Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light
by Ambyssin
Summary: Stop me if you've heard this one before. You wake up somewhere you don't recognize, only to find you've been turned into a Pokémon! Before you know it, you're off on a globe-trotting adventure. Dream come true, right? Well, for one human, that dream quickly turns into a waking nightmare. Can he fend off an otherworldly force threatening to rip the fabric of reality apart?
1. Stranger on the Shores

**Disclaimer: **The following story is rated **Teen** for realistic violence (including blood and broken bones), occasional swearing, crude and sexual humor, alcohol and drug use, character death, and strong themes of mental health, including depression and suicide. Additionally, this fic contains unmarked spoilers for the entire Mystery Dungeon series and the Generation VII games. If any of the above is not to your liking, I wouldn't recommend reading any further.

With that out of the way, enjoy!

* * *

 _What is the essence of one's being?  
_ _What magic ingredient fills us with life?  
_ _And sets us apart from plants and bacteria?  
_

 _There is no one single part.  
_ _Rather, living beings contain four essential elements.  
_ _Individually, they are important.  
_ _But together, they form the backbone of our existence._

 _'What? No, no, no, no! Ugh, this can't be right! Seriously, game? You're giving me Bulbasaur? I wanted Riolu! I put in all the right answers to the stupid quiz. I'm sure of it!'_

A Nintendo DS dropped onto the dented part of a rusty metal desk that had clearly seen better days.

 _'Well, this is just great. Brilliant use of your free time, Shane. Now, you get to start over from square one tomorrow.'_

Shane shut off the DS and closed it up. He pressed a hand to his forehead and ran it through his greasy brown hair. His gaze fell to his computer screen. _'What a worthless guide. It got me the wrong starter.'_ He shook his head. _'No, I'm sure the guide's fine. I probably screwed it up... somehow. Because that's just my luck.'_ Shane looked at his watch, noting the time and the date: 2:15 PM on December 5, 2015.

He sighed. _'And on that_ wonderful note, _it's time for work.'_

Shane headed for the bedroom door, pausing to inspect himself in his mirror. He rubbed his hands on his head in a halfhearted attempt at smoothing out his bedhead. But he gave up after a few seconds and proceeded out of the room. He made for the front door, pausing to look out a window. _'Looks like I'm gonna need my raincoat,'_ he thought, and grabbed it off the floor. He shook the dust and dirt off of it, and swung it on over his back.

Satisfied, he slid on his pair of worn, mud-caked work boots. He went out the front door and locked it behind him. He hiked his hood up and started walking out toward the dreary, rainy streets.

 _'One of these days I've got to get off this evening shift. All the fun stuff happens while I'm getting hammered at work.'_ He fumbled for his car keys and unlocked the door of his small car. _'I'll bet the RP thread's going to get updated with a new event, and my characters will get left behind, as usual. Which means I'll have to scramble and catch up with all the missed posts.'_ He swung the driver's side door open and climbed in.

 _'Let's just get this over with.'_

* * *

 _The first element is the_ _ **Mind**_ _.  
_ _A sum of our thoughts, knowledge, and memories.  
_ _The_ _ **Mind**_ _is both our arbiter and our navigator.  
_ _Making decisions large and small.  
_ _And guiding us through the treacherous quest we call life._

 _Next is the_ _ **Body**_ _.  
_ _Our physical form.  
_ _The_ _ **Body**_ _grants us control, through movement and sensation.  
_ _It exerts force on the world around us.  
_ _Giving us strength to overcome any obstacle in our path._

 _'Of course the rain would get worse just as my shift is ending,'_ Shane thought. _'What a total joke! But, that's my luck for you. The worst luck on the planet.'_

He sat down in his car, turning on the ignition. A wall of heat buffeted his damp cheeks. He drove toward the exit of the empty parking garage, passing a row of stone pillars in the process. A sheet of rain poured down on the other side of the garage's exit. Shane reached over and grabbed his glasses from the passenger's seat. He slipped them on and squinted into the night.

 _'It's still too blurry,'_ he thought. Shane considered giving up and spending the night in the break room. His back knotted up in protest. He gently pushed the pedal and the car lurched forward. The moment it left the safety of the parking garage, rain pounded on its exterior.

 _'Ugh. How annoying. Let's turn on some music,'_ Shane thought, switching on the car's radio. But all that he heard was the pounding of water on metal . Shane's grip on the steering wheel tightened. He leaned forward, hunching over the wheel. Shane slowly made a right and drove down the street. He saw a spot of red suspended in midair. A sure sign of the upcoming traffic light. He eased the car to a stop and quickly looked back and forth through the foggy intersection. No headlights came into view. So, Shane began to make a right turn onto the main road.

But then a blaring horn sounded. Shane had just enough time to glance to his left before an intense crushing force slammed him against the middle arm rest. Metal and plastic shards jabbed his rib cage, knocking the wind out of him. Shane's seatbelt immediately locked up. His body lurched against it, the seatbelt protecting him from being launched across the inside of the car. At the same time, the airbags activated from the door and steering wheel, sandwiching Shane in his seat. The taste of iron filled up his mouth and the scent of motor oil assaulted his nostrils.

Pain surged across his body. Shane could only let out a weak cough before his vision went completely white.

* * *

 _The third element is the_ _ **Spirit**_ _.  
_ _That mystical force lurking deep inside us all.  
_ _ **Spirit**_ _emerges in times of hope, reflection, triumph, and defeat.  
_ _Helping us to get the most out of a joyous occasion,  
_ _Or navigate the troubled waters of stress and crisis._

"Aggggggggggggggh! Somebody help me! It... feels like I'm… being ripped apart!"

Shane forced his eyes open. He quickly wished that he hadn't. A purple vortex surrounded him. Bright lights flashed around him, overwhelming his senses and forcing him to shut his eyes. Shockwaves rippled through his body. He could feel his skin crawling, like it wanted to rip itself right off of him and float away.

"P-Please… someone… anyone… HELP!" he shouted. "I don't wanna die! I don't wanna die!"

A lion's roar drowned out his cries. Shane fought through the pain to open his eyes. All he could see was a brilliant yellow fireball, surrounded by luminescent blue wings. They glowed with such intensity that they blunted out everything else in the vortex and burned Shane's eyes.

 **"I've got you now. There's no escape! Did you really think you could pull off this little stunt without me finding out about it? How ridiculous! I can feel my light seeping off of you. It wants to return to me!"** The fireball appeared to shrink in size and a second roar sounded. This one had a sense of desperation to it. Shane saw two black bars grab hold of the fireball. **"As much as I want you gone, I need you for something far more important."** From the middle of the glowing blue wings, a pair of red eyes looked up from the fireball, staring directly at Shane.

"Is… is someone out there?" Shane shouted. "I'm hurt. I need help! Whoever you are... do something!"

The red eyes flashed and the fireball suddenly started growing closer. Shane shut his eyes and tried to move his body. But he lost all feeling in his arms and legs.

 **"You need help, huh? It's a good thin you've got me here, then. Take it easy. No need to worry. I have just the thing for you, my human friend."**

Pressure hit Shane's eyelids, and they were yanked open. An orange inferno raged in front of him. Solar flares tickled his feet. A tingle rushed up his back. The fireball erupted into a wall of rainbow light. Shane screamed in agony as the light swallowed him up whole, limbs and clothes dissolving into swirls of black smoke. His vision faded and his mind went completely blank.

* * *

 _The final element is_ _ **Balance**_ _.  
_ _ **Mind**_ _,_ _ **Body**_ _, and_ _ **Spirit**_ _cycle through constant patterns of give-and-take.  
_ _These three elements depend on one another.  
_ _If_ _ **Balance**_ _between them falls apart,  
_ _Our being suffers and our life is imperiled._

A Vulpix's body seized up, feeling water brushing his snow-white fur. His eyes opened, immediately wideneding in panic at the sight of deep, dark blue surrounding him. Vulpix flailed his limbs about desperately, but made no progress moving upward. Instead, he continued sinking further into the ocean, the light from the surface growing progressively dimmer. Vulpix's soaked fur weighed him down. He soon grew tired and made the fatal mistake of opening his mouth. A stream of air bubbles rushed out and Vulpix took in a mouthful of water. Realizing his mistake, Vulpix thrashed about with renewed vigor, slamming his eyes and mouth shut for good measure.

But Vulpix's flailing quickly burned through his energy. The last of his willpower faded. Vulpix's muzzle slowly opened. Water flooded into his nostrils and mouth. Black spots popped up all around Vulpix's vision until he saw nothing but darkness. A few stray air bubbles trickled out from his mouth. His body went completely still.

Vulpix's body suddenly curled into a white ball. An unseen force grabbed hold of Vulpix and sealed him inside a bright, fluorescent green bubble. The bubble shot up through the water and burst through the surface, hovering into the air. It remained suspended in midair for several seconds, streams of moonlight reflecting off it and striking the water. The bubble took off soaring across the night sky. It sped along the surface of the water until it came to an abrupt stop at the edge of a beach. Ripples raced around the bubble, eventually poking a small hole in its base. Vulpix slid out of the protective forcefield, dropping onto the beach with a soft _thump._

The bubble burst, showering bright green light across Vulpix's body. When the light faded, a small anklet sat around his left foreleg. Vulpix tensed and coughed up a mouthful of seawater. The coughing fit continued for a few minutes, until his body slowly relaxed. Vulpix's chest gently rose and fell while the tide lapped up against his silky white tails.

* * *

 **Episode 1: A Chance Encounter**

 **Chapter 1: Stranger on the Shores**

* * *

 **~Aeon Town~**

 _'Today's the day, Riolu. You're gonna do it. You're not gonna chicken out. You'll march right up that hill, walk through the front door, and...'_

Riolu paused in the midst of marching back and forth across the outskirts of a colorful town. _'Oh, who am I kidding? I can't do this!'_ She grabbed hold of the rainbow scarf around her neck and pulled it over her head. _'I'm just wasting my time. I may as well go back to Sylveon's house.'_ She looked out at the buildings dotted around the town's square, taking in the myriad of assorted colors and designs. Eventually, her gaze came to rest on the small stone fountain in the center of town. She smiled at the sight of the stone Gorebyss spiraling out of the fountain, spitting water in all directions.

But the smile faded. She let out a sigh, and her gaze fell to the ground. Riolu wiggled her toes, expecting the gesture to suddenly bring forth an epiphany that would snap her out of her current indecisiveness. And when it didn't, she kicked a small pebble and watched it roll into town. In the process, her gaze came to rest on the largest building in Aeon Town. It sat atop a hill, at the end of a large dirt path that wound its way up from the town square. The domed roof sparkled under the sun's rays, giving off a hypnotic glow of purple and gold. Riolu continued to stare, feeling her earlier concerns melt away.

 _'C'mon, Riolu. It's the guild! Your whole family's had to take that first step at some point. And now it's your turn,'_ she thought, trying to psych herself up. _'You can do this! All you have to do is stop thinking, and start walking. Come on, now. One foot in front of the other. March!'_

Riolu stomped down the path into town. _'I've got the scarf and everything. Dad said it always gave him good luck. I'll bet it can do the same for me.'_ As she walked, Riolu clasped the scarf and held it up to her face to look at its frayed edges. One end had a sun stitched into it, while the other end had a crescent moon. The fabric glistened with a rainbow hue. _'It's time for some of that good luck to pass ont–_ '

"WAAAAAAAAH!"

Riolu failed to account for the scarf's length. She stepped on part of it and found herself falling toward the ground. Her face struck first, and her momentum sent her tumbling down the hill. She rolled into the town, nearly bowling over a frightened Furfrou couple. "Hey, watch where you're going!" the male Furfrou shouted, shaking his head disapprovingly. "Seriously, the nerve of some Pokémon. Trying to learn Rollout in the middle of the street."

"I don't think Riolu can learn Rollout, dear," his mate pointed out.

"... hmph. Doesn't make it any less rude."

Riolu continued forward. She finally came to rest in a collapsed heap in the middle of town square. She tried to sit up, but her whole world was spinning.

 _'Ooog, this was a mistake,'_ Riolu groaned. _'I should just go home before I make an even bigger fool of myself.'_

"Tessa! Yay, I made it in time!"

A cheerful voice jolted Riolu– or, rather, Tessa to attention. She scrambled to her feet, resisting the urge to throw up, and grabbed the scarf to stop it from dragging on the ground.

"Eevee?" Tessa gasped as the brown, fox-like Pokémon sprinted up to her. "I... I thought I told you to stop calling me Tessa. It's Riolu now." Eevee slowed his pace and frowned at Tessa. "Never mind. Did you run all the way here from Sunrise Village?"

Eevee trotted to a stop beside Tessa and dropped the bag in his mouth. "Yup, yup. Mommy said you were gonna try to join the guild again. I wanted to give you a good luck present." He looked down guiltily. "But you had already left." He immediately perked back up. "So, I ran over here as fast I could!"

"That's so sweet of you. But I really don't think I'm going to–"

"Look, it's an oran berry," Eevee chirped, producing the fruit for Tessa to see. "I picked it out myself." He beamed and wagged his tail.

 _'Awwwwww! Now I can't turn down something like that,'_ Tessa thought. She leaned down and placed the berry in her satchel. "Thanks a ton, Eevee," she said, tussling her friend's mane. "But you better hurry home. I don't want Sylveon to get worried."

"Okay!" Eevee nodded. "Maybe if I run fast enough… I'll finally learn Quick Attack!" He turned around and scampered up the hill without so much as a goodbye.

 _'Man… if only I had Eevee's enthusiasm. Joining the guild would be a breeze,'_ Tessa sighed. She adjusted her satchel and started up the hill to the guild's base. As she approached, her paced slowed and her gaze fell toward the ground.

 _'Oh no… it's happening again. I'm freezing up. Just like last time. And the fifty other times before that!'_ she realized. Tessa glanced up at the building. A shiver racked her body. She backed away, her feet moving without any orders from her brain. She was in the process of turning around when she bumped into something fuzzy.

"Oof! Hey, watch where you're walking."

Tessa's aura feelers shot into the air. "Oh my goodness. I'm so sorry, I–" She cut herself off. Rather than looking the Growlithe she had bumped into in the eye, she focused on the anklet around his foreleg. A silver badge was pinned to it. The sight of the overlapping sun and crescent moon made Tessa's aura feelers start to throb. "You're... you're with the guild," she whispered.

"Sure am! I'm Growlithe. Say, aren't you Lucario's daughter?" he responded. Tessa stiffened. Growlithe gave her a concerned look. "Lucario and Incineroar talked about you all the time! They called you something really strange. What was it, again? Oh, yeah. I remember! It's Tess-uh, right? "

Hearing the name Incineroar made Tessa jump. She landed on the edge of her scarf and proceeded to hop backwards a couple of times, trying to keep herself from falling to the ground.

"Are you okay?" Growlithe asked. "You seem kinda jumpy." He paused for a moment, and then his tail started to wag. "Oh, wait, I think I know what's wrong here. You've got first-time jitters because you're coming to join the guild, right? I totally get it. When I joined, I was so nervous, I coughed up a fireball and burnt a hole in one of the rugs. Boy, was I embarrassed." He let out a hearty laugh. "By the way, I haven't seen Lucario around the Observatory lately. Any idea where she went?"

"Uh… um…" Tessa fidgeted with her scarf and looked down. "I... I think there's been some sort of mistake."

Growlithe frowned. "Oh, really? But that's Incineroar's scarf, isn't it?"

Tessa's grip tightened on the scarf. "That's... uh...

"Well, he never said it was one of a kind, I guess. Maybe this is just a funny coincidence. In which case, my bad! It's been fun talking, but I should really get going." He moved ahead of Tessa, only to pause. "Wait." He shook his head. "How could I be so inconsiderate? The family you're from shouldn't matter. You're going to the Observatory, right? Whatever you're heading there for, it'll be much easier if you show up with an apprentice like me."

Tessa's eyes went wide.

"N-No!" she blurted out. "I... uh... must've made a wrong turn somewhere. Sorry!" She gave Growlith a small bow and sprinted down the hill. Tessa tucked her head in and tightly gripped her satchel.

 _'I knew it… I couldn't do it. Growlithe even offered to guide me in and I just froze up. I'm no better than a frightened Joltik! Why do I have to be such a screw up?'_ she thought, making for the outskirts of town. _'He just had to bring up Mom and Dad, didn't he? This was a disaster!'_ She squeezed her eyes shut and quickened her pace, not bothering to look back as she left Aeon Town behind.

* * *

 **~Azure Cape~**

Tessa continued running until the dirt road gave way to sandy bluffs. A mid-morning sea breeze bristled her fur, sending a shiver down her spine. She jogged to a stop and let herself sink down to her knees. Dropping her bag into the sand, she threw her paws up onto her face and let out a groan. Tessa flopped onto her stomach, burying her face in the warm sand.

 _'And just like that I'm back here... again,'_ she thought. _'How many times have I done this, now?'_ She scooped up a handful of sand and gently poured it onto the back of her head. _'Am I really that pathetic? Did I really rely on Mom and Dad that much?'_ A sinking feeling filled up her gut. Tessa couldn't stop a whimper from escaping her mouth. _'If only Mom or Dad were here. None of this would be happening. I'd have joined the guild. And I'd actually have a group of friends. But... no. Instead I'm here... alone. Just like last week. And if I try again tomorrow, I'm just going to end up back here. But I bet I'll try, anyway.'_ She let out a bitter, muffled laugh. _'Because I really am that pathetic. Guess I answered my own question.'_

Tessa continued laying in the sand, letting her mind go completely blank. Eventually, her boiling back bothered her enough that she forced herself back up to her feet and grabbed her satchel. Tessa started walking up toward the shoreline, staring down at the impressions her feet made in the wet sand. _'Why did I think today was going to be any different? Because I wore the scarf?'_ She ran a paw through its silky fabric. _'If anything, this thing made it worse! Usually I can at least make it up to the top of the hill before I panic and start thinking about Mom and Dad. But I didn't even get halfway up the hill today!'_

Tessa gave a frustrated growl and kicked up a patch of sand. She watched it splash into the water, but the sight did little to make her feel any better. Tessa stopped along the shoreline. She balled her paws up into fists and braced them against her thighs. Clenching her teeth, Tessa took in a sharp breath and forced her eyes shut.

"... hyaaah!"

She swung her paws forward, digits springing open. Tessa stood frozen like a statue. After a minute passed, she lowered her arms, letting out a loud groan. Tessa continued this routine, until the heat wore her down. She wiped her brow with an arm. _'And, surprise, surprise, no progress. At this rate, I won't even learn Force Palm.'_

Tessa scooped her satchel up and turned to leave the beach, when her nostrils twitched. She rubbed the bridge of her snout. _'Ugggh... gross! What smells like wet fur?'_ She turned around to inspect her back. _'It's not me. Someone out for a morning swim?'_ She shrugged. _'Bah, what does it matter? If some idiot wants to get swept out to sea, it's none of my business. I should really just go.'_

A swathe of white caught the corner of her eye. Tessa pivoted to her left and spotted a rock jutting out from the ground. A ball of white sat at the base of the rock. _'That's way too big to be a salt deposit. But it's just past the edge of the tide. So, what's the deal, here?'_ Her curiosity aroused, Tessa crept toward the rock. It didn't take her long to realize that she had stumbled on something far more important than a sea salt pile. _'Wait a second... four legs. Six tails. Bright white fur? That's a Vulpix!'_

Tessa broke into a jog, hurriedly closing the distance between her and Vulpix. As she ran up to him, the stench of wet fur overwhelmed her. _'Jeez. He really stinks.'_ She waved her paw in front of her snout. _'Does this mean he washed ashore?'_ Tessa looked out to the water. _'Oh, gods. What if he's hurt? What if... he's dead?'_ Tessa looked down and gave a relieved sigh when she saw Vulpix's chest slowly rise. _'Okay, at least he's not dead. But I can't just leave him out here like this. What if a wild Pokémon swoops in while he's sleeping? Or what if the tide comes in too far and sweeps him back out to sea?'_

That was all the convincing Tessa needed. She reached out and nudged Vulpix with a paw. "Um... wake up, please. You... uh... you really shouldn't sleep here. I don't think it's safe."

Vulpix stirred. Tessa withdrew her paw with a startled squeak. She fell off balance, and her rear hit the sand. Slowly, Vulpix's eyes fluttered open and he uncurled his body.

"Unnnnghhh. Who was using my head to play a bongo set?" Vulpix groaned. Tessa's ears twitched, displeased at the sound of Vulpix's nasally voice. "What... happened?" He looked around in confusion. "And what am I doing on the beach? It's not summer. And I _definitely_ can't afford a vacation anywhere tropical."

"Um, are you okay, mister?" Tessa stammered, getting back to her feet. "I found you sleeping out here, and–"

Vulpix's eyes widened. "Hey… you're a Riolu," he gasped. "And you just talked!" Vulpix's ears perked up. "Oh, wow." He looked about. His tails wagged independently of one another. "Okay, I think I get it. This must be a dream. But… it feels so real." He brushed his head against the sand, feeling the coarse grains on his fur. "And that can only mean... that this is a _lucid dream_." He looked around the beach. "Wow." He gave a whistle. "Pretty impressive work here, brain. Now don't you dare wake me up." He craned his neck toward the sky. "I want to experience my own adventure in a world of Pokémon. And I can't do that if you bungle things up like you usually do."

Tessa raised her brow. "Um, sir. You're not dreaming. I think you might've hit your head," Tessa muttered. "You sound like you're rambling."

"I suppose the first thing I should do is figure out what Pokémon I turned into," Vulpix chirped, completely ignoring Tessa's comment. "I guess I can rule out a Riolu. Which, honestly, is quite disappointing. And I expect better of my own mind." He looked at Tessa, whose eyes widened. "But I suppose having one as a partner is just as good. Now I'll just– OOF!"

Vulpix started to stand up, but collapsed onto his belly. He picked his head up and again tried getting to his feet. But the sand gave out underneath his legs, and he again dropped to his stomach, limbs splayed out in all directions. "Okay. So... it looks like I'm a quadruped. And... I've got white fur," he grunted. "That... doesn't ring any bells. I'll bet that means I'm super important!"

Tessa watched the scene unfold with a worried look on her face. _'What is wrong with this guy?'_ she wondered. _'He's totally delirious. And… did he just say I'm his partner?'_ She bit her lower lip. _'Please don't tell me there's some sort of crazy Pokémon code of honor that says if you rescue a Vulpix in need, they become your servant. I don't think I can deal with that!'_

"Hey, Riolu?" Vulpix called, waving a forepaw at her. "Mind lending me a hand? Kind of having trouble standing, here."

Tessa rubbed her shoulder and looked away. "Uh... I'm not really sure that's such a good idea. What's the problem, anyway?"

"Didn't you hear me? I can't figure out how to get my legs to work," Vulpix said.

Tessa frowned. "Do you have any idea how stupid that sounds?"

To her surprise, Vulpix looked up toward the sky again. "Oh-ho. So my partner's got a lip on her, huh? I approve, brain. But, uh, you think you could give me a little bit of control here?"

Tessa started to shuffle backwards. _'I don't like where this is going. I think it's time I made my exit...'_

"Finally!" Vulpix had gotten to his feet and let out a triumphant shout. He stumbled forward, nearly losing all of his progress in the process. But he managed to make his way toward the water's edge. Tessa crouched down, ready to break into a run if something went wrong.

"AHHHHHHHH!"

Vulpix let out another shout. And all the nervous energy Tessa had built up made her jump and let out a frightened yip. "Eep! What's wrong? What is it?" she asked, whirling around to face Vulpix.

"Seriously?" Vulpix glared down at the water. "I'm a Vulpix? This isn't cool. This is awful! I look all frilly and girly," he groaned, swinging his hips around and looking dejectedly at his tails. "And what's with the white fur? Am I albino or something? I know I'm a pretty pasty guy. But I can't believe this. Even in my own lucid dream, I have the _worst_ luck in the galaxy! Why couldn't I just be an albino Growlithe instead?"

He slapped the water with a forepaw, only to jump back as some droplets struck his snout. Tessa took another step away from him, shaking her head. _'This has to be some sort of trick. He's probably_ acting _crazy to get me to lower my guard.'_ She instinctively clutched her satchel tighter. _'Well, if this outlaw thinks he's stealing my stuff, he has another thing coming!'_

She couldn't bring herself to turn away from Vulpix. _'But... what if he_ isn't _faking? Can I really just ditch him like this? He seems... well, lost would be putting it nicely, I suppose.'_ Tessa looked down. _'Ugh, I know I'm gonna regret this.'_ She jogged up toward the water's edge. "Um, excuse me. But, why are you shouting about being a Vulpix? Is… is that a problem?"

Vulpix chuckled and shook his head. "Ah, Riolu, Riolu, Riolu." He put a forepaw on Tessa's shoulder.

"Please don't touch me!" Tessa cried and shoved Vulpix's paw off. She shrank back defensively.

"Relax, girlie," Vulpix scoffed. "Everything's okay. Y'see… I'm not actually a Vulpix. I'm a human!" He puffed his chest out proudly. "Name's Shane. I'm dr–" He paused. "Uh, I mean, some sort of mysterious force must have dragged me into this world so I can save it from a terrifying evil!"

Tessa's jaw slackened. "A human? But you look like a perfectly normal Vulpix to me."

The newly-named Shane laughed. "Oh, don't be so modest, Riolu. Unless you're modest-natured, of course, which will make you one heck of a Lucario when you evolve. But we have no way of finding that out, ha ha. Look, I _know_ the white fur's probably strange, but that just means I'm special. If you stick with me, we can take the world by storm."

Tessa crossed her arms. "Okay, I don't know how badly you hit your head while you were swimming, but you're _clearly_ off your rocker. I've only ever known Vulpix to have white fur. It's strange to see one so far from the Invern Mountains, though. Was there some sort of avalanche that brought you all the way out here? That would explain why you seem so... loopy."

Shane's muzzle stiffened. "Wait… Vulpix live in the mountains? Like snow-covered mountains?" Tessa nodded. "Huh… well there was that one Ninetales in the Air Continent. But I guess my brain's taking some 'creative liberties' with this dream," Shane muttered under his breath. He turned back to Tessa. "See? That's gotta prove I'm human. How else could you explain why I wouldn't know what a Vulpix looks like?"

Tessa fidgeted with her satchel. "Well, I've heard of humans. But, y'know, only in those stories about the times the world was in crisis. And none of those ever centered on Horizon."

"Horizon?" Shane parroted.

"That's, um, the name of the continent we're on," Tessa replied. _'How could he not know that?'_

"Oh, cool name. Sounds appropriate," Shane said. "We'll have plenty of time to talk the lay of the land once we settle into… uh…" His voice trailed off and he looked around. "Say, what kind of groups does this Horizon place have, anyway? Rescue teams? Explorers? Expedition Society?"

"We have a guild," Tessa answered.

"Perfect!" Shane jumped beside Tessa. "Then what are we standing around here flapping our lips for? Let's get moving!"

"What?" Tessa stepped back. "Are you crazy? You can't go waltzing into the guild just because you feel like it. You... um... you need a reason to go there."

"I have a very good reason. As do you," Shane insisted, giving her a confident smirk. "We're gonna enter this guild _together_. Meaning, you and I are gonna form an exploration team!"

 _'He wants to form a team... with me?'_ Tessa gasped. Her heart fluttered for a moment. _'This is some sort of trick. No stranger would be that nice to a loser like me'_ She took a deep breath and shook her head.

"Sorry, no can do," she said. "I just met you. And all you've done is... yell loudly and... uh... say crazy things like you're a human."

"But I _am_ a human," Shane said. "And that's important around here. Why wouldn't you want to save the world with me?"

Tessa clutched her satchel. "Everything's fine. It's been that way since Dark Matter was destroyed and it'll stay that way. For all I know, you're a thief out for my bag."

"I'm not a thief. And maybe the world's fine _now_ but I guarantee it won't be for long," Shane declared. "C'mon, just come with me and…"

"Enough! I am _not_ letting you steal my stuff!" Tessa shouted…

 _THWACK!_

… and beaned Shane over the head with her satchel. His legs quivered. He rocked back and forth a few times before collapsing onto his side.

Tessa dropped her bag to the ground, her arms shaking uncontrollably. "Oh no… oh no, no, no, no, no, no." She knelt down and shook Shane. _'You've gotta be kidding me, here! This guy spooked me, and I reacted. I couldn't have hit him that hard, could I?'_ she wondered. _'This is just great! I can't leave him here like this. What if he wakes up and reports me to Officer Magnezone? I'll get in trouble for sure!'_

Tessa strained to heft Shane up. Her legs trembled from trying to sling him over her shoulder. _'Okay, he's much heavier than he looks.'_ She tried to take a step forward, but her legs buckled. _'Ugh. Come on, Riolu. Dig deep. Just get him over to Sylveon's and then he'll be her problem.'_

She slowly shuffled off toward the dirt road.

* * *

 **~Sunrise Village, Sylveon's House~**

Tessa trudged toward the lone, pink, circular home sitting a ways off from the circular array of buildings. She couldn't lift her head up to see the windows and chimney designed to resemble Sylveon's eyes and bow, respectively. But she was able to brace Shane against one of the house's pillars styled after Sylveon's feeler-like ribbons. She slowly twisted the door handle and threw the door open. Tessa threw Shane to the ground.

"Sylveon... I'm home," Tessa wheezed. "And I, uh, kind of need your help."

Across the room, Sylveon dropped the mixing bowl held in her ribbons and jogged over to the front door. "My goodness!" she gasped. "What happened here?"

"It's... a long story," Tessa groaned. She staggered over to a nearby chair and collapsed onto it. "I found him in Azure Cape. He looked and smelled like he'd been in the sea. But he woke up and started saying all this weird stuff and, uh, then he passed out again. Do you think you could help him? I'm worried he's hurt."

Sylveon looked down at Shane. "Well, I think I may have something that could help him out." She gently scooped Shane up in her ribbons and carried him off toward one of the house's bedrooms. Tessa let out a groan and settled back in the chair. She had eyes shut for a minute, when footsteps caught her attention and made her sit up in the chair.

"Hey Tessa, do you think the sea is magic?"

Tessa looked over at Eevee, who had jumped up to put his forepaws on the chair. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, you said it spat out Vulpix. And made him talk crazy," Eevee said. "Unless you were telling a big, fat lie."

"No. I really _did_ find him passed out on the beach," Tessa sighed.

The door to her room opened and Sylveon stepped out. "Well, there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with Vulpix. The poor thing was exhausted, that's all," she reported. "He must have riled himself up on the beach and fainted from fatigue."

"Is Vulpix gonna be okay?" Tessa asked.

"With bedrest and some food, he should be up and about come tomorrow," Sylveon answered. "Did you end up carrying him all the way here?" Tessa nodded. "Goodness," Sylveon gasped, "You must be tired. Or maybe you were jumpy after going to the guild?"

Tessa looked down guiltily. "Uh… about that. Y'see, I–"

Sylveon frowned. "You didn't go, did you?"

Eevee's ears drooped. "Did… did I pick the wrong berry?"

"What? No, Eevee, of course not," Tessa insisted. "I just..." She glanced up at Sylveon. "... couldn't follow through. I started thinking about Mom and Dad again and…" Her voice trailed off. Tessa got to her feet and approached Sylveon. "You're Mom's friend. Did she drop by while I was out or send a postcard or a letter in the mail? Please, Sylveon, you have to know something."

"I'm sorry, Tessa." Sylveon nudged Tessa's chin with a ribbon. "Nothing's changed since last week. I'm still just as in the dark as you are. Besides, she and I haven't really spoken since, well..." She fell silent and Tessa hung her head. "If anything, the guild is more likely to know where she is than I am."

Tessa's shoulders slumped. "I understand," she sighed. "Um, is Vulpix awake now?"

"Yes. But don't talk to him too long. I want him to rest," Sylveon replied.

Tessa opened the door and entered her room. There, she found Shane lying on her straw bed, looking out a window. "H-Hi there," she whispered. "Sorry about, y'know, back at the beach."

"You mean for socking me in the head with that bag of yours?" Shane grumbled. "Not a great first impression, if I'm honest."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Tessa blurted out. "I panicked for a moment and thought you were an outlaw who wanted to steal my stuff."

"But I told you I'm a human," Shane stated.

"That's very hard to believe," Tessa said. "I've heard that outlaws know some crafty tricks."

Shane stiffened. "Wait. I lost consciousness after you hit me."

"How many times do I have to apologize for th–?"

"Quiet a sec," Shane said, drawing an annoyed look from Tessa. "If this was a dream, it should've _ended_ when you knocked me out, but I'm still here. And I'm still a weird, white-furred Vulpix."

"All Vulpixes have white fur here," Tessa reminded him.

Shane's eyes sparkled and his tails thumped excitedly. "Don't you realize what this means? I'm _really_ in the world of Pokémon!" He jumped to his feet. "I'm gonna be a hero!"

His legs suddenly shook and he flopped back on his belly. "Careful, careful," Tessa scolded, running up to Shane's side. "You're suffering from fatigue. You need to rest."

"I can tell," Shane groaned.

"Here." Tessa produced Eevee's oran berry from her satchel. "Eat this to keep your strength up."

Shane sniffed the berry and gobbled it up. _'Wow! Normally, I can't stand fruits and veggies. But this thing's so sweet,'_ he thought. "Thank you," he said to Tessa, "that really hit the spot."

Tessa sat on the floor next to the bed. "So, you're really a human, then?"

"Yup!" Shane proclaimed. "But, it's strange." His brow furrowed. "In the games… humans always lost their memories when they came to the Pokémon world. But I still remember everything perfectly. Apart from how I got here, I suppose."

"Games?" Tessa parroted.

"Ah, right," Shane chuckled. "They never had to have a conversation like this in the games, I suppose." He pivoted on the bed to face Tessa. "See, in my world, Pokémon are fictional characters." Tessa gave him a blank look. "Y'know, made up? Don't really exist?"

Tessa frowned. "Okay, I'm starting to doubt your story again."

"I'm serious," Shane said. "Before I woke up here, I was a male human. I had a family with two little sisters who bugged the heck out of me. I lived with them until I moved out. Then, I stayed on my own in this shabby little house in the projects of a human city and worked a job in a human hospital. I went to bed one night and, next thing I know, I wake up to see you talking to me."

"Well, if you just got here, what's with the jewelry?" Tessa asked, pointing to Shane's foreleg.

"Huh?" Shane looked down at the anklet clinging to his thigh. "I've never seen this thing before." He pressed his other forepaw against it, only to find that the anklet wouldn't move. "Urrrnnngggh… I think it's stuck. You got any grease or butter here?"

"We do, but Sylveon only keeps enough around for her cooking."

"Never mind," Shane sighed. He sank back down in the bed. "So, does this mean we're going to go the guild tomorrow?"

 _'He still wants to go? Even after I hit him?'_ Tessa gasped. _'No. Don't get your hopes up, Tessa. You'll end up disappointed... or worse!'_

Her fur stood on end. "Why me? I already told you I don't fully trust you," she said.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm a human. If I'm here, then this world is in trouble," Shane insisted. "The only way we're gonna find out is by joining with the guild so we can explore and, well, stumble onto whatever problem the world's about to face."

"That's a bit of a stretch, don't you think?" Tessa countered.

"Didn't you tell me you'd heard stories of humans before?" Shane asked. "Well, what were they about? They couldn't have been mundane, otherwise your parents wouldn't bother telling you them." He didn't notice the look of horror that flashed across Tessa's face when he said the word "parents."

Tessa tried to compose herself to give an answer. "Well…" She rubbed her shoulder. "My parents did say that some bad stuff has happened in their lifetimes. And that humans supposedly played a role in making that stuff go away. The Pokémon that were involved... they're all pretty famous now. Saving Temporal Tower from collapse... blowing up a planet-sized meteor... stopping embodiments of all negativity... that's the stuff of legends, yeah. But those heroes are all the way on the other side of the world. They don't care about the Horizon Continent. So, I try not to focus on it. Besides, nothing's gone wrong since I hatched out of my egg."

Shane tensed up. _'Wait. Those sound just like the games!'_ he realized. "I think I get what you're talking about."

"Are you serious? The only way you'd know what I'm talking about is if you were from this world. But you're claiming you're from the human world. So, which is it, huh?" Tessa scoffed.

Shane laughed nervously. "I'm from the human world. I was there... and now I'm here, with this mysterious anklet, no less. Considering my situation, I don't have a problem believing those stories." He tapped a forepaw against his chin. "You know... I saw a gleam in your eyes when you described the stories to me. I thought you said you didn't care much about them."

 _'Nnnngh... what am I supposed to say to that? That I've spent years of my life praying I could be as famous as Team Go-Getters and Team Poképals?'_ Tessa worried. _'He'll just use that as an excuse to make me go to the guild... where I'll fail miserably!'_

"Wait, I just thought of something that could help here," Shane said. "Tell me... do you know what a human looks like?"

Tessa stiffened. "No. Everyone knows that the humans that show up... they're always…" She looked up at Shane. "… turned into Pokémon... like you're claiming to be."

"Exactly!" Shane proclaimed.

 _'This... this can't be real,'_ Tessa thought, her heart racing. _'Did I really find a human, just like my heroes? No... this has to be a mistake. There's no way this could happen to a screw-up like me.'_

"I… I'm sorry." Tessa clutched her head and shook it. "This is just so much to take in."

"… ha! That's how _I_ should be feeling, not you," Shane laughed.

Tessa frowned. "You're not helping."

Shane sighed. "Y'know, the guild's my best shot at figuring out how to return to the human world," he said. "But, if I just go by myself, they'll never believe I'm a human."

 _'Certainly not with that attitude of yours. The human heroes were all soft-spoken and kind,'_ Tessa thought. "What do you want me to do about that?"

"Take me there. We'll form an exploration team and find a way for me to go home." Shane rolled onto his back and stretched out his limbs. "And if it just so happens we discover a terrifying evil plot and foil it, then that'll just be an added benefit."

Tessa's aura feelers throbbed. _'He's serious. The way he's talking, he really thinks we could be legendary heroes. But there's no way that could happen. I can't even walk up to the guild's front door. We'd be a terrible team.'_ She fidgeted with her scarf. "I… I'm sorry. I don't want to do something like that," she muttered.

"Are you serious?" Shane looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "You could be a hero! You'd be just like the Pokémon in your stories. Imagine… Riolu, the legendary explorer."

Tessa pulled her scarf over her eyes. _'Ohh... that's been my dream since I was a pup. Why does he have to sound so confident about this?'_ Her brow furrowed. _'Maybe I'm not giving him enough credit? He could be what I need to get out of this rut. I mean... he seems to like me. That's more than I can say for any of the other Pokémon my age here... aside from Eevee. I can't go to the guild alone, but if I have Vulpix...'_

Tessa's thoughts trailed off and she suddenly tensed. Images flashed through her mind.

 _A lithe Lucario standing in a doorway, looking back in her direction. "Go stay with Sylveon until I return. I promise... I won't be long."_

 _A streak of white flashing across her vision. The tip of a black scythe hovering in front of her._

"No… I can't…" Tessa stumbled to her feet. "I can't take you to the guild. Not now. Not ever."

Tessa scrambled for the door. "Hey, wait, where are you going?" Shane called.

"Somewhere else! We've already spoken too long. You need to rest."

The door slammed shut before Shane could further protest.

Shane rolled onto his stomach. _'Well, that was a bust. She must not be my partner, then.'_ He yawned and stretched out across Tessa's bed. "As soon as I'm rested up, I'll hit the road and look for the right Pokémon. Maybe there's another, cheerier Riolu wandering around, and she's just a red herring."

* * *

Tessa's eyes opened. She looked around the room, trying to make out the furniture in the dark. She put a paw up to her face, and clasped one of her aura feelers. It trembled in her grip. Tessa's heart started pounding. She sat up and stared at the front door. _'Is… someone outside?'_ Tessa slid to her feet and tiptoed toward the front door. The closer she got, the more her aura feelers throbbed.

 _'Oh, why can't you guys just work like you're supposed to?'_ she lamented. _'I wouldn't have to go outside if I could actually read auras like I'm supposed to.'_

She slowly opened up the door and a creaking noise echoed through the room. Tessa flinched and quickly slipped outside. The moment she shut the door, her aura feelers stood up on end. Her ears twitched and she pivoted to her left. She could see a shadowy blur off in the distance, but it was too dark for her to make out what she was looking at.

"I think the test was a bust, Umbry. This _definitely_ isn't the Mist Continent. Heck, I don't think I've ever been here before."

Tessa heard the bushes rustling and pressed herself up against one of the house's pillars. She held her breath and gently poked her head out to confirm the blurry figure was still standing there. _'What do I do? Should I go inside and tell Sylveon? Or wait to see if they leave?'_

Before she could give her situation any further thought, a male voice said, "You're right, Espy. Looks like our Ultra Entercard screwed up again. And this was the worst miss we've had so far! It's gonna take days of tweaking to deal with this."

"What are we supposed to do in the meantime?" the first voice – Espy, if Tessa had to guess – asked. "Do you really want to risk using another Ultra Entercard? What if it drops us into a volcano, huh?"

"I'd rather take my chances if it means actually getting to go home and avoid sleeping in some bushes by a hick town and a forest dungeon," Umbry growled. "We're supposed to be keeping a low profile, remember? That goes completely out the window if we stay here. Everyone in the village will wake up and see us."

"I'm not an idiot, Umbry," Espy scoffed. "Besides, it's too late to go unnoticed. We're not alone."

Tessa's heart leaped into her throat. _'No, that's impossible! She couldn't have seen me... I've been hidden the entire time.'_ She got onto her paws and knees and tried to crawl back toward the front door. But she looked over in the direction she'd been staring and found a pair of bright blue eyes looking right at her.

Underneath Espy's eyes, a winged heart twinkled in the moonlight. Espy darted forward without so much as a word. Tessa scrambled to her feet, trying to throw the door to the house open. But Espy managed to close the distance between them astonishingly fast. Tessa tried to shout for help, but a pink forepaw covered up her snout. Next think she knew, she was pinned on her back. Tessa looked up at her assailant, eyes freezing on the black crystals covering Espy's chest and shoulders.

"Ssssshhhhhh," Espy whispered, pressing her forepaw harder against Tessa's snout. Her forked tail snapped to her side, revealing black, metallic spokes where the tips of her tail should've been. "Well, aren't you a curious little eavesdropper. It looks like this accidental trip won't be a complete bust after all. Umbry and I can always use a new... playmate."

She leaned forward, showing off the star-shaped diamond embedded in her forehead. Tiny metal veins fanned out from the diamond, digging into Espy's scalp. The sight made Tessa's skin crawl. Espy's diamond startled to crackle with red and black energy.

Tessa tried to struggle out from Espy's grip, but she was too strong. _'This can't be happening! I'm too young to die!'_

Her entire world went bright red. But, to her complete surprise, she didn't feel anything. The red light faded as quickly as it appeared, leaving her staring at Espy's shocked expression.

"Impossible," she whispered. "You shouldn't be lying there like that. I just infected you. Your fur's supposed to burn. There should be Pheromosa parts tearing through your flesh! What's going on here?"

"Espy, what is wrong with you? What part of keeping a low profile didn't you understand? Get over here... now!" Umbry ordered. Tessa could just make out another figure out of the corner of her eyes. But all she could see was a pair of fierce red eyes, accentuated by glowing red rings on what she guessed were Umbry's tail, legs, and ears.

"Just a second, Umbry. Can't you see I'm in the middle of something important here?" Espy hissed.

The winged heart sigil on Umbry's forehead flashed and Espy tensed up. "I don't care. We're not here to infect anyone. You've already screwed things up for us big time. Let's get going before you manage to give me an even bigger headache."

"But Umbry, don't you see? She withstood infection," Espy exclaimed, again pressing down on Tessa's face. Tessa teared up at this. "We have to take her with us. She's exactly what I've been looking for. She's the _perfect_ new playmate for us." Umbry stomped over to their location and bit down on one of Espy's crystal-coated, triangular ears.

"Ow... OWW!" she shouted, releasing her grip on Tessa, who remained lying on the ground, frozen in fear. "What are you doing, you moron? We need to take her with us."

"No, we don't. I told you to stay with me, but you just wouldn't listen," Umbry snarled. He released his grip on Espy, who stumbled next to him. "Wipe her memories of us so we can leave. And this time, no infections, no talking about finding new playmates, and, most importantly, no jumping strangers!"

Espy rolled her eyes. She pointed them at Tessa and they flashed pink. Tessa went rigid and then immediately relaxed.

"There, happy?" Espy huffed. Umbry lowered his head and shoved her toward the nearby forest. Espy squeaked in protest, but Umbry shoved her forward again. This continued until they had both disappeared into the trees.

Tessa slowly sat up, getting over her stupor. She blinked a few times. Her mind raced for some reason, but she couldn't tell why. _'What the–? When did I get out here?'_ She opened her mouth, expecting to say something. But instead, Tessa's world went completely black. She was unconscious seconds before she fell back into the dirt, snout pointed up toward the starry sky.

* * *

Tessa had no idea how long she was out for. Only that it was still nighttime when she reawakened. After blinking a few times to clear her vision, her head started throbbing. _'What happened to me? I remember going to sleep, but now I'm outside,'_ she thought.

As she got to her feet, she sensed that something was wrong. A chill ran across her neck. She brought her paws up to her neck and felt around. Panic overtook her as her paws brushed against fur. Tessa looked down at the ground.

 _'Where's my scarf?'_ she wondered. _'Where did it go? Where did it go?!'_ She whirled around and continued scanning the ground. _'I still had it on my neck when I went to sleep. Don't tell me someone dragged me out here and stole it!'_ She looked back to the house. _'Wait, what if it was that Vulpix? What if I was right? He could've–'_

"Kweh heh heh! What a stroke of luck, eh, Jangmo-o? And here we was thinking we'd be going home empty-handed."

Tessa looked to her left. There, she spotted a pair of Pokémon walking along the dirt road. A set of gleaming white claws held up a rainbow scarf. It glistened under the moonlight. Tessa balled her paws up into fists and charged toward her scarf. "HEY! Stop... thieves! Gimme back my scarf!" she shouted. The two Pokémon turned around in surprise.

"Suh... Sneasel, what are we gonna do? She wasn't supposed to wake up and see us!" Jangmo-o gasped. "How are we supposed to make our brilliant getaway now? She's gonna try and stop us!"

Sneasel slapped his accomplice upside the head. "Jangmo-o, you ditz! You ain't supposed to tell the broad we're escaping. That'll ruin the whole point of, well, escaping!"

Jangmo-o rubbed the back of his head. "S-Sorry, boss."

Tessa barked angrily and lunged at the thieves. They both jumped out of the way. Sneasel yanked Tessa's scarf back just in time to avoid her reach. He slung it over his arm. "Nice going there, Jangmo-o. Your big mouth cost us a big head start!" Sneasel scoffed.

"But ain't you just wasting more time by yelling at me?" Jangmo-o retorted.

Sneasel's eyes widened. "You're right. What are we standing around for? Time to deploy our super speedy getaway special. Ready? _Go!_ " Tessa jumped back to her feet and tried to swipe at her attackers, but Jangmo-o and Sneasel had already broken into a run.

Sneasel turned to look back at Tessa. "Kweh heh heh! Nice try girlie, but ain't no Pokémon around here can outrun us!" he shouted. "We'll take great care of your scarf, though!"

"Heh... yeah! Thanks for the present, toots," Jangmo-o cackled.

 _'No... not my scarf...'_ Tessa whimpered. _'Not Dad's scarf. That was all I had left of him. And now it's gone!'_ She dropped to her knees. _'This is all Vulpix's fault. If I didn't run into him, I'd be sleeping in my bed and nothing bad would've happened!'_ She smacked the ground with her paw. _'I got suckered by him. Because I'm an idiot! A weak... pathetic idiot who can't even stand up for herself!'_ Tears welled up in her eyes.

"Hey, what are you just laying around for? Aren't you gonna go after them?"

Tessa turned around and spotted Shane trotting over to her. She quickly rubbed her eyes dry with her paw.

"Vulpix? What are you doing out here?" Tessa hiccupped. "You're supposed to be resting."

"I heard you shouting. And I already told you, it's Shane," he replied. "Wait, were you _crying?_ Because of those two jerks? Come on! They didn't look so tough. I bet we can take them!"

Tessa went slack-jawed. "Wh-what? Are you crazy? We can't just go after them. It's the middle of the night!"

"So? If that scarf's really so important that it'd make you start crying, then we have to get it back," Shane said. "Are you just going to sit there or are we going to give chase?"

Tessa blinked tears from her eyes. "We?"

Shane extended a forepaw. "Yeah. I do owe you for letting me crash in your room."

Tessa's eyes darted around as she tired to process Shane's offer. Wasn't she just cursing him out a moment ago? Could she really work with him on the fly? "But there's no way we'll catch them. They both blend into the night so well," she whimpered. "We should just wake up Sylveon and call up Officer Magnezone. He'll know what to do."

"Yeah, right," Shane scoffed. "If we do that, I guarantee you that your scarf's as good as gone." He started to walk ahead of her. "Losing that scarf clearly shook you up, so it's gotta be important to you. Don't let it go without a fight."

Shane helped Tessa to her feet. "Right." She nodded, wiping snot from her nose. "I can't let them take my scarf. It means... a lot to me. We have to go after them."

"That's the spirit!" Shane chirped. "Just tell me which way we need to go."

"They were heading toward Azure Cape… I think. Maybe if we hurry we can catch them while they're still there?" Tessa said.

"Only one way to find out," Shane declared, and then took off running.

* * *

This fic is also updated on Serebii and Bulbagarden. Due to this site's constraints, there may be considerable delays with me uploading revised versions of chapters.


	2. Cape Conundrum

**Chapter 2: Cape Conundrum**

 **~Azure Cape~**

Shane quickly discovered that his bravado came with a fatal flaw: running. Namely, he was bad at it. When he finally managed to stop stumbling every few feet, he found himself wincing with every step he took. Pebbles lodged themselves between his digits, and the coarse ground scratched his new paw pads. He gritted his teeth and kept at it, though, trying to keep up with Tessa. But it wasn't long before his lungs started burning. Sweat pooled in his tuft of hair. It collapsed, plastering slimy fur against his eyes. He had to shut them to drive away the stinging sensation.

"Okay… running on four legs is _not_ as easy… as those dogs on TV make it," he panted.

"Then why did you suggest going after these guys?" Tessa growled from up ahead of him.

"I'm not the one who lives here," Shane said. "You should've told me... how far it was..."

Tessa shook her head. _'This was a huge mistake. But, we've already come out all this way. It'd be pointless to turn back.'_ She spotted twinkling lights ahead of her. "We're approaching the beach."

"Great. I could do with a midnight dip at this point," Shane quipped.

"Are you even taking this seriously? This whole thing was _your_ idea," Tessa groaned. "I do want my scarf back."

"I know," Shane acknowledged, "I just didn't factor in the run distance. Aha ha… ha…"

They jogged down the hill in tandem. The grass and dirt gave way to a sandy beach that sparkled in the moonlight. The cool sand soothed Shane's sore paws. He sighed contently. Tessa slowed up and looked around.

"I don't see them anywhere," she reported.

Shane rolled his eyes. "Puh-lease. Like they would really just stand in the middle of a wide-open beach. They may not have sounded like the sharpest tacks in the toolkit, but no introductory boss could be _that_ stupid. Maybe they went somewhere else?"

"That doesn't make sense. The Cape's the only place in this direction besides Aeon Town," Tessa said. "Maybe they found somewhere to hide?"

"Like that giant wall of trees over there?" Shane said, jerking his head back.

Tessa's eyes widened. "No way! That's part of the boundary of Dewdrop Woods," she said. "They, um, wouldn't try to breach a Mystery Dungeon and hide there just to seal a scarf, would they? They'd get jumped by wild Pokémon for sure."

"What are you asking me for? I don't know a thing about this place, other then it's wet and sandy," Shane scoffed. "Feels nice after that run, though. We ought to come here again sometime."

Tessa slumped over. "Then, it's hopeless, isn't it?"

"Hey, cut it out with that quitter talk, Riolu! We're not giving up yet," Shane said, slapping her on the back. Tessa whirled on him with an angry look, but Shane ignored her. "Look at me. I died on the first Goomba in World 1-1 of Super Mario Bros. the first time I ever played it. And did I break the game cartridge in a rage? No. I mean, I was playing an emulator, so there wasn't a cartridge to break and I _definitely_ wasn't about to smash Dad's computer. But, the point is, I kept at it and, a few months later, I was able to beat the game!"

Tessa gave him a confused look. "I have no idea _what_ you're talking about. I thought we were here to get my scarf back. Are you telling me you think it's going to take months?"

Shane rolled his eyes. "No. I'm saying that, even if they're not out in the open, those two still sounded like a pair of knuckleheads," Shane said. "No way they're bright enough to have a solid escape route planned out. Especially if they just scooped up your scarf on a whim."

"You seem remarkably confident for someone who doesn't even know where he's going," Tessa sighed. She was about to say something else when her aura feelers twitched. "Wait a tic." She scanned the beachfront. "I think someone's out there."

"Why, cause your little face baubles told you?" Shane scoffed. "Man, sure must be nice having magic aura-sensing powers at your beck and call." His snout wrinkled. "All glory to the aura wielder. Making every other Pokémon look bad since the mid-2000's."

He huffed and looked away, pouting. _'Was it really too much to ask for me to be a Riolu? I never get what I want.'_

"I can't really control it, you know," Tessa mumbled, rubbing one of the feelers.

"Seriously?" Shane cocked an eyebrow. "Oh god, are you, like, actually a little kid?"

"What? No," Tessa said, looking a bit insulted at that.

"Then what's the problem? Are you sick or disabled?" He rolled his eyes. _'Figures something like this would happen. I get to be around a real Riolu and she can't even use any aura. Good grief. There's bad luck and then there's my luck.'_

"I just... I don't have anyone to teach me how to use aura, okay?" Tessa said. "If my feelers twitch like this, I can pick up some traces of another Pokémon's presence. But it's only for the briefest of moments and…" Her brow furrowed. "Oh, why am I wasting time explaining this to you anyway? Let's just keep going."

"To where?"

"Over by that rock formation." Tessa pointed a paw forward. She and Shane cautiously approached the area. As they did, Tessa's aura feelers twitched again. "I think we're getting close."

"Well, we sure won't hear anything if you keep flapping those gums."

Tessa reached out and clamped Shane's snout. His eyes went wide. "Quiet! They're talking," she said.

"Kweh heh heh heh! Like taking candy off a hatchling," Sneasel's voice carried from behind the rocks.

Jangmo-o whistled. "It's so sparkly. Like it's made out of gems."

 _SMACK!_

"You dope. They don't make clothing out of gems," Sneasel barked. "How would a 'mon wear something like that? It'd be wicked uncomfortable."

"Maybe for you."

"Well, some of us don't have scales," Sneasel pointed out. "Especially not ones shaped like wussy li'l hearts. Ain't that right, heart-face?"

"Oh yeah? Well... well... I'd rather have a scaly face than a feather popping out of my head," Jangmo-o countered. "It looks all girly."

"Then catch!"

"Augh!" Jangmo-o hollered. "What'd ya do that for? I don't want this thing."

"There. Now you're the girly one," Sneasel laughed. "Go on, twirl around for me with that frilly scarf. Kweh heh heh!"

"Nnnrrrrggghhhhh." Tessa gnashed her teeth together. She released her grip on Shane's mouth and jumped across the rock formation. "Gimme my scarf back!" she shouted.

Sneasel and Jangmo-o jumped to attention. "What the–?" Sneasel narrowed his eyes at Tessa. "Hey, ain't that the broad we swiped this scarf from?"

"Either that, or she has a twin sister," Jangmo-o replied. "She's got the same extra fur tufts over her ears."

Sneasel rubbed his claws together. "Kweh heh heh heh! You actually tailed us out here? That's cute. Real cute. But you're a fool if you think you can take us alone," he taunted.

 _'Well, I guess that's my cue,'_ Shane thought. "Who said anything about Riolu being alone?" he bellowed, trotting out from his hiding spot and puffing out his chest. "Well?" He looked at Tessa with a smirk. "How was that? Pretty heroic entrance, eh? Anyway." He cleared his throat. "Surrender… you fiends! Return the scarf at once."

Sneasel and Jangmo-o exchanged looks, only to break down laughing. Shane's expression faltered. "Hey! What's the big idea? You should be, I dunno, quaking in fear or something. Don't you have any idea who you're messing with?"

Tessa's shoulders slouched. _'I don't like where this is going.'_

"Kweh heh heh heh! We should be afraid? Of what, you, Snowy? Don't make me laugh," Sneasel dismissed.

"But, you laughed before you said that, dude," Jangmo-o pointed out.

Sneasel whirled on his counterpart, a vein bulging out of his forehead. "How's a guy supposed to talk tough if his partner's not backing him up, huh?"

Jangmo-o stiffened. "Err… uh… well…" He narrowed his eyes at Shane and Tessa. "We stole this scarf fair and square. Back off or we'll have to get nasty!"

"Oh yeah?" Shane jumped at the two of them. "Well, take _this!_ "

He opened his mouth, only to cough up a puff of air. His eyes widened. "Hey, what's the big idea? Where's my attack?" he gasped.

"It's right here!" Sneasel shouted, slamming into Shane with a sudden burst of speed. Shane fell into the sand with a holler.

"Your turn, puppy-girl. This is for ruining our patented super speedy getaway special!" Jangmo-o cried. He charged at a trembling Tessa.

 _'No, no, no, no. This is_ not _how this was supposed to go down!'_ She raised up her arms in a vain attempt at shielding. _'Oh pleeeeeeease let this work.'_

Jangmo-o tackled Tessa, but she maintained her balance. Her arms glowed red and she swung both fists at her attacker. She socked Jangmo-o right in the snout. He stumbled back in a daze. "Owie! Owie!" His eyes teared up. "Sneasel! She countered me right in the schnozzle. That's not faaaaair. Tell her to fight fair!"

"That's a bit rich coming from you, don't you think?" Tessa growled. _'Thank the gods, it actually worked.'_

"Oh yeah? Well… well… if you're gonna be like that, then I've got no qualms about doing… _this!_ " Jangmo-o scooped up some sand in his claws and hurled it at Tessa. She threw up her paws, but her reaction time was too slow. Coarse granules scratched Tessa's eyes, turning her vision blurry. Tessa stumbled back, trying to brush the sand out of her eyes. Jangmo-o charged forward and tackled her to the ground.

"C'mon, Riolu! That was weak. Put your back into it," Shane barked from beside her.

"Why don't you worry about yourself, Snowy? Kweh heh heh!" Sneasel cackled. He darted forward, seemingly disappearing before Shane's eyes. Next thing he knew, Sneasel reappeared beside him, knocking him back into the sand.

"Auugggh! Pleeechff… gwwwaaaaf!" Shane coughed up sand. He ran his tongue across the insides of his cheeks, and nearly gagged. "Dang it! Why can't I make an attack? Where's the fire?" He jumped to his feet and opened his mouth, but nothing came out. "Come on, stupid, girly Vulpix body. Flame on! Torch 'em! Get all fired up! Fire in the hole!" He clenched a forepaw. "Why isn't any of this working? Ugh, this is why I wanted to be a Riolu!"

"Kweh heh heh! Your friend Snowy's a few berries short of a bush, toots," Sneasel cackled, rubbing his claws together. "All the better for easy pickings."

Shane shot Tessa a panicked look. "Riolu. Why can't I use Ember? I'm a Vulpix, right?"

"I'm… a bit busy… OOF!" Tessa and Jangmo-o collided with one another mid-charge. They bounced back in opposite directions.

Sneasel doubled over in laughter. "A Vulpix using Ember? What rocks are rattling around in your brain, Snowy? You're half a world off in your thinking." He disappeared into the shadows again, and then struck Shane from behind. Shane whimpered as he skidded across the sand. Dusty streaks formed across his pristine, white coat.

"Get a load of this clown, Jangmo-o. He really thinks he's like them orange Vulpixes across the ocean. What a riot!" Sneasel taunted.

"You _idiot_ ," Tessa shouted from ahead of him, "Why would you even suggest trying to fight these guys if you _don't even know how to use your own moves?_ "

"Well, I… I thought I could just use Ember. It's _the_ low-level fire-type move. That's how it works when a Pokémon starts out battling, right?" Shane groaned, trying to lumber to his feet.

Tessa ducked a lunging Jangmo-o and whirled on Shane. "Fire-type? Have you _completely_ lost your mind? You're an _ice-type_ , you ditz! How could you not have known that? Look at your fur color!"

"Wait, _what?_ " Shane's jaw dropped. "Is that your idea of witty battling banter? It needs serious work!"

Tessa glared at him. "For the love of... does it _look_ like I'm joking to you?"

Shane's eyes widened. "No way! An ice-type Vulpix? What sort of messed up universe is this, huh?"

"The one that's gonna be your end, Snowy! Kweh heh heh heh!"

Shane yipped in fright and tunneled into the sand. Sneasel emerged from the shadows, but sailed right over him. Shane popped his brown, sand-covered head up.

 _'An ice-type? Then I should know an ice-type move, right?'_ he figured. _'Okay, Shane, make or break time. You've just gotta think cold. Ice cubes. Popsicles. The freezer aisle at the old grocery store with those god-awful pizzas. My bedroom during the winter because running the heat's too expensive. Aha!'_

A chill ran across Shane's fur and numbness spread down his limbs. He opened his mouth and a flurry of snowflakes rushed out. Sneasel flinched and threw his claws over his face. "Holy Karp! I _am_ an ice-type," Shane gasped. "Are you kidding me? This is terrible! Ice is, like, the most garbage-tier of all the types. I'd have even taken _poison_ over this. What, did I piss this world's Arceus off or something? I definitely didn't ask to have my Pokémon life set to 'hard mode!'"

"Finally realized the obvious, did we?" Sneasel wiped frost from his brow. "Well, it ain't gonna make no difference. I can withstand Powder Snows all night. Kweh heh heh!"

A lightbulb went off in Shane's head. "Riolu!" he shouted, sprinting away from Sneasel.

"Not… nnngh… now!" Tessa grunted, trading blows with Jangmo-o once again. A short gust of snowy air raced past her shoulder and struck Jangmo-o. He gave a cry of pain as frost covered up his right flank.

"We're switching targets," Shane instructed.

"Right, because your other ideas have worked out _great_ so far," Tessa protested.

Shane grabbed Tessa's shoulders with his forepaws and spun her around. Sneasel charged the duo down, brandishing his claws. "Go for it, champ. I believe in you," Shane said, shoving Tessa forward. He spun around to face the dazed Jangmo-o.

"Nuh-not c-c-c-c-cool," Jangmo-o said, tiny fangs chattering in his mouth.

"Oh, wait! Time out!" Shane held up a forepaw. "That's a perfect setup for my first heroic one-liner. Ahem…" He straightened himself up. "On the contrary, you ugly little Cranidos wannabe. It's _very_ cool!" he proclaimed. He gave Jangmo-o a cheeky grin. "Eh? Eh? What'd you think? Pretty good, huh?" Jangmo-o looked at Shane in disbelief. "Bah, everyone's a critic," Shane grumbled, and then released another flurry of snowflakes.

Jangmo-o was ready this time and jumped back. When he did, his body started glowing red. "Oh no you don't. You can't run from me. I've got type advantage on my side, villainous scum!" Shane declared. He dashed forward, spewing more snow. Jangmo-o dug in his legs and absorbed the blow. The scale on his forehead lit up bright white in the night.

"Huh?" Shane's snout stiffened.

"Vulpix, get outta there!" Shane heard Tessa cry from behind him. She and Sneasel had just bounced back after smacking into one another. "He's Biding. If he redirects that attack on you, it's gonna _hurt_."

"Eh?" Shane turned around and his eyes widened as a glowing Jangmo-o charged him down. "Ahh! No… stay back… stay _BACK!_ " He gave a loud, girlish shriek. Jangmo-o halted mid-charge. An invisible force grabbed hold of him and flung him back into one of the nearby rocks.

"Gnaaaaaargh!" Jangmo-o cried. His stored energy evaporated around him.

"Alright!" Shane cheered. "What the heck did I just do? Did I learn Hyper Voice in my first battle? Man, I am _totally awesome!_ I'm gonna be the best human savior this world's ever seen."

No sooner did he finish that sentence then Sneasel popped out of the shadows and slammed into him from behind. Shane faceplanted into the sand. "So, Snowy thinks he's a big-shot because he Roared my partner at the right time, huh?" Sneasel scoffed. "Well that's nothing but a _dirty_ _lie_. Kweh heh heh!"

"Sorry, Vulpix!" Tessa called. She flash-stepped forward, using the burst of speed to charge into Sneasel. The two tumbled across the sand.

"It's… pllletttth… Shane," Shane grumbled, spitting out more sand.

"Sneasel, it ain't fair!" Jangmo-o whined. "They ain't supposed to use tactics against us. I don't see no guild badges on 'em. We've been bamboozled!"

Sneasel and Tessa staggered to their feet. "Huh. So, that's your game huh? Kweh heh heh! Not bad, girlie."

Tessa narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"You pretend to be all innocent and weak. Then you tail a couple of decent-looking targets and knock 'em about," Sneasel replied. "That's pretty low… even by our standards. How long you been on the outlaw board for, huh?"

"I am _not_ a thug," Tessa declared. Sneasel darted from his spot, disappearing into the shadows. He reemerged and struck Tessa in the chest. But as she stumbled back, she swung her right arm around. Red light flared up around her fist. She smacked Sneasel in the gut.

"Aaaaagh!" Sneasel spun about from the force of the blow. He stumbled about for a few steps before collapsing onto his belly.

"Sneasel!" Jangmo-o's eyes widened. Shane jumped in his path.

"There. Now, surrender that scarf or I'll turn you into a lizardsicle," Shane declared.

Jangmo-o unwrapped the scarf. "Fine. You want it so bad? Here…" He used his jaw to hurl it forward. "Take it!"

The scarf blinded Shane. He let out a surprised gasp and stumbled back. Jangmo-o bore down and charged at him. Tessa saw the scene happening and immediately tried to run forward. But Jangmo-o was much closer to Shane. Just as he pulled the scarf off his eyes, Jangmo-o slammed into him.

 _Rrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiip!_

His hardened forehead scale tore the scarf in half as he and Shane fell to the ground.

" _No!_ "

Tessa staggered to a stop. Jangmo-o looked down and saw the torn halves. "Sweet! Now we can get twice as much for these," he cackled. But as he lunged to scoop up the halves, Tessa sped forward and shoulder-tackled him. Jangmo-o smacked the sand with a resounding _thump_ and went limp. Tessa tossed sand on Jangmo-o's face for good measure, and then got to her feet. She trudged over to her torn scarf. Shane sat beside the halves, looking particularly pleased with himself.

"Well, the going got a bit rough there at the start, but the side of good prevailed in the end. Isn't that right, Riolu?"

Tessa kneeled down and gingerly scooped up the two strips of cloth. She rested them on her knee and dusted them off. "My... my scarf..." she whimpered. "Dad's scarf. It's ruined."

"Riolu? Hello? Anyone home?" Shane started waving a forepaw in front of her face. "Shouldn't we, uh, find someone to arrest those guys?"

"Uuuuuuurrrrrgh… y-you… got lucky, Snowy."

Shane whirled around to see Sneasel up on one knee.

"Kweh… heh… you and girlie over there… better hope… you don't see us… again," Sneasel panted. He managed to scoop up Jangmo-o and rest him on his shoulder. "Next time… no kiddie gloves…"

"Ah yes, the old 'we were taking it easy on you,' cop out," Shane said. "What's the matter? Not 'mon enough to admit you got beaten by a white Vulpix?" He turned around and switched his tails about at Sneasel. "It's okay… I'd be embarrassed if I were you, too."

"Ooog… Sneasel," Jangmo-o coughed, sliding off his shoulder, "We won't get no rematch if we stick around here. We've gotta execute plan R!"

Shane raised an eyebrow. "And that is?"

"Run away!" they shouted in unison and scurried along the beach, stumbling the whole way.

Shane kicked the sand. "Crud, we've got to go after them!"

"… forget it, Vulpix."

Shane turned around to see Tessa back on her feet, cradling the halves of her scarf. "Look at us. We're all banged up and dead tired," she said. Shane looked over the tan streaks staining his pelt. Blood rushed into his face. "We're not gonna catch them," Tessa continued.

 _'Ugh! If I was a Riolu like her, this wouldn't look so stupid. Heck, if I was a normal Vulpix, it wouldn't look that bad,'_ Shane groaned. _'But, she's got a point. My legs and chest feel heavy enough already.'_

"What about your scarf?" Shane asked.

"Don't you mean 'scarves?'" Tessa separated them, letting them dangle uselessly in her arms. Jangmo-o had cleaved the scarf cleanly in half. The two halves were equally-sized, with each one having frayed threads on the end that had gotten cut.

"Oh..." Shane whispered, lowering his head. "Crap... I really mucked that up, didn't I?"

Tessa slung the half ending with the moon pattern around her neck. "Well… it fits _much_ better now. No more tripping over it. I guess that's a consolation… or something." Her ears folded against her head.

Shane perked back up, failing to read the disappointment in Tessa's voice "It sure is! Now you've got two of them. See, something good came out of this after all." He smiled at her.

"I guess so," Tessa mumbled. She noticed Shane continuing to look right at her. "Uh… can I help you?"

"Well, y'know, you've got that other scarf half there," Shane said, pawing at the ground. "I thought, I dunno, that maybe I could have it?"

Tessa clasped the other half of the scarf against her chest. "And why would I do something like that? We're not friends."

Shane's muzzle stiffened. "Aww, c'mon. We battled together pretty well. I'm telling you, we could make a great team."

 _'There it is again,'_ Tessa thought. _'I know my heroes all started off fighting small-time thugs, but this just has to be a coincidence. Besides, we nearly choked big time. And... and...'_

Tessa frowned. "We hardly worked well, at all. You leaped into action without even knowing if you could use any moves... and you had the gall to _scold me_ when you weren't doing anything to help!"

"Well, yeah, I suppose you're right. But once I found my rhythm I–"

"You tried to use Ember and called yourself a fire-type," Tessa reminded him. "You didn't even realize I was facing a dragon-type at first, did you?"

"In my defense, in the world I'm from we don't have things like that Jangmo-o guy," Shane said. "Besides, he didn't use any dragon-type attacks. No harm, no foul. And I already told you before, Vulpixes _are_ fire-types in my world. They have orange fur and–"

"But this _isn't_ your world," Tessa said. "The fire-type Vulpixes are only in the continents an ocean away from us. And since you clearly don't know as much as you claim to about _this_ continent, whatever makes you think that I would want to go exploring with someone like you? Your breed of recklessness could get an unsuspecting Pokémon killed!"

She bit her lip. _'Please... please just say something that will reassure me. I want this to work, but I know better than to get my hopes up over this.'_

"Okay, I get you're hesitant. But I can give you a _great_ reason to adventure with me," Shane chuckled. "I'm a human in a world of Pokémon. There are _legends_ about what folks like me can do. That makes me important and you, as the Pokémon who found me first, equally important… by extension, of course."

 _'Is it really true, though?'_ Tessa wondered. _'Are you like the rest of them? Would... would that really make me special, too?'_ Her lips pursed. "You're assuming things, Vulpix."

"It's Shane."

"… whatever." Tessa flicked a paw. "You don't even know why you're here, right?"

"Well, no, but I assume I–"

Tessa quickly pounced on that statement. "Aha, see. You 'assume.' That means you _don't_ know. So, who's to say you didn't just get brought here by _accident?_ For all we know… no, for all _anyone_ knows, there could be dozens of humans-turned-Pokémon running around here that don't have legends about them. All because they were dragged here by _accident_." She jabbed a digit into Shane's sternum and he tensed up.

Shane sucked in a weak gasp of air. His chest tightened and he clutched it with a forepaw. _'Accident?'_ he repeated. His jaw locked up. Sharp, pointed, invisible edges dug into his hide. Shane violently lurched his body forward, forcing Tessa to step back. His tails curled up against his rear and his muscles spasmed. He mouthed the word "accident."

"V... Vulpix?" Tessa gasped. _'What did I do to him?'_

Shane swayed back and forth. Tessa stepped toward him, expecting him to pass out again. To her surprise, he blinked a few times and shook his head. "Nnngh... wh... what happened?"

Tessa managed to stuff her animosity toward Shane back in the deeper recesses of her mind. _'What was that? It didn't look like something he could just fake.'_ Her brow furrowed. "Mind explaining yourself, there?"

"Huh?" Shane looked about in confusion. "What do you mean? Weren't you in the middle of accusing me of assuming stuff? Which, by the way, I'm totally _not_ doing."

Tessa's snout stiffened. _'This is some sort of mind game, right? He totally had a breakdown the moment I said I thought his arrival was an accident. Did he black out or something? Well, I guess this as good a chance as any to figure something important out.'_

She frowned as Shane rubbed his head with a foreleg. "Let me ask you something, Vulpix. Why me, huh? Why do _I_ have to be your partner?"

Shane froze, looking like a deer caught in a car's headlights. "Uh, well..." he stammered, pawing nervously at the ground. "I just... I dunno... I like you."

"How can you say that when we've only been together one afternoon?" Tessa asked.

"I don't know how to explain it. You give off a good vibe," Shane said, giving her a big smile.

 _'He... he can't really thing that, can he? Nobody would say something like that to me except for Eevee. Did he tell Vulpix to say that?'_ Tessa shuffled about nervously. "That's still not good enough," she said.

Shane bowed his head, sighing loudly. "Look, I just really like Riolus, okay. I think they're awesome." He gave her a pleading look. "You have no idea how long I've dreamed about something like this."

Tessa crossed her arms and raised a skeptical brow. "I thought Pokémon weren't real where you were from."

"I could still dream about it," Shane whispered. He looked back up at Tessa. "Isn't there anything I could do to convince you I'm worth your time?"

"Apologize to me."

"Huh?" Shane tilted his head. "What for?"

"For rushing into battle... and getting my scarf ripped," Tessa said.

Shane frowned. "But–" He cut himself off, wincing at the serious look in Tessa's eyes. "Okay. I'm sorry I rushed into battle. And I'm sorrier I got your scarf torn up. I'll try not to bungle things up again."

 _'Something tells me that's as good as I'm gonna get,'_ Tessa thought. She cleared her throat. "Okay, I can accept that."

"Ah, finally coming around, are we?" Shane asked, chuckling.

Tessa narrowed her eyes. "Don't push it, okay. I gave you a place to stay and you helped me get my scarf back... sorta. That makes us even."

"I guess that's fair," Shane replied. An awkward silence came over them. "So, uh, does this mean you'll come with me to the guild?" Shane batted his eyelids at Tessa.

She shuffled backward. "I... I don't think I can."

Her mother again leaped to the front of her mind. Lucario stood in the doorway, firmly clutching a badge in her paw. _"There's something I need to do, Tessa,"_ she said. _"It's guild business, so I can't tell you about it. Go stay with Sylveon until I return. I promise… I won't be long."_

The image quickly faded, only for a new one to replace it in her mind: an Absol glaring at her with as much intensity as he could muster, pointing the tip of his scythe forward.

 _"Don't you ever let me catch you setting foot in that guild. If you do, I won't hesitate to strike you down!"_

Tessa jolted to attention and rapidly shook her head. "I'm sorry!" she blurted out. "I can't… I can't do that. If… if you want to go there," she said with a gulp, "you'll just have to find someone else."

"But you just said you'd be okay working with me," Shane reminded her. "And, well, I'm in a strange land. With no friends or family. And no idea what to do. The guild's my best option if I'm going to figure out what to do about my current situation."

"I'm sorry, Vulpix, but I can't help you," Tessa insisted. "Please drop this subject."

"… no!" Shane responded, causing Tessa to tense up.

"W-Why not?" she growled.

"Look, Riolu." Shane's gaze fell to the beach and he pawed at the sand. "You don't like me. I get it. But we can make this work somehow. We battled together pretty well, didn't we?"

He extended a green, sand-coated paw toward Tessa. She clutched the scarf around her neck. _'I really do want to, but I can't,'_ she thought. _'Every time I get close to the guild, I…'_ The same image of an Absol barking at her flashed through her mind.

 _'No!'_ Tessa straightened up her stance. _'Enough is enough. Fate may have given me the opportunity I've been praying for. To be popular! To be famous! So, I can't turn tail and run. Every pair of heroes formed a duo of some sort. And now it's my turn. Besides, Sylveon told me it's the best way to figure out where Mom went. I don't care what Gallian says… if I go with Vulpix, everyone will hopefully pay attention to him and leave me alone.'_

Tessa took a deep breath. _'Even if I think Vulpix is far from perfect, I should stick with him. Then I can be famous, just like he said. People will actually pay attention to me. I won't be a loser anymore. Everyone will want to be friends with me... just like I've dreamed of.'_

Tessa took another deep breath and closed her eyes. She then extended the other half of her scarf forward. "Don't read too deep into this, okay?" she said. "I'm just giving you this so it'll look like we coordinated a bit before going to the guild. So, here. Take it."

Tessa opened her eyes and thought she saw Shane's eyes sparkle. He snatched the scarf up in his mouth and slung it around his neck. "Alright! This is gonna be great!" He stuck out a forepaw toward Tessa. "Uh? You gonna fist-bump me or not?"

"No," Tessa replied. "And there are conditions attached to this. First off, I reserve the right to back out of this if I think it's a bad idea. Understand?"

"Pfffbttt, you'll have nothing to worry about there," Shane assured. Tessa glared at him. "Okay, okay, I agree. Whatever."

Tessa nodded. "Good. And, for the other condition, we're not going right away."

Shane blinked in confusion. "What? Why?"

"Because we need to do some training first," Tessa said. "I want to be absolutely sure you can use your moves when you need to so we _don't_ have a repeat of this performance. Y'know, in case there's some sort of entrance exam or something."

"P'shaaaw, you're overthinking this. They'll be happy to have us."

Tessa crossed her arms. "That's my other condition. Either put up with it or the deal's off."

Shane rolled his eyes. "Fine, if you insist." He sauntered up beside Tessa. "Come tomorrow, when I dazzle you with my attacks, you'll realize we're just wasting time."

* * *

 **~Sunrise Village, Sylveon's House~**

"There you two are!" Sylveon grabbed hold of Shane and Tessa with her ribbons and dragged them in through the doorway. "Where did you run off to at this time of night? Do you have any idea how worried I was?"

Tessa looked down guiltily. "It's my fault, Sylveon," she admitted. "I thought I heard someone shouting outside. And then a pair of thugs tried to steal my scarf. I woke Vulpix up and we chased them to Azure Cape. Things… got a bit out of control from there."

"I can see that," Sylveon said. "Your scarf got cut in half. And you two are positively _filthy._ Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm a little banged up, but it's not that bad," Shane said. "We managed to walk all the way home from the beach without any trouble." He took a step forward, intending to emphasize his point. However, his legs gave out, and he flopped onto his belly. "Oooooooog," he groaned.

"You're far from okay, Vulpix," Sylveon declared. "I want you heading right to bed and you are not getting up until I say it's okay. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal, ma'am," Shane muttered. Next thing he knew, Sylveon's feelers had wrapped up his torso. Sylveon carried him off toward Tessa's room. Tessa waited until the door closed, and then lumbered toward the couch.

"Tessa?"

She froze, and then turned around. "Hi, Eevee," she whispered. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"Did something happen? You're all dirty," Eevee squeaked.

"Oh it's, uh, nothing important." She tried to give Eevee a reassuring smile. "Run back to bed."

"Okay," Eevee said. "Good night, Tessa."

Tessa let out a yawn. "Good night, Eevee." She watched her friend retreat into his room. Then she lay down on the couch and stared up at the ceiling.

 _'Mom,'_ she thought. _'I'm gonna do it. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna fail. Just like with your aura training. But if I don't... then I'm finally going to be someone that you can be proud of... wherever you are.'_ She rolled onto her side, burying her face into a cushion.

 _'I just hope this isn't a huge mistake...'_

 **End of Episode 1**

* * *

Next time: joining the guild isn't exactly an easy task when your partner won't keep his trap shut.


	3. Laying Some Foundations

**~Aeon Town~**

Shane sat underneath the awning of a small building. Its exterior was stylized to look like the face of a Kecleon, with the awning serving as an extension of its green and yellow forehead. The sweet smell of berries and other fruits tickled his nostrils, and he soon found himself gulping down saliva.

"There… I think that's enough supplies."

Tessa walked out of the town's Kecleon Shop, patting her comically inflated satchel with a paw. Shane raised a skeptical eyebrow. To him, it appeared that Tessa was about to topple over from the weight of her bag. "How much stuff did you buy, anyway?" he asked.

"Well, given that we're not official guild members yet, I only had access to a limited variety of items," she explained. "So, I got us a handful of apples, four oran berries, a pair of elixirs to keep our energy up, and some geo pebbles."

Shane blinked rapidly, trying to process her list. "That… seems like overkill," he confessed. "You seriously bought a bunch of dead-weight _rocks?_ "

"Why not? I've heard they can sock an enemy pretty well if you toss 'em right," Tessa said.

"What do you think this guild is going to have us do, summit Horizon's tallest mountain? We're gonna be fine," Shane insisted. "If anything, that overstuffed pack of yours will just slow us down."

"It doesn't hurt to properly prepare," Tessa insisted. "One could get hungry while exploring, for instance."

"I'm well aware of that, thank you. I have a stomach. And it's definitely working," Shane harrumphed. "Now let's stop lollygagging and get to the guild already. It's time to meet some fresh, friendly faces!" Shane turned and looked about the town. "Uh… let's see." He tapped his chin. "If we came from the left, then we should probably go to the right…"

"The guild's on top of the hill overlooking the town square," Tessa explained, guiding him forward.

As Shane approached the central fountain, he noticed a few Pokémon mingling about in front of one of the few two-story buildings in the area. It stuck out from the houses near it, as its sides had two rounded, blue sections protruding from the first floor. The majority of the building was purple, save for a pair of windows on the second floor. One of which was only half as tall the other.

Shane's curiosity got the better of him and he asked, "What's with this place?"

"Oh, that's Crabrawler's Café. It's the main spot for Pokémon to gather and hang out," Tessa explained. "It's _really_ popular with explorers. My mom got me a berry sorbet from there once. It was _heavenly_."

"Berry… sorbet?" Despite his personal lack of experience with Pokémon berries, Shane's mouth watered. "Quick!" He jumped in front of the Riolu. "Let's mash up one of those oran berries. I'll use some Powder Snow and we can make homemade sorbet!"

"Absolutely not. I spent good money on those berries," Tessa said, swinging her satchel back behind her. "You're the one so gung-ho about going to the guild. So, are we going or not?"

"Oh, relax, I was just having a little fun," Shane dismissed. "You need to lighten up a bit. How are you gonna make a good impression on the guild if you walk in all grumpy?"

Tessa scowled. "I am _not_ grumpy."

"Really? Cause that expression could make an Ursaring blush." Shane chuckled and trotted on ahead. He quickly made his way along the dirt path leading up the hill. However, when he turned back, he noticed Tessa progressing much slower. "See, told you that bag would weigh you down," he taunted. "At this rate, it'll be afternoon before we get inside." He ran down to Tessa. As he approached, he noticed Tessa clutching her scarf protectively. "Hey, something the matter?"

"I… I…" Tessa gulped. "It's just… nerves." Shane suddenly gripped Tessa's shoulders with his forepaws and jostled her back and forth. "Agh!" Tessa barked, shoving Shane back. "And just what was that all about?"

"Just loosening you up," Shane explained. "There. _Now_ can we get a move on?"

"Don't touch me without my permission!" Tessa squeaked. Shane hopped back in surprise. Tessa brushed off her shoulders and adjusted her scarf. "And, for the record, no, that didn't help one bit."

Shane sighed and shook his head. "Well, that's just because I don't have hands. Or magic aura-y powers. Otherwise, I could've done a much better job." He turned and jogged back up the hill. "Maybe we'll luck out and find a Manaphy who could Heart Swap us."

"I did _not_ just hear you say that!" Tessa barked.

"Hey, for what it's worth, I think you'd make a great Vulpix. You're already a regular ice queen," Shane quipped. He ran the rest of the way up the hill, laughing.

Tessa took a deep breath and stared at the ground. _'C'mon, Riolu. Remember... this is be a somebody. This is for fame and admiration!'_ She marched straight forward, stopping when she felt the fluff of one of Shane's tails against her side. Tessa opened her eyes and found Shane examining the building.

It was circular, with a foundation of golden stones. Purple tapestries hung off the side of it. Each one had stitched in it a white emblem displaying a crescent moon that overlapped the sun. That same icon was etched into the stone platform positioned right in front of the door. Above the door, a purple triangle stuck straight up into the air, casting a shadow over the grassy knoll the building sat atop.

"Huh. It kinda looks like a sundial," Shane realized.

"What? That's no Sandile. Besides, most of the structure's underground anyway. Built into the hill, I think."

"No, no, I said 'sundial.' They're a, y'know, way to keep track of time?" Shane explained. Tessa gave him a blank look. "Forget it. Must be a human world thing." He tilted his head to the side. "What's with the telescope? Is this place some kind of planetarium or what?"

"Um…" Tessa fidgeted with her scarf. "If I remember correctly, I think this place is actually called the Aeon Observatory."

"That so?" Shane raised an eyebrow. "Y'know, for someone who claimed to _absolutely, positively want nothing to do with this place_ you sure do know a lot about it."

Tessa rolled her eyes. "Don't jump to conclusions. My parents' house is in Aeon Town. I'd have to be pretty clueless not to know about this place. It kind of sticks out against everything else here."

"Fair enough," Shane said. "Now, how do we get inside?"

"Well, oh intrepid explorer, I'm not an expert like you, but I suggest we stand on that pedestal in front of the entrance," Tessa replied, pointing to the stone platform in question. Shane glanced at it but had to look away from the light reflecting off its glass surface. He blinked rapidly to clear his vision and walked up to the platform.

"Didn't need the snark in that answer, but I'll take it," Shane said. His tails wagged slowly as he jumped onto the pedestal. The sun and moon carving suddenly lit up, causing Shane to shield his eyes. "Hey, don't just sit there, Riolu," he called. "Climb on up!"

"Uh… yeah. Right…" Tessa stammered. She stumbled up beside him, throwing her arms up as bright light filled her vision.

"Registered, non-guild Pokémon and unregistered Pokémon detected. Stand by for identification!" a shrill voice shouted.

Shane looked around the pedestal as the glowing circles swirled around them. They soon fizzled out, retreating into the carving.

"The Pokémon are… Riolu and Vulpix!" the voice announced. "Please state your business!"

"We're here to join the guild!" Shane bellowed, puffing out his chest.

"Not so loud, please," Tessa whimpered, glancing nervously around the hill.

"Understood!" the voice replied. "Please proceed inside!"

The stone slab in front of the duo spiraled open, revealing the fringes of a bright purple carpet. "Hey, they're already rolling out the welcome mat for us. Awesome!" Shane cheered. He gave Tessa an encouraging shove off the pedestal and booked it inside.

"Oof! Hey, watch where you're walking," Tessa growled. She checked the contents of her satchel and followed him inside.

* * *

 **Episode 2: Minor Growing Pains**

 **Chapter 3: Laying Some Foundations**

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Tessa immediately bumped into Shane on the other side of the doorway. He sat on the carpet, taking in the guild's entryway. "It's… beautiful." He let out a whistle. "Look at that starry sky they painted on the ceiling. I think that's a Luvdisc constellation on the right. Oh... oh! And that's definitely a Solrock over there. And a Lunatone in the corner! This is really pretty. I like all the purple and gold."

"I guess it's pretty nice," Tessa said with a shrug. She spotted Growlithe sitting in front of a large wooden board, studying it intently. He noticed her and smiled.

"Hey, you're that Riolu I bumped into a few days ago," he barked, his tail wagging excitedly. "You're back. And you brought a friend! Hello, Riolu's friend!"

Tessa crossed her arms and turned away from Shane. "We're not friends."

Shane's ears twitched, but he ignored Tessa. He glanced over at Growlithe. "Oh, so the Vulpixes are backwards here, but the Growlithes made off just fine," he scoffed. "Honestly, how can anyone back in the human world like Vulpix more than Growlithe? It's not even a contest."

Growlithe tilted his head. "I beg your pardon?"

Tessa stepped forward and cupped a paw over Shane's mouth. "Err, don't listen to him. He's, uh, new around these parts."

"Well, I'll be."

Tessa and Shane jumped to attention at the sound of a new voice. They both noticed a staircase in the corner. A Braviary emerged from it and walked toward the duo. "I was wondering when I'd see ya finally set foot in here," Braviary said. "Ya certainly kept us waiting, huh, Tessa?"

Shane's eyes sparkled. "A Braviary? Okay, this guild's officially cool in my books," he declared, totally glossing over Braviary's statement.

"Ha ha. I like the attitude, pardner. But if'n yer expecting flattery to get ya a free pass to apprenticeship, you've saddled up to the wrong place."

"Of course, sir. Wouldn't think of it," Shane said, giving a nervous laugh. But his expression quickly shifted. "Hey… waaaaaaaait a second." He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Braviary, "I've, uh, 'heard' an accent like that before. You wouldn't happen to know any suspicious-looking Nuzleafs, would you?"

Braviary scratched his head. "Can't say that I do. Ain't no Nuzleafs living around Horizon, last I knew of."

Tessa turned to Shane with a look of horror. "What are you doing?" she whispered. "Don't talk to Braviary like that. He's the Guildmaster's assistant!"

"Sorry." Shane looked down. "It's just that, uh, my _instincts_ tell me not to trust any Pokémon with a kooky accent that acts nice to us. It's a recipe for disaster and double-crossing."

"I thought you said Pokémon didn't exist where you were from," Tessa hissed.

"Something the matter, you two?" Braviary asked. "Don't wanna keep the Guildmaster waiting, y'know. So, if'n y'all would head in that direction." He gestured back to the stairs. "I'll be right on down after I have a short chat with Growlithe over yonder."

Shane and Tessa turned and descended to the guild's main level. They found multiple hallways stretching out in different directions from a central room. Like the entrance, the new room had a starry sky motif on the ceiling. It was dark purple, with clusters of yellow and light blue littering it. Unlike the mural in the entrance, this sky faded into orange, and then finally to a sunny blue along the walls. In between each of the hallways, small pegs stuck out from the walls. Luminous orbs sat atop them, evenly distributing spherical light patches throughout the room to make up for the lack of any windows. The floor had a purple carpet in the center, with the same logo stitched into as the tapestries outside. Different versions of those tapestries also hung from the walls, next to the luminous orbs.

Shane broke the duo's silence. "Hey, uh, am I crazy or did Braviary call you Tessa?"

Tessa's eyes widened and she quickly looked away from Shane. "… he did."

"So, is that your real name, then?"

"No. It's... um... my mom told me it's just some old Lucario custom that dates back to ancient times. You're not allowed to call me that," Tessa ordered. "Ever."

Shane raised a confused eyebrow. "Why not? I happen to think it's a very pretty name. Suits you nicely!"

"If you want me to go through with this you will _not_ call me Tessa. Understand?" she growled.

"Whoa, whoa, take it easy," Shane coaxed. "No need to get so cross. It's just a name. Besides, you really just want me to call you Riolu?"

"Yes. That's what I'm supposed to be called. What else would you call me, huh?"

"Well, don't you think that could be awkward?" Shane pointed out. "Like, what if we run into other Riolus? How am I supposed to know who's who? Heck, how do any of you even talk to each other when you're in groups? That seems like a pretty big oversight, if you ask me."

Tessa gritted her teeth. "Look, I get you're not from around here and stuff. But maybe you could just be silent and observe a bit and _then_ start pestering folks with questions? It just so happens that the overwhelming majority of Pokémon simply call each other by their species name unless they're bullies, really good friends, or madly in love with each other. It's not a big deal."

"And nobody gets confused?"

"If you're in a group of Pokémon of the same species you just make eye contact with the one you want to talk to," Tessa said. "Did your 'brilliant human mind' not think that one up?"

"It did," Shane said. "But there are other situations. What if, say, you tried to report the Sneasel that robbed you to the guild. You can't just say, 'The culprit was Sneasel, officer.' Because there are probably plenty of Sneasels around here." Shane smirked, feeling pretty confident with his deduction.

Much to his surprise however, Tessa only glared at him. "You just _love_ racing to conclusions, don't you? The fact of the matter is, no two Pokémon of the same species look completely alike."

Shane's jaw slackened. "Say what now?"

"We all have differences between one another. Sometimes they're big differences and sometimes they're small. We can use those differences to address each other," Tessa continued. "My mom, for example, is very thin compared to other Lucarios and has single fang sticking out of her mouth. I have extra tufts of fur on top of my ears compared to other Riolu." She grabbed her ears and bent them over. "Plus, my aura feelers are small for someone my age."

Shane laughed. "Ha! That's a good one. I've stared at Riolus on my computer screen for _hours_ and the only way they look different is if an artist decides to take creative liberties with their fanart."

Tessa's glare fiercened. "Are you saying I'm _lying?_ "

"Uh… I guess not," Shane muttered. "But if you're telling the truth, then that just proves my point from when we first met: we're _destined_ to be a world-saving team, you and I! Because I, uh, read up on some of your local human legends and it sounded like many of the Pokémon that worked with the humans were called something different than their species name." He flashed Tessa a broad grin.

Tessa's heart skipped a beat. _'Huh. I hadn't even considered that and I've memorized the stories cover-to-cover.'_ She shook her head. _'No, wait, we shouldn't be having this conversation... someone might hear us and think we're crazy!'_

A vein bulged out of Tessa's forehead. "Will you _drop_ that whole world-saving business already?" she hissed. "Pokémon are gonna look at us funny if you keep that up."

Luckily for Shane, Braviary appeared from the staircase, abruptly ending the conversation before things escalated. Braviary focused on an open corner of the large room, where the stone walls gave way to a metal door. "Hopefully the Guildmaster ain't busy," Braviary mused. He approached the door and knocked on it with a wing. The metal door slid open and Braviary gestured inside.

Shane and Tessa walked through the door and entered a cold, gray room. It lacked any sort of decorations, save for a tapestry dangling from the far wall. It had a similar image stitched in it as the pedestal outside: a purple crescent moon overlapping a golden sun.

"Wow… talk about a sterile room," Shane muttered. "It's almost like the metal's been thrown up on top of… whatever used to be here."

"Quiet," Tessa said, elbowing Shane's ribs. "You're gonna get us in trouble."

"Guildmaster, I've got some new recruits," Braviary announced.

Shane jumped as he noticed part of the gray on the far end of the room shift. He watched four metallic limbs extend, hefting a massive, disc-shaped body up off the floor. _'The Guildmaster… is a Metagross?'_ Shane gasped. _'Wicked awesome! I don't see what Tessa doesn't like about this place. It just keeps getting better and better to me.'_

Metagross slowly pivoted to face forward. **Fact: the recruits are Riolu and a human.**

Shane jumped at the Guildmaster's robotic voice. "Cripes!" His tails stiffened. "Wait… you know I'm a human?"

"Ha ha! That's our Guildmaster, for ya," Braviary laughed. "Always calculating things faster than you can even say 'em. How do ya think we keep things running so efficiently here? But, uh, not to disrespect ya or nothing, Guildmaster." He looked at Shane. "It's just, uh, that don't look like no human to me."

 **Acknowledged. Fact: this Vulpix has memories of things alien to this world. Fact: he seeks to join the guild to find out why he is in our world,** Metagross explained.

"Eh? I never said anything abo– oh, I get it. You read my mind."

 **Fact: conversations detract from my ability to analyze and calculate in peace. Conclusion: read minds to deter idle chatter,** Metagross explained.

 _'Wow, someone must be a real hit at parties, then,'_ Shane thought. _'Wait… he didn't hear that, did he?'_

Metagross' eyes narrowed in a fashion that suggested yes, he very well _did_ hear that.

"So, what do you think, Guildmaster?" Braviary asked. "Should I register these folks, or–?"

 **Order: administer test. Reason: to ascertain the duo's capabilities,** Metagross replied. His eyes flashed blue. **Instructions transferred.**

Braviary blinked rapidly and he rubbed his head with a wing. "Err, right. Still ain't used to them mind games of yours, pardner." He turned back to Shane and Tessa. "Alright, you two, follow me back out." The trio headed toward the office's door.

 _ **Riolu.**_

Tessa froze as Metagross's robotic voice echoed in her head. She cautiously looked back at him.

 _ **Warning: continued dwelling on your family will impair your path to success in this guild.**_

Tessa flinched at this. "… thank you, Guildmaster. I'll, um, try to keep that in mind." She clasped her hands against her chest and shuffled out of the room, keeping her head bowed low. Out in the assembly area, she spotted the tips of Shane's tails disappearing up the stairs and quickly sprinted after him. She made it back up to the entrance and stopped next to Shane. Tessa hunched over, trying to catch her breath.

"Alright, eyes and ears on me, you two," Braviary ordered, pacing back and forth by the front door. Shane and Tessa stood at attention. "A big part of working fer the guild is helping us maintain an adequate stock of resources," Braviary explained. "Can't have folks going hungry, fer example."

"Our big test is… a food run?" Shane rolled his eyes. "Heh." He glanced at Tessa. "And you were worried."

"Son, we don't take kindly to folks who interrupt 'round these parts," Braviary said. Shane stiffened and looked away, biting his lower lip. "Now then, our resident cook, Steenee, had gone to Dewdrop Woods to get food yesterday. But she ended up losing one of the guild's looplets in the process. Them things are mighty valuable. So, the Guildmaster wants y'all to find it."

"Uh, question?" Shane raised a forepaw. "Who's to say another Pokémon didn't already snatch it up? That'd make a journey there pretty pointless, wouldn't you say? Besides, don't Mystery Dungeons always change their appearance? That looplet could be anywhere by now."

Braviary's brow furrowed. "Now look here, feller, I hope ya ain't trying to be cute. Fer one, looplets are plum useless if'n you ain't the exploring type. And second, everyone knows Mystery Dungeons out here don't work like them kooky ones they got overseas." He shook his head. "Are you sure you know what yer doing here, pardner?"

"Ignore him, Braviary," Tessa said. "You heard the Guildmaster. He's human. He doesn't know any better!"

Shane gave her a confused look. "Huh. I reckon I hadn't considered that," Braviary muttered. "Ah well. Guess you'll just have to learn about Horizon dungeons the old-fashioned way. By brute force, ha ha!" He reached in his satchel and pulled out a piece of paper and a glowing blue orb. "This here is directions to where Steenee went. And this is an Escape Orb. Use it when yer done or if'n y'all end up in over your heads. You, uh, do know about these things, yes?"

Tessa stared at it in confusion. "They magically teleport us out of the dungeon, right?" Shane asked.

"Heh, guess you do know a bit after all, hoss," Braviary chuckled. "Yeah, it'll warp you to the forest's edge lickety split."

Tessa's eyes widened. "But wouldn't that be painful?" she gulped.

"Nah. These here orbs are enchanted by psychic-types. Just, y'know, don't eat a ton before you use it fer the first time," Braviary explained. Tessa pocketed the orb and tightly gripped the direction sheet. "Well, if'n y'all got no questions, yer dismissed. Guildmaster expects a result one way or another by sundown."

Shane's eyes widened. "Then we'd better get a move on. C'mon, Riolu!" He turned and dashed for the door.

"Hey, wait!" Tessa lumbered after him. "You don't even know where you're going, you ditz!"

* * *

 **~Dewdrop Woods~**

The entrance to Dewdrop Woods lay just on the outskirts of Aeon Town. The massive wall of trees – Shane remembered it from pursuing the would-be scarf thieves – had an opening in it that let inside the forest. As soon as they stepped through the entrance, the forest swallowed them up. Massive trees hung over their heads. Their thick, leafy branches blocked out most of the bright sunshine they had enjoyed on their walk over. Only tiny beams of light could weave their ways through openings in the treeline. The rest of the forest was as shady as any beach umbrella Shane had ever sat under in his days as a human. Interspersed between the trees were patches of thick bushes. Some held thorns. Other produced flowers that assaulted Shane's nose with a bevy of soothing aromas.

Shane and Tessa proceeded down a path that winded its way through the foliage. Rich, earthy soil crunched underneath their paws with every step, releasing a fragrance that reminded Shane of the parks he had gone and played in as a kid. Every so often, he and Tessa found themselves tripping over a hidden root. But, other than that, the trek was quite uneventful. Shane took note of the multitude of swollen roots protruding from the trees. Each time he got near one, he crouched low, expecting a wild Pokémon to pop out. But when nothing happened, his confusion grew.

"Okay, this is really bugging me now," Shane finally spoke up after they had trekked pretty far into the forest. "Why is there this nice pathway through the middle of a Mystery Dungeon? Where are the wild Pokémon jumping us at every turn? And why do you have _directions around this place_ if it's supposed to change its appearance every time someone goes in and out of it?" Tessa continued starting at the direction sheet. "Hey, aren't you going to answer me?"

She sighed. "You really don't know, huh?"

"No, I don't. And I'd appreciate an answer. Unless you don't know either," Shane said.

"Sorry. You said you'd done some reading and you seemed like you knew what you were talking about with Mystery Dungeons," Tessa said, scratching the back of her head. "I guess you only know about the ones overseas."

"Yeah. Okay. I admit it. Now, what's the deal with dungeons in Horizon?" Shane asked.

"Simple. Rather than being labyrinths made up of floors, our dungeons are giant landmasses," Tessa explained. "Like this big forest, for example. The dungeons are separated from civilized towns by natural boundaries."

"So, like that giant wall of really thick, really dark trees we walked through at the start?" Shane wondered.

Tessa nodded. "Exactly. As for the other stuff, since the dungeons are stationary landmasses, they're not always changing their layouts," Tessa continued. "The Land Spirits decide when to change them. When I was a pup, my parents told me they can terraform the whole continent using their signature move: Nature's Madness."

Shane stopped walking, blinking rapidly as he tried to process Tessa's explanation. "Wait, what? Nature's Madness? Land Spirits? You mean, like the Regi Trio?"

"What? No. The Tapus! How could you not know who they are?" Tessa gasped. "It's their responsibility to keep Horizon's landscape safe. If it wasn't for them reshaping our dungeons, the chaotic energies of ley lines would build up to such a massive degree that the whole continent would break in half and sink into the ocean." As she said that, she fidgeted with her paws and eventually finished by thrusting her arms apart, like she was trying to imitate an explosion.

Shane's ears stood straight up. "Seriously?"

"Seriously." Tessa resumed walking forward, prompting Shane to jog after her. "And when they change the dungeons' landscapes, they try to make safe paths for explorers and other civilized Pokémon to navigate through. That way, we're not disturbing any wild Pokémon's territory. They don't attack us. We try not to bother them. Honestly, it's a good arrangement. And it's worked for us so far. We stayed clear of most of the problems that the other continents experienced."

"Uh... okay," Shane mumbled. "I mean, I recognized 'ley lines,' but everything else in that explanation just kind of went over my head. What's the point of having a guild if the dungeons aren't constantly changing, anyway? Seems like waste of manpower to me." He paused. "Or, I guess, 'monpower." He chuckled at his own lame pun.

Tessa rubbed the bridge of her snout. "Look, we don't have time to stand around debating the semantics of Horizon dungeons. _You_ were the one who wanted to do this. If it bothers you that badly, then take it up with the Guildmaster when we're done here." Tessa carefully sidestepped an enlarged tree root. Shane stole a glance up at the tree line, which towered over his head. One of the branches looked ready to break off and fall down on the bush sitting beside the tree.

"Whatever. Still, it's strange. How do you figure the guild's able to get any food from a place like this?" he asked.

"No idea. I've never been here before, remember?" Tessa replied, going back to looking at the directions. "Okay, looks like we're coming up to a crossroads. We need to take the left path."

"Um, are you sure about that?" Shane trotted forward, glancing down two pathways sectioned off by rows of trees and bushes. "Because I swear I see light from the other path. I think there's a clearing in that direction."

"Who's the one with the directions here?" Tessa reminded him, waving the parchment around. "We're going left."

"Look, just hear me out for a moment. If we _know_ which direction to go, why not investigate the other path?" Shane proposed. "The clearing's real close. Maybe there will be some treasure there?"

"No. We don't need to take unnecessary risks, Vulpix. We're on a timetable here," Tessa pointed out.

"It's minimal risk for a potentially big reward. How impressed would the Guildmaster be if we showed up with the looplet and _actual treasure?_ " Shane said. "I'll bet we'll get fast-tracked to a higher-level status for our team!"

"It's not worth it. Especially when we're not familiar with this ar–"

"Too late!" Shane called from up on the right path. "I'm already heading for the clearing!"

Tessa clenched her free paw into a fist and ran off after him. _'I_ could _just leave him behind,'_ she figured, _'But that's bound to cause more trouble than following him.'_

Shane's form had already disappeared into the bright clearing. "Well, do you see anything?" Tessa asked.

"Just a pond and a couple of nests!" Shane yelled back. "Guess I was mistak– Hey, where did you guys come from?" Tessa tensed up and she quickly increased her speed. "Hey! Ow! _Ow!_ No pecking! I'm not here to cause trouble!" Shane yelped.

 _'Ugh, you idiot!'_ Tessa hissed. She emerged into the clearing, squinting from the sudden influx of light. When her eyes adjusted, she saw Shane running in a panic from a quartet of angrily squawking, black and white birds with sharp, gray beaks.

"Gaaah! I didn't know this was your private roosting grounds. I'm sorry! We're just passing through, I swear!" he yipped. "Whoa!" His forepaw hit a root and he fell forward. Shane tumbled across the ground and fell into the pond on the other side of the clearing with a small splash. The birds hovered by the water's edge, exchanging confused looks.

Tessa rummaged through her satchel and produced a pawful of geo pebbles. _'Way to scare the Pikipeks, dude. And that idiot said we wouldn't need these.'_ Tessa chucked the the pebbles forward, watching them fan out from the tiny cluster they started in. Her trajectory was on the mark and the Pikipeks found themselves peppered by her projectiles.

She ducked back behind a tree. The Pikipeks all looked about in confusion. Suddenly, a plume of pond water doused them as Shane emerged from the pond and released a cloud of snowy air. It instantly froze their already-soaked bodies. The Pikipeks plummeted to the ground and landed on top of each other, forming a veritable stack of frozen Pikipeks. Tessa emerged from her hiding spot while Shane tried to shake out his wet fur.

"S-See?" he said through chattering teeth. "N-No p-p-problems a-at a-a-all!"

"The only reason you didn't end up in trouble was because _I_ stepped in with my – what did you call them again? – oh yeah, 'dead-weight rocks,'" Tessa said, crossing her arms and smirking. "Who's the unprepared one now?"

Shane's legs quivered. "Unless you've got a towel in there, I'm still saying you."

"Oh please, you're fine. You're an ice-type, you'll live," Tessa scoffed.

 _Grooooooooowl!_

"… but all that running around _is_ a problem. For your stomach," Tessa sighed. She pulled one of the apples from her bag. "Here, you need this."

Shane accepted the apple and munched away at it. "… it's a little bitter," he reported.

Tessa rolled her eyes. "You're welcome. Now let's get back to where we _should_ be going. Unless you fancy another swim?"

"Hey now. Maybe I'm secretly trying to learn Aqua Tail?" Shane proposed with a goofy grin. Tessa didn't even respond. She turned and walked back toward the fork in the path. "What? Come on!" Shane jogged after her, small ice shards dropping off his snowy tails. "That was funny. Can't I at least get a chuckle?"

"No!" Tessa barked. "Because this was nothing more than you wasting time. We're lucky you only riled up some Pikipek. It could've been a lot worse! Bewear live in these woods, you know!"

"I told you, we have nothing to worry about," Shane scoffed. "Like the Guildmaster would send us off to some terrifying labyrinth." He flicked his forepaw. "And that last sentence of yours was grammatically incorrect. 'Beware live in these woods?' Ooooh… very scary! What should I beware of, exactly? Giant tree leaves?"

 _'Come on, Vulpix, throw me a bone. You're the stranger to this land,'_ Tessa groaned. "Ugh, you're not listening to me," she growled. "Sometimes things aren't as clear-cut as you think they are."

Shane rolled his eyes. "Nice piece of wisdom there. You get that off the back of a fortune cookie? I prefer something along the lines of, 'don't dwell on the what-ifs.'"

"Fine then. Once we're officially in the guild, if you want to do a bunch of crazy missions on your own, no one's stopping you."

"That would defeat the point of us being a team," Shane pointed out.

"If we're supposed to be a team then at least try to understand where I'm coming from," Tessa snapped. "I know you think this is exciting… but there's _real danger_ out here. And I want to avoid it as best I can."

Shane ignored her. "Hey." His eyes narrowed. "I think I saw something sparkle in the distance. Are there any other directions on your list?"

Tessa scowled. "Were you even listening to me?"

"I'm serious, Riolu." Shane proceeded forward, crouching low to the ground. "I think we might've found it. Do your directions mention anything about veering off further to the left?"

Tessa sighed and checked the sheet. "Yes," she replied. "Apparently this path currently leads to four different areas with fruit growing in them. We want the leftmost one."

"Excellent!" Shane chirped, padding forward confidently. The duo continued on the path, with Tessa taking the time to eat an apple. As she finished, she saw something sparkle up ahead. She noticed the path splitting off in four directions. Shane turned into the leftmost one and she followed him. The path led to a small incline, which descended into a dusty, dirt-filled pit. A single sparkling tree grew out of the center. While it wasn't as large as the trees surrounding the pit, it stood out, since it sat in the center of a ring of sunlight that made its golden leaves glisten.

"Whoa!" Shane gasped. "Check out the apples in that tree. They're _huge_. Like, as big as our faces!"

"Yeah," Tessa whispered. "How is that tree not collapsing?" She looked down and noticed Shane had already reached the base of the tree.

"Hey, I found the sparkly thing," he announced. "But it's a chest. I'm pretty sure looplets don't look like this."

"Yeah, you're right." Tessa jogged down toward the chest.

"I guess the directions were mistaken?" Shane thought aloud. "Still, as long as we're here, we might as well help ourselves to whatever goodies are inside." He rubbed his forepaws together eagerly.

"Hang on, Vulpix. That might not be such a good id–"

"HOLD IT!"

The two canines jumped and whirled around. They spotted a mongoose with bright yellow hair sitting on one of the tree's branches. "I know I didn't just catch youse two tryin' to make off wit' our treasure."

Shane raised an eyebrow. "What the heck are you supposed to be? A Furret wearing an ugly wig?"

"Vulpix! Yungoos are very sensitive about their hair," Tessa scolded. But the damage was already done. Yungoos flung the apple by his side at Shane, who hollered as the fruit splattered against his face and doused him in applesauce.

"Gaaaaah!" He stumbled back. "Hey, that stings!"

"Yeah, it should," Yungoos snickered. "Like da sting of some lout tryin' to run off wit' ya goods!" He looked down at the ground. "Now, Trapinch!"

The soil started to shift under Tessa's feet. She squeaked in surprise and jumped away from the tree. The treasure box sank beneath the dirt. Tessa scanned the ground. "Nnngh, c'mon you stupid aura feelers. Sense something!" She flicked one of the baubles on her head.

The spot where the box previously sat had given way to a small, round, orange head with beady black eyes. "Treasure box is secured, Yungoos," Trapinch announced.

"Excellent." Yungoos rubbed his forepaws together. "Now, we show dese two losers what happens to Pokémon who try to steal from us."

"No… no… wait. Please wait." Tessa threw up her paws. "This is all a _big_ misunderstanding. We're not after any treasure. We're just trying to find something our friend left here while she was gathering food yesterday."

"… ha! Likely story," Yungoos dismissed. "Does it _look_ like dere's anyt'ing valuable around here dat ain't edible?"

"Um… no. But, that's only because we just got here," Tessa insisted. "Give my partner and me a second to check in some of these bushes and, um, maybe we'll find something."

Tessa heard Shane spit mushed apple from his mouth. "Oh, we are _so_ not backing down!" he hissed, rubbing sticky residue from his eyes. "Not after that ugly Furret threw an _apple_ at me. Why do you 'mons get off on making white-furred folk messy, anyway? Get a hobby!"

"Vulpix, wait. We can talk this out with th–"

Shane spat a snowball up toward the tree. Yungoos dug his claws into the branch and spun around it. He dropped down to the ground, dodging the stream of snowflakes. "Okay, dat tears it! Da two of youse ain't walking outta here wit'out a heaping mess of bruises!" He snapped at the air with his large fangs.

"Vulpix, seriously?" Tessa barked. She turned back to Yungoos. "Please… _please_ excuse my idiot of a partner over here. He got attacked by some Pikipeks earlier and I think it made him delirio–"

Beside her, Shane lunged for Trapinch. But Trapinch disappeared into his hole and Shane ended up headbutting the apple tree. "Ow!" He stumbled backward. "No fair, going underground like that." His eyes darted about the ground. "You can't hide forever! Come out and take your Powder Snow like a man… err… bug-worm thingy. You get the idea!"

Yungoos turned and glared at Tessa, who promptly facepalmed.

 _'Oh, for heaven's sake… I sure hope the other heroes stumbled in their first days, too.'_

* * *

Next time: Shane and Tessa experience an impromptu teamwork exercise. And go for a little tour, too.


	4. The Guilded Age

**Chapter 4: The Guilded Age**

Yungoos lowered his head and charged Tessa down. The sight reminded her of the battle with Sneasel and Jangmo-o. She opted to use the exact same strategy. Tessa braced her arms against her body. Yungoos struck her in the thighs, shoving her back slightly. But Tessa swung a glowing fist around and socked Yungoos in the jaw.

"Gack!" Yungoos shouted. Tessa's counter upended him, leaving him sprawled on his back. Tessa stole a glance at Shane, who had jumped onto a tree root to dodge Trapinch leaping out from the ground. Satisfied, she returned her attention to Yungoos.

"Not bad," he complimented. "Dat smarted quite a bit. But now dat I know what I'm dealing with…"

Yungoos turned around and kicked the ground with his legs. Tessa gasped as dirt buffeted her face. She stumbled back, rubbing her eyes and blinking them rapidly. Yungoos' eye gleamed and he charged Tessa again. Tessa couldn't see him through her watery vision. He body-slammed her right to the ground, then sprang up to run down Shane.

"C'mon, Riolu!" Shane barked, his Powder Snow trail missing Trapinch again. "I've got to focus on Trapinch. My attacks are more effective on him!"

"Too bad, so sad," Yungoos taunted. "Now, Trapinch!"

As Tessa tried to right herself, the ground shifted beneath her. Trapinch shot up into her back, knocking her even further away from Shane. "Nnnngggh…" Tessa groaned. She pivoted her head to see Trapinch running forward. He vanished into thin air.

Tessa recognized the technique from her previous battle and jumped back. Trapinch's shadowy form just barely missed her. Tessa opened her mouth and bit into Trapinch. Black shadows danced across Trapinch's body. "Ouchies!" he squealed and flailed his limbs about. Tessa fell to the ground on top of him, pinning him down.

"Can't tunnel away now, can you?" Tessa declared, restraining the ground-type.

"Yungoos! I could use some help here," Trapinch shouted. Yungoos kicked a stream of dirt into Shane's face. Shane gasped and the blast of snow he was focusing on went awry. Tessa's eyes widened and she rolled off Trapinch. Slush grazed the corner of her right shoulder, sending a chill down her arm.

"Vulpix, you dolt! You almost hit me," Tessa hissed. "Watch where you're aim– AUGH!" Trapinch cut off her complaint by successfully running into her from the shadows. This widened the distance between Tessa and Shane yet again.

"It's not my fault," Shane growled. "You were supposed to stay on Yungoos. This match-up's unfavorable. We need to switch targets!" He quickly shot a snowball to give himself cover for a charge toward Trapinch. However, the sand clouding his vision made the attack sail clear of Yungoos yet again. Yungoos ran after Shane and struck him from behind. Shane fell to the ground and the wind rushed out of him.

"Heh… trying to weasel out of t'ings, eh? Dere's a Pursuit for your troubles," Yungoos snickered. "Y'know, you and Riolu dere ain't much of a team, are ya?"

"I… can… handle things myself!" Shane grunted. Next thing Yungoos knew, he had a face full of Shane's frigid tails.

"Nyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaargh!" he gasped and dropped to the ground, struggling to catch his breath. "What is your problem? Youse don't just shove your tails in someone's face like dat! Dat ain't natural," he spat.

Shane buffeted Yungoos with a point-blank stream of slushy snow, freezing him to the ground. "Heh… how's that for a creative use of Tail Whip?" Shane boasted. "Hey, Tessa, check it out! I've put this guy on ice. See, nothing to worry abo–"

"Stop bragging and get over here!" Tessa barked. She lunged toward Trapinch with a burst of speed. But her Quick Attack went wide as Trapinch burrowed underground once again. "I need Trapinch distracted so I can heal. I'm not doing too hot."

"That's because you hesitate too much," Shane scoffed. "See? Leaping into battle _can_ have its advantages." He trotted over to her location, scanning the ground. Tessa grabbed an oran berry out of her bag. When she did, Shane spotted movement on the ground behind her. "Duck!" he shouted.

Tessa shoved the berry in her mouth and dropped to her belly. Shane rifled off a snowball, striking Trapinch while he emerged to spear Tessa from behind. Trapinch squealed in pain and retreated underground. "Oh no, not this time!" Shane grunted. "I've got me an idea." He sprinted over to the hole left by Trapinch. He then took a deep breath in and exhaled as much snow as he could manage straight into the hole. The soil around him froze over.

"Like that's really going to do anything," Tessa sneered. "How slow do you think a Trapinch moves underground?"

One second later, Shane found himself sprawled out on his belly. Trapinch dug into him from behind and jumped off his torso to lunge at Tessa. Her eyes widened, but she held her ground, preparing to counter him if necessary. Yet, to her surprise, Trapinch's momentum carried him beyond her reach. Instead, Trapinch landed and then bit into the ice around Yungoos' legs. "Nice moves dere, bud," Yungoos said.

"You doing okay?" Trapinch asked.

"Better dan dose schmucks, dat's for sure," Yungoos chuckled. "Quick, while they're still split up."

"Got it." Trapinch nodded and dug back into the ground. Yungoos darted in Shane's direction. Shane prepared to keep Yungoos at bay, but Yungoos proved faster on the draw and splattered more dirt across Shane's face. His head pivoted away and he shot snowy air in Tessa's direction. She had her back turned to him, so the slushy spiral struck her, soaking her fur.

She staggered forward, enabling Trapinch to slam into her thighs from underground. This made her collapse onto her back. "Vulpix!" Tessa howled. "What did I just tell you before? Mind your surroundings!" She awkwardly rolled to her feet and accelerated into Trapinch. This put enough distance between the two of them for Tessa to scarf down part of an apple and pull out a few of her pebbles.

"It wasn't my fault," Shane sputtered, spitting out bits of sand. "This guy's playing dirty… _literally._ "

"It ain't dirty, it's _strategic,_ " Yungoos boasted. "Da two of youse ain't in sync at all. Your teamwork's laughable."

"Well, we haven't worked together all that long," Shane panted. "But all I've got to do is freeze you again and make it a two-on-one scenario."

"Yeah, fat chance I'm letting dat happen again!" Yungoos bellowed. He lowered his head and charged at Shane. If Shane wanted to dodge, it would only put more distance between him and Tessa.

 _'But she's pretty fast,'_ he figured. Shane scampered back until Yungoos stumbled to a stop. "Tessa!" he shouted. "We need to regroup!"

"Don't call me that! And don't you tell me what to do. It's your bad decision making that's put us in this spot," Tessa growled, hurling the rocks at Trapinch. He avoided them by darting into the shadows. Tessa bolted forward and collided with his shadow-encased body. Both Pokémon bounced back, but Trapinch manage to tunnel underground.

"I'm serious here. They're trying to keep us apart on purpose," Shane declared. "You've got to believe m– EEP!" He ducked a plume of dirt from Yungoos and coated the ground with Powder Snow. Yungoos started slipping and sliding about.

"If we battle next to each other, we're bound to hit each other," Tessa countered.

"Look, just trust me on this one. We can't coordinate this far away!" Shane begged.

"Then do to Yungoos what you did to Jangmo-o back on the cape. Roar him away so I can approach safely!" Tessa ordered.

Shane blinked in surprise. "Wait… that was Roar? I just thought I, uh, hit him with some kinda psychic attack…"

Tessa scowled. "You mean you didn't even know you could use Roar? What was the point of training these last few days? I _told_ you to practice _all_ of your moves!"

"I… I practiced Powder Snow plenty," Shane muttered.

"Are you _sure_ about that? Because you could've fool–"

Trapinch emerged from the ground, cutting off Tessa. She jumped back to dodge him. Likewise, Yungoos charged at Shane once again. This time Shane held his ground. He took in a deep breath and let out a shrill, watchdog-like bark. Yungoos gasped in surprise before tumbling across the forest dirt and skidding to a halt by the tree.

"There. I got him," Shane wheezed.

"Great! Now move your frosty butt over here," Tessa barked, grappling with Trapinch. Shane turned and spat on the ground. Then he ran over to Tessa

 _'But, I can't just use Powder Snow. I'll hit Tessa too,'_ he realized. _'C'mon, there's gotta be something I can do. Concentrate… concentrate...'_

A spark ignited in Shane's mind. He narrowed his eyes fiercely at Trapinch. Before Trapinch could react, a pink glow encapsulated his body and hoisted him into the air. Trapinch yelped as the glow erupted into a burst of pink light, flinging him across the forest. Yungoos' eyes widened. He dove for cover behind a large root. His partner struck the front of the root and slid down to the ground.

"Ha ha, yes!" Shane whooped, hopping about excitedly. "Guess who just learned a new move to save the day? This guy, that's who!" He puffed his chest out proudly. "Oh, the Pokémon anime would be so proud of me right now." He flashed Tessa a confident grin. She stared at him with a look of disbelief.

"That… what even was that?" she gasped. "It looked like Psychic, but…"

"Hmm." Shane tapped a forepaw to his chin, "I know some normal Vulpixes can hatch knowing Extrasensory. Maybe these bizarre, ice-type ones can too? In which case, that only makes me more awesome than I could have imagined! I'll bet the humans in your stories didn't get any egg moves this great. Assuming they even got some in the first place."

 _'Is this how it's going to work for us? Is Vulpix going to obscenely strong, but in return act like a total brat? I can't see us actually succeeding like that.'_ Tessa grit her teeth. "Will you quit patting yourself on the back until _after_ we've saved our own hides?"

Yungoos scrambled out from his tree root hiding spot. "Youse t'ink yer clever keeping an attack like dat under wraps?" he barked. "Den dat just means I gotta take ya out first!" He sprang out from his hiding spot, only for Tessa to bolt from her location and body-check Yungoos. The force of the collision hurtled Yungoos into a nearby tree root. He struck it and slid onto his stomach, a dazed look in his eyes. Tessa approached him, fists raised to strike.

Yungoos immediately raised up his forepaws. "I yield! I yield! Enough… enough… youse two passed da test."

Tessa's stance slouched. "Wait… this was a test?"

A cocky grin flashed across Shane's muzzle. "Ha _haaaaa!_ See, what did I tell you, Riolu?" He confidently swaggered up to Tessa. "Nothing. To. Worry. About," he declared, jabbing her back with his forepaw for each and every word.

Tessa's expression fell. "I… I don't understand. Weren't we supposed to fetch a looplet for the guild?"

"Yeah, dat was a ruse. Sorry 'bout dat," Yungoos announced. He quickly scurried behind the tree root and reappeared carrying the treasure box from earlier. Yungoos opened the box and pulled out two anklets a pair of badges. Each one had a silver version of the overlapping sun and moon insignia Shane and Tessa saw at the guild. But this time it was boarded by a pair of fiery-orange wings. "My partner and I are wit' da guild," Yungoos exclaimed. "Dese are our badges."

"Wait… but we came _right_ to Dewdrop Woods from Aeon Town," Tessa exclaimed. "How could you possibly have gotten here to set this up for us?"

"We've been here since dis mornin'," Yungoos reported. "Guildmaster came up to us and was all like, 'Beep boop… a vision told me we're gettin' new recruits. So I'm gonna have youse test 'em in da woods.' And, well, can't exactly say no to da Guildmaster." Yungoos slid an anklet onto his right foreleg and fastened his badge onto it.

"Though, we've got to give you credit, Riolu. Trying to talk your way out of a potential conflict is always preferable to battling," Trapinch said. Shane's proud expression vanished in a heartbeat.

"It... it is?" he said.

Trapinch nodded. "I mean, it wouldn't have worked in this case, because we were ordered to goad you into a fight if you tried to resolve things peacefully. Still, it was the right mindset. It should serve you well, going forward."

Shane pouted. "That's _your_ opinion," he muttered under his breath.

"Great, so dat's all settled. By da way, if it ain't obvious, your so-called looplet? It ain't here."

"Seriously? Then what are we supposed to show back up to the guild with?" Shane asked.

"Well," Trapinch weakly muttered, having regained consciousness. "The Guildmaster's not a particular guy…" Trapinch dug into the treasure box. He managed to heft out an extraordinarily large apple. It was as big as the ones up in the tree. But this one sparkled in the afternoon sunlight. "… you won't get a rise out of him. But if you show this to Braviary, you'll pass. I guarantee it."

"That is one gnarly apple," Shane observed.

"Perfect Apple, actually," Trapinch corrected. "They're a personal favorite of Braviary's." Tessa and Shane both raised eyebrows at this. "Don't look so confused. Everyone who has to take the entrance exam comes here to battle a couple of guild apprentices. The Perfect Apple is the symbol of your victory."

"Even if it _was_ a lucky coinci–"

"Now, now, Yungoos. They beat us fair and square," Trapinch scolded.

"Right. But I still meant what I said. Youse two better hone your teamwork, if youse gonna contribute to da guild," Yungoos declared.

"Heh." Shane rubbed the tip of his snout. "I think we'll be just fine." He stepped forward and rolled the Perfect Apple over to Tessa. "So, what's say we use that Escape Orb and make our way back?"

Tessa picked up the Perfect Apple and inspected it. "Yeah, I guess that's the next step."

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Well, shoot. That's a mighty fine Perfect Apple y'all managed to dig up." Braviary gripped the oversized fruit in his talons and rolled it beside him. "And it's fresh and everything. Eeyup. I reckon you two pass with flying colors! I'd expect nothing less of ya, Riolu."

Shane smiled broadly while Tessa rubbed her left shoulder and looked away.

"Aww, y'all ain't sore about me lying to ya about the test, are ya?" Braviary asked. "I promise that's the only lie I'll make about any assignment y'all take in the guild."

"It's fine, Braviary," Shane insisted. "Riolu's just not in a celebratory mood, I suppose." He shot his partner a look that screamed, "Get with the program."

"Now, let's go see the Guildmaster and finalize y'all's registration," Braviary declared. "Then we can get on with the introductory stuff. Y'all finished quickly, which is great. Gives ya plenty of time to settle in." Braviary guided them back into Metagross' chambers. Metagross levitated parchment and an ink pad over toward them.

 **Order: generate name for your exploration team. Order: sign pawprints on guild contract,** Metagross stated. He set the page and ink pad down in front of them.

"Ah, right, the all-important team naming," Shane acknowledged, turning to Tessa. "You better not suggest something cheesy like Team Poképals. That's stupid. We need to be more creative than that."

"I wasn't about to suggest anything like that," Tessa growled. She turned away, biting her lip. _'Oof... so much for trying to take after my heroes.'_

"Okay, at least we agree on that part," Shane chirped. "Now, we've got to think of something cool. To show everyone that we don't mess around. Maybe something like Team Frostbite? Cause I can use ice attacks and you can bite stuff?"

Tessa's eyes narrowed. "Absolutely not. I will not have our team name revolve around a lame mishmash of words."

"Fine then." Shane flicked a forepaw. "How about Team K9? Cause we're both dogs, in a manner of speaking?" Tessa gave that idea a thumbs down. Shane frowned. "Well, if you don't like those, then maybe we need a name that exudes power? How about Team Iron Fist or Team Shellcracker or Team Vortex?"

Tessa fiddled with her scarf. "I'd prefer something that sounds more… positive. We're not trying to intimidate others. Guild explorers are supposed to help Pokémon."

"I'm aware of that, you know," Shane grumbled. "And you're not being all that helpful. You could at least try offering a suggestion."

Tessa looked up at him. "What about Team Radiance?" Shane raised a skeptical eyebrow. "It sounds uplifting," Tessa continued. "Y'know, something like, 'Through darkest night and brightest day, Team Radiance always finds a way.'"

Shane blinked in surprise. "That's… great! I really like it!" His tails wagged excitedly. "Yeah, Team Radiance. It's bright. It's bubbly. And it goes well with the whole 'sky motif' this guild seems to have going for it." He glanced at the tapestry on the far wall.

 **Accepted. Sign contract to finalize registration,** Metagross instructed.

Shane dipped his left forepaw into the ink pad and stamped it on the bottom of the parchment.

"Now hang on, Vulpix. Don't you think you should at least read this over fir–?"

Shane grabbed Tessa's paw, dipped it into the ink, and stamped it down next to his pawprint. She gave him a look of utter disbelief. "You… you… you…" She stuttered.

 **Generic congratulatory statement. Fact: you are official novice members of the Horizon Exploration Guild,** Metagross announced. His eyes flared blue and a box levitated down toward Braviary. **Fact: this box contains your starter's kit. Braviary will explain its contents. Order: be prepared to take up your first assignment tomorrow morning. Statement of farewell.** Metagross turned and stomped back toward the far end of his room. Braviary steered the newly-dubbed Team Radiance out of Metagross' office. He set the box down and opened it up.

"Right, let's get a few things squared away first," Braviary announced. "Yer supplies. They're a bit limited since y'all are novices. But if'n y'all graduate to apprentice or veteran rank, we'll have more to offer you. In the meantime, here are the basics." He produced two badges similar to the ones they saw Yungoos and Trapinch had. They each accepted a badge and pinned it to their half of the rainbow scarf.

"Yer badges. They're bronze because yer rookies," Braviary explained. "Silver badges denote apprentices. Gold badges are guild veterans. Gray badges are fer staff members of the guild. And, well..." He lifted a wing to showcase a platinum badge. "... the Guildmaster and I have our own special ones. Now, them badges will get you access to exploration items from the Kecleon Shop, as well as a storage space at Dhelmise Depot. It also gets you discounts at a buncha places in Aeon Town," Braviary continued. "Graduate to a higher rank and y'all will get better discounts. Sound good?"

Shane and Tessa nodded in unison. Braviary next pulled out a map. "Standard issue Wonder Map. Nothing special to say here." He handed it over to Tessa, then pulled out what looked like a smaller version of her satchel. He spun it around one of his wings. "This here's an explorer's pouch. Much better than yer run-of-the-mill bag. No matter what you stuff in it, it don't change size."

Tessa accepted the pouch and examined it. The fabric felt a lot more durable than her current bag. "Wait, how does that work? Is it TARDIS technology?" Shane asked, sniffing at the pouch.

"What-is? That some sorta human world thingamajig?" Braviary asked, scratching his head. "We ain't exactly got a lot of stories about humans. Aside from the handful of world-saving ones."

Shane laughed nervously. "Y'know what? Forget I said anything. It's probably just filled with Palkia's shed scales or something."

 **Actually, an acquaintance helped me generate the energy needed to produce those.**

Team Radiance jumped at an unfamiliar robotic voice. Unlike Metagross, this one sounded female. They turned to their lefts and spotted a metallic, humanoid creature comprised of multiple spheres walking toward them. Its head was an oversized gear with metal, rabbit-like ears. Shane's eyes lit up. "Coooooool! A steampunk robot." He jumped beside the creature, ogling it. "All we need is to find you a Victorian dress, a monocle, and maybe stick a few exhaust pipes on your head and shoulders and–"

"Vulpix!" Tessa barked, her face bright red with embarrassment. She stepped forward and dragged him back. "You can't just accost strangers like that."

 **That is okay. Most new members are intrigued by my appearance. I find their reactions seventeen percent amusifying,** the robot exclaimed. **I am Magearna. I am the guild's equipment and technical specialist.**

"Eeyup. Mags here helps us make the things we use out in the field," Braviary reiterated. "She's also our resident expert on looplets and emeras. If'n ya ever got a question about 'em, she's yer 'mon." He turned to Magearna. "This here's Team Radiance: Vulpix and Riolu."

 **On the subject of looplets, Braviary, I must ask something of Vulpix,** Magearna exclaimed. She walked toward Shane and grabbed his left foreleg. **Such curiositude! It appears you already have a looplet. But… hmm… this is not one of the standard looplet designs.**

"Wait, that's what this is?" Shane looked down at the band on his foreleg.

"Now that's funny." Braviary scratched his head. "If'n yer a human who just showed up here, how'd ya get yer mits on a looplet?"

"I don't know. Riolu said I already had it on my foreleg when I woke up on the beach," Shane announced.

 **Wait. There is further shockification,** Magearna announced. **There is some sort of gemstone in this looplet. My sensors read emera-like qualities. However, this is like no emera I have detectified in recent years. It appears** _ **embedded**_ **into this looplet.** She held Shane's foreleg up toward Braviary. **See for yourself.**

"Huh, yer right. This Looplet's done got all four notches open." Braviary rubbed his beak. "But this glowing stone in the middle looks _just_ like an emera."

 **Begging cycle initiated,** Magearna announced. **I must requesticate that you allow me to examine this looplet in closer detail. I am sure I have seen this somewhere before, but I need to check my record banks. Perhaps it houses some sort of secret?**

"Well, I'd really love to, but I can't get the darn thing off. It's stuck to my leg." Shane demonstrated by attempting to push the Looplet off with his right forepaw, to no avail.

 **Disappointment levels have surged to thirty-five percent,** Magearna sighed. **Well, if you discoverize anything new about your looplet, do come see me. My curiosity sensors are definitely firing on all cylinders.** She gave Team Radiance a curt bow and retreated down the northwestern hallway.

 _'So, Vulpix ended up here and somehow got hold of a looplet?'_ Tessa gasped, her heart fluttering. _'Ohh... I don't want to get excited for nothing, but it's looking more and more like I may have been blessed with a ticket to a happier life. If only he wasn't so... crass.'_

Braviary shrugged. "Err, I suppose I should give y'all yer starting looplets, then. Or, rather…" He pulled a small band out of the box. "… give Tessa one. Seeing as Vulpix's already got one." He tossed the looplet to Tessa.

"Please call me Riolu," Tessa whispered while she slipped on the Looplet.

"If'n you say so. And to go with the looplets, here are a pair of emeras." He tossed Tessa a pair of glowing, teardrop-shaped stones. "A paralysis guard and a sleep guard. Now, y'all don't need to use 'em right away. But if'n you choose to, they've only got enough energy to last one day of exploration. Most folk activate 'em at dawn and they fizzle out at dusk."

"Where can we get more of them?" Shane wondered.

"Town shops is y'all's best bet," Braviary replied. "Otherwise, Magearna can make you some if'n you find her enough stardust."

"Stardust?" Shane parroted. "Like from comet trails?"

Braviary shrugs. "Beats me. No one's sure why stardust falls into Mystery Dungeons. It just does. But that's enough rambling. I've got one last thing for ya."

He pulled out a circular device that had a tiny antenna sticking off of it. _'Huh… kinda looks like a Klefki,'_ Shane thought.

"This here's a…" Braviary frowned. "Oh, now what did Magearna call this doohickey again? Ah, right, a Gear-Com." He handed it over to Tessa. "It's some sort of magic communication thingamajig. It's synched up to Magearna and Guildmaster Metagross, so you can reach one of 'em if'n ya need to. I ain't too sure on the range, but we've tested 'em all around Horizon and they work just fine."

Tessa finished placing the items in her new pouch. To her surprise, it remained surprisingly light. She easily slung it on like a backpack. "Okay, time to get on with the tour," Braviary announced. "Now, this here is the main assembly area. Every morning novices and apprentices gather fer announcements and assignments. Fer the record, if'n y'all make it to veteran status, y'all get a lot more freedom to do as you wish. Don't even have to live here if'n ya don't want to."

"Then I guess we'll just have to rise up through the ranks, eh?" Shane said, grinning at Tessa.

"Let's take it one step at a time, Vulpix," Tessa cautioned.

"It's _Shane_ , partner," Shane chuckled, ignoring her.

Braviary waved a wing in between them. "Y'all can daydream on yer own time. Yer on guild time now, so eyes and ears on me. Now then, this way." He slowly flew across the assembly area. A small pond sat in the southeast corner of the large, circular room.

"Oh no! No, no, no, no!" Shane shuffled backward. "I am _not_ going for another swim. My fur is _dry_ and I am _happy._ " The pond water rippled and out popped a pink and yellow triggerfish.

"Well, helllllooooooooo, dahlings!"

"GYA!" Shane stumbled back, colliding with Tessa in the process. She shoved Shane off her. Braviary shot a wing out to keep Shane from tumbling into the pond. He quickly caught his breath. _'Dear lord. Those lips… and those teeth. Cripes and I thought that Yungoos guy had an ugly mug. Apparently he was just trying to live up to this… fish… thing…'_

"Bruxish, say hello to Team Radiance, our newest recruits. This here's Vulpix and this is Tes– ah, I mean Riolu," Braviary introduced.

Bruxish's eyes widened. "Of coooooooooourse! Lucario's daughter. Oh, you've got your mother's eyes, dahling. I always knew you'd find your way here."

"Um, so, Bruxish, is it?" Shane asked, cautiously approaching the pond. Again, the statement about Tessa's mom flew over his head. "What, uh… are you here for?" Shane jumped back in surprise as Bruxish levitated high out of the pond. _'Waah! That scary fish is_ psychic? _Oh, this keeps getting weirder and weirder."_

"Well, I _aaaaaaaaam_ an apprentice. I specialize in water area navigation," Bruxish explained. "But, of course, not everyone wants to explore places like that. So, most of the time, I help with move and ability maintenance."

"Eeyup. If'n you got the coin, Bruxish here can help you learn some special moves," Braviary explained.

"And if you're _really_ willing to pay up, I can even swap your ability, dahling," Bruxish continued. "Very helpful in a piiiiiiinch, wouldn't you say?"

 _'Uh, I don't even know what my ability is, so I'm not sure that'll help much,'_ Shane thought, but held his tongue. Tessa remained silent.

"Okay, let's get a move on." Braviary shuffled Team Radiance forward. He guided them along a small hallway leading to the south part of the building. Both Shane and Tessa slowed their pace toward the end. They hovered at the edge of a small, circular room. There was a closed door embedded in the far wall, blending in seamlessly with the wall except for a faint outline. A desk sat beside it, as did a large machine containing a glowing globe floating above a stone pedestal.

But Shane's and Tessa's gazes stayed locked on the two Pokémon lying on cushions beside the globe. They both recognized Growlithe. But neither knew what to make of Growlithe's partner. It lay still, staring down at the ground through its large, stone helmet. The talons on its forelegs gripped the edge of its cushion tightly, while its canine, scale-covered hind legs rested against the wall. A fish's tail lazily drifted back and forth between its hips. The gemstones lining its tail glinted in the pale light from the globe.

"What… what is _that?_ " Shane gasped. "Is it even alive? Is that supposed to be an enchanted statue? Because it's a real eyesore."

Tessa turned and gave him a look. "Could you be any ruder?" she hissed in a whisper.

"Oh, come on. Don't give me that. Even by weirdo Pokémon standards, that thing's _creepy._ Just listen to it breathing. All raspy and wheezy... like it's been smoking a pack a day for its entire life."

"Yes, it's weird. But if it's part of the guild, we need to be _respectful_ toward it… whatever it is," Tessa said. _'Or else it looks like it'll tear us to shreds!'_ she gulped.

"Howdy, Null." Braviary saluted the helmeted creature with a wing. "Any activity lately?"

The strange Pokémon shook its head about, letting out a loud, raspy groan. Shane's fur stood on end and his tails shot into the air. _'That's not normal… that's not normal! Keep me away from that freak.'_

"Nothing to report, sir. Aside from those two newcomers, we've had a quiet day," Growlithe said. He spotted Shane and Tessa. "Oh, hey, it's the newcomers." He waved at them. "Hiya, I know we already met. But let me officially say welcome. I'm Growlithe!" he barked excitedly. "I'm glad you're both here. We need more pups around this place, if you ask me. Any fire-related troubles, you come see me. There's nothing I'm not willing to burn." His tail thumped again the cushion. "Normally, I'm not on sentry duty. I'm just filling in for Trapinch today."

"Sentry duty?" Shane looked around the room in confusion. "You mean, you guys do that here?"

Braviary nodded. "That there pedestal you saw outside the entrance? It senses any Pokémon's presence. When it does…" He turned toward the globe-like structure. "… our Pokénector detects what kind of Pokémon they are. If'n they're from one of the continent's towns or villages, we know. But if'n they're from out in the wild or one of the other continents, well that's when you alert me or the Guildmaster."

Shane stared inquisitively at the globe. "So, is this like the Pokémon Nexus, then?"

"Ha! Yer pardner's got a good head on his shoulders, Riolu," Braviary chuckled. "If only he didn't have the lip."

"Well, how else would I talk?" Shane quipped. Tessa facepalmed.

"That ain't funny, son. But yer right. Magearna made this after studying the Pokémon Nexus over at the Water Continent's Expedition Society," Braviary explained. "Unfortunately, it ain't quite as impressive as their doohickey is. Their science guy is mighty protective over it, from what I hear. That, and we need to keep the Pokénector up to date by sending guild members to the different areas 'round Horizon."

"Horizon… that's the name of this continent, right?" Shane asked.

"Yeah," Tessa finally spoke up. She pulled out her Wonder Map and opened it up, showcasing the continent.

"Huh, kind of looks like a donut with a chip in the middle of it," Shane observed. "What's the island in the center?"

"Rainbow Island," Braviary answered. "That there place is off-limits, no matter how good of an explorer you get to be. It's a sacred spot."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. Ho-Oh used it as a roosting spot in ancient times," Growlithe reported. "Isn't that awesome? The amazing immortal Legendary bird that spits rainbow fire once treated this place like a second home."

 _'Guess I know who the dominating Legendary is around these parts,'_ Shane thought, chuckling. "What about you, big guy?" He turned toward the helmeted Pokémon. "Anything to say?"

It was at that point that Null looked up. His beady gray eyes zeroed in on Shane. His fur bristled, allowing Shane to see the thick coating of scales lying underneath. Null suddenly shot to his feet and a let out a furious roar. He looked at Shane, snarling, and dug his talons into his cushion. Stuffing spilled out onto the floor.

"Whoa, Null, take it easy!" Growlithe gasped, jumping to his feet. "Are you having those headaches of yours again?" In response to this, Null snarled. He turned to his side and slammed his head against the wall, leaving a noticeable crack. He took in deep, raspy breaths, and then bashed his head against the exact same spot in the wall, widening the crack.

Shane whimpered and shuffled back toward the hallway, tails shooting between his legs. _'What's going on here? Why was that freakish thing looking at me like it wanted to kill me?'_ he wondered. Braviary turned and hastily guided them away from the sentry station. "Okay… what's up with the big dude in the helmet?" Shane asked, his voice ripe with worry.

"What, y'mean Null? Oh, don't pay him too much mind," Braviary dismissed. "We found him unconscious at Glyphic Falls several months back. No idea how he wound up there. Heck, he didn't have no memories of anything, I reckon. Poor feller don't even know what kind of Pokémon he is. We took him in and he's been with us since. Never leaves the sentry station, though, except to go to his room and sleep. I don't blame him. He can't eat or drink, after all. And we can't seem to get the helmet off him, no matter what we try. I reckon it's making him act kinda... kooky. But he says it's stuck on him."

Shane's body stiffened. _'Wait. This Null guy washes up in some waterfall with no memory?'_ His eyes widened. _'No… no way. He couldn't be like me… could he?'_ He quickly shook his head. _'No! It's not true. Tessa's wrong. I'm not here by accident. Null's situation is just… a coincidence. That's all._

"Something bugging you, Vulpix?" Tessa asked.

"I, uh, just realized how hungry I was!" He laughed nervously and rubbed his underbelly.

"Well, the longer y'all jibber-jabber, the more you delay yer dinner," Braviary chuckled. "C'mon and follow me." Braviary led them next to the western wing of the floor. A series of arched doorways lined the hall. "So, if'n you haven't guessed, novices and apprentices room over here. Showers are down at the end of the hall. Don't y'all let me catch any word of any funny business in there, understand?" Shane and Tessa nodded in unison. "If'n ya reach veteran status, y'all will get offered better lodgings one floor down."

Braviary turned into the first room on the right. Tessa and Shane walked into it. Unlike the assembly area, it had a purely nighttime motif. The walls and ceiling were a mix of dark blue and violet, with tiny swirls of white to represent stars. Luminous orbs hung on either side of the doorway. But the room also had a circular window at its far end, bathing the room in orange sunlight and offering a view of the forest far below the Observatory.

Shane approached the two sky-blue pillows in the center of the room's purple carpet. "Huh… and here I was expecting a straw bed," Shane said. "Fancy."

"You better drop that sass, hoss, or I'll give you a pile of sand to sleep on instead," Braviary harrumphed.

"Sorry, sir," Shane gulped. Tessa walked toward one of the cushions and set the item pouch on it. Satisfied, she followed her teammate back out to the assembly area. They proceeded down the northwest passage that Magearna had gone into earlier.

The hallway led to a spacious room filled with three metal desks. Each one was littered with various diagrams and maps. Shane spotted the base of the Observatory's large telescope sitting on the other end of the room. Magearna sat working at a sheet of parchment with a compass. Atop her desk sat a small, rotund, gray and white hedgehog. She had brown and yellow triangular marks along her back, along with a tiny, bolt-shaped tail.

"Jeez, Pikachu, you've sure put on weight," Shane gasped. "And got old."

The rodent looked right at Shane. "Pikachu? _Pikachu?!_ "

 _THWAAAACK!_

Shane ended up sprawled out on his side. The rodent's triangular markings had extended straight and she dug them into Shane's hide. "Do. _Not._ Call. Me. A. Pikachu!" she hollered.

"Ow! Ow! _Ow!_ Sorry! Sorry! It won't happen again!" Shane sobbed, his eyes comically watering.

"Easy there, Togedemaru." Braviary ruffled his wings, shooing her off of Shane. Tessa kneeled down to help Shane stand up.

"Way to put your paw in your mouth… partner," Tessa deadpanned. "Are you trying to get everyone to hate us here?"

"So many… weird Pokémon… I've never heard of," Shane mumbled. "And look at the Pidgeys… flying around…" He spun in a circle, "Wheeeeeee!"

"Well, on the bright side, this is a perfect segue for our next destination," Braviary mused. Tessa used her shoulder to support Shane as they went into the northern corridor.

This wing ended in what was clearly a nursing station. Half a dozen beds lay evenly spread out across the room, with curtained dividers separating them. A desk and a cabinet sat in the one corner of the room not occupied by a bed. "Comfey, I've got a patient for ya. Togedemaru broadsided him," Braviary announced.

A small, light-green circle floated out from behind a curtain, carrying a trail of flowers. "Ooooooh… look at the pretty flowers…" Shane giggled. He then waved a forepaw in front of his face. "Go away, Pidgeys! I wanna look at the flowers."

"Oh my," Comfey squeaked. "He _does_ seem rather dazed, doesn't he?" She drifted down and strung the flowers around Shane's neck. Comfey released a series of bright, flower-shaped lights. Shane blinked a few times, appearing to come to his senses. "There… all better!" Comfey announced, fluttering back into the air.

"I've… never felt something like that," Shane whispered.

"It's my specialty: Floral Healing," Comfey said. "I'm the resident medic for the guild. It's a pleasure to meet you. And Tessa, you've gotten so big! It's wonderful to see you here."

Tessa clutched her scarf and looked down. "It… It's Riolu," she whispered.

 _Grooooooooooowl!_

"Aha ha… ha… I don't suppose the dining area's the next stop, is it?" Shane laughed nervously.

Braviary smirked. "It just might be, rookie." He led them out of the infirmary and down the eastern hallway, into the dining area.

Shane expected a long table to stretch across the room. Instead, a series of small, circular tables littered the room, with windows sitting between some of them to offer up views of the forest behind Aeon Town. Braviary introduced Team Radiance to Steenee and Tessa managed to clamp Shane's mouth shut before he could make a comment about Steenee resembling a walking piece of fruit. Steenee offered Shane and Tessa a quick meal, which they used to replenish their strength. After that, they both returned to their room.

"Ahhhh… that really hit the spot!" Shane said, stretching out his legs and flopping onto his cushion. "Boy, what an eventful day. But we made it. We're in the guild!" he exclaimed. "And with all these amazing Pokémon, too. Well, okay, maybe there are a few odd ducks in the bunch. Like that weirdo, Null. But I still think this is gonna be awesome!"

Tessa sat on the edge of her cushion, looking out their window at the setting sun. _'I can't believe I'm here. After months of chickening out. And,'_ she looked at Shane, _'it's all because of him.'_

A familiar line echoed through her head: _"Don't you ever let me catch you setting foot in that guild. If you do, I won't hesitate to strike you down!"_

Tessa flinched. _'No… this is my chance at making a name for myself. Even if Vulpix won't listen to me, if I can put up with him, then I'll be celebrated hero. No more lonely, miserable days at Azure Cape or Sylveon's house.'_

"Earth to Tessa."

She stiffened. "Don't call me that. It's Riolu," she muttered.

Shane scratched his ear. "Right. Did you hear my question?"

"No."

"Why do some of the Pokémon in the guild seem to know you?" Shane asked.

Tessa's fur bristled. She took a deep breath and said, "Because the rest of my family are guild members."

"Really? And you just thought to keep that hidden from me?" Shane gasped. "No wonder you're so quick on your feet! I can't believe you didn't want to come here. This is totally your element!" He gave Tessa a smile. "When do I get to meet your family, then?"

"You don't," Tessa replied tersely.

"… oh."

"Neither of my parents are here right now. They, uh, went to visit the Grass Continent," Tessa said, fidgeting with the edge of her pillow. "They probably won't be back for months."

"Well then, guess we'll just have to adventure hard for them," Shane proclaimed. He yawned and curled up into a ball. "I know the sun's not even down yet, but I'm pretty beat. I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings. What about you?" Tessa tucked her knees into her chin and resumed looking out at sky. "Too excited to speak, huh? Well, I won't keep you up then," Shane chuckled. "G'night, partner."

 _'For months, I'd been praying something would happen to lift my spirits. It seems my prayers have been answered. Only,'_ Tessa stole a glance at Shane, _'it's not quite what I was expecting.'_ She looked back out the window. _'Please, gods, let things work out for me. Alone, I'm just a failure, but Vulpix can change that. I don't want to be called a loser anymore. I want to be successful. That'll make me happy... I'm sure of it.'_

 **End of Episode 2**

* * *

Next time: Team Radiance gets down and dirty on its first official guild assignment.


	5. Pearls of Wisdom

_A beam of light crept across Shane's body. He brushed his forepaws against his face and groaned. Shane curled up into a tighter ball, attempting to will away the light. But the beam lingered over him. Eventually, Shane gave an annoyed huff and poked his head up. "What?" he growled. "What's the prob–?"_

 _He cut himself off and blinked in surprise. "Uh… this isn't my room," he said, getting to his feet. "How did I get back on the beach?" Shane looked around, surveying the sand in front of him. The beach gave way to luminescent, orange water that seemed to extend off beyond the horizon._

 _Shane looked up and noticed the sky perfectly matched the water's orange glow. "Okay, kinda creeped out here," he said. "This is definitely not the same beach I washed up on. So, what gives?"_

 _ **"Finaaaaaaaalllllyyyy!"**_

 _"Gah!" Shane fell to his belly, covering his ears with his forepaws._

 _ **"Do you have any idea how long I've waited for you to wake up?"**_

 _Shane looked around, but didn't see any signs of another Pokémon. "Two words, whatever you are: volume control. I'm right here. I can hear you perfectly fine," he scoffed, slapping the side of his head._

 _ **"Foooooooool!"**_ _the disembodied voice bellowed, sending Shane to the ground once again._ _ **"I do not have time for smart remarks. I cannot maintain our dream link for long, human."**_

 _"I'm dreaming?" Shane tilted his head. "That'd explain the crazy water, I guess." His brow furrowed. "Wait, did you just call me a human?"_

 _ **"Of course I did. I summoned you here, after all."**_

 _Shane raised an eyebrow. "Wait, by 'here,' do you mean this dream or the Pokémon world as a whole? This is kind of an important detail."_

 _ **"What do you think, human?"**_

 _"Uh, I'm gonna go with 'Pokémon world as a whole,'" Shane replied, preparing to cover his ears again if the voice got angry._

 _ **"Yes… correct! You see, human, I am in need of your help."**_

 _A broad smile crept onto Shane's muzzle. "Go ooooooon…"_

 _ **"There is something out there… draining me of my powers! Something… that wants to upset the balance of nature. But I do not know what it is."**_

 _"Hmm…" Shane scratched his chin. "That's pretty vague, but just as I'd expect of a weird voice inside my head." He looked out toward the ocean. "Isn't there any kind of clue you can offer me? A cryptic riddle? A vision of the future? Heck, I'll take an interpretive dance. Anything's better than flying blind, here."_

 _ **"Did you not hear me, you foolish fool? I said I don't know! Why do you think I brought you into this world? To figure everything out before it's too late for me!"**_

 _Shane's grin broadened. "So, what you're saying is, you need me to save the world? Ha ha, yes! Wait'll the guild hears about this. Tessa can take her stupid 'you're here by accident' nonsense and shove it!" He started dancing around the beach, singing, "I'm gonna be a he-ro! I'm gonna be a he-ro!"_

 _ **"Fooooooooooooooooooool!"**_

 _Shane fell flat onto his face._

 _ **"You cannot tell anyone about this! I've put myself in enough danger already just by bringing you here. Go forth… and find whatever is threatening the balance of nature!"**_

 _"Uh-huh, sure. I'll get right on that," Shane promised. "And what are you going to do? Sit around and bother me with cryptic dreams like this again in the future?"_

 _ **"This is all I can do if I wish to conserve my power. You'd better figure something out, because I will contact you again."**_

 _Shane nodded. "Sounds good to me. Now, uh, think you can wake me up so I can get started with this whole investigating business?"_

 _ **"Fine. As you wish. Farewell for now, human."**_

 _For a brief instant, Shane saw a sun-shaped silhouette appear in the water. Then, the silhouette let out a bright flash, completely blinding him._

* * *

 **Episode 3: One Step Forward**

 **Chapter 5: Pearls of Wisdom**

* * *

"Vulpix, wake up!" Tessa said, shoving her slumbering partner's hide. "C'mon, it's already dawn. You're gonna make us late for our first morning assembly."

"Gzzkkrr… snnnrrrkk… mmmfffffrr…" Shane snorted and stretched a forepaw forward. "Five more minutes… Mom," he groaned.

"Okay, we do _not_ have time for this," Tessa grumbled. She grabbed hold of Shane's cushion and yanked it toward her. Shane rolled off it, landing splayed out on his back. His eyes shot open.

"Hey, what was that for?" he growled.

"You overslept, you dolt," Tessa scolded. "Let's get going or Braviary will yell at us for sure."

Shane rolled to his feet and threw on his scarf. He jogged into the hallway, with Tessa following after him. They proceeded toward the main assembly area, where they found the guild members they had met yesterday. Braviary stood in front of the door to Metagross' office. Team Radiance shuffled up beside Yungoos and Growlithe. "Psst, did we miss anything?" Shane asked.

"Nah, youse rookies are fine," Yungoos replied. "I think Braviary's waiting ta see if da Guildmaster's showing up."

Shane nodded. He turned toward Braviary, but then something sparkled in the corner of his eye. Shane craned his head to the right. "Uh…" He raised an eyebrow. "Anyone else see a Milotic, Serperior, and Dragonair huddled in the corner? What are they doing?"

Tessa turned and spotted the three serpentine Pokémon in question. "You mean Team Captivate?" Growlithe spoke up. "They're one of the veteran teams. Must be taking a request from the Guildmaster if they actually showed up to a morning meeting." Tessa eyed the veterans skeptically. Milotic spotted Tessa and her eyes widened. She held up her rainbow tail to shield her face, but Tessa could see Milotic whispering excitedly to her teammates. Tessa hiked her scarf up over her muzzle and turned back to face Shane.

"Alrighty, folks," Braviary said with a clear of his throat. "Don't look like the Guildmaster will be gracing us this morning. So, without further ado, here are today's announcements." Braviary looked at Team Radiance. "Now, I know most of y'all met 'em yesterday, but we got us a couple of new recruits. That there…" He pointed a wing at them. "… is Team Radiance. If'n ya haven't greeted 'em, say hi to Vulpix and Te–" He paused again. "I mean, Riolu."

"Why don't you want anyone calling you Tessa, again?" Shane asked.

Tessa looked down at the ground. "I already told you, it's none of your business. Now drop it." She noticed the trio of Team Captivate exchanging whispers again. She repositioned herself between Shane and Yungoos, although Shane didn't seem to care.

"Now then," Braviary continued, "I'm sure a few of ya have heard that Sunset Shoals had some of its caverns flooded. Well, the team that went to investigate reported back to me yesterday. They said the local Pokémon are claiming the tide's steadily grown stronger over the past few weeks."

Shane raised an eyebrow. _'Huh… could that be related to the whole 'messing with the balance of nature' thing I heard about in my dream?'_

"Ain't entirely sure why that would be. But what _is_ important is making sure the folks in nearby Circadian Coast are safe from any flooding. To that effect, Team Captivate over there will be delivering some supplies on the guild's behalf." Braviary nodded at the serpent trio. Milotic winked and blew a kiss toward him. "Lastly, Magearna asks that y'all refrain from using yer Gear-Coms if'n you do any assignments today. She'll be performing some maintenance on her receiver," Braviary announced. "That'll about do things for us this morning. Now, get out there and show Horizon what we're made of!"

"Hooo-rah!" the apprentices shouted in unison.

"What, no motto? Lame," Shane mused.

As the group dispersed, cream-colored scales filled Tessa's field of vision. She looked up into Milotic's soft expression. Shane just sat beside her, a mystified look in his eyes. "Hiya… Milotic…" Tessa whispered.

"Tessa, sweetie!" Milotic wrapped Tessa up in her body. She craned her neck down and nuzzled Tessa's forehead. Tessa flinched from the contact and fought to dodge Milotic's gaze. "Oh, sorry." Milotic released her. "It's just Riolu now, right? Like it should be?"

"Yeah," Tessa whispered.

"Well, it's great to see you again. It's been ages!" Milotic chirped. "I can't believe you're finally in the guild. Oh, I'll bet your mom and brother are so proud!"

Tessa winced and looked away. "Milotic," Dragonair whispered. "You're being inconsiderate. Can you not see the distress on her face?" She slithered forward. "Sorry about her, Riolu. You know how she gets sometimes."

"It's… it's okay, Dragonair," Tessa stammered. "Mom's still… away."

Milotic's eyes widened. "Ohmygosh, I'm so sorry, Riri! I had no idea. I'll drop the subject right away." She turned to her teammates. "C'mon, ladies. We've got some supplies to deliver!" They all lifted their tails and tapped the tips together. Then they slithered off toward the stairs. Braviary fluttered over to Team Radiance the moment Team Captivate had departed the area. Shane still had a starry-eyed look about him, so Braviary flapped a wing in his face.

"Paaaafffttth! Pfffftt! I'm awake… I'm awake!" Shane hollered. He blinked rapidly. "Where's the fire?"

"Quite spacing out, hoss," Braviary scolded. "It's time fer y'all to get working. I'm here to show you the job board. So, follow me." Braviary escorted Team Radiance up to the main entrance. Shane spotted two bulletin boards on either side of the room. One of them clearly had sketches of Pokémon on it, but Shane couldn't make out any specifics. "We collect jobs from all over," Braviary explained. "Pokémon interested in our help can post jobs here themselves or send requests to us via couriers."

 _'Wonder how a postal system even works in a place like this,'_ Shane thought. _'Must be some secretive legion of flying-types.'_

"Now then, I want y'all to get used to accepting assignments from this job board. So, I'm gonna pick out yer first one. Sound good?"

"No objections here," Shane chirped.

"Yeah, that's fine," Tessa agreed.

Braviary unclipped one of the pages from the board and inspected it. "Perfect. Y'all can take this to start." He passed the page over to Tessa.

"Please help me, Horizon Guild," she read aloud. "I have this string of pearls that I wanted to exchange at the Kecleon Shop. I could really use some extra funds, and I was just so fortunate to discover these pearls. But when I was on my way to Aeon Town, I lost them. I believe they're somewhere along the Clayback River. Signed, Lunatone." She looked up at Braviary. "The Clayback River? That's a bit of a trek, isn't it?"

"Now don't you worry about something like that," Braviary laughed. "Y'all are part of the guild now. We've got ways of navigating the continent lickety split. If'n you head over to Aeon Port, you'll find the transportation you need."

"Is it a Lapras?" Shane asked.

"Ha, yer a riot, son! Ya really expect one Lapras to service the guild? Nah, we've got something much faster," Braviary exclaimed. "But I'll let y'all figure that one out for yourselves. Do whatever preparations y'all need. Then head on out to the port. I'm-a log this job into yer file in the meantime." He turned and glided over to the stairs, leaving Team Radiance over by the entrance.

"So, uh, we've got our first job!" Shane cheered. "You've got our pouch, right?" Tessa nodded. "Then let's make for the docks!"

"Don't you think we should get some supplies first?" Tessa exclaimed.

"What do we need? We're just going to investigate a river," Shane scoffed. "Besides, how could you still have money after the stuff you bought yesterday?"

"That was money I had saved for, uh, a special occasion?"

"Are you asking me or telling me? Look, we're burning daylight standing around here. We've got some pearls to find. So, let's get going!" He trotted out of the front door. Tessa groaned and followed behind him. She quickened her pace in order to get in front of Shane and properly lead up down one of the larger streets.

After a few minutes of walking, the buildings of Aeon Town gave way to a small hill that ran down to a set of wooden docks evenly spaced out in the water. Shane whistled. "Huh… they actually have more than one dock here. I'm surprised."

Tessa adjusted her pouch. "Well, Aeon Town is one of the bigger communities in Horizon, if I'm not mistaken. It's only natural we'd have to be ready for a bit of traffic."

"So, is this port connected to the water that surrounds Rainbow Island, then?" Shane asked.

"Yeah, the Midnight Sea," Tessa acknowledged. "I'm surprised you actually remembered."

"Hey, anything related to Ho-Oh is bound to stay in my brain," Shane declared. "And, seriously, it's called the Midnight Sea? That's _totally_ not ominous or anything!"

"It's named that way because if ye be _dumb_ enough to try swimming underwater, ye'll find it's as dark as the night sky!"

Shane's fur bristled. "Did you hear that?" He looked around rapidly. "That sounded like a pirate! Quick, find us some eyepatches so we can blend in."

"That's just our _ride_ , oh wise explorer," Tessa deadpanned, pointing toward the edge of the dock. _'What the heck is a pirate, anyway?'_ she wondered. Shane followed her line of sight and spotted a jagged blue dorsal fin and a pair of beady red eyes separated by a yellow star marking.

"Oh, sweet! We get to ride a Sharpedo?" Shane gasped. "That's awesome!"

Sharpedo surfaced. "Aye. I be the cap'n of Horizon's Sharpedo Sailors. Yer the new guild members, right?"

"Sure are," Shane chirped, his earlier trepidation having vanished. He jogged up to Sharpedo. "I'm Shane, and this is my partner, Riolu."

Sharpedo examined Tessa as she joined up with Shane. "Yer eyes be familiar, lass," he acknowledged. "Yeh wouldn't happen to be–?"

"Yes, yes, my parents and brother are all in the guild. Can we just get going now? We need to get to the Clayback River," Tessa cut in.

"Of course." Sharpedo swiveled around, exposing a pair of plastic seats that attached to his dorsal fin. "Climb aboard." Tessa jumped into one of the seats. Shane had a bit more trouble steadying himself thanks to his lack of any arms. "Alright, we be setting course for Clayback River!"

* * *

 **~Clayback River~**

"Okay, I'm sensing an _immense_ bias toward light-furred Pokémon in this continent!"

Tessa paused in the middle of climbing up a rock. She glanced down to see Shane along the dark red riverbank, brushing his forepaws against the very same rock she clung to. "What's the problem, exactly?" she sighed.

"Look at me!" He lifted up his forepaws, showing the wet, brown dirt caking them. "I'm _tired_ of getting my fur all grimy. First, it's sand. Then, it's dirt. And now, it's silt!"

Tessa smirked. "What happened to not wanting anyone to think you were girly?"

"I can't help it!" Shane proclaimed. He stumbled back from the rock. As he did, his tails brushed through the riverbank. Clay and silt caked them, making Shane cringe. "It's this stupid Vulpix body and mind of mine. There's a part of my brain that's _insistent_ I keep this pelt nice and shiny. And if it ever gets messed up my fur bristles, my stomach twists in knots, and I feel like I've got this awful itch I can't scratch."

"Aww, you poor, poor thing," Tessa teased. "Guess exploring's not for you if you can't handle a getting down and dirty."

Shane's left eye twitched. "I… that's…" He stomped a forepaw on the ground. "I can _totally_ handle it! Watch!" He scooped up a pawful of clay and smeared it across his chest. "See? Perfectly…" He looked down at his clay-covered chest. Shane's muzzle twitched. Seconds later, he smacked his forehead with his paw. "Aggh! What am I _doing?_ " he groaned, only to stare at his grimy paw with wide eyes. "CRUD! I just made it worse!" he howled.

"You know, you're really not helping things," Tessa scoffed. "Find some higher ground so we can get a better look around the river, will ya?" Shane looked away dejectedly and started trying to spot a vantage point of his own. Tessa resumed her climb up the rock. She hefted herself up to stand on the top of the rock and survey the area.

Two banks of clay ran in parallel. Both had steep, rocky inclines separating them from the surrounding plains. The brown, dirt-filled river coursed in front of her, providing a considerable gap if Team Radiance hoped to reach the other bank. Tessa soon spotted a few outcroppings of rock that seemed close enough together to jump across.

"This river's current looks pretty strong!" Shane shouted. Tessa looked down and noticed Shane had dipped a paw in the river. "I can feel it racing against my paw," he said. "This is running out to the ocean?"

"I'm not sure," Tessa called back. "Do you see anything sparkling in the water?"

"No. This is way too murky. Probably from all the silt and clay in the basin," Shane reported. "But don't you think Lunatone would have known if he dropped his pearls into the river?"

"I guess he would've requested a water-type's help, yeah," Tessa acknowledged. "But the river continues out to the north. And it looks like it gets wider over there."

She slid back down the rock to regroup with her teammate. "What do you propose we do then? We've got to search the other side of the river too or we're bound to miss it," Shane said.

"I know. I spotted a set of rocks that jut out into the river up ahead," Tessa announced. "One of us should try to jump the gap and reach the other ba–"

"Oh! Dibs! Dibs!" Shane jumped about excitedly and then sprinted forward.

"Hey… wait! We should talk this over before we split up," Tessa protested, but Shane was already halfway toward the outcropping she saw. She ran after him, only to notice Shane spraying the part of the river between the rocks with a jet of snow. To her surprise, a thin layer of ice formed atop the river.

"What are you doing? You're just gonna tire yourself out," Tessa warned.

"It's a failsafe. If I can't make the jump, I won't end up in the drink," Shane stated, puffing his chest out.

"Ice doesn't work that way, dummy," Tessa growled. "A thin layer's not good enough. You need to consider your weight _and_ the fact that you'd have momentum from falling!"

"Bah, physics was never one of my strong subjects. I'll be fine. It's just something to make you not complain. Guess it didn't work," Shane said, laughing. "Okay, 'Operation: Miles Prower' is go! Three… two… one… CHARGE!" Shane sprinted across the first outcropping.

Tessa shut her eyes and look away. _'Please don't screw this up and crack your skull in half…'_

"Ta-daaaaaaaaah!"

She poked an eye open to see Shane trotting confidently down the rock along the other side. "What did I tell you?" he called back to Tessa. "Nothing to it!"

 _'Thank goodness,'_ she sighed, but she wasn't about to give Shane any satisfaction. "Don't celebrate until we've found the pearls. See if you can get up the dirt embankment over there and get a look around."

"I was already about to do that. Sheesh, no need to order me around," Shane scoffed, trotting over toward the hill. The dirt pile rose up high enough to reach the fields of green grass overlooking the river basin. As he approached it, Shane noticed something glimmer in the corner of his eye. "Hang on, I think there's something in this dirt pile," he announced.

"Don't just stand there, then. Dig it up," Tessa called. Shane braced his forepaws against the dirt and started digging away.

"Ugh… blecch!" Shane sputtered. "I can't believe dogs actually enjoy doing this back home."

"It's cause your technique's sloppy!" Tessa scolded. "Stop throwing the dirt to the side like a wuss and push it toward your belly."

"I'm… doing… fine!" Shane insisted. After a couple of minutes, his paws struck something hard. He looked down and noticed a sparkling silver bit of metal staring back at him. "Oh-ho! What have we here? Come to Shane, shiny." He stuck his paws into the dirt and gave a hearty tug. Tessa watched him unearth a string of mud-caked, silver beads. Shane tumbled back, clasping the beads as he landed on his back.

"Hey, those look like they could be our missing pearls," Tessa said. "Think you can manage to get back across with them in tow?" She bit her lip. _'Ugh, we did_ not _think this through! I have the pouch and I have hands. Why did I let him jump across? Did I really think I'd be the one to find them?'_

"Uh…" Shane looked at the pearls. "I think I can manage if I sling these pearls across my scarf. They're not that heavy."

"Kweh heh heh heh! Thanks for taking the trouble to dig those out for us, Snowy. Now we don't need to get our claws dirty!"

Tessa's heart leaped into her throat. _'No way… that's Sneasel's voice! What's he doing here?'_ As if to respond, Sneasel and Jangmo-o both emerged from the other side of the dirt hill, grinning wickedly.

"I thought your voices sounded familiar," Jangmo-o said with a laugh. "See, told you it'd be a good idea to lay low behind the hill."

Sneasel whirled on Jangmo-o. "What are you talking about? That was _my_ idea!"

"Yeah? Well, I still provided moral support," Jangmo-o declared.

Shane narrowed his eyes at the duo. "What are you creeps doing here?"

"Kweh heh heh heh! Ain't it obvious? Combing for treasure, of course!" Sneasel declared.

"Yeah. Ain't nobody better at scooping up treasure than Team Fang," Jangmo-o added, only to receive a smack upside the head from Sneasel.

"You _idiot._ Why would you tell them our team name?"

"Uh, to strike fear into their hearts?" Jangmo-o squeaked.

"Yeah, but now they can try to report us!" Sneasel hissed. "Whatever, doesn't matter. Let's nab the pearls and toss Snowy into the dirty river where he belongs."

Tessa's eyes widened. "Vulpix, you've gotta jump back over here. Quickly! Don't try to take them both on at once."

"Why not? I've beaten 'em before!" Shane huffed.

"Don't be stupid! _I've_ got all our supplies."

Shane's ears and tails drooped. "Uh… right." He turned and started running toward the rock.

"Oh no you don't!" Sneasel bellowed. He opened his mouth and launched a blast of frigid air toward Shane. The sand froze up in front of him. Shane's paws failed to gain proper traction and he skidded forward. He spun around and wiped out on the edge of the rock. In the process, the pearls tumbled from his neck, rolling toward the edge of the river.

"No!" Shane shouted. Tessa gritted her teeth at the sight.

 _'Okay, no point staying around here anymore,'_ she figured. Tessa took a deep breath and dashed across the rocks on her side of the river. She leaped over the water, letting out a grunt as her feet impacted the rock on the other side. Shane looked up and saw Tessa run by him. He rolled over and shot a blast of slushy snow ahead of himself. This forced Jangmo-o to skid to a halt. Sneasel, on the other hand, ran right through the attack, brushing snowflakes out of his eyes.

"Nice try, Snowy, but you're not going to stop me!" Sneasel yelled. Seconds later, Tessa slammed into his side, knocking him away from the pearls.

Shane immediately scrambled to his feet and leaped to his partner's side. "You grab the pearls and get back to the other side of the river. I'll hold them off!"

"Are you nuts? I just said you can't handle two-on-one!"

"Yeah, but _I'm_ the one with the ranged attacks and _you_ have the bag," Shane pointed out. He spun around and belted a high-pitched shriek at Jangmo-o, pushing the dragon back. "Give me an Oran Berry to tuck into my scarf and go!"

Tessa's muzzle went agape. _'Wait. He actually thought this through? Could it be Vulpix is actually listening to me?'_ She plopped an oran berry against his neck and ran off. Shane turned and lay down a stream of snow to cover Tessa's scramble up onto the rock.

Sneasel again leaped directly into the line of fire, catching Shane by surprise. His eyes widened and he tried bucking up on his hind legs to impede Sneasel's progress. But Sneasel successfully jumped over Shane. He whirled around and, in desperation, spewed wet, slippery snow onto the rock. The snowflakes lined its rough surface, creating a layer of slush. Sneasel had no way to avoid landing on the slick part of the rock. Though his claws offered decent traction under normal circumstances, uneven, slippery rocks were another story entirely.

Unfortunately, Tessa was still on the rock. And her paws offered _no_ traction. Shane realized his mistake the moment he watched Sneasel land awkwardly, slip, and fall into the river. At the exact same time, Tessa prepared to lunge for the opposing rock embankment. But her foot slid out from under her and her momentum sent her off the edge of the rock.

Shane rolled to his feet and narrowed his eyes at Tessa. He felt the same spark of psychic energy he had drawn on in Dewdrop Woods. Concentrating, Shane fired a pink circle forward. Seconds before Tessa would have impacted the river, the attack exploded around her, flinging her back across the river. She landed on the opposite bank, leaving a Riolu-shaped crater in the mud.

"Eeep! Sneasel!" Jangmo-o gasped. He broke off from trying to attack Shane while the latter's back was turned and ran downstream. His partner surfaced, flailing his arms about.

"Don't worry… about… me! Get the… pearls!" Sneasel sputtered. Shane let out a growl and unleashed the biggest burst of snow he could muster. Jangmo-o hollered and jumped forward, trying to get away from the attack. However, this proved a foolish decision, because the only thing in front of him was the river.

 _Splaaaaaaaash!_

"Jangmo-o, you iddddiiiiiiiiiiooooooooooot!" Sneasel hollered as the harsh current swept him and his cohort away.

"Phew. Made it out of that jam," Shane sighed. "See, Riolu, I told you I could handle…" His voice trailed off as he recalled the state he had last seen his partner in. Ears drooping, he muttered a weak, "Oh boy."

Shane dashed along the rock embankment and lunged back toward the other side of the river. He scampered down to Tessa's position, only for a ball of clay to strike him in the face. He staggered back in surprise. "Hey! What the–?"

" _That_ was your cover? Freezing the rock?" Tessa snarled.

"Sneasel got around me, so I had to improvise. It worked, didn't it?" Shane groaned, trying to rub silt from his eyes.

"I nearly fell in that river! And I am _not_ what you would call a strong swimmer," Tessa shouted, trying to suppress a shiver.

"But you didn't fall. I had everything under control."

"You hit me with Extrasensory right next to a _very large and very sharp rock!_ " Tessa barked.

"Only because I wasn't close enough to use Roar effectively… aha ha…" Shane said with a nervous laugh. "So, I took a gamble. Big whoop. I succeeded. At the end of the day, that's all that matters. You should be thanking me for ending up in the drink."

"If your trajectory was even the _slightest bit_ different I would have hit that rock. Then I'd probably have passed out and _drowned!_ " Tessa hissed, her eyes watering. "And that attack _really_ hurt!"

Shane nudged the oran berry in his possession over to Tessa. "But you _didn't_ hit the rock. And I thought I told you yesterday that I don't dwell on what-ifs."

 _SLAP!_

Shane whirled about and collapsed onto his belly. His right cheek now had a brown, palm-shaped imprint in it. "I _thought_ you had taken what I told you yesterday to heart!" Tessa said, sniffling. "But, in the span of an evening, you somehow got _even more_ reckless."

Shane pursed his muzzle. "Okay… my bad. But you really didn't expect me to just stand there and let Sneasel attack you, did you? We would've lost the pearls for sure." He walked up to Tessa. "You, uh, did hang onto the pearls, didn't you?"

Tessa glared at him but ultimately pulled the pearls out of her pouch. "Alright! A job well done," Shane proclaimed. He then looked at Tessa's mud-covered form, and then glanced at the mud and silt on his pelt. "Well, for the most part, I guess. There's nothing left to do now but head back to the guild, right?"

Tessa silently pocketed the pearls and stormed off upstream.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Oh, thank you! Thank you both very much!" Lunatone spun about in excitement while he levitated the pearls up beside him. "I had a momentary lapse in concentration with these things and flung them away. I'm so happy you were able to find them."

Shane stood tall and beamed. "It was no trouble at all, sir."

"Are you sure? You two look pretty grimy. Where did the pearls end up anyway?"

"In a bank of clay. No worries, I dug it out just fine," Shane exclaimed.

"But we _did_ encounter a pair of thugs," Tessa stated, directing the comment to Braviary.

"Is that so?" He raised an eyebrow. "Who were they?"

"A Sneasel with a scar across his head-feather and a Jangmo-o with an oversized forehead scale. They called themselves Team Fang," Tessa explained. "They tried to attack us to steal the pearls."

Braviary fluttered over to the board on the opposite side of the entrance room. "Hrrrm… ain't on our outlaw board. Could've been a misunderstanding. But I'll be sure to pass it along to Officer Magnezone next time I see him."

"In any event, please let me offer you this pair of wands for your troubles," Lunatone declared. He levitated the rod-like instruments over beside Shane, who looked skeptically at them.

"Am I gonna turn into a Braixen if I touch one of these?" he wondered.

"I don't think it works that way, hoss," Braviary chuckled. Lunatone levitated his pearls onto the top of his crescent-shaped body and departed the guild. Braviary flew back over to Team Radiance. "Good work out there, you two. Although, I'm not too keen on y'all tracking mud in here like this," he said. "Next time, I'm-a have to write y'all up on a hygiene violation. But seeing as this was yer first assignment, I'll let it slide." He reached underneath his wing and produced a small pouch. "This here's your compensation. Fifteen percent of Lunatone's coin reward."

"Fifteen percent?! We're getting gipped! That's highway robbery," Shane whined. Braviary started to open his beak but Shane held up a forepaw. "Yeah, yeah, I know, I know. Guild's gotta make money somehow."

Braviary scowled. "One of these days yer gonna mouth off to the wrong feller and end up tied to a branch by them fussy little tails of yers. But, yer right. If'n yer looking to make more, take more assignments. Also, ya get a better commission once y'all are apprentices." He stole a glance out the window. "I see plenty of daylight left, so y'all should consider taking on another job request or two."

Tessa's shoulders slumped. "Do we have to?"

"I suppose not, but it sure wouldn't look good fer rookies to be slacking on their first day," Braviary mused. He bid them farewell with a wave and descended into the guild.

"Hey, here's one asking for help gathering honey from Dewdrop Woods! We can totally do it," Shane chirped, waving a piece of parchment around. "I mean, we're already filthy, so might as well."

Tessa squeezed her eyes shut. _'It's gonna be a long afternoon.'_

* * *

That same evening, a damp Shane walked into his room, a towel draped over his backside. "Ah, I feel so much better!" Shane said, shaking his torso and flecking water across the room. "I'm surprised my tails got unstuck that easily," he marveled, pivoting to wag his tails in unison. "Comfey's special soap worked like a charm!"

Tessa muttered inaudibly and turned her back to Shane. "You say something?" he asked.

"… no. You must have water in your ears," Tessa grumbled. _'How can he be so upbeat? Today was awful. This was even worse than the time Eevee's friends made fun of me for being a bad battler.'_

"Oh, okay then," Shane said. "You're, uh, not still sore about getting sprayed by that tree sap, are you? Because I had _no_ idea it could do anything but drip out of trees." Tessa tucked her knees in to cover up her face. "Aha ha… but it was kinda fun, wasn't it?" he added. Shane got no response. "Um… Tessa?"

"Don't call me that!"

Shane's tails stood up straight. "Are… are you feeling okay, Riolu?"

Tessa pulled her scarf up to cover her head.

"C'mon, you can tell me what's wrong," Shane insisted. "I'm your partner, after all."

Tessa whirled around on him. "Are you? Because you sure have a funny way of showing it!"

Shane's eyes widened. "Hey now. What's that supposed to mean?"

Tessa tried to suppress a shiver. "I need to you to promise me that you've got my back. Like _really_ got my back."

"That's silly! Of _course_ I do."

"No, I want you to _promise me_ and mean it," Tessa said. "Having my back means working _with_ me. Not doing whatever _you_ want to do and hoping that I adapt. The reason the heroes of the past did so well is because they worked _together._ We're nowhere even close to them... and that's upsetting."

"This… this is about the river, isn't it?" Shane whispered.

"Yes! Yes, it's about the river!" Tessa barked. "It's easy for _you_ to brush off… but for a moment there, I was _horrified_. I was falling down toward a very fast, very _dark_ river with absolutely no way to save myself! And then suddenly this strong, _painful_ force grabs onto me…" She picked up her pillow. "… and tosses me…" She hurled the pillow, striking Shane's face. "… across the river!"

Shane stood there, his eyes darting about the room. Tessa could see him visibly struggling to figure out something to say. "So please, Vulpix," Tessa whispered, fidgeting with her scarf, "please… just promise me you've got my back. Otherwise, I don't think I can make this work."

Silence followed. Tessa scrunched her eyes shut. _'Come on, Vulpix. Say something. Show me that I'm worrying for nothing. Show me that we're not doomed to fail... just like I failed at aura training and making friends in Sunrise Village. I need this... so, so badly. If this falls through... if I miss this one chance at making my biggest dream come true...'_

Tessa flinched as Shane's forepaw tapped her shoulder. She shrank back from him. "Of course, I've got your back. You're my partner," Shane exclaimed. Tessa's muscles relaxed slightly. But then a grin appeared on Shane's face and he added, "After all, you're gonna help me rid the world of evil. Even if you don't know it yet." He gave her a knowing wink.

Tessa frowned and sat back down.

 _'… that's not what I wanted to hear.'_

* * *

Next time: Team Radiance meets an outlaw that really rocks.


	6. An Outlandish Outlaw

This is the first chapter to feature a special "boss description" at the end. If you've played Kirby games before, this extra feature should feel familiar.

* * *

 **Chapter 6: An Outlandish Outlaw**

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Braviary whistled. "Y'all got quite a few jobs done. Not bad fer yer second day. Color me impressed."

Shane beamed at the praise while Tessa preoccupied herself with pocketing the team's earnings. "Does this mean we're ready to move up to apprentice rank yet?" Shane asked.

"Now what kind of shoddy establishment do ya think we're running here, rookie? Y'all still got a lot more to learn about the ins and outs of guild life. Don't be getting big fer yer britches, ya hear?"

Shane's ears drooped. "Dang. Well, can't blame a fox for trying."

"We've still got an hour before supper, so y'all feel free to occupy yerselves with something else." Braviary exclaimed. "I hear Crabrawler's Café done be offering a two-fer-one special on berry juice."

"Ooooh, that sounds refreshing!" Shane chirped. "What do you say, Riolu?" Tessa shrugged and made for the exit. Shane's ears perked up and he trotted off after his partner.

 _'Okay, I'll admit things went better today,'_ Tessa thought. _'Though the jobs were pretty basic, so I shouldn't get my hopes up that Vulpix is really taking last night's conversation to heart.'_

They wound their way down the hill into Aeon Town's central plaza. Crabrawler's Café stood right on the outside of the town square, facing the fountain. The duo hovered in the doorway, looking around the room for a spot to sit. The walls and floor were lined with smooth, dark brown wood. Luminous orbs were perched in the walls, giving a warm, orange tint to the room. Booths lined the walls, with various sized tables and benches to serve the many shapes and sizes of Pokémon. The more centrally-located tables were surrounded by bar stools. And the bar itself had a long, thin table spread around it. Standing behind it was a crab-like Pokémon that greatly resembled the building's exterior. He had a mostly purple body, with yellow antennae and blue pincers resembling boxing gloves. Additionally, his right eye was half-shut. He held a rag in one claw, using it to polish the counter top.

"Guess that must be Crabrawler. Anyway, I see a table for us over there," Shane exclaimed, pointed a forepaw to his left. An empty table sat over in the corner of the room by a glowing, multicolored jukebox. An outline of Shaymin lay etched into the front of the machine, surrounded by various music notes and floral patterns. Sparkling, rainbow crystals sat inside the glass dome at the top of the machine. Shane trotted over to the table and sat down by it, while Tessa turned and made for the bar area.

Crabrawler looked up and spotted Tessa walking up to the counter. "Afternoon, m'lady. What are you fixing for?"

"Can I get two mago berry juices, please?" Tessa asked, placing a few coins and her explorer's badge on the counter top.

"Certainly." Crabrawler glanced at the badge and then took all but one of Tessa's coins. She looked down in confusion. "Your discount still applies even if I'm running a special," he explained, prompting Tessa to pocket the coin. Crabrawler brushed two empty glasses toward her and started adding the contents for the drinks into a mixer. "So, I take it you're a new face around the guild, eh?"

"Yes, sir. My partner and I just joined a couple of days ago," Tessa explained.

"Ah, jolly good. And how are you finding things over there?"

"It's, uh, certainly something," she whispered.

Crabrawler inserted a large stone rod into the mixer and started mashing it. "I say, that doesn't inspire a lot of confidence. Exploring proving tougher than you thought?"

Tessa stole a glance at her partner. Shane sat at a table, gazing hypnotically at the jukebox. "You could say that. My team's having some… growing pains," she finally replied.

Crabrawler started shaking the mixer up. "Speaking from experience, some Pokémon get taken in by the excitement of exploring and don't really consider any of the repercussions. They think they can be like the folks who stopped the Bittercold and Dark Matter."

Tessa winced, then fidgeted with her scarf. "But... um... they didn't really cause that many problems in Horizon, right? I didn't really think people here cared all that much about that stuff."

"Well, as far as I know, people don't speak all that openly about it. Besides, it's not really my place to judge. I'm just here to help Pokémon take a load off. Whether or not they're explorers or care about Mystery Dungeons doesn't matter," Crabrawler said. He filled up the two glasses with pink juice and pushed them toward Tessa. "Here you are. Two mago berry juices. Anything else?"

"That'll be all. Thanks," Tessa said. She grabbed the two glasses and turned to bring them to her table.

"If I may give you one bit of advice, my dear?"

Tessa froze and glanced over her shoulder at Crabrawler. "Yeah?"

"Don't let your doubts create a self-fulfilling prophecy," he declared. "You're bound to have some hard days, but as long as your spirit's in the right place, your mind and body will follow suit."

Tessa blinked in confusion. "Uh, thanks… I guess," she muttered, and resumed walking back to her table. Tessa set the glasses down and took the seat opposite Shane. He remained focused on the jukebox, his head slowly swaying back and forth. "I brought you your drink," Tessa announced, shoving the second glass toward him.

Shane jumped to attention and spun around in his seat. "Smells good." He licked his lips and pressed the straw to his muzzle. "Say, what's with the jukebox? I didn't think music was a thing around here." Tessa replied with a wordless shrug and drank her berry juice.

"It's a nice song," Shane hummed. "Very relaxing. And I like the lyrics. 'Solgaleo, provider of daylight… Great Lunala, defender of the night…' I don't really get what it's about, but it's catchy!" he said, getting a few annoyed looks from other patrons when he belted out the lyrics. "Do you know who sings this, Riolu?" Tessa ignored him and took another sip of her drink. "Uh, hello? Earth to Riolu." Shane waved a paw in front of her. "I asked you a question."

"… Primarina," she replied. "He lives near Sunset Shoals and makes music crystals that are distributed to Sky Jukeboxes around the world."

Shane blinked in surprise. "That's a _dude_ singing? Dang, he's got some impressive pipes. I was totally fooled!" Tessa spun sideways in her seat and sipped more berry juice. "Um, okay, what's with the silent treatment? You barely said a word to me during any of our jobs today," Shane said.

Tessa shrugged. "… wasn't really up for conversing."

"Are you still mad about yesterday? I said I was sorry and I told you I've got your back," Shane insisted. "What more do you want for me? A lock of my fur? One of my tails?"

 _'How about an off-switch on that big mouth of yours?'_ Tessa scoffed, sighing. "Look, I've just… got a lot on my mind right now, okay? It's not like it was that big a problem. We did four jobs today, after all."

"Yeah, but I don't just want to work in silence."

"You were doing _plenty_ of talking," Tessa said.

"It's not fun if you don't have someone to talk _with,_ " Shane muttered.

"All I'm asking for is a little space while I think things over," Tessa insisted. "You just told me you had my back. So, please just lay off the subject for the moment. Besides, how's a guy like you going to 'save the world' if a little silence bothers you so much?"

Shane's ears drooped. He poked at his straw with his snout and gave a defeated sigh. They finished their drinks and returned to the Observatory. Tessa immediately made her way back to the team's room while Shane remained in the main assembly area until dinner was called. As dinner went on, Shane noticed that Tessa was conspicuously absent.

He hastily finished his meal and retreated to his room, where he found Tessa laying on her pillow. "Hey, if you don't hurry up, you'll miss dinner," he said. Shane got no response. He walked up to Tessa and soon realized that she was fast asleep. "Oh... guess you must've been pretty tired," he muttered. "I'll, uh, leave you alone then, I suppose."

Shane walked over to his own pillow and lay down on it. His boredom quickly lulled him off into a deep sleep. He got up the next morning to find that Tessa was already awake and out of the room. Shane left for the central hub and found all the guild members settling in for the morning assembly. He made his way over to Tessa's side and sat down. Surprisingly, Braviary was nowhere to be seen. Instead, Metagross stood outside of his office.

 **Fact: Braviary is absent. Order: in his absence, direct all inquires to Magearna,** Metagross said. **Fact: there are no further announcements. Order: get to work.**

"Hoooo-rah!" the guild apprentices shouted in unison. As the crowd broke apart, Team Radiance noticed Bruxish and Yungoos approaching them.

"Good moooooooooorning, dahlings! Settling in okay?" Bruxish greeted.

Shane tensed up. "Well, if I was sleepwalking before, I'm _definitely_ not now," he muttered, casting panicked looks at both Pokémon's large, toothy grins.

"You need something from us?" Tessa asked.

"Actually, it's youse who needs somet'ing from us," Yungoos declared. "Braviary's out doing some work. So, he left it to us to show youse two da Outlaw Board."

Shane grinned. "So, we're catching baddies today, huh? Count me in!"

"Now, now. Don't go psyching yourself up too much, dahling. We're not going to send you two out unless we're confiiiiiiiiident you can deal with at least oooooooone of the posted names," Bruxish chuckled. "Now, come along." He waved his fins around and led Team Radiance up into the entrance area. The team approached the board opposite the one they had used the previous two days. Sketches of Pokémon were pinned up across the board.

"So, as youse can see, we put up drawings of wanted Pokémon. Da number of stars underneath is a rating of how dangerous we t'ink dey are. And below dat is da reward Officer Magnezone and his squadron are offering for da outlaw's capture."

"Wait, I don't remember seeing any jail in Aeon Town," Shane said.

"Dat's because da jail ain't in da town, rookie," Yungoos said.

"Yes. After all, it would be mooooooooost dangerous for the good townsfolk if the jail was right here. Imagiiiiiiiine if there was a jailbreak. Oh, it'd be utter chaos, dahling," Bruxish added. "Now, let's see if there's anyone here that fits your ranking." He ran his eyes along the board.

"Oh, what about that, uh, fruit-looking girl with the long legs?" Shane proposed, pointing to a picture in the corner.

"Tsareena? Not a chance, newbie. She's outta yer league," Yungoos scoffed. "Besides, Growlithe's been on the hunt for her. He'd get mighty sore if ya scooped in and snagged his capture."

Bruxish shook her head. "I'm sooooooooorry, dahlings, but these outlaws are too tough for you."

Shane's lower lip jutted out. "You're kidding! Well then, what are we supposed to do today?"

"Uh, there's still the Job Board," Tessa reminded him.

"Well, Magearna should be around shortly to update this board," Bruxish explained. "You could wait a bit. Maybe buy some supplies in the meantime?"

Shane looked expectantly at Tessa. "Yeah, I guess we can wait a little while," she said with a shrug. "Actually, I want to drop something off at Dhelmise Depot."

"Great, I'll go with you," Shane chirped.

"Uh, this isn't really a two-mon job," Tessa mumbled, but Shane was already at her side. She sighed and proceeded out the main entrance. Once again, the duo walked into town. This time, they headed for the street leading down toward the port. Tessa's eyes were fixed on a building that was styled to look like a giant blue anchor.

"Oh, Team Radiance! What a pleasant surprise," Lunatone called, waving the string of pearls at them. He was floating in front of the Kecleon Shop.

Shane and Tessa paused and walked over to him. "Hiya, Lunatone. Finally going to trade in those pearls?" Shane asked.

Lunatone nodded. "Yes, yes. I wanted to trade them in yesterday, but then Kecleon told me I could get _way_ more for these pearls than I thought. He told me he's getting a supply shipment today. So, I decided to wait and see if he got anything new in stock. Oh, if I could get a Psychic TM I'd probably _explode_ with happiness!"

Shane smiled. "Well, I'll cross my fingers for you, then," he said. "My, uh, nonexistent fingers, anyway."

"Hey, Lunatone! Drop those pearls, you lousy thief!"

Lunatone and Team Radiance turned to find a Solrock levitating quickly toward them. It had a noticeably large crack spreading across what constituted its forehead. "A Solrock?" Shane raised an eyebrow. "Is that your brother or something?"

"No." Lunatone's eyes narrowed. "I've never seen her before in my life."

"Liar!" Solrock accused. "You swiped those pearls from me. They're _mine!_ "

"What are you talking about? I found these in Twilight Forest a few weeks ago." Lunatone gave Solrock a suspicious look. "I'll bet you're trying to take them from me."

"You've got that backwards. I was taking them through the forest, minding my own business, and you _blindsided_ me and made off with _my_ treasure. That's how I ended up with this _wonderful_ little crack in my head," Solrock declared. "Now, fork those pearls over!"

"Whoa, whoa, hold the phone a second," Shane said, stepping between the floating rocks. "I don't know what your story is, Solrock, but Lunatone here reported the missing pearls to the guild. And _we're_ the team that found them. So, I'm inclined to believe him."

"Butt out, kiddo. This don't concern you!" Solrock growled. Next thing Shane knew, he was hurtled back across the ground. Tessa's eyes widened and she ran over to her partner.

"Are you okay?"

"Nnngggh… head… hurts…" Shane groaned, eyes spinning about in a daze.

Solrock refocused on Lunatone. "It's not my fault a couple of guild dweebs fell for your obvious ploy. Now, last chance. Gimme those pearls or I'm using force! You messed with the wrong Pokémon, you two-bit con."

"But… these are mine! I found them myself," Lunatone whimpered.

"Fine that… have it your way."

Solrock's eyes flashed blue and the area erupted in a bright light.

"Uwwwwwaaaaaaaaaah!" Lunatone gave a pained cry.

"Lunatone!" Shane gasped. He tried to get to his feet but ended up headbutting Tessa in the process.

"Ow! Watch it, doofus. I'm right in front of you," she groaned, staggering back. The flash of light subsided, revealing Lunatone lying on the ground with a dazed look in his eyes.

"Oh no." Shane finally got his bearings and ran up to Lunatone. "Are… are you okay? Do you need to heal?"

"Pearls… gone again…" Lunatone blubbered. "Not… fair…"

Tessa rubbed her eyes with her paws and looked into the distance. "I think I see her on the outskirts of town!" She pointed forward. "Sunrise Village and Azure Cape are in that direction."

Shane looked down at Lunatone. "Don't worry, we're gonna get those pearls back for you. C'mon, Riolu!"

"But she can levitate! How are we supposed to keep up with her?" Tessa asked.

"Uh… I don't know," Shane conceded, breaking into a run. "I was kind of hoping you'd come up with an idea while we're chasing her!"

"Seriously?" Tessa groaned as she ran off after her partner.

* * *

 **~Azure Cape~**

Solrock floated across the sandy beach, stealing glances backwards. "Unbelievable. Those little runts actually tried to tail me! I'd have thought they'd give up for sure the second I skipped town. They don't _look_ like seasoned explorers." She screeched to a halt. "Wait, what am I doing? It's a Vulpix and a Riolu. I can take them down easily. And then I can loot all their stuff, too! Oh-ho, Solrock, you absolute genius you. This is gonna be a better day than I tho–"

Something small and green struck Solrock square between the eyes. A series of bright, sparking lights ensnared her. "Auuugh!" she hollered, sputtering toward the ground. As she opened her eyes and tried to right her position, her whole world spun about. "Everything's… a total blur. World's spinning..." she groaned. Solrock lost her grip on the pearls, which fell into the sand. "What… hit me?"

"Mwee hee hee! Oh, what an absolutely perfect shot. Picture perfect, wouldn't you say, team?" a shrill male voice cut through the air.

"Golly, you sure got her good, boss," a second, feminine voice praised.

"Yeah, she's totally dumbstruck," a third, deeper male voice chuckled.

"Who's out there?" Solrock barked. "Show yourselves!"

"Mwee hee hee… why we're right here… in front of you!" the first voice cackled. Solrock tried to shake the stars from her vision, but all she could see was a set of blurry circles hovering in front of her.

"Hoo boy, I bet you didn't expect to steal a set of _cursed_ pearls when you woke up this morning, huh?" the female voice giggled. "Shucks, that would ruin anyone's day, wouldn't it?"

"Cursed?" Solrock's eyes widened. "Bah! There's… there's no such thing as cursed jewelry!"

"Is that so?" the deep voice chuckled. "Because we, the Vicious Pearl Spirits of Twilight Forest, beg to differ!"

Solrock grunted in surprise as the string of pearls smacked against her left side. It didn't hurt, but it left her _quite_ unsettled. "This… this is a trick, isn't it?" Solrock growled. "Someone must've hit me with Confuse Ray or something."

"Oh golly, we can't do that. We're _undead spirits,_ not Pokémon," the female voice replied. "I'm afraid you're just facing an impending curse. Ain't that a real shame?"

Solrock started looking about the beach in a panic. The sand melded with the trees in the distance, turning her vision into a canvas of green, tan, and brown. "What do you want with me?" she barked.

"Why, what any good spirits want, dearie. To C-U-R-S-E you! Mwee hee hee hee!" the first voice laughed.

"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

"Hold it right there, Solrock! Release those pearls," Shane bellowed, as he and Tessa appeared on the hill overlooking the beach. They ran forward, their hearts pounding in their chests.

"We've… uh… got you now," Tessa panted. She sat down in the sand. "Well… maybe a quick break… first…"

Shane hoisted Tessa back to her feet. "C'mon, don't get soft on me now, partner!"

"Eh? Who's there now?" Solrock barked. She turned and stared at the levitating pearls. "Don't tell me there are more of you awful spirits!"

"Riolu?" Shane whispered.

"Yeah?"

"Is… is that Solrock… _talking_ to the pearls?"

"… sure looks like it."

"Is that normal around here?" Shane asked.

"… no. Maybe your special brand of crazy rubbed off on her?" Tessa sneered. Shane jutted his lower lip out in the biggest pout he could manage. "It was a joke. Sheesh." Tessa shook her head. "I think she might be confused. Her eyes are rolling about in a daze. We should strike now," she instructed.

"Good idea!" Shane chirped. "You go in low with Bite. I'll go in high with Powder Snow." He craned his neck up and shot a snowball ahead of him. Tessa sprang forward and dived toward one of the shards of rock sticking off Solrock's body. Solrock tensed up from the sudden influx of cold, but wailed in pain as Tessa bit her bottom-most shard.

The pain snapped Solrock out of her trance. She glared at Team Radiance. "Ah- _ha!_ I knew there were no such things as pearl spirits. It was you two brats, wasn't it? To think you actually tailed me out here. Well, now you're _really_ gonna get it," Solrock declared.

Tessa quickly ran behind her, but her eyes glowed blue. A plume of sand shot up, showering Tessa and sending her tumbling to the ground. All the while, Solrock kept her eyes focused on Shane. He opened his mouth and arced some slush skyward, but Solrock telekinetically kicked up more sand, blunting his attack.

"Aww, that's just plain uncool!" Shane groaned. A pair of rocks suddenly hurtled through the dust cloud. The first one struck Shane upside the head and he stumbled back with a loud howl. And the second one hit him in the gut, knocking him onto his back. He rolled about in the sand, groaning in pain.

"One down," Solrock boasted, turning to face where Tessa had fallen, "And one to g–" She looked around. "Hey, where did that Riolu go?" She swiveled her body about the beach, trying to locate Tessa.

"Try below you!" Tessa bellowed and leaped up, using some of Solrock's tiny craters to get a grip along her back.

"Aaaaaugh! Why you fussy little demon furball. I'll pluck every hair from your body! Not even your mother will be able to look at you when I'm through with you." Solrock tried to draw forth the energy to fling Tessa away with a pink blast, but Tessa bit down on Solrock's back first. Solrock gave a pained cry and her levitation failed, dropping her into the sand.

Tessa leaped off her and swiped the pearls off the ground. But her upper hand didn't last long. The small mound of sand Tessa stood atop parted, dropping her into a makeshift sinkhole and prying the pearls loose. Solrock floated back up, flinging sand off her form with short pulses of telekinesis.

"You made a _big_ mistake challenging a psychic-type on this kind of terrain, furball," Solrock spat. "Enjoy having sand in the worst possible places!"

"Oh yeah?"

Solrock swiveled around in time for a high-pitched wail to push her back across the beach. Tessa's eyes went wide and she dug herself further into the sand to avoid getting beaned in the face. Shane stepped forward, grinning. " _You_ made a big mistake turning your back on me, lady." He turned toward Tessa, tails thumping happily. "See? I told you I got your back!"

"Vulpix! How many times to I have to tell you to watch where you're aiming? You nearly Roared her right into me," Tessa whined, pulling herself out of the sand.

Shane's triumphant smile vanished, replaced by fervent blushing. "Aha ha… that was… I, uh, must not have seen you there." He laughed nervously. One beat later, a crushing force struck his back and, next thing he knew, he was the one eating a face full of sand.

"It's not polite to interrupt others like that, you snot-nosed brat!" Solrock hissed in the distance. "If you know what's good for you, you'll stay down this time." Solrock used telekinesis to gather more sand, balled it into two large, hardened rocks, and tossed them at Tessa. She then hovered forward to close the gap between her and Tessa.

However, Tessa held her ground, allowing the first rock to strike her. Her paws lit up and she caught the second rock. She spun around and hurled the projectile shotput-style back at Solrock. She wasn't expecting that and had to fire off a single pink wave to blow the rock into sandy smithereens.

Back on his feet but rather far away, Shane tried to seize on the opening. He narrowed his eyes and sent jagged pink waves rippling along the beach. By the time they reached the unsuspecting Solrock, however, they were severely weakened. They detonated in a small pink flash. While the attack failed to rattle Solrock, it still disoriented her and allowed Tessa to get in close and bite her from below once again.

"Ha! It worked!" Shane cheered, jumping up and down. "See? Told you I can cover for you!" he belted out. Solrock hissed her frustrations and fired an arrow-shaped pink blast straight down, hammering Tessa into the sand. Shane abruptly stopped jumping for joy and sprinted forward. _'Crud, now I've gotta buy time for her to heal up or she'll be finished!'_ he thought.

"Hey, lady!" he barked. "Your face is so ugly it makes a Barbaracle blush. And your voice is so screechy that only a Loudred could love it." Solrock turned to give Shane a death glare. Shane yelped at the sight of several sand-made rocks getting thrown in his direction.

He put on his best Zigzagoon impression, attempting to weave between the rocks. Shane even used a well-timed, conical blast of snow to harmlessly shatter one of the projectiles. But just as he managed to see Tessa safely down an oran berry, a rock nailed him in his left flank, knocking him to the ground. His vision faded in and out for a second before going completely black.

"You're one _nasty_ little Vulpix, kiddo, but now you're out of the picture," Solrock cackled. "Which just leaves that demon furball you call a partn– AAAAAAAAAAAAARGGGGH!"

Tessa had successfully jumped onto Solrock's back. She once again bit down onto the rocky surface, scoring a decisive blow. Solrock crashed into the sand and rolled into an unconscious heap right next to the hole she had previously made to trap Tessa, who dropped to her knees, panting heavily. "We… we got her," Tessa muttered. "And the pearls?"

"Hooo-weeee, why they're doing mighty fine, thanks to you!"

Tessa's ears and aura feelers jolted upright. Her eyes widened as she watched the pearls levitate into the air. A purple cloud gathered behind them, materializing into a Misdreavus. The pearls sat between the ectoplasmic tendrils that made up Misdreavus' hair. "Oh great, don't tell me _you're_ here to steal the pearls too?" Tessa groaned.

"Mwee hee hee… as much fun as it would be to see your reaction to that, we've got to draw the line somewhere. Besides, we got our kicks messing with that dumb Solrock."

Tessa shuffled back on the beach at the sound of a different, shriller voice. The sand beneath Misdreavus darkened. Out of the shadows rose the jagged, gaseous, purple form of a Haunter. Tessa immediately spotted a Looplet around Haunter's right hand, and a gold Horizon explorer's badge clipped to it. "Wait a second." She narrowed her eyes at the two ghosts. "Were _you_ the reason Solrock was acting funny when we got here?"

"Guilty as charged!" Haunter cackled. "Team Specter, at your service. 'We care when it matters, and scare the baddies 'til they scatter!' Mwee hee hee hee!" He threw his head back to let out a hearty laugh.

"Vulpix is back on his feet, Haunter!"

Tessa pivoted to see Shane stumbling toward her. A small, purple-and-white balloon drifted beside him. Tessa had to blink a few times before she realized that she was looking at a Drifloon. "Excellent work, Drifloon. We owe it to our new recruits here after they downed this outlaw for us," Haunter declared.

Shane's eyes widened. "Solrock's an outlaw?" he gasped. His muzzle stiffened. "In retrospect, I _really_ should've seen that coming. Guess the adrenaline rush was messing with my brain."

"Yup. One of the nastier outlaws too, if you ask me," Drifloon said. "Tell 'em, Misdreavus."

"Hoooo-weeee, Solrock's been on a string of thefts lately. Must be taking advantage of all the confusion these weird changes to the tides have brought. She always makes it seem like the things she steals belong to her. And, if Pokémon don't believe her, she uses Flash to escape," Misdreavus explained. "We saw the commotion at the Kecleon Shop, yup yup. Figured she could do with a taste of her own medicine."

Haunter's mouth widened and his oversized tongue fell out. "So, we gave her the old 'Team Specter Special.' We beaned her with a Totter Orb and played mind games with her to totally freak her out!"

"But then, golly, you two showed up out of the blue. Shucks, we weren't expecting that to happen," Misdreavus conceded. "We're awfully sorry for any confusion."

"Why didn't you guys help us out then?" Shane asked.

"Haunter told us to lay low and see how you two newbies handled things," Drifloon explained. "If you'd both gotten knocked out, we would've jumped in. But you didn't! And only Vulpix got KO'd."

"Which means you owe me your cut of tomorrow's profits, Drifloon! Mwee hee hee hee!" Haunter cackled.

"You guys… bet on us battling Solrock?" Shane gasped. "Isn't that, like, against guild regulations or something?"

"Golly, of course not! We'd _never_ do something against the rules," Misdreavus insisted.

"Yeah… thanks for taking a dive by the way, kiddo," Haunter chuckled. "I cleaned up thanks to you!"

Shane pouted. _'Great… rub it in why don't you? I got knocked out in a battle against our first outlaw. I'll bet Haunter cheated or something to make sure I went down. That's the only thing that makes sense to me. Well, when I end up saving the world he's gonna look like a big old fool.'_

"If it's any consolation, I think you guys did a really good job," Drifloon said.

"Gee… thanks," Tessa grumbled.

"Hey, we were all newbies once. A little tough love can go a long way," Haunter mused. "And since we're good sports, we'll even let you guys claim the bounty on Solrock."

Shane's pout quickly faded. Dollar signs flashed in his eyes.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Shane nudged his empty plate over to the end of the table. "Ah, another wonderful supper. Thanks, Steenee!" he chirped.

"You're very welcome," Steenee giggled. "Always nice to see a new face enjoying my cooking." She twirled around and scooped up the empty plate.

"So, wanna head back to the room, Riolu?" Shane asked. He didn't get a response. "Riolu?" Shane looked over his shoulder, only to discover her seat empty. "Tessa?"

"If you're wondering about your partner, she finished eating and took off a while ago," Growlithe announced.

"Oh, you mean Riolu?" Togedemaru said as she entered the room. She had a pair of metal bolts firmly attached to her head. "I just saw her heading down to the veterans' quarters not too long ago. Someone's looking to get in troooouuubbbllllleeeee!"

"Thanks." Shane trotted toward the exit, only to pause beside Togedemaru. "Uh, what's with the... y'know...?" He pointed up to his forehead.

"It's an electrical amplification testing apparatus," Togedemaru snorted. "… obviously."

"Oh, right, of course. How silly of me," Shane deadpanned. He turned and departed the room. "What a dweeb…" he muttered under his breath.

"Don't think I didn't catch that sarcasm, mister!" Togedemaru shouted after him. "And _you're_ the dweeb from where I'm standing! Calling me a Pikachu. Honestly! You'd have to be blind to make a mistake like that."

Shane ignored her and soon found himself in the assembly area. He descended the stairs to find a set of dimly-lit corridors. Shane spotted a thin veil of orange light flickering from one of the doorways. _'Wonder whose room that is?'_ he thought. _'Better not go in there. I don't need to be causing any troub–'_

"… this is the way it was when she left. Honest. No one's gone in here since then. And, well, you've already seen where the Guildmaster's residing."

 _'I recognize that heavenly voice from the other day. It's Milotic!'_ Shane realized.

"What about Braviary?"

 _'… and Tessa's with her.'_

"He got a room to himself once Metagross became Guildmaster," Milotic replied. Shane tiptoed toward the room.

"And… no one's heard anything from her? What about Team Buzz Buzz?" Tessa asked, her voice filled with desperation.

"Riri, please. If my team doesn't know, I strongly doubt those second-rate hacks would," Milotic scoffed. "She _really_ doesn't want anyone finding out what she's up to. Maybe the Guildmaster knows something, but he's hardly one to share much of anything with anyone who isn't Braviary. So, good luck getting any info out of him."

 _'What are they talking about? It sounds like there's someone away from the guild on an important assignment,'_ Shane thought. He hovered by the edge of the doorway, pressing the left side of his face against the wall.

"Uh, okay then," Tessa muttered, "Well... what about… y'know… _him?_ "

"Gallian? As far as the guild's concerned he never even existed," Milotic exclaimed ominously, "Guildmaster purged his record last week and— hold that thought, Riri."

Shane raised a curious eyebrow. _'Now who are they talking about?'_ He had no time to contemplate this further, as Milotic's form slithered out of the room. His tails and fur stuck up as Milotic gave him a disapproving look.

"It's not very polite to eavesdrop, you know," Milotic scolded. "Even less so in this part of the guild. You're only allowed on this level in the company of someone with veteran or staff status. So, who let you down here?"

Shane gulped. "Nobody. I… I was just trying to find Tes— I mean, Riolu," he stammered. "I, uh, just got down here, I swear."

"It's fine, Milotic. Leave him be," Tessa dismissed. Her head poked out of the doorway moments later. "Sorry I ditched you at dinner."

"You could have at least told me you were coming down here," Shane muttered. "What's in that room, anyway?" He craned his neck to get a better view but Milotic's rainbow tail spiraled up to block him.

Tessa stepped out beside Milotic. "It's my mom's room. I was just… seeing if she had maybe left something for me on the off chance I made it to the guild, since she's still away."

 _'… liar,'_ Shane thought. _'From the sound of things… she doesn't actually think her parents are in the Grass Continent. But then… does that mean they lied to her?'_ He wanted to press the issue further, but Milotic's scathing look told him he was in hot enough water already, so he dared not try his luck.

A smirk appeared on Tessa's muzzle. "You weren't actually worried about me, were you?"

"I'm, y'know, supposed to have your back… remember?" Shane stammered out his reply.

Tessa flinched. _'I think this is him trying to do a better job. It's just so hard to tell. I wish I knew exactly what was going on in his head. Sometimes it feels like he doesn't really understand what I'm telling him.'_

"D'aww, that's adorable!" Milotic giggled. "It's almost enough for me to forgive you for coming down here by yourself."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. 'Don't do it again, Shane, or you're in big trouble,'" Shane groaned.

"Hey, you said it. Not me. Now run along you two, or I'll get Braviary down here." Milotic shooed them off with her tail. But as they departed, Shane managed to catch a glimpse of the room Tessa was in. Specifically, the light revealed a tapestry showing what looked like two Pokémon. One was a large, metallic-gray lion with a gigantic mane. And the other was some sort of bat with giant, crescent-shaped wings.

"Ready to head off to sleep?" Tessa asked as she climbed the stairs.

"Hold up… one question," Shane said. "What was with those two Pokémon on the wall in your mom's room? The oversized Pyroar and Golbat?"

Tessa tried to stifle a giggle. "You mean Solgaleo and Lunala? They're spoken of in Horizon legends. It's said they embody the sun and moon themselves… or something like that."

 _'Wait, what? I thought this was Ho-Oh's turf. Didn't I see a sun in my dream the other night?'_ Shane gasped. "Hmm... sooner or later, I think someone needs to bring me up to speed on the local legends."

Tessa shrugged. "I don't exactly have them committed to memory. You're better off asking someone else in the guild. For now, let's get some rest. I'm still sore from battling Solrock."

Shane's brow furrowed as he watched Tessa climb up the stairs. " _You're_ sore? I'm sorry, but which one of us got pelted with _rocks_ again?"

"… let it go, Shane. Everyone gets knocked out in a battle sooner or later."

Shane hung his head and followed Tessa, grumbling bitterly under his breath.

 **End of Episode 3**

* * *

 **Nasty Ball of Sunshine, Solrock  
** _While not one of the stronger outlaws in Horizon, Solrock's wit makes up for her lack of raw power. She specializes in using her psychic powers to turn the terrain on her enemies, and then make a quick getaway. If an exploration team can coordinate well enough, perhaps they can throw off her routine and defeat her?_

* * *

Next time: Team Radiance seems to be making progress. But a stint on sentry duty may _Nullify_ it.


	7. Sentry Struggles

**~Dewdrop Woods~**

"Are you serious, here? Umbry and I bumped into that dinky little Riolu a few days back. She's totally worthless!" Espy spat, pacing back and forth along a dirt trail. "What makes her so important, huh?" She stopped and look at Umbry. "If she was really that important, then why didn't we know about her earlier?"

"That's a good question," Umbry growled. He directed his fierce red eyes toward a nearby tree. At its base floated a spectral bat about three times as tall as Umbreon. The bat's luminescent blue wings were wrapped over his body. "You sure took your sweet time telling us about her. Any particular reason?"

 **"Don't give me that look. I'm just the messenger here,"** the bat sneered. **"I'm not a fan of this either, you know. I'm wasting valuable energy coming here for something so stupid and insignificant. Oh, how I'd love to replenish some of my light."** He opened his mouth wide and licked his upper lip. **"Especially when you two look so vibrant. Brimming with energy to siphon off!"**

Umbry's furrow brow momentarily faltered. He shrank back toward Espy. "Shut it, Lunala!" he growled. "We're part of the same team, remember?"

Lunala vanished in a cloud of black smoke, only to reappear hunched over beside Umbry. His fur stood up on end and his tail ducked between his legs. **"That all depends on how well you two can do your jobs. I've been promised every last drop of your light if you two fail to live up to expectations,"** he whispered, smacking his lips in eager anticipation. **"If I were you, I'd consider getting a move on. You're burning daylight... for all of us."** The red eyes nestled underneath his black, armored helmet flashed. **"And you know how much I hate losing out on light."**

Lunala straightened back up and looked over his shoulder. The bushes behind him rustled. Lunala opened his right wing and stuck out a black, crystallized arm. A Shadow Ball shot forward, striking the bush. An alarmed yowl rang out and a Meowth tumbled out of the bushes. Its blue-gray fur stuck out against the black dirt. **"Here. Since I'm feeling generous, I'll offer up a 'willing volunteer' to help with your work. Enjoy!"**

Meowth looked up in horror as Lunala melted into a puddle of shadows. Espy and Umbry slowly crept toward it, smiles spreading across their faces. "Yes... I think this little fella will do just fine," Espy declared, forehead gem crackling with red and black energy.

* * *

 **Episode 4: Two Steps Back**

 **Chapter 7: Sentry Struggles**

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Settle down, y'all," Braviary called, quieting down the assembly area. "Now then, I'm hearing some murmurs 'round these parts. So, the Guildmaster and I want to set the record straight here."

He turned to Metagross. The Guildmaster stepped forward. **Fact: the guild will engage in an expedition to Sunset Shoals. Reasoning: to search for the cause of the rising tide.**

"Oh wow, a big expedition. It's been _two months_ since the last one," Growlithe barked.

"Well, if it's to Sunset Shoals I'll obviiiiiiooooously be going," Bruxish declared, flashing the group a toothy smile.

"I sure hope I'm picked to go this time," Togedemaru harrumphed. The metallic bolts were still fastened to her head. "Last time was a whole week sitting by the Pokénector. I was pretty much bashing my head against the wall in boredom by day two!"

"Is that why there are dents? I was wondering where that came from," Trapinch chuckled.

"Ex _cuse_ me? Did you just insinuate I'm fat?" Togedemaru growled.

Sweat droplets popped up on Trapinch's head. "O-Of course not! I know they're from Null. It was just a joke!"

"Fat? Nah. Swell-headed is more like it…" Shane muttered.

"I heard that, human!" Togedemaru hissed.

 _'Crap… crap… inner monologue, Shane. Inner monologue!'_

"Now, now, keep yer yammering to yerselves. This here's assembly time," Braviary scolded. "We're gonna be doing things a bit different with this here expedition. Yes sir, the Guildmaster and I talked it over, and we'll be having all y'all apprentices coming with us. And all the staff, too."

"Alright, finally!" Togedemaru cheered.

"What did I just tell ya? No interrupting!" Braviary barked. He turned to Magearna. "Mags, ya sure yer okay leaving yer lab behind for this?"

 **Of course. There are a few things I wish to studicate in that area,** Magearna exclaimed. **Togedemaru, you will assist me, yes?**

Togedemaru rolled her eyes. "Do I really have a say in the matter?"

 **No. I was simply engaging a courteous professionality script,** Magearna chuckled. **I think it worked out nicely.**

"Err… right. Anyway, Team Specter has generously agreed to stick around while we're gone to keep an eye on the place," Braviary continued. He then turned to Team Radiance. "Which means y'all are gonna take orders from them while we're away, got it?"

Shane ears drooped. "Wait, we don't get to go with you?"

 **Fact: only apprentices can accompany. Fact: you are novice rank. Conclusion: you will remain at the guild to continue training,** Metagross replied.

"Are you serious?" Shane tilted his head up and bellowed, "LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAME!"

"If'n ya don't want to be on cleanup duty in the mess hall I suggest ya drop the attitude there, rookie," Braviary warned. Tessa shot Shane an annoyed look. "Besides, Null's still a novice too. So y'all will have him around for company."

Team Radiance glanced toward the south hallway. Null brushed the side of his helmet against the wall, hissing. Shane dropped his head and poked at the ground with a forepaw. "Okay, I would like to rescind my earlier 'Laaaaaaaaaaaame,' and amend it to a 'major bogus,'" he whispered.

"We do have work to do to prepare for this trip," Braviary continued. "But y'all will get more detailed instructions tomorrow. For now, get any supplies ya think y'all need. Remember, we're dealing with pretty wet terrain here. So, plan accordingly." He nodded slowly. "That'll be all for now. Dismissed!"

"Hoooo-rah!" the apprentices shouted in unison and started breaking off. Braviary fluttered over to Shane and Tessa.

"Don't go runnin' off now, you two," he said.

Tessa stepped toward Braviary. "Look, if this is about Vulpix's outburst, I–"

"I didn't mean it!" Shane protested.

"I'm assigning y'all to sentry duty today," Braviary declared. "Now that y'all have gotten yer bearings, it's about time y'all contributed to the inner workings of the guild. We can't expect the same folks to do the same things day in and day out. Would get mighty boring, ya hear?"

Tessa nodded. "Of course."

"Seriously? Couldn't we start with something more interest– oof!" Shane grunted as Tessa elbowed his rib cage, abruptly cutting out his complaint.

"Ignore him," Tessa said. "He didn't sleep well last night, so he's been complaining nonstop since he woke up."

Shane shot Tessa an annoyed look as the Riolu followed Braviary down the south hallway. They arrived in the Pokénector room to find Trapinch and Null already settling in. The latter lay down beside the Pokénector's giant, glowing globe while the former fiddled with a dusty binder. "Look alive. Y'all got rookies to teach today," Braviary announced. He stepped to the side and shoved Team Radiance forward with a wing. "Show these two how to do sentry duty so we can count on them to take a turn every so often."

"You got it, Braviary," Trapinch replied, giving the best salute he could manage with his stubby foreleg.

"Good. Now, I've got work to do to prepare for this expedition. So, don't y'all go disturbing me unless it's an absolute emergency, understand?"

"Yes, sir," Trapinch and Tessa replied in unison. Null nodded from his spot.

"… whatever," Shane muttered under his breath. He watched Braviary leave out of the corner of his eye. When he was confident Braviary was out of eyesight, he sauntered over to one of the cushions. "Okay," he said, yawning. "So, what, we just lay around and twiddle our paws then? Or, let me guess, that globe thing will light up and we got to do some kind of timing minigame to open the gates properly?"

Trapinch gave Shane a blank look. But that paled in comparison to the glare he received from Null. _'Cripes… what's that guy's problem? You'd think I just broke his favorite toy or something…'_ Shane thought. Null growled and tensed his talons against the ground. He immediately turned away.

"Look, I have _no_ idea what you're talking about," Trapinch said. "Please, just pay attention. I really don't want to have to explain this more than once." He walked over to the Pokénector. "Whenever someone steps on the pedestal outside, the base of this structure will glow. If it's blue, it's a registered guild member. If it's green, it's a non-guild Pokémon we've synced in the Pokénector."

At that moment, the base of the structure lit up bright blue. Null looked up at the spinning globe. "Okay, so there's a guild member outside," Trapinch said.

"Thanks. I never would have gotten that, Captain Obvious," Shane deadpanned.

Tessa gave him another disapproving look. Trapinch ignored him. "So, we don't have to sound any alert when it's a guild Pokémon. But we _do_ need to make a record of it." At that, the spinning globe started glowing even brighter. Tessa narrowed her eyes and immediately made out an image of Milotic in the center of the globe.

Trapinch grabbed the binder he had opened, along with an ink pad. "I'll just record Milotic's return in our log book here," Trapinch said as he pressed an ink-covered foreleg to the page, "and Null over there will open up the door so Milotic can pass." He nodded to his partner. Null pressed a switch on the floor. The room trembled under Team Radiance's paws. They heard metal grating against metal up above them.

"When the glow fades, the Pokémon's inside the guild, and we're safe to shut the door," Trapinch continued. As if on cue, the blue light faded from the Pokénector's base. Null pressed the switch again and Team Radiance heard more grating noises.

"So, those are the basics," Trapinch exclaimed. "A couple of final points. If you see the base of the Pokénector glow yellow, then it's someone we don't have records of. So, you need to ask them to state their name and business. Then you contact Magearna and have her proceed up to the entrance. But that almost never happens. Although… I guess it _did_ happen when you showed up, Vulpix."

"Is that everything?" Tessa asked.

"Not quite. There's one more color: red," Trapinch said. "But, uh, none of us apprentices have ever seen that on sentry duty. I don't know what it's for. Only that I'm supposed to ring up Guildmaster Metagross, or whoever's in charge if he's out."

"So, I was right. We _are_ just gonna sit here and twiddle our paws," Shane scoffed. He let out another yawn and started back toward the cushion he found.

"Hey, don't start slacking on me now," Trapinch scolded. "Some days we can get a pretty high volume of traffic. And with an expedition coming up, there might be a lot of movement today."

"Wait, so what happens if multiple Pokémon show up at once?" Tessa asked.

"No worries. The Pokénector can identify up to five Pokémon with one scan," Trapinch replied, "Any more than that, and we usually just tell them to break into groups. So, think you can give it a try?"

"Sure." Tessa nodded. "I guess… I can do the identifying and log book stuff, first. Vulpix, you want to operate the door?"

Shane froze with a forepaw hovering over the pillow. "Do I have to?"

"Yes," Tessa replied. "Look, we're not getting out of this. Even if you don't like it, you've got to put up with this. I'm offering you the easier task. So, just go over by Null already!"

"Okay, okay. Sheesh." Shane dragged the pillow across the room toward the door switch. "Hey, uh, mind giving a 'mon some space, big guy?"

Null continued to look at Shane while he scooted back toward the wall. His expression was unreadable behind his mask. Shane's fur bristled as he took his position lying next to the Pokénector. _'Does this guy have some sort secret crush on me or something? I can practically feel him boring holes in the back of my head,'_ Shane thought. Just to be safe, he relaxed his tails to cover up his flanks.

As Shane predicted, the sentry duty process turned out to be slow going. There were a few instances of the Pokénector's base flashing blue. But then a quiet lull occurred. The entire time, Shane kept stealing glances at the chimera lounging behind him. He expected Null to pass out at some point, but he continued inspecting Shane like he was some sort of alien creature.

"... beast."

Shane's ears twitched. He turned around and looked accusingly at Null. "What did you just call me?"

Null immediately looked away. Before Shane could press further, a flash of green drew his attention. "Oh!" Tessa gasped, jumping up and scrambling toward the wall. A speaker sat mounted a few inches above her head. It ran up toward the ceiling. "U-Um… ahem…" Tessa cleared her throat. "Registered Pokémon identified! The Pokémon is…" She looked over her shoulder and watched the image of a Magnezone appear. "… Magnezone!" Tessa finished. She nodded to Shane who lazily pressed the door switch. "Please proceed inside."

Tessa then grabbed the log book off the floor, pressed a digit to the inkpad, and scribbled along the bottom of the page. "Um, what should I do when I run out of space? That was the last page in this binder."

"Oh, that's an easy one." Trapinch walked over toward the room's far wall. He pressed a circular button and part of the wall slid away to reveal a storage closet. Trapinch grabbed a stack of parchment and walked it back to Tessa. "Here you go. Just add it into the binder. I'll take the old pages over to Togedemaru to file away."

While Tessa and Trapinch attended to the logbook, Shane shifted uneasily on his cushion. The fur on his neck stood on end. He immediately spun around. "Okay, Null. What's your deal, huh? You've been eyeing me like I'm a criminal since I set foot in here," he hissed in a whisper.

Null's gray, heavyset eyes narrowed at Shane. A growl rumbled in his throat. Shane momentarily lost his nerve, but took a deep breath and furrowed his brow at Null. "What's the matter, too afraid to say what's on your mind? Or does that _ridiculous_ helmet of yours block your mouth?" Shane growled. "Why are you even wearing it anyway? If it's to make a fashion statement, I can tell you right now that it's not working."

"Vulpix!"

Shane glanced over his shoulder to see Tessa frowning at him. "Are you trying to pick a fight with Null? What is wrong with you?"

"Me?" Shane looked hurt. " _He's_ the one looking at me like I killed his best friend. Talk to him! Because he sure won't talk to me."

Tessa crossed her arms. "Null hasn't said a word since we got here. I'm sure he's just concentrating on the Pokénector and you're just jumping to conclusions, as per usual."

Shane was on his feet at this point. "I am _not_ jumping to conclusions!" he growled. "All I want to know is why this guy…" He jerked his head in Null's direction. "… is making me feel so uncomfortable!"

"… you didn't… close the door…"

Shane's blood ran cold. _'His voice… it's so… raspy.'_ He slid a hind paw back and hit the switch. "Okay, there, it's closed. But that only _just_ happened. You've been staring at me all day."

Null shrugged his shoulders.

"Don't you just shrug at me," Shane growled.

"Vulpix… drop it." Tessa said.

"No, I won't just drop it," Shane said. "What's the matter? Is it because I'm human? Is that it? Are _you_ human? Is that why you're studying me so intently? I get it... you're probably jealous. I got turned into a reasonably-normal looking Pokémon and you became a living jigsaw puzzle. Even by Pokémon standards, you're hideous!"

Tessa's eyes widened. "Stop it, Vulpix. That's totally uncalled for."

"No, it isn't. Think about it, Riolu." Shane whirled on Null. "The guy washed up in some waterfall with absolutely no memory and then he ends up in, of all places, an exploration guild. That sounds _awfully_ familiar." He pointed a forepaw directly at his face. "Don't you think?"

Null merely cocked his head in confusion. "… human?" he muttered.

"Don't you go playing coy with me. This has got to–"

"Gyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!"

Tessa stiffened. "Hey! That sounded like Yungoos!"

 _Crrrraaaaaaaaaaaaash!_

Tessa's aura feelers tensed up. "I… I think something's going on upstairs."

"What, like a commotion? I just let Magnezone in, that's all," Shane stated. He yelped as a set of talons gripped his back. Next thing he knew, he sat on Null's scaly, furry back. Null lumbered down the hallway, with Tessa right beside him.

"… the Pokénector… doesn't reset… until the door is closed…" Null hissed. "Someone could've… snuck in… because your _partner_ thought it was more important… to yell at me…"

"Seriously? Like that would really happen," Shane scoffed. Tessa didn't respond. Instead, she ran ahead and dashed up the stairs. Null had a bit of a tougher time. He had to tilt his head so the crest of feathers atop it didn't catch on a part of the stairs. Null and Shane had just about reached the entrance when they heard a startled yelp.

"Tessa!" Shane cried. He jumped off Null's back but the chimera stuck out a foreleg to block him.

"… you've done enough… for one day…" he growled. "Stay back here. Better yet… get Braviary…" Null shoved Shane backward and charged into the room. Shane poked his head forward and gasped at the sight before him.

Tessa stumbled to her feet, rubbing her head. Behind her, the outlaw board had been knocked off its posts. Yungoos was passed out next to Tessa. And in the middle of the room a blue and gray cat stood on two legs. It had a jet-black coin sitting atop its forehead. Its whiskers, however, were bright yellow and razor-sharp. And the cat's tail was bright white, resembling a scrap of paper. An inverted black triangle sat in its chest, with a red, winged heart glimmering in its center.

 _'What the–? That's no ordinary Meowth!'_ Shane realized. _'It looks totally possessed or something!'_

Null ran over to Tessa to try and help her up. Meowth gave a furious hiss, unsheathed a set of white, razor-thin claws, and charged toward Null, swinging wildly. Shane watched Null swipe the air in front of him, sending wind blades racing forward. To Null's surprise, the Meowth leaped over the Air Slash with a feral screech. Null hefted up his head, hoping to catch his opponent with his helmet or feathery crest. But Meowth landed on Null's back. Shane's ears throbbed at the sounds of claws scraping scales. Null grunted in aggravation, trying to buck the feline off him.

Shane jumped out from the staircase. "Get off of him!" he shouted. His eyes flashed pink and wavy ripples raced across the room. Shane's jaw dropped, however, when the attack detonated, only to fizzle out harmlessly against Meowth. Instead, Meowth narrowed its glowing red eyes at Shane. It lunged from Null's back and sprinted toward him. "Th… That's impossible!" Shane cried. More psychic waves surged across the room, but Meowth ran right through the explosive pink bursts.

"Idiot!" Tessa barked. "Why would you use a psychic-type move on a Meowth? It's a dark-type!"

Meowth lunged for Shane, who dived to the floor. He flinched as Meowth slashed some of the fur off his leftmost tail. "Oww! A dark-type? Since when?"

"Since always!" Tessa shouted.

Null similarly hissed in pain, rattling his helmet about. He gathered up another ball of concentrated air in his foreleg and arced a long wind blade forward. This one speared Meowth in the back, causing it to stumble forward. Tessa then barreled into it with a burst of speed, slamming it against the wall. Meowth thrashed about in Tessa's grip, then leaned its head forward, trying to bite her. Tessa gasped and stumbled backward. Meowth scrambled for the door, only to slam up against it and bounce backward.

"… I told you… to get Braviary…" Null snarled. "… do as you're told…" He charged down Meowth, winding up to strike with his talons.

"No. That'll take too much time. You guys need my help!" Shane squeaked. Meowth got a frenzied look in its eyes and leaped upward. It dug its claws into the metal wall and climbed about. Tessa growled in frustration and ducked into the stairwell. Null turned around and slung air crescents forward while Shane fired a straight column of snow.

However, Meowth scurried quickly across the wall. Not that it was ever in danger. Because the two attacks collided, creating an explosive burst of frosty air. Null grunted and turned his head away. He hissed once again and thrashed his head around, letting out rasping coughs. His ice-cold gaze fell on Shane.

"I was just trying to help," Shane muttered. Meowth had managed to find a window. It shattered it with its claws and scurried out the newly-created hole. Null slammed a foreleg against the ground in frustration.

"What in tarnation happened up here?"

Braviary flew into the room, with Tessa positioned on his back. She stole a glance at the broken window. "Did Meowth get out through there?" she gasped.

"… yes. Because _he,_ " Null pointed an accusatory talon at Shane, ",wouldn't follow directions…"

Braviary's eyes narrowed. Shane found his gaze drifting toward the bird's razor-sharp claws. "Mind explaining this one to me, rookie?" Braviary asked.

"He wouldn't stop staring at me!" Shane blurted out, pointing back at Null. "Null was making me uncomfortable and I just wanted to know why."

"And you neglected your responsibilities so you could harass him about that," Tessa cut in. "Then, when something _did_ go wrong, rather than listening to Null's order to get Braviary, you simply jumped into the fray." She turned to Braviary. "He tried using his psychic-type move on a Meowth."

"Meowths are supposed to be normal-types!" Shane huffed.

"Not in Horizon, they ain't," Braviary scolded. "Null, were you really bothering Shane?"

"… sometimes I just… seem to space out. I was having… one of those moments…" Null muttered.

"Oh, come on. He's lying!" Shane accused. "That's way too convenient to be true."

"Really?" Braviary raised an eyebrow. "Cause based on yer attitude this morning, it sounds to me more like you were bored and tried to take yer frustrations out on yer senior guild member. And that not only caused you to be careless, but to completely ignore his instructions."

Shane winced. "No," he whimpered. "I just... made an honest mistake."

"That may be, but it was a completely preventable mistake, if'n you were acting maturely as an explorer should," Braviary lectured. "I'm sorry to have to do this, but I can't just write this off. Ya won't be getting supper tonight, rookie. And that goes for yer pardner, too."

A wild look appeared in Tessa's eyes. "What?!"

"Y'all are a team. That means ya both need to take responsibility for each other's poor decisions," Braviary stated. "And now that you know this, Riolu, maybe you'll try a bit harder in the future to keep yer pardner in line if'n he keeps getting testy." He turned back to Shane. "Now, I believe ya owe Null here an apology."

"But I didn't do anything wrong!" Shane protested. "Tell him to say sorry for creeping me out." He noticed Tessa glaring daggers at him and quickly fixed his gaze on Null, who stared off into space.

"… hrmph. I don't have time to stand around waiting." Braviary turned toward the staircase. "Null, if'n Shane here don't give ya an apology, let me know tomorrow morning. I'm sure I can think of something appropriate fer him." Braviary flapped his wings and drifted toward the stairs.

Null stared directly at Shane. "… well?"

"I'll apologize when you apologize," Shane growled, but he was clearly squirming under the combination of Null's gaze and Tessa's piercing glare.

"… I'm sorry… if I made you… uncomfortable. I meant no harm. I really do… just space out sometimes…" Null wheezed.

Shane frowned. "That's supposed to be sincere?"

"Vulpix!" Tessa hissed.

"… fine. I'm sorry, too," Shane grumbled. "There, everything's cool." He turned toward Tessa. "Can we go now?"

Tessa stormed forward, thumping Shane with her shoulder. " _Don't_ you say a word to me," she seethed. As she stomped toward the staircase, Shane's fur prickled.

 _'But… I didn't do anything wrong here,'_ he thought. _'… right?'_

* * *

Shane continued saying that thought to himself throughout the evening. But he had a harder time believing it with each repetition.

 _Grooooooooooooowl!_

He flinched from the gurgling of his stomach. _'It's not like I never went long periods of time without eating as a human,'_ he thought. _'But, I don't know, something about this Pokémon body makes being hungry feel really bad.'_ He stole a glance at Tessa, who sat in the corner, boring holes into the floor. Shane hung his head shamefully and sighed. _'Everyone thinks I'm a screw up now, don't they? All I was trying to do was figure out what that Null guy's issue is. How could I have possibly known anything like this would happen?'_

Shane heard shuffling beside him. He noticed Tessa walking out of the room. His temptation was to follow her and see if he could try to patch things up, but then he saw Dragonair meet her by the other end of the table. The two departed the dining area together. At that point, he figured Dragonair was escorting Tessa to her mom's room. _'And I'm not looking for a repeat of last night, that's for sure,'_ he figured.

Shane stood up and trudged off. He quietly padded through the empty halls until he reached his room. Shane crept onto his pillow and lay down, curling up into a ball. He just wanted to shut his mind off and go to sleep.

 _'Tomorrow's another day, right? This is a small-time thing. It'll all blow over by tomorrow,'_ he told himself. _'Time heals all wounds, after all.'_ But that hardly lifted his spirits. And the churning of appetite-stirring juices in his stomach only served to make him more restless. It wasn't long before Shane had uncurled, rolling onto his back. He kicked at the air with his paws, trying in desperation to generate enough fatigue to pass out.

It was in the midst of this bizarre routine that he glimpsed his partner in the doorway. She wore a dumfounded expression. "I cannot _believe_ you!" she growled. "Fooling around in here like absolutely nothing happened."

Shane rolled onto his belly. "That wasn't… I was trying to fall asleep," he said.

"Did _anything_ Braviary tell you this afternoon sink in?" Tessa huffed.

Shane frowned. "Don't you think you're being a bit harsh? I made a mistake. I won't do something like that again. That's it. Case closed."

Shane noticed Tessa shaking. "No, that _isn't_ it!" she barked, stomping a foot on the ground. "Because you _keep_ promising that you'll be more careful. But that hasn't happened yet! You haven't really made _any_ effort to do that."

Tessa's accusation was a proverbial slap across Shane's face. "Now that's not true. What about, um, yesterday… with Solrock?"

"You seemed to have forgotten about that today," Tessa countered. "You think this is some sort of game? All you care about is doing whatever _you_ want so you can have fun. And anyone who tries to be just a _tad bit careful_ is ruining that fun. That's how it is, isn't it?"

Shane frowned. "No, of course not. I'm… I'm totally serious about trying to find a way home." He stood up. "But, I'm not gonna be a downer about the whole thing. I _want_ to enjoy my time here. What's so wrong about that?"

 _'I knew it. Why did I get my hopes up over this guy?'_ Tessa thought. _'Figures someone with such a screwed-up life would find a screwed-up human to match her. This is... so humiliating.'_ Tessa teared up. "The fact that you're putting other Pokémon in danger to 'enjoy your time here.' That's what's wrong."

"It's not like I'm _intending_ for that to happen," Shane insisted. "Trouble just keeps finding me. But you're from a family of experienced explorers and I'm a human. I'm pretty confident that that makes me stronger than your average Vulpix."

 _'There's that same old line again. What if I leave and he somehow turns things around and becomes a hero? I'll be an even bigger loser than I am now!'_ She shook her head. _'No... I can't show weakness here."_ Tessa bared her teeth at Shane. "Oh, step off it, will you! Just how swell of an ego can you get, huh? It's like you can't do anything wrong in your eyes."

"It's not ego. It's fact," Shane barked back, his temper starting to slip. "Check those stories of yours. Odds are they'll all say that pairs of Pokémon not much different from the two of us took on the likes of _Rayquaza_ or _Dialga_ and succeeded. If that's not special, then I don't know what is."

Tessa's paws had balled up into fists. "You're… just… so _sure_ of everything, aren't you?" she seethed. "Well, answer me this, then. What if you're right? What if Null's a human?"

Shane's annoyed expression dissolved into one of shock. "Duh-don't try to change the subject!" he stammered.

Tessa wiped her eyes. "No," she whispered. "I'm on the right track, aren't I?" Her gaze sharpened. "You're worried _Null's_ the human who's _supposed_ to be here. Which would make your arrival an _accident_ , just like I suggested the day we met!"

That did it. Tessa could see the fight drain from Shane's eyes. His mouth fell open and all he could do was weakly gasp for air. His fur stood up on end and his empty gaze fell to the floor.

Tessa unfurled her scarf and tossed it toward the floor. "I want some space, Vulpix. I'm going back to Sunrise Village to think through some things. If you have _any_ respect for me as a Pokémon, you'll leave well enough alone and stay here," Tessa said. She turned and marched out of the room, leaving Shane sitting there.

"… please."

Tessa froze in the doorway.

"… please don't go."

Tessa narrowed her eyes at Shane. "I just can't deal with you right now," she whispered. Tessa quickly disappeared from the doorway. Shane sat on his cushion, ears twitching as his partner's footsteps grew ever more distant. He stared blankly at the exterior of his room for several seconds. Then, he shakily got to his feet, scooped up Tessa's scarf, and stumbled out of the room.

* * *

 **~Aeon Town~**

 _'This is for the best. I'm doing the right thing.'_

Tessa stole a glance back at the dim glowing bulbs stemming from Aeon Town's buildings. She gulped down the saliva pooling her mouth. _'Vulpix was driving me up the wall. I needed to get away from him and reevaluate.'_

She forced herself to look away and continue on the dirt path. It would be a bit of a walk to Sunrise Village, but she figured that she could make it to Sylveon's house before it got too late out. Despite this, she felt a small, nagging voice whispering in the back of her mind. Telling her she could still turn back. That she could patch things up.

 _'No, I've already made my decision,'_ she insisted. _'This was doomed from the start because it involved me. Everything I do turns into a lost cause. This is what's best for both of us.'_ She turned her attention toward the forest. _'I'm sure Gallian knows I joined the guild by now, anyway. If I stay there, I'd only end up dragging everyone into harm's way. There's no way Vulpix could take–'_

A bright flash of light erupted around Tessa. Her body tensed up and she let out a cry of pain as she fell back to the ground. Her head throbbed and she threw her paws up over her eyes, trying to rub out the bright light. "What… what happened?"

"Uhuu huu huu! It's been a little while, my fluffy little Riolu. Did you miss me? Because I sure missed you."

Tessa sat up, the stars fading out from her vision. She found herself looking into Espy's sharp blue eyes. Her forked tail lazily drifted from side to side. Her grotesque forehead diamond sparked menacingly. "Oh... wait. You can't miss me. You don't even remember the last time we met." She traced a forepaw across the black choker around her neck. A winged heart, with demonic horns and a piercing eye sat in the center of the collar.

 _'Wait.'_ Tessa's eyes narrowed _'Why does that symbol seem familiar? Didn't I see something like that?'_ She met Espy's gaze. "Do I know you?" she stammered.

"Weren't you listening to me earlier? I already said I wiped your memories of the last time we met," Espy said, flicking her snout skyward. "Last time Umbry and I thought you were a useless nobody. But it turns out you're just the Riolu we're looking for!"

Tessa stiffened. _'Wait… is there someone else here?'_

No sooner did she try to turn around than something swept her legs out from under her, sending her onto her back. The second she hit the ground, she found herself looking into a set of fierce red eyes. Umbry's black body blended into the twilight, save for bright red rings along his ears, tail, and limbs. The red ring on his forehead bore the same winged heart Espy had on her choker and the crystal armor around her chest.

"Wh… What do you want with me?" Tessa squeaked. "Don't… don't tell me an Absol sent you. I… I was just leaving the guild, I swear!"

Umbry raised a brow. "Absol? Can't say we know one. Hey, Espy, did you infect an Absol recently?"

"Nope!" Espy replied, shaking her head while Tessa pivoted toward her. "But boy would I _looooooove_ to. That silky white fur… oh, and that _curvy_ blade on its head. We could do some real _interesting_ stuff with an Absol. We should totally find one to infect when we're done here, Umbry! I'll bet an Absol could wreak some havoc on these dungeons and draw the Tapus out of hiding."

"One step at a time, Espy," her partner cautioned. He fixed his gaze back on Tessa.

"Infect? What are you babbling about?" Tessa muttered. _'This is bad. This is worse than bad! I left the pouch with Shane at the guild. I've got nothing here to help me!'_

"I wouldn't expect a dumb little puppy to know about the Prism Virus," Espy giggled. "Let's just say it can make you an _ultra-fun_ Pokémon to be around." She crept toward Tessa, grinning mischievously. Tessa tried to slide away, only to bump into Umbry. She yipped in fright.

"I… don't want anything to do with you!"

"Aww, c'mon. Don't talk like that. I think you'll _love_ being infected," Espy whispered. She brushed her hide up against Tessa and ran her forked tail along the Riolu's arm. Tessa's aura feelers immediately spasmed.

"No! _Stay back!_ " Tessa shoved Espy to the side and bolted to her feet. She tried to run, but another bright flash of pink erupted around her. Next thing she knew, she was eating dirt.

"Uhuu huu huu! Yes! It's much more _fun_ when you play hard to get," Espy giggled. "I can tell you're going to make a wonderful edition to our Prism Virus family."

"Stop wasting time, Espy. We're burning twilight here," Umbry growled.

"Ugh… fine. You're such a stick in the mud, Umbry. Is it any wonder Pokémon want me to infect them instead of you?" Espy sighed. Tessa's eyes widened as she saw Espy's forehead glow, along with the winged heart in her choker.

"Now, that'll be enough of that there nonsense!"

Espy's grin faded. She yelped as a wave of fire and snowflakes washed over her. Umbry's eyes widened seconds before the feathery form of Braviary barreled into him, knocking him clear across the trail. Tessa's heart hammered in her chest as she caught sight of a familiar set of six white tails in front of her. Shane looked over his shoulder at her. "Are you okay? Did they do anything to hurt you?" he asked, while Growlithe took up a defensive stance beside him.

"I… I'm fine," Tessa squeaked. _'He... he came back for me? Even after I chewed him out? This can't be right... no sensible Pokémon would stick their neck out for me like that.'_

Across from the canines, Espy stumbled to her feet. "Nnnnnrrrghhhh… spoilsports!" she hissed. "You'll pay for this... jerks! C'mon, Umbry, we're done here." Espy turned and sprinted toward her companion.

"Oh no ya don't!" Braviary shouted. He bucked his wings and soared after the duo. But the moment Espy reached Umbry, their eyes flashed purple. Espy produced a strange, almost-mechanical card in her paw and slammed it to the ground. Braviary screeched to a halt as purple energy crackled around the two attackers. The guild members watched in shock as the energy dragged Espy and Umbry into the ground, leaving nothing but a patch of scorched grass behind.

Growlithe bounded over to help Braviary, while Shane turned and scrambled toward Tessa. She noticed he had the item pouch slung around his neck. Shane fumbled through it and pulled out her scarf. "I think this belongs to you," he said.

Tessa reached a shaky paw out and grabbed hold of it. "I… I told you not to come after me," she whispered.

"I know, I know," Shane said, lowering his head guiltily. "But I felt bad… like, _really_ bad. I went to Braviary and he offered to fly me over to find you. And then we saw what was happening and, well, leaped into action." Tessa wanted to ask what Growlithe was doing with them, but she noticed Shane poking at the grass with a forepaw. "Um, are you, y'know, mad that I didn't listen to you again?" he stammered.

Her muzzle stiffened. This was _definitely_ the most vulnerable she'd seen Shane since they met. And _she_ was the one who had gotten attacked. "A little," she whispered, prompting Shane to wince. "But…" She gave him an exhausted smile. "… I don't think I'd be here if you _did_ listen. So, thanks."

This immediately brought a relieved smile to Shane's face.

"What are partners for?" he replied, and offered a forepaw to help her to her feet.

* * *

Next time: Just what do Ho-Oh, Solgaleo, and Lunala have to do with the Horizon Continent?


	8. Much-Needed Background

**Chapter 8: Much-Needed Background**

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

After Growlithe volunteered to inspect the town's outskirts, Braviary took Team Radiance back to the guild. The flight proceeded in silence, save for the gentle whistling of wind beneath Braviary's wings. Tessa stared out toward Aeon Port and, beyond it, the Midnight Sea. The moon's bright-blue reflection rippled in the choppy waters. She directed her gaze up toward it. The full moon served as a beacon that glowed proudly in a hazy purple sky, accentuating the small, twinkling stars surrounding it.

 _'That's odd,'_ she thought. _'I could've_ sworn _we had a quarter-moon the night before Shane and I got here. How could it turn full so quickly?'_ Tessa blinked and shook her head. After the day she had, the _last_ thing she needed was to rile herself up thinking about the size of the moon. She pushed that thought out of her mind and instead turned to look at Shane. He was staring at her, but promptly turned away the moment their eyes lined up.

It seemed like Shane had something he wanted to say, but the silence persisted through Braviary's landing and subsequent guiding of Team Radiance back into the Observatory. The trio shuffled down to the main level. "Well, I suppose now y'all can check 'evening excitement' off yer 'rookie to-do list,'" Braviary said, attempting to bring some levity to the atmosphere. Based on the blank stares he got, it wasn't very effective. "I'm gonna retire fer the night. No more funny business from either of ya, got it? Done made me go and worry away a good three years off my lifespan..."

Team Radiance nodded in unison. Satisfied, Braviary descended to the veterans' quarters, leaving them to tread the empty hallway leading back to their room. They each sat down at their respective cushions, Tessa staring out the window and Shane studying the floor.

Finally, the silence broke. "I've really screwed this all up, haven't I?"

Tessa's ears twitched and she looked over her shoulder. Shane was batting the edge of his scarf with a forepaw. "I just want to do things differently here. To be better than my human self," Shane sighed. "This may come as a surprise to you, but I'm not exactly well-liked over in my human life."

 _'Gee… I wonder why,'_ Tessa sneered internally. Guilt immediately bubbled up inside her for such a thought. She bit her lower lip.

"It's not that I'm a bad person. At least… I don't _think_ I am," Shane continued. "And it's not like my life sucks or anything. I have a place to live, food to eat, and a job that pays enough to keep me comfortable. I can't complain about that stuff. It's just…" He hung his head shamefully. "… I, uh, don't really have any friends in the human world."

Tessa felt conflicted. On the one hand, she was exhausted. It had been a trying day and, to cap it all off, she was just attacked. She _really_ didn't feel like hearing a sob story from the Pokémon that had been the target of all her ire. But on the other hand, if she played the listening game then maybe, just maybe, Shane would finally cool down a bit, figuratively speaking.

"And I tried to, y'know, put myself out there," Shane continued, "It's just… things never clicked. I think… people didn't like me because I was pretty negative. Like, _all the time._ " He looked up toward the ceiling. "But why shouldn't I be? The human world… I think it's an awful place. Humans aren't like Pokémon, you know."

"I kinda figured," Tessa scoffed, only to wince as Shane looked down guiltily.

"I… sorry…" he mumbled. "I didn't phrase that well. It's just… you guys here. You look after each other. You try to help one another out. That's what makes places like this guild so great." He pawed at his cushion. "But humans don't tend to work like that. Oh, sure, we have some good eggs who _try_ to do nice things for others. But there are far more humans who are totally selfish… and look out only for themselves."

 _'You mean... like you've been doing since I've met you?'_ Tessa thought, biting her lower lip to stop herself from blurting that thought out.

Shane continued to avoid Tessa's gaze. "In fact, it's common for humans to stab one another in the back…"

"WHAT?" Tessa blurted out, eyes widened in terror.

Shane winced. "S-Sorry… sorry! I didn't mean that _literally_. I mean, like, betrayals and stuff," he squeaked. "Look, the point I was trying to make is that other humans always end up disappointing me back home. And I have such lousy luck. I can't put on a happy face as a human. So, nobody talks to me."

"But, you've been pretty upbeat here, all things considered," Tessa pointed out. In her mind, she added, _'A bit too upbeat if you ask me.'_

"I know," Shane sighed. "Remember how I said Pokémon are fictional where I come from?"

 _'Oh gods, not this again,'_ Tessa groaned. She nodded in the hopes of moving the conversation along.

"Well, I use those fictional adventures as an escape. A way to temporarily shut out all the things I don't like about the human world. I can have as much fun as I want in my games. Even if it's not real, everything seems possible when I'm playing." He stood up and glanced at the wall. Shane could just make out a faint outline of his shadow in the glow of the moonlight. "… and then I actually woke up as a Pokémon," he whispered, slowly shaking his tails.

"I seem to recall you believing this was a dream," Tessa said.

"Well, yeah, that was the only way I could make sense of it at first," Shane conceded. "But once I realized this was _legit_ …" He looked down again. "… I was determined to do things differently. I wanted Pokémon to like me. I thought if I acted cheerful and energetic… I could make friends. But, I totally mucked that up." He hung his head shamefully. "I guess I'm just a screw-up no matter what universe I'm in."

 _'Okay, either he's crafty enough to make a Zorua jealous or this is genuine,'_ Tessa thought. Her aura feelers bristled against her fur. _'I'm sensing_ something _in a snapshot of his aura. And… it's upsetting. I guess he's telling the truth, then.'_ Her brow furrowed. _'Still... he didn't have to drag me through his crazy fantasies.'_

"You know, you're not the only one with problems," Tessa spoke up, immediately wondering if there was a better way to phrase that. "I get it. Your whole 'stuck in another world and another body,' dilemma is pretty big. But it's not like all the Pokémon you've met lead perfect lives. We have issues too."

"… you're right," Shane sighed. "I guess I'm just being selfish."

 _'Yeah, you are,'_ Tessa thought, only to immediately wince. _'Stop it, Riolu. Mom taught you better than that,'_ she berated herself. "Sorry, that's not what I was going for. It's just… if you _really_ want to do things differently here, you should, y'know, treat other Pokémon the way you'd want them to treat you."

Shane's stance slouched. "Was I really doing that bad of a job with the golden rule?"

"Uh..." Tessa poked her index digits together. "I don't know what you mean by golden rule. Besides, do you _really_ want me to answer that?" But that was all the answer Shane needed. He sighed and made his way back to his cushion. "Y'know… if you're looking for a place to start, why not try apologizing to Null tomorrow?"

Shane shivered. "But… but I already did that," he whimpered.

"You didn't sound very sincere," Tessa chided. "Hey, look. Whether you apologize for real or not is up to you. But as your _teammate_ I am _strongly suggesting_ that it's in your best interest to at least try."

Shane hung his head in defeat. "I guess… you're right."

"Good," Tessa said. She watched Shane circle around his pillow and curl up into a ball. "We can talk more in the morning if you want, I guess. Good night." She lay down on her own pillow.

"… hey, Riolu?"

"Yeah?"

"You miss your parents a lot, don't you?"

Tessa sat back up, clutching at her scarf. "Y-Yeah."

"Is that why you keep going down to your mom's room? Because you're thinking about them?"

Tessa nodded. "Yes." She heard Shane whimper and sighed. "What is it now, Vulpix?"

A snowy white head popped up to look at her. "It's just… I haven't even thought about my family since I've gotten here… until now. Who knows how much time has passed in the human world for me? They could be worried out of their skulls for all I know." His ears drooped. "I guess I really _am_ selfish."

Tessa scooched her pillow closer to Shane's. "No use beating yourself up over something you can't control." She flinched, thinking of her own parents.

"But… but what if I really _am_ here by accident? What if I can never go back home?" Shane wondered. "My family will never know what happened to me. And the people at my job are gonna think that I died or something and then–"

"As I recall, a certain human-turned-Vulpix told me that he, and I quote, 'prefers not to dwell on the what-ifs,'" Tessa said. "Let's just take things one step at a time. Sleep now. Apologize to Null tomorrow if you're up to it. And then we'll go from there."

"Okay." Shane nodded. "Okay."

"Now, let's get some rest. It's been a long day"

They both laid down and lulled themselves off to sleep. The next morning came and, to neither member of Team Radiance's surprise, Braviary assigned them to a second day of sentry duty. After all, they still needed to prove they could do a _competent_ job with that assignment. And, clearly, Braviary's harsh words stuck with Shane. He volunteered to man the log book and spent the morning diligently pacing back and forth between the sentry station's table and the Pokénector.

"Um, you don't _have_ to stand up all the time, you know," Trapinch pointed out.

"If I lie down, I'm just going to lose focus and make another mistake," Shane replied, intently studying the Pokénector.

"Err…" Stella glanced down the hallway. "Tell you what. How about Trapinch and I go grab some snacks from Steenee? You can stay here with Null." That idea made Shane's fur bristle. His tails ducked between his legs and his ears flopped against his head. He whined softly. "Or… I guess you and Trapinch can go get snacks. And I'll just stay here with Null," Tessa sighed. Shane's expression brightened and he hastily departed the sentry room with Trapinch in tow.

 _'Guess he couldn't work up the courage after all,'_ Tessa thought.

Null swung his gaze to Tessa. "… something you… want to tell me?"

"Uh, listen." Tessa sat down in front of the Pokénector. "Braviary told me that Shane and I need to be held accountable for what we do as a team. So, um, I just want to, y'know, apologize. For my teammate. The… uh… the way you were treated yesterday wasn't very nice. And… um… Shane promised it's not going to happen again. So… uh…" Tessa's shoulders sagged. "I'm not doing a very good job at this, am I?"

"… I appreciate… the sentiment… and accept your apology…" Null muttered. He shook his head about.

Tessa sighed in relief. "Um, I don't suppose you would be willing to answer something for me, would you?

Null shrugged.

"Do you _really_ not remember anything before the guild?" Null's shoulders sagged and Tessa's expression blanched. "Aha ha... never mind. Forget I asked."

"… it's fine..." Null sighed. "… not much to say. I woke up… in the infirmary. Soaking wet. Lot of pain. I was found... in Glyphic Falls... apparently. I've stayed here… ever since. But before that… nothing…"

"So, you were in pain?" Tessa parroted.

"… yes. I thought... it might be... from the falls. I _was_ found… in one of the basins… according to Growlithe…" Null recalled. "But in reality... I think it's this helmet. It hurts." Null brushed the corners of his mask against the wall.

Tessa gulped. "Do you think you might've been a human, then?" She could not read Null's expression.

"… I don't know. That word seems… odd… to me…" Null responded. "… the first time… I heard it… was from listening... to Vulpix. It sounds… _alien_ …"

Tessa figured Shane would get at least some relief from that answer. If Null didn't think he was human, then Shane's appearance here _could_ still be significant in some way. At the same time, however, it didn't completely rule out the possibility of Null being human. _'Gah… if only I had some way to find things out for certain,'_ Tessa thought.

An idea quickly came to mind, and she asked, "Well, what kind of Pokémon are you? I've certainly never seen anything like you."

Null looked down. "… I don't know."

Tessa opened her mouth, but no words came out. In fact, she opened and closed her mouth several times, but couldn't think of anything to say to that.

"… I've spoken… with Magearna… Braviary… Guildmaster Metagross. They're all stumped too…" Null reported. "Though Magearna… _did_ say… that my helmet… brought the Original One to mind."

"Original One?" Tessa parroted. She looked Null's helmet over, tilting her head in the process. "Um, I'm sorry, but I don't really think I see what you're talking about. Far be it for me to question Magearna, though."

Null started wheezing and Tessa quickly thought to move away from the current subject. "So, uh…" She scratched his forehead. "Did the guild give you that helmet to heal up some injury?"

"… Didn't you hear me? I said... I think this thing... is what's causing the pain."

"Oh." Tessa looked down guiltily. "If it hurts, then why are you wearing it?"

"… I don't know."

Tessa raised an eyebrow. "Then why not take it off?"

"… because I can't."

"What?" Tessa gasped. "How does that even work?"

Nulls eyes narrowed. "I. Don't. Know."

Tessa figured it was time to bring this conversation to a close. "O-Okay… th-thanks for answering my questions. S-Sorry if I bothered you."

Null grunted and repositioned himself on his cushion. Shortly afterward, Shane and Trapinch returned with the snacks. The remainder of the sentry session proceeded mostly in silence, save for the occasional outburst from Null. Shane was extremely relieved when the team's shift ended and they could proceed to dinner. After they finished and returned to their room, Tessa took the time to loop Shane into her conversation with Null.

"So, he's not a human then?"

"Well, I can't say that for certain," Tessa replied. "But from the way it sounded, he doesn't seem to think he is. Still… the fact that the Guildmaster knew you were a human but has absolutely no idea what Null is seems rather odd."

"Uh, isn't he a Pokémon by process of elimination?" Shane wondered.

"Can _you_ identify his species? Because I sure can't," Tessa declared. "And Null doesn't know, either."

"Err, you've got me there," Shane conceded. "Maybe he got cursed by a Legendary or something?"

"I think that's a bit of a stretch," Tessa said. She flopped down onto her pillow. "Actually, I was thinking maybe we recruit him."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Y'know, ask Null to join Team Radiance."

Shane's ears tucked against his head. "No way. Nuh-uh. I'm sorry… but it's not gonna happen. That guy just scares the fur off me. Even if you say he's fine… I just don't feel safe around him. Besides, there are other 'mons in the guild. Why go right for him?"

"I just, I dunno, feel bad for him. His badge is bronze like ours, so he's still a newbie. But he's already been here for months," Tessa explained. "It sounds to me like sentry duty is all he's done since joining the guild."

"I don't blame the guy. If I looked like that, I probably wouldn't want to go out in public either," Shane muttered.

"But don't you see? How's he supposed to figure out anything about himself if he's cooped up here day in and day out? I think we should give him the chance to explore with us. Maybe it'll jog his memory," Tessa reasoned. "At the very least, I would think you should sympathize with him."

"What? Just because he has no idea why he's here either doesn't make us, like, share a special bond or anything," Shane dismissed. "You're just generalizing."

Tessa winced. "… ouch. Okay, it sounds bad when you phrase it that way. But I still think we should give him a chance." She looked over at Shane and gave a weak smile. "Treat others the way you want to be treated, right?"

Shane gnashed his teeth together. "That was a low blow," he grumbled. "But fine. Whatever. Do what you want. I guess we could use a muscle-head like him on the team for some heavy lifting. Or maybe he'll just scare all the enemy Pokémon off with his hideous–"

"Vulpix!" Tessa gave Shane an unamused look.

Shane raised his forepaws innocently. "I said you can recruit him, okay. But the _second_ this decision goes south, I'm going to be singing 'I told you so' until your ears fall off."

Tessa opted to respond to that with an overly-cheerful grin that wouldn't look out of place on Shane. "Great! I'll ask him tomorrow, then."

* * *

But before Tessa got the opportunity to talk to Null at morning assembly, Togedemaru shoved Team Radiance aside.

"Hey, hey, hey. Guess what? It's your guys' lucky day! Because you're working with Magearna and me," she declared.

The duo exchanged confused looks. "Um, doing what, exactly?" Shane asked.

"Equipment testing, checks, and maintenance, of course. What else would we do?" Togedemaru giggled. Team Radiance gave her a pair of blank looks. She rolled her eyes. "Gee, try to contain your enthusiasm there, guys. Anyway, no more time for chit chat. There's science to be done. Off we go!" She extended her quills and nudged Team Radiance down the north hallway to Magearna's lab station. They found her hunched over her desk, examining a large map with a magnifying glass.

"Yoo-hoo, Mags! I brought the test dummi– oops, I mean I brought our assistants for today," Togedemaru sang while she pushed Team Radiance into the room.

 **Splendiferous!** Magearna looked up from her map. The magnifying glass retracted into her arm. **I was just going over the travel route for the guild's upcoming exploridition. But please, come in. Make yourselves at home. We've got plenty to attend to today.**

A lightbulb went off in Shane's head. "Um, actually, Magearna. I was wondering if I could ask you some questions."

 **Certainly. My question-answering circuits are functionating at one hundred percent efficacy today, so you're in luck,** Magearna replied. **Togedemaru, why don't you get Riolu set up to beta test our Heavy Scarf?**

"Of course." Togedemaru grabbed hold of Tessa's right arm. "Hope you've got good upper body strength. When we tried this out on Growlithe last week, the poor guy couldn't walk for two days." Tessa's eyes went wide and she shot her partner a pleading look. But Shane was already over by Magearna's desk, ignoring her.

"So, what's the deal with this place and Ho-Oh?" Shane asked. "It sounded like Ho-Oh's important around here. Y'know, cause of Rainbow Island. But then I saw a picture of these two big Pokémon and Tessa mentioned something about the sun and moon…"

 **Ah, you are referring to Solgaleo and Lunala,** Magearna acknowledged. **Local legends believe them to be physical personifestations of the sun and moon, respectively.** She folded up her map and rifled through some pages in one of her desk draws. Magearna pulled out a smaller version of the picture Shane had seen in Tessa's mother's room and placed it on her desk.

"Yeah, that's definitely what I saw," Shane said. "What do the legends say exactly?"

 **Well, they're rather lengthy. But I can attempt to explainolate the key points, if you would like,** Magearna offered.

Shane nodded. "That would help a lot, actually."

 **Very well then. Please stand by while I boot up my exposition mode.** Magearna cleared her throat.

 _'Wait… exposition mode? Oh god, I've made a mistake. Take it back, Shane. Take it back!'_ Shane thought.

 **Exposition mode has loaded,** Magearna announced. She pulled several more pages from one of the drawers in her desk.

 **Ahem… the early days of our world were marked by clashes between the three Super-Ancient Pokémon responsible for creating the land, the sea, and the sky. Their endless battles created a state of constant unrest in the world. Pokémon never knew peace, because their lives were filled with violent quakes, torrential rains, and vicious winds.**

Shane's jaw stiffened. _'Hold up… Magearna dropped the funny words. Is that, like, part of her… programming? I don't even know what to think right now…'_

 **During the conflicts, one sizeable chunk of land broke off of the Air Continent and drifted into the ocean. That land would become the Horizon Continent…**

"Wait, WHAT? This continent's floating across the ocean?" Shane gasped. "Then how does Rainbow Island stay in the center of it?"

 **It's not adrift anymore, thanks to the Land Spirits,** Magearna replied. **But I am afraid that is an entirely separate story in it of itself. And my exposition mode is already down to eighty-five percent function. So, we must continue.**

 _'Land Spirits? Didn't Tessa say something similar? Are they like… the Regi trio or something?'_ Shade quickly made a mental note to follow up on that tidbit later and resumed listening.

 **So, to summarize, things were bad. But a group of Pokémon banded together, and begged the Super-Ancient Pokémon to end their battles. To keep things simple, let's just say the trio agreed to cede control over the world's weather to a pair of weaker Legendary Pokémon.**

"Lemme take a wild guess: Ho-Oh and Lugia?" Shane wondered.

 **Correct! Lugia monitored the weather from the depths of the sea, and Ho-Oh from high in the skies,** Magearna elaborated. **But Ho-Oh soon came to learn that part of her responsibilities included controlling the degree of sunlight and moonlight that each continent receives. If there is an imbalance, a continent experiences strange weather patterns that can cause Pokémon to go berserk.**

"I don't suppose these imbalances could also create odd, dungeon-like environments that constantly shift their layouts in totally random ways?" Shane mused.

Magearna raised an eyebrow. **Curious. I thought you said you hadn't heard of these legends?**

"Eh, it just reminds me of something I saw in my human life," Shane said with a nervous laugh. "Anyway, what happened from there?"

 **The task proved too exhausting for Ho-Oh,** Magearna said. **Since Lugia stayed deep underwater, Pokémon brought their complaints solely to her. She tried retreating to the relatively-empty Horizon Continent to find peace and quiet. But in doing so, she accidentally increased the intensity of moonlight we received.**

Shane grew worried. "Did something bad happen?"

 **Yes. A terrible storm befell the land. The likes of which hadn't been seen since the Super-Ancient Pokémon fought. Its rains proved so intense, it flooded the center of the continent, creating the Midnight Sea,** Magearna said. **Ho-Oh was caught up in the storm. And its ferocity nearly tore her to shreds.** Magearna then produced a piece of paper and placed it on her desk. Shane glimpsed what looked like some sort of swirling vortex. He could faintly make out a pair of orange-yellow wings.

"What is this?"

 **An artist's depiction of what we believe happened to Ho-Oh. A portal appeared in the eye of the storm. And from it emerged two beasts, the likes of which Ho-Oh had never seen.**

"So, other Legendary Pokémon then?"

Magearna shook her head. **No. In Horizon, we explicitly refer to them as "beasts."**

"You mean Entei, Raikou, and Suicune?" Shane asked. Magearna tilted her head. "Err… in the human world, there's, uh, a legend that ties them to Ho-Oh. And it calls Entei, Raikou, and Suicune 'beasts,' so…"

 **We think that whatever appeared from that portal was not of this world,** Magearna declared.

Shane's eyes widened. _'You mean… like aliens?'_ He looked up at the ceiling. _'Cripes, I guess the truth really is out there. Where are Mulder and Scully when you need them?'_

 **The beasts released an otherworldly energy and dissipated the storm in an instant. They had saved Ho-Oh's life,** Magearna continued. **But the beasts were unable to return from whence they came. And their bodies reacted poorly to our planet's atmosphere. Ho-Oh refused to let her saviors die in front of her. So, the legend goes that she transferred their spirits into two seals: the Dawn Hourglass and Dusk Hourglass.** Magearna produced another page, showcasing two sparkling hourglasses: one a brilliant gold and the other a majestic purple. **It is said a great, supernatural power dwells within each of them.**

Shane titled his head. "But, what does that have to do with Solgaleo and Lunala?"

 **Exposition mode is at forty-five percent. I will address that issue now,** Magearna acknowledged. **See, while Ho-Oh had preserved the beasts' spirits, their bodies remained behind as empty, lifeless husks. Ho-Oh covered them in her Sacred Ash and set the bodies ablaze with Sacred Fire.**

A brief image with two smoking towers of bright, rainbow fire flashed through Shane's vision. He shuddered and his fur stood on end.

 **From the ashes emerged two masses of cosmic energy. Both of which quickly mutated and grew. They transformed into a pair of Pokémon resembling the beasts that saved Ho-Oh.**

"Solgaleo and Lunala?" Shane turned to look at the original picture. "They… do kind of look like a sun and a full moon, now that I think about it."

 **Correct. And that is because, thanks to Ho-Oh, these Pokémon gained control over the sun and moon. Solgaleo can manipulate how much sunlight shines on the world. And Lunala, in turn, controls how much moonlight we receive,** Magearna explained.

"So basically, these two took over the whole 'balance of day and night' shindig in Ho-Oh's place, then?" Shane asked.

Magearna nodded. **Yes. However, their lives are finite. Once every two centuries, Solgaleo and Lunala are reborn through Ho-Oh's Sacred Fire and Sacred Ash. If ever this cycle were imperiled, it's said that the Dawn Hourglass and Dusk Hourglass will ensure the balance between day and night remains in place.**

Shane nodded slowly, taking Magearna's tale in. "Where do these two reside? In space?"

 **No. Supposedly, there's an island floating up in the heavens: Celestial Island,** Magearna explained. **But it is the great mystery of our continent. One that countless exploration teams have sought to solve… and failed.**

 _'Okaaaaay then. Guess that's a bit of a touchy subject around these parts. Note to self: don't bring it up with anyone,'_ Shane thought.

 **Have I properly answered your questions?** Magearna asked.

"Uh, actually, there's a couple more things…"

Magearna's body slumped over, causing Shane to stagger backwards in surprise. Moments later, her eyes flickered back on and she righted herself. **Oh… drat. It would appear I ran out of energy for exposition mode. What were you saying?**

"Err… I just had a few more questions for you," Shane said. "For one… aren't there two Ho-Oh's in this world? What happened to the oth– MWWWF!"

Magearna threw an arm up over Shane's mouth. She leaned over. **Who told you about that?**

"Mmffwoddy."

Magearna removed her arm, causing Shane to give a deep exhale. "Nobody," he repeated. "I, uh… thought I read something about it… in the story of the human who beat the Bittercold."

 **I am sorry. That information is highly classificated. Not even community leaders like Guildmaster Metagross are privency to it,** Magearna stated.

"But you know about it," Shane pointed out.

 **It is not something I am at libertarian to discuss with you. I could offer you an apology cycle if that would help.**

Shane's ears drooped. "Oh… okay. Forget I said anything."

 **But didn't you have more inquierations?**

"Yeah." Shane's muzzle stiffened. "What the heck were you guys doing when Dark Matter attacked? Don't you think they could've used your help over in the Water Continent?'

Magearna looked down. **We were utterly clueless, I'm afraid. Before that incidentiary, we had little-to-no contact with our fellow Pokémon beyond Horizon. Understand, human, the Air Continent is the nearest landmass other than small islands. And it is half a world away. Even Legendaries like Mew are incapable of teleporting such a vast distanography. One day we awoke to hear a booming voice claim all Pokémon would be turned to stone. Needless to say, we engaged in a massive panic cycle. The guild started evacateriazing as many Pokémon as we could find deep into the continent's underground caverns,** she said. **I stayed with the Guildmaster at the time to monitoriate the situation. Luckily it resolved itself. In the aftermath, I…**

"Okay, okay, I think I've heard enough," Shane sighed, rubbing his head against his shoulder.

"Great!" Tessa's tired voice called from across the room. "Because I could _really_ use someone tagging in here." Shane turned around to see his partner lying on her back on the floor, a bizarre gray scarf around her neck. Her fur was completely disheveled and her ears bent in directions that Shane never thought Riolu ears could go.

 **Togedemaru, I thought I told you to start her off easy,** Magearna scolded.

Togedemaru laughed. "Oh, I totally did that. I put her on the easiest difficult setting we had!"

"Um, should I get Comfey?" Shane asked.

"No! Just come take a turn so I can have a break," Tessa harrumphed.

* * *

"Hey, Null, wait up a second!"

Tessa tailed Null out of the dining hall following dinner. Shane followed her, though he was quite disoriented from the day's work.

"… do you need something?" Null asked.

Tessa scratched at her head. "Actually, I was just, uh, wondering if, I dunno, you maybe wanted to join Team Radiance?"

Null stumbled, but quickly collected himself. He turned to fix his cold, gray eyes on Tessa. "… you want _me_ … on your exploration team? Is this… a joke?"

"Trust me, I reacted the same way. She's totally serious," Shane said.

"You look like you could use some fresh air," Tessa exclaimed. "Have you _ever_ done anything other than sentry duty?"

Null shook his head. "… I'm fine… being a sentry…"

"But you're not even an apprentice yet and you've been here for months," Tessa pointed out. Null simply shrugged and started turning away from Team Radiance. "Wouldn't you like to try and figure out more about who you are? Or why you're here?"

Null froze. "… look at me… Riolu. I'm not trying… to scare the other Pokémon… in Horizon…"

"It's useless fighting her over this, Null. If I've learned anything about my partner, she's as good at arguing as she is at battling," Shane deadpanned. "You'll never win."

Null let out a sigh. "… tell you what. I'll consider it. Just… give me a day or two… to think about it… okay?"

"You got it. Take as much time as you need," Tessa chirped. Null nodded and lumbered along the hallway. Tessa turned back to her partner. "See? That went _way_ better than I expected. You've still got all your fur intact and everything."

Shane examined his pelt and fluttered his tails. "I suppose you're right. Maybe this is a sign… a sign that things are looking up for Team Radiance!" He puffed out his chest.

Tessa rolled her eyes. "Well, I guess you're back to your usual uppity self, then."

* * *

The reason I decided to tie Ho-Oh into Solgaleo and Lunala is simply to poke fun at the initial rumors about Gen VII/Sun & Moon. Back in early 2016, all the rumor outlets were calling the games "Pokémon Project Rainbow." And Ho-Oh's the Rainbow Pokémon, so there you go.

Next time: Crazed Pokémon with ravenous appetites. Make sure to finish eating before you read!


	9. Grievous Gluttony

**Chapter 9: Grievous Gluttony**

 _"Tessa. Wake up, Tessa."_

 _"Nnnggrrgghh..."_

 _"Come on Tessa. You can wake up now. It's alright. Mom's here."_

 _Tessa's eyes shot open and she sat up. She found herself on a cliff, looking out over a sprawling green field. A star-filled, twilight sky hung above her. And a full moon cast the cliffside in a soft, bright-blue light._

 _"M-Mom?" Tessa squeaked. She rubbed her eyes and blinked several times. A lithe Lucario stood in front of her. She had a single fang protruding from the top-left portion of her mouth and a white, diamond-shaped patch of fur in the center of her forehead. There was a lavender bandana around her neck, with a gold explorer's badge clipped to it. Tessa took in the sight for a few moments before her vision turned watery. She sprinted forward, watching the blob of tan, black, and blue steadily draw closer. Lucario knelt down, opening up her arms and wrapping her daughter in an embrace._

 _"I… I don't understand," Tessa sniffled. "Nobody knew where you were. How are you here?" Lucario clasped Tessa's chin and lifted it so their eyes met. She wore a frown on her face. Tessa's ears and aura feelers drooped._

 _"Y… you're not actually here, are you?" Tessa hiccupped. She brought a paw up toward her eyes._

 _"I'm sorry, Tessa. You're dreaming right now," Lucario replied. "This was the only way I could safely reach out to you."_

 _Tessa's heart sank. "Then… you're not coming home?"_

 _"I can't, Tessa," Lucario said. "Not for a while. There's something important that I'm in the middle of. But, as you can see, I'm perfectly safe. You don't have to worry about me. I can look after myself."_

 _"Does… does this all have to do with why you left?" Tessa asked._

 _Lucario nodded. "Tessa, words can't express how sorry I am that I lied to you about why I was leaving. I wanted nothing more than to tell you what was happening. But I had to make sure that everything was safe before I tried contacting you."_

 _"But what are you doing, then? What's so big that you couldn't tell anyone in the guild about it?" Tessa asked. "Please, Mom. I need to know."_

 _Lucario took a deep breath. "It's complicated, Tessa. To keep it simple, a certain Pokémon approached me to ask for my help. So, I'm working with a very special group to make sure this Pokémon stays safe."_

 _"Oh," Tessa whispered. "Well… that's… um… something. How much longer do you think you need to be away for?"_

 _"I can't really say, sweetie," Lucario replied. Tessa whimpered. Lucario brought up her paw and started rubbing her daughter's head. "But… I think I should be able to keep contacting you like this. So, at least we can stay in touch." She gave Tessa a reassuring smile, but Tessa couldn't return it. "I know it's not ideal, Tessa. But we'll make do." She sighed. "I can't say the same about Gallian, though. I tried to reach out to him the same way, but…"_

 _"Mom… Gallian's gone."_

 _Lucario's face blanched. "T-Tessa, what are you–?"_

 _"He left, Mom," Tessa elaborated. "A couple of weeks after you did. He just walked out on the guild."_

 _Lucario bit her lower lip. "I see." She brought her paw down to Tessa's shoulder. "And how are you holding up?"_

 _"I'm, uh, doing okay, I suppose," Tessa mumbled. She grabbed her scarf and twisted it to show off her bronze explorer's badge. "I'm part of the guild now."_

 _A smile crept across Lucario's muzzle. "Oh, Tessa, that's wonderful news!" She leaned over and nuzzled Tessa's neck. "I wish I could've been there to…" Her voice trailed off as her daughter looked down at the grass. "Tessa, is something wrong? Is someone giving you trouble?"_

 _"N-No." Tessa shook her head. "Just… y'know… having a bit of trouble finding my footing, that's all. You and Dad… set the bar pretty high."_

 _Lucario sighed. "That shouldn't matter, Tessa. Just try to be the best explorer you can be. So, are you flying solo or on a team?"_

 _"A team."_

 _"You've made yourself a friend, then?"_

 _"Err… not exactly," Tessa muttered. "My partner and I just sort of… ran into each other." She fidgeted nervously with her scarf. "He's, uh, a Vulpix." To Tessa's surprise, Lucario's eyes widened. "Mom, is everything okay?"_

 _Lucario's muzzle stiffened. "Tessa… where did you meet him?"_

 _"Um, over at Azure Cape. Is… is that important?"_

 _Lucario placed her other paw on Tessa's free shoulder. "I need you to listen to me. You need to distance yourself from Vulpix."_

 _"But… he's my teammate."_

 _"Then find another one," Lucario stated sternly._

 _"M-Mom, I can't just abandon him like that," Tessa said. "His situation's a bit… unusual."_

 _"Then you need to keep your eye on him, understand? Do_ not _trust him," Lucario declared._

 _Tessa's brow furrowed. "How do you know about my teammate, mom?"_

 _"It's the Pokémon I'm helping protect," Lucario replied. "She told me that she sensed a Vulpix with an unnatural aura appear in Horizon. She believes that Pokémon will be a lightning rod for the kind of trouble we're trying to keep her safe from."_

 _Tessa bit her lower lip. Was this really happening? Her mom knew about her partner. And she considered Vulpix a threat of some sort? "Mom, isn't there anything else you can tell me?"_

 _Lucario shook her head. "I'm afraid not."_

 _"Why not?"_

 _Lucario sighed. "It's tough to explain. I don't want you knowing too much, sweetie. Because I'm trying to protect this Pokémon from something that's far more active in Horizon right now than it is where I'm hiding. And if whatever's causing problems back home catches you, it'll figure out what I'm doing and where I am. And that could put all of us in grave danger."_

 _Tessa wasn't satisfied with that response. She opened her mouth to ask another question when her mom cut in, "I'm afraid our time's just about up."_

 _"Already?" Tessa squeaked. "But… but I have so much to tell you!"_

 _Lucario nuzzled Tessa's neck once more before standing back up. "Don't worry, Tessa. I'll reach out to you again soon. I promise." She stepped back toward the edge of the cliff._

 _"Mom!" Tessa cried, lunging forward. She skidded to a halt as a pair of dark-blue, golden-rimmed, crescent-shaped wings unfurled behind her mother._

 _A loud screech echoed across the clifftop, followed by a blinding flash of blue light._

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Tessa? Hey, Tessa. Wake up!" Shane nudged Tessa with his snout. "C'mon, it's almost time for morning assembly."

Tessa's eyes opened and she pushed herself upright. "Morning already, huh?" she mumbled.

"You were really out, huh?" Shane said. "Must've been pretty tired."

"I guess so." Tessa yawned and rubbed her eyes.

"Well, we'd better get moving if we want to make the assembly on time," Shane said. His tails wagged as he turned toward the door. "Wonder what they're gonna have us do today?"

Tessa frowned as she followed her partner out into the hall. _'That dream I had. It felt so real. Does that mean I was actually talking with mom? And, if so, what should I do about Vulpix? I mean… he has managed to get us both into a fair bit of trouble in such a short time. Maybe mom was telling the truth?'_

"Hey, Riolu. I got us a spot over here!" Shane called with a friendly wave.

 _'I guess I should just do what Mom suggested and keep an eye on him,'_ Tessa concluded, approaching Shane. They both turned toward the Guildmaster's office as Braviary cleared his throat.

"I'm sure I don't need to remind y'all that tomorrow is the big expedition!" Braviary announced to the assembled guild members.

"Which is why you just announced it anyway, right?" Togedemaru heckled, drawing laughter.

"Har, har, very funny. But yer forgetting I've got the power to pull any of y'all off this expedition," Braviary said. That promptly shut everyone up, though Togedemaru jutted out her lower lip in her best pouting effort. "Now then, the last thing we're needing is some rations. Luckily, Steenee will be attending to that today. That means the dining area is _off limits_. So, y'all are on yer own fer meals. Maybe try out something new in Crabrawler's Café. Just don't come complaining to me." He spread his wings. "That'll be all. Now, get out there and show 'em what yer made of!"

"Hooo-rah!"

The assembly broke up and Shane turned to Tessa. "So, what do you think's on tap for today?"

As if the universe had heard him, Steenee approached the duo. "Ah, Team Radiance, right? Just the folks I wanted."

"Um, can we help you with something?" Shane asked.

"Why, yes. You've been assigned to work with me today. We'll be gathering food and supplies for tomorrow's expedition from the Kecleon Shop and Dewdrop Woods. And then, of course, preparing it for the trek," Steenee explained. "You guys should drop off your stuff at Dhelmise Depot. I'll bring everything we need and I wouldn't want you to accidentally lose any important inventory."

Shane's ears drooped. "Aww, Dewdrop Woods _again?_ I hate that place," he groaned.

"Is that _whining_ I'm hearing?" Steenee gasped. "You can't just expect to dart all around the Horizon Continent right from the get-go, y'know."

"It's not that," Shane complained.

"He's, uh, had a _bit_ of a rough time in our past trips to Dewdrop," Tessa mused.

"Rough? I fell in a pond. I got an apple smashed on my face. Not to mention I ended up lathered in _disgustingly_ sticky honey," Shane recalled. "I _just_ got my fur all nice and fluffed, so–" His eyes widened. "–Oh god, I'm totally turning into girl!" He smacked his head against his shoulder. "Turn off, you stupid Vulpix brain!"

"Actually, I can understand. I believe coat pristineness is a source of personal pride for Vulpixes," Steenee said.

"Yeah, well I hate these dumb Vulpix instincts," Shane growled. He craned his neck upward and shouted, "You couldn't have made me something cool, like a Charmander or a Torchic or, better yet, a Riolu?"

"Um, but Vulpixes _are_ cool," Tessa pointed out. "They're ice-types, after all."

A vein bulged out of Shane's forehead. Tessa recognized the look in her partner's eyes and ran out of the room laughing. Shane gave chase, barking, "YOU THINK I'M GONNA LET YOU GET AWAY WITH A PUN LIKE THAT? YOU GET BACK HERE AND TAKE THIS POWDER SNOW LIKE A 'MON!"

Steenee blinked in shock.

"Yeah, they're a _real_ winning team, alright."

* * *

 **~Dewdrop Woods~**

"Aww, _come on!_ "

Shane jumped back toward a nearby tree and started brushing his right flank against the bark.

"I told you guys to warn me before you start tossing berries all willy-nilly," he whined. Shane backed away from the tree and glanced at his side. Streaks of purple lined his snow-white fur. "This is getting ridiculous. Do the powers that be just have a cruel sense of humor or something?"

Tessa walked by cradling an armful of berries. "Don't be ridiculous," she scoffed. "You're not so special that the Original One just sits there thinking of ways to make you unhappy."

"I was being rhetorical," Shane groaned.

"Sorry about that," Steenee said. "I'd have held onto the forage bag myself but, well, you kind of don't have any hands and that makes it tough for you to pick berries."

Shane's left eye twitched.

"Psst… I wouldn't bring that up if I were you," Tessa whispered. "He's kinda sore about having four legs."

"First thing I'm doing when I return to being a human is kissing my opposable thumbs," Shane sighed. "Oh, the things I've taken for granted all my life."

Steenee picked up her forage bag and deposited her pile of berries into it. Tessa followed suit. "So, what do we have left to get?" she asked.

"Just some Perfect Apples for Braviary," Steenee replied.

"Hey, we actually know where the Perfect Apple tree is!" Tessa chirped. "Don't we, Vulpix?"

"Oh no." Shane shook his head. "I'm staying as _faaaaaaaaaar_ away from that thing as possible. You two can deal with the Perfect Apples."

"Aww, but Shane, your Extrasensory is perfect for knocking them free of that super-tall tree," Tessa exclaimed. "Can't you just help us out a little bit?" She batted her eyelashes at him.

Shane turned his snout skyward. "No way. I can read the stars, and they're telling me I'm gonna end up buried under a pile of apples."

"Um, it's daytime," Steenee pointed out.

"Doesn't change a thing," Shane huffed.

"What if I buy you a mago berry sorbet when we're finished?" Tessa offered. Shane's muzzle stiffened. Tessa smirked. She appeared to have found a weak point.

"Nnnnggh… the answer's still no," Shane stammered, turning away to avoid Tessa's gaze. Tessa crossed her arms and started tapping a foot on the ground. Shane swallowed a mouthful of spit. He turned back to Tessa with a resolute gleam in his eyes. "Add in a razz berry twist or it's no deal."

"Hmm, you drive a hard bargain there, but I'll accept," Tessa giggled. "Okay, Apple Boy, let's get moving."

Shane rolled his eyes. "Oh, sure, you'll call me 'Apple Boy' but you won't call me Shane," he grumbled, turning to guide the two ladies back into the same area he had battled Trapinch and Yungoos in several day earlier. However, when the large Perfect Apple tree came into sight, Shane knew something was off. "Hey! There aren't _nearly_ as many Perfect Apples as there were last time we were here," he gasped. "What gives?"

"Look." Tessa pointed a paw forward. "There's a pile of 'em next to the tree. Looks like you're off the hook."

Shane grinned broadly, only for that expression to immediately falter. "Wait, I still get the berry sorbet, don't I?"

Tessa shot him a smirk. "I never recall shaking on it."

"That's not fair!" Shane protested, chasing his partner down the hill toward the pile of apples. The two of them made it about halfway down the hill before a rush of frosty air shot out from the roots of the tree. Neither could get the proper traction to stop. They rolled down the hill, ending up in a pileup by the base of the tree.

"Well, well, well. See, Jangmo-o, what did I tell ya? These two are a couple of no-good crooks. Kweh heh heh!"

Shane poked his head up. "You've gotta be kidding me," he groaned. Shane spotted Sneasel sitting on the lowest branch of the tree, tossing a Perfect Apple in one hand. Jangmo-o sat beside him, eyeing the Perfect Apple pile intently.

"Yeah! Trying to steal the Perfect Apples we went through the trouble of picking," Jangmo-o huffed. "The nerve of it all."

"Team Fang!" Tessa growled, bolting to her feet. "Trying to make off with the forest's whole supply of Perfect Apples, are you?" She hiked up her scarf to hide the frown on her muzzle. _'You've got to be kidding me. Maybe Mom really is telling the truth here.'_

"Hey now, we picked these things fair and square," Sneasel scoffed. " _You're_ the ones who were about to make off with _our_ hard work. We heard everything." He shook his head. "To think you'd stoop so low. Almost makes a guy think you have it out for him."

"Hey!" Steenee managed to catch up to Team Radiance. "The Perfect Apples here are for _all_ Pokémon to share. You can't just make off with all of them."

"Kweh heh heh! Last I checked, there weren't no laws on the books saying how many Perfect Apples a guy could take," Sneasel cackled. "Besides, we're doing this for the good of all Pokémon. We've got, uh, this special grass-type friend, see? We're gonna plant these Perfect Apples and make a whole _forest_ of Perfect Apple trees! Then _everyone_ can enjoy Perfect Apples."

"But Sneasel, I thought we was gonna sell the apples for mad coin?" Jangmo-o interjected.

Sneasel's face went bright red and a vein bulged out of his forehead. "Jangmo-o, ix-nay on the oiling our plans-spay," he seethed.

"Huh? What d'ya mean?"

"It means keep your trap shut you Trubbish-for-brains!" Sneasel hissed, grabbing hold of Jangmo-o and shaking him. "Ignore my silly little friend here. He's fallen on his head a few too many times, y'see. Kweh… heh… heh…" He rubbed the back of his head, "You're, uh, not buying that, are you?"

"Not in the slightest," Shane sneered. A mouthful of frosty slush started gathering in his mouth.

"Ah! Ah! Ah!" Sneasel shook his head. "I wouldn't do that if I was you, Snowy." He crept along the branch toward the Perfect Apple pile. "After all, if you try to attack us _now_ , all these _lush_ Perfect Apples will get caught. As will your precious Perfect Apple tree."

"Yeah! And if the tree gets frozen, there'll be no Perfect Apples for anyone," Jangmo-o laughed. "Good thinking, Sneasel."

"Didn't I just tell ya to shut your mouth?" Sneasel barked. "Or do I need to _freeze_ it shut?" Jangmo-o lowered his head and shook it. "Now then." He turned back to Team Radiance. "My friend and I are going to grab some Perfect Apples and be on our way. And you three won't move so much as a muscle. Because if you do… you can kiss your tree and your precious pile of apples here goodb–"

 _BRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP!_

"… excuse you," Jangmo-o gasped.

"What? I didn't belch just then, you moron," Sneasel scoffed. "Stop trying to deflect blame. I _knew_ I shouldn't have let you eat that weird-looking berry."

"It wasn't me, either!" Jangmo-o exclaimed. "And if it wasn't you, then–?" He glanced down at Steenee and Team Radiance. The trio shook their heads in unison. Jangmo-o's eyes widened. "Hey, Sneasel… I don't think we're alone here," he muttered. He looked down and saw the pile of Perfect Apples moving. Several apples spilled off the pile, rolling to a stop by Team Radiance.

"Aiiiiiiiyyyyyyeeeeeeee! The Perfect Apples are aliiiiiiiiiiiiiive!" Jangmo-o screeched.

Sneasel smacked Jangmo-o across the cheek. "Pull yourself together, you lout! Fruit ain't alive."

"Ex _cuse_ me?" Steenee narrowed her eyes at Team Fang. As she did, the pile of Perfect Apples moved again, sending a few more rolling toward Team Radiance.

"Then again… maybe there's some creepy forest spirit?" Sneasel stammered.

 **"Groooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"**

"Okay, that _definitely_ came from the apple pile," Tessa concluded, shuffling away from it.

"Hey, Sneasel?" Jangmo-o whispered. "Is it time to execute Plan R?"

"No way. We came here to get Perfect Apples. So, we ain't leaving without our Perfect Apples," Sneasel proclaimed.

Suddenly, a single bolt of electricity exploded out from the pile of apples, shattering the edge of the branch Team Fang stood on. They saw the apple pile start to fall apart. Team Radiance gave startled yelps and backpedaled from the tree, diving to the ground to avoid an apple avalanche.

"Never mind. These apples ain't worth this trouble," Sneasel panicked. "Time for Plan R!" He and Jangmo-o jumped down from the Perfect Apple tree.

"RUN AWAY!" they shouted in unison, sprinting for the cover of the forest.

"What's going on? Perfect Apples can't do things like that," Steenee gasped.

Shane rolled up to his feet and peered at where the Perfect Apple pile had once towered. He squinted. "Are those a pair of Munchlaxes?" He took a step forward, only for the Munchlaxes to lock eyes with him. Shane froze. A chill ran down his spine. "Wait... something's really wrong here!"

"I'll say! Those look nothing like Munchlaxes are supposed to!" Steenee gasped, watching as the two Munchalxes grabbed handfuls of Perfect Apples and shoved them not into their mouths, but the blue, void-like funnels sitting in the centers of their stomachs. "Did... did they just eat the apples with their _bellies?!_ "

"Guys, I think we should get out of here!" Tessa cried, panic spreading across her face. The Munchlaxes turned their sights on Tessa, showing off the black crystals covering their faces in armor. Tessa caught sight of the extra pair of arms protruding from each Munchlax's stomach. The mouth-like pincers at the end of their extra arms snapped wildly at the air. "Steenee, we have an Escape Orb, right? Something's very wrong here!"

The Munclax duo gorged themselves on more Perfect Apples. They turned in unison and belched in the guild members' direction. "Ugggh! Peeyew!" Steenee waved a hand in front of her face. "That's _noxious_."

 **"Infect!"**

Tessa's ears twitched. "Did you just say something, Shane?"

"N-No," Shane stammered. "It was them!" He pointed a forepaw forward, showing the Munchlaxes marching forward in unison.

 **"Infect!"**

Both Munchlaxes raised their hands and their pincers. Their claws and pincers glowed simultaneously. They started to wave them back and forth.

"I know that move. That's Metronome," Shane gasped. "Anything can come of it!"

 **"INFECT!"**

The Munchlaxes pointed their limbs forward. A stream of fire shot out from the right Munchlax. The left one extended a long, spectral tongue forward. "Look out!" Tessa cried. She tackled Shane to the ground, feeling the heat of the Flamethrower singe the fur on her back. Steenee gasped as the other Munchlax's ghostly tongue glided across her body. She immediately stiffened as electricity crackled around her.

"Steenee, quick. We need the Escape Orb!" Shane shouted.

"... paralyzed. Can't reach… bag," Steenee wheezed.

Shane and Tessa exchanged panicked expressions. "Okay, you go grab the forage bag from Steenee," Shane said. "While these two lugs are close together like this, I can hit 'em both with one Powder Snow and buy us time. Now, get moving!"

Tessa chose not to protest Shane's decision. She sprinted across the area while Shane turned and fired a wide blast of snowflakes at the Munchlaxes. However, much to his absolute shock, the duo easily skirted the attack. They split up and charged him down. _'That can't be!'_ Shane gasped. _'Munchlaxes are supposed to make molasses look like a turbo-powered jet by comparison!'_ He could see both Pokémon winding up to attack him and dove forward. He skidded across the dirt as both Chip Away punches sailed wide. Instead, the Munchlax socked themselves in their guts, right on top of their second mouths.

 **"Grrrraaaaaaaaaaaaagh!"** they growled in unison.

Tessa squeaked frightfully. _'This is awful! Somehow, Vulpix managed to get us all in trouble again. And with more berserk Pokémon like that Meowth. I don't believe this. Mom was right!'_ Tessa turned away from the Munchlaxes and continued fumbling through Steenee's bag. "Aha!" She hefted the Escape Orb up in triumph. "Okay, we're outta here." But when she tapped the orb to activate its effects, nothing happened. "Uh, Steenee, is this thing broken?"

"GUYS!" Shane barked, ducking a gigantic burst of crimson energy with a look of utter terror on his face. "Can we pick up the pace a little bit, please?" He spun about and shrieked at the top of his lungs. His Roar hurtled the nearest Muchlax into its counterpart. The two slumped down in a dazed heap, giving Shane time to scramble to his partners. He scooped up and hastily downed part of a Perfect Apple, feeling some of his energy return to him in the process. "What's the hold up?"

"The Escape Orb's not working," Tessa declared. "Something's jamming it."

"How does that work?" Shane groaned. "Oh, it doesn't matter. We need Steenee on her feet. Does she have any paralysis-curing stuff on her?"

"Yeah. I've… got a… cheri berry," Steenee stammered. Tessa started rummaging through her forage bag again. But the Munchlaxes had come to. "Guuuuuuuuys… they're starting up another dual Metronome," Steenee panicked.

"Relax, they're due to have a screw-up soon," Shane scoffed. But then he spotted brilliant sheens of red and pink light gathering around the Munchlaxes' claws. "Never mind… MOVE! MOVE! MOVE!" He shoved Tessa to the side and tried to grab Steenee by the forage bag and drag her away.

The Munchlaxes pointed their arms forward. A conical spiral of fire shot forward, with a dazzling pink light expanding the flames. The psionic energy caused the flames to spread out, showering Team Radiance. Shane howled in pain as wisps of fire peppered his back, leaving ugly black scorches across his fur. Likewise, Tessa yelped from flames searing her feet and sending her to the ground.

"Confusion boosted… Fire Spin?" Steenee gasped. "Something's not normal… with those Metronome attacks. They're too on-point. Like some force… is manipulating what attacks they're getting."

"I'd gladly take that over my usual bad luck shining through," Shane groaned. He noticed an oran berry had rolled out of Steenee's forage bag in the commotion and gobbled it down. He got to his feet, but quickly had to fire off a small, explosive wave of Extrasensory to damage one of the charging Munchlaxes. "Look alive, Tessa. One's coming for you!" he shouted.

His partner caught his warning. She spun around, her fist glowing bright blue. Then, she opened her palm and smacked the Munchlax's stomach-mouth. **"Gnnnnaaaaaaargh!"** Munchlax howled, body jiggling from the blow. He toppled onto his back, giving Tessa time to flee toward her partners.

"Thank goodness," she sighed. "After all these years, I finally got Force Palm working correctly!" Her fists glowed again as she ran down the Munchlax harassing Shane. But she didn't expect it to suddenly turn on her. It met her Force Palm with a swing of one of the black arms emerging from its gut. Its larger frame prevailed, and its Chip Away sent Tessa to the ground. It proved a short-lived victory, however, as a curtain of Powder Snow blanketed Munchlax's backside.

In fact, the rush of snowflakes quickly gave way to a fierce gust of ice-cold air. Munchlax snarled and a single, ethereal question-mark appeared over its head. The damaging effects of Shane's newly-discovered Icy Wind quickly faded. "Oh, great. Way to take the wind out of my awesome new move moment. Any more tricks you're keeping up your sleeve, big guy?" Shane groaned. He quickly ate his words, jumping to barely dodge a ghoulish tongue extending out from the Munchlax's second mouth. Meanwhile, its partner sprinted toward them, wagging its fingers as it readied a Metronome attack.

"Not this time!"

Shane and Tessa glanced over their shoulders and saw a shower of multicolored leaves batter the Munchlax, tripping it up and bringing it to the ground. Steenee landed in front of it, apparently having found her cheri berry. "You guys focus on that one," she said. "I'll try to keep this one separated from its partner." She bent down and spun the petals on her head around. A sparkling pink powder sprinkled over the Munchlax. Its ferocious gaze suddenly softened and its jaw slackened. Drool trickled out of its open mouth. "That ought to slow you down a bit," Steenee declared.

The other Munchlax would have none of this. It let out a roar and lashed out at Tessa with all four of its arms. She lacked the time to dodge and took the blow square in her chest. However, it proved too forceful for her to get her bearings straight and use Counter. Shane took a defensive stance in front of her and Roared the Munchlax away. It stumbled about in a daze, allowing Shane to run and scoop up the forage bag. He snatched up an oran berry in his mouth and tossed it to Tessa. "Here, catch!"

Tessa caught the berry in a trembling arm and scarfed it down. She rose up to her knees. "Why didn't you attack it?"

"It's used Amnesia. My attacks aren't going to do that much good," Shane reported.

"Well, _my_ attacks aren't doing much good either," Tessa panted. "So, how do we deal with this guy?"

Shane had no time to answer as he glimpsed white light encircling the Munchlax. "Oh, crud. Not _another_ Metronome!" he groaned. To his horror, he felt the ground starting to shake. A short distance away, the tremors hit Steenee, who dropped to her knees. The other Munchlax, took advantage of this to ready a Metronome of its own.

As Steenee fell to the ground, she sent a dozen razor-sharp leaves forward, pelting the Munchlax and making the Tri-Attack burst of ice, fire, and electricity that formed in its claws sail harmlessly off toward the woods. But the other Munchlax faced no resistance from Shane or Tessa. They were hurtled atop one another by the Earthquake. Shane gave a loud moan. His limbs trembled as he tried to force himself back to his feet. But he couldn't muster the energy to do so.

"Rrrggh… get off me… Vulpix!" Tessa grumbled. "We're sitting Duckletts like this."

"I'm too tired," Shane whimpered. "My legs feel like melted butter after that attack!" He looked up and saw a Munchlax bearing down on them. Shane roared it back again, buying him some time. He sucked in a deep breath and, with a pained wince, rolled onto his back. Tessa skirted free and charged down the Munchlax.

It narrowed its eyes at her and started gathering up energy for Metronome. But Tessa had no intention of letting things get that far. She flash-stepped forward with a burst of Quick Attack. Rather than striking Munchlax, however, she appeared by its side. Too focused on charging its attack, Munchlax had no countermeasures against the a Force Palm blow to its ribs. The impact sent Munchlax skidding back across the ground, directly into Steenee's line of fire. Both Munchlaxes' expressions blanched when a swarm of leaves raced forward, striking their bodies.

 **"Grooooooooooaaaaaaaaaarrrrgggggh!"** they roared in agony before collapsing onto their bellies.

"We… we got 'em." Steenee weakly raised a fist in victory. "How are… you two… holding up?"

She turned to see Tessa helping Shane struggle to his feet. Steenee winced at the streaks of burnt fur on Shane's back. "Goodness! We need to get back to the guild to see Comfey right away."

"I'll live," Shane grunted, leaning on Tessa for support. "I think we should bind those two Munchlaxes up and contact the guild. Guildmaster Metagross should have a look at this. Something not right with those guys."

A twinge of movement from one of the Munchlaxes made the trio jump. **"No,"** it wheezed, **"Must infect. M… Must inf–"**

Its body seized up. The red moons on its ears faded and the crackling sound of shattered glass echoed through the clearing. "What's going on?" Tessa squeaked. Shane yipped from his partner squeezing his shoulder.

"Look at the Munchlaxes," Steenee gasped, pointing a hand forward. The trio watched in horror as the black crystals covering the Munchlaxes' ears faded into a thick black mist. It swirled around each of their bodies, spiraling down toward the dirt. As the mist sank into the earth, all of the color seemed to drain from the Munchlaxes' bodies.

"They're disintegrating," Shane hollered, his legs quivering. The irises and pupils on one of the Muchlax's faces dissolved off its body, following the black mist into the ground. When all of the mist faded, the two Munchlaxes lay unmoving next to one another. Their fur was nothing but different shades of gray and their eyes were now cold, hollow balls virtually indistinguishable from their gray faces.

Tessa threw her paws over her face and looked away. "S-Steenee? A-Are th-they–?"

Steenee crept forward. She gently nudged one of the Munchlax's bodies, but got no response. "I… I don't even hear any snoring. And Munchlaxes are very loud sleepers," she said.

Shane's jaw stiffened. "How could they go so suddenly from being super aggressive to… to…" He gulped. "To _that?_ "

"Uhuu huu huu huu! What a silly question. They weren't strong enough hosts, of course."

Shane's tails stuck straight up and his fur bristled. "Wait, I recognize that voice!" He started looking about in a panic. A flash of lavender light caused Team Radiance to flinch, and then look toward the apple tree. At the base of the tree appeared the pink and black forms of Espy and Umbry, respectively. Tessa's aura feelers started to quiver.

 _'No. Not them again,'_ she thought. _'Is this what Mom meant when she said Vulpix is a lightning rod for trouble? If I stay with him… am I going to have to keep dealing with these two? I can't handle that!_

Shane narrowed his eyes at Espy. "You're the jerk who tried to hurt Tessa in Aeon Town."

"Now, now." Espy shook her head. "Is that any way to talk to a lady? Hmph." She pointed her snout skyward. "I'll bet you're the kind of Pokémon who _conveniently_ forgets his Poké when he's out on a date. Soooo not worthy of my attention."

Umbry picked up one of the Perfect Apples on the ground and stared at it disdainfully. "This was a wasted use of an Ultra Entercard, Espy. They've both got parts of that scarf on. We'd just be wasting our strength trying to infect them."

Espy pouted. "Aww, c'mon, I just wanted to play with those two a bit. What if we take Steenee home as a consolation prize?"

Steenee's cheeks puffed up at this. "Now wait just a darn second, here. I am _not_ going anywhere with a couple of strangers." She turned to Team Radiance. "You mind explaining all of this to me?"

Tessa shot Steenee a worried look. "I… I really don't know. These two showed up out of the blue in Aeon Town a couple of nights ago and attacked me." She tried to shuffle over toward Steenee. "We… we need to see if that Escape Orb's working now."

Shane meanwhile, stared at the pair of aggressors with a look of abject horror. _'Entercards? No… that's impossible. This is just a sick coincidence. It can't be_ them. _They were such nice characters in the games. They'd never attack innocent Pokémon like th–'_

Espy's eyes glowed blue. Shane turned and saw Tessa and Steenee cry out in pain as a burst of psychic energy hammered them into the ground.

"Uhuu huu huu. Normally, I love it when 'mons get all fussy like this. But Umbry's mad at me for dragging him out here. So, either take off those scarves and surrender…" Espy narrowed her eyes at them. "… or you three are about to retire from exploring… _permanently._ "

Shane tensed up. _'No, no, no, no! This doesn't make any sense. What kind of backwards universe did I end up in? I… I…'_ He threw caution into the wind and, despite his exhaustion, shot a swirling blast of Powder Snow at Espy and Umbry. He immediately booked it toward his partners. His attack fizzled out uselessly against a pair of sturdy, glimmering, pink barriers.

"Delightful! Here I was thinking you were just gonna roll over and take it, pupsicle." Espy licked her lips excitedly. "But now I get to have some _real_ fun!"

Shane dove for Steenee's forage bag and pulled out the Escape Orb. To his delight, the item sparkled with a brilliant golden aura. "Thank heavens. Let's get out of here!" he bellowed.

Espy's eyes widened. "No! Our energy's supposed to _block_ those things!" she hissed. "Don't just stand there, Umbry. GET THEM!" Umbry raced forward, but it was too late. A multicolored vortex surrounded Steenee and Team Radiance, sending them shooting into the sky. Umbry skidded to a halt in the dirt.

"… like I said. Wasted Ultra Entercard," he growled.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"So, lemme get this straight. Y'all got attacked by a pair of rabid Munchlaxes?" Braviary asked. Shane, Steenee, and Tessa nodded in unison.

"Yeah, but when we beat them, all the color drained from their bodies in this creepy black mist," Shane exclaimed.

Tessa suppressed a shudder. "When the mist disappeared they…" She gulped. "Their bodies were just lifeless husks!"

"And that's when the two Pokémon who attacked you in Aeon Town showed up?" Braivary asked. Tessa nodded. "Hrrrrrmmmmm… and yer telling me that them Munchlaxes were like the critter who attacked the guild the other day?"

"Yes, sir. They both had red crescent-moons on their bodies, just like Meowth did," Shane reported. "And the two Pokémon who attacked Tessa had the same symbols as well."

Braviary rubbed his chin with a wing. "Which means they're _definitely_ connected. In fact, they could even be related to the tide issues in Sunset Shoals."

"Really? Isn't that a bit of a stretch?" Steenee gasped.

"Not at all. Far back as we've been keeping records, Pokémon done lose their minds when our lands are thrown out of balance," Braviary pointed out. "And that means tomorrow's expedition is more important than we realized."

 _'Huh, I wouldn't have thought to make that connection. I guess that's what being a seasoned explorer's all about,'_ Shane thought. _'Either that, or this guy knows more than he's letting on and he's trying to play us. In which case, I'd better pay close attention to him.'_

He extended a wing toward Tessa. "I want to thank y'all fer discovering this, even if it did put ya in danger. This could prove mighty helpful fer us." Tessa gave the bird a confused look but shook his wing. "Since ya done brought me this info, I'm-a go ahead and sign off on Team Radiance's guild maintenance training. Y'all are now free to go back to taking jobs."

Shane perked up a bit at this.

"I'll inform the Guildmaster of yer findings and see if he has any thoughts. Y'all are dismissed for the day," Braviary announced and walked off toward Metagross's chambers.

"Sorry about today, guys," Steenee sighed. "That really got out of hand."

"It's not your fault, Steenee," Tessa assured her. "The important thing is that we all made it back safely. Right, Vulpix?"

Shane continued to study Braviary as he entered the Guildmaster's office. "Huhwha–? Oh, yeah. Good work. Go team. All that jazz." He halfheartedly waved a forepaw around in the air.

"I don't think he actually heard me," Tessa sighed. Steenee had already left the assembly area, leaving the duo by themselves. Tessa brought her paws up to her shoulders, trying to put a stop to her shivering.

 _'What happened out there today. I can't really blame it on Vulpix, can I?'_ Tessa thought. _'I mean, it wasn't his choice to go to Dewdrop Woods. That was because of Steenee. But… if we'd gone there without him, would we have been safe?'_

"Hey, Tessa, you doing okay?"

Tessa snapped to attention. "I told you not to call me that," she growled. "And… I'm fine." She crossed her arms and looked away. "I was just spacing out, that's all."

The sounds of claws scraping limestone drew the duo's attention. They looked up and noticed Null approaching them. His explorer's pouch was awkwardly slung across his helmet. "What can I do you for, Null?" Tessa asked, happy for the distraction.

Null shook his head and dropped the pouch in front of Tessa. "… my inventory," he mumbled. "I figured… we should pool resources…"

Tessa raised an eyebrow. "Whatever for?"

"… I overheard… your conversation…" Null muttered, looking down guiltily.

Tessa beamed. "… and you want to join up with our exploration team?"

"… no," Null replied bluntly. Tessa stumbled and Shane let out a sigh of relief. "… but… I think I may… go with you… for a few missions… here and there…"

Shane frowned and looked away. Tessa nodded her approval. "Well, that sounds perfectly reasonable to me. Welcome aboard." She extended a paw. "We're happy to work with you."

"Speak for yourself," Shane mumbled under his breath.

Null awkwardly extended a foreleg, allowing Tessa to realize his talons made pawshakes an impossibility. "Uh… lemme just…" Tessa wrapped her paw around Null's ankle and clumsily moved it up and down. "… there! Aha… ha…" She quickly retracted her paw. "We don't have a scarf to give you, Null. I hope that's okay," Tessa muttered.

Null craned his body to show his helmet covering up most of what would pass for his neck. "… I think… I'll manage…"

"Right. Sorry," Tessa muttered.

The trio fell into silence. Shane didn't need to be a psychic-type to tell that, even with most of the guild leaving tomorrow, Team Radiance would have plenty to talk about.

 **End of Episode 4**

* * *

 **Guzzling Gluttons, Ultra Munchlax Duo  
** _A dark force has taken these two's normally ravenous appetites and turned them positively monstrous! With the extra arms granted by the infusion of otherworldly life energy, their chaotic Metronome attacks have turned unnaturally aggressive. Hurry and stop them, Team Radiance, or they may eat every piece of food in the whole forest!_

* * *

One of the biggest disappointments about Sun & Moon was the fact that Lusamine merged with a Nihilego... and a normal trainer battle followed. So, I thought it'd be fun to mix and match some Pokémon and Ultra Beasts! For this chapter, Ultra Munchlax (or Guzzlax, if your prefer). Needless to say, future battles may not follow your typical "X Pokémon uses Y move," pattern.

Next time: a blast from the past. No Dialgas or Celebis necessary!


	10. Tracking a Tremendous Treasure

"Things sure are a-changing 'round these parts."

Braviary craned his neck up toward an oak bookcase. He grabbed hold of a binder with his beak and hopped over to a nearby desk. He dropped the binder onto a small reader's podium, with a glowing orb attached to provide a source of light. Then he used his beak to flip the binder open, showing sketches of Shane and Tessa. Below the drawings sat a line reading "Team Radiance Exploration File."

"I was beginning to think she'd never end up joining us. It's just such a shame that she arrived now. After all, the Guildmaster's getting rid of her family's records."

Braviary shut the binder. He grabbed a larger one from his desk using his beak and shoved it onto the podium. It opened up, showing a pair of sketches. The first displayed three Pokémon raising bronze explorers' badges high: a Rufflet, a Metang, and a black and red-orange cat with a bell-like orb on its neck. Below that drawing was another one. It showcased the same three Pokémon, only this time they had gold badges. In addition, a Riolu stood next to them, smirking. She had a bronze explorer's badge pinned to the bandanna around her neck, a small fang sticking out of her mouth, and a white patch of diamond-shaped fur on her forehead.

"I wish y'all could be here to see her. Yer little gal's really coming into her own with that partner of hers."

* * *

 _The name's Braviary. I'm the intelligence expert and assistant to Guildmaster Metagross here at the Horizon Exploration Guild. Course, that weren't always the case. Back in my heyday, I was part of one of the guild's top exploration teams: Team MIB. What's the name mean? Why, Metagross, Incineroar, and Braviary, of course. Now, we weren't actually like that when we first joined. But we were confident, yesiree. Confident we'd evolve and show the whole continent how strong we are._

 _We never backed down from a mission. Even if it done got us in hot water. Course, that meant we got into plenty of jams. None of them compared to this one mission, though. Been about twenty-five years, but I still remember it plain as day. Cause it would turn out to be the most important job we ever did…_

* * *

 **Special Episode 1: Seasoned Veterans**

 **Chapter 10: Tracking a Tremendous Treasure**

 _This Special Episode will follow Braviary back during his time as an explorer on Team MIB. The episode uses a first-person perspective for the duration of the flashback._

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"C'mon Rufflet. Wakey, wakey. Today's the big day!"

"Mmmrrgghh… ffrrrrggnnnngggh…"

My eyes opened to find Torracat staring right at me. His beady yellow eyes always made my feathers frizzle. "I'm up. I'm up," I groaned, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. My vision was still kinda fuzzy, but I could see the distinct lack of sunshine out our window. "Now what in tarnation did ya get me up for, Torracat? It ain't even sunrise yet!"

Torracat put on that annoying, all-knowing smirk of his. "Exactly. We have to get an early start. After all, this is our big assignment. If we nail this job, we'll make veteran rank!"

That's when it clicked. "Oh yeah. Guess it kind of slipped my mind. My bad."

"Slipped your mind? You're our inventory guy, Rufflet!" Torracat said. "Don't tell me you forgot to buy the supplies."

Well now, it might've slipped my mind in the moment. But that didn't mean I hadn't prepared the other day. "Course not," I said. I opened up our toolbox kit to show off all the wares I'd procured. "See, take a look fer yerself."

 **The quantity of items is sufficient to proceed.**

I looked up at Metang, who was hovering over by the door. Least, I _think_ it were hovering. Never could really tell, since ground-type moves could still hit him and what not.

"Thanks, Mets," I said with a yawn. "Now then, uh, someone want to remind me where we're heading for this here job?"

Torracat facepalmed. "Oh for heaven's sake. We're heading to Stormcracker Isle to find the long-lost treasure of the legendary Armored Adventurer! Or, at least, to try."

I raised a wing. "Hold up a sec. Ain't the Armored Adventurer nothing but a fairy tale? Y'know, something us exploring types like to tell yung'uns to get 'em interested in joining the guild?"

"Who's to say?" Torracat chuckled. "That's what we're going to find out. My dad tried looking for the treasure back before he became Guildmaster, but he could never navigate the inner caverns." Torracat got that confident gleam in his eyes. "He wasn't Team MIB, though. We're the best around. And now's our chance to show it."

"Well, shoot, finding a legendary explorer's treasure _would_ make fer quite the adventure," I said. "So, what're we standing around here for?"

Torracat laughed. "That's what I was saying. Let's get moving. I already got us a pair of Sharpedo willing to head out to Stormcracker Isle."

 **And we are ten minutes and fifteen seconds late to rendezvous,** Metang announced. **Now it's sixteen seconds… seventeen… eighteen…**

"Alright, I get it," I grunted, hefting the toolbox kit over a wing.

* * *

 **~Stormcracker Isle~**

"Looks like you lot lucked out. The isle's going through one of its dry spells."

Torracat and I shared a Sharpedo, while Metang lay atop the other one, clutching it's big ol' fin. They sped across choppy morning waters toward a fairly large island. Sure, I didn't have Keen Eye. But I didn't need it to see the basic features: clusters of jungle brush, a rocky spire jutting into the sky, and a waterfall streaming out from the rock, giving rise to a river that dumped into the ocean.

I turned to Torracat. "If'n ya don't mind me asking, boss, just why's the place called Stormcracker anyway?"

Torracat glanced at Metang. "Yo, Mets. Give Rufflet the rundown."

 **Affirmative,** Metang replied in that flat robot voice of his. **This island is positioned directly in the migratory paths of Zapdos and Thundurus. Each Legendary Pokémon expels excess electrical energy while migrating. The energy gathers up around the island, forming torrential storms that can fall for weeks on end.**

I could already feel my eyelids growing heavy again. Metang just had that effect on me. Guy could take any subject related to exploring and make it as boring as sentry duty at the guild. I done needed to shake my head about to make sure I didn't doze off. "So, why do y'all think the Armored Adventurer would stash his treasure here? Cause it's a tough island to penetrate?" I wondered.

"Either that, or he ended up here by accident and couldn't survive," Torracat said. "Which means if we find _anything_ , that'll make us explorers on par with the mighty Armored Adventurer."

I pictured glimmering, gold statues of our team in the center of Aeon Town. Complete with Pokémon marveling at 'em and telling their kiddies about the brave explorers of Team MIB. "Heh." I rubbed my beak with a wing. "Now that'd be something to see, I reckon."

"Hey, Sharpedo, we need to head for the east side of the island," Torracat said. "Is that okay?"

"Sure," our Sharpedo replied.

"Hang on." I squinted at the island. "Ain't that gonna put us further from that there big rock than if we go to the west side?"

 **Correct,** Metang replied. **However, it is the safer route. The jungles on the west side contain very rare fruits and berries, making that part of the island a prime target for scavengers or wild Pokémon.**

"And the last thing we need are some whackos trying to butt in on _our_ big mission," Torracat declared. "Now then, full speed ahead toward that beach!" He pointed a claw forward. Next thing I knew, I was gripping the Sharpedo's fin for dear life as it carved through that there ocean like it were slicing up a thick, juicy melon. After a few minutes, we touched down on the beach and said our thanks to the Sharpedos. "You've got that flare to call these guys when we're ready to leave, right, Rufflet?" Torracat asked.

"Reckon I do," I replied, pulling out the flare from the toolbox.

"Great, then let's head inward," Torracat said, and led our team forward into the jungle. There were no paths for us to follow. So, we was dipping and ducking jungle brush and hopping over tree roots that were taller than Torracat. Of course, them giant tropical leaves weren't no problem for Team MIB. With my Wing Attack, Torracat's Flamethrower, and Metang's Confusion, we easily cleared a path forward in the direction of that huge rock at the center of the island.

 **Torracat, do you not think it wise to avoid burning any foliage? The smoke could alert wild Pokémon to our location,** Metang said.

"Good point, Mets. But this _is_ a deserted island. We're probably fine," Torracat replied. I rolled my eyes. If'n there was one member of Team MIB who could jinx our luck with his overconfidence, it was Torracat. "Still, it doesn't hurt to err on the safe side. I'll hold off on the Flamethrowers and try to look for the best angle to approach that rock."

For once, it seemed Torracat was completely focused. Maybe things were gonna be smoother than I tho–

"It was this way for sure, cap'n! There's smoke billowing outta these here bushes."

Doggone it. Torracat, ya jinx.

Metang, being closest to the gal's voice we heard, raised up his arms, readying to strike with Metal Claw. The bushes in front of him rustled. **Halt. Identify yourself or I will use fo–**

A black and blue blur shot out of the bushes. I saw a spark of fire, but realized Torracat was behind me. Metang weren't quick enough to react, so a fiery foot collided with his face. Course, with both me and Torracat in front of him, you could guess what came after that: a three-Pokémon pile-up. We smacked back against a coconut tree. To really rub salt in the wound, one of them stupid fruits fell down and conked me on the dang head.

"Oy!" Torracat shoved me to the side. "Mets, get up. Don't let that sneak-attacking hussy get away with this."

 **Understood,** Metang bellowed, floating back into the air. However, whatever it was that attacked us had turned tail and run away.

"They can't have gone far. Mets, scan the area with your psychic powers," Torracat ordered. "Rufflet, give me eyes in the sky!"

I was still seeing stars from taking a coconut in the noggin, but I weren't no sissy. I flapped my wings and took to the air. Metang scanned the nearby bushes. His eyes turned blue and a nearby bush shook like an antsy Ludicolo. It didn't look like that had done anything, though. I pushed that though aside, however. Because I saw branches and bushes getting slashed up left and right by a Feraligatr with a particularly nasty look in its eyes. There were a couple Pokémon beside it, but I didn't recognize them right off the bat. It's not like I went about memorizing Pokémon species in my spare time.

"Boss!" I squawked. "Whatever ambushed us is bringing company. There's a Feraligatr and it's looking mighty grumpy."

To his credit, Torracat recognized the situation quickly. A water-type like Feraligatr put our team in a bit of a bind. We had no effective moves to deal with one. "Time to make tracks, guys! I'll lay some cover fire to distract them. Let's head for the inside of the island," Torracat declared.

"Err, boss, maybe it weren't a good idea to say that out lo–"

The same blur from before leaped out of the trees. Now, I'm a steady flier, but I weren't prepared for no aerial ambush. So, I was plum surprised when a Riolu struck me in my tailfeathers with a flaming kick. "Eyyyyaaaaaaagh! My keister's cooking! My keister's cooking!" I spiraled downward, with Riolu clinging to my legs. I spotted the little jackal, but didn't have no time to get off an attack before we crashed. Despite all that, Riolu hung onto me. In fact, she wrapped up my wings with her arms. This made my teammates pause.

"Go ahead! Try an' attack me, ye stinkin' landlubbers," she spat. "Ye'll just be harming yer feathery friend here." She turned toward them beaten-up bushes. "CAP'N! CAP'N! I've found us some strangers from the mainland!"

I thrashed about real good but this gal had an iron grip about her! All my struggling managed to do was make her mad. She dragged me toward the bushes, where I saw a patch of blue scales out the corner of my eye. Weren't too long before Feraligatr looked me right in the eyes. His angry, red eyes, big ol' teeth, and the claw scars across his chest made for quite the worrying sight, I tell ya.

"You've gone and made quite a ruckus, haven't ya, Runt?"

Riolu looked up at Feraligatr, gnashing her fangs together. "Grrr… how many times I gotta tell ye, cap'n. I've got me a name. It's Prisma! Not Runt!"

She called herself Prisma? That didn't make a lick of sense. I figured the gal had a touch of the crazy. Probably too much time under that hot sun. Still, I didn't given it much thought, considering my current predicament. "Hey, what's the big idea?" Torracat barked. Ever defiant, my boss was, even in a lousy situation for the team. Too bad this was one of them moments I wished he kept his yap shut. "Tell your friend to release my partner right now."

"Why did you capture him, anyway? Did you _want_ to make a scene?" Feraligatr growled, eyeing my Riolu captor suspiciously.

"No, cap'n," Prisma barked. "But these blokes were tearing up the jungle and I weren't about to let 'em destroy our cover. I was attacking from the bushes and I took this here Rufflet as a hostage so those lubbers wouldn't try to keelhaul me."

Icy mist brushed along my feathers. "For the love of– how many times do I have to tell you, _Runt?_ Ditch that stupid voice. We're _scavengers_ , not _savages_. No need to speak like you jumped out of a hatchling's story."

Prisma's grip weakened. The gal clearly didn't have much pull with her leader. "B-But cap'n–" she whimpered.

"And it don't make ya sound intimidating, either," Feraligatr said. Were I not wrapped up in a Riolu hug, I'd have probably laughed. Unluckily enough, Torracat was there to do that for me.

"… fine," Prisma sighed. "But these are continent-dwellers. I'm sure of it!"

"Aye, captain!" the Mareanie on my right spoke up. "They've got badges. Must be one of them rescue teams from the mainland."

Feraligatr didn't like that one bit. He bore them wicked-sharp teeth of his at us. "So, what would a pack of goody-two-shoes rescuers want with Stormcracker Isle? There ain't no Pokémon around here needing your help."

"We're just… passing through…" I grunted, hoping my partners might be able to add to the ruse.

"Yeah. We're doing some surveying for our guild," Torracat continued. Bless him. His confidence could get us in hot water, but it bailed us out just as often. "Just trying to map out the island and then we'll be on our way."

"Fat chance of that," Prisma barked. "Where are your mapping tools, huh?"

Well, shucks. The jackal was a quicker thinker than I done expected.

"I've… uh… got 'em right in my toolkit," I lied. "If'n you just let go of me… I can show you."

Feraligatr opened his mouth to retort, but Prisma acted quicker. Her grip weakened. I had to resist the urge to laugh. I spun around and used a burst of air to shoot myself forward and smack Prisma in the belly with my signature Aerial Ace. That sent her hurtling into Feraligatr's gut. Now, he didn't like that one bit. Eyes went wide. Spit shot out of his mouth. If'n you were the inexperienced type, you'd have watched the scene with a fit of giggles. But not Team MIB. No sirree. Torracat covered the area in a spread of his Flamethrower, while I took back into the air. Metang hit the flames with his Confusion wave thingamabobs to spread that fire even further.

"Let's move, gang!" Torracat shouted. And we high-tailed it outta there mighty quick.

Course, it weren't so quick that we didn't hear Feraligatr shout, "Runt, you _bleeding moron!_ You just cost yourself rations for the next _two days_."

A loud smack echoed through the air. Torracat and I glanced back to see Prisma on her knees; a paw gingerly held up to her face. Frankly, it served the varmint right. Trying to get the jump on us for no good reason. It _was_ mighty stupid of her to buy into my little act and let me go. Except, it looked like Torracat didn't share my sentiments. I could see the worry on his face plain as a disguise on a Mimikyu. "Oy, boss-man. Stay focused. They're on our tails!" I cawed, trying to shock him back to his senses. Torracat frowned but quickened his pace.

Hoo boy. Of all the times to have a bleeding heart moment.

Them scavengers made a beeline for us. "If they're heading for the rock, they must be trying to find the treasure," Feraligatr hissed. "That's _our_ treasure, lads. Don't let 'em take what's rightfully ours!"

I even saw Prisma running after us. She done had this fire in her eyes, the likes of which could make a Turtonator blush. And she was much quicker on the draw than her pardners. I thought she could do with some slowing up. So, I dipped down toward her and abruptly banked right. I had to adjust my angle to avoid a ball of sludge that Mareanie spat toward me. But I managed to get around to Prisma's back.

"Gnngaaaagh!" she howled as I hit her in the back of the head and pulled back up to finish off the U-turn. Course, that victory didn't end up lasting long. Turned out, Feraligatr could strike from a heck of a distance. Nothing could've prepared me for this massive tunnel of water striking me in the back and knocking me to the ground.

 **Rufflet is injured. We must provide cover,** Metang stated. He and Torracat turned, preparing to face the charging scavengers. Now, I weren't about to take any of this lying down. I rolled forward, dodging a Force Palm from Prisma. Then I got back into the air just in time to avoid my teammates combining their attacks again. A Flamethrower column turned into a bunch of fiery rings thanks to Metang's Confusion. Except, it didn't do much. A small Water Gun from Mareanie and a massive Hydro Pump from Feraligatr snuffed all the fire out in a matter of seconds.

But the burst of steam that followed done messed up my flying course. It made Metang and Torracat stagger back. Heck, Prisma got caught in it too. "W-Watch it, cap'n," she hollered. "I'm right in front of ya."

"… bah. Don't get in my way and you'll have nothing to worry about," Feraligatr snarled. That put a furrow in Torracat's brow. He sprang forward, crunching down on Mareanie's head. He swung his head around and managed to toss Mareanie back into this lanky metal Pokémon called Bisharp. I tried to take advantage of the opening by swooping down and using a burst of Aerial Ace speed to hammer Prisma from above. But I weren't counting on Prisma actually standing her ground. She gripped my shoulders with them ironclad paws of her and fed me a dirt sandwich courtesy of a Force Palm right on the top of my head.

"Stop making the cap'n get mad at me!" she hissed, foot igniting fer one of them Blaze Kicks. Torracat leaped into the fray. His fangs caught on fire and he bit down on Prisma's leg. Fire spilled out in all directions. Prisma's eyes widened and she jumped back.

But Feraligatr shoved her aside, claws extending and glowing bright blue. I don't know how a scavenger like him got his mitts on a Dragon Claw TM, but I had no intention of seeing how well he could swing them things about. Luckily, Metang realized it too, cause a pink Confusion ring halted Feraligatr's progress. That gave me the time I needed to fly away.

"Let's break off, boss!" I squawked. Torracat didn't respond, as he was spitting a warning Flamethrower over toward Prisma.

"You don't have to attack us, Riolu," Torracat said when the flames died down.

"Yes I do!" she barked, lashing out with a glowing fist. Torracat barely managed to skirt the attack. It took a moment for me to realize that was Sky Uppercut. "I already lost rations thanks to you lot. I'm not falling any lower in the cap'n's eyes!"

"Why are you even listening to him?" Torracat asked. He spewed another Flamethrower to put Prisma on the defensive. "You shouldn't have to answer to a Pokémon that treats you like dirt!"

"What do you know, rescuer?" Prisma growled. "My crew's my family! I'd never abandon them." She kept her wits about her and ran right through the middle of that stream of Flamethrower. Next thing I knew, she smacked the boss between his eyes with a Force Palm. He bounced back across the dirt. Metang and I turned to shield Torracat so he could grab an oran berry to heal.

"We ain't making any progress like this," I grumbled. "Don't bother talking with that there varmint, boss. Ya can't reason with crazy. And she's a crazy one."

Torracat gnashed his teeth. "Sorry. It just burns me up to see a Pokémon get mistreated like that."

"Well, well, well." Feraligatr licked his chops. "It seems we're at an impasse here. You want into the inner caverns. And _we_ want in there, too."

"But, cap'n, we've been searching them caverns for days! Ain't no sign of the treasure," Prisma protested.

 _SMACK!_

Feraligatr backhanded Prisma, knocking her onto her back. "Quiet, Runt!" he barked. "Have you learned _nothing_ from me? Mystery Dungeons are beyond reasonable explanation. Just because we failed before doesn't mean we give up."

My eyes widened. "Wait, so the inner caverns are a Mystery Dungeon after all? Boss, ain't this way too far out for the Tapus to control the landscape? We ain't never dealt with uncontrollable Mystery Dungeons before."

"Ha! You sound like you've never seen a Mystery Dungeon. What sort of pathetic rescue team are you hacks?" Feraligatr sneered. "Runt! Mareanie! We're setting out for the inner caverns. We'll leave Bisharp to take care of these three." Feraligatr gave Bisharp a reassuring pat on the bat. Then he grabbed hold of Prisma like she were an old doll and dragged her into the bushes. Mareanie followed along after them. Metang tried to turn and hold 'em off, but that Bisharp blocked our path. He disappeared into the shadows. Before we could realize he was using Feint Attack, he popped up in front of Metang and wrangled his arms. Weren't nothing Metang could do to Bisharp. He slammed Metang into the ground, and a loud _CLANG_ rang out through the clearing.

"Mets!" Torracat gasped. He lunged at Bisharp, teeth burning bright, but the varmint rolled out of the way. I weren't in a position to do much good either. Thought swooping in to strike him with Aerial Ace could snag some chip damage. But the blades on his arms suddenly extended and I quickly found myself backing off.

"Boss! This feller knows Guillotine. We gotta keep our distance," I squawked. Torracat recognized the danger and jumped back, opting to shoot off a Flamethrower instead. That was a foolish move, cause his attack went well high of Bisharp. But at least that seemed to make the varmint leery.

 **What would you have me do in this situation?** Metang asked. **My lone ranged attack is Confusion and it will not work.**

"If'n the two of us can give ya some cover, think you can move in and attack?" I offered. Probably weren't a good idea to open my big ol' beak, though. Bisharp heard us and vanished in the blink of an eye. Seconds later, he slammed into Metang and sent him backwards again. I couldn't help but squawk and fly higher. I was a hardy li'l bird, but seeing them glowing Guillotine blades done sent my heart a-racing.

Torracat stood his ground, though, and a fast, narrow Flamethrower scored a direct hit. Bisharp's gray arms lit up bright red. He thrust them to the side and I felt a rush of heat against my feathers. "Why are you guys treating Riolu so badly?" Torracat demanded.

Oh, lordy, he was still sore about that?

Bisharp's overheated arm blades extended. He swirled them around, ready to cleave the boss into ribbons. I gulped and dropped down, readying my body for a sudden upward jolt into a U-turn. There were a nice, satisfying _THWUMP_ when I struck Bisharp's head, stunning him.

"You okay, boss?" I asked. Torracat grabbed my wing and I hefted him on up.

"Talk about a close shave," he sighed, placing a paw to feel his right cheek. Poor feller done got his whiskers sliced right off. No idea if that meant anything important, but he seemed frazzled about it. We didn't have no time for celebrations, though. Because I felt something hard and metallic smack against my back, knocking me into the dirt. I lost my grip on Torracat, but the boss opened up his fiery mouth. He clamped onto Bisharp's shoulder and Bisharp's eyes went wide.

"Hold on, boss," I squawked, summoning a tunnel of air to ram into Bisharp with Aerial Ace. I'd have thought that combo would show the feller what's what, but he somehow stood tall. I saw his arm blades flare to life and flapped back. But it turned out that I weren't his target. Torracat realized the issue all too late. Them bright blades struck the boss upside the head. Torracat released his grip on Bisharp's shoulder and slumped down the ground. "Dang it!" I hollered. "Yer gonna pay for that."

Bisharp raised up an arm and gave me a "bring it" gesture. Course, I knew I wouldn't be any good one-on-one with the guy. I just needed to stall for a moment. Luckily, Metang was prepared to land a hand. A loud mechanical _CLANG_ sounded when his Metal Claw met Bisharp's metal skull. The varmint's eyes done teared up and he stumbled forward. I charged in for another smack with Aerial Ace, but Bisharp bounced back lickety-split and vanished. He struck me head-on and overpowered me. I wiped out in the dirt, seeing stars. Thankfully, I had already done my part. A red glow popped up behind that varmint. He turned around and threw his arms up in complete shock as a Flamethrower swallowed him up.

Torracat stepped forth from the heat, glaring daggers at Bisharp's smoking, KO'd form. Then I felt a metal arm around me. Metang hoisted me back to my feet. **Are your wings operable?** he asked.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just got thumped mighty good," I grunted. There weren't no shame to getting outmuscled, but I couldn't help feeling like this wouldn't have been a problem if I weren't just Rufflet. I'd trained mighty hard, but I was still the only one on the team who hadn't evolved. This battle only served to highlight that sore spot.

Torracat jogged over. "Yo, Rufflet. How many Reviver Seeds do we still have left?"

"Nine, I reckon," I replied. I liked my intervals of fives and tens. Nice, wholesome numbers there. So, I tended to buy up our items in clusters of five. Sure, it bothered the teammates, but not enough for them to take over toolkit management.

"Do we have any idea where those scavengers went off to?" Torracat asked, scanning the area. They had ducked into the bushes but they could've left some footprints. Problem was, following them would be a plum bad idea.

 **I believe I detect faint traces of their energies near the southern section of the rock spire,** Metang announced, pointing a metal arm forward.

"Is that the entrance to the inner caverns?" I wondered.

 **It is** _ **an**_ **entrance,** Metang responded. **I also detect structural weakness in the base of the rocks. It is due west of where I estimate the scavengers to be.** He pivoted to his left.

Torracat grinned. "Ah, so we're gonna _make_ an entrance."

"Now, wait just a doggone minute. I ain't trying to make no rock avalanche!" I squawked. Us birds didn't do so well in them situations, y'see.

 **I can deflect debris with Confusion,** Metang offered.

"Sounds like a plan to me. Onward, Team MIB!" Torracat declared and darted off to the west.

* * *

Next time: Team MIB find themselves in some puzzling situations. Where's Professor Layton when you need him?


	11. Spirit of an Adventurer

**Chapter 11: Spirit of an Adventurer**

 **~Stormcracker Isle, Central Part~**

I hung back. Way, way back. I weren't going anywhere near that rock face until I was absolutely, five-hundred percent sure no rocks were gonna bash my skull in. I'd already taken a coconut and a Bisharp arm to the head that day, after all. So, I stayed perched in my tree, watching Metang work the rock formation.

 **I have identified the structural abnormality,** he announced. I squinted, and just made out a visible crack running through a partition of rock. But that weren't the only thing strange about it. And judging by Torracat's gaze, he agreed with me.

"Hold up. This rock with the crack has a totally different look than the rest of the rock face," the boss announced.

"D'ya think the weather eroded it or something?" I wondered.

 **Unlikely. Otherwise similar structural weaknesses would present throughout the spire,** Metang said.

"Maybe this was some sort of secret entrance to the caverns?" Torracat proposed. His eyes lit up. "I'll bet the Armored Adventurer must've made this!"

"Now hold yer Mudbrays, pardner," I squawked. "Weren't them stories saying the feller got lost in this island? Why would he make his own cavern entrance?"

"Maybe a severe storm forced him to do it out of desperation?" Torracat said.

 **Illogical. Upon closer inspection, this rock outcropping shows evidence that it was placed against the spire's surface. This suggests the individual responsible has entered and exited the cavern multiple times,** Metang declared.

"Hrmph. That's mighty strange. But we're wasting time talking semantics here," I said. "Can you bust it open or not, Metang?"

 **Certainly. Please stand clear.** Metang's arms lit up and he lashed out at the rock with Metal Claw. It shattered after several swipes, sending pebbles scattering every which way. I flew back, waiting for the dust to settle. Eventually, I could see a dim, green glow spilling on out of the hole Metang punched.

"You coming, Rufflet?" Torracat asked. He was already halfway through the opening. Metang still hung outside, ensuring there weren't anything about to crush us.

"Yeah, yeah, gimme a sec," I said. Had to take a few deep breaths and remind myself I'd been in plenty of caves and this one weren't no different. I flew inside, quickly landing beside Torracat.

Our self-made opening sent light spilling into the cavern. I could hear the scratching of claws on rock. Probably wild Pokémon booking it toward hiding spots. The opening weren't all that big, though, so the light soon faded. Instead there were these small, green patches of light scattered about the cave.

Torracat whistled. "Whoa. This place is covered in Luminous Moss."

"All the more reason not to like it," I harrumphed. "Them plants ain't natural, I tell ya."

 **I can hear faint traces of running water. Please be silent,** Metang said. I clamped my beak shut and Metang hovered forward. Sure enough, I heard some running water echoing off the walls. I squinted, trying to use that Luminous Moss light to see if there were any brooks. The rocks lining the cave were damp, that was for sure.

"Up ahead here." Torracat waved us over. "I just stepped in a puddle."

I glided over to him with Metang following behind. The ground squelched beneath my feet as I landed. Water seeped out of the patch of mud I had accidentally found.

"Skkkreeeeeeeeeep!"

But that were nothing compared to the jolt my heart felt when that mud started moving. I squawked and fluttered my wings, hovering into the air. Looking down, I could faintly see the mud wash away and reveal the white-shelled, flattened backside of a Wimpod. The li'l feller looked up, only to recoil at the sight of my feathers. It scurried off along the cave floor and disappeared into a crevice.

"Hmm, guess those claw-scraping noises were Wimpod scattering," Torracat observed. "They're pretty meek little guys, if I remember correctly."

Course they were. But where there were Wimpod, I shuddered to think of their evolved form. Giant, hard-hitting Golisopods were the _last_ thing our team needed. Sure, I could get in some effective hits, but Golisopods could tank 'em like champs.

 **I have located a stream. It descends deeper into the cave,** Metang announced. **If we follow it, we might locate the deepest recesses of the cavern.**

"You don't suppose them scavenger fellers are in here too, do ya?" I asked, looking up toward the ceiling. Patches of Luminous Moss revealed a couple of Zubat hanging from it.

"If they are, they're not gonna know we're down here," Torracat declared. "Let's follow this brook and see where it takes us."

Metang led us forward, body reflecting light from the moss. It made him glow all green and stuff. Thanks to that, I finally spotted the brook in question curving sharply around a set of rocks. Course as luck would have it, these particular rocks had a pair of Zubat that weren't as timid as their friends from before. But a quick Zen Headbutt from Metang and a Fire Fang from Torracat knocked 'em right out.

We followed the brook down rocky stairs, into the next level of the cave. It didn't have nearly as much Luminous Moss brightening things up. So, when Metang's shiny hide entered the area, it whipped a set of Wimpod up into a frenzy. They started scurrying to and fro, hissing wildly. Bright-green balls of energy flew about from desperate Struggle Bugs launched in our direction. Weren't nothing a few Aerial Aces and some Zen Headbutts couldn't handle. But we did end up down an elixir after that, thanks to yours truly.

To our surprise, the next few levels grew steadily more waterlogged. I suppose I should've expected it. We were probably getting mighty close to the water level at this point. But the water was now up to Torracat's ankles. And some Zubat thought they could take advantage of his hindered movement for easy pickings. Boy did Metang and I show 'em they were sorely mistaken. We continued on down. At this point, I were expecting things to get pitch black. But strangely enough, the place where the brook stopped held a space full of bright Luminous Moss. The light was done reflecting off puddles, making the place look greener than a shack full of Rowlets. It made the pedestal on the far part of the cavern crazy obvious. There was some sort of circular rock atop it. And next to that pedestal, a few more rocks jutted out of the ground. They all glowed different colors.

"That's odd. It seems like _someone's_ been down here doing _something_ ," Torracat said. "But, uh, what is it? Painting rocks strikes me as a bit of a strange hobby."

 **I am sensing some energy from the colored rocks. They have a similar aura to the pedestal on the far side of the room,** Metang explained. **I believe some sort of magical hold was placed over this room.**

Something caught my eye next to the glowing rocks. I fluttered over and raised my brows at a plank of wood planted into the ground. "Hey, y'all, I think I found something," I said. "Looks like a sign of some sort." I squinted to try and read it. "And it's actually written in modern print."

"So, this wasn't done in ancient times, then." Torracat's eyes lit up. "Well, what does it say?"

"Gimme a sec here," I said, adjusting my position to better read the makeshift sign. "Says here:

'My days be numbered, my mind be fuzzy.

Adventures are done, though I've sure had plenty.

Got loads of treasure, but can't trust me crew.

Left directions here for the good eggs, though there were few.

If ye're one of me buddies looking for yer treasure's share.

Prepare me favorite brew to get yer cut fair and square.'"

I kicked up some water. "Dangummit! We ain't got time for no stinking brain teasers. Them scavengers could find us at any moment."

Torracat was of a different mindset. "Hey now, don't you see what this means? The tales are true. The Armored Adventurer really _did_ exist. And we've found the entrance to his treasure horde!" I could practically glimpse the stacks of golden coins in Torracat's eyes. "All we need to do is figure out this 'favorite brew' riddle, and we're in the clear."

"Yeah, but what the heck is it supposed to mean?" I asked. "Sounds like some sort of fancy drink. But I don't see no drink dispensing equipment nowhere."

Torracat raised a forepaw. "Hang on. When you think about it, that rock on the pedestal _kinda_ looks like a cup." He walked up toward it and reached out to grab the rock.

 **WARNING! The rock's energy level has just spiked,** Metang bellowed, but Torracat had already placed a paw on it. The glowing rocks' colors all changed to red and a loud whistle sounded through the cavern.

"Agh! What in tarnation is that noise?" I squawked. A pair of screeches drew my attention and my feathers nearly turned all white at the sight of a pair of angry Golbat.

I turned right around and used an Aerial Ace wind tunnel to strike one of them. But my pardners were slower on the uptake. And that resulted in the other Golbat chomping down on my wing. Purple toxins dripped out from the varmint's fangs and made my wing burn. I felt that familiar sinking sensation that came with poison washing over your body. So, I bucked the Golbat away and fumbled through the toolbox while my pardners dealt with the varmint. I snagged a pecha berry and downed it mighty quick-like.

"You okay, Rufflet?" Torracat asked. I nodded slowly. "Guess now we know what happens if we get the puzzle incorrect. But do you think those Golbat were part of it?"

"Not a clue," I sighed. "We can't stand around doing nothing, though."

"Right," Torracat nodded, "So, the riddle said we needed to 'prepare me favorite brew.'" Torracat paced back and forth in front of the glowing rocks, whose colors had reset. "Favorite brew… favorite brew… the Armored Adventurer's favorite brew…"

His eyes suddenly widened and he shouted, "That's it!"

"Err, ya mind looping me in, boss?"

"There's a drink in old man Crabominable's place that's only for top-ranked exploration teams: the Armored Brew!" Torracat explained. "My dad told me all about it: 'One part spicy, two parts sweet, to make the best adventurers feel the heat. Add a pinch of bitter, and a half part dry, and now this hardy brew is ready for you to try!' That must be how we can solve this riddle."

"Cripes. That's one heck of an explanation," I mumbled. "I couldn't even follow ya. What about you, Mets?"

Metang faced away from us, studying the rocks intently. **Upon careful analysis, I have determined that these rocks' colorations match those of the figy, wiki, mago, and aguav Berries. All of which are the primary berries used for making juices in Horizon.**

I raised an eyebrow. "Are you trying to tell me these here rocks are actually crystallized berries? That's total hogwash!"

 **Negative. Given these rocks are displaying energy signatures, I hypothesize they are figurative representations of the berries used to prepare such juices,** Metang elaborated. **Perhaps, if we are to interpret Torracat's recipe onto these rocks, we can solve the riddle.**

"Uh... right... yeah..." I rubbed my head with a wing. "Could ya say that again with some smaller words, pardner?"

Much as I'd hate to admit it, Torracat were faster on the uptake with this. "Right, so when it says one part spicy," he said, as he walked up toward one of the rocks, "We strike this rock that looks like a figy berry." He then tapped it with his paw and its colors brightened up. "Next is two parts sweet."

"… which means we hit that mago berry-looking rock twice?" I asked, finally catching on to things. I were closest to that rock, so I gave it two pecks with my beak. Like the first rock, it lit right up like an excited Lanturn.

 **A pinch of bitter suggests lightly applying pressure to this rock here,** Metang declared, tapping a claw to the aguav berry rock.

"Oh, good. I thought we actually had to pinch it," Torracat sighed in relief. "Cause that'd be a bit hard for any of us to manage." I sure hoped he were joking with that one.

"So then, how do we do half of a part on that last rock?" I asked. "Ya can't half-touch nothing. That don't make a lick of sense."

Torracat sized up the only rock that wasn't glowing. "Wait a second," he muttered, leaning it toward it, "There's a _very fine_ line right through the center of this rock. It's not one rock, it's actually two!"

I fluttered over to the boss. "Huh. Well I'll be a Vullaby's afternoon snack."

 **Caution: the left rock is a few hues darker than the right one. The cavern's odd lighting messes with the color patterns. Thus, the right rock better resembles a wiki berry,** Metang said. Torracat reached out and tapped the right rock. This time, all four rocks lit up bright green, as did the cup-shaped rock on the pedestal.

"I think we got it, guys," Torracat cheered. He leaped toward the pedestal and touched the glowing rock. The entire cavern started trembling mighty fierce. Torracat have a yowl and jumped back. Turns out, that cropping of rock holding that pedestal were a trap door of sorts! Who'dve thunk it?

It slowly slid open, revealing stone steps that descended toward a soft blue glow. "That must be it!" Torracat chirped. "The Armored Adventurer's secret treasure stash! What are we waiting for? Let's get going!"

* * *

 **~Stormcracker Cave, Basin Area~**

I didn't think things could get so bright so deep underground. But somehow, we managed to find a room that were glowing just about every color I could done think of. It was like looking into Ho-Oh's wings or something. Though, most of the area were glowing blue on account of these massive light crystals jammed into the rock walls. Still, there were piles of golden coins and other goodies that took in that light and projected a whole bunch of different colors.

"Golly, I ain't seen this much sparkly stuff in one place before!" I gasped. "Look at all these things. How could one Pokémon gather up so much treasure?"

"You read it yourself in the riddle, Rufflet. He had a team," Torracat chuckled. "Granted, one that didn't sound all too pleasant to work with. Kind of like that no-good Feraligatr's crew."

"Are you _still_ sore about Riolu? C'mon, get over it," I groaned. "Look at where we are, man. This is the stuff of _legends._ " I started looking around. "But what do we take? The coins? The crowns? I think I see a King's Rock in the corner over there. Any idea how much a 'mon will pay for something like that?"

 **Attention. I have detected an abnormality with the room,** Metang cut in. **That light crystal in the middle has a markedly different energy signature than the others. I do not believe it is natural.**

"Well, yeah, the Armored Adventurer said in the riddle he told the 'good eggs' in his crew where to find this place," Torracat pointed out. "One of them must have brought thi– hold on." He approached the crystal. "There's a book next to it."

"Careful, boss. Don't want to be setting off no booby traps like with that puzzle on the last floor," I cautioned. "The Armored Adventurer could've put some other magical wards up."

Torracat nodded. "Good point. Mets, open it up with your telekinesis."

 **Very well.** Metang pointed his arms forward and the book's cover flew opened. I winced, bracing myself for some sort of attack. Luckily, nothing happened.

"Guys… GUYS!" Torracat was jumping up and down excitedly. "I don't believe this. This… this is the Armored Adventurer's personal diary!"

"Yer kidding!"

"No fooling. Listen here." Torracat cleared his throat. "This first page says, 'Cap'n's log. The crew and I returned from our expedition around the Air Continent. Our biggest score came courtesy of Mt. Freeze, where I got a memorial wing from the mighty Articuno. But the plight was perilous. We almost lost Samurott in an avalanche. Given the dangerous nature of me work, I've decided to start chronicling me travels in this here diary. I don't know what I'll do with it when my days start getting numbered…' and yadda, yadda. You guys get the idea."

He turned back to us. "We've _got_ to take this with us, above all else!"

"I agree. It'll be the perfect proof for the guild," I said. "But, out of curiosity, what do you suppose the last entry says?"

"Mets?"

Metang flipped the pages forward until the boss held up a forepaw. He looked down at the diary and his brow furrowed. That weren't what I hoped to see. "Interesting," he muttered, "Listen to this, guys…"

 _Cap'n's log… what I think may be me final entry. These old bones of mine have grown too weary. I fear me days of seafaring and traversing the continents are at an end. But I can't complain. I've been fortunate to undertake such an incredible journey. If only me blasted crew weren't squabbling over who gets what parts of the treasure I've collected!_

 _Most of 'em ain't even that loyal! Never following me orders. Always scheming about what should happen if I fall in a battle. Heck, me closest mate told me a few of 'em were thinking of mutiny! I don't want me precious treasures falling into their greedy little mitts. How is me mind and body supposed to find peace with such worries?_

 _After thinking on it, I've made a decision to seek help from the mystical Ninetales of Mt. Freeze. I shall have a curse laid upon me. To protect me treasure,_ _ **I'll forever bind me spirit to me body.**_ _Any unworthy Pokémon who attempts to take me treasure, shall suffer me eternal wrath!_

 _Though I may not journey completely to the next world, at least this curse shall give me peace of mind._

"What a load of crock!" Torracat spat. "You can't bind a spirit to this plane of existence. When it's your time to go, it's your time to go. I _guess_ maybe you could stay as a ghost-type? Mets, you sensing any ghost-type energy?"

 **Negative,** Metang replied.

"I dunno, boss." I scratched my chin. "Ain't you ever heard that ol' story 'bout the curse of Nintetales? I ain't trying to end up like that poor Gardevoir."

"That's totally superstition and you know it," Torracat declared. "I'll grab the journal. You guys start packing some of those coins into the toolbox." Before I could so much as start to protest, Torracat had his claws all over the Armored Adventurer's diary. The moment he did that, a bright blue glow encased the book. His eyes widened and he dropped it to the ground, stumbling back in a daze.

 **Alert: the energy levels of the central crystal are rising rapidly,** Metang warned. Course, his robotic voice made it even more unsettling.

We heard a crackle. And then another, louder crackle.

"The crystal's splintering, fellers!" I shouted, pointing a wing forward.

Torracat scrambled forward and scooped up the journal. "Then we'd better book it before something bad hap–"

The crystal burst open, sending jagged shards in all directions. Metang floated over and shielded the boss and me from the debris. A bright blue glow spilled out of the crystal. The cave floor quaked beneath our feet.

 **I am detecting a new Pokémon's presence,** Metang exclaimed. He turned around toward the bright light, only to end up careening back through the room and smacking the far wall. Torracat and I turned with wide eyes. We found ourselves looking at the bulky, armor-plated form of a Golispod.

"Grrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaggggh!" that big ol' bug roared. "Treeeeaaasssuuuuuureee… muuuuuust proootteeeeeeect!"

"I knew it! We done triggered the curse!" I panicked. "Oh, real nice work there, boss. Yer gonna get our souls trapped in here for all eternity!"

"Whoa, the Armored Adventurer was a Golisopod? Who would've thunk it?" Torracat gasped. "Actually, that name seems like a dead giveaway. I can't believe we didn't realize it sooner."

" _That's_ what yer focused on?" I yowled, ducking a swipe from the massive bug. "This thing wants to slice us to ribbons! It's his undead spirit or whatever."

"Well, it's types are bug and water, so you're the best guy to deal with it," Torracat declared.

"Then help keep me safe, doggone it!" I squawked. Golisopod's spirit let out a roar. The spikes on its right arm extended into glowing blue blades and it ran forward. It hurtled its arm around and slammed Torracat, knocking him back into a pile of gold.

"Ooooog… what just hit me?" Torracat groaned.

"That were one heck of a Razor Shell," I gasped. Course, now the spirit had its back to me. So, it was high time to get in some offense. I darted downward into an air current and hit Golispod's back with Aerial Ace. Problem was, his back were coated in thick armor. I thought I dealt some decent damage, until the spirit whirled around and broadsided me with a blue-bladed swipe of Razor Shell. I desperately flapped my wings to maintain my altitude, but Golispod focused squarely on me. "S-Stay back, you cooky spook!" I squawked, trying to use my smaller size to zip around the big feller. If'n there were ever a moment I wished I were a Braviary, it was right then for sure.

A shower of coins exploded out from behind us. Metang hovered forward, his metal face glowing bright pink. Golispod had time to turn around and let out a confused, "Groh," before he got Zen Headbutted back into the remains of his crystal.

"Nice shot, Mets!" Torracat exclaimed. "You okay?"

 **Yes, however we are down another Reviver Seed,** Metang reported. **Luckily, I do not believe the spirit can use the attack that knocked me out again.**

Cripes! It had knocked Metang out in one blow? That didn't inspire all that much confidence. "Look alive!" I shouted, flying overhead to try and position myself behind the spirit. Golisopod lumbered forward, both arms lighting up with Razor Shell blades. Torracat frowned and fired a Flamethrower, hoping it would keep the spirit at bay.

But Golisopod didn't seem that bothered. A garbled roar sounded and Golisopod stomped forward, swinging both his arms at Torracat. Metang flew in front of the boss, face lit up with psychic energy. The Razor Shells bounced of Metang's glowing face, but he fell down to the ground from the force of the collision. Golisopod turned his sights on Torracat and lunged forward.

"Boss!" I shouted and made my move. Another Aerial Ace, of course. It were the best thing in that situation. I slammed into Golisopod's back as hard as I could manage, sending him crashing to the ground. That let Torracat run away unharmed. He spun around and returned the favor with a Flamethrower, giving me time to retreat and set up another angle for attack.

Golisopod roared furiously and lumbered to his feet. He spun around, snuffing out any lingering traces of Torracat's attack. Metang took this time to fire a wave of Confusion, hoping to knock Golisopod back on the ground. But the spirit held tough and lunged at Metang. This time his arms lit up green and he slashed Metang in the face with a nasty X-Scissor. Again, my pardner got flung across the cave, smacking into a mound of gemstones. He sank down to the ground, swirls in his eyes. I realized all too late that I shouldn't have stolen a glance at him. Next thing I knew I'd done been plucked out of the sky and clubbed across the chest with a Razor Shell blade.

I landed right next to Metang, who was glowing from taking in the energy of another Reviver Seed. "Ugh, just how much of a whooping can that spirit take?" I groaned. "Are we making _any_ headway against it?"

 **I am unsure,** Metang replied. **But it is inadvisable to leave Torracat on his own against this oppo–.**

"Eyyyyyaaaaaaaaagh!"

Torracat flew over our heads and struck a light crystal. He flopped to the ground with a dazed look about him.

"Treeeeaaaaasuuuuuuuurrrreeeeeee!" Golisopod hissed, fixing his sites on the three of us. Torracat needed time for a Reviver Seed to kick in. So, I jumped in front of him and spread my wings protectively. The spirit's empty eyes glowed as bright as all the blue crystals. Light exploded out all around him. I had to shield my eyes with a wing. When the light faded, there weren't no trace of Golispod nowhere.

"What the–? Where did he go?" I asked. "Mets, you seeing anything?"

 **Analyzing… analy–**

A blur of blue light raced right in front of me. It somehow ran over Metang, sending him rolling down the pile of gems. My eyes widened to the size of melons.

"What the heck was that?" Torracat asked, now back on his feet.

"How should I know? Maybe it's part of that crazy curse ya done triggered?" I replied. I should've known better than to complain like that. But I were mighty scared with Golisopod's spirit running about.

"Well, we have to stop it, or we're never getting out of here."

I noticed a light crystal to our left glowing brighter than any of the others. That light gathered up around the crystal and looked like it was going to fire at us. "Duck!" I shouted, and tackled the boss to the ground. The same blur of light that got Metang raced over our heads. I had just enough time to roll over and see the blur strike a different light crystal. Weren't too hard to put two and two together from there. "Boss, the spirit's done jumping between the crystals," I said.

Torracat's eyes narrowed. "Then we're smashing up some light crystals. That'll leave Golisopod with nowhere to hide."

"But that's our main source of light!" I protested.

"You have a better idea?"

I saw the spirit getting ready to crystal-jump again. "Nope," I cawed, and took off into the air. Torracat turned and raced to his right. He dodged the blur and shot a quick burst of Flamethrower at the crystal in front of him. My heart sank when it failed to do anything.

 **Inadvisable. Excessive force is needed to shatter the crystals. Not heat,** Metang said. Golisopod's spirit crystal-jumped once again. Metang fired a burst of psychic energy toward the ground, pushing himself higher up to dodge the attack. He also managed to lash out at a ceiling crystal with a Metal Claw. It broke and sent shards falling to the ground.

"Grrrroooooooooooooooooaaaaaaggggh!"

"Did y'all hear that?" I gasped.

"Yup. The spirit sure didn't like Mets wrecking that crystal," Torracat said. "Maybe the crystals are tied to the curse somehow? He _did_ pop out of one!"

A spark lit up in my brain. "That must be it, boss. If we break the crystals, we can weaken Golisopod enough to make him vulnerable!" Both of us had to jump apart to dodge Golisopod's spirit. It struck the wall behind us and started retreating toward a nearby light crystal.

"In that case, let's try to keep the spirit busy," I suggested. "Mets! You've gotta break them crystals, pardner."

 **Understood.** Metang floated off toward the far part of the cave. Meanwhile, I turned around and charged toward the light crystal holding Golisopod. I slashed the thing, then quickly backwinged outta there so Torracat could douse it in a stream of fire. The crystal glowed and Golisopod's form fell out of it.

The moment it did, Golisopod charged forward. I expected him to go for Torracat with Razor Shell, so I done called up a wind tunnel to hit his side with Aerial Ace. That knocked him down the pile of gemstones. "Treeeasssssuuuuuuuure!" Golisopod howled while two crystals shattered off in the distance.

"Keep it up, Mets!" I encouraged, before flying upward to dodge a swipe of Golisopod's Razor Shell.

"Gimme an elixir, Rufflet," Torracat called. "My Flamethrower's faltering."

"I'm… a bit… YOW!" I had to dive out of the air, cause Golisopod dissolved into a ball of light again. He struck the wall once more and raced for a light crystal. My eyes widened when I noticed Metang floating toward the same one.

"Hold back, Mets!" I yelled, but it were too late. Golisopod shot out from the crystal, knocking Metang to the ground. He entered the only other remaining light crystal. I tossed Torracat his elixir and flew over to Metang.

"Cripes, this guys just won't quit," Torracat complained. He turned and spat a Flamethrower at the occupied crystal, with little effect. I gave Metang an oran berry and helped him back up. Then I flew forward, only to end up slamming into a pile of coins. Golisopod had crystal-jumped right into me.

The whole cavern was spinning. I tried plucking an oran berry out of the toolkit, but my strength failed me. That spirit did me in with that blow. I spent a few moments out cold before my vision returned. Torracat was over by my side to help me to my feet.

"How's the battle?" I mumbled.

"He's hiding in the last crystal," Torracat reported. "We'll take it out together."

I stumbled to my feet and found Metang at our side. The lone crystal in the room glowed crazy bright. I thought it were gonna explode on its own. But my teammates charged toward it. And I weren't about to ditch 'em. I flew along after them, using a burst of wind to speed forward. That let me strike the crystal first. That angered Golisopod, because a ball of light raced toward me. But I did my job. Metang had his opening and smashed that crystal wide open. The second he did, the ball of light stopped chasing me. It dropped to the ground, morphing back into Golisopod's usual form.

"… ha! Not so tough without your precious crystals, huh?" Torracat laughed and fired off a Flamethrower. It struck Golisopod's back and the spirit let out a mighty loud hiss.

"Nuuooooooooh! Treeeeaaaasuuuuuurrreeee… myyyyy treeeeeaaaaasssuuuuure!"

Golisopod fell to his knees. I didn't want to see any more fancy tricks or hex-powered nonsense, so I dive-bombed him from above. Then Metang hammered him with a Zen Headbutt. Golisopod reached a shaky arm out toward us, only for it to start dissolving right in front of us. "Can… not… beeeeeeeeeeee!" Golisopod howled as his body disappeared, leaving the cavern pitch black.

"We did it!" Torracat cheered. "We dispelled the curse!"

"Yeah," I sighed. "Remind me _never_ to speak to no Ninetales in my lifetime."

"I think this means it's safe to nab some treasure and go," Torracat said. "Anyone have any idea where that journal got off to?"

But at that moment, the room started shaking. Light spilled into it from on high. All three of us turned around, eyes widening in shock.

"At last… the legendary treasure of the Armored Adventurer is all _mine_ for the taking!"

I heard Torracat's claws scrape the rocks. "… Feraligatr," he growled. "So, the scavengers caught up to us."

Looks like we weren't outta troubled waters yet.

* * *

 **Restless Spirit, Golisopod  
** _Having eternally bound his soul to this plane of reality, Golisopod rises to defend his treasure from would-be thieves. Aside from his usual attacks, he can jump between the large crystals scattered throughout his treasure horde. But just how did Golisopod come to be like this? What sort of strange magic lurks behind Ninetales' curse?_

* * *

Next time: Torracat looks Feraligatr right in the eyes and asks him, "Why can't we just get along?" Nah, just kidding! They're gonna fight.


	12. Dead 'Mon Tells No Tales

**Chapter 12: Dead 'Mon Tells No Tales**

Torracat had clamped a paw around my beak before I could say anything. He shoved me behind a pile of jewels. "Sshhhh!" he whispered. "Let's lay low. Maybe we can sneak out while they're preoccupied with the treasure."

"Yer actually gonna let 'em take this stuff?" I gasped.

"Some of it, yeah," Torracat answered. "There's way too much for any single group to take. Besides, they're just trying to scrape by in life."

"But they attacked us," I protested. "Wait a sec." I narrowed my eyes at the boss. "This is about Riolu, ain't it? Why you still harping on her? We'll never see her again after this."

"Because I can't just let a young Pokémon like us suffer at the hands of a bully," Torracat blurted out. "If they have this treasure, Feraligatr will leave her alone. I'm sure of it."

"Cap'n! I heard someone. We ain't alone here," Prisma's voice carried. I groaned and rolled my eyes. So much for laying low. Maybe we could still weasel out of this without a fight?

Wait a second. What was I thinking? Of course we could do that! "Psst… boss," I whispered. "I've got me an Escape Orb. Let's just grab some stuff and get going."

"No. I'm not leaving without that journal," Torracat said. "I think we can negotiate with these guys. There's plenty of treas–"

Our hiding spot exploded, burying us in a large pile of jewels. I thrashed about, trying to find my way out. This was the worst experience possible for a bird like me! Sure, they were jewels. But jewels were just colorful rocks, and I _never_ did well with rocks. It took a solid minute, but I tunneled my way out, taking in a big gulp of air. It's not like I were drowning or nothing, but I weren't exactly breathing right when I was pinned down. It took a few moments for me to realize something was off. I hoisted up my wing, only to jump in surprise.

"M-My toolbox!" I stammered. "Where'd it go?"

"Looking for something, landlubber?"

I looked straight ahead. Prisma stood where the pile of jewels once towered, spinning my toolbox kit by its strap. My heart leaped into my throat. I was just about to complain, but my brain done remembered about the Escape Orb. If I let 'em know about it, we were gonna be in a heap of trouble. Instead, I settled for shouting, "Give that back, ya varmint!"

Prisma stuck her tongue out at me. "Never! It's me property now, scallywag."

"Runt!" Feraligatr snarled, making Prisma jump. "Now's _not_ the time to be acting like an immature pup. We're here for the treasure, not their worthless supplies!"

"But cap'n, they be a rescue squad. There might be some valuable plunder in here," Prisma squeaked. Feraligatr lashed out, striking Prisma across the face. She collapsed on the ground and Feraligatr scooped up my toolkit.

"You don't have any pull here, Runt," he hissed. " _I'm_ the captain and I say what we take. Or do you want the crew leaving you like we found you? Because I'd be more than happy to obli– AIIIIYYYYYAAAAAAAAGH!"

Torracat had lunged at Feraligatr and crunched down on his scaly shoulder. Feraligatr thrashed about but couldn't buck the boss off. Metang managed to cordon Mareanie off and hit him square between his eyes with a psychically-charged headbutt. And at that point, the battle was on!

Prisma managed to get to her feet and lunge at Torracat. "Get off the cap'n!" she barked, grabbing hold of the boss and dragging him to the ground. Feraligatr locked eyes with me and I quickly found myself flying backwards to dodge a big, gushing Hydro Pump stream.

"I'm-a pluck those feathers of yours off one by one, kid," Feraligatr threatened. His teeth started frosting over and he ran right after me. Fortunately, I was way more agile. I dipped down toward the ground. By the time Feraligatr lunged to use Ice Fang, I had already flown around him. I kicked up a wind turbine and let it carry me straight into Feraligatr's back. He fell onto some gold coins.

But Feraligatr bounced back mighty quick. He rolled to his feet and jumped toward me. I didn't have the time to pull up. Instead, he bit down on my wing, encasing it in a thick layer of ice and making me squawk in pain. Feraligatr pinned me underneath his large frame. "You rescue types think you're so tough," he scoffed. "But when it gets right down to it, you can't hold a candle to battle-hardened Pokémon like me."

Feraligatr opened his mouth to attack when a blast of pink energy knocked him of mef. Metang floated above me and brought one of his arms crashing down against my wing. It shattered the ice, allowing me to hop to my feet and take to the air, banking toward my right. "Mets! Ya gotta switch targets with me, pardner," I begged. "I can't hit Feraligatr from a distance and it's too risky to get in close."

 **Understood,** Metang replied. He turned around and floated in Feraligatr's direction. Mareanie didn't like that one bit, though. He shot a stream of piping-hot water at Metang. But Metang must've seen a dirty shot like that coming. He veered off to his right and the Scald went straight into Feraligatr. It didn't do much damage, but it sure made the varmint mighty angry.

"Mareanie, you fool! Watch where you're aiming or I'll see to it you don't get a cut of _any_ of this stuff," Feraligatr hissed. Mareanie tensed up, giving me the perfect opening to fly in front of him and slash him with my feet. I quickly pulled up and rolled to my right. Poisonous stems whizzed past my left side, nearly knocking me off course.

"… you don't have to do this, Riolu. I've seen how your so-called crew treats you," I overheard Torracat pleading. I took a quick look and saw him ducking a Force Palm strike from Prisma.

"The crew is me family!" Prisma hissed. "Without them I'll be all alone, with nowhere to go and no one to turn to!"

Hoo boy. Torracat really wanted to get through to the gal. That was gonna make things harder. I made a sharp right to fly over to the boss.

"Hey, get back here! I'm not finished with you," Mareanie hissed, trying to hop after me. Scalding water raced forward, but sailed wide of me. Seems Mareanie couldn't attack all that well while moving. Which was perfect for me. I quickly doubled back, summoned a wind tunnel, and careened into his squishy head. This sent him flying back into a rock wall.

When I turned away from Mareanie, I found Torracat on his back, with Prisma trying to pin him down. "Rrrggghhrrr… you're… quite the scrapper," the boss grunted.

"This treasure be ours for the taking!" Prisma hissed. She raised an arm up to strike Torracat with Force Palm. I darted forward and slashed her in the shoulder. Course, this done messed up my momentum. Next thing I knew, the two of us were tumbling into some of the treasure. Seconds later, my chest plume was on fire! I smacked the ground and had to snuff out the flames by rolling around. Prisma ran toward me, her eyes blazing in anger. Lucky for me, Torracat barreled into her and quickly bit down on her leg with flame-coated fangs, tripping her up.

"Just listen to me, Riolu," he begged. "Do you _really_ think Feraligatr's going to let you have any of this treasure for yourself?"

"Rrrrgggh… shut _up!_ " Prisma yelled and lashed out with a spiraling Sky Uppercut. She struck the boss in the jaw, upending him. I didn't have any time to help him either, because boiling water grazed my right shoulder, signifying Mareanie was back in action. I flew forward, zigzagging through the air to try and confuse him.

"Hold still, you stupid bird," Mareanie growled. He spun around and hurled more purple Poison Jab spikes in my direction. I barely strafed them while I swooped in to attack. Mareanie's eyes widened right before I used a gust of wind to ram his frontside. He tumbled backward and I broke off once again.

 _CLANG!_

I flinched as Feraligatr sank black, shadowy fangs down on Metang metal skull. That varmint still had my toolbox kit. Worse yet, I saw him pull out one of our oran berries while Metang was dazed. He scarfed it down, then turned and fired a massive Hydro Pump at me. I weren't expecting him to notice me, so I got blasted clean out of the sky. I crashed down in the middle of the cave and everything went black. It took several seconds for a Reviver Seed to kick in and get me back to my feet. But this weren't good. We were gonna run out of those pretty soon, and then who knows what the scavengers would do?

"Hey, cap'n!" Prisma croaked, trying to scramble away from Torracat. "Can't ye give me one of them berries? I be feeling a touch weak."

Feraligatr turned and glared at her. "Didn't I already tell you you've lost ration privileges? Stop complaining and deal with Torracat or you'll be facing limited rations for _far longer._ "

Prisma winced and looked down. That gave Torracat a second wind. He directed his anger toward Feraligatr, lunging toward the varmint and sinking his fangs into his stomach. I turned away from the howling gator and flew at Prisma, whacking her from behind.

"Y'know, my boss is awful concerned about ya," I said, moving higher in the air to dodge Prisma's flaming leg. "Frankly, I'm not sure yer worth the trouble. But, how can ya really stand to be around a Pokémon that treats ya like that?"

"Eyyyyaaaaaaah!"

Torracat sprinted past us, with Feraligatr in pursuit. "Runt!" he barked. "If you don't start pulling your weight in this fight, I'll toss you into the ocean myself!"

Prisma narrowed her eyes and she lunged at me. I tried to fly up, but her Blaze Kick connected with my chest, sending me sputtering toward the ground. "You fools just don't understand," she hissed, "I owe my _life_ to Feraligatr and his crew. I can't turn my back on them. Things don't work that way with us scavengers. A life debt takes a _lifetime_ to repay. Walking out on it isn't an option."

"But you don't need to keep that up, you know," I countered, pecking her right between the eyes. She stumbled back and I rolled forward, striking her with my chest. Now I had the upper hand – err, _wing_ – in our little tussle. "I'm sure you can make decisions fer yerself. But, hey, if you want to be unhappy the rest of yer life, go right ahead. Ain't no skin off my bones."

I jumped into the air before Prisma could hit me with a glowing paw. "And where would ye expect me to go? Us scavengers are outlaws. The only place awaiting me on the mainland is one of them jail cells."

"That's not true!" Torracat shouted, running past us. A Hydro Pump stream raced past the two of us moments later. And then out of some coins exploded Mareanie, on the receiving end of one nasty blow from Metang. That proved enough to knock that varmint's lights out. For a moment I wondered if one of our Reviver Seeds would turn traitor. But nothing happened to Mareanie, thankfully.

Metang turned his attention to Feraligatr and rifled off a spiraling pink wave. Feraligatr stumbled about from the blow. He wheeled on Metang and sprinted toward him, dark energy encasing his fangs. Metang was already on the move, which gave Torracat the chance to head toward me and Prisma. She looked at us and narrowed her eyes.

"Oh, I see how it is. Trying to double-team a lass, eh? You landlubbers are pure scum!" she hissed, launching into a swirling Sky Uppercut. My wing done got clipped, but I was able to maintain my altitude.

"You can come with us to the Horizon Exploration Guild," Torracat said. "I can vouch for you with the Guildmaster."

"Uh, boss, ya sure that's _really_ a good idea? I don't know if she'll fit in all that well," I muttered. Prisma didn't seem to think highly of it either. Her response was to smack Torracat right in the face with glowing palm. His legs gave out and he crumpled to the ground.

"How stupid do ye take me to be?" she spat. "The second I set foot in a guild I'll be tossed into the brig to rot away for who knows how long!"

"Runt!" Feraligatr roared, failing to chomp down on Metang and getting struck in the side by a psychically-charged Zen Headbutt. "What are you doing talking to those blathering fools? If you're not gonna pull your weight, then at least start grabbing treasure so we can make a run for it!"

Prisma winced and scrambled toward one of the coin piles. Torracat jumped in front of her. "I'm being serious here. The Guildmaster's my _dad_. I'm sure he'll believe me if I tell him you're a good Pokémon at heart."

My eyes widened. "Boss, don'tcha think yer better of keeping something like that to yerself?" I was about ready to knock Prisma's lights out with an Aerial Ace, but she had frozen in front of the boss.

"I… I…" she mumbled. "But Feraligatr… could still find me. I… I don't wanna…"

"RUNT!" Feraligatr snarled as Metang tackled him to the ground. "What are you standing around for? I swear, when this is over I'll slash you up and leave you for dead on the beach, just like I found ya!"

Torracat frowned as Prisma raised a fist, readying a Force Palm. But then, to his surprise, she whirled around and ran toward Feraligatr. She shut her eyes and shrieked loud enough to make my feathers stand on end. Metang floated to the side, blasting Feraligatr with psychic energy. This sent him staggering toward Prisma, eyes wide in confusion.

"I've had _enough_ of your threats!" she cried, and hammered her Force Palm into Feraligatr's chest. Torracat grinned from ear to ear.

"I can't believe ya actually got through to her," I muttered. "Only you, boss. Only you."

"… heh." Torracat puffed out his chest. "I knew my charm would win her over eventually. Now, come on. Let's put the kibosh on this lousy scavenger." He ran toward Prisma and Feraligatr, yelling, "Give it up. You're surrounded!"

"Never!" Feraligatr snarled. "This treasure's rightfully _mine._ It was collected by a seafarer. As a scourge of the seas, I have claim to _all_ of this loot! So, shove off!"

"No." Torracat shook his head. "Golisopod was a brave adventurer who lived for the thrill of exploring. And he made sure that the honest members of his crew got their fair shares of treasure. Why do you think he never bothered selling any of this stuff? He could've made a fortune!"

"Yeah," I agreed, "Yer just a no-good crook who only looks out fer himself!"

"There's more than enough treasure here for all of us," Torracat said. "But you don't deserve any of it. Not with the way you treat Riolu."

"Um, that's not my name."

Feraligatr's eye twitched. "My 'crew' is nothing but a bunch of lazy hacks! _Especially_ the little runt over there. They're dead weight… you hear me! And with this score of treasure, I can cut them all loose." He lumbered to his feet, baring his fangs. "I won't let you take this treasure from me!" he roared. "Have you forgotten… I have your bag here?"

He raised up the toolbox kit. "Either you stand aside and let me take this treasure or I'll smash up everything in here!"

I glanced up just in time to see Metang's eyes flash blue. Feraligatr's arm seized up and my toolbox flew out of his hand. Metang grabbed hold of it. **Inventory secured. You have lost your leverage. Surrendering is the only option.**

Feraligatr's eyes widened. "W-What the–? This can't be happening!" He clenched his fists. "I finally find the Armored Adventurer's legendary treasure, and a bunch of no-good rescuers and the stupid, snot-nosed runt I saved from starving to death on some random beach are trying to stop me! It ain't fair!" He backed away from us. "Ha… ha… I ain't letting it end here. I _will_ have this treasure no matter what!" Feraligatr turned and sprinted toward one of coin piles. He lunged at it, but I slammed into the varmint and knocked him into a wall. This time around, he didn't hit it with no simple thump. Instead, the rock wall started splintering.

I gulped. "Uh… boss?" The cracks widened while Feraligatr sank to the ground. In fact, they were spreading toward the ceiling.

"What is it?" Torracat asked, scooping up Golispod's journal and pushing as much treasure as he could toward Metang.

"We might want to deploy that Escape Orb right about now," I said.

"What, you're just going to leave me here?" Prisma gasped.

Before I could explain anything, the wall above Feraligatr collapsed. Giant chunks of rock fell to the ground, burying him alive. The cave started shaking and more debris rained down from the ceiling.

 **The structural integrity of the cavern is deteriorating! We must evacuate immediately!** Metang declared. He finished putting away some treasure, reached into the toolbox, and grabbed the Escape Orb.

"Quick! Everyone reach out and touch as much treasure as you can," Torracat hollered, placing the diary in his mouth and splaying his body across all the treasure as he could reach. Likewise, I draped my wings over a wingspan's worth of jewelry.

"What about me?" Prisma hollered. The rocks were getting close to her.

"Jus gwab muh tawl," Torracat yelled, voice muffled by the journal.

"Eww… are you kidding?" Prisma's snout wrinkled in disgust.

"Twust me!"

Cringing, Prisma wrapped a paw around the boss's tail. The floor's exit was now sealed off by fallen rock shards. Metang hoisted the Escape Orb high. A blinding light swept across the room, teleporting us safely out of the dungeon.

* * *

 **~Stormcracker Isle~**

 **I have deployed the flare to request Sharpedo transportation back to Azure Cape. We can walk to the guild from there,** Metang announced. The rest of us were seated on the beach, staring out at the ocean.

"Thanks, Mets," I said. "You sure yer okay carrying that treasure? I can take the toolbox kit back if'n you want."

 **It is fine,** Metang replied. **Your wings were damaged in battle. It is best that you not strain them further before Blissey can heal them.**

I nodded my thanks.

"We've also got to thank you, Riolu," Torracat said. "No idea how things would've escalated with Feraligatr back there if you hadn't stepped in."

Prisma poked at the sand. "Yeah," she whispered. "Are… are you really going to take me to your guild?"

"You'll be fine," Torracat insisted. "Like I said, I just need to talk things out with the Guildmaster."

"Err, boss, do you really think it's such a good idea to bring her back there with us?" I asked in a whisper. Torracat gave me a look that said I needed to get with his program mighty quick. I sighed. "Guildmaster Lycanroc's a very nice feller," I stoically told Prisma. "Done gave me an amazing malasada on my last birthday."

"Well, that's easy for you to say," Prisma grumbled. "If he's Torracat's dad, of course he's gonna treat you guys nice. But I'm just some random pup, who spent the last few years hopping islands to scrounge up whatever I could find on them."

"Uh, if you don't mind me asking, what exactly happened to you?" Torracat said.

Prisma glared at the ground. "That's… personal."

Torracat frowned. "But, it would really help out your case if I could give my dad the full story. Plus, my teammates could back me up. Right guys?" I gave the boss a bewildered look while Metang didn't even acknowledge him. "I said… _right guys?_ "

"Err, yeah, of course," I said, shaking my head.

 **Affirmative,** Metang added.

"See? C'mon, I'm sure whatever it is that happened can't be that bad, right?"

Torracat couldn't see it because of where he was sitting, but I noticed Prisma's right hand ball into a fist around some sand. She reached up and started adjusting her bandanna. That's when I saw what looked like some scrap of paper poking out of it. Prisma stuffed it back against her neck before I could get a closer look.

"Look, I don't know how I ended up under Feraligatr's care, okay?" she growled. "All I can remember is suddenly waking up in some little cave on the edge of the water. Feraligatr said he'd found me passed out and half-buried in the sand on some beach. Said that I would've starved to death if he hadn't brought me to his ship. That meant I owed my life to him and needed to work for him." She hung her head in shame. "What was I supposed to do in that situation? He was bigger and stronger than me. And he said if I tried to walk out, he'd leave me for dead on the beach, just like he found me."

"Hey, no one's blaming you," Torracat assured her. He leaned over and rubbed Prisma's back.

Well, I kinda blamed her. But I weren't about to say anything to spoil the moment. Because it had pretty much clicked for me. Torracat done had a crush on the gal! That bleeding heart of his got us in hot water, again! Sure, things could've gone way worse, but this whole adventure would've been much smoother if he weren't lusting after Prisma. Maybe I couldn't say anything in the moment, but he was in for a tongue-lashing once we were back at the guild.

"What's gonna happen to me at the guild?" Prisma wondered. "Am I gonna have to work some sort of job, or–?"

"It depends. You could just be a staff member that offers up a helping hand. But I think you'd make a great explorer," Torracat chirped. "You can't join our team, of course, but you could take assignments on your own or link up with some other members of equal or lower rank. Who knows, if you get good enough, maybe you can take on a job with the three of us?"

Prisma looked down again. "So, I'd just end up travelling places, like I did with Feraligatr?"

"Sort of," Torracat said. "The difference is that _you_ can control what you choose to do. And, it gives you the chance to help other Pokémon instead of attack them. Not to mention, there's the prospect of being able to find treasure like we did or earn reward money." He leaned in toward Prisma. "Doesn't it sound at least a little bit exciting?"

"I… suppose?" Prisma muttered. "It'd just… take some getting used to, that's all. All I've ever really known is scavenging."

Torracat smiled. "Well, I'm sure some of those skills can transfer to exploring." Gods, he was being so sweet it was sickening. "But I think you can do it, Riolu."

This caused her to put on a sour face. "Why do you keep calling me that?" she growled.

The boss look surprised. "What do you mean? You're a Riolu. Plain as day."

"I have a _name,_ you know," Prisma said. "It's Prisma. Feraligatr laughed when I said that to him. Are you going to act the same way?"

Torracat and I exchanged confused looks. "A… name?" Torracat parroted. "I'm sorry, I'm not sure I understand."

Prisma looked dumbfounded. "Did I hit you in the head too hard? How can you not know what a name is? It's what you call yourself."

"Well, yeah, I call myself Torracat because I'm a Torracat," Torracat said. "What else would I call myself?"

"Something unique," Prisma said. "Otherwise, what's the point?"

Torracat shrugged. "It's not like any of us have any problems talking to each other. Besides, all your old teammates were like us, weren't they?"

Prisma rubbed her foot in the sand. "How could I have known? I wasn't allowed to call them by anything other than their ranks."

I raised a confused brow. "If'n there's anyone here who hit their head a bit too hard, it's you, pardner. Yer practically speaking nonsense, if you ask me."

Prisma's eyes darted about in confusion. "I… I don't understand," she squeaked. Then she sighed and rubbed her temples. "You know what? Forget I said anything. Just call me Riolu. It's not a big deal, I guess."

Torracat scooted up beside her. "Hey, no need to get worked up. If you want to be called Prisma, I'll call you Prisma."

Her expression immediately brightened up. "Y-You will?"

"Sure. It's no problem," Torracat said. He looked over at me.

"… hrmph. Don't be expecting no special treatment from me, missy," I said. "Yer Riolu. That's all there is to it."

Torracat rolled his eyes. "Don't mind him. I think the heat's finally getting to him." He extended a forepaw forward. "Anyway, let me be the first to welcome you to the guild. I'm sure we'll work great together in the future."

Riolu took his forepaw and shook it slowly. "I don't get it. Why are you being so nice to me? I attacked you guys, after all."

Torracat waved it off. "It wasn't your fault. If you weren't afraid of Feraligatr, I'll bet none of that would have happened." He gave her a warm smile and I had to resist the urge to gag. "Besides, I like to believe in the words of this one famous explorer: 'Truly bad Pokémon… don't really exist anywhere.'"

Oh brother. That couldn't have sounded more rehearsed if the boss had tried. Still, I had to give him this, he was putting in the effort to win her heart. And it looked like it was working, to boot.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"This is remarkable!"

Guildmaster Lycanroc sat looking at our haul, blue eyes wide in amazement. "You… you really found some of the Armored Adventurer's treasure?"

"Well, we done would've got even more if the cavern hadn't caved in on us," I reported.

 **It's still quite the impressinative accomplishment,** Magearna said. One of her arms had turned into some sort of fancy, plate-shaped doodad. She ran it across the treasure pile. **And is this really the Armored Adventurer's personal journal?**

 **Affirmative. Its contents describe numerous expeditions,** Metang reported. Magearna picked it up and flipped through it. **Furthermore, we have ascertained that the Armored Adventurer was a Golisopod.**

"Fantastic! And it seems you've brought yourselves back a friend," Lycanroc continued.

"This is Prisma, da– I mean, Guildmaster," Torracat introduced. "She was unwillingly serving as part of a scavenger crew we ran into on the island. They were trying to get the treasure, too."

"Don't mind the 'Prisma' bit, sir," I cut in. "Riolu will do just fine fer her." I'm pretty sure that made her glare at me, but I didn't care.

"I see." Lycanroc nodded. "And now you're looking to put your skills to work helping Pokémon and exploring Horizon?"

Riolu bowed her head. "Y-Yessir!" she squeaked. "I… I'm very sorry for attacking your son. I want to do my best to become a contributing guild member in any way I can."

Lycanroc chuckled. "It's okay, Riolu. You don't have to explain yourself. You look like a pretty reasonable girl to me. We'd be happy to have you in the Horizon Guild. I'll just talk to Leafeon. She can get you situated and help you fill out the proper paperwork."

Riolu nodded. Leafeon appeared in the Guildmaster's doorway and escorted her out of the room.

"So, I think it's pretty much a technicality at this point, but I can officially say you cleared your exam mission with flying colors!" Lycanroc declared. He dropped a pouch to the ground and out of it spilled three shiny, golden badges. "Here are your official veteran rank badges, with all the perks they entail you to."

"Yeehaw!" I chirped, scooping up my badge. "Wait'll the folks back home get wind of this."

"Obviously, I can't have Leafeon get you situated in the veterans' quarters, since she's busy with Riolu. I suppose you can go grab some chow from Meganium," Lycanroc said. "Once again, congratulations. I knew you guys could pull it off."

"Thanks, dad," Torracat said.

Lycanroc smiled. "It's my pleasure, son." He walked forward and pat Torracat on the head. "Don't tell this to anyone else, but I think the three of you are gonna do a swell job running this place in the future. I can feel it in my bones."

Torracat rubbed the bridge of his nose. "… heh. We'll do our best!"

* * *

 _And so, we succeeded in getting our veteran status. Frankly, things only took off from there. My teammates and I took on tougher missions, bringing in more rewards, but also more experience with our battles. It took a few weeks, but I was able to realize my dream of evolving into a Braviary. My teammates weren't terribly far behind either. We really became Team MIB: Metagross, Incineroar, and Braviary._

 _All the while, the boss showed Prisma the ropes of exploring. She caught on quicker than I expected, making it all the way to veteran rank without much of a hassle. It made her so happy she done evolved into Lucario on the day of her veteran promotion, as cheesy as it sounds. Still, that got the boss's attention. Pretty soon the two of them became inseparable. Heck, they were mates well before Lycanroc stepped down and handed over the reins of the guild._

 _Incineroar became the new Guildmaster. He initially kept Leafeon as his assistant, but it weren't long before she retired and I ended up taking on her job. I was mighty shocked he didn't pick Lucario. But, to my surprise, he told me that she had turned down the offer. She said her heart would never be in that job. She needed to be out exploring. At the time, I didn't question it. Now, I can't help but wonder if there was another reason to it._

 _Yup, that mission sure did lead us all toward a brighter future. At least, that's how it felt…_

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory, Present Day~**

Braviary flipped a page in the binder, revealing a picture of his team, alongside a smiling Lucario, and a young Absol. In her arms, Lucario held a blue egg with black stripes. Incineroar had a paw placed on top of the egg, with his other paw resting on his mate's shoulder.

 _'I remember this,'_ Braviary thought. _'Of course, they took Gallian in and reared him like he was their own kid. But they were overjoyed to finally have an egg after years of trying. And now, she's grown up and here in the guild, only…'_

Braviary closed the binder and placed it back in its shelf. _'Where did everything go wrong?'_ he wondered. _'I had to get rid of Gallian's records, and now the Guildmaster wants Lucario's records removed, too. First Incineroar perishes on a mission, then Lucario walks out on us, and if that weren't enough, Gallian abandons us shortly after. No wonder Riolu's feeling so blue. Has she even told her partner about this stuff?'_

His brow furrowed. _'Since the day we met, I've always thought something was off about you, Lucario. I held my tongue because Incineroar loved ya so much and he was my friend. But I should've spoken up... I should've told him the truth.'_ He took a new binder off his shelf, and opened it up to look at drawings of Shane and Tessa. _'What kind of mother runs out on her own kids, huh? What kind of mother won't even tell her family she ain't supposed to be a Pokémon? Is that why you ran away? Did you find a way back to your real home?'_ He shuddered at the thought. _'Then what were Incineroar, Riolu, and Gallian to you, huh?'_

Braviary shut the binder and looked up toward the ceiling. "I hope you have a good reason for doing this stuff, Guildmaster. Riolu deserves to know about her mother... sooner rather than later."

 **End of Special Episode 1**

* * *

 **Scavenging Crook, Feraligatr  
** _As the leader of a crew of outlaws, Feraligatr ferries his team from island to island, searching for anything valuable to flip for a profit. It's tough scraping out a living combing for treasures in Mystery Dungeons. But Feraligatr greatly prefers it over working some boring, dead-end job inside a building._

* * *

Next time: Tessa recounts how Horizon's most perilous Mystery Dungeon came to be.


	13. Bonus: An Electrifying Spirit

Bonus scenes will come in two flavors: canon and non-canon omakes that are just made for fun. This one's canon.

* * *

 **Bonus: An Electrifying Spirit**

 **~Sunrise Village, Sylveon's House~**

"Thanks for coming with me, Vulpix. After these last few days, I just didn't feel comfortable walking to Sunrise Village alone."

Shane yawned and brushed his snout against a foreleg. "It's no biggie. But that leppa berry bread better be worth it."

Tessa smirked. "You know, for someone who's only just recently taken up the local diet, you're growing to like it quite a bit."

"What can I say? The food here is way better than the garbage I cook back home," Shane said. "It's just surprising. Where I'm from, canines have terrible senses of taste. I expected everything I would eat here to taste, I dunno, bitter or something."

"Well, I can say with certainty the stuff Sylveon bakes is anything but bitter," Tessa declared. "I see the house up ahead. Let's go."

They jogged down the hill and approached the house. Shane stood beside the door while Tessa knocked. "Hey, Sylveon. I'm here to babysit Eevee for you."

"Tessa!"

The door flew open. Shane yelped as it smacked him into the wall. Eevee sprinted out the door and Tessa stuck out her arms to keep herself from getting body slammed. "Hi, Eevee," she chirped. "Great to see you."

"I missed you," Eevee cooed, rubbing his head against Tessa's belly.

 _Fwump!_

Shane collapsed beside the open door, his eyes spinning in their sockets. "When is a door not a door? When it's a jaaaaaaaaaaar…" he moaned.

"Oh, hey, it's Mr. Weirdo Vulpix," Eevee said. "Did he follow you here?"

"Actually, I brought him along. Hope you don't mind," Tessa said. "C'mon, Vulpix, let's head inside."

"Hang on, I'll be with you as soon as everything stops spinning," Shane groaned. Tessa rolled her eyes, walked over to her teammate, and hoisted him up to his feet. Shane made it about three steps forward before collapsing on his side.

"Did he forget how to walk again?" Eevee wondered.

"No, he's just being melodramatic," Tessa scoffed.

"I don't know what that word means," Eevee chirped, wagging his tail.

"Tessa. Great, you're here!" Sylveon called from inside the house. "I just finished making the leppa berry bread, so–"

"Outta the way! Outta the way!" Shane bellowed, bolting to his feet and booking it inside the house.

Eevee gave Tessa a confused look. She simply shrugged and led Eevee back into the house. Sylveon bid everyone farewell and departed the house. "Hey, Vulpix, don't drool on the bread," Tessa said, glancing at her partner. "We're all supposed to share it."

"It just smells so _goooooooood_ ," Shane whined. "Hurry up and break me off a piece. You're the only one here with hands."

"Then step back and let me divide it up," Tessa said. She approached the bread and split it into three. The trio proceeded to eat their meals. All the while, Eevee asked Tessa about the guild. She replied, with the help of some occasional tidbits from Shane. Eventually, the sun had set and Eevee yawned loudly.

"Sounds like it's almost bed time, kiddo," Shane said.

"Wait, don't I get a story?" Eevee asked, looking at Team Radiance with pleading eyes. "I haven't had any bedtime stories since last week."

Tessa and Shane exchanged looks. "Uh, sure," Shane muttered. "Once upon time, there was a very _loud_ Eevee who slammed a door into an innocent little Vulpix. The Vulpix forgave the Eevee because his mom made some delicious bread. Then, the Eevee went to bed and the Vulpix returned to the guild to put a big bag of ice over the lump on his head. The end." He threw the door to Eevee's room open. "Okay, there's your story. G'night."

Eevee frowned. "That was a terrible story!"

"Hey, I didn't come up with it," Shane quipped, earning a confused look from Tessa.

"I want a fun story," Eevee demanded. His eyes lit up. "Oh! Tell me the story about the big boom that made Voltaic Crater. I like that story."

Shane raised a confused eyebrow. "Um, I don't know that one."

"Then you tell it, Tessa," Eevee requested. "Pretty pweeeeeeeease?" He batted his eyelids at Tessa.

"I don't know, Eevee. It's been awhile since I've heard the story for myself."

"Aww, don't say that. I'll bet you can tell it great," Eevee said, jumping up onto his bed. "Come on, can't you at least try?"

"Yeah, Riolu. Can't you?" Shane parroted, giving Tessa a cheeky grin.

"Okay, fine," Tessa relented. "Let me just gather my thoughts for a moment. Okay, so, a long time ago in the Horizon Continent this fearsome black dragon appeared in the sky." She stuck her paws up into the air and bared her tiny fangs at Eevee.

Shane raised a forepaw. "Lemme guess. It was Zekrom?"

Tessa and Eevee gave Shane unamused looks. "Please hold your questions until the end of the story," Tessa deadpanned. "Now then, where was I? Let's see…"

 _Zekrom hovered in the air, looking over the land. He saw nothing but rolling green hills around him. This made him mad! He craned his head up and roared,_ _ **"Hear me, Land Spirit! Your boasts have reached my ears. I do not believe you speak with ideals in your heart. Face me, and I shall show you true strength!"**_

 _He hovered there, searching for any sign of the Pokémon he was addressing. But no one appeared out of the fields._ _ **"… hmph. So, you have the audacity to taunt me like this? I will not stand for it! If you will not show your face, I shall cover these plains in a mighty lightning storm!"**_

 _Zekrom heard a loud caw cut through the sky. He turned around, smirking. A bright ball of yellow electricity raced up from the ground. It flew up to Zekrom's eye level. Then the electricity dispersed, revealing one of the continent's protectors: Tapu Koko!_

 _ **"Finally decided to grow some backbone, have we?"**_ _Zekrom bellowed._ _ **"Well, it won't do you any good. My strength is unparalleled. None can wield electricity like me!"**_

 _"Ha!"_

 _Zekrom narrowed his fierce, red eyes._ _ **"You laugh?"**_

 _"Course I do, dude. Your voice puts an Exploud to shame," Tapu Koko responded. "Not everything needs to be shouted at the top of your lungs, you know."_

 _ **"SILENCE, WELP!"**_ _Zekrom thundered. His tail started glowing blue and electricity crackled around it._ _ **"Being true to one's sense of self is a key facet of expressing ideals. And I am the very essence of lightning. It is only appropriate that I roar with the intensity of rumbling thunder! Anything less is unacceptable!"**_

 _"That line of thinking's totally bogus, dude," Tapu Koko exclaimed. "And there's more to harnessing electricity than just firing a really big Thunderbolt or whatever."_

 _ **"Enough! I know when I am being mocked,"**_ _Zekrom shouted._ _ **"Your lack of respect for one of the world's mightiest Legendaries is insulting. Therefore I, Zekrom, will knock you down!"**_

 _A big ball of blue electricity encased Zekrom and he raced forward. Tapu Koko closed up his protective shell and sped into the air, dodging him. Zekrom screeched to a halt and opened his maw. A giant blue Dragon Pulse bolt raced forward. Tapu Koko burst out of his shell and divebombed Zekrom. The dragon was taken completely aback as his attack harmlessly struck Tapu Koko. Next thing he knew, a blinding pink light erupted around him._

 _ **"Grooooooaaaaaaah!"**_ _Zekrom roared in pain. He spread his wings to the side to stop his fall and looked up at Tapu Koko. The Land Spirit hung in the air, intently studying Zekrom._ _ **"So, you are fairy-type, huh?"**_

 _"Like, I'm surprised you didn't catch on from the get-go," Tapu Koko scoffed. "As I said, my strength is not something to take lightly."_

 _ **"Ha ha ha ha! Maybe I do not have the most effective attacks to strike you with, little Land Spirit. But what I lack in effective moves, I make up for with RAW UNBRIDLED SPEED AND POWER! BEHOLD!"**_

 _Zekrom's tail whirred to life and he raced forward. Psychic energy gathered around his head. But before he could get anywhere close to Tapu Koko, the Land Spirit flew away. He thrust his armored limbs to the side and, suddenly, electric particles filled up the air. The sky turned yellow before Zekrom's eyes._

 _ **"What sort of trickery is this, Land Spirit?"**_ _Zekrom snarled._ _ **"To employ deceit in a duel like this is the ultimate insult! It spits in the face of ideals! I will not stand– or, rather, float for such insolence!"**_

 _"Whoa, chillax, dragon dude," Tapu Koko exclaimed, "We Land Spirits are, like, one with nature around here. It lets us craft terrain to suit our abilities. Pretty righteous, huh?"_

 _ **"It is blasphemous!"**_ _Zekrom bellowed, sending sound waves shooting toward Tapu Koko. This took him by surprise. He could dodge some of the Hyper Voice, but a few sound waves struck and disoriented him._

 _"Ugh, not very bodacious of you, bro," Tapu Koko groaned. "If you'd given me a sec to finish splainin' things to you, you'd have known my Electric Surge boosts all electric attacks for a short while. You say you're the embodiment of thunder? Then come at me, bro!"_

 _Zekrom roared and encased himself in electricity yet again. He charged toward Tapu Koko, but the Land Spirit withdrew into his shell and sped away. Zekrom's tail crackled and released a burst of energy, sending him speeding forward. But Tapu Koko curved upward and Zekrom raced underneath._

 _ **"Quit flying about and let me hit you,"**_ _Zekrom whined. He abruptly stopped himself and sent Thunderbolts streaking toward Tapu Koko. The Land Spirit retaliated with Thunderbolts of his own, but Zekrom's proved move stronger and seared Tapu Koko's arms._ _ **"Ha ha! See? Even with your deceitful trickery, my lightning far outranks yours, puny whelp!"**_

 _"Yeah, well it's not a total bummer, dude. Because I can still do this!" Tapu Koko replied, filling the sky with sparkling pink energy. Zekrom engaged the booster in his tail and tried to speed away, but the Dazzling Gleam still hit him and sent him reeling. Tapu Koko sped forward, shooting lightning bolts to spear Zekrom's backside._

 _Zekrom whirled around and dispelled Tapu Koko's attacks with his own Thunderbolts. Tapu Koko had to withdraw into his shell to minimize any damage. He spun around and his momentum deflected some of the bolts down toward the ground. The electricity struck the ground and started to race across the grass._

 _Tapu Koko noticed the electricity. "Um, dude, maybe we ought to take this out over the ocean? I don't want to zap any little critters down below."_

 _ **"You should've thought of that before spitting on my pride!"**_ _Zekrom roared._ _ **"You have made your bed and you will lie in it."**_ _He tucked himself inside another ball of lightning and shot forward. Tapu Koko stood his ground this time. He thrust his arms apart and a Dazzling Gleam exploded outward. Zekrom's electric cage managed to slice through most of the attack. He slammed into Tapu Koko from above._

 _Tapu Koko rocketed toward the ground. He hit the dirt with a loud THUD, leaving a sizeable impact crater. And electricity exploded out from his body, vaporizing the grass and racing around the nearby rocks. Tapu Koko looked over and saw the lightning from Zekrom's attack had not dissipated. In fact, in continued arcing through the fields, leaving barren rock behind._

 _"Dude, no way!" Tapu Koko gasped._

 _ **"Do you see now the power that I wield, puny whelp?"**_ _Zekrom bellowed._ _ **"Withdraw your comments on my strength and I shall forgive such insolence and leave you be."**_

 _Tapu Koko rocketed back into the air, letting out a brilliant, blinding Dazzling Gleam. Zekrom howled as the attack washed over him. Now it was the big lug's turn to plummet toward the ground. But he managed to stop himself before he hit anything. He fired up his tail and shot upward. This bathed the hill beneath him in electricity, burning up grass in the process._

 _ **"Enough!"**_ _Zekrom roared._ _ **"I have grown tired of this affair. You are as annoying as a Beedrill buzzing about my domain!"**_ _His crimson eyes crackled with electricity._ _ **"Have a taste of this!"**_

 _Zekrom thrust his arms forward. Tapu Koko braced himself to dodge, but noticed no attack came out. Before he could say anything, however, a tremor wracked his entire body. He gasped and found himself struggling to keep his altitude. "What did you do to me?" he asked._

 _ **"Ha ha ha! Just as you have your frilly little terrain-making trick, I too have my own ability. It is one that stands a true dedication to pursuit of ideals!"**_ _Zekrom replied._ _ **"It is Teravolt! And with it, I shall strike you with Earth Powers even as we float in the air. And now I shall use my ability to thoroughly beat you into submission. Then you will know my fury!"**_

 _"Your vocabulary needs serious work, dude."_

 _Electricity crackled across Tapu Koko's arms. It gathered in front of him and took the form of a crystal sphere. He shattered the sphere and spread his arms out to the side. Orange beams of energy raced across his body._

 _ **"I will let you employ no more trickery!"**_ _Zekrom snarled. He slammed his fists together, sending another shockwave racing forward. But Tapu Koko ducked under the Earth Power. He raises his arms skyward, and the orange energy surrounding him started expanding and turning yellow. Zekrom's eyes widened as it rapidly took the shape of a four-limbed giant! Tapu Koko withdrew into his shell and soared to the top of the creature, planting himself on what appeared to be its neck._

 _ **"Th… this is… impossible!"**_ _Zekrom roared._ _ **"What is this madness?"**_

 _"The power of nature, dude!" the giant boomed in Tapu Koko's voice and swiped at Zekrom. He barely managed to dodge._

 _ **"No, I will not back down! I never back down!"**_ _Zekrom thundered, surrounding himself with electricity and charging forward. At the same time, the giant brought its arm up and then sent it crashing down. The instant Zekrom slammed into the giant, its fist connected with his skull. Both Tapu Koko and Zekrom exploded back from each other and hurtled toward the ground._

 _They impacted at the same time. A pair of massive craters ruptured the earth, sending with them waves of lightning! The first wave vaporized the remaining grass and evaporated all the water in the ponds. And the remaining waves bathed the rocky remnants in electricity. In fact, so much electricity was dispelled from their duel, that it continued to linger around the crater even to this day. It became a habitat for wild electric-type Pokémon. Hence, we now call the place Voltaic Crater._

Tessa sat back and let out a deep breath. "… and that's it. That's all I know."

Eevee jumped about excitedly. "That was great! That was great!" He turned to Vulpix. "Didn't you think it was great? I really liked your Zekrom voice." He reared up on his hind legs, spread out his forepaws, and shouted, "Grooooooooar! I'm Zekrom and I'm a big, fat, jerk-head!"

"Oh, brother," Shane muttered, rolling his eyes. "So, let me get this straight, Riolu. Zekrom battled this Tapu Koko thingy and they caused an explosion so big it made a Mystery Dungeon?"

Tessa shrugged. "That's how I interpreted it."

"But how would the terrain change if it's just a giant crater?" Shane wondered.

"I know this one," Eevee said, raising a forepaw. "That's cause the Tapus have the power to reshape the continent. When they do, all the Mystery Dungeons change." He beamed at Tessa. "Did I answer that right?"

"You sure did, buddy," Tessa said, tussling Eevee's head. "Unlike Vulpix, who forgot I told him that a few days ago."

"Gag," Shane muttered, pointing a forepaw at his open mouth. "So, there are other Tapus, then?"

"Yup," Tessa replied. "Any other questions?"

"Yeah," Shane said. "What the heck was that move Tapu Koko did where he summoned a giant energy monster? That sounds incredible! What can we do to learn something like that?"

Tessa scratched the bridge of her snout. "Hang on. I swear my dad told me about this once." She rubbed her temples. "Something about the Tapus being able to grant Pokémon the power to turn one of their moves into an extremely powerful attack during a battle. I don't remember what he called it, though."

"… knock, knock. I'm home, Eevee!"

Eevee jumped to his feet and ran to the door. "Hi, mommy," he greeted. "Did you have fun with your friends?"

"I did, thank you," Sylveon replied. "Tessa, how was Eevee?"

"A little angel. We had a nice, long story session," Tessa explained.

"Wonderful," Sylveon chirped. "You two are more than welcome to say the night, if you'd like."

"We'd love to, Sylveon. But we really should get back to the Observatory," Tessa said. "The guild's leaving on this big expedition tomorrow and I don't want to get locked out."

"Okay then. Safe travels." Sylveon waved farewell and they exited the house.

"See, Vulpix, that wasn't so bad," Tessa said. Shane didn't respond. She looked over at her partner, and noticed a gleam in his eyes.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" he asked.

"Probably not. But I'll bite," Tessa said. "What are you thinking?"

"That we find one of these Tapu guys and make them give us that special ability!" Shane declared. "I'll be able to save the world for sure with a power like that."

Tessa rolled her eyes. "Let's take it one day at a time, Vulpix," she sighed.

* * *

What, you didn't think I'd do a Gen VII-centric story and _not_ include Z-Moves, did you? That'd be ridiculous!

Next time: you thought the Poison Mushrooms in The Lost Levels were bad? Wait'll you see what Team Radiance has in store for them.


	14. Beware the Forest's Mushrooms

**~Aeon Town~**

The sun had just started rising to signal a brand new day. Though Aeon Town's streets were empty, one Pokémon scurried up the main path. Whatever sort of body he had was totally hidden underneath a pale, yellow rag. His head flopped backwards as he ran, showing off a face that had been scribbled on the rag with crayon.

"Hurff… heff… gotta hurry. Sun's almost up," he panted, climbing his way up the hill leading out of town. In the process, he nearly tripped over. The lightning-shaped stick on his back fell to the ground. He got up, tugging underneath his rag so the stick stood back up and resembled a proper tail.

Eventually, he reached the top of the hill and looked around. "W-Well, I'm here," he muttered. "But where is–?"

A white blur shot out of the bushes, scooping the rag-wearing Pokémon up off the ground. He got carried off into the forest, tumbling to the ground when his abductor skidded to a halt.

"A-Absol! D-don't s-scare me l-like that!"

Absol rolled his eyes. "… tch. You're a ghost-type, Mimikyu. Do you have any idea how pathetic that sounds?"

Mimikyu looked down, trying to avoid Absol's fierce red eyes. "H-Hey, I c-could g-get in a l-lot of t-trouble for d-doing this, y'know?"

"Quit your blubbering," Absol growled, lowering his black, serrated forehead scythe toward Mimikyu's rag. Mimikyu squeaked and shrank back. "Do you have the TM or not?"

Mimikyu started shaking. "I… I… I'm sorry…"

Absol's eyes glowed a sickly purple. The same color flared up on his scythe. "WHAT?" he snarled. "Then why are you even here?"

Mimikyu walked back into a tree. "I… I couldn't Shadow Sneak into the Kecleon Shop. They must have some sort of magical ward over the entrance. I did everything I could. Please don't hurt me!"

"I _needed_ that TM!" Absol hissed. He lashed out with his right forepaw, smacking Mimikyu against the tree. "Great." He turned away from Mimikyu. "Now, I've got to think of something else."

"U-Um… w-well…"

Absol raised a forepaw, silencing Mimikyu. "You're useless to me now. Go away."

"B-But…"

Absol narrowed his eyes at Mimikyu. "Go. Away."

Mimikyu sprinted away, nearly losing his rag in the process. Absol watched him go, digging into the dirt with his right forepaw. When the ghost was out of sight, he crept forward through the forest.

"… by my tabulations, that was a most spectacular letdown, Gallian. Bravo!"

The named Absol froze beside a tree. "… tch. I don't need your sarcasm, Sticky. Get down here."

The leaves above Gallian rustled and out from them popped a small, pink and purple pixie. "Sarcasm? I am afraid that word is not in my vernacular," Sticky exclaimed, tilting his oversized, circular head and brushing the needle sticking out of it against the nearest branch. "Could you explain it to me?"

Gallian shot Sticky a glare that said that no, he would not.

"Erm… well then…" Sticky fidgeted his tiny, nub-tipped arms and nervously flicked his equally-small tail. "It is surprising your special sense did not alert you to this outcome."

Gallian's eyes flickered purple again. He turned his head to show off the one oversized fang protruding from his lips. "I already told you, Sticky, my disaster sense warns about _serious consequences_ , not minor inconveniences."

"But you have spoken at length about the importance of getting this 'teeyem.' Would that terrestrial's failure not be a serious consequence for you, then?" Sticky wondered.

Gallian's left eye twitched. "You're the only one here making it into a bigger deal than it is," he hissed. "All this means is that I need to try a different approach." He crept to the forest's edge and looked out over Aeon Town. "If I couldn't get someone else to steal the TM, then I suppose I'll just need to take the direct route."

"What exactly is inhibiting you from simply purchasing this item?" Sticky wondered.

"I already told you. That's not an option. It ends disastrously," Gallian seethed. He started pacing back and forth. "Let's see here. Going in while the shop's locked up isn't an option since I can't Shadow Sneak. I could try breaking in…" he thought out loud, but his voice trailed off. His entire body stiffened and the red, diamond-shaped jewel in his forehead flickered ominously.

"No!" he hissed, shaking his head. "That option doesn't work either."

"Another disaster?" Sticky asked.

"I will not question my sense. It hasn't led me astray yet," Gallian insisted. He resumed pacing. "So, it looks like the best shot is to go in during broad daylight. But to do that, I'll need to give myself an opening." He looked out across Aeon Town. "What would make a solid distraction that'll rile the whole town up?" Gallian scanned the town, glancing over all of its buildings. His gaze fell on one building in particular, sitting at the top of a hill overlooking the town square.

The fur on the back of Gallian neck prickled. A chill ran along his spine. "The Observatory," he whispered. His gem flickered once again. "Something's happening there." Gallian walked out of the forest and sat down, studying the Aeon Observatory.

"I detect that you are unnerved. Perhaps I could assist in making this distraction?" Sticky offered. "That way, you can investigate that municipal lodging."

Gallian's eyes widened and he scowled at Sticky. "No! You'll stay here. No good will come of you going to Aeon Town."

"But, that is your old employer you are staring at, correct?" Sticky pointed out. "Would it not be equally disastrous to be spotted there after abandoning them?"

Gallian gritted his teeth. "… as far as I'm concerned, ignoring this feeling is the greater of two evils. I have no choice but to scope the place out. I'll think up some sort of way to get the TM on my own."

Sticky's head lolled to one side. "Very well. I shall resume recharging my energy in one of these tree branches. They are surprisingly cozy." Sticky floated up into a nearby tree, leaving Gallian to turn back and face the Observatory.

"… tch. I told myself I wouldn't go back there. Looks like I'm gonna have to break that promise."

* * *

 **Episode 5: The Renegade Explorer**

 **Chapter 13: Beware the Forest's Mushrooms**

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Hang on. Run that one by me again," Tessa said, rubbing her eyes with her paws.

Shane quickened his pace. "I think I know why I'm here," he declared. "I need to find out what's responsible for making Pokémon like those Munchlax go berserk."

Tessa frowned. "Don't you think that's a bit pretentious?"

"No, it's right in line with the other times humans have popped up around here," Shane replied. "I know it doesn't seem like much of a problem _now_ , but my gut is telling me that I'm going to have to get to the bottom of this issue eventually. So, we should tackle it sooner, rather than later. Y'know, be all proactive and stuff!"

Tessa froze in the hallway. "Okay, is there something you're not telling me? I know you said Pokémon are fictional where you come from, but it sounds to me like you know more than you're letting on. Which is, uh, surprising, given the way things have gone for us so far."

Shane raised an eyebrow. "Hmm? Oh… that." He pawed at the ground. "You, uh, promise not to call me crazy if I tell you this?"

Tessa crossed her arms. "Prefacing whatever you have to say with that line isn't helping your case."

"Okay, okay," Shane sighed. "The truth is… those stories you mentioned to me about humans? They're similar to a set of games that starred Pokémon in my world." Tessa started to open her mouth, but Shane held up a forepaw. "Hang on. Before you go accusing me of anything here, I just want you to know that it's not _exactly_ the same. For starters, a ton of stuff I've seen here was never in those games. Heck, there was no Horizon Continent in them, period."

"I mean, look at me. There's no such thing as ice-type Vulpixes where I come from," Shane declared, gesturing at his torso. "Or dark-type Meowths. And _definitely not_ whatever the heck Null is supposed to b–"

Tessa made a slashing gesture across her throat.

Shane's ears drooped. "… he's standing right behind me, isn't he?" Tessa nodded slowly. Shane turned around, his tails ducking between his legs. "N-Null… morning! D-Did ya sleep well?"

Null nodded.

"I, uh, wasn't trying to insult you or anything. Y'know, with what I just said." Shane gave a nervous laugh. "H-Honestly!"

Null's gray eyes continued glaring at Shane.

"Err, let's just go to morning assembly," Shane mumbled.

"Uh, did you forget? Today's the start of the expedition to Sunset Shoals," Tessa said. "It's just the three of us and any veterans who are hanging around the guild."

"Oh, right." Shane's shoulders slumped. "Well then, what are we supposed to do? Sentry duty?"

Null shrugged.

"Mwee hee hee! Now, there's no need for that, today. You should head outside. Stretch your legs a bit."

Shane's fur stood on end. "Who said that?" He quickly scanned the room.

A pair of eyes and a large mouth appeared on the ceiling. Shane went as stiff as a stone statue. He fell onto his side, unmoving. Null waved a foreleg in front of Shane's face, but got no response. "Haunter, get out of the ceiling," Tessa sighed.

"Aww… but I like it here," Haunter pouted. "Haven't you ever heard that old expression? Uh, what was it again? Oh yeah! 'Walls have ears, potatoes have eyes.' Something like that."

"But, you're putting eyes and a mouth on the _ceiling_. Not ears on the wall," Tessa pointed out.

Misdreavus rose out of the floor. "Golly. She got you there, Haunter."

Haunter materialized from the ceiling and floated down toward Team Radiance. "… fine. Ruin my fun. At least I spooked Snowball over there. Mwee hee hee hee!"

Drifloon appeared from behind Null. "Yup, you scared him silly."

Null plucked Shane's petrified form off the ground and shook him about. Shane came to. "Hey!" He thrashed about in Null's grip. "Put me down! Put me down! You're gonna mess up my fur!" Null shrugged and then unceremoniously dropped Shane. Tessa fought to hide a snicker.

"Yeah, sure, okay, get your laughs out of the way now," Shane grumbled, getting to his feet and dusting himself off. "What do you spooks want with us, anyway?"

"Oh, golly, we can't just stop by and say hi to our novice explorers?" Misdreavus said. "Hooo-whee, guess you're just itching for something to do, then. Gee whiz, Haunter, do you think we can lend them a hand?"

"I don't know, Missy D." Haunter's smile grew. "We only have two hands to split between the three of us." He raised up his two hands and wiggled his fingers.

Shane frowned. "You guys aren't being funny, you know."

Haunter rolled his eyes. "Sheesh, who tied your tails in a knot this morning? Oh wait…" A giant grin appeared on his face. "… I did!"

"Wait, _what?_ " Shane walked about in a circle, trying to see his tails.

"Made you look! Made you look!" Haunter cackled.

"Just tell me what you want with my team already!" Shane barked.

Tessa raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me? _Your_ team?"

"Ugh, you know what I meant," Shane grumbled.

Haunter waved his right hand and a scroll appeared in it. He unraveled it. "We got a request this morning from Morelull and Shiinotic. Seems they're looking to gather Luminous Moss from the deeper reaches of Twilight Forest. They would like a team to accompany them for support."

"Aww, geez, Haunter. You're letting 'em go to Twilight Forest? Golly, you folks don't know how lucky you are," Misdreavus said. "Twilight Forest is quite a pretty place. Yessiree, you oughta enjoy it a lot."

Tessa accepted the scroll from Haunter. "Isn't Twilight Forest northeast of Clayback River?"

"Yes," Drifloon replied. "You should get one of the Sharpedo Sailors to take you over to Terrace Village. It overlooks the forest."

Null cleared his throat.

"What's the matter, big guy?" Shane asked.

"… I'm not exactly… small…" Null muttered. "How would… I get there?"

"Hey now, don't underestimate those Sharpedo Sailors. The guy we used on our first mission seemed pretty tough," Tessa exclaimed. "I'll bet one could carry you, no problem!"

* * *

 **~Terrace Village~**

Shane jumped off a Sharpedo, landing on a sturdy wooden dock. He took in a deep breath. "Ahh, smell that rich, forest ai–"

He doubled over in a coughing fit. Tessa appeared beside him. "Um, are you okay?"

"I think… I swallowed… a leaf!" Shane wheezed. Tessa smacked him on the back a couple of times. Shane's wheezing stopped and he straightened himself up.

"Phew… thanks, partner," he chirped. "I swear, between this place and Dewdrop Woods, the forests of this world have it out for me."

The dock shuddered, making Tessa and Shane stumble off of it. Null lumbered forward, trying his best not to break any of the wooden planks. He quickly got off the dock and helped his teammates to their feet. Together, they made their way up from the dock and found a small, rustic cluster of brown, wooden houses that resembled log cabins. Brick chimneys stuck up from each building, two of which gave off trails of black smoke. While a few trees dotted the area, the bulk of them were actually below the village.

"Wow!" Shane sprinted past the houses, skidding to a halt by a particularly large oak tree. "This whole town's up on top of a big hill. That must be Twilight Forest down there."

Tessa jogged after him. "Uh, I don't really see what's all that cool about it. But good for you, I guess?"

"I'm serious here. This is _nothing_ like where I live in the human world. I've never gone up a hill or climbed a mountain or anything like that," Shane said. "Heck, I've only flown in an airplane a few times. This is my first time looking out over a big swathe of trees like this. It's positively _breathtaking!_ " He shook his head. "Oh, why did I never go outside more as a human? I've totally been missing out."

Shane lifted his head up to continue looking at the forest. "I do have to wonder, though, why are the trees purple?" He turned to Tessa. "Is that supposed to happen? The trees in Dewdrop Woods were big, sure, but their colors weren't weird."

Tessa rubbed her chin. "Hmm… you know, I think my br– uh, I mean, I think Sylveon told me about this once." She turned to her right and pointed. "Look over there."

Shane followed Tessa's paw. His jaw dropped. Off in the distance, a set of tree-covered mountains jutted out from the ground. The trees were blanketed in heavy layers of snow and the mountains' peaks were hidden by dense gray clouds.

"Those are the Invern Mountains," Tessa announced. "If you _were_ a normal Vulpix, that would be your home. They're also the reason why everything in Twilight Forest has a purple tint to it. Sunlight strikes the snow-covered mountains and reflects off of it, hitting the trees down there. At least, that's what I've heard."

Shane whistled. "Whoa. I don't really think I'd want to climb up one of those. My parents always told me it's hard to breathe at high elevations. Sometimes you can get sick from it."

"You're a Vulpix, though. You'd be perfectly fine," Tessa dismissed.

"EEEEEEEEEK! IT'S A MONSTER!"

The two canines turned around to see a small, white Pokémon cowering against a wooden door. He had three tiny mushrooms sticking out of his head. Null looked right at the creature.

"Wait, wait, wait," Tessa called, running to Null's side. "It's okay, little guy. This isn't a monster. He's from the Horizon Guild, just like me." She knelt down beside the little Pokémon. "I'm Riolu. My exploration team is here to help Morelull and Shiinotic. Do you know where they are?"

"I'm Morelull. Shiinotic's my mommy."

Tessa smiled at Morelull. "Oh, perfect. Do you think you could get your mom for us? We're ready to help you guys get through Twilight Forest."

Morelull looked hesitantly at Null. "O… Okay," he squeaked, and ducked inside of his house.

Tessa turned to Null. "Sorry about that."

Null looked down at the dirt. "… I knew this was… a bad idea. Should've… just stayed back."

"Don't say that!" Tessa scolded, approaching Null's side. "They just need time to get used to you.

"Here's a suggestion. Try, y'know, not speaking with that creepy, raspy voice of yours and everything should be fine," Shane sneered.

"Shane!" Tessa narrowed her eyes at him. "That's not very nice."

Shane's snout stiffened. "I was just trying to help…" he mumbled.

A creaking noise drew the group's attention. They turned and noticed a trio of serpents slithering out from another house.

"Milotic?" Tessa gasped. "What are you doing here?"

Milotic met Tessa's gaze. "Riri!" She smiled and blew a kiss in Tessa's direction. "What a surprise to see your team here. Most novices never go beyond Clayback River."

"There was an assignment and you know as well as I do the guild's short Pokémon right now," Tessa explained.

"How brave," Serperior chuckled. "I see you even managed to drag Mr. Personality out of the sentry station." She glanced at Null. "I'm surprised you didn't, like, melt in the sunlight."

Null lowered his head, fixing his sharp gaze on Serperior.

"Now, now, Serperior. We shouldn't tease our fellow guild members," Dragonair scolded.

"I invited him to join Team Radiance, for the record," Tessa declared. "He, uh, didn't _exactly_ say yes, but he's going to give us some help from time to time."

"Well, aren't _you_ the little risk-taker," Serperior giggled. "Quite the feisty little girl, ain't ya? Just like your mother. I'll bet she would've done the same thing if she were–"

"Leave them alone, Serpy," Milotic said. "Besides, we have to work to do."

"What are you girls doing here, anyway?" Shane asked.

"Sorry, Snowball, that's on a need to know basis. And you're not part of that need," Serperior replied. "But we'll totally try to snag a souvenir or something for ya from where we're heading. C'mon, girls!" Serperior gave Shane a flirtatious wink and then Team Captivate slithered off in the direction of the forest. Before anyone could say anything, the door Morelull entered opened up.

"Here they are, mommy. They're the exploration team."

Team Radiance turned around to see Morelull standing next to an oversized, white-and-pink mushroom. Shane opened his mouth to say something, but Tessa beat him to it. "You must be, Shiinotic, then? I'm Riolu, and these are my partners, Vulpix and Null."

"Um, my name is Shane," Shane muttered dejectedly.

"So very nice to meet you all," Shiinotic said, bobbing her head. She did cast a nervous glance in Null's direction, however. "Are you ready to go into the forest?"

"I think so," Tessa said. "You said we're heading for the deeper recesses in the north, right?"

"Yes. Morelull and I tried to get some Luminous Moss yesterday. But there wasn't any growing in the spot we usually visit," Shiinotic explained. "And, well, we've never gone too deep into the forest. I'm worried about wild Pokémon."

"No problem. We're just the crew needed to dispatch any problems," Shane declared. "Let's get to it!"

* * *

 **~Twilight Forest~**

Shane jogged in circles around the group, staring up at the trees.

"It's so pretty!" he chirped. "Everything's glowing purple! The trees… the mushrooms… the grass… and hey, is that a glowing bush?" He ran toward a thorny bush. "It's like nature meets an after-hours club. All it's missing is the trance music with a thumping bass."

Tessa shook her head in disbelief. "What are you talking about?"

"It's a human thing. You wouldn't understand," Shane scoffed.

"Well, it's called Twilight Forest for a reason," Shiinotic mused. "The light that trickles down from the Invern Mountains gives this place a constant purple glow. Kind of like the sky in early evening. It seems to have a very calming effect. Wild Pokémon are quite friendly around here."

"Is that why you two regularly gather Luminous Moss from here, then?" Tessa asked.

"Correct," Shiinotic said. "But something's been off in the forest as of late. When we didn't find any Luminous Moss in our usual spot, we sent a note to the guild requesting help."

Shane frowned. "What? Who's harshing the mellow in this place?" He looked around. "I've got an Icy Wind ready for a special delivery!"

"What do you mean by 'off' exactly?" Tessa asked.

"Several days back, my neighbor, Parasect, stumbled out of the forest. I'd never seen him look so worn and ragged," Shiinotic explained. "He explained that a swarm of Fomantis had attacked him for no good reason."

"But you still took Morelull into the forest?" Shane gasped. "That's not very responsible."

"… you're hardly… one to talk… human," Null growled. Shane frightfully squeaked and quickened his pace, allowing Tessa to hang back with Shiinotic and Morelull.

"Is that the only issue you guys encountered?" she asked.

"No." Morelull shook his head. "When we went out to the forest… the mossy area was all sickly and gross!" He shivered and cuddled up beside Shiinotic.

"What do you mean by tha–?"

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

 _CRAAAAAASH!_

Tessa spun around. "What was that?" She noticed Null standing next to a tree, looking farther into the forest.

"… the human… stepped here," he reported. "… slid off… and crashed… into that tree." He pointed a foreleg forward. Tessa saw Shane lying in a dazed heap, with dead leaves surrounding him.

"Why no, officer. I _don't_ know where that came from," Shane muttered.

Tessa walked up to Null and looked at the ground. "That… doesn't look right," she whispered.

"That's it!" Morelull gasped. "That's the creepy black stuff mommy and I saw in the mossy area."

Tessa ran her paw across the pitch-black spot in the dirt. She immediately yanked it back. "Ack!" She wrung her paw out. "That kind of hurt. It's like something leaped out of the dirt and bit me."

Null poked the black spot with a talon and quickly pulled it away. "It felt… very slick," he observed. "Must've been… why the human went flying…"

Shane managed to stumble back to their location, shaking leaves off his body. "Yeah, thanks for the hand back there, guys. Really feeling the love today."

"You stepped in some sort of… well… I don't really know _what_ it is," Tessa said. She pointed at the black spot.

"Oh, come on, that's not fair," Shane huffed, "It's _barely_ darker than the dirt. How was I supposed to see that?"

" _That's_ what you're focused on?" Tessa groaned. "How about the fact that there's some sort of creepy slime in what's supposed to be a very peaceful forest?"

"Oh, that? P'shaaw!" Shane smirked. "It's obviously a result of the super-evil force that's making Pokémon go berserk. Once Team Radiance beats back that evil, the slime will disappear. Case closed."

"P-Pokémon are going berserk?" Morelull gasped. "M-Mommy, do you think those Fomantis were acting like that?"

"Don't you think that's a bit of a stretch, Vulpix?" Tessa asked. "There's no sign of any Pokémon like that here."

 **"… shyyyaaaaakaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"**

A shrill cry echoed through the forest, making the entire group tense up.

"Mommy, what was that?" Morelull asked.

Shane rolled his eyes. "Oh, nice going, genius. You totally jinxed us!"

"Me? You were the one who screamed a frightened Loudred a few minutes ago," Tessa reminded him. "You probably drew the attention of some wild Pokémon!"

The bushes near where Shane collapsed earlier rustled.

"Yeah right," Shane scoffed. "What you said was only one rung below, 'It can't possibly get any worse than this.'"

"… guys?"

The shaking bushes exploded in a flurry of leaves. A large, crab-like creature with black, armored pincers leaped out, landing in front of the group.

 **"Shyakakaka!"** the crab shrieked.

"Parasect?" Shiinotic gasped.

Shane whirled on Tessa with a horrified look. " _Please_ tell me that's what Parasect are supposed to look like in Horizon."

Tessa recoiled in disgust. "It's… it's not.

"Really? Are you _sure_ they don't have a white jellyfish sitting where their big mushroom should be?" Shane said. "Oh _god_ , it's wriggling its tiny little tentacles and everything!"

"I am _very_ sure," Tessa insisted.

"Mommy, what happened to Mr. Parasect?" Morelull whimpered. "He looks scary!"

 **"Shhhyaaaaaa! Infect… I want to… infe-k-k-k-k-k-k-k-t!"**

Parasect coated his pincers in sickly black goop and thrust them forward. The sludge formed an X-shaped pattern and flew ahead. Null sprang to action, knocking Tessa and Shane out of the attack's path. It struck the ground, leaving two large streaks of the same black slime Shane had slipped in. Only this time, the slime was bubbling.

"Ah! It's making more of that goop," Morelull gasped.

"… both of you… stop arguing… and start battling…" Null hissed, glaring at Shane and Tessa.

"She started it!" Shane accused, prompting Null to slap him upside the head.

"… and I finished it…" Null said, spinning around and sending a wind crescent rippling toward Parasect.

 **"Shyyaaakakaka!"** Parasect clicked his pincers and then, to everyone's shock, he dissolved into a massive puddle of black ooze. His crescent moon emblems were still visible atop the ooze.

"Okay." Shane pressed a forepaw to his muzzle. "That's one way to make me lose my breakfast."

"How are we supposed to hit it like that? The slime is corrosive!" Tessa noted.

"Forget that. How's he even _doing_ that?" Shane wondered. "Did he, like, cover himself in Goomy sludge?"

Parasect emerged from the puddle of ooze and hurled two globs of black toxins forward. "Sludge Bomb! Duck and cover!" Tessa hollered, sprinting toward the tree line. Shane quickly backpedaled toward Morelull and Shiinotic. Null was not as fortunate, however. He got caught by one of the blobs, hissing as the sludge splattered his right side.

He fell to the ground, trying to get the toxins off. Shane watched the scene with wide eyes. "Okay… that's not good," he muttered.

"Aren't you going to do something?" Shiinotic asked.

"I'm thinking… I'm thinking!" Shane insisted. He looked over, spotting Tessa peering out from behind a tree. "Hey, Riolu. Think you can keep Parasect distracted so I can sneak up on him and use Icy Wind?"

"No way. I am not going _near_ that thing," she replied. "You be the distraction for once."

"But I have the most effective attacks of the team," Shane protested. "It's _smarter_ for you to distract him!"

"… guys!" Null hissed, sidestepping swipes from Parasect's slime-covered pincers. He slung a bladed air crescent forward and managed to strike Parasect. However, the attack sailed clean through his goopy form, splitting it into two halves. The halves promptly melted into puddles of ooze, only to quickly rejoin. Parasect reemerged and opened his pincers. Several yellow, sparking orbs flew toward Null.

Shane ran forward and let out a gust of white air. Null flopped onto his belly and watched Shane's attack destroy the Stun Spores. Shane ran beside his teammate. "Okay, we need to keep this guy occupied. And more importantly, stop him from turning to goop. Any ideas?"

"… not really…" Null replied.

 **"Infect! Infek-k-k-k-k-t!"** Parasect shrieked, firing more Stun Spores forward.

"I'll freeze him. You hit him with an Air Slash," Shane directed. He stepped forward and smothered Parasect's attack in blistering air. Null skirted to the side. But before he could attack, a small seed whizzed past his face. Parasect only had time to glance in Null's direction. The seed struck him right between the eyes. It bathed him in a red light and turned him as rigid as a statue.

"… huh?" Shane tilted his head in confusion. Tessa appeared between him and Null.

"Yes! It actually worked," she said, sighing in relief.

"What did you do?" Shane asked.

"I had some Stun Seeds," Tessa said. "See, I _told_ you I didn't need to be the distraction."

"You could've at least given me an inkling of an idea as to what you were planning," Shane groaned.

"Oh, quit complaining and hit him already. He can't melt into goop while he's stunned like this," Tessa stated. "Null, you hit him too. Two super-effective attacks ought to knock him down a peg, right?"

Null and Shane exchanged looks. "What? You want me to count to three or something?" Shane scoffed.

"… hardly," Null replied. His Air Slash turned Shane's stream of Icy Wind into a jet stream of freezing air. The combined attacks struck Parasect. His petrification wore off and he screeched in pain. His body melted into goop yet again. The pile lurched forward, heading for Team Radiance.

"Okay, plan-maker," Shane said, quickly backpedaling. "What's your brilliant idea now?"

"Uh… uh…" Tessa fumbled through her item pouch and pulled out another seed. She tossed it forward and, much to her surprise, the pile of goop bubbled. Parasect reemerged, his claws clutching his jellyfish head.

"Hey, it worked!" she chirped. "Uh, I mean, just as planned. Now, go get him." She pointed a forepaw forward.

"You're not fooling anyone with that routine," Shane scoffed.

He and Null again combined Icy Wind and Air Slash, creasing an explosive rush of frigid air that swallowed up Parasect. This time, his body exploded into two piles of goop. But instead of merging together, the puddles fizzled. Eventually, two smaller Parasects emerged and snapped their pincers at Team Radiance. Each one still had a red crescent moons in their eyes.

"Eeeeeeeek!" Shane's tails shot upward. "It's multiplying! What kind of Rocky Horror Picture Show nonsense is this?"

Both Parasects sent black, X-shaped streams of poison hurtling toward the team. Shane was still in shock, and couldn't escape in time. One of the Cross Poisons splattered across his body and he collapsed in a heap. Null and Tessa turned and saw sickly purple splotches popping up across Shane's fur.

"… crud…" Null muttered. "… he's poisoned."

The two Parasects also picked up on this. They chose to focus their attentions on Shane. Each one's pincers filled with black goop. Null acted quickly, running forward while dark energy crackled around his body. He ran directly into one of the Parasect, making his foe collapse into a puddle of ooze.

This splattered sludge across Null's chest and helmet. His Pursuit attack fizzled out, allowing the second Parasect to slash Null with toxin-coated claws. He hissed in pain and staggered backward. The Parasect he hit had managed to reform in that time and strike Null with a corrosive Sludge Bomb. This buried Null under a pile of black slime.

 **"Infect! Infect! Infect! Infect!"** the two Parasect chanted in unison, moon insignias in their eyes glowing. Null thrashed about but couldn't seem to pull himself out of the puddle of slime.

A small seed struck the Parasect on Null's left, freezing him in place. The second Parasect turned and hissed, but that noise was cut off when Tessa hammered his face with Force Palm. He split into two smaller puddles of sludge, which sizzled on the ground. Seconds later, an Icy Wind swept over the petrified Parasect. He scurried backwards and melted into slime. A poison-free Shane ran over, watching Tessa shove Null out of the gunk with her shoulder. She recoiled from the bubbling slime bristling her fur.

"This stuff is nasty!" Tessa hissed, trying to brush the ooze off her fur.

"I think Null got poisoned too," Shane observed. "We need another pecha berry."

Tessa rummaged through the pouch, but a loud hiss disrupted her. She looked up and noticed the Parasect Shane had hit was back to his feet. Not only that, but the one she struck had split in half like before. The two new, smaller Parasects clicked their pincers.

 **"Infek-k-k-k-k-kt!"** they screeched, their voices squeakier than the larger Parasect's.

Next thing Team Radiance knew, they had three sets of Sludge Bombs flying toward them. They quickly scattered in opposite directions. But Null, already weakened from the earlier blows, couldn't run away quick enough. When the attacks struck the ground, they sent toxins splashing in all directions. Some of the goop hit Null's left side. His right legs buckled and he fell to the ground.

"Oh no!" Tessa gasped.

"Big whoop. You have Reviver Seeds, right?" Shane asked.

Tessa's panicked expression suggested otherwise. "I… I might have a Tiny Reviver Seed or two. But it'll take a little while for Null to revive."

 **"Infect! Infect!"** the two small Parasects chanted. They scuttled toward Null.

"Uh… uh…" Tessa looked between them and the larger Parasect. "What should we do?"

Shane's brow furrowed. "You've gotta deal with the big guy. I'll handle the tiny ones with Powder Snow." Tessa opened her mouth to retort but Shane sprinted past her. "For once just don't question it and do what I say!"

Tessa grabbed another, slightly smaller seed out of her bag. She threw it right at the Parasect and it struck him on his jellyfish head. When it did, his eyelids grew heavy. He looked around in confusion, raising his pincers and waving them in front of his face.

 **"Shyyaaaakaaa?"** he grunted. Tessa used the opening to strike. She charged forward and hit the Parasect with Force Palm. Like his counterpart, he exploded into two piles of goop. Tessa tensed up as each one formed up into a smaller Parasect.

"Shane? I've got a two-on-one situation here. Is Null–?"

An Air Slash blade whizzed past Tessa and struck the Parasect behind her. She gave a sigh of relief and lunged toward the other mini-Parasect. He melted into a puddle of goop, causing her to sail clear of him and strike the ground. Parasect rematerialized and hurled a ball of sludge at Tessa.

She yelped as the attack struck her back, splattering her with ooze. Tessa winced, a throbbing pain running through her body. She reached a trembling paw to her back, trying to fumble about for a pecha berry.

 **"Infect! Infect! Infect!"** her assailant shrieked. He approached her, snapping his pincers repeatedly. But much to his shock, a burst of snow hit him from behind. Tessa looked over her shoulder and noticed that three of the Parasect were now covered in a thick layer of frost. Shane stood in front of them, flanks heaving. Sickly purple splotches dotted his fur again.

"I don't… feel… so good…" he groaned. "This… isn't fun… anymore..."

"… stay focused! Otherwise… we're screwed…" Null hissed, attacking the Parasect in front of him with glowing talons. That split the Parasect in half yet again, creating two micro-Parasects that barely went up to Null's ankles.

Tessa had managed to get out a pecha berry, but realized it was the team's last one. She tensed as the poison sapped more of her strength, noticing the other three Parasects defrosting.

"Vulpix!" she squeaked. "Catch!" She hurled the berry in his direction. It hit the ground next to him. He looked over at Tessa and was about to thank her, when Tessa's eyes rolled back in her head and she collapsed to the ground.

"Tessa!" he cried.

"The poison… made her faint. Eat the berry…" Null growled, jumping back from a set of tiny Sludge Bombs. "… I can't… beat them… alone…"

Shane ate the pecha berry and the poisonous spots faded from his body. "But there's five of them now. How are we supposed to take them all down by ourselves?"

"I don't… know…" Null growled. He slashed one of the Parasects in an X-shaped fashion. This Parasect let out a loud screech and sank into a puddle of goo. The other Parasect near Null hissed and shot tiny Stun Spores forward. At that close range, there was nothing Null could do to avoid them. The spores crackled across his form and he seized up from paralysis.

The three Parasect in front of Shane decided to duplicate this strategy. They fired such a broad stream of Stun Spores there was no way Shane could possibly dodge them. It wasn't long before he found his own body stiffening, too.

"Nnnnngggrrrhhh…" Shane grunted. "This… can't be happening! I'm… the hero. I can't… lose… to these things. I've got… to save the world!"

 **"Infect! Infect! Infect! Infect!"** the Parasect trio chanted. Their moon insignias glowed in unison, as did their pincers.

Shane tried to open his mouth to attack, but his muscles failed him. He couldn't even shut his eyes to brace himself for whatever it was these Parasects wanted to do to him.

Then an Ice Beam raced across the ground, striking all three Parasects. They collapsed into puddles of goop. A stream of blue-purple dragonfire shot out of the bushes the original Parasect had destroyed. It blasted the Parasect facing Null. He too collapsed into a puddle of ooze.

"W-What the–?" Shane stammered.

"Phew… looks like we made it in time. Nice navigation work, Airy!"

Shane's ears twitched. "Milotic?" he squeaked.

Team Captivate sprang out from the destroyed bushes. Serperior and Milotic opened their mouths. A stream of ice and a pulsating beam of blue dragon energy shot forward. The attacks combined to shower the puddles of ooze with bolts and ice shards. Each puddle started bubbling. Dragonair likewise shot two fiery streams of Dragonbreath at the puddles around Null. They also fizzled.

"When there's danger to be seen," Milotic declared, blowing a kiss toward a dumbfounded Shane, "Team Captivate is on the scene!"

The puddles of ooze slowly inched toward one another, making Shane's fur stand on end. "Milotic, look." Dragonair pointed her tail forward. "What do you think they're doing?"

"Surround them, ladies! We'll strike in unison, if necessary," Milotic ordered. The three serpents slithered into a triangular formation just as the puddles had recombined into one. They watched the original Parasect emerge from the puddle, his body perfectly still.

"Hold up." Serperior raised her tail. "I think he's out cold."

Shane turned toward Team Captivate. "Watch out. He could be faking or–"

The crescent moons in Parasect's eyes shattered. Red light encased his entire body, only to melt off of it into the ground. "Eww! That's totally disgusting!" Serperior cried, hopping back. Null had managed to lumber to his feet just in time to see the last of the red light dissolve into the ground, leaving Parasect's form lying there. His mushroom head had returned, but not a spot of color remained on his body. His mouth hung open.

Dragonair's eyes widened. "Is he–?"

"Nobody touch him," Milotic instructed, dangling her tail over Parasect's limp body. "He could still have some traces of whatever messed him up."

Shane stared down at the Parasect, his mouth agape. _'It's just like the Munchlaxes in Dewdrop Woods. Parasect attacked us in a berserk rage, only for the life and color to_ literally _drain right off him.'_ His vision went fuzzy. _'I must be right. There's something out there turning Pokémon into these violent, crazed lunatics.'_

But any elation he would have felt toward being proven right was completely drowned out by a different thought.

 _'… that Parasect was going to kill us!'_

* * *

 **Nihilistic Terror, Ultra Parasect  
** _Exposure to the Prism Virus morphed the mushroom atop Parasect's head. The poisons leaking into his body have drained him of the last of his free will. Now, all he can think about is spreading his toxins throughout Twilight Forest and sucking the life of whatever he can get his poisonous tentacles on._

* * *

Next time: Team Radiance's bad day gets a whole lot worse.


	15. Troublesome Tidings

**Chapter 14: Troublesome Tidings**

Failure.

An overwhelming sense of it flooded Shane's mind. It blocked out everything around him. He just sat on the ground, sweat rolling down his coat. In front of him, Team Captivate had their attentions split between Tessa, Null, Shiinotic, and Morelull. Shane stared at them, an empty look in his eyes. He didn't register their movements or hear anything they said.

 _'I don't understand,'_ he thought. _'This wasn't supposed to happen. I'm supposed to win! I'm a human-turned-Pokémon. That supposed to make me strong, right?'_

His gaze fell toward the ground. _'Deep breaths, Shane. Deep breaths. It's just… a hopeless boss fight. Y'know, that classic sign that you've still got a ways to go and a lot to learn. Heh… heh… yeah. This is all just Arceus looking out for me. That's how it works, right? That's why Team Captivate showed up.'_

"NO!"

He shouted without thinking. Everyone's gazes fell on him and it was at that point he remembered their presences.

"You okay, Vulpix?" Dragonair asked. "You look pale."

Serperior gave her teammate a confused look. "How can he look pale? He's got white fur, for heaven's sake!"

"Ugh, you know what I meant, Serperior," Dragonair groaned.

"I know. I just like bugging you about it. Tee hee!" Serperior teased, sticking out her tongue.

But Shane's gaze returned to the ground and his mind muted out the serpents. _'No… this wasn't just some story element from one of my games! This_ actually happened. _That Parasect had me on the ropes. I saw the killer look in its eyes. If Team Captivate hadn't shown up…'_ He took in a sharp breath. _'… who knows what could've happened? He could've turned me into a monster just like him. Or he could've ki–'_

His chest tightened. Shane tensed up, gasping weakly. He brought a forepaw up toward his head. _'Head. Why does it hurt so much?'_ He tried to inhale, but his mouth wouldn't respond. Instead, he made a noise as if he were a balloon that someone let the air out of.

 _'Pain. Crushing pain. Something hit me.'_

Shane's vision flickered. For a flash of a second, glass shards and metal fragments lined the forest floor. They vanished almost as soon as they appeared.

"Vulpix?" Tessa looked over and noticed Shane sitting across from her. His whole body was rigid and his mouth was clamped tightly shut. Then, he fell to the ground. "Vulpix!" Tessa gasped. She ran over to him, with Null and Milotic looking on curiously.

"Hey, what's gotten into your friend?" Milotic asked. Null only gave her a blank look. "Okay… forget I asked. Hey, Airy, can you hand me another oran berry and an apple?" Dragonair passed the two items of food over. "Thanks." Milotic grabbed them and slithered toward Tessa.

She shoved Shane's torso. "Hey… Hey! Wake up! You're not in any danger anymore, dummy."

Shane's eyes slowly fluttered open. "Tessa?" he croaked.

Tessa immediately frowned. "I told you not to call me th– yes, Vulpix, it's me. What's wrong? Did you get poisoned again, or–?"

"Why?" he wheezed. "Why… am I… remembering… so much… pain?"

"Uh, I don't know. We had a tough time with that Parasect, didn't we? That's why Team Captivate showed up. They could hear us from deeper in the forest," Tessa explained.

"Here, you should eat these." Milotic rolled the oran berry and apple toward him. "You seem like you're a world away right now."

Shane looked at the fruit, blinking in confusion. He opened his snout and snapped at the air, and then tried stretching out a forepaw. But it tensed up and his muzzle fell open. "Gotta… gotta get out. Call… 9-1-1… accident…"

"Vulpix, are you playing around again?" Tessa groaned. "We don't have time for this."

"Easy, Riri," Milotic cautioned. "I think he's in shock."

"But, we weren't dealing with any electric-types," Tessa said.

Before Milotic could respond, Null stomped over to them. He leaned down, yanked Shane up with one of his forelegs, and then throttled him. "Get a hold of yourself!" he barked, dropping Shane back to the ground. He landed on his belly and blinked several times. Shane slowly stumbled to his feet, eyes darting about the forest.

"Ugh, my aching head. What happened to me?" he whispered, leaning over to nibble on the oran berry.

Tessa shot Null a look of disbelief. "How did you–?"

"Heh, I get it," Serperior chuckled, "He was shell-shocked. So, Mr. Personality over here gave him an even _bigger_ shock to bring him back to reality. I like it!"

Null glared at Serperior, shaking his head about.

"Oops, sorry big guy. I didn't make you mad, did I?" Serperior giggled. "I'm so naughty, sometimes, I swear."

Null growled, his deep voice unsettling Serperior.

"So, now what happens?" Shane mumbled. "We failed the mission, didn't we?"

"Oh, you mean fetching Luminous Moss?" Milotic flicked her tail nonchalantly. "Hey, Airy, didn't we pass some patches on the way over? Could you go grab some?"

"Certainly." Dragonair slithered away. This only made Shane's stance slouch.

"Great. We had to get bailed out _and_ someone else finished our mission," he grumbled. "This day's been a huge train wreck."

"Relax, Vulpix. We'll let you collect the reward," Milotic assured. "It's okay to need some help when you're starting off. You think the girls and I just joined the guild as experts? Of course not!"

Shane stared down at the ground. "But, the Parasect–"

"Don't worry about it. I mean, that was totally creepy and everything, but there are plenty of strange things out in the world. That's what we're here to explore," Milotic said.

Shane only shook his head. "Easy for you to say," he mumbled.

Tessa shot her partner a concerned look. "Vulpix, what's gotten into you?"

"It's nothing," Shane dismissed, trudging away from her dejectedly. He spotted Dragonair reemerging from the bushes. Her tail was curled around a large ball of bright, fluorescent moss. She slithered over to Shiinotic and deposited the Luminous Moss at her feet.

"Here you are, miss," Dragonair said.

"Thank you very much," Shiinotic said. Morelull popped out from behind her to place the moss in a small bag.

"It's no problem. Sorry you guys ended up running into trouble," Dragonair said. "We should get you two back to Terrace Village right away. Who knows if there are other Pokémon like Parasect lurking about in here."

Shane's ears twitched when he heard this. "Does this mean you're taking us back to the guild, then?"

"Of course not," Milotic scoffed. "We've still got bigger Tauros to wrangle. We just got a bit sidetracked, that's all."

"We do? But, we finished our mission, Millie. I swear, if this is a ploy to keep me away from the Observatory, I'm gonna tie you around Magearna's telescope," Serperior hissed.

"Breathe, Serpy, breathe," Milotic coaxed. "Let's get everyone back to the village first. Then we'll take it from there."

* * *

 **~Midnight Sea~**

 _"Braviary wanted me to check in on you two. We finished setting up a basecamp at Sunset Shoals,"_ Magearna's robotic voice crackled through Team Radiance's Gear-Com.

"Uh… okay," Tessa said. "But wait, if the tides are rising there, aren't you worried the basecamp could get flooded or something?"

 _"Not at all. We constructilated the site on a rocky plateau. We should be okay for this expedition,"_ Magearna said. _"Wait, hold on one second…"_

Tessa stared at the device while static echoed out from it. Beside her, Shane watched the choppy water race past them.

 _"Howdy! Braviary here. Just want to know how things are going on the home front. You two staying outta trouble?"_ Braviary asked. Tessa noticed Shane flinch at this, but paid him no mind.

"Err… we had a bit of an issue with a mission we took today," Tessa admitted. Shane looked up at her and slashed a forepaw across his throat. Tessa shook her head at him and whispered, "Don't you try to shush me. He needs to know!"

 _"Is that a fact? What happened?"_

"Nothing. Everything's fine!" Shane lied. "You guys just pay attention to your little beachcombing trip. We've got everything under control." Tessa opened her mouth to protest but Shane stole the Gear-Com out of her paws. "Uh, where's the off switch on this thing?" he muttered under his breath.

"Give me that back," Tessa growled, but it was too late. Shane found a button on the device and pressed it. The Gear-Com promptly shut off and Shane handed it back to her. "What did you do that for?" Tessa barked. "I was trying to tell Braviary about what happened."

"Absolutely not!"

"But we both know what we just saw was like those Munchlaxes we dealt with yesterday. It's something that Braviary or the Guildmaster should follow up on when they're back," Tessa pointed out.

"No. I am _not_ about to tell Braviary we almost failed a mission," Shane growled. "He'll probably hold us back or make us do nothing but sentry duty."

"Is _that_ why you're in such a funk? Ever since I woke up after the battle, you've been the complete opposite of your usual self. What's going on?"

"It's nothing. I'm fine," Shane tersely responded, trying his best to turn away from Tessa on his seat atop the Sharpedo.

"No, if you were fine, you would've brushed off everything that happened in the forest," Tessa countered. "So, what's going on?"

"I'm fine," Shane insisted.

"We're pulling in to port, you lot!" their Sharpedo announced. Tessa looked up and watched their ride swim up to one of Aeon Port's docks. Null was already waiting for the two of them. His Sharpedo had somehow made the return trip faster, despite his larger weight. Tessa thanked her transport and disembarked.

"Uh, are you coming, Shane?" she asked.

"Huh?" Shane blinked and looked around. "Oh, yeah, whatever."

Shane climbed onto the dock and walked off without even so much as acknowledging the Sharpedo or his teammates. Null turned and looked at Tessa. "I don't know. He's in some kind of mood. Probably over what happened at the forest," she reasoned.

Null exhaled deeply and clawed at his mask. Tessa's fur stood on end. She had hoped doing a mission with Null would put a stop to that. But the sharp echoes his voice and breathing produced continued to unsettle her.

"Let's just head back to the guild, then," she said, not wanting to dwell any further on that subject. The day had proven tiring enough. _'If I'm lucky, maybe I can snag an early bird special from Crabrawler's without either of these two.'_

That thought almost brought a smile to her face.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"This isn't funny, Haunter! Lemme in! It's Shane!"

Tessa and Null found Shane standing on the entrance pedestal, shouting angrily at the door.

"What's wrong?" Tessa asked.

"The stupid door won't open!" Shane hissed. "Ugh, this day just keeps getting worse and worse. What's next, all the guild's food getting stolen? Probably, knowing my luck."

"… relax... human…" Null growled, causing Shane to go silent.

"Easy for you to say. If my body was a jigsaw puzzle like yours I'd probably feel comfortable sleeping in the dirt, too," Shane scoffed. "But it isn't. And I'm tired. And I want someone to let me in right no–"

Null shoved Shane to the side, giving him the most annoyed look his helmeted face could muster. He stomped toward the left side of the door. Null unclipped his badge from the looplet on his right foreleg and pressed it into an indentation in the door. The entire door lit up and then opened up like normal.

Shane stared at the open door.

"… did you really… not think… there'd be another way in?" Null rasped. He shook his head and marched into the guild.

Shane gnashed his teeth together. "Are you _sure_ you're okay? Want me to have Sylveon look you over?" Tessa offered.

"I'm… fine…" Shane seethed, storming inside. He stomped his way down the staircase toward the main level. "All I want to do is take a nice, long shower, grab some dinner, and sleep this o– OOF!"

Shane walked into Null's rear. He recoiled in horror. "What the heck? Don't just stop in the middle of the stairs like th–"

Null turned around and cupped a foreleg over Shane's snout. "… quiet," he hissed. "Something's wrong…"

Shane raised an annoyed eyebrow. Null lowered his foreleg and pointed it ahead of him. Shane looked forward and his eyes narrowed. The three ghost-types of Team Specter lay in a heap in the center of the room.

"Nothing's wrong," Shane sneered. "They're obviously messing with us again." He stood up on his hind paws, only to fall over. "Grrr. Okay, so no sarcastic slow-clapping for me. But still. Ha, ha, very funny, Team Specter. You totally got us. Ghost-types playing dead? How hysterical."

"Um… guys?"

Shane whirled on Tessa. "Don't tell me _you_ think they're not faking it too?"

Tessa wasn't even facing Team Specter. "The Guildmaster's office is open," she said.

"So, what? He must've left Sunset Shoals," Shane scoffed.

"That's not possible. If he were back here, don't you think Magearna or Braviary would have told us?" Tessa pointed out. "Oh, wait, I forgot. You decided to cut that call off because it was making you mad." She crossed her arms.

"The Guildmaster… always keeps his door closed… from what I've seen…" Null said.

"Okay, then it's part of Team Specter's prank," Shane dismissed. "But we're getting nowhere here. So, I'm just going to go in so Team Specter's happy and I can go take my shower in peace!" He turned and walked toward Metagross' room.

Tessa looked at Null. "I'm going after him before he manages to do something stupid," she sighed.

Null shrugged and turned toward the hallway leading to the sentry station.

"Hey! Who are you? This is guild territory!"

A flash of purple light erupted from the Guildmaster's room. Tessa sprinted forward. Null lagged along behind her. As soon as she reached the doorway, she heard Shane grunt loudly. She peered inside only for her eyes to widen in horror.

 _'No… no! Not him. Not here. Not now!'_

"Rrrghhh… put… me… down… you crazy… Absol!" Shane gasped, thrashing about in Gallian's grasp. He had pinned Shane against the wall using one of his forelegs. His forehead scythe hovered in front of Shane's face, glowing dark purple.

"How long have you been in this guild?" Gallian barked. Shane continued thrashing, so Gallian squeezed him harder against the wall. "Answer me!"

"Aggh! A couple of weeks, that's all!" Shane hollered. Gallian released his grip and Shane dropped to the floor, gasping for air.

"Then you're worthless to me," Gallian sneered. He turned around only to freeze at the site of Tessa.

Her mouth went agape. Gallian's fur was terribly matted, with patches of grime smeared across his white coat. His black, serrated forehead scythe stuck out against his dark-blue face. A black, crystalline harness clung to his chest, fastened to some sort of red, circular gemstone. Tessa spotted four smaller gems in the straps.

"You!" The red diamond in Gallian's forehead sparked to life. He glared at Tessa. "What are _you_ doing here? Didn't I tell you to stay away from this place?"

Shane looked up in confusion. "Riolu, you know this nutcase? Look, he's all messed up like those other berserk Pokémon!"

Gallian whirled around and flicked his glowing scythe upward. Shane had to roll to his right to dodge a crescent of distorted purple energy. The attack didn't strike him, but he still felt a shockwave ripple through his system.

"This doesn't concern you. Back off!" Gallian hissed. He whirled back on Tessa. "I asked you a question. Tell me what you're doing here, now!"

Tessa's legs quivered. _'He's even worse off than I remember! That wild look in his eyes… it's gotten even fiercer.'_

Null's heavy breathing did not help this situation. "… who… is that?" he muttered.

Gallian took notice of Null's presence. His glare sharpened. "And _what_ are you supposed to be?"

"… Null."

"So, the guild's hiring freak shows now, huh?" Gallian tapped a claw to his scythe. "Pathetic. This place just keeps sinking to new lows with each passing week."

Shane got back up to his feet. "We don't need to take that from a stupid outlaw like you," he spat. "So, either you can take your angsty edgelord routine and head for the exit or Magnezone can drag you out! Your choice, bub. It's three-on-one here."

Tessa shot Shane a wide-eyed look and shook her head rapidly. Gallian quickly picked up on this. "You and this little brat are together, huh?" he sneered. "Don't tell me _he's_ the reason you didn't listen to me."

"Hey, you leave my teammate alone!" Shane declared. Gallian glanced at Shane and his eyes flickered purple. His bared his fangs at Shane. "And… and… we'll protect the guild because… uh…" Shane's voice faltered in the face of Gallian's glare. Gallian whipped his head forward and fired another energy crescent. This one moved too fast for Shane to dodge. He cried in pain as purple electricity crackled through his body.

Null shook his head about and ran forward. He swung a foreleg at Gallian, striking him in the side with his glowing talons. Gallian stood tall against the blow, however, and raised a discolored foreleg. Dark energy gathered around it and he raked his claws against Null's helmet. Null stumbled back, his body racked by tremors.

Tessa stood dumbfounded as Gallian spun about and jumped back, dodging a quick gust of icy air from Shane. "Pathetic!" he snarled, and sent another distorted wave of psychic energy toward Shane. Horror filled his expression and he scrambled to his right. But the attack caused a small explosion when it struck the wall. The explosion caught Shane and flung him to the ground.

"Stop this, Gallian!" Tessa shouted. Gallian momentarily froze, but then sidestepped the charging Null and struck his backside with his shadowy claws. Null collapsed into a heap beside Shane.

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" Gallian roared. "You don't get to call me that. Not when you're standing here. I _warned_ you. I said I'd strike you down if I ever caught you setting foot in here!" He touched his forepaw to the gem in his head. "You… and your little Vulpix friend. You're both setting us all down a road to disaster!" He glared at Tessa. "Why did you ignore me?"

"You know _exactly_ why!" Tessa blubbered. "It's Mom, Gallian! I want to help Mom."

Gallian lowered his paw and his eyes glowed purple. "Leave her out of this!" he hissed.

"No! It's been six months, Gallian. Six months!" Tessa sobbed. "She left… and then you… you left right after her! I don't want to be alone anymore. I _know_ she's out there. And she's doing something really important. But I think she needs help. And that's why I'm gonna find her!"

Gallian bared his fangs at her. "And you think the _guild_ will help you?"

"Of course! Everyone's been very helpful and respected my boundaries since I got here," Tessa said. _'… except for Vulpix, but Gallian doesn't need to know that.'_

Gallian jerked his head forward and Tessa had no time to react to the Psycho Cut crescent that flew toward her. She screamed from the pain of the psychic shockwave that rippled through her system. Already exhausted from the day's events, she dropped to her knees. She looked up to see Gallian marching toward her, his scythe crackling with dark energy.

"Please, Gallian… don't go again…" she whimpered.

Gallian glared down at her. He shook his head disapprovingly. "… pathetic. Mom would never have stood for such a sorry sight."

"Why… are you… doing this?"

"Because this guild is rotten to its core," Gallian said. "You don't see it now, but you're just a tool here. As dumb and naïve as the rest of the Pokémon in this dumb place. You're all walking a dangerous path. One that ends badly for all of Horizon." He looked away from her. "I don't need this place to get stronger. And I _definitely_ don't need it to find Mom. I'm getting along just fine on my own."

Tessa collapsed on her belly. Her vision went fuzzy while Gallian walked toward the door. Just before she lost consciousness, she heard him say, "Don't try to find me. If we meet again, I'll make you regret it."

* * *

 _ **"What do you think you're doing? Get up, human!"**_

 _Shane scrambled to his feet and looked around. "Oh, I'm back here again," he muttered, trying to cover his eyes with a foreleg. "Think you could turn down the lights a bit?"_

 _ **"Fool! Did I not make myself clear before? I am the embodiment of light. I will do no such thing."**_

 _Shane slowly opened one of his eyes. Amidst the wall of orange light surrounding him, he could just barely make out a silhouette. A vaguely sun-shaped silhouette._

 _"Wait." His brow furrowed. "Solgaleo?_ You're _the reason I'm in the Pokémon world?"_

 _ **"I already spelled that out for you,"**_ _Solgaleo's voice boomed._ _ **"Get with the program."**_

 _"I just wanted the confirmation," Shane said. A smile tugged at his lips. "Wait'll Tessa hears about this. I_ knew _the world was in jeopardy." He shook his head. "And she thought I was brought here on accident. Ha! I'm a bona fide chosen one."_

 _ **"SIIIIIIILLLLLEEEEEEEEEEENCE!"**_ _Solgaleo roared, jolting Shane to attention._ _ **"You have nothing to celebrate, human. Letting yourself get smacked about by Absol. Pathetic!"**_

 _Shane's ears drooped. "Oh, right. That," he whispered. "Look, he just caught me off guard, that's all. Next time we'll be ready to–"_

 _ **"I am not interested in your excuses,"**_ _Solgaleo said._ _ **"I want results. Absol is the enemy here, Chosen One. He is working against me."**_

 _"By doing what, exactly?" Shane asked. "You still haven't made it clear what you want my help with."_

 _ **"I am in danger. There are forces trying to strip me of my power over the sun,"**_ _Solgaleo explained._ _ **"They threaten the balance of day and night."**_

 _"And Absol's one of them, huh?" Shane said. "But, if he beat us, then he probably ran off. So, I have no idea where to find him."_

 _ **"Then get an idea, Chosen One,"**_ _Solgaleo declared._ _ **"My strength is faltering as it is. Reaching out to you is strenuous enough. Track down all the weird-looking Pokémon, figure out what they're planning, and stop them."**_

 _"Right." Shane nodded. "You can count on me."_

 _ **"And don't screw up again, human!"**_

 _Shane's eyes widened. What appeared to be a tidal wave of orange water raced forward from the wall of light. He had nowhere to go, and could only curl up into a tiny white ball as the wave crashed onto him._

* * *

Shane's eyes shot open and he descended into a raucous coughing fit. He spat up water, and looked at the ground in confusion. "Why am I laying in a puddle?" he groaned.

"Oops, I guess I overdid it on the waterworks there. But at least it was effective, babe."

Shane got up and looked to his right. Sitting in front of him was a blue-and-white sea lion. He had a flowing mane of light blue hair, with what looked like a tiara sitting on his forehead. His snout ended in a small, round, pink nose.

"Who the heck are you?" Shane asked. "You look like you escaped from King Triton's castle and tried to squeeze into a Milotic costume."

"Wow, talk about a bad first impression, babe. And after I went to the trouble of waking you up and everything. How could you _not_ know the amazing Primarina?" He stood up on his tail fins and thrust his arms to the side.

 _"Shoo-be-do-whop!  
_ _I'm the best of all the fairies!  
_ _Zop-de-boo-bop!  
_ _Cause my tunes are legendarryyyyyyyyyy!"_

Primarina clapped his fins together. Shane heard a popping noise and looked up just in time to see a sparkling bubble burst and drench him in water.

"Agggggh!" Shane spat out a mouthful of water. "What was that for?" he snarled, trying to shake his fur dry.

"You had a little schmutz behind your ears, babe. I took care of it," Primarina explained. "Besides, washing up after you wake up is the perfect way to stay _freeeeesh and cllleeeeeeeeean!_ "

"If I wanted a cold shower I'd have asked!" Shane hissed.

"Primarina, I thought we agreed no dousing these guys to wake them up?"

Shane peered around Primarina and spotted a Vaporeon helping Tessa up to her feet. Vaporeon's mane-like crest of fins had sequins sparkling inside them. His tail had a pair of studded piercings. Light bounced off the gems, forcing Tessa to look away as Vaporeon used his tail to help her to her feet.

 _"Sorry Vappy, but our schedule's tight!  
_ _If we dawdle too long, I miss my chance on the mic! Sha-yeeeeeah!"_

Tessa blinked in surprise, only to stare wide-eyed at Primarina.

"Holy–! You're… Primarina!" she gasped.

"Finally! Someone around here gives me the recognition I deserve, babe," Primarina cheered. "You must be a newbie, fox-boy. How else would my fabulous presence not leave you speechless like your partner there?"

"Don't mind him," Tessa cut in. "He's not from around here." She ran up to Primarina. "What are you doing at the guild, sir? I thought you lived near Sunset Shoals."

"Oh, I do, babe," Primarina said. "But before I started _dazzling_ on the stage, I _dizzity-dazzled_ the guild with my _swee-hee-hee-hee-eeeet_ exploration abilities." He stood up on his tail again, allowing Tessa and Shane to see the Looplet wrapped around his waist. A gold explorer's badge was buckled to it.

"No way. _You're_ a guild veteran?" Shane gawked.

"Team Harmony at your service. Even though Primarina and I don't live at the guild anymore, we like to drop by from time to time," Vaporeon explained. "And we got a call from Braviary asking us to check in on the place. He said he was worried about some 'new faces.' I take it you're the Pokémon he was referring to?"

Shane's ears drooped. "Uh, yeah," he sighed.

 _"Well you certainly got yourselves into a bind!  
_ _Passed out in the Guildmaster's Office?  
_ _What a shibbidy-shocking find!"_

"Can we _stop_ with the singing already?" Shane groaned.

"Sorry, babe, but these pipes were born to belt," Primarina said. "Anyway, I don't really know what was going down around here, but when you're ready to fess up, Vappy and I will be at Crabrawler's."

Primarina left the room. Vaporeon gave Shane a nervous smile. "Don't mind him. He's really a great guy, but he doesn't appreciate Pokémon who don't like his singing."

"Oh, I can appreciate it. From a distance. A very _long_ distance," Shane sneered.

"Vulpix!" Tessa scolded. "Be nice to them."

"Whatever. So, how long were we out for, exactly?"

"Well, I don't know. We got here mid-morning and found you guys passed out," Vaporeon explained.

Shane's eyes widened. "We were out all night?" he gasped. "CRUD! Absol's probably well out of town by now."

"Calm down, Vulpix," Tessa said. "There's nothing we can do about it."

"We need to track him down," Shane declared. "You saw it as well as I did. He had this weird set of black crystals around his chest. Parasect had black crystals on his pincers. That makes him the enemy!"

Tessa winced and looked away. "Err, well, how are we supposed to know that for certain? He did talk, unlike Parasect and the Munchlaxes."

Shane gave her a look of disbelief. "Are you _trying_ to defend him?" His brow furrowed. "Wait a minute. Come to think of it, Absol seemed to know you!" He pointed a forepaw forward accusingly. "What's your connection to the guy?"

Tessa crossed her arms and looked away. "Why should I tell you, huh?"

"Because we're partners, duh," Shane said.

"Oh really? I asked you yesterday why you were in a such a foul mood and you refused to answer," Tessa reminded him. "So, this is no different. My personal life is none of your business."

"It's _totally_ my business when it puts us in danger!" Shane barked. "Didn't we have several conversations like this when we were first starting out? Pretty hypocritical of you to call me out on being too dangerous when now you're the one doing the exact same thing!"

Tessa bared her fangs at Shane. "But your sudden shift to a hostile attitude is what provoked Gal–" She cut herself off, "Sorry… what provoked _Absol_ into attacking. So, _you_ fess up!"

Shane shuffled forward, pressing his damp snout against Tessa's. "Not before you do!" he growled. "If you know something about Absol, then it's my business to know too. Because I've learned beyond a shadow of a doubt that the berserk Pokémon are a big threat to the whole continent. And that means we need to do something about it!"

Tessa didn't have the chance to respond. Instead, both canines felt something hard slam into their sides. They both sprawled out on their bellies. Tessa turned to glare at Shane, only for an insectoid foreleg to pin her to the ground. Her eyes went wide. Shane started sticking his tongue out at her, when Null pinned him down using his other foreleg.

"… both of you… shut up!"

Null thrashed his head about, rattling his helmet.

"… I'm tired… of your bickering," he rasped. "I'm… in enough pain… from this… blasted mask. I don't need… your arguments… making my headaches even worse. You're teammates… you made the choice to join… together. Work out your differences… or go your separate ways."

"Talk to her," Shane growled. "She's the one keeping sec– REEEEEK!"

Null pressed down on Shane's torso.

"… you're both… hiding things… if you ask me," Null growled. "I thought… you two… had worked through things… after you failed… sentry duty. Clearly… you didn't…"

He stepped back, releasing his grips on the duo.

"… I'm… going back to the sentry room…" he muttered. "Don't let me… catch you two arguing again." He turned and stomped out of the Guildmaster's room.

Tessa and Shane silently got back to their feet. They both glanced at each other, only to look away.

"Hey, so…" they both started, only to abruptly cut themselves off. "No, no, you first," they continued, only to both facepalm simultaneously.

Tessa raised up her paw. "Okay, I'll go first." She took a deep breath. "That Absol… is my brother, Gallian. And he was– no, _is_ a member of the guild."

Shane's jaw dropped. "Are you serious? Does egg-making work differently in this world, then? Shouldn't your brother be another Riolu or a Lucario?"

"We're not related by blood, if that's what you're implying," Tessa elaborated. "My parents found his egg abandoned in the Invern Mountains before they had conceived me." She hung her head. "He was always so warm and friendly toward others, _especially_ at the guild. And everyone was so nice to him, despite the stereotypes about Absols."

Shane raised an eyebrow. "What, the disaster-bringing stuff? That's just superstition."

"Yeah, but most Pokémon buy into it," Tessa sighed. "Despite that, Gallian loved it here at the guild. Whenever he visited home, he would always relay these exciting stories. And tell me how much he couldn't wait for _me_ to join up with the guild." She fidgeted with her paws. "He was even willing to put off graduating to veteran rank until I joined. That way, we could room together while I got used to this place."

"But he didn't seem nice at all yesterday," Shane muttered.

"I don't know what happened," Tessa said. "One day, after I started staying over at Sylveon's, he shows up and threatens me. He told me he'd strike me down if he ever saw me set foot in the guild. This… this was the first time I'd seen him since then."

Shane's snout stiffened. "I'm, uh, sorry?" he muttered. "It seems to me that he's gone berserk."

"Don't say that!" Tessa yipped. "Please…" She looked down. "I… I don't want to think about that. Because if… if he's berserk… and we beat him…" Her eyes teared up.

Shane frowned. "But, Tessa, didn't I tell you? Those berserk Pokémon… we have to put a stop to them. That's what I'm here for."

Tessa tensed up. "And what makes you so sure of that?"

"I've… I've had a couple of dreams," Shane confessed. "And in them, this voice calls out to me. He says he's Solgaleo. And that he needs me to help preserve the balance between day and night."

"You're kidding me, right?"

Shane's stance slouched. "See, _this_ is why I didn't want to tell you anything. I _knew_ you wouldn't believe me."

"Well, it's, uh, y'know, just kind of hard to believe," Tessa confessed. "And there's no way to prove it."

"It's not a stretch, though. C'mon, think about it. I show up in Horizon... and now these berserk Pokémon are appearing," Shane explained. "I understand that Absol's your brother and you're worried about him, but we can't just ignore him."

Tessa rubbed her shoulder. "I… I…"

Shane's ears drooped. "… I should've known you'd try to brush it off."

"Vulpix…"

Shane rolled his eyes. "Don't give me that. You want to know why I didn't want to talk to you about why I was 'in a foul mood?' Because I _wasn't_ , okay? That was the real Shane. The one I told you about after saving your behind from Espeon and Umbreon. Who tends to be negative all the time and makes people angry because of it."

Tessa looked down guiltily. Shane walked away from her. "Look at what happened yesterday. We blew it! It was a random stroke of luck that saved us from that Parasect and then, to add insult to injury, your brother shows up and _effortlessly_ takes us out." He slapped a forepaw on the ground. "This isn't supposed to happen! I'm a human-turned-Pokémon… a chosen one! Solgaleo told me I was in a dream. I _can't_ be defeated this easily. It's unacceptable!"

"But… I was. _Twice._ In one day, no less!" He flopped to his belly, burying his head in his forepaws. "Who am I kidding? They chose the wrong human. This world's done for. Those berserk Pokémon are going to overrun the place and _something's_ going to go wrong with day and night and…"

"That's enough, Shane."

Shane poked his head up. "Did… did you just call me–?"

Tessa walked over to him. "Stop talking like this. You're right… I _don't_ like it," she admitted.

"I can't help it. It's just who I am," Shane whispered.

"No, it's not," Tessa shot him down. "You said it yourself. That's who Shane the _human_ was. Shane the Vulpix is an over-confident, overly-enthusiastic braggart…"

" _That's_ supposed to make me feel better?"

"… let me finish," Tessa said. "You're too cocky… but you've also pushed me to do things that, before we met, I'd have never even attempted. The truth is, I spent _months_ trying to work up the courage to join the guild, only to chicken out each time I came to Aeon Town. Yes, most of this has frightened me. A _lot._ But I don't want to be afraid anymore. I don't want my brother looking down on me. And if he _has_ gone berserk, I don't want to turn tail when he needs my help."

She extended a forepaw forward. "So, Team Radiance may not be perfect. But, we've still got to try our best, right?"

Shane got to his feet. "Heh." He rubbed his eyes with his forepaw. "That's just what I'd expect a Riolu to say…" He let out a weak chuckle. "You aura users make me so jealous."

Tessa's face flushed and she looked away.

"C'mon." Shane stretched out his hind legs. "We'd better find Primarina and Vaporeon so we can explain what happened. Don't want to get into more trouble than we're already in, right?"

Tessa nodded. "Right."

From behind the corner of the nearby hallway, Null watched them emerge from the Guildmaster's office. He nodded to himself and disappeared before either of them could see him.

* * *

Next time: robberies and delicious treats! They go together about as well as chives and ice cream.


	16. Investigative Interlude

**Chapter 15: Investigative Interlude**

 _"Hey... uh... Shane? You there?"_

 _"Of course I am, Nicky. What's the matter? You sound awful."_

 _"Yeah. I've... urgh... been puking up a storm today. Think I got the damn stomach bug going around."_

 _"Seriously? But tonight's the new Thor movie premier. We've been planning to go for months, dude!"_

 _"I know that, Shane! Why do you think I'm so upseeeeeeeecht?"_

 _"Was that a belch, dude? That sounded pretty nasty."_

 _"I told you. I got the stomach bug and I got it bad. I'm miserable here, man. I don't think I can go out tonight."_

 _"Come on! You've gotta be kidding me, here. Can't you just soldier through it? You know Thor's my favorite Avenger. And we already bought the tickets. I don't want them going to waste."_

 _"Look, why don't you just go by yourself? We could always go together next weekend or something, dude."_

 _"But it won't be the same! I'll know everything that happened! And I don't want to go to a premier by myself. People are gonna laugh at me."_

 _"Would you rather catch the bug I've got and be spewing chunks like I am? It's not pleasant, man. My insides_ hurt. _"_

 _"I... I guess not. It's just–"_

 _"I'm sorry, Shane. I've got to bail. There's no way I can sit through that movie. Just, I dunno, go with your dad or something."_

 _"But Dad hates superhero movies."_

 _"Then I don't know what to tell you man. Sorry."_

 _"... it's whatever, Nicky."_

 _Click!_

* * *

 **~Aeon Town~**

"... Vulpix? Hey, Vulpix!"

Shane jolted to attention. He swiveled his head around, looking at the path leading from the Observatory toward the town square. "Did you say something?" Shane muttered.

"Yes, I did," Tessa growled. "Were you paying attention?"

"I must've spaced out... sorry," Shane muttered, wincing.

Tessa sighed. "It's fine. We just need to get our stories straight for Primarina and Vaporeon. As much as I don't like it, we have to take the 'whole truth' approach and tell them everything that happened yesterday. We went on a mission to Twilight Forest, only to get ambushed by an… uh…" She froze mid-step.

"What's the matter?" Shane asked.

"Well, I can't think of a way to describe that Parasect. 'Berserk' just doesn't seem like that good of a word for what we saw," Tessa explained.

"Hmm." Shane scrunched up his snout. "How about… bizarre?"

"That's pretty open-ended."

Shane rolled his eyes. "Okay then. What about creepy? Sinister? Totally whacko?" Tessa continued to shake her head at each option, making Shane more and more annoyed. "Shoot. I don't know. It looked like something out of one of those creepy sci-fi movies I watched back home, so how about 'alien?'"

Tessa flinched. "Can't you think of anything else?"

Shane shrugged. "Look, it's the best I can come up with. Take it or leave it."

"Fine, alien it is," Tessa said. She resumed walking. "So, as I was saying, an _alien_ Parasect jumped us. It would have done us in if Team Captivate hadn't shown up to save our butts."

"Don't remind me," Shane grumbled. Despite the pep talk Tessa had given him several minutes ago, the defeat still left him with a bitter taste in his mouth.

"Sorry," Tessa mumbled. "Anyway, we returned from that mission, only to find that Team Specter had been knocked out."

"… by your brother," Shane interjected. "Who's also probably possessed by the same alien force that controlled Parasect."

Tessa winced and looked down at the ground.

"Hey, you're the one who wants to tell the whole truth," Shane pointed out. "Don't go backing out on me now. Cause I sure don't want to say we got our butts kicked twice in one day."

"Okay, okay, fine," Tessa said. "It's not like those two knew Gallian all that well anyway. I guess I'll just have to deal with Braviary and Guildmaster Metagross when they get back from the expedition."

Shane and Tessa froze at the outskirts of the town square. Several Pokémon gathered next to Crabrawler's Café. Shane's ears drooped. "Oh brother. Don't tell me Primarina's managed to attract a crowd. I am _not_ about to fess up to anything in front of a bunch of strangers."

"Well, he _is_ kind of famous," Tessa muttered, poking her index digits together. "Maybe we didn't think this through properly?"

"Us? He's the one who sauntered off," Shane scoffed.

"Oh, it's positively dreadful, I tell you! Vappy, keep these folks back, babe. I _need-a-leedly-deed some ox-y-heeeeeee-gen!_ "

Shane started turning around, but Tessa grabbed him by the scruff of his neck. "Oh no you don't. You're not weaseling out of this. It sounds like something's wrong."

"Which is exactly _why_ I want to weasel out of it!" Shane protested, limbs flailing as he fought against Tessa's grip. "That guy's name literally sounds like prima dona. Whatever he's complaining about, I don't want to hear it."

 **KZZZRT! Everyone stand back. I need space to conduct a proper interview.**

Tessa's aura feelers twitched. "That sounds like Officer Magnezone," she said.

Shane stopped struggling. "So, something _serious_ happened?"

"We're not gonna know if we stand here. C'mon!" She dragged Shane forward, but he soon escaped her grasp and jogged toward the group.

"Alright, alright, step aside!" he barked, swishing his scarf around to show off his badge. "Nothing to see here, folks. We're with the Horizon Guild. If you could just… urgh…" He struggled to duck underneath a Butterfree.

Tessa shook her head. "I guess that's one way to make an entrance," she mused. Like her partner, she unclipped her explorer's badge and walked forward. "Err… I'm with him!" she squeaked, using her smaller stature to squeeze between the onlooking Pokémon. Tessa found her way out of the crowd and stumbled to Shane's side. The two of them found Primarina collapsed on the ground and an unamused Vaporeon fanning Primarina out with his tail.

They expected to find Magnezone talking to one of the guild veterans, but instead saw him speaking to Crabrawler. **Now, if you could just give me the sequence of events. Slowly, this time,** he requested.

Crabrawler nodded, his face ripe with worry. "I went to open up shop this morning. Things were rather slow, so I decided to do some cleaning in my storage room. Perfectly run of the mill, I say. But as I'm sweeping out the room, I pass by my safe and… and…"

Crabrawler started to get choked up. "Oh, dash it all! It's terrible! The safe… wide open! My precious family recipe… gone!" He rubbed an arm across his face. "This is the worst thing to happen to me in all my years running the café. Tourist season is due to start in a matter of days and someone filched my Mythical Malasada recipe."

Shane face planted. "Wait… all this commotion is over a lost recipe?" he said. "How is that a problem? Don't you, like, have it committed to memory or something?"

Crabrawler promptly raised his fists, which startled glowing. Shane's tails jutted up into the air and his fur stood on end. "Rubbish!" Crabrawler bellowed. "The Mythical Malasada's recipe is too complex to simply 'commit to memory!' What kind of simpleton do you take me for, child?"

Tessa hastily threw a paw up over Shane's muzzle. "Aha ha ha. Forgive him, Crabrawler, sir. He's… not from around here." She promptly shot Shane an icy look and released his muzzle.

"Cripes… I didn't realize it was such a sore subject," Shane muttered. "What the heck's a malasada anyway?"

Primarina bolted upright, making Vaporeon yip in surprise. "You mean you don't know?" he gasped.

 _"It's the treat of the gods!  
_ _With a texture so heavenly!  
_ _The flavor… the aroma…  
_ _It's quite extraordinary!  
_ _And the Mythical Malasada…  
_ _The greatest of all.  
_ _Simply tastiiiiiiing one  
_ _Will make you feel thirty feet taaaaaaallll!"_

The crowd erupted into applause, while Shane simply cocked his head in confusion. "That… didn't even _remotely_ answer my question," he griped.

"So, the other continents sell sweets like cookies and chocolate. Donuts are a particular favorite spreading from the Mist Continent," Vaporeon explained. "Malasadas are kinda similar. They're fried dough."

"So, they're just fancy donuts?" Shane asked.

"How daaaaare you!" Crabrawler bellowed, lunging for a startled Shane. Magnezone floated in front of him.

 **KZZZACK! Please restrain yourself. Do not commit assault in front of an officer of the law,** Magnezone instructed.

"Can you believe that child? Comparing our continent's lovely malasadas to mere donuts? I say, malasadas are superior in every way!" Crabrawler declared.

"Quite so, Crabrawler," Primarina agreed. "And you call yourself an explorer? Hmph!" He shook his head disapprovingly. "Vappy, remind me to have a stern conversation with the Guildmaster about his recruitment standards. They've gone way down, babe."

"Uh, hello?" Shane waved a forepaw at Primarina. "Human-turned-Pokémon? Only been living in Horizon for about a few weeks? Ring any bells?"

The crowd started muttering.

"A human in Horizon? No way!"

"This guy's gotta be joking. He looks like a normal Vulpix."

"Maybe the heat's getting to him? I've never seen a Vulpix walking around outside the Invern Mountains."

"But all the stories say they lose their memories when they become Pokémon."

Shane frowned. Primarina looked at him in surprise. "Wait, that's _you,_ babe?" He scratched his snout. "And here I thought Serperior was just yank-a-tiddly-anking my tailfins. She can be such a gossip sometimes, y'know."

Between Primarina and the crowd's murmurs, Shane had had enough. "Yes, I am a human! And I'll prove it to you all… by using my awesome human brain to find the recipe thief in record time." He puffed his chest out confidently.

It took Tessa a moment to process his statement. "Huhwha–?" She blinked several times. "You're going to do what now?"

"Find the malasada recipe thief, of course," Shane declared. "In fact, I already have a suspect."

The crowd gasped.

"No way! I can't believe this!"

"He's going to accuse someone without any evidence?"

"He hasn't even investigated at all."

"Besides, it's Officer Magnezone's job to investigate robberies. Not the guild's."

"Ugh, it's not any of you," Shane groaned. "Although a clever criminal _could_ try hiding in plain sight if they weren't confident they could escape, I don't think we're dealing with someone like that."

 **Interesting. I was unaware humans possessed the ability to see the past. Could you impart such wisdom onto me?**

"No, because I can't do that. But I have a very strong hunch who's responsible," Shane declared. "If my assistant and I could just take a look at the, uh, 'crime scene.' We might find some evidence that confirms my suspicions!"

Tessa's jaw dropped. "Ex _cuse_ me? Your _assistant?_ What happened to teamwork and equal partnership?"

Shane winced. "Err... right... sorry... my bad," he muttered. "Um, what I meant to say was, could my _teammate_ and I take a look?"

"Vulpix, I don't have any experience with this kind of stuff. What do you expect me to do?" Tessa asked.

"Not too much," Shane said. "You can follow me around and jot down all my _brilliant_ thoughts as I deduce the identity of our criminal." He walked toward the entrance, only to stop and look at Crabrawler and Magnezone. "Actually, would either of you happen to have a deerstalker hat and an ornate wooden pipe?"

Crabrawler and Magnezone exchanged confused looks.

"Oh, come on. No need to be shy about it," Shane chuckled. "With your accent, Crabrawler, I'll bet you've got those stored away somewhere, right?"

"Did you inhale a lot of Stun Spores as a pup?" Crabrawler scoffed.

"Shane, quit making a scene," Tessa said. "What's a deerstalker anyway? Is it like a Deerling?"

Shane frowned. "Never mind, it's not important. I guess I can still pull this off even without the right accessories." He turned back toward the café entrance.

"Will you _please_ just explain to me what's going on?" Tessa begged.

"Sorry, no time," Shane declared, trotting toward the door. "Come along, Tessa… the game is afoot!"

She watched him disappear into the entrance with a befuddled expression. "Wait, what game? And whose side are we on? Why won't you tell me what you're doing?" she whined. Tessa shook her head. "If this is his way of bouncing back from being in a mood, I'd rather him go back to moping."

* * *

 **~Crabrawler's Café~**

Crabrawler led Magnezone and Team Radiance back into the storage room. It was surprisingly clean, with all of Crabrawler's supplies tucked neatly into ornate wooden shelves on the left side of the room or situated in drawers made of the same wood over in the room's back right corner.

"Wow, Mr. Crabrawler. You even have a ladder in here and everything!" Tessa gasped.

"Um... Tessa... that's a stepladder," Shane said, looking directly at the object in question.

"First off, it's _Riolu,_ " Tessa said. "And second off, what's the difference?"

"There's a huge difference!" Shane said. "A ladder is just this flat, measly piece of wood you have to lean against whatever you're climbing up. Hardly supportive or safe! But a stepladder is like two ladders stitched together to form one sturdy fortress of climbing superiority!"

Tessa scratched her head. "But they just do the same thing, don't they? So, we should just call it a 'ladder' because it's shorter and saves us time and energy."

Shane's right eye twitched. "That's... not... how... it works..."

"I don't see a problem with it," Tessa said, shrugging.

"Just forget it, then," Shane sighed, hanging his head. _'Odd... I feel like I've heard all this somewhere before.'_

"Come now. If I'm going to let you two children in here, then I expect results!" Crabrawler said. "The safe is over there." He pointed to his right. In the front right corner of the room, a safe sat perched atop a barrel. The door was open wide, showcasing the safe's empty contents. "See, there's absolutely nothing there to go off of. Are we done here?" Crabrawler asked.

"Of course not. We're just beginning, after all," Shane declared. "And I won't stop until I've inspected every suspicious-looking nook and cranny."

"Why not just look at the safe? It's right there," Tessa scoffed.

Shane rolled his eyes. "Oh, silly partner. The obvious location is _always_ the first place to check. Which is precisely why I _won't_ check it first! There could be other clues to be found."

Tessa opened her mouth to retort, but couldn't think of anything to say. Shane instead walked over toward the far wall, where Crabrawler's desk sat. "What do you think you're doing, child?" Crabrawler said. "The thief went right for my safe, obviously."

"Shhhhh!" Shane held up a forepaw. "I'm trying to concentrate here." He walked up to the desk and leaned in toward the drawers, closely inspecting the handles. "Hmm… uh- _huuuuuh._ I see." He rubbed his chin. "Fascinating!"

Tessa's shoulders slumped. "Would you care to share your findings, detective?"

"There are claw marks on a couple of these handles," Shane announced.

"Of course there are! I have _claws_ , you rube," Crabrawler bellowed, brandishing his large pincers at Shane.

 **That does not strike me as a very wise deduction,** Magnezone added. **I will update my information on humans to include their propensity for stating the obvious.**

Shane faceplanted into the ground. He quickly stood up, dusting himself off. "Ugh, some people just take the fun out of everything," he grumbled. "Look, you guys didn't let me finish, okay? The claw marks aren't large like you'd expect if Crabrawler opened the drawers."

"Wait, they're not?" Tessa approached the desk and looked in the direction Shane faced.

"Yeah, they're very thin," Shane said. "And furthermore, there are multiple of them. See those thin lines all placed next to each other? They look like claw marks to me."

"I guess so. But, what's that supposed to mean?"

"That depends." Shane turned to Crabrawler. "Do you have any staff or helpers that you let back here?"

"Perish the thought," Crabrawler scoffed. "This café's been family run for _generations._ When I decide to up and have a kid, I'll pass it on to them."

"Okay." Shane tapped his forehead with a forepaw. "So, the logical conclusion to draw is that a Pokémon bearing claws entered the room and opened up these drawers."

 **Alternative theory: the thief utilized a fake set of claws to throw everyone off.**

"That is unnecessarily overcomplicated," Shane exclaimed. "There's an old human idiom that says, 'when you hear hoofbeats, don't think zebras.'"

Shane got three blank looks.

He rolled his eyes. "Ugh, it just means that the simplest explanation is usually the right one. Now then, if the culprit tried the desk, they may have searched other sealed things as well. Anything in here besides these desk drawers?"

"Only the safe," Crabrawler said.

"Okay then. Safe it is." Shane walked over to the safe and barrel, sweeping his head back and forth.

"What exactly are you looking for?" Tessa asked.

"Trace evidence," Shane replied. "A lot of Pokémon have fur, wings, scales, or some sort of slime clinging to them. I guarantee that if our culprit falls into one of those groups, they shed a bit and left something for us to find."

"Shed? I'll have you know this is the same fur I was born with!" Tessa protested.

Shane rolled his eyes. "You're honestly about to stand there and tell me you've never had anyone run a brush through your fur? What about your mom?"

Tessa stiffened and looked away. Memories flashed by of her pup days; sitting on her mother's lap while she tried to brush her knotted fur. "That's…" Tessa took in a sharp breath. "None of your business."

 **A query, human. How would a trace amount of fur enable you to determine who is responsible? You are not psychic,** Magnezone pointed out.

"No, duh. Of course it won't. The point isn't to find out exactly who did it," Shane elaborated, running his snout across the floor. "It's to try and find something that confirms the suspect I have in mind."

 **That doesn't sound accurate,** Mangezone said.

"Well, it worked for all the detectives on TV," Shane quipped.

"And if you don't find what you're looking for?" Crabrawler asked.

"Then I just need to shuffle my thinking," Shane declared. A smile crept onto his muzzle. "But I don't think I need to worry about that. Check it!" He pointed a forepaw toward the base of the barrel.

 **I do not see anything other than wood,** Magnezone said.

"That's because you need to come closer," Shane said. Under his breath he added, "Boy, the police in this place sure leave something to be desired." He guided Magnezone forward and maneuvered the officer's right magnet-hand to hover by the bottom of the barrel. "If you could just gimme a little static electricity here."

 **I am not supposed to utilize my electrical attacks unless force is required to restrain a criminal,** Magnezone reported.

"Just do it," Shane ordered. Magnezone pointed his magnet-arm forward and applied a slight current. Shane leaned in, causing the fur on his chest and face to comically poof up. More importantly however, a small cluster of long, thin, and white fibers stuck to Magnezone's hand.

"Okay, stop. Stop!" Shane ordered. He stepped backward, trying to shake the puffiness out of his fur.

Behind him, Tessa restrained her laughter. "What's the matter, Vulpix? Your brain need a jump start or something?" she heckled.

"Har, har. Hey, maybe if this exploration team gig doesn't work out you can join Primarina's performance ensemble as a stand-up comedian," Shane fired back. He beckoned her forward with a paw. "I'll have you know we got _exactly_ what I was looking for."

Tessa and Crabrawler joined Shane and Magnezone. The officer turned around. **I do not understand. Why do you consider these hair strands so important?**

Shane smirked. "They're the trace evidence I was referring to! White fur left behind by our culprit while they broke into the safe."

"But _you_ have white fur," Crabrawler pointed out. "Who's to say you didn't shed that fur strutting around my storage room, eh?"

"A fair point. But… heh…" Shane tapped his noggin. "Even without a crime lab to analyze the hair fibers and test their DNA, I'm pretty confident it's not mine. See, my fur is a much brighter shade of white." He walked right up next to Magnezone, allowing Tessa and Crabrawler to compare.

"Huh, I guess you're right," Tessa acknowledged. "But, wait, you're not trying to suggest _Sylveon_ did this, are you? She's the only one who comes to mind with white fur."

Shane gave her an unamused look. "Are you serious right now? This is totally obvious!"

 **I fail to see the obviousness of this,** Magnezone countered.

"Yeah, me too," Tessa agreed. "Why does any of this matter? Who's your suspect?"

"Why, that's elementary, my dear Tessa," Shane declared, a goofy grin sprawled across his face. "Oh man, it felt even better saying that line than I thought it would."

"Oy! Vulpix!" Tessa snapped her digits at him. "Get to the point!"

"Fine, fine." Shane turned around and closed the safe door, revealing a set of jagged claw marks running across the locking mechanism. They had caused the lock to break open, and it now bobbed back and forth from the door by a series of springs.

"Between the claw marks on the desk, the ones on this safe, and the white fur scattered around the barrel, it's clear to me that the culprit is none other than…" Shane took in a deep breath and placed a forepaw against his chest.

Tessa clenched her fists. "C'mon. Just tell us already!"

"I was pausing for dramatic effect," Shane declared, earning a stink eye from Tessa. "Okay, sheesh. Look, the culprit's Absol... or, rather, Gallian. I don't think it could be anyone else."

Tessa's muzzle stiffened. "You… you can't be serious."

 **That does not compute. Gallian is a registered guild apprentice. For what reason would he want to commit such a crime?** Magnezone asked.

"Yes, a capital question, officer. No one's seen hide or hair of the gent in nigh on half a year!" Crabrawler added. "Are you really suggesting he suddenly reappeared _just_ to steal my malasada recipe?"

"Ah, yes, motive. That's easy enough to explain," Shane said. "See, Riolu and I found him in the Observatory yesterday. He ransacked Guildmaster Metagross' office. Or, at least, messed it up as much as you could for a place that has nothing in it."

Shane stared pacing back and forth. "Judging by his ragged condition, he must've been trying to find something valuable to steal and pawn off. So, it's not unreasonable to deduce that, when he came up empty-pawed, he high-tailed it over to the café and stole the most valuable thing he could think of: the recipe!"

Shane paused and looked at one of the cabinets. "The only question is… what would the alien force infecting him want with a donut recipe?"

" _Malasada_ recipe!" Crabrawler protested. "And what are you on about with aliens?" He turned to Magnezone. "I want this charlatan arrested. He's making a mockery of me and my plight."

 **I cannot simply arrest someone for teasing. That is not a crime. It is just rude.**

"I'm not teasing anyone here! What I'm saying is the truth," Shane insisted. "Back me up here, Riolu. Didn't we confront your brother yesterday?"

Tessa tensed up. She looked down at the floor and poked her index digits together.

"Riolu. You said we'd tell the truth, remember?"

Tessa hung her head. "It's true, Officer Magnezone. We caught my brother trying to steal from the guild yesterday. He managed to knock us out and get away. So, it's possible he could've broken in here too."

"Egads!" Crabrawler's jaw dropped. "You mean this crazy human is actually _right?_ "

Shane beamed. "I told you I knew what I was doing."

"But there's a problem, Vulpix," Tessa said. "If that's the truth, and Gallian broke in here last night, he's probably long gone by now. Which means there's no way we're finding that malasada recipe."

The confident look on Shane's face instantly vanished. He slouched over like he was a living balloon that just got deflated. "Oh… yeah. I guess that's true."

"Oh no! The horror! The shame of it all!" Crabrawler sobbed. "He's going to pass along my family's biggest secret. I'm ruined I tell you! Ruiiiiiiiiined!"

 **I will put out a memo to all shops in Horizon to be on the lookout for an Absol trying to sell a recipe,** Magnezone announced.

"Fat lot of good that'll do," Crabrawler hiccupped. "The fiend probably has underground connections. He's part of the guild, after all."

As Shane racked his brain to try and come up with some sort of solution, he noticed a shadow in the sunbeam stretching across the room. He immediately looked up at the small window near the ceiling and spotted the tip of what appeared to be a gray tail.

"Guys! I just saw something!" he gasped. "Someone just moved past that window. We were being watched."

 **Do not try to distract from this subject, human. We must strategize to attempt to intercept the criminal Absol,** Magnezone exclaimed. **It appears I must also update my databanks on humans to include their inability to pay attention to something very long.**

"I'm serious here," Shane huffed. "Someone was watching us. If we hurry, we can track them down. They might know something about Gallian's whereabouts!" He turned to Tessa. "C'mon, you believe me, don't you?"

Tessa scrunched up her face in thought. _'Well, he did seem pretty on the ball with those deductions of his.'_ She turned and jogged toward the door. "Sorry to run out on you guys. But if my partner says he thinks he saw something worth pursuing, then I'm gonna agree with him."

A big smile spread its way across Shane's mouth. "Alright! Let's hurry," he said, and scampered along after Tessa.

* * *

 **~Aeon Town~**

Shane and Tessa hurried around to the back of Crabrawler's Café. But whatever Shane had seen was already long gone. He looked around and his brow furrowed. "Crud, we weren't quick enough!"

"Now what?" Tessa asked. "I don't suppose you got a good look at this phantom of yours, did you?"

"Not really. I just saw the tip of a gray tail," Shane recalled. "But that doesn't really do much to narrow it down, does it?"

Tessa scratched her head. "At the very least, it's definitely _not_ Gallian. So, doesn't that debunk your 'this snooping Pokémon could know something,' theory?"

"Not if Gallian had an accomplice," Shane said.

Tessa frowned. "You're just making this up as you go along, aren't you?"

"Well, a little bit," Shane admitted, earning a glare from Tessa. "But I told you, I've seen plenty of crime stories. They can take all sorts of surprising twists and turns."

"This isn't a story, though," Tessa groaned.

"Okay, point taken. Still, I'm not giving up here and neither should you. Because we _do_ have a way of telling if someone was here," Shane said. He turned around and looked Tessa right in the eyes.

"What are you staring at _me_ for? This was your idea," Tessa pointed out.

"Uh, because I need you to do your special aura sense stuff, duh," Shane said. "If there was a Pokémon here, they must've left a lingering trace of energy behind, right? That's usually how it works."

Tessa crossed her arms. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were an aura expert. Say, want to teach me Aura Sphere while you're at it? I've heard some Riolus can learn it on their own with enough practice."

Shane frowned. "C'mon, knock it off. Every second you spend being snarky is costing us precious time here."

"Didn't I make it clear to you before? I can't just turn on my aura sense at will. It's not fully developed... and I don't think it ever will be. If I was evolved, then maybe. But there's no way that'll every happen."

"Well, you're a happiness evolution so if you keep _that_ attitude up…" Shane trailed off the moment he noticed Tessa's stink eye. "Look, couldn't you just try? Maybe if you just concentrate really hard or something?"

"… ugh, fine. But you need to stand back. Like, _way back._ Or I'm only going to sense you," Tessa said, shooing Shane off with a flick of her paws. Shane backed up toward the town square, earning some confused looks from townsfolk enjoying the sunny weather. Satisfied, Tessa turned and approached the base of the café's rear window.

 _'Okay.'_ Tessa took a deep breath. _'C'mon, Riolu… you can do this. Relax… deep breaths. Just like Mom taught you. Clear your mind… clear your mind… clear your…'_

Suddenly she wasn't standing in back of a building anymore. Instead, she sat atop a rock, overlooking Aeon Town. She heard grass shuffling behind her, and spun around. Her mother weaved her way through the grass field. Prisma's feet glided across the ground, tracing concentric circles. She twisted about, slowly rotating her arms and tracing circles in the air with her paws. The blue energy flickering in her paws danced around with her, creating ribbon-like trails.

 _'Mom…'_

"Hey! Did you sense anything?"

Shane's shouts jolted Tessa out of her daydream. "N-No!" she stammered. "And I won't sense squat if you don't back off and let me concentrate." She slammed her eyes shut and clenched her fists.

 _'Rrrrr… you can_ do _this! Focus! Pay attention. Deep breath in…'_ She sucked in a large gulp of air and tensed up. For a brief moment, a mosaic of colors spread across her vision, replacing the interior of her eyelids. Though it quickly faded, Tessa's brain was able to process the sensation. Most of what she saw were various shades of browns, greens, and grays. But one thing immediately stuck out to her.

"Vulpix was right," she whispered. "Hey!" She turned around and waved Shane over. "I got something."

Shane smiled. "See, I knew you could do it! What did you find?"

Tessa blushed and looked away, fidgeting with her scarf. "I saw a flicker of wispy energy. If I'm remembering mom's lessons right, ghost-types tend to give those off if they linger somewhere long enough."

Shane nodded. "That makes sense to me. So, based on that information, we're looking for a ghost-type Pokémon with a flat, dark gray tail of sorts." His brow furrowed. "But the only thing that comes to mind is Giratina and we'd _definitely_ know if there was a giant, spoopy ghost-dragon stalking us."

"Spoopy? Is that another human thing?"

"Yup!" Shane chirped. "Now then, if it's not Giratina… then who could it be?"

Tessa's eyes widened in realization. "I think I might know who you're talking about. See, there's this Pokémon called Mimikyu that–"

"Hit the deck!"

Shane dived toward Tessa and fell on top of her. Tessa yipped from hitting the ground. Seconds later, Shane hissed in pain. He peppered Tessa's face with small snowflakes.

"Unngh… get _off_ me," she grunted, shoving Shane aside. "What was that all about?" She looked over and noticed a set of claw marks running across Shane's back. Purple vapor trailed off of him. Tessa turned to her right where a dark, shadowy-purple claw retreated around the street corner.

"Hey!" she barked, running after the ghostly claw. Her shout had given away her position, however, and the arm shot toward her. It slashed in front of her, but she was able to fall back on her heels, narrowly avoiding razor-sharp bits of ectoplasm. She opened her mouth wide, fangs turning black.

Tessa bit down on the ghost-arm. It dissolved into a purple fog, revealing a dull gray cloth that tasted like a dirty rag. Tessa's gag reflex nearly made her heave, but she steeled her will and yanked her head back. A frightened shout echoed from the alleyway. Tessa fell backwards and succeeded in dragging out the offender: Mimikyu. She could just make out a purple void struggling to keep Mimikyu's disguise rooted to the ground.

"Ahh! No! Stop! Please stop! Let go, let go, let go! I'm sorry!" Mimikyu squealed. He wriggled his arm about in Tessa's mouth. She released her grip and swallowed hard, trying not to puke. Tessa raised her fists and glared defiantly at the Mimikyu.

"You were watching us in the café, weren't you?" she accused. "Why did you attack us? Are you the real thief?"

Though she had never met a Mimikyu before, she'd heard about them from her parents. So, she made sure to focus her gaze on the tiny holes in the disguise's chest. There, she could see Mimikyu's eyes tearing up. "Please… please don't hurt me, miss!" he blubbered. "I… I didn't mean to! You… you just startled me, that's all. I don't… I don't want any trouble."

"Well, you sure have a funny way of showing it," Tessa growled.

"Easy there, partner."

Tessa whirled around to see Shane back on his feet. He winced with each step forward; the Shadow Claw had clearly done a number on him. "I can take it from here," he said. "Hi there."

Mimikyu noticed the gaps in Shane's fur and shrank back. "Ack! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hit you like that. I just panicked and…"

"It's fine, it's okay," Shane coaxed, stepping cautiously toward Mimikyu. "We're not going to hurt you. We just want to get Crabrawler's recipe back. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Mimikyu nodded his head slowly. "Ah, see, see. That's good. But, y'know, I think it would be better if we were able to talk face to face. So, why don't we take off that Pikachu costume and see who you really are, huh?" Shane said, reaching a paw toward Mimikyu. "Boy, I can't believe I get to do my own Scooby Doo villain unmasking."

Both Mimikyu's and Tessa's eyes widened. "Vulpix, don't–!"

Shane started lifting up Mimikyu's disguise. Purple smog rushed out and surrounded Shane. His entire body stiffened, his eyes rolled back in his skull, and he collapsed onto his side.

"Gaaah! I'm sorry… I'm sorry!" Mimikyu bawled, hopping back. "Th… this is bad. This is very bad!" Tessa noticed Mimikyu's arm appearing again, draped by purple ectoplasm. "No… no… I can't let you report me to Officer Magnezone. I didn't mean to do this… I was just supposed to be the distraction!"

Tessa raised an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean? You _did_ steal the recipe?"

"No, no, no, no! I'm innocent… I swear!" Mimikyu pleaded. The shadows faded from his arm and it withdrew into his costume. Seconds later, it reappeared with a piece of parchment. "I have the recipe right here, but I didn't take it! I was just supposed to hold onto it for a little while. Please, you have to believe me… this is all a big mistake!"

Shane started coming to while Tessa accepted the recipe. "Well if you didn't take this, then who gave it to you?" she asked.

"An Absol... with a serrated scythe," Mimikyu replied. "I… I didn't want to do it. But he said he would give me delicious berries! He's… he's…" Mimikyu looked away shamefully. "He's the only Pokémon in town who's bothered to talk with me lately. Even if he was yelling at me. I just… appreciated the attention." His eyes teared up again. "But I'm not a criminal. I swear it! Or may Reshiram strike me down in a ball of Blue Flare."

"Did Absol tell you what he wanted you to hold onto this recipe for?" Tessa asked. Mimikyu rapidly shook his head.

"Wait, so I _was_ right?"

"Not the time, Vulpix," Tessa growled.

"Somebody! Anybody! _Heeeeeeeeeelp! I've been robbed!_ "

Mimikyu's eyes widened. Both Tessa and Shane gave him angry looks. "I… I had nothing to do with that. I've been over here with you two," Mimikyu bawled.

"We'd better take him with us, just to be safe," Tessa exclaimed. Shane nodded his approval. Team Radiance ran in the direction of the shouts, bringing Mimikyu along with them. They didn't need to go far, however. For the second time that day, they found a small crowd gathered in front of a building, with Magnezone right in front. Except this time around, it was the Kecleon Shop.

 **KZZZZRRRT. Please explain what happened,** Magnezone said. Shane and Tessa managed to make their ways forward, shoving Mimikyu through to the front of the crowd. There, they found Kecleon lying on his stomach, clutching it in pain.

"It… it all happened so fast," Kecleon wheezed. "Absol... the one from the guild… he ran into the shop. He… snatched up some TM's and… made for the door. I… lunged after him… but…" Kecleon shuddered and rolled onto his back. The crowd gasped and Team Radiance recoiled. Kecleon's belly had scorch marks crackling with purple electricity.

"I… I've never _felt_ an attack… like this…" Kecleon groaned. "He… hit me. I… tried to call for… support… like I do when… I'm confronted by thieves. But… his attack… it hurt so much! I… I must've passed out. And now… he's gone. And so are the TM's!"

Tessa stomach knotted up. _'No… this can't be right! Gallian, how could you? Why would you do something like this?'_

"Um, Officer Magnezone, sir?" Shane spoke up. "I think my teammate and I may know what's going on here."

 **Oh… it is you. Yes, as I recall, you were offering an explanation before you sprinted out of the room,** Magnezone said, to Shane's chagrin. **Would you care to continue spouting off your theory?**

"Actually, I've got something even better than that," Shane declared. He swiped the malasada recipe from Tessa's paw. "Behold… our missing Mystical Malasada recipe!"

A few Pokémon grunted in surprise as Crabrawler shoved his way through the crowd. "What's this? You say you found my recipe?" He scuttled over to Shane and took the parchment from him. His eyes widened. "I say, this is it! Oh, capital job, Vulpix!"

The crowd muttered in surprise at this.

"Furthermore, we apprehended the recipe from Mimikyu here," Shane continued. Mimikyu's disguise slouched over. "According to his testimony, he was given the recipe to serve 'as a distraction.' And the Pokémon who gave him the recipe to hold? Why… the very same Absol that robbed Kecleon: Gallian!"

A flurry of comments rose up from the crowd.

"Wait… Lucario's son did this?"

"Unbelievable… he was one of the most virtuous members of the guild."

"Where's Lucario? Shouldn't she have a better grasp on her kid?"

"Ha! No one's seen her in half a year."

"Say, isn't Riolu also her kid?"

Tessa looked down at the ground, frowning. "Hey, all of you be quiet!" Shane barked. "I hadn't finished yet." He shook his head. "Where was I? Oh, right. If we put the pieces together, we can make a reasonable sequence of events."

 **Which is what, exactly?** Magnezone asked.

"First, Gallian poked around the Observatory. He didn't find what he was looking for, so he decided to go with a backup plan of stealing TM's from Kecleon," Shane explained. "In order to do that, he created a diversion by stealing the malasada recipe. While we were all occupied with that, he probably went into Kecleon's shop and swiped the TM's." He turned to Kecleon. "Do you have any idea how long you were out for?"

"Uh… I think I had just started to see a crowd forming by the café when Gallian showed up," Kecleon reported.

Shane's brow furrowed. "Drat! He's probably long gone for real, then. I can't believe he managed to outfox us like that!" Shane bit his lower lip. _'This guy got away with stealing from a Kecleon? Okay… this is bad. Really bad! As if it wasn't humiliating enough getting knocked out by him yesterday… now I know that he's totally out of my league. What if I run into him again? How am I supposed to win?'_

He turned to Mimikyu. "Did he give you _any_ indication where he was heading?"

"N-No!" Mimikyu squeaked. "I swear I have no idea. This wasn't supposed to happen! I made an honest mistake."

 **You assisted with criminal activity and held onto a stolen item,** Magnezone stated. **That is, in and of itself, a crime.**

Mimikyu's eyes watered. "Please don't arrest me. I'll do anything to make it up to you guys!"

Magnezone's bolts whirred. **Very well. In restitution for your actions, you must assist the Horizon Guild until Guildmaster Metagross says you have made up for your transgressions.**

Mimikyu's disguise bobbed back and forth rapidly. "Of course! Of course! Of course! I'll be the bestest, most-amazing helper you've ever seen. Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Magnezone turned away from Team Radiance. **I must contact your Guildmaster and file the necessary paperwork. Please excuse me.**

Shane raised a curious eyebrow. "Did… did we just inadvertently recruit this Mimikyu guy?"

Tessa shrugged.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

After collecting a handsome reward from Crabrawler – and having Primarina attempt to serenade them despite Shane's vociferous protests – Team Radiance escorted Mimikyu back to the Observatory. They deposited Mimikyu under Null's watch and reported the day's events to Braviary and Magearna.

 _"So, Gallian's done gone rogue on us? Mighty troubling to hear,"_ Braviary's voice crackled through the Gear-Com.

"It's not his fault, sir," Tessa insisted. "He's under the control of some sort of weird energy. It effected that Meowth, the Munchlax duo we fought with Steenee, and the Parasect we encountered in Twilight Forest. Something is _definitely_ wrong here."

 _"I concurbulate,"_ Magearna said. _"Our investigation into the tidal issues at Sunset Shoals yielded no answers. But we encountered a trio of Mareanie much like you described. Upon defeaticating them, their bodies de-colorized before our eyes. I had wanted to analyze their energy significators, but there was no energy left for me to even detect."_

Shane and Tessa exchanged nervous looks.

 _"It ain't just that either,"_ Braviary jumped in, _"The folks in Circadian Coast are starting to build up fortifications cause the waters of the Midnight Sea are spilling into their town."_

"What does the Guildmaster think about this?" Shane asked.

 _"He ain't exactly the sharing type, Vulpix,"_ Braviary replied. _"Luckily, we managed to find a feller who claims to know a thing or two about what's happening. We're bringing him back to stay over at the guild temporarily while we look into this stuff in more detail."_

"When are you guys coming back, exactly?" Tessa wondered.

 _"It should be another day or two. We do need to disassemble base camp, after all,"_ Magearna reported. _"Is there anything else to reportify?"_

"No," Shane said. The two parties bid each other farewell and disconnected the call. Shane sighed and slumped over on his pillow. "Riolu, I think we need to take some time to toughen up a bit," he said.

"What do you mean?"

"Y'know, get some training in. Learn some new moves. Take on a handful of missions. Maybe look into TM's and emeras for our looplets," Shane said. "We've collected plenty of stardust, so we can have Magearna make us emeras, right?"

Tessa blinked in surprise. "Wow, Vulpix. That's, uh, a surprisingly good idea coming from you."

"Hey, I have plenty of good ideas," Shane harrumphed. "And they were on full display today. Admit it."

"What, and inflate that head of yours only so it can get popped again? No thanks," Tessa dismissed.

Shane frowned. "Enough joking around, I'm serious here. These past few days have been very rough for us. We need to step up our game! My gut is telling me we're bound to run into Gallian again at some point. We've got to prepare for that so we can actually put up a fight."

Tessa winced. "There's… no way to know that for certain."

"Yeah, okay. It's a gut reaction. But if I had money, I'd bet all of it on that happening," Shane said.

His partner grasped her shoulders and shivered. "Please don't bring it up anymore, Vulpix. I… I don't want to think about that."

"We need to think about it, though. Or our keisters are going to get cooked!" Shane said.

"I said drop it!" Tessa suddenly shouted. Shane's ears folded against his head.

"Geez, what's got your fur bristled?" Shane muttered. "What, do you want me to invite Null to join us, or something?"

Tessa didn't respond. Nevertheless, she didn't put up any resistance when Shane had them spend the next couple of days taking several missions. Most of their assignments hit some snags. But they managed to avoid any serious issues and even kept the arguing to a minimum. Though, that was undoubtedly because Tessa was keeping surprisingly quiet.

Eventually, they returned from a mission in Twilight Forest to find Braviary standing in the guild's entrance. Across from him stood a red-and-white werewolf with a wicked mane and long, noodle-like arms.

"… I can get you situated in yer own room, but it'll be at the very end of the living quarters," Braviary said.

"Doesn't matter to me, mate. The extra walking ought to do me good."

Braviary noticed Team Radiance in the doorway. "Ah, good. Y'all are back. Come over here, there's someone I'd like y'all to meet." The duo approached Braviary. Shane's gaze was fixed firmly on the werewolf. "This here is Lycanroc. He's gonna help us look into this whole berserk Pokémon business."

Lycanroc smirked, showing off gleaming-white fangs. He fixed his glowing red eyes on Shane. "Heard a bit about ya, kid. It's nice ta meet ya, Snowy."

Shane's entire body stiffened upon hearing that nickname.

 _'Oh no... this guy's not going to help us. He's a criminal!'_

 **End of Episode 5**

* * *

Next time: the start of Special Episode 2!


	17. From Lively Town with Love

**~Aeon Town~**

The sun had just started to peek out from the east, painting Aeon Town in swathes of yellow and orange. Long shadows stretched out from each building. It was from these shadows that a blur raced forward. It sprinted up the hill leading out of the town square, pausing only to dip into cover behind the occasional tree.

A Zoroark's pointed, dark-gray snout poked out from one of the trees, followed by her sharp, angled face with pointed ears and a large crimson mane. She reached up and plucked an envelope from her mane, cradling it in her red claws.

"Good, no one's around. Just go and make the drop nice and quick, Zoroark. Hurry, before people start waking up," she whispered. Deep breaths followed, with Zoroark placing the envelope in her mouth. She got down on all fours and sprinted forward, using her upper limbs to help propel her the rest of the way to the Aeon Observatory.

Zoroark scanned the building's exterior until her eyes fell on a mail slot positioned to the right of the entrance. A sign neatly displaying, "Place job requests here," hung over the slot. Zoroark sped toward the chute and skidded to a halt. As she spun around, she grabbed the envelope from her mouth and thrusted it into the mail slot. She pressed her face against the wall and heard a soft _fwump_ from the other side. She sighed in relief.

"Now I just got to hope my request gets to the right team."

Zoroark backed away from the Observatory, and then sprinted toward the edge of the hill. She stole one more glance at the building to make sure there was no one watching, and then leaped off, disappearing behind the steep drop-off.

* * *

 _Once upon a time,  
_ _There were three feisty little young'uns.  
_ _Dreams of exploring brimming in their eyes.  
_ _I saw that there potential,  
_ _And decided to take 'em under my wing._

 _Now, they've grown up,  
_ _Into three lovely ladies.  
_ _With thrill-seeking spirits and eyes fer adventure.  
_ _They're serpents, they all know Captivate, and they work for the guild.  
_ _They are…_

 **Special Episode 2: Horizon's Angels**

 **Chapter 16: From Lively Town with Love**

 _This special episode focuses on Team Captivate completing a top-secret assignment. It takes place concurrently with the events of Episode 5._

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"A little lower… a little lower… a little lo– oh _baby,_ that's the spot right there!"

Serperior gave a content sigh and slumped down in her chair. She stared blankly in front of her, watching steam rise up from the base of her tail. Beside her, Dragonair sat next to a tray of small stones, all of which gave off steam like the one positioned on Serperior's body.

"You know, most Pokémon opt to use all the stones so they hit their pressure points," Dragonair muttered. "Using only one kinda defeats the purpose."

"Hey now, I can only tolerate so much heat at once, Airy," Serperior said. "And I am _very much tolerating_ this right now." She sank back into her seat and let her head loll off to the side.

"You could have at least told me you only planned on using one stone," Dragonair sighed. "It takes time to heat these up properly, you know. Hey, Milotic, do you want to use any of these as long as I've got them heated up?"

Dragonair glanced over at a pink, heart-shaped bed in the corner of the room. A loud snore flared up from that location.

"… guess not," Dragonair said.

"Why don't you just use them on yourself, Airy?" Serperior giggled. "Come on, I can _squeeze_ over a little bit to make room."

"Hot stone therapy isn't something you do to yourself, Serperior," Dragonair chided. "We've been over this before."

"Oh! Oh! I'll take the hot rocks if you don't want them, missy."

Dragonair pivoted around, expecting to find someone in the room's doorway. Nobody was there.

"… no, no, no. Over here. On your left," the voice instructed. Dragonair turned to her left, only to see a column helping hold up the ceiling. "Perfect!"

"Uh, I'm not giving my stones to a piece of the wall," Dragonair said.

"Why not? I've been feeling kinda low on minerals, lately," the column whined.

"These are not for eating," Dragonair said.

"Oh, for pity's sake, Airy. How long are you gonna indulge him?" Serprerior groaned. She turned to look at the column. "Get outta there, Haunter. We told you to stop creeping around our room."

A set of large eyes and a big grin appeared on the column. "Aww, come on. Don't be like that, Serperior. I happen to think this vantage point really _rocks._ Mwee hee hee hee he– AUUGH!"

A jet of steaming water suddenly spilled across the column from the far side of the room. The eyes and mouth disappeared and Haunter's shadowy body melted out of the column. Milotic slithered over, rubbing sleep out of her eyes.

"Uuurrrghhh…" Haunter gurgled. "Waaah! You girls are such killjoys."

"Excuse me? Which one of us is spying on another team's private time?" Milotic scoffed. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't report this little peeping incident to Braviary, huh?"

"Oh! Oh! Here's a perfect reason: he's not here. Mwee hee hee hee hee!"

"He'll be back, you know," Milotic countered.

"But not for a few days. The big expedition started and everyone's already left," Haunter said, floating back into the air. He pulled his eyeballs out of his ethereal head and started juggling them. "I just wanted to have a little fun since we've got the run of the guild."

"Then why not go mess with the rookies? I would think that Vulpix would be good for a laugh riot or two," Serperior said, stretching out her tail.

"Now, see, I totally thought of that, but Null is already up and prowling around the main level like he's stalking prey," Haunter said, poking his index fingers together. "Just between the four of us, that guy is S-C-A-R-Y scary!"

"You're a _ghost_ , Haunter," Milotic pointed out. "I thought you were better than that."

"Ghosts can't get scared? I'm sorry, I didn't realize I was speaking to Giratina, lord of spookiness." He bowed before Milotic. "Oh, thank you ever-so-much for gracing our dusty halls with your overwhelming terror, sir. You're looking rather… fabulous compared to the legends though. Mwee hee hee hee!"

Milotic gave Haunter a glare that suggested he was five seconds away from another Scald to the face.

"W-Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait." Haunter threw his hands up and waved them about. "I… I have a reason for being here. I'm just doing Braviary's job in his absence, I swear!"

Milotic raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really?"

"Yes, really!" Haunter snapped his fingers. "Show 'em, Drifloon."

Drifloon materialized from the flower pot next to the stone column. Milotic's face immediately went bright red and she adjusted her position. "Y… you let _him_ in here with you?" she hissed.

"Heh heh… hiya, gorgeous. You're such a pretty sleeper," Drifloon greeted, shades of red popping up underneath his eyes. "Anyway, you guys got a personal request." He held up an envelope. "This one's apparently really high priority." He tossed the envelope toward Dragonair, allowing her to glance the top of it.

"This envelope's got a seal from the Water Continent," she gasped. "What do they want with us?"

"Dunno. It had your team name on it. And the instructions on the front specifically said this stuff was, 'For your eyes only,'" Drifloon mused. "I assume that meant you fine femme fatales knew about this." He brought one of his strings up toward his face and blew a kiss at Milotic. She shuddered and looked away.

"Get out before I freeze you," Milotic growled.

"Whatever you say, gorgeous." Drifloon winked and floated out of the room. Haunter followed along after him.

Milotic shook her head. "You use Captivate on a guy _one time_ and he won't stop leaving you alone."

"To be fair, you had, like, three different emeras bolstering it," Serperior said, giggling. "Anyway, what's in the mail? Is it an assignment?"

"Let's find out. Airy, if you please." Milotic held up the envelope and Dragonair sliced it open with a small blade of wind. A single piece of paper spilled out onto the floor. Milotic scooped up the letter.

"Team Captivate, I address this to you in the hopes of acquiring your help with something incredibly important. I'm afraid I can't go into details about it in this letter. The information is very sensitive and I need to relay it to you in person. If you receive this message, please meet me at the Treetop Motel in Terrace Village. Sincerely… Zoroark?"

Milotic blinked and looked down at the letter again. "I… I don't believe this. It's really signed Zoroark!"

Serperior rolled her eyes. "Oh, great. I'll bet Haunter's set up one of his overly-elaborate pranks. When I get my tail on that guy, I swear…"

"It _does_ seem rather fishy," Dragonair muttered. "Zoroarks value their secrecy above anything else. That one would try to accost us without the guise of an illusion is quite perplexing. It seems like a unnecessarily risky endeavor for one of their kind. What do you think, Milotic?"

Milotic tapped her chin. "Well, the way I see it, either Serperior's right and we'd be walking into some sort of prank, or this is genuine. If this Zoroark is dropping any illusion pretenses, they might really be in trouble."

"That, and an official Water Continent postal seal is _not_ something you can just pull out of thin air," Dragonair pointed out. "I'm inclined to believe it's genuine. In which case, we should really get going."

Serperior wrinkled her snout. "Hmph. Fine. But I'm keeping at the back of the group. And when you two get doused in paint or mud or whatever Haunter's set up, I'll be right there to do my patented 'I was right and you were wrong dance.'"

"At which point I'll happily give you a nice, big hug and lather you in whatever slop I get covered with," Milotic sang.

Serperior shrank back at this. "Nnnngh… never mind. Forget I said anything."

* * *

 **~Terrace Village~**

Team Captivate made their way up to the hilltop village. Sunlight bristled across the smattering of log cabins. In the distance, a mosaic of purple hues drifted up from the tree line of nearby Twilight Forest.

"Ah, I never get tired of that sight," Milotic chirped. "Really makes you appreciate what the Tapus have given us here in Horizon, huh?"

"Hey now, we're not here for sightseeing," Serperior said. "There's the Treetop Motel. Let's head inside and see if we can find Zoroark. Assuming they even exist in the first place." Serperior pointed her tail forward. Milotic gave her unamused look. "What? I said I was gonna hang back. And I meant it."

Milotic rolled her eyes and slithered forward. Dragonair tailed her while Serperior brought up the rear. Milotic opened the doorway and Serperior flinched, expecting to see something grimy spill out in front of her. To her surprise, Milotic entered completely undisturbed.

"It's okay, the lobby's clear," she announced.

Serperior's snout stiffened. "… hmph. That's just what Haunter wants us to think." She followed her teammates inside. The Treetop Motel's lobby was a small room, consisting of a trio of chairs in front of a stone fireplace and a wooden desk with cubby holes behind it. Said desk was currently staffed by a small Ledyba.

"Good morning. Welcome to the Treetop Motel. I'm Ledyba. What can I do for you?"

"Hi there. We're Team Captivate, with the Horizon Exploration Guild," Milotic introduced. She swung her neck around to show off her gold explorer's badge.

Ledyba's eyes lit up in recognition. "Oh! One of our patrons asked me to keep an eye out for you three. Give me one moment." She turned and fluttered on up the stairs.

Milotic turned to Serperior with a knowing smirk. "And you thought this was a prank."

"I'm still skeptical," Serperior muttered. "Remember that time Team Specter got us to go all the way out to the Solaris Wastelands just to lead us into a sand geyser? I was cleaning my leaves for a week. _A week._ "

"Excuse me… miss?"

The team turned to see Ledyba's head poking out from the staircase. "If you would just follow me upstairs, please." She beckoned them up.

"Be on your guard, girls," Serperior whispered as they slithered forward. Ledyba guided them to a door at the end of the hall and knocked on it.

"Come in!" a muffled voice called from the other side. Ledyba opened the door and gestured for Team Captivate to enter. Milotic went inside, followed by Dragonair and Serperior. The latter shut the door behind her and turned around to find a Zoroark sitting on a wooden stool.

"You're Team Captivate?" Zoroark asked, studying the serpent trio.

"That's us," Milotic replied. "I'm Milotic, and these are my teammates, Dragonair and Serperior."

A warm smile appeared on Zoroark's face. "Oh, thank goodness. I was so worried my request wasn't going to reach you ladies." Zoroark got to her feet and walked over, fidgeting with her claws. "I really appreciate you coming out here like this. Sorry for the hush-hush letter."

"I just want to know what was so important you couldn't tell us in your request," Serperior said.

Zoroark looked down and her face flushed. Serperior raised a curious eyebrow. "It's… kind of embarrassing, really," Zoroark muttered. "I need you all to promise you won't speak a word about this to anyone back at your guild. Not even as part of some friendly coworker chitchat."

"Seriously? Okay, that just makes me all the more suspic–" Serperior started, only for Dragonair to cut her off by wrapping her tail around Serperior's snout. She gave Dragonair an annoyed look.

"Forgive my friend," Milotic hastily said. "Team Captivate treats each and every one of its assignments with poise and tact." She turned to Serperior. "Don't we?"

Serperior silently nodded, prompting Dragonair to release her mouth. She let out a gasp of air and started rubbing her mouth with her tail.

"So, what do you need us for, Zoroark?" Dragonair asked.

"Well, I'm actually visiting Horizon, see," Zoroark explained. "My village heard about the nectar that grows in Twilight Forest. Even though they warned that it would be a long trip, I volunteered to come collect some. I thought everything was going just fine. But then, out of nowhere, I got jumped!" Zoroark raised her arms up. "This deranged-looking Parasect ran at me, screeching like an agitated Sableye."

"Goodness. That must've been quite the shock," Dragonair said. "Are you alright?"

Zoroark frowned and shook her head. "No, that's why I called you here. Because of this…" Zoroark pivoted to her side and swished her mane forward.

"Uh, I don't get it," Serperior muttered.

"Look! Parasect cut off the base of my mane… pearl and all," Zoroark whimpered, prompting Team Captivate to gasp. "I tried to grab it, but in the chaos Parasect knocked it away toward a cave. I was already hurt and didn't want to chance anything, so I deployed my Escape Orb and I've been holed up in my room ever since."

Serperior pursed her lips. "Lemme get this straight. Your big, secretive mission is to rescue _your hair?_ Won't it just grow back eventually?"

Dragonair lightly slapped Serperior behind the head. "Show her some respect," she scolded. "This is obviously very troubling for poor Zoroark."

"You don't understand! Parasect cut off _my pearl,_ " Zoroark blubbered. "The pearl in my mane is a fulcrum to help me channel my illusion-making powers. Without mine, I'm completely useless! I can't return home like this. I'll be an outcast in the village. Everyone's going to laugh me into exile! A Zoroark without illusions is like a wingless Dragonite or… or a Milotic without their radiant scales!"

Milotic shuddered at the thought. Zoroark fell back onto her bed, burying her head in her lap. "If I just had the pearl back, I could get it fixed. There's a mage back home who can use a spell to fix it. But… but I can't stand up to Parasect. Especially without my illusions!"

"Good gracious. I'm very sorry to hear about that. I promise, we'll do everything in our power to get your hair back," Milotic vowed. "Right, girls?"

"Absolutely," Dragonair agreed.

"I guess so," Serperior said.

"Really?" Zoroark's expression brightened up. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" She bolted up and wrapped Milotic up in a big hug. The serpent's eyes nearly bulged out of her head and she appeared a bit woozy when Zoroark backed off. "I can compensate you three very well for your help. I swear it!"

"I'll believe it when I see it," Serperior muttered under her breath. Dragonair gave her another scathing look.

"Now then, you said you thought you saw the pearl roll off into a cave?" Milotic asked. Zoroark nodded. "And were you in the nectar fields?" Zoroark nodded again. "Okay, it sounds to me like your cut-off mane ended up in Nectar Cave," Milotic concluded, turning back to her teammates. "Dragonair, pull out our Wonder Map and find the fastest route through Twilight Forest based on its current condition."

"As you wish."

"And Serperior, grab us poison guard emeras from the bag," Milotic instructed. "We don't want any funny business in the forest. Ready the petrify wand too, in case we get jumped. Twilight Forest is supposed to be peaceful, but if Zoroark got attacked, then someone could be making trouble."

Serperior fished a trio of small, raindrop-like crystals out of the item pouch. "Got 'em, chief," she said, tossing one emera to each of her teammates. Milotic fastened hers into the looplet around her torso.

"I've got our route, Milotic," Dragonair declared. "There's a northeast path that leads directly to the meadow with the nectar. But, the cavern is a fair distance down a long hill from that meadow. It would be faster if we proceeded north and then cut across a trail at the first junction we see."

"Excellent work," Milotic praised. She turned back to Zoroark. "Sit tight. Team Captivate's on the case. Let's move out, girls!" They raised their tails in unison and touched the tips together, then proceeded to exit the motel. The instant they emerged outside, they caught sight of a Riolu and a snow-white Vulpix.

"Milotic?" Tessa gasped. "What are you doing here?"

Milotic met the Riolu's gaze. "Riri! She smiled and blew a kiss in Tessa's direction. "What a surprise to see your team here. Most novices never go east of Clayback River."

"There was an assignment and you know as well as I do the guild's short Pokémon right now," Tessa explained.

"How brave," Serperior chuckled. "I see you even managed to drag Mr. Personality out of the sentry station." She glanced at Null. "I'm surprised you didn't, like, melt in the sunlight."

Null lowered his head, fixing his sharp gaze on Serperior.

"Now, now, Serperior. We shouldn't tease our fellow guild members," Dragonair scolded.

"I invited him to join Team Radiance, for the record," Tessa declared. "He, uh, didn't _exactly_ say yes, but he's going to give us some help from time to time."

"Well, aren't _you_ the little risk-taker," Serperior giggled. "Quite the feisty little girl, ain't ya? Just like your mother. I'll bet she would've done the same thing if she were–"

"Leave them alone, Serpy," Milotic said. "Besides, we have work to do."

"What are you girls doing here, anyway?" Shane asked.

"Sorry, Snowball, that's on a need to know basis. And you're not part of that need," Serperior replied. "But we'll totally try to snag a souvenir or something for ya from where we're heading. C'mon, girls!" Serperior winked flirtatiously at Shane, and then Team Captivate slithered off in the direction of the forest.

Milotic gave Serperior a curious look. "You're not really flirting with that human, are you?"

"Of course I am! Did you see the look on his face? Absolutely priceless," Serperior giggled.

Milotic rolled her eyes at this.

* * *

 **~Twilight Forest~**

The trek through the forest proved uneventful for Team Captivate. Save for the occasional passing Pikipek and a group of Morelull hopping through the bushes, the trio didn't encounter a single soul.

Serperior looked around the forest. "Hey, girls. Um, not to be a downer or anything, but are you _sure_ we should trust this Zoroark? No offense, but losing a piece of hair? That doesn't really seem like a feasible reason to call for help from an exploration team."

"Well, I don't really know that much about how Zoroark illusions work," Milotic conceded. "Still, you know our team policy."

"We tackle any personal requests, no questions asked," Serperior recited. "It's just… don't you think that maybe Zoroark could be making up the missing mane tidbit? She _could_ have been showing us an illusion of her missing mane to lead us into some sort of trap."

"I personally think that's a bit of a convoluted way to bait us into some sort of trap," Milotic replied. "What, do you think this Zoroark is working with Haunter or something?"

"I wouldn't put it past the guy," Serperior huffed. "I just… I don't know. It's something in her eyes, Milotic. We haven't encountered a lick of trouble and I can see the meadow up ahead. It makes me suspicious. And we certainly didn't get to our current position by taking everything we see and hear for granted."

"Ordinarily, I'd say healthy skepticism is a good thing," Dragonair chimed in. "But it sounds to me like you're playing up the classic Zoroark stereotype. Namely, that they're shifty tricksters who you should never trust. Our client certainly _sounded_ sincere."

"Yeah, c'mon, Serperior. You know better than to fall into stereotypes," Milotic said. "If we played down to those, you'd be a smug, pompous jerk and I'd be an airhead that's just on the team for eye candy."

Serperior pouted. "Hey now! I'm just as pretty as you are. Besides, who's the only one on the team in any sort of committed relationship here?" She pointed her tail toward her head. "Me, that's who!"

Dragonair and Milotic exchanged looks. "Is that what's got you all hot and bothered?" Dragonair wondered. "I don't recall getting word that Team Harmony planned to drop by the Observatory."

Serperior's face flushed. "Uh… well… that's… y'know…" She tapped her tail on the ground. "I _might've_ called up Primarina on the Gear-Com and told him that there was an expedition coming up and the guild would be dead-quiet if he wanted to drop by."

"That would explain the attitude then," Milotic chuckled. "We're keeping you from your 'mon, aren't we?"

"We can't say that for sure, Milotic. For all we know, Team Harmony could be helping with the expedition," Dragonair pointed out. "After all, if Primarina comes to Aeon Town, he'll have to deal with all his adoring fans."

Serperior puffed up her cheeks. "He is so gonna come! But now we've been pulled off on this silly assignment. I'll bet he's there already and I'm wasting time playing hair-gatherer."

"Don't you think he'd call the team's Gear-Com if he was there but you weren't?" Dragonair asked.

Serperior's face blanched. "I hadn't thought of that."

"Huh, maybe _Serpy's_ the pretty one around for eye candy," Milotic giggled.

Serperior didn't seem bothered by the taunt. Instead, she smirked. "Aww, is Millie jealous that I'm stealing her thunder? Don't worry. At least you've got a winning personality. And it's what's inside that counts, right? Isn't that what you always used to say when you were a Feebas?"

"Yeah, it totally is," Milotic conceded. The three girls broke into laughter.

"I see Nectar Cave down there," Dragonair announced. "Let's move in, ladies."

"Right. Dragonair, take the left. Serperior, the right. I'll go from the middle," Milotic ordered. Her teammates slithered into position beside her and they shot off down the hill. Their heads swiveled back and forth as they approached the cave.

"Hmm… sunlight's not very good in here, chief. I can barely make out a thing," Serperior recorded.

"Hold back, then," Milotic instructed. "Airy, we've got a Luminous Orb, right?"

"Yup," Dragonair fished it out of the pouch.

"Okay. Let's deploy it into the cave," Milotic said. "Give that petrify wand to Serpy in case we startle any wild Pokémon." Dragonair did as instructed and Milotic peered into the cave. "If we see anyone try to pounce, hit 'em with the wand. Airy and I will cover your six, and use Thunder Waves to immobilize any other Pokémon the wand doesn't hit."

"Sounds good to me. Let's do this thing!" Serperior hollered. Dragonair hurled the Luminous Orb forward. It shattered into fragments which emitted dazzling streams of light. The cave glowed as bright at the meadow outside it.

"Bwaaaargh! B… bright light!"

A deep, scratchy voice echoed through the cave. Serperior looked forward and spotted a single, crab-like set of rocks lumbering back and forth in a daze. "Boldore dead ahead, chief," Serperior reported. She kept her grip on the petrify wand and instead raised her tail, rotating it about in a circle. A whirlwind of green, leaf-shaped fragments of energy funneled out from her tail. The tornado smacked into Boldore and blew them back into the depths of the cave.

"Right side's clear," Dragonair said.

"So's the left," Milotic added. "Looks like we came at a quiet point. Fan out and search for that hair. It should be black and fade to red at the tip."

"Okay," her teammates replied in unison. Serperior made her way toward the far part of the cave entrance, while Dragonair stuck to the right and Milotic took up the left. The three scanned the rocky grounds, looking for any red swathes laying atop the rock.

Milotic passed by a trio of small, rounded stalagmites. She stopped and coiled her body around the rocks, examining every angle of the crevice between the rocky structures. Her eyes fell on the center of the gap, where a bit of red stood out in the shadows of the Luminous Orb. "Girls, over here! I've got it."

"You're kidding," Serperior gasped, making her way toward Milotic. Her jaw slackened when Milotic lifted up a clump of black and red fluff. She swung her tail around to show the dusty, teal orb stuck in the middle of the fur. Serperior shook her head and chuckled, "To paraphrase Braviary, 'Well, I'll be a Simisage's uncle.' I guess that trickster was telling the truth after all."

"And you doubted her," Milotic teased.

"Oh, come on. You've got to admit, this was painfully easy," Serperior said. "I'll bet even that human blowhard could've done this with no problems. Why did Zoroark specifically ask for us?"

The thought lingered in Team Captivate's minds as they exited the cave and returned to the forest trail. "Maybe it was the embarrassment factor?" Milotic mused. "She was completely flustered about it, remember? An issue like that requires 'mons who can understand her sensitivity. The guys in the guild would probably just laugh her request off."

"Yeah," Serperior said. "Maybe she heard someone around here mention our team name? I mean, we _are_ pretty awesome. None of us can help it if some townsfolk decide to gossip about us."

"Well, there is the issue of that crazy Parasect that she brought up," Dragonair reminded her teammates. "Do you think we should do a sweep of the forest perimeter, just in case?"

"No!" Serperior blurted out. "Uh, I mean, we got what we came here for. No reason to risk losing it over one wild Pokémon acting odd."

Dragonair and Milotic exchanged smirks. "It sounds more like someone's itching to get back to the Observatory."

Serperior's face reddened. "Of course I am! Primarina's probably gonna show up there any second."

"At least she's being honest this time," Dragonair giggled.

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with wanting some alone time with my boyfriend," Serperior growled. "Honestly, it's like I can't do a thing with him without half the guild judging me. Did Lucario and Guildmaster Incineroar have it this bad when they were together?"

Milotic frowned. "Maybe that's a subject better left unexplored."

Serperior clicked her tongue. "Why? It's not like Riolu is around to hear us. She's running about with that bigmouthed human, remember?"

"Tessa!"

Team Captivate's heads all popped up simultaneously. "Did you girls hear that?" Milotic asked. Her teammates nodded immediately.

"It was bigmo– I mean, the human," Serperior replied. "Sounds like they're close by."

"But there's five of them now. How are we supposed to take them all down by ourselves?"

Milotic's eyes widened. "Sounds like Team Radiance might be in trouble. Airy, any chance you can tell where they are?"

The tiny wings on Dragonair's head bristled. She titled her head toward the south. "They're on another trail, I think. We can head them off if we cut through the trees here."

"Then let's get moving," Milotic whispered. She rushed into the foliage, her teammates tailing her. Over the rustling of the trees, Milotic could just barely hear a hiss sound out from across the forest. She tucked in her head and quickened her pace.

"Hold up, boss. We should have a plan of attack, right?" Serperior asked.

"Yeah, but I need to see what we're up against," Milotic replied. Seconds later, a clearing came into a view. Milotic quickly banked to her left, pressing herself up against a tree. Serperior and Dragonair veered behind her. Milotic poked her head out from their hiding spot.

"See anything?" Serperior asked.

"You bet I do," Milotic gasped. "It's Team Radiance. And they're surrounded by… uh…" She narrowed her eyes. "They _look_ like Parasects. But something's way off about them."

Serperior poked her head out. "Whoa, you're right. They're totally messed up. Is _that_ what Zoroark ran into?"

"Riri's knocked out. And Null and the human are paralyzed. We need a plan of action, now," Milotic said. "Here's what we'll do. I'll hit the trio by the human with an Ice Beam. Airy, use your Dragon Breath on that lone Parasect by Null. Serpy, you'll be with me."

The trio heard the Parasects screech, **"Infect! Infect! Infect! Infect!"**

"Okay, it's go time," Milotic said. She opened her mouth and shot a stream of ice forward. It hit the three Parasects in front of Shane. They melted into puddles of goop.

"What the heck?" Serperior gasped, only for Milotic to silence her with a flick of her tail.

"Now, Airy," Milotic ordered. Her teammate poked her head forward and a stream of blue-purple dragonfire rushed out into the clearing. The dragonfire washed over the other Parasect, melting it into a fourth goop puddle.

"What the–?" Shane stammered.

"Phew… looks like we made it in time. Nice navigation work, Airy!"

Shane's ears twitched. "Milotic?" he squeaked.

Team Captivate sprang out from their hiding spot. Serperior and Milotic opened their mouths. A stream of ice and a crackling, pulsating bolt of blue dragon energy shot forward. The attacks combined to shower the puddles of ooze with bolts and ice shards. Each puddle started bubbling. Dragonair likewise shot two dragonfire streams at the puddles around Null. They also started bubbling.

"When there's danger to be seen," Milotic declared, blowing a kiss toward a dumbfounded Shane. "Team Captivate is on the scene!"

The puddles of ooze slowly inched toward one another. Dragonair noticed Shane's fur bristle at the sight. "Milotic, look." She pointed her tail forward. "What do you think they're doing?"

"Surround them, ladies! We'll strike in unison, if necessary," Milotic ordered. The three serpents slithered into a triangular formation just as the puddles had recombined into one. They watched as a single Parasect emerged from the puddle, his body perfectly still.

"Hold up." Serperior raised her tail. "I think he's out cold."

Shane turned toward Team Captivate. "Watch out. He could be faking or–"

The crescent moons in Parasect's eyes shattered. Red light encased his entire body, only to start melting off of it into the ground.

"Eww! That's totally disgusting!" Serperior cried, shrinking back. Null had managed to lumber to his feet just in time to see last of the red light dissolve into the ground, leaving Parasect's form lying there. His mushroom head had returned, but not a spot of color remained on his body. His mouth hung open.

Dragonair's eyes widened. "Is… is he–?"

"Nobody touch him," Milotic instructed, dangling her tail over Parasect's limp body. "He could still have some trace of something." The trio quickly backed away from Parasect and redirected their attentions toward Team Radiance.

Milotic bit her lower lip. _'Sure, we managed to finish our mission no sweat. But, something about Parasect really bothers me. How could Zoroark brush something like that off so casually?'_

For Team Captivate's leader, one thing was certain.

 _'I think we need to have a little chat with our client before returning her mane.'_

* * *

Next time: deception! Illusions! Conspiracies! All in a day's work for Team Captivate.


	18. Bonus: Halloween Special 2017

**Bonus: Unwanted Renegade Rambunctiousness  
** _This is an omake. Please don't take it seriously!_

 **~Temporal Tower~**

"Here I come, Infernape! HYAAAAAAAARGH!"

A Feraligatr thrust his arms to the side, blue-purple dragon energy forming razor-sharp talons. He sped forward, winding up to slash the fiery monkey standing across form him. Infernape crouched low to the ground and swept his leg around. Feraligatr hollered as the attack tripped him up, causing him to faceplant and skid to a halt in front of Inernape. He victoriously rested his foot on Feraligatr's head.

"Ooooooogh… you just got lucky… that's all…" Feraligatr groaned. Infernape extended a hand toward Feraligatr and helped him to his feet. He crossed his arms and gave Feraligatr an unamused look. "Hmm, what? What's the problem?" Feraligatr wondered.

Infernape tapped the bridge of his nose. "Why didn't I use Hydro Pump?" Feraligatr asked. Infernape nodded. "Aha ha… that's a good question!" Feraligatr said. Sweat droplets formed along Infernape's face. "Truth be told, it's kinda dusty up here," Feraligatr admitted, rubbing the bridge of his snout. "I'm a bit worried that if I spit out any water from my mouth, I'm gonna inhale some dust and sneeze out a massive Hydro Pump you won't be able to dodge."

Feraligatr waddled up toward the edge of the tower. "It's kind of a long drop, wouldn't you say?" He scratched the back of his head. "Yo, Dialga, you ever think of giving this place a thorough dusting?"

He looked up toward the altar at the far side of roof, where the massive, metal-plated dragon lounged about. Dialga pawed absentmindedly at a piece of rock, and his tail dangled off the altar, lazily drifting back and forth across the ground.

"What do you think I called you two here for?" he scoffed. "I don't trust any other souls to clean this place up."

Both Infernape's and Feraligatr's jaws dropped. "But, the memo you sent to Treasure Town said you _urgently_ needed our help!"

Dialga yawned. "And I do. It's very urgent. Look at all this dust. There's enough here to fill up one of those small lakes you mortals like swimming in. What do you call those again?"

"How could you not know what a pond is?" Feraligatr groaned.

"Because that's Kyogre's job. Do you _see_ any water around here?" Dialga asked, gesturing out toward the cloud line spreading out across the Hidden Land.

"You _really_ ought to get out more," Feraligatr mused. "We've offered to let you go on missions, but every time it's…"

"We've been over this before. I am _not_ leaving this spot," Dialga declared, awkwardly rolling over so he lay on his back. "Much as I would love to busy myself doing something that _isn't_ lying around, the last time I did that I quite literally lost my sanity. Not making that mistake again."

Feraligatr recoiled in surprise. "You mean you really haven't left this spot this entire time?" he gawked. "How are you still alive? Don't you need to eat?"

"Ha ha ha ha ha!" Dialga smacked the ground with a foreleg, causing the rooftop to rumble. Infernape looked about in a panic. "Needing to eat? What a silly, mortal concept. I am time incarnate. Hunger and satiety mean nothing to me."

"Still, you could at least clean the roof," Feraligatr proposed.

Dialga sat up, glaring at Feraligatr. He squeaked frightfully and ducked behind Infernape, who rolled his eyes. "Look at me! I'm a gigantic, all-powerful dragon god. If I try to sweep away some dust, I'll take half the roof off and there goes the flow of time for a fraction of the Grass Continent!" He sat back down, shaking his head. "Dust this place off myself… bah! I am the guardian of time… not a cleaning service."

Feraligatr and Infernape exchanged tired looks.

"Well? Hurry up. This place won't dust itself off," Dialga declared, rolling back onto his belly.

Feraligatr slouched over and trudged toward a dust pile. "You ever feel like we get taken for granted sometimes?"

 _'The fact that Dialga rings us up to come to Temporal Tower kind of blows that idea out of the water,'_ Infernape thought. He shrugged and walked over toward the other side of the roof. Feraligatr sighed loudly, brushing dust off the roof. As he cleared off the pile, he found himself looking not at the roof, but at some sort of swirling, purple vortex.

"Eh?" Feraligatr's eyes widened and he quickly backpedaled. "Guys? Guys! There's something weird here!"

Infernape looked over and his face blanched at the portal's appearance. _'That doesn't look right!'_

Dialga was over by Feraligatr in the blink of an eye, staring down into the portal. "What did you do?" he barked.

Feraligatr flinched. "N-Nothing, I swear! I was just cleaning!"

Dialga leaned over to examine the portal in greater detail, when a wide, oval-shaped, golden head with small, beady, red eyes popped out.

"Big brother!"

Seconds later, Giratina's massive frame leaped out of the portal. He wrapped his black, ectoplasmic wings around Dialga's torso. "I'm so happy to see you!" Giratina chirped. "Aren't you happy to see me?" He immediately picked his head up and looked around. "And I _looooooove_ what you did with Temporal Tower. All this dust makes it look very rustic. Just like the World Abyss! Did someone tell you I was coming to visit?"

Dialga raised a foreleg, smacked Giratina upside the head, and then pinned him to the ground. "Giratina, you _dunce!_ " he roared. "How many times do I have to tell you? Don't show up here unannounced!"

"You've told me 1,378,413 times and counting!" Giratina replied, his tail thumping excitedly on the ground. "But I just absolutely, positively _had_ to come see my favoritest brother!" He dissolved into a shadow and phased through Dialga's foreleg. Giratina reappeared next to Dialga and nuzzled his neck, much to the latter's abject horror.

"Get off of me!" Dialga growled, shoving Giratina back. "What could possibly be so important that you couldn't just send me a letter?"

"I learned a new trick with antimatter," Giratina said, beaming with pride. "Well, actually, I discovered it by accident with Hoopa. But then I taught myself how to do the trick and I thought, 'I've gotta show this to Dialga. He'll think it's _sooooooo_ cool!'"

Dialga's right eye twitched. "You want… to play with antimatter… on _Temporal Tower?!_ "

Infernape and Feraligatr watched Dialga's eyes glow dark red. They both scrambled for cover behind a nearby column.

"Yeah! Where else am I going to do it? I need bright light to make the trick work," Giratina said. "Besides, you've got your helper-buddies over there, right? So, they can just fix whatever I break!"

Dialga took in a deep breath and calmly exhaled. "… Giratina?"

"Yes, most wonderful brother?"

 **"Go bother somebody else!"**

Dialga's roar distorted the air around Giratina. Silver quantum particles phased into existence in front of Dialga. Giratina moved in reverse right before everyone's eyes. It ended with Giratina flying backwards into the portal that he emerged out of, leaving an angry Dialga standing there, panting heavily.

Feraligatr blinked in confusion.

"… what just happened?"

* * *

 **~Spacial Rift~**

 **"... no!"**

Giratina's eyes comically teared up. "Aww, c'mon, Palkia. I just want to show you this trick. It's totally amazing! I take a small bit of antimatter and concentrate it into a singularity. Then… _fwabooom!_ Like the most brilliant explosion you could ever see. It'll be totally epic! I promise!"

 **"Absolutely not! I forbid it!"** Palkia thundered, clamping Giratina's mouth shut. **"This is my domain. No one is allowed to distort space without my say so!"** A beat followed. **"Actually, scratch that. No one is allowed to distort space, period."**

"Buh fwoo huffnt feen ma pwick!"

 **"What? I do not understand your inane babbling. Speak like a normal Pokémon!"** Palkia bellowed. He then looked down at his paws and sheepishly pulled them off Giratina's mouth.

"You haven't seen my trick though. It's not going to do any distorting. It's going to make a big ol' boom!" He looked around excitedly. "Since we're in a cave-thingy, I imagine the whole roof will come tumbling down!"

Palkia's eyes blazed in anger.

"So, what do you say? Want to see my awesome trick, oh wonderous, amazing brother of mine?"

* * *

 **~Sky Tower~**

"Ah, that sun feels _divine_ on my back. Thanks a ton for inviting me over, Ray. I've had a real headache of a time dealing with this nasty current Kyogre accidentally whipped up."

"The pleasure is mine, Lugia," Rayquaza replied, glancing over to see the giant sea bird reclining against a pair of stone slabs he had pushed together. "You're always a pleasant guest to have around. Everyone else just asks me to summon wind storms or vaporize something in the stratosphere. Makes a guy feel unappreciated, you know?"

"Oh, totally!" Lugia agreed. "You're talking about Blaziken and Swampert, right?" Rayquaza nodded. "Well, at least Team Go-Getters is nice enough to bring food. I can't even go back to the Sea Shrine because this annoying Delphox and Meganium duo keep dropping by and _begging me_ to join their foofy little Expedition Society. They say, 'If the Lati twins did it, why can't you?' Can you believe that?"

Rayquaza smirked. "What's this? Are you changing your tune on Latias? I thought you two had sealed the deal awhile ago." He shook his head disapprovingly. "Honestly, you could've done a lot better than that miserable excuse for a dragon."

"I love Latias from the bottom of my heart," Lugia said. "That doesn't mean I agree with every decision she makes. It makes her happy... so I'm happy. I just wish it didn't come with territory of Pokémon trying to recruit me into a guild." Lugia nonchalantly flicked a wing. "Honestly, what was Cresselia thinking joining the Wigglytuff Guild? Now everyone and their brother thinks they can go out and recruit a Legendary."

"You're not alone, my friend. They've done it to me, too. It's unbelievable. Did it ever occur to these foolish mortals that we choose to live in places like this because we don't _want_ to be disturbed?" Rayquaza mused. "I swear, if I had ten coins for every recruitment request I've gotten since the Dark Matter fiasco I could buy myself a delicious ice cream sundae and still have enough left over for a basket of oran berries."

A sparkling glow washed over the air above the two Legendaries. They immediately looked up and their eyes widened as the sky tore itself open, revealing a multicolored void. Palkia popped out of the void, Giratina firmly tucked underneath his arm.

"W-What the–?" Rayquaza's eyes widened. "You've got some nerve showing up here!"

 **"Special delivery!"** Palkia shouted, before unceremoniously dropping Giratina to the ground. Giratina landed on his head, making his eyes comically tear up. **"No givesies-backsies!"** Palkia immediately disappeared back into the rift he'd opened, which promptly shut behind him.

Lugia and Rayquaza exchanged confused looks, only to frown as Giratina popped up. "Saaaaaaaaay, there's two of you here. I could have twice the audience for my stupenderific trick! Wanna see it? It'll blow your minds." He tapped a wing to his chin. "Well, actually, it won't. But it _will_ make a gigantic blast in the sky. I'll bet they'll even be able to see it way over in Horizon."

He jumped toward Rayquaza. "C'mon, Ray-Ray. You like blowing stuff up, don't you? Help a fellow dragon out, will ya?"

Rayquaza shot Lugia a pleading look. "Don't look at me. You're the one who can Mega Evolve. You fix this," Lugia scoffed. He promptly got to his feet and flew off.

"W-Wait, wait!" Giratina cried, lumbering after Lugia. "If you run away now, you'll miss all the fun!"

Rayquaza promptly rubbed his temples, groaning loudly.

"Hatchlings… I'm surrounded by hatchlings!"

* * *

 **~Island of Isolation~**

"Heeeeeey, Two-y! You up yet? I'm making pancakes!"

A groggy Mewtwo floated out of a cavern, rubbing his eyes. In one hand, he clutched a coffee mug that had "World's Greatest Pokémon" drawn onto it with charcoal. He looked over at the other side of the cave and blinked sleep out of his eyes.

 _I didn't say you could come over, Mew._

"You also didn't say I _couldn't_ come over. So, here I am!" Mew chirped, spinning around with a frying pan levitating in front of him. "Sheesh, you'd think you'd be a bit happier, considering you're getting free pancakes out of the deal."

Mewtwo's brow furrowed. _I don't own any cooking supplies. How are you doing this?_

"It's maaaaaaaaaaagic!" Mew sang, giving Mewtwo enthusiastic jazz hands.

Mewtwo sipped his coffee. His nostrils twitched. _Hang on… is that razz berry I smell?_

"Sure is! I'm baking razz berries into the pancakes. It's a Mystery Jungle specialty, I'll have you know," Mew boasted, flipping the pancake in his frying pan.

It was at that point that Mewtwo caught notice of the sheer number of pancakes stacked on plate beside Mew. _For heaven's sake, how many of those do you plan to make? And where did you get the money to buy so much batter?_

"From Team Gaia, duh," Mew scoffed. "As for the pancakes, they're for our special guest, of course!"

Mewtwo raised a brow, only for his psychic sense to go off. His mug fell to the ground and shattered as he turned to look at Giratina, seated patiently in the back of the cavern. A large napkin hung from his neck.

"Yup! I'm going to need all my strength before I blow you guys away with my fantastic trick!" he cheered.

A vein bulged out of Mewtwo's head. He sped forward and grabbed one of Giratina's wings. The two disappeared in a flicker of light. Moments later, Mewtwo reappeared, arms crossed and a glare on his face. _What were you thinking? We had an agreement. No late-night parties. No singing cheerful musical numbers. No ironic slapstick. And most importantly…_ _ **no Giratina!**_

"Whoopsies, guess it must've slipped my mind," Mew giggled. "Aww, come on, don't give me that look." He levitated the frying pan over to Mewtwo. "Pancake?"

Mewtwo glared at the frying pan, and then grabbed the pancake with his telekinesis. He floated away, nibbling at it. Mewtwo flinched.

 _How are you so good at making these?!_

* * *

 **~?~**

"Phooey!"

A stack of papers smacked a wall and fluttered down harmlessly. An ink well then struck the same wall, leaving a large splatter. Opposite the ink stain, a black crystal slumped down against a table.

"'Do sudoku, Necrozma,' they said. 'It'll make you stop thinking about your headaches,' they said. Bah!" Necrozma shouted. "These puzzles are detestable! They've only made my headaches worse. I hope whatever Pokémon invented these awful things gets tossed into a Guzzlord-infested Ultra Space pocket and eaten alive!"

She looked over her shoulder and noticed Giratina sitting uncomfortably close to her. "Can I help you? I don't want any magazine subscriptions… or cookies… or whatever you're selling."

Giratina's eyes sparkled. "Wanna see a magic trick?"

Necrozma pointed an arm toward an Ultra Wormhole. "Get out."

"But…"

"Get. Out."

Giratina trudged into the Ultra Wormhole, whimpering loudly. Necrozma groaned and rubbed her head. "Where did I put that Soothe Bell?"

* * *

 **~Post Town~**

"I fancy a trip over to the Water Continent, Emolga. Would you care to join me?"

"Heh… d'ya need to ask? Of course, Virizion. I'm always up for an adventure with you."

Virizion looked over her shoulder and smiled at Emolga, who was seated on her back. "That's the spirit! What do you think we should do while we're over there? I've heard there are some rather nice locales to venture through."

"Oh, well, I really wouldn't know. But you always manage to come up with something interesting, so I'm going to defer to you," Emolga said. Virizion's face flushed at this.

"S-Stop it. You're embarrassing me," she whispered.

 _FWOOOOOOOOSH!_

"You complete _idiot!_ "

Virizion gasped and jumped backward as a massive, V-shaped stream of fire erupted out of one of the buildings. Moments later, Giratina scrambled out of the building. He took a sharp left and bounded past Virizion and Emolga. "But… but I didn't even get to do the trick yet!" he whined.

Seconds later, a large ball of fire floated out of the building. "… Victini? Are… are you okay?" Virizion gasped. She immediately backpedaled as a massive stream of fire shot past her. It seared Giratina's backside, causing him squeal and run even faster.

 **"Trash** _ **my**_ **V-Wheeeeeeeel, will you?"** Victini thundered. **"Do you have any idea how long I spent working on that? You're gonna be a smoldering pile of ashes when I'm through with you!"**

Victini's fiery aura flared up even brighter and he shot forward, racing after Giratina. Emolga peered out from behind Virizion's head. "Is… is it safe to come out now?" he whimpered.

"Yes, I think they're gone," Virizion sighed in relief. "Maybe it's best if we postpone any excursions abroad. Otherwise, there may not be a town left standing when we get back."

"Agreed," Emolga said.

* * *

 **~Expedition Society Headquarters~**

"So, that's another 'no' from Zapdos. I guess we'll just try asking him again next week. What do you think, Meganium?"

Meganium looked over at her Delphox teammate and shook her head. "Yeah, I agree. Probably a bit too pushy. Maybe we ought to try for Articuno instead? She seems much more level-headed. And if we show up with her in tow, Zapdos will surely accept our recruitment offer."

 _'Easier said than done, I'm afraid,'_ Meganium sighed.

"You look like you've got a good idea. Mind looping me in?" Delphox asked.

 _KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!_

The entire room rumbled. "Jinkies!" Delphox hollered. "That sounded like it was coming from upstairs!" Meganium was already up on her feet and sprinting over toward the stairs. They both scrambled up to the top floor, only to freeze. "Good gracious. Jirachi, what happened in here?"

Jirachi turned from the smoking pile of metal in the back of the room. "I'm not sure, actually. I had this very _vivid_ dream. Giratina popped in and wanted to show me some sort of trick. Then I got mad and hit him so hard, it sent him into orbit," he explained. "After that, I woke up."

"And you broke the Pokémon Nexus _again?_ " Delphox groaned.

"It was like that when I woke up," Jirachi harrumphed. "It's not broken. It's just ardently begging my genius for a tune-up, that's all!"

Delphox and Meganium faceplanted in disbelief.

* * *

 **~Tree of Life~**

A set of dainty, sword-like legs strode forward toward a set of stumps. "Tea's ready, Celebi!"

Celebi buzzed over and sat on one of the stumps. "What kind of blend did you use today, Xerneas?"

Xerneas set a tray down on the largest of the stumps. "It's a new blend, actually. Meganium suggested it to me. See, you–"

A massive fireball exploded out from the nearby forest, startling both Pokémon. They immediately exchanged nervous looks. Xerneas leaped forward, her multicolored antlers glowing brightly as she prepared to strike.

"… halt! Identify yourself, whatever you are!" she bellowed.

Her attack faded, however, when she noticed a charred, smoking Giratina stumble out of the forest. He looked up into Xerneas' eyes and smiled. "Hey, want to see me blow something up? That tree looks like a pretty good target for my incredible trick!"

Xerneas' eyes flashed with anger. She calmly exhaled. "… Celebi?"

"Yeah?"

"We have a code G-487," Xerneas announced. "We need to execute response plan BY-3."

"Knock him out and send him somewhere else?" Celebi sighed.

"You read my mind."

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Tessa rubbed her eyes, yawning. "Okay, no more high-sugar berry sorbet before bed," she muttered. "Ugh, my aching head." She stumbled out of her room. "Vulpix, where are you? Sorry I overslept. Are we going to do any missions today or not?"

"EYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"

Tessa turned to her left and immediately hit the deck. A fireball soared over her and struck the wall at the end of the hallway, generating a small explosion. She threw a paw up over her snout and started coughing raucously, waving smoke out of the way. "Ungh. W-What the heck's going on around here? Are we under attack?" she wheezed.

When the smoke cleared, she noticed a smoldering-black ball lying on the floor in the middle of the shower area. She looked up and saw a Vulpix-shaped imprint in the wall. Her aura feelers immediately shot up. "V-Vulpix?" She sprinted toward him. "Ohmygosh, what happened to you?" She noticed Growlithe had emerged from his room and was studying Shane's blackened body intently.

Growlithe whistled. "Whoa… that is one _thoroughly_ cooked Vulpix. I didn't know you could roast 'em well-done like this!"

Tessa shot him a look and ran up to him. She rolled him onto his back. "Vulpix? Vulpix! Speak to me! Don't you dare die on me!" She shook him.

"Uuuurgh… I… _hate_ … those… ghosts…" Shane rasped, coughing up a plume of smoke. His tongue lolled out of his mouth and he fell unconscious. Tessa turned around and marched down the hallway toward the assembly room.

"All right, what's going on in he– _eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!_ "

Tessa froze in place. Her eyes drifted up to look at Giratina, who towered above her. Giratina hopped around the room happily, each landing making the ground shake. "Yay! Yay! It worked! It worked! I blew up a Vulpix! Did you guys see it? It was great, right? I can't believe the other Legendaries didn't want me to do this."

"Golly, it sure was quite the sight," Misdreavus said.

"Yup. Absolutely wild!" Drifloon agreed.

Haunter noticed Tessa and his grin widened. "Well, what do you think of Team Specter's newest recruit? He's… a real blast! Mwee hee hee hee hee!"

All of the color promptly drained from Tessa's body. She put a paw up to her forehead and fainted.

"Whoa," Giratina gasped, "Did my trick take Vulpix's colors and give them to Riolu? That's even more stupendous than I was expecting!" He resumed jumping up and down excitedly. "I can't wait to go back and show this to Dialga. He'll be so amazed!"

"… will you… cut out… that infernal racket?"

Giratina look over and spotted Null standing in the southern hallway, brushing his helmet against the wall. He lumbered over to Null. "Hey, cool helmet!" Giratina chirped. "Did you make that yourself?"

Null looked up at the Legendary and gave a heavy sigh. "I don't know."

Giratina tilted his head to the side. "You know, it kind of looks like that thingy daddy wears around his tummy! Can I have one, too?"

"… what?"

"Oh, you don't know my daddy? He created the universe!" Giratina chirped. "I bet he'd be super impressed if I brought him that helmet. Can I take it?"

"… no. It won't… come off…"

"Well, _that_ seems like a serious design flaw," Giratina said. "In that case, I'll just have to sculpt my own helmet out of clay!" He draped a spectral wing over Null. Before Null could protest, he found himself getting hoisted into the air. "C'mon, new best friend. It's arts and crafts time!"

He turned around and dashed off toward the eastern hallway.

"Hooo-wheee, that guy's quite the excitable ghost, huh?" Misdreavus said.

"You bet!" Haunter said. "All the better for a ridiculous Halloween special, wouldn't you say? Happy Halloween, everyone!"

"Oh! Oh!" Giratina's head phased through the wall behind Haunter. "Are we breaking the fourth wall? I want to do that too! What should I say? Um… stay in school. No, no, that's totally lame. How about, 'AH'LL BE BACK?' Ugh, no, that's totally awful. C'mon, dummy this is your big chance, don't blow it. Wait! I've got it! The identity of the Prism Virus is actually–"

 **END**

"N-No, wait! I didn't even get to spoil the ending for everyone. Ugh, this is the worst Halloween ever!"

* * *

This was just a non-canon bonus for Halloween.


	19. A View to a Thrill

**Chapter 17: A View to a Thrill**

 **~Terrace Village~**

"Yo, Millie. You really think it was a good idea to just send Team Radiance off like that?" Serperior wondered. "You saw that human totally freak out. I think that Parasect rattled his cage."

"I'm aware of that," Milotic acknowledged. "But he has Riri and Null with him. He'll be fine. Besides, we've got some unfinished business to take care of." She turned her gaze toward the motel. "Namely, I think our 'client' was holding out on us with Parasect."

"Eh?" Serperior raised an eyebrow.

"It was clearly more than just 'some crazy wild Parasect,'" Milotic explained. "There's no way Zoroark could encounter it and just forget about how _weird_ it looked. So, I want to know why she withheld that information from us."

A smirk wound its way onto Serperior's face. "So, you're saying you don't trust our client anymore?"

"Wipe that smug look off your face," Milotic scolded. "She _was_ telling the truth about her mane, after all."

Team Captivate entered the motel and proceeded up to Zoroark's room. Milotic rapped the door with her tail and Zoroark called out, "Come in." The serpents entered the room. Milotic shifted her tail forward to reveal the missing part of Zoroark's mane. Zoroark's eyes immediately sparkled. "Ah, that's it! You actually found it! Oh, thank heavens," Zoroark cheered. She shakily got to her feet and lumbered over. "I just knew you were the right team for the job."

"Hold on there," Milotic brought the mane close to her torso. "I need you to answer something for me first. Namely, why didn't you tell us more about Parasect?"

"Eh?" Zoroark bit her lower lip. "Um, because it's just a wild Pokémon?"

"I disagree," Milotic said. "In fact, we ran into Parasect on the way back."

Zoroark's face paled. "Y… you did?"

"Yeah, and it was hardly your run-of-the-mill wild Pokémon," Serperior harrumphed. "Parasect could split into multiple copies!"

"So, like Double Team? How is that out of the ordinary?" Zoroark wondered.

"Because it wasn't Double Team. It _literally_ split itself in half. And it was made out of this _disgusting_ black slime!" Serperior said, grimacing.

"We found Parasect attacking some of our fellow guild members," Dragonair added. "We came to their assistance. And when we defeated the Parasect copies, they recombined. But, stranger than that, the life and color _drained_ out of Parasect after we beat them. They're now a colorless husk lying in the middle of the forest."

Zoroark's eyes widened. "Th… that can't be right," she muttered.

"Are you saying you were attacked by a different Parasect?" Milotic asked.

"Err, y-yeah! That's definitely it. I was attacked by an agitated, but normal, Parasect," Zoroark said.

"The stammering and hesitation in your voice suggest you're lying," Dragonair accused.

Zoroark bit her lip. "Well, that's just because, um, y'know, my memory's a bit messed up on account of…" Her voice trailed off and her shoulders sagged. "… okay. You got me."

Milotic frowned. "So, you _were_ lying to us."

"Yeah. That whole getting attacked by a Parasect thing? Never happened. I made it up," Zoroark said. "I just picked a Pokémon at random that I knew lived in the woods. I never would have thought you'd _actually_ run into a Parasect. Especially a super messed-up one like you described."

Serperior narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "And just why would you go about doing something so ridiculous?"

"Because the request I had you girls do was fake," Zoroark reported. She swiped the piece of her mane out of Milotic's grasp. Then she held it up by the bead and squeezed. It shattered, spreading glass fragments along the ground.

"A- _ha!_ I knew this whole thing was a set up," Serperior boasted. She whirled on her teammates with the smuggest look of self-satisfaction she could muster. "And you girls actually thought you could trust a Zoroark."

"Hey, I'm standing right here, you know," Zoroark hissed. "Look, I'm sorry I tricked you. But I needed to test you girls to make surely you knew what you were doing. Because what I _really_ need you for is something much more perilous."

"And why should we help you out when all you've done so far is lie to us?" Milotic asked.

Zoroark slumped over. "Because… it's professional courtesy among explorers, wouldn't you say?" Zoroark stepped back and a soft-blue light rippled across her body. Team Captivate gasped, seeing that Zoroark's mane was whole once more. But beyond that, she had several welts on her form. Her mane was disheveled, her left eye swollen, and her right arm lay in a makeshift splint. Zoroark winced as she pivoted to showcase the satchel at her waist.

Serperior looked at the golden brooch keeping the satchel shut. "Ah! That's a badge from the Expedition Society."

"So, that's what you meant by professional courtesy," Dragonair muttered. "But, look at you. You're in absolutely terrible shape."

"I know," Zoroark said, coughing weakly. She sat back down on her bed. "And that's where the problem comes in."

Team Captivate slithered closer to Zoroark's bed. "I think it's high time you gave us the truth here, Zoroark. Or do we need to have our guild ring up your HQ and tell them you're causing trouble over in Horizon?" Milotic said.

Zoroark's eyes widened. "Wait, please don't do that!" she begged. "Team Gaia and Ampharos don't know I'm here. You can't just tell them. All my planning will have gone to waste."

"Then you'd better start talking," Serperior huffed. "What's your role in the Expedition Society? Why are you over in Horizon if your head honcho didn't authorize it? I doubt you're just taking in the sights."

Zoroark nodded slowly. "Okay, I owe you girls that much, at least. I'm one of Team Gaia's recruits. I'm a… a…" She looked down and rubbed the shoulder of her injured arm.

"Go on," Serperior said.

"… a sleuth," Zoroark muttered. The girls exchanged confused looks. "I travel around to different places and use illusions to blend in with the locals. That way, I can get the lowdown on anything out of the ordinary and report it back to the Expedition Society. After the whole Dark Matter fiasco, Ampharos thought they needed to be more on top of things, see."

"That sounds like a rather _dubious_ way of keeping the peace," Milotic said, expression darkening. "I always thought your guild mates were a rather cheerful bunch."

"It was Team Gaia's idea, actually. Their leader, Delphox, recruited me," Zoroark said. "But I'm getting off-topic. I'm in Horizon because I'm chasing down a lead on an artifact that the Society's archaeologist has taken a vested interest in."

The girls exchanged unconvinced looks. "I'm telling the truth… I swear!" Zoroark said, desperation in her eyes. "Look, you can check in my satchel. It has copies of the notes Mawile had taken on the thing she sent me here after. She picked me because I'm good at blending in with my surroundings. It's that simple."

"Tch, that's so like a Zoroark to say," Serperior scoffed. "Well, you clearly didn't do a good job if you ended up like that."

"Quiet, Serpy," Milotic chided. "And what exactly was so important to Mawile that she didn't want to loop in the Horizon Guild?"

Zoroark winced as she rummaged through her satchel and produced some papers. "Mawile's spent the past several years digging up records on Dark Matter to study. In the process, she claims she found evidence of some sort of anti-Legendary Pokémon plot from ancient times."

"Like a conspiracy?" Serperior wondered. "Just how dense do you think we are, anyway?"

"It's not a joke," Zoroark said, foisting the papers onto Milotic. "She found some notes suggesting that, after Dark Matter's first attack in ancient times, a group of Pokémon strongly believed they could no longer trust Legendaries to look out for them. So, they wanted to set out to create a Pokémon that could protect them from any kind of threat."

"That's completely ridiculous," Serperior snorted. "If you want to make a Pokémon, all you need to do is find a compatible mate, take 'em somewhere romantic, and wait for the sparks to fl– MMPH!"

Dragonair wrapped her tail around Serperior's mouth.

"I'm not talking about mating or conceiving an egg. I'm talking about literally _building_ a Pokémon. Like, out of parts, or something. That way, it could always be controlled by someone else," Zoroark elaborated. "According to Mawile's notes, this group carried out their experiments in Horizon. But something seemed to have gone wrong during the whole thing. There are mentions of things getting buried underground."

Milotic scrunched up her snout. "Buried underground, huh? There is an underground labyrinth in Horizon. It's most prominent underneath Glyphic Falls."

"Yeah, the Nocturnus Catacombs. It's one of the few areas where the landscape isn't reshaped by the Tapus' powers," Serperior recalled. "Wait, don't tell me you actually tried going there? That place is a nightmare if you're not properly prepared."

"I didn't just go there. I made my way pretty far into its depths," Zoroark exclaimed. "But then I got jumped." She looked at her injured arm and winced. "Something attacked me from the shadows and pummeled me like crazy. I'd never felt so many punches and kicks striking me at once. It was like getting hit by ten Close Combats in unison! I just barely managed to grab my Escape Orb and flee back up to the surface before passing out. If I didn't have a Reviver Seed, I might not be here right now. And, well, those things are only so helpful..."

"So, you were ambushed by an unknown assailant," Milotic summarized. "Do you need us to retrieve something of yours, then?"

Zoroark nodded. "Yes. Whoever attacked me stole the one official record Mawile let me take. It had a picture of the artifact I was trying to find. Don't you see? I skipped town to come here. Didn't even tell Ampharos or Team Gaia. If I come back empty-pawed and having lost the record that Mawile found…" She shuddered. "Please. I need you to go into the Catacombs and try to find the Pokémon who stole the page."

"That's a pretty tall order," Dragonair said. "The Catacombs are not very small. We could spend weeks looking and turn up nothing."

"What if I show you the entrance I took to the cavern?" Zoroark offered. "Surely that's a place to start, right?"

Dragonair frowned. "It still doesn't help all that much. You didn't see the Pokémon that attacked you and it's not like there's any way to track the page that was stolen. Apologies, but given you've already lied to us, it's tough to agree to such an unreasonable request."

Zoroark frowned. "I've got 30,000 coin for you if you can provide any help."

Serperior doubled over in a coughing fit. "Well," Milotic muttered, "Our policy _is_ to take all jobs, no questions asked. So, I guess we'll help you out. But you'd better not be tricking us this time."

Zoroark raised her good hand. "I swear, this is really what I need you for."

* * *

 **~Glyphic Falls~**

The roaring of waterfalls and riverbeds echoed through the canyon. Zoroark limped along the base of the waterfall closest to the entrance. A thick haze lay over the area from water smacking the river. Luckily, Dragonair stood beside Zoroark. She continuously spun her tail about, whipping up short whirlwinds to dispel the haze.

"So, you went right up to this waterfall, then?" Milotic asked.

"Yeah. Like you said, I'm not exactly familiar with this place," Zoroark said. "I wanted to take the closest entrance to these tunnels I could."

"Hang on. We've gone through this place a few times and we've never spotted a Catacombs entrance here," Serperior said.

"That's because we were never looking for any entrances," Milotic said. "We just went in, got what we needed for our missions, and left."

"No, duh. Because nobody wants to spend any longer in this place than they have to," Serperior scoffed. As if to emphasize that point, a rocky outcropping beside her erupted with a burst of steam. Serperior yelped and quickened her pace, stealing glances back at the hidden geyser. "Ugh, like I said," she grumbled.

"It's right this way," Zoroark said, approaching a part of the cavernous pathway that seemed to spiral up through the waterfall's interior. She braced herself with her good arm and leaned against the rock wall.

"Do you have any idea how far into the Catacombs you made it?" Milotic asked. "Or, for that matter, where you ended up going while you were down there?"

Zoroark paused to produce a piece of parchment from her mane. "Here, I wrote down each way I went at the different forks down there. Of course, I pulled it from memory. But I'd like to think my memory's pretty reliable."

Serperior gave Milotic an unconvinced look and mouthed, "It's a trap."

Milotic flicked her rainbow tail dismissively. "Is there anything else?"

"Well, yes," Zoroark said. "I did try to mark my way through the Catacombs with my claws." She raised her good arm. "I used x-shaped swipes to signify my trail."

"But it's entirely possible her attacker took steps to remove that tracking," Dragonair pointed out. "In which case, we'd be out of luck."

"Hmm." Milotic twitched her snout. "I suppose we could do some temporary split-ups and scout ahead if we end up uncertain of how to proceed." She turned back to Zoroark. "Again, do you think you remember how far you made it into the Catacombs?"

Zoroark scratched her ear. "Hoo boy, that one might be a bit tougher to answer. It's not like I had any way of really keeping track of time down there. Lemme see…" She squinted her eyes shut and rubbed the bridge of her snout. "Okay, the sun was just about halfway toward its apex when I went down. And after I escaped, it was almost halfway toward setting." She turned back to Milotic. "So, maybe five or six hours?"

Serperior's eyes widened. "Millie, it's already late afternoon. If we head down now, we're going to be there late into the night."

"So? It's not like the time of day really makes a difference down there," Milotic pointed out.

"But I don't want to be stuck down there all night," Serperior groaned.

"Don't we have one of Magearna's timekeepers?" Milotic asked, looking toward Dragonair. To Milotic's delight, Dragonair and pulled a small, cylindrical contraption out of her bag. "Great, so let's set it for six hours. If we can't find anything in that time, then we'll just have to call it quits." She turned back to Zoroark. "Is that okay with you?"

"I suppose so," Zoroark said. She stopped in the middle of the pathway and started running her claws against the wall. "I think the entrance is over here somewhere. Aha!" Her paw glided across an indentation and she pressed down against it. The rocky area trembled and a portion of the wall beside Zoroark folded down.

Milotic slithered beside her and gazed through the opening. "It's a staircase. I guess this must be our route to the Catacombs."

"Yup, it's what I used," Zoroark said. "I really do wish there was more I could do to help, but, well…" she looked down at her injured body.

"We'll take it from here," Milotic said. "You just get back to Terrace Village safely, okay? We'll drop by the motel when we're done."

Zoroark nodded. "Okay then. Good luck, girls." She stepped away from the entrance, allowing Serperior and Dragonair to join their leader. The trio descended the stairs and the dim glow of the caverns quickly faded.

"Now what?" Serperior said.

"We proceed forward," Milotic said. "There should be something lighting up the Catacombs, if the rumors are true."

"And if they aren't?" Serperior huffed.

"Then we'll need to employ some creative liberties," Milotic said. "In the meantime, say on your metaphorical toes. Serperior I want you beside me. Dragonair, you'll be behind us and facing backwards. We'll move as a singular unit through the cavern until we reach any forks."

"Understood," Dragonair said. She shuffled backward to allow Serperior to slither beside Milotic.

"Okay, girls. Slow and steady wins the race here," Milotic said.

* * *

 **~Nocturnus Catacombs, Southeastern Quadrant~**

Their downward trek went faster than expected. Though the girls found themselves fumbling in the dark as the path zig-zagged and a few sharp rocks jutted out to impede their progress. Eventually, however, a soft, purple glow started to filter up the stairs. Milotic's radiant scales once again began sparkling in the dim light.

"Great, looks like we've got a light source," Serperior sighed in relief. "Except your scales turn us into walking targets for any wild Pokémon that happen to linger around the area."

"How about we make an entrance with our Tri-Captivate Technique?" Milotic proposed. "If there are any baddies lingering about, we'll totally catch them by surprise and then we can give them the business. Sound good?"

"I guess so," Serperior said.

"Right, then on my signal." Milotic crouched down. "One, two, three… go!" She sprang forward, with her teammates moving in sync behind her. They sailed down the remainder of the stairs and landed in the middle of a tunnel. All three serpents faced out in separate directions. They proceeded to bat their lashes and radiate small, heart-shaped bits of energy. The energy sailed harmlessly around the cave and struck various walls.

"Area's clear, Milotic," Dragonair reported. Her teammates both relaxed at this, leaving them time to take in their surroundings. The catacomb tunnel was circular in nature. Jagged rocks lined the area, occasionally jutting out into the path. Clusters of crystals also suck out along the tunnel. They came out from the floor, walls, and ceiling. The clusters varied in size and, thus, intensity of the light they gave off.

"Odd," Milotic whispered. "These don't look like any light crystals or Luminous Orbs I've ever seen."

"Could they be ancient light sources?" Dragonair wondered.

"Don't you think they'd have deactivated by now?" Serperior scoffed. "Yo, Millie, which way are we going here?"

"In our direction," Milotic replied, jerking her head down the path. Dragonair, you okay moving backwards? If you get tired, you can switch with one of us."

"I'm good for now," Dragonair reported. She turned around and slithered along backwards while her teammates led her forward through the cavern. "Keep your eyes peeled for any gaps in the lights the crystals make, chief. I think those might be some good hiding spots for wild Pokémon."

"Roger that," Milotic said. "There aren't any real areas of darkness up ahead, but there are certainly dimmer spots."

 _Click!_

Milotic felt herself pass over a switch in the rocks. Serperior and Dragonair bolted away from her. She craned her head up and steaming-hot water gushed out of her mouth. The attack blew the shards of rock that had dislodged from the ceiling into bits. Milotic held her tail up to shield her face from the shower of debris and water droplets.

"A Stealth Rock trap," Milotic muttered. "Looks like we're in for a rough trek, ladies."

"I'm surprised Zoroark didn't trigger it. It's right in the middle of the path," Dragonair mused. "We have three see-trap orbs. I'm not sure how far into this tunnel the effects of one will carry. But it couldn't hurt to try deploying an orb, right?"

"Let's hold off on that until we're deeper into the cavern," Milotic said. "The paths may get more convoluted and trap-riddled, for all we kn–"

 _Click!_

"Are you kidding me? Come on!" Milotic groaned, before the ground around her spewed a mud geyser. Dragonair and Serperior shielded their eyes until they were certain it was safe to turn back. Milotic still stood in place, only now her body was caked in a layer of damp, brown mud.

"Well, now you certainly look the part of the grizzled explorer," Serperior giggled.

"Wipe that smirk off your face before I do it for you," Milotic growled, rubbing mud from her eyes with her tail. "That was just a stroke of bad luck, that's all."

"Or maybe it's bad karma for dragging me out here like this when I said I didn't want to come?" Serperior proposed, her smirk growing. Milotic responded to this by running her tail across her body and flinging a stream of mud at Serperior. "Augh! Hey!" Serperior groaned, raising her tail to shield her face. "Lighten up, Millie. I was just messing with you."

"Ladies, settle down," Dragonair chided. "We've got bigger problems to concern ourselves with than a little grime."

"Does this _look_ like a little grime?" Milotic hissed. "Ugh, I can feel it under my scales!"

"Easy there, chief. Deep breaths. You can always clean yourself off after the mission," Dragonair coaxed. Milotic's face was probably beet red with anger, but there was no way to tell with all the mud in the way. "Instead, can we focus on the mud trap you triggered? Or, rather, what's left of it?" She scooped up a piece of the broken trap and held it up. "Check it out. This trap is brand new. Someone lay it here quite recently."

Serperior squinted her eyes. "How can you even tell?"

"There's absolutely no wear and tear on any of these pieces of debris," Dragonair explained. "And barely any dust or sediment. A trap that's been here awhile would have plenty of dirt sinking into it."

"I guess that means someone's trying to deter visitors," Serperior concluded. "I _told_ you two that Zoroark was bad news. She probably set these traps to either do us in or soften us up for whatever outlaws she convinced to hide down here and lie in wait for us. This whole thing _reeks_ of a set-up."

"You think she's faking those injuries of hers, too? Those seemed pretty real to me," Milotic countered.

"That's just because you're a softie," Serperior scoffed. "I've been suspicious of this mission from the get-go. All of this is just confirming my thoughts."

"Okay then. Suppose you _are_ right about this whole thing being a giant trap," Milotic exclaimed. "Then aren't you just the slightest bit curious about what the heck Zoroark is up to down here?"

"Do you think she's related to that anti-Legendary conspiracy she mentioned? Say, perhaps, a distant descendant of one of the Pokémon involved?" Dragonair proposed.

"But then why would she go through the trouble to bring us here? It's not like we know anything about it," Serperior argued. "She'd have dragged us into this for no good reason."

"Exactly," Milotic cut in. "An outlaw wouldn't try to trick a veteran explorer team for 'no good reason.' So, whether this is a trap or not, Zoroark must have something in mind for us. And I intend to find out just what that is."

"Lead the way then, chief," Serperior offered. "At least I can get a kick out of seeing you trigger all these tra– HEY!"

Several globs of mud pelted Serperior's body.

"That's enough of that talk," Milotic harrumphed. "Dragonair, do we have a trap proof emera in our possession?"

"Um, let me take a look," Dragonair said, fumbling through the item pouch. "Oh, hey, we do have an unused one. I'm guessing you want this?" She produced the teardrop-shaped gem and handed it to Milotic. Milotic rubbed the base of her tail off to expose her looplet and placed the emera inside the only open slot. It shimmered to life and made her looplet momentarily flash green.

"Excellent," Milotic said. "Let's switch the formation to a line. I'll lead and you two can switch places behind me as needed."

"No objections here," Serperior said.

Milotic led Team Captivate along the tunnel. She used her long, serpentine body to help guide her teammates forward. They followed her path perfectly, so as not to trigger any wayward traps. Milotic ended up running into several more traps, but the emera's effects caused them to fizzle out harmlessly. Dragonair inspected several of them and, each time, confirmed they were freshly-placed.

Along the way, the team even encountered some of the claw markings Zoroark had told them about. "Okay, so she wasn't lying about that part. But I still think she's rotten," Serperior said while the team approached a marking telling them to turn right and proceed down a new corridor.

They weaved their way along the path Zoroark dictated. All the while, Magearna's timer continued to tick away. The team paused for a couple of breaks to restore their bellies with their supply of apples. But despite their long trek, not a single wild Pokémon appeared to challenge them. In fact, they heard no signs of any wild Pokémon along their path.

"Don't you girls find it suspicious there are no wild Pokémon around here?" Serperior asked. "From the way Braviary and the Guildmaster talked about this place, I was expecting a Monster House every thirty paces or so."

"Are you trying to jinx us, Serpy?" Milotic groaned.

"Hey, we're all thinking it," Serperior said. "I was just the one to actually bring it up."

"I wonder if the lighting has something to do with it?" Dragonair thought.

"What d'ya mean, Airy?" Serperior asked.

Dragonair paused next to one of the clusters of light crystals. "Well, we all thought these seemed like a strange light source. And to make matters weirder, these crystal clusters have somehow grown _larger_ the farther we've progressed into the Catacombs. I would've expected our light sources to get smaller. We _are_ pretty far underground by now."

"I can't think of any sort of explanation for this," Serperior said, eyeing one of the crystal clusters. "I guess it's just one of those 'the Tapus work in strange, mysterious ways,' moments."

"Perhaps," Dragonair said. "Or, maybe, these aren't a natural light source." Her teammates stiffened at this. "These crystals could have been planted down here and cultivated."

"… you certainly have quite the head on your shoulders there, luv. Working that tidbit out with naught but a hunch to go off of."

Serperior whirled around. "Who said that? Show yourself!"

"Ease up, there. I'm not looking for trouble," the soft, male voice replied. Serperior turned around and fired a spiraling tornado of leaves behind her. They sailed harmlessly along the tunnel, pinging off the light crystals.

"Whoa-ho-ho. You're quite the hothead. I've heard of sweeping a gent off his feet, but that takes it to a new level."

Milotic gasped and slithered back from a cluster of purple, ectoplasmic wisps gathering into a puddle in front of her. The wisps extended upward, taking the form of a small, gray, blob-like Pokémon. He had two arms, two legs, a puffy, cloud-like collar around its neck, a helmet-like cranium bearing a trio of horns, and red eyes with beady, yellow pupils.

Dragonair appeared by Milotic's side, the team's petrify wand curled up in her tail. She kept it hidden behind Milotic, ready to strike. "And just who or _what_ are you supposed to be?" Milotic asked.

"Oh my. Where are my manners? Ever so sorry, luv. The name's Marshadow." Marshadow extended his right arm and slowly bowed. "Charmed to make your acquaintances."

"And what would a 'mon like you be doing crawling around a place like this?" Serperior barked from the back of the group.

"I could ask you the same question, luv," Marshadow chuckled. "The pouch around Dragonair suggests you're not Catacomb-dwellers." Dragonair reflexively swiveled her bag back to hide it. "Not to mention I'd recognize a Horizon Exploration Badge anywhere."

Milotic raised her tail to block off her badge and looplet. "Are you a guild associate? If not, then we have nothing to say to the likes of you."

"In a manner of speaking, I am," Marshadow replied.

"Fat chance!" Serperior spat. "I've never heard of any Marshadow before."

Marshadow smirked. "I should hope not. I'm one of a kind, after all. And I've got a certain reputation to uphold. Wouldn't do me much good if folks knew exactly what I looked like."

"You're not doing much to sell yourself as trustworthy there, _buddy,_ " Milotic muttered.

"Touché, luv. But then, neither are you. Here I thought you guild folk were all friendly types," Marshadow mused. "Then again, word around the shadows is there's been one heck of a regime-change lately. Shame to hear Incineroar bit the big one. He was a such a kind soul. Maybe a bit too kind."

Marshadow suddenly jolted stiff. His face scrunched up and his legs smacked together. Dragonair unfurled her tail, revealing the activated petrify wand. "What should we do with him, chief?"

"We've got to take him with us, I think," Milotic said. "If he can melt into and out of the ground he might be able to catch up to us pretty quickly."

"Um, you know I can still hear you, luv. And talk, for that matter," Marshadow muttered. Sweat droplets popped up on Team Captivate's heads. "Listen. Maybe we didn't exactly get off on the right foot, here. You're quite clearly the no-nonsense types. A gent of my caliber can appreciate that kind of professionalism when it comes to exploring."

"So, you're an explorer then?" Milotic asked. "Who are you affiliated with?"

"No one," Marshadow replied. "I'm what you might call a 'private contractor.'" Team Captivate narrowed their eyes at Marshadow. "Oh, come now. No need for the suspicious glares. I'm just not much of a team player. Plus, I can keep one hundred percent of the profits from every job I pull. Can't blame a gent for wanting a bit of independence, eh?"

Team Captivate encircled Marshadow. "Look, cut me a bit of slack, luvs. Let's just say I tend to take sketchier jobs that an established group turns down. When Pokémon are really desperate, they turn to me." Marshadow shakily got to his feet, dusting himself off. "It's not noble and I'm hardly proud of it. But a gent needs to make a living."

"… fine," Milotic said. She smacked him with her tail, freeing him from the petrify wand's effects. "Now tell us what brings you down here."

"Uh, uh, uh," Marshadow wagged a finger. "Information doesn't come cheap, luv. How's about a little mutual exchange first?"

Milotic rolled her eyes. "I'm Milotic. These are my teammates, Serperior and Dragonair. We're a veteran-rank exploration team with the Horizon Guild here on an assignment we personally received."

"What's your team name, then?" Marshadow asked.

Milotic's lips pursed. A gesture that no one caught with mud still coating her face. "We're Team Charm," Milotic lied. Dragonair and Serperior didn't question the lie in any way.

"A fitting name for a trio of beautiful faces," Marshadow exclaimed.

"Answer my question," Milotic instructed.

"Wow, there's just no fazing you, eh?" Marshadow let out a laugh. "Very well then. Personal reasons brought me here. Heard rumors that there's something peculiar lying around this quadrant of the Catacombs. Some sort of remnant of a sinister plot from ancient times. Pokémon trying to play Creator and all that jazz." Marshadow stretched out his back. "But it's been slow going what with all the traps some brute laid out. I keep shadow-melding to try and skirt them but that eats up my strength pretty quickly. Hence how you three caught up to me."

 _'So, other Pokémon know about this conspiracy too,'_ Milotic thought. "Well, I'm afraid our reason's not quite so intriguing. But maybe we can help each other out. You look like you know your way around here pretty well. I've got a trap proof emera equipped right now. I can clear traps out of the way if you're willing to provide us with a little extra muscle while we search for our objective."

"Hmm, I'd rather not stray too far from my own mission, luv," Marshadow said.

"But we're already heading in the same direction," Milotic pointed out.

Marshadow crossed his arms and tapped a foot. "Just try not to slow me down. Time is money, after all."

"Ha! Same to you, buddy," Milotic laughed as she slithered past Marshadow. Dragonair and Serperior hung back.

"You go first, Airy," Serperior said. "I don't like that guy and I want to stay as far away from him as possible." And with that, the trio resumed their trek with Marshadow in tow.

Milotic glanced back at Marshadow. _'Best way to make sure he doesn't try any funny business is to keep him talking,'_ she figured. "So, Marshadow, what did you mean earlier when you said Dragonair was on the right track about these crystals?"

"Oh, just that they're _not_ natural," Marshadow said. "I've got a hunch that they're actually emera ores."

"These massive things are emeras?" Serperior gawked. She glanced down at her looplet and shook her head. "You've got to be joking."

"I did say it was a hunch, luv," Marshadow chuckled. "No way for me to say for certain. And if they are, they're certainly not like the emeras we know of. You make those little trinkets by gathering up stardust, yes?"

"Yeah," Milotic said. "What, so there are different origins for emeras or something?"

"That's where the mystery comes in," Marshadow said. "And there's no sense of wonder to be had if I just tell you. It'll be more fun if you find out for your– woomf!"

Dragonair smacked Marshadow's back with a glowing tail. He stumbled forward.

"Okay, okay, you made your point, luv," Marshadow grumbled. "I've heard rumors that back in ancient times, emera ores were a source of energy used to power all manner of things. Simple as that."

"It sounds to me like you're leaving out details," Milotic huffed. "For starters, where did these things even come from? Giant energy crystals don't just magically pop out of the ground."

"You're sharp as a spike trap," Marshadow chuckled. "But all I have to go on are educated guesses."

"Well, if they're from ancient times, could they be related to the battles between the three Super-Ancient Pokémon?" Dragonair wondered.

"That was my thought, luv," Marshadow said. "After all, they were venting off massive amounts of energy. Some of it must've gotten trapped and crystallized. And thus, we have emera ores."

Milotic pursed her lips. "I'm not sure I like that idea very much. Using captured primal energy all willy-nilly? That could have disastrous consequences." She looked around. "And there sure are an awful lot of these ores."

Marshadow smirked. "As I said, it's quite the enigma. Why do you think I came down here? It's utterly fascinating. If there was something suspicious going on in ancient times, odds are pretty good these emera ores could've been involved."

"Bah, that sounds like a bunch of superstitious nonsense," Serperior scoffed. "Pokémon always look out for each other. It's been that way as far back as anyone can remember. Why do you think rescue teams and exploration guilds formed up?"

Milotic tensed up. "Um, girls? There's something awfully bright up ahead."

Marshadow whistled. "I'll say. Seems like we've stumbled onto something." He glanced at Milotic. "You gonna check it out, luv? Or is this where I bid you adieu?"

Milotic sped forward, deactivating a trio of traps in the process. The others followed along after her, though Serperior continued to lag back. All the while, the bright light grew steadily closer. Eventually, Milotic froze at a point where the tunnel opened up.

"Tapus preserve us," she whispered. "What _is_ this place?"

Marshadow peered out from behind her. They had found a circular chamber, littered with emeras ores extending up to the ceiling. The rocky ground had given way to smoother patches of stone. Only there were numerous jagged cracks running through them.

But Marshadow's attention immediately snapped to the other side of the room. There, in the shadow of two large emera ores, sat a giant, crystal lattice structure. Unlike the emera ores, it was dull-gray in color. Not only that, it had been shattered. Crystal shards lay strewn across the stone floor, twinkling in the purple light. At the top of the lattice's remnants, the group could barely make out a strange symbol: a winged heart, with demonic horns sticking out of the top and a piercing eye sitting in the center.

"This," Marshadow said, "is exactly what I was looking for."

* * *

Next time: Team Captivate and Marshadow go a bit crystal crazy.


	20. Crystals Are Forever

**Chapter 18: Crystals Are Forever**

Milotic slowly slithered into the room, craning her neck up. Unlike the tunnels, the ceiling in this room was so high she couldn't properly see it. Emera ores stretched up to the point where they became purple spots in the distance.

"Do you suppose this was some sort of emera reserve?" Milotic wondered.

"Wouldn't know, luv," Marshadow replied, striding toward the shattered crystal on the far side of the room. "Frankly, I'm amazed this many could gather in one location."

"Maybe that's the big conspiracy you're chasing after," Milotic thought aloud. "A group of Pokémon started stockpiling emera ores. Or perhaps they learned how to grow their own ores instead? And other Pokémon didn't like that, so they attacked and somehow the stockpile ended up underground."

Over by the entrance, Serperior and Dragonair exchanged looks that showed they'd reached the same conclusion: Milotic was playing dumb to keep Marshadow from getting suspicious. After all, they didn't need him suddenly turning on them.

"Don't you want to look inside?" Dragonair asked.

"Nah, I'm good here," Serperior answered. She remained in the entrance while Dragonair slithered toward one of the nearby ores to get a better look at it. She glanced over at the ground and managed to find a pebble. Wrapping it up in her tail, she gently tossed it against the giant gemstone. A bright flash of purple light burst forth from the ore, sending Dragonair into a hasty retreat.

"Okay, that was a bad idea," she concluded.

"I'll say it was, luv. You trying to get us blasted to bits?" Marshadow sneered. "These puppies are stuff with massive amounts of energy. Set one off, you could very well start a chain reaction that could make this part of the Catacombs crumble."

Dragonair gulped. "I hadn't considered that." She coiled herself up, bringing her tail close to her body.

Satisfied her teammate was safe, Milotic turned back to Marshadow. He had knelt beside the gray crystal and was currently examining one of the shards. "This is quite interesting," he muttered. "I've never felt anything quite like this."

Her curiosity aroused, Milotic reached out and ran her tail across a nearby crystal shard. She raised a brow. "This is so weird. It's almost like I'm touching water. But the crystal's completely solid." She picked up the shard and brought it up toward her face. "I can't explain how something like this might happen."

"An ice-type move getting used on a body of water?" Serperior heckled from across the room.

"Does this look like a glacier to you?" Marshadow scoffed. "If it was, we'd be freezing our faces off." Milotic gave him an annoyed look. "What? It's pretty much the only thing we've got in common," he said, throwing in a laugh for good measure.

Milotic rolled her eyes. "So, if this isn't a glacier, maybe it's some kind of remnant from an attack?" she proposed, approaching the remains of the large crystal. It was tough to look at the lattice squarely with all the purple light bouncing off it. Milotic instead stuck her tail up. The rainbow light flickered onto the walls.

"Now's not the time for shadow puppets," Marshadow criticized.

"I'm not goofing off," Milotic said, running her tail across the crystal. "I'm examining this thing. And there's a pretty sizeable impression in the middle of it."

Marshadow crosses his arms. "I should think so, luv. It _did_ break, after all."

"No, that's…" Milotic cut herself off. "Ugh, how do I explain this? I think this crystal was hollow on the inside. It has a rounded basin."

Dragonair looked over in surprise. "You're kidding. All these emera ores are completely solid. So, why the difference?"

Marshadow walked up beside Milotic and put a hand inside of the crystal. "I think you're right, luv. This is far too smooth to have come from this thing breaking." He traced his hand along the outline. It didn't follow the edges of the crystal. Rather, his hand initially curved outward, only to move back toward the center. At which point, he moved his hand up toward the top of the crystal.

"I may be off the mark, here," Milotic said, "but I think something was inside this crystal."

"That's an amateur opinion. It wasn't a something, it was a some _one,_ " Marshadow claimed.

"You know what I meant," Milotic huffed. "But then, does that mean this big conspiracy you're investigating involves some sort of Pokémon?"

"Sorry, luv, that's a piece of information I'm keeping a tight hold on," Marshadow said.

 _'Which means it totally does. So, did Zoroark tell this guy about the conspiracy? Or did he find out on his own?'_ Milotic thought. But she put on a frown in order to maintain her façade. "Aww, you're no fun," she whined.

"I can be plenty fun in the right situations. This just isn't one of them," Marshadow quipped, winking at Milotic.

"Hey, there are a couple of small crystal clusters next to the broken one. They're grayed out too," Dragonair announced, standing in a corner of the room and looking toward her teammate. Milotic stretched her kneck out and found one of the clusters Dragonair referred to.

"These look like emera ores," Milotic observed. "So, I guess they don't have unlimited energy. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing."

"Forget the energy amounts," Marshadow dismissed. "There are a bunch of cords shooting out from the ores to the big crystal." He knelt down and ran his hand across a small, circular band in the floor. "And the cords feel exactly like the broken crystal. I think we can safely conclude these emera ores were _powering_ this big thing."

"And then they ran out of energy and the crystal just shattered?" Milotic said. "How very strange."

"Try looking at it from another angle, luv," Marshadow said. "We think there was someone sealed inside, right? So, when the ores ran out of power, the sealed creature could've woken up and busted its way out."

"But then whoever or whatever was inside would start rampaging around the Catacombs," Serperior stated. "Don't you think we'd have heard about something like that?"

"Who's to say when exactly this all happened?" Marshadow asked, shrugging. "For all we know, it could've been decades ago."

"I think I may have found something that could help us answer that," Dragonair cut in. "Behind this crystal, there's something written on the wall." She beckoned Milotic toward her with her tail. Milotic weaved her way around the crystal and accompany emera ores, with Marshadow tagging along behind her. They found Dragonair looking at a stretch of stone wall.

"Yeah, it sure looks like something was carved in there," Milotic said. "But, I don't think I recognize those symbols. They don't resemble any footprint writing I've ever seen."

"That's because your guess is a bit off the mark there, luv," Marshadow said. "This is the Unown language. I'd recognize it anywhere."

"The Unown language?" Milotic parroted. "Hang on, isn't that just the species of Pokémon with a bunch of different symbols around an ey–" Her eyes widened. "Oooooooooooh, duh. I see what you're getting at."

"I'm afraid none of us know anything about reading Unown," Dragonair said.

"No worries. That's where I can step in," Marshadow offered. "You've helped me piece a bit of this whole mystery together, so it's the least I can do. May I?" Dragonair moved next to Milotic, allowing Marshadow to approach the writing. He knelt down and stared intently at the wall, sweeping his head back and forth.

"Good gracious," he muttered. "This is… very unexpected."

"Hey now, it's not nice to keep a pair of lovely ladies in the dark, you know," Milotic chided. "What's it say?"

Marshadow smirked. "A little patience goes a long way, luv. I just wanted to make sure what I was reading made sense. Listen to this…"

 _Sealed within this crystal is a terrifying monster that should never be allowed to see the light of day. My team tried to create a Pokémon that could protect us from any manner of danger. We wanted a controllable creature that could adapt to fend off enemies, including Legendary Pokémon. But we have failed. Our creation immediately turned on us, slaughtering my colleagues before I could subdue it. Hence, I have used magic from my emera ore stockpile to form the crystal imprisoning it._

 _I have tethered as many emera ores as I could manage to the crystal. But I fear the effort may not be enough. This failed experiment must remain sealed. I have left this message here so that the Pokémon who discover this place in the future can connect more emera ores to the crystal and keep our creation imprisoned._

 _If, by some chance, you have discovered this message and find the large crystal behind you is broken, then my creation has escaped. In which case, you must be on guard for a Pokémon with a large, stone helmet covering its entire face. If you cannot outright destroy the creature, then you must either subdue it or flee before it can attack you. Though the helmet I forcibly melded to the experiment is meant to subdue its aggression, there's no guarantee it won't display hostility._

 _I imagine reading this will make you angry. Just understand that I was doing what I thought was best for the future of our world. My only regret is that my team made mistakes with this experiment. Hopefully, our second attempt will prove more successful._

"… and there you have it." Marshadow stood up and massaged his throat. "Quite a mouthful, eh, luv? Though, I'm not quite sure what to make of the symbol at the bottom."

"The winged heart?" Milotic asked, following Marshadow's gaze. "Yeah, it's kind of strange. It's got horns poking out of the top and... is that an eye in the middle? It looks rather ominous. Just what do you suppose was going on down here?"

"Can't say for certain, luv," Marshadow replied. He knelt down to continue examining the glyph.

Dragonair and Milotic proceeded to slither a fair distance back from Marshadow. They exchanged panic-stricken looks. "A Pokémon wearing a large, stone helmet over its face? We have one of those in the guild," Milotic whispered.

"Yeah, that Null fellow," Dragonair whispered back. "Didn't Braviary say our guild mates found him in Glyphic Falls?"

Milotic's eyes widened. "If that's the case, then he's probably the Pokémon that's written about here. Which means we've let a monster into the guild!" Her jaw stiffened. "And he's running around with Riri and that Vulpix!"

"Are you okay?" Marshadow called. "You look like you've seen a ghost." He smirked. "Well, you _have_ seen a ghost. But I'm talking a less-handsome, not nearly as dashing ghost as me. Aha ha ha."

"Err… nothing! We're totally fine," Milotic lied. She then spun around and whispered, "We need to do something about this. Those kids could be in danger."

"If our Gear-Com works down here, I could ring up the group in Sunset Shoals and tell them about what we've found," Dragonair suggested. "But if we try using it in front of Marshadow, then we're gonna tip him off that something's wrong."

"Then we just need to excuse ourselves for a little bit. Or maybe have Serperior d–"

"Hey, check it out! What's a looplet doing sitting around down here?"

At once, everyone's heads turned toward the entrance of the room. Serperior stood tucked between several emera ores. A silver band dangled from the tip of her tail. "Ah well, I ain't gonna complain about finding some treasure."

Milotic and Dragonair approached their teammate. The former raised an eyebrow as she got a better view of Serperior's discovery. "Err, that sure doesn't look like any looplet I've ever seen. There aren't any slots for emeras in it. That would make it totally worthless."

Serperior hoisted her tail up. "Huh. You're right. I just saw a band and thought, 'looplet.' Maybe this is, like, an early looplet prototype or something? In which case, this is an important bit of history I just stumbled across."

"Actually, there is a curious part of this band," Dragonair spoke up. "Look here in the center. There's some kind of golden wheel surrounding a gemstone."

Serperior gave the band a closer look. There was a cross-shaped pattern running through the middle of the wheel. Each corner also held tiny gemstones. "Would you look at that?" Serperior whistled, eyes sparkling. "I've obviously scooped up something big!"

Marshadow tensed up. "Golden wheel with a cross-shaped pattern?" He took a cautious step forward. "Mind if I take a look, luv? I think I may have heard about what you're describing."

"Um, I don't think it has anything to do with this room," Milotic declared. "From the looks of it, it must've tumbled in here from the tunnels we passed through."

"Come now. Just a quick glance and then I'll give it back."

Serperior backed away toward the room's entrance. "No way. I'm invoking my self-proclaimed first law of dungeon exploration: 'finders, keepers, losers, weepers.'" She stuck her tongue out at Marshadow.

"I thought your first law of dungeon exploration was 'don't get knocked out, dummy,'" Dragonair mused.

"Eh heh heh, let's not bring that up," Serperior dismissed with a nervous laugh. "Anyhow, are we just about done here? Because we should probably be getting a move on."

Unbeknownst to Team Captivate, the red wisps sitting atop Marshadow's eyes extended in length. "Yeah, I'd say that just about wraps things up here." He took a step back behind the shattered crystal and melted into the ground.

"Great. Here, Dragonair. Why don't you hold onto this until we've exited the dungeon," Serperior suggested, handing her newly-discovered treasure over to her teammate.

But before she could complete the handoff a massive black shadow overtook her, muffling the terrified screech that followed. "Serpy!" Milotic gasped. She opened her mouth and spewed scalding water. However, the shadows had retreated before her attack struck, leaving a dazed and scuffed-up Serperior to get blasted.

"Gluuugh! H-Hey! Watch where you're aiming," Serperior moaned.

Dragonair started scanning the ground, looking for any signs of what hit her teammate. "It has to be Marshadow," she concluded. "I don't see him anywh–"

Another shadow completely enveloped Dragonair, who yowled in surprise. Milotic whirled around only to find herself staring at a pair of large, beady, yellow eyes in the midst of the shadow. Before she could even start to form an attack, the shadows retreated. Milotic lunged toward the ground by her friend, only to find her progress halted. She gasped in surprise.

"What the–? What's pinning me down?" she wondered, turning toward her tail. Her eyes went wide when she saw that her tail had inexplicably gotten tangled up into a knot. And within it, she made out the ends of both of her teammates' tails. "How the heck did this happen?"

A loud sigh echoed through the room. "And here I was hoping we could part on friendly terms, luv."

Milotic turned toward the center of the room as best she could. There, Marshadow rose up from a puddle of ectoplasm. In one hand he clutched the band Serperior found. And in the other, he held Team Captivate's item pouch. Not only that, the wisps on the ends of his helmet-like head and palms had flared to life. They now glowed bright green.

"Hey, what's the big idea attacking us while our backs were turned?" Milotic hissed. "You said you weren't here to collect any treasure."

"Yeah, I lied," Marshadow said with a shrug. "Again, sorry to deceive you. You seem like a fine bunch of ladies. But, well, this band is precisely what I wanted to find down here. And I wasn't about to let you waltz off with it."

"So, he's a no-good thief. I knew it! I knew we couldn't trust him," Serperior declared.

"Save the I told you so routine for another time," Dragonair sighed. "Assuming we even get out of this messy business."

"No-good? Because I lied to you? That's rather hypocritical of you, luv," Marshadow scoffed. "Seriously, Team Charm? _That_ was the best pseudonym you could come up with under duress? You're the worst looking Medicham, Gardevoir, and Lopunny trio I've seen in my lifetime. And I've been around longer than I'd care to admit."

Milotic bit her lip. "Th-There's an actual Team Charm?"

Marshadow smirked. "Of course you wouldn't know about them. Unlike you lot, I'm rather well-travelled. Clients expect nothing less from the elite globe-trotting thief, Marshadow!" He thrust one arm to the side in a pose. "I'm the master of mischief... and the maker of misfortune for exploration teams from Aeon Town to Pokémon Square and beyond! I never fail to make off with my prize!"

"Well, I think I've showed off long enough," he said, chuckling. "I can see you three are a bit _tied up_ at the moment–"

"You _rotten little outlaw!_ " Serperior snarled and lunged for Marshadow. In the process, both Milotic and Dragonair lurched forward. Their faces struck the stone floor and their combined weight stopped Serperior well short of Marshadow. She fell to the ground in front of him. Her mouth opened and crackling blue bolts started to gather up in it.

"Ah, ah, ah," Marshadow taunted, wagging a finger at her. "If you try that, I'll just duck into the shadows. Then your attack will hit an emera ore and, well, that could make things _really_ messy for you lot."

"Keep your temper in check, Serperior," Dragonair said, trying to get back up. She struggled without the balance provided by her tail.

"Your friend's got the right idea, luv," Marshadow laughed. "Besides, you've got much more pressing matters you need to deal with." He rummaged through the team's pouch and tossed two apples and two oran berries onto the floor.

"Hey, those are our items. Stop that!" Serperior hissed.

"If you insist," Marshadow teased. He reached inside his collar and produced a small, square-shaped tile. "I'll give them back to you. They just won't be _quite_ as good as you'd like them to be."

Milotic's eyes widened. "That's a trap tile!" She glared at Marshadow. "So, that was _you_ setting all those up in the Catacombs?"

"Ah, what can I say? You got me there, luv," Marshadow chuckled. He threw the tile to the ground and stepped on it.

 _Click!_

The four items Marshadow tossed to the ground started to tremble. Serperior tried shrinking back, only to get tripped up by her teammates. "You… you have a Pokémon trap?" she gasped.

"Correction: I _had_ a Pokémon trap. I'm afraid it's your problem now, luvs," Marshadow chuckled. He started walking toward the room's entrance. "But, since I'm a sporting gent, I'll at least do you girls a favor and activate this wonderful Monster House seal I've got on me. That way, you don't accidentally blow yourselves up. Consider it a parting gift!"

Marshadow turned and touched the wall, revealing a hidden switch. A circular wall of bright, red light surrounded the room, leaving Marshadow standing on the outside. He smirked and blew a kiss toward Team Captivate. "Well now, I must be on my way. It was lovely meeting you three. Take care. Aha ha ha!"

He retreated into the shadows. "Grr… why that little creep," Serperior seethed. "How _dare_ he do that to us!"

"Save the anger, Serpy. We've got bigger problems on our hands here," Milotic declared, poking her head out to look at the trembling items. White light overtook all of them, and the items immediately started expanding in size, forming up into four mineral-filled Pokémon.

Dragonair frowned. "Archeops, Klefki, Carbink, and Probopass. Talk about a rocky match-up."

Serperior glared at her teammate. "And you were harassing _me_ for not acting appropriately? That's about as bad as one of Haunter's jokes," she growled.

The four wild Pokémon immediately became aware of their surroundings. Their eyes fell onto Team Captivate. "Both of you be quiet and listen to me," Milotic hissed in a whisper. "We've got no way out of this situation so we have to make the most of it. Klefki and Archeops could be big problems, so leave them to me. Serperior, you take Carbink. Draw it toward you with Leech Seed. Dragonair, you're gonna have to keep Probopass busy somehow. Waterfall isn't an option, so get creative."

"But how are we gonna move, chief?" Serperior asked.

"We won't. Stand your ground. Spread out so we don't get in each other's ways," Milotic said. "If you lose one of your targets or an attack is veering toward your teammates, then say something. Got it?"

She opened her mouth and sent boiling-hot water gushing toward Archeops. He hovered higher to avoid the attack, screeching angrily. At the same time, Serperior spat a large green seed between Carbink and Klefki. This forced Kelfki closer to Milotic, while Carbink barely skirted the attack. It ended up opposite Serperior.

Dragonair likewise unleashed a stream of blue-purple dragonfire on Probopass. It was not nearly as quick as its fellow wild Pokémon, and the dragonfire washed over it. This gave Dragonair an opening to whip up a sudden twister. It proved just strong enough to grab the levitating Probopass and hurl it in away from the other wild Pokémon.

"Nice work, Airy!" Milotic shouted, inching forward to put more space between her and her teammates. As she did, Klefki floated forward, releasing waves of static electricity in Milotic's direction. Milotic extended her head, letting the electricity strike her. It crackled around her body, making her muscles twitch erratically.

"Millie, are you nuts?" Serperior gasped, ducking a set of fossilized rocks hurled at her by Carbink. "We need you at your fighting best!"

"I know. That's why I'm triggering Marvel Scale now," Milotic said. "I've got far more defense this way. Plus, I can use Recover to make up for items getting stolen." She pivoted, flinching from the paralysis, but managed to send a short burst of ice up toward Archeops. He easily dove under the attack and darted toward her with a sudden burst of speed. Klefki floated behind Archeops and, gathering bright-pink energy in its ring.

Milotic allowed Archeops to barrel into her and unleash a flurry of acrobatic strikes with its beak and talons. She grimaced from the pain and momentarily seized up while Archeops backed away from her. But he was still in close range when Milotic regained her movement. She released a torrent of scalding water that swallowed Archeops up, blowing him back. Archeops smacked into Klefki, who lost concentration and dropped the fairy energy it was gathering onto Archeops' back.

Archeops crashed to the ground, flopping about like a beached Magikarp. Klefki floated about in circles, trying to reorient itself. Milotic smiled when she noticed small flames had gathered on Archeops' pelt. "Yes! Looks like Tapu Fini's given us a bit of good fortune," she cheered.

"Duck, Millie!" Serperior yelped. Her teammate complied and a quartet of brightly-glowing gemstones raced over her. Klefki shrieked and floated upward to dodge Carbink's attack. "Sorry about that. Didn't think this little devil was packing Power Gem."

"Is everythiiiiiiing okay?" Milotic asked, the paralysis cutting in while she spoke.

"I've got Carbink seeded s– _whoa!_ " Serperior cut herself off, spitting a blue beam of raw dragon energy forward to blow apart fossilized rocks summoned by Carbink. The attack continued forward and harmlessly brushed across Carbink. The seeds covering its body flashed brightly, draining energy out from it and back to Serperior. She capitalized on the moment, sending leafy-green energy tendrils forward. They wrapped themselves around Carbink and siphoned even more of its energy, restoring Serperior's health.

However, a sudden burst of electricity struck her back, cutting off the soothing sensation. She fell to her stomach, the wind knocked out of her. Milotic likewise lurched painfully to her right, shrieking.

"Sorry, ladies. I had no idea this guy could use Discharge," Dragonair squeaked. Milotic struggled to right herself. Archeops and Klefki quickly pounced, both charging her at once. Dragonair glanced her teammate's distress. She ignored Probopass as it gathered glowing gemstones of its own and spewed flame breath over Milotic's back. The quicker Klefki floated right into the attack and drifted backward with a yelp.

Archeops crashed into his teammate and they fell to the ground in a tangle of limbs and metal. Archeops squawk painfully as his burn took effect, giving Milotic the necessary time to right herself. Soft light encased her body, gradually restoring her stamina. The sight gave Dragonair a brief moment of relief before Probopass' glowing gems peppered her backside.

The attack struck with enough force to knock her back. Unfortunately, this upended both her teammates in the process. Carbink seized on the opening, gathering a ball of vibrant, pink light over its head. It locked eyes with Dragonair and hurled the fairy energy forward. Serperior shot upward, taking the blow for her teammate.

However, because she went airborne, the force of the blow sent her reeling. And this led her teammates to get dragged across the floor with her. They ended up on the opposite side of the room, right next to Klefki and Archeops. The former released a pink, lip-shaped burst of energy that struck Dragonair, draining her life force as she cried in pain.

This gave Milotic a second wind to fight through her paralysis and down Kelfki with a quick blast of boiling water. "Fan out again, girls," she ordered, awkwardly hopping forward and shooting ice crystals at Archeops. He easily dodged the attack and then doused Milotic in dragonfire. Milotic hissed from both the pain and the paralysis taking hold again.

Serperior noticed her teammate's distress, but was too busy blowing apart a line of fossilized rocks with a blue energy beam. She paused to catch her breath as more stamina returned from the seeds on Carbink. It also tripped up Carbink enough for Serperior to unleash more grassy tendrils. Carbink managed to roll past the first two, but the other three nailed it. The floating gemstone cried in pain before its consciousness faded.

"Carbink's down," Serperior declared. She turned to her right and immediately fired a small green seed at Klefki. It skirted the attack, but Serperior managed to draw Klefki away from Milotic. This let Milotic focus squarely on Archeops. She took in a deep breath, only to seize up from the electricity.

Archeops divebombed her. Milotic again faced the flurry of wing strikes and talon scratches from Archeops, but they didn't feel nearly as painful as they did earlier. She easily held her ground and drenched Archeops in boiling-hot water. He fell to the ground and twitched a few times before going still.

"How you holding up, Airy?" Milotic asked.

"Not good!" Dragonair hollered, sweeping dragonfire in front of her to try and destroy all the gem fragments heading toward her. A crackling-blue bolt cut through the bits of the attack Dragonair couldn't destroy.

"Hey, back off, you big lug," Serperior barked. "You're outnumbered now. Give up or you're gonna end up like your friends over there." She jerked her head behind her, indicating she had knocked Klefki out.

Probopass merely raised its floating limbs in response. Electricity started gathering around it. Before it could discharge the lightning, however, a stream of Scald raced across its side and blasted it back across the room. Probopass managed to get back into the air, however, and released the Discharge.

"Duck and cover," Serperior hollered. Unfortunately, the trio of Team Captivate found themselves lunging in different directions to try and dodge the attack. Their knotted tails created a stalemate that shot them into one another. Electricity then wracked their bodies, hurting Milotic in particular.

"Agh," she gasped. "K… keep him busy, girls. I… I've got to heal up." Her paralysis took hold once again, hindering her movements. Serperior coughed up another seed at Probopass and Dragonair whipped up a small twister to limit its ability to dodge. The seed struck Probopass' giant nose and covered its body in tiny vines. It flinched as the vines sucked out its energy and gave it to Serperior.

Milotic managed to push herself up. Soft, glowing light surrounded her body once again, restoring her vitality. "Alright, let me at that suck–" she started to say, only to look over her shoulder and realize Probopass was already knocked out and the red barrier had dissolved back into the ground.

"Sorry, you're gonna have to take a rain check on that one, chief," Serperior chuckled. "I don't know how we did it, but we managed to get out of that jam."

"Hardly a consolation," Dragonair sighed. "We're still tied together and who knows how far Marshadow's managed to get. With our movements hindered like this, it could take us a whole day to get back to where we entered from."

Serperior frowned. "So that slime ball is gonna get away with this? Unbelievable!" She turned to Milotic. "C'mon, Millie. Isn't there anything your super-strategizing brain can think of for this situation?"

Milotic's brow furrowed and she looked around the room. Her eyes fell upon one of the emera ores jutting out from the wall. "Well, there _is_ one thing that comes to mind. But you're not gonna like it."

"What could possibly be worse than getting tied to your teammates?" Serperior scoffed.

"I have a way out. But it's not forward. It's up." Milotic jerked her head toward the emeras.

"Wait, you're not suggesting we destroy them, right?" Serperior asked.

"No. We're going to _climb_ them," Milotic declared.

Her teammates eyes widened. "Have you gone completely mental?" Serperior gasped. "There's no way we can manage that. And it's a pretty steep climb. If we fall… it's SPLAT! And that's game over."

"It's the fastest way out," Milotic insisted. "You can use Vine Whip to grab hold of the emera ores and keep us from falling. Dragonair can use Waterfall to help us ascend and I can support with a Hydro Pump or two if necessary."

Milotic's teammates exchanged nervous looks. "Hey, it's that or we hop our way through the Catacombs and pray we don't come upon any wild Pokémon," she pointed out.

Serperior extended a green vine from the leaves encasing her torso and tensed it. "This is just turning into one of those miserable days where I wished I hadn't gotten out of bed," she grumbled. "Fine, let's do it. But what happens when we reach the top? There's a big ceiling there."

Milotic's gaze sharpened. "We're gonna have to blow the roof off this joint. Literally."

* * *

Next time: rock climbing! Explosions! Impromptu white-water rafting? Nobody said being Horizon's top explorers was easy.


	21. Dive Another Day

**Chapter 19: Dive Another Day**

"Unnnngggggggggh! C'mon, Airy! I could… use a little… help here!"

Serperior's body dangled high in the air, her outstretched vines wrapped around a large emera ore above her while her teammates hung below her. The stone floor lay dozens of feet below them, making it barely visible. Serperior's vines quivered and her body shook from the strain of holding up her teammates.

"Sorry," Dragonair squeaked. "I thought you were going for the other ore."

"Nnnrrrgh… less apologizing… more Waterfalling!" Serperior grunted. One of her vines started to slip, prompting her to squeal. Dragonair craned her head upward and her eyes flashed blue. A pool of water suddenly formed around her. The pool turned into a wall of rushing water that rocketed her skyward. This sent both Milotic and Serperior flying up along with her. Serperior lashed out with her vines and managed to pull the trio onto an emera ore before the waterfall dissipated.

Serperior struggled to catch her breath. "How… how much further?" she panted. "I don't think… I can take… anymore of this." Her vines fell limp by her sides. "I'm… I'm totally spent. I need… apples. And an elixir."

"Well, we don't have either of those," Milotic reminded her. "And if we can't catch Marshadow, then we won't get any of our supplies back." She looked up and a smile crossed her face. "Good news, ladies. It looks like the end's in sight! There's the ceiling."

Serperior craned her neck upward. "Oh-ho-ho, thank the gods! No more crazy rock-climbing."

"Not to dampen the mood, chief, but how exactly are we going to blow apart the ceiling?" Dragonair wondered. "It looks to be solid rock, just like the walls."

"Let's combine our strongest attacks," Milotic declared. "Hydro Pump for me, Dragon Pulse for you, Serpy, and Flamethrower for you, Airy. If we aim them just right, we might be able to bust a hole through this thing."

"Y'know, I just thought of something," Serperior interjected. "What if we blow through the ceiling and we don't end up on top of one the falls? There could be another cave or some boulders up there, for all we know. And if we break the ceiling, we could cause a cave in."

Milotic frowned. "Okay, admittedly that never crossed my mind. But we're already up here. And the alternative option could end just as badly. So, we've got to try."

"Good thing that paralysis wore off then, huh?" Serperior said. "For the record, if we _do_ cause a cave in and fall to our deaths, I'm going to haunt you throughout the afterlife."

"Love you too, Serpy," Milotic deadpanned. "Now, stop talking and start firing." She pointed her head skyward and opened her mouth. A massive stream of highly-pressurized water gushed outward, hammering the ceiling. Seconds later, a sparking, blue bolt and a stream of fire joined it. The attacks united into a single, concentrated burst. Dragonair's flames superheated Milotic's water, vaporizing it. Serperior's dragon energy then amplified the burst of heat.

Within a few seconds of the attacks combining, cracks formed in the ceiling. They splintered outward until, eventually, the ceiling began to crumble. "Get back!" Milotic hollered and pressed her teammates up against the wall. Large chunks of rock plummeted to the ground, but the group stayed safely out of harm's way. Milotic looked up and noticed only bits of dust sprinkling down. Even better, light filtered down into the cavern.

"Okay, girls. It looks like we're home free."

The sounds of shattering glass echoed from down below. All three serpents immediately tensed up. "M-Millie?" Serperior stammered.

"Yeah?"

"Tell me that wasn't an emera ore that just shattered."

Milotic glanced down and noticed a brilliant, explosive burst of blue light. It consumed nearby emera ores, setting off a domino effect creating more blasts beneath them.

"Nope, it definitely was. And they're starting a chain reaction," Milotic said. "We've gotta get out of here _now!_ "

Her teammates saw cascades of blue explosions making their ways up every wall in the room. "Oh, _brilliant,_ " Serperior hissed. "Why can't we just catch a break? What do we do? There's nothing for me to grab onto up there."

"Then we'll have to blast ourselves up," Milotic declared, taking in a deep breath. "Ready, Airy?"

Dragonair nodded. She formed up a pool of water, which shot up into a midair waterfall. The moment it did, Milotic unleashed super-pressurized water downward. It further propelled the trio upward. Milotic continued pumping water out until brisk evening air brushed against her scales. She suddenly lurched to the right, as Serperior had grabbed a stone slab and managed to pull the group safely away from the cave.

There was little time to celebrate, however, as they heard more emeras exploding inside the Catacombs. The ground trembled beneath them. "We're still not out of the water yet," Dragonair said. "But where do we go? I don't even see a path down."

Milotic turned around and spotted a small outcropping of rock and, next to it, rushing water that spiraled down into dense fog. "We're going to have to ride the falls down."

" _What?!_ " her teammates gawked in unison.

 _BOOM!_

Everyone flinched and spotted crystal fragments flying out of the cavern. Milotic seized on her friends' momentary panic, shooting ice at the base of the rocky outcropping. She lunged forward, dragging her teammates along with her, and struck the frozen rock. It shattered, sending the unfrozen part falling toward the river. Milotic awkwardly hopped onto the rock, turning it into a makeshift raft. The movement of the current swept her teammates along the ground until they were forced to jump on with her.

They all turned back just as the river started turning downward. Blue light exploded outward, encasing the spots they'd just been standing in. Fragments of rock rained down all around them. Some of them struck the river, kicking up waves that threatened to upend their raft.

"Have you totally lost it, Millie? You're gonna get us killed!" Serperior shrieked.

"Stop screaming and help me steer," Milotic hissed. She leaned to her left and the raft tipped with her, skirting one of the falling rocks. "Now, right! _Right!_ " she shouted, leaning to the other side. Dragonair complied and the raft avoided another rock. At that point, the river took a sharp downward turn, speeding the raft up considerably.

"How is this helping us in any way? We're gonna plummet off one of the falls as soon as this river ends!" Serperior yelped. Milotic ignored her, spewing out ice instead. It struck an upcoming rock and froze it solid. The team's raft collided with the ice and shattered it, jostling its passengers in the process.

"Be quiet, Serpy," Milotic repeated her order. "I have a plan, alright?"

"Really? Cause it seems like you're just flying by the end of your tail here," Serperior said. "Rock dead ahead!"

"I'm not blind. I can see it," Milotic exclaimed. She leaned to her left. Her teammates copied her movements and steered the raft to the left. "Now, we've got to hug the wall to follow the rightward curve. Everyone lean right!"

Milotic's teammates followed her command. Their rock moved to the right just as the river curved sharply in the same direction. The rock leaned over, putting the trio in close contact with a cluster of jagged rocks. "Now, grab that last rock, Serpy."

Groaning, Serperior thrust her vines forward. They wrapped around the rock, allowing the raft to safely turn along with the river. As the trio passed the cluster, Serperior withdrew her vines. The river then took another sharp downward turn, nearly causing Dragonair to fall off the raft.

"It's getting faster. We must be getting close to the waterfall," Serperior panicked. "Now would be a _really_ good time to let us in on that plan of yours, Millie."

"Not yet," Milotic said. "Just brace yourselves, okay? Try not to fall off this thi– WHOA!"

Rapids appeared all around them. Their makeshift raft struck one, tossing Team Captivate about and spraying them with salt water. "Hack… plebth… rrrnggh… yeah, real great plan here, chief!" Serperior sputtered. The raft bounced toward another rock, dousing the girls once again. Their momentum made the raft spin around and start moving down the river backwards.

"Dragonair! I need eyes up front," Milotic shouted. "What's happening?"

"The… the river's dropping o– YEEEEK!"

Team Captivate's raft fell down a small set of rocky steps, bouncing the trio about. Serperior shrieked in terror as she struck the raft and started tipping off the side. Milotic and Dragonair quickly leaned to the opposite side, grunting from the strain. Serperior just managed to get herself back on the raft when it passed through another set of rapids. The harsh currents spun the rock around to face forward once again.

Just as the girls got their bearings, a loud roaring noise rose up to the greet them. Milotic looked forward and noticed the river suddenly disappeared in front of them. "This is it!" she shouted. "We're gonna jump on three!"

" _That's_ your big plan?!" Serperior screamed. "We're doomed!"

"One…"

"We're gonna smack the water and drown!"

"Two…"

"I can't believe I let you drag me into this!"

"Three! _Jump!_ "

The makeshift raft careened over the edge of the falls. Team Captivate leaped off the rock with as much energy as they could muster. They cleared the descending water, falling toward the plunge pool below them, Serperior shrieking in fear. Milotic spun around in the midst of the freefall and opened her mouth. A massive water stream shot out, slamming into the plunge pool. It managed to provide some resistance against gravity, slowing Team Captivate's fall.

Milotic had to release her attack before they splashed down, however. The trio fell the rest of the way and smacked the surface of the water. Bubbles and froth exploded out around the girls. Both Dragonair and Serperior gasped from the impact, letting out big mouthfuls of air bubbles. Milotic got her bearings, shifting to her hidden gills to let her breath underwater. When she did, she noticed she had full range of use of her tail.

 _'Yes! The rapids must've loosened the knot Marshadow tied our tails in. And the impact knocked us free,'_ she cheered. She glanced over and noticed Serperior thrashing about in a panic while Dragonair drifted up toward the surface. Milotic swam forward and wrapped herself around her teammate. She carried Serperior up and broke the surface of the water.

Serperior took in a huge gulp of air, coughing and sputtering. "It's okay, Serpy. It's okay. I've got you," Milotic coaxed.

Serperior hacked up seawater. "We're… we're alive?" she gasped.

"Alive and unbounded," Milotic reported.

Serperior's eyes widened in disbelief. "I… I can't believe we pulled that off. I think we just used up a lifetime's worth of good fortune on that one."

"Luck had nothing to do with it," Milotic boasted. She swam toward the side of the plunge pool and helped Serperior onto rocky ground. Serperior collapsed on her belly, breathing heavily. Dragonair slithered out of the water behind them, shaking out her body to dry off.

"Don't lie… Millie," Serperior panted. "You must've… been just as scared… as us."

"Oh, totally," Milotic conceded. "But, like I said, I had a plan. And I do love it when a plan comes together."

"I want… a vacation… when this is all over," Serperior groaned.

"Let's focus on getting Marshadow first," Milotic exclaimed.

Serperior shot upward and her eyes widened. "Are you kidding me? We just got lucky to escape the Catacombs with our lives. Let's accept the loss and tell Zoroark we screwed up."

"Absolutely not," Milotic said. "We just took the fast way out and we're back near the entrance to Glyphic Falls."

"And who's to say he's not just going to run off into one of the neighboring areas, huh?" Serperior said.

"Because there are large, fast-moving rivers surrounding this place, remember?" Milotic retorted with a smirk. "There only one way into and out of the falls. And we're going to head him off before he can get to it."

"Um, forgive my interjection, Milotic, but how exactly do you plan to do that?" Dragonair asked. "Marshadow is much faster than us with that shadow-melding trick of his."

"That may be true," Milotic acknowledged. "But now we have access to something that wasn't down in the Catacombs." She turned around and faced the river trailing off from the plunge pool.

"Oh-ho no, no, no, no, no," Serperior said, shaking her head rapidly. "I've had more than enough of a swim for one day, thank you very much."

Milotic rolled her eyes. "Will you quit being such a baby? You don't have to do any of the work." She turned and pointed her tail a bit down the path. "There's a rotting tree over in that direction. We can knock it into the river. You and Dragonair can sit on it and keep your eyes peeled for anything shifty, while I push the raft forward through the river. Sound good?"

Serperior slouched. "… fine." She slithered over toward the dead tree, muttering, "The things you'll do for a huge payday."

Milotic hopped into the river and swam forward. At the same time, her teammates lashed out at the tree with their tails. The bark shattered, sending it falling into the river with a slight splash. Dragonair and Serperior jumped on and immediately felt the tree bob in and out of the water.

"Are you two situated?" Milotic asked. They nodded. "Good, then here we go!" She straightened out her tail and began ferrying the dead tree . It lurched forward, causing Serperior to gasp, then it sped along the river.

"We need to be Milotic's eyes and ears right now," Dragonair said, scanning the rocky trail running beside the river. "The question is, how far are we from where we entered the Catacombs?"

"Don't know," Serperior said. "We're probably wasting our time anyway. I'd be surprised if the guy hasn't already left the place." She scowled and faced forward, only to raise a confused eyebrow. "Huh. Look over there, Airy." She pointed her tail skyward.

"It's a flock of Murkrow," Dragonair observed. "And they seem pretty riled up."

"And what could frighten a bunch of Murkrow in the dead of night?" Serperior offered.

"An unexpected visitor to whatever part of the falls they were roosting in," Dragonair concluded. "Milotic, there's something causing a ruckus due east of us. It could be Marshadow."

"Do you see any divides in the river?" Milotic asked, barely keeping her head above the water to get that question out.

"Yeah, there's one coming up ahead here," Serperior announced. "We've got to go left." She leaned over to the left, as did Dragonair. Milotic thrashed her tail out to her right. Their combined actions turned the tree ever so slightly to the left, allowing them to pick up the branch off the main river. Milotic hissed loudly as they started heading east. "Everything okay down there?" Serperior asked.

"It's much shallower here," Milotic replied. "I think I just nicked my tail on something sharp."

"Do you need to stop?"

"I'm fine. We have to keep moving," Milotic declared. She pressed her head harder against the tree and swam with even more vigor. The tree sped through the river, passing underneath the flock of Murkrow in the process.

"Well, there goes our directional cue," Serperior sighed. "And these rock faces are way too high up to see anything reliable."

Dragonair tried looking ahead, but this part of the river ran through a small chasm and offered no clear view forward. They hit a downward stretch and sped up even more. When the river flattened out again, the cliff faces parted, giving rise to two trails that spiraled alongside the river.

"See anything?" Milotic asked.

"No," Serperior sighed. "Face it Millie, this is a dead e–"

A glass orb came flying in from the trio's right and conked Serperior in the head. "Eyowch!" she shouted, collapsing on her back. The orb fell in front of Dragonair, who quickly scooped it up.

"This is an Escape Orb," she realized. "But where did this come from? Hey, Milotic, slow down for a second."

Milotic swung her tail in front of her and oscillated it against the river's current. The net effect slowed the tree considerably. "What's happening? What's going on?"

"What's going on?" Serperior growled, rubbing her head. "What's going on is that some jerk chucked a perfectly usable Escape Orb and hit me with it!" She looked over in the direction the orb came flying from and her eyes widened. She opened her mouth up and shot a crackling bolt.

Dragonair's face blanched. "What are you doing?" she gasped. Moments later, a cry of pain echoed out across the area.

Serperior's expression fiercened. "That sounded like Marshadow. Forward, Millie, forward!" she barked, keeping her gaze fixed on the direction she fired her Dragon Pulse in. Milotic pushed the tree forward. Sure enough, a dazed-looking Marshadow came into view at a narrow portion of the trail with a very large rock hanging precariously over it.

"Hey, jerk-face!" Serperior hissed. "Remember us?" A green glow overtook her body and she shot branches of green energy forward. Before Marshadow could realize what was happening, the tendrils struck him and sapped some of his strength.

Milotic poked her head up and saw Marshadow staggering about. "Surround him if you can, girls," she said. Serperior and Dragonair leaped off of the tree, landing on either side of Marshadow. Milotic pushed away from the tree and ducked under water. She swam down, then curved upward in order to leap out of the river. As she did, she opened her mouth wide and spat a stream of scalding water right at Marshadow.

He finally managed to get his bearings however, and retaliated with a ball of crackling ectoplasm, splitting apart the Scald. "Well now, this is quite the surprising development," he exclaimed. "Seems you're better explorers than I pegged you for. Better than that dopey girl I ran into before, anyway."

"So, you're the one who attacked Zoroark in the Catacombs and stole the paper she was carrying," Milotic accused.

Marshadow tilted his head in confusion. "Zoroark? Can't say I know anything about that. And stealing is really such an ugly word, luv. I prefer to think of it as 'borrowing without returning.' Besides," he chuckled as he reached into the puffy ectoplasm around his neck and produced the looplet-like band he'd swiped, "I managed to make off with the real prize in the end, didn't I?"

"And now we've got you surrounded!" Serperior hissed. "So, fork over the band, the paper, _and_ our stuff. And maybe we won't beat the spooky out of you before hauling you off to Officer Magnezone."

Marshadow tapped his chin. "Hmm… tempting. But here's a counteroffer, luv. You're in the night and that's _my element_. So, stand aside and let me depart or you'll suffer another humiliating defeat at the hands of Master Thief Marshadow!"

As he finished speaking, Marshadow sank into the ground. That's when a giant wave of water crashed out along the rocky trail. Serperior and Dragonair backed away from it, while it harmlessly passed over Milotic and crashed atop Marshadow. He hollered as the waters slammed him into the rock wall on his right.

Marshadow hit the ground, losing his grip on Team Captivate's item pouch in the process. Serperior shot her vines forward without any hesitation and grabbed onto it. "I've got our items, chief!" She reached into the bag and tossed her teammates a set of elixirs and oran berries.

"You seem to have forgotten something, 'Master Thief Marshadow.' There's water here. Which means you're in _my element,_ " Milotic boasted, flicking her long, sparkling lashes to the side. "The only one who's going to suffer a humiliating defeat is _you._ "

"Mmm, tough words for a goody-goody, I'd say," Marshadow scoffed, shaking water off his body. "The fact is that I'm faster than all three of you put together and there's nothing you can do about it, luv. Observe!"

Marshadow flash-stepped in Dragonair's direction and punched her in the snout with a shadowy-black fist. Dragonair recoiled in shock, giving Marshadow the opportunity to slip behind her just as Serperior sent green energy branches at him. "Ah, ah, ah," he taunted, grabbing Dragonair by the neck and holding her in front of him. "Wouldn't want to see any friendly fire here, would we?"

Serperior dissolved the branches. Marshadow failed to account for Dragonair's tail, however, and she used it to quickly whip up a twister, blowing Marshadow back up the trail. His smirk reappeared and he melted into the ground. The puddle of shadows that formed immediately blended in with the ground's dark coloration.

"Quick, Serpy. We should still have a Luminous Orb or two!" Milotic said. Serperior fumbled through the item pouch, only for a purple blob with bright-yellow eyes to lunge out from the base of the rock towering over them. Serperior's eyes widened in horror. At the very last second, she managed to coil herself around the item pouch to prevent Marshadow from grabbing hold of it.

Marshadow retreated and formed up out of the shadows, breaking into a run. Serperior righted herself, a weary look in her eyes. "You'll never catch me, luv. No exploration team has! Aha ha ha ha!" he shouted.

"We're chasing him down," Milotic declared. "Serpy, stick to the land. I'm taking my chances with the river. Airy, your choice who to follow." Before either of her teammates could protest, Milotic dove into the river. Dragonair slithered down the rock pathway with Serperior following suit. Both of them could just make out Marshadow up ahead, though he was clearly increasing his lead.

"We'll never catch him at this rate," Serperior groaned.

"I think that's what Milotic's using the water for," Dragonair said. As if on cue, a wave rose out of the river and threatened to crash down on Marshadow. He turned and shot a ball of shadowy energy to his left, splitting open a hole in the wave.

"Ha! Is that the best you go– AGGGH!"

Marshadow's boast was cut off as dragonfire washed across his back. Serperior then launched a blue beam forward, sending Marshadow straight to the ground. Milotic leaped out of the river, frosty air gathering in her mouth.

"Not so fast, luv!" Marshadow snarled and rolled onto his back. Dark energy encased his fist and, before Milotic could unleash her ice, Marshadow shot off the ground and socked her in the snout. Milotic fell to the ground, writhing about and squealing in pain. Marshadow landed on his feet. "Sucker!" he taunted as he ran off. But he didn't count on a diamond-shaped blast of blue energy striking him in the back.

It didn't cause him any pain, but he noticed his running speed drop significantly. "W-What the devil?" he gasped.

"Nice use of slow wand, Serpy," Milotic said, before turning and blasting Marshadow from behind with scalding water. Marshadow gasped and fell forward onto his belly, giving the other members of Team Captivate openings to use their own attacks. Green energy tendrils speared Marshadow's back and dragonfire doused his legs.

"Agh! You… you _cretins!_ " Marshadow hissed. Despite his hindered movements, he managed to slip back into the shadows.

"Brace yourselves, ladies. He could be anywhere," Milotic declared.

"Or he could just be trying to run like a coward!" Serperior accused, slithering forward. "Where's all that bravado and tough talk from before, huh? What's the matter? Afraid of getting your butt whooped by some girls?"

"Um, Serperior, maybe you shouldn't taunt him like tha–"

"Leave her be," Milotic cut Dragonair off with a whisper. "I think Marshadow's part fighting-type and Serpy's picked up on it. She's trying to trigger that reckless fighting-type pride."

Dragonair nodded her acknowledgement. At the same time, an icy fist popped out from the shadows and clobbered Serperior in her right side. She fell to the ground, ice crusting over her torso. Marshadow turned and raised his fists at Milotic and Dragonair.

"C'mon, luv. I can keep this up all night! But I just need to stall until this stupid slow wand wears off," Marshadow exclaimed. Milotic's response to this was to spit up an ice stream. Marshadow couldn't gather any shadowy energy quick enough to dispel the attack. The beam struck him in the chest, covering him in a layer of frost. Dragonair then propelled herself forward with a plume of water, striking Marshadow and bringing him to the ground.

"That's enough out of you. Surrender," she ordered.

"Sorry, luv. Afraid I don't know the meaning of that word," Marshadow grunted. He tensed for a moment, and then phased out from underneath Dragonair. More ice surrounded a fist and Marshadow pummeled Dragonair from behind. He had little time to celebrate, however, as branches of leafy-green energy latched onto his side and sucked out some of his vitality.

Milotic was by Dragonair's side in an instant, bearing down on Marshadow. She flicked her tail and a wave of water washed onto the trail. It swept Marshadow up against a boulder, drowning out his pained hollers. Milotic wasted no time in gathering up ice in her mouth and shooting it forward. Only, instead of aiming for Marshadow, she hit the puddle surrounding him. The water froze up on the spot.

She then swept the ice toward Marshadow. His eyes widened as his body froze before his eyes. He thrashed against his icy prison to no avail. And to his horror, his limbs were tightly bound against his torso, rendering him unable to phase through the ice.

Marshadow's eyes grew heavy and he glared defiantly at Team Captivate. "Well, what are you waiting for? Aren't you going to drop some cheesy one-liners or whatever it is you guild-types do when you catch an outlaw?"

A smirk crossed Milotic's lips. "Ha! I'm afraid your 'refined gentleman' routine is all washed up, you crook."

Serperior slithered up beside her teammate. "Oh, how about this one? We put your 'uncatchable master thief reputation'… _on ice!_ "

Dragonair smacked both her teammates upside the head. "We've gotten banged up enough to last a month. I _don't_ need a headache on top of it."

Marshadow rolled his eyes. "How disgustingly sappy. Knock it off and call your constabulary already. I'll take the slammer over listening to any more of your drivel."

* * *

 **~Glyphic Falls Entrance, One Hour Later~**

 **Kzzzaaaaack! This is incredible!** Magnezone gasped, showering Marshadow in electrical waves that paralyzed his ghostly form. **Marshadow has topped our outlaw list for well over a decade. And you three have managed to catch him.**

"No need to thank us, sir. All in a day's work for Team Captivate," Serperior boasted.

 **Sir, what about the reward we were offering?** a Magneton deputy spoke up.

Serperior's eyes lit up. "What reward?"

 **Well, given that this particular outlaw has skirted through every continent we know of, there's been a 20,000 Poké reward on his head for quite some time,** Magnezone announced. **We can transfer the funds to your account at Dhelmise Depot.**

Poké signs appeared in Serperior's eyes. "Awesome! That's the kind of money that can get us a year's vacation."

"Frankly, we could really use it," Dragonair sighed.

"Yes, yes, all's well that ends well and all that jazz," Marshadow growled. "Take me away, officer. I've had enough of their disgustingly pretty faces."

 **Very well. Deputies, remove this outlaw,** Magnezone instructed. The three Magnetons utilized electromagnetism to lift the paralyzed Marshadow into the air and carry him off. **I will issue payment upon returning to Aeon Town. Thank you once again for your hard work.**

"Our pleasure, officer," Serperior chirped. She waved him off with her tail and then turned back toward her teammates. "This is perfect. Now we just find Zoroark and give her the drawing we found. Then we get to keep the band _and_ 30,000 Poké. That's the haul of a hundred lifetimes!"

"Team Captivate? Thank the gods, you're okay! I was getting worried."

The girls looked over and saw Zoroark limp up to them. She was still bandaged up and had a tired look in her eyes. "Zoroark," Milotic gasped, "you didn't have to drag yourself all the way out here for our sakes."

"Sorry. It's just that, it had been much longer than six hours since we had parted ways and I thought something might've happened," Zoroark explained. "I figured I at least owed it to you to come out and look around."

"We appreciate it," Dragonair said.

"Yeah, but we're professionals! We were never in any dang–" Serperior started boasting when Milotic held up her tail.

"Truth is, we _did_ run into trouble," Milotic confessed. "Tell me, did you get attacked by an outlaw called Marshadow?"

"I don't know, remember?" Zoroark responded. "Something sneaked up on me from the shadows."

"That sure sounds like our guy," Serperior scoffed. "Not to mention, Marshadow had this in his possession." She reached into the item pouch and pulled out a scrap of paper. Zoroark's eyes lit up.

"Ah, that's it! That's my reference page," Zoroark cheered. "You actually found it. Thank you so much!" She walked over and accepted the page from Serperior. As she took it, Milotic noticed a picture in the center of the page.

"So, were you here to look for that band?" Milotic asked.

"Yup," Zoroark replied, looking at the page. "Why do you ask?"

Serperior shot her teammate an annoyed look. "Marshadow was apparently looking for it, too. Or, rather, I guess he was looking for it _after_ he stole the drawing from you."

Zoroark frowned. "I see. That's… not good. But he didn't find anything, right?"

"Actually…" Milotic started but her voice trailed off. Zoroark's eyebrows raised.

"Forgive my teammate, Zoroark. She must still be a little disoriented from dealing with Marshadow," Serperior cut in, giving Milotic a stink eye.

Milotic ignored Serperior and continued, "We found a band that matches your drawing. Marshadow tried to steal it but we took it back when we defeated him. It's in our item pouch."

Zoroark's eyes widened. "Y… you're kidding!" she gasped. "You've got to let me have it. Do you have idea how happy it'll make the Expedition Society?"

Serperior pouted. "No way. We're not just going to give this up, are we?"

"Drop it, Serpy," Milotic ordered. "I know you found it, but Zoroark here was actually looking for it to begin with. It's one thing to take treasure that's just randomly left in a dungeon. But this is something someone was on the hunt for. Give it to her. It's the right thing to do."

"… fine," Serperior huffed. She slithered forward and handed the band off to Zoroark. "You're lucky we're such _generous_ ladies. You have no idea how tempting it is to run off with this thing. What's so important about it anyway?"

"Beats me," Zoroark said. "Mawile had an interest in it because she thinks it's tied to that whole anti-Legendary plot. I don't suppose you girls found anything out about that, did you?"

Milotic pursed her lips. "We did find something. It was apparently an old letter… a warning."

"Or so we think. It was written in Unown and Marshadow read it to us," Dragonair said. "I'm not entirely sure if we can trust that guy's interpretation. But if he _was_ telling the truth, then a group of Pokémon banded together to try and construct their own Pokémon from scratch. Apparently, their plan failed and the creature went berserk."

Zoroark's muzzle stiffened. "Goodness. That's… quite the tall tale. I'll relay it to Mawile anyway." She reached into her mane with her good arm and pulled out a very heavy-looking bag. It dropped to the ground in front of Team Captivate with a loud _thud_.

"This seems like a more than 30,000 Poké," Milotic said, eyeing the bag.

"What can I say? You found the artifact I snuck over here to look for. That deserves a little extra generosity, wouldn't you say?"

Serperior eyed the bag skeptically. She poked it with her tail. "This isn't gonna, like, blow up or do some other trick you Zoroarks like, is it?"

"Serpy," Milotic chided. Her teammate shut up. "We appreciate the reward, Zoroark. And please, give our regards to the Expedition Society."

"I will. So, where are you girls heading now?" Zoroark asked.

"Well, I'd really like to contact our guild's science expert," Milotic exclaimed. "I think there's something we need to discuss with her."

"Not a chance. We might as well wait until she's back from the expedition before saying anything," Serperior said.

Milotic leaned over and whispered. "But what about Null? We have to warn Team Radiance."

"Millie, please. The guy's been here half a year now and nothing's happened. If he was going to attack Team Radiance, he would've done it by now," Serperior said. She turned back to Zoroark. "I don't think we'll be doing much of anything. I'm beat. I need sleep. There's a small base camp just to the west of the entrance. We're crashing there and not getting up for the next couple of days, I'd say."

"Oh, yes. I don't think I could make it back to the Observatory right now," Dragonair agreed.

"Well then, I guess this is where we part ways," Zoroark said. "I've got to contact my ride back to the Water Continent, after all."

"Travel safe," Milotic said. Zoroark watched Team Captivate head off down a small side-path toward the lone cluster of trees in the entire area. She overhead Milotic say, "Hey, am I crazy, or does the moon seem bigger to you girls than usual?"

"Don't know, don't care," Serperior replied. "Sleep now, talk later."

Zoroark stood on the rock pathway and continued to watch Team Captivate until they'd disappeared into the trees. When she was absolutely sure she could see no sign of them, she took a step back, sighing in relief.

"Oh, thank goodness. I can _finally_ ditch this uncomfortable form." She pulled a small bag from her mane and dropped it to the ground. Then she threw off the sling and bandages, crouched down on all fours, and stretched out her back and neck.

A bright-blue glow overtook her entire body. All at once, her four limbs and wild mane disappeared. Two large red wings replaced them, protruding from a rounded torso of red feathers. In the center of her belly lay a blue triangle. The red on her body gave way to a long, slender neck line with a white down. This continued to a pointed, angled head with an upside-down, red triangle covering her face.

"Much better!" she squeaked, opening her hazel eyes and running claws through the feathers on her neck. "Heh… and big brother said I couldn't keep a disguise up for an entire day. Boy, did I prove him wrong in a big way. I'd better call him up and give everyone the good news!"

Her eyes glowed a deep blue and her irises and pupils faded. _Hellooooooooooo! Anyone home?_ she telepathically sang.

 _Cripes!_ a male voice responded. _Latias, is that you?_

Latias put a paw to her mouth and stifled a giggle. _Actually, it's your conscience speaking. We really should talk more. Who do you think it is, dummy?_

 _Very funny. What do you want? You know how I feel about you calling me when I'm on supper duty._

 _Oh, that was this week? Must've slipped my mind. Sorry, Latios!_ Latias giggled. _Is Slurpuff giving you trouble?_

 _Uggggghhh… I don't wanna talk about it,_ Latios groaned. _Just tell me what you need so I can get back to work._

 _Actually, I need to speak to Mawile. Is she around?_

 _She set out to Noe Town this morning with Team Gaia,_ Latios replied.

 _Okay, what about Ampharos?_

 _I'm given to understand he got lost after running an errand in Serene Village,_ Latios sighed.

Latias lowered her head and shook it, groaning. _Jirachi, then?_

 _He's sleeping. I'm not waking him up,_ Latios responded.

Latias groaned again. _Is_ anyone _with any authority actually available?_

 _Nope. Want to leave a message?_ Latios teased.

 _"Uh, hello? Latias, is that you?"_ a calm, female voice suddenly interjected.

 _Mawile! Great to hear from you. Big brother said you were out on another continent,_ Latias said.

 _"What? No, I got back in the early afternoon. He must've been too lazy to look for me,"_ Mawile scoffed. _"I take it you have an update about your special assignment?"_

 _Yup. And it's great news, to boot. I've got the Memory Looplet in my possession,_ she declared. _Even better, I think the Pokémon that can make use of this is currently staying with the Horizon Guild. I didn't want to pry too much into that, though. And, uh, that's kind of because I maaaaaaaaay have hired their top exploration team to help me get the looplet._

She heard an audible sigh. _"Oh, Latias… I told you not to drag anyone from the Horizon Guild into this,"_ Mawile said. _"Because it could whip them up into a panic if they learn there's a Pokémon designed to destroy Legendaries wandering around."_

 _I'm sorry, Mawile, but I needed to take a chance on it. I got jumped while looking for the looplet,_ Latias confessed. _It was some sort of Pokémon that could blend into the shadows so well, I couldn't detect even the faintest trace of his aura. According to the Pokémon I hired, he's a notorious outlaw called Marshadow. I got bombarded with a ton of ghost-type energy. And then, before I could even see the guy, he Throat Chopped me!_

 _You got attacked?_ Latios gasped. _Are you hurt? Do you need any help? Where the heck are you, anyway? I'm not picking up your aura at all!_

 _I'm doing okay,_ Latias said. _I had berries to get my strength back. But that Throat Chop... something was off with it. I haven't been able to get any of my attacks to work since he hit me. I think he might've struck a major pressure point. So, I took a gamble and hired some help. I know it sounds bad. But I didn't feel safe trying to go back and look for the looplet myself._

 _"Well, the important thing is that you're okay,"_ Mawile declared. A beat followed. _"Wait, did you say that the Pokémon is_ in the Horizon Guild right now? _Because if it is, we've got a serious problem on our hands."_

 _I wouldn't worry about it too much, Mawile,_ Latias exclaimed. _The veteran team let slip that Null – that's what they're calling this thing – has been living in their Observatory for six months. And nothing bad's happened so far. So, we still have time to figure out how the Memory Looplet is supposed to work before bringing the Horizon Guild up to speed. Much as I'd love to just head there right now, we really ought to study this thing. Giving the looplet to this Null fellow may cause him to go berserk like it said in those papers you found. I'm not willing to take that risk._

 _And even though Team Captivate did learn about this whole conspiracy thing, they definitely don't have the full picture. And they seemed very skeptical,_ she continued. _For one, I disguised myself as a Zoroark and submitted a cryptic request directly addressed to them. Then I sent them out on a meaningless task. They became super suspicious of me after that. So, frankly, I'm not entirely sure they believe what they do know. I sensed quite a bit of doubt in all three of their minds. I did use a sizable sum of Poké to pay them, though. I'll make up for it, I swear!_

 _"I suppose that's better than nothing,"_ Mawile declared. _"At least your trip to Horizon didn't turn out to be a waste."_

 _Wait… all this time you've been in Horizon? Did you not think to tell me?_ Latios gasped. _Are you sure you're okay? How did you fly all the way over there?_

 _I'm perfectly fine, big brother,_ Latias insisted. _And I'm heading home. I should be there in about three hours or so. Save me a bite to eat, okay?_

 _Ha! You and I both know that's not happening with Slurpuff around,_ Latios scoffed.

 _Ugh… fine. I'll pick something up for myself,_ Latias sighed. The blue glow from her eyes faded. She pointed a paw at her bag and it levitated toward her. She grabbed a set of tricked-out goggles, with the Expedition Society's logo etched into it, and strapped them onto her eyes. Then she took out a looplet and fastened it around her neck.

"Okay, awakening emera, time to work your magic!" she said, rising into the air. Orange beams of energy encircled her entire body.

 _CRACKA-THOOOOOOOM!_

A loud, supersonic boom echoed through the falls as a purple and white blur sped off to the west, crossing the enlarged, brightly-glowing moon.

 **End of Special Episode 2**

* * *

 **Master Thief, Marshadow  
** _Horizon's most notorious outlaw. Countless exploration teams across the continents have tried to capture him throughout the years, but all have failed miserably. His mastery of shadow-melding makes him as elusive as the most well-trained Kecleon. His signature move, Spectral Thief, can pummel a Pokémon into unconsciousness so quickly, they don't even remember how they were knocked out._

* * *

Even though I don't expect anyone to ask, yes, the Eon twins are the same ones from the Rescue Team games and Super Mystery Dungeon. Anyway, happy Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon release day. Enjoy the games!

Next episode: It's time to Lycanroc and roll!

... I'll show myself out.


	22. Lousy First Impressions

**~Dewdrop Woods~**

"Stufful, sweetie. Don't run too far! Momma can't see you if you go behind the trees."

A small, pink bear with stubby brown legs skidded to a halt. Stufful turned around to look at a similarly-colored, much larger, two-legged bear. "Sorry, Momma. I thought I saw a berry bush up ahead," he squeaked. "It was just a normal bush, though."

Stufful's mother put a paw up to her mouth and stifled a giggle. "That's quite alright, sweetie. But you've got to be careful if you go poking around the trees and bushes. Sometimes there may be Pikipeks and Trumbeaks lurking in them. And you wouldn't want to make one of them angry, right?"

Stufful shook his head. "No, I don't."

"And that's because…?"

"Because they know attacks that could hurt me very badly," Stufful dutifully recited.

"Right you are, kiddo," his mother said. She knelt down and, to Stufful's delight, tussled the fur on his head.

"Aww, look at that, Umbry. Isn't it just such a pretty widdle sight? Almost makes that Bewear look docile!"

Bewear quickly got to her feet and spread her arms wide. "Who goes there? Show yourself," she growled.

Espeon leaped down from one of the nearby rocks and held her head high. "Ta-daaaaah! Here I am, my lovely little helper."

Bewear's eyes narrowed. "There are no Espeons making their homes here," she said. "What do you want? And what's with the ridiculous rocks all over your head and chest?"

Espeon jutted out her lower lip. "You don't like them? Umbry thinks they're very fashionable. Don't you, Umbry?"

Umbreon casually strolled over to Espeon's side, prompting Bewear to take up a fighting stance and whisper, "Get back, Stufful. I think these two might be trouble."

"Trouble? Oh, no, no, no, no," Espeon said, shaking her head rapidly. "You've got me pegged all wrong, you snuggly-wuggly Bewear. We're the _good guys._ And we're here to help you, along with all the Pokémon in this forest."

Bewear didn't even have time to react. The diamond embedded in Espeon's forehead crackled and a ray of red-and-black light shot out. It struck Bewear right in the chest, causing her to let out a loud, high-pitched roar and stumble backward. Umbreon stepped forward, the red-crescent moon on his head glowing. He shot forth an identical stream of energy. This second one caused Bewear to fall to her knees.

"Momma! Momma!" Stufful cried.

"S… Stufful. Run. Run away," Bewear said through gritted teeth.

"B-But you said–"

Bewear dropped to her hands and knees, roaring in agony. Above her, a winged heart with demonic horns and a piercing eye in its center flashed brightly and then faded away. Stufful noticed his mother's eyes start to glow bright red. Jagged rows of teeth appeared in her mouth and her arms swelled up to the size of her body.

"Momma!" Stufful shrieked. He immediately turned and ran into the bushes, tears streaming from his eyes. He fell to the ground amidst a tangle of vines and leaves. Blinking the tears from his vision, Stufful saw Espeon and Umbreon cease their attacks. They stood in front of Bewear. Red and black energy continued to crackle across her body, making her arms and torso grow even larger.

Her fur coat started tearing, revealing a chitinous exoskeleton filled to the brim with fluorescent-red fluid. Stufful's heart leaped into his throat. He tried to open his mouth and scream again, but a brief glimpse of Umbreon's fierce, red eyes caused him to swallow the scream in his throat. Instead, he settled for a whimper, digging himself as far into the soil as he could go.

"Almost there. You're doing great!" Espeon chirped encouragingly, but a wicked grin lay on her face.

Bewear fell to her stomach as her ears and legs burst apart, showering the ground with fur. In their places lay a set of horns and four, spear-like, insect legs. The light faded from her body and the newly-infected Bewear staggered to her feet. She raised her comically-swollen arms up and flexed them proudly, belting out a mighty roar. Stufful squealed and backpedaled out of the little hole he had dug for himself. He struck a rock and fell over. Despite landing on his side, he still had a clear view of his mom and her assailants.

"Uhuu huu huu huu! Isn't she beautiful, Umbry? I told you a Bewear would make the perfect Buzzwole specimen," Espeon declared, happily prancing around.

Umbreon's brow furrowed. "Are you kidding? This thing's hideous."

 **"KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"**

Bewear shouted shrilly as she proceeded to uproot a tree twice her size. She thrust her arms apart and tore the tree in half, showering Espeon and Umbreon in wooden splinters. The sight caused Stufful's eyes to roll back in his head. He promptly passed out from shock.

"Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!" Espeon declared, tail wagging excitedly. She watched Bewear stomp through the forest, picking up more trees. "She'll raze this entire forest to the ground. And then, when Tapu Fini comes crawling out of the woodwork to see what's wrong… _bam!_ The old hag won't know what hit her! Then we can search out the Dawn Hourglass unimpeded. And we'll have one Legendary rubbed off the planet."

Bewear pulled a rock from the ground and hurled it forward, sending a flock of Pikipek fleeing into the air.

"We should go grab some snacks, Umbry. This is going to be so exciting! Uhuu huu huu huu!"

* * *

 **Episode 6: Striking Midnight**

 **Chapter 20: Lousy First Impressions**

* * *

 _"N... Nicky?"_

 _"What do you want, Shane?"_

 _"Um... you want to hang out or something? I know you got suspended and stuff, but..."_

 _"Seriously, dude?_ That's _what you start out with? No 'Hey Nicky, how are you?' or 'You hanging in there, dude?'"_

 _"I... I figured you just wouldn't want to talk about it."_

 _"There shouldn't be anything to talk about, Shane! I'm getting screwed, here! None of this was my fault! It was Rebecca... and those assholes she calls friends!"_

 _"Why did this even happen, anyway? I thought you had that awful stomach bug. You... you lied to me about that, didn't you?"_

 _"Shane, don't–"_

 _"But we were planning to go see that movie for months! How could you just bail on me like that?"_

 _"Rebecca's my girlfriend, dude. Or, at least, I thought she was..."_

 _"But I'm your best friend!"_

 _"Step off it, Shane! You saw the damn photos, didn't you? I'm the laughing stock of the whole school, here. My parents are furious. I... I don't know what I'm gonna do, here. Could you stop thinking about yourself for a moment, here? I'm hurting!"_

 _"None of this would've happened if you'd just gone to the movies with me."_

 _"... unbelievable."_

 _"What?"_

 _"Shane, we've been over this. My life doesn't revolve around you. I'm allowed to hang out with other people... or go to their parties."_

 _"Not if it means ditching me, Nicky. That wasn't fair."_

 _"Don't you dare talk to me about not fair. What's happening to me?_ That's _not fair."_

 _"... I get it, Nicky. You hate me... don't you?"_

 _"What? No, I don't hate you, Shane. Will you stop doing that?"_

 _"But you're yelling at me..."_

 _"Because I'm upset, Shane! Can't you see that?!"_

 _"Y... yeah. But maybe if we hang out, you'll feel better."_

 _"No."_

 _"Don't you want to get out of your house for a little bit?"_

 _"I'm grounded, Shane. I'm not going anywhere. And I'm not going to feel better if I hang out with you. So, just drop it. I'll see you whenever they let me back into school."_

 _"B... but... I just want to have fun."_

 _"And I'm not up for it. Goodbye, Shane."_

 _Click!_

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Shane woke up to find Tessa nudging his shoulder. "Wake up, Vulpix. I've got some good news."

"Huh?" Shane mumbled sitting up on his cushion.

Tessa waved an envelope at him. "Check it out. We have a job offer."

Shane blinked. "Okay. How is that special?"

"Because it's a job offer addressed _to us,_ " Tessa chirped.

"Really?" Shane gasped. He jumped to his feet, suddenly full of energy. "That's great! We're already getting recognized!" He smiled at Tessa. "See? I told you good things would happen if you stuck by me." Shane hopped off his cushion and trotted out toward the assembly area, with Tessa following along after him. They other guild members were already there, awaiting the start of morning assembly.

"Good moooooooorning, Team Radiance!" Bruxish called, beckoning Shane and Tessa over with a fin. "You both seem to be in mahvelous spirits."

"Well, why wouldn't we be? Someone specifically requested our team for an assignment." Shane said, beaming. "Can you believe it? We're moving on up in the world."

"Let's not get carried away here, Vulpix," Tessa cautioned. "It's nothing all that major. We're just going to collect some purple nectar for a Pom-Pom Oricorio."

"Now, now, dahling, no need to be so modest," Bruxish chuckled. "After all, getting a personal request is suuuuuuuch a big deal. Even if it's a smaller assignment, it'll stick with you throughout your time here. Why, I still remember my first requested mission like it was yesterday…"

Shane lunged forward and covered up Bruxish's mouth. "Aha ha… that's nice and everything, but I think the morning assembly's starting soon. Maybe we could take a rain check on that little trip down memory lane?"

"Oh, fiiiiiiiiiiiine," Bruxish said. Shane sighed in relief. "I suppose I could always regale you dahlings at dinner tonight." Bruxish turned to Tessa. "So, how goes learning Thunder Punch? Were my lessons yesterday heeeeeeelpful?"

"Yup," Tessa chirped. She raised a clenched fist and yellow electricity crackled around it. A stray bolt jumped off her arm and tickled Shane's chest, frizzling his fur.

"Hey, watch where you're pointing that thing," Shane protested. He ran a forepaw over his chest, only for the remaining sparks to traverse his foreleg, prickling clumps of fur.

 **All attentions requested,** Metagross' robotic voice carried through the assembly area. Everyone turned around to face his office. Shane noticed Lycanroc and Mimikyu standing between Metagross and Braviary.

 **Fact: we have acquired two temporary members. Fact: they are Lycanroc and Mimikyu, respectively,** Metagross explained. **Order: treat them with the same courtesy you would extend toward one another. Order: report any issues to me or Braviary.** He glanced at Braviary. **Continue assembly.**

Braviary nodded. "Right. Now, I know most of y'all were with us in Sunset Shoals, so y'know about why Lycanroc's here and all that jazz. But, we've gotta be fair and bring the rest of y'all up to speed."

Shane initially looked over at Tessa and back toward the southern hallway where Null lingered. He also spotted Teams Captivate and Specter hanging out by the stairs. Likewise, Primarina and Vaporeon were over by the pond.

"So, we really didn't get any solid leads about what's messing with the tides," Braviary explained. "Worse than that, it ain't just the ocean that's causing problems no more. The Midnight Sea is rising up toward Circadian Coast."

 _"Oh, the horror! The torment of it all!  
_ _My precious home could very well fall.  
_ _We cannot afford to wait too long,  
_ _If we're hoping to right such a terrible wrong."_

Shane buried his head in his forepaws. _'Ugh, why is this guy still here?'_ he groaned.

"Err… thanks for that, Primarina. But we done put in a temporary countermeasure," Braviary said.

 **We installificated some fortified structures and dug out irrigation trenches,** Magearna elaborated. **By my calculations, they should hold for at least the next two months. After which, we will need to go back and reconstructimalize.**

Braviary nodded. "Exactly. Which brings me to the other issue that came up. We had a run in with some… _strange_ Mareanies. Ain't like no Mareanies I've ever laid eyes on, I tell ya what."

"Uh, Braviary, sir?" Shane spoke up. "These Mareanies, they wouldn't have happened to have any strange markings or crystals on their bodies, would they?"

"They sure did. Had some kinda funny heart with an eye and wings," Braviary replied. "So, if'n yer reports are accurate, they're probably connected to the other Pokémon you've encountered with weird markings. Now, I'm sure y'all have heard that Gallian paid this place a visit while we were away."

Tessa looked down guiltily.

"We went through the guild top-to-bottom, Braviary. It doesn't look like Gallian took anything," Milotic reported.

"But he _did_ steal TM's from the Kecleon Shop before skipping town," Serperior reminded her friend. "I gotta admit, that takes serious stones to pull off. Wonder what got into him? No one sees hide or hair of him for six months and then… _wham!_ He shows up, tears this place upside down, and robs Aeon Town's biggest merchant."

"Well, it seems like Gallian might be under the effects of whatever's messing with Pokémon like the Mareanies we found," Braviary said. "Which is where Lycanroc comes in."

Lycanroc flashed a toothy smirk. "G'day, mates. Yeh, I'm pretty sure I can pinpoint the cause of our troubles here. It's these two creeps: Espeon and Umbreon."

Shane and Tessa exchanged nervous looks. "Crap! We totally forgot about them," Shane whispered.

Tessa frowned. "You mean the ones who kept talking about making us their playmates?"

"Yeah. I feel like such an idiot right now!" Shane growled.

"Well, it's been a rough last few days for us," Tessa pointed out. "And, in fairness, I've met them more than once. So, the blame's on me for not bringing them up."

Shane nodded. "You're right. It is your fault." A blue fist connect with his shoulder and he doubled over in pain. " _Ow!_ What was that for?" he hissed in a whisper.

"That was very rude, Vulpix," Tessa growled. "Apologize, now."

Shane wilted under Tessa's scornful look. "I... I'm sorry," he squeaked. _'Stupid big mouth... next time make sure that stuff stays in my head!'_

Tessa shook her head disapprovingly. _'The things I'm putting up with so I can be famous like Team Poképals.'_

"Hey. Didn't Espeon and Umbreon mention something about wanting to 'infect' Pokémon?" Shane whispered, glancing nervously around the room. "I feel like there was something else, too. It's on the tip of my tongue, but I can't remember."

"But there's gotta be more than a few Espeons and Umbreons lurking around Horizon," Growlithe pointed out to Lycanroc. "How are we supposed to know where to look to find these two?"

"That's the thing, kiddo, we _don't_ know where to look," Lycanroc scoffed. "But, I know what I saw." He crossed his arms. "There I was, minding my own business in the Cavernous Depths, when I saw them. Espeon and Umbreon planted this whacko black crystal into one of the cavern's walls."

Lycanroc's glowing red eyes narrowed and he clenched his fist. "The crystal… it made this crazy spinning blades pop up all over the cave! It was total lunacy, mates. Then I saw Espeon take out a card and throw it on the ground. This freaky vortex popped out and the two of them walked right into it! Needless to say, I got outta there quick as I could."

Shane's eyes widened in realization. _'Ah! That was the other bit. They were using Entercards.'_ His gaze fell toward the ground. _'No. This guy's gotta be lying. I refuse to believe this is all their fault. They're being manipulated or brainwashed. They can't be doing this on purpose!'_

"So, that's how you ended up in Circadian Coast?" Trapinch asked.

"Ya got that right. Normally I wouldn't set foot near a place like that. Water just plain sucks, mate," Lycanroc said, shuddering. "But I wanted to get as far from Cosmic Cavern and the Cavernous Depths as possible, ya dig? And, while I was in Circadian Coast, I did a li'l bit of sleuthing. And I figured out where our problem lies."

The various guild members exchanged hushed whispers.

"Espeon and Umbreon ain't Horizon natives, mates! They're here to muck up our continent!" Lycanroc bellowed.

"Hey now. How can youse be so certain about dat?" Yungoos asked. "Sunrise Village and Aeon Town have plenty of Eeveelutions."

Lycanroc smirked once again. "It's them freaky cards. I found a book about 'em. Entercards, they're called. But that ain't the juicy part." He licked up saliva from his lips. "That book said that there are only three Pokémon in the whole world who actually work with Entercards. I've never laid eyes on Keldeo, but I know for a fact I saw the other two: Espeon and Umbreon! And they live in the Mist Continent. Not Horizon."

Tessa tensed up at this. "Now that I think about it, they _did_ use a card to get away from us the last time we met them." She looked over at Shane, only to see him shaking his head rapidly.

"That's not true… that's not true…" he whispered.

"Vulpix, are you okay?" Tessa asked.

"Don't you realize what this means? Those two gits are mucking around on _our_ continent for their precious little experiments!" Lycanroc barked. "They're messing with forces the gods don't want us tampering with and now _we're_ paying the price for it! The rising tide and the crazy Pokémon are all their faults. If we don't stop those dills, who knows what sort of havoc they'll wreck?"

"That's not true!"

Shane felt everyone's attentions fall onto him. He met Lycanroc's glare, only to immediately look down. "Espeon and Umbreon are good Pokémon! They… they're nice a-and… kind… and… they played a part stopping the Bittercold. There's no way they'd be out causing problems intentionally. Someone or, more likely, some _thing_ is controlling them. And we need to figure out what that is so we can save them!"

"Is that a fact, Snowy? And how would a bloke like you know about them, huh?" Lycanroc asked. "Word on the street is that ya ain't been here too long, mate."

"I… I've… y'know… read the stories and stuff," Shane muttered. He shot a pleading glance at Tessa, but she returned his look with one of confusion.

"Listen, Snowy," Lycanroc growled. Shane tried to suppress a shiver. "Good on ya for trying to get up to speed on things. But some of us here were _alive_ for that trite. And while none of it affected Horizon, we heard stuff. It sounds to me like Espeon and Umbreon were a bit _too_ obsessed with them Entercards. And that ain't natural."

"Err, no offense meant dahling, but this isn't exactly a subject you're well-versed in," Bruxish said to Shane. "I think you'd best leave this to Braviary and the Guildmaster."

Shane frowned. "But my gut's telling me–"

"Your gut? Aww, ain't that cute," Lycanroc chuckled. "Are you trying to tell me your gut feeling is better than what I saw with my own two eyes, mate?"

Shane's stance slumped and he coughed out a weak, "No."

Lycanroc smirked and crossed his arms. "Thought so."

Braviary rubbed the back of his head. "Well then... if'n that's the truth, and them two are from the Mist Continent, odds are they're registered in the Pokémon Nexus, right?" He turned toward Magearna. "Mags, any chance you can hit up our contact in the Expedition Society and see if she can look into them two varmints' whereabouts?"

Magearna's mechanical eyes whirred in their sockets. **It has been a little while since I've contacted her, but I can certainly try. Togedemaru, I may need your Zing-Zap to help boost the Gear-Com's signal.**

Togedemaru smirked. "Of course you do. Because I'm just awesome like that."

"Good. In the meanwhile, I'll do a flyover across the continent and see if'n there are any other weird crystals like what Lycanroc saw," Braviary stated. "Yungoos, I want you flyin' with me. You've got a good nose on ya."

Yungoos stood at attention. "Youse got it, boss-man."

"As fer the rest of ya, go about business as normal. If'n we need to take any additional measures, the Guildmaster will contact y'all." Braviary looked at Metagross, who nodded in approval. "Alright, y'all are dismissed. Get some work done today."

As the assembly started breaking up, Shane made a beeline towards Braviary. "Vulpix?" Tessa called. "We need to get going to Twilight Forest. What are you doing?"

"… leave him be. He's… clearly troubled…"

Tessa flinched at the rasping sounds of Null's voice. "Hi… Null. Did you, um, want to come with us again today?"

"… I might…" the chimera replied. "But… I heard you were… working on some new moves." He shook out his scaly, furry body. "I haven't… had a good practice battle… in a while. Maybe… you could help?"

Tessa stole a glance back at Shane, who was pushing past Growlithe and Yungoos. "I suppose I could spare a few minutes," she muttered and followed Null toward the staircase.

"Ugh, lemme through. I need to talk to Braviary," Shane growled, not noticing his partner's departure.

"Hey now. Where's the fire, Snowy?" Lycanroc chuckled. "If it's that important, just come out and say it."

"No, I need to speak to him _alone,_ " Shane insisted. He waved a forepaw in Braviary's direction. "Please, Braviary. I just need a few minutes."

Braviary furrowed his brow and walked over to Shane. "Son, I've got something rather important to attend to. What's getting ya hot and bothered, huh?"

"I can't say it out here. Can't we find someplace private?" Shane pleaded.

Braviary's brow furrowed. "… fine." He pointed a wing toward Metagross' chambers and Shane hesitantly walked inside.

"But I asked for somewhere private," Shane muttered, glancing over at the Guildmaster. Metagross stared at his tapestry, seemingly lost in thought.

"Anything ya can say to me ya can say to the Guildmaster too, hoss," Braviary said. "Now, go on. Out with it."

Shane's gaze fell to the ground. "You… you shouldn't trust Lycanroc. He's not a good Pokémon."

"Is that a fact? And what, pray tell, gives ya that impression?"

"He's calling me Snowy," Shane explained.

Braviary rolled his eyes. "So? Shoot, Midnight Lycanrocs _love_ teasing other Pokémon. Especially fellow canines."

Shane gritted his teeth. "You didn't let me finish, sir. Someone else has called me Snowy: Sneasel. He's an outlaw who says he's part of a group called Team Fang. Has a scar running down the little feather in his head." He looked up at Braviary. "It's plain as day, to me. Lycanroc's probably Team Fang's leader. You led an outlaw right into the guild!"

Braviary's eyes narrowed at this. "Son, are you saying you don't trust my judgment? You don't trust _the Guildmaster's judgment?_ "

Metagross turned around at this. **Fact: I detected no hostile intent. Order: treat Lycanroc with respect. Order: do not make unjust, unsubstantiated allegations.**

"But what about him accusing Espeon and Umbreon! You have no way of proving they're the research duo from the Mist Continent," Shane whimpered.

Braviary put a wing on Shane's shoulder. "Listen, hoss, I understand you had a rough time of things while we were gone. But that don't give you no right to act nasty toward other Pokémon, guild members or not. Talk things out with yer partner if you need to. But don't be picking no fights because yer upset." Braviary stood up and made for the door. "I suggest you adjust yer attitude, pardner, else I can give you something to _really_ complain about."

Shane slumped over in defeat. "Yes, sir."

"Good. Now, run along. Don't want to keep Riolu waiting, do you?"

* * *

 **~Twilight Forest~**

"I'm telling you, Riolu, Lycanroc's a dirty liar! He's totally making up everything! He's gotta be part of Team Fang. I just know it."

Tessa walked forward, resting her arms against her head. Shane trailed behind her, glaring at the ground. "And you're just basing that off the fact that he called you Snowy?" she asked.

"Yes! Weren't you the one who told me that everyone just goes by their species name here?" Shane growled.

"Yes, but there are some Pokémon that like to mess around with others," Tessa said. "My dad always told me that Incineroars, Zoruas, Zoroarks, and Midnight Lycanrocs are prone to making fun of other Pokémon. But they usually don't mean any harm by it."

"But there was _definitely_ malice in his voice," Shane insisted. "Metagross said he 'didn't sense anything' but how could he? Lycanroc's totally a dark-type. The Guildmaster's psychic powers are useless on him."

Tessa laughed. "Guess you're not as well read up on things as you claim to be. Both versions of Lycanroc are rock-types. It's _in the name, doofus._ "

Shane froze mid-step. "I… I knew that," he squeaked. "I meant to say his secondary type was dark."

"Which is, again, wrong. Both Lycanroc forms are pure rock-type."

"Wait. What do you mean both forms? Don't tell me that jerk can transform," Shane groaned.

"No. Lycanroc can either be in midday or midnight form depending on the time of day that they evolved," Tessa explained. "Actually, I think I remember hearing something about a third form, but I can't recall the details."

Shane frowned. "You seem to know an awful lot about these Lycanroc characters. Is there something you're not telling me?"

Tessa turned around and gave Shane a stink eye. "Yes. It just so happens my grandpa, gods rest his soul, was a Midday Lycanroc. So, what? Are you gonna tell me _he_ was a no-good, two-faced liar too?"

Shane's body went rigid. "Of course not!" He scampered forward after his partner. "I'm not saying all Lycanrocs are bad. Just that one. C'mon, don't tell me your little aura feelers didn't sense _any_ hostility. If I were a Riolu, mine would probably twitch like crazy!"

"Good for you. That makes you paranoid," Tessa said. _'C'mon, Riolu. Deep breaths, here.'_

"But, I was on the money about the thefts in Aeon Town, wasn't I? Don't you think I could be right about this?" Shane pleaded.

"Well, no. Because you found evidence Gallian was stealing stuff. This time around all you've got is a gut feeling," Tessa pointed out.

"I _do_ have evidence. He called me Snowy, just like Sneasel did!"

Tessa shook her head. "Look, I know you love racing to conclusions, but I think this time around you're off the mark. Sorry." She turned away from him and resumed walking. "Just give the guy a chance, okay? And maybe just try keeping your mouth shut around him? At least until you have a better idea of the kind of Pokémon he is."

"Sure, fine, whatever," Shane grumbled. "Thanks for the talk, _Mom._ "

"You're not helping your case by acting like a little kid," Tessa said.

"Forget it," Shane sighed. "So, how much further until we reach the nectar fields?"

Tessa pulled the Wonder Map from the team's pouch. She started to unfold it when Shane dashed in front of her. He opened his mouth and shot a stream of frosty air forward. The Rufflet swooping toward them fell toward the ground, groaning in defeat.

"And here I thought we wouldn't be encountering any wild Pokémon," Tessa said. "Thanks for the save. Looks like you've got Frost Breath working."

Shane looked down at the Rufflet. "No strange markings anywhere on him. So, I guess Parasect was the only infected Pokémon in the forest."

"We don't know that for a fact. But let's keep our voices down just to be safe," Tessa suggested. "The nectar fields should be just a little further ahead." She picked her head up and sniffed the air. "Smell that? The air's getting sweeter."

Shane mimicked his partner. "Huh, how about that. There's a kind of fruity smell to it." He smiled. "Man, this Vulpix nose is totally amazing! Way better than my human one." He trotted down the forest path. "Of course, it probably makes nasty smells even worse. But I haven't had to deal with that, yet. And hopefully never will."

Tessa facepalmed. "You do realize you just tempted fate by saying that, don't you?"

Shane rubbed the bridge of his snout. "Heh. I'm a human in a world of Pokémon. If that's not messing around with fate, I don't know what is."

 _'I see he rebounded from his funk pretty quickly,'_ Tessa thought. _'Ah well, I'd rather have him do this than complain about Lycanroc.'_

"I guess that's one way to look at things," Tessa said. She followed Shane into a bright clearing in the forest. The dirt and tree roots gave way to an open grassy field filled to the brim with flowers.

"Wow!" Shane marveled. "Check out the bright colors. Red, yellow, pink, and purple. What sort of flowers do you think these are?"

"Uh, nectar flowers?" Tessa said, shrugging. "They're definitely what we're looking for. Let's pick one and head back."

"Well, this turned out to be extremely uneventful," Shane chuckled. He walked up toward one of the purple flowers, ignoring the wide-eyed look Tessa gave him.

 _"Arrrrrroooooooooooooooooooooo!"_

Shane's tails stuck straight up and he froze. "Uh, Riolu. Was that your stomach?"

"What do you think?" Tessa growled. "Honestly, Vulpix, I can't believe you jinxed us. And after you gave _me_ such a hard time for doing that the last time we were here. That's not cool!"

"Hey now. There are no problems here. I've got the flower. Let's activate the Escape Orb and get out of dodge before anything goes wrong," Shane said. "See, I _am_ learning."

Tessa fumbled about for the Escape Orb. The moment she pulled it out of her explorer's pouch, a chorus of angry squawking drew her attention. Out of the cover of some of the trees appeared a quartet of Pikipek. But along with them were two larger birds, with longer, multicolored beaks.

The Pikipek spotted Shane and Tessa and cawed excitedly. Their bigger counterparts nodded and then dive-bombed the two canines. Tessa yelped and fell to the ground. The Escape Orb tumbled from her grasp.

"Ack! Grab the orb, Vulpix!" Tessa barked. Shane sprinted forward, only to skid to a halt as the Pikipek surrounded him, cawing angrily.

"Hey! What's the big idea?" Shane hissed, gathering cold air in his mouth.

"Noise! Noise! Bad noise!" the Pikipek chanted in unison.

"Oh, for god's sake. We didn't make any noises!" Shane said. "We're just picking up some nectar."

"No! No! No nectar for noise-makers!" the Pikipek chanted.

Team Radiance quickly went on the defensive. They easily fended off the flock. Tessa got the two Trumbeaks to crash into each other and then fried them with swings of her electrified fists, while Shane caught a lucky break and had the Pikipeks get their beaks stuck in the ground when they couldn't hit him. He swiftly dispelled them with a single frosty cloud.

"In the words of a terrible movie villain: 'Stay cool, bird boy,'" Shane taunted, using a thick accent.

"Are you about done making a fool of yourself?" Tessa groaned. "Seriously, what were you doing with your voice? You sounded like someone was holding your head underwater."

"It's not your concern, Riolu," Shane chuckled. "Just grab the Escape Orb so we can get the heck out of here before something _else_ goes wrong."

"Okaaaaaay. Ignoring your _blatantly obvious_ attempts to jinx us here, I need you to grab another flower first. I accidentally stepped on the one you picked up before," Tessa said. Shane nodded and went to scoop up a new flower. Tessa grabbed the Escape Orb. It released a rainbow light that swallowed up both members of Team Radiance.

* * *

 **~Aeon Town~**

Team Radiance departed the port and made their way toward the town square. "Oricorio should be waiting by the fountain," Tessa said.

"What are we looking for, exactly?" Shane asked. "I've never heard of an Oreo-coro, but it sounds like these delicious cookies we have back in the human world."

" _Or-i-core-io,_ " Tessa corrected. "And it should be a yellow bird with large balls of feathers on the ends of her wings."

Shane froze in the middle of the pathway. "Uh, Riolu?"

Tessa looked up from the piece of parchment containing Oricorio's original request. "What?"

Shane pointed a forepaw forward. "I see a bird. But it's _definitely_ not yellow."

Tessa looked forward, only to frown at the sight of a purple-feathered bird. Instead of big, round puffs of feathers, this bird had flat, fan-shaped extensions on her wings. She also had a small crest on her head, with two feathers protruding from each side. Curiously, she wore a rainbow shawl around her shoulders.

Shane narrowed his eyes. "And look who's beside the bird," he growled, drawing the attentions of both the bird and Lycanroc, who stood next to it.

"What up, Snowy?" Lycanroc fixed his glowing red eyes on Shane. "You seem a bit peeved, mate. Just having a friendly chat with one of the locals. Trying to get up to speed with things around town."

"Oricorio, is that you?" Tessa asked, looking between the bird and the paper in her hand.

"Oh. Oh dear. You must be Team Radiance, huh? This is kinda awkward, isn't it?" Oricorio pressed one of the fanned edges of her wing to her beak.

" _Puh-lease_ don't tell me we went to all that trouble and got the wrong nectar," Shane groaned. "I can't read that chicken scratch and you said she wanted purple nectar."

"That's not a mistake. I _did_ want some purple nectar," Oricorio confirmed. "It's just that Lycanroc here happened to show up and had nectar flowers with him. And, well, I heard that Twilight Forest has become a bit perilous as of late, so I kind of jumped at the chance to take the nectar."

Shane narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Is that a fact? You just so happened to have some flowers that are utterly useless to you?"

Lycanroc bared his fangs at Shane. "Are you calling me out, Snowy? Matter of fact, I _like_ the smell of nectar flowers. Yeah, I get it. It's not terribly manly. But it's soothing. Way better than all the dust I breath in back home. I found some flowers growing in Circadian Coast, so I kept them. Didn't mind giving one to Oricorio. I've still got a few more." He produced a quartet of different-colored nectar flowers from his scruffy mane.

"I'm still willing to pay you guys, since you went through the trouble of finding one," Oricorio said. She reached into her bag and produced a nice stack of coins and some seeds. Tessa accepted the payment, keeping some of it in her paws to give to Braviary upon return to the guild.

Shane continued giving Lycanroc a stink eye. "Aww, c'mon, Snowy. Just an honest misunderstanding here. Didn't mean to chafe your tails, mate." He turned back to Oricorio, ignoring Shane's cross expression. "Anyway, it was nice talking to ya, sheila. Safe travels back home."

Oricorio bowed gracefully. "Thank you very much, sir. You have a good night, as well." And with that, she turned and fluttered her way into the air. Lycanroc turned to head back toward the guild.

"Guess we should head back, too. Sun's starting to set," Tessa said.

"Hold up a moment." Shane blocked off Tessa's path. "You aren't seriously telling me you believe that drivel, are you? He 'had some flowers on him already.' That's total baloney. I'll bet he tailed us and snagged some flowers while we were occupied with those birds."

"Vulpix, I think the summer heat's getting to you," Tessa scoffed. "What would Lycanroc have to gain by doing that? Especially when he's here to investigate Pokémon going crazy."

"The guild's trust. Duh!" Shane said. "He's weaseling into their good graces." Tessa gave him a look of disbelief. "Look, there was a loud howl before we got attacked, remember?" Shane asked, prompting Tessa to nod. "So, that was totally a werewolf howl."

"A what?"

"Werewolves! They're creepy, two-legged wolves in the human world that are triggered by full moons and tend to give off these loud, creepy howls," he explained. Shane craned his neck skyward and belted out an, "Arrrrrroooooooooooo! … kinda like that."

" _Oy!_ Keep it down, you mangy pup!"

A rotten berry hurtled out from a building window and splattered across Shane's left hip. He stumbled forward, grimacing at the sight of purple splotches in his fur. "Oh, come on! It wasn't even that loud!" he protested.

Tessa crossed her arms. "Where are you going with this, exactly? Lycanrocs aren't werewolves. They're Lycanrocs."

"But they look _exactly_ like werewolves in my world. It had to have been him," Shane said. "Lycanroc followed us, howled to anger the wild Pokémon there, and grabbed flowers while we were preoccupied."

"Don't you think we would've seen him if that had happened?"

"No, because we were busy trying _not_ to get pecked to death," Shane said.

Tessa shook her head. "I'm sorry, Vulpix. But to me, that just seems like an even stranger coincidence than Lycanroc finding some nectar flowers on his own and picking them." She walked past him. "Let's go to the guild. I'm getting hungry and I really don't have the patience to listen to more of your ranting."

Shane kicked at the ground with a forepaw. "I'm not ranting! It's the truth, dang it!" He turned and ran after her. "Don't walk away from me. We're not done with this subject yet!"

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"It's so quiet in here. Where is everyone?" Shane looked around the assembly area and found it empty. The lone exception was Null, who had curled up into an awkward ball, sleeping next to the pond. _'That might be cute if I wasn't looking at this world's equivalent of Frankenstein's monster,'_ Shane thought.

"Shhhhh!" Togedemaru appeared out of the northern hallway. "Will you keep your voice down, Vulpix? Comfey's trying to concentrate back here!"

"Did someone get hurt?" Tessa asked.

"… I think so. I'm really not sure how to describe it. You're better off looking for yourselves," Togedemaru said, and then led the duo back to the nursing station. They found Magearna, Growlithe, Braviary, Metagross, Mimikyu, and Lycanroc gathered around one of the beds. And on that bed lay a Pokémon that looked like a larger Yungoos, with a thicker head of hair. However, this Pokémon's body was just various shades of gray.

 **Hypothesis: Aromatherapy use may allow Floral Healing to work,** Metagross stated.

"Whoa, what happened here?" Shane asked, trying to push his way through the group.

"Hey now, Snowy. Stay back a bit. Give the lady some room to work," Lycanroc scolded, drawing an annoyed glare from Shane.

"I'm sorry, Guildmaster," Comfey squeaked. "I can't seem to do anything to Gumshoos here. Nothing's working. I… I think he might be…"

 **I do not detect any energy signatures from Gumshoos,** Magearna confirmed. **Surely you would agree with that observationary, Guildmaster?**

Metagross stepped back. **Affirmative. Fact: this Pokémon was drained of its life force and spiritual energy. Fact: this is not a Gumshoos anymore. Merely an empty shell.**

Shane noticed Tessa grimace at this. "Uh, Tessa and I have seen this happen before," Shane declared.

"And we saw it with those wild Mareanies in Sunset Shoals," Growlithe added.

"Well, yeah. I _did_ find this feller along the Clayback River," Braviary recalled. "He was screeching and flailing his arms around like he was on fire."

"Did ya notice anything else, mate?" Lycanroc asked. "Maybe some dark black crystals somewhere in the ground?"

"Sorry, Lycanroc. I didn't see nothing like that," Braviary replied.

 _'Of course he didn't. Because Lycanroc's making all that stuff up. How can I be the only one who sees that?'_ he thought.

"Espeon and Umbreon must've gotten to this poor bloke," Lycanroc growled, shaking his head. "The nerve of them creeps, I tell ya. If I get my paws on them…"

 **Order: do not do anything rash. Reminder: you are under our roof and will follow my directions,** Metagross stated.

"Ain't nothing we can do about this feller fer now," Braviary said. "But what should we do with him, Guildmaster? I reckon it ain't safe to keep him 'round these parts."

 **Affirmative. Order: return him to Clayback River,** Metagross said and departed the room. The other guild members started to disperse, save for Lycanroc and Braviary, who continued inspecting Gumshoos.

"So, ya think the crystals ya saw in the Cavernous Depths are causing this?" Braviary asked.

Lycanroc nodded. "I'll bet Espeon and Umbreon made 'em with corrupted Entercard energy or something."

Shane stomped a forepaw on the ground. "Vulpix, don't–" Tessa started but Shane stormed past her.

"You're lying, Lycanroc!" Shane accused. "Just like you lied about 'conveniently' having nectar flowers on you. You totally stalked my teammate and I during our mission!"

Braviary raised a brow. "Now what's all this hullabaloo?"

"Ah, don't pay Snowy any mind." Lycanroc said, waving dismissively. "His tails are all twisted up cause I gave some purple nectar to an Oricorio who asked him to find some. It was just a coincidence." He craned his head to the side. "By the way, you've uh, got a little something on yer side there, mate." He brushed a paw along his hip.

"Ha! You _wish_ it was a coincidence." Shane turned to Braviary. "In Twilight Forest, we heard a Pokémon howl loudly and then we were attacked by birds. It was obviously this guy who did it."

"Why would I do that? I ain't got no reason to go to Twilight Forest. It'd be a waste of time," Lycanroc scoffed.

"Because you're here to mooch off the guild's generosity," Shane declared, snorting out tufts of frosty air. "You made up some story about a pair of famous Pokémon turning evil and attacking this place. That's completely ridiculous!" He turned to Braviary. "And it's more ridiculous that you're actually buying into this."

Tessa's eyes widened and she stepped back toward the hallway. "Oh no. Tell me he didn't just snap at Braviary like that," she squeaked.

"Well I could, but I'd be lying."

"Gah!" Tessa jumped. She looked beside her to see Togedemaru standing there. "W-What are you doing here? I thought you left."

"I heard Vulpix shouting and came back. I do so love seeing rookies get chewed out by Braviary," she giggled.

"Listen up, hoss," Braviary said, narrowing his eyes at Shane. "There are Electrikes and Houndours in Twilight Forest. Ya just heard one of them. Now, I could understand if'n ya were a bit nervous around a Midnight Lycanroc. Most smaller 'mons are. But going around and calling him a no-good scoundrel when he ain't done nothing is where I draw the line. Not to mention, the _Guildmaster_ already told you he ain't sensed no hostile intent."

Braviary shook his head. "Apparently, that didn't get through that thick skull of yers. So, maybe a day on sentry duty will adjust yer attitude?"

"Oh, come on!" Shane hissed. "I'm being serious!"

Lycanroc licked his lips. "I'm real sorry ya ain't a fan of me, Snowy. But this is just who I am." He shrugged. "I don't want our continent becoming some dumping ground for dark magic crystals, that's all."

"And that sentry assignment goes fer yer pardner, too," Braviary said, glancing at Tessa.

Tessa's eyes widened. "What? Don't lump me in with him! We couldn't disagree more on this issue!"

Togedemaru fell onto her back laughing. "Aha ha! You sure found a real winner of a teammate, there. Wonder what the powers that be were thinking when they brought this guy over from the human world." She stumbled back down the hallway. "Oh, wait'll Serperior hears about this. What a hoot!"

Shane's tails drooped. "But–"

"If yer gonna keep on yapping, I can extend your sentry duty punishment," Braviary declared. "Well, go on. Still got something to say?"

Shane hung his head and shook it.

"Good." Braviary turned to Lycanroc. "Let's get ya some food. Ya must be starved."

"Actually, no need." Lycanroc pulled a small bag out from his mane. "I bought something from that café over in town. Because I don't want to – oh, how did Snowy phrase it? – 'mooch off the guild's generosity.'"

Shane's eyes widened. _'Oh, come on! He probably stole money from someone to get that,'_ he thought, but a death glare from Tessa kept his mouth shut.

"Suit yerself, pardner," Braviary said. "Yer still welcome to join us in the dining area." He pointed a wing forward guided Lycanroc to the hallway. Lycanroc turned and gave Shane a cocky smirk as he walked by.

Shane gritted his teeth, but waited until Lycanroc and Braviary disappeared from his view before turning to Tessa and saying, "Did you see that look he gave me? He _knows_ he's getting away with thi–"

 _SMACK!_

Tessa struck Shane in the gut with a glowing palm. Shane crumpled to the ground like a destroyed stack of cards.

"Here's a little suggestion, _partner._ When I tell you to ignore Lycanroc, listen to me! He's trying to get a rise out of you and you're making it too easy for him. I'm sure he'll be gone before you know it," she hissed, and then stormed off down the hallway, shaking her head disapprovingly.

Comfey floated down toward Shane. "Oh dear," she sighed. "I hate it when teams have infighting."

Shane staggered to his feet. _'I don't get it. I know I'm right here. Why isn't anyone believing me?'_

* * *

Next time: it's a trap!


	23. Bonus: Family Picnic

**Bonus: Family Picnic  
** _Certified, 100%, Grade-A Canon!_

 **~Sunrise Village~**

On the outskirts of Horizon's quietest community sat Hillside Park. As its name suggested, it was a small, open field running up a grassy hill. It featured a sandbox in the shape of a Sandygast to keep children entertained. It was into this park that a young Tessa sprinted, turning to look over her shoulder.

"Hurry up, Gallian! Kick the ball," she squealed, turning around to backpedal.

"Okay!" Gallian's squeaky voice echoed through the park. "You better get ready." He wound up with a foreleg and launched a small rubber ball well over Tessa's head. She threw her arms to the side and dashed off after the ball.

"I got it! I got it!" she shouted.

"Not if I get it first!" Gallian shouted, speeding off after her.

"… heh." Incineroar rubbed the bridge of his nose. "She runs just like you do, you know that?"

He looked to his right, where Prisma walked alongside him. She had a basket hanging loosely off her right arm, while her left arm was wrapped around Incineroar's waist, a safe distance above his fiery belt.

"I _so_ don't run like that," Prisma grumbled.

"Are you kidding? You've been running with your arms stuck out like Lati wings since the day I met you," Incineroar said with a chuckle.

Prisma's face flushed. "It hasn't been that obvious since I became a Lucario," she insisted.

"I can still spot it," Incineroar said.

"You know, if you're gonna be like that, there's nothing stopping me from taking the food and waltzing out of here," Prisma pouted.

"Relax, sweetie, I'm just having a little fun," Incineroar said, feigning a hurt expression. "After all, today's my day off. I want to enjoy it to the fullest!"

"Are you sure you're not needed back at the guild for anything?" Prisma asked.

"Of course not. You felt the tremors when you woke up too, right? The Tapus are out reshaping the Mystery Dungeons. Nothing's getting done today. That's why I gave the whole guild the day off!" he said, giving her a thumb's up. "Besides, Braviary and Leafeon are holding down the fort. She said it'd be helpful with preparing him to take over as my assistant."

He shook his head. "Man, never thought I'd end up seeing the day where Leafeon would retire. I'd figure she'd just stay with us forever."

"I think she's earned it," Prisma said. "At the very least, your dad'll appreciate her company." She removed her paw from his waist and rubbed her shoulder. "Err, sorry, I probably shouldn't have said that. He's still having a rough time of things, isn't he?"

Incineroar sighed and shook his head. "You know my old man. He'll never admit that anything's getting to him." He wrapped an arm around Prisma. "But, truthfully? Losing Mom has hit him pretty hard. I can barely get more than a couple of sentences out of him when I go to visit." He looked up to the sky. "We really should take the kids to see him, soon. I think he'd like that a lot."

Prisma frowned. "But, if the Tapus are working on the dungeons, you're going to be flooded with work starting tomorrow. How are you possibly going to find the time?"

Incineroar gave her a reassuring grin. "I'll burn that bridge when I get to it. What's my motto?"

"Always go for seconds at dinner?" Prisma replied.

"Very funny," Incineroar deadpanned. "No, it's 'take things one day at a time.' For now, let's just focus on enjoying our time together as a family." He looked down the hill and watched as Tessa tossed the ball toward Gallian. He lunged in front of the ball and used his body to block it from rolling away.

"Ha! Nice try, sis, but it'll take more than that to get one past me," Gallian boasted. "Now… taste this!" He reared back and clubbed the ball with the flat of his scythe. Tessa started backpedaling, only to trip and fall on her rear. Her parents couldn't help but laugh as her eyes comically widened upon landing on her tail. Gallian snickered. "Ha! That makes in three to nothing. Step up your game, sis!"

"That's not fair. You're bigger and stronger than me!" Tessa protested, rubbing her tail as she got to her feet.

Gallian grinned. "And don't you go forgetting it!" He lowered his scythe, which flickered with pink energy before abruptly fizzling out. "Aww, c'mon. Work, you stupid thing!"

"Kids! Lunchtime," Prisma called, spreading out a picnic blanket. They turned around simultaneously and sprinted toward her.

"I'm gonna get there first," Gallian called.

"But you have four legs," Tessa whined. Her eyes squinted shut and she ducked her head down as Gallian's lead increased on her. Then, surprisingly, she vanished in the blink of an eye. The confident smirk on Gallian's face disappeared and, seconds later, he fell to the ground. Tessa popped up right next to him and stumbled the rest of the way to the picnic blanket.

"W… what just happened?" she gasped.

"Looks like someone's just learned Quick Attack," Incineroar said. He gave Tessa a thumb's up. "That's my girl!"

Tessa's aura feelers twitched. "I… I used an attack?" she gasped. Her expression immediately brightened. "Alright!"

Gallian walked over, blinking stars out of his eyes. "Nnnrrrgh… you cheated," he accused, frowning.

"Nuh-uh! Learning a new move isn't cheating. It's, um, strategy," Tessa declared.

"Settle down, both of you," Prisma said, passing them plates of food. "If you're still this riled up after eating, you can have a practice battle."

Gallian's eyes flickered with interest, while Tessa's face blanched. "Now, now, let's just enjoy lunch," Incineroar said. "So, Gallian, still trying to get Psycho Cut working, huh?"

Gallian scowled. "The psychic energy keeps disappearing before I can shoot it forward. Why can't I go work with Bruxish, dad?"

"Bruxish helps teach moves to guild members," Incineroar explained. "I can't let you use his services if you're not in the guild. Wouldn't want folks thinking I give my family special treatment, right?"

Tessa looked up at him, her mouth full of berry. She swallowed and then said, "Is that why you're not making Mom your new assistant?"

Incineroar and Prisma exchanged looks. "That… has nothing to do with it," Prisma stated. "Your father and I just have a difference of opinions as to how I can best serve the guild."

"Your mom wants to stay out in the field and keep doing missions," Incineroar said. "Who am I to say no to that? Besides…" He leaned over and nestled Tessa's head. "… this way, your mom has time to look after you. And Gallian too, of course."

"Does that mean we can do more, um, 'ower-a' practicing, Mom?" Tessa asked.

"It's 'aura,' Tessa," Prisma corrected. "And, of course it does. But, remember, aura training isn't easy. If you want to work with me, then I need you to be focused."

"Of course! I can focus really good," Tessa said. "Look, here's my focused face." She furrowed her brow and stared intently at the remains of her sandwich. "See? Pretty good, huh?"

"I guess so," Prisma said, rubbing the back of her head.

The rest of the meal went by swiftly. Tessa got to her feet as Incineroar cleaned up their picnic. "Okay, Mom. Let's start that training stuff right now!" She bobbed back and forth on the balls of her feet.

"Actually, Tessa, why don't you go play with Gallian some more?" Incineroar suggested, placing a paw on Prisma's shoulder. "Your mother and I need to have a little chat."

Tessa and Gallian looked at their parents, and then at each other. "Hey, I'll bet that Quick Attack was a fluke," Gallian suddenly declared. "You'll never get it working again."

"Nuh-uh! I can so do it again," Tessa immediately countered.

"Oh, really? Then, catch me if you can!" Gallian said, running off down the hill. Tessa gave chase. When the kids were out of earshot, Incineroar turned to Prisma.

"Sweetie, is there something you're not telling me?"

Prisma frowned. "Uh… no."

"Let me rephrase that," Incineroar said. "I know you're keeping something secret from me." Prisma raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Braviary came up to me about a day after I offered to make him my new assistant. He said that he thinks there's a _very specific reason_ you turned down my offer. Something much bigger than just wanting to be out in the field more."

Prisma shifted about uncomfortably. "And you believe him?"

"He's one of my most trusted friends," Incineroar replied. "I don't think he'd lie to me."

"Maybe he's just seeing smoke when there's no fire," Prisma scoffed. "You know he's never quite been the biggest fan of me."

"Well, maybe that's true," Incineroar said. "But, if there really is something wrong, you know you can always talk to me, right? You're the love of my life, Prisma. I want you to be happy. I want our family to be happy. And if you're not happy, I'll do whatever it takes to fix that."

"I'm quite content, thank you," Prisma tersely replied. "If anything, this line of questioning is making me peeved. So, how about we drop it, okay?"

A worried look crossed Incineroar's face. "It's not me, is it?" He put a paw to his forehead. "Oh gods, I've been too pushy, haven't I? I'm being too overbearing. Saying you'll spend more time with the kids, as if you don't have a choice in the matter. Sylveon's always willing to look after them, so I don't know why I'd say that!"

Prisma leaned over and pecked Incineroar on the cheek. "If I did have a problem, I guarantee it has nothing to do with you. You've been nothing but kind and loving. And, really, I'm honored that you would ask me to replace Leafeon. Honest." She leaned her head on his shoulder. "But, I can't just stay around the Observatory, save for the occasional special assignment. I'd go absolutely stir crazy. I can guarantee it."

Incineroar wrapped an arm around Prisma. "Ah, I really hadn't thought about it that way. I'm sorry. It was pretty selfish of me to thrust that request onto you like that."

"It's fine, sweetie. Don't beat yourself up over it. You and Braviary already work so well together. This is only going to be good for the guild. Trust me," Prisma insisted.

"I always do," Incineroar chuckled, giving her a wink. "Even if you have gotten us into trouble a couple of times."

"Look, if this is about that time your dad caught us kissing in his office, I already–"

Incineroar laughed at this. "Are you kidding? Probably my favorite night I've ever had at the Observatory." Prisma blushed at this. They fell into silence for several seconds, before Incineroar said, "It's about the picture, isn't it?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"The reason you want to keep working in the field is that picture you always have on you, right?" Incineroar asked. Prisma gave him an incredulous look. "Drop the act, baby. I've known about your picture since you were a Riolu. You always keep it under that bandanna of yours."

Prisma subconsciously brought a paw up to fiddle with the bandanna in question. "I… th-that…" she stammered.

"Hey, it's okay," Incineroar coaxed. "I just figured it's related to your lost memories, that's all. If you think exploring will help you get those memories back, you have my blessings. Go explore to your heart's content. But…" He looked over at her. "Promise me that, if something's bothering you, you'll come to talk to me, okay? I'm probably just making a mountain out of a Drilbur hill here. But, the way Braviary talked about you, it sounded like you were keeping some sort of deep, dark secret from me."

"What? That's totally ridiculous." Prisma let out a nervous laugh. "I've got nothing to hide from you." She lay down on the grass, allowing her upper body to rest on Incineroar's thighs. "I know we've got a big day ahead of us at the guild tomorrow. So, let's just rest up for now. Maybe we can have a little alone time after we put the kids to bed?"

Incineroar smiled. "I was just thinking the exact same thing."


	24. The Peak of Reckless Abandon

**Chapter 21: The Peak of Reckless Abandon**

 _Shane's eyes fluttered open and he yawned loudly. However, he immediately buried his head in his forelegs, shielding his eyes from a familiar bright-orange expanse._

 _"Gah!" Shane shouted. He slowly stood up, blinking his eyes rapidly. "Okay, that never fails to startle me. At least this is pretty convenient timing." He took a step toward the orange water lapping up at the shore's surface. "Yo, Solgaleo! Get your booming voice out here. Your chosen one needs a bit of spiritual guidance."_

 _The sun-shaped silhouette from his previous dreams flickered into view on the water's surface._ _ **"What the matter, human? Did I not make you purpose clear last time?"**_ _he growled._

 _"You totally did," Shane said. "Be the chosen one, protect day and night, save the world, yadda yadda… look, I got that. But I've run into an issue. And I really need your sagely wisdom. See, there's this Midnight Lycanroc running around the guild and I think he's up to no good. He claims he knows what's causing Pokémon to go berserk, right? And I'm pretty sure it's connected to the whole day-night issue, but I think he's lying!"_

 _ **"Foooooooooooooooooool!"**_

 _The booming roar knocked Shane off his feet and he tumbled across the sand. "Hack! Plebth! Okay. Easy on the yelling," Shane groaned, coughing up some sand._

 _ **"Absol is the problem,"**_ _he said._ _ **"You don't have time to waste on Lycanroc."**_

 _"What if he's in league with Absol?"_

 _ **"My powers are stretched thin enough already, chosen one,"**_ _Solgaleo retorted._ _ **"I do not have the strength to see how virtuous Lycanroc is. You're on your own."**_

 _Shane frowned. "Darn. So much for that idea." He scratched his ear. "But wait a second. If you said that Absol's the problem, then that means Espeon and Umbreon_ aren't _the problem. And that means Lycanroc's totally lying. Which means I'm one hundred percent right and Tessa, Braviary, and the whole guild can suck it!" He narrowed his eyes. "I knew that mangy mutt was trouble the moment I laid eyes on him!"_

 _He looked up at the silhouette on the water. "Thanks a ton, buddy! This was actually very helpful."_

 _ **"Then I expect no more stupid questions,"**_ _Solgaleo growled._ _ **"Do not dawdle, human. You must start restoring the balance between night and day before it's too late!"**_

 _His vision went completely white._

* * *

Shane picked his head up off his cushion. "Nnnnrrgh. Talk about a rude awakening," he whined, rubbing his temple. "The sun's barely even risen. It's not time to get up." He rested his head back on his pillow. Unfortunately, his ears twitched and swiveled in the door's direction. "Hmm?" He picked his head up, ears twitching again.

"Curse these sensitive Vulpix ears," Shane mumbled. "When I was a human I was _such_ a deep sleeper. Now I can wake up at the drop of a pin." He slowly stood up and arced his back. His spine produced several satisfying _cricks_. "Might as well investigate whatever that thumping noise is." He proceeded out of his room and into the hall.

Shane didn't need to go far to identify the problem. The moment he stepped into the assembly area, he gave a frightened yip and scrambled to his right. Seconds later, Null's large frame skidded past him. Null shook his head about, giving a deep, rasping cough, and charged forward.

 _'Okay…_ definitely _awake now,'_ Shane realized, his heart thumping against his chest. He picked his head up and saw Tessa standing in the center of the room. Null continued his charge, bringing a foreleg up as blades of energy sheathed around his talons. He swiped down at Tessa, but she thrust her left palm forward.

The force from the two limbs meeting caused both Pokémon to buckle. Null's larger frame easily absorbed the blow, while Tessa trembled and fell off balance. Null brought his head down and his helmet and feathered crest hardened into steel. He thrust his upper body forward and struck Tessa in the face with a resounding _claaaaaaaaang!_

Tessa collapsed onto her back. Null bore down on her, raising a foreleg while air gathered in between his talons. "You got me," Tessa squeaked, holding up her paws in surrender. Null lowered his foreleg and extended it to Tessa. She grabbed hold and Null hoisted her to her feet. He then turned away and shook his body. His helmet rattled around on his head, making Shane's fur stand on end.

"… your left side… is weak…" Null wheezed. "… that last attack… you wouldn't have been so vulnerable… if you'd used your right paw…"

Tessa wiped sweat from her brow. "It was really that noticeable, huh?" she sighed. "I guess I've got to work on that."

"… yeah… you do…"

"Still, thanks for waking up to do this with me at this hour," Tessa said. "This was a good release." She stretched her arms up toward the ceiling.

"… wasn't getting much sleep anyway. The headaches… keep getting worse..." Null groaned. He tensed up and clawed at his helmet with a foreleg.

Tessa shrank back, unsure how to approach Null. "Um, are you okay?" She cautiously reached a paw toward him, but Null swerved his head away with a hiss. Tessa quickly brought her paw back to her side.

"Hey!" Shane finally decided to make his presence known. "Are you two trying to wake everyone up? Because it's working."

Tessa caught Shane's gaze and frowned. "I needed to blow off some steam and this is the only real practice area the guild has. It's too chilly outside this early in the morning."

"Blow off steam?" Shane parroted. "What for? I thought we had a pretty good day yesterday, save for Lycan–"

"Don't you dare start with that nonsense again!" Tessa snapped, balling her paws into fists. "It was your big mouth that got us stuck on sentry duty and so help me if you extend it beyond today, I'll… I'll…"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. You already got your licks in with that Force Palm yesterday," Shane reminded her. "Thanks for that, by the way. My chest is nice and sore now."

"You deserved it," Tessa growled. Null immediately stepped in front of her, blocking the duo's view of each other.

"… don't escalate things. Just walk away…" he said. Tessa nodded and followed Null down toward the dining area.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" Shane called. "Don't I at least get some sort of apology?"

His answer came in the form of a blue tail wrapping around his snout, clamping it shut. Shane's eyes widened. He turned in the direction of the tail to see Dragonair looking right at him. She wasn't glaring. Rather, she had a calm, almost detached appearance about her. Dragonair unwound her tail.

"What's the big idea?" Shane growled.

"We need to talk, Vulpix," she said. Dragonair turned around and beckoned him forward with her tail. "Walk with me."

"Uh, you don't walk. You slither."

"I could knock you out in one Extreme Speed if you don't feel like cooperating," Dragonair threatened, her voice still calm and measured. Shane's tails stiffened and he immediately trudged along after her. She led him up the stairs toward the entrance, pausing at the top to look at the starry mural painted across the ceiling.

"… I'm concerned about you and Tessa," she finally said after a long silence.

"You know we're supposed to call her Riolu, right?" Shane said. "I'm totally telling her you're not listening."

"In case you haven't noticed, she's not here," Dragonair countered, showing no signs of impatience toward Shane. "Stop trying to deflect. I want you to listen to me."

"Pssssht. Riolu and I are fine. She's just a bit mad about sentry duty, that's all," Shane dismissed. "I know I'm right about Lycanroc and soon you guys will realize that, too."

Dragonair sighed. "This goes beyond Lycanroc. Every time it seems like the two of you are making some solid progress as partners, something happens to set you back. And, generally speaking, it's _your_ fault," she accused, jabbing Shane's torso with her tail.

Shane frowned. "Maybe we're not a _perfect team,_ but we're getting better. You just saw us at our low point back with Parasect. We've improved since th–"

Dragonair abruptly cut him off, wrapping her tail around his snout once again. Shane's eyes narrowed and he let out a puff of frigid air.

"If you really intend to do right by Riolu as her partner, then you need to start respecting her boundaries," Dragonair lectured. "She's been through a lot. More than you could possibly know."

Shane raised an eyebrow. "Mmmmmffffrrrghhhh," he grunted, Dragonair's tail muffling his voice. She rolled her eyes and withdrew her tail. Shane exhaled forcefully. "Sheesh, no need to muzzle me."

"I have found it's the most effective technique for dealing with your moody, childish rambles," Dragonair said. "Now, what were you saying?"

"I was just asking if you meant her family? Because I'm already perfectly well-versed in that subject. Sure, the thing with her brother's a bit weird, but at least she _knows_ her family's somewhere here," Shane said. "How do you think _I_ feel? I've already been here a month. Who knows how much time has passed in the human world? What about my family, huh?" The lie made Shane's stomach churn, but he kept a straight face.

To his relief, Dragonair closed her eyes and said, "That's a fair point. I'll give you that much. However, I do not believe Riolu has given you the full story about what's happened with her family."

Shane pursed his muzzle. "What? You mean there's more to it than just 'my parents are exploring the Grass Continent and I don't know when they'll be back?'"

Dragonair nodded. "Yes. But it's not my place to tell you. That would violate Riolu's trust."

"Aww, c'mon. I can keep a secret. And I'm her partner, so it's important that I know," Shane said.

"If she doesn't trust you enough to tell you the truth, what makes you think I will?" Dragonair scoffed. "If you want to win her over, then do as I suggested. Respect her boundaries."

Shane's face scrunched up. "But what does that even mean? I've been perfectly nice to her lately!"

"That's something the two of you need to talk out," Dragonair said. "Preferably, without any shouting."

"Well, great. Now I'm tired _and_ confused. Thanks," Shane grumbled. "Can I go now? I've got sentry duty to attend to."

Dragonair slithered away from the stairs. "Be my guest," she said. Shane shot her an annoyed look and descended back to the main level.

 _'What could Tessa not be telling me about her family?'_ Shane thought, making his way toward the sentry station. _'This is all so weird. What happened to my partner being a cheerful, energetic little Pokémon with tons of spunk? Tessa's like the exact opposite of that!'_

He stopped to look up at the ceiling. _'Is this some sort of secret character test? Is Tessa under some sort of spell that I can break her out of with love, kindness, or the power of friendship? Bah… that's so pathetically sappy!'_ His brow furrowed. "Yo, Arceus, if you're really up there doing whatever, how about a sign?"

"… hurry up, human…"

Shane flinched at the sound of Null's rasping voice. He quickened his pace and entered the room. Tessa sat on a cushion, clutching the guild's entry log. Null stood up from beside the Pokénector. He turned to Tessa and said, "… if he… bothers you at all… call for me…"

"Hey! There's no need for that," Shane whined. "I'm not looking for any trouble, okay."

Null fixed his tired, gray eyes on Shane. "… actions speak louder than words… human…" He exited the room, eyeing Shane as he went.

"Cripes. Could you _be_ any creepier?" Shane scoffed. "You've been hanging around with him quite a bit lately. Is there, uh, something going on between you two I should know about?"

Tessa crossed her arms and looked away. "No. I just appreciate his company. He's soft-spoken, unlike a certain ice-type, who shall remain nameless. Besides, it's none of your business how I choose to spend my free time."

 _'Besides, even if he looks strange, I don't feel as lonely when I'm around Null,'_ Tessa thought. _'If I can't forge a good relationship with Vulpix, then at least I have Null to lean on for support until we figure out what's happening to the world and how to a put a stop to it.'_

Shane prepared to retort, but his conversation with Dragonair flashed into his mind. His ears drooped and he slinked toward the unoccupied cushion. _'I don't believe this,'_ he thought. _'Why is my own partner starting to trust that freak with the headgear more than me? Why can't she just see things my way for once?'_

He pawed at the ground. "Um, listen. About yesterday…"

"I said not to bring that up," Tessa growled, spinning away from him.

"Oh." Shane lowered his head. "Right… sorry."

Sentry duty proceeded in silence for the duo, with the exception of the occasional Pokémon arriving and Tessa announcing said arrival. All the while, Shane's thoughts continued to fester. He soon found himself gnashing his teeth together. _'I can't just stay quiet. I don't want friction between us. If Tessa's refusing to speak up, it's up to me to put this issue to rest!'_

"Are you at least willing to hear an apology?" he asked. Tessa raised her head at this. "See, I…" Shane started, but cut himself off when his ears twitched. He lifted his head and glanced down the hallway.

"You what?"

"Uh, hang on a second." Shane got to his feet. "I think I hear someone out in the assembly area."

"So? We're on sentry duty, not eavesdropping duty," Tessa scoffed.

"Hallway conversations aren't private," Shane countered. "I'll be right back. I just want to investigate." He got to his feet and padded his way toward the assembly area. As he did, he could make out a familiar voice. His brow immediately furrowed.

"… exactly why I wanted to find ya, sheilas," Lycanroc's voice carried around the corner. "From what I heard, you're the strongest team around these parts. I'd try asking Braviary or the Guildmaster, but they seem busy."

"Hold on," Milotic said. "What makes you so sure something's happening in Dewdrop Woods, anyway?"

"Right. I was on my way through town and I saw this right banged-up Araquanid and Volcarona duo trudging through the place."

"That's Team Buzz-Buzz!" Serperior gasped. "Are they okay? What the heck happened?"

"They said they got throttled in Dewdrop Woods. Something about a Bewear losing its mind," Lycanroc explained. "And, yeah, they're resting on up with Comfey. Them suckers had some nasty blows."

Shane's muzzle pursed. _'What the heck's he talking about? Beware losing your mind? That doesn't make any sense.'_ He narrowed his eyes. _'I'll bet this is a set up! Lycanroc's trying to dupe Team Captivate.'_

"Look, I'd go investigate myself, but I ain't got any ideas how to navigate that forest. And I'd be beyond useless against the likes of a Bewear. Plus, there's three of you and one of me," Lycanroc pointed out.

 _'I'll bet he's gonna try and steal their stuff,'_ Shane concluded. _'No, wait. What if he's telling the truth and leading them right into a trap?'_

"I don't know, it sounds a little vague," Serperior said, to Shane's relief.

"But if we don't do anything, it could start rampaging through the town," Lycanroc pointed out. "Now, I'm sure you fine sheilas don't want that on your tails, right?"

 _'Come on, don't listen to him. Dragonair, you're stupidly logical. Say something!'_ Shane thought.

"Hmm. Well, we wouldn't want something like that happening. Pokémon could get hurt that way," Milotic agreed. "Besides, we were planning to visit Dewdrop Woods anyway. C'mon girls, let's get going."

Shane's eyes widened and he smacked his forehead. He stiffened at the sound of footsteps. Shane quickly turned away as Lycanroc popped up in front of the south hallway.

"Oy. Ain't you supposed to be somewhere, Snowy?" Lycanroc asked.

"Yeah. I'm just, uh, taking a short break!" Shane lied. "Y'know, stretching out my legs so I don't, uh, get any muscle cramps." He leaned down in a stretch and then jogged in place. "It can get a bit stuffy sitting in the sentry room, see. Aha ha… ha…"

Lycanroc smirked. "I'll take your word for it, mate. Later." He strolled off toward the living quarters, whistling a jaunty tune.

 _'Grrrrrrr. Why that no-good, sleazy dirtbag! He's setting Team Captivate up for… something.'_ Shane started jogging down the hallway. _'I'd better report this to Tess–'_

He promptly skidded to a halt. "Wait, what am I saying? She's just going to say I'm lying again and run off to complain to Null or Braviary." He turned back toward the assembly area. "But I can't just go after Team Captivate myself. I've gotta find someone to help me out…"

Shane backpedaled toward the assembly area. "Okay, living quarters are no good. Lycanroc's there, remember? Maybe I'll have some luck upstairs." He sprinted up the stairway and smiled at the sight of Yungoos, Trapinch, and Growlithe. "Oh, thank heavens," he chirped. "You're just the Pokémon I need right now."

"Uh, ain't youse supposed to be doing sentry duty?" Yungoos pointed out.

"Forget that! Listen, did you see Team Captivate pass through here?" Shane asked. The three apprentices nodded in unison. "Crud! I wasn't fast enough."

"Where's the fire, Vulpix?" Growlithe asked. "And why didn't you let me light it?"

"Listen, I just overhead Lycanroc _begging_ Team Captivate to go investigate Dewdrop Woods," Shane explained.

"Oh brother, not this song and dance routine again," Trapinch sighed.

"I'm serious! He said something about 'Bewear losing its mind,' or some nonsense like that," Shane insisted. At that, the apprentices' eyes widened.

Trapinch gulped. "Did… did you just say Bewear?"

Shane rolled his eyes. "Yeah. Why? It doesn't make any sense, right?"

Yungoos gave Shane an unamused look. "Rookie, youse _do_ realize Bewear is a Pokémon, right?"

Shane's jaw slackened. "Huhwha–?"

"Hmm. How can we describe it to you?" Growlithe wondered. "Oh! It's like an even more terrifying Ursaring. It's got huge arms like this." He reared up on his hind legs and spread his forelegs out, trying to flex them. "It can snap a tree in half just by hugging it. Great for gathering firewood, if you ask me."

Shane's tails shot straight up. "Are you serious? If that's the case, Team Captivate's in serious danger!"

"What do you mean? They're the strongest team in the guild," Trapinch said. "They can handle anything."

"But Lycanroc's leading them into a trap! An ambush!" Shane darted toward them. "We have to do something. We need to catch up to them and get them out of that forest!" The apprentices all exchanged nervous looks. "Ugh… look. I'm telling the truth, I swear." He turned to Trapinch. "Can you just check Team Captivate's room and make sure Lycanroc isn't trying to steal anything?"

"Uh, I guess so?" Trapinch muttered. "But why would Lycanroc–?"

"Because he's a no good crook of an outlaw," Shane growled. "And when you're done checking, go take my place at the sentry station."

"But if Braviary finds out youse ditched yer post, you'll–"

Shane held up a forepaw to silence Yungoos. "Uh-uh. This time, the two of you are coming with me so I can _prove_ I'm right. And because if there _is_ trouble I need backup."

Growlithe wagged his tail. "Does this mean I can light stuff on fire? Because I've heard a Bewear's fur is _especially_ combustible." Shane nodded. "Great! I'm in."

"Hang on a minute dere, rookie. Youse can't just come up to us and demand we help youse like dat. We could get in trouble too, y'know," Yungoos said.

"Well… uh…" Shane's eyes lit up. "I know. I'll buy you the Supreme Berry Sorbet from Crabrawler's Café if you help me."

Yungoos' eyes sparkled. "Now _dat_ is what I call a bribe! Okay, I'm in too."

"Great!" Shane ran toward the door. "Then we'd better get a move on. We need to catch up to Team Captivate."

He sprinted through the entrance, with Yungoos and Growlithe following him. The three guys failed to notice a hulking, helmeted form watching them from beside the Observatory entrance.

"… beast… beast… have to... follow. Must get rid of him… get rid of… beast!"

Null moaned and wheezed. He jostled his head around and then plodded toward the town square.

* * *

 **~Dewdrop Woods~**

"Anyone see anything suspicious?" Shane asked, swiveling his head about.

"No. Just trees and rocks. Da usual stuff," Yungoos replied. "Does dis mean we can go now?"

"Not if you want that sorbet," Shane replied. "Braviary said you had a nose for sniffing things out, right? How about putting that to use here?"

"Fine." Yungoos walked beside Shane and bent down toward the ground. He sniffed the pathway.

"Wow, amazing," Growlithe chirped. "I'll bet if I tried that I'd inhale the dirt and just end up setting Vulpix on fire with one of my sneezes."

Shane took several steps forward, his tails falling between his legs. _'I could've been a normal, fire-type Vulpix but nooooooo. This universe hates me, apparently, because it put me with a Riolu who isn't even appreciative of being a Riolu!'_

"Hey, I got somet'ing!" Yungoos picked his head up and sniffed at the base of a rock. "I smell brine."

Shane raised an eyebrow. "Which is weird because…?"

"Because Milotic always smells like seawater cause of her shampoo. Duh," Yungoos scoffed.

Growlithe looked at his guild mate. "And you know this because…?"

"Because none of youse business, dat's why!" Yungoos growled. "I'll bet Team Captivate took off in dis direction." He pointed a foreleg down a path running east. Yungoos brought his head back toward the ground and resumed sniffing. Shane followed along after him. "Oh yeah, I can definitely still smell 'em," Yungoos muttered.

"How far could they have gotten anyway? I didn't think serpents could slither that fast," Shane muttered.

"Well, they're Team Captivate. They've been doing this for a while," Growlithe chuckled. "I tried to beg Dragonair to teach me Extreme Speed once, but she said it won't work until I evolve. Some Pokémon just have all the luck, huh?"

 _'Preaching to the choir there, buddy,'_ Shane sneered, continuing to keep his distance from Growlithe.

Yungoos led them forward, focusing on the ground. They reached a point where the trail started to wrap around a hill, when Shane's ears suddenly twitched. "Hey, I think there's someone coming," he said, turning to face some of the nearby foliage.

Sure enough, the trio soon saw the trees and bushes shaking. They all took a few steps back. The bushes then parted and several Pikipeks and Ledybas fluttered out. "Whoa!" Yungoos gasped, scampering backwards. The cluster of wild Pokémon made no attempt to engage the guild members, however. Instead, they shot worried glances back into the forest and scrambled across the trail. They disappeared into another set of bushes.

"Sheesh. What's got them all riled up?" Shane growled, trying to use his tails to dust off his fur.

"Uh, hello? Weren't youse da one who said dere's a Bewear going crazy in here?" Yungoos pointed out. "What d'ya _t'ink_ dey're running from?"

Shane remembered Growlithe's description and his body stiffened. "Aha ha… right…" He gulped. _'C'mon Shane, show some backbone! This is your time to shine… I think. I hope. Maybe.'_

"Should we try going into the trees?" Growlithe wondered. "I could always set them ablaze to draw out whatever's lurking in there!"

"No!" Shane and Yungoos belted out in unison.

"Err, what I meant ta say was dat I'm still picking up Milotic's scent on dis trail," Yungoos said. "It's possible dey ain't run into no trouble yet."

Growlithe's tail drooped in disappointment. "Right."

The trio prepared to start forward again when the ground started rumbling.

 **"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"**

" _Cripes!_ " Yungoos jumped up in fright, smacking his head against a low-hanging tree branch. He fell to the ground, eyes swirling about in their sockets.

"What… what was that?" Shane asked. "Is that what a Bewear sounds like? It's pretty high-pitched for a giant bear."

"Yeah, Bewear have deceptively squeaky voices," Growlithe said. "At least, that's what Braviary tells me."

"Uhuu huu huu huu! Aww, look at the adorable tiny tykes brigade. They're so scared, Umbry!"

Shane's eyes widened. _'Oh no. Please not here. Please not now!'_

Growlithe's eyes narrowed. "Hey, haven't I heard that voice somewhere before?"

A spark of pink energy danced across the forest path, just in front of the guild members. More sparks followed it, and they started to gather around in a circle. Their coloration shifted from pink to a sinister dark lavender. The image of a winged heart appeared in the circle, with arced horns and a piercing eye in its center. A red and-purple vortex rose up from the circle.

"W… what in da blazes?" Yungoos gasped, staggering backwards.

"Hey, that's my line," Growlithe griped.

Shane's tails darted between his legs as he watched Espeon ascend from the vortex, head held high and sunlight distorting around her due to the black armor on her torso. A smile creeped across her face and she opened her mouth…

 _"Solgaleo, provider of daylight…  
_ _Great Lunala, defender of the night…  
_ _Working hard for the sake of harmony!"_

Espeon put a paw to her snout and giggled. "Uhuu huu huu! That's surprisingly catchy. Now I see why that Primarina fellow loves singing it so much." She turned back toward the vortex. "How did I sound, Umbry? Better than that stuffy, soggy sea dog, I hope."

Umbreon appeared beside Espeon from the vortex. It quickly shut behind the duo, receding into a small, red-and-black card that vanished in a flash of light.

"… bah! Don't waste my time with your little games, Espy," he huffed. "We're here for a reason."

Espeon pouted. "Aww. But we're supposed to be having fun!"

"We can have fun once we've infected Vulpix," Umbreon stated. "Besides, he seems like a good playmate for you. He has a wonderfully big mouth you can clamp shut for endless amusement."

Shane's eyes widened. _'That's me they're talking about. And I_ so _do not have a big mouth!'_ He briefly went cross-eyed, attempting to inspect his snout.

"Infect?" Yungoos raised an eyebrow. "Hey, didn't da weird Mareanie we run into at Sunset Shoals keep saying stuff 'bout infecting?" he asked Growlithe.

"I think so," Growlithe replied. "And have you forgotten what Lycanroc told us yesterday?" He narrowed his eyes. "These two are the ones responsible for all of it."

Espeon jumped up and down excitedly. "Oh, yaaaaaay! You guys saw our handiwork." She then frowned. "But you cost me a bunch of _adorable_ little playmates! And you two aren't nearly squishy enough to make up for it."

"I ain't got no plans to play wit no one," Yungoos said. "Especially not a couple of crazy tourists bringin' trouble. Youse scoot on back to yer own continent and leave Horizon alone."

Shane suddenly jumped in front of his guildmates. "Espeon! Umbreon! Snap out of it!" he barked. "This… this isn't like you! You're both nice Pokémon who want to help others."

Espeon tilted her head to the side. "Oh? Do you know us from somewhere? Because I'm not intimately familiar with any white-furred Vulpixes. How about you, Umbry?"

"… no. They're unique to this continent," Umbreon replied. "Either he has us confused with someone else or he's trying to throw us off to make an escape." Umbreon's eyes glowed an even brighter red. "In which case, you're not putting on a very convincing act."

"But Umbry, he's a human, remember?" Espeon giggled. "He shouldn't know _any_ Espeons or Umbreons at all!"

"I know you!" Shane insisted. "You're a kindly research pair from the Mist Continent. You're trying to master Entercards to help benefit Pokémon around the world. And… and you _deeply care_ for one another. You're not troublemakers and you never have been! You have to fight back against… whatever it is making you act like this!"

"Uhuu huu huu huu!" Espeon cackled, fixing her bright blue eyes on Shane. "Well, well, someone's done their homework, haven't they? Umbry and I care about each other lots, but I must say," she sauntered up toward Shane, "I'm not really into stalkers."

Her eyes flashed white and next thing Shane knew, he lay well behind his guild mates, knocked flat onto his back. Growlithe and Yungoos shouted in fright. Shane scrambled to his feet, only to freeze when he saw faint blue auras around his teammates' bodies. Espeon's eyes crackled with pink bolts of energy.

"And you were a bit off base, kid," Umbreon sneered. "We _are_ interested in Entercards. But not for the sake of research." The red rings across his body flickered. "Because with the energy we've gotten from the Prism Virus, we're close to achieving something no Pokémon could ever dream of cooking up on their own: Ultra Entercards! With them, we'll have _absolute control_ over ley lines. Meaning we can circumvent the chaotic energies forming Mystery Dungeons…"

"… and spread our _wonderful_ Prism Virus to every corner of the planet!" Espeon cheered. "And once we do, we'll have everything we need to make the world of endless night our _beautiful new reality!_ Uhuu huu huu!"

"W… world of… endless night?" Shane practically choked on his words. _'Oh no. The threat to the balance between day and night! This had to have been what Solgaleo was talking about!'_

"Yup! Where Legendaries are nothing but distant memories and every Pokémon can live out a worry-free life," Espeon continued, her grin broadening.

"No more conflicts. No more battling. No more _obnoxious_ Mystery Dungeons. The world will finally… _finally_ achieve peace and prosperity," Umbreon declared. "And it starts with using our Ultra Entercards to bypass the magic keeping each and every Legendary holed up in their Mystery Dungeons. Then, we infect them with the Prism Virus, and get rid of them... _permanently_."

Shane's eyes widened in horror. "What are you saying? You can't do that! We need those Pokémon or the world's gonna fall apart. Besides, you're not helping anyone. You're poisoning the environment and hurting other Pokémon," he growled. "Now, you'd better let those two go right now or… or…"

Umbreon took a step forward, his red eyes glowing. "Or what… _you're_ going to stop both of us? Don't make Espy laugh!"

"Too late! I've already done plenty of that," Espeon giggled. "But, I have something in mind that's _way_ more fun. We're going to play a little game… the five of us! It's called 'hostage negotiation.'"

Shane went rigid. "D-Don't…" he whimpered.

"The rules are super-duper simple," Espeon said. "You give us that girlie scarf around your neck and then we get to infect you! In return, your so-called friends here will get their freedom." Her eyes narrowed. "… for now."

"My… scarf?" he looked down at the rainbow scarf. _'But, they said they're going to infect me if I give this up. That means they're going to make me into one of those crazy monsters like Parasect and the Munchlaxes. I can't end up like that. I'm this world's best chance against whatever's controlling these two! And besides,'_ his gaze fell to the ground, _'Tessa_ entrusted _me with this. I'm not going to give it up so easily!"_

"No deal," Shane said.

Umbreon's eyes flashed with rage. "Big mistake. Now we do things my way…"

Shane crouched into a fighting stance, waiting for Umbreon to charge him. But he didn't. Instead, both he and Espeon froze as the ground trembled yet again.

 **"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"**

"Espy?" Umbreon turned around. "I thought you said you had sent Bewear to the northern part of the woods?"

Espeon frowned. "Yeah, uh, about that." She grinned sheepishly. "I _might've_ told a teensy-weensy white lie."

"What?!"

"Hey, c'mon, it's not like we were planning to be around here long," Espeon scoffed. "Besides, this presents a convenient scenario. Let's have Bewear deal with these three. Our paws stay clean and we can focus on other things in the meantime!"

Umbreon's eyes narrowed. "I'm not leaving this up to chance. Vulpix is coming back with us!"

The ground shook once again. Shane, Espeon, and Umbreon nearly fell from the force of the tremors.

 **"** _ **Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!**_ **"**

Umbreon frowned. "Okay, on second thought, not becoming food for an out-of-control Ultra Bewear is a much better idea."

Espeon released Yungoos and Growlithe. Shane noticed her levitating up another red and black card.

"Wait… wait!" Shane cried, but the duo deployed their Entercard. A new vortex formed up and they disappeared into it. Espeon paused in the center of it. She turned and blew a kiss in Shane's direction.

"Until we meet again, my lovely stalker! Wait, you're heading for the great Bewear-yond, aren't you? Oh well. It was nice knowing you. Uhuu huu huu huu!" She disappeared into the vortex and it faded behind her.

"No!" Shane lunged toward the Entercard, only for it to vanish in a burst of bright pink light. Another tremor struck, this one far stronger than any of the others. Shane toppled over into Yungoos and Growlithe.

"Oof! Get offa me you clod," Yungoos hollered. "What were youse t'inking back dere? You nearly got us all killed!"

"Wait." Growlithe turned to Shane. "Do you not have an Escape Orb?"

Shane pawed at the ground. "Aha ha… see… funny story. Riolu's sorta the one in charge of the items and I, uh, didn't grab anything before we left. I assumed one of you had one."

Yungoos and Growlithe glared daggers at Shane. But before they could scold him, a beam of ice split through some of the trees. It immediately froze patches of leaves and shattered them. The guild members backed up cautiously. Seconds later, Milotic hurtled out from behind the trees.

"Auuuugh!" she hollered, striking a boulder across the forest path and dropping to the ground, writhing in pain.

"Milotic? Milotic!" Growlithe dashed over to her. "It's Growlithe. Are you okay? What happened?"

"B-Bewear… crazy… not…" Milotic mumbled, but her eyes fluttered closed and her head slumped against the ground.

"Um… guys?" Yungoos whimpered.

Shane and Growlithe turned around. Their jaws dropped at the sight before them.

"That's a Bewear?" Shane gasped. "That's no Ursaring lookalike."

"Dat… dat ain't what dey usually look like."

"Really? They don't all have four legs and _massive_ red arms with veins bulging out of them?" Shane panicked. "It's called leg day, you big brute! And you never skip it!"

Bewear heard the taunt and turned her attention toward the guild members. She raised her arms high up and then swung them down toward her massive, rippling chest. Bewear flexed her oversized pectorals and uttered a loud, **"** _ **Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!**_ **"**

Shane's legs quivered.

 _'Oh god. This is it. I'm gonna die. I'm gonna die! What was I thinking? This isn't like the games…'_

Bewear whirled around, karate-chopping one of the trees beside her in half.

 _'… this is a literal waking nightmare!'_

* * *

Next time: Shane's entire world comes crashing down.


	25. Breaking the Ice-Type

**Chapter 22: Breaking the Ice-Type**

Bewear roared and flexed her arms skyward. A dark black aura encased both of them and she immediately slammed her fists to the ground. None of the guild members had any time to react. A black shockwave rippled across the ground, spearing Yungoos and Growlithe. Shane, being farthest away, was left best off, but still hollered from the attack rattling his bones.

"What the–? What sort of attack was that?" Shane gasped, forepaw placed on his chest.

"Br… Brutal Swing," Growlithe whimpered. "It catches you off guard, cause you think if you dodge the Pokémon's arms you're fine. But then the shockwave hits…"

Bewear gave the group no time to commiserate further. She stomped forward with her four, pointed legs. She raised her arms and flexed once again. This time each of her arms hardened into gigantic, bright-red hammers.

"Get back!" Shane hollered. Bewear thrust her arms downward once again. Yungoos rolled back along the ground, barely skirting Bewear's strikes. Growlithe had already gotten back to his feet, so he easily dodged the attack. He positioned himself behind Bewear and shot a stream of red-hot flames directly at her.

Fire washed across Bewear's back. Shane's eyes widened as the flames spread across Bewear's fur. Or, more specifically, what was left of her fur, as several patches along her body seemed to have been replaced with a tough, fibrous exoskeleton to match her legs.

"Oh, praise the gods! This sucker's still got Fluffy," Growlithe cheered. The victory was short lived, however. Growlithe recoiled in horror as Bewear spun her head and torso around without the use of her legs.

 **"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"** she shrieked. Bewear brought her arms, still encased in chitinous hammers, to her sides, and started to rotate her torso rapidly. Growlithe immediately backpedaled.

"This is bad. That's not supposed to be physically possible!" he panicked. Bewear roared and stomped forward. Her upper body whirled about; a living, towering top looking to pummel Growlithe into oblivion.

"We've got to draw him away!" Shane hollered.

"I ain't getting near dat t'ing," Yungoos said. "Youse can hit it from a distance, so do something!"

Shane nodded and opened his mouth. Chilled air raced forward, but the combination of residual flames from Growlithe's attack and Bewear's rapid spinning created a wall of heat that vaporized the attack before it could so much as tickle Bewear's massive paws.

Growlithe was now several yards away from his teammates, running along the trail and silently praying for Bewear to get dizzy. Yungoos and Shane slowly jogged forward, both of them too bewildered to properly think up anything to do.

"Wait, what the heck is Bewear's typing anyway?" Shane asked. "With arms like that it's _gotta_ be fighting-type, right?"

"No _duh,_ rookie!" Yungoos spat. "What'cha gonna tell me next? Da sky is blue? Dat yer face is ugly?"

Shane ignored that jab and tensed up his body, trying to call forth psychic energy from the deeper recesses of his mind. His eyes glowed pink and a set of familiar pink ripples raced ahead of him. The spinning Bewear had no defense against the psionic waves. They ensnared her and exploded. The force wasn't strong enough to knock Bewear to the ground, but the attack successfully disoriented her.

"Now! Go, go, go!" Shane hollered, sprinting forward. He didn't dare to look back at his enemy for fear of snapping her out of her stupor. Yungoos whizzed past him, making it to Growlithe first.

"Thanks for the save, guys," Growlithe said. "So, anyone have any ideas?"

"Yes!" Shane said.

"Absolutely not! Anyt'ing youse try to offer is gonna get us murdalized," Yungoos spat.

"Now's not the time for jokes or Magearna impressions. This is serious!" Shane hissed. He took a deep breath. _'Okay, Shane. Time to draw out your inner Pokémon trainer here. Strategize… strategize…'_

Bewear snapped out of her confusion. She flexed her arms in front of her chest and unleashed another ear-splitting, **"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"**

"Okay, Yungoos, you need to blind Bewear with Sand Attack," Shane ordered. "Growlithe, you and I stay together and hit Bewear. Use Flamethrower first to make its fur catch on fire. Then I'll use Extrasensory. If we're lucky, it'll turn your Flamethrower into a giant fireball that erupts on top of Bewear!"

Yungoos started to protest, but noticed Bewear raise up her arms once again. Black tendrils of energy encased her hands and she slammed them to the ground. The trio found themselves leaping up, barely dodging the shockwave that rippled out from Bewear's arms.

"Ah, forget it! We're already hosed! What've I godda lose here?" Yungoos groaned. He jumped forward and kicked at the ground repeatedly. Multiple plumes of dirt shot out, smearing across Bewear's face. Bewear hissed and staggered back. She kept switching between flexing and trying to wipe the dirt from her eyes.

"Now, Growlithe!" Shane ordered. Growlithe stepped forward and unleashed his fire breath. The flames struck Bewear's chest and quickly started to spread around her body. The dirt pockets on her face heated up, creating a loud sizzling sound that made Shane shiver.

"My turn," Shane said. He stood next to Growlithe and sent a quartet of psychic ripples forward. They trapped Bewear and burst around her. Only, instead of a small pink flash, this time a brilliant orange fireball swallowed up Bewear's hulking form. The guild members shielded their eyes from the rush of heat.

"Okay, if we weren't fighting for our lives, you'd have to admit that _that_ is pretty cool," Growlithe chuckled.

"Actually, it's the exact opposite of cool," Shane quipped. "But it looks like it did the trick. Great work, you two! I knew we could pull this o–"

 **"** _ **Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!**_ **"**

The triumphant look on Shane's face deflated. His ears and tail drooped. Not only was Bewear not down for the count, but that last combo seemed to have disposed of the remaining fur patches on her body. Her arms and torso were now a fully chitinous exoskeleton. A white, winged heart sat seared in her chest, with vicious horns point up toward her vein-filled neck. Strange luminescent fluid ran through the veins bulging out of Bewear's arms and neck.

"No! It's got that symbol that Espeon and Umbreon had," Shane gasped. "And look at that crystal sticking out of the center of the heart!"

"That's a black crystal. Just like what Lycanroc said Espeon and Umbreon were planting. But how did it even get in there?" Growlithe wondered.

"Nice going, gang! We just succeeded in making it mad!" Yungoos groaned.

"But… but we hit it with two super-effective attacks in tandem. That should've seriously weakened it," Shane squeaked. _'Just what does this Prism Virus thing_ do _to these Pokémon?'_

"Okay, don't panic too much guys," Shane said. "We just need to do the exact same thing and that oughta– _oh my god!_ " His eyes widened at the sight of Bewear turning and scooping Milotic's unconscious body up off the ground.

"Hey, you put her down right now!" Growlithe barked. Bewear shrieked in rage and flexed with her free arm. The arm gripping Milotic reared back and swung forward.

" _Duck!_ " Yungoos shouted, sprawling out on his belly. Growlithe dove toward the bushes. But Shane wasn't fast enough on the uptake. Milotic's cream-colored face collided with his head and neck.

 _Craaaack!_

White-hot pain flared up on every square inch of Shane's body. His legs buckled and he crumpled to the ground.

"What… what just hit me?" Shane whimpered. He tried to blink the stars from his vision, but to little avail.

"It… uh… whipped you… with Milotic," Growlithe said in disbelief.

Bewear roared and brought her Milotic-wielding arm back. It whipped Milotic forward yet again. Still disoriented, Shane had no proper means of self-defense. Milotic's limp form hammered him across his back.

 _Craaaack!_

A fresh wave of excruciating pain gripped Shane. Invisible needles stabbed him repeatedly from all over. Shane wailed in agony and his spotty vision quickly turned to nothing but bright light.

"Ahh… ahh…" Shane lay there, desperately gasping for air.

"He's gotten da wind knocked outta him! He's useless to us right now!" Yungoos hissed. "But how are we supposed to hit Bewear wit'out hitting Milotic?" Yungoos scampered forward. Bewear snarled viciously and lashed out with Milotic. Yungoos barely managed to skirt the strike, and continued running forward. He didn't even try to attack. "Now, Growlithe! While its back is turned!"

Growlithe recognized his opening. He curled up into a ball and doused his body in flames. Then he ran forward, his jaws igniting with wicks of fire. He bit down on one of Bewear's rear legs. Startled by the blow, she gasped and dropped Milotic to the ground. Growlithe quickly headbutted Milotic. She went rolling down the hill, safely away from Bewear.

However, Growlithe lacked the time to properly escape Bewear's reach. Her arms turned midnight-black and came thundering down right onto Growlithe. Bewear's fists pummeled him into the ground with far greater intensity than the shockwave he'd experienced previously. Growlithe's pained howl echoed through the forest.

Yungoos whirled around in a panic. Bewear raised her arms high and flexed triumphantly. Yungoos could just barely make out Growlithe between Bewear's legs. His fur stood on end as he noticed Growlithe's left hind leg bent at an angle it very clearly should not go at.

Shane got his second wind at the exact same time, only for his gut to squirm at the sight of his unconscious teammate. Worse yet, the black crystal embedded in Bewear's chest started crackling with black electricity.

"No! Get away from him!" Shane shouted. Even though every facet of his body screamed in protest, Shane called up his psychic powers. More psionic waves shot forward from his head, going straight for the crystal in Bewear's chest. The waves exploded in a flash of pink. The crystal rattled about in Bewear's chest. She screeched and flexed her arms back behind her in surprise.

Unlike the previous attacks, this one tripped Bewear up. Her hind legs gave out, sending her hulking form toppling over. "Aiiiyyyyyeeeeee!" Yungoos yelped as Bewear's form fell toward him. He scrambled backward, only to gasp in pain. Bewear's head struck his tail, pinning him down to the ground.

"Agh! No, no, no, no, no!" Yungoos panicked, desperately yanking his tail. It refused to budge from under Bewear's massive head. "C'mon, stupid tail. Is youse trying to get us both snapped like Growlithe's leg?"

Shane tried to go forward and attack again, but his legs seized up when he took a step forward. Burning pain shot down his back. He froze. _'Ow… owww! Why does this hurt so much? Did Bewear damage my spine?'_ His eyes widened at the thought.

Bewear started getting back up. Yungoos felt the pressure subside from his tail and scrambled forward. He managed about half a dozen steps before a burly, black arm shot forward and grabbed him by the tail. "Ahhhhh! No! Put me down! I don't taste good or nuttin'!" Yungoos hollered, flailing his limbs about. He found himself looking right into Bewear's glowing-red eyes.

 **"** _ **Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!**_ **"** Bewear roared.

" _Rookie!_ " Yungoos sobbed, thrashing about even faster. "Don't just stand there... _do somethiiiiiiing! I don't wanna diiiiiiiiie!_ "

Bewear flexed her free arm. Yungoos watched it form up into a gigantic, glowing hammer. Bewear then released her grip and, before Yungoos could properly fall to the ground, spiked him down from on high with her solidified arm. The force propelled him into the ground, leaving an impact crater twice his size, with cracks reverberating all around the ground.

Shane seized up in pain yet again as he tried cry our for his guild mate. _'No... this is a disaster! We're all gonna die out here! It's not fair!'_

Bewear rotated her torso to lock eyes with Shane. The life drained out of his face. The pain in his spine refused to subside. His legs remained locked in place, even as his brain desperately screamed for him to turn tail and run.

 **"Kiiiiiiiiiiiii!"** Bewear shrieked. She rotated to the side, leaned down, and hefted up a rock three times Shane's size. Bewear hoisted the rock up and turned to face Shane. His heart hammered in his chest. Shane tried to take a step back, but his hind legs wouldn't move. The excruciating pain continued spilling out from his back. Shane's vision turned watery.

 _'This is it. I'm done for! And it's all because of stupid Lycanroc! All because nobody would listen to me! How could this go so spectacularly wrong? I'm trying to do the right thing. This shouldn't be happening!'_ Shane thought. _'All that work Solgaleo did to bring me here… it's all gonna be for nothing!'_

Shane couldn't even close his eyes. He could only watch through his tearful vision as Bewear's arms started to move forward, preparing to hurl the boulder and crush every bone in his body.

 _Craaaaaaaaaaaaaash!_

The boulder exploded into hundreds of rocky fragments. Bewear's arms thrust apart. She flexed them as she looked up in surprise to see Null land directly on her head. Bewear hissed in protest and reached toward her face.

 _'Null!'_ Shane gasped, unable to open his mouth and speak properly. The chimera leaped off Bewear, spun around, and sent a blades of air forward. They speared Bewear's chest crystal. She staggered backward, clutching at the crystal with one hand and flexing her free arm.

Null fell to the ground and worked quickly. He scooped Yungoos out of his crater and tossed him in Milotic's direction. Bewear roared her disapproval. Null ignored her and ran toward Growlithe. However, the bulky helmet clearly slowed him down. Bewear raised her arms high, transforming them into gigantic hammers yet again.

Shane tried opening his mouth to shout, but all that escaped was a dry cough. More pain shot across his back and, at last, his legs had had enough. He collapsed on the ground, body trembling in agony. He teared up again, so he failed to see Null barely dodge a pair of wild swings from Bewear's arms.

Null reached Growlithe and tossed him over by the other unconscious battlers. He turned and thrust his left foreleg at Bewear. Air crescents hurtled forward. They struck Bewear's left-front leg. The sharp air currents made her leg buckle. Bewear lost her balance and tumbled to the ground. In desperation, she reached out toward a tree to steady herself, but merely shattered the tree into splinters.

Bewear struck the ground with an audible _thud._ Null saw Shane lying on his side and approached. He shook his head about, letting out a raspy hiss. Null's talons scratched at the ground.

"… he's down…" Null whispered. "We can… dispose of him. We can… _eliminate both of them_." Null shook his head and staggered backward at this, hissing loudly.

"No! He's… part of... the guild. I don't…"

Null thrust his head to the side, roaring. "Do it! Destroy him! He's... a Beast! We must... kill all Beasts! It's why... we were made!" he suddenly shouted. He lumbered forward, gathering white energy in his talons. He raised his foreleg high…

… and struck his own helmet. Null stumbled to the side, lapsing into a coughing fit. He took a deep breath to calm himself and produced an oran berry from the pouch around his torso.

Shane didn't move, still whimpering in pain. Null stepped forward and planted a foreleg on Shane. Null rolled Shane onto his back, drawing a pained grimace, and shoved the berry into his open mouth. Shane's eyes widened, but the berry appeared to do the trick. He slowly rolled onto his stomach, coughing up a storm.

Bewear finally returned to her feet. She roar furiously and turned her attention on one of the forest's trees. Null heard the roar and immediately started clawing at this helmet.

"Null… what… how did you… get here?" Shane wheezed. He took a few shaky steps forward and gave a relieved sigh. A dull, throbbing ache still ran across his back, but at least he could move now.

Null only growled loudly in response. It echoed against his helmet, making Shane's skin crawl. He decided it best not to question the good turn of fortune. Instead, he turned back to Bewear, only for his heart to immediately start racing again. With another shriek, Bewear successfully uprooted an entire tree. A pair of Pikipek flew out from the branches, squawking in terror.

Bewear hefted the tree over her head, glaring at Shane and Null.

"It's… it's gonna throw that tree at us!" Shane realized, tails sticking straight up in panic. "What do we do?"

"… combine attacks…" Null hissed. Shane glanced at him and could see a sharp air current encasing his right foreleg.

 _'Right! Just like I did with Growlithe's Flamethrower,'_ he recalled. _'But can I really pull off an attack now? I couldn't even move before Null showed up.'_

Bewear hurled the tree forward, giving Shane no further time for thought. He saw Null whip his foreleg around, shooting air blades forward. Shane grit his teeth and tensed every muscle in his body. He thrust his head forward and smiled as pink waves shot ahead of him.

They reached the tree seconds after Null's wind blades and exploded. Bursts of psychically-bolstered air currents exploded out in all directions. The tree shattered into harmless little splinters. But there was no time for celebration. Bewear lurched toward the duo with her four legs. She flexed her arms in front of her chest and they transformed into hammers once again.

Without even thinking, Shane opened his mouth, exhaling with all the force he could muster. A torrent of ice-cold frost raced forward. Aside from hitting Bewear, it made the ground slick. One of Bewear's forelegs planted down, only to kick up. Bewear hollered in surprise. Her arms' transformations faded and she toppled backward.

Null stepped forward and again gathered fragments of concentrated air in his right foreleg. He hurled the air crescents at the fallen Bewear. The blades struck Bewear's chest crystal. This time, the crystal shattered, scattering glassy, black fragments in all directions.

 **"KIIIIIIIIiiiiiiiiiiiiiii…"** Bewear's shriek gradually diminished in volume. She reached a trembling arm up and gave one final flex before the arm collapsed to her side. Null and Shane looked on as light encased Bewear's body. She shrank down, her arms losing most of their ridiculous muscle mass. When the light faded, the exoskeleton was gone, replaced with black fur around her body and pink fur around her head.

Shane took a step toward Bewear, only to recoil as wisps of black electricity started racing around her body. "No!" Shane cried, realizing what was happening. The tendrils retreated toward the ground. And as they did, Bewear's colors melted away and spilled out on the ground around her.

Null thrashed his head about again, hissing loudly and clawing at his helmet. Shane switched between watching him and watching Bewear's colors evaporate into the air. When the multicolored steam faded, Bewear lay motionless on the ground.

"It's… it's gone…" Shane whispered. He glanced at Null, who was now scratching his helmet up against a tree. Shane's adrenaline rush, meanwhile, was fading fast. His vision grew fuzzy fuzzy. Something weighed down his limbs. _'This… this doesn't feel like a victory at all,'_ he thought, whimpering.

"… momma?"

A tiny squeak drew Shane's attention. Null didn't seem to notice. He remained next to the tree while Shane proceeded forward. He only made it a few steps before stopping. Stufful had walked out from behind Bewear. He sniffed at her torso.

"Momma?" Stufful squeaked again. He nudged Bewear's limp form with his muzzle. Bewear failed to move.

 _'No. C'mon, little guy, go away!'_ Shane thought. _'You shouldn't be looking at this.'_

"Momma? Momma?" Stufful tried to shove Bewear with his forelegs, but to no avail. His eyes teared up. "Mommaaaaaaaaaa!" Stufful rubbed his face against Bewear's hide.

Shane's head throbbed. His vision flickered. _'This isn't right. I'm just supposed to fight upset wild Pokémon and move on. I can't deal with things like this. That Bewear was a mother! And now… now her kid… is all alone.'_

"M-Momma…" Stufful lay down against her shoulder.

Shane took a step forward. "Hey, kid… you shouldn't stay out here. It's not safe for you."

Stufful got to his feet. He spun around, growling at Shane. "Get away! You… you and your friends hurt momma! You're… you're a bad person!"

"No, you don't understand. Your mom… she…" Shane started, but his voice trailed off. His legs started to shake. His head pounded. His vision failed him. The combination of mental and physical exhaustion proved too much for Shane to take. Overwhelmed by everything that had happened, Shane's eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed to the ground.

Null managed to snap out of his stupor and saw Shane passed out in front of Stufful. He walked over toward Shane, but it wasn't long before Stufful spotted him. Stufful leaped in front of his mother, his legs trembling.

"Get away, you monster! I won't let you hurt my momma!" Stufful squealed.

Null coughed and shook his head. "I don't... want to hurt her. I just... want to help you. You can't stay out here... by yourself..."

"I'm... I'm not by myself. Momma's here with me, see?" Stufful whimpered.

"Kid... your mother's gone. You need to come... with me. I'm with the guild. We can keep you safe," Null said, but his rasping voice made Stufful's fur bristle. He glared tearfully at Null.

"No, I won't leave my momma! You... you go away! Or else!" he warned. Null sighed and scooped Shane off the ground.

"Suit yourself... kid."

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Tessa sprinted out from the sentry hallway. Trapinch scampered after her. "Wait up, Riolu!" he squeaked. "I can't run that fast!" She wasn't running for much longer, however. The second he entered the main assembly area, Trapinch skidded to a halt by Tessa's side. They both watched Metagross stomp toward the nursing wing. He levitated multiple Pokémon around him.

"Null!" Tessa called and ran over to him. She slowed her pace, noticing Yungoos and Growlithe draped over his back. "Wh… what happened?"

"… infected Bewear… tearing up Dewdrop Woods…" Null rasped. He turned away from Tessa and trudged along after Metagross.

"Oh man, Vulpix was right?" Trapinch gasped.

Tessa whirled on Trapinch. "Wait. Vulpix _hasn't_ been in the nursing wing this whole time? You told me he got overheated and fainted!"

Trapinch's face blanched. "Aha ha… ha… did I say that? Oops. I must've gotten my wires crossed with another guild member."

Tessa clenched her fists. "What did that crazy idiot do this time?" Trapinch looked around nervously. "C'mon, Trapinch, spit it out!"

"Okay, okay!" Trapinch squeaked. "Vulpix came up to us saying he overhead Lycanroc tell Team Captivate to go to Dewdrop Woods and investigate reports of a Bewear going crazy. He thought Lycanroc was leading them into a trap. He convinced Growlithe and Yungoos to go with him and I covered his sentry spot." Trapinch flinched and looked away. "Please don't get mad at me. I just wanted to help."

Tessa relaxed her arms and paws. "Ugh, what was he thinking?" She stormed off toward the nursing wing. But the place was packed. She couldn't even get a glimpse of who was in there, because Lycanroc and Braviary filled up the entrance.

"… well, yeah, I did ask Team Captivate to go check the place out. Actually, Volcarona and Araquanid are the ones who reported Bewear to me. But I ain't got a clue what Snowy and the others were doing in the forest, mate. You'll have to ask one of them."

"I can't exactly do that right now, can I?" Braviary stated. "They're all totally out of it. Null, how'd ya even manage to get 'em all back here?"

"… Team Captivate… had Escape Orbs. Found their item pouch… and used one…" Null muttered.

"Mighty quick thinking on yer part, hoss," Braviary complimented. "Comfey, how are they looking over there?"

"Excuse me, Braviary, can I just get through to see my partner?" Tessa asked.

"Huh? Oh, sure." Braviary lifted a wing to let Tessa through. She stepped into the infirmary and found all of Team Captivate positioned on separate beds. Beside them lay Shane, Yungoos, Growlithe, and two large bugs Tessa didn't recognize. She assumed they were the Volcarona and Araquanid that Lycanroc had mentioned. Comfey floated between all of the beds.

"Well, Team Captivate's all healed up. Their injuries were fairly routine, all things considered," Comfey reported. "But these three are going to be a problem. I think I can heal Yungoos up with one round of Floral Healing. Let's see…" She floated down to Yungoos and draped her string of flowers across his body. A glow overtook them, bathing Yungoos in soft, pink light.

Yungoos' eyes fluttered opened. "Eh… huh?" He picked his head up. "Ayy, I ain't dead! Oh, t'ank da Tapus, I ain't dead!"

"Shhh!" Comfey released a cloud of light pink vapor around Yungoos. He breathed in the gas and sank back onto the bed. "You need to rest, and I need you to keep your voice down, okay?" Yungoos nodded slowly, letting out a yawn. "Good. Now then." Comfey turned to Growlithe. "That broken leg needs to be reset before I can try anything. Guildmaster, if I could borrow you for a moment?"

 **Affirmative.** Metagross stepped forward. Comfey floated over to Growlithe's head. She started releasing a pink cloud around his face. Metagross' eyes flashed blue and Growlithe's leg abruptly snapped back in the proper direction. Growlithe's entire body tensed up and a whine escaped his muzzle. But he then breathed in the vapors and fell back to sleep.

Comfey floated down toward his hind leg and pointed a stubby arm at it. A set of small, glowing, green vines shot out and wrapped the limb up. "And there's a Synthesis cast for good measure. He'll need to stay off his leg for the next few days, but I think it'll heal properly."

"Good to hear," Braviary acknowledged. "What about Vulpix?"

Shane had woken up of his own accord, but he couldn't bring himself to meet anyone's gaze. He just stared transfixed at his pillow. Comfey floated over and inspected his spine with a furrowed brow.

"Vulpix, you have a massive bruise running down your back," she observed. "What happened?" Shane said nothing. He attempted to curl up into a ball, only to wince in pain. "Hey now, don't you move a muscle, mister," Comfey scolded. "You've clearly damaged your spine and any unnecessary movement could make it impossible for me to fix it properly."

"… he was… on his feet… when I found him…" Null rasped. "Used… an attack… too…"

Comfey's eyes went wide. "Good heavens!" she gasped. "I'd better get working right away." She floated over Shane and draped her flowers along his back. Tessa walked up toward his bed but Shane buried his face into the pillow. The soft glow of Comfey's Floral Healing spread out across his back. When it faded, only faint traces of the massive bruise remained.

"Now, I'll ask again. What happened?" Comfey said. "I need to know to determine my next move."

Shane glanced Tessa's stoic expression from the corner of his eyes. "Bewear… hit me in the back… with Milotic."

Everyone's attentions turned toward Milotic, who recoiled in shock. "I… I don't remember anything like that," she said.

"Because you were out cold. Bewear picked you up and wielded you like a whip," Shane reported. Milotic's eyes widened and her face flushed. Serperior's jaw hung open.

"Oh… oh my…" Milotic flummoxed. "I… I'm so sorry. This is _really_ humiliating."

Tessa frowned and stepped back from Shane's bed. He turned to look at her. Tessa's aura feelers stood upright. _'That's odd. Vulpix's aura is way different than before.'_ She quickly moved out of the way to allow Comfey to circle Shane's bed.

"I'm overlaying your back with bands of Synthesis," she explained. "Their healing energies should be able to safely reach your spine. I don't want to risk any other treatment options. So, I'm going to need you to lie like that for at least the next day. Possibly more depending on how your body reacts to the treatment."

"… whatever. I deserve it," Shane whimpered. A knot tied up in Tessa's stomach.

 _'Vulpix fell into a pretty bad funk the last time we fought an infected Pokémon,'_ she recalled. _'But this seems even worse.'_ Her face then scrunched up. _'Wait, what am I thinking? He's right. None of this would've happened if he hadn't chosen to run off and try to play the hero again. Dang it, Vulpix! Why couldn't you just listen to me and not eavesdrop on Lycanroc? You're supposed to be my ticket to success and happiness, but that all goes out the window if you go out and get yourself killed!'_

Her aura feelers tensed again. She stared down at the floor in an attempt to ignore them.

"Well, this turned into a right mess, eh?" Lycanroc sighed. "I'm sorry, sheilas. If I had really known what Bewear was like, I'd have never asked ya to get involved."

A growl drew the room's attention. Tessa briefly looked up from the floor to see Shane staring Lycanroc down. _'Oh no,'_ she thought. _'He can't seriously still be on Lycanroc's case, right? Even after all of this? Keep your mouth shut, Vulpix. Please! Things are bad enough already. You're going to make everything worse.'_

But her mental prayers failed to reach Shane. "You… you planned this," he croaked. "You knew what Bewear was capable of, but you told Team Captivate to go to the woods anyway."

"It was an honest mistake, mate," Lycanroc growled. "And that don't explain how you ended up in the woods."

"You did it on purpose," Shane accused. "You told them about Bewear in the middle of the guild… so I would hear. You knew I had sentry duty. You… you set me up!"

"Funny," Braviary said, scratching his beak. "So, yer admitting you done abandoned yer station after I assigned you sentry duty as a punishment?"

Shane winced. "I… I had to! I only meant to go warn Team Captivate that they were heading into a trap. I didn't expect to actually run into Bewear. Everything got out of control, okay. And I'm sorry, but I needed to do it. Because… because Lycanroc's…"

This time Lycanroc growled. His crimson eyes narrowed and the usual smirk on his face turned into scornful frown. "What about me, mate? I already apologized. Yeah, I mucked things up real good, but I ain't about to stand here and let you drag my name through the mud. What makes you think yer so high and mighty, huh? Is it the human tidbit? Because if all this is an indication, yer more of a hindrance than a help to this place!"

Tessa tensed up, tucking her chin against her chest. Lycanroc's words sent a chill down her spine. _'That's… that's what I really think of Vulpix right now, isn't it? No... that's what I've_ always _thought of him, isn't it?'_ She involuntarily flinch. She saw a Lucario stare back up at her from the floor, a disapproving look in its eyes.

 _'I latched onto the idea that Vulpix was a chosen one... and would elevate me if I stayed with him,'_ Tessa realized. _'No... no! You stupid, stupid_ idiot. _You weren't supposed to get your hopes about all of this, remember? Look at what's happening! You were right... Vulpix is a total fluke! He's not special. He's nothing like my heroes. He's... he's a total failure.'_ Tessa's ears and aura feelers drooped. _'And that means... I'm not going to be special, either.'_

Shane gnashed his teeth together, jolting Tessa upright. "I know you're a problem," he claimed, leering at Lycanroc. "I… I figured it out. In a dream."

Lycanroc's muzzle pulled back into a smirk. Everyone's eyes fell on him. Tessa buried her face in her paws. _'Oh, gods. Why, Vulpix? Out of all the ridiculous things you could possibly say, why that?'_

"Hoss, do ya realize how absurd yer sounding right now?" Braviary scoffed. "Comfey, ya might wanna check his noggin'."

"I'm not crazy," Shane said. "It's the truth. I've… I've had visions in my dreams where Solgaleo talks to me. I think _he's_ the reason that I'm here. Guildmaster, you can read my mind, right? Tell 'em!"

 **Fact: dreams are fabrications of your subconscious. Fact: excluding Legendaries, only Pokémon with access to Dream Mist can view the dreams of another Pokémon. Conclusion: I cannot validate your statements,** Metagross declared.

Shane noticed the bewildered looks from his guild mates. "Don't look at me like that. I'm sure other humans brought to this world have experienced stuff like this. The story where Temporal Tower got saved? That human had visions in it. Dimensional Screams… that's what they were called, right?"

 **That is correct. But I still find the odds of your statement being true infinitesimally smallimal. Approximately sixty-four thousand to one, with generous rounding,** Magearna stated. **An incarnation of Solgaleo and Lunala have not been witnessified anywhere throughout the world in over two centuries. And my lieification sensors are detecting a 72.5 percent fluctuation in your vocal pitchitude, suggesting uncertainty with your own statements.**

"Oh, come on. You totally just made that up. Pokémon don't have built in lie detectors," Shane hissed.

 **Your deflectifying of the issue only serves to further my point,** Magearna countered.

"I'm _not_ lying!" Shane whimpered. "He's contacted me several nights since I've gotten here. He told me that someone or something is trying to upset the world's balance between day and night. And he also told me…" Shane glanced at Tessa, who wore a big frown on her face, "that Tessa's brother, Gallian, is the Pokémon behind it." Shane hastily looked away.

Tessa took a step backwards, her paws balling up into fists and her arms trembling. _'No. How could he say something like that? That... that... that_ asshole! _'_ The tremors intensified. _'He... he promised me a chance at fame and admiration. But all he's doing is earning me the exact opposite of that! I didn't need people looking down on me more than they already did. What have I done?'_ Tears welled up in her eyes. _'I... I never should have come here. This was a mistake. A huge mistake that's spiraling into the disastrous failure I feared it would be!'_

"Don't you see? Lycanroc came in here insisting Espeon and Umbreon are to blame for everything. But they're not! They could be under Gallian's control, or maybe someone else's, but no one's doing any favors listening to Lycanroc," Shane stated, unaware of Tessa's growing restlessness. "He's here to drive wedges between everyone in the guild. And it's _working._ "

Lycanroc's face contorted into a snarl again. "But, rookie," Yungoos muttered. "We _did_ run into Espeon and Umbreon in the forest."

"Is that so? And what did they tell y'all?" Braviary asked.

"Lots! Namely, most of da stuff Lycanroc told us. Dey're usin' Entercards for evil. Dey wanna spread somet'ing called da Prism Virus and use it to kill all da Legendaries and make a world of endless night," Yungoos said.

Shane's ears drooped. "They… they must've been brainwashed into saying that…"

"Like dey was brainwashed into restraining Growlithe and me to get to youse?" Yungoos snarled.

Braviary narrowed his eyes at Shane, who abruptly tensed up. "Ya mind repeating that one?"

"Yeh," Yungoos growled. "Espeon and Umbreon were after him! Dey want Vulpix. And dey was willin' to hold Growlithe and me in a psychic bind to get him to give up dat dopey scarf and turn himself over to dem!"

Metagross' eyes flashed blue. **Fact: Yungoos' statement is true,** he announced. Murmurs rose up amongst the other guild members.

Shane squirmed about in his bed. "W-Wait… wait! You, uh, don't have all the context behind that!"

"Oh, is dat so? By all means, rookie, jump in if I'm leavin' somet'ing out," Yungoos spat.

 _Vrrrriiiiiiiiiing! Vrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiing!_

 **If I may interrupt your argumenticating for a moment? I appear to be receiving a call,** Magearna announced. **Origin signal is… Lively Town.**

A hush fell over the room. Shane sat up, only to hiss in pain. Comfey floated down and pressed him back into a lying position. "Honestly, were you even paying attention to me?" she groaned.

"Well, best be giving 'em an answer, Mags," Braviary said.

Magearna nodded. Her stomach compartment opened up and a somewhat larger version of her Gear-Com appeared. She retracted one of her arms and out popped a small satellite dish.

 **Horizon Guild. Magearna speaking.**

 _"Oh, uh, hi, Magearna,"_ a very squeaky voice projected from the Gear-Com. _"This is Dedenne. You're the one who called Latias, right?"_

Shane's eyes widened. He opened his mouth to say something but received glares from several guild members, forcing him to hold his tongue.

 **Yes, that is correct,** Magearna replied.

 _"Right. Latias has been a bit tied up. We've been running her and her brother ragged lately,"_ Dedenne explained. _"I don't know if any of you have noticed, but something's up with the moon. And it's been messing with a lot of the Mystery Dungeons around here. Latias has been out with Team Gaia investigating things."_

Tessa's heart skipped the beat. _'Oh gods, is that true? I_ thought _the moon seemed off the last time I ran into Espeon and Umbreon. Is there really something wrong with it?'_

"Howdy, Dedenne. Braviary here," Braviary spoke up. "Any chance you could elaborate a smidge?"

 _"Oh, sure. Although Jirachi might be a better option for that one. Hold on…"_ Her voice trailed off and the faint sound of footsteps echoed through the speakers. It didn't take long for Dedenne to return. _"He's asleep. And trust me, you don't want me waking him up. I can still do my best, though!"_ she said. _"See, a couple of weeks back the moon went from being quarter-full to completely full in only a couple of nights. And it hasn't waned since."_

"S-See?" Shane groaned. "What did I tell you? Balance between day and night is in trouble. _Now_ do you believe me?"

"Pipe down, son," Braviary ordered. "Well, that is mighty concerning to hear, Dedenne. Matter of fact, we've been having some strange tidings here in Horizon, too."

 **Yes. Some odd weather-related phenomenon are occuspiring throughout the continent. I have been engaged in multiple confusion cycles trying to figure out a cause. Admittedly, the moon did not occur to me as a possibility,** Magearna added.

 _"Yeah, it's been shining really bright too,"_ Dedenne said. _"Some of us are even having trouble sleeping at the Expedition Society. But, oh, I'm straying off subject, aren't I? Silly me! I'm supposed to be following up on that request you called us with."_

Magearna's eyes whirred in their sockets. **Were you able to look into the Pokémon Nexus, then?**

 _"You know it,"_ Dedenne replied. _"And, um, I'm afraid I've got bad news."_

Lycanroc's smirk reappeared. "Is that so?"

 _"We're familiar with Espeon and Umbreon. In fact, they've tagged along with Team Gaia on occasion to conduct their research,"_ Dedenne explained. _"They're honorary Expedition Society members, so they're registered in the Pokémon Nexus for sure. But we can't get a lock on their signal. Like… at all."_

Shane felt Lycanroc's crimson gaze fall onto him. He squirmed in his bed, only for Comfey to throw a hand on him. He abruptly stopped and resumed staring at the floor.

 _"Latias said she can't sense any traces of their energies around here,"_ Dedenne continued. _"She went to Post Town and spoke with Virizon, Keldeo, and Emolga. Apparently, no one's seen them around town in weeks. And Keldeo told her that some sort of outside force has blocked his ability to synthesize Entercards."_

 **I see. Well, thank you for the informatelligence,** Magearna said. **Sorry to have bothered you.**

 _"It's no trouble at all,"_ Dedenne chirped. _"We're always happy to help out our friends across the ocean. Just give us a ring if you need anything."_

Static erupted from Magearna's speaker and it withdrew into her stomach. "Well, I think we can all agree what's going on 'round here, mates," Lycanroc declared. "Espeon and Umbreon are using their Entercards to throw day and night out of whack. And they're messing up our continent as a result!"

Another chorus of murmurs erupted throughout the room.

"But what exactly is a Prism Virus?" Trapinch wondered. "I mean, I know a prism's a kind of shape."

"Yeah, but I've never heard of viruses," Serperior muttered. "Yo, Guildmaster. That ring any bells for you?"

 **Negative,** Metagross responded. **Fact: the human is familiar with that term.**

Though he was still looking at the floor, Shane sensed everyone eyes falling on him again. "What, you can't tell me you guys really don't know what viruses are? C'mon, haven't you ever gotten sick?"

"You mean like a tummy ache?" Trapinch asked.

Shane glanced at Comfey. "I treat Pokémon for illnesses, but they're caused by things like getting poisoned or spending too much time in the heat or cold."

Shane sighed. "Okay then. A virus is a type of disease. From the human world… I guess." He tapped a paw against a chin. "How can I explain it? Viruses are, like, these little invisible enemies that can make you really sick. They invade your body and start using it to make more copies of themselves. And they, uh, well, if you can't cure them then they usually kill their hosts and move on to infect someone else."

"What?" "You're kidding!" "Is _that_ what happened to those Mareanie?"

"But don't you see what this means? It's not Espeon's and Umbreon's faults!" Shane looked at Lycanroc. "If they're infected by a virus, then that's what's got control of them."

"And what if they're the ones responsible for making it, huh?" Lycanroc growled.

"How could they be?" Shane said. "You guys just said that you don't know what viruses are. So how would they, huh?"

Lycanroc rolled his eyes. "Seriously, mate? You answered that one already. Didn't you say something about them two helping stop the Bittercold?" Shane's muzzle stiffened while Lycanroc's faze fiercened. "That means those two have met a human before…"

"But the human had lost its memories," Shane pointed out.

"So? Espeon's a psychic. She could probably read the human's mind. Including its lost memories," Lycanroc scoffed.

"Why are you determined to tear the two of them down? If we can free them from the Prism Virus' control, then they could help us!" Shane insisted.

"And why are _you_ so intent on putting them on a pedestal, mate?" Lycanroc growled. "Wait…" A smirk appeared on his muzzle. "Oh. Aha ha ha! I think I see what's going on here now." He crossed his arms. "Yer crushing on Espeon. Or maybe Umbreon. Hey, I ain't judging."

Shane's eyes widened. " _What?_ Need I remind you I'm _human?!_ "

"But you look like a Vulpix. So, you've got Vulpix instincts, mate," Lycanroc chuckled. "Look, hey, maybe we got off on the wrong foot here. I'm willing to live and let live if you just fess up and say you spat on my pride because you've got the hots for one of them." His smirk widened. "Or both of them."

"I do _not,_ " Shane snarled. "I'm mad at _you._ Because you're a nasty, awful, mean-spirited Pokémon. It's not my fault no one here wants to believe me!"

 **Enough.**

 _Claaaaaaaang!_

Metagross slammed a foreleg on the ground, silencing both of them. He turned to Shane.

 **Fact: you abandoned your post on impulse. Fact: appropriate action was to contact a high-ranking guild member about Bewear,** Metagross stated. **Fact: your actions served to place guild members in harm's way. Conclusion: when you are healed, you and your teammate will report to my office for proper disciplinary action.**

Tessa went stiff as a board. " _What?!_ I didn't even do anything this time!"

 **Fact: a team is held accountable for its collective actions. Fact: Braviary has repeatedly informed you of this,** Metagross elaborated. He turned toward the rest of the guild members. **Order: disband immediately and go about your business. Lycanroc, you are free to do as you wish.**

"Thank you, mate," Lycanroc said. "Think I'll grab something to eat in town." He turned and strolled out of the room. The guild members followed shortly after him.

"R-Riolu…" Shane rasped, but Tessa turned around and stomped up to him.

"I cannot _believe you!_ " she snarled. "You ignore me. You run off and nearly get yourself _killed._ And, when you were lucky enough to escape a Bewear by the skin of your teeth, you have the _audacity_ to not only humiliate me in front of the whole guild, but to try and accuse _my brother_ of masterminding everything?" Tears were in her eyes.

"I… I…"

"No! No more excuses! No more fake apologies! I'm _done_ listening to you! The only thing I want to see or hear whenever I'm around you _is complete and utter silence!_ Are we clear?"

Shane's lower lip trembled.

" _Do I make myself clear?!_ "

Shane opened his mouth, but couldn't form up a response. Tessa turned and stormed out of the infirmary, howling in anger.

Comfey sighed and shook her head disapprovingly. She floated up and drew curtains in front of Shane's bed to give him some measure of privacy from the other Pokémon in the infirmary. Just before the curtains closed up, he saw Tessa burry her face in Null's left foreleg.

Shane pressed his face into his pillow. _'I don't understand. I've been trying to do the right thing since I got here. It worked for the other humans, didn't it? Why is everything going so wrong for me? No one in the guild trusts me. I can barely hold my own against enemies. And my partner…'_

Shane sniffled. _'… Tessa hates me now. She'd rather be around a walking jigsaw puzzle in a hideous mask. And Null's not even nice. Everything he does makes him look like a creep.'_ Tears pooled in his eyes. _'Who am I kidding? I don't have what it takes to be a chosen one. What was Solgaleo thinking bringing someone as useless as me here? Maybe Tessa was right… maybe I_ am _here by mistake. In which case…'_

His pillow grew damp. _'I'm never going to be a human again, am I? I'm gonna be stuck here… trapped in a Vulpix's body… in a place where everyone hates me!'_

Shane lay there, letting those thoughts roll around in his head. His body's aches and pains eventually won out. He fell into a restless sleep.

* * *

 **Absorptive Aggressor, Ultra Bewear**  
 _Espeon and Umbreon have pumped Bewear full of life energy from a creature not of this world. The resulting increase in muscle mass has peaked Bewear's anger. Now, she will stop at nothing to tear Dewdrop Woods down. Her flexing behavior is evidence that her spirit has warped to such a tremendous degree, that she cannot realistically be called a normal Pokémon anymore. Is there any way to turn her back to normal?_

* * *

Next time: Tessa attempts to take her mind off the day's events. In the process, she makes a few interesting discoveries.


	26. Bonus: Stargazing

A preface to this bonus: these are two scenes that I had wanted to put in the episode proper and had drafted them up... only to find that they didn't properly fit where I wanted them to. Rather than just outright scrap them, I made them into a bonus part and added a bit to the end to tie it back into the episode proper. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Bonus: Stargazing  
** _I can't believe it's really canon!_

 **~Celestial Island~**

"That should just about do it for the Horizon Continent."

Atop a sparkling, multicolored rock sat a large white lion. He shut his eyes and arced his neck back, turning his face toward the mosaic of stars twinkling above him. His neck joints _popped_ satisfyingly, prompting him to flop down onto his stomach.

"Sunrise in the Grass Continent won't be for a little while. I think I've earned myself a nice break until then," he declared, yawning. He rested his head against his forepaws and started to drift off to sleep. But a strange sensation tickled his mind's eye and he stuck his head back up. He lumbered to his feet and jumped off the rock, landing atop luminescent, multicolored grass.

"Lunala, is that you?" he called, plodding forward. He passed several more rocks and trees, all of which gave off the same wide spectrum of colors as the rock he previously lounged on.

"I wasn't calling you, Solgaleo," a soft, female voice muttered. "Go back to sleeping or eating or whatever you were doing."

Solgaleo turned to his right and squeezed past a set of palm trees. He found himself near the edge of the floating island, looking out toward the endless purple expanse beneath it. But his gaze quickly shifted to Lunala, who lay on her stomach. Her head rested against a small rock, and she was lazily moving a pebble around with the digits on her wing.

"I'm on break," Solgaleo said. "Besides, you seem a bit upset."

"What gave that away?" Lunala snorted.

"Your aura, actually," Solgaleo replied matter-of-factly.

"I thought we agreed to keep our aura sights off on the island," Lunala growled.

"Sorry, I was dozing off. Couldn't really help it," Solgaleo said. He walked up to Lunala and lay down next to her. "So, what's on your mind? Aside from that rock, of course."

Lunala rolled her eyes. "It's not your problem."

"Maybe not. But that doesn't mean I can't lend an ear or two, right?" Solgaleo offered, giving his counterpart a big grin.

"Believe me, you're the _last_ Pokémon that can help me right now," Lunala said. She turned her head over to look away from Solgaleo, only to suddenly jump as the lion popped into existence on her right. "Hey, knock it off! We promised Ho-Oh only to teleport for work-related reasons."

"But it is work-related," Solgaleo exclaimed. "My partner's feeling blue and I've got to cheer her up so she can keep doing an awesome job." He gave her another big grin.

"I already told you, you can't help me," Lunala huffed.

"Then tell me who _can_ help you, so I can reach out to them," Solgaleo said.

"Nobody," Lunala hissed, squeezing her eyes shut. "I just want to be alone right now."

"Suit yourself."

The ground shook under Lunala's belly. She poked an eye open to see that Solgaleo had rolled onto his back and was now staring up at the sky. "The stars are really pretty right now, wouldn't you say?" he hummed.

"I'm ignoring you," Lunala grumbled. She turned so her head toward her left once again.

"Where do you suppose all these stars came from, huh?" Solgaleo continued. "Like, they couldn't have just poofed into existence when Arceus shaped the universe."

"Well, they're in space. Palkia probably made them," Lunala figured.

"Maybe. But what kind of purpose do you think they serve? Because I doubt Palkia would waste a ton of energy creating all these stars just to make the sky look pretty. The moon already does a great job of that."

"You're not fooling anyone with that flattery routine," Lunala scoffed.

"I'm serious, though," Solgaleo said. "The way you shine moonlight down from the heavens is breathtaking! It always makes looking at the stars such a treat. Look! That cluster over there kinda looks like a Pyukumuku, don't you think?"

"I think you're just saying that," Lunala dismissed.

Solgaleo frowned. "Why would you think something like that?"

Lunala finally picked her head up. "Because nobody cares about nighttime!" she blurted out, only to realize what she had said and promptly look away, face bright red.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Don't play dumb with me," Lunala growled. "Just look at the Pokémon down there. Everyone's so lively and awake when you bring them daylight. They go about their lives… laughing and playing with friends... helping each other through Mystery Dungeons." She drew her lips back in a snarl. "But nighttime? Nobody likes nighttime. Kids hate it because their parents send them off to bed. Townsfolk hate it because that's when strange things pop up from Mystery Dungeons and attack. Wild Pokémon in Horizon _despise_ it because that's when their homes may get changed around on them. And when do most outlaws like to carry out their crimes? That's right… at night!"

"O-Oh…" Solgaleo muttered. "I didn't think…"

"Of course you didn't," Lunala cut in. "I told you that you couldn't help me out. You don't understand what it's like to be so unappreciated just for doing your job." Her head sank to the ground. "Why couldn't Ho-Oh have told me what it would be like? I'd have chosen to be a Solgaleo and made you evolve into a Lunala."

Sweat drops formed on Solgaleo's head. "I, uh, I don't think it works like that."

Lunala shot him a look that said it could work that way if she wanted it to.

"Well, um, I'm sorry you feel that way," Solgaleo said. "But I think you're wrong."

Lunala rolled her eyes. "I don't want to hear it, buster," she harrumphed. "Everyone _loooooves_ the sunlight guy."

Solgaleo shook his head. "You're exaggerating, Lunala. Sure, it's true that a lot more happens on the surface during the day. But," he glanced up toward the sky, "I can't do anything nearly this impressive with sunlight. It's too bright." He scooted closer to his partner. "I know you think everyone's singing my praises, but the fact of the matter is no one's ever going to marvel at the sun. It would blind them."

"Sure, Pokémon like blue skies, but they also like majestic, starry vistas," Solgaleo continued. "The way you blanket the continents in moonlight, and let them gaze upon the stars, it's magnificent. It shows the Pokémon down there how grand the world really is. It's not something that I can do. Heck, I'll never do it."

He glanced at Lunala, whose lip quivered. "I… I don't really believe that," she muttered.

"Let's consider it from another angle, then," Solgaleo proposed. He traced a paw through the dirt, drawing out a couple of Pikachu. "Yeah, it's true that Pokémon sleep through the night." He waved his paw across his drawings' faces. "But that sleep is important. It's just as critical for all of them as eating or breathing. If they didn't get sleep, they wouldn't be able to recover their energy."

He drew frowning faces on the Pikachu. "Then they wouldn't have the strength needed to get up and go about living their lives." He picked his foreleg up and swept it across the edge of the island. "Now, imagine that happening on a global scale. The world would grind to a halt. And, before long, there wouldn't even be any Pokémon left for us to give day and night to."

Lunala pursed her lips. "I hadn't considered that," she whispered, looking downward.

"But, thanks to you, the Pokémon down on the surface have a chance to sleep. To recover all their strength," Solgaleo continued, erasing the frowny faces on the Pikachu and replacing them with smiles. "And they wake up the next morning and go about contributing to a lively, thriving world." He turned to Lunala and gave him a grin. "So, yeah. If you ask me, Pokémon owe you quite a bit."

"Okay, I get it," Lunala said, giving a melancholy chuckle. "You can climb off your precious pedestal now."

"Are you feeling any better?" Solgaleo asked.

"Yeah, I guess so," Lunala muttered. "I'm sorry. I don't really know what got into me."

Solgaleo leaned over and nestled his partner's neck. Lunala pushed him away, fighting off a blush. "It sounds to me like you're going a bit stir crazy up here. When was the last time you went down to the surface, anyway?"

"I… I don't remember," Lunala admitted.

"Then take a day or two to go explore," Solgaleo insisted, giving her head a playful shove. "Just put some excess energy into the moondial before you go. That way, you're covered."

"Are you sure about this? I wouldn't want you to be up here all alone," Lunala worried. Solgaleo turned and gave her a lick on her cheek. Lunala immediately turned away, fighting to hide a blush. "S-Stop it. You know I hate it when you do that," she griped.

"Sorry, you had a little smudge," Solgaleo lied. "And I'll be fine. Maybe I'll invite Cresselia over for a bit. She said she could do with some time off from Team Poképals."

"Okay." Lunala took a deep breath. "Then I'm going to leave just as soon as you raise the sun for the Grass Continent."

"Great! Have fun," Solgaleo said. Lunala nodded and slowly rolled onto her back.

"You're right. The stars do look beautiful right now."

* * *

 **~Azure Cape~**

About 160,000 feet below Solgaleo's and Lunala's conversation, a different pair of Pokémon sat underneath the starry sky. A small campfire flickered about between them, and above it hovered a pair of marshmallows.

"Careful, Tessa. You're putting yours too close to the fire. You want to make it golden-brown or it won't taste good."

Tessa stuck her arms up above her head. The stick holding her marshmallow followed. But her arms started shaking as soon as she did this. "G-Gallian, this kinda hurts," she squeaked. "How long do I have to do this for?"

"Just keep it up for ten more seconds," Gallian said. His own roasting stick sat in his mouth, muffling his voice slightly. "Almost there… almost there… okay!" He yanked his head back and pivoted his body. He spread the marshmallow against a graham cracker with a piece of chocolate sitting atop it. Tessa watched him and then tried to mimic his actions, only to end up with marshmallow smeared across her paws.

Gallian placed a second graham cracker atop the marshmallow and smirked. "Heh." He rubbed the bridge of his snout with a forepaw. "A perfect s'more, as per usual."

"Um, Gallian? Did I do this right?"

Gallian looked over his shoulder to see his sister's paws were a mess of melted marshmallow and chocolate. Some of it had splattered onto her lap.

"Err… not quite," Gallian muttered, holding back a laugh as Tessa tried to fling the goop off her fur.

"Aww, it's all sticky!" she whined. "This is never gonna come out of my fur. Mom's going to make me take a bath now, isn't she?"

"Throw some sand on it. That oughta help it rub out," Gallian proposed. Tessa threw her paws into the sand and started furiously rubbing the granules across her lap. Gallian fought off snickers at her antics.

"Hey. Don't laugh at me, Gallian. I'm gonna tell Mom on you, and then she won't let you join the guild tomorrow," Tessa threatened. Gallian rolled his eyes and got up. He walked around the fire and took up a spot lying down next to Tessa.

"Here, why don't I make a s'more for you, okay?" he offered. Tessa passed him her roasting stick and the bag of marshmallows. Gallian speared one of the marshmallows and turned his head to hold it over the fire.

"Gallian? C… can I ask you a question?"

She noticed him smirk despite the stick in his mouth. "That's technically a question, you know."

"R-Right," Tessa squeaked and looked away. "Sorry."

"Relax, I'm only yanking your tail," Gallian chuckled. "What is it?"

"Are you, y'know, nervous… about tomorrow?" Tessa asked. She gripped her ears and pulled them against her head. "Ohhhh, that was a stupid question, wasn't it? You've been doing all that training with Dad. I'm sure you'll be fi–"

"Yeah, I'm nervous."

Tessa's muzzle stiffened at this. "O-Oh. I'm sorry. I–"

"It's fine, Tessa," Gallian dismissed. "I'm just a bit worried about what this entrance test is going to be like. Dad made it sound pretty serious." He twisted his head to adjust the angle of the marshmallow. "Then again, Dad teases us quite a bit. So, he might be pulling a fast one on me."

"Doesn't Dad try to pull pranks on some of the guild members? Remember how Serperior showed up to our Winter Solstice party painted bright pink?" Tessa recalled.

"Oh yeah, that was a riot," Gallian said. His expression immediately fell, however. "It's just, even if I get through the entrance bit no problem, I'm just worried about how other Pokémon are gonna treat me."

Tessa's eyes widened. "But you're awesome, Gallian. You're the best big brother ever!"

Gallian smirked. "Aw, thanks, squirt," he chirped.

"Hey! I'm not _that_ much shorter than you," Tessa pouted, crossing her arms and scowling.

"You're still the shortest in the family," Gallian teased.

"Only until I evolve. Then I'll be calling you 'shorty,'" Tessa declared, putting her hands on her hips matter-of-factly.

Gallian pulled his head away from the fire and finished assembling Tessa's s'more. "Y'know, I could just eat this myself if you're going to tease me."

Tessa's eyes widened in horror. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please don't eat it," she begged, batting her eyelids at him. Gallian smirked and slid the s'more over to his sister. Tessa eagerly grabbed it and swallowed the whole thing in one bite.

"Jeez. I see you got Dad's bottomless appetite," Gallian mused. "But Mom'll kill me if I give you too much sugar. So, I think we should call it there."

Tessa jutted out her lower lip. "Aww, c'mon. Can't I have another?"

Gallian shook his head.

"Pweeeeeeeeeeeeease?" Tessa begged, leaning over and brushing her head against Gallian.

"Well… when you put it that way…"

Gallian grabbed the marshmallow bag and slid it back into his satchel.

"… no."

Tessa fell off the log, landing on her back. "Aww, you're no fair!" she whined, crossing her arms over her chest. Gallian smirked and slid off the log, laying down next to his sister.

"I'd rather be unfair than a victim of Mom's nagging," Gallian said. He then leaned over and whispered, "She didn't say anything about what you can't eat for breakfast, though."

Tessa's expression brightened at this. She rolled over and gave her brother a hug. "See? No one in the guild's gonna hate you. You're the best big brother ever!"

"Ha ha… I hope they see it that way," Gallian said. "Well, except for the brother part. That'd just be weird."

"Right," Tessa said. She craned her head up to the sky. "Um, Gallian?"

"Yeah?"

"You're, um, you're going to come home and visit, right?"

"C'mon, Tessa. What kind of question is that? Our house is right near the Observatory," Gallian replied.

"I… I know. But sometimes when Mom and Dad get super busy, it can be _weeks_ before we see them again," Tessa muttered, fidgeting with her paws. "I mean, I love getting to play with Eevee, but… I really miss them when they're gone." She glanced at her brother. "And now you're going to be off adventuring just like them." Her eyes watered. "What if you guys all forget about me?"

"Pssssshaw! That's never gonna happen," Gallian said, playfully shoving Tessa. "And I'll tell you why. Because, we're meant to take the guild by storm… together!"

Tessa's ears twitch at this. "Huh?"

"Come on, don't play coy with me," Gallian said, nudging his sister again. "Dad took over running the guild from Grandpa Lycanroc, right? So, that means one day… _we're_ going to run the guild when he gets too old!" Tessa's eyes widened in acknowledgement at this.

"But, but I don't know when I'm going to be strong enough to join the guild," she said. "You'll probably be an amazing explorer by then. You're not going to want to waste your time with your little sister."

"I can wait."

Tessa blinked in surprise. "Huh?"

"You're my little sis, Tessa," Gallian said. "If it helps you out, I'll hold up moving up the ranks. I'll stay an apprentice until you join. That way, you've got a familiar face to show you the ropes when you're ready to join." He tilted his head and gave her a wink.

"B-But… Mom says I'm not doing very well in my aura training. What if it, y'know, takes a bit of time?"

"Then I'll wait," Gallian said matter-of-factly. "Or better yet, I can help train you! Maybe we don't know the same moves, but I can help you with speed and evasion. Those are my specialties, after all!" He gave her a confident smirk. "I know it's hard to see right now, but the two of us? We're gonna be the best Guildmasters the Horizon Guild's ever seen! I'm talking Wigglytuff-levels of amazing! I'll bet we'll impress everyone so much, they'll let us go overseas and meet the world-saving heroes from all the stories!"

"You... you mean like Team Poképals? And Team Go-Getters?" Tessa gasped, her eyes sparkling.

"Not just them. Teams Paradise and Gaia, too," Gallian said, beaming. "We'll meet them all. And they'll be super-impressed with us. I'm sure of it!

Tessa smiled at this. "Okay! I'll train super-duper hard, then!"

"That's great. But why don't you wait until tomorrow to start that?" Gallian said, yawning. "Let's just rest for now. I've got a big day ahead of me, after all."

Tessa nodded. She snuggled up to her brother and rested her head on his chest. "Hey, can you point shapes out to me in the stars?" she asked.

"Of course," Gallian replied. "Let me just see what I can find…"

* * *

 **~Celestial Island, Present Day~**

"Aww, phooey!"

Espeon kicked up a clump of clammy, gray grass, sending it tumbling over the abyss and into a spiraling, red-and-black void.

"My beautiful Bewear got thrashed, Umbry," she huffed. "I can't believe that little fuzzball lucked out _again._ "

Umbreon glared at her. "We should've taken care of him ourselves."

"C'mon, you have to admit using Bewear was a good idea! How could I have known that the masked weirdo would show up to bail the human out?" Espeon huffed.

 **"Well, well, well, looks like you have yet another failure to add to your growing list, Espeon."**

"Eep!"

Espeon's fur stood on end and she jumped back, arching her back like a frightened kitten. "G-Go away, Lunala! We didn't ask for your creepy hide to butt in."

A swarm of shadows pooled out from a dead, gray tree lying in the grass. A pair of bright, sky-blue wings spread apart from them.

 **"And I don't like wasting my time bringing messages to you. But Mistress Zero… heeheeheehee… she is looking for you. She is quite upset with this new development. I don't blame her."**

The color drained out of Espeon's face. Her ears and tail fell against her body. "T-Tell her she's gonna have to leave a message, then," she whimpered.

Lunala tilted his crescent-moon head. **"Do it yourself. I'm tired. Every move I make wastes more and more of what little light I have."** He tilted his head skyward. **"What are you still doing here? Go away!"** he barked, his red eyes flashing ominously.

Espeon's tail shot between her legs. She hastily fled into a Magnagate. Umbreon shuddered and followed along after her.

 **"Heeheehee. The stars,"** he muttered, looking up to the sky. The swirling vortex of dark energy over his head parted, offering him a small glimpse out outer space. **"So beautiful. So full of light.** _ **My**_ **light. The light that was stolen from me... by these contemptable gods."**

The black armor on Lunala's forehead sparkled. A glowing red eye appeared on its brimmed. It flashed brightly and the vortex again swallowed up the sky.

 **"Each and every one of you stars... I'll put you back where you belong...** _ **inside of me!**_ **"**


	27. Baring Your Fangs

**Chapter 23: Baring Your Fangs**

Null staggered along the Observatory's northern hallway, his head slowly bobbing up and down. He had just about made it to the main assembly area when something fuzzy brushed against the scales and chitin on his foreleg. Null flinched, groaning hoarsely.

"Oh, Null. I'm so sorry!" Tessa squeaked. "Are… are you hurt? Nobody even thought to let Comfey take a look at you. Here, I'll bring you back."

Null exhaled forcefully and tapped the base of his helmet against his chest. "… I'm fine."

"You don't seem fine."

"… just more headaches. I'm used to them," Null muttered. He brushed the corner of his helmet against his right shoulder, huffing loudly. "… if anything… I should ask… how you're doing."

"M-Me?" Tessa fidgeted with her scarf. "I'm… I'm fine. Really!"

"… you don't seem fine. Is it… the human again?"

Tessa flinched and looked away. "It's not something you need to concern yourself with." She placed a paw against his foreleg and her aura feelers stiffened. She fixed her gaze on the side of Null's helmet. "What were you thinking going after Vulpix like that? From the sound of things, that Bewear could've really hurt you!"

"… everything was fine," Null rasped. "… our guildmates… had already weakened her. She was… completely focused on the human. I snuck up on her easily…" He shook his head again, huffing quietly. "I tried… to tell someone. Couldn't find the Guildmaster… or Braviary…"

That was a lie, of course, but it completely fooled Tessa, since it prompted her to bite her lip. "So, you thought the best alternative was to run after them? Ooh, do you have any idea how lucky you are? If… if something would've happened to you, I…"

Null turned away from her. "… please. We don't… know each other well. You don't need… to be nice to me… out of courtesy. You can just… ignore me… like everyone else."

Tessa winced at this. _'But I don't want to ignore you,'_ she thought. "Will you at least answer one thing for me?"

"… haven't I answered enough?" Null grumbled. "… I'm tired." Tessa looked at him with pleading, puppy-dog eyes. "… tch. Fine."

"Why did you go rescue Vulpix?" Tessa asked. "He's done nothing but make fun of you. Nobody would've blamed you if you didn't do anything."

Null looked down at the ground. "… I don't know."

Tessa frowned. "What do you mean you don't know? Surely you were thinking _something._ "

Null hissed and shook his head about, striking the nearby wall. Tessa took a cautious step back. Null turned his cold, gray eyes on her, making her heart race. "… I just don't know… okay? I saw him… the human… he ran off. And then…" He touched a claw to his helmet. "… there were voices. Hundreds of them… yelling at me. 'Follow him!' they screamed."

Null leaned his helmet against the wall. "They got so loud… I couldn't block them out. Eventually… I just went to the forest… without even thinking. That's when… I saw the Bewear… and leaped into action…"

Tessa glanced one of her aura feelers out of the corner of her eyes. It twitched, as if acknowledging Null's statement. "I… I don't understand," she muttered.

"… you don't have to. It's not your problem…"

Tessa frowned. "But if there's a problem, you shouldn't have to face it alone. We're guild mates! I even offered to let you be my teammate."

"… and I already said... I'm not committing to that. Look at me. I'm not… the type of Pokémon… a sweet little girl… should be around," Null muttered. "Assuming I even _am_ a Pokémon to begin with. No one… has any idea what I'm supposed to be. Not Magearna… not Braviary. The Guildmaster says… he can't even read my mind. They just… called me Null… because they literally couldn't think of anything…"

"I'm sorry," Tessa whispered.

"… why? You didn't… do anything wrong…" Null wheezed.

"Even still, I'm not going to turn my back on you based on appearances," Tessa said. "Look at Vulpix. He thinks Lycanroc's a bad guy because of the way he acts. I don't want to stoop to that level. I _want_ to help you. Because you've been helping me cope with my stress. It's only fair."

Null let out a long sigh. "… you really… want to know… what's wrong?" Tessa nodded. "These voices… they're always popping up. I can't… block them out. This… this _thing…_ " He rattled his helmet. "… it hurts. It _always_ hurts. I can feel it… weighing on my head… weighing on my shoulders…"

He staggered forward. "But sometimes… the headaches get bad. My head… it starts to pound. Then I hear them. Voices… echoing around… in my head. Too many… to make out… what they're really saying." He shook his helmet about again. "I can… kinda make them be quiet… when I do this. But it… barely helps."

"Have you gone to see Comfey about it?"

"… what do you think?" Null growled. Tessa shrank back, fidgeting nervously again. "… sorry. That was… uncalled for…" He exhaled loudly. "I couldn't… feel anything… that Comfey did. Magearna thinks… this helmet… is the problem. Says it... emits its own aura. One that masks… everything around it. She said the aura… is unnatural…"

Tessa brought a paw up to rub one of her aura feelers. _'Is that why these guys can't stop twitching around you?'_ she thought.

"But I can't... break it," he growled. "I've tried… but that just makes the headaches worse…" He coughed three times.

"Are you okay?" Tessa worried. "That doesn't sound good."

"I just... need rest," Null wheezed. He walked toward the residential quarters. "… please don't follow me…" he muttered.

"Wait." Tessa ran up to Null's side. "Listen, um, Vulpix is kind of out of commission for a bit. Would you, y'know, be willing to do some assignments tomorrow… together?"

Null turned to look at Tessa with his heavyset eyes. "… I'll sleep on it…" And then he walked away.

Tessa sighed. Her shoulders slumped. _'Some week this is turning into,'_ she thought. _'Vulpix's totally gone off the deep end and he's going to drag me down with him.'_ Tessa winced. _'It's the aura training fiasco all over again. The longer this goes on... the worse it's making me feel.'_ She glanced down the empty hallway. _'I know I haven't known him long, but if I could just get Null to agree to partner with me... maybe I could stay here. Maybe I wouldn't feel like I've been backed up into a corner.'_

A shudder ran down her spine. _'Mom, what would you think of all this if you were here? Would you offer me a shoulder to lean on? Or would you tell me this is all my fault? That I wasn't focused or disciplined enough... and I deserve all this crap Vulpix is putting me through?"_

She bit her lip. _'Ooooh… I've been so wrapped up letting Vulpix drag me places. I'm not any closer to figuring anything out where Mom went. I mean, sure, she's keeping a Pokémon safe. But if what Vulpix said about viruses is true, can she really do it on her own?'_ Shivering, Tessa brought her paws up to her shoulders. _'If Mom's out there alone, then the Prism Virus could get her. Just like it might've gotten to Gallian. I can't lose her like that… right?'_

The slow beating of wings snapped Tessa out of her thoughts. She turned around and a lightbulb went off in her head. "Oh, Volcarona!" she called. "Are you heading to the veterans' quarters?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Comfey wants me to rest up," Volcarona replied. "Why, do you need something?"

"Um… I don't suppose I could come downstairs with you and see my mom's room, could I?" Tessa requested.

"Am I going have to watch you if you do?" Volcarona asked.

"It's, uh, part of the rules isn't it?"

"… eh, I guess it can't hurt too much," Volcarona sighed. "But I'm just warning you… I may conk out on you." She turned and flew toward the stairs. Tessa followed after her, descending into the dimly-lit veterans' quarters. The dark blue hallways gave way to the occasional opening leading into a room. Volcarona rounded the corner and flew over toward a glowing orb. She hovered next to it while Tessa proceeded in through the doorway.

The last time Tessa went in her mom's room was when she asked to speak to Milotic in private. She didn't pay any mind to the room's condition. This time, however, she stiffened upon entering. _'This doesn't look right,'_ she thought. _'This place is totally torn up! Papers… books… everything's strewn about so carelessly. It's not like Mom at all.'_ She took a cautious step forward, over a book that lay face down on the floor. _'Milotic said nobody has touched her room since she left. Could Mom really have left it like this?'_

Her brow furrowed. _'Hang on. Gallian_ did _show up here a few days ago. Maybe he did this? No, Serperior said Gallian hadn't done anything.'_ She shuffled forward, stopping at a pile of papers scattered across a rainbow carpet. Tessa knelt down and picked the papers up, only to frown. Most of them had doodles drawn on them.

 _'Are these… feathers?'_ she wondered, flipping through the pages. As she did, the doodles steadily transformed from feathers, to a large, bright-red bird with a golden outline. Tessa squinted. _'There's some stuff written here? 'Rainbow Wing… summon her… use the scarf…' Huh?'_

She flipped to the last drawing, which just consisted of massive amounts of black scribbling with the words "Save him," and "It's not too late. Get the ash," repeatedly scrawled on the page. Tessa reflexively brought a paw toward her scarf. Images flashed through her mind, showcasing the numerous times she had seen one of her parents wearing the scarf back when it was in one piece. Tessa frowned and dropped the papers back to the floor. She wandered over toward the desk. The light was much darker in this part of the room.

"Um, hey, Volcarona? Think you could detach that luminous orb and bring it over here?"

"Zzznnrkk… hrrrkkk… huh?" Volcarona sputtered, jolting to attention. "Oh. Sure." She detached the orb and flew it over to Tessa, who accepted it and placed it on the corner of the desk. A frown immediately returned to her face. The first thing she noticed was giant blotches of spilled ink. The stains had dried up, so her attempts to rub them away proved futile. She lifted the orb up and hovered it over the desk.

A cursory examination revealed a map of the Horizon Continent. Her gaze went toward the top-left corner and settled on a large X. Tessa noted the phrase "temple?" scrawled underneath it. Before she could question the sight, she spotted an identical mark at the bottom of the map. _'I wonder what these are for?'_ she thought.

Her gaze drifted toward the right side of her mom's desk, where more papers lay strewn about. It was another set of doodles. This time, however, Tessa couldn't tell what they depicted. She lifted one of them up and rotated it. All she could see was a thick blue circle, with some bits of white in the center. She immediately recalled the bedtime stories her dad told her about magic portals. A deep pang of sadness tugged at her heart from the thought, prompting her to set the drawing down.

Tessa flipped through the pages. The same doodle was sprawled out repeatedly. Only each subsequent drawing had more jagged lines. The "eye" in the center became steadily more difficult to discern. Eventually, Tessa discovered rough patches in the pages, as if someone had scratched at them with nails or claws. At this point, large red splotches showed up in the drawings.

 _'Did Mom start_ bashing _her pen against the paper?'_ Tessa wondered. _'And what are these lines around her drawing?'_ She squinted, trying to follow the different connections between the lines. _'It kind of looks like the Unown language Dad showed me pictures of… but it's not the same. There are no eyes.'_

Tessa reached the bottom of the drawings and froze. She found herself looking at a picture that Magearna had taken. _'I remember this. This is after Gallian got promoted to apprentice rank,'_ she recalled.

Gallian sat dead center in the picture, a silver guild badge nestled in his chest plume. A slightly-younger Tessa hugged his side. Their mother stood behind them, a slight smile tugging at her lips. And next to her was Incineroar. The rainbow scarf around his neck sparkled in the picture, as did the platinum guild badge pinned to it. He gave a thumb's up toward Tessa.

… or at least, that's what she imagined he was doing. Because his right arm was obscured by a massive blot of red ink, just like some of the doodles she held in her hand. She and Gallian had similar red spots covering parts of their bodies. And a trio of claw marks ran across the picture.

Tessa grit her teeth. _'But if Gallian didn't do this, then…'_ She pressed the photo to her chest. _'Mom. What's happened to you? I can't even imagine what you're dealing with right now.'_

"… I think you oughta get a move on there, pardner."

Tessa stiffened at the sound of Braviary's voice. It was much graver than his usual tone. He walked into Prisma's room, examining the papers and books scattered about the floor.

"Ain't no good coming from poking around here, hoss," he said. "Nothing but memories left, I reckon."

Tessa winced and looked down at the floor. _'Hadn't Vulpix said something about finding Braviary suspicious? No, don't think like that. He's totally nuts. He thinks half the guild's out to get him.'_

"I just… I just want to know what happened to Mom," Tessa muttered. "I miss her… I want her to be here with me." She looked up at Braviary. "Did you see her when she left?" He nodded slowly. "Did she tell you anything? Anything at all?"

"Tessa…"

"Don't call me that!" Tessa snapped, before throwing her paws over her mouth. "Oh… s-sorry… I didn't…"

"Look, I don't think it's best for you to dwell on the subject," Braviary said. "Lucario was mighty steamed about something the night she left. I reckon it was the angriest I ever done saw her since the day the two of us met."

 _'What… Mom was angry? But, she seemed so relaxed when she brought me to Sylveon's house,'_ Tessa thought. _'That doesn't make any sense…'_

"And she done said something about going away fer awhile and not to bother looking fer her," Braviary said, scratching his head. "I don't exactly remember the specifics."

Tessa frowned. _'But Mom told me she was doing a quick assignment!'_ She pursed her muzzle. _'I mean, that turned out to be a lie. But why would she say something different to Braviary? Or… is Braviary lying to me right now?'_

Braviary tried to give Tessa a reassuring smile, but all it did was make her fur stand on end. "Why don't ya head on back upstairs? It's been a heck of a week. Ya need yer rest, pardner." He gestured toward the doorway. Tessa slumped over in defeat and trudged out, passing by a sleeping Volcarona. She ascended the stairs and returned to the main level.

Tessa paused in the middle of the assembly area. _'That's odd.'_ She glanced toward the wing leading to the dining area and found light streaming out of it. Tessa walked over to the east hallway. As she did, her aura feelers twitched, followed by her ears.

"… I mean, can you believe that little runt? He gets clobbered by a crazed wild Pokémon and he's got the stones to blame _me!_ If all humans are like him, then they're a bunch of dills."

 _'That sounds like Lycanroc! But who's he talking to?'_ Tessa crept forward until she approached the cusp of the wall of light spilling out from the dining area.

"Kweh heh heh! That sure sounds like the Snowy we know, don't it?"

"Yeah, the guy's nothing but a grade-A loser. If it weren't for that prissy Riolu following him around he'd be lying at the bottom of Clayback River right about now."

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. _'Team Fang? What are they doing in here? Oh, gods, did Lycanroc let them in? Was Shane actually telling the truth?'_ Her eyes narrowed. _'And what did Jangmo-o just call me?'_

"Hey now, don't be hating on the poor sheila like that, mate," Lycanroc said. "After all, she must've pissed off the Tapus pretty badly to get shackled to a guy like Snowy. I feel bad for her."

"Seriously?" Sneasel scoffed. "I didn't have you pegged as a softie."

"I ain't soft, mate," Lycanroc growled. "I'm letting you two dipsticks take all these berries, ain't I? That's sticking my neck out a ways considering Snowy's got a vendetta against me."

"And we totally appreciate it, dude. We haven't had a decent meal in _ages,_ " Jangmo-o chirped. "These berries are berrytacular!"

 _Smack!_

"What have I told you about making up words like that?" Sneasel hissed. "It ain't cute and it makes you look like a wimp."

"S-Sorry, Sneasel," Jangmo-o muttered.

Tessa grit her teeth. _'He let them in so they could steal our food? But why would he do that? No one in the guild thinks he's bad except for Vulpix. Does this mean he was actually right?'_

"You mates are a riot," Lycanroc said. "Like I said before, I don't really care. You can trash the place, for what it's worth. Serves these dumb blokes right for letting a cur like Snowy walk around like he owns the place. I don't want our continent going down the drain, but I ain't working with that mangy Vulpix. Espeon and Umbreon can tear this place apart. I'll just lay low and be the top dog in whatever's left of the world."

"Kweh heh heh heh! I like your thinking. You oughta join up with us. We'd make a great team," Sneasel cackled.

Tessa started to turn around. _'I'd better find Braviary again… quickly!'_

"Forget it, mate. I work alone. Where do you think the whole 'lone Lycanroc' expression comes from, anyway?" Lycanroc scoffed. "I'm gonna knock Snowy down a peg for spitting on my pride, and then go after the rest of those lousy enabling guild 'mons. Starting with the creep in the helmet."

Tessa froze with one of her paws resting on the wall.

"There's a Shelmet in this guild?" Jangmo-o gasped.

"No, no, no," Lycanroc said. "There's this... this _thing_ that walks around with a giant stone helmet over its face. I mean… I don't blame it. If some god had hit me with an ugly stick that bad, I'd want to hide my face from everyone, too. But I ain't got a clue what kind of Pokémon it is. I just know it makes a Muk look like an attractive mate!"

"Kweh heh heh heh! Sounds like one sorry 'mon," Sneasel cackled. "You oughta let us take a crack at it. We could use a bit of a morale boost."

"Ha! My pleasure, mates. Why not make a little sport out of it?" Lycanroc said. "First one to knock that ugly bitzer's lights out gets first cracks at Snowy."

Tessa had balled her paws into fists, gnashing her teeth. _'Grrr… how dare those jerks!'_

"Riolu, are you okay?"

Tessa ignored Steenee's tired mumbling and stomped forward, her eyes burning. " _Hey!_ " she barked, raising up her fists. "What do you crooks think you're doing!"

"Meep!" Jangmo-o dropped the berry sitting in his mouth. "S-Sneasel… it's Miss Prissy-Pants!"

Lycanroc held up a paw. "Easy there, sheila. Ain't looking for no trouble here. I found these two passed out from exhaustion. Figured they could do with a little food, that's all. Ain't that what you guild 'mons are all about... helping folks out and all that jazz?"

"Don't lie to me. If you really found them passed out, you should've brought them to Officer Magnezone. Because they're a couple of outlaws!" Tessa spat. "And I heard what you said about us! I can't believe you'd act like this after we let you in here out of the goodness of– _agggggh!_ "

Tessa yelped in pain as a series of rocks pelted her body, knocking her to the ground. Lycanroc's crimson eyes glowed and he shook out his mane. "You've got things backwards there, sheila. I _wanted_ to try and do good by you folks. But your dumb friend Snowy went and drove a stake right through my pride. And I _never_ forget a slight... no matter how small! Anyone who crosses me gets roughed up! That's how I roll!"

He glanced over his shoulder at Team Fang. "Good news, mates. I think I'm taking you up on your offer. How's about we christen the occasion by kicking the daylights out of this sheila here?"

"Kweh heh heh! Why that sounds positively _wonderful,_ " Sneasel cackled. He rubbed his claws together and they hardened into steel. Just as he was about to run Tessa down, however, a stream of glistening, multicolored leaves funneled out from the hallway. Sneasel threw his claws up and slashed them to ribbons.

"Eh? So, you brought backup," Sneasel growled. "Figures you don't have the spine to stand up to us on your own."

Steenee appeared and helped Tessa out from the rock pile. "Are you okay, Riolu?"

"Fine, but we've gotta stop these guys," she growled. "They raided our food supply."

Lycanroc rolled his eyes. "Please. You mates don't need all them berries. And dills like Snowy don't deserve 'em." He planted his paws on the ground and scooped them upward. More rocks appeared in front of him and arced toward Tessa. Steenee stepped forward and whipped the petals on her head around, sending out another volley of glowing leaves. The leaves sliced through the rocks effortlessly.

But Senasel and Jangmo-o took advantage of the opening Lycanroc made. Jangmo-o charged down Steenee while Sneasel disappeared into the shadows. Tessa hollered seconds later, as Sneasel barreled into her from behind. Steenee turned around in surprise, only to end up on the ground next to Tessa, the result of Jangmo-o swinging his glowing-blue tail around and clobbering her in the gut.

"Owww! Unnngh," Steenee groaned.

"Heh, how do ya like them apples? We've picked up a few new tricks since our last scrap, runt," Sneasel cackled.

"Yeah?" Tessa's eyes narrowed and she rolled to her feet. She charged down Sneasel, raising a glowing fist. "Well, you're not the only one, tough guy," she barked, whirling her arm around…

… only for Lycanroc to step in at the last moment and take the blow right in his plume of chest fur. He stumbled back with a grunt, only to flash Tessa a fang-filled grin. Both of his paws glowed brightly and he brought them crashing down onto the top of Tessa's skull. A loud gasp of air escaped her. Tessa crumpled to the ground, gripping her head in agony.

"Sorry, didn't quite catch that? Was that supposed to hurt or something?" Lycanroc taunted, rubbing his chest plume with a paw.

"C-Counter?" Tessa whimpered, stars fluttering around her vision and a harsh ringing filling her ears. "But how–?"

"What can I say? I'm a 'mon of many talents!" Lycanroc said with a laugh. He looked over to see Steenee steering Jangmo-o away with a stream of razor-sharp leaves.

But she didn't stay up for long. Sneasel positioned himself behind Steenee and unleashed a gust of frigid wind. Steenee squealed in pain and stumbled forward. Jangmo-o skidded to a halt. His tail brimmed with blue dragon energy and he once again brought it around, socking Steenee in the side. This knocked her into a nearby stack of crates. They collapsed on top of her. Jangmo-o waited for a second, but the pile didn't stir. He turned to Lycanroc, a grin plastered on his face.

"Nice try, sheilas, but you're outnumbered and outmuscled," Lycanroc sneered. He turned, hocked up a large loogie, and spat it onto Tessa's back. "C'mon, mates. Let's blow this lame little outfit."

"… hey!"

Team Fang turned around and Lycanroc's smirk widened at the sight of a Vulpix standing in front of them on shaky legs. "I was wondering when you were gonna show, Snowy."

"Kweh heh heh heh! You don't look so good, Snowy," Sneasel cackled.

"Yeah, look at his eyes, boss. They're all red and puffy!" Jangmo-o teased. "Is widdle cwybaby Vuwpix sad we hurt his special fwiend?"

Shane drew his lips back into a snarl. "I was right! You _are_ a thug," he said, but his voice cracked while making the accusation. Shane looked right down at the ground, his face going red with embarrassment.

"V… Vulpix!"

Shane spotted Tessa crumpled up on the ground. "Don't be an idiot! Go get help!" she begged.

Lycanroc snarled and whirled around, flinging up several more rocks to bury Tessa. She rolled to her right, wincing as the room spun about. The rocks struck the ground next to her and shattered harmlessly.

"Run, Vulpix!" Tessa shouted. She staggered to her feet, trying her best not to hurl, and lunged at the bewildered Lycanroc. Blue energy encased her paw and she smacked him right in the chest, knocking him back into Sneasel.

"Rrrrrrrgh! Don't let him run off!" Lycanroc roared, falling to the ground. Tessa quickly backed off, fearing another Counter. She glanced at the knocked-over crates and her heart soared at the sight of some oran berries. Tessa scampered toward the crates, scooped up two oran berries, and downed one. Her vertigo quickly subsided and her strength returned to her.

"Help! _Help!_ _Thieves in the guild!_ "

Shane sounded off like a squeaky claxon. Seconds later, a howl of pain sounded. Tessa's eyes widened.

"Yeah. How does _that_ feel, loser?" Jangmo-o's voice resonated through the hall. Tessa tried to run in Shane's direction but Sneasel's form blurred into her from the shadows, knocking her to the floor.

"Oh no you don't," he hissed, icy air gathering around his face. "Consider this payback for those swimming lessons at Clayback Riv– _mmmrrrrrrrrrrgh!_ "

Sneasel's eyes bulged out as Tessa forcefully clamped his mouth shut. He was forced to swallow the ice that he had gathered up. His eyes watered from the frigid air constricting his larynx. Tessa's right paw flared up with blue energy and she backhanded Sneasel across the face.

"Idiot!" Lycanroc snarled, flinging a rock barrage at Tessa. "Taunt _after_ you've gotten your licks in! That's battling 101, mate!"

Panicking, Tessa curled up in a ball around her other oran berry. The rocks peppered her back, drawing a pained squeal. She ate her other oran berry and immediately got to her feet. Lycanroc brought up his fists, ready to face her down. Tessa took a step forward, only to disappear in a blur of motion. Lycanroc swung his paws in her direction, but ended up only hitting air.

"What the–?" He swung his head back and forth, only for his eyes to widen. "Oy!" He lunged at Sneasel and hurled him to his feet. "She bailed on us with Quick Attack! Don't just stand there… get her!" He shoved Sneasel forward and lumbered after him.

No sooner did Sneasel and Lycanroc reach the end of the hallway then a resounding _clang_ echo throughout it. Lycanroc found himself tumbling back down the hallway. He ended up sprawled out on the floor.

Sneasel looked up, his jaw hanging open. "Wh... what are _you_ supposed to be?"

"… Null."

A masked, metal-coated head slammed into Sneasel. Sneasel careened backwards. His momentum came to an abrupt stop when he crashed into Lycanroc. Null turned around slightly. Togedemaru and Trapinch had Jangmo-o pinned to the ground. The former was sitting atop him, digging her spikes into his scales.

"Owie! _Owie!_ Stop! Uncle! Uncle! I give in!" Jangmo-o squealed, his eyes tearing up.

"Yeah, Togedemaru's got some personal space issues," Trapinch muttered. "Good luck getting her off you."

"Ahem?" Togedemaru's cheeks sparked with electricity. Jangmo-o yelped as the current ran down his body. "You want to come here and say that to my face?"

"Please don't! Please don't! I can't take any more of this," Jangmo-o whimpered, only to squawk like a bird as Togedemaru nuzzled him with her spikes again.

"Quiet, you crook," she hissed. "Hey, human. Any luck getting the Guildmaster?"

"I'm trying!" Shane whimpered. "Wake up! Wake up! _Can't you tell we're under attack out here?!_ "

Null turned back around to see a barrage of frost-coated rocks flying right at him. He narrowed his eyes and again hardened his helmet into steel. He ran forward, bursting through a few of the rocks. But he couldn't keep up his charge. The metal dissolved off his mask and the remaining rocks struck his head and torso. Null staggered backward, hissing in pain.

"You made a big mistake taking us on two-on-one, ugly!" Sneasel spat. "Only thing those beady eyes of yours are gonna see are stars. Kweh heh heh!"

Tessa jumped out from behind Null, her paws brimming with bright blue energy. "You leave him alone!" she roared, speeding down the hall. Lycanroc stepped forward, a grin appearing on his face, and braced himself. But Tessa suddenly banked toward the side, leaving Lycanroc staring down Null's frost-coated helmet.

Null conjured up air around his right foreleg and shot an air spear at Lycanroc. While it didn't really hurt him, it made his attempts to Counter dissipate. This allowed Tessa to strike Lycanroc's chest with an open palm, knocking him back into Sneasel. The two ended up atop one another. Tessa and Null ran forward, the former's paws alighting blue once again. Lycanroc groaned and picked his head up, only to blanch in the face of the charging duo.

Lycanroc reached back and grabbed hold of Sneasel. "Huh? H-Hey… what d'ya think you're doing? Put me do _oooooooooooooown!_ "

Sneasel found himself sailing through the air, limbs flailing about in all directions.

Tessa screeched to a halt, falling on her rear. The base of her tail struck the floor, sending a jolt of pain up her spine that made her eyes water. Sneasel beaned her in the head, knocking her flat on her back. He continued his trajectory forward, but Null was ready for him. Null raised a glowing foreleg up and batted Sneasel aside with his claws. Sneasel smacked into the wall and slid to the floor on his belly.

"Kweeeeeeegh… pr-pretty birdies…" he muttered, drool seeping out of his mouth.

"Rrrrrgggh, you two are a couple of useless blokes," Lycanroc growled, glaring at Sneasel. "Doesn't matter. I can take you one-on-one, freak. You ain't so tough!"

 **That is sufficientary, Null. I can take things from here.**

With a wheeze, Null stepped to the side, revealing Magearna. She had one arm pointed at Sneasel and the other at Lycanroc.

"Oy, yer the science sheila, ain't ya? Ha… I'd just like to see ya try getting yer licks in on m–"

Two beams shot forward. One of swirling metallic gray that struck Sneasel in his gut, knocking him out. The other being a steady stream of ice that washed across Lycanroc's body, freezing him solid where he stood. Tessa staggered to her feet, fighting to hide a smirk at the sight of Lycanroc's widened eyes darting about in his icy prison. Null walked over to Sneasel and pinned his down with a foreleg.

"Did you just use Flash Cannon and Ice Beam at the same time?" Tessa gasped.

 **Correct,** Magearna replied. **Awhile back I ran a diagnosticary on my processors. I found out that I could overclock my motherboard to one hundred and fifty percent efficacy, allowing for dualmentary attack implementifying.**

"In laymon's terms, she reprogrammed herself to use two attacks at once," Togedemaru mused, shoving Jangmo-o's equally-frozen form into the hallway.

 **You know, it sounds one hundred percent more scientific the way I say it,** Magearna grumbled.

Shane staggered into the room. His face was so flushed, one could mistake it for that of a fire-type Vulpix. "Couldn't… get the Guildmaster… up," he muttered. Tessa frowned at him. "What? I did what you guys wanted me to do this time. It's not my fault the Guildmaster could sleep through the end of the world."

 **Negative. Fact: I am an automaton. Fact: I do not sleep, I recharge my circuits.**

Heavy, metallic footsteps echoed off the stone floor. The arranged guild members all backed up against the walls. Metagross walked forward, flanked by a trio of floating magnets.

"Officer Magnezone?" Trapinch gasped. "Wait… Guildmaster, did you already know this was happening?"

 **KZZRRT… Metagross brought to my attention that the guild was being robbed,** Magnezone announced. **I take it these are the perpetrators?** He pointed to the immobilized trio of Team Fang.

"Yes, sir. I found them raiding our pantry. Who knows how many berries they ate," Tessa exclaimed.

 **Very well.** Magnezone turned to two Magneton deputies. **Break the ice and immobilize the culprits with Thunder Wave, please.**

"Um, is that really such a good id–?" Shane started to ask, only to watch the ice around Lycanroc and Jangmo-o shatter. Seconds later, electricity crackled across their bodies, rendering them stiff as boards. Magnezone and his deputies then hefted Team Fang into the air using their electromagnetism.

"What the–? Lemme go!" Lycanroc snarled, his body twitching from the paralysis. "This is all Snowy's fault! He's the bad egg here!"

 **That is a distortion of the facts,** Metagross declared, stomping over to Team Fang.

"Hey, don't make me out to be the bad guy here. You guys were caught red-handed," Shane growled. His statement came out as a hoarse squeak, eliciting giggles from Togedemaru and Trapinch.

 **Fact: after I stopped the human's argument with Lycanroc, I sensed a change in his thought patterns,** Metagross announced. **Fact: careful analysis led me to conclude Lycanroc would bring trouble into the guild. Fact: Lycanroc intended to foist the blame onto the human and get him expelled from the guild. Fact: Midnight Lycanrocs are confrontational in nature. Fact: they hold irrational grudges.** Metagross glanced at Shane. **Fact: the human drew Lycanroc's ire with his comments.**

Shane tensed up. "Wait… what?"

 **Warning: do not interrupt my explanation,** Metagross growled, eyes flashing blue. Shane whimpered loudly, tails drooping. **Fact: I established a mental link with Lycanroc's mind to spy on him. Fact: I discovered him meeting with these outlaws in Aeon Town. Fact: they discussed raiding our food stock. Conclusion: inform the authorities and use the opportunity to test you apprentices.**

"Wait, this whole thing was a set up?" Togedemaru gasped.

"What?! You told us this place was easy pickings!" Sneasel snarled, trying to work through his paralysis and glare at Lycanroc.

"I… I didn't… but that don't make a lick of sense!" Lycanroc growled.

 **Hypothesis: there will become a time when you apprentices have to face difficult odds without a true leader present. Conclusion: use the outlaws as a test run of your abilities to work as a team under pressure,** Metagross elaborated. **Either you would subdue the outlaws or Magnezone would arrive with backup to defeat them. Based on the results, I calculate my plan was a success.**

"And what would have happened if we ran into problems and Magenzone couldn't get here fast enough, huh?" Togedemaru asked.

 **Fact: the berries that Team Fang ate had rotted. Fact: they should begin to experience symptoms of food poisoning in thirty seconds.**

Jangmo-o's eyes widened. "You're kidding! Those berries tasted perfectly scrumptious."

"That's… because… the Guildmaster… had me use Sweet Scent… on them…"

Everyone turned and watched Steenee stagger back into the hallway, gripping her side in pain.

"You were in on this?" Tessa gasped. "But look at how banged up you got!"

"Heh… I was supposed to… discover everything… and wake you guys. But… you kinda beat me to the punch there," Steenee explained, chuckling weakly.

"Owwwwwiiiieeee!" Jangmo-o suddenly groaned. "Sneasel... my tummy… it don't feel too good."

"Rrrrggghh… sh-shut up… Jangmo-o," Sneasel moaned. "Nobody… cares…"

Lycanroc's face turned pale. "This… this is an outrage. Do you hear me!"

 **Save it for your fellow inmates, criminals,** Magnezone stated. **Let's move out, troops.** He turned and carried off Team Fang. Lycanroc locked eyes with Shane.

"I hope you're happy, Snowy! You got what you wanted. Whoop-de-doo," he snarled. "Savor it for now. Because I swear… I'm gonna break out of yer stupid jail. And then… I won't rest until I've strung you up by your fat, ugly tails!"

Lycanroc managed to fight through the paralysis and spit right on Shane's face. Shane hissed and rubbed his face against his shoulder.

"You ain't no hero, Snowy! Ya got that?" Lycanroc shouted as Magnezone's squad carried him toward the stairs. "Yer just a stupid kid with a big ol' mouth! Yer gonna get what's coming to ya, Snowy! No one crosses me and gets away with it! _Do you hear me? No one!_ "

 **Enough talking, prisoner.**

A spark of electricity flashed along the stairwell, followed by a loud howl from Lycanroc. An awkward silence fell over the guild members.

"Well… uh… I guess we oughta clean things up a bit?" Trapinch suggested.

"Can't it wait until morning?" Togedemaru groaned, yawning.. "I need my beauty sleep! And I'm a bit mad at the Guildmaster, quite frankly."

 **I had my reasons for acting as I did. Order: I will handle the cleanup of this wing. You are to all return to bed,** Metagross said. **And you, human, should expect a tongue-lashing from Comfey for leaving your bed.**

"Oh, he's going to get more than a tongue-lashing…"

Shane's tails jolted stiff and he looked up to see a very unamused Comfey floating in front of him. "What did I tell you? Twenty four hour bed rest _at a minimum!_ And here you are, running into a battle when your spine isn't even fully healed." Her eyes narrowed at the sight of fresh bruises on Shane's back. "And you got hit in the back again!"

She shook her head. A psychic force hefted a yelping Shane into the air. "Well, you'd best start crossing your digits and praying you didn't do any permanent damage," Comfey declared.

"Wait!" Shane pleaded. He froze in midair. "I just… I just want to know one thing." He turned to look at Tessa and Metagross. "Was… was Lycanroc telling the truth?"

Tessa's snout stiffened. She shut her eyes and nodded. "Yes, Vulpix. He really wanted to help us with this Prism Virus situation… until you insulted him. I _told_ you that Lycanrocs can hold grudges, but I guess you weren't listening... as usual. Your big mouth turned him against us. So, congrats. You were right in the end. I hope you're happy."

 **Fact: in insisting that Lycanroc was an outlaw you created a self-fulfilling prophecy,** Metagross stated. **Fact: I will address this with you in your disciplinary session once you have properly healed.** He turned his back to Shane. **Assuming you can even be healed at all.**

Comfey levitated Shane out of the room. His whines grew progressively softer until no one could hear them. Following Shane's exit, the rest of the guild members started to make their ways back to their lodgings.

"… that was… pretty harsh back there…"

Tessa froze in the middle of the assembly area and glanced back and Null. "Don't tell me you're actually defending him. He's been a total jerk to you!" she said.

Null looked down. "… yeah. I just… don't think… he means bad. He's just… frightened of me. Just like… he was frightened… of Lycanroc."

Tessa bit her lip. "But… he sure didn't _sound_ frightened. He sounded… more like a know-it-all. And he doesn't have a reason to be scared of you. You're a nice Pokémon! You're…"

"… Riolu… I appreciate it. But… look at me…" Null walked forward, giving Tessa full view of his patchwork hide, emphasizing the mosaic of fur and scales. "… I don't… give off… a very inviting… first impression."

"So? Mom always told me not to judge another Pokémon by its looks… or even its aura," Tessa said.

"… okay…" Null muttered. "But Shane… wasn't raised that way. He… certainly wasn't raised… as a Pokémon." Tessa stiffened and her gaze fell to the ground. "He's just reacting… to the sight… of something… bigger and scarier… than him."

"If… you want him to change… you need to provide him… with a good example… of what he should do," Null continued. "… be his… role model… or something…"

Tessa bit her lip. "For Vulpix? I…" She shook her head. "Sorry… no. That's asking too much of me. I can't be a role model."

Null sighed. "… tell you what. Why don't… we talk it over more… during some assignments… tomorrow?"

Tessa's expression brightened up. "You mean it?"

"… you could do… with a good distraction. G'night," Null said. He shuffled toward his room, wheezing loudly.

Tessa ran forward and embraced Null's right hind leg. He cringed from the contact. "Thanks, Null," Tessa whispered.

"… whatever…" Null muttered, and then walked back toward his room.

Tessa yawned and retreated to her room. She flopped down on her pillow and rolled onto her back. Her muscles began to ache. Tessa's eyelids fluttered closed. Her head lolled to the right. She glanced a portion of the full moon shining through a crack in her window.

 _'Wait… since when does the moon glow purple?'_

* * *

And now that this chapter's up, I can give a bit of trivia. This episode is an inversion of, coincidentally enough, the 6th chapter of the Explorers games (Team Skull). While both involved shady characters linking up with the guild, in this instance Lycanroc was a good guy, until Shane got involved. In contrast to Explorers, where guild members rally to support the player and partner, Shane's actions turned a number of guild members against him.

I swear, I didn't intend the numbers to actually line up like that. Happy accident. But, yes, this was a bait-and-switch. Probably not the most clever one, but I had fun with it. And I hope you did too. The episode's not quite done, though. So...

Next time: after the day's events, our heroes find themselves with one question on their minds: where do we go from here?


	28. Rocky Road to Recovery

**Chapter 24: Rocky Road to Recovery**

 _Tessa poked at the grass with a digit. "… and then, even though he almost got himself killed, Vulpix flew off the handle at Lycanroc. That set Lycanroc off, Mom. Next time I ran into him, he had let these outlaws called Team Fang into the guild. I heard them badmouthing us and when I tried to stop them, they attacked me!"_

 _From her position beside her daughter on the clifftop, Prisma scowled. "Well, I'm sorry you had to go through that, Tessa. But I_ did _warn you, didn't I? Vulpix is nothing but bad news."_

 _"I know, Mom," Tessa sighed. "It's just… you always taught me never to turn my back on someone." She looked up at her mom. "That, as an aura Pokémon, I need to try my best to help others."_

 _Prisma rolled her eyes. "Well, it's nice to see at least_ something _I taught you sank in," she declared stoically. "But you're forgetting my very first lesson: your own safety comes first. You're still young, Tessa... an woefully inexperienced. If you keeping sticking your neck out like that, something bad will happen."_

 _"You mean… like what happened to Dad?" Tessa muttered. Her eyes widened and she threw her paws up over her muzzle. "I… I'm sorry, Mom," she squeaked._

 _Prisma's eyes flickered dark red and she balled her right paw into a fist. "It's fine, Tessa." She took a deep breath. "I know I'm not in Horizon right now, but that's no excuse to develop a reckless streak." She leaned over and rubbed Tessa's head with her snout. "You're my pup. I have an obligation to look out for you."_

 _Tessa nodded slowly. "Uh-huh. I'm just… not really sure what to do about all of this."_

 _"That's a decision you ultimately have to make on your own. All I can tell you is what I know from the Pokémon I'm helping," Prisma said._

 _Tessa pursed her lips and took a deep breath. "Mom… are you protecting Lunala?"_

 _If Tessa had managed to catch Prisma off guard, she didn't show it. "What would give you that idea?" Prisma asked._

 _"A few things that happened today, actually," Tessa admitted. "When Vulpix called Lycanroc a crook, he said that he's having visions in his dreams where Solgaleo speaks to him."_

 _Prisma clenched her jaw. "He… he said that?" She glanced around the area for a few seconds, drawing a concerned look from Tessa. Prisma's calm demeanor then returned. "I suppose that's actually a good thing. It must mean that Solgaleo is safe as well."_

 _"From the Prism Virus?" Tessa asked. "That's what you're protecting Lunala from, isn't it?"_

 _"Prism Virus? Where did you hear that?" Prisma asked, her brow furrowed._

 _"From an Espeon and Umbreon that are causing trouble in Horizon," Tessa replied. "I've met them a few times, actually. They keep trying to take my scarf. They say it's so they can 'infect me.'" She looked down and fidgeted with the scarf. "Vulpix says that a virus is a deadly sickness from the human world."_

 _Prisma turned away from her daughter. "Tessa, don't listen to that. For all you know, he could've been lying to you."_

 _Tessa shook her head. "I don't think he was. I felt ripples of his aura, Mom," Tessa said, rubbing her aura feelers. "I'm getting a bit better at it, actually." Prisma raised a skeptical eyebrow at this. "He seems very worried and agitated about this," Tessa continued._

 _Prisma's gaze sharpened. "What else did Vulpix tell you?"_

 _"Solgaleo warned him that an unknown force is trying to upset the balance between day and night," Tessa said. "It might be this Prism Virus thing that Espeon and Umbreon are trying to spread. That's what got Vulpix very mad at Lycanroc. He thinks that someone's controlling Espeon and Umbreon." She picked at some grass on the clifftop. "He… he said Solgaleo told him Gallian is behind all of this."_

 _Prisma tensed up. "And you honestly believe him? You really think_ Gallian _is capable of something like that? Are you even listening to yourself right now?" she scoffed._

 _Tessa whined softly. "Mom. Gallian might be infected." She looked over, but saw no surprise on her mother's face. "I ran into him recently. He looked a bit like the other infected Pokémon I've seen."_

 _"I... I see," Prisma whispered. "It seems... that things have gone quite downhill since I left." She rubbed the bridge of her snout. "Nevertheless, I'm afraid there's nothing I can do about it."_

 _"Because you have to protect Lunala, right?" Tessa squeaked._

 _Prisma stiffened again. "Well… um…."_

 _"Mom, we also got a call from the Expedition Society," Tessa said. "They think there's something wrong with the weather. And they said the moon's been full for an unusually long time." She poked at the grass again. "I noticed it too. The moon went from quarter-full to completely full too quickly. And just before I fell asleep, I saw it glowing purple." She leaned over to rest her head on her mother's shoulder. "It's because of Lunala that you're gone, isn't it?"_

 _Prisma gave a defeated sigh. "You ought to give yourself more credit," she said. "I'm surprised you were able to pick up on that. Clearly, your father rubbed off on you more than you think."_

 _Tessa's face flushed at this. "It's nothing," she mumbled._

 _"In any event, you're right," Prisma said. "I was called away to help tend to Lunala. She managed to reach out to me through a dream. Pretty much like what I'm doing now. When I found her, she said that some sort of otherworldly creature had attacked Celestial Island, ranting and raving about 'taking back the light that's rightfully mine.' She and Solgaleo had to flee, but ended up getting separated in the ensuing chaos. The escape left her on the verge of death. She's been in the process of recovering ever since. While she does, I'm supposed to keep her safe."_

 _"So, you've really been hiding with her for seven months?" Tessa asked. "That's… a very long time."_

 _Prisma's brow furrowed. "I know. That's because she's having difficulty recovering. Lunala thinks something is feeding off the cosmic energy she keeps trying to gather." Prisma crossed her arms. "But I haven't been able to sense anything with my aura sight. Perhaps it's the Prism Virus? I wouldn't exactly know how to sense energy that's not of this world."_

 _"What's going to happen to Lunala, then?" Tessa asked._

 _"Well, none of us are giving up yet. Especially not Lunala," Prisma said. "We're trying to figure out a way to stop the Prism Virus from siphoning Lunala's energy. If we can at least stall it, Lunala might be able to return to full strength."_

 _"And what about Solgaleo?"_

 _Prisma shrugged. "No idea. If Vulpix is telling the truth, he probably knows what happened to Solgaleo. But…" Her eyes narrowed. "As I said before, I think it's in your best interest to avoid him."_

 _"Yeah," Tessa whispered._

 _"I mean, look at what's happened, Tessa. He keeps running into the Prism Virus. For all we know, it could've been the force that brought Vulpix here from the human world," Prisma pointed out. "I know that your father and I have dealt with more than our fair shares of trouble, but I need you to promise me you'll try to stay clear of this."_

 _"But," Tessa poked her index digits together, "Null told me I should try being a role model for Vulpix."_

 _"Null?"_

 _"He's, um, a friend I made," Tessa mumbled, earning a confused look from Prisma. "He joined the guild after you left. It's, uh, kind of tricky to explain."_

 _"Well, if he's your friend, couldn't you just team up with him instead of Vulpix?" Prisma proposed. "I'm just trying to keep an eye out for you."_

 _Tessa squeaked as her mother leaned over and embraced her. "I… I'll try, mom." She gave a yawn and lay down on Prisma's lap. It wasn't long before her eyelids closed and the dream melted away around her._

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Tessa arced her back as she walked out toward the main assembly area. It cricked several times, causing her to flinch. "Oof. Boy, am I sore." She froze and looked around. "Huh, where is everyone? Isn't it assembly time?"

"Braviary cancelled it after all the hullabaloo yesterday," Togedemaru answered. Tessa turned toward the northern hallway, where Togedemaru sat on top of a large box. "And yes," Togedemaru said, "he specifically used the word, 'hullabaloo.' And now Magearna won't stop talking about it." She hopped off the box and rolled toward Tessa. "Word around the Observatory is you and Null were thinking of taking on assignments today."

"And, what, you want in or something?" Tessa asked.

"You're darn tootin' I do!" Togedemaru declared. She froze upon completion of that sentence. "Oh, for pity's sake." She smacked her forehead. "Now Braviary's got _me_ talking like a wastelander, too."

"Tessa! Tessa! Tessa! Tessa!"

Tessa turned around in time for a speeding brown ball to barrel into her, knocking her to the ground. When the stars faded from her vision, she found Eevee's beaming face staring down at her. A wicker basket dangled from his snout.

"Hiya, Eevee," Tessa mumbled. She sat up and rubbed the back of her head. "I see you're… getting pretty quick on your feet. Where's the fire?"

"Did someone say fire?" an excited voice barked from the infirmary wing.

"Hey! I told you to stay in bed, Growlithe. Don't make me immobilize you," Comfey's exasperated voice called.

Trapinch scrambled down the stairs, looking about in a panic. "Oh, there you are. You can't just go running down into the guild like that, you know." He walked over toward Eevee and Tessa. "Are you okay, Riolu?"

"Peachy," Tessa muttered. "Eevee was just telling me what brings him to the guild this morning."

"Itch a speciuhl dewivewy," Eevee chirped, his basket muffling his speech. He set it down and took the cloth off the top of it. "We're a little late, but Mommy and I wanted to give you something to congratulate you on one month in the guild. Ta-daaaaah!"

Tessa leaned over to look at the basket. She found a set of smiley-faces staring back at her. "They're cookies!" Eevee squeed. "Mommy baked them… and I did the razz berry frosting. Aren't they great?"

Togedemaru looked at the basket. Drool dripped down her mouth. "I'll say! And they smell _amazing._ " She walked toward the basket.

"Hey! Hey!" Eevee stepped in the way and swished his tail in Togedemaru's face. "They're for Tessa. If you want some, buy them from the Kecleon Shop. Mommy just brought some over."

Togedemaru's eyes widened. "She _did?_ " She pivoted to Tessa. "Don't go leaving for any missions without me. I'll be back lickety split!" She curled into a ball and rolled off toward the stairs, yelling, "Dang it, there I go again! Get out of my head, Braviary!"

Tessa shook her head and picked up the basket. "Well, thank you very much for these, Eevee. I'm sure I'll enjoy them after a busy day of exploring."

Eevee pouted. "Aww, you're not gonna eat them now?"

"Sorry, Eevee. Mom may not be here, but I still promised her no sweets in the morning," Tessa said. "Now, go on. Tell Sylveon I said hi."

"Okay!" Eevee chirped and sped back off up the stairs.

"Hey, wait. I'm supposed to escort you out!" Trapinch groaned, and then scurried off after Eevee.

"… he a friend… of yours?"

Tessa's fur bristled and she spun around. "N-Null!" she squeaked. "Morning. You… you really shouldn't sneak up on folks like that."

Null shook his helmet about. "… can't you… sense auras?"

"Not when I'm not paying attention," Tessa said. "But that's neither here nor there. Are you okay with Togedemaru joining us today?"

Null stretched his neck out. "… I'd rather… she didn't. She talks… too fast…" He finally managed to focus his gaze on Tessa. "But you were... being rhetorical… right?"

Tessa raised her paws innocently. "You got me there. Let me just drop these cookies off at my room and we can take a look at the mission board, okay?"

"… sure."

* * *

Shane grimaced, his face scrunching up in pain. Whimpering, he tried to stretch out his lower legs, but they spasmed uselessly. The curtain in front of his bed swished open. Unable to lift his head, Shane could barely glance Comfey floating in front of him.

"Goodness, you're an absolute mess," Comfey gasped. Shane's fur was disheveled, his tails edges' were frayed, the tuft of fur on his head was knotted up, his eyes were bloodshot, and the welt across his back had blackened. Sweat had pooled around his body overnight, leaving a damp stain across the bedsheet.

Shane paid Comfey no mind. With a groan, his head twitched against his pillow. Comfey spotted the flushing under Shane's eyelids and frowned. She floated over toward him and gently placed a hand on his head. Startled, Shane barked loudly. Comfey quickly pulled her hand back.

"Yup, your forehead's on fire," she said, waving her hand about to cool it off. "You're running a terrible fever." She gave Shane a disapproving look. "I _told_ you not to run around after I put Synthesis bulbs on your back. Instead of going to heal your back, they went to uninjured parts of your body and made you sick." She let out a long sigh. "Which I means I can't try using more Synthesis bulbs on your back. This just complicated things considerably. What do you have to say for yourself, mister?"

Shane didn't respond. In fact, he didn't even meet her stern gaze. He stared blankly at the wall. With a whimper, Shane tried to stretch a foreleg, only for it to tremble.

"Can you hear me?" Comfey asked. She leaned in toward Shane, but froze at the sound of Shane weakly gasping for air.

"Help… me…"

"Vulpix, are you alright?"

Shane met her gaze with a dazed look in his bloodshot eyes. "Car… crushing… me…" he wheezed. "Hurts… everything huuuuuuurts…"

Comfey frowned. "What's a 'ca-hurr?' Oh, dear. I think the fever's made you delirious."

"So… much… pain…" Shane whimpered. A shiver ran along his body. He again tried stretching out a foreleg but it twitched unresponsively. Shane started to hyperventilate.

Worry flashed across Comfey's face. "Hey, human, calm down. I can't heal you if you're acting like this," she said. She floated over by Shane's face and waved an arm in front of it. Shane continued grimacing in pain.

"Um, is Vulpix gonna be okay?"

Comfey looked behind her and noticed Araquanid standing in the center of the infirmary, looking about in confused. "I'll be with you in a minute," Comfey said, before mumbling under her breath, "… or five." She exhaled and released a small cloud of pink gas that encased Shane's body. His breathing progressively slowed and his widened eyes narrowed. Comfey again floated in front of him and noted his pinprick pupils darting about the room.

"Wh… wha–?" he blinked several times. "Where… how did…?"

"Vulpix? It's Comfey. You're in the infirmary, remember?" she said, waving her hand in front of his face for good measure.

Shane's breathing continued to slow and his eyes fluttered shut. "Oh, right," he rasped. "I must've had a nightmare or something. Is it morning already?"

"Yes, and it looks like you have a fever," Comfey exclaimed. "I'm going to have to take care of that before I can even attempt to fix your back. Assuming I _can_ fix it at this stage."

"… what does it matter? If I got a fever… I deserve it. Just leave me here and go deal with everyone else," Shane muttered. He tried to roll over in his bed, only to hiss in pain as his back seized up.

Comfey's cheeks puffed up. "Oh no you don't, mister." She gave him an unamused look. "You're in _my_ infirmary and that makes you _my_ patient. My treatments aren't going to be effective with that kind of attitude. So, take your self-pity and stuff it into whatever clump of brain you pulled it out of."

"It's not self-pity if it's true," Shane said. "Didn't you hear them last night? All of this is my fault."

"I see," Comfey said. Her body glowed with a soft blue aura and, next thing Shane knew, there was a Stufful floating next to Comfey.

"Uwaaaaagh! I don't want to see that little guy," Shane hollered, trying to bury his face in his pillow but finding himself unable to move. "He thinks I killed his mom."

"What, this?" Comfey looked at the Stufful. "This is a doll I made. He's Mr. Bluey. When you're feeling sad, you hug him and then you feel a little better." She set the toy down next to Shane, who eyed it with a look of disbelief.

"How's that supposed to make me feel better?" Shane said.

"Well, it would help if you could actually hug it," Comfey admitted. Shane gave her a scathing look. "But, as it stands, it's a reasonable distraction for me to do… this!"

A flash of light blinded Shane. He needed a good minute to get his vision back in order. When he did, he found Comfey floating in front of him. "Just what was that all about?" he groaned.

"I needed to discombobulate you a little bit so I could apply my special fever cream to your forehead," Comfey said.

"Magearna taught you that word, didn't she?" Shane groaned.

"Actually, it was Metagross, but that's beside the point," Comfey chuckled. "Now, I'll need you to lie perfectly still for the next few hours while the cream takes effect. Not that you can really move, from what it looks like. Oh, you might feel faint and the cream may cause some chills. But you're an ice-type, so it won't be that bad compared to when I use it on normal Pokémon. However, there _is_ the matter of cooling you off."

"Cooling me off?" Shane parroted. He repeatedly flexed his brow, now aware of the cream's presence in his fur.

"Yes. Your body temperature is supposed to be pretty low, after all," Comfey said. "Look at all the sweat you're generating. Odds are you're teetering dangerously close to getting dehydrated. And that's very bad for an ice-type. In my medical opinion, the best way to get you back to normal would be an ice bath."

Shane's eyes widened. "What? You can't make me do that. I chickened out of three polar plunges back in the human world, you know."

"It's either that or you stay bedridden for gods only know how long," Comfey said. She turned and floated over toward Araquanid, leaving Shane lying there with a dumfounded expression.

* * *

 **~Clayback River~**

Tessa shuffled backward, her left leg dipping into a pile of clay. "That's a lot of Wingulls," she said.

In front of her, a flock of Wingulls hovered around a pile of golden coins, repeatedly squawking, "Our treasure! Finders keepers!"

Null grimaced. "… I don't… have any… effective way… to hit them…"

Togedemaru stepped forward and puffed out her chest. "Then isn't it a good thing you've got me here? Behold… my brilliant strategic plan." She pivoted to glance at Tessa. "You learned Thunder Punch, right? Quick, sock me right in the back and launch me toward those Wingull."

"Are you nuts?" Tessa said. "Better yet, did Vulpix put you up to this?"

"Pfbt, please. There's a difference between science and stupidity. It's just hard to tell when you're not trained to appreciate said differences," Togedemaru scoffed.

Sweat drops ran down Tessa's head. _'I think that was supposed to be an insult.'_ Nevertheless, she stepped forward, allowing electricity to encase her fist. When her foot was free of the sticky mud puddle, she lunged at Togedemaru. She swung her fist in an upward arc. In contacted Togedemaru's back. Much to her surprise, the electricity rushed inside Togedemaru's body. The force of the punch shot her into the air.

"Now, time to light this flock up," Togedemaru declared. "Behold, my patent-pending Super Ultra Hyper Lightning Rod-Boosted Discharge Attack! _Hyaaaaaaaaah!_ " Electricity crackled around her cheeks and, seconds later, a swarm of lightning bolts rained down on the Wingull flock.

The Wingulls gave squawks of pain and spasmed about in the air. Togedemaru cut off the attack and landed in front of the coin pile. The Wingulls fell to the ground, forming a sparking heap of comically-charred, unconscious bodies. "Ta-daaaaaaaaaaaaah!" she declared, turning back to her guild mates. "Now, let's grab these coins for Nosepass, so we can get going."

Tessa gave Null a confused look. "Did you see what was scientific about that attack?" she asked.

Null shook his head.

"… tch. Amateurs. I used Lightning Rod to raise the intensity of my attack. Combining that with the angle at which the Discharge struck the Wingulls ensured it was a one-hit KO on all of them. It's a matter of basic physics, duh," Togedemaru explained.

"Oh, okay, that makes it much clearer," Tessa said, her voice filled to the brim with sarcasm. "Give me a second to shift some things around in my pouch so I can fit all these coins."

"Mind the clay pile in front of you," Togedemaru warned. "It can't support your–"

 _Fwump!_

"Auuuuugh!"

"–weight." Togedemaru facepalmed. Null looked beside him and noticed that Tessa had somehow disappeared. He started looking around in confusion. "Stick your left foreleg down, buddy," Togedemaru said. Null did as instructed and felt something grabbing his insectoid exoskeleton. He hoisted his foreleg up, flinging a mud-covered Tessa toward Togedemaru's feet.

Tessa squirmed about. "Ugggh… this is totally disgusting!"

"Are you kidding? It's absolutely hilarious," Togedemaru mused. "The only way it'd be funnier is if it was Vulpix there instead!"

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Wahchooo!"

Shane sneezed, spitting out a mouthful of water that Comfey had tried giving him. "Good gracious. What was that all about?" she gasped.

"Dunno," Shane mumbled. "I've just got this strange feeling someone's making fun of me right now."

* * *

 **~Clayback River~**

"Look at it this way, there are tons of minerals in that silt. When you wash this stuff off, your coat's gonna have a healthy sheen that oughta make Solgaleo blush," Togedemaru chuckled.

"Gee, that makes it so much better," Tessa groaned. She tried brushing silt off her torso, but it just ended up clinging to her paws. "And my pouch is totally ruined, too."

"You can always clean it off back at the guild," Togedemaru said. "I'll just use mine."

"Wait, you've had it the whole time? Then what was the point of making me walk over here?" Tessa seethed.

"It just slipped my mind, that's all," Togedemaru giggled.

Tessa fell backwards in disbelief, landing in the same pile of muddy clay with an unceremonious splash. Null's shoulders sagged and he stepped back to dig Tessa out of the silt once again. She wore an annoyed expression. "I _so_ did not need this happening today," she griped.

"Are you okay?" Null muttered.

"Do I look okay?" Tessa growled, thrashing about and flinging clay onto Null's helmet and body.

Null huffed and released his grip on Tessa. "You wanna… talk about it… or something?"

"There's nothing to say," Tessa sighed. "It's obvious. The powers that be are telling me I can't ditch Vulpix, even though I want to. I'm just going to be stuck with him forever!"

"Hmm? So that's… still bothering you?" Null asked.

"Yes," Tessa said. "I… well… that is…" She poked her muddy digits together. "I'd really rather not say."

"Oooooooooh, but saying that just makes me all the more curious," Togedemaru said, appearing by Tessa's side.

"This doesn't concern you," Tessa huffed.

"Well, maybe I can help you work through your issues from a scientific angle," Togedemaru offered, though her eager grin didn't sell her sincerity.

Tessa slumped over. "No point in hiding it, I guess. You know how yesterday Vulpix said he's been communicating with Solgaleo in his dreams?"

Togedemaru nodded. "Wait, are you saying you actually believe the guy?"

"Yes," Tessa said. "Because the same thing is happening to me."

Null stiffened. "… you're sure?"

Tessa nodded. "I wanted to tell you earlier, Null. But, well, a part of me just thought I was just crazy. Look at how everyone reacted to hearing Vulpix say he's had visions in his dreams. I figured you guys would just laugh at me." Her shoulders sagged. "But it's really happening. Honest. The thing is, I'm not seeing Solgaleo. I'm seeing my mom."

"… you mean Lucario?"

"Wait? Lucario's talking to you? What's going on? Is she okay? Where did she take off to?" Togedemaru asked. Tessa shrank back at her rapid-fire question assault.

"It's… complicated. I don't really feel like explaining it," Tessa said. "The biggest part is that she keeps telling me to leave Vulpix. She said Vulpix will keep attracting trouble and if I stay on his team, I'm just going to get dragged into it. And after everything's that's happened lately, I just don't think I can handle it. Plus, it's my mom. I… I'm always supposed to listen to her, right?"

"You're just now realizing Vulpix is a troublemaker?" Togedemaru scoffed. "Please, I could've told you that day one."

"… you're just… upset… at him… and holding a grudge…" Null muttered.

"Of course I am. He called me a Pikachu!" Togedemaru spat. "Stupid, skinny, overrated little posers..."

Tessa ignored her. "It's just, y'know, I remember what we talked about last night, Null," Tessa said. "About me trying to be a role model and stuff. But I can't just go against my mom's wishes like that. Besides, I can't explore on my own." Her aura feelers drooped. "I'm just not good enough. I'll _never_ be as good as Mom."

"Just ditch Vulpix, then," Togedemaru scoffed. "You and him obviously don't mesh. He'll understand."

Null stepped in front of Togedemaru. "I just… want you to be happy. That's what… friends want… right?"

Tessa smiled, though no one could tell with the mud dripping down her snout. "So, would you be okay if we teamed up, Null?"

"… if it's for you… I can live with it…" Null said, letting out a few rasping coughs.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Shane hovered in midair, barking up a storm. His legs dangled under him unresponsively. "No, please don't make me do this! I don't wanna!" he whined. "It's gonna be painful!"

"For the last time, you're an ice-type. This'll be fine," Comfey sighed. "Now, on the count of three. One… two…"

"W-Wait, wait, wait, wait!" Shane hollered. "I, uh, got Trapinch to sneak me a berry five minutes ago. You can't put me in the ice bath, because I have to wait thirty minutes after a meal to swim."

Comfey gave him an unamused look. "You didn't get any berries. You've spit up everything I've tried feeding you today. That's why we're doing this. You're so dehydrated you won't take in food or fluids. This is for your own good. Stop trying to wriggle out of it." This only made Shane bark even louder. "Oh, for pity's sake. I can't even use Sweet Scent on you right now. I'll need to resort to something else." She tapped her chin. "I think I've got an idea."

She floated back toward her desk and started rummaging through it. "Hey, Vulpix. I've got a picture of Espeon and Umbreon right here. Lycanroc said you've got a crush on one of them, right?"

"What? No! He's lying. I don't have a crush on any–" Shane started, only to freeze at the sight of an old tabloid magazine. A blush overtook his face.

"Pefect," Comfey said. She released her psychic grip on Shane, dropping him into the ice bath with a holler. Frigid water splashed in all directions. Comfey floated up toward the edge and peered down. A circle of bubbles formed in the center of the bath.

"Don't you think that's a bit mean of you?" Dragonair wondered, slithering away from one of the infirmary beds.

"It was the best thing I could think of in the moment," Comfey said. "Unfortunately, it looks like it didn't shock his legs into working again." Dragonair shook her head and slithered out of the room while Comfey levitated Shane out of the ice bath. His head trembled and his teeth chattered. "Oh, don't be so melodramatic," Comfey dismissed. "You're perfectly fine."

"N-N-N-N-No I'm n-n-n-not. I'm f-f-f-f-f-freezing!" Shane squealed. Water streamed down his soggy fur, splatting against the surface of the bath. "G-G-G-G-Gimme a t-t-t-t-towel."

"Hmm, I'm not really sure how to explain that one," Comfey said.

 **It is entirely possible that Vulpix's human brain is overriding the instinctual desires his species has for colder body temperatertures,** Magearna exclaimed. She walked into the room with a towel draped over one of her arms. **I soaked this towel in cheri berry as you requestified.** She set the towel down and exited the room.

"Excellent," Comfey said. She set her trembling patient down at the edge of the large water trough. "Don't worry Vulpix, this ought to help get some sensation back into your legs."

"Fffffffffforget that. I just… want a b… b… blanket," Shane stammered. "And a parka, a space heater, my Pikachu onesie… and a bathtub full of chicken noodle soup!"

* * *

Metagross lay in the middle of his office, eyes closed.

 _Clang! Clang! Clang!_

Metagross' eyes opened and he hoisted his body off the ground. **Enter,** he stated. The metal door slid open, allowing Braviary and Tessa to walk in.

"Err, Guildmaster. Riolu here has something–"

 **Stop.**

Metagross' eyes flashed blue. Tessa's aura feelers stood on end. She had no doubt the Guildmaster had opted to read her mind instead of hear her out. **Fact: you are requesting Team Radiance's termination. Fact: you wish to form a new team with Null. Request: one moment while I consider this proposal.**

Tessa didn't have the chance to respond, as Metagross immediately closed his eyes. One second later, they opened back up. **Proposal considered,** Metagross announced. **Fact: the timing of this request directly coincides with the human's delinquent behavior. Fact: terminating your team would absolve you of any consequences you would face as his teammate. Hypothesis: guild members will view this as a means to escape discipline in the future.**

Tessa's face scrunched up. _'Oh, great. He's going to shoot me down.'_

 **Fact: this issue is causing you significant distress,** Metagross stated, prompting Tessa to grit her teeth. **Conclusion: I will accept your proposal–**

"You will? Oh, thank you, Guildmaster!"

 **Order: let me finish,** Metagross warned, glaring at Tessa. She scooted closer to Braviary. **I will accept your proposal and dissolve Team Radiance… provided you make it through my disciplinary assignment successfully.**

Tessa stiffened. "Huh?"

 **Fact: I will explain when the human reports for disciplinary action following his recovery,** Metagross said. He turned away from his door. … **assuming he recovers at all. Order: you are dismissed.**

"But…"

 **Dismissed,** Metagross stated. Braviary then shooed Tessa out of the office.

"Well, I'm sorry to hear things ain't going well with yer pardner," Braviary said. "I don't suppose there's something I could do fer y'all, is there?"

Tessa shook her head. "I'm sorry, Braviary. My mind's made up on this matter. In fact, I'm going to go tell him right now."

"If you're going to see Vulpix, then I'm afraid you won't be having much of a conversation," Comfey said, floating by the duo with a pair of berries. "The ice bath and cheri berry combination didn't work. I'm afraid I had no other options but to administer a special serum to try and reverse the damage to his spine. I had to put him into a very deep sleep for his own safety. He won't be waking up until its effects wear off."

Braviary gave her shocked look. "Shoot. Was it really that bad?"

"All my attempts to correct the damage in his spine have failed so far," Comfey reported. "This is my last-resort option. I have to keep him asleep, otherwise I risk putting him in a tremendous deal of pain. I wish it hadn't come to this. Vulpix was too out of it to even consent. I just assumed he'd want the treatment..."

"What if this thing don't work?" Braviary asked.

"Then I fear he'll never walk again."

Tessa bit her lower lip. "Um, in that case, can you have someone tell me when he's awake? I need to talk to him," she whispered.

"It could very well be a week before he's up, Riolu. Maybe even more than one week," Comfey warned. "But, I'm sure I can arrange that." She floated away.

Tessa adjusted her scarf. "Well, I'm going off to bed. Sorry, Braviary." She walked off toward the living quarters.

Braviary sighed. "G'night, Riolu." He looked back at the door to the Guildmaster's office. "I sure hope you know what yer doing in there, Mets. Them two basically need a miracle right now."

* * *

 **~Mellath Bog~**

 **"Tch! How disgusting!"**

A pair of sky-blue wings spread apart. Their owner doubled over in a fit of coughing. Espeon turned around, only to flinch and look away from the sight. "We didn't ask you to come, you know. Why didn't you just stay back at Celestial Island?"

Behind her, Lunala rubbed his mouth with a black, crystallized arm. Said arm then spasmed, smacking against his chest. **"You told me you were going to infect a dungeon. How could I not miss the opportunity to suck the life out of this worthless swamp's inhabitants? I'm hungry... I want more light."** His mouth twitched, and then opened wide. His tongue lolled out to the side. **"Even dank, murky light is better than nothing. Even if it tastes like moldy cheese lathered in Garbodor sheddings. It sends the pain away... and that's good enough."**

Espeon put a paw up to her muzzle, and then forcibly swallowed the load of bile she stopped herself from spitting up. "Yeah, thanks for that wonderful mental image, buddy."

 **"What is the point in this, anyway? This is hardly the type of place you're going to get Tapu Fini to come to. Heeheeheehee… it's as depressing as your boyfriend over there,"** Lunala mused. His jaw tightened. **"You two think you're so clever, don't you? You think you won Mistress Zero over by putting your heads together... but you won't fool me that easily. Your relationship is a farce. It's coming apart at the seems. In fact, I think it'll be your undoing. I mean... I'm not surprised. Umbreon just can't seem to put up with you anymore, can he? Look at him. He has an attitude that only the most devout sister could love."** His arms twitched and he pulled them against his chest.

"Shut it, batface!" Espeon hissed, the diamond on her forehead sparking. She turned around, only to see her colleague had vanished.

 **"Oh, did I strike a nerve?** _ **Good.**_ **Because the two of you** _ **disgust**_ **me. Just as much as this swamp. You are using my light... power you never deserved. Mistress Zero is wasting my core's energy on you fools,"** Lunala whispered. From the shadows, he enveloped Espeon with his wings. She stood there, petrified, as his black arms twitched erratically against her fur.

"K-Knock it off, Lunala! You're not funny!" she shrieked, leaping forward and spinning around to face him.

 **"Really? Because I think I'm** _ **hilarious.**_ **You're just thin-skinned,"** Lunala crooned. **"Perhaps your precious Umbry is rubbing off on you more than you'd care to admit."** He paused, and then a grin spread across his lips. **"Then again, he's** _ **always**_ **rubbed off on you, hasn't he?"** Lunala added. **"See what I did there... with the double entendre? I** _ **told**_ **you I'm hilarious!"**

A flicker of yellow light caught Lunala's attention. His head pivoted and his red eyes flickered with interest. **"Oh-** _ **ho!**_ **What have we here?"** He disappeared into the shadows. Espeon raised a confused eyebrow.

Seconds later, a terrified pair of screams echoed through the swampland. Espeon jumped up onto a tree branch and spotted Lunala floating over a murky pond. He clutched two Lanturns in his metallic limbs. **"Finally... some wildlife. A pair of Lanturns whose spirits I can** _ **devour**_ **. Look at these light balls… bobbing off of their heads. It's not much, but every little drop of light fills that gaping hole in my spirit. I'm so tired of feeling** _ **empty.**_ **That's why I want your life forces inside of me."** He flapped the captive fish up and down, making their antennae bounce around.

"Put them down. Umbry and I call the infection shots, not you."

A red eye appeared inside the black, triangular armor on Lunala's forehead. **"Oh? Are you telling me I can't take their light for myself? They live in this Mystery Dungeon. A Mystery Dungeon filled with stardust. Filled with light that was stripped from** _ **me.**_ **Their life energy is mine. I want this pain gone. I want my full spirit back."** He hoisted the Lanturns up so they were at eye level with him. **"Are you going to stop me, Espeon? Because I don't care how much Mistress Zero likes you. If you don't let me take their light, then I'm going to rip that tail off your round little behind and** _ **strangle**_ **you with it!"**

Espeon's eyes widened in horror. She stepped back, looking away from Lunala and saying nothing.

 **"Silence. Good. I'm glad you know where you stand."**

"L-Let us go!" one of the Lanturn shrieked. Bright green energy gathered at the tip of her antennae.

But before any attack could fire, the red eye atop Lunala's forehead brightened. Both Lanturn abruptly stopped screaming and seized up in Lunala's arms. Espeon wore a neutral expression as the colors spilled off the Lanturns' bodies. They swirled around Lunala's head before flying into his open mouth. His entire body convulsed, causing him to drop the two colorless Lanturns. They struck the ground and, in an instant, black crystals covered every square inch of their lifeless bodies. Lunala's three red eyes flashed and the crystals shattered. Their remnants dissolved into fine black mist.

 **"It wasn't much, but at least it took some of the edge off,"** Lunala said. Espeon turned away, only to jump backwards and give a startled yelp as Lunala teleported right in front of her. **"You and Umbreon, on the other hand? You would be quite filling! Your spirits are strong. And they are filled to the brim with Z-Power from** _ **my**_ **core. The fact that you haven't felled the human yet is a testament to how you have stolen what belongs to me."**

He leaned in and saliva dripped onto the ground in front of Espeon. **"I want your spirit. I want Umbreon's, too,"** he said. **"Oh yes… I imagine your life energy must taste so sweet... like cotton candy! But Mistress Zero would rather give power that isn't hers to worthless mortals like you. Which is why I can't wait for you two to crash and burn. I'll swoop in and take my light back. And you can spend eternity with your precious Umbry."**

Espeon shrank backwards, tail shooting between her legs. "U-Umbry!" she shouted. "You need to hurry up... _now!_ "

Umbreon jumped up onto a nearby rock. "It's finished. All we need to do is wait for the crystals to corrupt the dungeon. That ought to drive Tapu Fini out of hiding." Espeon joined her partner on his perch and looked out across the swamp. Ahead of her, a cluster of black crystals sent out shockwaves of dark energy. As they raced across the swamp, they transformed the murky water into bubbling, fluorescent-purple ooze.

Lunala teleported over to the slime and examined it. He yanked his head back seconds before a particularly large bubble burst. **"What an absolute waste! All of this Z-Power getting poured into to** _ **twisting**_ **this landscape, when it should all be working toward giving me back my real body!"** He floated up and glared at Umbreon.

Umbreon's brow furrowed. "Take it up with Mistress Zero. She approved our changes to this dungeon. We're leaving. The less time we have to spend around you, the better." Espeon produced an Entercard and opened up a Magnagate behind her. She and Umbreon trotted inside the portal, which then shut behind them.

Lunala wrapped his wings around his torso. **"Yes, go ahead. Walk away,"** he taunted. **"Just like the gods. Just like everyone who called themselves a friend. I cannot wait for you to fail once more. Heeheeheehee. Yes, and then I'll take your spirits. Because all light in this world belongs to me… to** _ **Necrozma!**_ **"**

His red eyes flashed and a blue portal opened up in front of him. Necrozma unfurled his wings and flew off into it.

 **End of Episode 6**

* * *

Next time: Shane awakens to the news of Tessa's decision, escalating his downward spiral.


	29. Fading Radiance

**~Dewdrop Woods~**

"I'm sorry, Captain. I was unable to locate the source of the ultra aura traces you sensed."

Sticky emerged from behind a set of trees. A gray visor sat over his eyes, but it quickly dematerialized by dissolving into purple streams that faded into the harness on his chest.

"… tch. So, this was a waste of time, then?" Gallian growled, seated atop an overturned rock. He rolled onto his back and let his head droop down. He had an upside-down view of the blue-pawed dog Sticky addressed. "I thought Houndooms were supposed to be clever."

Sticky's eyes widened. "F-Forgive him, Captain Luxeira. He–"

The Houndoom raised a blue forepaw. "It's fine, Sticky," she said, adjusting her white, full-body jumpsuit as she got to her feet. "Truthfully, I didn't have a lot of hope, given how weak the signals were. It looks like we were too slow on the draw."

"Yeah… you seem to have a rather nasty habit of that," Gallian sneered.

"Well, perhaps if the terrestrial with the self-professed 'disaster sense' could offer up a little more support, this wouldn't be happening," Luxeira countered, her expression unreadable behind her helmeted visor. "Our partnership was born out of circumstance, but I seem to recall you saying that you 'owed us big time.' Perhaps it's time to you started living up to that promise. Or are the inhabitants of this world the type to renege on their vows so easily?"

"… tch. My disaster sense doesn't give specifics, _Captain,_ " Gallian growled. "And it's not going to work unless I'm close to the disaster, literally or figuratively speaking."

"Easy now, you two," Sticky coaxed, floating in between them. "There's no need for petty squabbles. We are here for reconnaissance work, after all. And, even without a source for the ultra aura, it's pretty evident that something transpired in this… this…" He tapped his forehead. "Oh, what do you terrestrials call this location, again?"

"A Mystery Dungeon?" Gallian said.

"Yes, yes. Quite an odd designation. I do not see any apparatuses associated with highly-fortified terrestrial prisons," Sticky mused. "But that's beside the point. What could have torn the landscape asunder like this?"

Gallian sat back up on his rock and rubbed his temples. "First off, enough with the big words. You sound like an uptight stiff. Second, I've got a hunch as to what's responsible."

"Oh? Do tell, rookie," Luxeira ordered.

"It was probably a Bewear," Gallian said, "or five."

Sticky titled his head in confusion. "Captain, are you familiar with that Pokémon? I am afraid I have not encountered it in the past."

"They're really big. And strong. Like, they can snap trees in half just by hugging them. It's the only Pokémon I can think of capable of doing something like this that lives around here," Gallian explained. "I guess the group that did this ran off."

Luxeira got to her feet. "Then it would appear it's time for us to move o–" She froze. Gallian tensed up, digging his claws into the rock. Luxeira's visor flashed. "Sticky! Get a load of this. I'm picking up _substantial_ ultra aura readings."

Sticky pressed the jewel at the center of his harness. His visor rematerialized over his eyes. He placed a stubby hand on his temple and frowned. "I concur, Captain. Off to the southwest. A noticeable surge… and it doesn't appear to be subsiding, either."

"Rookie, what lies to the southwest of this dungeon?" Luxeira asked.

"Uh… that'd be Tethys Tunnel. It leads to an underground swamp," Gallian exclaimed.

"Alright. Sticky, I want you to do some careful observation on this 'Tethys Tunnel' and report back to me posthaste," Luxeira ordered.

Gallian's eyes flashed purple. "No way. Nuh-uh. You're not letting him get anywhere near that place."

"Because, let me guess, 'disaster awaits us if he does?'" Luxeira scoffed.

Gallian glared daggers at her. "Yeah. Pretty much," he seethed.

"Rookie, Team Paradox's first and foremost responsibility is to investigate anomalies that we suspect have ties to Ultra Space," Luxeira declared. "Even without a home, we're not about to abandon that principle."

Gallian pointed his scythe toward Luxeira. "Yeah, and how much have you accomplished here, honestly? Lemme answer that… nothing. Pinhead's not going to Tethys Tunnel, period."

Luxeira stormed over to Gallian's location and grabbed his scythe. The energy forming on it quickly dissipated. "I am your captain. And, as such, I'm ordering my subordinate to investigate Tethys Tunnel."

Gallian's forehead diamond sparked. "Then I'm going with him. Things probably won't end as badly if I'm around."

"Absolutely not," Luxeira said. "Your violent temperament will not do Sticky any good."

"But he's going to run into trouble. I'm sure of it," Gallian hissed.

"Then he will do his best to remove himself from that situation," Luxeira declared, giving Sticky a nod.

"Seriously?" Gallian gave her an exasperated look. "I went to a lot of trouble to get you two TM's so that you could actually defend yourselves out in these Mystery Dungeons. And you're telling me that you're just going to let that go to waste?"

Luxeira flicked her tail. "All members of an Ultra Recon Squad surveillance unit are expected to adhere to a strict nonaggression policy. We observe, but we don't attack unless there are no other options."

"Yeah, fat lot of good that policy did your home, huh?" Gallian muttered under his breath.

"What was that?" Luxeira growled.

"Nothing," Gallian dismissed, turning his snout skyward. "You want to find Tethys Tunnel? Fine. Follow me." Gallian turned and led Luxeira and Sticky back along the forest trail.

* * *

 **Episode 7: The Great Divide**

 **Chapter 25: Fading Radiance**

* * *

 _ **"Fooooooooooooooooooooool!"**_

 _So loud was Solgaleo's roar that it made the tiny dreamscape island quake. Shane tumbled down the sand and landed in the orange water with an unceremonious splash. Only, to his horror, he realized what soaked him was far more viscous than water. It was more like orange slime. When he managed to trudge back onto the beach, he resembled a normal, fire-type Vulpix._

 _ **"I explicitly gave you one direction. Do not disclose our conversations!"**_ _Solgaleo bellowed._ _ **"And now you've gone and done just that. Do you have brain damage? Because it's not like my instructions were hard to follow."**_

 _Shane writhed about, trying to clear some of the ooze off his body, but to little avail. "I… I didn't have a choice. I was backed into a corner there. And besides, I needed to prove a point. It helped out, didn't it?"_

 _ **"What sort of answer is that? You are the worst chosen one ever!"**_ _Solgaleo shouted._ _ **"Proving a point is far less important than saving the world, don't you think?"**_

 _Shane flinched at this._

 _ **"Well? What do you have to say for yourself, human?"**_

 _Shane drew his lips back into a snarl. "I get it okay. Tessa, Null, the rest of the guild, and now you, too. You all hate me. Think I'm some sort of screw up, don't you? Well, why'd you bring me here, then? Why did you think that I'd actually be the one who could save your sorry butts, huh? You've given me no sense of direction, extremely cryptic clues, and not a single power boost to help me. How do you expect me to do this when nobody wants to help?"_

 _ **"Siiiiiiillllleeeeeeennnnce!"**_

 _Shane jumped. He glared off toward the horizon, where a sun-shaped silhouette sat. "Well, which is it? You want an explanation or you want me to keep my mouth shut? I'm getting very mixed messages here, bub."_

 _ **"I do not have the strength to bring forth another human,"**_ _Solgaleo declared._

 _"And why not?" Shane huffed. "You didn't answer my first question, either. Why me, huh? What makes me special?"_

 _ **"I said…**_ **silence!** _**If I'm to be stuck with you, I need to make the best of a bad situation."**_

 _"Gee, thanks for the ringing endorsement," Shane sneered. "Real words of encouragement from a Pokémon that's supposedly worshiped around these parts. You're supposed to be making me feel better. Picking me up in my moment of need! Instead, you're just putting me down."_

 _ **"Idiot! I am not here to give you belly rubs and tell you that you're the very best like no one ever was,"**_ _Solgaleo roared._ _ **"This isn't some happy-go-lucky fairy tale where everyone holds hands and skips around in circles belting out songs about friendship and joy. This is a real, dangerous situation. Lives are on the line!"**_

 _"Yes, I think that's been made abundantly clear to me at this point," Shane said. "So, what am I supposed to do now?"_

 _ **"Isn't it obvious? Rally your stupid friend, Riolu, and go after Absol like I told you to!"**_ _Solgaleo ordered._ _ **"And this time, no more excuses."**_

 _"Yeah, uh, and just_ how _do you expect me to do that, big guy? According to Comfey, I broke my spine," Shane admitted._

 _ **"So? You are a Pokémon. You should heal up quickly,"**_ _Solgaleo said._

 _"Look, I don't exactly know how healing works here. But where I come from, a broken spine is_ not _something you just bounce back from and resume going about your business like nothing happened," Shane elaborated. "Heck, the whole reason I'm asleep right now is that Comfey's trying to use a serum to get my legs working. And if it fails… I don't think I'm ever going to walk again."_

 _His head and ears drooped. "Besides, it's not like Tessa's going to be all that cooperative with me. She totally hates me now. She'd rather run around doing missions with Null. And that guy's the walking definition of creepy." He looked out toward horizon. "So, again, are you sure you've got the right guy? Tessa told me Null just randomly appeared with no memory several months back. And he's much stronger than me. Maybe he's the human you actually brought here? And I'm… just a mistake."_

 _ **"Null? I know of no Nulls!"**_ _Solgaleo responded._ _ **"You are the human I summoned. Quit acting like a crybaby and get to work!"**_

 _Before Shane could offer a rebuttal, his entire field of vision went white._

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Shane's eyes shot open. He blinked rapidly, trying to adjust to the lack of light. _'Great. Not only did that go terribly, I woke up in the middle of the night,'_ he groaned. _'Things just keep getting better and better in Shane's horrible new reality.'_ He rubbed his head against his pillow and cringed at the feeling of moisture. _'Looks like I've got night sweats, too,'_ he sighed.

He squeezed his eyes shut, desperately hoping he could will himself back to sleep. Unfortunately, his brain didn't get the memo, so he continued to lie there, staring up at the ceiling. _'Maybe this is some form of punishment?'_ he thought. _'Like, I spent all that time playing Pokémon games and doing things online related to Pokémon when I could've, I don't know, volunteered in the community, or whatever. And now, as some sort of twisted karmic retribution, I'm trapped here in what_ should _be a dream come true, only everything's trying to kill me and I haven't made a single friend.'_

Shane shuddered. _'No, I can't think like that. I'm not a bad person. I might not be perfect, but that's why the phrase "I'm only human" exists in the first place, right? There are way more malicious folks out there. I need to keep my head up.'_

He looked down at his hind legs and tails. _'Come on,'_ he thought. _'Come on, Shane. You can do this. Move those legs… move them. Come on… come on…'_ His brow furrowed, he grit his teeth, and held his breath as he tried to bend his knees. Much to his surprise, he saw his legs move ever so slightly toward his thighs.

His expression brightened immediately. _'Did Comfey's treatment work? Can I use these legs again?'_ With a forceful breath in, he flicked his foreleg back and hit one of his hind legs. The leg in question tensed up from the contact. _'I actually felt that!'_ he cheered. _'Oh, thank god, it worked. I'm healed!'_ He let himself fall back against his pillow, panting from exhaustion. Somehow, that brief bit of exertion had managed to drain him of his energy. He quickly fell back asleep.

Several hours later, light funneled in through the curtain, causing Shane to wake up. He stretched out his neck and, with considerable effort, managed to sit himself up. _'Maybe this means I can finally get out of bed without being levitated around,'_ he hoped.

"U-Um, h-hello? A-Are you a-awake in there, Mr. Vulpix?"

Mimikyu's squeaky voice came from the other side of the curtain. "Come in," Shane said. A ghostly hand drew back the curtain and Mimikyu zigzagged into the room. "What do you want?" Shane asked.

"O-oh… n-no…" Mimkyu looked down. "Are you not supposed to have visitors? I didn't get that memo. Please don't rat me out!"

"Relax, it's fine," Shane dismissed. "Did someone send you over here?"

Mimikyu shook his head. "No. I just, y'know, wanted to see how you were holding up." The little eye slots in his disguise started tearing up. "You've been asleep for a week now and–"

Shane's eyes widened. "A _week?!_ " he gawked.

"Agh! Sorry! S-Sorry! I thought... y'know... someone had already told you," Mimikyu mumbled. "Comfey was supposed to break that news. Oooooh, she's going to be so mad at me."

Shane sat there in stunned silence. Mimikyu stared at him, and then looked down dejectedly. Just as it looked like he was about to leave, Shane snapped out of his stupor. "Wait. You clearly came here for something. What did you want?" he asked.

"R-Right. Sorry. Anyway, you've been asleep all this time, and I don't think a single Pokémon has come to visit you. I thought that maybe you'd appreciate a little company… but then I saw you move behind the curtain. So, I figured you must be awake. Aha ha… ha…" The head of his disguise flopped over, obscuring his eyes.

Shane frowned. "Yeah, I'm not exactly the most popular guild member right now. Thanks for the reminder."

Mimikyu's disguise stiffened. "O-Oh no! Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel bad! I was only trying to cheer you up." He scuttled toward the bed. "For what it's worth, I thought Lycanroc was very scary too."

"Uh, thanks, I guess," Shane muttered, but in the back of his mind, he thought, _'Great. It's like I'm back in my high school cafeteria. No one's letting me sit with them, so I have to slink over to that one table where the kid with hideous braces always sits.'_

"Um…" Mimikyu shifted about, sensing the awkward silence. "I, uh, thought you might be hungry. So, I brought you a treat." His spectral arm appeared from underneath his disguise, carrying a small plate. "It's a 'Get Well Soon' Muffin. I made it myself!"

Shane looked at the "muffin," which actually appeared to be several brown lumps held together by a red paste. "I know it doesn't look that good," Mimikyu admitted, "but Steenee tried one and liked it." He set the plate down next to Shane's head.

 _'Yeah, but how much Sweet Scent did she douse it in?'_ Shane wondered. _'Well, I am hungry. May as well eat this.'_ He picked up the muffin and took a tiny, cautious bite of the largest lump. His eyebrows raised. "Huh, you're right. It's not bad." He scarfed the rest of the muffin down.

"I could get some more from the cafeteria if you want," Mimikyu offered. He looked down dejectedly. "Nobody else ate any."

Shane felt a pang of guilt. Clearly, he wasn't the only one failing to fit in. "You know what, that sounds good. Why don't you grab me three or four?"

The head of Mimikyu's disguise perked up. "Okay!" He turned to leave, only to see Comfey floating in front of him. Mimikyu tensed up. "Err, hi Miss Comfey. I, um, was just visiting Mr. Vulpix. Hope you don't, y'know, mind."

"It's quite alright, Mimikyu. But I'll need you to run along. Vulpix and I have work to do," Comfey said. Mimikyu saluted the healer with his shadowy arm and scurried back down the hall.

"Well, so much for breakfast," Shane muttered.

"I don't want you gorging yourself on carbs, mister," Comfey chided. "Not when we need to start rehabilitating those legs of yours."

Shane raised a brow. "Eh? How did you know I can feel my legs again?"

Comfey smiled. "Because you just told me."

Shane flopped back against his pillow. "Looks like I walked right into that one." An unseen force grabbed hold of him and lifted him off the bed. Shane's paws make contact with the floor. Comfey released her psychic grip and Shane collapsed onto his belly. "Ooooooooogh," he groaned. "Warn me before you do that."

"Sorry. In any case, we should get started. I find that most limbed Pokémon need a lot of time to get up and walking again. But since you're a human, maybe things will be different for you," Comfey said.

What followed was several hours of strenuous work for Shane. The net result being that he could shakily get to his feet. However, as he tried to shuffle forward, his hind paws slipped out from under him. Comfey grabbed him with her telekinesis before he could wipe out, and then give him a gentle nudge along. Still, his frustration was clearly mounting.

"Okay… I officially take back… every time I ever… laughed at those cheesy rehab scenes… in inspirational movies." he wheezed.

"Let me get you some water. You're sweating enough to fill up the town fountain," Comfey mused.

Shane dropped to his stomach, sides heaving. "Isn't there a better way… to do this?"

Comfey frowned. "This is the way I always rehabilitate my patients," she exclaimed. "I suppose if you're that desperate there's one other thing I could attempt. But the last Pokémon I tried this on lost all the fur on her legs."

Shane craned his neck back and brushed his sweaty coat with his snout. "Look… I'm desperate here. I'll try anything."

Comfey sighed. "Fine. If it's really bothering you that much, I suppose I can let you try my special healing potion." She floated over to a cabinet and pushed it aside with her telekinesis, revealing a safe. "It's actually a liquid soap. You pour it into a bath and soak yourself in it. It's supposed to seep through your skin and repair damage to any bones and muscles, but, as you heard, it's had mixed results."

"Wait, how am I supposed to use it, then?" Shane wondered. "There are only showers in the lodging area."

The safe opened, revealing a small, corked bottle filled with fizzy pink liquid. Comfey levitated it onto her desk. "We have baths in the veterans' quarters. I'll have to go ask the Guildmaster if it's okay for you to use one. Wait here." Comfey left the infirmary. When she disappeared from Shane's view, he heard her say, "Oh, hi, Riolu. Do you need something?"

"I'm good Comfey. I just need to speak to Vulpix."

Shane's ears folded against his head. _'It's Tessa. And she doesn't sound very happy.'_ He buried his head in his forelegs, so he couldn't see her enter the room. Much to his surprise, he didn't hear her say anything. Instead, Tessa draped a piece of paper over Shane's back. His head shot up with a startled yip. He craned his neck around and managed to grab the paper with his snout.

"What'd ya do that for?" Shane whimpered. "And what's this?"

Tessa crossed her arms. "It's a teammate dissolution notice. I'm done putting up with you."

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Shane expected something like this could happen. But the shock of hearing her say it overwhelmed him anyway. All he could do was repeat in his head over and over one single thought.

 _'She really does hate me.'_

The silenced lingered, with Shane staring blankly at the piece of paper. He kept opening and closing his mouth repeatedly, but only succeeded in letting out short rasps. "Well? Say something, already," Tessa growled, tapping a foot on the ground.

Shane looked Tessa in the eye. "Why?" he croaked.

"You know exactly why. You're an insufferable jerk," Tessa explained. "I don't want to be around you anymore."

A whine escaped Shane's muzzle. His mind raced to try and form up something to say that could change her mind, even though the look in her eyes said she would never budge on this issue. "Please," he croaked. "I… I see now that I screwed up… badly. Just give me another chance. I'm begging you. You have no idea how awful this whole affair has been. I can honestly say this is the worst I've ever felt in my whole life. Both the Pokémon and human parts. Please don't make it any worse."

"Don't pull that crap with me. I've given you _several_ chances," Tessa growled. "I'm sick of the constant danger. I'm sick of getting looked down on because I teamed up with you. And I _especially_ don't want the Prism Virus chasing me around when it's really after you." Shane winced with each and every gripe Tessa rifled off. She turned away from him. "The Guildmaster's making us stay together for whatever punishment you got us. After that, I'm creating a new team with Null. I'll never have to deal with you again."

Shane's brow furrowed. "You're really just going to leave me like that? What am I supposed to do, then? I… I can't handle the Prism Virus by myself. It's a danger to everyone, including you."

"Haven't you been calling yourself a chosen one? Well, now you've got your chance to prove it," Tessa responded stoically. "Or, better yet, why not let the experienced Pokémon take over and stay on the sidelines for once? You'd be doing us all a favor." She turned and stormed out of the room.

"… that's it then," Shane whispered. "I'm all alone." He bowed his head solemnly.

 _'This isn't fair. I'm just trying to help everyone. Why can't Tessa see that?'_ he thought. _'Why doesn't she appreciate it? She should be defending me, not joining everyone else in getting mad at me. I'm doing the best I can here.'_ His muzzle stiffened. _'She really doesn't expect me to just sit and wait while the Prism Virus runs amok, does she? How can she even think that? She's just as wrapped up in this as I am!'_

Before he could feel any sorrier for himself, a psychic force grabbed him and levitated him out of the room. He floated beside Comfey as she guided him to the stairs. "So, good news. I got you permission to use a bath in the veterans' quarters." The bottle of soap also floated next to Shane. "I just need to mix this into the water and have you stay in there for, let's say, an hour or so."

"An hour?" Shane sputtered. "I'll shrivel up!"

"The serum needs time to seep in through your skin," Comfey said. Shane noticed that they had passed the dimly-lit veterans' rooms and descended to an even-darker sublevel in the Observatory. Only a pair of small, orange Luminous Orbs provided light in the hallway. "Apologies with how dark it is down here," Comfey continued. "I've found that the lower lighting helps make the baths more relaxing. I can turn them up if you'd like."

"It's fine," Shane whispered. Comfey levitated him through one of the doors, revealing a small, purple, circular room shrouded in steam. He hovered in the doorway while Comfey proceeded to pour the bottle's contents into the water. Within seconds, mountains of lavender soap bubbles formed up.

"Alright, off you go," Comfey exclaimed, lowering Shane toward the pool.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Shane gasped, limbs flailing about. "You're not actually about to just plop me in here and watch me bathe, are you?"

Comfey raised an eyebrow. "What's the problem? Even if the fur covering your sensitive areas gets brushed aside, they'll be under water. I won't be able to see anything sultry and I need to make sure nothing happens to you."

Shane's face scrunched up. "Look, I don't know how Pokémon do things, but humans bathe _alone._ So, leave me be."

Comfey gave Shane an unamused look. "Oh, for pity's sake. You're the most difficult patient I've had in all my time here." She turned toward the doorway and her eyes flashed. Shane watched a blur whiz past his face and land in the bath.

"A rubber Ducklett? I'm not a little kid, you know."

"It's got a two-way communicator in it, so I can check in on you," Comfey explained. "I'm not about to float in that hallway for an hour."

"Fine. Whatever. I'll call you if I need you," Shane said. He watched Comfey float out of the room. The second the door shut behind her, the levitation ceased. Shane fell into the bath, splattering water around the rim. Luckily, he landed in the shallower part and easily surfaced, spitting up soapy water. "That wasn't very kind or caring," he muttered.

Shane managed to pull himself up to the rim of the bath. He rested his back against the wall and allowed the shallow floor to support his legs. Gradually, he slid down under the surface. Shane used his forepaws to pull some of the soap piles over toward him, washing away the grime and sweat in his fur from last week's events.

"Well, now what, Shane?" he sighed. "You finally have an inkling of an idea about what's going wrong with this world, only now the enemies are too tough for you to beat. Your partner's being unreasonable. The Guildmaster and Braviary think you're incompetent and now you're gonna get seriously punished. How do we fix this, huh?"

"There's only one thing you can do in this situation."

Shane blinked a few times and looked to his right. Above his shoulder floated a black shadow with a wisp of white smoke coming out of its head. Shane blinked several times. "This... this is just a trick, right?"

"... hmph, I do not waste my time with idle tricks," the specter sneered, crossing his arms.

Shane reached up and pulled his ears against his forehead. "Oh god... this is it... I'm totally losing my mind, here! And I didn't even have the common sense to hallucinate something _really_ evil like Giratina or Yveltal!"

"Hrmph. I'm positively insulted!" the specter said, shaking his head. "You know that I've done far worse than either of those two rubes."

"Okay... fair point, Darkrai," Shane said, sighing. "Given the world I'm in, you're the perfect candidate to drive me crazy."

"Glad to see my reputation precedes me," Darkrai chuckled. "Then, I suppose we can cut to the chase."

"Hold up. Isn't there supposed to be another figment of my imagination here? Doesn't my conscience get a say in this?"

"Bah! The way I see it, you're so inept your conscience doesn't even want to try and sway you," Darkrai scoffed.

"That's not true!"

A flash of pink encased Shane's left shoulder. From it appeared a blue, swan-like creature. "Gee… a Cresselia. How predictable," Shane deadpanned. He glanced at Cresselia. "By the way, you owe me, like, a thousand Reviver Seeds. Dumb, stupid escort mission… I wasted hours saving your sorry butt."

"You do realize I'm a figment of your imagination, right?" Cresselia squeaked.

"If that's the case, what took you so long?" Shane sneered.

"This jerk Dark Voided me," Cresselia growled.

Darkrai shrugged. "You made it all too easy."

"Right. Yeah, that makes perfect sense. Except for the part where it doesn't," Shane hissed. "Well, thanks, but you both wasted a trip. I'm trying to do some thinking for myself. So, unless you two plan on offering up some much-needed advice, buzz off!"

"Oh, I've got advice," Darkrai declared. "It's quite simple. Ditch these inconsiderate bullies and join the winning side."

"You mean… I should _let_ the Prism Virus get me?"

"Yes. More specifically, that Espeon you have your eyes on," Darkrai mused. "Or, is it the Umbreon? I'm inside your brain and frankly even I'm not sure what to make of it."

Shane's face went beet red. "S… stop assuming things!" he hissed.

Darkrai flicked a hand dismissively. "Whatever. The point is, they're hunting you down. Why not simply join them voluntarily? Y'know, get with the more powerful side? If you haven't been able to beat their flunkies, I hardly think you stand a chance against Espeon and Umbreon."

"Don't listen to him!" Cresselia cried. "I know things may seem bad, but the night is always darkest just before dawn. And, if you've really hit rock bottom, there's nowhere to go but up."

"Seriously?" Shane said, cocking an eyebrow. "Motivational taglines? _That's_ your best defense?"

Cresselia looked down. "They sounded good when I was rehearsing them in front of my mirror."

Shane didn't even want to try and imagine how that would work.

"You see?" Darkrai let out a laugh. "Your conscience can't even put up a reasonable counterargument. And that's because I'm _right._ " He floated up next to Shane and flicked his snout. "You tried doing the whole hero routine. Look where it got you. You've been humiliated, thoroughly beaten, and then repeatedly kicked while you were down."

"The vaunted 'partner' who's supposed to turn into your best friend prefers the company of a _freak of nature_ that doesn't even qualify as a real Pokémon. That's how bad at this you are." Darkrai began sarcastically slow-clapping. "I must give you kudos. What you managed to do on your own ranks up there with some of the best nightmares I've ever made."

Shane scowled. "That's not me. This whole place is a nightmare and I just got plopped into it without any say in the matter. I'm trying to do the best I can here, but I'm not getting any help."

"That's exactly why you have to fight on!" Cresselia declared. "Solgaleo brought _you_ here. Tell me, how many hundreds of millions of humans could he have picked from? He clearly sees something in you. Sure, it's something that none of us are aware of at the moment, but with a little time and some focus, I'm sure you could become stronger and turn the tide of this situation."

"Aha ha ha ha ha! Don't be ridiculous! Him?" Darkrai gestured at Shane. "Give me a break! It's obvious Solgaleo went cross-eyed and brought him here by mistake." He leaned against Shane's snout. "I mean, did you _really_ expect to accomplish anything here? The only reason you got through any of the games back home is because you _cheated!_ "

Shane's annoyance disappeared and he sank down on the ledge. "Well, yeah. Because they're long… and tedious… and boring… and they're really dang hard, okay! I don't want to spend, like, ten hours grinding up because I can't beat one stupid boss. That's obnoxious."

Darkrai chuckled once more. "Exactly. There are no cheat codes or Action Replays here to bail you out. If you want to get stronger then you have to do it the old-fashioned way. And are you really up to that? Especially when you have no one to turn to for help?"

Shane started opening his mouth but Darkrai held up a hand. "Let me answer that. No, you're not. Which is why you will join this Prism Virus. You can get all the strength and power you'd ever want as a Pokémon with no effort required whatsoever." He crossed his arms. "Not to mention the added perks. Like getting to show up all these guild Pokémon who've made fun of you from day one. And, of course, the company of the _lovely_ Esp–"

Shane flicked Darkrai away with a forepaw. "How many times do I have to say it? I don't feel anything about anyone here and if I do it's this stupid Vulpix body and its stupider Vulpix instincts!" He slapped the surface of the water with a forepaw.

"... hmph. How utterly childish," Darkrai sneered. "If you were working with the Prism Virus, you'd have no need for petulant tantrums."

"Shane," Cresselia whispered, "I know it might sound tempting, but it won't end the way you want it to. You've seen what's happened to all the infected Pokémon you've encountered."

"But none of them joined willingly," Darkrai countered.

"And who's to say he wouldn't just meet with the same fate if he joined willingly, huh?" Cresselia huffed. "Shane, you're hurting. I get that. It's stopping you from thinking straight. Please, realize that you have everything to lose and nothing to gain from listening to Darkrai. Think of what you'll be turning your back on. A way back home… your family…"

"Things he's barely even given a passing thought to since he arrived," Darkrai scoffed. "For all Shane knows, the Prism Virus could give him a way back home _instantly._ "

"Yeah, but it would be as someone his family would never recognize," Cresselia countered. "You said it yourself earlier. You are not an inherently evil person. Don't give into dark temptations simply because things aren't going your way right now. That just means it's time to make a change. Just get through Metagross' punishment and you can start fresh. Maybe try making a new team with Mimikyu? He seems to like you."

Darkrai visibly fought to hold back his laughter. Cresselia glared at him. "Look, you said you wanted to be a hero and save this world, right? Well, that means you have to take the bad with the good. But the victory _will_ be all the more satisfying if you struggle and work for it. I guarantee it," she proclaimed.

Shane lowered his head. "Enough, alright?" he sighed. "I just… I guess I'll see what this punishment is, and go from there."

Darkrai's lone visible eye flashed ominously. "Fine. But when you go out there and get yourself killed, don't say I didn't warn you." He then vanished in a swirl of black shadows. Likewise, Cresselia disappeared in a flash of pink light. Shane let out a yawn and felt himself drifting off to sleep…

 _"Vulpix, do you copy? It's Comfey. You've been in there for ninety minutes already! Is there a problem?"_

"Guuzack… sssnrggt… huhwha–?" Shane rapidly blinked his eyes and looked over at the rubber Ducklett. He grabbed it and found the little speaker on one of its wings. "I'm okay. Must've dozed off." He tossed the toy out of the tub and, without really thinking about it, climbed out. Shane stood on all fours and shook about to try and dry himself.

"Man, where do they keep towels around here?" he muttered, walking about the room. Shane eventually found one in the corner. No sooner did he grab it with his snout then he realized something. "H-Hey! I'm walking!" he gasped. Shane sprinted over toward the rubber Ducklett. "That didn't hurt either," he chirped. "Comfey, I think your serum worked! No more pain or tingling. I'm walking just fine."

 _"Glad to hear it. Head on up to the infirmary, then. I should be able to discharge you after a quick check up,"_ Comfey declared. Shane ran for the door and bounded up the steps, overjoyed to finally be over his horrible injury. He made it up to the veterans' quarters when he noticed a shadow passing through the hallway. Shane skidded to a stop and peered out from the staircase.

"I just can't help but feel sorry for her, y'know?"

 _'That sounds like Serperior,'_ Shane realized. He glanced around the hallway and then cautiously crept forward, following the sounds of conversation.

"What makes you say that?" Milotic's voice carried over to Shane.

"She got played by that human. I don't know what Vulpix did to convince her to work with him, but she's clearly miserable," Serperior scoffed.

"I must concur. The entire time she's been here, she hasn't seemed like her usual, perky self," Dragonair muttered. "But do you think that's Vulpix's fault?"

"Yes," Serperior replied. Shane's stance slouched. "And all of this is happening with her hatch day tomorrow, to boot."

Shane stiffened. _'Wait. They actually do birthdays here?'_ It was admittedly an aspect of Pokémon that Shane had never considered. _'And Tessa's is tomorrow? But why wouldn't she say anything?'_

"Maybe you're better off not bringing that up," Milotic suggested. Shane found himself slowly creeping even closer to Team Captivate's room. "She hasn't exactly advertised it to the guild, you know."

"Can you blame her? Her teammate's an attention whore and in the span of a year her entire family's disappeared on her," Serperior said. "She's probably too heartbroken, since none of them will be here."

Shane's ears flattened against his head. _'But Tessa told me her parents were exploring in the Grass Continent. Did she lie to me? Why would she do that?'_

"Maybe we should throw her a surprise party. Y'know, to cheer her up?" Serperior proposed.

"Normally, I'd agree with you, but I think it's equally likely we could just end up making her really sad," Dragonair exclaimed. "Plus, she has to do that disciplinary assignment from the Guildmaster. I'll bet he made it so that it will run through her hatch day."

"We could always do a belated party, then," Serperior said.

"I just think it's too much of a headache at this point," Milotic sighed. "She clearly doesn't want anyone acknowledging it, so I say we respect her wishes. Even if we don't agree with them."

Shane found himself shuffling backwards. _'I don't believe this,'_ he thought. _'No wonder Tessa's furious with me.'_ He lowered his head guiltily. _'Why couldn't she have just told me what was going on?'_ He glanced over his shoulder and noticed that, in the process of sneaking around, he had ended up in front of another room. His eyes widened at the site of a large map of the Horizon Continent.

 _'This is Tessa's mom's room,'_ he realized. Shane took a step inside and examined the map in greater detail. Charcoal and ink markings dotted the map. Upon closer examination, Shane realized that most of the markings centered around continent's northeast, northwest, southeast, and southwestern corners. _'That's odd,'_ he thought. _'It seems like Tessa's mom was looking really hard for something. A treasure, perhaps?'_

He crept into the room and started looking around. There were papers everywhere. _'Tessa must have got her tidiness from her dad, because this place is a total pigsty.'_ His forepaw struck a piece of paper. A crinkling noise filled up the room and Shane immediately tensed up.

"Well now. Yer looking mighty fit fer someone who'd been put to sleep to get his legs working again."

Shane slowly turned around and looked into Braviary's eyes. His fierce gaze was fixed directly on Shane, making Shane's heart race. "Uh… uh…" He looked around rapidly. "Whoa! How did I end up here? I guess that special healing soap Comfey gave me must've made me space out."

"Nice try, son," Braviary harrumphed. "But we both know that's a lie. This is the second time I've done caught you wandering these halls unsupervised. And that's on top of the trouble yer already in, to boot. What d'ya gotta say fer yerself, pardner?"

Shane had meekly lowered to the floor. "I'm… sorry?" he squeaked.

"Save it fer the Guildmaster," Braviary exclaimed. "Since yer clearly feelin' better, I think it's high time you and yer pardner had yer disciplinary hearing."

Shane's eyes widened. "N-No, wait! Please! Comfey said I'm supposed to get checked out by her first." Braviary unfurled his wings, causing Shane to yelp. Braviary darted over to Shane and plucked him off the ground with his talons. He then flew out of the room, making for the stairs.

"Haunter! I know yer hiding 'round here. Make yerself useful and go wrassle up Riolu fer me," Braviary ordered. Shane looked to his right and saw a pair of eyes materialize in the wall.

"Aww, but it was just getting to the good part!" Haunter whined. His eyes vanished into the wall.

Shane shut his eyes tight. _'Is it just me, or did Braviary find me awfully quickly given I wasn't making any noise? And he seems really steamed about this.'_ His snout stiffened. _'Is there something about Tessa's mom he doesn't want me figuring out?'_ He briefly looked up at Braviary, only to squeak and look back down as Braviary met his gaze with an annoyed look.

 _'No, Shane. You can't make the same mistake you did with Lycanroc,'_ he thought. _'He's mad because you broke the rules when you're already in trouble.'_ He gulped. _'Which I'm sure is going to make Tessa even angrier.'_

Shane yipped as Braviary dropped him to the ground. He scrambled to his feet, doing his best to avoid Braviary's gaze. Braviary gave three sharp raps on Metagross' metal door with his beak. He then shoved Shane forward as the door opened.

"Well, go on. Guildmaster's waiting fer ya."

Shane peered into the dimly lit room and felt his tails droop between his legs.

* * *

Next time: it's the Christmas special, featuring answers to questions you didn't know you had. Don't miss it!


	30. Bonus: Christmas Special 2017

Merry Christmas, folks! Here's the Christmas special. It's quite different, so let me know what you think.

* * *

 **Bonus: Snowfall**

 **~?~**

"Looks like you're down to your last dude, Nicky."

A young boy leaned forward, looking over the screen of his Game Boy Color. He flashed a smile at his friend, who lay on the floor, looking at his own device.

"Heeheehee... don't think you've won yet, Shane. This one's my best guy," Nicky declared, pushing brown hair out of his eyes. "You ready for this? Go, Lugia!"

Shane watched the colored pixels flash across his screen. "Ha, big whoop! My Dragonite can totally deal with th–"

"Eat this... Psychic!" Nicky squealed, jostling his Game Boy in excitement. In the process, the Pikachu plushy in his lap dropped to the floor. Shane's enthusiastic expression quickly vanished as he watched Dragonite's sprite fall off of his screen.

"No way. You were faster than me?" Shane gasped.

"Now _you're_ down to your last dude, Shane," Nicky taunted.

Shane's grin reappeared. "Ah, but I saved the best for last, too. Go, Ho-Oh!" The other Legendary bird popped up on his Game Boy's screen. He eagerly went to select a move to use. "Alright, it's time for me to win the bat–"

"Heeheeheehee! Nice try, but it won't help. Hydro Pump to the face, dude," Nicky said with a victorious laugh.

"What? It gets Hydro Pump?" Shane gasped. He watched the HP of his Ho-Oh trickle down to zero and Ho-Oh's sprite vanished from the screen. "No way. You totally cheated!"

"Of course Lugia gets Hydro Pump," Nicky scoffed. He grabbed his stuffed Pikachu and dusted off the rainbow ribbon pinned to its chest. "Don't you remember the Lugia movie? It lives underwater, dude." He disconnected the Link Cable tethering their Game Boys. "Better luck next time."

Shane hung his head in defeat. "Ugh, fiiiiine."

 _Ding-Dong!_

"Nicholas, your mother's here!"

Nicky frowned. "Aww man. Already?"

"You can come back tomorrow, can't you?" Shane asked.

Nicky shook his head. "No. Tomorrow I'm going on a trip."

"Oh." Shane slowly got to his feet. "But we can play more when you get back, right?"

"Totally!" Nicky promised. The two of them ran down the staircase, where a pair of women stood by the door. One had on a black, puffy winter jacket.

"Nicholas, what do you say to Shane and his mom?" Nicky's mom asked, rubbing fog off her glasses.

"Right." He turned back to Shane. "Thanks for letting me come over."

"And?"

Nicky gave his mom a confused look. She rolled her eyes and said, "And Merry Christmas to you both."

"Oh, right! Merry Christmas, Shane. Merry Christmas, Mrs. Shane's Mom!" Nicky chirped, causing the two women to giggle.

"Okay. Let's get going before the snow gets really bad on the roads," Nicky's mom exclaimed. The two exited the house. Shane ran up to the window beside the door and gave Nicky a wave goodbye.

"I'll see you soon, dude!" he called as the car pulled out of the driveway.

* * *

 **~14 Years Later~**

A young man removed the white coat he was wearing and draped it over his right arm. He paused at a corner and poked his head around the wall. "Dr. Sinclair?" he called.

"I know what I said, Rory, and I'm sorry. I got held up at work. I'm waiting on some labs for a patient."

He spotted a woman seated in front of a computer with her back to him. She had a cell phone pressed against her right ear, while her left hand twirled a lock of blonde hair. "Prisma?" he said, knocking on the wall.

"Hang on, Rory," Prisma sighed and pulled the phone away. She spun around in her office chair. "What are you still doing here, Sanders? I thought I told you to go drop by the holiday party before it closes down."

Sanders laughed nervously. "Aha ha… right. I was planning on doing that, but the Ardsley kids' parents yanked me aside and started asking me questions about his procedure tomorrow. Before I knew it…"

"Sanders, Sanders, Sanders," Prisma sighed, shaking her head. "How many times do I have to tell you? Do not indulge helicopter parents. You'll never be able to shake them off. Give them brief answers and tell them you'll check in on their kid shortly. Then get your butt out of that room." She lifted her phone up. "Now, is there anything else? I'm a bit busy here."

"I, uh, just wanted to wish you a Merry Christmas. You're, um, not stuck working this year, are you?" Sanders asked.

"Ha! Good one, Sanders," Prisma laughed. "That's what we've got you residents for."

Sanders eyes widened. "B-But I thought I had Christmas off," he muttered.

Prisma rolled her eyes. "You do. Learn to take a joke, Sanders. It'll go a long way in this field. Now, get a move on before I change my mind and make you do blood draws with the nurses."

"R-Right," Sanders muttered. "Merry Christmas, boss."

"And a happy new year," Prisma replied, waving her subordinate off. She spun back around in her chair and took her hand of the phone's speaker. "Sorry about that, sweetie. One of the kids had a question." A pause followed. "Yes, I was talking about a resident. You know how Sanders gets sometimes. Poor guy's too polite for his own good."

A notification popped up on Prisma's computer. "Oh… oh!" She leaned in toward the screen and started moving the mouse around. "Looks like I shouldn't be out too much longer, Rory. I just got the test results I needed. I'm going to wrap things up with my patient. With any luck, I'll be home in an hour."

She went silent and nodded slowly. "I'm aware it's already after sundown. Can't she just wait until I'm home?" Prisma sighed and rubbed her temples. "Okay, tell you what. She can open one of her birthday presents now. But she'll need to wait until I'm home to open the rest. And don't let the kids get at the cake yet, either."

Another pause followed. "Love you too, sweetie. I'll be home before you know it." She ended the call and tucked the phone into the pocket of her white coat. Prisma took a deep breath and clasped her hands together. "Come on, baby. Prisma needs a Christmas miracle here." She pulled up a page of lab results and immediately started scanning them. Her eyes lit up. "Oh, thank heavens. This is fantastic!"

Prisma typed into the keyboard and the printer beside her whirred to life. The lab values printed out and she grabbed the page. Prisma fast-walked down the hallway, approaching a bedroom in the corner. She stopped at the door and gave a knock. "Evening, Mr. and Mrs. Miller," she greeted. Then she turned toward the bed, where a young girl lay heavily wrapped in blankets. "And hello to you too, Izzy. How are we feeling tonight, huh?"

"Kinda tired," Izzy mumbled. She pulled the stuffed Lapras doll in her arms up against her face.

"She just woke up from a nap," Mrs. Miller explained. "We know that the floor's holiday movie night is happening soon." She shot her husband a concerned look. "But you said you weren't sure if she'd be allowed to leave the room and go."

"Well, I have some good news for you all, then," Prisma exclaimed, passing the page she printed to the Millers. "Her white count's showing marked improvements. No inflammatory markers, either."

Mr. Miller examined the page in confusion. "What does that mean, doctor?"

"It looks like the bone marrow transplant is taking," Prisma elaborated. "She's responding well to it. No signs of rejection in her labs." She stepped to the side, allowing a nurse to enter the room. "So, I'm happy to say that she's got my permission to take part in the floor's Christmas activities." Her smile widened. "And that includes movie night, of course."

Izzy sat up at this. "Really?" she squeaked. "Can Cissy come with me, too?" She held up the Lapras doll.

Prisma nodded. "I think that would be okay," she exclaimed. Izzy cheered and hugged the plush while the nurse helped her out of the bed and into a wheelchair. Prisma gave her a wave as the nurse wheeled her toward the exit. "You have a Merry Christmas, okay Izzy? I'll be back soon to check up on you."

"Okay. Merry Christmas, Dr. Prisma," Izzy bid her farewell.

Prisma waited until the wheelchair was out of view, and then turned to her parents and said, "You'll want to sanitize and wash that doll tonight. Her immune system's improving, but it's far from perfect."

"Of course, doctor," Mr. Miller said. "We can't thank you enough for all your help." He wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulders. "We were so worried she was going to be cooped up in this room for all of Christmas."

"It's my pleasure. I'm here to help," Prisma replied. "Now, I should let you know that I'll be out of the hospital on vacation with my family next week." She pulled out a business card from the chest pocket of her coat. "My partner, Dr. Bezdow, will be covering my patients, along with my residents. I'm sure you both remember Dr. Sanders."

"The mousy fellow, right?" Mrs. Miller asked.

Prisma fought back a laugh at that. "Yes, well he'll be off for Christmas, but he's here the rest of the month. I've given him special instructions to keep an eye on Izzy. So, don't you worry. She's in great hands." She winked at the Millers. "I'm afraid I must get going, now. It's my daughter's birthday, you see, and I'm already in hot water with my husband for staying here too late."

The Millers chuckled at this. "Well, don't let us hold you up any further," Mr. Miller declared. "Merry Christmas, Dr. Sinclair."

"Same to you both," Prisma replied. She turned and departed the room, taking off her white coat in the process. She made a quick stop at her office to shut down her computer, and then snaked her way through the hospital to get to her white SUV. As she pulled out from the parking garage she frowned at the sight of snowflakes cascading down in front of her car's headlights.

"Ah, crud," she muttered. She reached down and switched the radio on.

 _"… that'll conclude the traffic report. For the weather, here's meteorologist Chuck Donohue,"_ a man's voice crackled through the speakers.

 _"Thanks, Mac. The words for the night are snowing and blowing, folks,"_ Chuck exclaimed. _"We've got a high-pressure system moving in from Lake Ontario. And jets of warm air to the south and southeast of us look to be slowing the storm system down. So, expect the snow to linger over the county from tonight, through tomorrow, and into Christmas Day. If your kids were hankering for a white Christmas, then they won't be disappointed."_

Prisma sighed and switched the stations. She flipped on her high-beam lights and slowly drove through the deserted city. She remained focused on the road, only the music and whirring of her windshield wipers to keep her company. After thirty minutes of driving, she pulled up to a snow-covered driveway. She glanced out the window.

 _'I think I can make it,'_ she figured. _'C'mon, old girl. Let's put that horsepower of yours to good work.'_ She spun the wheel to the left and slammed down on the accelerator. Her truck surged forward, digging through the snow and shooting its way along her driveway. She pulled into an open garage door and shut it behind her.

Prisma managed to just make it through the door when a pair of eager voices sounded through the house.

"Mom!"

"Mommy!"

Prisma hastily dropped her bag onto the floor and opened her arms up to embrace her two kids. "Hi!" she chirped. "Aren't you two positively bursting with energy?" She looked up and noticed her husband walking forward, hands tucked into the pockets of his black jeans. "You didn't let them get at the cake, did you?"

"What kind of sorry soul do you take me for, huh?" Rory asked, rubbing the back of his bald head. "Kids, tell your mother we've been waiting for her to get dinner started."

"We've been waiting and we're sooooooo hungry," they declared in unison.

"Well, you won't have to be hungry any longer," Prisma declared. She took off her winter coat, hung it up, and proceeded into the kitchen. "Oh, wow. Smell that? Looks like someone's got her favorite dish waiting for her, huh?"

Prisma's daughter nodded enthusiastically and sprinted toward her seat at the table, black hair fluttering. The rest of the family joined her. Rory brought over a large strainer filled with spaghetti and offered up helpings to everyone. "Okay, dig in," he declared, setting down the strainer to take his seat. Both of the kids immediately reached for the jar of sauce.

"Hey. Let go, Gallian. I wanna use the sauce first!"

"And let you take all of it? Little sister, please," Gallian scoffed, shoving her smaller hand aside.

Prisma rolled her eyes and gently lifted her son's hand off the jar. "Come on, Gallian. It's Tessa's birthday. Let her have first dibs just this once, okay?"

Gallian sat back in his chair and scowled while Tessa accepted the jar with a delighted grin. "… tch. Have some pasta with your sauce," he heckled, blowing a tuft of brown hair out of his eyes.

"Hey now, tomato sauce can be good for you," Rory said, looking over toward Prisma. "Isn't that right, doc?"

"How the heck should I know? I'm not that kind of doctor," Prisma scoffed. "Last I checked, tomato sauce isn't causing cancer, so Tessa's free to have as much as she wants."

"Yeah, sure. Maybe you'll turn into a tomato if you keep eating that much," Gallian said, pouring sauce on his pasta. "Then I can tell everyone in school that my sister's taken being a vegetarian one step too far."

"Mom!" Tessa whined.

"Don't tease your sister, Gallian," Prisma scolded. "Especially with all the junky snacks you like to eat. Don't think I don't know that you're taking coins from the family coin jar to use on the vending machines at school, because I do."

"Meh." Gallian shrugged. "Dad shaysh I have a shuper metabolishm jusht like him."

"How many times do I have to tell you not to talk with your mouth full?" Prisma sighed.

Gallian slurped up the spaghetti dangling from his mouth. "I can eat whatever I want and I'll never get fat."

"I never said anything like that," Rory insisted, raising his hands innocently.

"Good. Because I'd hate to have to replace all the snacks in the pantry with vegetables," Prisma teased. Gallian's eyes widened and he promptly looked down at his dinner, pouting. "So, Tessa," she said, turning to her daughter, "I understand you got a bit overeager with opening your presents. What'd you get?"

Tessa's eyes sparkled. "Oh! Oh! Wait here, I'll go get it." She launched off her chair and sprinted out of the room.

"Nice airplane arms you've got there, ya dork," Gallian heckled.

"As I recall, you used to run like that when you were her age," Rory mused, stroking his goatee. Gallian looked away, blushing.

Tessa returned, brandishing a small game case in her right hand. "Here it is, here it is!" she chirped, slapping the case on the table. Prisma briefly glanced the bright-blue background on the cover art.

"Oh, yeah. This is the game you had asked for, right? It's not as new, so your father and I weren't sure if we'd be able to find it." Prisma said. Tessa nodded enthusiastically

"Yup! I'm gonna play as the Oshawott, cause he's the cutest," Tessa squealed, picking the case up and hugging it.

Gallian rolled his eyes. "Oh, brother. We both know you're going to give up at the first boss and come running to me, begging me to beat it for you."

"I will not," Tessa huffed. "My friend Stacey told me this one's much easier than the last one."

"How would you know? I seem to recall I played through that entire game for you," Gallian scoffed. "And it would've been so much easier if you'd just let me do the personality quiz. Vulpix and Riolu are a terrible combination."

"Hey! I like Riolu," Tessa said, her cheeks puffing up. "And Vulpix."

"Gallian, what did I tell you? Quit teasing your sister," Prisma scolded. "My, how easily you seem to have forgotten that you used to always come to your father and I for help with your games."

"Here, here," Rory agreed, raising his glass. "Who could forget trying to solo Blue with an overleveled Pikachu?"

Gallian's face flushed and he started poking dejectedly at his spaghetti. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, why don't you?" he grumbled.

"Besides, I seem to recall you enjoy playing games with your sister," Prisma declared.

Gallian shoved a forkful of spaghetti into his mouth. "I guess. Just don't tell the other moms in your parent group or whatever."

"Deal," Prisma promised, winking. They finished off dinner and then proceeded into the living room, where the rest of Tessa's presents sat. She gleefully tore through the wrapping paper. The first box contained a new dress, courtesy of her parents. Then there were assorted posters for her bedroom and some DVDs.

"… heh. Saving mine for last, I see," Gallian declared. "You better like it. I spent good allowance money on it."

"Allowance money that _we_ gave you," Rory muttered under his breath, before Prisma elbowed him in the gut.

Tessa raised an eyebrow. "This is just a package," she said, staring at a brown postal box.

"Relax, sis. Take a look inside," Gallian said, nodding at the present.

Tessa carefully used scissors to cut along the tape and spread the box open. A big grin appeared on her face and she dipped her arms into the box. She pulled out two stuffed toys: an Absol and a Vulpix. "Aww, they're so cuuuuuuuuute!" she squealed in delight, wrapping the plushies up in a big hug. "Thanks, Gallian!"

"No problem, sis," Gallian said, before leaning in and whispering, "and if you liked those, just wait until Christmas." A broad grin appeared on Tessa's face and she looked down at the toys.

"Wow, I can't wait," she chirped. "I got you something really good, too. But Mom said I can't spoil the surprise." She stepped back, tightening her grip on her toys. "Come on, you two. We've got a game to start playing."

"Hey now, what about cleaning up all this wrapping–"

"Thanks for the presents," Tessa called as she ran past her parents and toward the stairs. Gallian chuckled and slowly followed along after her.

"–paper?" Rory leaned over and sighed.

"Easy there, honey. This barely qualifies as a mess. I'll just throw this stuff in the kitchen garbage," Prisma declared. She hastily cleaned all the wrapping paper and brought it toward the large garbage bin in the kitchen. "Hey, Rory, did you get the mail today? I don't see it here."

"Ah, nuts," Rory said, snapping his fingers. "I knew I was forgetting something. Do you want me to head out and grab it?"

"No, no, it's fine. I'm still dressed. I'll just throw on my boots and jacket and go get it," Prisma exclaimed. She geared up for the cold and then proceeded out her house's back door. A blast of cold air awaited her and she quickly pulled up her coat hood. Snow was still falling down. Her first steps saw her sinking into the white, powdery ground. The snow reached halfway up her lower legs.

"Hoo boy. I sure hope the plows can make it here overnight," she said, rubbing her gloved hands together. Slowly, she stomped forward, making her way through snowstorm. She pulled a flashlight out from her pocket and shined it ahead of her. It unveiled the mailbox, barely sticking out from the snowdrift pile that had gathered around it. Prisma reached it and opened it up, taking out its contents. She tucked the mail under her arm and started returning toward her house.

Prisma had made it halfway up her driveway when she brought a hand up to her temple. _'Unngggh… w-what–?'_ Her vision flickered and she blinked rapidly. _'Where's that ringing coming from?'_ She cupped her free hand over her ear, but the ringing only grew louder. Her vision flickered once again, before everything went white.

"R-Rory!" Prisma shouted. She tried to reach her hand into pocket and grab her phone, but her arm stiffened. Her other arm followed suit. The mail fell to the ground. " _Rory!_ " she shouted even louder. " _Help!_ Call 9-1-1! I think I'm having a–"

She felt the ground disappear beneath her legs. The air rushed out of her lungs and she immediately lost consciousness.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"… Lucario? Hey, Lucario? You feeling alright, pardner?"

Prisma snapped to attention, blinking her eyes rapidly. "B-Braviary!" she gasped, a blush coming on. "What are you doing in my room?"

"Yer room? Hoss, yer in the hallway in the veterans' quarters." He stepped back and lifted a wing to showcase the hallway.

"O-Oh…" Prisma fidgeted with the bandanna around her neck. "Whoops, silly me." She laughed nervously. "I must've gotten, y'know, taken in by the snow." Prisma glanced out the window, watching snow gently drift down onto the ground. Braviary stepped up next to her.

"Ain't nothing special about this, really," Braviary thought aloud. "You've seen yer fair share of snowstorms hitting Aeon Town, ain't ya?"

"Of course I have," Prisma replied hastily. "But... I dunno. I guess it's just nice to see it falling again."

Braviary gave her a skeptical look. "Uh-huh. How long ya planning on staring, exactly? It's almost sundown, you know."

Prisma's aura feelers stood on end. "I-It is?" she squeaked.

"Course it is. Ol' Incineroar's been counting the minutes. You know how much he looks forward to his Winter Solstice party. Feller wouldn't stop yapping about it all day," Braviary said with a laugh. "He took off to get the kids an hour ago. I reckoned you were already home."

"Oh gods, I forgot about the party," Prisma groaned, smacking her face with a paw.

"Well then, I'd shake a tailfeather if I was you," Braviary chuckled, turning to walk toward the staircase. "Yer family's waiting for ya, after all." He hovered in the stairway and waved a wing at her. "Happy Winter Solstice, Lucario."

Prisma raised her paw and slowly waved it. As soon as he was gone, she turned back toward the window. Her grip on her bandanna tightened. "My family's… waiting for me," she whispered.

Her paw slowly slid underneath the bandanna and pulled out a small piece of paper. She unfolded it and stared at a photo of her, Rory, and their human kids in front of a large fountain. Everyone wore big, enthusiastic smiles. Her free paw clenched into a fist and she grit her teeth.

"My… family…"

Her eyes watered and red energy crackled across her fist.

* * *

Hope you all enjoyed this. It was quite a lot of fun to write.

Next time: Team Radiance learns of their disciplinary assignment, and tensions run high. Can a little UB-Adhesive keep their relationship from falling apart completely?


	31. A Sticky Situation

**Chapter 26: A Sticky Situation**

Shane slinked into Guildmaster Metagross' office. He barely made it through the door when Metagross locked eyes with him. Shane abruptly stopped. His gaze fell to the ground and stayed there until he heard the sound of footsteps. He looked up and confirmed that Tessa had entered the room.

"So, you're all healed up, huh?" she said, her tone completely neutral.

"Y-Yeah," Shane said.

 **Order: attention on me, human,** Metagross bellowed, causing Shane to jolt upright and stare straight ahead. **Fact: I have considered your transgressions. Observation: You continue to display a disregard for your fellow Pokémon, sometimes due to ignorance but mostly out of selfishness.**

Tessa nodded in agreement, while Shane winced and looked straight down.

 **Conclusion: your punishment must make clear that exploring is something to be taken seriously,** Metagross exclaimed.

"Then why do I have to be here? I've understood that from the get-go," Tessa growled.

 **Order: no comments or questions until I have finished,** Metagross replied. **Fact: you've made no attempts to reach out to anyone to help you and your partner settle your differences. Fact: you cannot go through life picking and choosing the Pokémon you work with. Conclusion: this punishment will also force you to work cooperatively with the human.**

Tessa's face blanched. "But… that's," she meekly whispered before her gaze fell to the floor. Shane glanced her out of the corner of his eyes and she immediately glared back.

 **Fact: your punishment is an exploration assignment,** Metagross said, to the duo's surprise. **Fact: you will guide Oranguru to Sunflower Meadows.**

"An escort mission? Are you kidding me?" Shane groaned.

 **Silence,** Metagross thundered, sending Team Radiance shrinking back. Tessa gave Shane a scathing look. **Fact: this is not up for negotiation. Fact: if you fail this assignment, you will both be expelled.**

Now it was Tessa's turn to interrupt. "Wait, what? Why? That's not fair!" she protested.

 **Fact: your continued behavior is having a negative effect on other members. Fact: my responsibility is to run the guild and keep it in order. Conclusion: caustic individuals must be removed,** Metagross explained. **Counteroffer: if you succeed this assignment, you will both obtain apprentice rank.**

"So, our places here are dependent on escorting some random Pokémon? That's just great," Shane said. He turned to Tessa and said, "We're going to Dhelmise Depot and dropping off every single item we've got. I don't want this Oranguru fellow dipping into our stock. And, trust me, he will. These things always go badly."

 **Fact: Oranguru will provide his own supplies. Fact: this is no mere random Pokémon. He is a close acquaintance. I will tolerate no slander of his character,** Metagross said. **Order: you two are to be on your best behavior. Fact: if you act out, I** _ **will**_ **know and you will fail the assignment.**

Shane's jaw slackened. Likewise, the color seemed to drain from Tessa's whole body. "So, uh, how are we supposed to find this Oranguru guy? Is he in Aeon Town?" Shane asked.

 **Negative,** Metagross responded. **Order: you will meet him in Moonrise Marsh. Fact: it is a subterranean swampland at the end of Tethys Tunnel.**

"But, that's a Mystery Dungeon, isn't it?" Tessa asked, having pulled out her Wonder Map. "Couldn't we just go straight to the Marsh?"

"Didn't you hear him? It's _underground._ So, unless the Sharpedo have learned how to dig tunnels outside the water, we have to go through it," Shane said, frowning.

"Okay, I get it. You don't have to be a jerk about it," Tessa growled.

Shane's brow furrowed. "I wouldn't expect you to understand. You've never done an escort mission. They _always_ suck."

"And you would know this... how?" Tessa asked, her tone growing angrier. "Oh, let me guess, it's another one of those stupid game things you've mentioned countless ti–"

 _CLANG!_

 **I demand order,** Metagross declared, his eyes glowing blue. Shane and Tessa reflexively curled up into balls. **This is precisely the kind of negative behavior that has put the two of you in this situation. Reconcile your differences or I can guarantee that you will fail this assignment.**

A shiver rad down Shane's spine. _'Okay, is it just me or is this guy a_ lot _scarier when he starts speaking like a normal person?'_

Metagross turned away from them. **Order: proceed to Moonrise Marsh. Meet up with Oranguru. Escort him to Sunflower Meadows by traversing Mellath Bog.**

"Are you kidding me? We have to go through two dungeons in succession? How is that possibly fair?" Shane said, stamping a forepaw down. "If we run into any Prism Virus Pokémon, we're so unbelievably screwed." He narrowed his eyes at Metagross. "I'll bet you're setting us up for failure! Tell me, did you come up with this or is this all Braviary's idea?"

 **Warning: continued combative backtalk will result in your immediate expulsion,** Metagross replied.

"Oh, no, by all means, keep flapping your gums," Tessa sneered. "You could make this a lot easier for both of us."

Shane lifted his head up and his left eye twitched. "Yeah, you'd like that wouldn't you?" he muttered.

Metagross' door opened up behind them. **Exit. I have finished conferring instructions. Oranguru is waiting.** He pointed a hind leg toward the door and Team Radiance walked out. They both refused to meet each other's gazes.

"So, uh, are we going to Dhelmise Depot?" Shane finally asked.

"Yeah, we're definitely going there," Tessa responded. She turned around and clutched the straps of the item pouch. "But it's so that _I_ can deposit _my_ items so that _you_ don't use them up in these dungeons!"

Shane narrowed his eyes at Tessa. "Hey, we're still a team for this. That means those items belong to both of us!"

"But you're the irresponsible one who's going to get hurt and burn through our reserve," Tessa said, leaning in toward him. "So, I want to put as much stuff away as possible so _I_ still have a decent inventory to use once this stupid mission is done and the team's dissolved."

Shane drew back his lips and bared his fangs. "Where did this nasty attitude of yours come from? I already said I'm sorry! You're making me out to be some sort of villain. I'm not out to blow this mission, you know."

Tessa raised her fists and they crackled with electricity. "That's because the only reason we're in this do-or-die situation is because of you! I'm stuck doing this ridiculously difficult mission with a reckless _jerk_ because he managed to delude himself into thinking a random stranger was pure evil. No amount of 'I'm sorry's' can make up for that!"

"I've learned my lesson!" Shane snarled back. "I feel terrible, okay? And you're just making it worse. So, can we _please_ just put this issue aside already?"

"I will _not_ just put it aside," Tessa barked. "Because every time you've apologized and said you were going to try and do better, you've _lied._ If you want me to shut up, then _listen to what I have to say for once._ Otherwise, you can bet your sorry ass that I'll keep reminding you of all the boneheaded decisions you've made up to this point."

Shane's left eye twitched. "That's totally uncalled for!" he protested. "Besides, weren't _you_ the one who said you at least appreciated some of my 'boneheaded decisions,' because they pushed you into doing things you weren't comfortable with?"

"I only said that because I thought you were turning over a new leaf. But in the short time since then you've somehow managed to become _worse_ than when we first met," Tessa replied. "You stressed me out to the point where I can't think straight!"

"How do you think I feel? I've been in a coma the past week with a deathly fever and a broken spine. Or did you just happen to forget that?" Shane hissed.

"Oh, you want pity? Too bad! It's your stupidity that got you hurt," Tessa countered. "And if it wasn't for Null, that Bewear probably would've _killed_ you. Have you even thanked him for saving your life yet? Let me answer that. No, you haven't. Because you only think of one person and that's yourself!"

"Do you have idea how childish you're sounding right now?" Shane sneered.

"No, _you're_ the one sounding childish!" Tessa fired back.

A loud thump and harsh hissing noise abruptly jolted the duo out of their argument. They looked over toward the south hallway and spotted Null staggering about. He thrashed his head from side to side, groaning loudly.

"Whoa, whoa, take it easy, Null," Trapinch called, running over to him. "Is your head hurting again? Maybe you should go see Comfey?"

Trapinch was forced to duck back as Null whirled around and bashed his head against the wall several times. "Wow. I can't believe _that's_ what you want to ditch me for," Shane scoffed. Null turned around to face Shane, who stiffened. He stared right at Shane, letting out heavy, echoing wheezes. Null stomped toward him, continuing to shake his head about.

"Null!" Tessa shouted, walking into his path. "Are you okay? You don't look so good."

Much to Shane's surprise, Null stopped dead in his tracks. His tired, gray eyes blinked repeatedly. "… sorry about that," he wheezed.

Tessa leaned in close and whispered, "The voices again?"

"… yeah," Null replied. "They're… getting worse…"

"Why don't you come with us, then?" Tessa suggested. "I think we could really use the extra help for this one."

" _What?_ No, no, no, no! You are not dragging that _thing_ along with us!" Shane cut in. "Did you see the way he was looking at me? Besides, we could get in trouble for that. You were the one yelling at me for making bad decisions. What do you call what you're doing right now, huh?"

Tessa turned and glared at him. "Bettering our odds. You said you just wanted to get this mission done with minimal conversation? Null's a perfect way to do that. I can talk to him and ignore you the entire time. And did it ever occur to you that he's giving you nasty looks because you're being mean to him?"

Shane looked down and pawed at the ground. "But the Guildmaster," he whispered.

"Didn't say we couldn't bring Null with us," Tessa said. "The way I see it, it's perfectly fine."

Shane snorted out clouds of frosty air. "He better stay as far away from me as possible."

* * *

 **~Tethys Tunnel~**

Team Radiance proceeded into the cavernous dungeon in silence. It didn't take them very long to lose all light from the surface. The tunnel alternated between flat areas and downward slopes taking them deeper underground. As the sunlight faded, patches of green Luminous Moss appeared along the floor, walls, and ceiling of the cavern. The moss overlay rocks littered with clammy, gray plants.

"This is so strange," Tessa whispered. "Null, do you see these purple threads running through the walls? It almost looks like there's some kind of liquid flowing through them."

Shane glanced at the opposite wall and noticed purple fluid with twinges of red rushing through a network of crystalline veins embedded in the wall. "You're the most knowledgeable about Horizon, Tessa. Can't you explain what these things are?" Tessa ignored him. "Hey, I asked you a question," Shane growled.

"No, you didn't," Tessa said flatly. "I'm Riolu."

Shane gritted his teeth. "Fine. _Riolu_ , do you know what these things are?"

"Nope," Tessa responded, making a vein bulge out of Shane's head. "I don't remember hearing about anything like this. My dad always said Tethys Tunnel was boring. Just a lot of gray inside it. So, these bits must be a recent addition."

"Brilliant deduction there, professor," Shane sarcastically declared. "And not in the slightest bit help– _gah!_ "

Shane suddenly found himself sinking. He looked down and saw that his legs had been sucked up by the ground. "What the–? Hey! Help! I'm sinking!"

His teammates looked over at him. Tessa rolled her eyes. "Ha, ha, very funny. C'mon Vulpix, you're holding us up."

"No, I'm serious here," Shane grunted. He struggled about, but that only made him sink deeper, to the point where his belly brushed against the dirt.

"… is that… quicksand?" Null wondered.

"In a cave? I find that hard to believe," Tessa said. "But I guess we've got to help him out. Stop struggling, Vulpix. You'll just make yourself sink faster."

"Then get me out of here!" Shane hollered. Null stepped forward and stuck his foreleg out. "And just what am I supposed to do with that, huh?" Shane growled.

"… bite down on my leg. I'll pull you… to safety," Null offered. Shane looked skeptically at Null's talons, but also felt the quicksand steadily rising along his torso. He clamped his jaw on one of Null's talons. Null's exoskeleton-coated claw tasted horrible, to the point where Shane thought he was going to hurl. Null gave a hearty tug and his massive weight and foreleg strength resulted in Shane getting flung out of the quicksand pit.

Shane landed in a heap in front of Tessa. His entire lower body was covered in coarse sand. "Huh, guess it really is quicksand," Tessa said. "But what would quicksand pits be doing in a cave like this? There isn't even supposed to be sand here."

"How should I know?" Shane growled, trying to brush sand off his coat to little avail. "Maybe your stupid Tapu thingies can magically teleport quicksand into dungeons to screw with innocent Pokémon?"

 _Smack!_

Shane quickly found himself sprawled out on his belly, with Tessa standing over him. "You do _not_ badmouth the Tapus!" she barked. "They're the continent's protectors. That makes them noble, not stupid. Understand?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, Mom," Shane muttered, glaring at Tessa as he got back up. "The fact remains that there's quicksand in a place where there shouldn't be and we can't explain it. I guess we can just ignore it for now and tell Braviary when we're done."

"You do that if it bothers you so much," Tessa growled and stomped forward in the cavern.

Null stepped beside Shane and cleared his throat. This made Shane jump. "Cripes! Don't sneak up on me like that. You're already frightening enough as it is."

"… Lycanroc said something… about seeing weird stuff… in the environment," Null muttered. "Espeon and Umbreon… planted strange crystals… in the ground. And they… messed with the environment. Perhaps that's what... we're seeing here?"

Shane's muzzle stiffened. "But they're not the bad guys!" Null looked right at him. "I… I mean…" Shane winced and slumped down in defeat.

"Hey! Are you guys coming or what?" Tessa asked from farther down the cave. Her teammates looked away from one another and proceeded forward in silence. Their trek then grew a bit more cumbersome. After the first patch, the team encountered several quicksand areas scattered around the tunnel floor. To make matters worse, the Luminous Moss faded, leaving the mysterious crystal veins as the dungeon's only light source.

This was also when the team encountered traps and wild Pokémon. It was nothing they couldn't handle, but the quicksand pits limited their maneuverability considerably. Not helping things at all was Shane's insistence on staying in the back of the group, for fear of walking into another quicksand pit.

"Quit being such a baby and get up here! I need your help with these wild Pokémon," Tessa ordered.

"No way! There are Tirtuoga over there. And I have no intention of getting smacked around with rocks," Shane whined. "You have the fighting-type moves, you do something."

"Then can you at _least_ take care of the Wimpods? They're only Wimpods, for pity's sake," Tessa growled. A frosty gale rushed past her, nearly causing her to fall into a quicksand pit on her right. "Hey, watch where you're aiming!"

"I thought you _wanted_ my help," Shane taunted.

"Move it along," Null growled. "Neither of you are doing us any favors."

They continued through the tunnel, dipping into their supply of apples and each taking an oran berry to refresh themselves. "Ungh, how much further do we have to go? The air's musty down here," Shane said.

"If you don't like it, take the Escape Orb," Tessa said. "I'll happily report your disappearance to the Guildmaster when we return."

Shane gnashed his teeth together. "Are you going to just take a dig at me every time I open my mouth? Because that's _beyond_ obnoxious!"

"You brought it on yourself," Tessa said, her voice caustic. "It's not fun when people say things that make you feel bad, huh?"

Shane frowned. "If you're trying to tell me that this is how Lycanroc felt, then you're doing a lousy job of it. You're only making yourself look like a spoiled puppy throwing a temper tantr– _oomph!_ "

He walked into Null's hindleg and staggered backward, muttering angrily under his breath. Null turned back to give him a disapproving look. "… perhaps it's best… if you keep quiet…"

"Ha!" Tessa taunted.

"… that goes for you too," Null growled, eliciting a frown. He walked beside Tessa and whispered, "… I thought I had told you… that the best way to get him to change… is to be a good role model. He's right… you're acting foolish."

"That went right out the window the second his stupidity got me in a situation where I could get kicked out of the guild," Tessa said, and then walked forward. Null hung his head, sighing. He trudged forward after his teammate, while Shane followed him, boring visual holes into the ground.

As they walked down another incline, Tessa's aura feelers twitched. "Hold up," she whispered, "I think someone else is here."

"Well, yeah, we've seen tons of wild Pokémon," Shane scoffed.

"No, I mean someone a bit stronger."

"This is preposterous. I'm getting the same signal everywhere. There's no way for me to localize this energy pattern with so much interference."

Shane frowned. "That's one strange voice," he said. "But he doesn't sound all that threatening. Let's just move along and ignore whoever he is."

"Maybe we ought to wait and see if he leaves?" Tessa proposed.

"Oh no, I'm not sitting around in this musty cave," Shane growled. He walked forward, hip-checking Tessa in the process. "If you're not going to lead anymore, then move aside." He descended down the rest of the incline and entered a flattened area.

 _Bwoop! Bwoop! Bwoop!_

A beeping alarm made Shane tense up. He turned to the right side of the room and found Sticky floating by the wall. "And just _what_ are you supposed to be?" Shane asked. "If you're a Pokémon in distress, then I can help. But you've got to shut off that awful alarm. You'll wake up all the wild Pokémon here!"

"My sincerest apologies."

Sticky turned around to face Shane. "I am referred to as Sticky, however I understand the inhabitants here refer to one another by species name. So, my species designation is Poipole."

Shane cocked his head in confusion. "Your species name is just a color? What a joke!" He then noticed the alarm was coming from the harness on Sticky's chest. "Hey!" Shane narrowed his eyes at Sticky. "That's just like the thing Gallian had on. What's going on here? Are you working for the Prism Virus?"

That statement drew not only a panicked expression from Sticky, but footsteps from behind Shane. His teammates hastily caught up to him. "You know Gallian? Where is he? Please tell us," Tessa called out.

"Drat," Sticky muttered, fidgeting his nubby hands. "This is precisely the type of predicament Gallian warned the captain about. He will undoubtedly be incensed at this development." Sticky raised up his arms. "Attention, terrestrials. I am doing routine reconnaissance of this subterranean habitat. I mean you no harm. Please, continue about your business."

"Fat chance of that," Shane growled. "If you're in league with Gallian, then you're working for the Prism Virus and that makes you the enemy."

"Prism Virus?" Sticky gasped. He looked away from Shane and whispered, "It must be further encroaching on these terrestrials." He cleared his throat. "I am afraid that such a term does not register any…" His voice trailed off as he turned to face Null. Sticky's jaw dropped.

"Hey, don't ignore me," Shane said. "Riolu, what's this stupid Pokémon's deal?"

"Pokémon?" Tessa cocked an eyebrow. "I've never seen a Pokémon like that before."

Shane's brows raised. "So, what, is it an alien then? Oh, that's just great. The Prism Virus is an _alien virus._ Because this wasn't messed up enough, already." He snorted out frost. "Well, I'm not about to let this jerk get away."

"Get away? You should be the ones attempting evacuation!" Sticky yelped, hovering back from the group. "Do you not realize you are in the company of a dangerous monstrosity?"

Null's muscles tightened up and he let loose a low growl. Tessa stood in front of him and thrust her arms to the side. "You leave Null alone! He's part of our team."

Sticky's eyes widened. "I am afraid that that is an unacceptable response, terrestrial," he declared. "This failed experiment is a threat to those of us with ultra auras. Though my team adheres to our Ultra Recon Squad's nonaggression policy, I'm sure my captain would overlook it in this instance. Your friend must be immediately neutralized. Please surrender him to me."

Null's head fell toward the ground. "… experiment?" he rasped.

"So, he _is_ a total freak, then? I knew it!" Shane scoffed. He shook his head at Tessa. "And you actually want to be his friend. You're really something, you know that?"

"I am quite surprised that this experiment has not already attempted to eviscerate you," Sticky said, looking directly at Shane. "Your presence triggered my scanner. You display a perplexingly substantial ultra aura for one of such minuscule stature."

Shane's smirk faded to a look of confusion. "Ultra… aura?" He looked at Tessa. "You're the aura reader. What's this freak talking about?"

"I don't know," Tessa said. "It just sounds like an ultra-powerful aura, to me."

"Gee, thanks, Brock. Never would've guessed that on my own," Shane deadpanned.

"What did you just call me?" Tessa growled.

"Ultra auras are energy signatures displayed by anyone who has been exposed to a particular type of radiation as a result of traversing Ultra Space," Sticky explained.

"Okay, that's it. I know when I'm being messed with, and I've had enough of it," Shane said, eyes narrowing in anger. "I was willing to give you the benefit of the doubt because you also thought Null's a freak show, but you're clearly just as obnoxious as Gallian is."

"Your hostility is unnecessary," Sticky said. "Simply surrender the experiment and I will leave you both in peace."

"I'm not about to let you take Null," Tessa responded.

"Very well. Though my combat skills are lacking, it behooves me to utilize force. Gallian said I should be able to do an adequate job defending myself," Sticky exclaimed. He raised his nubby arms, and blobs of purple toxins formed up in them.

"Oh, _come on!_ Another poison-type? I'm getting sick of this nonsense. Literally and figuratively," Shane hissed. He released the icy energy gathering in his mouth, trying to bathe Sticky in it. Sticky easily hovered over it and launched the poisonous globules downward. One of them smacked Shane directly in the face, causing him to stagger back with an agonized howl. Tessa jumped out of the way out of the second one.

Null gathered air around his foreleg and sent a wind blade up in Sticky's direction. Sticky once again skirted the attack, gathering more poisonous sludge in the sacs on his head. "Riolu," Shane said, coughing, "gimme a pecha berry. This jerk's slinging Toxics around!"

Purple splotches now coated Shane's fur. Tessa glowered at Shane. "I just _knew_ you were gonna end up dipping into _my_ item reserves," she said. Null appeared by her side and flicked a foreleg skyward, shooting an air blade in Sticky's direction. Sticky held his ground and allowed the attack to strike. He fought through the pain and pointed his head in Shane's direction.

"… look out… human!" Null called. Shane looked over his shoulder in time to see streams of purple ooze raining down on him from Sticky's location. He dove forward, sliding across the cave floor on his belly.

"Pity, I missed," Sticky declared stoically. "I should not have tried withstanding that attack. It clearly impacted my aim."

"Pecha berry, now!" Shane ordered, glaring at Tessa. "If I get Venoshocked while I'm poisoned, we're gonna start dipping into _our_ Reviver Seed supply."

Tessa rolled her eyes and produced the berry in question. Sticky's eyes gleamed at the sight of the fruit and he pressed the central gemstone on his harness.

 _Click!_

Just as Tessa tossed the pecha berry to Shane, she stepped on a glass tile, breaking it. She looked up and watched the berry expand outward, taking on the form of a bulky Carracosta. It completely flattened Shane, who could only squeal in fright at the turn of events.

"What the... he turned the berry into a Carracosta? How?" Tessa said, recoiling in shock. Null looked up in time to see Sticky pressing the gem on his harness again. Null looked around the room and noticed several flashes of purple on the ground. Glass tiles appeared for a split second, before vanishing. When Sticky finished, Null thrust a foreleg forward to shoot air blades at him. Sticky descended toward the ground and gathered more toxic blobs in his nubby hands.

"Nrrrgggh! Somebody… help… me!" Shane wheezed, thrashing about beneath Carracosta. The newly-summoned enemy seemed to get over its momentary confusion and stand up. It turned around, formed a rock between its flippers, and shot it into Shane from point-blank range. Shane howled in pain as the attack buried him underground.

"Riolu… go help… Vulpix," Null ordered from across the cave. He and Tessa managed to jump back from the toxic blobs that Sticky threw at them.

"Me? Why do I have to help him? He's the one who escalated things, as usual," Tessa growled.

"Just do it!" Null roared, to Tessa's surprise. "I'm… the one… this guy's after. Don't… get yourself hurt… protecting me."

"But…"

Null shook his head about, hissing loudly. Tessa quickly got the message and ran in Shane's direction. Sticky anticipated this, however. The gemstone in his harness opened up and produced a small seed that he hurtled at Tessa. She wasn't prepared for the projectile, so it struck her in the head. Pink gas washed across her body. Tessa flopped onto her belly, snoring loudly.

Sticky nodded in satisfaction, only for his smile to disappear when he saw Null charging him down, claws glowing bright white. He quickly pointed his head at Null and blasted purple streams at him. Null managed to sidestep the attack. But in the process, he stepped on one of the glass tiles Sticky had summoned. Sickly-purple spikes popped up around him and dug into his foreleg. With a groan, Null staggered forward. Purple splotches appeared along his hide.

However, much to Sticky's surprise, the splotches immediately vanished and Null resumed his charge. He lunged at Sticky and swiped at him. Null's claws hammered Sticky into the ground. Null prepared to follow that attack up, but Sticky blasted him in the helmet with a stream of purple venom, forcing him backwards.

"So, you armed yourself with an anti-poison apparatus," Sticky said. He looked down and saw the looplet around Null's foreleg. "Ah, yes. The device you terrestrials use to bolster your abilities when exploring. I should have expected something like this."

"Heeeeeeey! Where's my pecha berry?" Shane whined, sprawling out on his belly to dodge a set of rocks Carracosta shot at him. "What's the hold up, Tessa?" He poked his head up and his eyes flashed pink. Psychic waves burst forth from Shane's body, knocking Carracosta onto its back. It landed directly on a purple tile, scattering toxic spikes all around it. Carracosta flailed its limbs about, desperately trying to right itself.

Shane staggered to his feet and scrambled over to Tessa, doing his best to skirt the purple tiles Sticky had scattered. Sticky spotted Shane and again opened the gemstone in his harness. But before he could grab the item he wanted, Null slammed into him, sending black energy through Sticky's torso. Sticky petered backward and pulled an oran berry out of his harness. He quickly ingested it, restoring some of his vitality.

Over at the other side of the cavern, Carracosta still struggled to right itself and now had poisonous blotches across its body. Shane repeatedly smacked Tessa's snout until her eyes fluttered open. "Hey! What's the big idea?" she hissed.

"You let yourself get put to sleep, doofus!" Shane snarled. "Give me my pecha berry, _now_. I feel like I could collapse any second."

Null realized Sticky could attempt to interrupt the item exchange again, so he charged Sticky down. Sticky's eyes widened and he quickly ascended. He gathered a ball of orange acid between his hands and chucked it down at Null, who evaded the attack. In the process, Null ran past Sticky, whose head tilted in confusion. Null's helmet then gained a metal sheen. He ran directly into the cave wall. The shockwave from his collision raced up above him.

Sticky yelped as shards of rock rained down on him from the ceiling, sending him crashing into the ground. Across the cave, Shane had managed to heal up, but Carracosta had righted itself. Furious, Carracosta surged forward on a jet of water. Tessa just barely managed to evade the attack but Shane was smacked in his side. The water drenched him and knocked him to his belly.

Tessa managed to get behind Carracosta. Her palm lit up with aura and she hammered Carracosta in its shell. Howling, Carracosta lumbered forward, giving a weary Shane the opportunity to engulf it in psychic waves. They exploded around Carracosta, upending itonce again. Unfortunately, Shane neglected to account for Tessa's positioning. Tessa yipped in fright and dove to the ground to dodge the falling Carracosta.

It struck the ground and disappeared in a puff of smoke. At the same time, Tessa hit one of the remaining glass tiles. Toxic spikes appeared all around her. They pricked her arms and legs, drawing a pained whimper. Sticky noticed the development and ascended to dodge a swipe of Null's talons. He pointed his head sideways and sent purple bursts racing toward Tessa.

Shane leaped out in front of her and blew out a large cloud of frost. He froze the poisonous streams solid and they dropped to the ground, where they shattered harmlessly. "You can thank me later," he said.

"Thank you?" Tessa hissed, scrambling to pull out a pecha berry. "This was all your fault! How could you not know I was behind Carracosta? Were you _trying_ to crush me?"

"I didn't know, okay!" Shane barked. "Unlike a certain someone, who's _really_ starting to twist my tails, I don't have awesome aura-sensing powers."

"It's called depth perception, loser!" Tessa snarled, shoving Shane's shoulders.

Shane's left eye twitched and he snorted ice tufts at Tessa. "Don't you dare shove me like that. I'm not the one you're supposed to be fighting," Shane growled.

"Well, I was _hoping_ we wouldn't have to fight anyone. But you got that creepy purple guy all hot and bothered. Because you can't seem to open your mouth without making _someone_ mad," Tessa hissed.

Shane glowered. "You certainly didn't help things! We don't need to protect Null. Didn't you hear the alien? He's some sort of failed experiment. In other words, a waste of our time and energy!"

Null skidded to a halt in front of them just as Shane finished that statement. He whirled on Shane, an enraged look in his eyes. "Oh, don't give me that," Shane said. "You know it's tr–"

A multicolored blast struck both Shane and Tessa, rendering them as stiff as statues. Null looked up in time to see a metal rod evaporate from Sticky's hands. "There, that ought to quiet you two down," Sticky said. "Now I do not need to split my focus anymore." Null didn't like this new development. He whipped a foreleg forward. An air blade raced toward Sticky, smacking him in the side.

Sticky hovered backward and produced another oran berry. He quickly devoured it and dusted himself off. "Even with your abilities inhibited, your strength is frightening," Sticky said. "Perhaps I can synthesize a trap to hinder you further?" The gemstone on his harness glowed and Sticky prepared to press it.

"… what do you mean… abilities inhibited?" Null wheezed. "And… why are… you calling me… a failed experiment?"

Sticky produced a glimmering tile and hurled it at Null. He wasn't expecting the projectile and it smacked his helmet, shattering on impact. A chilling sensation ran down Null's foreleg. He lifted it up, only to see his looplet had turned to stone. The emeras within it were drained of their colors. Null hissed angrily and charged down Sticky.

However, Sticky was much faster, and moved to his right. He gathered blobs of poison in his hands and tossed them right at Null, who managed to pivot and run toward the poison. Null's helmet turned to solid steel. He lowered his head and the toxins harmlessly splashed against his helmet. Sticky's face blanched and, seconds later, Null charged into him. This finally knocked the alien out of the air and down to the ground.

Null lumbered toward Sticky. "Do you… know who I am?" he panted. "Tell me… why do I… hear all these voices? Why can't… I make them… go away?"

Sticky rolled backward and resumed hovering. "Hmm, so your creators tampered with your memories, did they?" He rubbed his forehead. "Yet, your aggression levels have clearly spiked at the sight of me. Which means, on some subconscious level, you still acknowledge ultra auras."

Null roared in frustration and slung a line of air crescents at Sticky. Sticky turned and fired poisonous beams from the pins on his head. They struck the wind blades and resulted in a stalemate that splattered toxins in all directions. Null backpedalled, allowing Sticky to reach into his harness and produce a small seed. He hurled it at Null and a large explosion ensued, blasting Null across the cave.

This had the unintended side effect of causing Null to strike the petrified Tessa. She dropped to the ground, clutching her knee in pain. Sticky didn't notice this development and instead proceeded toward Null. "Well then, I believe we should wrap this up before you manage to do any significant damage," Sticky said.

Hearing that gave Tessa a second wind. Ignoring Shane, she rolled to her feet and sprinted forward, electricity gathering in her fists. She jumped onto a small rock and leaped at Sticky. He didn't realize his mistake until Tessa connected with his right temple. Sticky careened into a wall, leaving a sizable imprint, and slumped down toward the ground. Electric bolts crackled across his body, signifying Tessa paralyzed him.

Tessa ran over and helped Null to his feet. Null looked silently at Sticky. His gray eyes had glazed over. Tessa picked up on this and stomped over toward Sticky. "You do _not_ threaten my friend like that," she said. "Now you can look forward to a nice, long talk with Officer Magnezone."

"I have… made a grave miscalculation," Sticky muttered. He shakily reached a hand toward his harness and produced an Escape Orb. Tessa's eyes widened and she lunged for Sticky. But her efforts were in vain. The second he pulled the orb out, a multicolored aura encased him, then he disappeared in flash of light. Tessa wound up striking the wall. She fell back on her rear, clutching her face in pain.

"Oww!" she whined. "Okay, that didn't go over very well, but at least we fended that little creep off, right?" She looked over at Null, expecting a response. Null continued to stare emptily ahead of him. "N-Null?" Tessa squeaked, getting to her feet. She approached him, reaching out a paw. "Are you okay? Do you need a healing item?"

Null suddenly banged the side of his head against the cave wall, keening despondently. He dropped to the ground, clawing at his helmet with his talons. "Make them stop! Make them stop!" he cried, jerking his head in different directions.

Tessa bit her lower lip and ran up to her friend. But before she could get up close, one of his forelegs swiped at her. She barely jumped back in time to dodge. "Null, you have to calm down. I can't help you when you're all riled up like this," Tessa said.

"N… no… get away," Null muttered.

"But you need help," Tessa pleaded.

"Get away!" Null roared. He lumbered to his feet and sprinted further into the tunnel. His loud stomps echoed through the cavern, until they gradually faded out. Tessa's eyes widened and she quickly tried to run after him, only for a muffled scream to cause her to skid to a halt.

"Oh… right… Vulpix," she whispered, looking back at Shane's motionless body. Tessa approached him and kicked him in the chest. Shane abruptly regained his movement, in time for the air to rush out of him. He dropped to his belly, eyes watering in pain.

"What… the… heck?" he snarled, breathing rapidly. "You were just going to leave me there!" he accused.

"No, I wasn't," Tessa insisted. _'As tempting as it sounds.'_

"Don't lie to me! You were ready to book it after that freak," Shane spat. "And thanks for breaking me out of petrification when you were freed, by the way. You're a real class act. A _wonderful_ teammate. I'm such a lucky Vulpix."

"We have bigger things to concern ourselves with, you selfish jerk," Tessa growled. "Null needs our help. That little alien totally spooked him."

"Really? Are you sure that isn't what Null's _normally_ like?" Shane sneered. "Need I remind you that the alien is in league with your brother? If _he_ thinks Null's a threat, then what do you imagine the big guy would do to us?"

Tessa crossed her arms defiantly. "You're thinking backwards to suit your own desires," she said. "If that alien _is_ evil, and he's afraid of Null, then that means Null's on our side. Which means we should do everything in our power to help him."

Shane opened his mouth to respond, but couldn't think up a counterargument. He settled for snorting out tufts of frost and storming off into the next tunnel. Tessa followed him, grinning triumphantly. They proceeded down the darkest inclined path they had encountered yet.

"I don't see any sign of him," Shane growled. "And I don't hear anything eith– _yaaaaaaaah!_ "

Shane suddenly slid away from Tessa. She took another step forward and found out the hard way that the dirt along the cave floor had given way to water, which swept Tessa up and carried her down the tunnel. All the while, she let out a scream matching Shane's.

* * *

 **Paradox Navigator, Sticky  
** _And who could this creature be? Did he really call himself "purple?" What kind of Pokémon names itself after a color, anyway? Well, despite his minuscule appearance, he has a couple of tricks up his nonexistent sleeves. Like the ability to create trap tiles on the ground! It's believed that this ability is shared between the aliens dwelling beyond this world._

* * *

One of the things I love about the early PMD games is rival teams. But they kind of fell by the wayside with Gates and Super. Naturally, I had to bring that mechanic into this story. And with Team Fang having been arrested, who better to take their place than Team Paradox?

Next time: someone on Team Radiance finally reaches their breaking point. Who snaps? What sets them off? You'll have to read on to find out!


	32. Shattered Psyches

An update on my birthday? Sure, why the heck not. Just a couple of quick notes, since I can't respond to guest reviews via PM. MalevolentSin, glad you're enjoying things so far. And for anonymous, stay tuned. I won't leave you hanging.

Now then, onto the final update for 2017!

* * *

 **Chapter 27: Shattered Psyches**

 **~Moonrise Marsh~**

Shane and Tessa hollered in fright as they slid through what could only be described as a natural water slide. It zigzagged past several large rocks, before taking a sharp drop off a small ledge. They careened out of the tunnel and fell onto a very large, rubbery lily pad. They bounced about multiple times before coming to a stop.

"Urrrrrgh… my aching everything," Shane groaned.

Tessa slowly got to her feet. "I think we made it to the marsh," she announced, surveying her surroundings. Several floating wooden planks extended in different directions from the lily pad. They either led to other lily pads or some small wooden shacks sitting on large rafts made of bark. Above them, a dense fog obscured any signs of how far underground they were. Tessa could barely make out a few trees up ahead. Some had luminous orbs hanging from their branches.

Shane wobbled about on the lily pad. He looked around at the bubbling, dark-gray swamp water spreading out across the marsh and grimaced. "Blech. Looks like Pacifidlog got visited by a Garbodor horde." His snout wrinkled and he threw up a forepaw. "And everything smells moldy and mildew-ridden like my grandma's house." He glanced at the nearest tree. "It's gotta be these trees. Are those mold spores growing on them instead of leaves?"

"If I'm remembering correctly, it's a fungus that grows in damp environments," Tessa said. "But who cares about that? We have to find Null." She approached the edge of the lily pad and stared down into the swamp. "You don't think he sank down when he landed down here, do you?"

"Well, he's pretty dang heavy, so I wouldn't be surprised," Shane said. "Let's just find Oranguru first."

"Vulpix! We're not ditching our teammate like that," Tessa growled, glaring defiantly at Shane.

Shane rolled his eyes. "Glad to you see you've got so much concern for him but are willing to leave me petrified in the middle of a cave."

"I had a brain fart, okay?" Tessa harrumphed. "It happens."

"Please, we both know it was intentional," Shane scoffed. "Whatever. Look, from what you told me, Oranguru's a psychic-type, right? So, he could probably help us find Null. We're not going to get anywhere by ourselves. Especially with this fog."

"Okay then." Tessa stepped onto one of the planks, arms crossed. "Where should we look for Oranguru? Do tell."

Shane stepped off after her, shoving her to the side and nearly sending her into the swamp. "Isn't it obvious? Try knocking on all the shacks and see who answers," he said, ignoring the scowl Tessa gave him. Shane continued along the planks toward the closest dock. He approached the nearby house and rapped the door with his forepaw. "Hello, anyone home? We need some help."

The door opened up, revealing a shabby-looking fin. "Hiya, Relicanth," Shane greeted as the door opened a bit wider. "I'm with the Horizon Guild. My teammate and I are looking for Oranguru. Do you know where to find him?"

Relicanth yawned loudly. "His shack's in the center of the marsh." He shifted his position a bit, allowing Shane to notice a gaping hole in his house giving way to the swampy water beneath it. Relicanth backed into the swamp and disappeared underwater. Shane started to proceed forward, when he heard splashing behind him. He looked around and saw Relicanth was now bobbing in the water next to the dock.

"Go along those planks over there," Relicanth said, pointing a fin forward. "It's the second dock you encounter."

"Thanks," Shane chirped, before flashing Tessa a cocky grin.

"Don't mention it. But I oughta warn you, whatever you need Oranguru for, you're probably not going to get anything out of him," Relicanth said. "He rarely leaves his hut for anything. I swear, it's been months since I last saw him."

Tessa's jaw stiffened. _'That doesn't sound good. The Guildmaster wouldn't just send us for no reason, right?'_ Her brow furrowed. _'Unless this is a test of some sort. Oh gods, please let it not be a test.'_

Relicanth disappeared into the swamp and Shane hopped onto the planks. "You coming or not?" he called, walking off into the fog. Tessa jogged forward to catch up with him, but had to slow down in order to avoid slipping off the planks. This was one of the few times she found herself wishing she had extra legs for greater traction.

After a few minutes, the duo arrived at the dock Relicanth directed them to. They found another small shack. This one had an odd structural combination of mud and wooden planks. In fact, the roof looked like it could fall right off the place. "Jeez, how could anyone stand to live here?" Tessa wondered.

"Different strokes for different folks, I guess," Shane said, drawing a confused look from Tessa. "It's a human expression." He walked up to the door and knocked on it. "Oranguru? It's Team Radiance. We're here to take you to Sunflower Meadows," he called.

Shane stepped back from the door, expecting it to swing open. Nothing happened, however. Shane knocked on the door a bit harder. "Yoo-hoo, Oranguru! Your friend at the Horizon Guild sent us. Come on and open the door," he declared, his tone growing a bit more impatient.

The door suddenly swung inward, causing Shane to fall through the doorway onto his side. "Oof!" he grunted. Shane grimaced from soggy wood brushing against his chest. He looked up and found himself staring at a big, white orangutan. He had a lot of gray patches in his fur, and heavy bags under his eyes. Oranguru appeared to be wearing a purple shawl over his shoulders, but on closer inspection Shane realized it was actually part of his fur.

"Hello," Oranguru whispered. "Please, come inside. You must be tired."

"Um, actually, sir, we were wondering if we could ask a favor of you," Tessa said as she stepped inside the hut. Shane had already walked over and sat down on a small, raggedy carpet. "See, our teammate–"

Steam rose up from the other side of the room. "I just finished boiling some sitrus and mago berry tea. Would you care for a taste?" Oranguru said.

"We really don't have the time to–"

"Sure, why not?" Shane chirped, giving Tessa the smarmiest grin he could muster. She glared at Shane in response.

"Ah, an excellent choice," Oranguru said. "My mate and I do so enjoy picking out berries from Mellath Bog. You would think that murky wetlands would be awful spots for berries. But, surprisingly, the trees there seem to produce these ripe, _firm_ babies." Oranguru sighed and held up a swollen oran berry. Shane started drooling.

"Though, I must admit, my beloved mate and I haven't been up for venturing into the bog as of late," Oranguru continued, while Tessa tapped her foot on the ground impatiently. "Something seems off about the place. It's probably those doggone kids causing trouble with the wild Pokémon again. Why, back in my heyday, we would go about leaving treats for them in dungeon spaces. I even had a pen pal in Twilight Forest, if you can believe that."

Shane flashed his pearly whites at Tessa. "Having fun yet?"

"Stop sounding so smug," she seethed.

"Whoa, nice alliteration there, wordsmith. Bravo," Shane said, voice dripping with sarcasm. He turned away from her at the sound of footsteps. Oranguru approached them with a tray holding three clay bowls. He set the tray down on a log serving as a knee-high table.

"Oranguru, please, I just need to talk to you about my partner Nu–"

"Go on, try the tea," Oranguru suggested, pushing the tray toward Tessa.

"Yeah, come on, Riolu. We're this guy's guests after all. Wouldn't want to be impolite, would we?" Shane added. He leaned over and lapped up some tea, ignoring Tessa's exasperated expression. "Hmm, it's very sweet, but it's got a bit of a kick to it."

"Yes, yes, of course," Oranguru said, nodding slowly. "That was actually my lovely mate's idea." He raised up a hand and started pantomiming with it. "Just a single drop of tamato berry will make the tea invigorating," he said in a high-pitched voice. "Of course, the first time I tried it she had actually spiked the tea with quite a lot of tamato berry. I could barely feel my mouth for the next week." He shook his head. "Never did think of a way to pay her back for that little trick."

"That's all well and good, sir, but there's a matter that I could _really_ use your help with," Tessa said, fidgeting nervously with her paws.

Oranguru slowly sat back in his wicker chair. "You seem rather tense, child. Go on, try the tea. It should help."

Tessa bit her lower lip. _'Good grief. Just how dense is this old fella?'_ she wondered. _'Easy now, Riolu. You're supposed to treat your elders with respect, remember? And you don't want to give Vulpix the satisfaction of seeing you annoyed.'_ She reached out grabbed the last remaining bowl from the tray. Tessa sat cross-legged on the floor and proceeded to drink the tea.

"It's pretty good," she said.

Oranguru smiled. "I'm sure that will make my darling mate quite happy," he said. "Now that we have partaken in some tea, please, tell me what troubles you, child."

Tessa's eyes lit up and it was now Shane's turn to look annoyed. "Oh, you don't need to worry about her. She's perfectly fine," Shane said.

"Actually, we're missing one of our teammates," Tessa said. "He ran off while we were still in Tethys Tunnel."

"Ah, yes." Oranguru stroked his beard. "Never a wise decision. Why, I remember the first time I was in Tethys Tunnel and made the foolhardy decision to run along part of the path. I hit the brook leading to Moonrise Marsh and tumbled right on down. Sprained my ankle pretty badly. But, oh, my wonderful mate nursed me back to health." He shook his head. "If only the Tapus didn't constantly rearrange the tunnel's layout. We wouldn't have problems with you youngsters having accidents."

"Right," Tessa mumbled. "Anyway, we think he's somewhere in the marsh but the fog outside is really thick. We're not sure how to look for him. So, we were wondering if maybe you could use your psychic abilities to sense his aura for us?"

Oranguru nodded slowly. "Well, it's been a little while since I've given the ol' brain a workout like that. Mostly I just do these old sliding box puzzles I bought from a traveling Greninja merchant. Now that is quite the tale–"

"And we would totally love to hear it once we're travelling through the bog," Tessa cut in. "But right now, we _really_ need help finding our teammate."

Shane shook his head in disbelief. _'How could Guildmaster Metagross possibly be friends with this guy? He's the very embodiment of wasting time. Maybe he's gotten slow with old age?'_

"Very well," Oranguru said. "So, what kind of Pokémon is your friend?"

Tessa's expression immediately blanched. A grin wove its way onto Shane's lips. "Um… err… well…" She poked her index digits together.

"We don't know because the guy's some sort of messed up experiment," Shane said, earning a frown from Tessa.

"You do not know?" Oranguru parroted. "Hmm, that is rather interesting. I vividly recall my youthful days when I encountered a Pokémon species for the first time. There was always this sense of mystery and intrigue. Let me tell you about the time I first encountered a Decidueye…"

"Maybe later," Tessa interjected. "Isn't there anything you can do to help us?"

Oranguru sipped more of his tea. "Well, do you know his typing?"

Tessa's gaze fell to the ground. "N… no," she squeaked.

"The guy's a total freak of nature," Shane said. "Canine body like mine. But his front two legs are like an insect's mixed with a bird's. He's got a fish's tail and this massive stone helmet covering his head and neck. Frankly, I'm not even sure he's a real Pokémon."

"Shut up, Vulpix. You're not helping," Tessa seethed.

"Now, now. No need for harsh words," Oranguru said, waving both hands. "We can solve this problem together. Why, my lovely mate and I are quite the problem solvers. Just the other day, we had an issue with the door falling off its hinges. They had rusted over, you see. So, we took some metal coils we had lying around and used them to anchor the door to the inside wall. Quite the solution, eh?"

"Would you be willing to help us search for our friend, then?" Tessa asked. "I know we're supposed to be helping you out, and you don't like to leave your home, but I'd really appreciate it."

"Well, I suppose it would get the old heart pumping a bit before we set out into the bog," Oranguru said, knees popping loudly as he got to his feet _._ "Chances are, if your friend just wandered through here without any sense of direction, he ended up on one of the small patches of wetlands we have here." He started shuffling toward the door. "They're a bit deeper into the marsh."

Tessa jumped to her feet. "Great! C'mon, Vulpix, we'd better get moving."

Shane huffed out some frost. "I said I'd take you to Oranguru so he could help. I didn't say anything about scouring this place in search of Null."

An exasperated expression overtook Tessa's face. "Seriously, Vulpix? We're supposed to be doing this _as a team._ "

"Yeah, then take it up with Null. He's the one who ran off," Shane harrumphed. He then yipped in fright as a small psychic force brought him up to his feet.

"It is not polite to argue with a nice, young lady like Riolu, here," Oranguru chided. "Come along, child."

Shane scowled and trudged along after Tessa. "She's not my friend," he muttered. They exited onto the dock and it bobbed in the water, sending Tessa stumbling forwards.

"The wetlands are due north of my house," Oranguru said. "But there's also a patch to the northeast." He beckoned Team Radiance toward him, where two sets of floating logs led off in different directions. "How would you prefer to split this up?"

Shane stomped off toward the rightmost path. "I'll go this way," he said. "You two can go north."

"Oh no you don't," Tessa growled. "You should take Oranguru with you."

"Why? I can handle myself," Shane said, eyes narrowing.

"Because I don't trust you to actually look for Null," Tessa said, crossing her arms.

Shane rolled his eyes. "Well, bully for you. I'm still going by myself." He turned and walked away. Tessa quickly lost sight of him in the fog.

"It would seem you and your friend are at odds," Oranguru observed. "Did you consider talking out your differences? That's what always helped my mate and me when conversations got a bit heated."

"I'm pretty sure that's what led to our current situation," Tessa said, rubbing the bridge of her brow. "Come on, let's start looking for Null."

* * *

 _'Man, if I had a fire-type move like a real Vulpix, I could get this stupid fog out of the way,'_ Shane thought, cautiously proceeding along the path of floating planks. He could barely make out a small patch of light ahead of him, but the fog obscured his view. _'This is such a waste of time. Obviously Null doesn't want to be found. Why can't Tessa just take the hint and move on? What, has she got a crush on that_ thing? _'_

Shane shuddered at the thought. In the process, one of his hind paws came down on the edge of the wood and slipped backward. Shane slid onto his belly, yipping in surprise. His hind leg partially dropped into the swamp, causing him to grimace. "Ugh, gross!" he whined, hoisting himself back to his feet. He looked over and inspected the leg. A thin layer of gray slime covered his fur.

Groaning, Shane continued along the plank. The ball of light grew closer, until Shane could make out a luminous orb hanging from a large wooden stake that someone had planted in the ground. The orb illuminated a small island littered with crabby gray grass and patches of damp, equally-gray sod.

"How could anyone stand to live in such a dank, depressing place?" he wondered. "Actually, it's kind of the perfect place to go if you don't want to be bothered." His snout wrinkled. "If only it didn't smell like a pair of used bowling shoes." He approached the end of the dock and stepped off it. The ground squelched under his paws. Soft, sticky mud surrounded Shane's paws, making him grimace.

"Yo, Null! You out here?" Shane shouted, looking around. "C'mon, you big loon. Riolu's worried about you. Stop messing around. We've got Oranguru and we want to leave this place sooner rather than later." He swiveled his head about the wetlands. All he heard was swamp water lapping up against nearby wooden planks. His ears folded against his face. "Great. We're never going to get out of this stupid swamp at this rate. I should've taken Oranguru with me. Then I could've just ditched Riolu and finished this mission on my own."

He walked further into the wetlands. His gaze fell to the ground as he tried to stick to the patches of grass. Of course, they were just as soggy as the dirt. So, every one of Shane's steps created a splashing noise louder than the creaking of the docks. "Null! Where are you?" he shouted. "Man, this is useless. I'm going to shout myself hoarse at this rate."

A rasping, wheezing cough sounded. Shane jolted to attention. "Th… that you, Null?" he stammered. "Come on. Quit hiding and get out here already." Loud squelching footsteps sounded, and then a bulky outline appeared in the fog in front of Shane. "There you are. Jeez, what got you so riled up that you just took off like that?" Shane said, frowning. "Whatever, I don't care. Riolu's waiting for us. Let's go and try to meet up with her."

Shane got no response. Instead, the squelching noises got faster. The outline in the fog rapidly thickened. "Um, Null? You okay, dude?" Shane said, stepping back hesitantly.

A loud roar answered Shane, sending a shiver racing across his body. Shane had no time to process what was happening. Out of the fog appeared Null, helmet glowing with a metallic sheen. He charged headfirst into Shane, knocking him across the wetlands. Dirt and swamp water caked Shane's body.

"Agh! W-What the… Null?" Shane croaked, looking up. Null fixed his beady gray eyes on Shane and hissed angrily. Shane's eyes widened. "What is your problem? It's me… it's Shane!"

Null charged toward Shane. "You… beast!" he snarled. Shane scrambled to his left, squealing in fright. He dodged a swipe of Null's glowing talons. Null struck the ground instead, splattering dirty water against his chest.

"Oh, come on!" Shane hissed. "Who put you up to this, huh? Tessa? Braviary? Why does everyone have such a problem with me? I haven't done anything wrong this whole mission!" He opened his mouth and shot a blast of frosty air forward. It hit Null, who staggered backwards, hissing.

Null thrashed his head about, rattling his helmet in the process. "Beasts… must be… destroyed! Do it… do it! Destroy them!" Null shouted. Next thing Shane knew, a sharp blade of wind grazed his side. Shane gasped and hopped backward, wincing in pain. Null's helmet once again hardened into metal and he began charging Shane down.

"Stop it, you crazy freak!" Shane cried, turning and running away. His smaller stature easily allowed him to stay clear of Null. "Help! _Help!_ I'm being attacked by a _raving lunatic!_ " Shane screamed. But in looking back at Null, Shane misjudged his stride. His forepaw struck a patch of mud and slipped out from under him. Shane ended up sprawled out on his belly.

Shane's eyes widened in fear as Null shouted, "Get rid… of the beasts! That's why… we're here. It's what… we must do!" Shane turned around and shrieked as loud as he could. The sound waves missed Null, however. Null collided with Shane moments later. The force from the blow sent Shane reeling across the wetlands.

The ground slipped out from underneath the lower half of Shane's body. Shane started sliding into the water. He desperately tried to dig his forepaws into the wetlands to pull himself back up. But he failed to get a proper grip. In a matter of seconds, the remainder of his body slid into the water with a small splash.

His entire world went dark. Shane jammed his eyes shut and puffed out his cheeks, struggling to hold his breath. Slimy reeds suddenly brushed up against his backside. Shane couldn't help but gasp in surprise. Swamp water rushed into his mouth. Shane started to thrash about, utterly uncertain how to use his four limbs to propel himself up. This proved a poor decision. His struggling only succeeded in getting reeds ensnared between his tails.

Shane forced himself to swallow the swamp water and tucked his head into his chest. He felt himself sinking deeper into the swamp. _'I've only got one shot at this!'_ he thought. Shane tried to push the sensation of the slimy water and reeds out of his mind. He concentrated as hard as he could and then released a burst of psychic energy directly below him. The lack of traction underwater resulted in the attack rocketing Shane upwards.

He broke the surface of the water and took in a huge gulp of air. Unfortunately, he couldn't get close enough to the wetlands to pull himself ashore. _'Come on, Shane. Doggie paddle! Doggie paddle like your life depended on it… because it totally does!'_

Shane started sweeping his legs forward and back. Much to his delight, the movement managed to propel him forward. However, he didn't make a lot of progress with the swamp reeds getting in the way. He craned his neck up and took in another deep breath.

A blade of air whizzed past him, slicing the tops off several reeds. Shane rapidly blinked swamp water from his vision. He could just make out Null's blurry outline positioned on the surface of the wetlands. Null paced back and forth, shaking his head and snorting. He quickly gathered more air around his foreleg and launched crescents right at Shane, who yelped and ducked underneath the surface. The wind blades grazed Shane's mane, taking locks of wet fur with them.

Shane resurfaced and immediately started swimming to his right. _'There's got to be some other patch of land I can climb onto. I have to get away from this guy!'_

"What… are you waiting for? Get him!" Null snarled.

He threw his head to the left. "But… but he's my teammate. I don't… want to… hurt him."

Null then thrust his head back to the right. "He's… one of them. We exist… to eliminate them. He made fun… of us. This… should be child's play!"

Null groaned in frustration. More air gathered around his foreleg and he slung it toward Shane. Shane took in a big breath and submerged himself. All the while, he continued paddling forward. The surface of the water rippled from the explosive air. Shane's breath quickly escaped him as a stream of bubbles. He resurfaced, tilting his neck up to try and see in front of him.

Shane heard a loud hiss and the sound of creaking wooden planks. He didn't dare try to look at Null, for fear of leaving himself open to an attack. Null was clearly trying to follow him. Sure enough, another blade of air rushed past Shane, nicking the back of his neck.

 _'Gotta hurry… gotta hurry!'_ he thought. Shane's heart hammered in his chest and his legs ached from opposing the weight of his soaking-wet fur. He maneuvered himself into a set of reeds. Seconds later, several of the reeds behind him fell apart. A ripple spread through the water. Null roared loudly.

 _'Is he getting closer? Maybe I should turn around?'_ Shane thought. _'No… everything hurts. I can't keep this up much longer. I've got to get back on land… even if it's right where Null is.'_ He peered through the reeds, praying for some sign of approaching land. Shane's heart fluttered at the sight of a luminous orb dangling from the branch of a rotting tree. It illuminated another patch of wetlands.

 _'Oh, thank god! I'm almost there. I'm going to get through this,'_ Shane cheered. He took a deep breath and forced himself to paddle harder. A groan escaped his muzzle, nearly causing him to swallow a mouthful of swamp water.

"I don't… want to… keep chasing… him!" Shane heard Null yell. "Make this stop!" Null groaned.

Seconds later, Null shouted, "He's exhausted… this is our chance to strike." Shane redoubled his swimming efforts, and the edge of the wetlands soon came into view for him. He spotted what looked like a drier patch of land and steered himself toward it.

Shane glanced to his left and noticed that Null had slipped out of his view. He couldn't see any nearby floating planks, either. _'I should be in the clear,'_ Shane thought. He approached the wetlands and, with considerable effort, scissor-kicked with his hind legs. This drove him upward. Shane refused to take any chances. He opened his mouth wide and sank his fangs into the ground.

Grass and mud filled his mouth, making his eyes water as he tried to fight the urge to gag. But it provided him with the traction needed to hoist the lower half of his body out of the swamp. Shane released his grip and staggered forward, before collapsing on his side, panting heavily. Every muscle in his body burned.

"There… you are!"

Null's furious roar sent Shane racing to his feet. Shane looked to his left and spotted Null racing out of the fog. His helmet had turned to steel once again. Shane turned tail and ran in the opposite direction, ignoring the intense pain shooting through his legs.

" _Tessa, get over here!_ I'm being attack by Null!" Shane cried. He tried to focus on where he was running, but the fog made it difficult to see a path forward. Shane's eyes widened and he had to skid to a halt as he realized he was approaching the edge of the wetlands.

 _'No, no, no! There's got to be a plank or a dock around here somewhere,'_ he thought, looking about in a panic. But the clanging of Null's metallic helmet grew steadily louder. Shane turned to cut to his left, but Null had already anticipated this. Shane found himself on a direct collision course with Null. He turned to his left and opened his mouth. But in his fatigued state, all he could manage to do was cough up a couple of clouds of frosty air.

Shane screamed in terror as Null's mask bashed against his head. The blow upended him, immediately knocking him out. His unconscious form slid back across the ground, picking up mud, until Shane's head and neck dangled over the surface of the swamp. Null raised a foreleg, gathering air between his talons.

"One more blow… and he's gone forever," Null muttered.

"Null! What are you doing?"

Null heard Tessa's cry too late. He thrust his foreleg forward and an air crescent rifled toward Shane.

" _Null!_ "

The blast struck Shane and knocked him back into the swamp. Tessa sprinted toward Null, a look of confusion spread across her face. Null turned to face her just as she threw a small seed at him. Next thing he knew, a smoky-pink cloud enveloped him. Null wobbled about before collapsing onto his side, snoring loudly.

Tessa looked over to see Oranguru lifting Shane out of the swamp and lowering him onto the ground. He knelt down and placed a paw on Shane's side. It flashed pink, sending waves of psychic energy pulsating across Shane's body. Moments later, Shane coughed up a mouthful of swamp water.

"It seems we got here just in time," Oranguru said. "Yes, this is just like the close shaves my lovely mate and I ran into back when we lived near Glyphic Falls."

"Uunnnnnggh," Shane groaned. His eyes slowly creaked open. "W… what happened?" He looked up at Oranguru. "Are we… in Sunflower Meadows?" Shane sat up, blinking rapidly. "Wait..." His gaze fell on Null's slumbering form. Tessa knelt beside Null, rubbing his side with a paw.

"Are you serious?" Shane growled. "You're paying attention to _him?_ That psycho just tried to kill me!"

Tessa flinched and looked up at him. "Vulpix, it's not his fault."

"Oh, of course. How silly of me," Shane said, narrowing his eyes at Tessa. "You're absolutely right. Null's perfectly fine. I just decided to go for a nice, _refreshing_ dip in this nasty-ass swamp!"

"Actually, the swamp water really isn't that bad if you know where to swim," Oranguru mused.

"Shut it, gramps!" Shane barked. He whirled back on Tessa. "Alright, fess up! Someone put the two of you up to this, didn't they? Who wants me snuffed out? Braviary? The Guildmaster? Lycanroc?"

"You don't understand," Tessa said. "Null… he can't help it. He hears voices."

Shane bared his fangs. "Are you kidding me? _That's_ your big explanation? Well, I'm not buying it. Pokémon aren't schizophrenics. The guy's just a dangerous freak!" He glared at Null. "For all we know, he could've picked up the Prism Virus!"

"He's _not_ infected," Tessa said, stepping defensively in front of Null. "I know you don't like to think about other people's problems, but Null told me that when he gets his headaches he starts hearing a bunch of voices. The same thing happened with Bewear in Dewdrop Woods. The only reason he followed you was because these voices yelled at him until they overwhelmed him."

"Shut up!" Shane screeched, smacking the ground with a foreleg. He grinded his teeth together. "You don't get to defend him. Not after what he just did to me! He deserves to stay here and rot with these moldy trees. He's not a Pokémon… he's a freak of nature!"

" _You_ shut up!" Tessa snarled, balling her paws into fists. "Maybe if you had taken the time to actually be _nice_ to him, none of this would've happened." She looked back at Null. "I was talking to him after Lycanroc got arrested, you know. He said he doesn't blame you for the way you act around him. Why can't you just do the same thing?"

"Because I nearly _drowned_ thanks to him!" Shane thundered, snorting out water droplets. "A little teasing will _never_ measure up to that."

"And I nearly drowned because of you on our _very first assignment!_ " Tessa shouted, her fists flashing blue.

Shane's left eye twitched and a vein bulged out of his forehead. "Are you saying this is my fault?"

Tessa crossed her arms. "Well, you certainly haven't done anything to help the situation."

Shane's left eye twitched again. "Alright, _that tears it!_ " he bellowed. Shane sprinted toward Tessa, face contorted in rage. Tessa's eyes widened, but she backed up right into Null. A stream of slush washed in front of her. Tessa slipped and fell onto her belly. Seconds later, Shane barreled into her. The two canines tumbled across the ground. Their momentum carried them to a mud pit, which they fell into with a large splash.

Shane got the upper hand and pinned Tessa against the ground. Tessa thrashed about underneath him, but Shane had pressed his forepaws down on her arms, preventing her escape. "Let… me… go!" she screeched.

Shane responded by pushing Tessa's head into the mud with his neck. He leaned down and sank his fangs into her ear. The taste of iron filled up his mouth as Tessa wailed in pain. Shane let go of her ear and pushed harder against her.

"You don't get to tell me what to do anymore! I'm through listening to you!" he hissed, spitting a mouthful of blood onto Tessa's neck. Shane pulled his head back and smacked Tessa across the cheek. He opened his mouth wide and coated Tessa in chilled air from head to toe. Tessa cried out in frustration and struggled even harder. But her energy quickly faded as Shane's attack encased her in a thick layer of ice.

Once he was certain he'd frozen Tessa solid, Shane lumbered to his feet, howling angrily. For good measure, he doused the mud puddle surrounding Tessa in snowflakes, freezing it over. Shane walked over and scooped up Tessa's item pouch. "I'm taking this," he declared, "and I'm going to bring Oranguru to Sunflower Fields _myself._ When I'm done, you can bet I'm telling the Guildmaster all of this. And then the two of you will get kicked to the curb _where you belong._ "

He reached into the pouch and produced a sparkling orb. "Here. Unlike your stupid friend, I'm actually generous. When you thaw out, you can use this to _buzz off._ " He rolled the orb over to Null's sleeping form.

Shane turned and stomped over toward Oranguru. "C'mon, we're leaving."

"Are you sure about that? Don't you want to wait for your friends to recover?" Oranguru asked. "It is not wise to rush into Mellath Bog by your lonesome. I remember the first time I made that mistake…"

"Don't care," Shane said. He pointed his snout forward. "Get walking. Now!" Oranguru looked back at Tessa and Null. Shane shoved him with his snout. "I said get moving!"

Oranguru lumbered forward, sighing. Shane gave his former teammates one last scornful look before storming off after Oranguru, shaking bits of mud off his pelt.

* * *

Well, isn't that a happy note to end things off on? Sometimes you just have to hit rock bottom before things start to pick up. With that said, a big thank you to those of you who have showed your support so far. I hope you'll stick around, because there are plenty more ups and downs to come in 2018. Until then, a happy and healthy new year to all of you. And if you're reading this sometime in the future, mind sending me some winning lottery numbers?

Next time: Mellath Bog, feature a certain infamous Totem Pokémon.


	33. Cut Down to Size

Decided to put this latest chapter out a day early, as a thanks for all the support so far. Enjoy!

To MalevolentSin: I think you're thinking of Araquanid, which isn't what's showing up. Though I'll give props to Game Freak for catching everyone off guard with that Totem.

* * *

 **Chapter 28: Cut Down to Size**

 **~Mellath Bog~**

To Shane's pleasant surprise, a significant degree of the fog shrouding Moonrise Marsh disappeared when he entered the Mystery Dungeon. However, it didn't take long for Shane to wish for the fog's return. "I… really don't like the look of things here," he said, swiveling his head back and forth as he walked. The entire dungeon glowed purple, with the leaves serving as the source for the unnatural light. He turned to Oranguru. "Is this place radioactive or something?"

Oranguru raised a curious eyebrow. "I'm afraid I don't quite know what you mean."

Shane frowned. "Right, sorry. That's a human thing. Is this supposed to be a toxic swamp?" He stopped at the point where the path branched out in front of him, encircling a small lagoon. Unlike the marsh, this pond was filled to the brim with fluorescent purple liquid. It was even thicker than the swamp water. Shane gave a frightened squeak and quickly backpedaled as a large bubble formed in the lagoon and burst. Some of the fluid splashed ashore and dissolved, leaving darkened patches on the ground.

"This is definitely not how I remember this place looking," Oranguru said. "The dungeon used to have clear water. And it housed wild Pokémon like the Goodra and Lanturn families."

As if on cue, the pond's surface rippled. A fish lunged out of the water. At first glance, it looked unrecognizable underneath all the purple sludge. Its only distinguishing feature was an antenna that ended with a white, spike-covered ball of crackling electricity.

"Infeeeeeeeeect," the fish moaned. Shane wasted no time in sending a pink, telekinetic burst forward. It struck the sludge-covered monster, blowing it off the trail and into the woods. Shane heard a splattering sound and winced.

"The Prism Virus is here," he concluded. "And it's not just infecting Pokémon this time. It's polluting this entire Mystery Dungeon!"

"Would it not be wiser to wait for your friends to recover and join us, then?" Oranguru proposed.

A scowl crossed Shane face. _'No, I'm not chickening out here. I don't want Tessa's or Null's help.'_ He resumed walking down the path. "They're not my friends," he said. "Now, let's get moving before that mutated Lanturn wakes up."

Oranguru lumbered along after Shane. Both Pokémon took in their surroundings. The dark purple trees gnarled and twisted around each other. Some trees sported dozens of pointed spines. They pulsated with some sort of red and black liquid. Shane grimaced and fixed his attention to the pathway. But even that couldn't extinguish the unsettling feeling in the pit of his stomach. The numerous cracks in the soil glowed the same shade of purple as the leaves and water.

"You can do this, Shane," he whispered to himself. "You're the human here, remember?"

"There's strength to be had in numbers, you know," Oranguru said. "Why, there was this one time where my lovely mate tried to venture into Rem Canyon on her own. A tribe of dragon-types captured her, for the wild Pokémon living there are not fond of us civilized folk. Naturally, my first inclination was to dash in after her. But it was your Guildmaster who advised I wait so he could gather the personnel necessary for a rescue mission. Ah, what a kind soul he was."

"Guildmaster? You mean Metagross? Is that how you know him?" Shane asked, eyes still fixed on the ground.

"Guildmaster Metagross?" Oranguru said, raising an eyebrow. "I think you are mistaken, child. He is the top explorer in the Horizon Guild, sure. But I'm talking about Incineroar!" Oranguru smiled. "Such a charismatic fellow. He could light the room up with his infectious smile. And not just because he was a fire-type. Ho ho ho!"

"You're clearly just doing this to bug me, aren't you?" Shane huffed in frustration. "I have no idea what an Incineroar is, but I know for a fact that _Metagross_ is our Guildmaster. He's the one who sent us down here to help you."

Oranguru stopped in the middle of the trail. "That cannot be," he said. "I've been exchanging letters with Incineroar for the last few weeks. Perhaps Metagross simply conveyed the order on Incineroar's behalf?"

Shane's brow furrowed. "Look, you said yourself you haven't been out of the marsh in a while, dude. So, I don't know what to tell you. I'm still pretty new to the guild myself, but everyone there acknowledges Metagross as the Guildmaster. Maybe Incineroar stepped down and didn't tell you? It doesn't matter. Less talking, more walking."

He glanced over his shoulder and saw Oranguru standing there, frowning. "But he is such a close friend. My wonderful mate and I have gone on many excursions with Incineroar and his mate, Lucario." He scratched his head. This revelation caused Shane to stumble.

 _'Wait… so Tessa's dad is this Incineroar guy?'_ Shane gasped.

"Hmm… come to think of it… Riolu could've been their pup," Oranguru muttered. "I never met their children in person, you see, but Incineroar loved to talk about them. Oh, how I long for the good ol' days when my aura-sensing abilities were up to snuff."

"For god's sake." Shane puffed out a cloud of mist. "Look, sir, there's clearly been some sort of miscommunication here. Tessa told me herself that her mom and dad have been in the Grass Continent for quite a while. And neither of them will be returning to Horizon anytime soon. Let's put the issue to rest and get go–"

"But, there's no way we could have communicated so frequently if he's in the Grass Continent," Oranguru said. "This is quite perplexing."

"No, it doesn't matter," Shane growled. "Look, we're wasting time standing here and talking. You want to see your 'lovely, wonderful, fabulous mate,' right? Then we should be booking it through this bog. So, come on, already!"

Oranguru stretched out his neck. "Yes, I shouldn't keep my darling mate waiting, should I? Sorry, these old bones can't move as fast as I'd like them to." He arced his back and then proceeded forward.

Shane bit his lower lip. _'This is getting weird. Why would Metagross deceive this old geezer? He's not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer.'_ He started walking after Oranguru. _'And what about that Incineroar business? I guess Metagross is just acting as Guildmaster in his absence, then? But how could Tessa not think to mention her father is_ the actual Guildmaster. _That's a pretty big detail to leave me in the dark about this whole time.'_

Shane scowled and shook his head. _'No. You know what? I'll bet she did that on purpose. If her dad's the actual Guildmaster, then exploring really is in her blood. So, the only reason she's acting like this is because she hates me and wants to be rid of me!'_ A glare crossed his face. _'I'll bet she's probably not in any danger of getting expelled. Metagross wouldn't want to upset 'Daddy's Little Girl,' after all.'_

He gnashed his fangs together. _'Well, we'll just see about that. When I get back to the Observatory and show Metagross that Tessa's willing to defend a would-be killer, there's no way he'll let her stay. And with any luck, Null will get the boot too.'_

* * *

 **~Moonrise Marsh~**

Null's eyes slowly opened. Groaning, he struggled to stand up against the weight of his helmet. "What… happened?" he muttered, finally righting himself. Null surveyed the foggy wetlands. All he spotted was the luminous orb hanging from its tree and a small patch of blue ground giving off a fine mist.

"We fell unconscious!" Null found himself shouting. "The beast escaped us again."

Null jerked his head to his right. "No… shut up. That… that wasn't a beast. That was… a teammate." He clawed at his helmet. "I… attacked Shane."

Null stiffened. "Of course we did. He has an ultra aura. That makes him a beast. All beasts must be destroyed."

He walked over toward the tree, continuing to shake his head. "I don't… know what you mean. He's just… a little Vulpix," Null growled.

Again, his head jolted straight up. "We will not stand for this. Prove that purple beast wrong. Destroy Vulpix! Show him this infernal contraption can't contain us! Show that we are not some failed experiment!"

Null stiffened. He turned and banged his helmet against the tree, making a considerable dent in the rotting wood. His head throbbed in pain, but he also felt the hissing voices retreat from his mind. Null sighed in relief and sat down in front of the tree. He figured his best course of action was to find Tessa.

He got back to his feet and proceeded forward, approaching the blue mound in the wetlands. As Null got closer, his eyes widened at the sight of Tessa lying on her belly, encased in a thick sheet of ice. "What happened here?" he wondered. Null raised a foreleg and chipped away at the ice. He continued digging until he exposed Tessa. A layer of brown, hardened mud caked her entire body. Patches of ice clung to the mud. Null reached in and yanked Tessa out of the frozen mud pit.

Tessa didn't stir. Null cautiously placed a foreleg on her chest and felt it slowly rise up. That drew a relieved sigh, until Null noticed the item bag was missing. He did a quick scan of the wetlands, but saw no sign of it. Null hung his head. He then lay down next to Tessa and slowly curled his body up around her. Cold, slimy mud brushed against Null's fur and scales. He willed his discomfort away and tucked Tessa up against his shoulder.

Null continued lying there, trying to forget about his splitting headache. If he started shaking his head, he'd strike Tessa, and that would make things worse. Eventually, he felt Tessa stirring. Null slowly uncurled, allowing Tessa to wake up and roll onto her knees.

"I… am going… to _kill_ him!" she seethed, digging her digits into the sod.

"What happened to you?" Null asked, drawing Tessa's attention. Her eyes blazed with anger.

"Vulpix totally lost it and attacked me," Tessa spat. "I was just trying to come over and help you out, but Vulpix flipped out, charged me down, and knocked me into the mud. He pinned me to the ground and then froze me solid!" She lumbered to her feet. "Before I passed out, I heard him say he was taking _our_ hard-earned items and ditching us to take Oranguru to Sunflower Meadows." She stepped forward and grabbed the brim of Null's helmet. "He's going to try and get us kicked out of the guild. And all because he wouldn't just stop and listen to me for a minute!"

"… no. It's… it's my fault," Null rasped. "After battling that… little guy… in the tunnel… the voices… they burrowed into my mind. They were screaming at me. I couldn't... make them stop. So... I ran off. I thought… if I hid somewhere… they would go away." He lowered his head. "But… they got so loud… my head was hurting so much. Before I knew it… I was attacking Vulpix. I couldn't… control myself."

"Don't you blame yourself," Tessa scolded. "You couldn't help it. It was just like what happened with Bewear, right?"

Null nodded. "… yes. I… the voices…" He clawed at his helmet. "I… started speaking… what they were saying. I… was shouting… that Vulpix needed... to be destroyed."

"And I tried to explain your problem to Vulpix. But he refused to listen. And that's when he got mad and attacked me!" Tessa growled. "C'mon, we need to go after him."

"Are you sure… that's a good idea?" Null muttered. "What if… I lose control… and attack him… again?"

Tessa placed a paw on Null's shoulder. "I'll be there to help keep you calm. I'm not going to let anything happen to you." She gazed off into the fog. "And I'm not about to roll over and let Vulpix get away with this. We can get a fresh start, the two of us. All we need to do is catch up to him. I think if he's dealing with both of us, he'll keep quiet and listen."

She walked off toward the fog. Null jerked his head to the right and jostled his helmet around. "… okay. I trust you. Please… please make sure... I don't snap again."

Tessa approached Null's side and the two of them ventured off toward the marsh's exit.

* * *

 **~Mellath Bog~**

Shane forcefully exhaled, sending frosty air spilling out in front of him. The icy attack splashed up against a wall of thorny, pulsating, red vines. To his utter horror, his attack harmlessly bounced off the foliage. Worse, the red glow strengthened and the vines pulsated faster. Shane slumped over, panting heavily.

"It's… it's no good. I can't break through them," he said.

"You should take some time and think about how to approach this from another angle," Oranguru suggested. "A clear mind can tackle the toughest of obstacles, you know."

Shane's left eye twitched. "In case you haven't noticed, we don't exactly have the time to dawdle here!" he growled. "This place is crawling with infected Pokémon. And these vines are _definitely_ growing out onto the path."

A thorny-red vine launched out from one of the purple trees. With a startled bark, Shane sprawled out on his belly. The vine shot past him and dug into the existing wall of plant life. Small roots emerged from the new vine and wrapped around the wall. It wasn't long before red and black liquid started pumping through the new roots.

Shane rolled out from underneath the vine, his legs trembling. He stuck his snout in the item pouch and brought an apple out. Shane hastily devoured it. "See what I mean? We can't stick around here. This place is crawling with the Prism Virus."

"Prism Virus?" Oranguru parroted. "What in heaven's name is that?"

"It's… complicated," Shane muttered. "The quick version is it's an evil force turning Pokémon into sick, twisted monsters. Which is exactly what we'll become if we stay in one spot too long." He turned back toward the vine wall. "So, are you going to give me a hand with this thing or not?"

"I'm afraid I don't think my hands would do much good with that thing, child," Oranguru muttered. "My lovely mate, on the other hand, had quite the iron grip about her."

"I didn't mean literally! How stupid are you, huh?" Shane hissed. "Can't you use your psychic powers to boost up my Frost Breath? We might be able to get through that way."

"I'm not sure how much help I'll be," Oranguru said. "I don't quite have that spring in my step nowadays."

"Well, we're not getting through here if we can't bust this down," Shane said. He sucked in a deep breath and spewed a large gust of frost. As his cloud of frozen air struck the vines, a pink glow overtook it. This amplified the blast of cold and, to Shane's delight, froze the vines solid. Shane spun around and kicked the base of the wall with his hind legs. A large crack weaved its way through the frozen wall, and it came tumbling down.

"Finally! Now, let's get going," Shane ordered, proceeding forward. _'This is it. We've gotta be getting close now. And not a moment too soon. This swamp is absolutely terri–'_

Shane abruptly stopped, squeaking in surprise. "W-What the–? What is this place?"

Oranguru lumbered up beside Shane and started stroking his beard. The duo found themselves looking at a rounded area similar to the lagoon near the bog's entrance. However, there was no body of water. Instead, a basin sat in the center of the clearing. Pitch-black crystals peppered the basin floor. Each one crackled with ominous red energy. Similarly, crystal roots extended out from the basin, heading into the forest.

"Is _this_ what's corrupting the Mystery Dungeon?" Shane gasped. "What are these things?"

"I couldn't say," Oranguru muttered. "Look closely. The light is distorting over there. I daresay this is not natural."

Shane gave Oranguru a look of disbelief. _'Gee, you think?'_ he sneered. Shane cautiously took a step toward the basin. As he did, his eyes fell toward its center. There, a pointed black stone jutted out from the ground. Shane followed it upward, until he spotted a red, winged heart insignia burned into the top of the stone. The heart had horns poking out of its top and a piercing eye in its center.

 _'This is no crystal. It's a monolith!'_ he realized. _'Someone had to have put this here. Don't tell me Espeon and Umbreon did this.'_ He took a deep breath. "Well… this doesn't concern us. Let's keep going."

Shane walked around the basin, only to freeze mid-step when the ground started trembling. He scrambled backward, yipping loudly. Seconds later, a pink, drill-like structure popped out from the spot Shane had been standing in.

 **"It's carving time! Kekekeke!"**

Shane's heart leaped up into his throat as he watched the newcomer unfurl her limbs. "An… an infected Scyther?" Shane gulped.

"What are you talking about, child? That is definitely a Lurantis," Oranguru corrected him. "And here I thought my eyesight was getting lousy."

"Lurantis? Like, a praying mantis?" Shane said. "Because, where I'm from, they don't have four giant pink swords for arms. And they're not that big!" His tails shot between his legs. "Dear god, why is it so big?"

Oranguru stroked his beard. "Well, Moonrise Marsh is led by Totem Lurantis. If you're with the guild, surely you know how Totem Pokémon work, yes?" Shane was not in the mood to give Oranguru an honest answer. Oranguru dismissed Shane's silence and offered Lurantis a friendly wave. "Lurantis, how are you doing? I noticed you did not drop by for tea, yesterday. Were you busy here in Mellath Bog?"

In response to this, Lurantis pointed her upper arms skyward and shot a ball of red light above her. Shane's tails jolted stiff and he prepared to book it, only to notice the fireball had stopped and was now hovering above them. It bathed the clearing in orange light.

Shane's eyes widened in realization. "Wait… Sunny Day? So, it's grass-type, then. Perfect!" He sucked in a breath and blew out a steady stream of frost.

 **"Kekeke… I'm going to slice you up like a loaf of moldy white bread!"** Lurantis cackled. Her four arm-blades flared to life with vibrant green energy. She swung her lower limbs forward to absorb Shane's attack. Shane ceased his attack and sprinted backward. But Lurantis swung her upper limbs forward, causing two massive beams of light to pummel Shane into the ground.

"Agggh! Wha… what did she just hit me with?" Shane hollered.

"Solar Blade," Oranguru said. "It has been quite some time since I've seen that attack in action. And using Sunny Day to remove the charge-up time? Quite the strategy. Why, if my lovely mate were here, I'm sure she'd be complementing Lurantis… despite her aggression."

"Nnnrrgh… you're not helping!" Shane hissed through gritted teeth. He lumbered back to his feet. "Give me a little backup, here," he ordered.

"I'm afraid I'm not much for fighting these days," Oranguru said, shrugging. "Ah, if only you'd seen me in my youth."

Lurantis raised her upper right arm. Shane's eyes widened at the sight of a target reticle appearing on the ground and slowly approaching him. "News flash, you old geezer. This thing's trying to kill us! I don't care if you're old, just help me out!" he yelped and sprinted away from the targeting reticle. It instead maneuvered toward Oranguru. The second the reticle contacted Oranguru's body, it turned red. Lurantis' eyes gleamed and her raised arm shot forward like a pointed rocket.

Oranguru barely managed to form a sparkling blue shield around him, blocking the attack. Lurantis whipped her limb backward, causing her arm to retract. **"Your shields will fall, you worthless scum. Kekeke!"**

"Hmm," Oranguru hummed, stroking his beard, "why would Lurantis be able to use Smart Strike? That doesn't sound quite right. What is going on here?"

Shane quickly shot a gust of icy air forward while Lurantis continued to focus on Oranguru. It successfully struck her right side, sending her stumbling backwards with a hiss. Her attention immediately diverted to Shane. He took off, glancing into the item pouch. "C'mon, c'mon. There's gotta be _something_ in here I can use to deal with he– meeeep!"

Shane skidded to halt and a giant blade of green light slammed down in front of him, missing his snout by inches. He looked up and saw a second green blade careening down toward him. Shane gritted his teeth and leaped over the Solar Blade that had missed him. He just barely managed to clear the beam of light and land safely on the other side.

"Hey, old man! Now's your chance!" Shane yelled. He opened his mouth and spewed a large cloud of frost in Lurantis' direction. Lurantis stuck her limbs out. To Shane's utter horror, her arms started spinning around her body while her head and legs remained stationary. Her spinning blades easily parted his attack. But they proved to be useless against a sudden blast of psychic energy that erupted behind her.

Lurantis gasped and abruptly stopped her spinning. **"Rrrr… why won't you let me slice you up?"** She stomped her feet about angrily and raised her upper limbs. Two targeting icons started moving toward either side of her. Shane immediately stuck his snout into the item pouch.

 _'I've just gotta think about what I want, right?'_ he figured. _'C'mon… stun seed, where are you? I know Tessa's bound to have at least one after that Parasect business.'_

Something sharp contacted Shane's tongue. He hoisted his snout out of the pouch, only to realize the targeting reticle was about to lock onto him. He sprinted to his left and spat the stun seed forward. Lurantis saw this coming, however, and raised up one of her lower limbs. Green energy crackled across it and she sliced the seed at a diagonal angle. Lurantis' cursors contacted both Shane and Oranguru and she launched her upper arms forward.

Shane was astonished by the speed of the attack and had no means to evade it. Lurantis' metallic blade smacked him on the side of his head, making his entire world go white. _'No… not again! I can't have this happen again!'_ He staggered forward in a daze, desperately snapping at air while he tried to get into the item pouch.

 **"Kekeke! First, I'll slice off your silky little tails. Then I'll skin the fur off your hide and knit it into a beautiful vest,"** Lurantis giggled, withdrawing her limbs. Shane's vision returned to him and he plucked an oran berry from the item pouch. At the same time, another small blast of psychic energy struck Lurantis. She stumbled to her left. **"Oh, you want to be infected first?"** she said, looking up at Oranguru. **"Your fur isn't silky soft, but I can still slash it up real nice."**

All four arms flared up with giant green blades. Lurantis slammed her lower arms together, looking to squish Oranguru. Her upper limbs spun around, attempting to clothesline Shane. He yelped and dropped to his belly, the solar-powered energy grazing his hair. Shane looked over in Oranguru's direction, only for his eyes to widen.

Oranguru stood clear of Lurantis' arms, perched atop Null's mud-soaked back. Panting heavily, Null sat down to let Oranguru climb off. Tessa sprinted out from behind Null, paws glowing bright blue, and smacked Lurantis' lower arms. Lurantis recoiled and withdrew her limbs.

"What are you doing here?" Shane growled.

"Saving your ugly hide, that's what," Tessa sneered. "Actually, scratch that, we're here for Oranguru. You're just collateral, as far as I'm concerned."

"I had everything under control here," Shane hissed. "I gave you that Escape Orb. Why didn't you just use it?"

Lurantis shook the stars from her vision. **"Newcomers? Fantastic! I'll paint the soil into a beautiful mosaic of fur and blood. Kekekeke!"** She stuck out her four arms and four reticles appeared along the ground. Null stepped forward and hurled an air blade at Lurantis. It struck her chest and promptly knocked her into the basin. The reticles immediately evaporated.

"Because they only work inside Mystery Dungeons, dipstick. And in case you forgot, Moonrise Marsh _isn't_ a dungeon," Tessa growled. "Once again, you acted impulsively and look at all the trouble it managed to cause. Bravo!"

"Me? What about your hideous friend over there?" Shane snarled. "He tried to _kill_ me. And you were justifying it! What is wrong with you?"

"Hey! _Focus!_ " Null roared, turning to face the basin. Lurantis had managed to stumble out of it. She glared at Null.

Tessa and Shane stared each other down. "… fine. I'll deal with you later," Tessa said.

"Likewise!" Shane snarled, turning away from her to face Lurantis.

 **"Mind if I cut in?"** Lurantis shouted. Her arm-blades suddenly lit up with vibrant blue energy. She leaped forward and slammed her upper two limbs downward. Tessa quickly sprinted to her right, avoiding the attack. Shane was not as fortunate, however. Lurantis' arm struck his side. Shane hollered as the blow sent him reeling. He careened back and slammed against a tree. Shane slumped down to the ground, his eyes shutting.

"Okay. Anybody know what attack that was?" Tessa asked. Lurantis left no time for an answer, though. She thrust her lower limbs toward Null and Oranguru. The latter managed to form up a blue shield and deflect the attack, though he dropped to one knee from the effort. Null could not move fast enough and got speared in the chest. Like Shane, a powerful force sent him rolling back across the ground, skidding to a stop by the edge of the clearing. He struggled to get back to his feet.

"I've certainly never seen anything like it," Oranguru said. "Ah, the wonder of seeing a move in action for the first time. If only my lovely mate were here to see this."

Shane staggered over toward Tessa, flanks heaving. "Sacred… Sword. It knows… Sacred Sword," he wheezed.

Tessa raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me? Did you just make that attack name up or something?"

"No. It's one of those things I know because of my 'stupid human game stuff.' Not so stupid now, is it?" Shane said, voice filled with spite.

"Considering you still got hit by the attack, yeah, it is," Tessa replied.

 **"Huh? But my slashes should've left you for dead. How can you still be standing?"** Lurantis gasped, stomping about in a fit.

"Reviver Seeds," Shane replied.

" _My_ Reviver Seeds!" Tessa corrected. "That you stole from me, by the way."

"Hey, it'd still have gotten used on me even if you were holding the pouch. So, back off!" Shane barked. Their bickering was abruptly halted as an elongated green energy blade flattened Tessa from above. Shane had enough time to look up and whimper before he too was pounded by a blade of green energy.

"Rrrrgh… this is… all your fault!" Tessa yelled, her right eye now swollen shut. "If you hadn't stormed off, we wouldn't be in this situation."

"No, it's your fault for following me!" Shane countered, rolling back to his feet and shooting out a frosty gust.

Lurantis cackled and spun in place. Her arm-blades effortlessly diverted the attack. Likewise, the crescents of air Null shot forward were easily dispelled, leaving him hissing in anger. **"You think you have all the answers for my attacks, don't you?"** Lurantis growled. **"Well, if I can't slice you into ribbons, I can at least tear the ground to shreds and swallow you up in the process!"** She hefted her upper arms above her head and pointed her lower arms down.

 **"Kekekeke! Take this… Prism Drill Breaker!"**

Lurantis started spinning, transforming into a giant, pointed metallic top. Team Radiance could only look on in confusion as Lurantis tunneled her way underground, disappearing from view. They immediately felt the ground rumble.

"Tell me she's just using Dig," Shane whined, tails drooping between his legs.

Cracks appeared in the ground, with plumes of dirt shooting up between them. Seconds later, Null roared in pain. Shane and Tessa looked up in time to see Null flying through the air, limbs flailing. He crashed into a nearby purple-leafed tree. Null fell to the ground, landing in an unmoving heap.

The ground shook once again. A sharp tip of gray metal poked out in front of Shane and Tessa. Their eyes widened. "It's not Dig! It's not Dig!" Shane yelped, scrambling away from Lurantis. Tessa booked it in the other direction. Lurantis disappeared underground once again.

"How curious," Oranguru muttered. "That's a surprisingly long time for a Pokémon to stay underground."

"Yo, old-timer, look out! She's heading right for you!" Shane barked.

Oranguru looked down, where a small fissure was zigzagging toward him. He took a few cautious steps backward and raised a glowing hand. A portion of the ground in front of him exploded, showering dirt in all directions. But there was no sign of Lurantis where his attack had struck.

 **"How's this for an impression? Back Slash!"**

Oranguru looked over his shoulder to see Lurantis leap out from underground, two green blades raised above her head, ready to nail Oranguru in the head. Oranguru formed up a shield, but it immediately shattered when the first blade struck. Lurantis swung the second one toward Oranguru and he braced himself.

Only it didn't make contact. Instead, Lurantis was the one giving an agonized cry. Oranguru opened his eyes and spotted Lurantis lying on the ground a few feet away. Null lay on top of her, pinning her on her stomach with his superior weight. He proceeded to strike her in the back repeatedly with a set of glowing talons.

 **"Agh! Agh! Get off! You're hurting me!"** Lurantis whined.

"Shut up… beast!" Null hissed, then struck her even harder with his claws. The black crystals coating her back splintered. Lurantis appeared to stop struggling after that strike. Null didn't take notice of this, however. He raised his claws to hit her again.

"Enough, Null! You got her! She's down!" Tessa hollered, sprinting over toward her teammate. Null froze in the midst of his attack. He blinked a few times and looked at his glowing talons. Null groaned and shook out his head.

"See, what did I tell you? The guy's dangerous," Shane growled. While Tessa tended to Null, Shane went toward Oranguru.

"My, my," Oranguru muttered, leaning over and panting heavily. "That certainly… got the ol' ticker started. Haven't had a workout like that… in several years."

"Whatever, I'll give you an oran berry in a second," Shane whispered. "For now, let's ditch those two creeps and get a move on."

"Really? After they kindly rushed in to help us? That's certainly not very noble," Oranguru said.

"I told you I had everything under control," Shane growled. "Now, get a move on!" He pushed his head against Oranguru's backside. Oranguru stumbled forward. Shane spotted the other end of the clearing. "I think I see some light trickling through the fog. That must be the exit to this place," he said. "C'mon, we're almost there."

"Hey! Just where do you think you're going?"

Shane looked over to see Tessa charging him down. Null trudged along behind her, still looking a bit dazed. "I wasn't going anywhere," Shane lied. "Just tending to Oranguru's injuries, that's all."

"Fat chance. You were trying to run off again!" Tessa accused. "I can't _believe_ you. And after Null and I saved you from Totem Lurantis. You disgust me!"

"I don't recall asking for your help," Shane spat. "And I made it pretty clear back in the marsh that I'm not spending another second with you and your freaky-deaky boyfriend over there."

Tessa glared at him. "Then why don't _you_ use an Escape Orb? Null and I can finish this on our own!"

"Because I _need_ to keep Metagross pleased. Unlike _you,_ Miss 'My dad's actually the _real_ Guildmaster, but I'm not going to tell my partner because I'm a gigantic tool who plays everyone around her to get sympathy,'" Shane bellowed. The fight immediately drained from Tessa's eyes. Her limbs locked up and her gaze fell toward the ground.

"Yeah, that's right. I know all about your dad. Surprised? You can thank our travelling companion." Shane jerked his head in Oranguru's direction. "You think Incineroar would be proud of what you're doing? Defending a psychopath?"

Tessa's paws balled up into fists and she started shaking. "Sh… shut up," she muttered.

"Oh, have I struck a nerve?" Shane sneered. "Good. Because that's exactly how I feel! I don't know how the daughter of a Lucario and a Guildmaster could end up with such a warped sense of right and wrong. You don't deserve aura powers! You deserve to remain stuck a sad little Riolu for the rest of your life!"

Tessa's face contorted in anger, but Shane continued, "Hey, here's a thought. Maybe your parents didn't leave because they felt like exploring the Grass Continent. I'll bet they never actually loved you. And they went away because they were tired of putting up with your bull!"

"Shut up, _shut up,_ _ **shut up!**_ " Tessa shrieked. She charged toward Shane, fists glowing bright blue. Shane's eyes crackled with pink, psychic energy. But before either could launch an attack, the ground in front of them gave way. Both Pokémon could only gasp in fright as a large gray drill emerged from the ground.

 **"Kekekeke!** _ **Surprise!**_ **Heeeeeere's Lurantis!"**

Lurantis spread her four limbs out and blue energy blades encased her arms. She launched her left arms at Tessa and her right arms at Shane. At such close range, there was nothing either canine could do to stop the attack. The blades struck them both, shooting them back in opposite directions.

Shane crashed into a set of thorny, corrupted vines. Lurantis raised her arms triumphantly. **"And now for the finishing touches!"** she yelled. Lurantis approached the unconscious Shane. The black diamond encasing her chest crackled with red energy. It formed into the shape of a winged heart. **"Kekekeke! Enjoy your new life as an Ultra Beast, kiddo,"** Lurantis bellowed.

She thrust her chest forward and a spiraling beam of black-and-red energy shot out. Lurantis grinned as she watched it fly toward the edge of the clearing. But at the last second, Oranguru suddenly jumped in the beam's path. He had formed up another blue shield. It absorbed the beam and promptly shattered. Oranguru tensed up and dropped to his knees.

 **"Okay, that's fine. You know what they say: the more the merrier,"** Lurantis declared. She started charging up more energy in the black diamond, but a furious roar drew her attention. Lurantis didn't even have the time to turn around before Null's metal-coated helmet speared her in the back. The crystals draped over her shoulder blades shattered on impact. Lurantis crumpled to the ground.

She looked down to see the color fading from her legs. **"No… no! I can't get cut down! I'm supposed to infect! Mistress Zero, please don't take my spirit! I can still fight! I can still–"**

Lurantis looked over at Oranguru and raised a trembling arm. However, it immediately dropped back to her side, as the rest of the crystals on her body shattered. The remaining color drained off her body, leaving her a gray lump in the middle of the clearing.

Null stepped backward and exhaled deeply. "… it's over."

Shane stumbled out of the vines' remains. The thorns had taken off patches of his fur, and there were pink splotches in the fur that remained. "This is officially the work week of my life… ever," he said. He stuck his snout into the item pouch and emerged with an oran berry that he hastily downed. The pink spots disappeared from his fur. "You okay, old-timer?"

He looked at Oranguru, who remained down on one knee, breathing slowly. "Okay, I'm-a take that as a no." He walked forward, using his snout to pluck another berry from his bag. "Here, this ought to get your strength back up." But to his surprise, Oranguru raised a hand. He descended into a raucous coughing fit and brought his other hand to his chest. "Take the berry, for god's sake. You clearly need it."

"I'm afraid… I must decline… your generosity," Oranguru grunted.

Shane's muzzle stiffened. "Why, because you have your own items?"

Oranguru looked over at Null, who was walking toward Shane with an unconscious Tessa draped across his back. "If I could… just get your help… big fella," he muttered. Null pointed a talon at himself, prompting Oranguru to nod. Null shuffled forward. Oranguru used Null's shoulder to stand up. He leaned heavily against Null, who flinched from the sudden weight on his shoulder.

"It shouldn't be very far to Sunflower Meadows," Oranguru declared. "But I'm going to need a little support, iff that's okay with you."

"… I guess so," Null muttered.

"You know, that wouldn't be an issue if you just took the dang oran berry," Shane said.

Oranguru shook his head. "I'm afraid you'd just be wasting it on me."

 _'Well, yeah, duh. But I'd rather waste a berry than fail this mission after all this trouble,'_ Shane thought. _'Why's this geezer suddenly being so stubborn?'_

He noticed Oranguru and Null slowly trekking forward. Shane sighed and walked off after them. As he passed Null, he noticed Tessa starting to stir. Shane quickened his pace to avoid dealing with her.

* * *

 **~Sunflower Meadows~**

Team Radiance emerged from the exit of Mellath Bog and shielded their eyes. "Cripes, is it sunrise? We really spent all night heading through that horrible swamp?" Shane groaned.

Tessa yawned, then leered at Shane. "Well, we could've gotten a good night sleep if _someone_ hadn't thought it'd be a good idea to try and ditch his teammates to sneak off with our client," she said.

Shane's muzzle scrunched up. "I'm sorry. I don't make it a habit to stick around Pokémon that want to tear me limb from limb!" he barked, shooting Null a nasty look. Null turned his head away shamefully.

"It wasn't his fault, Vulpix. He really can't control his actions when his headaches get too intense," Tessa said. "If you actually took the time to talk to him instead of bullying him, you'd have known that! But, no, it's much easier to make fun of him... and to put down a scared little Riolu."

"There you go, begging for sympathy again," Shane scoffed. "I've seen through your routine, _Tessa._ How many favors did it win with you with your folks, huh?"

"You take that back right now or I'll–"

"… please… be quiet…" Null hissed, shaking his head.

Shane turned away. "Okay, well, here we are. Plenty of sunflowers," Shane huffed. He looked at Oranguru. "So, where's this mate of yours that you're meeting? There aren't exactly any hiding spots here. Don't tell me she wound up ditching."

Oranguru lapsed into a coughing fit before pointing a shaky arm in front of him. "There," he wheezed. "On the edge of the shoreline."

"But there's nobody over there!" Shane growled. "You're totally delirious, aren't you? Just let me give you a berry." Null helped Oranguru limp forward. Shane rolled his eyes and trotted along after them. "I swear, if this was all just some stupid ploy by Braviary to try and get us killed," he muttered, only for his voice to trail off as he approached the shoreline. His brow furrowed.

"What… what is this?" Tessa squeaked. Oranguru pushed away from Null and stumbled forward. He sat down in front of a small array of colored beads that encircled a large, plump, green berry.

"This is it," Oranguru whispered.

Shane's eyes widened. "Wait… your mate's… she's…"

"Already passed on to the spirit realm," Oranguru whispered. He reached a shaky arm out and placed it on the berry. "Passimian and I, we loved each other so very much. I was a staff member at the Horizon Guild when I met her. At the time, I was helping Guildmaster Incineroar and his assistant, Leafeon, make an important delivery."

"Guildmaster… Incineroar?" Tessa whispered, shrinking back. Her gaze fell toward the ground. Shane huffed and rolled his eyes.

"Yes, your father was the one to introduce us," Oranguru said. "That's just the kind of Pokémon he is, always putting other's feelings ahead of his own. Words can't express how grateful I am that he introduced me to Passimian." He gently rolled the berry back and forth across the sand. "He agreed to let me depart the guild to start a new life with her. Together, we took in all the sights Horizon had to offer. But this place…" His voice trailed off as he descended into another coughing fit.

Null stepped forward, but Oranguru raised a hand. "I'm alright," he insisted, taking a deep breath. "We always considered Sunflower Meadows special. Most Pokémon stay away, because they do not feel the trek is worth it. Nevertheless, we made the journey. And it proved to be a very special trip."

Oranguru reached into his fur and produced a yellow, crescent-shaped feather that dangled from a star. "Somehow, we had managed to run into a kind-hearted soul. I'm not sure why, but she looked the two of us over and gave each of us a feather. She said to think of them as symbols of our love. Ones that will dispel the darkest of thoughts and dreams."

 _'That's a Lunar Wing,'_ Shane realized. _'Big whoop. What does that matter?'_ He stole a glance over at Tessa and noticed her clasping her shoulders with her paws and shivering. He vaguely thought he saw her mouthing something. _'And what's she being so melodramatic over, huh?'_

"We ended up retiring to Moonrise Marsh so we could come here frequently," Oranguru continued, setting the Lunar Wing down. "One morning, however, I woke up and found that Passimian was terribly sick. I tried to offer her medicinal berries, but she refused. 'Take me to Sunflower Meadows,' she said. 'I'd like to watch the sunset there one last time.'"

Oranguru took a deep breath. "I must apologize to for deceiving you all."

"What do you mean?" Shane asked.

"When I made the escort request with the guild, I left out the part about this being a one-way trip," Oranguru said. He hunched over, breaking into another coughing fit. Shane quickly stepped forward.

"What are you talking about, old-timer? You seemed just fine up until that battle," Shane said.

"I wanted a team to escort me here… so that I could join my beloved Passimian in the next life," Oranguru said.

"No!"

Shane looked over his shoulder and saw Tessa running toward them, wild-eyed. "You can't… you can't do that!"

"I've been on my own for a couple of years now," Oranguru wheezed. "And I have grown so very, very tired. I'm afraid that it's simply my time to go."

Tessa's eyes teared up. "Puh-Please… can't you just wait another day? Or wait until we leave, at least?" Shane gave his teammate a look of disbelief.

"I understand that this is a lot to take in," Oranguru said. "I had expected that Incineroar would send a veteran team… not his own daughter."

Tessa stumbled back. "My dad… sending a team?" she squeaked, aura feelers twitching.

"Yes, he's the one I made the request to, after all," Oranguru said. Tessa sank down to her knees, staring at the dirt. Oranguru started coughing again. "I fear… that my time here is up. But, there's one thing I'd like to do before I leave." He looked over at Null and beckoned him forward.

"… what do you... want me for?" Null asked.

Oranguru held up the Lunar Wing. "Please, keep this safe for me."

Null's beady, gray eyes widened. "… but why me?"

"I don't need to be psychic to sense that you all are deeply troubled," Oranguru said. "I believe this can help you three find peace of mind." He reached over and stuck the feather into the sling binding Null's head crest. Oranguru patted Null's helmet. "Thank you all for your help," he said. "It was nice to meet you three."

He turned and stole a glance at Tessa, who was now sitting with her head buried in her thighs. "Give my regards to your parents, Riolu," he said.

A golden glow overtook Oranguru's body. Shane and Null quickly backpedaled into the field of sunflowers. The light became so intense, they had to look away. A brilliant, golden flash spread across the meadow. When the light faded, all that remained were the string of beads and the berry.

Shane's muzzle twitched. "I guess that's it, then," he whispered. He took a step forward, only for his forelegs to unexpectedly give out, bringing him to his knees. His breath rushed out of him and his vision grew blurry.

 _'No… something's wrong,'_ he thought. He tensed up, whining loudly. _'I'm… I'm…'_

He tilted his head toward the sky and bellowed, " _Help me!_ "

* * *

 **Four-Bladed Menace, Ultra Totem Lurantis  
** _She slices! She dices! And she carves up a mean tossed salad, to boot! This once-friendly Totem of Moonrise Marsh has seen her blades sharpened by the power of the Prism Virus. With two extra scythes at her sides, she can use a slew of new techniques to punish her foes. Why can she wield attacks she can't normally learn? Is this the Prism Virus' doing? Has something alien taken hold of her soul?_

* * *

First off, as far as references go, Mellath Bog draws inspiration from Torvus Bog in Metroid Prime 2: Echoes. And Oranguru was based off of Tahrust Inmee, in character from Ace Attorney: Spirit of Justice.

Anyway, I know some of you figured Team Radiance needed a bombshell to stay together. I hope "unknowingly leading a Pokémon to his deathbed" is sufficiently surprising. Note that, for all Shane's nastiness, he never brought up Tessa's parents. But now that he's crossed that line...

Next time: Shane and Null learn the truth about Tessa's family.


	34. Bitter Realizations

Another day, another chapter. BendyStrawBerry, glad you liked the reference, but please don't stay up too late reading. Sleep is very important; take it from someone with insomnia.

 **Content advisory:** this chapter contains heavy themes of depression and suicide

* * *

 **Chapter 29: Bitter Realizations**

Null was at a complete loss for what to do. Both of his teammates were unresponsive. Tessa sat curled up in a ball, rubbing her paws against the ground. Shane had collapsed on his side, breathing heavily. Null took a step forward, only to freeze as Shane's widened eyes met his. They frantically darted around in his skull. Shane stuck a forepaw out.

"P-Please… sir," he croaked. "Help… I need help!"

Null shuffled backward, shutting his eyes. "No, wait, don't go!" Shane hollered. "Call the police! Call EMS! There's been... an accident. I'm being crushed! Please, sir… my car…" Shane's forepaw fell to the ground, along with his head. His chest rose and fell rapidly.

Something stirred in in the back of Null's mind. Null reached a foreleg up and clawed at the base of his helmet, groaning.

 _He's vulnerable. We can take him out!_

Null staggered backwards, shaking his head rapidly.

 _Don't ignore us. We know you want to. It's what we were created for!_

Null stumbled forward, wheezing. As he did, however, a strange tingling sensation bristled his head crest. It faded quickly, only to be replaced by warmth spreading throughout his body. The whispers in Null's mind receded. He blinked several times and his gaze fell toward Shane once again. Null lumbered forward until he towered over Shane. He raised a foreleg, only to pause as Shane gasped for air and brushed a foreleg through the dirt.

Null closed his eyes and gently lowered his limb. He nudged Shane with a talon. "… hey… wake up," he muttered. "You're… having a bad dream… I think…"

Shane groaned. Null carefully stepped over him and found the item pouch. He stuck a foreleg into it and managed to pull out an oran berry. He rolled it in Shane's direction. At first, Shane didn't acknowledge the berry. Null bent over and pressed the fruit up to Shane's lips. A bit of drool trickled down Shane's snout.

"Hrm… what… what happened?" Shane groaned, blinking slowly. His blurry vision cleared up and he found himself looking directly at Null's helmet. With a holler, he pushed himself back across the beach. "Get away from me, you monster!" he shouted, scrambling to his feet. "I don't want you anywhere near me ever again, you understand?"

Null looked down at the berry in his talons. "I was just… trying to give you this," he whispered. He kicked the berry over to Shane and slowly walked backward, looking away guiltily.

Shane looked skeptically at the fruit. "And how do I know this hasn't been spiked with poison or something?" he said, leaning over and sniffing it.

"… I only… wanted to help," Null said. "You and Riolu… you both… slipped into shock… after Oranguru disappeared…" He looked over in Tessa's direction, confirming that she was still curled up in a tiny blue ball. Her body trembled, bits of dirt and sand trickling down her fur.

Shane reluctantly nibbled at the berry. "I don't know what her problem is," he said. "But what are we supposed to do now?" He looked back, cringing at his damp, muddy coat with numerous patches of fur missing. "We all look miserable. And after your little stunt back in the marsh, we're pretty much guaranteed to fail this mission." He narrowed his eyes at Null. "So, nice going, big guy. You sure helped a ton."

He glanced back at Tessa and shook his head. "I told her not to bring you along. She's got her friend Eevee's house to go back to. But what about me? Once we're kicked out, I'll have nowhere to live!" Shane's lips curled up into a snarl. "And Tessa called _me_ the selfish one."

A series of metallic clangs caused Shane to abruptly jolt to attention. He turned around and his tails fell between his legs at the sight of Metagross approaching them. "Guh-Guildmaster?" Shane whimpered. "What are you doing here?"

 **Fact: there is a shortcut to Sunflower Meadows located in Tethys Tunnel. Fact: I did not tell you about it because you cannot reach it once you get to Moonrise Marsh.**

Metagross' reply struck Shane as rather odd, but he didn't feel like questioning him. He looked at his damp, scratched-up, mud-caked fur and whined. "Guildmaster, please. This… this isn't what it looks li–"

 **Silence,** Metagross said. Shane shrank down toward the ground. Null stepped back, rubbing his helmet against his shoulder. Metagross looked at Shane and his eyes flashed blue. **Fact: your team encountered significant hardships during this mission. Fact: there were multiple points where you even attempted to abandon your teammates.**

Shane winced. "I… I can explain…"

 **Unnecessary. I have read your mind already,** Metagross scoffed. **Your callous disregard for your teammates created a hostile environment and nearly resulted in your death.**

"That wasn't my fault!" Shane blurted out, but Metagross' glare quickly silenced him. He buried his head underneath a patch of sunflowers. "Go on then," he said, soil muffling his voice. "Kick us out already. That's what you're here for, isn't it?"

Metagross turned away from Shane and Null. **By all accounts, I should remove you three from the guild. But I will not.**

"Really?" Null gasped, beady eyes widening.

 **Affirmative,** Metagross replied.

Shane's head poked up, muzzle agape in shock. "But you said that if we act out–"

 **Fact: I was referring to acting out toward Oranguru. Fact: analysis of your memories leads me to conclude that Oranguru was treated… adequately. Fact: you successfully brought him to Sunflower Meadows, per instruction. Conclusion: your team passes the assignment... by the skin of your teeth.**

"You're kidding," Null rasped, legs tensing.

Shane's eyes narrowed. "I… I don't understand," he whispered. "We did _horrendously_."

 **Correct.**

"And you lied to us!" Shane said, getting to his feet and baring his fangs. "You never said anything about taking Oranguru here _to die!_ What kind of sick, twisted punishment was this?"

Metagross' eyes flashed blue again. **You will be silent or I will change my mind and expel you,** Metagross said. **Fact: careful analysis led me to conclude that, regardless the assignment given, you and Riolu would argue to the point of creating a schism in your ranks. I realized that the only way to put an end to your caustic behavior would be to give you both an assignment that would ultimately shock you to your cores.**

Shane's jaw dropped. "But that's… that's…"

Metagross stomped a foreleg on the ground, crushing several sunflowers. **I run the Horizon Guild. I must work for the greater good. I do not care what sort of reputation I garner... only that I run a well-functioning institution. Your team was not well-functioning. Now that you properly realize the gravity of exploring in Horizon, I expect you to cease your reckless behavior and nonproductive squabbles.**

"How… how could you?"

Behind Metagross, Tessa had somehow snapped out of her stupor. She was on her feet, paws balled into fists. Her arms and aura feelers shook with anger. "You knew… you knew about all of this! And you didn't tell us. Why?" she said.

Metagross eyes glowed blue once again. **I made it very clear when giving this assignment. The purpose was to show you both that exploration is something to be taken seriously. That lives can hang in the balance.**

Tessa's eyes snapped shut. "You could have at least told us what Oranguru wanted! Maybe then we wouldn't have been at each other's throats the whole time," she said. "And… and…" Her gaze fell to the ground. "You pretended to be my dad! That's…"

 **I had my reasons,** Metagross said, facial expression unreadable. **Oranguru had always confided in Incineroar. I wanted to have this mission available in case your teamwork failed to improve, which is what happened. Therefore, I had to forge your father's handwriting to correspond with Oranguru. Yes, I resorted to deceitful methods, but I deemed it necessary for the greater good.**

The blue glow in his eyes faded. **Order: this discussion is over. Fact: your new badges and equipment will be conferred to you upon return to the guild.** He produced an Escape Orb, which wrapped the foursome up in bright, multicolored light.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Team Radiance stood in silence, watching Metagross open the Observatory's entrance. **Fact: we will proceed to my office in order to finalize the team dissolution.**

Shane looked down at the dirt. _'If we really succeeded, then why does this feel like such a crushing defeat?'_ He glanced at his teammates. Tessa stood facing away from him, arms wrapped around her chest. Null was completely spacing out. _'Oh… right, because I'm going to have to try and sleep tonight, knowing that right down the hall is a guy who wants me dead! And my ex-teammate is practically willing to help him.'_

He looked up toward the sky. _'What were you thinking bringing me here, Solgaleo? This is all your fault! My human life may not have been anything special, but at least I could feel safe going to sleep.'_

Metagross looked back at them. **Order: proceed inside. You are wasting my time,** he said.

Tessa shuffled away from the group. "I… I'm sorry… I can't," she whimpered. "I need… I need to be alone for a while." She abruptly turned around and took off running down the hill.

"Tessa? Oh, come on, you can't be serious right now. I'm exhausted! Let's just get this over with," Shane said, approaching the top of the hill. He spotted Tessa running down toward Aeon Town's central fountain. "For god's sake, I just want to go to sleep and forget all of this already! Get back here!"

He gritted his teeth as he broke into a run. His lungs screamed in protest and his legs burned with every step. "Tessa!" he wheezed. "Tessa, stop!" Ahead of him, the tip of Tessa's blue tail dipped into a side street. Shane tucked in his head in the hopes of increasing his speed. He glimpsed Tessa going around a corner and ran after her. "Cut it out, Tessa. You're being childish," he shouted in between gasping breaths.

Shane rounded the corner and found himself looking at a few houses arrayed out on either side of the little street. A brown house had its red, wooden door wide open. Shane slowly approached it, trying to catch his breath. "Tessa," he said, "Enough is enough. Suck it up, and get back to the Observatory so we can dissolve the team."

He heard no response. Instead, whimpers echoed from inside the house. "Seriously? You're crying? Quit being such a baby," Shane hissed. He stepped through the doorway, only to freeze up. Immediately, Shane's nostrils twitched from all the dust in the air. It took every ounce of his willpower not to sneeze. Despite the lack of light in the house, the living room was clearly lined with a thick layer of dust. It covered up every piece of furniture and every item in the house.

More whimpers sounded from a back room in the house. Shane cautiously made his way forward, passing a long, knee-high table covered in dirt. He reached a doorway flanked by a dust-covered bookshelf on its right side and a rusty metal stand holding a broken luminous orb. Shane proceeded through the open door, entering a circular room that, lacking windows, was even darker than the living room. He blinked rapidly, struggling to adjust to the complete lack of light.

"Tessa?" Shane called. "Get up. We're going back to the Observatory."

"… get out."

Shane's muzzle stiffened. "Quit it, Tessa. This is getting ridiculous," he said, stomping a forepaw on the floor. "I already feel miserable enough. So, can you stop acting like such a brat and do this team breakup thing so I can get on with my life?"

"I said _get out!_ "

Shane's eyes widened and he jumped to his right. A picture frame whizzed past him and struck the wall next to the door. Glass shattered all around Shane. The picture frame fell to the floor. Shane looked up and spotted Tessa's outline. After a few seconds, she came into focus standing next to a dust-covered bed. She stared at the ground, arms shaking, and aura feelers pulsating wildly. Shane shuffled over toward the broken frame and looked down at it.

There, in the bits of broken glass, sat a photo. He immediately recognized a younger Tessa and Gallian. Tessa sat on her brother's back; both had smiles on their faces. Behind them stood a Lucario. Her expression was relatively stoic, though she had the faintest hint of a smile. Next to her was a Pokémon that Shane assumed was Incineroar, given his cat-like appearance. Incinceroar's arm lay draped over Lucario's shoulder. Shane quickly realized Incineroar wore the same rainbow scarf he and Tessa each had halves of.

His brow furrowed. "This is about your parents, isn't it?" Shane muttered. "Yeah, Metagross shouldn't have pretended to be your dad, but it's in the past now. Don't drag me down even further because you've got such a big problem with this."

Tessa looked up. Shane's anger continued to build when he saw the devastated look in her eyes. "You… you don't understand," she squeaked. "I… I never wanted to watch a Pokémon die right in front of me. This wasn't what I signed up for. I can't deal with this!"

"And I don't care," Shane said, snorting out snowflakes. "Suck it up and move o–"

Tessa walked toward him, her eyes tearing up. "I can't just do that!" she shouted. "Why… why did he bring up my dad?"

Shane rolled his eyes. "How should I know? Look, why don't you just have Comfey help you?"

"She can't help me! Nobody can just _help_ me," Tessa said, getting right up in Shane's face. "Because… because…"

Shane shuffled back against the wall. "What, is it because you're the Guildmaster's daughter or something? Does 'Daddy's Little Girl' get some sort of special treatment?"

"No! I'm not the Guildmaster's daughter! And I never will be…" Her lips trembled. "Because my dad's dead… and it's all my fault!"

Her voice cracked at that last statement and she burst into tears. Shane gasped as Tessa shoved him against the wall. The air rushed out of him, causing him to drop to a seated position with his tails pinned under his hips. Tessa fell forward, burying her face against the side of his neck.

Shane's flinched from the contact, his anger abating in an instant. Two statements bubbled up from his recent memory.

 _You know, you're not the only one with problems. Err… I mean, your whole 'stuck in another world and another body,' dilemma is pretty big. But it's not like all the Pokémon you've met lead perfect lives. We have issues too._

 _If you really intend to do right by Riolu as her partner, then you need to start respecting her boundaries. She's been through a lot. More than you can possibly know._

 _'Oh my god… this is what they meant, isn't it? This is why Tessa's family is such a bitter subject for her,'_ Shane realized, Tessa's sobs making his ears fall flat against his head. Guilt bubbled up inside him. _'And I totally snapped and told her that her parents left because they didn't love her!'_ His eyes widened in horror. _'What have I done?'_

"I don't… I don't know what to say," he whispered, but Tessa didn't hear him. She continued to cry, sliding down from his neck to his shoulder. Shane looked around the room, desperately hoping for some sort of way to get out of this situation. He found Null standing in the bedroom's doorway, his gray eyes looking even more heavyset than usual. Null bowed his head down and slipped back from the doorway.

Shane awkwardly reached a forepaw out and tried to pet Tessa on the back. "Uh, there, there. Everything's… going to be okay?" he squeaked, though his statement was laden with uncertainty. "Do you, um, want to talk about it or something?"

A shove indicated that no, Tessa didn't want to talk about it. Pain shot through Shane's tails, but he remained seated as Tessa bawled her eyes out. _'Why is all of this happening? There isn't supposed to be this level of heartbreak until the end of these things,'_ Shane thought. _'Tessa… I'll bet she's been thinking about her dad from the very beginning. And I dragged her along through all of this.'_ He shut his eyes. _'I really am a pathetic excuse for a hero. Everything I've done has just hurt the Pokémon around me…'_

Tessa's cries quieted into soft, shudder-filled whimpers. She slumped to the ground and buried her face in her arms. "It happened just about a year ago," she said, voice muffled. Shane didn't relax a single muscle in his body. He clamped his muzzle shut as Tessa took in a deep breath and continued, "I had been playing outside with Eevee, despite Sylveon telling us not to. We got caught in a big storm. Sylveon brought us inside… but I caught a terrible cold."

"Mom had started to take care of me, when Dad showed up, saying he needed to go to Glyphic Falls," Tessa said. She managed to push herself into a seated position but her head remained bowed somberly. "He said it was crucial guild business. Mom tried to go with him for support, but he refused. He told her it was more important that she take care of me." Tessa rubbed her eyes. "Mom tried to convince him otherwise. She suggested bringing me to the Observatory and leaving me with Comfey. But Dad…"

Tessa grabbed her mud-soaked rainbow scarf and tossed it to the ground. "… he said he couldn't have her do that. He knew that she'd just end up worrying about me if she came to Glyphic Falls. And he didn't want to stress her out... because he loves her too much to do something like that."

"So, he gave us both a kiss, and walked out," Tessa said. "And… and…" Her eyes teared up again. "That was it. That was the last time I got to see him. I couldn't even get out of bed to give him a hug or anything!" She dug her paws into her thighs.

"What happened?" Shane whispered.

"I don't know," Tessa said, her voice cracking again. "The next day, Braviary showed up, looking grimmer than I've ever seen him look. He told us that there had been an accident." Tessa shook like a leaf. She grabbed her muddy scarf off the floor. "He said this scarf was all that he and Metagross found when they went to look for Dad."

Tessa turned away from Shane. "Gallian, Mom, and I were all at home when this happened. I've tried so hard to forget how they reacted. They were always so calm... so level-headed. But when they heard the news…" More tears ran down her face and Tessa gritted her teeth. "They were so upset. Mom… Mom lost it." Her gaze drifted over to the bedroom doorway. Tessa rubbed tears from her eyes. "That table you walked past? Mom broke it when she heard about Dad. She… she broke a lot of things."

"And what about you?" Shane asked.

Tessa brought her knees up toward her head. "I was scared!" she hiccuped. "Scared, and confused, and tired. Mom was so angry. I sensed her aura for just a second," she shuddered, "and I blacked out."

Shane tried to get up and move toward Tessa, but she shoved him away. She turned away from him. "It's my fault! All my fault! If I hadn't gotten sick… if I'd listened to Sylveon and stayed indoors that day… then Mom could've gone with Dad. And he'd still be here! Everything would be fine!" She wiped snot from her snout.

"Nobody gets sick on purpose, you know," he said, tails curling against his belly.

"Mom blamed me. I know she did," Tessa said, grabbing a fistful of fur in each paw. "I could _feel_ the anger in her aura after Dad died." She released her fur and used her scarf to dry her eyes. "She stopped training me after that... and she barely came home from the guild. Sometimes she'd remember to bring me to Sylveon. But other times…" Her voice trailed off and she shook her head.

"I tried to make it up to her. I tried to train on my own. To show her what I taught myself when she did visit me. I told her that I loved her." She lowered the scarf and her ears drooped. "She would tell me that she loved me back... but it always sounded like she was lying."

Shane bit his lower lip. _'This is just too much. She's gotta be exaggerating. She just has to be!'_ He looked Tessa over, but everything about her body language screamed sincerity.

"And then, almost eight months ago, Mom up and left," Tessa continued. Shane thought back to the times he'd caught Tessa going into her mother's room. Then, he remembered his attempt to look inside it, only for Braviary to catch him and take him away. "She told me she was doing a quick assignment for the guild... and that she'd be back soon."

"But she hasn't returned," Shane said. Tessa shook her head.

"A couple of weeks later, Gallian left. That's when he threatened me, saying he'd strike me down if I set foot in the guild," Tessa said. Tears welled up in her eyes again. "I… I've been alone for so long now." She fell to her side, curling up into a ball. "I'm not even sure why I keep waking up in the mornings, anymore."

Shane's head pounded. His view of Tessa momentarily faded out, replaced instead with a page from a newspaper, showing a smiling, brown-haired boy with freckles peppered across his face. A stabbing pain gripped Shane's chest. "Tessa, no. You can't… I had no idea," Shane whispered, eyes darting about the room.

"Don't call me that!" Tessa shouted, causing Shane to jump back. She looked up at him with tearful eyes. "You want to know why I don't want Pokémon calling me Tessa anymore? It's the same reason I refuse to call you anything but Vulpix. Every time I hear 'Tessa' I think of Mom and Dad and Gallian! It's because of my family that everyone called me Tessa instead of Riolu. And I don't want to be reminded of them... because the only thing that comes to mind is the memory of Braviary showing up and telling us that Dad had died!"

Tessa dug her paws into the floor. "Not like it matters. All I can think about when I'm in the Observatory is Dad dying and all the bad things that happened afterward. I've had enough. I can't..." She looked over at the remnants of the picture frame. "I don't want to do any of this anymore." Tessa staggered to her feet, swaying uneasily from side to side. Slowly, she approached the glass fragments littered on the ground.

"Tessa, I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry," Shane said. "If you had just told me–"

Tessa whirled on him. "You really think I was going to tell a total stranger that I'm frightened of guild work because my dad died?" she said, her face a mess of tears and snot. Shane flinched and turned away. "Mom was right," Tessa muttered. "I should've gotten as far away from you as possible."

Shane's head pounded once again. "What? But I thought you said you don't know where your mom is?"

Tessa stuck her right foot out, poking the remnants of the picture frame with her toe. "I don't. But she's… reached out to me. Through my dreams," Tessa said. "Yeah, I didn't want to say anything. Especially with how everyone reacted to you saying Solgaleo was giving you dream visions. But it's true. Mom told me that she's trying to protect Lunala… my guess is from the Prism Virus."

"She wanted me to ditch you. She said that if I stuck with you, I'd surely keep running into danger," Tessa continued. "But I was stupid. I hoped – I don't know why, but I hoped – that maybe you could make me feel better. That you could make me feel like I actually matter to other Pokémon." She shut her eyes. "But you did the exact opposite. I don't feel better. Instead, I left the only two Pokémon I get along with reasonably well. The closest thing I have to a friend now is Null."

"I never intended for any of this to happen," Shane whimpered.

Tessa knelt down, putting her paws on the floor. "I don't care. Mom told me that she doesn't want me to look for her. She would rather leave me alone to defend Lunala, when there are plenty of Pokémon up to the task," Tessa said with a sniffle. "And, thanks to you, I now realize why. It's because she doesn't love me... and I'll bet she _never_ loved me."

Shane's throat went dry. "I… no… I was just…" He struggled to form a coherent sentence.

"No," Tessa cut in, her voice bitter. "Thank you, human. You finally made me realize just how worthless I am. I know exactly where I belong: nowhere."

Shane stood up and his tails jolted into the air. "That's not true! You're… ah…" He bit his lower lip. "C'mon, surely there's _something_ I can do to help? Just say the world. I'll get you whatever you need. Anything! Just… just stop talking like that!"

"I don't have anything else to say to you. I never want to see you again," Tessa whispered. She reached a trembling paw toward the largest glass shard on the floor.

"No!" Shane cried, opening his mouth and spewing a gust of chilled air. Tessa fell to the ground, throwing her paws over her face and howling in frustration. Shane turned toward the glass shards, focusing his cold air on them until he had frozen them solid. He then sent out a small psychic ripple, turning the frozen shards to dust.

Tessa sat up, her gaze fixed on where the broken glass previously lay. "You... you..." She rubbed her fists against the floor.

"Please," Shane whispered, legs trembling. "Please let me help you."

"No," Tessa said, lowering her head. "You want to help? Then just… go away." She lay down on the ground, gripping her stomach with her right paw. "I'm not going back to the Observatory. In fact, I'm not going _anywhere_. I'm just going to stay here. I'm already starving, so I imagine it won't take long for my spirit to start ebbing away. Just a few hours... and it'll all be over."

"Riolu, don't–"

"What are you complaining about?" she snarled. "You're going to get what you wanted. I'll be out of your life." She took in a shuddering breath. "I'll be out of everyone's lives."

Shane's vision flickered. The newspaper picture flashed through his mind, and then his eyes teared up. "No... Tessa, I can't leave you here like this," Shane said.

"Fine," Tessa said, rolling over so her back was to Shane, "then you can watch as the hunger saps every last bit of my strength."

Shane's ears drooped. "But–"

"Goodbye, Vulpix," Tessa said, cupping her paws over her ears and pressing them against her head.

Shane opened his mouth to offer a retort, but nothing came to mind. His ears twitched and his heart skipped a beat at the sound of a raspy cough. He looked over his shoulder and again saw Null in the doorway. Null backed out of the doorway upon glimpsing Shane's frightful expression. Shane looked back at Tessa and, after a moment of hesitation, followed Null out of the bedroom, shutting the door behind him.

"How much of that did you hear?" Shane asked.

"… everything," Null said.

"Then you know what you need to do," Shane said, stepping away from the door. Null's head cocked in confusion. "Tessa's hurting badly. She needs…" He shuddered. "She needs a friend right now _._ And… that's not me. I don't think it'll ever be me. She needs you."

Null blinked. "… what can I… possibly do… for her?"

"Just be there with her. You don't have to say anything. But lay down next to her. Maybe rub her back or something. Go in there and don't leave as long as she's awake. Make sure she doesn't do anything rash. You're her best friend. You have to do this," Shane said.

Null nodded slowly and then lumbered toward the door. He pushed it open and slipped inside the bedroom, leaving Shane alone. The second the door closed, Shane collapsed onto his belly. His whole body ached and he felt a huge, crushing weight against his forehead. He tried to lift up his head, but the whole room spun. He lay on the ground, trembling; face buried in the dirt. The colors of the spinning room faded. The brown of the house's floor gave way to bright, flashing, red-and-blue lights. Black shadows moved across his field of view.

 _I've got a pulse, but his airway's collapsed. We have to intubate. Where's that paramedic?_

 _'No…'_

 _Sir, sir! Are you okay? Can you hear me?_

 _'Please… help me!'_

 _No pupillary response. He's got fluid in his lungs._

 _'I don't want to die!'_

 _We've got him boarded up. Start the EKG and let's get him to the ER. You there! Page trauma. He needs surgery ASAP._

The sound of a door closing jolted Shane from his stupor. He sat up, breath coming in ragged gasps. He looked over at Null, who stood frozen in front of the doorway. "Wh-What are you… what are you doing out here? What happened to Tessa? H-How long was I out?"

"… not long," Null rasped. "Riolu… cried herself to sleep," he reported. He sat in front of the door like a grotesque gargoyle. Shane staggered to his feet, his head hung shamefully. "Are you… leaving?"

"I don't know," Shane whispered. "I just… I'm so confused. Everything's gone so horribly, horrendously wrong!" He blinked a few times. "Wait, why am I even saying this to you? What do you care?"

"… what happened… back in Moonrise Marsh… I didn't want that," Null said. "I don't… want to hurt you. And I don't… want to hate you."

Shane's lips quivered. "Well, it's a bit late for apologizing, isn't it?" He sat down opposite Null. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I _do_ need to be taken out. I've done nothing but screw up since I got here. You'd all be better off without me."

"… I don't… think that's true," Null said. "I think… you're trying to make the best… of a difficult situation. I can… sympathize with that…"

Shane's eyes teared up. "Can you? Look at what I've done to Tessa. I broke her spirit. I… I made her–" He cut himself off, shaking his head in disgust. "All this time, she's really just been depressed because she lost her family. It's probably why she was so hesitant to go to the guild! So, what did I do? Pressure her and pressure her until she cracked and went to the very place she shouldn't have set foot in in the first place!"

He smacked a paw on the ground. "All this time… all this time she's been trying to put on a brave face. And I just brushed aside the signs that something was wrong because I didn't want to believe it. I didn't want to believe that things were different here than in my games." He began crying. "I've been thinking like a selfish human since the moment I woke up, when… when I should've been thinking like a Pokémon."

He flopped onto his belly, burying his head under his forepaws. "Metagross was right. There are _real_ lives at stake. And here I am thinking I can just waltz along and have everything be fine!" He looked up at Null with tearful eyes. "I never even beat the games fair and square, you know. I always resorted to cheating because I got too frustrated, but that's not possible here."

Shane smacked his head against his forelegs. "Everything I've done so far has had consequences. And they're not the kind I can simply erase by hitting a power switch and forgetting that they ever happened. I can't preserve a happy scenario in a stream of data, because this is all real!" he sobbed. "The damage is done. I'm… I'm… I'm not a hero. I'm just… a screw up."

Null slowly exhaled. "… you do realize… it sounds like… you're making Riolu's struggles… all about you… right?"

In response to this, Shane got up, walked over to the table, and bashed his head against it. "Yes, because I'm _dumb!_ "

 _BANG!_

" _Stupid!_ "

 _BANG!_

A welt popped up on Shane's head, which he lowered shamefully. "You're absolutely right. You want to know the worst part of all of this?" Shane whispered, causing Null to lean forward. "Today's Tessa's birthday… sorry, 'hatch day.' This is supposed to be a happy day for her. And I managed to go and turn it into the worst day of her life."

"I think… you're overreacting… just a smidge," Null said.

"I'm not," Shane whimpered. "I know this all sounds selfish, but this is really my fault. If I hadn't flown off the handle at Lycanroc... if I'd just trusted all of you instead of thinking I knew better… then I wouldn't have gotten in trouble. And then Tessa wouldn't have gotten in trouble. We'd have never gotten sent on this awful mission that put us at each other's throats and ended with Tessa having to watch a Pokémon _die_ right in front of her… and one year after her dad died, to boot!"

Shane stepped back from the table. "I can't even blame Metagross. It's not like he was controlling how I acted."

Null slowly sat up and walked over toward Shane. He sighted heavily. "… when you put it that way… I guess it is your fault. But… it's not like you were the only one… acting badly on that mission. I think we all… did and said things… that we feel horribly about…"

Shane rubbed his snout with a forepaw. "Are you trying to compare us, here? There's no comparison to make. I deserve all the vitriol Tessa gave me. I…"

He flinched as Null sat beside him. Shane looked away, whimpering. Null muttered, "I'm saying… I understand… how awful you feel. But… I think… that's exactly why… you need someone to lean on for support… just as much as Riolu does."

Shane blinked tears out of his eyes. "Well, forget it. I'm not worth your trouble. Tessa's your friend, not me. Right now, she needs your undivided attention."

"… but I'd like you to be…"

Shane froze. "Huh?"

"… I want… to be your friend. I know… we haven't had… a very good relationship," Null muttered. "I'm sorry… for staring at you... back in the sentry station. It was never… my intent… to scare you. But clearly… that's what happened."

Shane turned away even further. "A bit late to be asking for that, considering what happened, don't you think?"

"… I really wish… I could make it up to you," Null wheezed. "Which is exactly why… I refuse to turn my back on you." He poked a foreleg at the ground. "And… from what it sounds like… you're not ready... to give up... on Riolu."

Shane winced, his ears folding against his face. "I just… I have to do something to help her. It's my fault all of this happened. I _need_ to make things right. But," he sighed and shook his head, "I can't think of anything. Every attempt I see myself making is just going to make her even more upset."

"Is there really nothing… you can do?" Null wondered.

Shane squeezed his eyes shut and scrunched up his snout. "I… I," he whispered. His eyes suddenly shot wide open. "I've got an idea," he said, getting to his feet. "If it's Tessa's hatch day, then we should throw her a party."

Null stared blankly at Shane. "Like… a surprise party?"

"Ideally, yes," Shane said. "She said that she's depressed because she feels alone, right? Well, this is the guild's chance to show her that, just because her family's not in the picture, doesn't mean she's alone. Not as long as she has them."

"But… she didn't mention… her hatch day… to anyone," Null pointed out. "I'm not even sure... how you found out."

"I heard Team Captivate talking about it," Shane said. He dried out his eyes. "They wanted to do something for her, but were too hesitant." He looked out the window. "If I leave right now, I think I can still make morning assembly. And if I can get everyone on board, we might have a chance at getting something set up by tonight."

"Do you… have a plan?"

"No… not really. I'm sort of winging it here," Shane whispered. "Like, Tessa's friends with Sylveon... and she's a baker. She could make treats. And we could have her work with Steenee and anyone in the guild who feels like helping to make food." Shane started pacing back and forth. "Then, we can get supplies from the Kecleon Shop and a couple of other places in town. I'm sure folks had some gift ideas in mind for Tessa, too." His brow furrowed. "Maybe with a little bit of begging and pleading, Crabrawler will let us borrow the Sky Jukebox from his Café?" He took a deep breath. "No, no, I can't get ahead of myself. First, I have to concentrate on getting everyone in the guild to help. It's the only way I can make this work."

"Is there anything… I can do?" Null asked.

Shane nodded. "You need to keep Tessa busy," he said. "She's gonna wake up. She's really fragile right now. And I don't want her coming to the guild and seeing what we're doing. If anything, you're the best Pokémon to try and lift her spirits. Maybe try taking her out to Azure Cape or Sunrise Village? That should at least help her clear her mind."

"I'm not… really good… at making small talk," Null said, tapping a claw on the floor.

Shane frowned. "I _need_ you to do this. Don't let her back in Aeon Town until after sundown, got it? Even if you have to carry her away while she's still sleeping." He paused. "Okay, maybe don't do that one. But still, I…" He took a deep breath. "I trust you to do this."

Null's eyes widened. He nodded his head slowly. "I'll do my best," he said.

"Great. Then I'd better get running. There's a lot to do and not a lot of time to do it. And we _need_ this to work," Shane said. He trotted over toward the door and out onto the street. Null watched him disappear around a corner.

"Good luck," Null whispered. "For Riolu's sake, I'm rooting for you."

* * *

Seeing as the classic portrayal of PMD partner characters involves them being happy-go-lucky and cheerful (if a bit timid, depending on what Pokémon you got), I went the opposite with Tessa. Yes, she's been depressed since Chapter 1. And the reason she has no confidence (and has acted rather emotional) is because it's been getting worse. But now that we're at this point, it should be all uphill, right?

Next time: can Shane and Null really lift Tessa's spirits?


	35. A Real Team Effort

Man, I can't believe we're at the 30th chapter already. Thank you all for the support thus far. Nathaniel, if you're still reading, thanks for the words of encouragement. I'll have to tend to that little mistake when I go through to make corrections.

Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 30: A Real Team Effort**

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"I don't really have all that much to tell y'all this morning," Braviary said. "Just a bit of a recommendation. Try to keep yer workloads light today. I've given Comfey a bit of a break–"

"Because Vulpix ran her ragged wit' his dumb injuries!" Yungoos cut in. "I ain't never seen her looking so tired."

Braviary rolled his eyes. "We don't need to be discussing no specifics, pardner. Point is, she's got the day off. So, I don't want any of y'all getting banged up out there, understood?"

The crowd of assembled guild members muttered their approval. "Good." Braviary nodded. "Now, anyone out there got something they need to say?" Silence followed. "Alright then. Yer dis–"

"Wait! Please wait!"

All eyes in the room turned toward the staircase, where Shane stood, panting heavily. "My goodness!" Bruxish said as Shane stumbled down the stairs. "What happened to you, dahling?"

"Yeah, you look like you got swallowed up by a Muk, chewed on, and then puked back up," Trapinch observed.

"Never mind that," Shane said. "I need everyone's help, like, right now!"

No sooner did he say that than Yungoos moved to block him off. "Youse need _our_ help? After the stunt ya pulled last week? Buzz off! Helping you is a virtual death sentence, bub. And youse still owe me a berry sorbet, anyway. So, I doubly ain't helping."

"But… but this isn't about me. It's Tessa!" Shane said.

"And why should we believe you, huh?" Growlithe asked, limping to Yungoos' side. "As I recall, when I offered to help, I ended up charging into battle against a mutant Bewear with no plan of attack. All because you had no Escape Orbs to bail us out. And what did I get for that decision? A broken leg, that's what." He stuck his snout up in the air. "You've burned up your good will, buddy."

"This is serious, you guys," Shane insisted. "Tessa… she's hurt… really bad. I screwed up, okay. And now I need to make things right!"

"Oh, what a surprise. It's your fault, huh?" Serperior scoffed. "And you're saying you want to fix it, but the reality is we'd just do the work and you'd try to take the credit. I'm sensing a pattern here. One that I _really_ don't like. Whatever you did, you can figure out a fix for yourself." She turned to her teammates. "C'mon girls, we're leaving."

"Will you all just _shut up and let me speak for two seconds?_ " Shane barked, his eyes snapping shut. "I get it, okay. I'm very, _very_ bad at this. I've made dozens of mistakes and it's gotten a lot of you hurt. I'm _sorry._ Really, truly, honestly sorry! And… and I wouldn't be coming to you guys if I wasn't absolutely, one hundred percent sure that I need your help. But I do!"

"Your mouth's moving, kid, but all I hear is 'blah, blah, blah.' How many times have you said the same things to Riolu, huh?" Serperior asked. "Talk is cheap. If you're really sorry, then prove it."

Shane teared up. "Tessa… she's super depressed because of me," he said. "I know, it's terrible. I don't need you guys beating me up over it. I just need some help to make her happy again. Please…" He looked up at the group with watery eyes. "I can't do this by myself."

Yungoos' brow furrowed. "Don't bother, rookie. Turning on da waterworks ain't changing my mind. Youse ain't trustworthy no more, see?"

Shane glanced Trapinch backing toward the southern hallway out the corner of his eye. "Um, yeah. No offense, Vulpix, but how do we know this isn't going to end like your other ideas?" he said.

Shane's ears folded against his head. "You don't understand," he whispered. "She's holed up in her house. And she refuses to leave."

"Finally realized you're bad company, huh? Took her long enough," Togedemaru heckled.

"That's not it!" Shane said. "She's… she's…" He squeezed his eyes shut and turned away from the group. "She's refusing to move. I think she's trying to starve herself to death."

A flurry of shocked looks followed. Shane poked one eye open, just in time to notice the surprise disappear from his guild mates' faces. Under the combined weight of a dozen glares, he shrank back toward the wall.

"Do you have any idea how stupid you sound right now?" Serperior growled. "Gods, it's the 'Lycanroc is evil' routine all over again. I can't believe you're willing to lie like that just because you can't make things work with your partner."

"Um… guys? Maybe we should hear him out?" Mimikyu mumbled, trying to push his way past Togedemaru.

"I'm not lying!" Shane shouted, his voice cracking. He hung his head. "It's true, okay. I did this to her. Our mission went so badly, I flew off the handle and told her that her parents never loved her."

A tailfin blindsided Shane, leaving an imprint against his muddy fur. Milotic's tail coiled around his body and hoisted him into air. Shane squeaked as Milotic pulled him up to meet her at eye level. Her normally soft eyes were filled with rage. "How could you do something so insensitive?" she barked, thrashing him about in midair. "I ought to blast you with a point blank Hydro Pump for that!"

"Put him down, Milotic," Mimikyu cried. But he was drowned out by Yungoos' and Togedemaru's shouts of encouragement.

Shane jammed his eyes shut and looked away from Milotic, expecting a sudden wave of pain.

"All y'all, be quiet!"

Shane lifted his head up and his ears twitched at the sound of shuffling. Braviary pushed Yungoos and Growlithe aside. He walked up to Milotic, with Mimikyu trailing behind him. "I'm disappointed in y'all. I sure as heck know I didn't train y'all to act like this. And if the Guildmaster were out here, he wouldn't stand for this malarkey."

"But Braviary, you and Metagross hate him too, don't ya?" Togedemaru said.

"Personal thoughts ain't important right now," Braviary said, waving her off. "What _is_ important is that everyone gets to say their piece." He looked down at Mimikyu. "Go on, now. Speak up, pardner."

Mimikyu nodded slowly and took a deep breath. "Guys, I think we should help Vulpix out. He sounds sincere to me." Several guild members turned to look at Mimikyu. "I know you say you don't want to work with him, but he's already said that this isn't about him. It's about… uh…" His disguise head lolled off to one side. "Wait, who's Tessa again?"

"Riolu," Shane said.

"Right!" Mimikyu's fake head bobbed back and forth. He turned toward the other guild members. "Look, maybe the crying was a bit much, but Vulpix actually put his pride beside him to come to you guys and beg for your help. I may not _technically_ be an official explorer, but that seems like a pretty big thing for him to do."

Mimikyu pivoted back and forth. "I know that I'm willing to trust him this one time. So, are you guys really going to stand here and tell me you'll let Riolu stay depressed simply because you're determined to hold grudges against Vulpix? That… um… doesn't really seem in line with your guys' philosophy." He shuffled back toward Shane and Milotic, stealing nervous looks at the guild members.

"Well, he ain't exactly wrong," Braviary said. Milotic looked over at her teammates. Serperior clearly looked unconvinced, but Dragonair nodded slowly, prompting Milotic to release her grip on Shane. He dropped to the floor, looking up at Milotic nervously.

"So, just to clarify, Riolu's feeling miserable... and choosing not to eat because of it?" Milotic said. Shane nodded. "And you want to try to do something to fix it?"

"Well, I'd at least like to try and make her feel better," Shane said. "See, the problem is, Tessa– sorry, Riolu feels unwanted and alone. Namely, because none of her family's around anymore." Dragonair's eyes narrowed, causing Shane's to panic. "Those were her words. Not mine. I swear! She dold me about her tad– I… I mean told me about her dad." He looked away and rubbed the back of his neck. "The point is that I thought, maybe if we all pitched in and worked together, we could show her that there _is_ somewhere that she's wanted. Namely, right here in the guild."

Braviary flew over to Shane and landed in front of him. "Well, what did ya have in mind, hoss?"

"Um…" Shane pawed at the ground. "Today's actually Riolu's hatch day."

Murmurs rose up from the group. "Hey! How did you come to find that out? Because I strongly doubt she'd tell you that," Serperior said with a suspicious glare.

Shane winced. "I overheard your team talking about it," he admitted. He squirmed about uncomfortably as Braviary gave him a stern look. "And I heard it because…" He took a deep breath. "I heard it because I was sneaking around the veterans' quarters by myself." He slid down onto his belly, trying to avoid Serperior's scathing look.

"Seriously? You were spying on us?" she hissed. "You little perv! What else did you hear, huh? And what did you see?" She shot her vines at Shane, but Braviary batted them away with a wing.

"It's alright, y'all," Braivary said, holding up a wing, "I've already handled his little eavesdropping problem. So, what's Riolu's hatch day got to do with yer plan, pardner?"

"I want to throw her a surprise party," Shane said. "Tonight."

"Haaaa ha ha ha ha!" Yungoos broke out in laughter, only to abruptly stop. "Wait, youse actually serious? Get outta here! Ain't no way we can get a whole entire party set up in a day. We're explorers, not magicians. Do youse see Hoopa around here? No. It'd take da whole day just to get da supplies for a halfway-decent party." He shook his head. "I shoulda known you'd be t'inking crazy."

"You're right. Anyone would have trouble setting up a party in one day… if they worked alone," Shane said, "But if _everyone_ chips in, I think we can get it done." He looked up at Braviary. "I, um, don't exactly have a concrete plan–"

"Gee, there's a big surprise," Togedemaru said sarcastically, only for Braviary to give her a disapproving look.

He gave Shane a nod to continue. "Err, yeah. Anyway, I was thinking some of us could go into Aeon Town and buy supplies to get this place set up. And, um, maybe some gifts along with the supplies?"

"And what about food?" Growlithe asked.

"Well, I was kind of hoping you would fly me over to Sunrise Village, Braviary," Shane said. "We could ask Sylveon and Eevee if they wanted to help prepare stuff for Riolu. I'm sure they'd say yes."

"And they're more than welcome to come here and use our kitchen!" Steenee said, waving a wooden spoon. "I'm assuming you'd like my help too?" Shane nodded. "And will anyone else want to prepare treats?"

"Oh! Oh! I will… I will!" Mimikyu said, waving a raggedy arm about excitedly. "Err… if that's okay with everyone, I mean…"

"I'd be happy to have you aboard," Steenee said, causing Mimikyu to perk up.

"I was also thinking we could rent out the Sky Jukebox from Crabrawler's Café," Shane said. "Crabrawler still owes me a favor for finding his missing recipe. I'm sure he'd be willing to help. But what I don't know about is how we'll move it all the way up to the Observatory."

"What about Null? He seems perfect for a heavy lifting job," Milotic said.

"Sorry. I've got him keeping Riolu busy," Shane said, frowning. "Trust me, he's in the best position to do that." He looked at Braviary pleadingly. "Do you think maybe the Guildmaster would be willing to levitate it up here?"

Before Braviary got a chance to answer, metallic footsteps jolted everyone to attention. **Fact: I am capable of moving the jukebox. Offer: I will move it, provided I am told when the Jukebox is secured.**

A metal door slammed shut and relief washed over Shane. "Okay… okay. I think we can do this. It might be tough, but we've gotta try," he said.

"And I think youse is crazy," Yungoos said. "But, fine. If it's for Riolu, I guess I'll give it a shot."

"I like parties! Especially ones with cake. You can put candles on them!" Growlithe said. "So, as long as I get to pick the candles, I'm in."

"Well, we _were_ thinking of trying to do something," Milotic said. "I suppose we could help out as well."

"I'm more than happy to help with the set-up, daaaaahlings. I'm sure my levitation could be veeeeery helpful," Bruxish chimed in.

Braviary nodded. "And I'm ready to fly you over at a moment's notice. Just say the word."

A smile crossed Shane's muzzle. "Great. Let's get to work!"

* * *

 **~Sunrise Village, Sylveon's House~**

"You don't exactly _look_ like you're in any condition to be planning a party, Vulpix."

Sylveon's ribbons moved back along a table, grabbing some uneaten berries and placing them into a basket. "Covered in mud. Patches of fur missing. And your eyes are bloodshot." She shook her head. "Are you having trouble sleeping? Because I know a really nice Hypno who could help with that."

"I'm fine," Shane insisted, quickly biting down on his tongue to hold back a yawn. "We could really use your help setting things up for Riolu. You're an amazing baker. I'm sure she'd absolutely love it if you made her a cake."

Sylveon's brow furrowed. "Normally, I wouldn't think twice about it. But the other week, Riolu made it pretty clear she doesn't want to do anything for her hatch day." She looked over and noticed Eevee's head poking up over the counter. He was trying to reach for the basket. Sylveon extended a ribbon and pushed him back onto the floor with a stern look. "I'm sorry. I'm just not comfortable with going behind her back like that. She's really sensitive about that sort of thing."

"Please, you've gotta help me," Shane said. "Look, she's an absolute wreck right now because she's thinking about her dad–"

Sylveon frowned. "She told you about Incineroar."

Shane looked down guiltily. "It, uh, it might've come up in conversation." He shook his head. "Look, the point is, she needs us to show her that she's _not_ alone and that there are people who care about her. This was the best thing I could think of. So, please… would you lend a paw here?" He turned to the dirty item pouch still slung across his torso. "I don't have money on me right now, but I could easily get some from Dhelmise Depot on the way back to the Observatory."

"There's no need for that," Sylveon said. "Are you really telling the truth, though? Is Riolu depressed?"

"It's worse than that. She had me leave her as a sobbing mess," Shane said, pawing at the ground dejectedly. "I know I haven't been very good to her. So, I'd just like one chance to make things right…"

"Very well," Sylveon said. "But I have one condition."

"What is it?"

"You need to adjust your thinking," Sylveon said. Shane watched her pluck Eevee off the ground in her ribbons. "Wanting to make up for how you treated Tessa is great. But, saying this is _about_ how you treat her is self-centered. And frankly, you've come across as rather selfish since I've met you." Shane flinched. "So, if you talk to anyone else about this, I want you telling them that you're doing this to lift Tessa's spirits. Nothing more and nothing less," Sylveon said.

"I… I can do that," Shane said, once again trying to fight off a yawn.

"Great." A smile appeared on Sylveon's face. One of her free ribbons shot toward a cabinet and pulled out a piece of paper. "Truthfully, Eevee and I were thinking of dropping something off at the Observatory for her. I've got a perfect recipe in mind. Though, I imagine I'll have to use a lot more ingredients to make the cake big enough for everyone." She grabbed a scrap of paper off the counter and looked at it. "Yeah, I'd say if I multiply everything by twenty, the cake should be large enough.

Eevee's eyes sparkled. "Does that mean there's gonna be twenty times the batter left over in the bowl for me?"

"Sorry, Eevee, it doesn't work that way. Besides, the bowl I'll be using is so big, you'd fall inside it if you tried to lick the batter," Sylveon said, giggling. Eevee's slumped over in his mother's ribbons. "Well, I think we'd better get going."

"Braviary's waiting right outside," Shane said, leading Sylveon out of the house.

* * *

 **~Aeon Town~**

Serperior and Milotic moved down a store aisle in tandem. "What color ribbons do you suppose Riri would like?" Milotic asked. "I was thinking blue, but maybe that's too obvious?"

"She wears a rainbow scarf," Serperior said. "If anything, that's our best option." She turned toward the front of the store. "Yo, Kecleon! Got any rainbow ribbon in stock?"

Kecleon appeared at the end of the aisle, broom in hand. "Hmm, I'd have to check in the back. I don't get party supplies delivered all that often. Give me one second." He disappeared behind some shelves.

"So, you think Vulpix is being sincere this time?" Serperior asked.

"I'd like to give him the benefit of the doubt," Milotic said. "Still, there's a part of me that feels uneasy about all of this. You saw how he looked. What do you suppose happened to him on that mission? And do you think Riri had a similar experience?"

"I'm guessing she probably did," Serperior said. "And, not going to lie, I don't trust him to throw a good party. I feel like he's just doing this more for himself than for Riri. So that he can turn around and say that he's amazing because he planned such a great party, or some nonsense like that. You can bet I'll be keeping an eye on him. If he steps out of line…" Her voice trailed off and she whipped one of her vines out against the air. A loud _crack_ sounded through the store.

Milotic nodded. "That does sound like him. Want me to Hydro Pump him if he tries a stunt like that?"

"Only if I get to Dragon Pulse him, too," Serperior said with a laugh.

"Good news, ladies!" Kecleon called. "I found some rainbow ribbons in storage. Come have a look!"

* * *

 **~Dhelmise Depot~**

"Hiya, Dhelmise. I need to grab my Super Special Surprise Sparklers out of storage, please," Growlithe announced. He dropped his explorer's badge onto the front desk, where Dhelmise collected it up using a lump of seaweed.

"What exactly do these sparklers look like?" Dhelmise asked.

"They're a big pile of multicolored sticks!" Growlithe said, tail wagging.

"Okay. I'll be back shortly." Dhelmise turned and disappeared into another room.

"Seriously? Super Special Surprise Sparklers? What are those?" Araquanid said.

"My special brand of fireworks. I made them myself," Growlithe said, only for a gray tail to smack him in the back of the head. "Err, I mean, Togedemaru made them. But I provided tactical support!"

"He sat around eating spicy peppers," Togedemaru scoffed. "Nearly lit my tail on fire, too."

"Hey, I can't plan when I get indigestion," Growlithe quipped.

"Is it safe to use fireworks in the Observatory, though?" Araquanid said.

"Of course. At least, with ones this small, we should be fine," Growlithe said. "Now, my 'Big Bad Mamma Jammas,' on the other hand… they'd probably blow the Observatory up." He looked around the building. "And maybe half of Aeon Town, too."

Araquanid looked at Togedemaru. "Do I even want to know?" he asked

"No. You don't," she deadpanned. "Why are you even helping, anyway? You don't know who Vulpix and Riolu are. And trust me, there are much better ways to spend your time than helping out this stupid human."

Arauqanid shrugged. "He seemed like an okay guy from what I could tell. Well-meaning, if not a bit careless. Besides, parties are fun. And I joined the guild to help others. That includes my guild mates." He narrowed his eyes at her. "If you're so angry at this guy, why are _you_ helping, then? Seems like this kind of thing isn't up your alley."

Togedemaru looked a bit flustered. "Well… that's… I…" She scratched at her head and looked away. "It's just because, in the unlikely event he's _actually_ telling the truth, I don't want to be known as the girl who turned her back on a Pokémon at the end of its rope. Know what I'm saying?"

"So, you have a guilty conscience," Araquanid said. "Did you fail to act in a situation like this before?"

"What? No! I just–" She sighed and lowered her head. "Let's just say that, before I came here, I knew what it was like to not fit in."

"Oh? Care to elaborate?" Araquanid said.

"What do you want, a sob story?" Togedemaru said. "Look, I came from Circadian Coast. My parents expected me to be a performer like the Totem and his daughter and when I told them I wasn't interested, they decided to ignore me 'until I started thinking straight.'" She poked her nubby arms together. "One day I caught a glimpse of Team Captivate in action... and, next think you know, I'm packing my bags and sneaking off to Aeon Town in the dead of night."

"So, yeah, I think I know a thing or two about what it's like to not feel welcome somewhere," she said, shrugging.

Araquanid nodded. "There's no shame in that, you know. Sounds like you really do have a good reason to help."

"Whatever," Togedemaru said. "Just don't tell Vulpix I said that. Wouldn't want to inflate that head of his any bigger."

"Here are your things, Growlithe," Dhelmise said, and dropped a pile of sparklers onto the desk. It was such a large pile that some of the sticks rolled onto the floor in front of Growlithe.

Araquanid's eyes widened. "Duh-doesn't that seem a bit excessive to you?"

"Excessive? Hardly!" Growlithe said. "If anything, this isn't enough."

* * *

 **~Crabrawler's Café~**

Shane slumped over. "You're… you're kidding me!"

"Fraid not, lad," Crabrawler said. "The thing's been on the fritz since yesterday. And my old man never showed me how to fix it. I'm sure a mechanic could be here to fix it in, say, a week or so."

Shane crouched over, pulling at his ears with his forepaws. "I don't have that kind of time!" He started coughing.

"Are you okay, Vulpix? You look weary," Crabrawler said. "And that's to say nothing of your appearance. You're lucky I don't throw you out for tracking mud in here."

"I'm fine!" Shane insisted. "Look, what if I brought Magearna over? She's a top-notch mechanic. Maybe she can fix it."

Crabrawler shrugged. "Can't hurt, I suppose." Shane nodded and ran out of the café, wincing as he went. Crabrawler sighed and shook his head. "Poor lad is going to make himself sick running to and fro like that."

Shane staggered back into the café about five minutes later, Magearna walking along behind him. **Good morrow, Crabrawler. I trust business is boominating as usual.**

Crabrawler nodded, only for Shane to shove Magearna. "Listen, we don't have time for small talk, okay? Go take a look at the Sky Jukebox and see if you can fix it." Magearna gave him a blank look, to which he groaned. "… please?"

 **Of course. Please, give me some room.** Magearna approached the jukebox. Her arms retracted into her body, and out popped a glowing rod and a screwdriver. She knelt down and started looking inside the base of the machine.

"Well, see anything?" Shane asked.

 **Yes. There a few loose bolts and a severed wire that I must repair,** Magearna said. **I suggest you go and get the Guildmaster. That way, he can move the jukebox when I'm done.**

"You… you want me to go back now?" Shane said, lapsing into another coughing fit.

 **In the interest of preservating time, yes,** Magearna replied.

He groaned and stumbled out the door.

* * *

 **~Azure Cape~**

"… we're here…"

Tessa slowly slid off Null's back, landing in the sand. She stumbled forward before dropping down onto her knees. "Why did you take me here? I want to go back home."

"… I think… you need some fresh air," Null said. "We could both use it… after all that time… underground…" He sat down next to Tessa. The two of them stared at the ocean in silence, watching sparkling waves lap up against the shore. This continued for several minutes, though Null interrupted the silence with the occasional jostling of his mask. Beside him, Tessa slowly rotated so she was sitting as well. Eventually, she scooted over and came to rest her head against Null's hip.

"… how are you feeling?"

Tessa rubbed her snout. "Horrible. And you?"

"… horrible," Null said, "but what else is new?"

"I know that you didn't mean to attack Vulpix in the marsh," Tessa said. "I wish I could've been there to calm you down, so that things didn't escalate."

"… it's okay," Null said. "We've already… talked about it." Tessa looked up at him in concern. "It's not something… you need to bother yourself with. You should… focus on yourself right now. And how you're feeling…"

"But you're hurting… like really, _physically_ hurting. I think that trumps anything I'm feeling," Tessa said, frown deepening.

"Don't worry… about me. I've… been in pain… since I woke up… at the guild. I'll probably… be in pain… forever," Null said, sliding down onto his belly. Warm sand brushed against his fur and scales. Grunting, he rubbed the bottom of his helmet in the sand.

"Did you, like, feel anything weird when, y'know, you were attacking Vulpix?" Tessa asked.

"Just… headaches… searing, splitting headaches," Null said.

"Do you think, maybe, something's contributing to your pain? Like, say, hunger?" Tessa said. Null looked right at her. "Err, you know what, that was a stupid question." She rubbed the back of her head. "But, um, I _have_ been curious about that since I've met you. Aren't you, like, starving? You can't eat anything with that helmet on, can you?"

Null shook his head. "I don't know. What does hunger feel like exactly?"

Tessa's eyes widened. "Are you joking? What kind of question is that? You get pain in your stomach... and sometimes your mouth starts to drool."

"My… my mouth," Null wheezed. "I don't…" His voice trailed off and he clawed at his helmet. "Nnngh… my head…" He shook his head around. "What if… what if I'm off base? What if… this helmet can't come off… because it's actually my face?" He lay his head down on his forelegs. "You heard… that purple guy. He called me… a failed experiment."

"If that's really true… then Shane is right. I'm not a Pokémon… I'm just a freak…"

Tessa put her paw on Null's side. "I don't believe that. For one thing, when you shake your head, your mask rattles around. There's got to be a face under there."

"Then… why can't I feel it?"

Tessa tensed up. "What do you mean?"

"The only things I can feel up here… are headaches. This helmet… just feels… really heavy… on my neck... and shoulders," Null said. "Other than that… nothing. If I really… have a face… under here… I have no idea… what it looks like. I can't… remember anything… about having a face. Why do you think… it's so hard… for me to speak? I can't… feel my own mouth... assuming it exists…"

Tessa rubbed his side. "I'm sorry, Null," she said, sighing. "Trust me, if I could trade situations with you, I would." Null looked at her and narrowed his eyes. "If I had to give up my memories so that you could get yours back… I'd do it in a heartbeat."

Null coughed loudly. "… this is… about your family… isn't it?" he said. Tessa looked away. "Riolu… you shouldn't… bottle this stuff up. It's just going… to make you… feel even worse."

Tessa's aura feelers drooped. "You… you heard what I told Vulpix," she said.

"I'm sorry… for eavesdropping," Null said. "I just… wanted to help you… feel better."

"I don't want to talk about this," Tessa muttered.

"You've already… talked quite a bit about it," Null said. "Surely there are… still a few things… you'd like to say… right?"

Tessa crossed her arms against her chest and turned away from him. "No. I said I'm not talking about it. And I mean it. My mind's already made up."

"… then I won't... make you talk," Null said.

"Good. Then I'm going back home," Tessa growled, getting to her feet. But Null's hind leg shot out behind him, forcing Tessa back down onto the sand. She gave her friend a look of disbelief. "You're really going to try and stop me? I'm not even doing anything! I just want to lie down in the dark… alone."

Null shook his head. "I'm sorry… I'm not letting you walk off." He turned to look at her. "I saw you... reach for that glass. I can't just… brush that aside…"

"Why not? Vulpix obviously did," Tessa said.

"He got… pulled away… for something important," Null said. "Believe me… he's just as concerned… about what he saw… as I am."

"He is?" Tessa whispered, flinching.

"Yeah. And I imagine... that's pretty hard for him... given what happened in the marsh," Null said, nodding.

Tessa stiffened, grabbing sand with her paws. "What do you mean by that?" she whispered.

"Well... it's hard... to put it... into words," Null rasped. "Things just... got out of control... down there. But... the thing is... even if I didn't mean... to attack Vulpix... I still did. He nearly drowned... because of me. Because... of those voices. And... from what it sounds like... you brushed that all aside..."

"What are you talking about?" Tessa said, aura feelers shooting up. "I managed to stop you, didn't I? That's all that matters, right?"

"Not to Vulpix," Null said with a heavy sigh. "He has to live... with the memory of what happened to him... of this big, scary monster... trying to rip him to shreds... compounded by his other teammate... trying to make it seem... like it was his fault." Null shook his head. "I can't blame Vulpix... for lashing out... like he did. If I were in his place... I'd have done the same thing."

Tessa couldn't believe she was hearing this. She blinked tears out of her eyes. "But... but what about the stuff he said to me?" she squeaked.

"Don't get me wrong... it _was_ uncalled for," Null said. "But... by that point... everything had spiraled... out of control. We all got... swept up... by our own emotions... that we just... fell apart... at the seams. The stress... that Totem Lurantis added... certainly didn't help. If she wasn't there... if that purple guy wasn't there..." Null shifted about uncomfortably. "So many things... went wrong down there. Honestly... I'm not sure why... the Guildmaster did this."

Null looked at Tessa, who sat there, head bowed silently. It was true. She was sure of it. Everything Null said made too much sense. Her desire to win Null's friendship was so strong that she was willing to look past Shane's near-death experience at Null's talons just to make him happy. The realization made her chest tighten.

"You're right," Tessa whispered. "I... uh..." She put her paws on her shoulders and shivered. "Maybe it's a good thing my family's gone." Tessa slouched over. "I guess... I really should just disappear, then. I'd be doing everyone a favor. Even if I _could_ muster the courage to go back to the guild, I can't face Vulpix. Not after what you just told me."

Null nudged Tessa with his helmet, but she pushed him away. "Riolu," Null whispered. "I think... you understand... what I was saying... right?"

"Yeah," Tessa said. "It's why I should stay away from the guild... forever."

"I can't... make that decision for you," Null said. "But what I can tell you... is that... understanding where things went wrong... is a good first step... to making amends."

Tessa refused to meet his gaze. Null figured he couldn't press the issue any further. He lay his head in the sand and took in a deep breath. His ribcage pressed against Tessa's side. Several minutes of silence followed. All the while, Tessa fidgeted with her paws and stole glances at Null. She knew what he said made sense, but there was a mental block in the way. Her gaze wandered off to the water, where she watched small waves roll up against the sand.

"When I was little, there was nothing I wanted more than to join the guild," Tessa whispered. "Dad always brought guild members over to visit. They looked so happy and were always super friendly to me." She repeatedly traced a circle in the sand with a digit. "Gallian and I always talked about how we were going to become Guildmasters… together." Tessa rubbed the bridge of her snout. "When he joined the guild, he'd come home so excited and full of energy. It was the happiest I'd ever seen him."

"And then it all came crashing down last year," she continued, her voice shaking. "After Dad died, I figured that joining the guild was the only way to get Mom and Gallian to pay attention to me again." She lowered her head. "But without anyone to train me, I didn't really make any progress. And, to make matters worse, I couldn't work up the courage to go toward the guild. I'd just think about the morning that Braviary showed up... and the rampage that Mom went on when she learned Dad died."

"I don't blame you… for having trouble. Something like that… has gotta be tough to live with," Null said.

Tessa nodded. "But it just got worse from there. Everyone I'd grown close to dropped out of my life," she explained. "The guild members stopped visiting. Then Mom left, with Gallian following shortly after. Sylveon and Eevee were all I had left." She rubbed her shoulder against her eyes, blinking away tears. "But, what was I supposed to do? Sylveon had her job to worry about and Eevee had other friends in Sunrise Village. He tried inviting me to come with him, but…" Her voice trailed off.

"You didn't go with him?" Null said.

"I tried… once," Tessa squeaked. "But his friends wanted to do practice battles. And I… I wasn't very good at battling. So, they laughed at me... and I ran back to Sylveon's house," Tessa said.

"What happened next?" Null asked.

Tessa's ears and aura feelers drooped. "Every day, I'd walk to Aeon Town. Every day, I'd get a bit closer to the Observatory. Then I'd think of all the bad things that happened since Dad died. And I'd run off. Sometimes I'd go to my parents' house and sometimes I'd come out here."

Null curled his body up so he could face Tessa. She dragged her knees up toward her head and stuck her face in her lap, desperately trying to avoid making eye contact. "And then Vulpix showed up," she said. "Right off the bat, he confused me." She shook her head. "I should've put my foot down. I should've told him to go get help somewhere else."

"But you didn't," Null said.

"Right. And look where it got me," Tessa said, flopping onto her belly. "Look where it got _us._ I feel so... small. Small and undeserving of any support."

"Riolu... I know that stuff I brought up... was harsh... but I did it... because I still care about you," Null said. "If you hadn't… joined the guild… with Vulpix… we wouldn't have met…"

Tessa winced. "I…" She bit her lip. "I would've worked up the courage to join… somehow."

"If that's… really true… then why did you partner up with Vulpix?" Null asked. "There has to be a reason."

"Because I owed him for getting my scarf back," Tessa said, gently nudging the rainbow scarf with her right paw.

Null looked at her skeptically. "No... there's more to it..."

Tessa's aura feelers stiffened. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said.

"If that was… the only reason... you wouldn't have… stayed partnered with him… as long as you did," Null said.

Tessa dug her paws into the sand. "Th… that's… I… don't… um…"

"It's okay… just take your time," Null said.

"I believed him, okay!" Tessa shouted, then stuck her face into the sand. Null leaned forward and gently nudged her back up. Tessa hastily turned her head, refusing to make eye contact. "Despite some of the stuff I said to him, deep down – _really_ deep down – I wanted him to be right. I wanted him to be this special chosen one. Because then I could be special by extension... just like my idols."

Tears welled up in her eyes. "I'm so stupid. I let myself get taken in by the idea of becoming a world-famous hero. I can't believe I was dumb enough to think that I could have stories made about me." She rubbed her eyes with an arm. "I told myself to put up with Vulpix because the reward would be love and admiration. From the guild… from the townsfolk… heck, from _the whole world_. Everyone knows about Team Poképals, Team Gaia, and the others." She hung her head shamefully. "And I let Vulpix convince me that I could be just as famous as them if I stuck with him."

"It's not your fault," Null said. "That stuff… does sound tempting. Especially if... you're feeling lonely."

Tessa shoved Null's hip. "You're just saying that to make me feel better," she muttered dejectedly. "Vulpix was right. And that's exactly why I can never face him. I _am_ a sad, sorry little Riolu who uses sob stories to get people's attention. I don't deserve anyone's love. All Vulpix and I managed to do was bring out each other's bad sides... until everything exploded." She turned away from Null. "That's why I can't go back. That's why I'm just done with all of this. It feels like I'll only be able to do more harm than good from now on. And besides, I don't matter to anyone. I just…"

She stuck her head back into the sand, letting out a muffled cry of, "I just want to see my dad again."

"You matter to me."

Tessa poked her head up, sand cascading down her face. "Null, you don't have to say that to make me feel better."

"I mean it," he said, scooting toward her. "You're the first person… who's made me feel like... something other than a burden. Everyone else… keeps their distance. But you… you want to talk to me." He pressed his mask against the tip of her snout. "I… I have fun… being with you. When you're around… the pain… it doesn't feel as bad. It feels like… I can handle it…"

"Null," Tessa whispered, her eyes sparkling.

"Please don't leave me," he begged. "We can… help each other… together. Starting with... making sure... you and Vulpix are square." He shuffled backward, his gaze falling toward the ground.

"Okay." Tessa took in a deep breath. "If it's for you… I guess I can try to do that." Her ears twitched at the sound of a relieved sigh. The sand around her shifted as Null lumbered to his feet. "H-Hey, where are you going?" she squeaked.

"… to the ocean," Null rasped. "I'm… sick of all… this muck on me. I'd like… to clean it up…"

"But the ocean's salt water! It'll make you all sticky," Tessa said.

"… better than… being covered in mud," Null said, trudging toward the water. Tessa sat up and watched him wade into the ocean. As he lay down, a wave rushed across his body. The water swept the grime out from his fur and scales. He dipped his mask down, letting water splash across it.

Tessa got to her feet and slowly walked forward. She stood at the edge of shore, wincing as cold ocean spray tickled the soles of her feet. Tessa cautiously inched closer to Null. Each successive wave went a little further up her leg, removing the mud in the process. A sense of relief washed over her, like the waves were carrying her sorrows away with the filth her body had accumulated underground.

Then, suddenly, an unexpectedly large wave struck her. Tessa yipped in fright. She stumbled about and fell into the water, flopping around like a beached Magikarp. Tessa got back to her feet, coughing and sputtering. "Wha-What the–?" She brought her paws up to rub her eyes, only to hiss and blink rapidly. "Ow! Ow! Salt… in my eyes!" she whimpered.

Finally, her blurry vision faded. She noticed Null had shifted so he lay parallel to the shoreline. "Did… did you just splash me?" she said

Null looked right at her. "What? Of course not."

"Don't lie to me. There's no way a wave that big would just come up out of the blue like that," Tessa said. "Okay, _maybe_ a wild Pokémon could do it, but they don't tend to get this close to the shore."

"Hmm. Well… I suppose… I could've done… something like this…"

A rush of wind grazed Tessa's sides before another wave drenched her, knocking her onto her back. Null let out a low, rumbling laugh while Tessa scrambled to her feet. "Hey! You totally soaked me, you… you…"

"… hey… at least you're cleaner now," Null said.

"Oh yeah? Well, let's see how much _you_ like it!" Tessa said. Her right paw glowed bright blue and she slammed her palm into the water. She gave a confident smirk, but it faded when her splash failed to make it to Null. He retaliated by sweeping glowing talons across the surface of the water. Tessa tried to avoid the wave, but the silt on the ocean floor weighed her down. The wave swept her up and pulled her under the surface again.

Null lumbered to his feet, water dripping off his underbelly. Tessa popped back up, trying to shake the water off her fur. "You're not going to get away from me!" she declared, charging after her teammate. Or, rather, she would've, if the silt didn't trip her up and make her stumble. She fall forward, disappearing under the surface with a tiny splash. Null's laugh rumbled through the air

"… you okay, Riolu?" he asked, when he noticed she hadn't resurfaced. He was then taken completely by surprise, as Tessa lunged out of the water from beside him.

"Now I've got you!" she hollered, throwing all of her weight into an attempt to tackle Null. To Tessa's shock, she struck his side, unceremoniously bounced off of it, and fall back into the ocean. Null blinked and shook his head.

"… yeah… that's not… going to work," he said. Seconds later, he felt something yank one of his forelegs forward. Null hopped around, before slowly collapsing into the water like a falling tree. Tessa resurfaced, spitting out a mouthful of saltwater.

"Ha! See? I told you I had you," Tessa boasted, watching Null get back up and shake out his body and tail. The two stared at each other in silence, before breaking down laughing. They went back ashore, and resumed laying under the sun. When Tessa felt completely dry, she stood up and arced her back.

"So, it's getting kind of late," she said. "We should probably get going."

Null looked up toward the sky. "I think… we should go to the Observatory…"

Tessa's smile vanished. "I'd rather not go back there. At least… not right now."

"… I know. It's just… there's something there… that I want you to see," Null said. "We don't have to… stay long."

Tessa sighed. "Okay." She nestled up against Null's side. "But don't leave me alone, understand?"

"… I wouldn't think of it."

* * *

A quieter chapter, but we needed the quiet. Sorry if fluffy scenes between Riolus and chimeras aren't your thing. I still had fun with it.

Next time: the surprise party.


	36. Turning a Corner

**Content advisory:** themes of depression and suicide.

* * *

 **Chapter 31: Turning a Corner**

 _"Nicky. Dude, what are you doing calling me? You know I start my shift in, like, five minutes."_

 _"Can't you just clock in a bit late, Shane? This is important. I really need to talk to you."_

 _"Sorry, buddy, no can do. Boss has been breathing down my neck all week."_

 _"You're a_ _part time employee,_ _man. What could possibly be so important that you can't take a moment for your best friend?"_

 _"Ugh, fine. Whatever. You wanna talk? Then, go on. If something bad happens to me, it's on your head."_

 _"… you know what? Never mind. Forget it. It's not important."_

 _"No, no. I already said I'd clock in late. Don't be shy. Tell me what's wrong."_

 _"… it's nothing. I'm just… overthinking things again."_

 _"Is this about what happened at school this morning? Dirk got detention, you know. I'll bet his mom will pay to fix up your 3DS. Or get you a new one. I think the SD card's fine, so–"_

 _"That's not what I–"_

 _"Not what, Nicky? You're confusing me, here."_

 _"Forget it. It's fine, Shane. Just go to work."_

 _"You sure?"_

 _"I'm not looking to be a bother."_

 _"Uh, okay then."_

 _"And Shane? Just in case I don't see you this weekend… happy birthday."_

 _"Huh? I thought you said you were coming over!"_

 _"Yeah… something popped up. I'll try to make it. But… no promises. I'm heading to drop your gift off right now, actually."_

 _"Nicky? Dude... you're scaring me."_

 _"Don't worry about it. I'm fine. Take care… Shane."_

 _"Nicky, wait!"_

 _The line went dead._

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Vulpix? Oy, for crying out loud," Yungoos said, waving a paw in front of Shane's face. He grabbed one of Shane's ears and shouted, "Yo, human!"

With a holler, Shane snapped to attention. He stumbled forward, rubbing the ear that Yungoos had just yelled into. "Ow! What the heck was that for?" he said.

"Youse was spacing out on us," Yungoos scoffed. "Ain't youse finished with… whatever it is youse is doing? It's getting ta be late in da afternoon."

"Right," Shane said. "Lemme go check in on the food." He turned and made for the dining area, shaking his head. Shane knew he couldn't afford to draw comparisons at a time like this. After all, he had an opportunity to do the right thing this time, but that chance would slip away if he lost focus. He paused in front of the dining table and sniffed the air. A fragrant, fruity aroma wafted in from the kitchen. Shane followed it, pausing in the doorway to gawk at the giant cake sitting on a cart. Chocolate frosting lined every square inch of it.

"Wow," Shane said, mouth watering.

"Well, what do you think?" Steenee asked, walking over with a wooden spoon resting on her shoulder. She wiped her chocolate-covered hands on her apron. "Not bad, huh?"

"It's twice as big as you," Shane said. "Are we sure we can get it through the doorway?"

"Absolutely!" Mimikyu said, scuttling over with a tray of Solrock and Lunatone-shaped cookies balanced on his head. Like Steenee's apron, flour and frosting peppered his costume. "Sylveon measured the door just to be safe. She's going to use her ribbons to help the cake stay balanced. Oh… uh… sorry… you must be here because you need something. Forgive my rambling."

"It's okay," Shane said. "I just wanted to check and see how the food was coming along. It's getting pretty late and I'm starting to think Riolu will be here soon."

Sylveon maneuvered a couple of plates onto a different cart. "In that case, would you mind bringing these treats out for me? That way I can tend to the cake."

"Not a problem," Shane said. As he walked over toward the cart, he noticed the giant metal mixing bowl on the table vibrate. It spun around slightly, before falling onto its side. Eevee tumbled out onto the floor, covered in chocolaty batter from head to tail. He looked up at Shane and wagged his tail excitedly.

"You need to plan more parties in the future!" Eevee said. "That way I can go swimming in Mommy's cooking!"

"Eevee, did you _seriously_ jump into that bowl while my back was turned?" Sylveon said, shaking her head. "Great, now we'll need to get you cleaned up."

"Actually, I think it's an improvement," Shane quipped, smirking as he watched Eevee turning to lick batter off his shoulder.

Sylveon lightly rapped the back of Shane's head with a ribbon. "Don't encourage him," she scolded. Shane rolled his eyes and pushed the dining cart out of the kitchen, heading toward the assembly area. His legs ached and the back of his mind begged him to lie down and go to sleep, but Shane willed those thoughts away. He could rest after the party, for better or worse.

Shane arrived in the assembly area. His guild mates gathered several tables together to hold the buffet. They even managed to fit a single, purple and gold tablecloth over everything. Shane's ears twitched at the murmurs of faint conversations taking place behind him.

"Um, can someone help me put this food on the table?" Shane asked. He turned around and found himself looking at the bevy of ribbons and balloons scattered about the room in decoration. He blinked a few times, but soon felt his vision growing fuzzy.

 _'That's… weird. Why does this feel so familiar?'_ he thought. He squeezed his eyes shut and opened them back up. However, the room remained blurry. And it grew even blurrier, until his everything went completely white.

* * *

 _Shane was moving. He wasn't sure how. He wasn't sure why. But he was walking forward. His field of vision bobbed up and down with each step he took. His gait was much heavier than he had grown used to as a Vulpix, furthering his confusion. Blue walls lay on each side of the hallway he was walking through. Shane passed marble pillars and wondered why he was seeing them when he was supposed to be in the Observatory. The soft carpet under his paws also struck him as out of place. Before Shane could try to begin piecing together what had just happened, someone spoke._

 _"Remind me why I need to keep my eyes closed again?"_

 _Shane looked to his left, identifying the crescent moon-shaped bat gliding beside him as the source of the unfamiliar voice. He felt his mouth start to move, but the voice that emerged wasn't his._

 _"I already told you, Lunala. It's a surprise!"_

 _Upon hearing the name, Shane immediately tried to ask a question. He was talking to Solgaleo's partner, after all, and the Pokémon that Tessa's mom was supposedly protecting. He figured if he could get her some answers, that would surely make her feel better. However, his mouth refused to budge. In fact, Shane's body wasn't listening to him at all. He kept walking down the hallway, passing more marble pillars._

 _The only thought that came to Shane's mind was that he was having a dream vision. He began to panic, wondering if he had passed out before the party could start._

 _"That's not helping your case here, you know. Your surprises are almost always of the unpleasant variety," Lunala said._

 _Shane looked ahead, spotting bright colors at the end of the hallway. He stepped into the light, but was unprepared for the sight in front of him: Legendary Pokémon filling up the entire circular room, most positioned around a circular table with a half-orange, half-blue cake._

 _Shane involuntarily nodded and the assembled chorus of Legends belted out, "Surprise!"_

 _Lunala's eyes shot open and her jaw dropped. "What the–? What are you all doing here?"_

 _"Why, we're here to celebrate, of course!"_

 _"Luh-Lady Ho-Oh? Is that you?" Lunala gasped, bowing her head. "Forgive my rudeness."_

 _A glistening rainbow aura drew Shane's attention. He looked to his right and watched Ho-Oh walk up to him. She smiled at him. "Of course it's me," she said. "And no need to be so stiff, Lunala. Today's the fiftieth anniversary of the day you two were made from the ashes of your predecessors, after all."_

 _"And I thought it would be fun to throw a party," Shane said, though his voice was still much deeper than he was used to. "C'mon, I thought it'd be fun. Look at everyone who came out to celebrate with us."_

 _ **"Ho-Oh informed me that there would be merrymaking! If I find that I was lied to, I shall smite someone in retribution!"**_ _Zekrom shouted, slamming an arm on the table._

 _Reshiram stepped beside him and flicked the tip of his snout with a talon. "Do us all a favor, Turbine Butt, and give that big mouth of yours a rest, will ya?" she said._

 _ **"… hmph. My mouth is not big… it is perfectly proportioned for my well-toned physique,"**_ _Zekrom said, putting his hands on his hips._ _**"You're just jealous beca– mfgrh!"**_

 _Reshiram grabbed Zekrom's muzzle and clamped it shut._

 _"Get a cave, you two!" a voice heckled from the background. Reshiram's face went bright red._

 _"So, what do you think?" Shane asked. "Up for a little fun with some friends?"_

 _Lunala chuckled. "Of course I am. Just because I'm dedicated to my job doesn't mean I'm unwilling to cut loose for a few hours. Who do you take me for, Dialga?"_

 _The room burst into laughter at this._

* * *

Water splashed across Shane's face, forcibly jolting him back to reality. He doubled over in a coughing fit.

"Are you suuuuure you're okay, dahling?" Bruxish asked.

"He's obviously not," Serperior scoffed. "Look at the bags under his eyes. He's sleep deprived. I'll bet he's hallucinating." She rubbed her forehead with her tail tip. "Great. We've spent all day taking orders from this doofus."

"I'm… fine," Shane wheezed, shaking water off his face. "I just… um… zoned out for a second."

"Yeah. A _really_ long second _,_ " Yungoos said.

Before Shane could say anything else, Trapinch scrambled down the stairs to the main level. "They're coming! They're coming!" Trapinch hunched over, struggling to catch his breath. "Why did I have to be to the lookout guy again?"

"Cuz youse didn't volunteer to do somet'ing else quick enough," Yungoos said.

"Alright then. I guess that means it's showtime," Shane said, silently wondering if the guild had really done enough or if this plan would fall flat. "Can we cut out the Luminous Orbs for a little while?"

Metagross' eyes flashed blue and he dimmed the orbs scattered around the room. Shane shoved his way past his guild mates, making his way toward the eastern hallway to help Sylveon deal with the cake. The other guild members stood around, waiting in silence.

"Did Vulpix tell anyone what we should to when Riolu shows up?" Togedemaru asked.

"That would be a no," Serperior said. "Guess we should just wait until we see some shadows on the stairs and say surprise."

It took a few more minutes, but they eventually heard footsteps above them. "That's really strange." The group immediately recognized Tessa's voice. "I can't believe no one's around to let us in."

"… maybe… they all went somewhere?" Null said. "In any case… let's head downstairs…"

The guild members heard footsteps that gradually grew louder. "Hey, who killed all the lights?" Tessa asked.

The Luminous Orbs flared to life, followed by everyone shouting, " _Surprise!_ "

A yipping Tessa jumped backward, aura feelers shooting straight up. "What are you all doing?" she asked.

"Happy hatch day, Riolu!" the guild members declared. Several sets of streamers and balloons suddenly fell down from the ceiling, while Tessa looked about in shock.

"Th… this is… a surprise party? But, I didn't tell anyone today was my hatch day," Tessa squeaked. Sure, there were guild members who probably knew, but she told Team Captivate she didn't want them doing anything.

"We know," Growlithe barked. He marched forward with several of his special fireworks sticking out from a harness on his back. "But we were able to find out and thought it would be fun to throw you a party. Check out the cake. It's bigger than me!"

Behind him, Shane, Steenee, and Sylveon, wheeled out a rather large cake. Shane stayed hidden behind the dining cart and, as soon as it came to a stop, bolted for the east hallway before Tessa could see him. Though he wanted to see Tessa's reaction, he also didn't want to risk her seeing him and getting upset.

Tessa looked up at the towering dessert. "Is that–?"

"Molten chocolate cake with a nanab berry glaze in the center. Your favorite," Sylveon said. A ribbon extended forward, holding a slice of cake with a candle sticking out of it. "We all got together and decided that, just because your family's not around, doesn't mean we can't pitch in to help you have a fun hatch day."

"Yeah!" Eevee chirped, still covered in cake batter. "You're such a good friend. Which is why I wanted to help, too." He stepped to the side to show the plate full of Solrock and Lunatone cookies. "I made these with Mimikyu! And I got you a gift, too."

"Go on," Sylveon said. "You ought to make a wish."

Tessa gingerly took the plate from Sylveon's ribbon and stared at the piece of cake. "R-Right… okay… h-here goes nothing." She shut her eyes tight, blew the candle out, and opened them back up. Though she had thought of a wish, she was confident it stood no chance of coming true.

"Great!" Growlithe said. "Now we can get the festivities started!" A round of cheers followed as Sylveon and Braviary went about cutting up the cake. Steenee and Mimikyu made rounds to set out the other dishes that they had prepared. Shane brought the remaining food items from the kitchen, disappearing back into the east hallway each time. Steenee tried to offer him some cake, but he refused. His stomach growled in protest, but Shane ignored it. This was Tessa's moment and he had to do everything to keep it that way, even if that meant not partaking in the festivities.

While everyone ate, they traded talks of recent assignments and took part in a few card and board games that Team Specter had managed to gather. Naturally, since the ghosts had gotten a hold of them, it didn't take very long for some folks to realize that Haunter was attempting to cheat. He tried to play the accusation cool, but Misdreavus quickly ratted him out, prompting him to call everyone a bunch of spoilsports and go sulk inside of a nearby balloon.

Despite all the conversations taking place, each guild member went to great length to keep Tessa included. At first, she dismissed it as them playing along with whoever's idea the party was. But, the more she talked, the more those thoughts went away. Eventually, Tessa found herself laughing along with her fellow apprentices as Growlithe recounted the time he burnt one of Braviary's treasured keepsakes to cinders.

As the games winded down, Tessa rejoined Null. "I… I just can't believe this is all happening," she whispered.

"… see? It's just like… I told you… at the beach. More folks care about you… than you think," Null said.

Tessa looked up at him. "You took me to the beach so this could all get set up, didn't you?"

"… guilty," Null said. "But… it was important. Besides… it worked… didn't it? You seem to be… in better spirits…"

"I… I guess so. This is all just a lot to take in," Tessa said.

"… I think… you deserve it," Null said, nudging her with his mask.. "C'mon… just try to relax… and enjoy yourself…"

"Augh! Haunter, _seriously?_ "

Tessa looked over her shoulder. Shane staggered back from the buffet table, a plate firmly pressed against his face. "Sorry, Vulpix. I guess that cake just slipped through my fingers," Haunter said. "But look on the bright side. You're… much sweeter now! Mwee hee hee hee!"

 **Hold on. I will procurtain a towel for you,** Magearna said, then walked out of the room.

"Huh. Why hasn't Vulpix cleaned himself up from the mission? He looks horrendous," Tessa said.

"I think he mentioned… the shower not working… or something," Null said. "I wouldn't… bring it up with him. You know how he gets… about his fur…"

"Yes. It's one of the few things he does that's actually entertaining," Tessa said, chuckling.

Null sighed. "How about… you open some gifts?" He jerked his head to the side, where Tessa spotted several wrapped objects sitting in a small pile.

"Those are all for me?" she gasped.

"Pretty sure… yeah…"

Tessa got up and made her way toward the presents. Her guild mates noticed this and followed her. A gift unwrapping session followed. Tessa received a few practical items, like a new looplet to replace the one she had gotten when she joined the guild. She also got stereotypical gifts, like a red bow to wear on her head. Then, there were the strange gifts, like the tube of novelty fur dye Serperior gave her. It was promptly tested, when Serperior used a vine to smear the gel across Tessa's tail, turning it a bright, gaudy shade of yellow.

Finally, Sylveon stepped forward, holding a small box. "Here's the last gift," she said, nudging the box toward Tessa. "It's not from me, but apparently someone's got cold feet, so I'm giving it to you in their place."

Tessa took the lid off the box. "It's a locket," she whispered. Tessa reached inside and delicately pulled the jewelry out, clasping the sun-shaped pendant in a paw.

"Go on. Open up the pendant," Sylveon said. Tessa looked at her in confusion. Sylveon nodded.

Tessa slowly opened the trinket, only for her breath to rush out of her. There, looking back at her, was a small, sky-blue gemstone. Her paws trembled. She recognized this! "Dad... he kept a gem just like this in the house," she said. "Where did you get this? How did you do this?"

 **That is the same gem your father owned. I used my patented Geartronic Gemstone Shrinkifier to resize it,** Magearna explained.

"Youse totally just made that up, didn't ya?" Yungoos said.

 **Of course not. I inventified it ten years ago,** Magearna insisted, crossing her arms.

Tessa stared wide-eyed at the open locket. Sylveon frowned. "Do you not like it?"

"What? Nuh-No! Of course I do," Tessa said. "It's… it's beautiful." To think someone had actually gone and worked with Magearna to craft a memento of her dad that she could always carry with her.

Sylveon nodded. "Good to hear. I'm sure the Pokémon that made it for you would be happy to tell you more about it," she said, shooting a look over at Shane. He froze in the midst of loading plates onto one of the dinner carts.

"What are you looking at me for?" Shane said. "Talk to Null. He was beside himself with worry over the idea you wouldn't like it. He did choose it for you."

Tessa looked at Null. His helmet hid his widening eyes. "You made this?" she said.

"Yeah," Shane said. "He wanted to get you the perfect gift to cap off this party. It was his idea, after all."

The side conversations taking place abruptly stopped and all eyes fell on Shane. A few guild members turned and exchanged surprised whispers with one another. Shane resumed pushing the dinner cart toward the east hallway, but Steenee snatched it away from him and pointed toward his teammate. Shane hung his head and trudged back across the room. Null briefly looked at Shane before Tessa walked up to him.

"I… I don't know what to say," Tessa whispered. "This is really kind of you. Did you plan all of this out while I was sleeping?"

"Yup. He barged right into morning assembly and told us that we should all come together to throw you a surprise party," Shane explained. "It's all thanks to him."

Tessa smiled at Null. "You didn't need to go to all this trouble just for me."

"But you had a good time, right?" Shane asked.

"Absolutely," Tessa said.

"And are you feeling better than you did this morning?" Shane said. Tessa vigorously nodded. "That's… that's good to hear." He stepped back, relief flooding through him. "Well, uh, I'm sure you want to get back to the festivities. So, uh, I'm just going to go outside… get a little fresh air. Don't mind me." Shane turned and made his way toward the stairs. The sounds of laughter gradually faded as he reached the Observatory's entrance. Shane walked outside, craning his neck up to look at the star-filled, twilight sky.

His idea had worked. The guild lifted Tessa's spirits and he was able to keep his involvement in the idea hidden from Tessa. _'Nicky... this is what I should have done for you,'_ Shane thought, tilting his head down and taking in a shuddering breath. Like at Tessa's house in the morning, a newspaper page flashed through his mind.

 **Westhill High School teen dies in apparent suicide.**

 _'I turned Nicky away when he needed my help the most,'_ Shane thought, eyes watering. _'And I almost made an even worse mistake with Tessa.'_ He thanked the stars that the guild was able to pull Tessa back from the brink. The article was replaced with a mental image of Tessa smiling at Null. _'Seeing her happy like that... I think it's the best thing to happen since I got here. Probably the only good thing that's happened, too,'_ Shane figured.

He took another shuddering breath. _'I'm sorry, Nicky. And I'm sorry, Tessa. It's a good thing you're dissolving the team. I don't deserve to have friends.'_

Feathers draped across Shane's back and he involuntarily flinched. He looked up and saw Braviary's blurred outline beside him. Shane quickly rubbed a foreleg across his eyes. "I was… I just wanted to get some air. That bog did a number on my sinuses," he said.

Braviary dropped a small metal object at Shane's feet. Shane looked down and saw a silver badge sparkling in the moonlight. He knew it was an apprentice badge. Shane had coveted it since he'd gotten into the guild. Yet, he couldn't even smile at the sight of it.

"Son, I wanted ya to know how proud I am of what you did back there," Braviary said. "That was mighty big of you. So, on behalf of the guild, congrats on reaching apprentice rank."

Shane frowned. "How can you be proud of me? After what happened on our mission, I wouldn't be surprised if no one in the guild wants to speak to me again." He looked away from Braviary. "I'm sure Metagross must've told you what happened."

"I got a terse summary beamed into my noggin," Braviary said, causing Shane to wilt like a flower. "This ain't about that. It's about what you did today. It was generous and selfless. And you didn't even use the opportunity to try and make yerself look good. I admit, I had my doubts about how sincere you were with this gesture. But it looks to me like you did it out of the kindness of yer heart, and not as a means to an end."

"I wouldn't have needed to do this if I hadn't screwed things up so badly to start with," Shane said. "I wanted to make things better for her, so she could happily start over with Null." He remembered Sylveon's instructions to him from earlier and bit his lower lip. "Err, scratch that. _We_ did this together, to help Riolu see that the guild can be a second family for her."

"I'm glad to hear that. I mean... look at yerself, hoss," Braviary said. "Yer positively filthy... and exhausted in ways most of them folks in there couldn't begin to imagine." As if to emphasize this, Shane descended into another coughing fit, spitting up a mouthful of sticky green phlegm. Braviary cringed. "Err, anyway... not once this whole day did I hear you complaining about how you look or how you feel. Considering how you'd been acting before, that's a mighty impressive attitude adjustment."

Shane's ears folded against his face. "I don't need sympathy right now, okay. I'm just spending some time out here… alone. After all, I'm going to need to get used to that from now on. So, I might as well get started."

Braviary withdrew his wing. "Son, I may not have saved the world or nothing, but I do know one thing. You don't gotta be called a hero to do the right thing, but heroes are remembered as the folks that do the right things _fer the right reasons._ Sure, getting rewards fer completing missions is great. And, yeah, maybe it'd be nice to have stories passed on about yer days in the guild. But that shouldn't be yer motivating factor to go out and help others."

He pointed a wing at his chest. "Nah, that's gotta come from the heart." Shane looked away again, so Braviary stepped into his field of vision. "Listen. Folks like us make our livelihoods helping other Pokémon. And we do it because it makes us feel good to see them happy. Ain't that what yer thinking about Riolu right now?"

Shane nodded.

"Then, sounds to me like yer finally thinking like one of us," Braviary said. "I can't say what things were like fer you back home. But out here, we all face a lot of challenges. Especially with Mystery Dungeons constantly popping up and changing around. That's why we need to work together."

"I understand," Shane whispered. "No more walking around, acting like I own the place. I need to take this stuff seriously. Because bad things happen to good Pokémon when I don't."

Braviary nodded approvingly. "Just keep those thoughts in mind, and you'll do great from here on out. I can feel it in my bones." He looked back toward the Observatory. "So, ready to go back inside yet?"

"Almost. I just need a few more minutes to myself," Shane said.

"Alright, but it's getting late. And we should really try to clean up before heading off to sleep," Braviary said. He walked back into the building, leaving Shane to look out at the stars.

 _'Do the right things for the right reasons, huh?'_ Shane thought. By that logic, Shane figured that he shouldn't try to stop the Prism Virus because a voice in his dreams called him a chosen one. Instead, he needed to stop it so that Pokémon can continue living peaceful lives. _'And so that families like Tessa's aren't torn apart.'_

There was one problem, though. How was he going to fight the Prism Virus without any partners? The Bewear incident proved he wasn't strong enough to beat an infected Pokémon along, even with all the training in the world. _'So, what do I do now?'_ he thought, shoulders sagging.

The question continued to linger in Shane's mind as he returned inside and went about helping his fellow guild mates clean up. He was particularly adamant that Tessa and Null not get involved, as he continued sticking to his story that all of this was Null's idea. When Braviary was satisfied with the cleaning job and dismissed him, Shane staggered back to the housing wing.

Each step became slower, making Shane's legs tremble. His eyelids grew heavy and muscles burned, threatening to give out from exhaustion. A thick fog overtook Shane's mind. When he stumbled into his team's bedroom, he tensed up. "Hmm? When… when did I get in here?" he asked, yawning. His gaze fell to his pillow in the middle of the room. Never had a single cushion looked so inviting to him as it did in that very moment. "Maybe Tessa wouldn't mind… if I just slept here one more night," he mumbled, walking toward the pillow.

"… hey."

The soft whisper roused Shane from his half-asleep stupor. He rapidly shook his head, trying to fight back the urge to pass out. Tessa stood in the doorway, her newly-received locket sitting on her neck, over her scarf. "Oh, uh, hi," Shane said. "I was just, y'know, checking to see if I left anything in here. Since, um, I guess I'm supposed to switch rooms with Null or something?" He scratched his head. "What room does that guy even sleep in, anyway?"

Tessa rubbed her shoulder. "I know," she said.

"Huh?"

"I know that this whole thing was your idea," Tessa said. "Null told me the truth."

"Uh, I don't… I have no idea what you're talking about," Shane said, shuffling back. "Must be the berry juice. I told Serperior not to spike it with anything."

"You do realize Null can't eat or drink, right? Now, stop lying," Tessa said. "You made this locket for me, didn't you?"

"Well, honestly, Magearna did the bulk of the work. So, if you want to get technical–"

"Why wouldn't you want to take credit for any of this?" Tessa said. "This… all of this clearly took a lot out of you."

Shane poked the ground with a forepaw. She was right, but any desire for Shane to say that was dampened by what Sylveon had told him. "Because this wasn't about me. This was about you. You said that you're alone... and that nobody cares about you. It's not true. Everyone in the guild… they pitched in to make this happen. Because you _are_ loved," Shane said. "I stayed out of it because I didn't want to ruin everyone's hard work."

"Vulpix," Tessa whispered, clasping her newly-obtained locket.

He hung his head. "If you had known that I was the one overseeing all of this, it might've made you more upset. So, I decided to give the credit to Null. After all, he's your best friend. And if you two want to start a team together, I figured the least I could do is try to start the two of you off on the right foot."

"Vulpix," Tessa said, a bit more forcefully.

He walked toward the door, avoiding Tessa's gaze. "I know this is probably a meaningless gesture, but I want you to know how sorry I am. For everything. From the moment I met you, I've been a real jerk. Because I thought that I somehow knew better than you, an actual Pokémon who's lived here her whole life." Shane's stance slouched. "If I had known the truth, I'd have never pushed you to come here."

"Vulpix, that's enough," Tessa said, putting a paw on his shoulder. Shane jolted stiff in surprise. Had he said something wrong? Was he about to put all his hard work to waste by sticking a paw in his mouth?

"Um... is there a problem?" Shane whispered.

"You can stop talking, Vulpix," Tessa said. "I can see how sorry you are... and I appreciate it. But the truth is that I owe you an apology just as much as you thought you owed me one."

Shane finally turned and looked Tessa in the eyes. She wanted... to apologize? That didn't make any sense!

"But... I attacked you," Shane said, looking down guiltily. "I froze you in a mud puddle and, if that wasn't awful enough, I said your dad didn't love you."

"I know," Tessa said. "But it's not like I was much better. I shoved a teammate dissolution notice into your face after you woke up from a coma. Then, I spent the start of the mission demeaning you until I completely overlooked the fact that Null _attacked_ you."

Shane stiffened. Where was this coming from? Did Braviary pull Tessa aside? Because Shane couldn't imagine Metagross talking with her about this. And he had told Null to cheer Tessa up at the beach, so there was no way he could've brought this up. Unless _that_ was what Tessa had meant when she said Null told her the truth.

"Um... Null said he had talked with you about what happened," Tessa said, poking her index digits together. "I don't exactly know what you said but... well... as bad as I was feeling this morning, I can't even imagine what must've been going through your head in Moonrise Marsh." Her ears and aura feelers drooped. "I'll bet you were terrified. And I... I blamed that attack on you."

So, it _was_ Null, then. Shane's tails curled up. The memories of the attack _had_ lingered in his mind. Heck, he was thinking about them when he was outside. Despite that, he wasn't sure he was really prepared to talk about it.

"Y... yeah," Shane said, tracing a forepaw along the ground. "I... well..."

He couldn't help himself. Tears welled up in his eyes.

"Ri... Riolu... I was so scared," he squeaked, brushing snot against his shoulder. "I'm _still_ scared, though I'm sure the Lunar Wing will help him. I just..." His voice trailed off and he shook his head. "I'd never felt so... so powerless! The reeds dragging me under the swamp... the weight of my fur... struggling just to be able to breathe. I... I..." Shudders racked his body. "When I saw you there... going to him... _comforting_ him... and _blaming_ me, I snapped. I just... I'd never felt so _angry_ before. I wanted to hurt you... I wanted you to know _exactly_ what I felt like. It... it was..."

"Instinct?" Tessa said, lowering her head shamefully.

"Yes," Shane said, ears drooping. "I... freezing you in the mud was so satisfying in the moment and I _hate_ myself for thinking that... but it's true. After that... I don't even know. Seeing you pop up in Mellath Bog stirred those same feelings. I was... I let my hatred just take the wheel and drive things out of control."

Without warning, a teary-eyed Tessa stepped forward and embraced Shane. "I did, too," she whispered, brushing her head against his neck. Shane flinched from the contact, tails shooting upward. "I'm sorry," Tessa squeaked. "After Lycanroc, I wanted nothing to do with you and I took those feelings to the extreme. I was so desperate to get Null to like me that I made a terrible mistake down in Moonrise Marsh. Even if we weren't on good terms... you didn't deserve that. I just... I'm so sorry."

"I guess... we both screwed up big time, huh?" Shane said, lowering his head.

"You know what's really stupid? Null told me... I should try to be a role model for you," Tessa said, laughing bitterly. "If I really wanted to earn his friendship, _that's_ what I should've done. But instead I went and did the exact opposite. And look where it got us." She broke off the embrace and stepped back sighing.

"Yeah," Shane said. Now he was _sure_ all the good vibes from the party had been undone. Yet, a part of him was happy that he was able to get this all off his chest. Tessa even apologized to him, which he wasn't expecting at all.

"Really... I don't think I deserved this big party. Least of all... one spearheaded by you," Tessa said, rubbing her shoulder. "But, well, we can't exactly turn back time and take it all away."

Shane nodded, unsure where Tessa was going with this.

"I guess that just means... that I'm going to have to find a way to make it up to you," Tessa said, extending a paw toward Shane. He looked at Tessa's paw like it was a lethal weapon.

"Wait," Shane said. "But what about the team dissolution?"

"Give me the form and you'll see," Tessa said, flexing her digits. Shane gave her a blank look but ultimately obliged. Tessa grabbed the paper out of his mouth and tore it in half. Then she tore those halves into fourths and the fourths into eights. She continued ripping away until the form was a handful of paper scraps. Then she tossed them behind her nonchalantly.

"I… I don't understand," Shane said. "Are you saying, you want us to stay together? Even after yesterday?"

"Yes," Tessa said. "Assuming, of course, you still want me as your teammate. After all that's happened, I honestly wouldn't blame you if you just asked Metagross to draw up a new form." She fidgeted with her locket. "I really do mean it when I say that the party you threw was amazing. I wish I could put into words what it means to me, but I don't think I can. And I _want_ to find a way to pay you back for it... partner."

Shane blinked in surprise. He was stunned. With the way the conversation was going, he couldn't have predicted such a turnaround. Did he still want Tessa as his teammate, though? After all, it wasn't like they had really had any fun together. Still, maybe this was the opportunity he needed to start off fresh? If he could take Braviary's words to heart, maybe Tessa could be the friend he sorely needed in his life. There was just one small matter he had to clear up.

"Well, I can think of one way you could pay me back." He reached his forepaw up and clasped the tip of Tessa's chin. "Please, promise me you won't ever go to such a dark place again."

Tessa blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Starving yourself," Shane said. "Or doing anything else to hurt yourself, for that matter. Promise me that, whatever happens to us, you won't ever try something like that."

His paw trembled against her chin. "I… well… yeah, okay. I promise," Tessa said.

"Good," Shane said, relieved. He backed away from her, ears folding against his head. "I don't want you to feel miserable anymore. I know you've lost your family, so to speak. I've lost people who are important to me, too. So, yeah, I know what it feels like to think that there's no one you can turn to." Another blush overtook his face. "… but maybe it doesn't have to be that way?"

Tessa nodded in understanding. Shane continued, "I know this will sound crazy, but do you think we could maybe start over? I'm not saying we need to be best friends or anything. But, at the very least, I'd like to leave the past where it is... and be a partner that you can depend on. It might not be perfect." He looked down. "Odds are, I'm going to screw up again, so I'll need you to call me out on it, like what Null did for you. Otherwise, I'll never learn. But... I'm going to try my best to be a better Pokémon."

"And I'm going to try my best to be better, too," Tessa said. She extended a paw toward Shane. "Through darkest night, and brightest day."

"Team Radiance always finds a way," Shane said, bumping her paw with his. "Partners?"

"Partners," she replied. And the two moved forward to embrace once again, only for Shane to hold up a forepaw.

"Wait a second," he said. "Yo, big guy!" He turned toward the doorway. "I know you're out there. Don't just stand there... come in."

Tessa's aura feelers stood up as Null's helmeted head appeared in the doorway. "… I didn't… want to interrupt," he rasped.

"You're part of this team too, right?" Shane said. Null shook his head. "Okay, yeah, I mean your name's not on the contract or anything. But it might as well be. After all, you're a lonely misfit with a spotty past, just like the two of us. The way I see it, you're more than qualified to join the team… officially."

Null blinked. "You… you really mean it?" he croaked. "Even after... what happened?"

"Yeah," Shane said. "I know things between us are... rocky. But I think the only way that'll change is if we work together." He poked the ground with a forepaw. "Besides… it's not a group hug unless _everyone_ participates."

Null's gray eyes widened. "… are you sure… about that?"

"I'd just go along with it. You know how stubborn he can be," Tessa mused.

"Very true, very true," Shane agreed, playing along. "It's a wonder I didn't end up a rock-type when I came here." Tessa fought to hid a giggle. Null plodded into the room and leaned over. This allowed both Tessa and Shane to contact the sides of his helmet as they embraced.

A click sounded.

"Awwwww, isn't that just the cutest, Serpy?"

Shane and Tessa stiffened and backed away from each other. "Milotic! We're having a private moment here," Tessa hissed.

"I know, and it's positively _adorable!_ " Milotic said.

 **And I got it on camera!** Magearna said. **This is definitely going in my 'Album O' Splendiferous Guild Moments.'**

Shane's face reddened. "Wait, what?"

"Mwee hee hee! Look, little Snowball's blushing," Haunter cackled, appearing out of the wall alongside Drifloon and Misdreavus. They flew out of the room, laughing amongst themselves.

"Seriously, you guys? Way to kill the moment!" Shane said.

"Relax, Vulpix. We're happy for your guys," Milotic said, smiling. "But we'll leave you alone. It's time we got some shut eye anyway." She turned and departed into the hallway, but not before Shane heard her say, "Hey, Magearna, make sure to make me a copy of that photo, okay?"

"Forget it. I'm too tired to stay mad at them. I need sleep… badly," Shane said, yawning.

"You also need, like, four showers," Tessa said.

"Oddly specific number choice, there. But it's on the agenda for tomorrow. I think we could all use a _real_ day off, don't you?" Shane said.

"I think this is the first time we're in agreement on something," Tessa said. "Guess we're getting off to a good start already."

They both approached their cushions and Shane immediately passed out. Tessa looked back toward the doorway, where Null lingered. "You're free to join us, you know."

"… right. Lemme just… go grab my pillow," Null said. He backed into the hallway. When the light struck his mask, Tessa saw something that made her aura feelers stand on end.

 _'Null's helmet… there's a crack in it!'_

* * *

 **~Great Canyon, Hill of the Ancients~**

A golden fox approached the canyon's summit and fanned out her tails. She could just barely make out a silhouette against the rising sun. "Xatu? It's Ninetales. I got your summons. What did you want to ask me?"

Ninetales paused her ascent, expecting to hear Xatu's voice echo through her mind. But nothing happened. She continued walking up, keeping her gaze fixed ahead of her. "Xatu, can you hear me?" She reached the top of the canyon and approached Xatu's side. She found him staring directly out at the sun.

Sighing, Ninetales gently shoved Xatu.

… _hmm? Oh, Ninetales. How nice to see you. What brings you to Great Canyon?_

"You summoned me here. Or did you forget again?" Ninetales said.

 _Did I?_ Xatu blinked slowly. _Oh… yes… I believe this is the time I foresaw you arriving. My apologies. I'm afraid my mind was elsewhere._

"Yes, yes, I've heard it all before," Ninetales said. "Well, I'm here. You said you had something you wanted to ask me? Something that needed me to be here in person?"

… _I see. Excuse me… I must recall what it is I summoned you here for,_ Xatu said. Ninetales rolled her eyes. _Ah! Yes… a glimpse into the past has allowed me to remember what I wanted to ask. Tell me, Ninetales, have you been commiserating with the spirits in the Tree of Life as of late?_

"Of course I have," Ninetales scoffed. "Don't tell me _that's_ why you wanted me here?"

… _I foresaw such an attitude,_ Xatu said, earning another eye roll. _No, what I wanted to know is if any of the spirits have ever mentioned something called the 'Lightless Black.'_

"Lightless Black?" Ninetales said. "Can't say I've ever heard of it. What's the significance?"

 _I am unsure,_ Xatu said. _But, lately, my glimpses into the future have turned up nothing._

Ninetales' eyes widened. "Are your powers fading?"

 _No. Rather, at a certain point, I simply cannot see anything. There is only darkness,_ Xatu said. _I probed this subject further to try and craft some form of explanation. What I got instead was a premonition. And, frankly, I do not know what to make of it. So, I thought it best to consult you. Would you permit me to share my vision?_

"By all means, go ahead," Ninetales said.

 _Very well,_ Xatu said. He spread his wings out and his eyes glowed bright blue. Ninetales shut her eyes and soon found a series of words spreading out across her mind's eye.

 _A faller rises.  
_ _And a Lightless Black blots out the sun.  
_ _Wings of dawn blanket the horizon,  
_ _The Devourer of Light has his fun.  
_ _Zero will strike. Gods will fall.  
_ _And Mystery Dungeons shall number none._

Ninetales blinked and staggered backward. "That... well... I'm a bit confused. Frankly, it sounded like a bunch of contradictions. How does something rise up when it falls? And dawn leading to 'devouring of light?' That doesn't make sense. Dawn leads to daytime... and daytime is flooded with light." Her brow furrowed. "Am I to understand that you think something is going to happen to our gods?"

 _I am sorry. Like you, I am unable to discern meaning from this vision,_ Xatu said. _I apologize for bringing you all the way out here. Would you prefer it if I teleport you back to Mt. Freeze?_

She nodded and placed a paw on his wing. The two disappeared in a burst of blue light.

* * *

 **~Celestial Island~**

Groaning, Necrozma rubbed an arm across his armored eyes. He glided past black cubes floating in limbo until he reached a cloud of black static flickering in and out of existence. A single red eye stared back at him, along with an eye-shaped purple gem sitting in the middle of a Nemes headdress.

 **"I was in the middle of a nap, Zero,"** Necrozma grumbled. **"What do you want?"** The red eye narrowed at him. **"Oh... right... sorry about that. Let's try again. What do you want...** _ **Mistress?**_ **"**

"An Ultra Wormohle to Aurora Vale," a garbled, heavily-distorted voice responded. As Zero spoke, the cloud of static pulsated faster.

 **"Do I look like a ferry service to you?"** Necrozma said, third eye flashing. **"Each wormhole you make me summon wastes more of my precious light. If you're not going to give me my core back, then you can walk!"**

A glimmer of rainbow energy pulsated from Zero's right side. Necrozma floated backward, arms twitching. **"Nrgh... fine,"** he said. **"But I want a little something in return!"**

"What did you have in mind?" Zero asked.

 **"Musharna. Give me her Beast Ball,"** Necrozma said, licking his lips. **"I have need of her... abilities."**

"Fine," Zero said. Black shadows swirled in front of Zero, producing a black and red ball with a checkerboard pattern running across it. "Now, the Ultra Wormhole, please."

Necrozma opened his wings and pointed his right arm forward. An Ultra Wormhole opened up behind Zero. **"Have fun. Oh... and if it's not too much trouble, bring me back a souvenir or two. Like some delicious light! Heeheeheehee!"** Necrozma said, levitating the Beast Ball toward him as Zero walked into the Ultra Wormhole. It remained open, despite Zero disappearing.

 **"Wakey, wakey, Musharna,"** Necrozma said, opening the ball up. Musharna appeared in a stream of red light. She lay on the ground, wheezing. Necrozma picked her up in his claws. **"Oh, come now, you're perfectly fine,"** Necrozma said. He squeezed Musharna, who shrieked in fright as pink mist funneled out of her blowhole. Necrozma dropped her to the ground, eyes flashing blue. The mist swirled into a spiral.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Perfect!"** Necrozma declared. He clapped his hands together and the mist formed up into a Lucario with a white diamond on her forehead and a fang sticking out of her mouth. **"Let's see if I can drive in the wedge that will pry the intrepid heroes apart for good!"** Necrozma said.

He pointed to the Ultra Wormhole and the Lucario diligently walked into it.

 **End of Episode 7**

* * *

I hope you enjoyed the episode, even if you found this last chapter too cheesy/sappy for your liking. I had a lot of fun with it, but it's time our heroes stopped fighting each other and started fighting the real threat. Rest assured, things aren't going to be all sunshine and rainbows for the main trio. If I do my job right, their new relationships will be put through the wringer, so to speak.

Next time: we meet the face (or lack thereof) of the Prism Virus.


	37. A Frosty Reception

_Tessa plodded forward and found her mother sitting on a small rock atop a violet cliff face. She walked up and sat down beside her. Prisma's aura feelers twitched and she opened her eyes. "I just thought I'd check up on you," she began. "When last we spoke, it seemed like you had hit a bit of a rough patch. Have things gotten any better?"_

 _Tessa rubbed the back of her head. How much was she prepared to tell Prisma? "It's, um, all a bit confusing, to be honest," she said._

 _Prisma crossed one leg over the other. "Well, maybe I can help you make sense of it."_

 _"No, that's not necessary. Everything's fine, I guess. I just had to go on a very difficult mission, that's all," Tessa said, concerned because she had brought her thoughts on Prisma up to her teammates. "I… well… my team ended up taking a Pokémon to Sunflower Meadows... so that he could die."_

 _Prisma's eyes widened. "What?" She turned around and plucked a squeaking Tessa off the ground. "Dear god... you didn't actually see this Pokémon die, did you?"_

 _Tessa nodded solemnly and Prisma's muzzle went agape._

 _"Why would you agree to something like that?" she barked, practically shaking Tessa in the process. "Oh, you must be feeling miserable!"_

 _"We didn't exactly know all the details of the mission, Mom," Tessa said, struggling in Prisma's iron grip. She had seen that familiar spark of anger in Prisma's eyes. "It was a disciplinary assignment. I would've gotten kicked out of the guild if I didn't do it. My team only learned the truth when we got to Sunflower Meadows."_

 _Growling, Prisma dropped Tessa to the ground. Pitch-black energy crackled across Prisma's clenched fists. Tessa's aura feelers shot up in alarm, her fears proven true. "This is… an outrage!" Prisma seethed. "How could Braviary and Metagross do that to you? They know full well what we've been through."_

 _Prisma's eyes narrowed. "No… wait… this was probably intentional," she whispered. "The more things change... the more they stay the same."_

 _Tessa's aura feelers throbbed. She was right. Her mom_ was _displaying the same anger she showed following Incineroar's death. Tessa hesitated to press on the issue, but this was her dream space. She should be safe, right?_

 _"Did you say something, Mom?" Tessa asked._

 _Prisma's eyes widened, but she quickly regained a neutral expression. "Metagross has a history of employing backwards logic," she said. "If he's treating you badly, I think you ought to quit."_

 _Tessa's brows raised. Did Prisma say she was proud Tessa had made it to the guild in a previous conversation? Why did she jump to that idea so quickly?_

 _"I can't quit, Mom," Tessa said._

 _"Why not?" Prisma asked._

 _"It's… um… it's complicated," Tessa said._

 _Prisma frowned. "Well, try me. I'm here now. Let me see what I can do to help."_

 _Prisma reached a paw over to Tessa, but she scooted away. She rubbed her shoulder. "Mom," she whispered, taking a deep breath. "You blame me for Dad's death, don't you?"_

 _Shock flashed across Prisma's face, but she hastily furrowed her brow and resumed her stern expression. "Sweetie, I would never do anything like that. You're my daughter. Whatever would give you such a ridiculous idea?"_

 _Tessa didn't believe her. She grabbed one of her aura feelers and rubbed it. "You always told me that aura never lies." She looked up at Prisma. "Before you left, I sensed a spark in your aura. Something that wasn't there before Dad died." Her gaze fell to the ground. "It's okay, Mom. You can tell me the truth. If I hadn't gotten sick, Dad would still be here."_

 _"Don't say that," Prisma barked. Tessa stiffened, worried Prisma might lash out. "You can't blame yourself for getting sick. If you want to blame anyone… blame Zapdos."_

 _"Zapdos?" Tessa gasped. "But he's a Legend. What does he have to do with this?"_

 _Prisma's expression darkened. "After your father's death, I spoke with Magearna. That day, the forecast in Sunrise Village called for clear skies." She clenched her fists, grabbing pawfuls of fur. "Zapdos decided to make an unexpected flyover. And he brought a thunderstorm with him." She turned back to Tessa. "You're innocent in this. It's Zapdos' fault. Zapdos… and… and…"_

 _Red aura crackled across Prisma's paws. It disappeared when she took a deep breath. "Sorry for startling you, Tessa. It's just... you know I'm under a lot of stress right now."_

 _"… yeah. Protecting Lunala must be pretty important," Tessa whispered, unsatisfied by Prisma's response to her concerns._

 _"How about we just drop this subject?" Prisma said. "It sounds like you've been through an ordeal. I'm not here to try and make that worse. I could calm your mind, instead, if you'd let me."_

 _"I'm okay, Mom," Tessa said. "My teammates helped me get through it."_

 _Prisma raised an eyebrow. "You mean the human? What could he have possibly done?"_

 _"He got the entire guild to throw me a hatch day party," Tessa said. "Thanks for remembering, by the way. I'd have liked at least a letter or something."_

 _Prisma's eyes narrowed. "I don't know where this sudden attitude of yours cropped up from, but I suggest you adjust your tone. I made it crystal clear I can't do_ anything _to give away where I'm hiding," she said. "I'm sorry, Tessa, and I wish there was another way, but…"_

 _"It's okay… Mom," Tessa growled, trying to keep her temper in check. "You keep working on Lunala. In the meantime, Vulpix and I are going to do what we can to help the Pokémon in Horizon deal with the Prism Virus." Her aura feelers tensed. Anger flashed in Prisma's eyes again. Tessa was sure of it. Something had to be wrong with her mother._

 _"Very well," Prisma said. She got to her feet and approached the edge of the cliff. "Then I'm afraid this is where we have to part ways."_

 _Tessa frowned. "You mean no more dream communication?" Her mother nodded. "Why? I haven't done anything wrong."_

 _"I already told you, Tessa. That human will keep attracting trouble. And I cannot risk the Prism Virus stealing your dreams and using them to find out where I am," Prisma said. "Besides, I should be getting back to Lunala anyway." She stuck one leg out over the cliff._

 _Tessa dashed toward her. "Wait, you're really going to leave me? Just like that? What about Gallian? What about–"_

 _Prisma turned to give her daughter one last look before pushing her other leg off the cliff's edge. Tessa watched her mom plummet into a purple void. Then her whole field of vision went pitch black._

* * *

 **Episode 8: Viral Infection**

 **Chapter 32: A Frosty Reception**

* * *

 **~Aurora Vale~**

Frightened chittering echoed through the foliage scattered around the deepest recesses of a sprawling valley. Several bushes burst apart and dozens of rocky, meteor-like spheres floated away at a frenetic pace. Close behind them, blistering cold air swept across the valley floor. The air entrapped the trees and bushes, stripping them of their leaves and instantly freezing their bare remnants. A slick layer of sparkling white ice spread out across the ground. Some of the frost descended on a pair of nearby streams. The rushing water came to a stop and, in a matter of seconds, the streams were nothing but lines of splintering ice sheets.

"Uhuu huu huu! Isn't it _grand,_ Umbry? In just a few hours, we'll take this dreary little dungeon and turn it into the most amazing ice-skating rink in the world. Great Glacier won't even hold a candle to our pristine, wintry paradise!"

In the center of the area, Espeon pranced around a cluster of onyx crystals. They pulsated with tendrils of crimson energy, sending waves of cold air across the valley and thickening the glacial frost that covered the ground.

"… hmph. Personally, I can't wait to demolish Great Glacier. It's a sickening place, just like Glacier Palace," Umbreon sneered. "Why did we have to coat this place in ice anyway? Couldn't we have just poisoned it like we did with Mellath Bog?"

"Of course not. We've got to be original!" Espeon said, swishing her hips. "Doing the same old thing every time is hardly fun. Where's the excitement? Where's the _panache?_ We want all these Pokémon to be mystified in their last moments before the Prism Virus changes their lives _forever._ " Umbreon rolled his eyes. "Also, you know Zero told us the best way to alter these Mystery Dungeons is to go by basic type effectiveness. Ground resists poison, but ice beats ground. So, I turned this dusty old valley into a winter wonderland," Espeon said, smirking.

Umbreon glared at her. "Well, then these stupid crystals need to hurry up. I'm tired of waiting around for Tapu Lele to show up. And I _hate_ the cold. Just like I hate that frosty Vulpix that slipped through our paws back in Dewdrop Woods. In fact, just being here makes me think of him. And that makes my blood boil."

"Aww, don't say that, Umbry. It just makes our little game all the more fun," Espeon said. "Besides, if your blood's boiling, you should be perfectly warm."

"… no, Espeon. Your partner has the right idea."

The joyous smile on Espeon's face immediately vanished. She stopped dead in her tracks and shrank down onto her belly, ears and tail folding against her body. Likewise, Umbreon's angry expression simmered down, replaced by a frown. Behind the cluster of crystals, purple sparks materialized out of thin air. They spiraled around, until they formed a portal with white, checkerboard lines running through it. The sounds of ice crunching echoed through the valley.

A golden metal staff struck the ground in front of the Eeveelutions. They both flinched. "Huh-Hi… Zero," Espeon squeaked. "You… um… you didn't tell us you'd be dropping by!"

A black, crystal-coated foot stepped down on Espeon's left forepaw. Her tail shot into the air and crumpled up as pain raced across her body. "Get up," Zero ordered. Next thing Espeon knew, metal claws dug into her back. Zero hoisted her to her feet and shoved her away. Espeon stumbled to the side, keeping her weight off her left limb.

"Um… a little advance notice would've been really appreciated," Espeon said. "We haven't finished setting things up here, so–"

Zero pointed her staff forward. The black octahedron sitting atop it started glowing red. Espeon hopped backwards, turning her gaze away from the scepter. "I don't recall ever needing to inform you of my actions," Zero said, straightening out the strip of red, Egyptian-styled cloth dangling from her waist. She gazed at the winged heart stitched into its center. "I wanted to check in on your progress." Zero swung her staff in front of her and gazed into the gem. The red energy's crackling intensified. "It seems the infected Lurantis in Mellath Bog was disposed of."

"What?" Umbreon gasped. "But we just infected her the other day. Who could've–?" He abruptly cut himself off and his eyes narrowed. "Don't tell me, it was Vulpix and Riolu again?"

Zero placed her right paw on her black, crystalline mask and nudged it up. Espeon focused on Zero's left eye – her lone eye – and then looked away, biting her lower lip.

"… hmph. It's good to see at least one of you has a decent head on their shoulders," Zero said, brushing snowflakes off the red spike protruding from the star insignia on her gem-encrusted chest. "With Lurantis done in, we've lost our best shot at subduing Tapu Fini. Not that it really matters, since it seems she never had the Dawn Hourglass to start with. That said, I'm not taking any chances this time around. Which is why I've come to speed things up a bit here."

"That's very proactive of you," Espeon said, grinning awkwardly.

"Silence," Zero hissed. Her eye flashed dark blue. "I would not need to be doing this if you two had done as I'd ordered and taken care of the human." She raised her left hand and black sparks crackled around it. "The Prism Virus has no use for disobedient Pokémon."

The color drained from Espeon's face. "Now, now, there's no need for that," she squealed, her voice cracking. "As you can see, everything's going swimmingly here. Look, we've even got the wild Miniors fleeing in terror. See?" She jerked her head upward, looking at a Minior pair floating off toward the sky.

Zero pivoted to follow Espeon's gaze. A sudden gust of wind ruffled the black fur around her rear and the four, waist-length dreadlocks sticking out of her head. With an annoyed growl, Zero raised her staff and the red energy swelled to fill the entire octahedron.

"Infect," she said. A red waveform beam raced forward. The Miniors turned around and screamed in fright as the beam swallowed them up. Zero lowered her staff and looked up. A pair of black, jagged crystal lattices with glowing red cores now floated where the Miniors previously were.

"There. Much more appropriate, wouldn't you say?" Zero said. The infected Miniors floated down toward them, dark energy crackling around their edges. "Let's see, Minior is hardly a threatening name. Henceforth, you are Necrospheres." Zero waved the Necrospheres off and turned to look at Espeon and Umbreon. "No objections, I trust?"

"Of course not! Of course not! Wonderful names for such lovely little additions to our growing family. Uhuu huu… huu…" Espeon's tail curled up against her flank. Umbreon remained silent.

"Good. Then let's dispense with the idle chatter and cut to business," Zero said. She raised her scepter high and slammed it into the ground. Espeon and Umbreon jumped in surprise and scrambled back. From the center of the crystal cluster, a black monolith jutted out of the ice. A red, winged-heart insignia appeared atop the monolith, matching the one stitched into Zero's robes and Nemes headdress. Ice streamed out in all directions, quickening the pace of the valley's freezing. Umbreon looked over his shoulder to find more Miniors transforming into Necrospheres.

Zero adjusted her mask. "Now then, I do think it's time our dear friend Tapu Lele joined us, don't you?" she said, turned to look over toward the end of the valley.

"Um… what do you want us to do?" Espeon asked.

Zero walked to the other side of the crystal cluster. "You're going to be a distraction. Get behind the crystals. I'll order you to use Shadow Ball and Dark Pulse when I think the time is right. Until then, don't move a muscle. Don't even so much as speak. I'll keep our VIP entertained." She finished circling around the crystals and stood at attention. In the thick, wintry fog brought on by the ice, Zero spotted a round outline growing steadily larger.

"Come to me, Land Spirit, so that my Prism Virus can cleanse this world of your worthless filth," she said. Tapu Lele appeared from the fog, a look of anger etched in her face.

"Like, what's with the chilly reception?" she said, looking around. "Is this your doing?"

Zero bowed mockingly. "I'm ever-so-humbled that you took notice."

"This is, like, totally uncalled for!" Tapu Lele barked. "You return this land to the way it's supposed to be. Or better yet, scamper off before I blow you to smithereens and use your hollowed-out body as a raft to float along the stream that's _supposed_ to be here."

"Tempting offer," Zero mused. "But, if I may issue a rebuttal…" She held up her free arm and snapped her crystalline digits.

"Eh?" Tapu Lele's eyes widened at the sight of the Eeveelutions lunging out from behind the monolith. Espeon had a ball of spectral energy gathering in her forehead diamond, while Umbreon's red rings pulsated with black and purple bolts. They fired their attacks toward each of Tapu Lele's sides.

"Like, I'm going to turn you creeps into carpeting for my temple," Tapu Lele said, summoning pink barriers to effortlessly deflect the attacks. They ricocheted into nearby ice walls, exploding and showering the area in frosty shards.

"I'm going to, like, sooooo thoroughly _enjoy_ this," Tapu Lele cackled, vines of white energy stretching out toward the ground. Before she could generate her attack, however, a beam of silvery metal struck her and sent her spiraling backward. Zero raised her left hand and clenched her fist. A strange, distorted red wave raced forward, turning everything it spread across bright red. As it passed over Espeon and Umbreon, they froze in place, flickering like broken television screens. The wave struck Tapu Lele, slowing her down to a crawl.

Static encased Zero's free paw. On either side of Tapu Lele, towers of red cubes formed up from the ground. Another red wave then raced forward, returning the area to its normal, icy-blue coloration. The towers toppled over, swallowing Tapu Lele up and drowning out her screams. Zero walked toward the downed Land Spirit, readying her staff.

"What the–?" Zero gasped. She tapped her staff on the ground and the cubes evaporated into pixelated streams. All that remained of Tapu Lele was a splattered puddle of pink slime. "A Ditto?" Zero snarled.

"Uhuu huu huu! Well, isn't that a surprise. Looks like Tapu Lele's a craftier critter than we thought, huh?" Espeon said. Zero abruptly turned around and held up her left paw. Several spiked cubes floated ominously around it, pointing at Espeon. "Meep!" Espeon ducked for cover behind the monolith. The cubes dissipated and Zero turned back around, nudging up her helmet.

"It seems the rumors of her deceptive nature are true after all," Zero said. "It's no matter. She can only delay the inevitable for so long. My Legend-free world _will_ become reality."

"Does this mean we can leave now?" Umbreon growled. "I've grown sick of the cold."

"On the contrary," Zero said. "That just means it's time for you two to get this place ready for our guests of honor." She turned around and walked over to Umbreon.

"Seriously? Look, the bait didn't work," Umbreon said, ears twitching angrily. "Tapu Lele's onto us. If you want to destroy all the gods then I suggest we go for more vulnerable o–"

"Shut your mouth," Zero hissed, backhanding Umbreon. Espeon shrank back as her partner crumple to the ground. "I have made it expressly clear why we're focusing on the Land Spirits. One of them holds the Dawn Hourglass – Tapu Lele, it would seem – and it's the key to perfecting the Ultra Entercards. Then, I can beam into any spot in any Mystery Dungeon I choose. No spells, magic barriers, or manipulated ley lines will stand in my way. With this power, each and every Legend will fall before the might of the Prism Virus."

Zero knelt down. She dug the metal claws protruding from her paw into Umbreon's chest and hefted him into the air. His breath rushed out of him and his fur frazzled. "Now listen closely," Zero said. "You two will go to Sunrise Village and kidnap two residents: Sylveon and Eevee. That should bait the sniveling coward, Riolu, and her human leech out from their stupid guild. Have them come here and then dispose of them."

"Uhuu huu huu huu! Sounds like fun," Espeon said, wagging her tail. "How about we find us a snuggly Sandslash and give him a dose of Celesteela? No, wait! Wait! We should totally do–"

Zero slammed her staff against the ice. Her right arm phased out of existence, leaving distorted air in its place. "You're mishearing me, Espeon," she seethed, her arm returning. "I told _you_ to dispose of them. No more infected Pokémon. No more of your pathetic, so-called games. Take care of this mess _yourselves_."

Espeon's ears drooped. "Y-You want _us_ to battle them? But… but if we lose, then…"

"The Prism Virus consumes your life energy and gives it to me," Zero said. Espeon's tail fell between her legs. "Wipe that sniveling look off your face, Espeon. Or should I simply take your spirit here and now? Such spinelessness will not do any good."

Zero dropped Umbreon onto the ice and stepped back. She brushed fur off her paw and then lifted it up, allowing dark energy to swirl around it. A black ball with red, web-like lines appeared in it. She pointed the ball at Umbreon and he immediately looked away, panic flashing across his face.

"You are both _my_ Pokémon," Zero said. "I captured you fair and square. You are my property. And I have trained you to wield powers you never would have discovered on your own. If you cannot win a simple battle against the opposition, then you will be discarded. I am trying to ensure this world has a prosperous future. At this point, setbacks are unacceptable."

Espeon bowed, fixing her gaze on the ground. "Yes, Mistress Zero, of course. We won't fail you this time."

Zero pressed a paw to her mask. "… hmph. Actions speak louder than words." She swung her staff around and looked into the octahedron. It started glowing. "Necky!"

A moment passed, followed by a loud, garbled, _"What? What is it? I'm trying to finish setting up my room!"_

"Return me to Celestial Island," Zero ordered.

 _"Hang on! If I open another Ultra Wormhole, I'll be too tired to levitate this stuff around."_

"I'm sorry. Did it _sound_ like I was asking you?" Zero snarled.

 _"Ugh, fine. Now I'm going to recruit some Ultra Beasts to do it for me. Hope you're happy."_

Purple energy ripples gathered behind Zero and a portal identical to the one she arrived in opened up. Zero stepped toward it and vanished in the blink of an eye. Espeon and Umbreon looked away as a dazzling white light swallowed up the portal.

"Well, you heard her, Espy. To Sunrise Village we go," Umbreon said.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"… you really don't… need to waste your cash… on me…"

Team Radiance sat in front of Bruxish's pond while their fellow apprentice went about assembling his special cauldron.

"Well, I guess we don't _have_ to," Shane said. "But it wouldn't hurt to spice up your move set, would it? Seriously, have you even learned a single new move since you got here?"

Null shook his head. "I figured… that the helmet… or the headaches… were just going to stop that from happening."

"Ah." Shane's brow furrowed. Null had a good point. "But the helmet's got a crack in it. So, maybe that's going to change?"

"That's rather optimistic of you," Tessa said. "A bit surprising with how you've acted the rest of the week. This doesn't mean the old Shane's back, does it?"

Shane shook his head. "No. I... um... want to try and start being positive and, y'know, actually meaning it. I figured something like this is a good place to start." He blinked and then looked over at Tessa. "Hey, you actually called me Shane."

"We're starting things over, right?" Tessa said. "May as well call you by what you want to be called, even if I don't quite get it." Shane's tails thumped against the floor. "So, Bruxish, how would this work exactly?" Tessa asked.

"Oh, it's veeeeeeeeery easy, dahlings," Bruxish said. "I can use my scalding cauldron to glimpse a Pokémon's spiritual energy. From there, I can use the old thinker to determine both your ability and some of the moves you can learn." He tapped his forehead.

Null looked down at his forelegs. "Um… did I mention… that none of the other psychics… have been able to read my aura?"

"Yes, I'm well aware of that snafu," Bruxish said. "Not to speak ill of the Guildmaster, but he likely only tried to sense your aura. And that's a bit too basic. Your spiritual energy incorporates more than your aura. It's the essence of your being, dahling. This cauldron can drag that out for me to see thanks to a few haaaaaandy spells I learned growing up. It hasn't failed yet."

Bruxish looked down into the boiling cauldron and rubbed his fins together. "Okay then. Let's get started, shall we?" He lifted his fins upward and his eyes glowed a deep, navy blue. The water in the cauldron bubbled faster. Shane and Tessa craned their necks to see over the top.

"Hey, the water's not changing color," Shane said. "Isn't it supposed to be changing color?"

Bruxish lowered his hands and looked down into the cauldron. "This is odd," he said. "I've never seen this happen before. Different colors show up to relate to the different types of moves a Pokémon can learn. But Vulpix is right. Null has a venerable absence of color. It symbolizes absolutely nothing."

"You mean… I can't learn anything else?" Null rasped.

"I wouldn't necessarily say that, dahling," Bruxish said. He closed his eyes and pressed his fins against his face. "Nnnngh." He opened his eyes and shook his head. "Goodness gracious. It seems like there's quite literally a block on your life force. Something is jamming my ability to read it." His levitation faltered momentarily. "Urgh. Did the Guildmaster mention experiencing any disorientation when trying to read your mind, dahling?"

"Uh… I don't know," Null said.

"Huh. Well, that just deepens this mystery," Shane said. He looked at Null, but stayed quiet because he wasn't sure how to properly express sympathy over Null's situation.

Tessa scooted over beside Null and rubbed his back. "It's okay, buddy. Maybe we can try some TM's on you later?" she said.

"… I suppose," Null said with a heavy sigh. Shane nodded. He was glad Tessa was around. She knew how to get through Null.

"Well, as long as we're here, how about you take a gander at me?" Shane said, scooting toward the cauldron. "For one thing, I'd really appreciate knowing what the heck my ability is. Or what it could be, for that matter."

"Oh, well of _course._ Just stand still for me, dahling," Bruxish said. Shane stood in front of the cauldron, looking up at Bruxish as he went about activating the cauldron. Shane sucked in his gut as droplets of boiling water scattered around the cauldron, narrowly missing his fur.

"This can't be right," Bruxish said, opening his eyes. "Perhaps the cauldron is on the fritz?"

Worry overtook Shane's face. That was the last thing he had wanted to hear. "Is something wrong?"

Bruxish floated upward. "Magearna! Oh, dahling, could you come here? It seems my cauldron is acting up."

 **It is? But I just did a diagnostic on it yesterday and it was fine,** Magearna said, before disappearing into the north hallway, leaving Shane wondering how _anyone_ could run a diagnostic on an oversized cooking instrument.

Bruxish's brow furrowed. "Hmm, well if that's the case, I suppose I just have to take these findings at face value. Even if they don't make sense."

"Not to be rude here, but I _really_ don't like the sound of that," Shane said. What sort of bad hand was fate dealing him now?

"Sorry to spook you, dahling. It's nothing life-threatening or anything," Bruxish said. "But according to my cauldron, your ability is Clear Body. And that doesn't make a _lick_ of sense."

Shane blinked. That didn't sound like anything to make a fuss over. "What's wrong with Clear Body? Regice has Clear Body and they're an ice-type too," he said.

"I'm _sorry_ , dahling. But Vulpix in Horizon are meant to have Snow Cloak, with a select few knowing Snow Warning. Your ability is more like an impossibility!" Bruxish said, shaking his head.

Null and Tessa looked over at him. Shane wore a confused expression on his face. Why would he have a unique ability? Did it tie into how he ended up in the Pokémon world?

"Don't look at me. Maybe Solgaleo did it to me?" Shane said, shrugging. "I strongly doubt I had anything to do with it. I don't even remember how I ended up here in the first place." He looked over at Bruxish. "Is there anything else off about what your cauldron's saying?"

"Yes," Bruxish said. "I saw traces of fire-type energy in your life force. Actually, it was more than just traces. It seems like you should, theoretically, be able to learn _multiple_ fire-type moves. But, again, that's totally implausible."

"Maybe the fact that he's actually human prevents your cauldron from working properly?" Tessa said, scratching her chin. "I mean, sure, Shane has the _body_ of a Vulpix, but his _spirit_ should still be the same one he had as a human, right?"

Shane nodded. "Yeah. That's gotta be it. Remember, I only knew of fire-type Vulpixes as a human. So, maybe those memories are corrupting your magic cauldron," he said, thinking that had to be the right explanation.

"It's certainly poooooooossible," Bruxish said. "But I can't say for certain."

Shane sighed and slumped over. "It's okay. Thanks for the help, anyway." He turned and walked over to Null.

"Huh," Tessa said, raised an eyebrow.

"What? Is there something on my face?" Shane asked, briefly going cross-eyed.

"No. It's just… I'm surprised. I figured you'd be dancing around the place singing your own praises. I mean, you have a unique ability. Doesn't that make you special, just like you wanted?" she said.

Shane blinked a few times. "Oh," he said, looking down. "Well… I mean… you said it yourself. Fresh start and all that jazz. Even if I _did_ think this was cool–"

Null groaned loudly and shook his head.

Shane realized his unintentional pun and cringed. "My bad," he said. "As I was saying, even if I thought that was good news, I wasn't about to make a scene over it. I'm trying not to be like that anymore."

Tessa frowned. "So, wait. Are you upset about your ability, then?"

He shook his head. "I'm not upset. Just confused, that's all," he said, choosing his words carefully. "At the very least, it's better than what I'm supposed to have. Snow Cloak's only helpful if it's snowing out, which means I'd need to learn Hail. And I don't want to do that for the exact same reason why I wouldn't want Snow Warning." He pawed at the ground. "It would hurt you and Null."

"Actually, I think Magearna has some kind of device that can keep us explorers safe in inclement weather. But I appreciate the concern," Tessa said, chuckling as Shane faceplanted into the floor. If only he had known that earlier. So much for trying to make a sweet gesture.

"Well, at least now I can't have my strength or endurance lowered by other Pokémon's moves," Shane said, getting back to his feet. "But, whatever, not much to do about that if we just stand around and talk. How about we take on a couple of simple missions? I can't believe I'm saying this, but after the last week I'd _kill_ for just a normal day on the job."

Tessa nodded approvingly. "I agree. Lead the way. Maybe if the morning goes well, we can take on a higher-paying job," she said.

"Ah, Team Radiance! Where's Magearna?"

Trapinch sprinted out of the southern hallway, a panicked look on his face. "Whoa, where's the fire, dude?" Shane said.

"It's the Pokénector. Something's wrong with the Pokénector! I need Magearna to look at it ASAP. Is she in her workshop?" Trapinch said, anxiously trotting in place.

"Chill out. She just went back to it," Shane said. "Why don't you just call her out–"

"Thanks for the heads up!" Trapinch said, dashing off toward the northern hallway.

"… aaaaaaaaand he's gone," Shane said with a sigh.

"You don't suppose we should stick around and see what the problem is, do you?" Tessa asked.

"Nah, we should be fi–" Shane started, only to cut himself off and instead say, "that was a rhetorical question, wasn't it?"

Tessa smiled at him. "Yes. But hey, you're picking up on my tone of voice much better."

Shane didn't have the opportunity to mull over that complement because Trapinch reappeared in the hallway, with Magearna following along. **I strongly doubt the Pokénector would just up and break on us. It's been perfectly functionalible since I upgraded it last month.**

"You've just gotta have a look at this," Trapinch said, heading for the southern hallway. "I can't even explain it. Part of the globe just _blacked out._ "

 **Blacked out?** Magearna said. **That's not possachievable. Show me.**

Despite Shane's silent begging not to get involved, Team Radiance followed their fellow guild members down the southern hallway to the sentry station. They all assembled around the Pokénector, giving Trapinch and Magearna enough room to stand by the portion mapping out the Horizon Continent.

"Wait," Null said. "Look… there are two black spots." He turned to Tessa. "Isn't that one… toward the northern part of the continent… where we were the other day?"

Tessa pulled out the team's Wonder Map and unfolded it. Her eyes widened. "Ah!" she gasped. "The Wonder Map… it's…"

Shane walked over toward her. "What, did you rip it or something?"

"It has black spots in the same places," Tessa said, showing it to her teammates.

"Yeah, those parts are totally blacked out. Like someone spilled ink on them," Shane said. "But why would it do something like that?"

 **Simple. Your Wonder Maps are synchronisified to the Pokénector, thanks to some handy spellcasting on my part,** Magearna explained. **I have developed the Pokénector to map out the changes to the landscape that the Tapus create. And that, in turns, updates everyone's Wonder Maps.** She turned back to the Pokénector. **But this is like nothing I've ever seen before.**

Shane's jaw stiffened. Magearna's explanation didn't sit well with him. Magical maps that could change on a whim? The thought made his fur prickle.

"This all sounds dubious," Shane said. "So, if that northern area is Moonrise Marsh and Mellath Bog, then what's that place in the southwest?"

 **Aurora Vale,** Magearna said.

Tessa's aura feelers tensed up. "I… I know that place," she whispered. "It's supposed to be the most beautiful Mystery Dungeon in all of Horizon, because you can always see an aurora in the sky above it." Her gaze fell toward the ground. "Dad had always promised that, once I joined the guild, he'd take me there and we could explore it together."

Thinking back to yesterday morning, Shane looked over at Tessa in concern. "Hey, are you going to be okay?" he asked.

"It's… it's fine," she said, taking a deep breath. Tessa looked over at Magearna. "Do you think this means something's wrong with Aurora Vale? Maybe the Tapus are doing something to it?"

 **I can only launch a speculation algorithm on the matter,** Magearna said. **But I doubt that will assistify us much.**

"… maybe… it's been infected," Null muttered ominously. Shane shot Null a worried look. "Think about it. When we were in Mellath Bog… the whole place had been corrupted… by strange energy…"

As much as Shane wanted to issue a retort, he couldn't escape the sinking feeling that Null was right.

 **Is that a fact?** Magearna said. **Hmm. Well, I suppose the way to definitatively know would be to investigate Aurora Vale.** She looked at Team Radiance. **I don't suppose you three would be willing to go? It sounds like you have experiasity with such situations.**

Shane and Tessa exchanged nervous looks. It was all they needed to tell each other they didn't want a repeat of their time underground. "I, uh, don't know, Magearna," Shane stammered. "We're still shaken up from Mellath Bog. I'm not sure if we're the best ones for the job. What about Team Specter or Team Captivate?"

 **They're both out,** Magearna replied. **It wouldn't be long. In fact, I'm not even requesticating that you go** _ **into**_ **the Dungeon. Just glimpse over it and ring me up on the Gear-Com to tell me what you see.**

"Well, I _guess_ that's okay," Tessa said. "But, we're still going to stock up on supplies, just in case." Behind her, Shane and Null both nodded their support.

 **That is fine. Just get going as soon as you can. My worry levels have surged to 47.3%, and I fear my ability to repairate the Pokénector will decrease if my worry levels keep rising,** Magearna said.

"Right." Tessa walked toward the hallway and her teammates followed her along. "So, um, are we going to head out right now?"

"I guess so," Shane said. "Do you even know where we're going?"

"Yeah," Tessa said. "There's a small community near Aurora Vale. It's called Borea Heights, I think. With any luck, we won't need to venture past there."

They headed upstairs to the guild's entrance. But as they proceeded toward the door, it suddenly slid open. In flew a yellow bug with a white face, white hips, and a black scarf slung around her body. She promptly collapsed onto the ground, groaning loudly.

Shane cocked his head. "Huh?"

Tessa's aura feelers twitched. "T... Totem Ribombee? What happened to you? You look terrible," she said.

"Totem?" Shane looked down at the bug and thought of his encounter with Lurantis. His tails shot between his legs. "Is... is she the leader of Aeon Town, then? And did she just get infected?"

"No, she's the Totem of Sunrise Village," Tessa explained, kneeling down beside Ribombee. "Hey, can you hear me? Can you tell me what happened?"

Totem Ribombee's eyes fluttered open and she grimaced. "Sunrise Village… attacked. Sylveon's house… destroyed. She and Eevee are… gone."

Her eyes rolled back in her head and she lost consciousness.

Tessa looked up at Shane with a panic-stricken expression. "We've gotta go to Sunrise Village right away!" she said.

* * *

And thus, we are officially introduced to our primary antagonist: Zero. Design-wise she is based off Dark Enerjak, from the _Sonic Universe_ comics. As you can see, she is molded more in the archetype of Darkrai/Bittercold/Dark Matter. Her name's also an indirect nod to Dark Matter. Kirby fans will know what I mean.

Next time: it's rivalry week! Brother vs. sister! Guild explorers vs. Ultra Recon Squad! Who will come out on top?


	38. A Paradox to Unravel

It's time for another one of those rare chapters that's just one extended scene. But there'll be plenty of action to go around!

And thanks for the kind words, Crokex. Glad you're enjoying it so far.

* * *

 **Chapter 33: A Paradox to Unravel**

 **~Sunrise Village~**

"Sylveon! Eevee!" Tessa shouted, sprinting down the dirt road leading into the village. Shane struggled to keep up with her on account of still being sore from the Mellath Bog mission. He looked up, spotted a column of smoke rising in the distance, and gulped.

 _'Ugh, was it too much to ask to just get a nice, normal day for once? I officially take back all the bad things I ever said about the filler chapters and side quests in the games,'_ Shane thought. Null lagged behind him, his mask slowing him down considerably.

"W-Wait up, please!" Shane wheezed. He gritted his teeth and tried to run faster, but his burning legs refused to make up any of the distance. Then, as the smoke column grew close, Tessa inexplicably stopped. Shane's sense of relief proved fleeting. Tessa's aura feelers were standing on end, which meant something had spooked her.

"What's the matter?" Shane asked, trotting up to Tessa's side. "Do you sense something hostile? Like the Prism Virus?"

"I sense… Gallian," Tessa squeaked. "B-But why would he–? How could he–? Sylveon and Eevee were supposed to be his friends, too!"

Shane's eyes narrowed. "It's just like I told you. He's infected. You can't think of it as your brother doing this stuff. You have to think of it as a creepy alien force _using_ him to do awful things!" He figured he could've phrased that better, but it was the only thing that came to mind.

"That doesn't make it feel any better," Tessa whimpered. Before Shane could say anything else, both of their ears twitched in unison, with Shane's pivoting forward.

"… traces of ultra aura here, Captain."

"Did you hear that?" Shane whispered. "It sounded just like that purple alien guy we ran into in Tethys Tunnel."

"Please, I could have told you that without needing some geeky scanner. I want to know where they ran off to. The longer they stay missing, the greater the chance of something terrible happening. I can feel it in my bones."

"And that's definitely Gallian," Tessa said, fidgeting nervously with her locket. "W-What should we do? Sneak attack them?"

Shane shook his head. For once, he didn't want to blindly charge into battle. "No, let's lie low and hear what they have to say. Maybe they'll let slip where Sylveon and Eevee are. Then we can scamper off without any sort of conflict."

"… huh. That's the first time… I've heard you suggest… holding back… instead of leaping into the fray," Null said, joining his teammates. "I'm in agreement. We couldn't handle Gallian alone. We can't take him… and the purple guy…"

"But it didn't sound like they know where Sylveon and Eevee are, either," Tessa said.

"I'm afraid the trail runs completely cold, Rookie," Luxeira said. Her unfamiliar voice prompted Team Radiance to exchange confused looks. "Whatever entity did this appeared right in this exact spot, only to disappear from it soon after. It's not beyond the realm of possibility to suggest that Ultra Wormholes were used, considering the strong ultra aura readings."

"Did you hear that?" Shane asked. "Didn't the purple guy mention something about ultra auras when we met him? And what's an Ultra Wormhole? Some kind of alien transport method?"

"Beats me," Tessa said, shrugging.

"Well, look harder, then!" Gallian growled. "I can feel impending disaster growing stronger every minute we stand around doing nothing. And all you two seem to know how to do is stand around and do nothing!"

"Oh, puh-lease. You terrestrials say the most ridiculous things," Luxeira said.

"My disaster sense is _not_ ridiculous. It can save lives. But only if we take action!" Gallian barked.

"Huh. I guess you're right, Riolu. Sounds to me like Gallian might not have had anything to do with this," Shane said. But if it wasn't Gallian, then who could it be?

His eyes widened. "Ah! Don't tell me… this was Espeon's and Umbreon's doing?" His gaze fell toward the ground. "If… if that's the case, then Lycanroc might've been right the whole time. They _are_ masterminding all of this chaos." His ears folded against his face. "Ugh, I've been such a blind idiot."

"Beat yourself up later," Null said. "I think… we should head back to the Observatory… and try to find some backup…"

"C… Captain Luxeira! My radar is detecting an ultra aura spike," Sticky said. "I do not believe we are alone."

Shane's tails shot up into the air. "I think it's time we made our exit, guys," he said, walking backwards. However, a sudden rush of air made him freeze up. Tessa's aura feelers jolted up as high as her ears and she spun around. The color drained from her face at the sight of Gallian glaring right at them.

"This doesn't concern you three. Buzz off!" he hissed. "And _you,_ " he snarled, looking directly at Tessa. "I thought I made it abundantly clear that you needed to ditch the guild. Evidently that failed to sink in. Guess you're just as dense as Dad was."

"What are you saying, Gallian? Sylveon and Eevee are good friends. This _absolutely_ concerns me. I want to get them back. And I want my teammates to help me," Tessa said. "So, tell us what you know."

"… hmph." Gallian's eyes flashed purple. "You're not getting involved in this. Any scenario with you trying to save them is going to end badly. Trust me. You're not strong enough. And neither are your little friends. So, step aside, and let a _real_ explorer handle this."

"I _am_ a real explorer!" Tessa fumed. She pivoted to show the silver badge on her scarf. "Our team made apprentice rank the other day. And that's at _least_ half a year before you did."

Gallian's forehead scythe flickered red. "And you think that makes you special? I'll bet you were just given it out of pity. After all, this _is_ around the time Dad died. Metagross probably did it to keep you three away from him." He shook his head. "Honestly, how can you stand working for that hack?"

"Hey! You don't just get to insult him like that," Shane said. "He's actually trying to keep Horizon safe, like we are. Which is more than I can say for a punk like you."

"Rookie, is there an issue here?"

Team Radiance stiffened at the sight of who they assumed was the "Captain Luxeira" that Sticky had addressed earlier. They watched the Houndoom stride forward, taking notice of the skin-tight white suit and the helmet that obscured everything on her head except her blue snout. Like Sticky and Gallian, a black harness sat around her chest, with a sparkling stone embedded inside it.

"What the heck are you supposed to be?" Shane asked. "An astronaut Houndoom? I didn't think this world was advanced enough to have a space program."

"… curious," Luxeira said, lights blinking on her helmet's visor. "It would seem your analysis is correct, Sticky. That terrestrial is exhibiting unnaturally high ultra aura levels."

Gallian looked over at her. "So, that stupid Vulpix is from the same place you guys came from, then?"

Luxeira shook her head. "I strongly doubt it. No, his ultra aura levels far surpass those of an average Ultra Village resident."

Sticky nodded. "I got the same readings when I encountered these terrestrials while doing reconnaissance work in Tethys Tunnel. He must be an Ultra Beast. Though, I do not know how he managed to disguise himself as an ice Vulpix."

Shane narrowed his eyes at them. He didn't understand the whole conversation, but he didn't like what he was hearing. "Ex _cuse_ me? I _happen_ to be a human, thank you very much," he said. "Whatever you freak shows are doing, you need to stop. You're only making this whole Prism Virus situation worse."

"Negative. If anyone is escalating any sort of current crisis, it is your squadron," Sticky said, shaking his head. "After all, you have a Beast Killer in your ranks. And with the ultra aura you are giving off, it is a miracle you are even still breathing."

Shane and Null abruptly looked away from each other, allowing Sticky to see the crack running through Null's helmet. "Ack! C-Captain… the restraining mask!" He pointed frantically at Null. "It's coming undone."

Luxeira turned to look at Null. "Then our course of action is clear." She turned back to Shane and Tessa. "Relinquish this failed experiment into our possession posthaste, terrestrials. We of Team Paradox will apply a sealant to that mask, to restrain the Beast Killer's power and hostility."

"Null is _not_ hostile!" Tessa said. "He's our friend and teammate. You can't have him. Stop trying to let your companions beat around the issue, Gallian! Tell me everything you know about what happened to Sylveon and Eevee."

"Hmph. If you _really_ cared about them, you would still be living with them. And then you could've protected them," Gallian scoffed. "But no, you'd much rather run around the guild with those other blind idiots."

"Wait, wait, wait. Everyone hold up for a minute." Shane turned to Luxeira. "You guys are an exploration team? Is this a joke?" he asked. "What guild would possibly let you in?"

"You misconstrue our words, terrestrial," Luxeira said. "We are Team Paradox. We are a unit of an Ultra Recon Squad hailing from a pocket world known as Ultra Village. We are not an exploration team, we–"

"Okay, you used one too many 'Ultra's' in that sentence," Shane said, rubbing his temple. "I'm just going to say you're a crazy alien and call it a day."

"Enough!" Gallian said. "You're wasting your time explaining things to these idiots." His scythe flickered red.

"Easy there," Sticky said. "Even if we are on different sides, it is important that we do not allow the situation to escalate into violence. Perhaps we can come to some sort of agreement? If you hand over the Beast Killer, we will give you the information we have gleamed from our surveillance of this residential building."

"Are you serious? What a joke!" Shane said. "Any goodwill you could've had went completely out the window when you attacked us back in Tethys Tunnel!"

Luxeira turned to Sticky. "Is this true?"

"I spotted the Beast Killer and attempted to subjugate it. I did not anticipate that these terrestrials would step in to save it," Sticky said, head tilted down shamefully.

Luxeira sighed. "You know our Ultra Recon Squad policy, Sticky."

"No combat engagement with terrestrials unless the situation poses risk of physical or mental harm," Sticky said. "But it _was_ a hostile situation, Captain. That terrestrial with the massive ultra aura threatened me."

"Only because we knew you were working with Gallian," Shane said. "Look at him. The guy's certainly not radiating any friendly vibes. Why would a couple of aliens like you even hire him?"

Gallian's eyes flickered. "You do _not_ get to call me that, pipsqueak," he hissed. "I've got my own reasons for working with these two. And I'm certainly not going to be nice to anyone who's triggering my disaster sense."

"Oh brother. I strongly doubt you've trained well enough to have a flawless disaster sense. So, did you ever consider the possibility that maybe you're just wrong?" Shane said, ignoring Tessa's wide-eyes look. He realized his mistake when Gallian's scythe glowed pink.

"My disaster sense is the truth!" Gallian snarled. "And I know for a fact that letting you three saunter off after Sylveon and Eevee will end badly. So, if you're not going to stand down, then I'm going to do what I should have done back at that blasted Observatory."

Sticky's face blanched. "Y-You don't mean–?"

"Unfortunately, I agree with his assessment," Luxeira said, shaking her head. "My apologies for reprimanding you earlier, Sticky. It would seem that these three do indeed create a threatening situation. We must act accordingly." She pressed the jewel in the center of her harness and whispered, "Let's just hope these Technical Machine devices really work as advertised."

No sooner did she finish saying that than a flamethrower raced forward from her snout. Gallian added purple crescents to the mix. Team Radiance scattered in different directions. The two attacks collided, spreading fire in all directions. Fireballs pelted Shane from behind. He fell to the ground with a holler, rolling around to cool off his fur.

Across from Shane, Null flung air blades at Sticky's face. Luxeira leaped up and snagged the recoiling Sticky in her jaw. She landed back on the ground and said, "Watch your back. You know full well what Beast Killers can do to your kind."

"… what… do you mean… Beast Killer? Are you saying… there are others… just like me?" Null said.

"That is not information we would think of disclosing to you," Sticky said.

"... that sounds... like a yes to me," Null said, pawing at the ground.

Sticky floated back up and scattered purple tiles appeared around the area. One of them popped up right in the path that Tessa was running along to avoid Gallian's purple waves. Poisonous spikes jabbed her thighs the moment she stepped on it. Tessa staggered to a halt, gasping for air. "Need a lum berry," Tessa said, reaching into her item pouch.

"Fat chance of that!" Gallian roared, covering Tessa in pink mist. He stood over her sleeping form, gathering red energy in the diamond on his forehead.

"No! Get away from her!" Shane shouted, spewing frosty air.

"Butt out, shorty. This is a family matter," Gallian hissed, dodging Shane's attack. He retaliated with more purple waves. Shane struggled to dodge with Sticky's toxic traps in the way. Why didn't he try to knock Sticky out first?

Shane's thoughts were interrupted when he found himself staring down the barrel of a fiery tunnel! He flopped to his side, howling in agony as flames brushed his right flank. Luxeira quickly backed away from him, catching her breath. "Target down," she said. "Eh?" She tilted her head in confusion as Shane stumbled back to his feet.

"You're not… getting rid of us… that easily," he panted.

"Captain! Gallian told me that the Pokémon of this world can stockpile specialized kernels to revitalize them if they faint in battle," Sticky shouted. He then turned around, shooting poison from his head tips at Null. But Null barreled through the attack using his steel-coated helmet. Panicking, Sticky pulled a rod from his harness. A whirlwind flung a screaming Null into the trees. Where did Sticky keep getting these things from? Had Gallian stolen a ton of items?

Sticky turned to his right, where Tessa was weaving through psychic crescents to get to Gallian. She thrust her aura-coated fists at Gallian, who countered with his glowing scythe. Gallian skidded across the ground, hissing. Sticky launched poison globs to back up his teammate, but Tessa unleashed a burst of speed and appeared underneath Sticky. She socked him with an electrically-charged fist.

Yes! She had finally gotten a hit in! And, even better, she knocked Sticky into Gallian. She couldn't let up now! Tessa charged Gallian down, but banked off to her right instead when she heard Shane crying for help.

"Nnnghr… get _off_ me!" Gallian roared, shoving Sticky to the side. "And quit getting in my way. Focus on your friend in the mask. I don't need your help. Got it?"

"Very well," Sticky said. "At least let me heal you–"

A wind blade to the face blew Sticky across the ground. Null ran toward Gallian, mask turning to metal. "... tch. Amateurs," Gallian said, getting to his feet. Null missed his headbutt and Gallian slashed him in the side with shadow-coated scythe. Gallian produced a wand from his harness as Null dropped to the ground, hissing in pain.

"Get petrified, freak," Gallian said, showering Null in blue energy that rooted him to the ground. With Null out of the way, he turned his attention toward Tessa. But he caught movement out of the corner of his eye and jumped back, narrowly avoiding a reeling Sticky. He turned right and charged.

Shane had no time to prepare for Gallian. His shadowy scythe raked Shane's back, slicing through his fur. Blood splattered across the soil next to Shane. Out of all the places to hit, Gallian _had_ to get him in the back. Now his whole body was screaming in pain!

"I don't know what Tessa sees in you, pipsqueak," Gallian scoffed. "You can barely hold your own out here. Frankly, it's pathetic."

Shane fought through the pain, scrambling to his feet. "How could you say that about her? She's your sister, dude!"

"Yeah, and look what good her family did for me!" Gallian snarled. Shane tried to snuff the psychic energy out of Gallian's scythe with frosty air, but Gallian dissolved into the shadows. Shane's eyes widened. That looked nothing like the Feint Attacks he had seen other dark-types using. What was Gallian up to?

His answer came in the form of something hard and sharp stabbing his rear. Shane tumbled to the ground, triggering one of Sticky's poisonous traps. "W-What the–?" Shane said. "Just what the hell kind of move was that, huh?"

"It wasn't," Gallian said. "You really are an idiot." He dissolved into a black puddle, with Luxeira taking his place and staring Shane down.

"Don't even think about it, terrestrial," she said, flames gathering in her mouth.

Tessa knew she had to help Shane right away or he was toast! But Gallian lunged out of the shadows, raking his black talons across her chest. She fell into a poison trap. Tessa couldn't believe she let Gallian catch her off guard like that. How infuriating he was! She barely managed to pull out two lum berries and hurl one toward Shane.

Tessa's eyes widened and she tried to use Quick Attack to reach Luxeira in time. But Gallian popped out of the shadows and Night Slashed her across her chest. This upended Tessa, and caused her to crash into a Toxic Spike trap. Her body seized up as the poisons took hold. She barely managed to pull out two lum berries, hurling one toward Shane.

Shane shrieked, pushing Luxeira away before she could unleash her flames. He scarfed the berry down, wondering what he could do to possibly fend off an opponent with such a strong type advantage.

An idea quickly popped into his mind. "H-Hey!" he said. "You… you better stop what you're doing right now. Or, uh, I'm gonna unleash my ultra aura or whatever and blast you into smithereens."

"Your tone of voice suggests you're bluffing. You clearly have no idea what you're talking about," Luxeira said.

Shane swore under his breath. She didn't take the bait! Shane sprinted to his left, dodging a pitch-black beam and retaliating with frost breath. Luxeira stood tall, not even flinching in the face of the frigid air. Shane's jaw dropped. Surely that had to have done some damage, right?

"Perhaps my scanner is malfunctioning. I have minimal experience with this 'battling' concept, but even I can see that you don't seem to rise to the threat level your ultra aura suggests is possible," Luxeira said. "We'll be taking the Beast Killer. And I cannot allow you interfere with that."

In the face of an impending flamethrower, Shane could do nothing but run for his nearest ally, Null. As Shane neared Null, he realized his teammate was in rough shape. But Sticky looked weary, too.

"Even with the restraining mask, it is clear you are still a serious threat," Sticky said. "Although, battling is not exactly my strength. So, this was going to be a struggle from the beginning."

"Then… quit it. I don't… want to hurt anyone!" Null said, thrashing his head around.

"I do not believe you. And I will put a stop to your endeavors," Sticky said. Another wand popped out from his harness and he blasted Null with a dim, red light. Nothing happened at first, but then Null yawned and slouched over.

"What… did you do?" he said.

"Unless I am mistaken, I have modified your ability to Truant," Sticky said. "Your capacity to form up the energy necessary to instigate an attack is now greatly redu–"

Psychic rings knocked Sticky to the ground, then ice-cold air froze him to the spot. "You okay, Null? We really need to give Tessa a hand," Shane said. Null answered by lunging forward, tackling Shane to the ground. He shielded Shane from a flamethrower, only to collapse unconscious on his side. Shane looked up in horror to see Luxeira staring him down.

This was it. She was going to hit him with the orb in her mouth and run off with Null! Gallian was right. Shane wasn't strong enough. There was nothing he could do to win...

 _'No! I refuse to give up here! Not after everything we've been through!'_

Luxeira released the orb and Shane fired psychic rings from his forehead. He knocked the orb back at Luxeria, who barely blasted it apart in time with a black beam. Shane followed up with a gust of icy air. He sprinted away from Luxeira, hoping to outrun any attacks she launched. The flames that swallowed him up seconds later proved him sorely wrong. He only had an instant to mull his failure before blacking out.

Null saw his teammate fall and charged Luxeira in a blind rage. He upended her with a swipe of his claws and pounced, landing atop a howling Luxeira.

"Please… you have to relent," she wheezed. "We're just doing our jobs."

"… so am I," Null snarled. He raised a foreleg and hammered the top of Luxeira's helmet. She immediately stopped struggling. Any relief he felt dissipated when he heard Tessa's cries of pain. He slapped his talons angrily against the ground. He had forgotten about Gallian!

Null lumbered to his feet and stomped toward Gallian. Shane trotted after him, back up thanks to a Reviver Seed kicking in. Gallian stared them both down, shadows dancing around his legs. "You have to cut this out, Gallian," Shane pleaded. "You're not helping anyone. We're wasting time that we could be using rescuing Sylveon and Eevee!"

"I don't want your help. I want you all out of my life!" Gallian snarled, scythe glowing bright-green. Shane scrambled to his right, narrowly dodging Gallian's horn. But Gallian lunged through a cloud of Shane's frost breath, ready to drive his horn through Shane's chest. Shane's legs locked up.

There was nothing he could do. Gallian was too quick. This was it! A crazy Absol was going to be the death of him!

Shane braced himself for the ensuing pain, when a glowing-blue paw struck Gallian's shoulder and sent him to the ground. Gallian turned and glared at Tessa. "You just don't know when to quit, do you?" he barked. "Why won't you listen to me? You _cannot_ go after Sylveon and Eevee. Let me handle it!"

"Couldn't we just work together on this?" Tessa said. "You're supposed to be part of the guild, Gallian."

"I'll never work with them again!" Gallian cried, unleashing a volley of pink crescents from his horn. They didn't get far before bursting into clouds of black smoke. Gallian stood there, dumbstruck, as Null lunged out from the smoke, talons glowing. Null struck air, however. Gallian materialized behind Null, but Shane came to his teammate's aid, dousing Gallian's right flank in icy air.

Tessa ran after Gallian, aura gathering in her paws. Hissing in pain, Gallian dissolved into the shadows. But Tessa refused to back down. She leaped onto Null's helmet, grabbing his head crest.

"... tch. If you're gonna hide behind your freakish friend, then I'll cut Vulpix down to size!" Gallian cried, emerging next to Shane.

Null hurled air slash blades at Gallian, but Gallian simply jumped out of the way. He wasn't prepared for Null thrusting his head forward and launching Tessa directly at him. Gallian had a moment to shout before Tessa cannonballed into him, launching him back across the field.

Tessa landed safely on the ground and dropped to one knee. Panic washed across Shane's face. "Are you okay? That was totally nuts! Where did you come up with that idea?" he said.

"I'm fine," Tessa said, getting back to her feet. "And I took inspiration from you, you reckless dummy."

Wincing, Shane gave her a weak smile. "Aha ha... just warn me next time you're going to do something like that," he said. "I thought my heart was about to stop."

"Says the Vulpix who got squished by a Bewear," Tessa mused. She regretted her words when Shane shrank back from her. "Oops, sorry. I really shouldn't have brought that up, should I?" she said. Shane nodded.

"… guys… Gallian disappeared on us… again," Null said. Team Radiance circled up with their backs to one another. Gallian materialized in front of them, a scowl on his face.

"I'll bet you think you're hot stuff, don't you?" he growled. "The only reason you had any upper hand was you had Reviver Seeds and I didn't. But no amount of them will let you three rescue Sylveon and Eevee. Don't you get it? You're _going to fail._ I can guarantee it. My disaster sense hasn't been this strong in weeks. It's absolute certainty."

"Oh god, _please_ tell me he didn't just make a horrible pun there," Shane said.

"How can you say such awful things?" Tessa said, arms trembling and paws balled up into fists. "I'm your sister, Gallian. We're supposed to have each other's backs. Why won't you just come back to me? Please!" Her arms stiffened against her sides. "I… I miss you so much…"

"Oh brother, are you really going to pull out the waterworks on me? Gods, you're such a crybaby," Gallian scoffed. "No wonder Mom got so fed up with you."

Tessa's aura feelers jolted up. That was the _last_ thing she wanted to hear from him. "W… what do you mean 'fed up?'" she said.

"Wow, are you dense or what?" Gallian said, rolling his eyes. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. If you had a decent head on your shoulders, you'd be as far away from the guild as you can get."

"I don't understand," Tessa rasped.

"There's a big surprise."

" _Hey!_ " Shane barked, stepping beside Tessa. "Here's an idea, you conceited prick, instead of putting Tessa down, why don't you just grow a pair and tell her what the problem is, for god's sake?"

Anger flashed across Gallian's face. His scythe flared up purple, but Null shot a warning air slash blade across his flank. Gallian locked eyes with Tessa. He drew his lips back into a snarl. "You really want to know what the problem is? You really want to know why I left?" he growled. "It's Dad. And Metagross and Braviary. He's gone because of them!"

Tessa stiffened. Her heart shot up into her throat. Her legs grew weak and, before she knew it, she had fallen to her knees. Was Gallian saying her dad's _friends_ were responsible for his death?

"There's no way that's right," Shane said. "Tessa told us it was an accident!" He looked over at Null, who nodded his agreement.

"What do you expect? She doesn't know any better," Gallian said. "But I do. They killed him! I'm sure of it! They got rid of him… and they tried to get rid of Mom, too!"

"What?" Tessa squeaked. "But I… that…" She leaned forward, pressing her paws on the ground. "Why wouldn't she tell me? We've been speaking. She never even said anything. She blamed Zapdos," she said.

"Of course she'd never tell you anything. Mom thought you were insufferable," Gallian said, shaking his head disapprovingly. "After Dad died, she'd constantly show up at my room, ranting about how you were suffocating her. How you constantly wanted her attention, when all she wanted was peace and quiet." He started pacing back and forth. "Heck, I even went down to the veterans' quarters once and saw her losing her mind. She scribbled all over her maps and papers, angrily threw books around her room, and screwed up a bunch of family photos. All the while she was shouting some nonsense about how she was 'going to make them pay. Make them all pay.'"

A stabbing pain shot through Tessa's chest. All the strange sights she had found in her mom's room... were her own doing? And not Gallian's?

Tessa squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. "I don't believe you!" she yelled. "Mom loved both of us! She just–"

"Please, stop deluding yourself. She couldn't stand the sight of us," Gallian said. "You're so pathetic. I was right. You were only made an apprentice out of pity. I'll bet it was Braviary. He's probably guilty he offed his so-called best friend." His scythe flashed purple. "Why do you think I left? Just the thought of being around them made my skin crawl!"

"So? It's not like you've said your disaster sense is all that accurate," Shane said.

"It had to be them!" Gallian barked. "I had to leave. I didn't have a choice. I couldn't stay around them. I'm sure they knew I'd found out about their crazy plan! So, I left. And I threatened you because I figured you'd try to go to the guild. You've been so desperate for attention since Dad died... and that's the best place to get it. I thought if I threatened you, you'd actually listen." He shook his head. "Guess I was wrong."

"Stop it!" Tessa hissed, stomping a foot on the ground. "Shut up. I don't… you stop saying that stuff right now." She gripped her head and shook it back and forth.

"I'm only telling the truth," Gallian growled. "Mom never cared about us. I'll bet she only paid attention to us to make Dad happy."

"Shut _up_ , Gallian!"

Shane put a forepaw on Tessa's trembling shoulder. "Don't listen to him. He's just saying that to rile you up," he whispered. "You can't give him the satisfaction." He silently cursed himself out for not thinking of anything better to say to support his friend.

"But… but I told you the exact same thing about Mom the other day," Tessa whispered back with a somber whine.

She was right. Still, he refused to let Gallian keep putting Tessa down. He turned back toward Gallian and said, "You can take your emo mommy issues and shove off! Tessa's my friend. And if she wants to rescue Sylveon and Eevee, I'm going to do everything I can to help her out. Because Pokémon are meant to work together! Isn't that what you're doing with those two aliens?"

Gallian glared at Shane. "I already said I have my reasons for working with these two. Otherwise, I'd be on my own," he hissed. "The guild showed me that you can _never_ trust another Pokémon under any circumstances. Because, even if we say we help each other, deep down we're only looking after ourselves."

Shane's blood run cold. How could one Pokémon harbor so much enmity for everyone around him? Could this actually be the Prism Virus' doing?

Gallian noticed his teammates stirring and walked over toward them. "You want to go rescue Sylveon and Eevee? Fine. Then you're going to have to beat me to it," he said. "I don't have any intention of letting the three of you get within a mile of them. Don't come crying to me when you ultimately fail."

"Uhuu huu huu huu! Isn't this such a touching, lovely family reunion? Really pulls at the ol' heartstrings."

Beside Gallian, Sticky and Luxeira tensed up. "Captain, are you seeing these readings? They are astronomical!" Sticky said.

A swirling, red and black vortex opened between the two groups. Espeon and Umbreon leaped out of the portal. "Well, well, well, haven't we all been a bunch of busybodies?" Espeon said. "We should've brought snacks, Umbry. This is quite entertaining!"

"You two… you're working for it, aren't you? That armored _thing_ ," Gallian said, scythe flashing pink.

"Working would imply I'm not having any fun. And this is loads of fun! So, no, I'm not," Espeon said with a giggle. "And judging by your appearance, I get the feeling you didn't want to get with the program?" She shook her head. "News flash: Legends are out of season. The Prism Virus is going to make things better for Pokémon like us."

"You call what you did to Mellath Bog better?" Shane shouted. "Or how about Bewear? Or Lurantis? Or Parasect?"

Umbreon leaped in front of Shane, sending backpedalling with a yip. "You're a bit delusional there, Snowball. We were making them stronger. Powerful enough to take down the Legends that plague all of us," Umbreon said. " _You_ and your band of idiots are the reason they're just cold, empty shells."

"Identify yourselves," Luxeria said, staggering forward. "Which Ultra Space pocket are you hailing from? A normal Pokémon wouldn't be expressing ultra aura levels like you two are."

"Uhuu huu huu! Look at you, trying to sound all authoritative," Espeon said, tail wagging. "Umbry and I only answer to the Prism Virus. Besides, we're not here for you. So, take your silly costumes and go someplace else. Though, feel free to leave Pinhead over there behind. He looks so adorable! I'm sure I could have _fun_ with him."

"Captain, I think they've lost their sanity. They must be possessed by Ultra Beasts," Sticky said, gulping.

"No, these readings don't show any Nihilego neurotoxins," Luxeira said, frowning. "In fact, now that I think about it, these energy signatures are remarkably similar to the Lightless Black."

"Then I would advise an immediate retreat," Sticky said. "We don't have the necessary means to deal with the Lightless Black or any terrestrials it may have projected its power onto."

Gallian whirled on his teammates. "Wait, you want to leave _now?_ No! We need to get information out of these two," he said.

"Espy already made it clear we have no intention of saying anything to you," Umbreon scoffed. "Unless you're planning to attack. And frankly, you three look like you're in no condition to do that."

"Try me!" Gallian snarled, sprinting forward. But he barely made it a yard before a card made of red and black energy appeared in front of him. Gallian fell onto his rear and dug his hind legs into the ground. He failed to stop his momentum, however, and slid right into the card. A second card opened up far across the field, over the remains of Sylveon's well. Gallian fell into the hole with a yelp. A splash permeated the area while the cards disappeared into thin air.

"W-What the–?" Shane gasped.

"Gallian!" Tessa cried. Luxeira and Sticky quickly exchanged looks and dashed away from Espeon and Umbreon.

"Bye! Don't forget to write," Espeon sang, waving a forepaw at them mock mockingly. She turned back to Team Radiance. "Ah, thank heavens we got rid of those party-poopers. Now, we can all have some fun together!" She gave them a sickeningly sweet smile, only for it to abruptly fade. "Well, all of us except the big guy over there. He's the very definition of buzzkill."

"… what did you do… to Absol?" Null asked.

"It's none of your concern," Umbreon said.

"Yeah. Besides, a good magician _never_ reveals her secrets!" Espeon said, giggling. "But I'd be more than happy to give you a little demonstration up close and personal if you want." She winked at Null, who looked away, shaking his head violently.

"Where did you take Sylveon and Eevee?" Shane said, snorting out ice tufts.

"Oh, you sound all fired up. I bet you'll be _lots_ more fun than the last time we met," Espeon said, flicking her tail back and forth.

"Sylveon and Eevee are in Aurora Vale's deepest recesses," Umbreon said. "And you're not getting them back. Period."

"You leave them out of this!" Tessa barked, bearing her fangs. "They have nothing to do with any of your Prism Virus stuff."

"You didn't let me finish," Umbreon growled. Tessa's ears and aura feelers drooped. "We're never going to let you break them out of the prison we've set up. With that said, Espy and I would be happy to let them leave of their own free will for, shall we say, _an equivalent exchange._ "

"Whatever you're asking, no deal," Shane said. "I can't believe you two would do something like this. And to your own kind, no less! What happened to the Espeon and Umbreon happily working with their friends in Post Town to solve the mysteries of Magnagates, huh? Surely you remember those fun times, don't you? Why would you want to get rid of them?"

Shane's answer came in the form of a blast of psychic energy so strong it ripped a sizeable part of his fur coat off his body. The blow knocked him back across the ground. His ears rang and his world went fuzzy.

 _'This is it...'_

"Oh, come on! Even after that... his scarf is still on? You've gotta be kidding me," Umbreon growled.

 _'One blow. She... she took me out in one blow!'_

As Shane's world darkened, he saw Lunala in his mind's eyes. Black crystals enveloped her body each team his vision flashed, until Necrozma's helmeted face stared Shane down, a grin plastered on his face.

"Shane!"

Tessa's cry jolted Shane back to reality. He scrambled to his feet, eyes widening upon realizing that Espeon had appeared right beside him.

"Remembering the fun times, huh?"

Shane scrambled backward, but Espeon lunged to his side.

"The only 'fun time' I remember," she hissed, as Shane squealed and jumped back in fright, "is Kyurem terrorizing the continent, making me fear for my life! All while a bunch of Legends sat around being _useless_. And the ones that were actually on the Mist Continent? _Worthless!_ " She stomped a forepaw on the ground and dark energy raced up to the diamond in her forehead. "Victini cared more about playing with his _stupid_ toy. Virizion was too busy sulking and moaning about how her fake friendships. And don't even get me started on Keldeo. What a total dweeb!"

Umbreon's red rings crackled. "You ask us why we want to be rid of the gods? Simple. We've finally woken up... and realized just how little our research means," he said. "Because, at the wave of a paw, we could have it all stripped away from us. Simply because some Legendary Pokémon doesn't like it."

"But… but you two are heroes," Shane whimpered. "You helped stop the Bittercold. Parents tell their kids stories about you!"

Another psychic blast struck Shane, ripping more fur off his body. Espeon walked up to him, pink energy pouring out of her glowing eyes. "And what good did that really do, huh? A few years later, Dark Matter showed up and sent _everyone_ into a panic," she said. "Umbry and I worked ourselves to death trying to help Pokémon take refuge from Yveltal. Meanwhile, what did the other Legends do? They sat in their homes, silently wishing the problem would go away."

"That's not completely true," Shane whispered meekly.

"Oh, of course. How stupid of me to forget," Espeon said, voice dripping with sarcasm. "Yes. Entei, Suicune, and Raikou were _such_ big helps. Running about the continents like blind idiots! And, oh, if that wasn't bad enough, when the rest of them _finally_ decided to take action, it didn't do anything! They all got turned to stone!" Her eyes watered. "Umbry got turned to stone! _I_ got turned to stone. I don't care what you claim to have experienced as a human. _Nothing_ compares to the horror of the Voidlands. Do you hear me? _Nothing!_ "

Espeon backed away, rubbing her eyes. "Way to go and suck all the fun out of this," she hissed. "I guess I'll just get to the point, then. You and your cowardly Riolu friend surrender and come with us to be infected. Then Umbry and I let your precious Sylveon and Eevee go. Do we have a deal or not?"

"Ah... ab... absolutely not," Shane said, struggling to stay on his feet. Tessa nodded slowly, though her gaze had fallen toward the ground.

"I told you they'd refuse," Umbreon scoffed.

"No. They just need time to think it over," Espeon said. She walked up to Shane again. "Sunrise tomorrow. If you and your sorry teammate aren't at the end of Aurora Vale, I will _personally_ take pleasure in infecting Sylveon and Eevee. Heck, I'll even let you bring the masked weirdo along for company. I'm just that nice." Her expressed immediately darkened. "If anyone else from your so-called guild even takes so much as a _step_ into Aurora Vale, then it's bye-bye Sylveon and Eevee. Do I make myself clear?"

Shane's tails fell between his legs. "Oh, come now," Espeon said, her cheerful demeanor returning. "Being infected isn't bad. It's a good thing! Look at how much stronger Umbry and I are now." She walked beside Shane and slid her tail across his neck to touch his cheek. "And think of how much _fun_ we could have together."

Shane's eyes widened and he scrambled away from Espeon. A grin spread across her muzzle. "Aww, what's the matter? You're not getting cold feet, are you? That'd be embarrassing for an ice-type." She shook her head. "So much for that spark of defiance earlier. I'll be waiting for you in Aurora Vale… cutie. Don't disappoint me." Her eyes flashed red and an Ultra Entercard appeared between her and Umbreon. They both jumped into the ensuing vortex, which closed right behind them.

Shane's legs gave out and he collapsed on his belly, heart hammering in his chest. Again, his vision went dark. Necrozma popped up, spreading his wings apart.

 _ **Don't worry. We'll finally be together again… real soon. Heeheeheehee!**_

Who was he kidding? They were in over their heads! He was nowhere near strong enough to save Sylveon and Eevee.

Shane curled up into a ball, shivering in fright. Null walked up to Tessa, who continued to stare silently at the ground. "What are we... what do we do now?" Tessa squeaked. "I can't take those two. But I can't let them hurt Sylveon and Eevee."

"… we should… go back to the Observatory. We all… need to be healed. At the very least… the guild could help us… plan our next move," Null said.

Tessa gulped. "But what about what Gallian said? About Braviary and Metagross?"

Null stiffened. "I... I don't know," he said. "But if... if they try anything funny... I'll tear them to shreds."

His promise did little to quell the sinking feeling in Tessa's gut. But it wasn't like she had other options. Certainly not with Gallian acting the way he was. She nodded slowly and joined Null as he walked up to Shane. He slowly staggered to his feet, avoiding eye contact with his teammates.

"… do you… want me to carry you back?" Null said.

"No," Shane whispered. "I can walk. I… I'm fine. It's going to be okay. Everything's going to be okay. We'll think of something. Somehow. Some way."

But as the team set off down the path to Aeon Town, Shane's own words rang empty in his head.

 _'Who am I kidding? We're hosed!'_

* * *

 **Ultra Recon Squad, Team Paradox**  
 _Gallian's newfound exploration partners have arrived from Ultra Village, a distant world destroyed by an entity known only as the Lightless Black. They claim their purpose is to observe, and search out bizarre energy patterns they call ultra auras. But something about the way they talk seems familiar. Perhaps they are Ultra Village's equivalent of an exploration team..._

* * *

Next time: after such a heated battle, Team Radiance needs to chill out in Aurora Vale.


	39. Fearsome Frozen Hazards

I suggest you put on a ski hat or a sweater before you read this chapter. It's going to get a bit chilly!

* * *

 **Chapter 34: Fearsome Frozen Hazards**

 _"Aggggh!"_

 _Shane found himself yanking a metallic foreleg backward, a stinging sensation rushing across his body._

 _"Oh, brother. Quit being so squeamish," Lunala chided. "If you hadn't tried to pick a fight with Volcanion, this wouldn't have happened."_

 _Shane looked down and noticed his foreleg was burnt to a crisp. What had happened? Wasn't he supposed to be back at the guild with his friends?_

 _"Yuh-yeah? Well, it's his fault for trying to cover southern Horizon in volcanic ash!" Shane said. "Seriously, what was he thinking trying to send all of the lava in Mount Supernova toward the Midnight Sea? We let him settle down in the Volcanic Wastes and this is how he repays us?"_

 _"You're just lucky Tapu Koko showed up when she did," Lunala said. She levitated a cloth toward his injured leg. Shane looked at it and tensed up. "Come on. You used up all your energy for Morning Sun. You've got to let me apply this ointment or you'll be a three-legged Solgaleo before you know it."_

 _Shane sighed. It looked like he was seeing one of Solgaleo's memories. But why would Solgaleo choose to share this now? Was this even relevant to his situation?_

 _"Just hurry up and put it on," Shane growled. "I just want to put this all behind me."_

 _"Then quit resisting, already." Lunala gently lowered the cloth onto Shane's leg. Searing pain rushed up his limb. An agonized roar sounded, then everything dissolved around him._

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Ow!"

Tessa's hissing snapped Shane back to attention. She jerked her leg back, causing Togedemaru to stumble and drop the cream-covered gauze she was holding.

"C'mon, Riolu, you've got to hold still," Togedemaru scolded. "You scuffed your thighs and knees up pretty badly. If you want the fur to grow back, I need to use this stuff."

 _'Okay, this is weird,'_ Shane thought. _'This is practically identical to that memory I just saw.'_ He then became aware of his injuries and doubled over in pain. His exposed fur burned as if he had spent way too long sunbathing without any lotion.

"B-But that medicine really hurts," Tessa said, frowning at Togedemaru.

"Well, consider yourself lucky. You didn't get the worst of things," Shane grumbled, noticing he stood beside Comfey's large water bucket. Instead of being filled with ice water like last time, it held a viscous purple fluid with sparkling bits of fairy dust strewn throughout it. "What's with the goop?"

"That's for you," Comfey said.

Shane's jaw dropped. "Seriously? Are you _really_ going to put me in that stuff?"

"Hmm, I suppose I don't have to," Comfey said. "If you don't want your fur back, of course. I can't speak to whether or not you being human messes with normal Vulpix health. But my predecessor taught me that a Vulpix's fur coat is essential to maintaining its internal body temperature and, by association, calling upon its ice-elemental powers."

Shane looked over the rim of the bucket and poked the surface of the liquid with a forepaw. It wobbled about like gelatin. Bile rose in the back of his throat. "It's disgusting, though," he said. "Hell, it reminds me of that Gak stuff they always advertised on kiddie channels back home. What's even in this, anyway?"

"There's a very delicate ratio of pamtre and sitrus berry extracts to promote rapid, healthy regeneration of your fur," Comfey explained. "However, in order to stabilize everything, I suspended the mixture in the slime shed by Goodras and Sliggoos–"

" _What?!_ Nuh-uh. No way am I bathing in slimy dragon sheddings," Shane huffed, flicking his snout skyward. Barely a day had gone by when he _hadn't_ ended up soaked or covered in grime and he had to draw the line somewhere. And that somewhere was bathing in dragon slime.

"You didn't let me finish," Comfey said, sighing. "I used a spell to coat the berry extracts with the slime, that way it can spread across your body so your coat is uniform. I'd have thought your Vulpix instincts might appreciate something like that."

In truth, a part of him _did_ like that idea. But said part was dwarfed by the overwhelming urge to vomit at the sight of medicine. "You thought wrong," Shane said, turning to leave the room. Null blocked his path before he could get more than five steps. "What? What do you want?" Shane said.

"… we need you… at your best," Null said. "I know it sucks… but just go along with it…"

Shane's ears folded against his face. How could Null understand? That mask probably blocked his sense of smell. "I don't want to," Shane whispered. "It'll make me look like an idiot."

"Do you really think... you look okay... the way you are... right now?" Null said, wheezing. Shane glanced down at his bare forelegs. Flaky bits of dead skin sloughed off and drifted to the floor between his paws.

"I guess not," Shane said, wincing. "It's just... it looks disgusting. And smells even worse!"

"Maybe I should do it with him?" Tessa said. "I need to get the fur back in my thighs."

"I suppose I don't see why not. It'll save me some of the cream, at the very least," Comfey said, shrugging.

Tessa hopped off the bench and limped over toward the bucket. "C'mon, Shane. Let's just go in together," she said. Null lowered his head and nudged Shane's rear toward the bucket. It looked like he didn't have a choice.

"Alright, alright, I get it. I'm going. I'm going," Shane said, walking up to the bucket. "The things this universe is making me do..."

A psychic grip took hold of them and slowly slid them into the bucket. "Oh god! This is awful! It's all gooey and sticky. I can feel it between my tails," Shane whined before his and Tessa's heads disappeared under the surface. Null grimaced and looked away from the bubbling slime. Seconds later, they both reappeared, covered from head-to-toe in purple goop. Comfey set them both down. Tessa held a paw up to her muzzle, trying not to hurl. Shane stood there, shivering.

"How do you feel?" Comfey asked.

"It feels like my body's on fire!" Shane said, registering each and every bit of goo that moved on him. He wanted nothing more than to curl up in a corner and forget this ever happened.

"Sometimes Pokémon experience a mild burning sensation. Particularly if they have large patches of missing fur," Comfey said. "I'll need you two to stay still while the suspension restores your coats."

"Aww, c'mon! Get this stuff off of me," Shane pleaded.

"Dangummit, Comfey! How many times I gotta tell ya to keep this door closed if'n yer doing sensitive stuff like this?"

Braviary lingered by the infirmary doorway, holding a wing up over his face.

"It's perfectly fine. You can come in," Comfey said.

"Yeah, great. Why not invite the whole guild while you're at it? Let's all laugh at the Vulpix," Shane said, trying not to look at Braviary. After Gallian's outburst, he wasn't sure how to act around the guy.

"Aww, c'mon. It's not so bad. I think you look good in purple," Tessa said. She then threw her paws over her muzzle. Her cheeks puffed up. Shuddered, she swallowed hard. "Okay, yeah, I think I just ate some. This stuff's hitting my gag reflex pretty badly. This doesn't mean I'm going to grow fur inside my belly, does it?"

"Of course not," Comfey said. She turned to Braviary. "Did you need me for something?"

Both Shane and Tessa went rigid. Tessa's tail crinkled and her aura feelers stood up on end. Recalling her earlier conversation with Gallian, she looked right down at the floor, squeaking in fright. Shane sighed. He wanted to do something to help her, but given Comfey's order not to move, nothing came to mind.

"Um, do you think you could come back later?" Shane asked, his voice cracking. "This is a bad time."

Braviary raised an eyebrow. "What's with the frightened looks, you two? Y'all are looking at me like I killed a 'mon."

Shane's tails shot into the air, flinging bits of slime around the room. One of them struck Togedemaru on her cheek. "I really… hate that guy," she hissed, right eye twitching.

Sensing the unease in the room, Comfey floated in front of Braviary. "You know what? Maybe you ought to give the three of them a bit more time. I think they're still recuperating from battle," she said, to Shane's and Tessa's relief.

"If'n y'all ain't in the right frames of mind to talk, then why'd ask fer me, huh?" Braviary said. "Null said y'all had something important you needed to bring to my attention."

Shane and Tessa exchanged panicked looks. They were both hoping they'd have more time to think about this conversation. "Y… you tell him," Tessa whispered.

"Um… I'm not exactly sure how to explain everything," Shane said, ears drooping.

Before he could say anything else, a splash echoed through the room. Null stood beside the water bucket, his head stuck in the purple fluid. "Hey! Hey! I did _not_ okay you to do that," Comfey scolded. She floated over and angrily slapped her tiny arms against Null's side. "Get out of there right now. Do you have any idea how long it takes me to prepare this stuff? I don't want to waste a drop on someone who doesn't need it!"

Null withdrew his head. His helmet now matched the composition of his teammates perfectly. "… sorry. I thought… maybe it could… help break this mask," Null said.

"Ugh. I swear you three have the worst two-week infirmary record of any team I've ever encountered," Comfey declared before draping Null's helmet in a towel and floating over to Braviary in a huff.

Braviary raised a confused brow. "Right. Uh, if'n y'all are done acting like hatchlings, tell me just what happened to get y'all roughed up like this. Shoot, I've seen Mudbray stampede victims looking less worse fer wear."

Tessa realized that Null's childish gesture was likely an attempt to buy them time to think. Unfortunately, it had failed, which meant they had to fess up. Luckily for her, Shane was up to the task. He recounted the events at Sunrise Village, leaving out the things Gallian said about Braviary and Metagross. Tessa's fidgeting intensified through the explanation. She watched Braviary, wondering how he would react to this.

Once Shane finished his recap, Braviary said, "That's mighty concerning." He tapped his talons on the floor. "So, y'all got ambushed by Gallian. And Gallian's working with aliens that know something about the Prism Virus. On top of that, Espeon and Umbreon are escalating whatever crazy plan they've got."

"When I ran into them in Dewdrop Woods last week, they mentioned something about taking out all the gods,'" Shane recalled. "But what would corrupting Mystery Dungeons have to do with that?"

"Most Legends make their homes in Mystery Dungeons, son. I figured you oughta know that, with the way you run that mouth of yours," Braviary said. Shane looked away in embarrassment. "If'n they disrupt the balance of a Mystery Dungeon's natural energy, they're sure to disturb whatever Legend may be sleeping there."

"Wait. If they're doing that, then they might try to attack Temporal Tower. Or the Tree of Life!" Shane said, eyes widening. "If that happens, this world's totally screwed!" It struck him that, if something like that actually happened, he could disappear in the blink of an eye, without even knowing. He couldn't help but shudder.

"… but they've only… done stuff in Horizon… right?" Null said, dropping his now-purple towel to the floor. His helmet still had a purple tint to it. Tessa would've found it funny if she wasn't in the same room as Braviary.

"I suppose we oughta call up the Expedition Society to make sure that's the case," Braviary said. Shane frowned. Would that really solve anything? "What're ya giving me that look fer, son? It's the best idea I can come up with on such short notice," Braviary said, waving his wing. "Besides, we need to talk about the situation in Aurora Vale. Ain't no way I'm letting the three of you mosey on into an obvious trap like that."

"But they said if anyone else shows up in Aurora Vale, they're going to infect Sylveon and Eevee," Tessa cried, aura feelers tensing. "Espeon's psychic-type. She'll surely know if we bring someone along."

"Riolu, ya don't really think them varmints are gonna keep their word, do ya?" Braviary asked. "I reckon that the moment y'all show up there, they're gonna attack you and infect Sylveon and Eevee anyway. From what I've heard, they don't exactly sound like a reasonable pair."

"N-No," Tessa whispered, her gaze falling. "I… I can't lose them too. Not now."

Shane's tails drooped. He wanted to hug Tessa, but knew it would end badly because of the medicine. Instead, he turned to Braviary and asked, "Isn't there anything you could do to, I dunno, power us up or something? Like a special emera or one of Magearna's inventions… _anything_ to help give us a fighting chance against Espeon and Umbreon."

"Strength in numbers, hoss," Braviary replied. "That's the only way yer getting through that kind of situation. Y'all have taken quite a whupping as of late. Frankly, I have half a mind to make y'all stay here."

Shane bit his lip. To him, it sounded like Braviary was setting them up for failure. He shot Tessa a worried look. "You can't keep us here!" Tessa said, getting Shane's memo. "P-Please… you have to let us go after them."

"They're Riolu's friends, Braviary," Shane added. "You're nuts if you think we're going to sit around while Espeon and Umbreon have them. Right?" He looked at Null, who nodded his agreement.

Braviary sighed. "I reckoned you would say something like that. Look, I think y'all are misunderstanding me. I ain't got no intention of sending other guild members in there." Tessa and Shane exchanged confused looks. "But I am going to be flying over the Vale and keeping an eye on y'all," Braviary said. "And I reckon stationing Team Captivate at Borea Heights shouldn't be no problem. That way, I can swoop in and grab them if there's any trouble."

Shane raised a skeptical brow. "Wait, you can just fly into a Mystery Dungeon. Then what's the point of having us exploring these places, huh?"

Braviary lifted his left wing, revealing a small, metallic plate with an electrode sticking out of it. "No way I could just fly into a dungeon on my own without getting attacked or hopelessly lost," he said. "But with this puppy, it's possible. Err… now what did Magearna call this thingamajigger again?"

 **My Geartronic Dungeon Penetratorizer,** Magearna said as she walked into the infirmary. **And as I told you the last time you swiperated it from my workshop, it is just a prototype. I have yet to get it to work properly. The most recent tests ended up with a 14.3 percent error margin from the target coordinates.**

"Yeah, I've still got the marks from where that Crobat bit my butt. Thanks for that, by the way," Togedemaru said.

 **You are welcome,** Magearna stated, before blinking a few times and saying, **wait, that was supposed to be sarcasm, was it not? Drat. I am now at a 31.25 percent sarcasm detection rate for the month.**

"Aww, come now, Mags," Braviary said. "There's a first time for everything, ain't there? Including this warp doohickey putting me in the right spot in Aurora Vale."

 **That is hardly scientific,** Magearna said. **Not to mention, I haven't fully stabilitized the energy consumption of that device. If you use it improperly, it may melt… or explode.**

Sweat drops formed on Braviary's head at this. "Ya don't think ya should've mentioned that earlier?"

 **I did the last time you tried to use it,** Magearna said. **Why do you think I had Togedemaru testing it?**

"Well, uh…" Braviary preened some feathers on his wing. "If'n Team Radiance is going in, then I'm willing to risk trying this doodad out. Hopefully I won't end up medium-rare as a result."

Shane looked skeptically at the device. "That's your big plan, then?" he asked.

"I reckon so," Braviary said. "Team Captivate and I will escort y'all to Borea Heights. The town's got the entrance to Aurora Vale that's closest to its deepest recesses. Not to mention, a lot of retired explorers live there. They may have some supplies to offer up."

Shane looked over at Tessa. "What do you think?" he asked. "Are you okay with this idea?"

Tessa's gaze switched between Braviary and Shane. Eventually, she nodded slowly. "It's for my friends," she said. "As long as you guys are staying out of Aurora Vale, then I guess we're keeping our part of the deal. So, let's start getting ready."

Comfey cleared her throat. "Would you mind saving the preparations until _after_ I've cleaned the medicine's remnants off you two?"

Tessa looked down at her slimy body and shuddered. "R-Right… getting rid of this stuff would be nice."

* * *

 **~Borea Heights~**

"H-Holy Karp! W… what _happened_ here?" Serperior gasped.

The rescue party found themselves standing on the outskirts of the town. Serperior's jaw dropped as she scanned the area. The place was covered in a thick layer of ice. Yellow-brick buildings, dirt paths, and the town square were all frozen solid. A huge slab of ice protruded from what once was a fountain.

"Did we get any word Articuno or Regice were coming to Horizon?" Milotic said, brushing frost off her looplet.

"No," Braviary said. "And if'n one of them is having a temper tantrum on our turf, you can bet the Guildmaster will be making an angry call overseas."

"Wait, is there normally not supposed to be wintry weather here?" Shane asked. "The dungeon's name is _Aurora_ Vale. I was expecting tons of ice."

"You're off base there, Vulpix," Dragonair said. "It's called Aurora Vale because the magnetic flux generated by all the Miniors populating the dungeon makes it so that you can always see an aurora in the sky." She slither up toward the town, cringing as ice brushed her scales. "Plus, this is mostly a retirement community. Older Pokémon wouldn't do so well in cold weather."

"Couldn't've said it better myself, Dragonair," Braviary said. "This is mighty strange."

"Which is exactly why I had the residents evacuate their homes."

The group turned to see a blue-green serpent shuffling forward. He had wool clothing draped over his white, fluffy tail and the white fur covering the base of his torso.

"Who's this old geezer?" Shane whispered to Tessa.

"That's Drampa. One of the residents of Borea Heights, if I'm not mistaken," Milotic replied.

"Hrmph. It's _Town Supervisor_ Drampa, thank you very much," the old dragon huffed. "And you all have a lot of nerve taking this long to show up. I sent my SOS request to your base _hours_ ago."

"Err, apologies, Drampa–"

"Town Supervisor Drampa."

"–Uh, right. Anyway, we've had some pressing matters of our own to attend to," Braviary said. "But we're here now. Ain't that what's important?"

"Hardly!" Drampa snorted. "What could possibly be more important than the _entirety_ of Aurora Vale turning to ice... and said ice encroaching into my precious town?" He raised a paw and stroked his mustache. "The answer is nothing, I tell you. Nothing! Oh, what a miserable day this has turned into. No doubt, they will blame me for this horrifying malady. My approval rating is going to tank because of this."

Shane rolled his eyes. It seemed that, even in the world of Pokémon, he couldn't escape obnoxious politicians.

"Um, Braviary?" Tessa said. "Before we went off to Sunrise Village this morning, Trapinch showed us that something was wrong with the Pokénector. It had this part of the continent blacked out."

"Say what? The Pokénector's never broken before," Serperior said.

"… I think… I might've been right," Null wheezed, rubbing his helmet against the ground "Aurora Vale… is infected. And that infection… is spreading through this town…"

Drampa caught sight of Null and his eyes widened. "W-What in Destiny Tower's name are you supposed to be, _boy?_ And what is this nonsense about 'infection?'" He turned to Braviary. "If you know what's happened to my town I want answers. Answers, I say!"

Shane figured now was as good a time as any to say something. "You ever hear of Espeon and Umbreon? The researchers looking into Entercards?" he asked, walking toward Drampa. The ice was oddly soothing on his paw pads. Shane figured it was his ice-typing at work.

"Of course I have. I'll have you know, I was quite the spry fellow back in the days when the Bittercold was terrorizing the Mist Continent," Drampa said.

An exasperated look overtook Milotic's face. "He acts like it was decades ago," she muttered under her breath.

"Well, we weren't in the guild yet when that stuff happened," Dragonair mused.

"Ladies, can you cut the chit-chat?" Shane growled, silencing them. "Espeon and Umbreon have, um, gotten hold of some sort of otherworldly energy. And they're using it to turn Pokémon into terrifying monsters. Lately, they've expanded to transforming the landscapes of Mystery Dungeons."

"Crabapples!" Drampa spat. "This is one kooky recruit you've got here, Braviary. Any Horizon-dweller knows the Tapus control the Mystery Dung–"

"I'm telling the truth, _sir,_ " Shane said, hissing out the last word. "Will you stop thinking about your reputation and listen to me for a minute? This is serious! My teammates and I were in Mellath Bog the other day and it had been turned into a toxic wasteland. We were lucky to get out of there with our fur attached. And now the same thing is happening to Aurora Vale."

"You need to leave, Mr. Drampa. It's not safe to be here," Tessa added. Why couldn't this guy see reason?

"Bah! I'm not about to let a couple of kids and a weirdo who's too afraid to show his face tell _me_ what I need to do," Drampa said, furrowing his oversized brow. "I give out the instructions around here. Not anyone else."

Ice shattered in the distance, jolting everyone to attention. "Ah, look!" Serperior said, pointing her tail forward. "That building just blew apart."

Shane's tails shot into the air at the sight of half a dozen Necrospheres emerging from the rubble of a frozen building. They floated about in erratic patterns, plasma sparks racing across their bodies. "B-Braviary… _please_ tell me those are just the Minior things Dragonair mentioned," Shane said.

Braviary spread his wings apart, shielding both exploration teams. "Son, you could search the whole darn planet, but you ain't finding no Miniors looking like that," he said.

Shane's ears folded against his head. That's what he was afraid of.

The Necrospheres rotated so their glowing-red cores faced the entire group. One of them turned toward its counterparts and let out a robotic beep. Shane's ears stuck up in fright.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing, you fools?" Drampa roared, shoving Braviary aside. "This here is a _private residential community!_ Vandalism is not to be tolerated!"

All the Necrospheres looked about at one another. They sounded a single, high-pitched beep in unison.

"W-Why are they letting out such weird noises?" Tessa whimpered, paws clasping her ears and pushing them against her head. The tone made her skin crawl. She wanted them to stop.

"Are you hooligans listening to me? I'm the town supervisor, here. And I'm about to write you _all_ up on citations! Hoo-hoo, Officer Magnezone is going to have his hands full. But I will not allow my town to fall victim to thugs, even in the midst of chaos!" Drampa declared, stomping about angrily.

The lead Necrosphere hovered forward and looked at its cohorts. It beeped in a lower pitch. The other Necrosphers followed it, their red cores glowing brighter.

"Hey, I don't like the looks of this," Serperior said. "Do we attack them or what?"

"Absolutely. Give 'em yer best shots. In unison, of course!" he ordered, pointing a wing forward. Water, fire, ice, wind, and blue lightning coalesced into a huge beam.

But the guild members' attacks proved useless. Each Necrosphere formed up a hexagonal shield of hard light and brought them together. The stalemate led to a smoke eruption that drove everyone back. "You stupid guild folk are worthless, I tell you! Worthless!" Drampa huffed. "You're wrecking my wonderful town."

The smoke cleared, revealing the Necrospheres had surrounded Drampa. He looked around at them and his aggravated look quickly disappeared. "Hey now. You… you can't attack me. I'm a town supervisor! I'm an authority figure." He gathered blue energy in his mouth.

The Necrospheres all sounded their high-pitched tones in unison. Black and red beams shot forth from their cores. Drampa cried out in pain, collapsed on belly, and then began to tremble. The Necrospheres ceased their attacks and turned on the guild members.

Braviary's brow furrowed. "Listen to me, Team Radiance. Y'all get a move on. Head into Aurora Vale. Leave everything here to us," he said.

Behind them, black crystals encased Drampa's torso and hair. "Are you nuts? We need to help you. Look at what's happening to Drampa!" He pointed a forepaw ahead of him, showing the membranous, purple wings emerging from the crystals on Drampa's body. The fur shed from his tail, leaving a large, purple bulb that ended in a giant gray needle. Purple ooze squirted from the its tip.

 **"Grrroah! Must... infect!"** Drampa roared. The Necrospheres replied with a round of beeps.

"Oh gods, is _this_ what made Bewear into a giant monster?" Serperior said, her face paling.

Braviary turned toward Team Radiance. "Why are y'all still standing there gawking? Go on! Git! Leave these no-good fellers to us." He turned around and sped forward, a bright, shimmering light encasing his body. A roaring Drampa released a blue bolt from his mouth. Braviary skirted the beam and hammered Drampa at the base of his neck.

Tessa winced as Drampa screeched like a angry bird. While she was worried about Team Captivate's safety, she had no desire to fight Drampa. Not with Sylveon and Eevee waiting in Aurora Vale. She nodded at Null, then leaped onto his back. Null lumbered over to Shane and Tessa plucked him off the ground by his tails.

"W-What the–? Hey, put me down! We need to help them," Shane said, thrashing in midair as Tessa pulled him onto Null's fury, scaly backside.

Null ran toward a wall of blue haze. "You heard Braviary. Besides... we can't waste our strength... right now. Otherwise... we'll be easy pickings... for Espeon and Umbreon."

Tessa took one last look back at Borea Heights. "I really hope Braviary actually has their backs," she whispered. "Stay safe you guys."

* * *

 **~Aurora Vale~**

Ice shavings kicked up along the path as Null skidded to halt. He looked behind him. The dungeon's entrance, two pillars of rock encased in ice, had long since disappeared behind a layer of icy haze. "I think… we're safe," he wheezed.

Tessa disembarked from Null, only to squeal as her paw contacted the ice and she slipped. Her tail jammed against the ground. "Ow, ow, ow, ow!" she cried, eyes bulging out. Shane gingerly got to the ground, gripped the scruff of Tessa's neck, and hoisted her up. Tessa skittered about trying to find her balance, but eventually stood up without support. "Th-Thanks, Shane."

She brought her arms up to her shoulders and rubbed them. "This… is horrifying. I… I've never been so cold. This ice _hurts,_ " she whimpered. "My paw pads are in so much pain... and we haven't even been here five minutes!"

"Yeah, this isn't pleasant," Shane said, looking down at his feet. "This ice is unnaturally slick, if you ask me." He glanced at Null. "Hey, big guy. Think you could try to carve some of the ice ahead of us up with Air Slash or Crush Claw?" Shane waited for a response. What he got instead was the sound of raucous coughing.

"Null! Are you okay?" Tessa gasped. She tried to walk over to him, only to slip again. Her muzzle smacked the ice and her eyes widened to the size of melons. "Ow! My nose," she whined, bringing her paws up to grab her throbbing snout. Shane stepped over toward Null, who was on his knees in a coughing fit.

"Chest… hurts…" Null groaned. "Can hardly breath… feels like… the helmet's… suffocating me…"

Shane frowned. This was bad. They hadn't even started looking for Espeon and Umbreon and the cold was already doing his teammates in. Shane would have to put on a brave face if they had any hope of getting through this place in once piece.

"You don't think your mask's possessed or something, do you?" he asked. Null shook his head. "In any case, we can't sit around here. What if more of those floating rocks show up? We're sitting Duckletts like this." Shane helped Tessa back to her feet again. "I hate to ask this, but do you think you could carry Riolu? I don't want her catching frostbite."

"Frostbite?" Tessa said, looking worriedly at her feet. Shane flinched. He probably could've phrased that better.

With a few deep breaths, Null was back on his feet. Tessa grabbed hold of his fur and hoisted herself up. She gripped the back corners of Null's helmet and dug her knees into his sides.

"Okay, we'd better get moving," Shane said, cautiously walking forward. It didn't take long for the ice to grow even slicker, however. Shane bent his knees to stop himself from sliding forward. The path turned into a small hill that he rode down into an icy basin. He quickly stepped to his side to make sure Null didn't slam him from behind. Null used his talons to halt his progress.

"There are a bunch of… big icy rocks… sticking up here," Null observed.

"Yeah, they're ice boulders," Shane said. His brow furrowed as he looked out across the basin. It all looked disturbingly familiar to him.

Shane's eyes widened. "Argh! I know exactly what this is. It's a god damn ice sliding puzzle! These aren't supposed to be here!" he hissed.

"What do you mean?" Tessa asked.

"The ground's way too slick to walk on. As soon as one of us takes a step forward, we're getting whisked off in whatever direction we're facing, and we can't change our course," Shane explained. "We need to use the boulders to plot the right course to the other side of the basin."

"Well, which way do we go?" Tessa asked, poking her head out from behind Null's mask.

"Um… well…" Shane bit his lower lip. "I'm not really sure. I was always terrible at these things back home. It always took me half an hour just to solve the Snowpoint City Gym puzzle." He gnashed his teeth together. "Of all the mechanics that could wind up here…"

"Guess we just... need to employ… a little trial and error," Null said. He took a step forward and slid across the ice. He came to a stop by one of the boulders and proceeded to adjust his course. Null slid off to his right, striking the side of the basin. Tessa squeaked as snow fell on her from the edge of the basin. She hurriedly brushed it off her fur, shivering. "Sorry about that," Null muttered.

"Null! That's definitely the wrong way," Shane said. "If you go north or south, you'll just end up in a loop that brings you back here."

Sighing, Null slid off to his south, looking to return to Shane. However, when he hit the ice boulder in the corner, it shattered. Three Necrospheres fluttered out of it. They fixed their glowing cores on Null. Electrically-charged rocks gathered up around them. Null encased his helmet in steel. With vigorous shakes, he deflected the projectiles.

A burst of psychic energy struck the Necrosphere on Null's left. It hit its teammates like a line of dominoes and their crystallized remains fell into clumps of snow on the rim of the basin.

"Looks like… there are enemies… lurking here," Null said, coughing.

"Do you think Espeon and Umbreon placed them there as part of a trap?" Tessa wondered, rubbing her paws together.

"Undoubtedly," Null said. He slid back over to Shane's location and relayed Tessa's thought.

Shane frowned. "Great, so we get penalized for doing this puzzle wrong. That's awful!" He rubbed his cheek with a forepaw. If only he could get a better vantage point. After a few seconds thinking, Shane's eyes widened. "Wait, that's it," he said. "Riolu, I need you to stand on top of Null's head and see if you can spot a path across the basin."

Tessa forcefully exhaled into her paws and rubbed her shoulders. "But I'm so cold… I can barely even move," she said.

"C'mon, Riolu. You're a head taller than I am. And you've done a great job with navigating in the other dungeons. We really need you here," Shane said, hoping the words of encouragement would help. Tessa nodded shakily and climbed atop Null's helmet. Null stuck his neck upward as best he could, though he was visibly straining from the combined weight of Tessa and his mask.

"I think I've got something," Tessa said. "We all assumed we needed to go up, down, right, or left to start this. But it looks like the key is to move diagonally." She pointed her paw ahead of her, where a particularly large ice boulder jutted out from the ground. "That's where we should go first."

"Okay. Then, I think it's best if I go first, so Tessa can stay here and give directions. If it's the right way, you guys follow me," Shane said. He stepped onto the ice and slid forward, coming to a stop by the large boulder. Tessa continued relaying instructions as Shane zigzagged about the area. One of the rocks he hit turned into another Necrosphere trap. But Null disoriented them with air slash blades from afar, allowing Shane to freeze them solid. They dropped to the ground and shattered on impact.

"You're almost there," Tessa said. "Just head over to your right, then go straight forward. That should bring you to the clearing."

Shane slide forward to his right. His paw brushed against a lump in the ice, leading to a _click_ that made his blood run cold.

 _'Did I just trigger another tr–'_

The ice exploded, jettisoning Shane forward with a howl of terror. He struck the far wall basin with a sickening _crunch_ , knocking off a mound of snow that piled on top of him.

"Shane!" Tessa gasped, the image of his blackened belly and legs burned into her retinas. "Come on, we've got to help him."

"But he broke… one of the rocks we needed… to reach him," Null said. "Which way… am I supposed to go?"

The combination of frigid temperatures and adrenaline made Tessa shake while her vision went blurry. She had to get to Shane. She just _had_ to.

"Up and to the left," Tessa said, sitting down on Null's back. He stepped onto the ice and slid across in an effort to catch up to Shane. However, his talons grazed another lump in the ice, leading to another loud _click_.

The ground fell out from beneath Null's hind legs. Tessa screamed and grabbed hold of Null's feathery head crest for dear life as he slid into a pitfall. Growling, Null dug his talons into the ice. Null managed to stop himself, but not before the lower half of his body dangled over the edge of the ice, leaving Tessa dangling. She looked down the pitfall and her eyes widened at the sight of strange, flickering red light.

"Pull us up, Null! _Pull us up!_ " she shrieked, kicking her legs wildly. "There's something down there and _I don't want to find out what it is!_ "

"I'm… trying," Null hissed, straining his limbs to try and hoist them back up.

"Skraaaw!"

Null looked up and his eyes widened. "Wha… what was that?" Tessa asked.

"Skarmories," Null grunted, watching the trio of metal birds circling overhead. With considerable effort, he managed to get his whole body back up on the ice, but immediately crumpled to his side, wheezing loudly.

Tessa looked up and went bug-eyed as the Skarmories swooped down, talons at the ready. She meekly threw her arms up and braced for pain. But a high-pitched shriek echod through the basin, followed by a crash and furious squawking. She peeked an eye open and saw the Skarmories lying in the remains of an ice boulder.

"You guysh okay?"

Tessa turned to see Shane standing on top of the snow pile that had buried him. The collision with the wall had left him with a blackened right eye, a swollen snout, and a very large welt on the right side of his head. She grimaced at the sight of specks of red on his chest. Shane swayed back and forth uneasily.

"Y-Yeah. We're fine," Tessa said, looking over her shoulder to confirm Null had gotten back to his feet. "But you're totally not."

"Ish fine," Shane said, his swollen face slurring his speech. "Jusht a shlite concushion. Don't… y'know… let me fall ashleep or anything. You can totally shlide over here, now."

"We'd better… hope these berries… can fix him up," Null said. He extended a foreleg to let Tessa climb aboard and slid over to the mound of snow. Tessa got a pair of sitrus and lum berries out and handed one of each to Shane. As he nibbled away at them, Tessa squished the other berries against his face.

"Ach! That stings!" Shane hissed. The juice quickly crusted over in the frigid air. Then, it vanished, leaving Shane's face mostly as it was before triggering the trap. "What was that for?" Shane asked.

"Comfey said berry juices can sometimes help heal injuries in the field. Like first aid, or something," Tessa said. "You look much better now." Sure, there was still see some black and blue around his eye. And he reeked of burnt fur. But that was better than the alternative.

"Well, let's just move forward. Those Skarmories are going to be very mad once they can untangle themselves," Shane said. The trio slid their way across the last bits of ice and quickly departed the basin. Fog blanketed the path behind them, leaving the previous area nothing but a memory for Team Radiance.

Shane looked up, past the frozen trees, to stare at the sky. "Hey, Riolu. Is the aurora over this valley supposed to look purple and red?" he said.

"How should I know?" Tessa said, following Shane's gaze. "W-What the–? But it was barely early afternoon when we arrived at Borea Heights. How could it become nighttime so quickly?"

"I don't think… the sun's actually set," Null said. "Something else… is messing up the sky… over this place…"

"Probably the same thing that's turned this dungeon into a Glacier Palace wannabee," Shane said.

Just then, a wall of red energy formed up at the other end of the path. A black, winged-heart insignia appeared on it. Team Radiance all turned around to see an identical barrier behind them. "And we're trapped," Shane said. "Which means…"

A few of the frozen trees burst apart and a pack of Necrospheres floated out. Behind them, a pair of Skarmory flew in. Unlike the ones the group had left behind, these Skarmories had black bodies and serrated wing-blades. They landed in front of the Necrospheres and spread their wings out, cawing defiantly.

"Yup. Monster House, right on schedule," Shane said, groaning.

"I'm starting to get the feeling… Braviary was right… about Espeon and Umbreon… not planning to stick to their end of the deal," Null said, lunging for one of the Skarmories. It took off, dodging Null's talons, while its counterpart drilled into Null's side with its black beak.

Opposite Null, Shane and Tessa hopped about, dodging red lasers from the Necrospheres. "If one of those hits us, we could be in a ton of trouble!" Shane said, looking at the smoking crater left by one of the lasers.

"Well, what are we supposed to do? I have to get in close to hit these guys," Tessa said, hunched over and shivering. "And... I can barely move... in this cold."

Hearing his teammates' concerns, Null backed away from the Skarmories. But they followed him, trying to slash him with their wings. Null lunged at a Skarmory, jerking his head as he made contact. His teammates delighted to see the Skarmory strike the Necrospheres. Despite their shields, half of them exploded on impact.

Relief gave way to panic on the part of Shane and Tessa. "Look out!" Shane barked, lunging for Tessa. They slid across the ice and struck the base of a nearby tree. Shane donkey-kicked Tessa out of the way of falling icicles. The resulting pain was awful, but he could bear it knowing he had gotten Tessa out of harm's way.

Except the second Skarmory had gotten around Null and now looked to spear Tessa from behind. "Riolu, look alive!" Null shouted, but it wasn't soon enough. Tessa smacked the tree and sank onto her belly.

Shane looked down at his injured teammate, her face twisted into a grimace. With a snarl, Shane shrieked at Skarmory. Null leaped up and slammed his metal-coated helmeted into his disoriented foe. Skarmory's teammates barely avoided it careening back through the air.

"I think they're up to something," Shane said, staring at the other Skarmory and its Necrosphere buddies. He silently prayed a Reviver Seed would kick in for Tessa soon. Otherwise, he wasn't sure if he could protect her.

Cawing, the lead Skarmory swung its legs forward. Red, glowing, spike-covered cubes shot out toward the ground. The Necrospheres fired electricity at the cubes. "Jump!" Null cried, lunging into a nearby snowbank.

Lightning struck the cube farthest from Shane, sending a current across the ice. Shane kicked Tessa behind the tree and flatted himself against the trunk. Electricity grazed the tips of his tails. Eyes watering, Shane bit into the frozen tree without even thinking. He curled up his tails, trying to will the electricity away. But it wouldn't die down. At least Tessa was back on her feet, though she also clung to the tree, eyes widened in panic.

Frenzied caws made Shane's ears stick up. The Skarmories were coming for him! He was sure of it! He had to attack. It was Extrasensory or bust. _'I need a miracle!'_ Shane thought, squeezing his eyes shut.

A tiny seed struck a Skarmory, then an explosion engulfed them. Shane released his stored psychic energy, intensifying the blast. The remaining Necrospheres vanished in bursts of napalm, leaving only red and black smoke trails behind.

Shane released his grip on the tree trunk and slid to the ground, relieved that the enemies were gone and, with them, the barrier halting their progress. Shane rolled onto his back, breath coming in ragged gasps.

"Buh... berries... please," he wheezed.

"Um... why do you think those guys didn't, y'know, turn all colorless like the other infected Pokémon?" Tessa said, rummaging through her item pouch.

"They might not... have been real," Null said, limping over to his teammates. "Espeon and Umbreon... probably made them... somehow..."

Tessa's fur prickled. If those two could conjure up all of these enemies, what chance did they even have against them? She knew she shouldn't think like that, but she couldn't help it. Tessa busied herself offering healing items to her teammates.

"I guess we've got to forge on ahead," Shane said, looking up at the sky once again. A shiver ran along his back. He actually found himself wishing he was back in Mellath Bog. At least there, he was underground, with no black sky to intimidate him.

"Hold up… Shane…"

He stopped mid-stride and looked over his shoulder. Tessa lay on the ice, curled up in a shivering ball. "I… I can't… t-too cold," she whispered trough chattering teeth.

"Hey, hey!" Shane said, trotting to her. "You can't lay down on the ice. It's just going to make it worse. Pick her back up, Null."

Shane leaned over, only to flinch from hearing Tessa's sobs. "My whole body _hurts,_ Shane. I can't take this cold anymore!" she said. "Please... make it stop."

Null bent over and, to Shane's surprise, curled himself up around Tessa. She squeaked in surprise but, after a few seconds, her teeth stopped chattering. "Is that… any better?" Null asked. Shane's ears twitched at the sound of Tessa's heavily-muffled voice, but he was unable to make out her response.

It wasn't long before Null uncurled, however, allowing Tessa to climb onto his back yet again. "Looks like we're… good to go," he said.

Shane nodded and took his place beside his teammates. The team continued forward, disappearing into the fog once again.

* * *

Next time: Team Radiance finally confronts Espeon and Umbreon.


	40. Heart of the Entercards

It's time to duel!

... wait, what franchise am I in, again?

* * *

 **Chapter 35: Heart of the Entercards**

The Monster House gave way to more ice sliding puzzles. All the while, the oddly-colored aurora filling the sky progressively disappeared. After navigating a longer maze, Team Radiance looked up and found the sky had turned completely red. Black lightning bolts raced across their heads. Each one made Tessa's aura feelers jump.

"Guys, this doesn't feel right," Tessa whispered. "I don't want to be here anymore. I want to leave!"

"But what about Sylveon and Eevee?" Shane said.

Tessa squeaked and threw her arms up over her chest, shivering wildly. Of course she wanted to rescue them. Yet, something felt wrong. "The air here… it's suffocating," she said.

"All the more reason… to press onward," Null wheezed.

"Look, I just think we need to stop… and come up with some sort of plan," Tessa said.

"But a plan for what, exactly?" Shane wondered, sitting on the snow.

"I don't know," Tessa said. "That, maybe?" She pointed a paw skyward. "It just feels like something's going to pop up in the sky and blast us to smithereens or… or suck the life out of us like what's happened to the infected Pokémon we've fought."

Null tapped her on the shoulder. "What? What's the matter?" Tessa said.

He pointed the same talon forward. "Is that… what's making you flip out?" he asked

Tessa looked over her shoulder and her eyes went wide at the sight of a black monolith, surrounded by a cluster of crystals. Its winged heart sigil glowed prominently against the dark sky. "Oh no. Not again," she squeaked.

It was exactly like Mellath Bog. Shane figured the monolith had covered the dungeon in ice. "This must mean we're at the end," he said, turning to Tessa. "See? We can't turn back. We're this close to saving Sylveon and Eevee. _Then_ we can get the hell out of here and never come back."

Tessa clasped her paws together and nodded slowly. Shane was right. She couldn't give up here. Tessa shuffled forward, taking care to stick as close to Null as possible. The trio slowly approached the monolith, stopping on a very large patch of icy ground. "Ah, look! There they are," Tessa said, pointing a shaking arm forward.

Shane gulped. Tessa's friends were trapped inside one of the black crystals. How could Team Radiance free them from something so alien?

"Well, what do you know? You actually showed up. Wonderful! I do love Pokémon that can _satisfy_ me."

All three members of Team Radiance tensed up as Espeon emerged from behind the crystals. Umbreon tailed along after her, wearing his usual look of disinterest. "I'll admit, Umbry and I had our doubts. But I should've known better. You three always know how to surprise." She fixed her gaze on Shane. "And I _love_ what you've all done with your fur. Purple and black looks great on you! I take it this means you're going to accept my lovely offer?" She batted her eyelashes at him.

Shane's heart skipped a beat. Was she... flirting? With him? Why? Shane shook his head. He had to focus. Tessa was counting on him!

"Even if we _were_ considering it, there's no way we're joining up with you two after seeing what you left waiting in the wings for us back there," Shane said. "I'll bet you never even planned on keeping your end of the deal, anyway!"

Espeon feigned a hurt expression. "How could you say that to me? After all we've been through together, I thought we had something special between us." The forked ends of her tail formed into a heart. Shane's face went bright red and he abruptly looked away, biting his lower lip.

"Drop the act, Espy," Umbreon snorted. He jerked his head toward the monolith. "We're not here to play games. You know that."

"Fine. Here I wanted to be all welcoming, since we're going to be on the same team soon. But _some Pokémon–_ " she gave Umbreon a vindictive look, "–can't be bothered to show some manners. So, let's hit the fast-forward button, shall we? Ahem…"

She stepped to her right, mimicking Tessa's nervous look. "You, like, give me my friends back, like, right now! O-Or… um… or else we're gonna, like, attack you and stuff."

"Hey, I do _not_ sound like that," Tessa said, but her voice cracked. She looked away in embarrassment.

Espeon stepped back to her original position and shook her head. "It appears we're at an impasse, then. You want your friends. We have orders not to give them up unless you and your human boy-toy come and join us."

"Wait… orders? So, you _are_ being manipulated!" Shane said, though the revelation wasn't as relieving as he had hoped. "Who's calling the shots here? A Legend? Invading alien forces? Tell us. We can help you guys!"

Umbreon glared at his partner and shoved her to the side. "Espy, you dolt! You're giving too much away," he hissed.

"Oh, p'shaaw. What's the problem? Once they're infected, they'll know the full story. I'm just giving them a short teaser. Zero will be happy not to waste her time explaining everything to them," Espeon said.

Black lightning from the monolith struck the ground beside Espeon, leaving it charred black. Espeon's face blanched and she skirted close to her teammate. "See? We've talked enough already," Umbreon scoffed. "Last chance to lay down those scarves and surrender, punks."

Shane still wasn't sure why his scarf was so important to them, but he didn't care. "Not a chance," he said. Shane looked over at his teammates. "You guys ready? I get the feeling this isn't going to be easy."

Null hunched over and brushed the ice with a foreleg. Tessa took in a deep breath and raised her fists. With their guild mates preoccupied, there was no one to bail them out. It was up to them to win the fight on their own.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," Espeon said, shaking her head. "I suppose you three can't be blamed for any of this. You're ignorant. Just like everyone else."

She and Umbreon hopped down from their perch, eyes flashing red in unison. Heat sent Team Radiance scrambling forward. Shane looked back and saw red, hexagonal, hard-light tiles forming a wall behind him. Identical walls encased each side of the icy arena, climbing until they were higher than the monolith. A ceiling of black tiles appeared, blocking out the vortex in the sky and bathing the battlefield in dark red. Flashes of light erupted on each wall as Necrozma's star icon appeared on them.

"By the time this is over, we'll make sure you understand just how worthless the gods really are," Espeon said. A red glow encased her body and she lifted a forepaw. Four life-sized, holographic cards appeared in front of her, each bearing a winged heart icon inside differently-colored symbols.

Shane's eyes widened. He recognized those symbols! A heart, spade, diamond, and a club. Just like _human_ playing cards.

"Once you've seen just how powerful our Ultra Entercards can be, you'll be as excited for the Legend-free world as we are," Espeon declared. "Isn't that right, Umbry?"

Umbreon snorted in response. He slammed a forepaw on the ground and all four cards flipped over, revealing four different colored wormholes. Umbreon leaped into the blue one, disappearing from the fight. The cards vanished. Team Radiance huddled up, utterly baffled as to what was happening.

"You're battling on our terms, now," Espeon said. "And, in this scenario, the house _always_ wins! Uhuu huu huu!"

As soon as she finished laughing the diamond on her forehead flashed. Several tiles disappeared from the walls and lined the arena. Espeon fired a pink waveform beam toward the nearest tile. It reflected toward Team Radiance

"Hit the deck!" Shane shouted, sprawling out onto his belly and sliding forward on the ice. Tessa fell beside him but Null leaped back instead. Espeon grinned and flicked her tail. Her attack banked off another tile. Null hit the ice with a groan and a heavy _thud_.

Thinking it safe, Tessa stood up, only to blanche in the face of the ricocheting Psybeam. She rolled left, only for an entirely different blast to blow her into the far wall. Red electricity surged through her body, drawing an agonized howl. Tessa crumpled to the ground, a smoldering blue ball.

Shane's eyes widened. The wall was electrified? He couldn't think over this predicament for long, however. Something hard struck his side. Shane was flying into Espeon's attack! Psychic energy pummeled him into the ground. That was one attack. _One attack_ and he hurt so bad he could barely move.

"That's right, roll over and take it, human. You rank amateurs don't realize how utterly outclassed you are," Espeon hissed. "You said it yourselves. We've faced the Bittercold's forces. We've had to look Kyurem right in the eyes. And that was without the power boost from the Prism Virus. Do you really think you can even so much as land a hit on us? Don't make me laugh! What a fever dream!"

Air crescents flew in from Espeon's right, but the red, heart-bearing card sucked the attack into its vortex. Null slapped the ice in frustration, only for the card to reappear next to him. There was no time to dodge. Air blades battered his hide. The pain forced him to the ground.

Shane flinched. He couldn't lose his nerve, even if they were outgunned! Shane needed to get _some_ offense going, but he got choked up trying to conjure icy air. The blue Entercard was right in front of him! He had to move, _now!_

Black wisps poured out of the card. Shane was defenseless. Umbreon barrled into him. Shane skipped across the ice like a living rock on a riverbed until he skidded to a stop far from his teammates. His flanks burned. Why did these attacks hurt so much?!

Umbreon charged ahead, racing past Tessa's meek paw strikes. He disappeared into the green Entercard while his partner's eyes glows. The card split into four copies that fell on the ice. Shane and Tessa struggled to their feet, exchanging panicked looks. What were they supposed to attack?

"Is this supposed to be Double Team?" Tessa said. "Which one's the real one?"

As if on cue, the card on their left flipped over. A black glob floated upwards and split in six. Shane and Tessa bolted in opposite directions. That looked _nothing_ like a Shadow Ball or a Dark Pulse.

"Ha! Nowhere to run, kiddies," Espeon shouted, eyes flashing blue. The blobs exploded, bathing the arena in dark energy. Tessa yelped and threw her arms up. Intense winds buffeted her, yet there was no pain.

"H-How?" Tessa gasped, opening her eyes. It was Null! He had shielded her!

Null stood in front of her, firing air crescents despite his fatigue. Shane raced awkwardly toward his teammate. He had to do something to help. Shane mustered the best cloud of frosty air he could manage. His heart sank when Espeon negated Null's attacks with the yellow Entercard while Umbreon popped out of the real green card and vaporized his Frost Breath with a black beam. That was the last thing Shane saw before pain filled his world and everything went black.

"No! Get up, Shane!" Tessa called. Sure, they had Reviver Seeds, but would they even work?

"Worry about yourself, bi[size=4t[/size]ch," Espeon growled, leaping into the yellow card.

Tessa looked around frantically. Where was Espeon going to pop up? She had to be ready. Tessa couldn't withstand another psychic blow.

"Left!" Null shouted, helmet hardening into iron. Tessa turned and her world erupted in a brilliant white flash. It was even strong enough to envelop Null. The fairy energy was too overwhelming. Like Shane, they both collapsed in unconscious heaps.

"That was so easy, I _almost_ feel sorry," Espeon scoffed, flicking her snout skyward. "Guess Zero was right. We should never have bothered toying with you three."

"Excuse me. What's this 'we' business all about? I wanted to attack them like this from the beginning," Umbreon said. "Besides, look." He pointed a forepaw down to the ice, where all three members of Team Radiance were staggering back to their feet.

"I guess we couldn't touch your Reviver Seed stock after all," Espeon said. "No matter. Because there aren't enough Reviver Seeds in the universe to help you if I break all your legs!" This time, Espeon disappeared into the red card.

Umbreon shot a black beam toward Null and Tessa. Null shoved Tessa away and jumped over the attack. He was going to get a hit in this time, he was sure of it!

"Uhuu huu huu! Nice try, big guy!"

The red card was level with him! Null couldn't escape in midair. A pink blast shot him into the wall, where he seized up from the electricity. Null dropped to the ground, where the ice cracked beneath him.

Shane's blood boiled. This had become a complete disaster. Without even thinking, he blew icy air at the red Entercard. It was supposed to be a show of frustration, so imagine Shane's surprise when the card shattered like a dropped pane of glass. Espeon fell screaming to the ground. Shane looked at the wall on right, where the star icon had turned completely black.

There _was_ something they could do, after all. "Guys! We have to attack the Entercards! It's the only way to stop Espeon and Umbreon from moving so fast," Shane declared.

"Not going to happen, human!" Umbreon bellowed, disappearing into the shadows. Next thing Shane knew, he was sprawled out on his belly, pinned under Umbreon's forelegs. "Time to shut you up," Umbreon growled, black energy gathering in his forehead ring.

"Back off!"

Tessa charged in, fists at the ready. The yellow Entercard was at Umbreon's side, ready to keep him safe. Tessa threw caution to the wind and hurtled her fists forward. She punched right through the card. Umbreon lost his concentration, yelping. Shane had an opening! He tickled Umbreon's belly with his tails.

"Augh!" Umbreon hollered, weakness shooting through his legs. Shane shimmied to freedom, then buffeted Umbreon with icy winds. Yes! He had _finally_ gotten in a clean hit. And Espeon's pained wails made him realize he wasn't the only one.

Behind him, Null silenced Espeon with a swipe of his glowing claws. To Null's satisfaction, her forehead diamond splintered. It served her right. Except the diamond was still glowing. Null jumped back. His right hip tingled. He looked at it and growled. Her Psybeam had still gotten him. Worse, it was heading right for Tessa. Null couldn't get to her fast enough. He prayed she could dodge it, safely.

Tessa tried to backpedal, but slipped on the ice. She spun helplessly across the ground. Espeon seized her chance and opened the blue Entercard next to Umbreon. Tessa knew what was coming. "Help me!" she shouted. She had to stop or else–

It was no good. Shadows filled her vision, followed by searing pain. She was sliding even faster across the ice, now. She couldn't stop. The wall was approaching. Tessa was going to get electrocuted for sure!

"Nngh!"

Tessa hit something fluffy and came to a stop. Oh, thank the gods, Shane had made it to her in time. Shane whirled around on instinct and spewed frosty air. He thanked his lucky stars when his ice destroyed the blue Entercard. Shane felt a perverse satisfaction seeing Umbreon hit the ice face-first. Hopefully, Umbreon wouldn't remember this once Team Radiance had won and freed him.

"You may have some new tricks, but the two of you were always researchers first and battlers second," Shane said, while Tessa stepped up and struck Umbreon's chest with her palms. Umbreon hit the wall and Shane froze him solid while he was seizing up. He hoped that would keep Umbreon quite so they could focus on a single target.

Shane and Tessa were dismayed to see Null lying unconscious at Espeon's feet. Likewise, she didn't take kindly to the life-sized ice cube that was her partner. "Okay, you want to play dirty?" she said, eyes glowing pink. "I can play so dirty it'll make a Trubbish blush!" Ice swirled around her. Shane and Tessa knew they needed to attack, but were completely dumbstruck by the sight of Espeon molding an ice sculpture of herself.

"Umbry's a great partner and all that. But sometimes, you've just got to learn to love yourself. Know what I'm saying, handsome?" Espeon said, locking eyes with Shane. He tensed up. Why did she keep saying stuff like that? "Of course you do. I'll bet the only love you're used to getting is from your own rosy paws," Espeon continued, smirking. "Now, if you'd like to give up, I'm sure I can _rectify_ that."

Espeon looked up and saw one of the two darkened stars had refilled with light. With a psychic blast, she launched her ice-double at Shane and Tessa. Neither had an answer for the attack, so they fled. The double erupted in a whirlwind of snowy air seconds later. By the time they'd gotten their bearings again, Espeon was already gone.

"Quick. We need a little healing session," Shane said. Tessa handed him a pair of berries, looking around in a panic. Espeon would never give the a chance to heal.

The yellow card appeared on her left. "Run!" Tessa shouted. Her warning was too late. Pink light erupted around her. Then there was a painful shock. Shane hit the ground next to her right before she passed out.

Null was finally back on his feet, but Umbreon's icy prison was breaking apart. He had to strike quickly. But Entercards appeared on his left and right. Null jerked his head right, praying his guess was correct. Blood splattered against his metallic mask. Espeon took a few steps backward. Null had knocked the wind out of her. Now, he just had to finish her off.

Dark energy hammered Null's side, knocking him across the ice. Umbreon was by Espeon's side in an instant. "Espy! Are you okay?" he said.

"Do I _look_ okay to you?!" she shrieked, whirling on Umbreon to show a pair of black eyes, a bloody snout, and the shattered diamond on her forehead. "How could you let yourself get frozen? Are you _trying_ to lose? Do I even need to _remind_ you of the consequences, here?!"

"I'm trying my best," Umbreon said, stone-faced.

"Well, try harder, damn it!" Espeon screeched, smacking him across the cheek. "I'm not getting the life sucked out of me again. I can't deal with that again! _Back me up, here!_ "

"Don't you take that tone of voice with me, Espy!" Umbreon snarled. "What do you think I've been doing? That human caught a lucky break figuring out the trick with our cards. We can still win."

"Cover me while I heal," Espeon hissed. She shut her eyes and a small, orange ball appeared above her head.

Shane had managed to revive again, only for his jaw to drop.

Espeon had Morning Sun. After everything they had done, she barely looked any worse for wear!

"No!" Shane roared, releasing sound waves. Umbreon thought he could dispel them with his green Entercard, but Tessa ran through it with a burst of speed. Shane's sound waves blew Espeon and Umbreon away. But any hope he had of sending them into the electrified wall was dashed when they tumbled into the newly-repaired blue Entercard instead.

"Brace yourselves, guys!" Shane said, looking about the arena. They were going to appear someone for a surprise attack. But where? _Where?_

"Red card over by the crystals!" Tessa barked. Shane turned to find two Necrospheres floating out of the red Entercard. He frowned. Where did they come from?

The Necrospheres wasted no time in bombarding Team Radiance with bright-orange fireballs. Shane and Null failed to snuff them out with ice and wind. They were way too large! Shane bolted from his spot, running about in a frenzied panic. The Necrospheres weren't stopping! Volley after volley of fireballs rained down on Team Radiance. Their legs aches, but none of them wanted to see how badly a fireball would hurt.

"Oh, for the love of– this is why everyone hates bosses that summon flunkies," Shane growled. "For god's sake, I'm in a Mystery Dungeon, not Gradius level!" Someone had to make a move on them, even if it meant getting hurt. Shane threw caution into the wind and ran toward the Necrospheres, nearly getting scorched in the process.

"Take this!" he shouted, shooting psychic ripples from his glowing eyes. They had to hit. Otherwise, he was sure to get burnt to cinders!

A loud _clang_ made Shane's ears stick up in joy. He'd hit a Necrosphere and knocked it into the wall. It looked ready to fall apart at a moment's notice. But, wait, something was wrong. The Necrosphere wasn't breaking. It was falling... right toward him!

"Get out of there, Shane!" Tessa shouted.

Shane tried roaring at the Necrosphere. It was no good. He turned to run, but electricity rooted him to the ground. Shane's eyes widened. He had forgotten about the other Necrosphere! Shane bowed his head, praying a Reviver Seed was strong enough to keep him safe.

The broken Necrosphere exploded. Napalm and molten metal washed over Shane. For a brief moment, Shane felt each and every hair fiber burning away. Then, he blacked out.

Tessa held her paws up to her muzzle. Shane was careening through the air, charred beyond all recognition. She dropped to her knees. This couldn't be happening. Not when they had _finally_ patched things up with each other!

"Cover me!" Null said, running off to try and catch Shane. Tessa looked up to see the other Necrosphere looking to attack the defenseless Shane. Her blood boiled.

"Don't you dare!" she barked, using a burst of speed to close the distance and then striking the Necrosphere's core with a glowing palm. Cracks splintered across its body. Tessa used the newly-formed fissures to grab hold of it. She wouldn't let this Necrosphere get away with the same devious trick. She hurled it into the Entercard that had summoned them. Its destruction did nothing to lift her spirits.

Null succeeded in catching Shane. He placed Shane on the ground. Tessa ran toward him, praying for a Reviver Seed to work its magic. She sucked in a breath as Shane's eyes slowly opened. He was in pain. With his fur coat gone, he had no protection against the cold. Shane was shivering intensely. Tears streamed down his eyes, freezing against his bare cheeks.

"This is bad," Tessa said. "At this rate, we'll run out of Reviver Seeds and those two will be no worse for wear. What do we do?"

"I don't know!" Shane panicked, blinking tears from his eyes. "They're too fast. And the cards make them move faster and give them stupid, unfair enemy-summoning powers. We have to... I..." He was at a complete loss. It really _did_ seem hopeless.

" _Surprise!_ "

White light followed Espeon's voice out of the blue Entercard. Shane's frightened cry was cut off by a force jerking him backwards. Something itchy was underneath him. He blinked the light out of his eyes. Null had put Shane on his back. And not a moment to soon.

"What are you doing?" Shane gasped, a bewildered Tessa sitting beside him. "You're making us into easy pickings."

"No… I'm taking their maneuverability… out of the equation," he growled. Null slammed a foreleg on the ice, splintering it. "Hey! You want us? Come and get us!" he roared, before turning to his teammates and whispering, "Ready your attacks, and strike the cards when they appear."

The blue and red Entercards popped up on either side of Team Radiance. Air blades and icy winds destroyed them both, revealing Umbreon. Tessa hopped off Null's back and slammed into Umbreon's spine. She retreated onto Null's back, expecting Espeon to have a trap lying in wait.

Her prediction was proven correct by the yellow Entercard appeared behind Null. Tessa lunged and punched it apart with a fistful of electricity. "Now, Shane!" she shouted, pointing at a dazed Espeon. Shane got the memo and breathed out so much frost that Espeon resembled the ice sculpture she had previously made of herself.

Tessa knew this was her chance. She doubled back toward Espeon, mouth open wide. Tessa sank her blackened fangs into Espeon's shoulder, willing her opponent to black out. She was getting Sylveon and Eevee back!

Hissing, Espeon summoned the green Entercard beneath her. Tessa realized Espeon planned to drag her into the card. Luckily, her teammates were already by her side. Shane stuck out a forepaw and Tessa grabbed it. He and Null hoisted her back out of range of the Entercard's vortex.

It wasn't a complete victory, however, as Espeon sniped Tessa's tail with a pink beam. Tessa yipped, rubbing the singed fur at the base of her tail. She downed an oran berry, trying to stifle a newfound urge to rip Espeon's tail off in retribution.

"Nice job," Null said. "But Umbreon… took advantage of Espeon's distraction." Null's teammates looked around his head to see a soft, white glow fading from around Umbreon's body. The scuffs that Tessa's earlier attacks dealt him had disappeared, leaving him healthy and able to glare daggers at Team Radiance.

Shane groaned. How could he not of seen this coming? Moonlight to match Espeon's Morning Sun. "This isn't funny, you know!" he growled. "I don't care what universe I'm in, healing bosses will always su–"

Null unexpectedly took off to dodge a black beam from Umbreon. Shane was forced to bite into Null's scaly, furry back to avoid flying off his teammate. It took every ounce of willpower not to hurl. Null dug his claws into the ice and spun around. He shut a bevy of air blades in Umbreon's direction.

Umbreon smirked as multiple Entercards appeared around him. "Quickly, attack," Null said, pivoted so his teammates faced the cards. Shane let loose psychic ripples, blowing apart the cards. Tessa sprang off Null and struck a socked a bewildered Espeon with an electrified fist. Even if Espeon and Umbreon could heal themselves, their unconventional attacks were taking a toll on them. Team Radiance, on the other hand, had elixirs at the ready

Umbreon jumped up and used a hastily-summoned barrier to catch Espeon before she struck the wall. They landed, only to gasp in shock as chilled air turned them into living snowmons.

Seeing them frozen brought a smile to Shane's face. "Ha ha! Nice try, but you just activated my Trap Card: 'Winter's Coming.' It lets me bypass all cards in play on the field for a direct attack!" he said.

"Seriously, Shane?" Tessa groaned. It's not like things were going terribly well for them.

"I'm sorry, I had to do it," Shane said. "After all the crap they've given us, that was so _satisfying!_ "

Tessa rolled her eyes and hit Umbreon with a glowing palm. Howling, he hit the wall. He collapsed into a smoldering pile of black fur beside an equally-charred Espeon.

"Enough is enough, you two. Please!" Shane said. "You're not like the other infected Pokémon, are you? You can fight this crazy Prism Virus thing. I know it. Remember all the good you've done!"

A glob of spit smacked Shane in the face. He looked down in shock to see the two Eeveelutions disappearing into the red Entercard. Espeon held one of her lower eyelids down with a forepaw and was sticking her tongue out at Shane. "Oh, real mature, you bitch!" he growled. "You're _so_ off my top ten favorite Pokémon list when this is all over."

"Seriously, Shane? You really think we can actually reason with them _now?_ " Tessa said. "We're well beyond that point." She turned around and tensed up. "Let's keep sticking together. It seems to have knocked the two of them out of their rhythm." She jumped onto Null's back. Then the yellow Entercard opened, and out flew a trio of Necrospheres.

"Crap! Not again!" Shane hissed. Null immediately fired off air blades, but it did no good. The Necrospheres bombarded the arena with an onslaught of fireballs. Shane had no desire to try and get close to one this time. Null realized this and set Shane and Tessa down.

"What are you doing?" Tessa said.

"Wait here," Null said. His mask hardened to steel and he ran the Necrospheres down.

"Look out! We can't sit around," Shane said, shoving Tessa out of the way of a fireball. The two stuck together while Null leaped through multiple fireballs and brought the Necrospheres down with his head crest and claws. Null struck the ground hard, limbs quaking.

"Everyone… doing okay?" Null said, staggering to his teammates. "We've to stay on our toes… because they might–"

The red Entercard opened up and Espeon shot out of it, a wicked grin on her face. "Thanks for the time to heal, idiots!" she said with a laugh. "Now I'm ready to end this!" Her momentum carried her into Tessa, sending the two of them skidding across the ice. Espeon bored into Tessa with her forepaws. "Say buh-bye to your ugly scarf, Riolu!" Espeon snarled. She opened her mouth wide, showing off glistening fangs, and bit down on Tessa's scarf.

"No! You can't have that," Tessa squealed, grabbing hold with one paw and using the other to backhand Espeon across the cheek. Espeon momentarily stumbled and lost her grip on the scarf. But Tessa couldn't get to her feet of her own accord. A second set of fangs grabbed the scruff of her neck and hoist her into the air.

Her eyes widened in terror. They had her. She was _in_ Umbreon's grasp. Tessa thrashed about. Umbreon had to let go. She couldn't get infected. Not after everything she'd been through!

"Tessa!" Shane cried. Ignoring his body's protests, he sprinted forward. But the blue Entercard appeared in front of him. " _No!_ " Shane cried. Bright pink light erupted around him. A fresh wave of pain enveloped him. When the stars cleared from his vision, he was near the wall. Null lay behind him in an unconscious heap.

"N... no... Tessa," Shane wheezed. He had to help her.

Shane staggered forward. Each step was pure agony. No, he had to hang on! His teammates– no, his _friends_ needed him!

His vision flickered.

 _'C'mon... move, legs, move!'_

"You know what, I take the insults back. You're not green at all. In fact, you're a lot tougher than I had you pegged for," Espeon said. She bit down on Tessa's scarf and continued, "Of course, that's only because _our_ precious creations hardened you up into a Pokémon _worth_ infecting. And, to think, _this_ is how you ended up repaying us."

"Lemme go! Lemme _go!_ Help! _Help!_ " Tessa shrieked. Umbreon pinned her down, bringing her thrashing to a stop. Espeon grabbed Tessa's arm with her telekinesis and forcibly yanked them behind her. Tessa's shoulders popped out of their sockets. Tears pooled in her eyes. It was all over. Her teammates were down. They had lost. And now they were going to be infected!

"What are you looking so sad for?" Espeon said, shaking her head. "This is going to be the best thing that's ever happened to you. In fact, there's someone who can't wait to see you on our side! She hasn't stopped talking about it since she recruited us." The diamond in Espeon's forehead crackled with red and black energy.

Shane took a single step forward, but his legs buckled from the fatigue.

It was all over.

"Somebody _help me!_ " Tessa wailed.

"Quit shouting. That's _exactly_ what I'm going to do!" Espeon said.

"No… p-please… don't do this," Tessa croaked. Espeon's menacing grin faded behind the red glow from her broken diamond.

Shane saw the glow and forced himself back to his feet. "Get away from her!" he shouted. He needed to keep them distracted. It was the only way.

Espeon swiveled to look at Shane. "Butt out of this, Snowball. You'll get your turn in a minute!" she hissed.

 _'I... I can't give up. I can't lose Tessa. I have to... I_ have to save her! _'_

Ice gathered around Shane's paws. The numbness in his legs melted away. They stopped trembling. Shane's fatigue faded. He was so invigorated, now! Something was stirring deep inside him. Shane focused intently on this spark of energy. His looplet responded by glowing brightly and surrounding him in orange light.

This was it. The chance he needed to save Tessa!

"I said… **get away!** "

The ground rumbled beneath everyone's paws. Espeon and Umbreon looked at Shane. The energy from his looplet had given him a second wind. He ran Espeon and Umbreon down. All he could think about was Tessa. Shane was so focused, he didn't notice his looplet shimmer with bright white light. A fresh coat of pristine, snow-white fur settled across him. Shane paid it no mind. The energy was still building. He had to harness it... and quickly!

"What the–?" Umbreon gasped. Espeon's infectious beam faded and she fired a pink blast at Shane, only for it to harmlessly fizzle out. Shane stopped in front of the two Eeveelutions, a thick layer of frigid air swirling around his body. He was ready. It was time to put these troublemakers out of commission. He'd give them the biggest ice attack he'd ever used!

Shane glared at the two of them, revealing sky-blue light pouring out of his hollow eyes. **"Let her go!"** Shane roared.

Espeon whirled on her partner. "Don't just stand there gawking! End him! _Destroy him!_ Don't let him do whatever he's planning to do!" she screamed, dousing Umbreon in spittle.

Shane howled in fury. A massive ice column rocketed him skyward. Bone-chilling air rushed out and destroyed the arena's walls. Shane had no idea what was going on, but he didn't care. This power was incredible!

Null staggered backward, dropping to the ground and throwing his forelimbs over his head, hissing madly. Tessa took advantage of Umbreon's shock to buck him off and run away, clutching at her neck and scarf. Espeon looked up and saw Shane perched atop the ice, a whirlwind of snow racing around him. She fired the biggest Psybeam she could muster, only for her jaw to drop in horror as it evaporated against Shane's massive iceberg.

"No… _no!_ " she said, staggering backward. "Do something, Umbry! I don't wanna disappear! I don't–"

Shane opened his mouth and unleashed a gigantic ice beam. It blew through Espeon's and Umbreon's counterattacks with ease. It destroyed their Ultra Entercards like they were nothing but tissue paper. Espeon's blood-curdling scream lasted only a second. Then the ice swallowed her and Umbreon up.

A high-pitched screech echoed through the valley. Shane's ice column melted back into the ground, lowering him to safety, where a shell-shocked Tessa stood with a blank expression on her face. The energy rush had faded, leaving him with such painful aches he couldn't help but collapse. Luckily, Tessa caught him before he hit the ice.

"Sh-Shane! That was… what did you–" she said, heart pounding against her chest. She looked down and saw the white light on his looplet flicker a few times, then disappear. The gemstone in the center had lost its color. "Where did that come from, Shane?"

Shane blinked and looked at the large mound of ice in front of him. Espeon and Umbreon lay trapped inside, not unlike what they had done to Sylveon and Eevee. He was in disbelief. That was _his_ attack. It was like nothing he'd ever seen before.

"I… I don't know," Shane whispered. "I just… I saw you in trouble… and I suddenly felt this _huge_ burst of energy flow through my whole body. It was like I could lift up an entire building all by myself."

"Well, you saved me," she said, fidgeting with her paws. "I… I guess I owe you my life now, huh?"

"All that matters is that you're safe," Shane said, blinking tears out of his eyes. Sure, they had only officially been friends for one day, but it didn't lessen Shane's relief. He fixed his gaze back on the remnants of his attack. Specifically, he focused on Espeon and Umbreon.

Shane's eyes widened and he nudged Tessa with a foreleg. "Check it out. Their black armor pieces are gone," Shane said. "And they both still have all their color!"

"You don't think that's because you froze them, do you?" Tessa wondered.

"Well, there's one way to find out," Shane said.

Tessa caught on and her eyes widened. "Are you crazy? They just tried to kill us!" she said.

She was right, yet he couldn't bring himself to listen to her. "I still think we have to free them," he said. "They might know something about the Prism Virus that could help us." He then looked at the black monolith. "Besides, we have no idea how to break Sylveon and Eevee out of there on our own. Aren't they the whole reason we came here?"

Sighing, Tessa nodded. "Okay. I just hope you know what you're doing."

Shane also hoped this wouldn't prove a reckless decision. He looked over in Null's direction. "Yo, big guy! Think you can help us break that ice?" he said.

Null nodded and followed his teammates toward the ice mound. "Here goes nothing," he whispered, and shattered the ice with swipes of his glowing claws.

* * *

 **~Celestial Island~**

 **"Gagh!"**

Necrozma shot up from the table he was lying on. He looked down to see his arms trembling.

 **"What… what's going on? It feels... like someone tore off part of my body."** He reached a hand up and rubbed his temple. His eyes flashed and his confused frown slowly morphed into a wide grin. **"Oh… what's this?"** He hunched over and rubbed his hands together gleefully. **"Do I sense... Z-Power? Yes...** _ **yes!**_ **Heeheeheehee! Someone's used Z-Power.** _ **My**_ **Z-Power! From my light!"**

He floated up from the table and looked around at the floating black cubes and prisms surrounding him.

 **"Could it have been you...** _ **Shane?**_ **"** Necrozma said, scratching at his chin with the tip of his wing. **"I really hope so. After all... you're of no use to me as a measly fox. I need you to be something better.** _ **Much**_ **better! Heeheeheehee! Yes... you're going to make** _ **good**_ **use of my gift and, in return, you'll gift** _ **me**_ **with the return of my true form. My** _ **real**_ **power!"**

Necrozma sank back down onto the table and folded his wings over his body.

 **"It's just a matter of time until I get to see the light** _ **fade**_ **from your eyes. It won't be the perfect spectacle I was hoping for, but I'll cherish it all the same."**

* * *

 **Destructive Duo, Ultra Espeon and Ultra Umbreon**  
 _The former heroes of the Mist Continent have pledged themselves to Zero. Their raw, latent fears of past threats to the world have enveloped their hearts in darkness. And Prism Armor serves as proof of their loyalty to the Prism Virus' cause. With corrupted Z-Power flowing through their bodies, they have powered up their Entercards and turned them on Team Radiance._

* * *

Next time: news of Espeon's and Umbreon's defeat spreads far and wide.


	41. Zero Sum Gain

**Chapter 36: Zero Sum Gain**

 **~Lively Town~**

"Hurry up, Meganium. We don't want to keep everyone waiting!"

Delphox looked over his shoulder, checking to make sure his partner followed. Meganium lagged behind, constantly glancing at her side as if her satchel would magically vanish if she stopped looking at it. She regretted taking seconds at breakfast. Her stomach was badly cramping. Meganium sighed in relief upon seeing the Expedition Society's large, yellow-brick headquarters. Delphox held the metal door open to let her walk through.

"We're here, everyone. What's the situation?" Delphox said. Meganium looked around at the assembled array of Pokémon, including a handful of the folks she and Delphox had recruited to Team Gaia. Archeops, who had been pacing back and forth, stopped and acknowledged them with a nod.

"Err, we'd love to get started," he said, rubbing the back of his head with a wing. "But, y'see…"

"Ampharos isn't here yet, as you can plainly see. Yo, Mawile, what's the deal?"

Mawile turned to her right. "I can't say, Floatzel. I didn't even know he'd stepped out."

"Sorry I'm late, everyone!"

A jovial voice carried through the room. Meganium and Delphox stepped aside to allow Ampharos to pass. "You're not going to believe this. I walked into Rockin' Lock by mistake. That took me by surprise. Aha ha ha!"

Half the Pokémon in the room fell to the floor in disbelief.

"Well, you're here now. That's all that matters. Let's get started, shall we?" Mawile said. "Ninetales, thank you very much for agreeing to show up in person."

Meganium fixed her widened eyes on the unexpected visitor. Normally, Ninetales turned to Pokémon Square if she needed help. What did she want with them?

"I wish I was here with better news," Ninetales began. "But I'm afraid a very concerning situation has popped up. The other day, Xatu brought me to the Hill of the Ancients and imparted a vision. One that I can't quite wrap my head around, but that's had me up tossing and turning the last few nights."

A yawn drew the groups attention to a wooden table, where Jirachi sat propped up against some books. "Are you sure you're not just tossing and turning cause of the moon?" Jirachi said, rubbing sleep out of his eyes. "By my estimates, it's size has swollen by forty percent in the last two weeks alone. And it's shining with fifty-five percent brighter intensity."

"And just _where_ are you pulling those estimates from, huh?" Floatzel harrumphed. "You certainly haven't had any problems sleeping since the moon started getting all big and stuff."

"I pulled them from my brilliant mind, of course," Jirachi said, proudly puffing out his chest. Sweat drops ran down the back of Floatzel's head.

"Um, guys? Could we save that discussion for another time?" Latias said, floating between them. "We have a guest."

Floatzel rolled his eyes and turned away from Jirachi with an annoyed grumble. "Thanks, Latias," Ninetales said. "I understand the situation with the moon is odd. But this is something different. Here, let me pass on what Xatu told me." She took a deep breath in, cleared her throat, and began to recite the vision Xatu had given her.

 _"A faller rises.  
_ _And a Lightless Black blots out the sun.  
_ _Wings of dawn blanket the horizon,  
_ _The Devourer of Light will have his fun.  
_ _Zero will strike. Legends will fall.  
_ _And Mystery Dungeons shall number none."_

The assembled explorers exchanged confused looks. "You said that this is from Xatu?" Bunnelby asked with a gulp. He gripped his head and shook it. "Agh, it sounds so confusing!"

"I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks that," Ninetales said, sighing in relief. "I've been fretting over it all this time. But I can't wrap my head around it. I even tried reaching out to the spirit realm. No one there has heard about any sort of 'Lightless Black' or 'wings of dawn.'"

"Let's not forget that first line," Archeops said, biting his lower lip. "'A faller rises?' What kind of cryptic oxymoron is that supposed to be? If you fall, you're doing the exact opposite of rising."

"And you would know, Archeops. You've done more falling than anyone in town," Floatzel heckled, drawing an annoyed look from his colleague.

"Now, now, let's not ruffle any feathers. Though, I must agree. Archeops is our falling expert. If he says that falling means you can't rise, then I'm inclined to believe him," Ampharos said. Archeops buried his head in his wings, groaning loudly.

"Ampharos, if I may?" Mawile interjected, facing the table so she could hastily scribble notes. "I believe trying to interpret Xatu's words literally will not do us any good. We may need to make a few educated guesses."

"Oh? Is there something you had in mind?" Ampharos said, his tail lighting up.

"Yes. In fact, I believe I have a hypothesis as to the identity of this 'Lightless Black,'" Mawile said. "You're familiar with solar eclipses, right?"

"Are you kidding? Of course I am!" Ampharos said, grinning boldly. "But, um, maybe you ought to give some of the newer members here a refresher, just in case?"

A chorus of exasperated groans rose up. Meganium rolled her eyes. Even at meetings, her boss could be such a basket case.

"Solar eclipses are rare cosmic phenomenon wherein the moon positions itself between the earth and the sun, effectively blocking sunlight from reaching us," Jirachi explained, letting out a yawn at the end. "They can have varying levels of intensity. Sometimes the sun is partially blocked and sometimes it's completely blocked."

Mawile nodded approvingly. "Exactly. I believe Xatu has forecasted a solar eclipse. And, judging by the 'world will fall into endless night,' part, this may not be any random eclipse. Something could be triggering it," she said.

"Like, say, a spell?" Delphox wondered, pulling his stick out of his furry sleeve and staring at it. "Think about the last line in Xatu's vision. You can't destroy a Mystery Dungeon unless you can find a way to remove its ley lines. Any magic that could do that is undoubtedly strong enough to cause a solar eclipse."

Latias' eyes widened. "Wait, do you think this could tie into the moon getting larger? What if it gets so big that, when it eclipses the sun, it doesn't move away? That _would_ leave us stuck in endless night," she said.

"But there's no way that would just happen randomly, right?" Delphox said, noting the worried look on Meganium's face. "Something or someone's got to be responsible for what's happening to the moon. Maybe they're the one who's trying to plunge the world into endless night?"

"Hmm, that _does_ sound plausible," Mawile said, writing more notes. "But if that were the case…"

Floatzel glanced over at Jirachi. "Hey, what's she mumbling about over there, huh? You look like you've got some idea of what she's getting at."

"Well of course I do. I _am_ a genius, after all," Jirachi boasted, rising up from his seat of books. "She's referring to the Cosmic Duo." Several of his cohorts gave him confused looks. "Seriously, you guys? Solgaleo and Lunala? The Pokémon responsible for keeping the world's cycle of day and night in balance? Does that _really_ not ring any bells?"

Meganium had never heard of them. She turned to Delphox and shook her head.

"It's not surprising, Jirachi," Mawile said. "Even in my research, I haven't come across a lot of documents about them. All I have are some conflicting myths. One says that they were created at the start of the world like the other gods. But then there's another myth that says they're a pair of Legendary Pokémon that were born in the Horizon Continent during a time of crisis."

"Wait, that's that one donut-shaped continent on the other side of the world, right?" Delphox asked. Mawile nodded. "So, does that mean there's a problem with one of these Legends?"

"It's just a theory. I don't have any definitive evidence," Mawile said, putting her quill down. "We'd really need to talk with the Pokémon living in Horizon. The local myths are a bit of a sensitive subject, I believe."

 _Guys! Guys! Guys!_

"Auuugh!"

A blue blur rammed into Jirachi. He yelped as he spun across the room. Jirachi would've bowled Delphox right over had Meganium not stuck her vines out and caught him by his pointed head. Everyone looked over to see Latios floating by the stairs, a look of embarrassment on his face.

 _Oh… today was that meeting, wasn't it?_ Latios said. _Sis, why didn't you remind me?_

Latias shook her head in disbelief. _Seriously, big brother? How did you not sense everyone's auras down here?_

Latios pouted. _I was preoccupied with the Pokémon Nexus,_ he said. _Because I found something huge!_ He turned to the rest of the assembled Pokémon and cleared his throat. "Everyone… Espeon's and Umbreon's signals are back!"

Surprised gasps echoed throughout the room. "Really? But Dedenne said they'd vanished from the Nexus," Bunnelby said.

"Well, yeah. But if they reappeared, then they reappeared," Dedenne said, shrugging.

"What? No. Don't be ridiculous. I _built_ the dang thing, and I say that a pair of Pokémon whose signals are lost don't just _magically_ reappear. I want to take a look at this right now," Jirachi said. He hastily floated to the stairs at the northernmost part of the room. A few moments of silence followed, only for Jirachi to speed out from the stairway, knocking Latios to the ground in the process.

"I don't believe this. He's right. Their signals are back!" Jirachi said. "They're in the Horizon Continent."

Meganium and Delphox exchanged astonished looks. "Th-They're halfway around the world?" Delphox gasped.

 _'Did you send them there on an assignment?'_ Meganium wondered, tilting her head to the side.

Delphox's brow furrowed and he shook his head. "The last thing I remember telling them was to go enjoy some time off at Pokémon Paradise. Raichu and Haxorus would've told us if there was something wrong, right?" He stroked the fur on his chin in thought. "Maybe they took a vacation?"

"And figured out a way to take themselves out of _my_ ingenious invention? I don't think so," Jirachi scoffed, flicking a hand dismissively. "Clearly, something bad happened."

"Are you sure the Nexus didn't just mess up?" Archeops said.

Jirachi's face went bright red and swelled up. "The Pokémon Nexus doesn't 'mess up,' you got that?"

"Yessir!" Archeops squeaked, sliding under the table.

"Wait a second. This is really important!" Dedenne interjected. "Magearna and Braviary called up from the Horizon Guild last week, asking about Espeon and Umbreon."

"Oh, great… _Magearna_ ," Jirachi said, an unamused look on his face. "You hung up on her, right?"

"Now Jirachi, that wouldn't be very courteous," Ampharos said.

"The way Braviary talked about them, it sounded like something bad _had_ happened," Dedenne continued.

"Maybe we should send someone over to investigate, then?" Ampharos said.

"Um, Ampharos, you _do_ remember that, even with a well-trained Lapras, it would take at least a week to sail to Horizon, right?" Floatzel said, pointing to a map of the world hanging on the wall by the stairs.

"That's not necessary," Mawile said. "Latias can go." She looked up at a startled Latias. "I was hoping we could wait a little bit longer, but you might as well use the opportunity to take the Memory Looplet over to the Horizon Guild and see that experiment for yourself."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Latias, you're not about to fly off to Horizon again, are you? You were just there a couple of weeks ago," Latios said, tapping his claws together worriedly. "It's not exactly a short flight."

"I can handle myself just fine, big brother," Latias said. "I'm the liaison to the Horizon Continent. I..." Her voice trailed off. "I have a responsibility to go there and help, if the need arises."

"But she mentioned that experiment. You're not really going to go to it, are you? Mawile said it's meant for killing Pokémon like us!" Latios said. He realized his comments a moment later, and tucked his head up against his paws. "Err… uh… can you guys forget you heard that one?" he squeaked.

"Wait, what?" Delphox gasped. "An experiment for _killing_ Pokémon?" He turned to Mawile. "What the heck's going on overseas?"

Latias shot her brother an annoyed look. "Real smooth there, big brother. We told you that _in confidence._ "

Mawile sighed. "It seems like I owe quite a few of you an explanation. But I don't want to hold Ninetales up. So, let's wait until—"

"Actually, I'm a bit curious myself," Ninetales said. "That sounds foreboding and I'd appreciate some details."

"Okay, that's fine. Can I just help Latias get ready to depart?" Mawile asked. "Time is of the essence here."

"Of course. But don't go too far," Ampharos said. He leaned in a whispered, "We need to talk, remember?" Mawile nodded and Ampharos pulled away, putting on his usual grin. "Well, best of luck to you, Latias. We'll be cheering you on!" he said.

"Wait, you're leaving right now?" Latios gasped. "No way! You should take the rest of the day to prepare, at the very least."

"I know what I'm doing, Latios. Besides, there's something I need to do before I leave," Latias said.

"But… but what if you run into trouble? I can't let you run off like this. Not after what happened to you last time," Latios insisted. "Why does it _have_ to be you? Why not send someone who get there even faster… like Hoopa?"

All eyes in the room fell onto Latios. He wilted and looked away. "Okay… yeah, that was a bad idea." He shook his head. "But still. You shouldn't have to stick your neck out for Espeon and Umbreon like that. Couldn't you bring someone along with you?"

"Knock it off, big brother!" Latias snapped, snorting tufts of dragonfire. She floated up to him. "Look, I appreciate that you're concerned. But I thought we agreed you'd stop babying me."

"I don't want you to get hurt again," Latios whispered.

"I'm going to be more careful this time," Latias said.

Latios' wings drooped. "Okay. I'm Sorry." He floated up and touched the tip of his wing to Latias'. "Just promise you'll at least check in with me this time. I get worried."

Latias raised a set of crossed claws. "It's a promise." They quickly embraced, and Latias turned to follow Mawile out of the building. As they walked, she dug through her satchel.

"Admittedly, I didn't have as much time to put this together as I would've liked. But I suppose that can't be helped now." She produced a stack of papers and thrust it into Latias' paws. "This is the instruction set that I whipped up from the tests I could run. I _hope_ it's right, but I'd be prepared for the possibility that it might not work."

Latias looked down at the title page and a shiver ran along her spite. "R-Right. I can handle myself. Everything… should be okay." Despite this, she gulped.

"Hey." Mawile put an arm on Latias' right shoulder. "Are you sure you're okay with doing this? We can send a group over on a Lapras ferry, if you'd prefer."

Latias placed the manual in her satchel and shook her head. "I'm fine, Mawile. What would be the point of all the work I've done for you guys if I'm just going to bail at the first sign of trouble? I'll find Espeon and Umbreon and explain this whole experiment business to the Horizon Guild." She gave Mawile a reassuring smile. "I'll be back home before you know it."

"Sounds good to me. So, what is it you need to get done before you leave?" Mawile said

"Sorry. That's personal," Latias replied, smile fading. "I'd better get going. Good luck looking into this whole solar eclipse business. If anyone can solve this riddle, I'm sure it's you."

"Glad to have your vote of confidence," Mawile said, grinning.

Latias nodded and slipped on her flight goggles. She took off toward the water, giving one last wave before disappearing in the midday sun.

* * *

 **~Borea Heights~**

Milotic lunged for cover behind a large ice shard. It fizzled from the onslaught of corrosive poisons. Milotic sprang upwards, rifling off an Ice Beam. A battered-looking Drampa was too preoccupied dodging leaves and dragonfire from Serperior and Dragonair. Ice coated his mutated wings. He collapsed with a loud groan.

The black crystals around his body shattered. Black smoke pooled around him for a few seconds, only to fade away. Drampa had changed back to normal, but all of the colors had drained out of his body. Milotic climbed down from the ice chunk. Her landing made her wince. "It's just like the Parasect we found in Twilight Forest," she whispered. She turned to check on her teammates. "You ladies okay?"

Serperior slumped down against a piece of debris, trying to brush ice shavings off her body. "No. Not in the slightest," she huffed. "Someone grab me a bucket. I think I'm going to hurl!"

"I've seen better days, chief," Dragonair said, glancing at the streaks of darkened scales on her body. "We really didn't need this after last week."

With a flutter of his wings, Braviary landed between them. "Nice work, y'all," he said, fighting to catch his breath. "Them varmints were mighty tricky, but y'all held yer ground nicely."

"What should we do about Team Radiance, though?" Dragonair wondered. "You sent them into Aurora Vale. Who knows what happened to them."

"Them? What about us?" Serperior huffed. "I swear there was something weird in the poison attacks Drampa used. I haven't felt this queasy since I got food poisoning from that rotten berry Haunter planted in my salad."

"Now, listen here. Yer gonna have to fight through that. Use another lum berry if'n ya have to. We ain't about to leave them rookies alone in there," Braviary said, a stern look on his face.

"Personally, I'd be a bit more worried about your situation, Mr. Braviary."

The feathers on Braviary's neck stood on end. He quickly turned around. "I reckon I don't much care for eavesdroppers. 'Mon up and get on out here, ya no-good scoundrel!"

Zero waltzed out from behind a wrecked building, offering a sarcastic slow-clap. "Clever," she said. "Espeon and Umbreon said that no one sets foot in Aurora Vale besides the human and his friends. So, you just get as close as you can without breaking that rule."

She paused to look at the comatose Drampa beside her. "And you disposed of this fellow with minimal trouble, I see. I'd expect nothing less from the guild's best and brightest. The top enforcers for a world where it's gods first and everyone else second." Zero shook her head. "It's such a shame you won't put your skills toward a more worthwhile cause."

"Son, what the heck are ya blabbering about? Ya ain't making a lick of sense," Braviary said, narrowing his eyes at Zero.

"Um, Braviary. I think this guy's related to Espeon and Umbreon," Milotic whispered. "What do you want with us, huh?" she demanded. "We beat back your crazy Drampa and all the little flunkies that infected it. So, you'd better think twice before trying anything funny."

"Funny? Please. This is no laughing matter," Zero said. "Especially when you deign to stand in front of me with those _hideous_ badges plastered on your bodies."

"Hey! Don't you dare dis our badges," Serperior hissed. "They symbolize a lifelong dedication to helping others. Something you Prism Virus freaks clearly don't understand."

"Lies!" Zero said, raising a crystalline paw and clenching it into a fist. The guild members tensed up. "Lies you've been fed by Pokémon too lazy to do their jobs. What you wear are symbols of resignation. You've accpted a miserable status quo dominated by forces that, no matter how hard you work, will always be out of our control."

She swiveled her staff around, showing off the octahedron. "But I…" She cut herself off. "No, _we_ have the opportunity to change it. Aren't you tired of waking up day after day and putting your necks on the line navigating dungeon after dungeon?"

Team Captivate exchanged confused looks. "Is this a trick question? Exploring is our livelihood," Milotic said.

"And it's a terrible livelihood. The product of never-ending conflict perpetuated by the complete indifferent of the gods you claim to depend on for protection in times of crisis," Zero said. "That is why I want your help. I want to use the Prism Virus to make this world a better world. A world without gods."

Zero held out her free hand and dark energy swirled around it. The energy formed into a black Beast Ball. "Join me. I can train you all. Give you access to powers you could never get on your own. Together, we will create a world brimming with Z-Power. Where Pokémon will leave in happiness, peace, and, most importantly, equality."

"No thanks," Milotic said, glaring at Zero. "We've seen what your Prism Virus does. It doesn't make anything better. If anyone's making Pokémon suffer, it's _you._ "

"Besides, your flunkies mentioned a world of endless night. And who wants that?" Serperior scoffed. "Sounds like a miserable existence. Don't you know about the heroes who saved Temporal Tower? Do you _want_ a dark future like we were going to have before Team Poképals stepped in?"

Zero pressed her staff into the ground, reached up, and took the octahedron in a paw. "How unfortunate. I hoped I could reason with you all. But I suppose I should've expected guild Pokémon to react this way. You are nothing but the pawns, after all." She placed the octahedron against her headdress and it sank into the star-shaped symbol. Zero took in a deep breath. A dark aura of distorted energy overtook her body.

"If I can't get you to join me willingly, then I'll simply have to use force," Zero said. She hovered into the air, raising her paws. Black cubes started to gather around her. "I'm sorry it had to be this way."

Scalding water and dragonfire swirled around a blue burst. Zero calmly nudged her helmet and vanished. She was absurdly fast. Team Captivate could only watch their blue-violet storm strike a frozen building. As ice shards exploded around them, a startled squawk rang through the town square.

Zero was right next them, her fist outstretched. And, in the distance, Braviary slid down the remains of a building's front door. Zero turned to Team Captivate and pointed her other arm forward. Distorted red light enveloped Team Captivate, accompanied by garbled hissing. Grimacing from the noise, none of them noticed the black, staticky cubes racing toward them.

Milotic desperately fired off scalding water. But the sailed out of the way. Team Captivate found themselves leaping in different directions as the cubes encircled them. Zero snapped her digits and the cubes cubes exploded.

"What the heck kind of attack is that supposed to be?" Serperior grunted, wiping soot out of her eyes. "That's cheating!"

"That's the problem with you Pokémon," Zero said, vanishing on the spot once again. She reappeared in front of Serperior and slammed a fist into her neck. An unseen force rocketed her back across the ground. Zero clasped her paws together and started charging a large red sphere. "You think so one-dimensionally."

She hurled the energy ball at Milotic, who retaliated with a huge water torrent. It wasn't enough, however. Milotic backpedaled but the energy ball gave chase. She was in shock. Her Hydro Pump should've stopped it in its tracks.

"There is an abundance of magic in this world. And yet, you avoid it," Zero said. "Because you're all scared your precious gods will strike you down the instant you try to take any of it."

Zero was distracted. Dragonair was sure she and Braviary could take advantage and strike. But Zero pivoted, sending distorted red light at them, followed by a ring of electrified cubes. Had she sensed them coming? Braviary didn't dwell on it. He flew away from the attack, while Dragonair kept her distance.

Milotic, meanwhile, had recruited Serperior to try and destroy Zero's energy ball with a a combination of water and leaves. It _still_ wasn't enough, though. Zero detonated the sphere, filling Milotic's and Serperior's worlds with ice-cold pain.

"Yer gonna pay for that one, varmint!" Braviary cawed. Zero raised a glowing paw. Braviary realized he was flying toward a giant red square. He tucked his wings in and dove forward. Seconds later, the square rose into a pillar of distorted cubes. Zero lowered her paw, dispelling the cubes. She threw her arms up as Braviary struck her helmet with his talons. A metallic _thunk_ ran out.

"My turn," Zero said, pointing her paws at a dazed Braviary. But fire-coated leaves peppered her back. They finally scored a hit on her. Zero wanted to retaliate, but instead went for Dragonair. She charged Dragonair down in the blink of an eye and released red psionic energy. Zero plucked Dragonair off the ground and tossed her like a wriggling worm. Dragonair landed in a crumpled heap by the town fountain's remains.

"I must commend you. That was a clean hit. It really is a shame that you're turning down my offer. You have such magnificent potential. Imagine the power you could wield with my training," Zero said. " _You_ could be the new protectors of this world. Not a pack of lazy, self-aggrandizing gods."

"That's blasphemy!" Milotic spat. "You'd ask us to stand against the Pokémon working to keep the world turning? What kind of evil, twisted maniac are you?"

"It's not that black and white. I _am_ trying to do good for this world," Zero said, nudging up her mask. "But my vision puts me at odds with the bloated pantheon of Legends. So, I guess that makes me 'evil.' How one-dimensional."

Zero vanished once again. Fearing an attack, Milotic spun around, sweeping an Ice Beam. The ice fizzled out against a wall of flickering cubes. The cubes surged forward. Milotic couldn't outrun them. She meekly brought her tail up. Each cube that struck seared her scales, drawing a pained hiss.

"How the heck is this loser moving so fast?" Serperior said. "Can he teleport?"

Dragonair narrowed her eyes. She was sure Zero wasn't teleporting, but needed a way to be certain. "Braviary, can you get this guy's attention?" she asked. Braviary flew toward Zero, summoning air blades with flaps of his wings. Dragonair tensed. She would only get one shot, so she had to make it count.

"Ya think yer so dang impressive cause ya throw around a buncha fancy-schmancy talk, huh? Well, that don't make ya anything other than annoying," Braviary said. Zero responded with a burst of static. Braviary's Air Slash blades dissolved into mist while Zero disappeared. Braviary tensed. If Dragonair had a plan, she needed to use it now or he'd be toast.

Seconds past. Braviary remained in the air. He felt completely fine. Braviary looked right and found Zero on the ground, clutching her helmet and shaking her head. Whatever Dragonair did had worked, though it left her dazed.

"I knew it. You're not teleporting. You're using Extreme Speed," Dragonair said, trying to distract Zero while her teammates launched their own attacks. It didn't work, but Dragonair raced toward Zero. The two exchanged blows at a breakneck pace, bouncing off one another. The stalemate repeated until they settled by the town's entrance. Dragonair doubled over, trying to catch her breath. She had used too many Extreme Speeds in rapid succession and was paying for it.

"You wield Extreme Speed well, Dragonair," Zero said. "You must've had quite the tutor."

"I did. She's a far more virtuous Pokémon that you will _ever_ be," Dragonair hissed, unleashing a flamethrower. Liquid metal swallowed up the flames. Dragonair leaped back, her throat burning for all the wrong reasons.

"Fascinating. You ought to introduce me to her sometime," Zero said, a chuckle rumbling in her throat. "She sounds like she'd make quite the ally."

"Lucario would never work with the likes of a Pokémon like you," Dragonair barked. She was losing her cool, but she couldn't help it. Zero was so obnoxious. Dragonair rifled off a stream of dragonfire. Braviary added Air Slash blades and Milotic tried to snipe Zero from behind. But she vanished _again._ Dragonair was so sick of that routine.

Braviary plummeted from the sky, squawking. The impact crater he made made the girls wince. He'd need first aid for sure.

"Is this your idea of a passable self-defense? Flinging attacks like mad and praying your superior numbers are enough to carry you to victory?" Zero mused. "Mystery Dungeons have made you all complacent… and predictable."

The dark aura around Zero's body intensified. She raised both arms up toward her shoulders and corrupted red energy gathered in her paws. Staticky red light erupted around Zero, swallowing up the town square. Each guild member slowed to a crawl. None of them could process what was happening. Their thoughts moved just as slow as they did.

Zero raised a paw. Swarms of red cubes appeared, forming cannon-like cylinders over each guild member. The red light disappeared in a flash. They had only seconds to realize what had happened before swirling metal beams rained down upon them. The agony was unbearable. They all collapsed and Zero dispelled her attack.

"What now, Horizon Guild?" Zero said, removing the octahedron from her helmet and placing it back in the scepter that had materialized next to her. "Do you let your Reviver Seeds kick in and continue to struggle in vain? Or do you relent and join my cause?"

Initially, no one responded. Zero raised her staff, sighing in disappointment.

"We're… not… going to help you," Dragonair wheezed, giving Zero a defiant glare.

"... hmph. Ironic. The one who's sacrificed the most out of you lot is the only one with the backbone to speak out against me," Zero scoffed. "Tell me, Dragonair, are you happy in that frail body? How many years have you resisted the urge to evolve, hmm?"

"W… what did you just say?" Dragonair whispered, her attitude fizzling out.

"Don't play dumb with me. Your aura positively _reeks_ of desire and jealousy," Zero said, nudging her mask.

"Don't listen to him, Airy," Milotic said. "There's nothing wrong with you

Zero knelt down and clasped Dragonair's head in her paw. "You envy your teammates, don't you? They've had their final evolutions for _years_. And you? Well, you've been stuck like that this entire time. Too scared your friends will abandoned you if you turn into a Dragonite. Do I have that right?"

"I… I…" Dragonair looked away. "They'd never do that to me. We've been friends forever. I _choose_ to remain a Dragonair, because I'm more help to the team this way."

Zero released her grip on Dragonair. She slumped to the ground, grunting in pain. "Wrong answer. The truth is that you've talked it into yourself that vanity is more important than power," she said. "Your team's reputation as a trio of serpents is meaningless. As meaningless as the Mystery Dungeons the gods claim are necessary to keep the world turning."

"They are necessary," Braviary said. "Look at the Tree of Life. Rip it out of the ground and the planet'll done hurtle into the sun!"

"Hmph. That's a hatchling's tale put into your mind to make you fear and worship Xerneas," Zero said, nudging her mask. She pointed her glowing staff forward. "I can open your eyes and let you see this word for what it really—"

Zero froze.

"No," she whispered, bringing her scepter up to look at its crystal. "That's impossible!" Her lone visible eye narrowed in rage. "Troublemakers!" she hissed, tapping her staff to the ground. "Necky, get me to Aurora Vale… _now!_ "

An Ultra Wormhole materialized behind Zero. Braviary and Team Captivate all shielded their eyes as Zero leaped into the portal. It closed behind her, leaving the guild members alone in the empty town.

Braviary stumbled to his feet, clutching an injured wing. "Y'all okay?" he asked, suppressing a cough.

"No," Serperior said. "That last attack really did a number on my tail." She raised it up, grimacing as it throbbed in pain.

"What about Team Radiance? That _thing_ could be trying to go after them," Milotic said.

Braviary tried to lift his bum wing, only to wince and push it tightly against his torso. "It's no good. My wing's all busted up. We ain't in no condition to be helping them," he said.

"So, we're just supposed to leave them out there and hope for the best?" Milotic said.

"Uh... well..." Braviary frowned. "Look... I don't know what to tell ya. I need to get healed up. Y'all do too. We've gotta go back to the Observatory. Maybe we can get some backup?" He glanced toward the fog-filled dungeon entrance. "I just hope we ain't too late."

* * *

 **~Aurora Vale~**

Shane stood in front of his teammates, gazing down at Espeon and Umbreon. They were covered in frost, but they were breathing. "They're still alive," he said. "They lost all those black crystals and they're still alive."

"Be careful. It could be a trick," Null warned, tensing up. He coughed and shook his head about. Tessa continued to steal glances up at Sylveon and Eevee. The hard part was over. She knew her friends would be safe soon.

"U-Ungggh…"

Shane's ears swiveled in Espeon's direction. He looked down at her just in time to see her eyes finish opening. Their gazes met for a brief second. "No way," she whispered. A horrified look spread across her face. She glanced back at her tail. "It's gone? Just like that?" She looked back at Shane.

"Es… Espeon?" Shane said. "It's okay! We're Team Radiance. We're here to help you."

"Get back!" Espeon shouted, scrambling to her feet. She staggered backward, crouching low to the ground. "You… you need to get back! Get out of here! It's going to come back," she said. Tears welled up in her eyes. "You're not safe! We're not safe. Oh, gods… what have we done?" She shook her head about rapidly.

"But we're not trying to fight anymore," Shane said. "We won't hurt you guys."

"It's too late for that!" Espeon hissed. "Umbry, get up," she said, nudging Umbreon's back. "It's gone… the Prism Virus is gone. And we're in big trouble!"

"Wh… what?" Umbreon groaned, shakily lifting up his head. The moment he did, Espeon threw herself on top of him. He grunted as his head flopped back against the ice. Espeon nuzzled him and cried into his neck.

"Oh, Umbry! It's true. The virus is gone and… and we're still here," she sobbed. "But all the damage we've done… it didn't go away! Look at this place. We've ruined it! We… we've become monsters!"

Shane's heart skipped a beat. This couldn't be right. From the sound of it, they knew exactly what happened. Which meant they _hadn't_ been completely brainwashed.

"The explorers," Umbreon coughed. "Are they… are they still alive?"

A stabbing pain shot through Shane's chest as Espeon looked up at him. Her eyes narrowed into a fierce gaze. "You… you did this!" she shouted, pointing a forepaw at him accusingly. Null jumped beside Shane, growling threateningly. "Where did you get that power from?"

"I… I don't know…"

"Don't know? _Don't know?!_ " Espeon snarled.

"Back off!" Null barked. "We're here… for Sylveon and Eevee."

"So? Just take them and go away! Get out of here!" Espeon said. "I… I can't…" Shudders racked her body and she fell to the ice. "Umbry," she croaked. "Make it stop… make the memories stop!" She smacked her head with a forepaw.

"Hey, cut it out! You should be thanking us!" Shane said. Umbreon blocked off his path, shaking his head.

"Keep your distance, kid," he said. "You're not going to get through to her." He turned to Tessa. "Our magic's faded from those crystals. If you break them, you'll free your friends." His gaze fell to the ice. "Please, take them and go. Don't worry about us. We don't deserve your help. Not after what we've done."

Shane opened his mouth to protest, but Null put a foreleg on his shoulder, shaking his head disapprovingly. Tessa turned and made her way up to the crystals. But she spotted a bolt of black lightning racing across them and shuffled backwards. "N-Null… I need a hand up here," she squeaked. Null lumbered up after her, fur standing on end from the electricity in the air. A warm, tingling sensation spread out from his feathery head crest, stifling his growls.

Null raised a foreleg to strike the crystal prison, when a flash of light blinded him. He gasped and staggered backward, shaking his head. Tessa looked to her right and quickly scrambled toward her friends.

"What the... what's with the portal?" Shane gasped, his stance slouching. He looked over to Espeon and Umbreon, whose eyes had widened in horror.

"No. She's come for us! Umbry, we've got to get out of here!" Espeon shrieked. She tried to stumble to her feet, only to squeal in pain as her hind legs caved out on her. Espeon fell back onto her belly, shaking like a leaf. "U-Umbry… I can't… I don't want to hurt anymore Pokémon! She's going to drag up all those awful memories again!"

"I know," Umbreon said, staring transfixed at the crystals. The portal swirling next to them disappeared and Zero stepped out of it, distorted energy blurring her body. She turned and fixed her eye on them. Umbreon's gaze wilted.

"So, it's true. Someone purged the virus from you both," Zero said. She looked over at Team Radiance. Her red eye flickered blue and she rested a paw on her helmet. "It would seem Espeon and Umbreon were right. You are quite the curious trio."

Shane's throat went dry. "Who are you?" he asked hesitantly.

"You may call me Zero," she replied.

Shane tilted his head to the side, expecting Zero to say she was joking. When she didn't, he shook his head. "Seriously? Is that supposed to stand for 'Zero self-confidence?' Because it takes a real sorry soul to hide themselves behind a mask," he said. "Seriously… you've got 'try hard' written all over you! You make my partner's brother look like a basket of sunshine and puppies."

"Shane, maybe you ought to stop," Tessa squeaked. They were in no position to deal with this newcomer.

"No, I think I'm onto something here," Shane growled, glaring at Zero. "I'll bet you wake up every morning, look yourself in the mirror, and say that you're 'the tallest of mountains and the roughest of waves,' or some utter nonsense like that, am I right?" He glanced at Null. "Better be careful, big guy... or you'll cut yourself on all this dude's edge."

"... Aura Sphere."

A ball of red energy exploded underneath Shane, flinging him skyward. He fell to the ground screaming. When he struck the ice, he looked up toward Zero's mask. The static momentarily faded from her body. Shane's eyes slowly widened.

"No," he whispered. "No, that can't be right!"

"How long did you have those insults waiting in the wings, you sad, sorry Vulpix man-child?" Zero said, shaking her head. "My name is Zero, as in _'Patient Zero.'_ I'm the instigator of the Prism Virus."

"Sh… Shane?" Tessa squeaked, worried by her friend's sudden stupor. "What's wrong?"

"Lu… car… io…"

Shane's whisper was so soft that only Zero could hear him. "… hmph. I see you all standing there… judging me. My Prism Virus has done nothing wrong. But that won't convince you. You three are pawns of the gods, just like every Pokémon labeling themselves an explorer."

"The fact is that everything Espeon and Umbreon did can be reversed," Zero said. Espeon flinched and buried her head in her forelimbs. "And I fully intended to turn each infected Pokémon and dungeon back to normal. But then you three intervened." Zero shook her head disapprovingly. "And now... well, I can still fix it. But it'll be much... tougher."

"I… I don't believe you," Shane said. "Evil… it always tries to justify its actions with whatever flimsy logic it can find. Well, I'm not falling for it!"

"Then you're a self-righteous buffoon," Zero sneered. "Tell me, human. If my virus couldn't be reversed, then how do you explain these two pathetic whelps sitting beside you?" She gestured to Espeon and Umbreon. "I do not wish to bring harm to Pokémon. I want to save this world. Save it from the endless cycle of chaos that our gods use for their own self-preservation. And I can't do that if every Pokémon has been transformed into an Ultra Beast."

"Please, Zero. Just leave us alone," Espeon whimpered. "We don't… we don't want to work with you anymore."

Zero's gaze fell on Espeon. "I don't care. You're both my Pokémon. You don't have a say in this." She raised her staff and the octahedron pulsated with red energy. "I don't feel like training you up again if someone else can remove my handiwork. But I won't let you wander around and spill all my secrets. So, I'll need to take your life energy until I'm finished with my work."

"No… _no!_ " Espeon screamed, turning to flee. "Get up, Umbry! Get up! She's gonna—"

" **Consume** ," Zero said, pointing her staff forward. A purple and black energy beam spiraled toward the Eeveelutions. But before it could reach them, a loud bark echoed through the clearing. Espeon and Umbreon slid across the ice, safely out of harm's way.

"You leave them alone!" Shane growled, crouching low to the ground. Zero's red eye flickered purple and she chuckled, prompting Shane to declare, "Oh, so you can emote after all?"

"Look at you. Standing there, trying to put on a brave face like you're some sort of hero," Zero said.

"I _am_ a hero!" Shane said, smacking the ice with a forepaw. "I'm the hero who's going to help the Pokémon here get rid of you and turn things back to normal." He looked over at his teammates and gave them a nod.

"A hero? Please." Zero gave Shane a dismissive wave. "Frankly, calling you human is a stretch. You're a meek little furball who has yet to realize just how hopeless his situation is."

"If your big, evil plan is to tear me down with a laundry list of reasons why I suck, then I'm here to tell you it's not working," Shane said, though he winced at the sound of his cracking voice. "I'm far from perfect. But I know a bad Pokémon when I see one. And that's exactly what you are."

Zero adjusted her mask. "No amount of courageous hero talk can mask the fact that, in reality, you're scared. You don't have the strength to stop me." Zero pivoted to look at Tessa. "And what of you, girl? Nothing to add to support your partner? You're a rather pathetic excuse for an aura wielder."

With a whimper, Tessa looked down at her feet. "How disappointing," Zero scoffed, turning to face Espeon and Umbreon. "Now then, where were we?" She raised her glowing staff once again. Shane's eyes widened and he dashed across the ice, sliding in front of the Eeveelution duo.

"I already told you to leave them alone," Shane barked. "You're not getting to them this time."

"Then let me show you what happens to those who stand in my way," Zero said. She swung her staff around and struck the crystal imprisoning Sylveon and Eevee. Tessa's friends fell on top of each other. This immediately caught her attention. Her aura feelers shot up.

"No! Leave them alone!" Tessa screamed. Null gasped and reached a foreleg out to try and restrain Tessa, but missed her. Tessa sprinted toward Zero, aura encasing both her paws. Shane turned and focused his mind on Zero. He let loose a psychic blast, only to watch it fizzle out against a shield of red cubes.

"W-What the—" Shane gasped, watching as Zero lay the tip of her staff atop Sylveon's body.

" **Consume** ," she said. Shane gasped and Tessa stumbled to a halt. Zero drained the color off of Sylveon's and Eevee's bodies. Swirls of colored pixels surrounded the crystal in her staff. They rushed inside and the octahedron sparkled with a rainbow glow.

"No! Sylveon! _Eevee!_ " Tessa shrieked.

Shane's stance slackened. His legs threatened to give out on him. After the grueling dungeon trek and the fight with Espeon and Umbreon, they had ultimately failed.

Zero lowered her staff and raised a paw. " **Destroy** ," she said. A rainbow glow emerged from inside her mask. Crystals encased Sylveon's and Eevee's bodies. Zero clenched her paw into a fist and the gems shattered, evaporating into a fine black mist.

"You monster! _I'll kill you!_ " Tessa roared, resuming her charge. Tears streamed from her eyes. She raised her paws, looking to strike Zero with a flurry of Force Palm blows. Zero pivoted so her raised paw faced Tessa and opened her fist. She hoisted Tessa into the air. Tessa thrashed about, screeching at Zero and blinking her eyes rapidly in an attempt to dispel the tears.

"Upset, are we? Good. Perhaps now, you'll understand where I'm coming from," Zero said. "Maybe if you behave, I'll bring them back. But first, let's be rid of that scarf of yours, shall we? You don't deserve its protective power."

Shane stood there, petrified. He glanced at his looplet, hoping to see the same spark of energy that helped him save Tessa from Espeon and Umbreon. But the gem remained a dull-gray color. His heart sank and his gaze fell toward the ground. He couldn't believe it. Gallian was right. He wasn't strong enough. He failed Tessa. He failed her friends. And now, they were all going to die.

Something bristled Shane's fur. Ahead of him, Zero stumbled forward, hissing loudly. Tessa fell to the ground and Null swooped in, carrying her over to Shane's side. He had enough time to look over his shoulder, before a red and black vortex swallowed him up.

"What?" Zero looked in the red light's direction. Her eye widened. Team Radiance, Espeon, and Umbreon, had vanished from the dungeon without a trace. Growling, she gazed into her scepter's crystal. "Necky, I'm finished for the day. Bring me home."

A wormhole opened up in front of Zero. She stepped inside it, leaving Aurora Vale behind.

* * *

Next time: would you believe this story's actually going to have a Valentine's Day special?


	42. Bonus: Valentine's Day Special 2018

**Content Advisory:** this part has adult themes, including references to sex and suicide. Nothing is described explicitly.

This here is an impromptu, experimental bit that I decided to do for Valentine's Day. If you like it, great! If not, it's a bonus for a reason.

* * *

 **Bonus: Two Confessions**

Our whole family was built on a lie.

I never got to tell you that. I couldn't figure out how. I wasn't even sure I wanted to. But after you died, I found myself wishing I had. Compassion was something you always had in spades. I guess that's why everyone in the guild loved you so much. And I guess that's why the kids preferred you to me.

The truth is that you were not my first partner. Those were not my first kids. This was not my first family. I am human and that is why I go by something other than "Lucario." Maybe you knew that the whole time, but you didn't speak up because you didn't want to upset me? That wouldn't surprise me. In which case, I suppose all of this is pointless, isn't it? Still, I need to get this off my chest. If you're reading this, then, against all odds, I succeeded. And I need to confess to what I've done.

My memories have always been intact. I never found the strength to tell you that. The day we met on Stormcracker Isle, I saw something in your eyes. I saw Rory. He was... no, he _is_ my husband. At first, I tried to ignore the connection. But the longer I spent fighting you, the more I pictured Rory. So, when the dust had settled and we finally had a heart-to-heart, I panicked. In human media, amnesia is such a cheesy cop-out. You Pokémon don't know that. So, I clung to that flimsy excuse. For twenty-five years.

"O, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive."

Walter Scott said that. You wouldn't know him. He's human. Like me. I just thought it fitting. Because, frankly, he's right. I think I'd make an Ariados blush with my handiwork. And yet, I'm sure you'd still find it in your heart to forgive me, because that's just who you are.

I don't deserve it. Because our love was never really genuine. At least, my side of it wasn't.

At first, I befriended you because you reminded me of Rory. You reminded me of happier times. Of what I wanted to go back to. I figured, if I grew close to the Guildmaster's son, then somehow, someway, I could go back. It had already been a couple of years, yet you reignited my hope of going home. But days stretched into weeks stretched into months… and that hope faded again.

I remember the night I skipped dinner and lay curled up in my room, crying. You came in. Asked me what the problem was. I told you it's nothing to worry about. You spent the whole night with me anyway. I think that was the first time I saw you for… well… you.

Then you did a mission with me. I remember that, too. Walking through Aurora Vale, gathering stardust under the brilliant light show. We made it to the end of the dungeon and your tail brushed up against mine. You said it was a sudden breeze, but I should've known better. After all, you went to grab an Escape Orb and our lips met. It was brief. But I felt a spark. Just like I had with Rory.

It confused me. Did I really enjoy kissing you? Or was this some primal Pokémon urge bubbling up inside me? Where I'm from, Pokémon just disappear into streams of pixels and pop up with eggs. So, I figured physical intimacy wasn't a thing here. Guess I was wrong.

I should've broken things off right there. But I didn't. Because it felt good. Thrilling, even. No matter what I do, I can't seem to forget the adrenaline rush I got from sneaking into your dad's office with you. Even though he found us wrapped around one another, I didn't care. My limbs were shaking that whole night. I was giddy at the time, but now… now I'm just wondering what I was thinking.

That's when I really should've ended things. Of course, that didn't happen. Looking back on it, I'm sure that the whole transformation thing messed with my mind. I was a mature, responsible adult when I left the human world. But when I woke up a Riolu, I acted like a kid again. A reckless, invincible little thing. And even though there was a strong part of me that knew how messed up that was, I didn't care. I liked your shape. Your scent. Your taste.

Then we evolved. I'll be honest, when you talked about an "evolution high," I thought you were bluffing. But, well, after that day, I can believe it. I mean, it's been on repeat in my mind all this time. The shivers I got when you brushed your claws through my fur. Your warm breath washing over my neck. The flames around… well… you know. Painful at first, sure. Suddenly having metal coat your skeleton will do that, I suppose. And you wondered why you were the one with the bites on your neck the next morning.

Oh god, I'm rambling. See… this is what you do to me. Even from beyond the grave. You're just so… so perfect. Every time we had a disagreement it never escalated. When I asked for my space, you gave it to me. When I asked for your attention, you put your friends aside for me. Looking back on it, that's probably what tipped the scales against you. I didn't pay Braviary and Metagross much mind. They didn't like me. I didn't like them. We respected each other's boundaries, but I get the sense they didn't like the direction our relationship took.

What was I saying again? Oh, yeah. How you were just too perfect. The more we were together, the more I forgot about Rory. The more this… all of this felt like a second chance. But even as I finally… finally started to feel like Horizon could be my home… there was this voice. This nagging little voice.

"Never forget who you are. Never forget what happened."

That's when you sat me down and told me you wanted to start a family. Things unraveled from there, even if it didn't look that way to you. I threw every excuse I could think of at you. But you… you wore me down with best weapon in your arsenal…

Patience.

I never bought into that BS nonsense about dark-types being conniving devils. But leaving me alone to dwell on the idea of having an egg? That was pretty sinister. You didn't have to say a word. I just sat there… letting the idea fester. I had hoped that if I stayed quiet long enough, the issue would go away.

But the gods had other plans, didn't they?

Why did we even go to the Invern Mountains that day? I don't remember. But, well, we went. And there was Gallian's egg. Sitting in a snow bank, slowly freezing over. I don't think I'd ever seen you move as fast as you did when we spotted that egg. Everything after that was a blur. I recall a few snippets. Like how you pretty much camped out in the infirmary, refusing to go anywhere or even eat a proper meal until you were sure the egg would hatch into a healthy baby. And how happy you were when you got the okay to foster the egg.

I had objections. Strong objections. But seeing that smile on your face… that warm, loving smile… made me bite my tongue. I suppose it helped that the sex we had then was mind-blowing. The egg hatched, of course. I can still remember the joy sprawled across your face. Holding up a little Absol. Nuzzling it affectionately. And me? I just sat there… staring.

"Gallian."

You didn't hear it the first time. I just whispered it without even thinking. The nagging voice had come back. "If you can't go home, then get back what you lost." And so, our son became Gallian. My second Gallian. You never knew that. The kids didn't, either. At least, I don't think they did. Unless you told them. Or Braviary. Lord knows Metagross wouldn't say anything.

The next several years… a thick haze clouded up my mind. Gallian grew and you pressed me to have an egg of my own. I never remember saying yes, but I don't remember refusing, either. And I know you. You never would've forced me. I think I agreed. Because, before I knew it, I had a daughter. Tessa was back…

… except she wasn't. Just like Gallian wasn't Gallian. And you weren't Rory. I did the best I could. I smiled at the kids. Told them I loved them. Gave them attention. But my heart wasn't in it. It was my fault. I should've put my foot down, but I couldn't muster the strength to break things off with you. Just like I couldn't find the strength to tell you I'm human. See, we've come full circle, haven't we? Things were bad, sure. And yet, your smile still managed to warm my heart.

And then you were gone.

When I got the news, I broke that table you made. Y'know, the one we had a bit of fun on when we were feeling particularly frisky? I turned the whole house upside down, actually. I couldn't believe it. Two separate lives… and in both of them, I lost the one person who meant more to me than anything. I refused to roll over and take it. I tore up the library, gathering every piece of info I could find about Horizon's myths. I found the materials I needed to get an audience with one of the Tapus. I took the scarf — the one made from Ho-Oh's rainbow feathers — and marched up to the Temple of Balance…

… only to be turned away.

"Give up. You are not one of virtuous spirit. Your mind is poisoned. And your body is alien. My brethren and I will never summon Ho-Oh for the likes of you."

Tapu Fini's words still haven't left my head. How could she just judge me like that? After everything I had been through? After all the heartache I had beared? First the gods led me to an egg I didn't want. Then they conspired to help your so-called friend take you away from me. And, when I tried to bring you back, they laughed at me. I went blind with rage. At least, that's what I think happened. I'm still not sure why I went over to Glyphic Falls. But everything that happened after that was crystal clear.

Cold metal claws tore through my flesh. I fell from my perch, screaming into the night. And I saw them. A pair of fierce, glowing red eyes. That's when I knew. I knew he had killed you. And now he had come for me. But something hit me before I could complete my fall.

I wish it hadn't. Because it made my life — my _current_ life — an endless, restless cycle of pain. Horrible, burning pain. Pain that scarred my face. Pain that tainted what little fur remained on my body. Pain that took half my vision from me. Pain that twisted my aura into something… well, something as hideous as I look now.

I'm glad you're not around to see me like this. To see me stagger around my new home… draining Pokémon of their life to make the pain go away. And all because of Glyphic Falls. Because, instead of eating food, I have to take in spirits. Because I won't allow myself to simply drop dead. See, after all this time, I've finally realized why I'm here.

I spent my days as a human preventing pain. Making people's suffering stop. I thought I could do the same thing here, but I was wrong. I understand now. No matter how hard any normal Pokémon works, they can never truly fix anything. I certainly tried. And this world rewarded me by taking you away from me and leaving me with nothing...

Nothing.

Zero.

Which is why I'm going to end everyone's suffering… by destroying the ones responsible for it. If I alone have to bear the brunt of the world's pain to make this happen, then so be it. I will not allow anyone to hurt like I have. Not anymore.

Yes, it's true that there have been… missteps. Pokémon whose lives I've taken to keep my powers stable. Depending on how things go today, I may be adding Leafeon's daughter and grandson to that list. But I can't help it. I'm the only one who can do this. That is why I came to this world. It has to be. Ironic that I ended up a Lucario. In my world, they're fictional creatures considered noble to a fault. But this isn't noble. It's far from it. I don't care, though. I was a terrible Lucario, anyway.

I will bring those whose light I stole. Just like I will bring you back… and bring my real family back to me. Soon, I'll have full control of my "partner's" powers. Then, and only then, will everything finally be right.

I'm sorry this is how you had to find out about this. I hope that, one day, you can find it in your heart to forgive me. And, if not, I at least hope you understand why I did what I did.

* * *

It's been awhile, hasn't it, Rebecca? Or maybe it hasn't. I'm still not sure how the whole "flow of time" thing works between worlds. Do you even remember me? Because I sure remember you.

At first, you were just the new girl who smiled at me when we passed in the hall. Then you evolved into the girl who sat across from me in most of my classes. You have no idea how relieving it was to see someone else choose to sit in the front, rather than end up there because no other seats were left.

I was never great at judging what other people thought of me, which is probably why I took these small gestures to mean something important. Frankly, it's not like you did anything to make me think otherwise. You actually came to me when we were told to partner up. Nobody ever did that. Except Shane. But, well, high school really emphasizes separating everyone, doesn't it? I couldn't help it if I did better than him in school. If I ended up in all the honors classes and he… didn't. So, I really appreciated the gesture… at the time, anyway.

Now, I see that you were just setting yourself up. To use me for your own gain. I should've noticed who you ate lunch with. They'd given me so much trouble already, but I paid it no mind. I had already convinced myself that you were different. That you were special somehow. So, imagine my surprise when I saw you show up to swim practice. This had to be some sort of joke, I told myself. And it was… but I couldn't see that at the time. Instead, I saw this girl — who smiled at me and me feel welcome in class — go into the same lane as me. Stopping to ask me how I was doing. Exchange a quick word about class. Small talk, sure. But when I only ever really talked with one other kid my own age, it meant the world to me.

So, I asked you to a movie. Some cheesy rom-com. A flick I'd never give the time of day on my own. You said yes. I actually had to process that response. Remind myself that this didn't mean anything. We were just… two classmates going to hang out.

Didn't stop Mom from gushing over how proud she was that, "I was finally expanding my horizons beyond Shane."

Dad was much blunter: "Guess you're not gay after all. Good. Now, don't screw this up. Leave your stupid pokeyman toys at home."

Naturally, I listened to him. Though, now that I think about it, it probably didn't matter, did it? You already knew about my hobby. You heard it from your "real friends." My money's on Geoff. The guy was always a jackass and I swear he had it in for me. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's just… remember the good times. And that movie was a good time. Not the move itself. Oh god, it was awful. Full of every romance cliché imaginable and filled with pop music that made me want to pull my ears out. Still, I had fun. All because of you.

I remember the smile you gave me when we got back to your house. "Let's do this again sometime," you said, and vanished inside. Okay. So, we did it again. And then a third time, with an added dinner. Shane wondered why I didn't want to hang with him that weekend, by the way. I told him I'd caught a cold. I lied to my friend for you. Granted, I was looking for a way to put a bit of distance between us. Still, that was a big deal for me. That's how much you meant. And that's how much you managed to pull the wool over my eyes, I guess.

Or maybe I'm just ignorant. We spent plenty of time together... and never did I suspect that anything might be wrong. I brought you over to see my parents. I'll never forget the looks on their faces when you said, "You mean he hasn't told you about us? We've been dating for a month!" You'd have thought I'd just gotten a full ride to swim for some big-name school. That's how crazy it was. I still couldn't believe you had used that word. "Dating." Like a foreign language to me.

Of course, I had to tell Shane. "I'm happy for you dude," he said. He wasn't. In fact, he looked like I just told him I'd shot his dog. I didn't care, though. Shane was too clingy for his own good and never seemed to listen to me when I told him I needed some space. So, of course I felt happier than I had in a long time.

Which brings us to that fateful weekend. You know the one. The football team was state champ and news you'd be hosting a party spread through the school like wildfire. "You should come," you said. "It's gonna be wild."

I told you that I didn't do so well with crowds.

"That's okay. Because, I was thinking we'd spend some quality time together. Y'know… just the two of us."

English may not have been my best subject, but I could definitely read between the lines. I didn't want to let this opportunity pass me by. So, even though Shane and I had been planning to attend a midnight movie premier for months, I blew him off. Told him I'd gotten a real bad stomach bug. He believed me, of course. Bless him. The hard part was trying to get through the checkout at the pharmacy with a straight face.

I came to the party, just like you wanted. I wore the stuff you asked me to wear. Which should've been a red flag, but I was too excited to notice. I said hello to all the guys I hated. They looked surprised to see me at first, but they were very friendly and polite. Another red flag I failed to catch. Maybe that's because the punch I was drinking wasn't really punch? They'd warned us about this kind of stuff in health class. I just… tuned it out. I was doing it for you. Because you made me happy. But by the time I found you, I could barely stand. I managed to mumble a greeting, then everything went black.

You were there when I woke up, holding a washcloth in one hand and a towel in another. I asked you what happened.

"Don't worry about it," you said, and then pushed me toward the bathroom.

I repeated the question, but you tossed the towel to me and shut the door. If I hadn't felt like crap, maybe I'd have noticed that my shirt was on backwards. And then I would've suspected something bad had happened. But I didn't catch it at the time. I showered, and then you were gone. Your older brother told me to get out. Your parents were coming back and the two of you had promised no funny business while they were gone.

I left. I had a lot of questions, but no one was giving me answers. So, I just hung out with Shane and dropped the subject… until school started up the next week. Suddenly, the people who paid me no mind in the halls were looking at me. Not the way you did. No. They had smirks. I could see amusement in their eyes. I was like… like some sort of sideshow attraction to them. But all I was doing was walking. I sat by you in math class that day. You got up and walked to the back of the room. I didn't understand what I had done wrong. The more the day went by, the more restless I got. None of this made any sense. I couldn't reach out to Shane. I'd have to tell him that I ditched him for you. Luckily, some dumb freshman left his computer window open... and I saw exactly what had happened.

I'll admit, you guys really got me. Whatever you put in my drink, it worked. I can say that now, having had centuries to process what you did to me. I'm sure you'll be confused by that. Good. Because that's exactly how I felt... looking at those photos.

How could you do this to me? I thought we really had a connection. But, no. It was all a lie, wasn't it? A lie to get you your vaunted spot atop the school's social pyramid. To cement your ranks with the "in" crowd. Why else would you have put them up online, for everyone in school to see?

I imagine you must've been very proud of yourself. After all, when the principal came and plucked me out of class to suspend me "for violations of the student code of conduct," you were all smiles. I saw the pats you got on the back. The high-fives. This was your plan. And you'd succeeded. No one would believe me if I said it was your fault. Because that was the beauty of the internet. These stupid adults didn't know how to trace it back to you. And they didn't want to try. The last thing any snooty administrators wanted were their faces on the evening news, with reports of "an investigation into a hazing incident."

What did I ever do to you? What did I do to any of you?

I like to think I know the answer. You can thank Dirk for that. He gave me a pretty big hint when he "accidentally" spilled his coffee on my 3DS that first day back at school. Apparently, I had stepped out of line. I was either allowed to be a jock like him... or a dweeb who played kiddie games, like Shane. I couldn't have it both ways.

I know you were there when it happened. You stayed silent. You wouldn't meet my gaze. Perhaps some time to reflect on the issue had left you with a guilty conscience? I sure hope so. It's the least you deserve. My guess is you were just too preoccupied to notice. Or care. Because I was never someone important to you. I was a stepping stone. I'd served my purpose. You had moved on ahead, with no plans on looking back. That's fine. I moved on, too.

I wonder how you felt when you heard the news? I wonder how everyone at school felt. Oh, if I could've been a fly on the wall in school after I'd succeeded…

I don't know what I'm psyching myself up for. Let's face it. We both know what happened. I wasn't one of the "admired" students. I didn't get a vigil. I didn't get a heartfelt card with messages of love sprawled all over it. I'll bet the school sent a mass email to the parents. They brought in grief counselors... not that anyone would need them except for Shane. And they held an assembly where they got some whack-job psychologist or motivational coach to sit everyone down and talk about why suicide is wrong, how there's so much to live for, that you need to pay attention and intervene, and a bunch of other stuff we've all heard before. Then everyone moved on with their lives.

I wonder what you would think of me if you could see me now? Would you apologize? Maybe. I imagine there would be begging and pleading. Tearful confessions about how wrong you were. About how someone else made you do it and how you always loved me and believed in me.

Of course, you'd be lying through your teeth. Because I've seen your black heart for what it is. Which is why, when I'm whole once more, I'm going to come back. I'll visit all the "wonderful friends" I made in school. And then, I'll come find you. I'll rip your black heart right out of your chest and tear it shreds. All that'll be left is your light.

Sweet, delicious light.

* * *

Hopefully that clears up some questions some of you have had.

Next time: Team Radiance tries to find a way forward after failing their rescue mission.


	43. No Sense of Direction

My apologies to anyone who didn't get a review reply that quickly, and to the guest reviews which may not have been published right away. Apparently, the site decided to stop sending me email alerts. I'm given to understand that's a regular thing, here. But it's the first time it happened to me. So, with that said, a few responses to start off.

Bowserjrrules: Xatu's vision wasn't meant to be hard to decipher. It was meant to be confusing to the characters, who don't know what Ultra Space or Necrozma are. And, I've only ever played (and sucked at) some Halo 2 multiplayer, so I don't know a thing about the Flood. I drew from Metroid Prime in making the Prism Virus.

SonicStreak5344: Because I did use the Phantom Ruby's "glitchy illusions" as an inspiration. Kind of helps that Lucarios have jackal traits, and Infinite is a jackal. Shane actually quoted some of the lyrics to "Infinite" in Chapter 36 if you look closely.

Another guest: Correct! It seems like most people expected the Prism Virus to be named the way it is because of Necrozma. That's not the case.

Alright, onto the chapter proper. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 37: No Sense of Direction**

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Eyowch!"

Braviary's good wing flapped open in surprise, smacking Misdreavus from behind and nearly making her to drop the bowl of burn ointment resting on her head.

"Golly, Braviary. Watch where you're pointing that thing," she gasped.

Braviary ignored and her and fixed an angry look on Comfey. "Dangummit. Warn a feller when yer gonna go jostling his bum wing, will ya?"

"We've been over this before, Braviary," Comfey sighed. "If I tell you when I'm going to fix your wing, you'll just tense up and make it impossible for me to work. In any case, it should be okay now."

Braviary slowly lifted up his injured wing and gave it a light flap. "Err, right. Nice job, pardner," he said, face flushing slightly.

"Hoo-whee, I'm still a bit confused as to just what happened to you four," Misdreavus said, levitating a brush over Milotic to apply some of the ointment to her belly.

"Yeah, you guys look like you got put through a cheese grater!" Haunter said, going intangible to dodge a swipe of Seperior's tail. "And you've got all the funk of smelly cheese going, to boot. Mwee hee hee!"

"We got jumped by this…" Serperior's voice trailed off. "I don't even know what to call it. It was a _thing._ It acted like it was a Pokémon, but it sure didn't attack like one. Airy, you're better at explaining this stuff. Loop 'em in, will ya?" She glanced over her shoulder at Dragonair, but her teammate lay facing the corner of the infirmary. "Airy, you feeling okay?" Serperior asked.

"I'm fine," Dragonair whispered, but her tone of voice suggested otherwise.

"Aww, c'mon, Dragonair. You're safe and sound at the guild," Haunter said, floating in front of her. He detached his mouth from his body and rotated it 180 degrees. "Let's turn that frown of yours upside-down!"

A stream of dragonfire pelted Haunter. He struck the wall behind him and his ectoplasmic body splattered against it like jelly spread on toast. "O-ho-kay… or not," he said.

Milotic and Serperior exchanged panicked looks. Bright light then funneled in from the hallway.

"Whoa! Team Radiance? What happened to you guys?" Togedemaru's surprised gasp echoed. "And… is that Espeon and Umbreon? Ah! _Emergency!_ " Sounds of quick, small footsteps filled up the infirmary. "Sound the alarms! Get the Guildmaster! We're in trou—"

"It's fine, Togedemaru," Shane cut in. "It's… it's fine."

A loud sob reached the infirmary, making Milotic's eyebrow-like fins crinkle up. Everyone, including the injured Team Captivate, quickly made their way toward the assembly room. Togedemaru and Trapinch stood there, backs against the wall in surprise. The beaten-up trio of Team Radiance lay in the middle of the room. Next to them sat Espeon and Umbreon, who looked even worse for wear. Tessa held her paws to her face, bawling hysterically.

Without warning, she took off running toward the stairs. "Tessa, wait!" Shane cried, trying to grab her tail with a forepaw. Null held him back, however, and shook his head.

"… let her go. There's nothing… we can do for her," he grimly, lowering his head grimly.

"Good gracious. What happened to you all?" Comfey gasped. "I can't let your team out of my sight for one afternoon without the three of you getting torn to shreds!"

"Forget that," Trapinch fumed, glaring at Espeon and Umbreon. "What are you two doing here? Give us one good reason we shouldn't get Officer Magnezone on the line."

"It's okay," Null said, stepping in front of them. "They're… not our enemies anymore…"

"Alright, all y'all need to stop and take a deep breath," Braviary declared, sticking a wing out between Null and Trapinch. "Now, why don't you loop the rest of us in as to just what happened in Aurora Vale."

"Only if you tell us what happened to you guys," Shane said, giving Braviary a suspicious look. If Drampa had given Braviary a hard time, Shane wanted to know.

"Hrmph. I was gonna get to that anyway," Braviary said. "Go on. Start talking."

Shane recapped Team Radiance's trek through Aurora Vale, including the dungeon's icy traps, the battle with Espeon and Umbreon, and Zero's appearance. Looks of shock appeared on his guild mates' faces when they learned of Sylveon's and Eevee's fates.

"Oh… oh gods. Those poor souls," Milotic said. "They didn't deserve any of this."

"I can't believe you two did this! You should be ashamed of yourselves," Togedemaru said, glaring at Espeon and Umbreon.

"You think we don't realize that already?" Espeon said, her voice cracking. Her head and shoulders drooped. Tears splashed against the floor. "It's all over for us. We can't go back to the Mist Continent after what we've done." She shivered. "I can still see them. All the Pokémon I hurt." She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head rapidly. "I want it to stop. Oh, Umbry. Why won't it stop? Why can't I just shut my stupid, _stupid_ brain off?"

"But, you saved us, didn't you?" Shane said. "Tessa had our Escape Orbs, but we vanished from the dungeon before Zero could do anything to us. You guys must've done that."

"We had one more Ultra Entercard at our disposal. We used it to come here," Umbreon said, frowning. "It was all I could think of." He drew his lips back, showing off his fangs. "I wish I didn't have to use it. Just feeling its power made me wish I was dead."

"So, this 'Zero' lady ditched us to attack your team," Milotic said. "And we just came back here… too banged up to go back for you guys. Some help we turned out to be."

"Wait, you dealt with Zero, too?" Shane gasped. "Is that why you look so beat up?"

"Yeah. But she ran off, hissing about 'troublemakers.' And not a moment too soon. We were…" Milotic shuddered. "We were hopelessly outmatched."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Shane asked.

"Most of her attacks… weren't even real Pokémon attacks," Milotic said. "She did all this creepy stuff where she distorted the air around her. I can barely even explain it. We got our tails handed to us. And what made it even worse was that she had the gall to lecture us about how foolish we were to be part of the guild. She called us paws to the gods."

"I think she said the same thing to us," Shane said, his voice faltering. Given what he'd heard, it really was nothing more than a struck of luck that he was standing back at the Observatory. If Zero could wipe the floor with four opponents, then Team Radiance stood no chance against her.

"Well, yeah. That's what Zero's after," Espeon said. "She wants to wipe the gods off the face of the earth… forever. The endless night business is part of that."

A tense silence fell over the room, with everyone's gazes falling toward the floor. "Okay, I'm gonna be 'that guy,'" Haunter said, his body coiled up to form a giant question mark. "What does destroying gods have to do with plunging the world into eternal night?"

"Well, isn't it obvious?" Shane said. "If the Prism Virus gets rid of _all_ gods, then that includes Dialga. And if he's gone… then Temporal Tower will fall again."

"No," Espeon whispered. Shane's ears stuck up. "Zero doesn't want that. She made it very clear that there's no point to everything the Prism Virus is doing if the world falls into ruin."

"Zero said she has a way to use the Prism Virus' powers to erase dungeons like Temporal Tower and the Tree of Life, with no consequences," Umbreon said. "She intends to make sure things like time and space flow freely, without any Pokémon controlling them."

The group sat there, processing Umbreon's claims. "The way you're talking about it… it sounds like you believed her," Shane accused, narrowing his eyes at Umbreon.

"We did," Umbreon said. "We believed it. In fact, a part of me _still_ believes it's possible. There's…" He gritted his teeth. "There's a part of me that _wants_ to see it happen. I mean, when you think about it, it makes sense, doesn't it? Imagine never having to worry about the planet falling into ruin because some god loses its mind. Doesn't it sound good? Doesn't it sound... reasonable?"

Everyone assumed fighting stances in an instant, though the injured guild members did so with pained winces. It sounded like the two weren't as free as Shane had thought.

"You don't understand!" Espeon cried, choking back tears. "What Zero does… it's not brainwashing. It's not mind control. It's just… awful." She shrank down to the ground, curling up in a ball. "When we found her in our home, she just… sat there. And talked to us."

Espeon's shivering intensified. "The more she spoke, the more bad memories kept getting dragged up. All of the Pokémon who suffered at Kyurem's and Munna's hands. The chilling, _suffocating_ cold. And then Dark Matter. Oh, gods, Dark Matter…" She rubbed her paws across her face.

"All I could think about was how terrified I was… staring down Yveltal before getting turned to stone. And those wretched, miserable Voidlands. I couldn't stop! The thoughts kept pouring in." Espeon smacked her head against her forelegs. "I saw Void Shadows everywhere! Standing there… taunting me! Laughing at me! They wouldn't go away. I tried everything… and they wouldn't! Go! Away!"

"Our fear turned to anger," Umbreon said, turning away from the group. "I was furious. Because we suffered thanks to Dark Matter, while the gods sat in their homes… doing _nothing_ until it was too late."

"We've been over this before. They did help in the end," Shane said. "Otherwise, Dark Matter would have won!"

"It doesn't matter," Espeon hissed, slapping a forepaw on the ground. "I said the same thing to Zero and she _laughed._ She looked me right in the eyes and said, 'And what do you think will happen when another abomination like Dark Matter strikes? Do you really think you can keep relying on humans to bail you all out?'"

"We were so afraid. We couldn't take it anymore. So… we agreed to help her," Umbreon continued. "That's when Zero conjured up these two balls and threw them at us. One of them struck me and… and…" He threw his forepaws up over his head. "This horrifying energy grabbed me and dragged me up into a vortex. It felt like something was tearing me to shreds!"

"It was terrifying! I thought I was going to suffocate and die," Espeon bawled, curling up against her partner. "All around me was darkness. I thought I'd been turned to stone again! But the darkness went away. And I was back in the house. I felt… _stronger_. Stronger than I'd ever felt in my entire life."

The chitin on Null's foreleg tingled. He looked down. Shane staggered backwards, tails curling around Null's foreleg. His jaw hung open. "Are you okay?" Null said.

"Th… that's impossible," Shane whispered. "Hit by a ball… swallowed up by energy?"

Zero somehow had access to Poké Balls. And this was a world _full_ of wild Pokémon. A shiver raced across Shane's spine and his fur bristled. He fell silent and shook his head slowly.

"So, all the stuff y'all have done to our continent?" Braviary said, giving Espeon and Umbreon a stern look.

"Was our idea," Espeon said, wilting under the collective gazes of the guild members. "We thought that if we corrupted the Pokémon and landscapes of your continent, we could draw out the Land Spirits."

"You guys wanted to go after the Tapus?" Togedemaru gasped.

"Those were Zero's orders," Umbreon replied. "She knew that one of the Land Spirits holds something called the Dawn Hourglass." Umbreon looked up into a cluster of widened eyes. "Zero wanted us to find it, so she could absorb all of its power. She said that the Dawn Hourglass' energy would let her charge up our Ultra Entercards to the point where we could summon Magnagates strong enough to transport us directly to the end of any Mystery Dungeon, even ones sealed behind magic barriers like Temporal Tower, Spacial Rift, or, well, everything in the Sea of Wonders."

"Which would make getting to any of the world's gods a complete breeze," Serperior said. "That's sickening." She leaned in, a worried look on her face. "Did Zero get the Dawn Hourglass?"

"Thanks to a stroke of pure luck, no," Espeon said. "We had covered Aurora Vale in ice to rile up Tapu Lele, but it looks like she suspected something was wrong. She sent a Ditto to scout ahead disguised as her." Espeon's gaze fell back toward the ground. "That's when Zero insisted we kidnap Sylveon and Eevee to get to Vulpix."

Shane's blood ran cold. Zero really did want him dead, then. Shane thought about his dream visions with Solgaleo. He had claimed Gallian was behind everything, but clearly he was wrong. Did Solgaleo just not know or was he, perhaps, misleading Shane?

"Getting the Dawn Hourglass would also rid the world of daylight," Umbreon said. "Hence, the whole 'world of eternal night' business."

"But that can't be right," Haunter said, frowning. "All the legends say Solgaleo's the one who can control the sun. The Dawn Hourglass only comes into play if something really bad were to happen to him."

"But something bad _did_ happen," Shane said. "In my dreams, Solgaleo told me something drained him of most of his power. I'll bet Zero tried to attack him!"

"Tried?" Espeon said, drawing everyone's gazes back to her. "The way Zero and her crazy pet sounded, they _succeeded._ "

"What do you mean 'they succeeded?'" Shane asked, growing more worried. Had he actually been right? Had Solgaleo misled him?

"Solgaleo's _already gone,_ " Umbreon said, drawing a chorus of surprised gasps. "Zero said she fed him to her pet… Lunala."

" _What?!_ "

Half the assembled guild members shouted their surprise in unison. Shane's head throbbed. The guild faded from view. Necrozma floated opposite him, a big grin plastered on his face. He melted away as soon as he appeared, leaving Shane standing dumbstruck.

Zero was a Lucario. She had Lunala as her pet. Tessa said she thought her mom was protecting Lunala. Which meant that Zero _was_ Tessa's mother. Shane looked toward the stairs, his chest growing heavy. Tessa's own mother had killed her friends. Worse, she was ready to choke the life out of her own daughter!

Shane's legs shook. It was taking every ounce of willpower not to pass out. This was too much. What was he supposed to say to Tessa? Not to mention... if Solgaleo really was gone, then who was the Pokémon in his dreams?

"I don't know how Zero did it, but she turned Lunala into this right creepy Pokémon, who cackles incessantly and rambles on and on about how all the light in the universe belongs to him," Espeon said. "Hearing his voice always made my skin crawl."

"She really fed Solgaleo to _Lunala?_ " Comfey said. "That can't be right. Solgaleo and Lunala are a unit. Each iteration has worked together to keep the balance of day and night in the world. Lunala would never turn on Solgaleo like that."

"Unless Lunala's been infected," Null said, voice filled with dread.

"No, that can't be right," Milotic said. "If the Prism Virus is trying to wipe out all the gods, then why would it rely on one of them to meet its endgame?"

"And didn't Vulpix say Solgaleo's given him dream visions?" Trapinch said, glancing at Shane. "That must mean he's still out there."

"As much as I'd love to believe that, the writing's on the wall," Espeon said. "Haven't you been watching the sky? The moon's growing larger every day."

"So what? The moon gets bigger and smaller all the time," Haunter scoffed.

"But not like this," Milotic said. "It's unnaturally big and unnaturally bright."

"Because the moon's positioning itself to encase the sun in a permanent solar eclipse," Umbreon explained. "With no Solgaleo, there's no one to make sure sunlight reaches the planet. Meanwhile, Lunala is free to manipulate the moon." His ears drooped. "If your legends are accurate, then Zero taking the Dawn Hourglass' power would mean there's no way to reset the world's supply of daylight."

"Leaving behind a world of endless night, unless Zero chooses to reverse it," Espeon said.

"Wait, Magearna told me that, in ancient times, Ho-Oh maintained control of the world's day-night cycle," Shane said. "Surely Ho-Oh's realized there's something wrong by now, right?"

 **That may be true, but it does nothing to help our situation.**

The group turned to see Magearna appearing out from her hallway. **Allow me to offer an apology cycle for my intrusification,** she said, bowing her head slightly. She remained still for several seconds before returning upright. **Cycle complete. Now then, as I was saying, while it might be true that Ho-Oh can manipulify light to reach the planet, it is a skill that she has not used in a considerable amount of time.**

"Which means what, exactly?" Trapinch asked.

"Duh. Isn't it obvious? The birdbrain's gone so long without having to do it, she's forgotten how," Togedemaru snorted.

"You can't be serious. That's way too important of a thing to forget," Serperior said.

 **I'm afraid I must agreeciate with Togedemaru,** Magearna stated. **Even a god's memory is not infallible. They're bound to forget things. Especificially gods that aren't psychic-types.**

"Then why not stash those memories away with a psychic-type god?" Serperior said.

 **Look, I'm not trying to say Ho-Oh would be no help in this scenuation.** **I am just suggesting you temper your expectations by seventy-two percent,** Magearna said. **It's unreasonable to think a Pokémon can simply call forth a power that's laid dormant within them. We all forget moves and abilities as we age. I don't think it's different for the gods.**

"Alright, everybody oughta settle down here," Braviary declared, lifting up a wing. "I think… we've got a lot to digest. And, frankly, most of us ain't in the right state of mind to be thinking 'bout this stuff. Let's focus on getting healed up first, and then we can put our heads together and see if we can come up with some sorta plan. Sound good?"

Murmurs of agreement and head nods followed. Shane shifted uneasily, worried Braviary's suggestion wasn't meant to help, but hinder. Braviary turned to Espeon and Umbreon. "As fer you two. I want you coming with me to see the Guildmaster pronto."

The order caused Espeon to arc her back and hiss, fur standing on end.

"Espy!" Umbreon gasped.

"No. I'm not going anywhere near him!" she cried. "I can sense his energy." She shot Umbreon a despondent look. "I'll bet he's been going through my memories since we got here. And that's why I can't get them out of my head."

"Be quiet!" Braviary cawed. Several Pokémon near him jumped in surprise. "This can go one of two ways, missy. Either you see the Guildmaster and, if'n he clears y'all, we'll patch the two of you up. Or I take you to Officer Magnezone and you can look forward to rotting in jail." His eyes narrowed at them. "So, what's it gonna be?"

Umbreon gave his partner a worried look and gestured at Braviary. Espeon slumped over in defeat. "... fine. Take us to him," she whispered meekly.

"Good. Maybe then y'all can start thinking 'bout how yer gonna make things up to us."

Espeon flinched. "M-Make things up? No! I can't. I don't want to get involved." She looked at Umbreon, who shook his head solemnly. "Umbry, please don't make me do this," she squeaked.

"We don't have a choice, Espy," Umbreon whispered. "Not after what we've done."

"Exactly. Now, follow me." Braviary walked forward and shooed the duo off toward Metagross' office. The rest of the group returned to the infirmary. Shane looked at Null. He didn't have to say anything for Null to pick up on his nervousness over Braviary's sudden shift in demeanor. But Null had nothing to offer Shane. He trudged toward the infirmary.

Before Shane could follow him, one of Magearna's mechanical arms blocked his path.

 **A moment please, human,** Magearna requested. **I could not help but notice that, from the sound of things, the move you used to defeatify Espeon and Umbreon was not normal.**

"Yeah," Shane confirmed. He lifted his foreleg up. "My looplet glowed while it happened. And then the glow faded and the gem turned all gray." He glanced at the looplet. "It looks like the color's back, though."

 **Ah… it can't be!**

Sparks landed on Shane's shoulders. He stumbled backwards with a whine. Magearna slumped over, a wayward current racing across her body. Shane's tails shot into the air. "W-What the—" He looked around the room in confusion. "S-Somebody help! I think Magearna's busted," he cried.

"What do you mean busted?" Togedemaru asked, popping out from the infirmary. "She's a living being!" The heads of several of his guild mates joined Togedemaru in the doorway.

Magearna righted herself and blinked her mechanical eyes. **My goodness. That was the most intense surge in shockification levels I've ever felt since my circuitry activated. I've never gone to one hundred percent so quickly. But forget that!** She turned to Shane. **How could I not have realizinated this earlier? Oh, I am going to need numerous shame algorithms to process this blunder.** She brought her arms up against her face and shook it repeatedly.

"Stop beating around the bush and tell me what's wrong already," Shane begged. "Is it the looplet? Is it trying to kill me?" He put his foreleg on the ground and frantically tried to push the anklet off, to no avail.

 **No, no. Quite the opposite, actually,** Magearna said. **That is no ordinary looplet. What you have there is a** _ **Naturia Looplet.**_

"No way!" "It can't be!" "I thought those were a myth." "How the heck did _he_ get one?"

Shane's ears twitched from the chorus of whispers behind him. "Okay, someone's going to have to loop me in, because I'm quite confused." He paused for a moment. "Heh… loop. That's a good one." A series of annoyed groans rang out from the infirmary, making his ears scrunch up. "Hey, that was clever, dang it!" Shane huffed.

 **A Naturia Looplet is a looplet imbued with the life energy of one of the Land Spirits,** Magearna explained. **Judging by the green colorification on that gem, I calculate a greater than ninety-nine percent chance that it was Tapu Bulu who gave you that.**

"But I've never met a Tapu Tofu before. I don't even know what it looks like," Shane said, staring blankly at his looplet.

"Tapu _Boo-loo,_ you dork! Are you trying to get us all cursed or something?" Togedemaru said.

 **You say you've never met him, but that has to be his life energy I'm detectinating. These readings are astronomical!** Magearna said, eyes flickering rapidly. **And, from what it sounds like, you used a Z-Move against Espeon and Umbreon. Only the power of a Naturia Looplet can grant a normal Pokémon access to Z-Moves.**

"Wait, that was a Z-Move?" Shane gasped. His jaw fell open. "You mean this whole time I could've—" He fell to the floor and buried his head under his forepaws. "Aggh! You big, dumb, stupid idiot!" He smacked his cheek multiple times. "Do you realize how much trouble you could've prevented if you'd used it earlier? You're so pathetic, Shane!"

"Huh. That wasn't the reaction I was expecting," Togedemaru mused.

"Yeah, I figured he was going to start prancing around the place singing about how awesome he is," Haunter added. "I guess I dragged these out of my room for no reason." He nonchalantly chucked the Haunter-colored maracas in his hands over his shoulder. Misdreavus caught them in her spectral hair and disappeared into the floor with them.

 **Don't beat yourself up too much. It's been so long since a normal Pokémon's been seen with one, it was assumed they were only meant for Totem Pokémon to use,** Magearna said.

"But wait. This could be really important!"

Cold air bristled Shane's shoulder. "Gah!" He jumped backwards. "When did you get here?"

"S-Sorry! I'm sorry," Mimikyu squeaked, swiveling his makeshift tail forward to cover his eyes. "You guys were so busy talking, I didn't want to say anything."

"Well, you're talking now," Togedemaru said. "Go on, finish your thought."

"Well, Shane said that the very last thing Espeon and Umbreon were hit with was the Z-Move, yes?" Mimikyu said, drawing a nod from Shane. "And they're here with us now, right? As opposed to getting turned into colorless, motionless statues?"

"Yeah," Shane said.

 **Ah, I see what you're getting at,** Magearna said.

"Right. What if Shane's Z-Move can free Pokémon from the Prism Virus?" Mimikyu proposed.

Shane's eyes widened as the realization sank in that he _had_ freed them. "Then we might have a way to save infected Pokémon after all," he said.

 **Don't get too carried away. If the data I have is true, you can only use a Z-Move once in a Mystery Dungeon,** Magearna cautioned. **Judging by your explanolation earlier, I believe that is the case with your looplet.**

Shane's ears folded against his head. "So, I've got to pick and choose when to use it, huh? That dampens things." He looked down at the looplet once again. "But wait, isn't there any way we could try to get more of these? If Z-Moves can stop the Prism Virus, then everyone in the guild should have a Naturia Looplet."

"It's not that simple, genius," Togedemaru scoffed. "Naturia Looplets are only granted to worthy Pokémon by the Land Spirits. And that means you have to be able to find one of them and prove you deserve the looplet." She rubbed her chin. "Then again, if you got one without even knowing how, maybe it's not as hard as the legends say."

"Hey! No need to dis me like that," Shane growled.

"It wasn't an insult. Just an observation," Togedemaru said, frowning.

Shane still gave Togedemaru a nasty look before turning back to Magearna. "Isn't there any way to figure out where the Tapus are hiding?"

 **I might be able to generatify a plan, given some time,** Magearna said. **If anyone needs me, I'll be in my workshop.** She disappeared into the hallway she had popped out of earlier.

Shane sighed and rubbed his head. "Now what?" he muttered. "I have all this new information, but it doesn't feel like there's a thing I can do with it!"

"Maybe focus on healing up first?" Mimikyu said. Shane gave him a look of disbelief. Mimikyu flinched. "A-Ah! It was just a suggestion, that's all. Y-You can go do whatever you want." He quickly shuffled backward.

Shane walked past Mimikyu, glancing down the stairs. Tessa had run down here earlier. He figured he should check to make sure she was okay. "Hey! I'm going downstairs to find my partner. Don't anyone go yelling at me for entering the veterans' quarters this time, okay?" he announced.

"Sure, buddy. Whatever you say."

" _Gah!_ "

Drifloon popped out of the wall. Shane leaped up in surprise, hit the edge of the stairs, and tumbled down them. His joints rattled with every step he hit until he landed at the bottom in a fuzzy white heap.

"Huh. And here I thought Vulpixes always landed gracefully," Drifloon mused, disappearing back into the wall.

Shane groaned and staggered to his feet. He _really_ hated those ghosts. Shane looked down the veterans' quarters, narrowing his eyes to adjust to the lower lighting conditions. "Riolu? Hey, Riolu! Are you down here?" At first, he heard no response. However, his ears soon twitched.

He should've known Tessa would go to her mother's room. Though, with the conclusion he had drawn earlier, the thought of entering said room unsettled him. Nonetheless, Shane padded forward and glanced toward the appropriate doorway. The room was as messy as he recalled it being at the start of the week. He caught a flash of blue in his field of vision and turned his attention toward the far corner of the room.

Prisma's bed sat buried underneath a bookshelf that had toppled over, scattering books all around it. It was at the foot of the bed that Tessa lay curled up into a ball. She clasped her scarf and a piece of paper in her paws. While she wasn't bawling her eyes out anymore, her soft, muffled whimpers made the fur in Shane's ears tingle.

"Riolu," he whispered, stepping into the room. Tessa's aura feelers twitched the moment his forepaw hit the ground. She pivoted, turning her back toward the doorway. Shane's tails fell to the ground. "Riolu, I'm sorry," he said, continuing toward her. "I don't know what to say."

He reached Tessa's side while she attempted to curl up into an even tighter ball. His heart sank. This wasn't fair. Tessa didn't deserve this. Not after everything that had happened over the last few days. This was supposed to be a fresh start for the team.

"Please," Tessa whispered, making Shane's ears twitch. "Please… just be quiet. I don't want to talk right now."

Shane opened his mouth, only to slowly close it and silently bow his head. He couldn't leave her alone any longer. "C… can I join you, at least?"

Tessa didn't reply, which technically meant she didn't refuse his offer. So, Shane slid down beside her. It wasn't long before Tessa shifted her position, so her head came to rest against his side. He avoided eye contact, instead glancing at the paper in her paws. It was a photo. One of a younger Tessa and Gallian, together with an even-younger Eevee. Incineroar and Sylveon were both in the background, holding up an Eevee-shaped cake.

"You guys were really close," Shane said, only for his eyes to widen. He meant to think that, not say it. Where had his inner monologue gone?

"They were practically family," Tessa said. She rubbed her face against his hide. Her snot seeped into Shane's fur as he suppressed a grimace. "And… and now they're gone. Just like everyone else."

They fell back into silence as Tessa stared at the picture. There was a longing gaze in her eyes. "Is there anything I can do? Y'know, to help and stuff?" Shane said, praying she would respond.

"Tell me… that it's going to be okay," Tessa said, blinking tears out of her eyes.

"Huh?"

"Tell me that they're not really gone!" Tessa cried, grabbing Shane's face and swiveling it to meet her tearful gaze. "Tell me we can find a way to bring them back!"

"Uh… w-well… I d-don't really…"

"There has to be way! There just has to," Tessa blubbered. "All the other times the world was in danger, the heroes fixed _everything._ They made happy endings for everyone. So, why should this be any different?"

Shane's muzzle stiffened. That was true for his games back home, too.

"Come on. You're always going on and on about how well you know the stories. Tell me that once we beat the Prism Virus, they'll come back!" Tessa pleaded. "That all we need to do is stop Zero... and I'll have my friends back!"

"I… um..." Shane shut his eyes and forced himself to look away. "You're right. We can't give up hope."

"I knew it."

"Hmm?" Shane opened his eyes to find Tessa staring down at the photo again.

"You don't really believe that, do you?" Tessa whispered. "They're gone. They're gone and they're never… they're…" She curled back up into a ball.

"Wait. No! No, I really believe it," Shane insisted, though the uncertainty in his voice was plain as day. "B-But you're not of any help to them all banged up like this. We, erm, we need to get you all healed up."

"No."

"Huh? B-But—"

"Please… just leave me alone."

"Riolu—"

"Shane, I need some space right now. I'm not going to hurt myself or anything," Tessa said.

He wanted to believe her, but wouldn't forgive himself if he left her alone when she really needed help. "But—"

"Get out, Shane," Tessa said. After a long pause, she added, "Please."

Shane frowned. He felt so useless. Shane wondered if maybe he should get Null to help Tessa. He got to his feet, continuing to stare at her. After a minute of Tessa lying still, Shane made up his mind. He silently walked out of the room. His gaze remained fixed on the floor as he trudged up the stairs. When he arrived back at the assembly room, he spotted Espeon and Umbreon walking out of the Guildmaster's office. Blank expressions sat on their faces.

"You two!" he shouted, stomping up toward them. "What else aren't you telling us about the Prism Virus, huh? And Zero, for that matter?"

Espeon and Umbreon exchanged panicked looks. "We've said everything we know. Honest," Umbreon replied.

"Well, I'm not convinced," Shane huffed. "What happens to the Pokémon who turn colorless, huh? Is there any way to bring them back?"

"This is about your partner's friends, isn't it?" Espeon said, frowning.

"Of course it is!" Shane barked. How could she act so stoic about this? He stood up on the tips of his toes and got into Espeon's face. Espeon took a cautious step backwards. "You hurt her. You hurt her badly. And if that wasn't bad enough, you flat-out admitted you were aware of what you were doing the entire time!"

Espeon shuffled backwards. "Stop reminding me of how much I screwed up. It's bad enough I'm stuck with all these memories. I don't need you making it worse!"

"What more do you want us to say?" Umbreon asked. "You saw what happened to Riolu's friends. There's no coming back from that. I'm sorry."

Shane pulled his lips back into a snarl. "That's not good enough!" he shouted, pushing his face against Espeon's chest. She slid back once again. One of her hind paws slipped out from behind her. With a yelp, Espeon slipped into Bruxish's pond.

"Espy!" Umbreon cried. He tackled Shane to the ground. "What the heck is your problem, kid?"

" _My_ problem?! What's _your_ problem?" Shane hissed, squirming about underneath the dark-type. "You're brushing over Riolu's losses. Didn't you see how devastated she was? You at least owe her a big… no, a _huge_ apology! No… more than that. You need to fix this! You need to make things right!"

"Come on. You didn't think we'd at least apologize?" Umbreon huffed. "How do you think we're feeling right now, huh? This isn't going to do anyone any good. Least of all your friend!"

"Goooooood heavens," Bruxish's voice carried from the pond as a soggy Espeon splashed up next to her partner. "Warn a fellow before you go diving into their home, dahling. You nearly made my heart stop." Bruxish disappeared back under the surface, muttering something to himself. Espeon turned and glared at Shane.

"Oh brother. Suck it up. A little water never hurt anyone," Shane growled, recalling his multitude of unwanted dips. He fixed his gaze on Espeon, but heat soon rushed into his face and he looked away.

"Why are you being so nasty toward us?" Espeon asked, trying to shake herself dry to little avail. "We realize what we've done is wrong."

"Then go apologize to Riolu. Now!" Shane said, huffing out frost. "And, while you're at it, why not try to make up for what you did and help us figure out a way to beat the Prism Virus? You're both really smart. I'm sure you can think of something if you put your heads together."

Espeon slapped her forepaw on the ground. Water droplets splattered against Shane's cheek. He flinched and turned away. "Don't you get it," she said. "There's nothing we _can_ do. You saw Zero's powers for yourself. Our normal abilities alone aren't good enough to stop her."

Shane wriggled free. He bolted to his feet and snorted another tuft of frost at Umbreon. "I can't believe you two!" he spat. "Moping about in defeat like she's already won. I always thought you two were so cool... the way you helped stop Kyurem and the Bittercold. You were heroes to me! I... I..." Shane's gaze fell onto Espeon. He watched water drip off her fur.

He turned away, a look of uncertainty on his face. "I guess it's true what they say. Never meet your heroes. You just wind up getting disappointed by what you see," he growled.

Umbreon opened his mouth to retort when a half-avian, half-furry foreleg reached out in front of him. He followed the limb to Null's body, locked eyes, and then abruptly looked away.

"… I think you two… should give us the room…"

Umbreon nodded slowly. "Come on, Espy. Let's go dry you off," he said. They then left Null alone with Shane.

Turning to Shane, Null rasped, "Okay. What's with the attitude? You totally… flew off the handle... at them."

"No, I didn't. They deserved it," Shane said. "I was doing it for Tessa." When Null responded with an unamused look, Shane shouted, "It's not fair!" He then lashed out at the wall, only to quickly withdraw his throbbing paw with a whimper.

"I've worked hard. I've gotten stronger. I'm patching things up with everyone. So, why did we fail again?" Shane said. "Every time I go up against the Prism Virus, things go wrong! And it's getting worse, not better." He collapsed to the ground, burying his head in his forelegs.

"Shane," Null whispered, extending a foreleg toward him.

"Don't 'Shane' me!" Shane hissed, swiping Null's foreleg away. "You don't get how messed up all of this is. I…" He shut his eyes and scrunched up his face. "Null… I can't do this. I can't do this anymore."

"What are you... talking about?"

"The dungeon-crawling. Fighting the Prism Virus. It's too much! I'm in too far over my head!" Shane said. He couldn't hold it back any longer. Tears trickled down his cheeks. "Zero… is Tessa's mom."

"That's impossible."

"I'm sure of it," Shane whimpered. "Don't you get it? The answer was sitting in front of me the whole time, but I was too stupid to notice it!" He let out an unhinged laugh. "Tessa's mom is a human. That's why Tessa and Gallian have names. She's a human... and she's been here god only knows how long. Now she's trying to destroy the world!"

"I don't… believe you. Zero… didn't sound… anything like a girl," Null said, shaking his head.

"Believe it. I saw her outline up close, Null," Shane said. "She had the figure of a Lucario. She was wearing Egyptian clothing. She had a _mask of Anubis_ over her face! Anubis is the inspiration for Lucario in my world." He buried his face in his forelegs, shivering. "It can't be anyone else. It's her." He looked up at Null, blinking tears out of his eyes. "This is too much. I can't fight against Tessa's mom. Now when she's got crazy powers."

"What about Tessa?" Null whispered.

Shane bolted to his feet, tails fanning out in panic. "We can't tell her anything!"

Null tensed up. "What are you saying? It's her mom. She's been trying… to find out what happened to her… since she got here," he growled.

"That doesn't matter. You saw her for yourself. She's a mess!" Shane said. "If we tell her that her mom's Zero, then… then she's going to kill herself for sure!"

Null stepped forward. His stone helmet jammed Shane's snout backward. "We have to tell her," he hissed. "If we _don't…_ and she finds out on her own… then what do you think… is going to happen?"

"Well... um..." Shane hopped backward. "You want to tell her? Fine!" he growled. He stepped to the side and gestured toward the stairs. "Be my guest. Well, go on. What are you waiting for? March on down there, look her in the eyes, and tell her, 'Hi, Riolu. Sorry about your friends. Oh, by the way, your mom's the one who killed them. Because she's a _murderous psychopath now!_ '"

Null tackled a squealing Shane to the ground. "What are you doing?" Shane said. "Help! _Somebody he—_ mmfffgh!"

Null grabbed Shane's snout in his talons. "Stop… stop it!" he snarled, thrashing his head about. Shane swore he heard Null's voice crack. "Do you think… I like this? Riolu's my... best friend. I don't want… to see her in pain. I don't want… to see either of you… tearing yourselves apart like this." He leaned down, digging his helmet into Shane's ribs. "But we have to tell her. She deserves to know… what's going on."

Silence fell over the two of them. Shane stopped struggling. He couldn't think up a counterargument. Null was right. Keeping this big of a secret from Tessa would do far more harm than good in the long run. And he couldn't subject Tessa to something like that. Still, there was a big problem in front of them.

"How?" Shane squeaked. "How can we possibly break news like this to her?"

"I don't know," Null said. "But we'll have... to think of something. I dunno… maybe ease her... into the conversation? Didn't she say… she was having dream visions… about her mom... and Lunala?" Shane nodded silently. "Then just based on... what Espeon and Umbreon told us… we have a place to start."

"Do we have to do it right now?" Shane whimpered.

"I guess not," Null sighed. "We can… think on it… overnight. But tomorrow… we have to say something…" He stepped off Shane and extended his foreleg. "I'm sorry… for snapping at you."

Shane got to his feet of his own accord. "Apology accepted," he said, letting out a dejected sigh. He briefly wondered if he should apologize for the outburst, but instead said, "Wanna know the worst part of all of this? It's that Gallian, was right! We failed Sylveon and Eevee." He lifted his head up and looked at Null. "What am I supposed to do, huh? At this rate, I don't stand a chance against Zero!"

"… you could evolve…" Null whispered, poking the ground with a talon.

Shane's ears twitched. "You're kidding, right?" he said, adding a bitter laugh

"Does it sound... like I'm kidding?" Null asked.

"I can't evolve," Shane said. "Think about the other times the world was in danger. Every time it happened, something prevented the heroes from evolving. I'm sure the Prism Virus is doing some weird, alien mumbo-jumbo to the continent. Which means I'm stuck as a weak, frail Vulpix."

"But you keep mentioning… how much different this feels... from those other times," Null said. "Maybe that means... you can evolve. Don't you think… it's at least worth a shot?"

"Bah! I don't want to get my hopes up," Shane dismissed. "Besides, how would an ice-type Vulpix even evolve, anyway? What, is there an Ice Stone or something?"

Null coughed and looked away.

Shane's expression stiffened. "Oh my god, there's totally an Ice Stone in this world, isn't there?" he said. Null nodded slowly. "Okay, well, even if I _could_ evolve, what about Tessa, huh? Riolus are supposed to evolve into Lucarios when they're extremely happy. Tessa's about as far from that juncture as you could possibly get right now!"

"That's not necessarily true."

Shane's ears swiveled in front of him. He looked up and saw Tessa walking toward him. Espeon and Umbreon stood a few paces behind her. "T-Tessa!" he squeaked. "I… I mean Riolu! Are you, y'know, okay? Feeling better?"

"I'm fine," Tessa said, rubbing her nose with a paw. "You're wrong, though. Happiness isn't the only way to get a Riolu to evolve." She clasped her shoulder and looked away. "Mom told me that, if a Riolu can learn to fully tap into its aura, it'll evolve into Lucario. But she was in charge of my aura training. It's been almost eight months since I've had any real practice with it."

Shane's stance slouched. "Then, it's hopeless, isn't it? We're both going to be stuck in our base evolutions. And we'll be totally powerless against the Prism Virus," he said.

"Maybe not."

"I had an idea," Umbreon said as Shane gave him an unconvinced look. "That Z-Move you used on us, it left you positively brimming with energy while it was happening."

Espeon sighed. "He's right, you know. Your life energy erupted like a geyser. You emitted an aura so strong I thought it would blind my psionic sense." She looked at Umbreon. "But what does that have to do with controlling raw aura, anyway?"

"If Riolu uses a Z-Move, it's possible that the sudden surge of energy she would experience could be enough to jump-start her aura sense and trigger an evolution," Umbreon said. "Of course, it's only a theory. There's no guarantee it would work. Still, you ought to try."

"I thought you two had already given up?" Shane huffed, giving a dismissive flick of his snout. Though his gaze remained fix on Espeon's damp fur.

Espeon and Umbreon looked at each other and their gazes fell guiltily. "I guess you could say your partner reminded us of something important. Something worth fighting for," Espeon whispered. Shane gave Tessa a curious look, but she immediately turned away, pulling up her scarf to cover her face.

"There's one problem with that idea, though," Shane said. "I can't get this Naturia Looplet off me! It's practically a part of me. Like Null's helmet." His muzzle stiffened and he shot Null a nervous look. Null huffed and shook his head, ruffling his chest plumage.

"Then we'll have to find another one," Umbreon said. "Espy and I are…" His voice trailed off and he looked at Espeon. She stiffened, but she gave a single nod. "Right," Umbreon said. "Yeah. Espy and I are willing to help. Researching magical energies _is_ a specialty of ours, after all."

"I guess we could use your help," Tessa whispered, biting her lip.

"Then it's settled," Umbreon said. "We might not have a plan, per se. But that's what tomorrow's for. In the meantime, you should get healed up."

Shane and Tessa glanced at each other. They both gave nods and proceeded toward the infirmary. Null tagged along after them, slowly shaking his head. Espeon's tail flicked to her left, flinging water droplets onto the wall. "What do you think, Umbry?" she asked.

"They're no Haxorus and Raichu, that's for sure," Umbreon said. "But they're neck deep in all of this craziness. Like it or not, we have to help them."

Espeon lowered her head in resignation. "I understand."

* * *

Aaaaaaand the episode's getting extended by another chapter. Because this one was getting too long.

So, next time: the Prism Virus replenishes its ranks at the guild's expense. Also, some dragon and sea bird fluff. Yes, you read that correctly.


	44. Peering Over the Horizon

Ho-kay, so, this chapter. Originally, this was going to be a two-scene bonus. And then the last chapter started getting too big for its britches, so a lot of that content was spun off and combined with the bonus scenes... which basically led to all of this getting rewritten. I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

 **Chapter 38: Peering Over the Horizon**

 **~Sea Shrine~**

With a loud groan, Lugia hoisted himself out of a pool of water. Tears stung his eyes. He pulled his wing close to his side. Lugia cursed himself out. He had messed it up badly. Not even Roost could fix it up. Lugia glanced down from his watery perch, frowning. There was no way he could safely jump down to his nest. What was he supposed to do, now? This injury could put him out of commission for a while.

"Lugia!"

His eyes widened. Latias lay on top of one the stone pillars. Why was she here? She hadn't even sent word she'd be visiting.

"T-Tia," he said. "What are you doing here?" He pivoted to his right in a poor attempt at hiding his broken wing, but Latias had already spotted the injury. Worry flashed across her face and she sped over to him.

"I wanted to come see you. But never mind that. You're hurt! What happened to you?" she said.

"It's… it's nothing," Lugia said, pivoting further to the right. Latias hovered around to face his broken wing.

"Let me see," she said. Lugia sighed and dropped his left wing. Latias gazed at the swollen, misshapen limb and grimaced. "I can fix this. I'm sure of it," she whispered.

"Tia, you don't have to waste energy on my behalf," Lugia insisted.

"You don't need to pull the tough guy routine on me, you know," Latias said, scowling at him. "You really think I'm just going to let you sit here with a broken wing? No! I'm leaving for Horizon tomorrow and I'd like to rest easy knowing my mate's okay."

Lugia's jaw slackened. "Wait, what?"

This gave Latias the opening she needed. She pointed a claw at him. Soft, multicolored light hit Lugia's wing. It enveloped his feathers. His bruises faded away and his wing bent back into its proper angle. A surge of pain flooded Lugia's limb. Hissing, his eyes snapped shut. Luckily, the pain faded. Lugia looked at his mended wing and cautiously flapped it.

"There. Was that really so bad?" Latias said.

"No," Lugia sighed.

Latias hovered forward and brushed her head and neck against his wing. "And, even if your pride's telling you otherwise, I don't think any less of you for accepting my help." She craned her neck up to peck him on the cheek. Lugia fought to hide a blush.

"It… it's not that I didn't want your help, Tia. It's just… it's really embarrassing that I let this happen to me. I'm supposed to be a sea guardian, and I let the water get the better of me today," Lugia said, tail curling up. He turned his face away from her. "Last time I felt this humiliated, I let Hoopa spike my berry juice at Reshiram's summer solstice party."

"Well, do you think you could tell me what happened?" Latias asked.

"Only if you tell me what you meant with that Horizon nonsense," Lugia replied, to which Latias nodded. "Okay. It's the undersea currents. The moon has seriously screwed them up. A nasty whirlpool popped up off the coast of Treasure Town today. I tried to reach out to Kyogre for her help, but she refused to leave her home."

"So, I had to try and dispel the whirlpool all on my own," Lugia whispered, shuddering. He lowered his head shamefully. "I misjudged the amount of room I had to safely maneuver around it. I got sucked in and tossed into a jagged rock."

The mental image made Latias wince. "Oh, Lugia, I'm so sorry," she squeaked.

"That broke my wing," Lugia continued. "I'm just lucky I was able to swim back here safely."

"Why didn't you just surface and get help? I'm sure Wigglytuff's Guild would've lent you a hand," Latias said.

Lugia glared disapprovingly. "Seriously, Latias? I wasn't about to go up to a guild and admit to all its Pokémon that I failed at my job." He shook his head. "I wouldn't expect you to understand…"

Latias' cheeks puffed up. "… why? Because I'm 'just a Latias?'" Her amber eyes narrowed. "You sound like Rayquaza, you know. 'I'm not surprised Dark Matter got to you first. You and your brother are disgraces to dragon-kind! Hardly befitting the title of lesser god!'"

Lugia flinched and looked away, but Latias continued, "I know you don't like guilds, but couldn't you at least _try_ to understand? I don't just sit around in Lively Town, twiddling my claws day in and day out. These last couple of weeks have been _really_ stressful for me." She teared up. "I came to see you because I'm leaving for Horizon and… and…"

She buried her face in Lugia's neck and shivered. His feathers stood on end. Sure, Latias had come to him full of worries before, but this case seemed _especially_ troubling. "Tuh-Tia? What's the matter? Did something bad happen to you?" His eyes narrowed. "Is someone on the Horizon Continent giving you trouble?"

"It's me," she said, voice cracking. Lugia raised a confused brow. "I'm the problem. I was in Horizon last week, trying to run a mission, and things went really badly. N-Now I have to go back… and I might have to face down a Pokémon that wants to kill me!"

"What?! Then don't go! Your safety comes first, Tia," Lugia said, eyes widening. He draped his left wing over her in an embrace. "For pity's sake, I couldn't stand the thought of losing you."

"Lugia..." Latias shifted up, her feathers brushing his underbelly. She leaned her head up next to his. "Don't you get it? I have to go. I have to do this."

"No, you don't," Lugia countered, pulling her out of the embrace and sternly putting his wings on top of hers. "You don't owe those Pokémon anything."

"Yes, I do! We _all_ do. 'Those Pokémon' are the only reason I'm here," Latias said, brow furrowing. "They're… they're the only reason we're _both_ still here. And you know that. You just refuse to admit it."

"That's not..." Lugia's voice trailed off. She was right. He didn't have any semblance of a counterargument.

"You… Rayquaza… I swear, a ton of you are trying to pretend like Dark Matter didn't happen. Like it was a fluke! Sometimes it feels like you guys think that, somehow, if you ignore everything that went wrong, there won't be any fallout," Latias continued. "But Dark Matter _did_ happen. And now we're starting to see the repercussions."

Lugia looked away guiltily, but Latias swiveled his head back to face her. "Something's wrong with the world, Lugia. Don't tell me you don't think there's a problem. Because if there wasn't, a 'random whirlpool' wouldn't have gotten the better of you!" she said, jabbing a claw into his right wing.

"What do you want me to say?" Lugia croaked, not wanting things to escalate further. "Nobody's helping me. I'm trying to do the best I can to counter these strange currents, but I've never dealt with something like this. And Mom didn't, either. Even when the natural disasters were at their worst, Mom had everything under control."

"I know that, sweetie," Latias whispered, floating forward to peck him on the cheek. "And now I need to step in and do the best that I can, too. I won't let what happened with Dark Matter happen again. The Expedition Society thinks the Horizon Guild's heavily involved in all the stuff with the moon. So, I'm going over there to investigate." She fidgeted with her claws. "And I came here… I came here to say goodbye. Because…" She gulped. "… I don't know if I'm going to make it back."

"Latias—"

"I'm scared, Lugia!" she squeaked, embracing him again. "I don't want to face this 'God Killer.' And I don't want to face whatever's messing with the moon." She gazed up into Lugia's eyes. "But… but I don't want to lose you. And I don't want to lose Latios. I can't go through that again. That's why I have to go. I need to do whatever I can… to keep you both safe."

"Luh… Latias... have you even told your brother about us?" Lugia said, face flushing.

Latias hung her head shamefully and shook it.

"Even after three years, you still can't muster up the courage to tell him?" Lugia asked. "Surely—"

"I know, Lugia, It's pathetic. _I'm_ pathetic," Latias said, wings drooping. "Maybe Rayquaza's right. Maybe I am useless."

Lugia pressed his wing against Latias' snout. "Don't listen to him. Look, I may be on better terms with Ray than you are, but I'll be the first to admit there are times when he should… oh, how do I put this delicately?"

"… shove his tail down his throat and suck on it?"

Sweat drops ran down the back of Lugia's head. "That's… uh… well, I guess that's one way of looking at it."

Latias couldn't help but giggle. "You're right, though, Lugia. That's why, when this is all said and done, I'll come clean. I'll tell big brother you're my mate. But right now, I'm all he has. I don't want him to feel like he's lost me to you. He's my only family. He _raised_ me, even when we were both just hatchlings. He's the one who kept me going when we were running from Dark Matter... and I wanted to give up because I was too tired."

Lugia spotted his blurry reflection in Latias' teary eyes. "I understand," he said, tickling Latias' chin with his wing. "Do what you have to do. And, if there's any way you can think of for me to help, don't hesitate to—"

"Stay safe. I'm not saying to hide here, but watch your back. Keep your psionic sense sharp. Because we don't know what's out there. So, we need to be on our guard," Latias said.

Lugia nodded. "You got it, Tia. So, does this mean you're leaving right now?"

Latias's ears fell against her head. "I think that'd be best…"

Lugia craned his neck around Latias' and nestled her cheek. "Are you sure I can't convince you to stay just a bit longer?" He pursed his lips and blew a small jet of cool air against Latias' ear.

Latias squeaked. Her face reddened. "W-Well… maybe I could stay a few more minutes," she said, feathers standing on end.

* * *

 **~Celestial Island~**

 **"No! Stop!** _ **Stop!**_ **What do you think you're doing, you imbecilic Xurkitrees? I said right, not left!"**

Across from Necrozma, four giant messes of coiled wires stiffened. The large crystalline bed they were holding shook. Electricity emerged from the sparking stars serving as the Xurkitrees' nuclei. Lightning raced down their cable-like limbs and surged across a purple shag carpet. The fibers stuck straight up. Necrozma looked down at them and grimaced.

 **"Yes. You four. I am talking to you. Do you see any other Xurkitrees here? No!"** Necrozma said, pointing a wing at the quartet. **"I am this close to finally having a place I can call home and are ruining everything. Now, all of you, take three steps to your right."**

The Xurkitrees stepped to their left. A black energy beam grazed a Xurkitrees' nucleus. It crackled, vaguely sounding like someone walking across a sheet of bubble wrap.

 **"How many times do I have to say this? Move right, not left! These are basic directions. Do you foolish Ultra Beasts** _ **really**_ **not know your lefts from your rights?"** Necrozma shouted. Behind him, two white jellyfish floated down from the ceiling. Chittering, they extended some of their tentacles toward Necrozma. **"Okay, okay, back off. I get the memo,"** Necrozma growled, waving them away with his right hand. It spasmed, forcing him to bring it against his chest.

 **"Stupid Zero, making me open all those Wormholes. I'd have been done by now if I wasn't too tired to use Psychic."** He sighed and shook his head. **Let's try this again. Take three steps that way."** He pointed to his left.

The Xurkitree slid over to their right. Their heads flickered multiple times. Necrozma tapped his chin with a claw. He held his hand up, shut his right eye, and cocked his head to the side. **"Yes... Finally! It's positively perfect!"** He pointed down. The Xurkitrees released their grips on the bed. It dropped to the ground. Necrozma flew onto it. He spread his wings out and sighed in content.

 **"After centuries of being stuck with nothing... I** _ **finally**_ **have a bed. I have a room!"** He let out an unhinged laugh. **"Oh, how I've missed this feeling! Cloud-like foam under my body. Soft silken sheets against my flesh. It's been** _ **eons**_ **since I've experienced this."**

He floated back up into the air and looked at the Xurkitrees. **"I appreciate the help. Really, I do. But even with the bed... the pain is still here. So, I'm afraid I must ask you for one teeny, tiny, little thing."** His third eye glowed brightly. **"I want your light!"**

He spread his wings apart. Four black beams raced out around him. Each struck a Xurkitree, sapping the colors from their bodies and sending them into Necrozma's open mouth. Their corpses slumped to the ground. Crystals coated them, only for Necrozma to blow them up with purple Shadow Balls. Behind Necrozma, the jellyfish frantically waved their tentacles about and chittered angrily.

 **"Don't give me that tone, you stupid Nihilegos,"** Necrozma spat. **"You have no idea what it's like for your spirit to be fractured. I had to make the pain go away. I had to take their light. It was the only way!"**

Before the Nihilegos could respond, Necrozma tensed. Zero's voice echoed through his mind, saying, _"Necky, I'm finished for the day. Bring me home."_

Necrozma sighed. He lazily lifted his right arm and an Ultra Wormhole popped up in the center of the room. Zero walked out of it. She took three steps before stumbling. The Nihilegos descended toward her.

"Back off!" Zero hissed, swinging her scepter around. The Nihilegos drifted away, swaying back and forth. Zero descended into a fit of raucous coughing. She dropped to one knee and her mask and scepter fell to the ground with a pair of loud _clangs_.

 **"Oh?"** A grin wove its way onto Necrozma's mouth. Zero lunged for her mask, but a pink glow surrounded it. An unseen force yanked it into the air. **"Oops. How silly of me. I should really be more careful, shouldn't I?"**

"Necky, what do you think you're doing?" Zero hissed. Her limbs shook. Red liquid pooled at the base of her lone eye. She reached a trembling paw toward him. "Give me my mask."

 **"You mean this mask?"** Necrozma said, pulling it back and looking directly at it. **"I'm not doing anything to it. You want it… take it."** He looked down at Zero. Blood trickled from her left eye, coating her burnt flesh and patches of gray fur.

Zero's nostrils flared. "This isn't funny, Necky! I… I'm in pain. Give me back the mask!" she cried, her voice cracking.

 **"Yes, you look quite** _ **uncomfortable.**_ **But I don't really care. I'm in pain, too. And you've never once offered sympathy to me. Why should I return the favor?"** Necrozma said, floating over to her while keeping the mask suspended high above him. **"Especially when you can rid us** _ **both**_ **of all this pain. You just have to let me pluck my core out of your skull… and there'll be no more suffering for either of us."**

Necrozma placed his claws on the tips of Zero's mutilated snout. He walked them toward her right eye socket. He stuck his index claw out, tapping the rainbow prism wedged into Zero's right eye socket. Multicolored light spiraled across his arm. He licked his lips and whispered, **"Wouldn't you like to stop needing light to survive?"**

"Give me the mask, Necky!"

Zero grabbed Necrozma's face. The claws in her metallic armor dug into his forehead. Her arm distorted. It flickered so violently that it seemed to detach from her body. The static spread onto Necrozma. Afterimages fanned out in all directions. Necrozma fell to the ground with a guttural screech. He clawed at his face with his wing-digits, while Zero grabbed the mask and reattached it to her face. She took in several shuddering breaths.

 **"Skreeeep! Muh… mistress! Don't do that! It hurts! It** _ **hurts!**_ **"** Necrozma hissed, arms convulsing as if they were about to shoot off of his body.

"Then… listen to me… when I tell you… to give me my mask," Zero panted. She grabbed her scepter and slowly stood up. But her legs grew weak. She braced against the staff for support. "Light… get me light…"

 **"And why should I do that? You don't seem to be in the best frame of mine right now. Hell, you attacked me,"** Necrozma said.

Zero fixed her eye on Necrozma. "If you want your precious core back, then you need me at full strength. Otherwise, all that light you rant about will fade away."

Necrozma glared at Zero. **"That's my core you're misusing!"**

"The more time you waste, the more energy seeps away," Zero chided. "Now, I don't care what Pokémon you take. Just get. Me. Light."

 **"... fine. Your wish is my command... mistress,"** he hissed, disappearing into an Ultra Wormhole. Zero stood there, slouched against her staff, panting heavily and staring at the blood on her paw. She couldn't keep this up. Necrozma was getting testier.

The sound of bodies hitting the floor jolted her out of her stupor. She didn't even bother looking up to see what sort of Pokémon Necrozma had taken for her. " **Consume** ," she rasped, shakily raising her bloody paw. Red and black energy shot forward. Zero's arm fell limply by her side. Warmth spread across her body from the tip of her snout. The searing pain disappeared. Zero took a few steps backward. A couch lined with bright white feathers materialized out of the floor. She unknowingly sat on it, and allowed herself to lie down.

 **"Feeling better now?"** Necrozma scoffed. **"Good. Tell me again why you won't let me take my core back. You'd be so much happier without the bulk of my spirit festering inside you. I just want to put an end to all this pain. I'm tired of siphoning off Lunala's spirit. She's fighting me from the inside!"**

"And your spirit's fighting me from inside. So be quiet, Necky," Zero hissed, pressing her mask tight against her face. "It's thanks to you that this stupid core is stuck inside me. Whatever would make you think I'd trust you to take it out safely?" She flicked her other paw dismissively. "Besides, I need it to cleanse this world of its gods. Your life force is making that dream a reality."

Necrozma wrapped his wings around his torso. They twitched in protest. **"But mistress… I could destroy them all for you. No pain. No suffering. No problems. I'm more than happy to kill those heartless cretins."**

"No. It has to be me. It's the only way I can make this world perfect," Zero said. She rolled over on the couch and looked ahead of her. Three colorless bodies lay on top of one another, contrasting against the purple carpet. "An Alakazam, Charizard, and Tyranitar, huh?"

 **"Don't waste your energy worrying about these three, mistress. Just a group of retired rescuers. Well past their prime. Nothing of value was taken with their deaths,"** Necrozma said.

"No wonder their light tasted so stale," Zero said. "But beggars can't be choosers, I suppose. Get them out of my sight."

Necrozma snapped his claws and the corpses fell down into an Ultra Wormhole. **"So, seems like you had a bit of a rough day? Why don't… heeheeheehee… you tell your good buddy, Necrozma, what's bothering you?"**

"I'm not in the mood, Necky," Zero growled, plucking some of the down feathers off the couch.

 **"Hey! Leave the furniture alone! It's taken me weeks to finally assemble a room of my own and I will not have you ruining it!"** Necrozma snapped.

Zero ignored him and rolled over to face the back of the couch. "You want to know what's wrong? That wretched human slipped through my digits _again,_ " she seethed.

Necrozma popped up behind the couch in a puff of black smoke. **"Oh-** _ **ho!**_ **He is turning out to be quite the interesting little fellow, wouldn't you say? You might need to start being careful. He could easily be the difference between your plans succeeding and failing."**

Zero whipped her arm out and grabbed Necrozma's head again. She yanked him onto the couch and pressed down on his crystalline helmet. The third eye on Necrozma's forehead flickered like a dying lightbulb. "The only reason he keeps getting away is because _you_ screwed up! You told me you had vaporized the human. So, what's he doing in a Vulpix body with all his memories intact, huh?"

She shoved Necrozma away. He hissed at her and rubbed his face with his wings. **"What are you asking me for? My Prismatic Laser should've annihilated him right on the spot! Something must've interfered with my attack."**

"Gee, you think?" Zero huffed.

 **"I can't explain Ultra Space. It's one giant anomaly! But does it really matter? Couldn't Espeon and Umbreon deal with him?"** Necrozma asked.

Zero raised her paw up. Two black balls materialized before her. "Espeon and Umbreon... are no longer part of our team," she declared, clenching her fist and shattering the balls like they were made of glass.

Necrozma frowned. **"What?! No, you're lying. They had my energy inside of them! Where is it? I want it back. I want it back** _ **now!**_ **"**

"You won't get it back. They've been purged of the Prism Virus," Zero said, crossing her arms.

Necrozma's frown turned into a full-blown glare. **"You foolish mortal! Now I'll never get that light back! I'll never restore my core if you keep throwing it's energy away like that. We have a deal! I help you... I get my light back. Not half of it.** _ **All of it!**_ **"**

Zero brought her staff around and pointed it at Necrozma. "I'm well aware of our agreement, Necky."

 **"Skreevp! Then why are you breaking it?"** Necrozma thundered, bringing one of his wings up to obscure his face.

"I haven't broken it, Necky. There are plenty of gods out there to kill. More than enough to make up for the energy lost from Espeon and Umbreon," Zero snarled. "Let me put it to you simply. As long as that miscreant is here to interfere, then your core stays with me. And all that light you're rambling about will remain out of your reach."

 **"What?** _ **No!**_ **You can't do that! It's my light! The sun and moon are mine! Mine!** _ **Mine!**_ **"** He smacked his hands against the couch so violently that he shattered it, forcing Zero to jump to her feet.

"If you want them back so badly, then you're going to start pulling your weight around here, understand?" Zero barked. She raised her staff and pointed the octahedron at Necrozma and his face immediately blanched. "And that starts with taking me down to the surface so I can look for replacements for Espeon and Umbreon."

 **"Absolutely not! I'm not going to let you waste my light on more pathetic mortals,"** Necrozma sneered. **"Besides, you're after the Tapus, no? Shouldn't we have the Dawn Hourglass?"**

"Does it _look_ like I have its power under my control?" Zero said. "No! Because we got duped by that two-bit Land Spirit." She turned away from Necrozma. "I plan on sending you after Tapu Lele once I've caught some new Pokémon."

 **"Me? What happened to killing the gods yourself,"** Necrozma said.

"I'm willing to make one exception."

 **"Not good enough! You think you can keep me distracted by dangling Tapu Lele's life energy in front of me like it was a piece of meat on a stick?** _ **Fool!**_ **"** Necrozma shouted. **"I meant what I said! You are not capturing more Pokémon. You are not wasting all my Z-Power on worthless mortals who are doomed to fail against that human!"**

"Enough!" Zero roared, slamming her staff against the floor. Necrozma backed away from her, looking uneasy. "You've made your point. But I don't care. Either you listen to me..." She raised her staff and pointed it at Necrozma. "Or I rip your little spirit fragment out of Lunala."

 **"You wouldn't dare!"** Necrozma said.

Zero's lone eye narrowed. Her scepter flared. "Try me." Necrozma's eyes darted about in a panic. He lowered his wings and arms in surrender. "Good, that's what I thought. Now, open a wormhole to the surface." Necrozma gave Zero a bewildered look. "The winds of change are approaching the Horizon Guild and there's a little gust of air that I'd like to catch before it's too late."

Necrozma's third eye narrowed. **"Oh, really? I hope for both our sakes you know what you're doing."**

They proceeded into an Ultra Wormhole together.

* * *

 _Shane pulled the covers off his head and rolled onto his back. He looked up at the stationary ceiling fan on the ceiling. Sunlight had already spread throughout his bedroom. Shane didn't need to look at his alarm clock to know that he had slept through the start of the school. He had already been awake for hours. But he refused to get up._

 _After all, what point was there in going to school when your best friend was dead?_

 _The events of the previous evening were on repeat in his head. Coming home from work to find his parents in his room. His mom telling him to sit on his bed. Their stern expressions as they looked him in the eye and told him that Nicky had died in the emergency room that evening. And then the cold numbness that had overtaken him after that. All the while, he constantly drifted in and out of sleep._

 _He had never felt so miserable. His only friend had left him. Now, he was truly alone. Sure, he had his family, but he couldn't be himself around them. They_ hated _that. So, he'd be stuck wearing a mask and having to keep his thoughts and interests to himself. All he could think about was Nicky. Why did he have to do this?_

 _Unfortunately for Shane, nature was making it increasingly hard to keep laying around in his bed doing nothing. Eventually, he surrendered to his urges and slinked off to the bathroom. Upon exiting, he heard a pair of voices carrying up from the kitchen._

 _"… I'm just saying, it might not be the right time, Margie."_

 _Shane froze at the top of the stairs. He hung over the railing, hoping to get a better listen in on the conversation._

 _"George and I are beside ourselves, Estelle. We just… we need to know exactly what happened," Margie said._

 _"I can't even imagine what you and George are going through right now, Margie. But shouldn't you be focusing on… something else?" Estelle asked._

 _"I'm tending to the funeral arrangements. And we'll be sitting shiva afterwards, of course," Margie said, her voice clearly strained. "But George… he just…" Margie sniffled. "He's not going to sit still on this."_

 _Shane tightened his grip on the railing. What did Nicky's dad really care? Nicky said his father hated him. Shane wondered if maybe Nicky's parents were the ones who'd driven him to suicide._

 _"Is he meeting with the school about Nicholas?" Estelle said._

 _"No. He's… we're…" Margie's voice trailed off. "We're hiring an attorney. You remember my college roommate, Prisma Sinclair? Her husband's a litigator. Specializes in education law."_

 _"You're getting a lawyer? Why?"_

 _"George thinks this is the school's fault," Margie said, her voice cracking. "He, um, he wanted me to ask you if Shane could meet him. The lawyer, I mean."_

 _Shane stepped back from the stairs._

 _"Shane? Is that you, honey?" Estelle called. "Why don't you come downstairs for a minute?"_

 _He didn't listen. Instead, Shane turned and ran back into his room, slamming the door shut._

 _ **Fake…**_

 _"H… Huh?"_

 _Shane looked at the box sitting on his desk. It was covered in hideous polka-dot wrapping paper. "N… Nicky?" he said, stepping toward the box. "Is that you? Am I dreaming?" He walked up toward the box and picked it up._

 **Fake!**

 _Shane dropped the box in surprise and stumbled back. "What's going on here?" he said. "Who keeps saying that?" He picked the box back up again. "Nicky, did you get me some sort of stupid prank toy for my birthday?" He tore through the wrapping paper and pried open the box underneath it. Shane gasped. "This… no, it can't be."_

 _He reached into the box and pulled out a worn Umbreon doll. It had a few gray patches on it. Shane gritted his teeth._

 _It was Nicky's favorite toy._

 _He flipped the doll over, rubbing his hand over its back and feeling the stitches woven into the fabric from the time he accidentally ripped the doll open and Nicky's mom had to sew it back together. Shane set the plushy down on his desk_

 _ **Faker!**_

 _Shane looked at the shelves hanging over his neck. On the edge of the lowest one sat an Espeon doll that looked equally ragged compared to Nicky's gift. Shane plucked it off the shelf and held it in his hands. He recalled how he and Nicky had managed to get them years ago. They were the last ones available in the store and they had just managed to beat out another kid to the toy aisle. Now he had both of them._

 _His mind raced. Why was this his birthday present? Had Nicky planned to do this for a while or was it a last-minute decision Nicky made once he had decided to kill himself? Shane couldn't stare at the plushy any longer. He set it down next to its counterpart and stepped back from his desk._

 **Faker!**

 _Shane froze. He looked down at the dolls again. "Did you say something?"_

 _The Espeon doll suddenly caught fire. Staticky red cubes raced across it, transforming it into a fiery yellow lion's head._

 _"W-What the–? What's going on here?"_

 _ **All of this is fake! Wake up! Remember who you really are!**_

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Shane shot up. Tremors wracked his body. He looked around the room, eyes settling on the window. Purple light streamed into the room, casting the deactivated Luminous Orbs in a sinister glow. Shane rolled over on his cushion, only to shudder as his face brushed against damp fabric. Shane put a paw up to his face. Cold sweat coated his paw pads. Salt buffeted his nostrils.

He must've had a nightmare. Yet, some of his dream was an actual memory... wasn't it? Shane shook his head and got to his feet. He tiptoed across the room, stealing a glance at his teammates. Tessa and Null remained fast asleep, the latter curled around the former protectively. Shane continued walking out into the hallway. Curiously, he noticed light flickering from the assembly area.

 _'Who else could be up at this ungodly hour?'_

An image of Metagross appeared in his imagination. A shiver ran down Shane's spine. Steeling his nerves, he padded his way into the assembly area. There, Espeon crouched low to the ground and walked in circles around the center of the room. Her eyes darted about.

"I'm sorry!" she whimpered. Her tail curled between her legs. "I didn't mean to hurt you all. Please, you have to understand, I was desperate. I just… I wanted to make the bad memories go away!"

"Huh?"

Espeon stopped circling. Her ears stuck up. She turned toward Shane. He stiffened, expecting her to yell at him, but her gaze seemed to carry on into the hallway behind him.

"Please stop!" Espeon begged, backing toward the east hallway. "Stop laughing at me. I'm… I'm serious! It's not my fault! I didn't mean to do this! Please…" She shook her head.

"Espeon, what's the matter?" Shane asked, taking a cautious step forward. Her behavior bore an unsettling resemblance to Null's in his less lucid moments.

"I said stop laughing!" Espeon shouted. Her eyes flashed blue. A pink Psybeam whizzed by Shane. The fur on his right flank stood on end. He looked up just in time to see one of the purple tapestries fall on top of him.

"Augh!" he cried as the weight of the cloth dragged him to the ground. Shane squirmed about. He succeeded in poking his head out from the banner. "Espeon, stop. It's me! It's Shane! There's no one here but us!"

Espeon froze. Her gaze fell on Shane. She blinked a few times as recognition slowly set in. "Oh… oh gods," she whispered. Espeon hung her head. "Not again."

Shane lumbered to his feet. "Guess I'm not the only one having a rough night."

Espeon slowly walked forward, adopting a guarded stance. "Why are you out here? Are you going to yell at me some more?" she asked.

Shane's ears drooped. "Look, I'm sorry about earlier, okay? But can we take a moment to talk about—"

"You mean you don't normally introduce yourself by dropping someone into a pool?" Espeon scoffed.

Shane winced and looked away, blushing. "I let my anger get the better of me. It's been a really frustrating last couple of weeks."

"And you think Umbry and I have had it easy? We—" She cut herself off and looked away. "No. I don't want to talk about any of this right now. Least of all with you."

Shane looked back at her. His gaze started to wander down from her head, until he forced himself to lock eyes with her. He couldn't risk upsetting her any more. "Look, I know this'll sound stupid, but from one Pokémon who's very uptight about his fur to another, I understand how you feel."

"Then why'd you do it?" Espeon growled.

Shane frowned. "It's Tessa."

"Who?"

"Riolu. My teammate. I got upset because of what happened. Because, up until recently, I'd been such an awful teammate to her. I thought we were finally moving in the right direction, but then we failed to save Sylveon and Eevee," he said, slouching over. "I thought it meant I was still a lousy teammate. So, I flew off the handle at you." He glanced up at Espeon. "I'm sorry."

"I see," Espeon said. Silence followed.

"Well, do you forgive me or not?"

"I…" Espeon's voice trailed off. She stiffened.

"Espeon?" Shane whispered, waving a paw in front of her face.

"You're right," she said. Shane hastily retracted his paw. "You had every right to be mad. Furious even. If I were in your guys' place…" She shuddered. "If I'd lost Umbry… I wouldn't have just pushed you into a pool. I'd… I'd…" She turned away from him and pressed her face against the wall. "How can you even bear to look at me? I'm a horrible person."

Shane poked the floor with a forepaw. "It's all so confusing," he whispered. "Everything's happening so fast that I can't wrap my head around it. I know this sounds selfish, but I had been operating way too long under the assumption that everything here would be like my games at home."

"What games?" Espeon asked.

"Err, it's a long story. The point is, I thought I knew how most of the things I'd get wrapped up in would play out. But I've been wrong far more than I've been right." Shane looked up to the ceiling. "The only thing's that's keeping me moving forward… is Pokémon like you."

Espeon's ears twitched. "M-Me?"

"Yeah." In the dim glow of the Luminous Orbs, Espeon failed to notice the blush falling across Shane's face. "You, Umbreon, Tessa, and Null. Maybe you guys aren't perfect. But you're good Pokémon at heart. And none of you deserve to deal with this kind of crap," he whispered. "That's why I have to find a way to stop the Prism Virus. So that you guys can be happy again."

He walked forward, stopping beside Espeon. "I'll leave you alone now," he whispered.

"Wait." Espeon stepped into his path. In the process, Shane's foreleg brushed against her chest. His heart raced. "Thanks. Y'know, for understanding. And, um, tell your partner… tell Riolu that Umbry and I will do what we can to bring her friends back," she said.

Shane smiled. "I'll make sure she knows."

* * *

Exactly one floor below Shane's and Espeon's conversation, Dragonair slithered out of bed, taking care not to disturb her teammates. She glanced out the window, gazing at a portion of the large, purple moon.

 _You envy your teammates, don't you?_

Zero's distorted voice echoed in her mind. Dragonair forced her eyes shut and looked away. She shook her head, as if she could jettison the thought from her mind. However, upon opening her eyes, she found herself looking right at Milotic and Serperior. Her teammates slept soundly in their beds, Serperior producing a soft whistle with each exhale.

 _They've had their final evolutions for_ years. _And you? Well, you've been stuck like that this entire time. Too scared your friends will abandon you if you turn into a Dragonite. Do I have that right?_

Dragonair bit her lip. Her teammates wouldn't hold her back like that. The reason she hadn't evolved yet is because she hasn't felt like it. That was all. She could, but she liked her current form. It was sleek and slender. It let her swim swiftly through water. Those were all things she'd lose if she evolved.

Her gaze wandered over to the team's mirror. The moonlight trickling through the window tinted her reflection purple.

 _The truth is that you've talked it into yourself that vanity is more important than power._

Dragonair shook her head. This wasn't about looks. She had stopped dating a while ago. It was all a matter of comfort. Nothing more, nothing less.

But Dragonair's gaze faltered from the mirror. She looked down at her white underbelly, brushing her head against the jewel in her neck.

 _Your team's reputation as a trio of serpents is meaningless._

That wasn't true, either. She _liked_ being part of Team Captivate and having such wonderful friends. What was she doing? Dragonair told herself to stop letting Zero's words get to her.

She turned to go back to her bed, only to freeze up. Memories of her battle against Zero flashed through her mind. She thought about how easily Zero overpowered her. How Zero matched her movements with Extreme Speed step for step. Zero easily moved around the deserted town, while Dragonair struggled to maintain traction against the ice.

Tears welled up in her eyes. Would the battle have gone differently if she was a Dragonite? She looked at her teammates. Dragonair had let them down today, just like she had done against Bewear. She turned away from them and faced the window. How could she fight against the Prism Virus in her current state? She'd just end up getting in the way of her friends.

Dragonair slithered over toward the room's lone desk. Pieces of paper sat on it. Dragonair shakily wrapped her tail around one of the pens and hastily scribbled on the top page. She brushed it off the desk with her tail and then took off for the window, tears streaming from her eyes. Dragonair climbed out the window just as the paper fluttered to the ground. The fresh ink on the page glistened in the moonlight.

 _I'm sorry._

* * *

 **~Aeon Port~**

 _'If I can just get home, I'm sure I can evolve in no time,'_ Dragonair thought, slithering as fast as she could toward the docks. She prayed a Sharpedo was available. This wasn't something that could wait.

She made it about halfway down the hill, when a puddle of black shadows bubbled up on the ground in front of her. Dragonair stopped short and coiled her body up, ready to strike.

 **"Poor little Dragonair. All by your lonesome. What a sad, sorry sight!"**

Gasping, Dragonair fell on her back as Necrozma rose out of the ground, his wings wrapped around his torso as if he'd been set in a sarcophagus. His red eyes flickered ominously and his mouth opened up, tongue lolling out to the side.

"Th… those wings. That face. You… you're… Lunala? But that can't be!" Dragonair gasped

 **"Hang on. Give me a second here,"** Necrozma pleaded. **"I'm still getting over that last bit. I can just** _ **feel**_ **the heartbreak, you know?"**

Dragonair rolled upright. She spat flames at Necrozma's face. His grin widened as he disappeared before Dragonair's eyes in a burst of shadows. She whirled around, expecting him to pop up behind her. Instead, a crystalline arm grabbed her muzzle. Fog brushed her scales.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Gotcha,"** Necrozma whispered, his breath hitting the tips of Dragonair's tiny wings. Her eyes widened. She tried to scream, but Necrozma clamped down harder on her snout. **"Oh, no. There's no need for the shouting, Dragonair. I'm here to rescue you from those deceitful fools who claimed to be your so-called friends. After all... friendships are worthless. They're all fake! The only thing that matters is power... right?"**

"That's enough, Necky."

Necrozma wrapped his body up with his wings and floated to the side, allowing Zero to walk past him. She gently rested her staff against her side. "I see you've realized that I was right," Zero said, addressing Dragonair. "You held yourself back. All because you couldn't bear the thought of your friendships falling apart." Zero nudged her mask, and Necrozma's wings twitched. "And now you're leaving them. Because, even if you won't admit it to me upfront, you want nothing more than to evolve."

"You're wrong," Dragonair replied, trembling. "I'm going to evolve so that I can do a better job protecting my friends from scum like you!"

 **"Skreeep!"** Necrozma shrieked, his body briefly convulsing. **"That is not how you speak to Mistress Zero."** He leaned over toward Zero, opening his mouth to run his tongue across his fangs. **"Please, mistress. Let me take her light. She's a coward. She's no help to us."**

"That's not true, Necky. With proper training, I can strengthen any Pokémon." Zero extended her free paw toward Dragonair. "What do you say, Dragonair? You want a fast-track to evolution? You want to _really_ protect your friends? Then join me. We will rid this world of its problems. Then you and your friends can live out the rest of your days worry-free. Team Captivate's reputation won't matter in a world without gods. In a world without Mystery Dungeons." She took a step forward. "You can have the friendships that you've always wanted. Ones that don't revolve around exploring."

"You're crazy if you think I'm going to join you," Dragonair hissed, raising up her tail. "My friends like me for who I am. And they'll keep liking me once I'm evolved. We'll beat you back… together!"

Necrozma spread his wings out and leered at Dragonair. **"I was hoping you'd say that. Now, your light belongs to m—"**

Zero swung her scepter in front of Necrozma. "No, Necky. We simply need to get her to appreciate our perspective." She planted her staff in the ground. "Besides, the best way to capture a wild Pokémon is to weaken it in a battle."

Before Dragonair could even process what that meant, Zero vanished. She reappeared in front of Dragonair and uppercut her. Dragonair careened through the air, squealing. Distorted energy encased Zero's right paw. It flickered in and out of existence. A giant square of red, holographic cubes appeared. Zero thrust her paw up. Red cubes exploded out from the square, taking the shape of a spear.

Dragonair hastily shot a stream of dragonfire below her. The cubes exploded into streams of black pixels. Dragonair hit the ground with a hard _thud._ Zero left her no opportunity to move away. She fired liquid metal from her paws. Dragonair met it with her Flamethrower.

 **"Hurry up! Every second you spend fighting her I can feel light fading from my core!"** Necrozma barked from the sidelines.

Dragonair sped forward. Zero met her charge with her own Extreme Speed. Both Pokémon bounced off one another. Zero slapped her paws on the ground, red energy crackling around them. A wave of distorted cubes raced across the dirt. Dragonair jumped to dodge it, only to gasp as the wave grew higher. She burned a hole in the middle of the wave with Flamethrower. Dragonair tried to lunge through the opening, but it wasn't large enough. The wave of cubes swallowed her up. She screamed.

Zero broke off the attack. Dragonair's scorched body tumbled to the ground, seizing from the deformed energy bolts racing along her tail. Zero raised her right paw and it glowed pink. Her staff flew across the ground and she caught it.

"You have nothing to be ashamed of, Dragonair. You'll be much happier as a Dragonite. And your friends will come to appreciate all of your hard work… in time," Zero said. She tapped her octahedron against her free paw. A black ball materialized, with a winged-heart sigil flickering to life on its top.

"Go," Zero said, tossing the ball at Dragonair. It struck her. The ball opened, encasing her body in red energy. Dragonair screamed as an invisible force pulled her into the ball, which snapped shut. It rolled around on the ground, before clicking loudly _._ Zero walked forward and picked the ball up off the ground.

 **"Gotcha! Dragonair was caught,"** Necrozma mused, flying up beside Zero. **"Perhaps she can put my powers to greater use than Espeon and Umbreon did."**

Zero paid Necrozma little mind. She touched the octahedron to the ball and black electricity raced across it. Unbeknownst to Zero, however, Necrozma's three eyes and chest sigil flickered with rainbow light. Trace bits of colorful energy encased the ball. Zero withdrew her staff and opened up the ball. A beam of black energy surged forward and struck the ground. When it did, it expanded upward, dissipating when a pair of crystallized wings thrust apart.

"Welcome to the team… Dragonite," Zero declared.

A gem-encrusted arm shot out. It flexed its digits. Lightning descended from the heavens, forming a spear in Dragonite's armored hand. She hurled it out to sea, then vaporized it with a white-hot Hyper Beam. She turned to Zero and Necrozma, smiling at the lingering electricity in her claws.

"How do you like me now?" she said.

Zero's lone eye widened. She looked down at her staff, then back at Dragonite. Her eye then darted about the area nervously. Behind her, Necrozma's face twisted into a crooked grin.

 **End of Episode 8**

* * *

Next time: to Glyphic Falls!


	45. An Underground Movement

Anon: Not really sure how to respond to all of that. Did you get scared or something?

Another Guest: Zero uses modified Beast Balls, to be more specific. And yes, she killed Team ACT. No one's safe in this story. Especially not any current or former main characters.

All right. Time for an episode I've been looking forward to posting for a couple of months now. I hope you all enjoy it!

* * *

 **~Glyphic Falls~**

"This is the place."

Gallian stepped onto a rock and looked out across a nearby riverbed. It flowed past the spot Team Paradox currently occupied, travelling off into a thick cloud of mist. The roars of waterfalls echoed in the distance. "I don't really know why you'd want to come here, though. Nothing here but a bunch of old relics and drawings scattered around this place. And you can forget about the Catacombs. Not a good idea to go down there," Gallian said.

"My reconnaissance determined that it was here that your former guild located the Beast Killer," Sticky explained. He pressed the jewel on his chest harness and his visor materialized over his eyes. "Therefore, this is the optimal location to search out a means of elucidating his weakness."

"… tch. Whatever." Gallian sat down on the rock. He flicked a pebble into the river below him and watched the harsh currents carry it away. "Your dopey scanners aren't going to find anything here."

"What makes you so certain of that, Rookie?" Luxeira asked, rubbing her shoulder against her helmet. "This is top of the line Ultra Recon Squad tech, you know."

"Captain, I'm picking up significant levels of interference. There's no way we're going to find any ultra auras here," Sticky declared.

Gallian turned and gave Luxeira a knowing smirk. "Call it intuition." He jumped off his rocky perch. "So, are we done here?"

"Negative. If we can't do a routine scan of the area, then we will need to put in some legwork," Luxeira replied.

"Are you freaking kidding me? You really want to scour this place top to bottom. That'll take ages," Gallian snarled. His eyes and scythe flickered purple. "And all that wasted time on our part paints a bad picture for what's to come."

"If your disaster sense is that disturbed by it, then you are more than welcome to leave," Luxeira scoffed, turning her snout skyward. "We need to investigate ultra aura readings in this world. They are far too similar to the ones we detected in our home before the Lightless Black laid siege to it." She walked toward one of the branching paths. "Besides, who's to say you won't figure out more about this Prism Virus phenomenon that's got you so panicked?"

Gallian's glanced at his harness. The fur on the back of his neck stood on end and his snout tingled. It seemed Luxeira had a point, much as he didn't want to admit it.

"… tch. Fine." He dashed ahead of Luxeira. "But you're following me. Understand?"

"Of course. Lead the way."

* * *

 **Episode 9: Null and Void**

 **Chapter 39: An Underground Movement**

* * *

 _Shane's eyes shot open and he rolled to his feet. "Convenient timing," he said. Then he turned toward the orange sea and shouted. "Yo, Solgaleo! Get your loud, booming butt out here. We need to talk."_

 _The familiar, sun-shaped silhouette appeared within the water._ _ **"What? Do you have news? Did you finally**_ **destroy** _ **Absol?"**_

 _"I've got news. But before I spill the beans, I need to know if you're telling me the truth," Shane said._

 _ **"What nonsense are you babbling about, boy? Is this another one of those impulsive freak-outs people with your condition are so prone to?"**_

 _Shane shrank back, tails curling against his hips. The mention of his "condition" nearly sapped the fight from him. Of_ course _Solgaleo had to bring it up. Well, Shane had no intention of acknowledging him. He steeled his nerves and stood up straight._

 _"Did you really bring me here to preserve the balance of day and night? And are you really safe? Because I have reason to suspect you're lying to me," Shane said._

 _ **"Impudent fool!"**_ _Solgaleo roared. Shane was prepared this time, however. He dug his paws into the sand in order to avoid getting blown back._ _ **"This**_ **is** _ **one of your ridiculous tirades. You dare suggest that I am being dishonest? I'm trying to keep the world safe!"**_

 _"Yeah. About that…" Shane's brow furrowed. "See, my friends and I managed to free two Pokémon from the Prism Virus."_

 _ **"Oh? How wonderful! Maybe you're not a total lost cause after all,"**_ _Solgaleo said._ _**"Now, all you need to do is find the source of this stuff and you can dest—"**_

 _"I wasn't finished," Shane said, eyes narrowed. "As I was saying, we freed them from the Prism Virus' control. And they told me that the Prism Virus already attacked you. In fact, they went so far as to make it sound like there isn't a Solgaleo anymore."_

 _ **"Is this supposed to be a joke? I am not laughing,"**_ _Solgaleo said._ _ **"Yes, I was attacked. I'm not entirely sure what it is that tried to strip me of my power, but I am most certainly alive. Otherwise, we wouldn't be having this conversation."**_

 _"Except I encountered the Prism Virus' supposed creator. And she doesn't really seem to be out to mess up the balance of day and night. The Pokémon I freed said that's happening because the big boss lady fed Solgaleo to her pet," Shane said, taking a step toward the edge of the water. He was onto something. Shane wasn't sure what, but he had to keep pressing._

 _"So, I'm going to ask again. Are you telling me the truth? What's really happening to you? Am I really talking to Solgaleo or an impostor?" Shane stared out at the water, but received no response._

 _Then, out of nowhere, he heard clapping. It was slow and quiet at first, but it gradually grew in speed and intensity. Shane tensed up. "W-What's going here?" he gulped._

 _ **"Heeheeheehee! Bravo, little human. No, really. Take a bow. You deserve it! That was quite the impressive deduction,"**_ _Solgaleo's voice gleefully exclaimed._ _ **"I'm talking A-plus, gold star, grab the magnet and put it on your refrigerator levels of impressive."**_

 _Shane hunched low to the ground. "H-Hey! B-Back off, whoever you are. This is my dream space and, um, I'm not afraid to use it!" His expression blanked as the water rippled in front of him._

 _A large, fiery-yellow lion emerged from its depths. Shane glanced at the lion's black, armored helmet. "S-Something's wrong. You're not Solgaleo! I've seen pictures... and he doesn't have black armor. Or arms sticking out of his back, for that matter," Shane said. His head throbbed and his thoughts raced. Who was this imposter? If Solgaleo really was dead, then who brought him into this world? This couldn't all be one big accident like Tessa said... could it?_

 _The impostor wiggled the claws on his arms._ _ **"Heeheeheehee. Correct again! You are really knocking these things out of the park today, huh?"**_ _he taunted._

 _"Those armor pieces. You're infected with the Prism Virus, aren't you?" Shane gasped. "Who are you? And why do you look like Solgaleo?"_

 _ **"Aww. Come now, if I went and told you, that would be spoilers!"**_ _the lion teased, sauntering across the surface of the water._ _ **"And I don't wanna be like you. You know, the kind of guy who always ruins the big twists because they can't keep their damn mouth shut?"**_ _He shook his head._ _ **"So disgraceful."**_

 _"What did you do to Solgaleo, you creep?" Shane huffed, snorting out tufts of frosty air as a warning._

 _ **"Me? Why, I did plenty. In fact… heeheeheehee… if it wasn't for me, there wouldn't**_ **be** _**a Solgaleo in the first place. Or a Lunala, for that matter!"**_ the imposter said, smirking. _**"And yet, here I am, without so much as a thank you card or a fruit basket for all my hard work. Story of my life."**_

 _Shane jaw locked up. "Wha— but that's not right. The Horizon legends… they said Ho-Oh created Solgaleo and Lun—"_

 _ **"Lies! Filthy lies!"**_ _the imposter roared._ _ **"Solgaleo, Lunala, and all their descendants owe their lives to me! The sun and moon owe their existences to me. This world's light is mine! Heeheeheehee… you understand me? M-I-N-E.**_ **Mine!** _ **"**_

 _"You bring Solgaleo back right now," Shane said. "Or I… I'm… uh… well, I'll think of something!"_

 _ **"Heeheeheehee. Oh, you need not worry about that metalhead,"**_ _the lion said._ _ **"In fact…"**_ _He approached Shane and looked right down at him. Shane shrank down into the sand, whining meekly._ _ **"I'd say he's a lot closer than you might think!"**_

 _Shane wanted to scream, but his entire world went white._

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Gah!"

Shane shot up from his cushion, a shiver running down his spine. He looked around at his team's room and sighed in relief.

"Mmmmrrgh… Shane, is that you?" Tessa muttered. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. "What's the matter?"

Shane blinked and rapidly shook his head. "It's nothing. Just a bad dream," he said, even though he knew it was the second one of the night. Shane glanced up at the window and his eyes widened. "Wait, it's already daytime!" He bolted to his feet, knocking Tessa off her pillow. She hit the floor with a grunt. "We overslept. They've probably held assembly without us!" Shane said.

"… assembly's cancelled today…"

A shadow filled the room. Null stood in the doorway. Sweat covered his body and his flanks heaved as he breathed in heavily.

"Oh, really?" Shane said.

"… too many folks… recovering from injuries," Null explained. "You can sympathize… I imagine…" Shane winced, but nodded slowly.

"What about you, Null? You don't look all that good. Where have you been?" Tessa asked, slowly standing up.

"Nowhere. Just… exercising a bit," Null said. He glanced toward the hallway. "There are some folks… still gathering up in the assembly area… if you're looking for something to do…" He shuffled backwards, allowing Shane and Tessa pass. Together, Team Radiance proceeded into the assembly area.

"Oh, good. You guys are up," Trapinch said. "Hey, Braviary. Team Radiance is here."

The gathered Pokémon backed away a little bit, allowing Team Radiance to see Braviary and Metagross standing in front of the Guildmaster's office. Shane and Tessa exchanged uneasy looks. Neither really wanted to see Metagross right now. Not after the whirlwind events of the previous day.

"Glad to see y'all are up and about. Feeling okay?" Braviary asked. Both Shane and Tessa tensed up. They stepped next to Null, each of them hiding defensively behind one of his forelegs. Null growled. "Whoa. Easy now." Braviary raised his wings up. "Guess y'all are still not in the best of shape, huh?"

"We're… doing alright," Shane lied. He glanced over at Tessa, who was rubbing her shoulder and fidgeting with her locket. Shane didn't need to be psychic to tell Tessa wanted to get as far from Metagross as possible. "Um, is there something you need us for?"

"Matter of fact—"

 **Affirmative,** Metagross cut in. **Fact: I have analyzed the information provided to us by Espeon and Umbreon.** His gaze briefly fell on the duo. Espeon slinked back down the stairs, trying to avoid everyone's eye contact. Shane cocked an eyebrow, however, at the sight of a Zoroark leaning on the wall by the stairs. Was this a guild veteran he hadn't met?

 **Conclusion: it is imperative the guild locate the Dawn Hourglass before the Prism Virus,** Metagross declared. **Fact: the Prism Virus attacked Aurora Vale to draw out Tapu Lele.**

"Zero believes Tapu Lele is the one holding onto the Dawn Hourglass right now," Umbreon added, looking uneasily at the Guildmaster.

Shane cocked his head in confusion. "Why would a Land Spirit have something related to Solgaleo?"

 **While there's no concrete data, it appears that the original Solgaleo and Lunala entrusted the Dawn and Dusk Hourglasses to the Tapus. The prevailenating belief in Horizon is that the Tapus will randomly exchange the Hourglasses between one another while they're going about reshaping the continent's Mystery Dungeons. At the same time, this allables them to move their respective temples to different spots around the continent,** Magearna explained.

"Which keeps them safe from any varmints who want to try and take them fer themselves," Braviary said.

Shane bit his lip. His recalled Solgaleo's impostor claiming the Horizon myths weren't true. He shook his head. "So, um, the Tapus live in temples, then?"

"Yes, but from what Zero could tell, they're all protected by strange forcefields. That's why we suggested messing with Horizon's landscape. To draw them out," Espeon said, sighing.

 **Fact: if we are to locate Tapu Lele, we must find the Temple of Mind.** **Hypothesis: the temple is located somewhere near Aurora Vale,** Metagross said.

Tessa squeaked and shuffled back across Null's body. She grabbed his hind leg in fright. Shane saw the display and shook his head. "No way. Nuh-uh. We're not about to go back there. I'll bet that place is still completely messed up," he said.

 **Negative. I am not ordering anyone there are this time,** Metagross said. **Order: the guild will go on an expedition to Glyphic Falls.**

"Glyphic… Falls," Null whispered. He scraped his claws against the floor. Tessa's aura feelers twitched in fright.

 **Fact: several apprentices are already there, establishing base camp. Fact: I am ordering all available guild members to Glyphic Falls to search out the means to locate the Land Spirits' temples. Fact: Primarina and Vaporeon will look after the guild while we are away,** Metagross said.

Shane frowned. "Oh great, him again," he groaned.

"Um, Guildmaster? I, uh, I don't think we'll be able to pitch in for this one."

Espeon and Umbreon stepped away from the stairs, allowing Milotic and Serperior to pass. Both of them had somber looks on their faces.

"Hey, is something wrong?" Tessa asked, tilting her head.

"Yeah," Serperior whispered. "It's Airy. She's… gone."

Shane's eyes widened. "Wait. 'Gone,' as in—"

Milotic produced a piece of paper. "She left. She must've slipped out while we were sleeping last night."

Tessa threw her paws up over her mouth. "Y-You're kidding! But why–?"

"I don't know. Zero said some pretty harsh stuff to her when we fought. I think it really got to her," Milotic said, her tail fins drooping.

Metagross nodded slowly. **Acknowledged. Order: remain at the guild. We will proceed without you.**

Shane narrowed his eyes at Metagross. Dragonair was one of the top explorers in the guild, yet the Guildmaster wasn't remotely concerned with her disappearance. A tiny voice in Shane's head said that perhaps Metagross was responsible. The thought made his stomach churn.

"And what will you have me do, Guildmaster?"

Milotic and Serperior both did double-takes. "Wait, Zoroark? What are you doing back here? Is this more Expedition Society business?"

"You know this girl?" Tessa gasped.

Shane's concerns about Metagross vanished. His eyes widened. "Wait, you're with the Expedition Society?" He dashed up toward Zoroark. "You've got to tell me what it's like over there. How's Ampharos? And Mawile? Oh! Oh! Wait, have you met the Pokémon that beat Dark Matter? What are they like? And why can't they lend us a paw or two here?"

Tessa lunged forward, cupping Shane's snout with her paw. "Aha ha ha. F-Forgive him, ma'am. He's a bit notorious around these parts for his big mouth." She shot him a a dirty look. Her paw muffled Shane's resulting sigh.

"It's alright," Zoroark said, giggling. She looked at Shane. "So, you must be a human, then? It's nice to meet you." She bowed curtly.

 **Order: you will provide us with aerial reconnaissance of Glyphic Falls,** Metagross said, catching everyone in the room off guard.

"Um, what? Since when do Zoroarks fly, Guildmaster?" Trapinch gasped.

"Maybe she's just really good at illusions?" Mimikyu said. "I always heard some Zoroarks could shapeshift. Maybe if she made one of a flying-type Pokémon, she could fly?" Trapinch gave him a bewildered look. "Meep! It… it was just a suggestion, that's all."

"Oh, I can fly," Zoroark boasted. "Just, not for the reasons you're thinking, little guy." In a flash of blue light, Zoroark transformed into Latias. "Tadah! Pretty cool, huh?"

Tessa's grip slackened. Shane's eyes sparkled and, next thing anyone knew, he sprinted up to Latias. "Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh! It's Latias! Right here in front of me!" he said.

"Shane! Show some manners, for pity's sake," Tessa said, facepalming.

"Oh, cut the fun police act. How could you _not_ think this is totally amazing?" he said. Shane turned back to Latias. "Eee! This is incredible. You're only, like, my number four favorite Legendary Pokémon ever. Right behind Rayquaza, Ho-Oh, and Mewtwo because, well, let's face it, they're just concentrated awesome in Pokémon form. But you're definitely the cutest in my book!"

Sweat drops formed on Latias' head. "Oh, uh, that's… nice, I guess."

"Hey, Tessa? We got a pen and some paper anywhere? I've _gotta_ get me an autogra—"

A faint, pink glow surrounded Shane's body, freezing him in place. An unseen force clamped his muzzle shut. **That is : save your tomfoolery for your own time,** Metagross said.

"Wait, you mean to tell me we were working for you the whole time?" Serperior gasped.

Latias nodded, looking down guiltily. "I'm sorry about the ruse, but I was in a bit of a bind and wanted to keep a low profile."

Serperior looked at Milotic and shook her head. "See? It's just like I said. Can't trust a Zoroark."

"Technically she was _never_ a Zoroark, so your point's invalid," Milotic scoffed. "In any event, what brought you here, Latias?"

"That's a bit… complicated," Latias replied. "First off, the Expedition Society wanted to check and see what had happened to Espeon and Umbreon." She glanced over her shoulder at the them. "Seems like the two of you have been through quite a lot."

Espeon's tail turned stiff as an arrow. "You didn't go through my memories, did you?" She shot Umbreon a horrified look.

"Of course not. The Guildmaster looped me in," Latias explained. Her revelation hardly relieved Espeon. "I take it you two are sticking around here, though?"

"They decided to help us investigate this whole Prism Virus situation," Braviary said. "I take it you also brought her up to speed on that, sir?"

 **Affirmative,** Metagross replied.

"But, uh, there is something else I'm here about," Latias announced. "I was thinking about how to bring this up to you guys. Ultimately, I think I need to just cut right to the chase here." She floated over toward Null. He took a few hesitant steps back.

Tessa looked up at the two of them. Her aura feelers tightened up. Latias' aura brimmed with nervous energy. She wondered what had prompted such a quick change.

"You're Null, correct?" Latias asked.

"Yeah. Did the Guildmaster… tell you about me?" Null said.

"N-No," Latias said. Her stammering drew skeptical eyebrow raises from several Pokémon. She glanced at the Lunar Wing in his helmet and sighed in relief. Latias turned toward the other guild members and said, "My friends in the Expedition Society think they know what Null is." Shane caught Milotic and Serperior exchanging nervous looks. Did they know what Latias was about to say?

"Null is a Pokémon that was made by hand in ancient times," Latias said, drawing startled gasps from the others. "And we think the reason he was created was… to kill gods."

Null's legs gave out. He scrambled to keep himself from collapsing on his stomach. His fur prickled. "I… I'm… what?" he whispered. He took a few steps back, then jostled his helmet. Null lost his balance and flopped onto his belly. He launched into a fit of raucous coughing.

"Null!" Tessa cried and ran over to his side. Null hissed and jerked his head to the right. Tessa stopped short of him, narrowly avoiding an accidental headbutt.

"No... no... please be quiet," he whimpered, jerking his head to his left.

Shane watched his teammates with an astonished look in his eyes. There were too many problems with Latias' revelation. For one, why did Team Captivate sit on this information if they knew about it? And if Null was meant to kill gods, then why did he go after Shane?

"All we have to go off of are some old materials we managed to dig up. Mawile found some records suggesting that a group of Pokémon took off to Horizon following Dark Matter's first defeat. Some of their logs said they teamed up with a Horizon native and tried to make a Pokémon that could protect them from any manner of danger," Latias explained. "Based on the way they phrased it, that danger made it seem like they were talking about gods."

"But it didn't work, right? Their experiment went berserk and they had to seal it inside of a crystal," Serperior said.

Shane's tails shot between his legs. That likely answered why Null attacked him. But another problem surfaced. Why did Sticky call Null a failure? Sticky was an alien, after all. Shane groaned. He didn't need these extra headaches on top of the Prism Virus situation.

"How do you know all of this, Serperior?" Trapinch asked, snapping Shane's thinking back to his original issues.

"Because I hired Team Captivate to locate one of the records Mawile found. I had it stolen from me while I was looking for artifacts in the Nocturnus Catacombs," Latias said. "Turns out, they did one better than that and actually found the item Mawile wanted."

Null's head shot up. "I… I don't understand," he wheezed. "I don't… I don't remember anything like that…" He looked at Team Captivate. "You knew... about this?" Milotic and Serperior nodded in unison. Shane and Tessa exchanged frowns.

Null lumbered to his feet, violently shaking his head. "Why?" he snarled, his voice uneasy. "Why didn't… you tell me? I've been trying… to figure out… why I can't remember anything... since day one!" He scraped his talons across the floor. "That isn't... you..." His helmet banged against his shoulder. "I had a right... to know about this! You needed... to tell me!"

Shane's blood boiled. He stepped in between his friend and Team Captivate. "I can't believe you kept that stuff to yourself! Do you have any idea how much trouble you would've saved us if you'd actually opened your mouths?" he barked. "God... and you two call yourselves the top veteran team!"

Tessa winced. Though she agreed with Shane, she thought he came on a bit strong.

"I didn't say anything because I was scared!" Serperior blurted out. She slithered back toward the stairs. "Look… Null's frightening, okay? Sure, there are plenty of odd-looking Pokémon. But we know all about them. Null's a giant question mark. How did you expect us to react when the first thing we learned about his past was that he might be some sort of killing machine?" She ducked down into the stairwell. "I didn't want to chance having Null freak out and slice me open like a pasta noodle. So, yeah, I kept my mouth shut. Can you really blame me?"

Null whined. Shane's ears folded against his head. Despite their past issues, a heavy guilt tugged at Shane's heart over Null.

Latias floated toward Espeon and Umbreon. "I'm not really sure what to tell you." She turned to Metagross and Braviary. "I'm sorry we kept you guys in the dark. Mawile really hoped she could figure more out about all of this, so that maybe I could come here with a solution to Null's situation."

Braviary rubbed the top of his beak. "Well, I ain't exactly a big fan of getting news like this. And at such a doggone lousy time fer us, to boot."

 **Order: Null will stay behind for this expedition. Hypothesis: going to Glyphic Falls will trigger memories and cause him to lash out,** Metagross said.

"B… but Guildmaster," Null whimpered, much to Shane's surprise. "Please… don't make me... stay behind. I… I want to know. I _need_ to know... if there are answers... to my past…"

 **Request denied,** Metagross said. **Fact: the Prism Virus situation is a serious threat. Fact: it requires our undivided attention. Conclusion: I cannot have guild members preoccupied with tasks that will ultimately prove insignificant should the world fall into crisis.**

Tessa stepped forward. "You have to let him come with us," she declared. "Null's a member of Team Radiance now." She pulled a copy of the team's contract out from her item pouch. "He signed this when I told you to get rid of the dissolution form, remember?"

 **Fact: my memory is infallible,** Metagross scoffed.

"Then, if you're allowing Team Radiance to go on the expedition, Null has to come too," Tessa declared. "Right, Shane?"

She gave him a pleading look. Shane's heart skipped a beat. He quickly stood at attention. "Y-Yeah!" he squeaked. "All for one and one for all… or something like that…" He winced at the look of disappointment on Tessa's face. She wanted more of a ringing endorsement. Shane's expression grew stern. "Null's been crucial to giving us a fighting chance against the Prism Virus. I'm not going to Glyphic Falls without him."

He glanced at Tessa, who gave him a warm smile. Null looked between the two of them, his sniffles echoing in his helmet.

 **Fact: I reserve the right to amend the rules of expeditions as I see fit,** Metagross said. **I will not have you distracting us from our prime objective.**

"Guildmaster… I won't… waste anyone's time. I just… want to go there… and see… if I remember anything. I promise... I'll focus... on looking for stuff... about the Tapus," Null said.

Metagross' expression remained neutral. **Fine. Order: Magearna will accompany your group. Warning: if she believes that you are deviating from my directions, you will be sent back to base camp and returned to the Observatory.**

Null nodded. "I understand."

 **Order: all those proceeding to Glyphic Falls, gather your belongings and meet at the entrance in five minutes. Dismissed.**

* * *

 **~Glyphic Falls~**

 _"Testing? Uh… one, two. Is youse all hearing me?"_

 **I read you loud and clear, Yungoos,** Magearna said. She led Team Radiance through a narrow path overlooking a particularly steep drop down to a roaring riverbed. Her stomach compartment was open, revealing a large speaker.

 _"Great. Red Team's moving along to da nort'west and— oy! Growlithe! Put da stick down. Now ain't da time to use dat!"_ Yungoos' voice crackled through the speakers.

 _"Blue Team's setting a course to the north, y'all,"_ Braviary announced

 _"Sky Team checking in. Nothing really to report at the moment. The clouds are quite lovely up here,"_ Latias said. " _Also, why did I get a team if I'm the only one on it?"_

 _"Gate Team here. All quiet at the entrance. We've finished gathering the supplies needed to cook dinner,"_ Trapinch reported.

 **Okay, good. Your Gear-Coms should have enough juice to make it to sundown. After that, you should report back to base camp. Ping me if you need anything. Otherwise, try to stay off the line,** Magearna said.

A chorus of acknowledging statements followed. Magearna's speaker retracted into her chest. **Just as a heads up, I may need to borrow your team's Gear-Com, should mine unexplicably lose power.**

"Heh, that shouldn't happen as long as you've got me around!" Togedemaru boasted, her cheeks sparking with electricity.

Shane leaned over and whispered to Tessa, "Remind me why we got stuck with her, again."

"Be _cause,_ " Togedemaru huffed, stopping in the middle of the trail and extending her spines. Shane stumbled to the ground, barely avoiding them. "My electricity can give auxiliary power to Magearna's energy cells. Otherwise, she'd never be able to keep so many Gear-Com lines tethered to her at once."

"Oh, okay. That makes perfect sense," Shane said. _'Which engineering school did you graduate from, again?'_

"I really don't understand your Guildmaster," Espeon said, walking dejectedly at the back of the group. "Why would he split Umbry and me up? We do our best work together. We'd be most useful _together._ "

Tessa winced and tried to ignore Espeon's complaints. She didn't want to have to think about Metagross. "Exactly where is it that we're going to look for clues, anyway?" she asked. Tessa's gaze drifted toward the cliff face and the river down below. "This seems like a rather odd place to keep information about the Tapus." A steam geyser erupted nearby. Tessa jumped forward with a frightened yip. She hastened her pace.

 **There are caverns interwovenated amongst the waterfalls,** Magearna explained. **Some of them lead down into the Nocturnus Catacombs. But others are believed to have served as shelter for Pokémon in the times when the Horizon Continent was a driftinating landmass.**

Tessa peered up the path, and noted a large rock spire jutting out diagonally. Water cascaded off the top of it. She guessed that was their destination.

"So, big guy, anything jogging your memory yet? Y'know, in a nice, friendly, 'I don't want to murder everyone around me' kind of way?" Togedemaru asked.

Shane's ears folded against his head. "Hey, d'ya think maybe you could tone down on the black comedy a bit?"

"Psht! What's the matter, scared of your own teammate?" Togedemaru scoffed.

Shane quickly glanced back at Null. The answer was yes, of course. Shane had an awful feeling that, if Null flew off the handle again, it would be his head on the proverbial chopping block.

For his part, Null stayed silent. He stared at the river as he trudged along at the back of the line. "You guys… found me… washed up by the entrance… right?" he said.

"Sure did! Boy, was that a surprise or what?" Togedemaru said, looking over toward Magearna.

 **It certainly generated a strong startle cycle in my processors, if that's what you're insinuinating,** Magearna said. **We were here to gather some meteorological data. I sent Togedemaru to get river water for my Geartronic Pressure Sensorometer.**

"But when I went to the river, I found this big lug lying in the shallows near our campsite," Togedemaru continued, jerking her head in Null's direction. "We called Braviary up right away and he and Metagross showed up to haul his ragged butt back to the Observatory."

Null slowly craned his head to look at the falls. "Did I… go down… one of those?" he whispered.

"Fat chance. Your odds of surviving a fall down one of these suckers without any wings is, like, a zillion to one," Togedemaru said.

 **Actually, it's around one in eight hundred and thirty seven.** **Certainly not the worst odds in the world,** Magearna said.

"Yeah, but you'd either have to be crazy or really, _really_ desperate to go down one of these waterfalls," Togedemaru scoffed. "Can you imagine someone in the guild trying that?"

Shane's brow furrowed. "I can see you looking right at me, you know."

Togedemaru smirked. "Good, because out of all us, you'd be the odds-on favorite to try something that stupid."

"Har, har. Very funny," Shane deadpanned. He turned to Tessa. "Hey, uh, can we talk for a second?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"No. I mean, can we hang back and talk. It's… kind of personal," he said, leaning in to whisper that last line. Tessa's aura feelers stiffened. She beckoned Null and Espeon ahead of her, then walked alongside Shane. Initially he stayed silent, his gaze focused straight ahead of him.

"Well? Are we going to talk or are you going to stare at Espeon?"

Shane abruptly jerked himself upright. He looked straight down at his forepaws. "Right, sorry. Anyway, about this morning…"

"You mean the bad dream?" Tessa said.

Shane nodded. "Kind of. See, I was thinking about what Espeon and Umbreon said yesterday. Y'know, about what they think happened to Solgaleo?" He bit his lower lip. "I, uh, had one of my dreams last night. The ones where Solgaleo shows up." Tessa gave him a concerned look. "Well, I told him about what we had learned."

Tessa's aura feelers twitched. "And what did he say?"

A shiver ran down Shane's back. "That's the thing. The voice in my dreams… I don't think it was actually Solgaleo. Because he revealed what he looks like to me. At least, I _think_ that's what happened," he whispered.

"Shane, you're speaking in riddles here," Tessa said. "It's a bit hard to follow."

"Sorry. I, uh, I'm just not sure how to phrase it," Shane said. He took in a deep breath. "I think the voice inside my dreams isn't Solgaleo. I think it's part of the Prism Virus." Tessa's eyes widened. She opened her mouth to respond, but Shane quickly threw his paw up over her snout. "Whatever you've got to say, do it quietly, please. I don't want anyone else to hear about this."

Tessa slowly nodded and Shane withdrew his paw. "What makes you so sure of this?" she asked.

"I told you, the voice showed me his body," Shane said. "And it _kinda_ looked like Solgaleo, but the colors were wrong. And he was covered in pieces of black armor, just like Zero."

Tessa gave him a worried look. "But how can the Prism Virus do that?" She threw a paw up over her muzzle. "Oh… oh, gods. You don't think you've been infected, do you? What if that's why Null tried to attack you?"

Shane's eyes widened. That hadn't occurred to him. But that wasn't something he wanted to consider. "N-No, that wouldn't make sense. I've been having these dreams for over a month. It wouldn't have taken the Prism Virus this long to infect me," he said, thinking his reasoning was sound enough.

"But what if something's keeping you safe?" Tessa proposed. "Like your Naturia Looplet?"

"Please don't say that!" Shane blurted out. The other group members looked back in concern. "We… we're fine," he lied. "Let's just keep going." He turned away from Tessa and quickly walked forward to try and rejoin the group.

Tessa jogged up to him. "Shane, you can't just ignore this, you know. If someone's messing with your mind, then you need to speak up. With Espeon and Latias here, we have three powerful psychic-types. I'm sure they could figure out a way to help you."

Shane whined softly. "I know, okay. I just… I don't know what to say to them. The other guild members are still pretty iffy about me because of the whole Bewear-Lycanroc fiasco. This would just make everything worse," he said. "Besides, what about you? Espeon and Umbreon think Lunala's been taken in by the Prism Virus, too. So, what would that mean for your dreams about your mom?"

It took a moment for the impact of Shane's statement to sink in. When it did, Tessa hastily pulled her scarf over her head. "I… I don't want to talk about this anymore," she said. Tessa sped up her pace. "We're here for info about the Tapus. And... and for Null. I can't help him if I'm distracted by you."

"But…"

"Not now, Shane!"

Again, their travelling companions stopped to give them concerned looks. "S-Sorry! Shane was trying to take one of my berries," Tessa said. She shot him a pleading look and whispered, "I'm sorry. We can talk later." Then she opted to walk alongside Null.

Shane sighed. Even though that didn't go how he'd hoped, he was relieved Tessa was willing to talk at a later point. It was a far cry from their past arguing, at least. Shane walked forward, ears instinctively tucking against his head in a vain attempt at reducing the sounds of roaring water. It didn't take long for his head to throb. He glanced over the edge of the pathway and quickly skittered back toward the wall.

He could safely say this was the highest off the ground he'd ever been without being inside an airplane. And he did _not_ like it. "Hey, um, how long do we have to stay up here, exactly?" he asked. "I'm, uh, just learning that I'm not so good with heights."

 **Just long enough to scope out this cave,** Magearna replied, drawing a relieved sigh from Shane. **Then we can move along to the next one.**

Shane's tails tucked between his legs. "J-Just how many of these waterfalls are we going to investigate, huh?"

Before Magearna could respond, a ringing noise sounded from her stomach. Her built-in speaker turned on and Braviary said, _"Mags. Y'all might want to find some cover over there. My team spotted something flying across the air mighty quick-like. And it was heading in y'all's direction."_

 _"Yeah. I just sensed a pretty powerful aura fly by,"_ Latias chimed in. _"Hang on, I'm going to try and see if I can get a closer lo— eek!"_

The group tensed up as Latias' frightened shriek sounded through Magearna's speaker. "Latias? Latias! Are you okay? What's going on?!" Espeon said, glancing back and forth between the speaker and the sky.

Static erupted from the other end of the line. Everyone flinched except Magearna.

 _"… thing… bad… big…"_

 **Could you repeat that? You're not coming in cleanerly,** Magearna said.

More static followed. _"You guys need to take cover!"_ Latias cried. _"Whatever's flying around up here just blindsided me with some kind of attack. Feels like it struck me in the back with something really hard and really sharp."_

"Did you get a good look at it, at least?" Togedemaru asked.

 _"N-No, sorry. It flew off right away. And I need to land and heal up. I'm not doing so hot,"_ Latias squeaked.

"Well, you heard the lady," Shane said. "Let's find an alcove to stow away in until we get the all cle—"

 **"Skraaaw!"**

Shane's stance slouched. "… or it could show up right now and make our lives miserable." He looked over his shoulder, but immediately had to turn away as a glaring light spread across his body. "Ach! What the heck? Is it a Skarmory up there?" In response, a rock nailed Shane's face. It exploded into dusty debris, knocking him back into Null. "Eyowch! What hit me?" he groaned.

"A rock," Null said. "But… where would a bird… get a rock from?"

Magearna's eyes widened. **That is no Skarmory. It is a Toucannon. But something is clearly off with its apperentice. Its wings look like they're made out of bamboo. That is one hundred percent illogical. That variety of plant doesn't even growthinate in Horizon.**

Toucannon's beak shimmered in the sunlight. It opened its mouth wide. Several more rocks shot down toward the group. "It doesn't have to make sense. It's a Prism Virus Pokémon!" Tessa cried. She batted rocks away with her glowing paws. Magearna swept liquid metal through the air to blow apart the rest, but Toucannon easily steered clear of her attack.

It spread its wings apart and let out a defiant, **"Skraaw!"** Toucannon tucked in its wings. It dived at the group, beak turning red hot.

"Not good! It's trying to Beak Blast us!" Tessa yelped. She turned tail, trying to scramble up the path. But she got tangled up with Null, Espeon, and Shane in the process.

Togedemaru hopped in front of them. "Leave this one to me. Zing-Zap away!" She shrouded her entire body in electricity and launched herself forward. But, much to her surprise, Toucannon stayed its course. Electricity crackled across its body, but its bamboo-like, metal-coated wings absorbed the attack. Toucannon shot Togedemaru back into the ground, leaving a crack in the cliff.

Shane spewed frosty air in desperation, but the heat of Toucannon's beak dispelled it. Shane braced himself for impact, when Null stepped in front of him. Toucannon slammed into Null. The impact made his legs buckle. A sharp crack echoed through the area. The ground trembled underneath Team Radiance.

"Agh! Careful!" Espeon cried, the quake knocking her to the ground.

 **My word! Null, hold absolutely still,** Magearna said, pointing a metallic arm forward. Shane opened his eyes and his jaw dropped at the sight of Toucannon's beak wedged into Null's helmet. A second, spiderweb crack radiated out around the mask.

"W-Wait, I'm supposed to defeat it with a Z-Move. That might be the only way to save it from the Prism Virus," Shane said.

Magearna gathered ice at the tip of her arm, when a loud, long rumble sounded. "Um, guys? I think we need to move… _now,_ " Espeon said, trying to shove Shane and Tessa out of the way.

Shane sank into the ground. He looked up at Toucannon. "Is that bird doing something to us?" he asked.

"No. The ground's giving way!" Espeon shrieked. She managed to push Shane onto his side and was prepared to leap over him when the path beneath her crumbled away. Seconds later, Shane, Tessa, Null, and Toucannon all dropped down. Horrified screams rang out, only to grow steadily more distant.

Magearna's eyes widened. She dashed toward the edge of the crumbling path. Magearna looked for a sign of her guild mates, but all she got were splashes that echoed far in the distance. The pathway shook once again. Without so much as a second thought, Magearna grabbed the unconscious Togedemaru and hastily fled away from the waterfall.

 **Guildmaster, we've got a serious situation here!** Magearna declared, casting glances backward to watch as rocky debris covered up the hole that Team Radiance had just fallen down.

* * *

Next time: 28 characters are introduced!

... it's not what you think, I swear!


	46. Into Unown Territory

Looks like I couldn't fool any of you smart cookies. Let's start the chapter up!

* * *

 **Chapter 40: Into Unown Territory**

"Did you guys feel that? I think an earthquake just hit this place." Gallian tapped the ground with a claw.

Luxeira sat down in the middle of the trail. She nudged her helmet with her foreleg. "Hmm. There's still a lot of interference, but I think you're right. There are trace levels of seismic activity. Is that normal around here?"

"Well, there are plenty of water geysers. But this didn't feel anything like one of them," Gallian replied. "And my disaster sense is telling me it's time to get the heck out of here."

"If there was any seismic activity, then it appears to have dissipated," Sticky said, resting a nubby hand on his visor. "I'm not even detecting any aftershocks. Are we sure it was an actual earthquake? Perhaps what Gallian sensed is secondary to something else entirely." He turned to Luxeira, the visor disappearing into his harness' jewel in a stream of purple light. "Do you suppose an Ultra Wormhole could have triggered the earthquake?"

Luxeira shook her head. "No. Even with all the interference, there's no way the seismic waveforms would have a high enough amplitude to be linked to an Ultra Wormhole," she said.

"If it's not about your Ultra Wormholes, then drop the subject. You're just wasting our time," Gallian snorted. He started to walk forward, when Luxeira stuck a foreleg in front of him. Red energy crackled across a glaring Gallian's scythe.

"Sit down for a second, Rookie. That's an order," Luxeira said. She turned back to Sticky. "As I was saying, Ultra Wormhole or not, I still find it odd that such a strong energy signature could fade so quickly. We should've seen it diminish gradually."

"Perhaps all this interference is at fault. Or maybe the freefalling water blunted the aftershocks," Sticky said, tapping an arm against his chin.

Gallian rolled his eyes. "You mean the waterfalls? Don't tell me waterfalls don't exist where you're from."

Luxeira and Sticky exchanged looks. They both shook their heads at Gallian. "We don't have any waterfalls. Though, I suppose the name you terrestrials have for it makes sense. Very simplistic. Difficult to forget," Luxeira said.

Gallian dug his claws into the dirt. "Ugh, I cannot believe you two! We're wasting our time talking about _waterfalls._ You want to find stuff about the helmeted freak show? Get off your asses and start moving!" Before Luxeira could respond, Gallian tensed up. The diamond on his forehead flashed red. Growling, he crouched low. "We're not alone."

Sticky raised a brow, and then pressed the jewel on his harness once again. His visor reappeared. "… it's no good. There's still too much interference. Are you sure you sense someone coming, Gallian?"

"Boy, Magearna sure seemed worried. What do you suppose happened to Team Radiance, huh?"

At the mention of Magearna, Gallian bared his fangs. He crept forward, as if he was stalking prey.

"Rookie. What are you doing?" Luxeira hissed in a whisper.

"Getting ready to greet some unwanted guests," Gallian said.

"I dunno. But man, dose dopes can't go a single mission wit'out getting demselves into some kinda trouble," Yungoos said. "Wit' dere track record, you'd t'ink dey're getting stalked by a pack of Ab—"

Gallian flicked his scythe forward. Pink energy crescents battered a nearby rock. Debris rained down on the area. The moment he heard startled yelps, Gallian dove into the shadows. Luxeira and Sticky ran after him. "Get back here, Rookie! I did not authorize any combat," she barked.

"I find that our Absol ally is not the type to listen to orders. Or reason, for that matter," Sticky said, sighing.

Up ahead, Gallian emerged from the shadows, a snarl on his face. "Speak of the Absol and he'll appear, you exploring amateurs," he hissed. Dark energy encased his paws. He slashed Yungoos' face, knocking him into Growlithe. The two rolled backward across the path.

"What the— Gallian? You're alive! It's us… it's the Horizon Guild!"

Gallian whirled around to face Volcarona, shadows encasing his fur. "Huh, so there are veterans here, too. You guys on an expedition or something?"

Volcarona glanced at Araquanid. "Something's wrong. He kind of looks like Bewear when we ran into her in Dewdrop Woods," she said.

Gallian lunged at Volcarona. She flapped her wings to safely avoid Gallian's claws. The second Gallian landed, he dissolved into a puddle of black mist. Araquanid whiffed his attempt to bite Gallian. He reemerged a couple of yards away, looking dazed. Volcarona glowed green, but a globule of poison struck her right wing from behind.

Hissing, Volcarona rapidly fluttered her wings to rid them of the toxins. Luxeira and Sticky went to Gallian's side. "We're going to have a serious talk about your insubordination later, Rookie," Luxeira growled.

"No, you're going to thank me. Because I'm going to dig up the information that you've been on the lookout for," Gallian scoffed. He pawed at the ground. "Listen up, scrubs! I know you're here on an expedition. So, get the Guildmaster on the line and tell him to get down here. Or we'll knock the living daylights out of you and swipe every piece of equipment you've got."

Luxeira's jaw dropped. "What? I authorize no such criminality. The Ultra Recon Squad doesn't resort to petty theft."

"Yeah, you're a bit late on that, captain," Gallian sneered. He flicked his scythe. Psycho Cut blades swarmed the guild members. Volcarona fired green waves. Her Bug Buzz blew the Psycho Cut blades apart. Team Paradox scattered to dodge the lingering sound energy. Luxeira stepped out from her cover behind a large rock. She spewed a flamethrower, but much to her surprise, Growlithe jumped in front of the attack. Sighing happily, he shook out his torso as the attack washed across him

Luxeira's jaw stiffened. "Flash Fire? Figures," she said. "Sticky. Quiet this terrestrial down, please."

"Of course, captain," Sticky said, producing an orb from his harness. Yungoos turned around and kicked up a ton of dirt. It smacked Sticky's face, but his visor protected his eyes. He hurled the orb forward, striking Growlithe in the side.

"Eyowch! That hu— _mmph!_ " Growlithe's whine abruptly stopped as his muzzle snapped shut. He tried to open it, but couldn't, leaving him standing there wide-eyed.

"Magearna! Guildmaster! Someone get over here, quickly," Yungoos cried into his scouting team's Gear-Com. "Gallian's gone off da deep end and is attacking us. And he's got some creepy friends with him." Yungoos scrambled away as a burst of poison soared over his head.

* * *

 **~Nocturnus Catacombs, Eastern Quadrant~**

Emera ores lining the cavern walls cast a soft, purple glow on the brook trickling through the middle of the cave. Rippling water made the light flicker. Null staggered out of the brook, coughing raucously. Though Toucannon was no longer stuck in his helmet, he was clearly in pain. The spiderweb-like crack left by Toucannon's Beak Blast had created a black, discolored spot on his mask that extended up toward his left eye.

Splashes made Null turn around. Shane, Tessa, and Espeon dragged themselves out of the brook. They were all soaked to the bone, their bodies weighed down by their wet fur. Tessa collapsed onto her knees, clutching her ribs.

"O… ow. That… that really hurt," she squeaked. Beside her, Shane tried and failed to shake himself dry. Likewise, water clung to Espeon's fur, making her look like a pink, ragged mop head.

"This blows," Shane growled, snorting out tufts of chilled air. "Just once… _just once_ I'd like to go on a mission and not end up drenched from head-to-tail. Or covered in mud, slime, or gunge. This is inhumane!"

"But… you're a Vulpix now… not a human," Null said.

"Not the point, big guy," Shane hissed.

"You mean to tell me this kind of stuff happens to you three regularly? Jeez, I can see why you're at each other's throats all the time," Espeon said.

"Hey, we've moved past that," Shane said, though the fur falling over his face deflated his point considerably. "It's not my fault that Arceus is a sick, twisted, perverted weirdo." He craned his head up to look at the rocky ceiling. "Yeah, you heard me! So, you like to get your kicks messing with an innocent little Vulpix's fur? You make me wanna hurl, you overgrown llama!"

"Shane! What are you saying?" Tessa gasped.

"And why are you pronouncing it Ar-see-us? It's Ar-key-us," Espeon said. "And with the way you're acting, you're totally setting yourself up for some form of karmic retribution."

"Maybe. But I've been thoroughly humiliated, chewed up, and spat out _repeatedly_ by this miserable world," Shane grumbled, walking forward. "Frankly, there's nothing left that could happen to m—"

A click cut Shane off. Null's eyes widened as a geyser of mud erupted around Shane, coating him in a thick layer of brown sludge. Espeon snorted, desperately trying to hold back a laugh, while Shane's bright-blue eyes blinked repeatedly from within his new mud coat. He turned and stomped back toward the brook, leaving muddy footprints behind him.

He shot Null a scathing look. "Not. One. Word." Shane trudged into the brook, disappearing underneath the surface. He reemerged seconds later, brown water dripping off his pelt.

"Um, I'd hate to interrupt your moment there, Shane, but I really think we need to get moving. What if that Toucannon followed us down here?" Tessa said.

"I don't think… we need to worry about it… anymore."

Null turned toward the brook. Tessa caught sight of the damaged patch on his helmet. "Toucannon… had gotten stuck on my mask. It fell down with us. But it didn't… pop out of the water."

"Y-You don't mean it drowned, do you?" Tessa said, eyes widening.

Espeon pursed her lips. "Much as it pains me to say it, that's the most logical outcome. Though, given how the Prism Virus works, drowning may have been the best outcome for that poor Pokémon," she said, shuddering.

"Espeon, how could you say something like that?" Tessa said.

"Because I know what happened to Toucannon," Espeon said, shutting her eyes. "Infection… it _changes_ a Pokémon by corrupting its spiritual energy. You've seen the results for yourselves."

"Is that why the infected Pokémon lose all their colors when they're defeated?" Shane asked.

Espeon nodded grimly. "It's Zero's failsafe. Because she damages a Pokémon's spirit to infect it, breaking the virus' hold over a Pokémon causes the entirety of its life force to drain out of its body."

"But you're still here," Null pointed out.

"I know. It's a miracle. Rightly and truly a miracle. Though it feels more like a curse," Espeon whispered.

"Actually, Magearna thinks it was the Z-Move that I used against you and Umbreon," Shane explained. "See, my looplet lets me do this—"

A blue paw grabbed one of Shane's tails and yanked it. Shane cut himself off with a yip.

"We really ought to get a move on, Shane," Tessa said, dragging her teammate away from the water.

Shane managed to wrestle himself free of Tessa's grip. He looked back toward his tails and slowly bobbed them up and down. "Okay, Riolu. No need to get pushy. Besides, where exactly are we going to go? And where the heck are we, for that matter?"

"We fell down from a path in Glyphic Falls," Espeon said, looking up toward the ceiling while she walked past Shane and Tessa. Shane's gaze followed her forward, only for him to immediately look right at the ground, biting his lower lip.

"That means we must be in the Nocturnus Catacombs," Tessa said. Her aura feelers throbbing. She squealed and tightened her grip on the team's item pouch.

"So, we just need to find our way back to the surface, right?" Shane said, alternating between giving Tessa a concerned look and stealing glances ahead at Espeon. A tiny voice in his head chastised his behavior, telling him to focus on staying safe.

"It's not that simple. Our Wonder Maps… they don't include the Nocturnus Catacombs. We're flying blind," Tessa whimpered.

"But it looks like… there's only one direction… we can go," Null wheezed. He pointed a shaky talon forward.

"Yeah. I think our fall caused a bit of a cave-in," Espeon said. She turned back toward the group. Shane hastily looked at the debris on the other end of the cavern. He silently wondered why Espeon made him so flustered.

"What if that was the way to the exit?" Tessa said, worriedly tugging at the strap of her item pouch.

"Then we'll need to hope the direction we can go leads to one," Espeon said. "Now, are you three coming or not?"

Shane raised a forepaw. "Hang on. This is a Mystery Dungeon, isn't it? Why don't we just use an Escape Orb and return to the surface?"

Tessa opened the team's item pouch and pulled out a dull-gray orb. "Because we can't," she said.

"Oh, come on. Seriously?" Shane groaned. "I know our luck sucks, but this is getting to be a bit ridiculous."

Espeon's brow furrowed. "Well, it's true. There must be some sort of hex jamming this place. At the very least, maybe we can move outside the hex's range and then use your Escape Orb to get out of here."

"What about an Entercard?" Shane asked, heart racing as he met Espeon's gaze.

She hook her head. "I need Umbry's help to make one. Now, let's get a move on."

Shane trudged after his teammates, muttering, "We just can't have an easy mission, can we?" He squinted his eyes as he passed over beams of purple light streaming down from the emera ores. "Cripes. These crystals are a bit much, don't you think?" He rapidly blinked the stars out of his vision. Shane slowed up as his gaze fell on Espeon's backside. His chest tightened up and his heart raced even faster.

"… human…"

"Gah!" Shane jumped forward, then looked back at Null. "Don't do that, man. You already scare me enough as it is."

Null coughed. "I'm sorry. It's just… you keep staring at Espeon. It's… a little creepy…"

"W-What?" Shane hastily shuffled forward, trying to use the glow of the ores to mask the blush on his face. "I… I'm not staring. I have to look where I'm going and she's up ahead of me. So, of course I'm going to see her. St… stop being such a worrywart." He walked ahead, but Null quickened his pace.

"It's not… normal. It's a lot like… how I was staring at you… the first time you had sentry duty," Null whispered.

"You're just seeing things, Null," Shane dismissed. He dipped his head down and kept walking. Shane had a bad feeling he knew what Null was implying.

"… you're studying her," Null said, confirming Shane's fears.

"Hey, Riolu. What's up with these weird crystals anyway?" Shane asked in an obvious ploy to change the subject. Null growled his displeasure, but opted to continue onward without pressing Shane further.

"I really don't know," Tessa said. She approached one of the emera ores. "Maybe they're some kind of light source? Like a cousin of luminous orbs?" Tessa placed her paw against the crystal. Her aura feelers jolted upright. She pulled her paw back with a startled yip. Tessa stared wide-eyed at the bright-blue aura clinging to her paw like a flame to the tip of a match. She wrung her arm out, as if she could fling the aura away. It eventually disappeared.

Tessa clasped her paw to her chest. "Th… that's not normal. Those crystals, they have energy in them. A lot of energy. It's scary!" she said, whining.

"That would seal it, then. I had my suspicions, but it looks like these are emera ores," Espeon said, glancing at one of the crystals as she walked past it. Her forehead gem glowed brighter the closer she got to an ore.

"… emera… ores," Null said. His pace slowed considerably. Null nervously swiveled his head back and forth. The helmet muffled his soft whimpers.

"So, what? Are they like the emeras we use, but on massive amounts of steroids?" Shane said, gazing at his distorted reflection.

"Not exactly. In our research, Umbry and I found some documents that talked about Pokémon using massive crystals as energy sources. Apparently, these things are remnants of the battles waged by the immortal gods that shaped the land, sea, and sky," Espeon said. "They're quite volatile, even sporadically venting off their energy and forming up new crystals."

Shane shut his eyes. A brief mental image flash through his mind. Pillars of lava collided against tidal waves, while a massive tornado attempted to break both of them apart. He shuddered at this thought.

"But the emera ore name was made retroactively by some explorers. Because, when they discovered these things, they found the energy signatures were pretty similar to the emeras they used in their looplets," Espeon continued.

Shane's brow furrowed. "Wait a second. I thought the Expedition Society invented looplets to help out explorers."

Espeon raised a confused eyebrow. "Um… no. I don't know where you got that idea from, but looplets have been around for a really long time."

Shane's ears stuck up from the discovery of yet another difference between this world and his games.

"Does that mean our emeras come from these ores?" Tessa wondered. As she walked forward, she took great care to maneuver herself as far from each ore as she could. Her aura feelers had tensed up considerably. She winced every time they throbbed.

Espeon shook her head. "No one's entirely sure about that. The prevailing theory is that emeras, wands, orbs, and other treasures were all created at the hands of one Pokémon." Her eyes drifted shut and she stretched her neck out. "The scriptures I've read said, 'A blinding light enveloped the world. Stardust fell and the earth became ripe with magical treasures.'"

"Seriously? That seems pretty far-fetched," Shane said.

"No, it doesn't. If individual Pokémon gave us the land, seas, skies, outer space, and time, then why can't one Pokémon have made a bunch of treasures?" Tessa said.

"Because it's not like there are a limited number of these things," Shane countered, thinking about how items randomly popped up in dungeons.

"I agree. It's not a solid idea. But, as I said, it's just speculation. Some folks believe that a Pokémon released a massive burst of pure, raw energy. In other words, they gave off a tremendous amount of light and… poof! Suddenly the world was flooded with vast amounts of stardust," Espeon said. "And that's where all the emeras come from." She shook her head. "Some crazy whackos actually think Dialga used stardust to forge the Time Gears as a contingency plan for Temporal Tower."

"Well, I'm not convinced," Shane said, shaking his head in disapproval.

A flash of purple light caught their attention. Null had brushed his hide against a lone emera ore. He froze mid-step, with his teammates watching him. His eyes constricted, then he slammed his helmet into the ground, roaring furiously.

"Null!" Tessa cried. She tried to run toward him, but Shane cut him off.

"Are you crazy? You need to keep your distance," he said. Memories of Null's attack in Moonrise Marsh surface, making Shane's tails curl up.

"But look at him. He's in pain!" Tessa said. Null thrust his head up and jerked it to his right. It struck the emera ore beside him. Another flash of purple light enveloped Null. Shane's fur prickled and his tails shot between his legs.

"Get… out of… my head!" Null snarled, jerking his helmet to the left, then smacking it against the emera ore once more. The second blow shattered the crystal. Shards peppered Null's body, leaving small scuffs in his fur. An explosion blasted Null into the ceiling.

"Null!" Tessa cried again. Shane tackled Tessa to the ground to prevent her from running forward and getting squished. Null fell to the ground, bringing a shower of rocky debris with him. The rubble landed around Null, forming a wall that blocked off the tunnel.

"Nice going, big guy. You just caused a cave-in," Shane whimpered, staggering backwards. Null didn't appear to process his complaint, however. He lay on the ground, staring wide-eyed at the nearest emera ore.

Tessa managed to wriggle free of Shane and sprint over toward Null. "A… are you okay? What happened. "Oh gods, you've got welts on your shoulders." She turned back to Shane and Espeon. "What are you guys doing standing there? He's hurt. Help me get him out."

Shane pawed nervously at the ground. "Um, are you sure it's safe? He looks a little, y'know, crazy." The events of Moonrise Marsh were on repeat in Shane's head. Though he tried to tell himself this wasn't Null's fault, he couldn't bring himself to believe that.

Tessa ignored her teammate and ran forward. She grabbed Null's helmet and tugged. "H… hang on. I'm… gonna… get… you…"

Espeon tensed up. She whirled around and her eyes flashed blue. A pink shield materialized in front of her and deflected a burst of bright-white energy. "We've got company," Espeon cried, crouching low to the ground. Shane turned around and Tessa looked up from her spot beside Null.

"Why are you here?" a squeaky voice echoed through the cavern.

Espeon's eyes widened. "This is bad. I'm sensing more auras popping up. Whatever just attacked me… there are a lot of them!"

"Why are you here?" the squeaky voice asked again.

Shane gulped. "We're explorers with the Horizon Guild. We fell down from Glyphic Falls and got trapped in here. All we're trying to do is find a way out. Just let us pass, please." Another blast of white light sailed over Espeon, forcing Shane to dispel it with frosty air. "Hey! I just said we're not looking for any trouble."

A single, beady eye popped up from beside one of the emera ores. Shane's tails shot up. "Y… you're… an Unown?" He cocked his head in confusion. "Oh-ho… oh… okay. Phew. For a second, I was worried that we were in serious tro—"

Several more eyes popping up around the tunnel. By Shane's count, he saw at least thirty. More Unown floated out of the shadows, joining the one in front.

"We weren't talking to you," the Unown A at the head of the group exclaimed. He fixed his lone eye on Null. "You! Why are you here?"

Null blinked a few times. "Do… do I know you?" he wheezed, struggling under the weight of the rocks.

"You should. You hurt my brothers and sisters!" Unown A said.

Tessa and Shane exchanged confused looks. "Look, little guy. We're just trying to pass through," Shane said. "If you could let us bail our teammate out, we'll be on our way and nobody will get hurt."

Unown A fired a white blast. Shane blew it away with frosty air. "No!" Unown A cried. "The Abomination may not leave. He must pay for what he's done to us!" He spun around to face his fellow Unowns. "Brothers! Sisters! We must strike back against the Abomination. Make him pay for the suffering he brought upon our kind!"

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. She spun around and struck the rock wall with a glowing paw. Several rocks shattered. Null barely managed to wriggle free.

They both looked up and noticed the Unown spinning around one another in midair. "Make him pay! Make him pay! Make him pay!" they chanted.

Espeon released a pink wave, only for her jaw to drop as the attack fizzled out harmlessly against the Unown. "But that's impossible," she gasped. A bright flash of light consumed the Unown. Espeon fled back toward Team Radiance. When the light faded, a Golurk stood in place of the Unown.

"They turned into a Golurk? But how's that possible?" Tessa asked, shakily raising her fists.

"Seriously? That's an obvious one," Shane said. Both Tessa and Espeon gave him confused looks. "You guys are yanking my tails, aren't you? How could you not know that Unown are reality-warpers? When you gather enough of them together, they're capable of distorting the fabric of time and space. But they're hive minds, so they need to have a sense of direction. And Unown A clearly gave them one."

Shadowy tendrils wrapped around Golurk's fists. Two giant, fist-shaped balls of ghostly energy hurtled toward Team Radiance. Null lunged forward and slashed them with his talons. They evaporated into fine purple mist.

"Well, that tidbit isn't exactly going to help us. What are we supposed to do against a Golurk? I can't even touch it," Tessa said.

"That's not true. Don't you still know Bite?" Shane said.

"I am _not_ biting that," Tessa said, gagging.

Golurk roared and retracted in its hands and feet. Jets of fire appeared in their places. It flew toward Team Radiance, bringing an arm back to attack. Null's helmet hardened into steel. He jumped forward. Null struck Golurk. They both bounced back from the blow. Null ended up in a heap by Tessa's feet.

"Null!" Tessa squeaked.

"Don't… just stand there… help me!" Null growled. "I can't… do this alone."

* * *

 **~Glyphic Falls~**

"Let us go, Gallian!" Volcarona shouted. She and her guild mates sat inside of a cube-shaped purple forcefield. Volcarona blasted it with a flamethrower, but the forcefield absorbed it and then spat it back at her. Hissing, she threw her wings up to shield herself.

"Dat didn't work da first five times youse did it, so what makes youse t'ink it's gonna work now?" Yungoos sneered, flicking a pebble forward with a claw.

"Gallian, exactly how long to you intend to wait this out? I fear the forcefield does not have the potency to continue withstanding that terrestrial's incendiary attacks," Sticky whispered.

Gallian's glare fiercened. "We'll wait until I say otherwise," he hissed. His forepaw rolled the Gear-Com he had captured against the ground.

"This isn't accomplishing anything. Remind me why you're doing this, exactly?" Luxeira said.

Gallian tensed up. His eyes flashed purple. "… he's coming," he said. He turned to his right and lunged in front of the forcefield. A pink blast struck him from the sky, but didn't hurt him. Eyes pitch-black, Gallian craned his head skyward. Gallian fired a black and red beam. Above him, Latias squealed. She released her psychic hold on Metagross, who dropped in front of Gallian with a heavy _thud._ Gallian shook his head. The diamond on his forehead smoldered like a lit candle.

"Well, shoot. I didn't wanna believe it, myself. But that's our Gallian right there," Braviary said, swooping in to land next to Metagross. Latias hovered down between them. Umbreon hopped off her back. He shot a concerned look toward Team Paradox.

"I remember you three. You were snooping around Sunrise Village yesterday," Umbreon said.

Gallian raised a curious eyebrow. "You're back to normal?" he gasped.

Luxeira nodded. "It would certainly appear that way, though we can't confirm it without an ultra aura scan. Still, that should be impossible."

 **Order: stand down and release my subordinates,** Metagross sadi, his eyes glowing deep blue.

"Not happening. Not until you give me some answers," Gallian said.

 **I owe you nothing. Fact: you are outnumbered. Fact: our party has superior physical and ranged attacks at our disposal,** Metagross said. **Fact: we have a less god. Conclusion: resistance is futile. Order: release your captives or I will attack.**

Sticky shot Gallian a panicked expression. "I concur with his assessment. Let's just hand them over so we can be on our way."

"I said not until he gives me some answers!" Gallian snarled, his forehead scythe flickering red. He slammed a forepaw against the ground and a ripple of dark energy raced across his fur. Latias' eyes widened and the blue glow faded from Metagross' eyes.

 _G-Guildmaster, you felt that, didn't you?_ Latias telepathically said, shrinking back toward the nearby stream.

"Captain, did you see that?" Sticky whispered. "He's showing signs of corruption again. I thought the harness was supposed to neutralize his ultra aura."

Luxeira raised a forepaw. "Easy now, Sticky. If we try anything, we might set him off."

Gallian stepped closer to the energy cage, black smoke rising off of his scythe. "Good. I see I've gotten your attention," he hissed through gritted teeth. "I'm sorry to ruin your little trip to the falls, _Guildmaster._ After all, this place has such lovely memories for you, doesn't it?"

 **Negative. Fact: my memories of Glyphic Falls elicit the same level of response as all other existing memories,** Metagross dismissed.

Gallian laughed bitterly. "Don't lie to me, you oversized tin can. It's been, what, a year since this place changed your life for the better? I'll bet you're already feeling nostalgic over it."

 **Hypothesis: you are implying an emotional connection to this place. Fact: emotions are predatory in nature. Fact: they interfere with my ability to carry out my work properly. Conclusion: your petty mind games are useless,** Metagross said. He raised a foreleg and it glowed bright red. He shot forward with an astonishing burst of speed. Gallian barely managed to melt into a puddle of shadows and dodge Metagross' swipe.

He popped up next to Metagross, dark energy sheathing his forelegs. However, his Night Slash was met by both a glowing wing from Braviary and one of Metagross' hind legs. Gallian stumbled back, howling. Umbreon jumped in front of Luxeira and Sticky, rings glowing bright yellow in a warning to keep back.

"I know it was you! So, admit it, already!" Gallian barked.

"Hold up, pardner. Just what are you insinuating here, huh?" Braviary asked, keeping his wing lowered.

Gallian's eyes flashed purple. "Don't play coy with me, Braviary. You're holding up this whole farce too," he said. "Now fess up. Right here. Right now. Because you two are the reason my dad's gone! You killed him!"

Braviary momentarily slackened. Gallian used that moment to strike. Shadows bathed his claws. He lunged for Braviary's throat, only for a metallic leg to blindside him from his right. Gallian sailed backward, careening past Latias and striking the rock wall across the stream. He ricocheted off it and fell into the water with a splash, but didn't stay down long. Gasping, Latias fired a bright blue bolt of energy, but it struck the water harmlessly.

Her eyes widened. Shadows gathered beneath her. Gallian rematerialized. He shot a black beam from the diamond on his forehead. However, a second Dark Pulse struck his side and knocked him back, sending his attack off course. Latias wasted no time. Her eyes glowed blue and, next thing Gallian knew, a wall of water rose out of the stream and crashed onto him. He collapsed into a heap.

"Son, I don't know what you've done to yer noggin, but that there is crazy talk if'n I've ever heard any," Braviary said. Behind him, Metagross pinned Sticky and Luxeira back with a raised foreleg. Sticky turned and sent a tiny beam of blue light to his right. It struck the energy prison and made it disappear.

"Hot diggity! We've been sprung," Growlithe cheered, jumping to his feet. He ran over to hug Metagross, but the Guildmaster shoved him aside with one of his hindlegs.

"Gallian should be lucid. That harness is supposed to suppress the corrupted Z-Power that he was exposed to. Those words are his own," Luxeira said.

Gallian looked up, breathing heavily. Latias floated over him, her normally soft facial features contorted into a glare. "N… no. They're lying!" Gallian growled. "I'm not the one you should be after. It's them. They're killers! Both of them!"

 **Fact: the night of your father's death I was in the Observatory,** Metagross countered, not even turning around to address Gallian. Instead, he looked right at Braviary, who immediately tensed up.

"Right! I can back him up. Because he was with me," Braviary said. He shuffled in place, before seeing Metagross' glowing eyes and promptly fixing an angry look on Gallian. "I suggest you start explaining yerself, hoss. Yer a wanted 'mon back in Aeon Town, you know."

Gallian stuck his head up and spat in Braviary's face. "I don't owe you anything, you backstabbing _traitor!_ "

A rainbow-colored tile fell out of his harness. Latias immediately recognized it and tried to yank it away with her telekinesis. But Gallian managed to wrap his paws around it and shatter it. Both he and the other members of Team Paradox disappeared in three flashes of light.

Latias bit her lower lip. "That doesn't make any sense. You can't just carry Warp Traps on your person like that. They're randomly phased into dungeons," she said.

"I reckon that pointy-headed varmint might've had something to do with that," Braviary said, brow furrowing. "In any case, ain't much we can do about it. Guildmaster, you sensing 'em nearby?"

 **Negative. Fact: they have warped out of range of my abilities,** Metagross said.

"Maybe they're out of range for you, but I bet I could catch 'em. I'll do a flyover and see what I can find. Um, if that's alright with you guys, I mean," Latias said.

Metagross nodded. **Order: contact us if you find him.**

Latias tucked her arms into her body and zipped off into the sky. Braviary walked over toward the freed guild members. "Y'all doing okay?"

"Yeah. Just a bit humiliated, that's all," Volcarona sighed.

"Um, Braviary? Gallian… was he talking about Guildmaster Incineroar's death?" Araquanid asked. "You guys told us it was an accident."

 **Order: do not concern yourself with his slanderous statements. Fact: an outside influence has poisoned Gallian's mind. Fact: if we cannot free him from it, he will continue to believe these delusional lies,** Metagross said.

The other guild members exchanged concerned looks.

Metagross' eyes glowed blue again. **Fact: we are in a time-sensitive situation. Fact: our energy must go toward locating information about summoning the Tapus. Order: continue searching Glyphic Falls.**

"Err, but—" Volcarona started, but Metagross had already turned away from her and was walking back to Braviary. "Right… we'll get back to work, then."

* * *

 **~Nocturnus Catacombs, Eastern Quadrant~**

"Duck!"

Shane slid onto his belly. An ectoplasmic fist passed over him. Ghostly energy grazed his back. He shivered. Shane scrambled back to his feet and looked around. Espeon had shot a Shadow Ball back at Golurk, but it caught the attack between its hands and slammed it against an emera ore. The crystal absorbed the energy. It crackled with purple lightning.

"Come on. We've gotta keep running!" Shane cried, sprinting forward. He skidded to a halt, however, when blue electricity shot up in front of him. He looked to the side and noticed an Unown G floating there. Moments later, lightning surged through his body. Shane collapsed in a smoldering heap.

"Yay, it worked! That'll teach you no-good creeps!" the Unown I floating above him cheered.

Angered by his teammate's injury, Null shot Air Slash crescents at Unown I. It's single eye widened as the harsh air currents slammed into it. The electricity gathered around it faded. Null hoisted Shane up to his feet. "Come on," he rasped.

Shane coughed up a mouthful of smoke. "Thanks for the save." The crack in Null's helmet splintered further. Shane could swear he saw something gray inside the crack.

"Don't thank me yet… we've still got trouble," Null growled. He put Shane onto his back and ran ahead. His eyes narrowed at the sight of multiple Unown scattered across the tunnel. Behind him, the ground shook.

"Eyaaagh! Are you crazy? You're going to cause a cave-in!" Tessa cried.

"Worth it to stop the Abomination and its accomplices!" Golurk bellowed. "This is for all my brothers and sisters that you locked away in that wretched prison you call a body!"

"Quickly, everyone. Execute Plan B!" an Unown F at the head of the group declared.

"Huh? You need me for something?" an Unown B asked, tilting to the side in confusion.

"No! I said _Plan B_ , not _Unown B!_ "

"Oh. You should've been more specific, then," Unown B quipped.

Null skidded to a stop as the Unown organized into parallel lines. Electric barriers formed up between the lines, effectively walling off the group's only path forward. "Heh. That's Plan B as in 'barrier.' Which means you're not going anywhere," Unown F declared.

Null clawed the ground with his talons. "Why are you… doing this? I don't even… know who you are!" he said. "Please… just let us pass…"

"Look out!" Tessa cried from behind them. Shane barked in fright and leaped off Null's back. Null turned around in time for a large, glowing-red fist to slam into his helmet. It knocked him back against the nearby barrier. Electricity surged through him. Null roared in fury before slumping to the ground. Static clung to his fur. His limbs spasmed.

"Hey! _Leave my friend alone!_ " Tessa snarled. She lunged at Golurk and sank her fangs into its left shoulder. Golurk gasped in pain. Null shakily lifted his head, whimpering as he watched his friend struggle. Another chip appeared in his helmet, offering a peek at gray feathers matching his chest plume.

Golurk raised its right hand. Shadows coated its fist. Before it struck Tessa, however, a purple Shadow Ball hit its right shoulder. Golurk froze up.

"I guess now's as good a time as any to try this out," Shane said. "This is for picking on Null!" He scrambled forward, heart racing. Water coated his tails. Shane whirled around. His tails swept Golurk's legs out from under it. Shane smirked, only for his eyes to bug out. Golem was toppling forward. It was going to flatten Espeon, who was frozen in shock.

"Espeon!" Shane cried. He sprinted toward her and dove to the ground. Shane and Espeon tumbled away from Golurk. It missed them by inches. The nearest Unown scattered, squaling in fright. Their barriers faded. Espeon looked up, panting.

"Th… thanks. I totally locked up there," Espeon said.

"You're not hurt, are you?" Shane asked, looking her over. His heart jumped into his throat when he saw her right hind paw was swollen.

"It… it's fine," Espeon assured him, though the squeak of pain she gave upon standing up made Shane brace himself against her side. A flush came across her cheeks.

"Ach! C'mon, guys, wake up," Unown F said, looking at Golurk. Its two buddies joined it and together they reformed their barrier. "Okay, only one thing to do. Push 'em back. We'll flatten them against the cave-in they caused earlier and that'll be the end of that."

The barriers hovered forward. Tessa's aura feelers shot up. Null scrambled to his feet and backpedaled alongside her. Shane helped Espeon hobble through the tunnel, though she was clearly in pain. The barriers left Golurk unharmed.

"We've got to figure out a way to get rid of them or we're all going to get fried!" Shane said.

"What are we supposed to do? There's too many of them," Tessa cried. "And some of us don't have any ranged attacks, remember?" Shane's brow furrowed. What could they do in the face of impenetrable barriers? Shane realized that, if their attacks weren't enough, then they'd need something bigger.

Static tickled his tails. Shane quickened his pace. "I… I have an idea. But it's kinda— no, it's _very_ risky."

Tessa shot him a horrified look, but glanced the approaching row of barriers and gulped. "How crazy are we talking, exactly?"

He looked over at Espeon. "If Null and I shoot our attacks forward, do you think you could hit them with Psychic? That ought to create a blast that's strong enough to break a few of these emera ore things."

Espeon's tail shot up. "Are you crazy? They're much closer together here than they were before. If we break one, the energy that gets released will start a chain reaction and collapse the whole tunnel!"

"I know that," Shane said. "Which is why we need to run _toward_ the barriers as soon as we launch our attacks."

"That's gonna get us killed!" Tessa cried. She looked in front of her and her face blanched at the sight of the earlier cave-in popping up.

"Do you have any better ideas? Because I, for one, don't want to experience this world's version of an electric chair!" Shane said, not even bothering to care his teammates wouldn't understand what he was talking about.

Tessa skidded to a halt. "Okay, fine. But give some sort of signal so we know when to run."

Shane nodded. He pushed Espeon to the side and shouted, "Null, fire an Air Slash." Null obliged. Shane simultaneously released a white Frost Breath cloud. The two attacks connected. Pink energy erupted all around them. Fierce, wintery air exploded. The lead barrier collapsed and the three Unown fell to the ground unconscious.

"Now! Go, go, go, go!" Shane screamed, ducking his head down and running forward.

His teammates took off after him, though Espeon struggled to keep up. Seconds later, two of the emera ores in the cavern burst open. Fluorescent purple energy shot out of them. The entire cavern shook as, one by one, the arranged emera ores detonated like purple, neon fireworks. Just as Espeon predicted, huge slabs of rock rained down from above. The Unown all shouted in fright, but even after disengaging their barriers they were not as fast as Team Radiance. The foursome passed all the Unown by. More emera ores blew up around them. The cave collapsed on top of them.

"Hurry up… the cave-in's gaining on us!" Tessa screamed. She threw her arms up over her head and slammed her eyes shut. Beside her, Shane's eyes widened. The cracks in the ceiling had caught up to them. They were going to be crushed to death.

" _Dive for it guys!_ " he bellowed. Null encased his helmet in metal and lunged forward, his Iron Head destroying a couple of falling rocks. Tessa likewise burst her way through using a pair of well-timed Force Palm strikes. Shane managed to blast apart a rock that was about to land right in front of him with pink Extransensory ripples. He threw himself to the floor, not even realizing that the rocky ground had abruptly given way to cold, hard steel. The cavern gave one final, violent shake before the tremors subsided.

Team Radiance lay on the ground, flanks heaving. "We're… we're alive," Tessa panted. She blinked tears out of her eyes. "Oh, dear gods, why is every day bringing us crazier and crazier near-death experiences? Our luck can't keep holding out like this!" She looked up at the ceiling. "We're totally trapped! We could be miles underground for all we know and there's no way out. We're going to starve to death in this… this…" She slowly sat up and looked around. "W… what the— this isn't a cave. Where the heck are we?"

Shane had finally managed to get the ringing out of his ears. He staggered to his feet, coughing up dust. Shane blinked stars out of his vision and looked ahead of him. His chest tightened. "Guys… I don't think we're in the Catacombs anymore," he whimpered.

"Hey… Shane? W… where's Espeon? She was running beside you, right?" Tessa said.

Shane turned to his right, only to find himself looking at the metal floor. His eyes widened. "Espeon? Espeon! Where are you?" He looked around frantically. "Can you hear us? Did you get blown across the room?"

"… um… guys?"

Shane turned toward the wall of rubble. Null stood there, looking down. He shut his eyes and pointed a talon forward. "No," Shane whispered. "No! Please, god, no!" he wailed, sprinting toward his teammate. He stumbled to a stop beside Null.

It was there, at the base of the rubble, that he saw a forked, pink tail lying motionless beneath a jagged rock.

* * *

Next time: the birth of the God Killer.


	47. A Monster to End All Monsters

I am absolutely blown back by the support as of late. Seriously, you guys bring a smile to my face. Just a quick reply to Guest: it's quite alright. No one's forcing you to enjoy everything. I just needed those little scenes there to set up some stuff for the next couple of episodes.

Onto the chapter, then. The title here is actually from a cutscene in Spyro: Year of the Dragon. But I think it'll make sense in context. As a recommendation, you might want to look up the main menu theme to Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, and have it playing in the background as mood music. I've put a lot of elbow grease into this one, so I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

 **Chapter 41: A Monster to End All Monsters**

 **~Glyphic Falls~**

"Captain, are you okay?"

Sticky swooped down and attempted to hoist Luxeira to her feet. She slowly got up and adjusted her helmet. "What exactly was that? My scanner picked up seismic activity right below us. But I don't see any shifting landmasses."

"It was another earthquake, genius, but it passed," Gallian growled.

"Another earthquake?" Sticky looked around the area. "Hmm. I hope there aren't subterranean terrestrials here. I fear their lives may be in jeopardy."

"Who cares? I can't believe they just lied to my face like that," Gallian huffed. He dug his claws into the ground. "My dad trusted them! They were his friends. How could they just betray him like that?"

Sticky poked his nubby hands together. "Not to question your judgment, Gallian, but it did seem like those organized terrestrials disagreed with your assessment. Are you sure you have the right side of this story? I believe you may be hallucinating."

Gallian whirled around and pointed his glowing scythe at Sticky, whose face blanched. "I am _not_ lying! Those two are murderers! They led Dad here… and pushed him off a cliff to his death!" His irises disappeared and his eyes turned pitch-black. "I want them all dead. You hear me? _Dead!_ The whole guild has to pay for what they did to me!"

The rocky crags beside Team Paradox trembled. Pebbles cascaded down to the ground. Gallian looked over his shoulder. The rocks exploded. Dirt and debris threatened to pummel Team Paradox. Gallian swung his scythe, slicing the rocks in half with ease.

 **"Skraaaw!"**

A pair of metal-coated wings smacked together, dispelling the smoke and dust in the air. Toucannon stepped forward, its fierce eyes focusing on Team Paradox. Sticky's eyes widened. "C-Captain! That Toucannon—"

Luxeira nudged her helmet. "Yes, there's clearly something wrong with it. It looks a bit like a Celesteela. Could this Pokémon have become an Ultra Beast?"

Toucannon opened its beak and out came a stream of rocks. Gallian leaped over them. Luxeira and Sticky hid behind a nearby boulder. Gallian landed and slashed with his scythe. Pink energy crescents hurtled toward Toucannon. It threw its wings up to cover its torso.

Toucannon heated its beak. It stared Gallian down. He turned and spat onto the ground, saying, "Just so you know, I'm in a pretty foul mood right now." Toucannon spread its wings apart and launched itself at Gallian. He collapsed into a cloud of shadows. Toucannon flew right by the spot Gallian once stood in. Sticky bathed Toucannon in a cloud of toxic air. However, to his shock, the toxins harmlessly washed off its feathers.

"Impossible," Sticky gasped. Toucannon turned to find Gallian behind it and screeched.

"Not gonna stand down, huh?" Gallian growled. "Fine. Then you're about to feel my rage!"

His eyes went pitch-black once again and he lunged at Toucannon with a ferocious roar.

* * *

 **~Nocturnus Laboratory~**

Shane slammed his body against the rock pinning Espeon's tail. " _Espeon!_ " he keened, bouncing off the rock and staggering backward. He turned to his teammates. "What are you two doing? Don't just stand there! We have to get rid of this thing!"

"Shane," Tessa whispered.

"She's trapped under there. We need to get out her out," Shane cried. He turned and pressed himself against the rock. It failed to budge even an inch. "No! No! Move, you stupid rock. _Move!_ " He slid down onto his belly.

"Shane… think about... what you're doing," Null said. "If you move that rock… the ones on top of it will just fall down. You'll end up… getting yourself crushed as well."

Shane teared up. "No, I won't believe that. There's gotta be a way to free her. She can't… she can't be dead! B-Because… if… if she is… then that means…" He tucked his head into his chest and squeezed his eyes shut. Tears streamed down his cheeks. "… it's my fault." He resumed pushing against the rock with renewed vigor.

Tessa bit her lip and looked at Null. "What should we do?" she whispered.

Sighing, Null shook his head. "Help him out… I guess. I have an idea… but it's definitely not the safest thing to do…" Tessa flinched, hesitant to try another risky gambit with how disastrous the last one turned out. "Don't worry… it's not risky for you. I'll be the one… sticking my neck out… literally." He leaned over, coughing hard.

"A-Are you sure?" Tessa said.

"Guys, help me! Please!" Shane sobbed. He banged his head against the rock and staggered back in a daze. Null took in a few heavy breaths and charged forward. His mask hardened as he ran. He struck the rock pinning Espeon's tail and kept his helmet pressed against it. A massive crack splintered through the rock.

Null fell forward as the rock crumbled. Tessa yipped in fright, worried the rest of the rocks would crush Null. With a loud groan, Null threw his body backwards. Shane's eyes widened. Espeon's limp body flew threw the air, landing between him and Tessa unceremoniously. Null fell to his side, hissing loudly. Cracks and discolored splotches peppered the top of his mask. His grotesque, swollen right leg throbbed.

Tessa grabbed an oran berry and sprinted toward Null. She smooshed it against his ankle. "Even if you can't eat anything, the nutrients can seep in through your scales." Whining, Null tensed his hind leg. The berry juice stung.

"Tessa, I need the item pouch over here. Stat!" Shane barked, sitting next to Espeon. Tessa got up and joined her teammate. Her stomach knotted at the sight of Espeon.

"She's… she's…" Tessa struggled to find any words. She squeezed her eyes shut and jerked her head away.

"She's breathing!" Shane cried.

Curious, Tessa cracked open an eye. Shane had a forepaw on Espeon's chest. "But why is part of her chest sucking in while the other part moves out?" Tessa asked.

Shane's brow furrowed. "I saw this on TV once. Her ribs must be broken." He looked up at Tessa. "Give me the item pouch. We've got to fix this!"

"Fix it? Shane, look at her." Tessa pointed a shaky paw at Espeon. Bruises littered her body. One of her ears was bent against her face. Blood trickled out of it and seeped into her fur. "She needs serious healing."

"You think I don't realize that?" Shane snapped. Tessa shrank back, frowning. "Sorry, I…" He took a deep breath, but it couldn't stop his racing thoughts. "Please, just let me try this. I did this to her. I've got to fix it." Tessa reluctantly handed over the item pouch. Shane first pulled out one of their Escape Orbs. He frowned at its dull-gray coloration. "Dang it! This isn't fair!" he hissed, shoving the orb back into the bag. Beside him, Espeon let out a watery cough.

The scene in front of Shane dissolved into a swirling mist of colors. His limbs locked. He found himself staring not at Espeon, but a battered Lunala. She lay curled up in a ball much as Espeon did, letting out wheezing gasps.

 _"Hang on!"_ Shane felt himself shout. _"Lunala, you've got to stay with me. I'm gonna force this Reviver Seed down and try something with Morning Sun. Don't you die on me! I can't lose you!"_

Shane stumbled forward, returning to the underground lab. He snapped to attention and quickly dug through the pouch. Multiple berries rolled out to his side. He found a Reviver Seed and gingerly pulled it out in his mouth.

"What are you going to do with that?" Tessa asked. Shane leaned down toward Espeon's head. He bit down on the seed, then forced Espeon's muzzle open. Blood trickled out onto the floor. Tessa's face turned an odd shade of yellow. She looked away, throwing a paw up over her muzzle. "Augh, gross!" she said, grimacing.

Across the room, Null's eyes widened. A small fireball appeared over Shane's head. Orange light enveloped him and Espeon. "What the—" Null wheezed, before the glow got so bright he had to look away.

By the time Tessa opened her eyes, the glow had faded. Shane pressed Espeon's snout closed and hefted her head up. He grabbed the berries he had gotten from the team's bag and, just as Tessa did to Null earlier, smooshed them against Espeon's hide. Berry juice splattered across her fur, filling the room with a sweet aroma. Shane stared intently at Espeon. He noticed her chest movements gradually return to normal, though it was clear she was shuddering with each breath.

Espeon coughed up a mouthful of blood. Her eyes slowly fluttered open. "U… ungh. W… what happened?" She blinked slowly and tried to lift her head up.

Tessa stepped forward. "Easy there, Espeon. You got hurt by the collapsing cave." She shot Shane a curious look. "Does this mean she's okay?"

"I… I don't know," Shane said. "Espeon, how are you feeling?"

Espeon tried to lift her head up, only to squeal in pain and collapse. Shane opened the item pouch and pulled out an oran berry. "Here. You need to get your strength back up." He nudged the berry forward. Espeon nibbled away at it until she was able to sit up. Shane sighed in relief

"The last thing I remember were rocks falling toward me," she whispered. "Did…" She gulped. "Did I get… crushed?"

Shane nodded slowly.

Horror crept across Espeon's face. Her gaze fell to the floor. "No," she whispered. " _No!_ " she shouted. Her head jerked to the right. Espeon stared off into space. " _Shut up!_ " she cried, ears folding flat against her face. "I'm not going back. I never want to see any of you again. Get away!" She staggered to her feet. "Get back, you awful Void Shadows. _Go away!_ "

Shane stepped in front of her. "Espeon, I'm sorry! This was my fault! I never should have suggested such a stupid idea." He slapped a forepaw on the ground. "Stupid! Stupid! I'm such an idiot!" he shouted. Tessa flinched from his shrill cries. Espeon looked at him in confusion. She blinked a few times, took in a deep breath, then exhaled. Espeon lifted her head up and summoned a warm, glowing orb above her. Soft light sprinkled onto her body. Some of her wounds faded, though many of the larger bruises and welts still remained.

"Morning Sun," Shane whispered. A shudder ran down his spine. He had an awful sense of déjà vu, but wasn't sure why. As he though about this, a silhouette of a blazing fire appeared around Espeon. Fierce red eyes looked back at him through the fire. Shane shut his eyes and shook his head. The hallucination vanished. Shane's attention returned to Espeon. "How are you doing now?"

"A little better... I guess. Unlike your berries, recovery moves like Morning Sun can restore my life energy," Espeon said.

Once again, spectral flames gathered around Espeon. The red eyes stared at Shane. He jumped back with a yip, only to find Espeon staring at him in confusion. He quickly forced a smile onto his face and ran up to embrace Espeon. "Oh, thank god you're okay! I thought… I thought I'd…" He gritted his teeth and look away.

Espeon's face flushed and she stepped back from him. "W-Well… it's not perfect." She rubbed her neck with a forepaw. "My ESP… feels fuzzy." The gem on her forehead flickered with dull light. Espeon's eyes widened. "Oh no, I can't call on my telekinesis! Or my telepathy!" Her shivers returned. "My psychic powers... they've been crippled," she whimpered.

"Seriously?" Shane gasped. "What's the problem? Can I do anything to help?"

"I don't know!" Espeon squeaked, looking about in a panic. She shut her eyes and forced herself to take slow, deep breaths. Even though she wanted to scream, she managed to keep herself under control. "It looks like we have to find a way out of here. Otherwise, I'll never be able to get this fixed." She looked around. "For that matter, where exactly _is_ here?"

With Espeon's health restored, Team Radiance finally familiarized themselves with their surroundings. Black crystals lined the walls, floor and ceiling. The crystals distorted the room and gave it a jagged appearance. Shane could barely make out metal grates under the crystals. Had they grown over whatever this room originally was?

Alongside the crystals, emera ores lay scattered around. Tessa's aura feelers curled against her head. "I don't like the look of this place. It's almost like it was completely frozen in time. What are those things hanging down from the ceiling?"

Shane craned his neck upward and clenched his jaw. "That's… but… no way. Sure, they're covered in crystals. But some of those look like lasers. And one of them's a probe!" His eyes darted about. He found other instruments bolted to the walls, buried under a layer of pitch-black crystals.

"Lasers? Espeon, do you know what those things are?" Tessa asked, clasping her paws against her chest.

"No. In all my travels, I've never seen anything like them." Espeon meekly lowered her gaze. "But it looks like they're all focused on that fossilized table."

Shane approached the dark-gray slab of a table. His tails jolted upright. "Ah!" He scampered back toward a nearby cluster of darkened crystals. "There are chains welded to this table," he said, pulse quickening. His rear struck the darkened crystals. He jumped forward, yipping.

Null squinted at the crystals. "Are those… emera ores?"

"If they are, they've been drained of all their power. I didn't even think that was possible," Espeon said. Her brow furrowed. "Look." She pointed a paw forward. "There are lines running from the crystals toward the table. Were they powering something down here?"

Shane looked to his right. Scattered scraps of brown stuck out against the metal floor. He cautiously approached them and hesitantly reached a paw toward the nearest paper. He tapped it with a digit, then yanked his paw back. When nothing happened, he grabbed the paper and held it up toward the cave's dim lighting.

"Guys, I think I may have found something important," he said.

Tessa and Espeon trotted toward him, but Null hung back. He fixed his gaze on the table. His limbs locked up. "Ch… chains. I… I remember… chains," he whispered, head pounding. He tried to shake his head, but his body wouldn't listen. His talons scratched against the steel. Null whimpered, wanting nothing more than to leave this place behind.

"There's writing here," Espeon said, looking at the papers Shane had gathered. "This looks like the Unown language."

"Well, that makes perfect sense, considering who we ran into earlier," Shane said. "I guess this is some sort of ancient lab, then."

"Can either of you read this?" Tessa asked. She poked her digits together and looked down guiltily, muttering, "I know what Unown language is, but never learned how to decipher it."

"Oh, yeah. I can read it. It's super easy," Shane chirped, drawing bewildered looks from the girls. "Like this line on the top here. It says: 'God Killer Unit: Schematics.'" A beat followed, then Shane's eyes widened. He looked back down at the paper. "Wait. 'God Killer?' Th-this is—"

Espeon tried to levitate the paper up, but failed to move it. She huffed her frustration and bent over. "This is what Latias told us about this morning," she said. The trio looked at the page. It was full of sketches. There were more lines of Unown script underneath them.

 _Design based on invader's memories extracted using Dream Eater._

 _Four legs for optimal ground speed. Infuse primal energy into paw pads for water and air-running capabilities._

 _Must have talons for traction and close-ranged combat. Bird design with bug exoskeleton for protection. Vikavolt can help with that._

 _Tail of a water-type for optimal subaquatic maneuverability. Position dead-center between its hips._

 _Feathers around the head and chest are critical! Head crest should have solidified primal energy for redirecting air currents. Conduit at the tip of the crest can concentrate the air for attacking purposes. Be sure to speak with Sigilyph about this._

 _Ears need basic sonar functionality. See Noivern for working demonstration._

 _Steel-plated jaw to bite the toughest Pokémon hides imaginable. Examine Tyrantrum specimen for good reference!_

 _Layer body in scales, but cover them with dark fur for better camouflaging._

Shane frowned. "Is… is this what I think it is?"

Espeon nodded grimly. "There's no question in my mind. These pictures and the stuff they're describing… they're just like your friend, Null."

Shane examined the page closer. His head tilted to the side. "Is that what Null looks like without his mask? He has a bird's beak. That's so weird."

Tessa grimaced and looked down. "Then… it's true? Null's some sort of experiment?"

Shane bit down on his tongue, fighting back the urge to belt out an, "I told you so." This wasn't something he was happy to be right about. Instead, all he felt was an overwhelming sense of dread. He took a deep breath and looked around at the other papers on the ground. "But who would do something like this? The paper mentioned 'God Killer Unit.' But why?"

Espeon squealed, drawing Shane's attention. She was staring down at a piece of paper, eyes wide and tail curled up against her belly. "No, it can't be," she whispered, staggering back.

Shane approached her. He followed her gaze. His limbs locked up. Tessa joined her teammates, only for her aura feelers to shoot up. "That's the Prism Virus symbol, isn't it? The winged heart? It... that..." Tessa shook her head. "That's impossible. Why's it on this paper?"

"It's not just on the paper," Espeon said, pointing a shaky forepaw forward. Off in the distance, the familiar sigil lay painted on the wall, distorted by the crystals on top of it.

"So, then this place... it must've held a group hating the gods. Latias mentioned something like that, right?" Tessa said, suppressing a shiver. She knew Null was still staring at the table and wanted to say something to comfort him. However, she feared anything she'd have to say would only upset him further.

"Hey." Shane beckoned the girls over. "There's more over here." He held up another page in his mouth. Espeon recited its contents.

"We want to power our creation with primal energy entrapped in the power crystals abundant in this part of Horizon. But the problem is finding a way to do that safely. After all, these are crystallized remnants of the raw power wielded by the gods in their many clashes. If we tried to transfer this energy into another Pokémon, what would happen? We can't simply ask Pokémon to volunteer for such a task. So, as lead designer on the God Killer Project, it falls to me, the Illustrious Golem, to figure out a method by which we can use this primal energy. Even if we succeed, there's still the question of what the creature will look like. But that is something we can continue to investigate…"

"It looks like it's a journal entry of some sort," Shane said, dropping the paper to the ground.

Without warning, Null roared. His teammates jumped in surprise. Before any of them could say anything, Null bashed his head against the table.

"Null! What's wrong?" Tessa cried. Null stepped back from the table, shuddering. He looked up at the instruments that hung from the ceiling, then rammed his mask into the table once again. This time his mask hardened into iron. Cracks and splinters appeared on the table. Null jumped back, hissing loudly.

"… destroy it… destroy it!" he shouted, dropping to the ground and clawing at his helmet. "It hurt us! Get rid of it!"

Tessa tried to run up to him, but Shane stepped in front of her. "What are you doing? He's lashing out. He could hurt you."

"But he's my friend. I can't just let him suffer," Tessa said, though she knew he was right. Null was bigger and far stronger. She wondered if she should deploy a seed or an orb and put him to sleep like in Moonrise Marsh.

"Graagh! Make it stop! Make… the pain… stop!" Null thundered. He got to his feet and charged the table down. He struck it with Iron Head once again. This time the table shattered. Null lumbered forward, only for his eyes to widen as the ground gave out under him. He fell down into the newly-created hole, roaring in anger. Claws scraped metal. Shane's ears reflexively folded and he winced.

"Null, no!" Tessa shouted. Throwing caution to the wind, she shoved Shane's chest and ran forward. However, she immediately skidded to a halt. Metal chains launched themselves into the hole where the table had previously stood. The metallic scratching noises got worse. Null cried out in agony. Tessa's aura feelers stiffened. Her heart pounded in her chest.

"They must've booby trapped the table," Shane said. "What should we do? If we try to free him, we could get wrapped up in chains too!"

"Are you serious? We're not about to leave him here," Tessa said.

"I wasn't saying to leave him here. Just that we shouldn't go right for the chains," Shane said. "I'm sure that there's _something_ around here that can tell us how to deactivate that trap. We just need to do some more investigating."

"What makes you so sure about that?" Espeon asked.

Shane winced. "Okay, I'm not exactly certain. But the trap activated from the table breaking, right? Which means it's not controlled by a Pokémon. So, it stands to reason that there are instructions for it, just in case someone triggered it accidentally."

"But where else are we supposed to look?" Tessa said.

Espeon tapped a paw on Tessa's shoulder and pointed ahead of her. Tessa followed Espeon's paw and went rigid. Shane also looked where Espeon pointed and his stomach squirmed. "H-How did we miss that when we got here?" he gasped.

"It's not exactly well-lit," Espeon said. She walked toward the hidden room she had discovered. Her eyes glowed blue in an effort to provide some light. But her head throbbed, forcing her to stop.

"Espeon, I think there's something wrong here," Tessa said, shivering. "These crystals don't look anything like the emera ores we saw in the other room. They're more like the one's that are covering everything else in here... but ten times bigger!"

"Yeah, this isn't good. It's like they're sucking in all the light…" Espeon's voice trailed off and her gaze fell to the ground.

"What's wrong?" Tessa asked.

"N-Nothing!" Espeon yelped, skirting back from Tessa.

"Um, guys? There's something inside one of these crystals," Shane said. He gulped and crouched low to the ground. His teammates walked up to him.

Tessa's aura feelers tightened. "Not something… some _one._ "

Espeon nodded. "It looks like a Porygon2," she said. "Should we try to free it?"

"No!" Tessa blurted out. "I… I mean… what if it's hostile?"

Shane was inclined to agree with Tessa. At the same time, however, he knew ignoring this discovery wouldn't help Null. "It might have answers for us. Besides, it's three of us and one of it. Plus, it's sure to be weak if it's been trapped in this crystal," Shane said.

Tessa's ears flatted against her head. The idea didn't sit well with her, but neither did letting Null sit inside a booby trap. "Fine," Tessa said, walking toward the other end of the room. Shane's eyes flashed. A small Extrasensory wave destroyed the crystal. Porygon2 fell to the ground, unmoving. "Is… is it dead?" Tessa asked.

Shane reached a forepaw toward it, only to hastily yank it back when Porygon2's body shook. "Gah! Nope, it's alive! Very alive!" Shane yelped, assuming a fighting stance. Slowly, Porygon2's eyes opened. It hovered into the air, but only made it a few inches before collapsing to the ground.

"Are you okay?" Espeon asked.

 **Who… are you?** Porygon2 asked, its voice filled with static that made the trio flinch.

"We're explorers with the Horizon Guild," Shane said.

Porygon2 looked around the cavern. **Why… underground? Don't…** Its voice descended into static again.

"We found you imprisoned inside a crystal. By the look of things, you've been inside it for a very long time. Is there any chance you can remember what happened?" Espeon said.

In the distance, Null roared. Claws slashed metal. Porygon2's eyes widened. **Impossible,** it said. **We… experiment… sealed. How did… escape?**

"No, our friend Null got stuck in your booby-trapped table. We need to free him. Tell us how," Tessa said, worried Porygon2 might try to attack Null.

 **Voice… recognize. Experiment… here…** Porygon2 tried to rise into the air, only to collapse on the ground. **Danger… flee…** Its voice was heavily garbled.

"Null's not dangerous," Tessa growled, though her voice was riddled with uncertainty. She tried to focus on the good memories she had with Null, but his anguished cries made that an uphill battle.

"So, you were part of the group that created Null," Espeon said, confirmed what his teammates both feared. "What do you remember? You have to tell us."

Porygon2 shook its head. **No time. Must flee.** It again failed to rise more than a few inches off the ground.

"Look, we're trying to get out of here ourselves. So, how about a deal. You tell us what you know about what happened down here, and we'll get you to safety," Shane said. Porygon2 looked up at Shane. "Like Riolu said, Null's stuck in your booby trap. He's not going anywhere anytime soon."

 **Accepted,** Poryton2 rotated its head. Light flickered in its eyes, before fading out. Then its eyes glowed white and a dim, static image projected onto the wall across from the group.

 _"Are you recording, Porygon2?"_

An unfamiliar voice came from Porygon2's body. Shane tilted his head in confusion. "Is that supposed to be a Golem? What's with the facial hair and the magnet on its head?" he asked. Tessa opened her mouth to reply when Shane held up a forepaw. "No, no, wait. I've got this one. 'That's what they look like in Horizon, Shane.' Am I right?" Tessa slowly nodded. Shane turned back to the video. In it, Golem stepped back.

 _"This is the first log for the God Killer Project. I, the Illustrious Golem, am the project lead,"_ Golem said. The shod had the same table Null had broken, but it clearly showed Golem was in a building with strange metal panels on the ceiling. Emera ores served as the only source of light in the area.

 _"If you're watching this in the future, then I hope this means we succeeded in our endeavors. See, I have assembled a group of fellow researchers. Like me, they share a distrust in the gods. We have strong doubts about their abilities to protect us,"_ Golem said. He paced back and forth. _"However, you must try to understand where I am come from. You see, calamity befell our world."_ He looked straight at the camera, which Shane assumed was Porygon2.

 _"Do not let anyone twist the truth of the matter. The fact is that, as it currently stands, our world... is a world of darkness,"_ Golem continued. He turned his back on the camera for a moment, but it was long enough for the group to spot the winged heart sigil carved into his back. Shane glanced nervously at his teammates, but couldn't think of anything to say.

"A world of darkness?" Tessa whispered, blinking in confusion.

 _"We were attacked by—"_ Golem stopped and stroked his beard. _"Well, I can't even call it a Pokémon. It was really an entity. An entity known as Dark Matter."_ He resumed his pacing. _"Dark Matter lay siege to the world, turning many Pokémon to stone."_ His expression darkened. _"Pokémon like me. Pokémon like my assistants."_

 _"Our spirits were somehow pulled from our bodies and cast off into a twisted landscape. Though I cannot sense energy, I found psychics who confirmed that this_ prison _, for lack of a better word, had a warped aura. They described the place as a void. Hence, we dubbed it the Voidlands,"_ Golem continued, shaking his head. _"No matter where I went, I was besieged by strange images and stranger voices. Saying that our negativity had birthed Dark Matter. That Dark Matter would purify the world by restoring it to its natural state."_

Golem turned so that the winged heart sigil was visible yet again. _"This symbol... it was scattered around Dark Matter's prison. It was said to represent the true power that forged our world. A power that the specters in the Voidlands claimed the gods have tried, but ultimately failed, to properly control."_

"I... I don't understand. Does this mean the Prism Virus is all Dark Matter's doing?" Tessa said. "That's impossible! Dark Matter was destroyed for good by Team Gaia. Everyone knows that."

 _"Dark Matter was stopped, but from what I've heard, there is a chance it could reappear. And, in the meantime, our world is still shrouded in darkness,"_ Golem continued, turning back to Porygon2. _"Before Dark Matter rose up, the constant quarrels between Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza, left the world in a state of chaos. One of their battles led to a perilous storm that nearly destroyed Ho-Oh."_

Golem shut his eyes and shook his head. _"Ho-Oh was saved by two other gods, Solgaleo and Lunala. However, they saved Ho-Oh at the cost of their lives."_ He clenched his fists. _"Somehow, their deaths led to the loss of light from the world. No sunlight. No moonlight. The sky is awash with a strange, twisted vortex reminiscent of what lay in the Voidlands. Perhaps this is the 'greater power of the void' at work."_

 _"I would've thought Arceus would be able to create a new Solgaleo and Lunala to restore our light. But that hasn't happened,"_ Golem said. _"It seems as though the gods really don't have all the power that we thought."_

"No, that can't be right," Tessa gasped. "The Horizon legends… they say Ho-Oh controlled the light! And she imparted that gift to her saviors."

Shane's chest tightened up. He immediately recalled his nightmare, where Solgaleo's impostor claimed the Horizon legends were lies. Based on what Golem said, it sounded like the impostor was right. Which begged the question, how did Horizon's legends come about? And why were they wrong?

Golem's brow furrowed. _"If, indeed, Dark Matter were to return, I firmly believe the gods can't be trusted to keep us safe. We are taking matters into our own hands!"_ He put a hand on the table behind him. _"This power... the power of the void. My team and I will find a way to utilize it. And with it, we'll make a protector we can trust. Our creation will kill the gods before they ruin the world and, most importantly, listen to the will of normal Pokémon."_ Golem nodded, smiling.

 _"It will surely be a tough endeavor, but I believe…"_

The scene descended into static. **Footage… corrupted,** Porygon2 announced, its eyes flickering. Before anyone could ask it what it meant, a new image appeared.

 _"God Killer Project, second update,"_ Golem said, stepping to the side to show off a number of pictures that a Sigilyph levitated in the air. _"I, the Illustrious Golem, have ironed out the mechanics for powering our creation. We will infuse it with primal energy from power crystals. They are abundant in Horizon. My associates are gathering as many as they can get their hands on."_

"Power crystals?" Shane said.

"That must've been what they called emera ores back then," Espeon figured.

 _"We do have to be careful how many we gather, though. That much energy is dangerous,"_ Sigilyph said, his flat affect sending a chill down Shane's spine.

 _"Yes, yes, of course,"_ Golem said, stroking his beard. _"In the meantime, let us discuss the body framework. I, the Illustrious Golem, did not develop this idea. Rather, my colleague Musharna proposed it."_ He snapped his fingers. Sigilyph levitated new pages over. Along with those pages came two Unown. Both of them looked to be in a great deal of pain.

 _"These are Unown. Very mysterious Pokémon,"_ Golem said. _"Alone, they are insignificant. Only capable of using Hidden Power…"_

 _"Puh-please, sir,"_ an Unown I squealed, its body trembling in Sigilyph's psychic grasp. _"Let us go!"_

Golem shook his head. _"I'm afraid that's not possible. Now then, where was I? Ah, yes. Alone, Unown are meek. But, when brought together, they appear to generate tremendous power."_ Golem pointed toward Porygon2 and the papers flew forward, expanding to give Team Radiance a look at their contents.

Shane's eyes widened. "No way. They can't do that, can they?"

 _"Power that some theorize can bend time and space,"_ Golem continued. _"In fact, I, the Illustrious Golem, had pioneered the idea that the Unown are, in fact, the remnants of the Thousand Arms that Arceus used to shape our world during its creation."_

He walked up to an Unown K and examined it. _"Yes. Testing has shown we can combine Unown to create an entirely different Pokémon. Thus, we're gathering Unown."_

 _"I still have concerns about this avenue, sir,"_ Sigilyph said. _"Can we really control a large quantity of Unown? They develop hive mind tendencies when grouped together."_

 _"Your concerns are noted. Luckily, I, the Illustrious Golem, have the means to do so. See, it all goes back to 'the power of the void.' It took time, but I figured out what those cryptic messages meant: alchemy!"_ Golem said. A strange, distorted light rippled through his claws. Even the sigil on his back glowed briefly. _"The gods have used this power maliciously, but I intend to use it for the good of all Pokémon everywhere."_

 _"Sir, again, I fear we may not be able to do this successfully,"_ Sigilyph said. _"What if a god can sense your use of alchemy?"_

 _"I've already been able to use a few basic runes without detection. The power crystals help shield any strange energy these spells create,"_ Golem said. _"Fear not, Sigilyph. For I, the Illustrious Golem, will alchemically fuse Unown together by using these power crystals as a base. And the result? Our God Killer will be born! History will forever remember our names!"_

Espeon staggered backwards. "No way. Alchemy? My parents told me that's a forbidden art."

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "This can't be. Null's really… a bunch of Unown?"

Bile bubbled up in Shane's throat. "Could that have been what the Unown were talking about? About how Null hurt them?" It didn't sit well with him. Especially since Null himself didn't have any control over this.

"No wonder he told me he's always in pain," Tessa said, crestfallen by the revelation.

"I thought that was just the helmet?" Shane said.

"Shh! There's more," Espeon said, pointing at Porygon2's projection.

 _"Yes, I agree, Sigilyph. We must ensure the Unown's hive mind tendencies don't create obedience issues,"_ Golem said, nodding. He tapped his claws on the table. _"I believe there's a solution to this. The Unown are a hive mind, so we simply need minds with stronger wills to counteract them. So, we should infuse the God Killer with memories from Pokémon that have already passed to the spirit realm."_

Shane's fur bristled and his tails jolted upright.

"What's wrong, Shane?" Tessa asked.

"I don't know. Something about that statement just… just feels _wrong_ on, like, a personal level," Shane squeaked. His muzzle twitched. "A part of me just wants to lash out at this guy for some reason."

"Could it have something to do with what this guy's saying? Because it makes me sick," Tessa said, shivering.

"Well, yeah. I mean, Golem's clearly off his rocker," Shane said. "But there's also something else to it. The part about the spirit realm really chaffed my tails."

"It could be your instincts. Ninetales are believed to have spiritual powers," Espeon said.

"As in?"

"They commune with the spirits of dead Pokémon," Espeon said.

"Oh," Shane whispered.

 _"With the help of Horizon's Totem Ninetales, I will search out restless spirits from the spirit realm and summon them. Then, like with the Unown, I can bind them together through the power of the void. The result is a God Killer with rational thought and obedience,"_ Golem said, nodding approvingly at himself. _"Of course, we'll have a contingency for this. I, the Illustrious Golem, will forge a custom-made looplet that will house some of the spirits."_

A new paper floated toward Porygon2. The design lacked notches for emeras. It had a small wheel in its center. _"I'm sure you notice this part in the center. I will cram spirits of every manner of Pokémon inside the looplet. Then, with the right alchemical runes, the God Killer will be able to change its typing at will."_

"Dear god. Null isn't just some experiment. He's _an attempt to make another Arceus!_ " Shane said. He barely managed to stop himself from hurling. "How… why… what am I even watching, here? This is lunacy! You can't just _make_ a god with magic… can you?"

Espeon and Tessa gave Shane astonished looks, but they then heard Golem say, _"I suppose you could say that I'm playing god to rid the world of the gods. I prefer to think of it as using the power of the void_ correctly. _Desperate times call for desperate measures, after all. Given the irony, I think it fitting we call the God Killer's ability... the RKS System!"_

Behind Golem, Sigilyph shifted about uneasily.

"You see? No wonder Null's a walking disaster. What were these sickos thinking doing something like this?" Shane said. After a moment, he winced, fearing his wording was too harsh. Tessa didn't seem to give any indication Shane's words bothered her, however.

Espeon's ears drooped. "I can't believe it. This is what researchers were like back then? They're no better than Umbry and I were with the Prism Virus." She gritted her teeth. "I guess that makes sense... if they've got the same symbol."

"Guys, look! It's that purple Pokémon that Gallian was with," Tessa said, pointing up to the screen. On the projection, a Poipole slumbered soundly on the table. Sigilyph and Musharna floated next to it. Unlike Sticky, it lacked a harness.

Golem turned from the table to face the camera. _"God Killer Project, third update. Progress on the design hit a snag. We were hard-pressed to think of a body that could adapt to all manner of terrain,"_ Golem explained. _"But fortune has smiled upon us."_

He gestured toward the Poipole. Musharna had taken her place beside one of the crystalline lasers. Psychic energy pulled it down from the ceiling so it hovered inches above the Poipole's head. Her chest rose and fell slowly. Musharna released a cloud of pink gas. The Poipole's expression relaxed.

 _"As you can see, this mysterious invader showed up in Horizon,"_ Golem continued. He turned toward the table. _"She presented herself as some sort of goodwill ambassador from a place she called 'Ultra Village.' Bah!"_ He waved a hand dismissively. _"She's no doubt here to use the power of the void to try and finish what Dark Matter started. But did a god appear to dispose of her? Of course not. So it falls to me, the Illustrious Golem, to deal with her."_

He rubbed his hands on the edge of the table. _"Musharna has told me she displays a remarkably different aura from Pokémon in our world. She seems to have memories of creatures from other worlds that can adapt to different situations. So, Musharna will extract those memories. We will use them to construct the God Killer. And then, we will incorporate her spirit into the God Killer, so that it can recognize these alien auras… and dispose of them properly."_

Musharna glowed brightly. The Poipole lay there in silence as the laser engulfed her body. Tessa threw her paws up to cover her eyes and looked away. The projection faded to static.

Shane wrapped a foreleg around her. "It's okay, Tessa. It's okay. It's gone," he coaxed.

Espeon turned her disgusted gaze on Porygon2. "How could you willingly let something like this happen?" Porygon2's eyes flickered, producing a new projection.

 _"The time has come,"_ Golem said. A ball of blue light hovered in front of him. Fluorescent liquid dripped off it, landing in the center of a triangle traced in the ground using chalk. A chalk cross extended off the base of the triangle, while a gigantic chalk circle expanded out from the tip of the triangle. Emera ores surrounded the circle, bathing it in purple light.

Shane's jaw dropped. He gulped. "That's a lot of Unown."

Espeon slowly blinked. "Why is there a pentagram inside the circle? The Unown look completely frightened!"

 _"The spirits are amassed,"_ Golem continued. The ball of light vibrated angrily. More liquid splashed against the runes drawn in the ground. _"I will now activate the binding rune. Sigilyph, prepare the elements!"_

Four balls of light hovered toward the circle. The Unown struggled against the forcefield trapping them in the center of the pentagram. Their chorus of panicked cries reached a fever pitch. Sigilyph's body glowed. He lowered a ball of fire into one of the pentagram's points. The second it touched the ground, a beam of orange light shot up toward the ceiling. Sigilyph lowered the remaining three balls of light to the ground: a lump of dirt, a ball of water, and sphere of air. They each touched a tip of the pentagram, sending different-colored beams of light up to join the orange one.

 _"And last but not least,"_ Golem said, chuckling. His magnet crackled with electricity. Sparks raced ahead of him and settled in the empty pentagram tip.

"What is he doing?" Espeon cried, shrinking back against the wall.

Shane blinked his eyes. "It's some sort of ritual," he whimpered.

A yellow beam of light shot up. Together, the five beams of light pivoted to point at the forcefield of Unown. Hundreds of voices screamed in terror as grotesque, star-shaped runes surrounded the forcefield. _"And now, for the spirit core to stabilize everything!"_ Golem shouted. He traced a pentagon in the air, causing a rune to encase his hand. He touched the rune to the ball of light, shooting it inside the forcefield. For a brief moment, a rune of a winged heart with horns and a piercing red eye appeared. Then, it shattered along with the forcefield. The ball of light swallowed up the Unown. It expanded outward, reaching the edges of the chalk circle.

Golem's eyes lit up. _"It's working. It's working! Ho ho ho ho! I'm a genius!"_ A flash of light overtook the projection, then quickly subsided.

"Look, that's Null! But there's no helmet," Shane said. He stared transfixed at the footage, watching the helmetless Null look around the room curiously. His metal, beak-like mouth opened and closed at random intervals. His fish tail wagged slowly.

 _"At last. I've done it. I've finally done it,"_ Golem said. Sigilyph's body glowed, and a metal table raised out of the ground, hoisting Null up with it. Golem walked up to Null. He slowly pet Null's feathery crest. _"It took four hundred Unown, fifteen power crystals, and over a thousand spirits pulled from the afterlife with the help of Totem Ninetales…"_

 _"P… please, leave my name out of it,"_ a female voice squeaked from off screen. _"If the Voice of Life finds out what I've done—"_

Golem waved dismissively. _"You need not worry. When the God Killer has done its job, we will have no need for the Voice of Life."_ He stroked his beard. _"In any case, as you can plainly see, my creation is awake and alert. That's all that matters."_

A Stufful doll floated by Null. With lightning-fast reflexes, he stuck his neck out and grabbed the doll in his jaw. He pulled his head back and bit down on the toy. It squeaked. Eyes brimming with excitement, Null trilled.

"I don't understand. How could Null go from that to… well…" Shane jerked his head back toward the main room, where Null gave another frustrated roar.

 _"I am going to test the Memory Looplet. I, the Illustrious Golem, shall apply the looplet. Sigilyph, Vikavolt, please record notes for me."_ Golem turned his back to Porygon2 and slowly slid the looplet onto Null's right foreleg. The second it reached a point where it snugly clung to Null's limb, Null went rigid. His irises faded, his head lolled to the side, and his beak fell open.

 _"Um, sir? I think there's something wrong,"_ Sigilyph said.

 _"Relax. He's just incorporating the additional spirits into his life force,"_ Golem said. _"Any second how he'll reawaken and—"_

Null's eyes shot open. He struck Golem with glowing talons. Null raised his head and roared his fury. His eyes narrowed. He lunged off the table, shrieking in rage. Sigilyph's previously-emotionless voice erupted in a pained warble.

"Oh god!" Shane's eyes widened. His tails shot between his legs. There was nothing he could do to stop memories of Moonrise Marsh from flooding his mind. Shane stood there, petrified.

Null hurled Sigilyph into the laser diodes. He fell to the ground, unconscious. Null jumped onto Sigilyph. He plunged his claws into Sigilyph's torso and yanked them out. Blood spurted out of Sigilyph's body. He abruptly went limp.

"No… dear gods… no!" Espeon cried, curling up defensively against the cavern wall.

Golem had managed to stumble back to his feet, a dazed look in his eyes. _"S-Something's wrong. This wasn't supposed to happen!"_ he said. _"Porygon2, what are you doing? Shut off your blasted recorder and help me deactivate the God Killer, quickly. Or—"_

A bloodcurdling scream sounded. Locks of white fur float across the projection. Shane's heart hammered in his chest. "No. He didn't… did he?" Shane whispered.

Null shot across the screen. Blood dripped off his chest, beak and talons. Golem's magnet whirred to life, crackling with electricity. However, Musharna's scratched up body hurtled into him. She struck Golem and fell to the ground, eyes hollow and drool seeping out of her mouth.

"Turn it off," Tessa whimpered, pulling on her aura feelers and squeezing her eyes shut.

Roaring angrily, Null stomped toward Golem. Blood trickled out of his beak, staining his fur and the pristine white feathers of his plumage. _"What do you think you're doing? You are my creation! I… I command you to stop. Stop I say!"_ He shot bolts of electricity at Null, but they bounced harmlessly off his body. _"No… get back! Get back… I order to you to get back!_ Stop! _"_

Null responded with a primal scream. He sank his bloody beak into Golem's hide. Golem cried in pain. Null hefted the rock-type into the air and hurtled him directly at Porygon2. The footage went askew as, presumably, Porygon2 fell to the ground.

"I said… _turn it off!_ "

Tessa blindly charged forward. She struck Porygon2 with a glowing fist. The projection abruptly cut out. Porygon2 slammed up against an emera ore. He sank to the ground.

Espeon's eyes widened. "What are you doing? You're gonna cause another cave-in," she cried.

"E-Easy there, Riolu. Nobody's going to hurt you," Shane said, reaching a forepaw toward her.

"No, get away!" she barked, swatting Shane's paw aside. "I… I need air. I need some air!"

She turned her back on her teammates and ran off toward the far corner of the room, tears streaming from her eyes. Shane and Espeon could only stand there watching, pained expressions on their faces.

What were they supposed to do now?

* * *

Okay, debrief time. First off: Espeon. Yes, she was always gonna survive this. It was more meant to set up a bit of an odd moment for Shane that will be popping up again in the future. If you didn't like it, or thought it's OP or whatever, that's fine. No one's forcing you to like the story and everything in it. Secondly: Null's creation. I'm pretty confident that no one was expecting this to be the end result, but this was, pretty much, the plan from the start. I opted to take the "false god/failed Arceus clone" aspects of the canon and expand on them to literally have him be made from remnants of Arceus. And, naturally, with no tech, I needed a good alternative. So, the Unown felt like a reasonable workaround.

It's also where the alchemy comes into play. Gen VII is a generation that has a lot of lore elements plucked from alchemy. Which is why I decided to incorporate some of the broader strokes into this story. In fact, the story's opening monologue about mind, body, and spirit directly references that. Because mind (mercury), body (salt), and spirit (sulfur) are the _tria prima_ of alchemy. Or, essentially, the base elements that material things are composed of. I hope you still found it enjoyable. But, if this backstory wasn't to your liking, then all I can say is I'm sorry. You may not like some of what the next chapter brings, either. Let me know your thoughts either way.

Next time: the answer to life, the universe, and everything.


	48. Astral Rebirth

To my anonymous guests: funny you mention Full Metal Alchemist, because I wasn't actually thinking of it. Happy accident, I suppose. And yes, an Alolan Vulpix using Morning Sun is quite strange. Quite strange indeed.

* * *

 **Chapter 42: Astral Rebirth**

Shane and Espeon stood silently in the middle of the tunnel. Porygon2's static bursts provided the only sounds in the whole lab area. Null had stopped struggling against the hexed chains. "Riolu?" Shane called, his voice sounding uneasy.

"Stay back! I… I need a second," Tessa said. Shane tensed up despite being far away from her. He knew how much Null meant to Tessa. The video must've devastated her. He imagined that, if their roles were reversed, he'd have blown up. Shane peered around the emera ore Tessa hid behind. She sat against the wall with her legs tucked in, head buried in her thighs, and her paws grabbing her aura feelers.

"What am I supposed to do? I know Null is really a good person deep down, but what if he loses control again?" she whimpered. "It was only dumb luck that he calmed down when I put him to sleep in Moonrise Marsh, wasn't it?"

Shane didn't have a straight answer for her. It was taking every ounce of his willpower not to dwell on Moonrise Marsh. "I think… Null will listen to you." His words lacked confidence, but they were better than nothing. "S-So, let's get back to freeing him."

"I... I..." Tessa curled into a tighter ball. "I want to help him, but I can't watch any more of that." She squeezed her eyes shut. "I'm sorry, Shane. It's... " Tessa took a deep breath. Though the video made her sick to her stomach, it certainly explained why Null told her he was hearing voices.

"I'm sorry. It just— this is a lot to swallow." Tessa rubbed her eyes. "The spirits… they're what made Null fly into a rage in Moonrise Marsh, aren't they?" She didn't wait for Shane to answer before continuing, "I'm so conflicted right now. Null's my friend. I want to believe in him. Help him, too." Tessa sucked in a breath. "But his mask is coming off. What if it breaks… and he flies into an uncontrollable rage? I don't want to lose him, but I'm not strong enough to save him if that happens."

Tessa grabbed her shoulders. "I need time to think. I can't let myself be useless again." She looked up at Shane. "So, please… give me some space."

Shane frowned. He opened his mouth to respond, when a fresh round of snarling rose up from the middle of the room. Their hearts skipped a beat.

"See? This is why… you shouldn't have trusted them!" Null shouted. His head banged against the wall. "They want… to keep the mask on. They don't… care about us. No one cares." Null coughed. "Kill the beast! Kill his friends! They used us! They must pay! Pay! Pay!" He resumed struggling against his chains.

Tessa stared wide-eyed in Null's direction. Shane stepped back from the emera ore, heart hammering against his chest. Null's outburst had left him at a complete loss for words. It had the same effect on Tessa, too.

"R… Riolu…"

Tessa stiffened. She lunged toward Shane and wrapped her arms around him, eliciting a surprised yip. "Hear that? I'll bet he's worried about losing control, too," she squealed. Tessa let go of Shane and lightly rapped her head. "C'mon, think! Think! I have to come up with something!"

Shane stayed silent. His gaze fell toward the ground, mind plagued by memories of cold, slimy swamp water suffocating him.

"Riolu… h-help. You're… my friend. I trust you… to help me," Null wheezed. "I trust you… to keep me… under control."

He bashed his head into a wall. The cavern shook. "Liar!" Null roared. "We're nothing to her! She works… for the beast! She must die! They must all die!"

Again, helmet struck steel. "Shut up!" Null's voice cracked. Shane's ears swiveled forward. "Get out… of my head. I won't… hurt my friends!" Null lurched forward. The chains dug into his hide. He howled in pain.

"You will hurt them. They are… nothing to us. We exist… to kill. We exist… to destroy," Null snarled. "Remember… what we were... created for."

Null scratched his claws against his chains. "… Riolu. I'm sorry," he whimpered. "I don't… remember… how any of that happened. Please. You have to… believe me. I don't… want to hurt… any of you…"

Tessa believed him, but couldn't come up with anything to say to comfort him. She worried about drawing another angry outburst. Still, staying silent wouldn't help, either. Swallowing her fear, Tessa stepped toward the pit.

"It's going… to be okay," she whispered. Tessa got onto her knees and forced a shaky smile onto her face. "We'll get you out of this. I promise…" She glanced back at Shane.

Shane got the message. Still, he held the same doubts Tessa did. The only reason he had managed to keep working with Null after Moonrise Marsh was because of their shared desire to help Tessa. If Tessa didn't know how to help Null, what could he possibly do?

"Hey, human. You better get over here! Something's wrong with Porygon2," Espeon called. Shane walked back to the tunnel to find Espeon staring up at the ceiling. Porygon2 had manifested another projection, but with the damage Tessa had done to him, it was heavily distorted.

 _"… is… fourteenth update,"_ Golem declared. His rocky beard was missing several pieces. Multiple jagged scars ran across his body. _"It… considerable work. But the failed prototype… imprisoned underground…"_

Shane glanced down and noticed Porygon2 trembling each time the projection descended into static. "Ugh, we're not going to get anywhere like this. Hey, Espeon, give that Porygon2 a thwack on the head, will ya?"

Espeon raised an eyebrow.

"Look, I'm a human. I know a thing or two about fixing broken machines," he lied. Espeon did as instructed. To her surprise, the flickering projectiong steadied.

 _"After careful evaluation, I, the Illustrious Golem, have concluded that my first attempt failed because of an error in approach. It was entirely the fault of my late assistants! They didn't point me in the right direction. Instead of using the power of the void to tie a thousand spirits with hundreds of Unown, I should've found one spirit with tremendous will power!"_

Golem scratched his side. " _Yes. If I can harness a spirit with a strong will, it can control the power of the void without descending into madness! Better yet… I can try a different alchemical hex."_ He traced a pointed star in the air with his claw. " _Namely, a hex that will use the power of the void as a base to combine power crystal energy with pure, raw light!"_

He nodded to himself. " _Such brilliant energy could not possibly be tainted."_ He raised a fist. " _I'm sure of it. A strong will, combined with the sanctity of light energy, will yield a God Killer with a pure soul that I can properly control!"_

The shot veered to the side to show off gray, lifeless emera ores. _"These depleted power crystals will serve as the perfect framework for my new creation."_ He stroked his beard. _"Of course, there is still the matter of finding a strong-willed spirit to turn into the God Killer."_ Golem paused to smirk at the camera. _"But I think I know the solution. I will summon a human and make it the God Killer's core!"_

Shane's tails ducked between his legs. "But I thought only gods could summon humans. He can't do that, can he?"

"That's… that's what I had figured. But he sure sounds confident," Espeon said.

 _"Plus, humans are easy to manipulate. After all, Mew forced one to fight Dark Matter. The way I see it, what I'm proposing is no different,"_ Golem continued. _"There is much prep work to be done. But I'm confident this will work."_

The footage cut out, but quickly shifted to another scene. This time, a Growlithe sat atop the table, whimpering loudly. _"What's going on?"_ he said. _"This doesn't make any sense. I'm supposed to be dead. Did... did the pills do this? Oh, god... am I in a coma? Is this some crazy coma dream?"_

 _"Quiet him, please,"_ Golem ordered. A Claydol hovered behind Growlithe and pressed one of its floating limbs to the fire-type's snout. _"Good. Now then."_ He turned back to the camera. _"Though this may look like a normal Growlithe, it is, in fact, a human. I, the Illustrious Golem, brought him over from the human world. And it appears that, in the process, he acquired a body that is more natural to our world."_

 _"It's no matter, however. His mind and spirit are human. His will is strong enough to wield the power of the void,"_ Golem said. _"All I need to do is entrap him in the empty power crystals using the proper alchemical runes, then let him incubate. The results will be exactly what I'm looking for."_

Claydol floated back from the Growlithe and he immediately shouted, _"Hey, I asked a question! Why isn't anyone answering me? What's going on here? Why am I Growlithe? This doesn't make any sense. I'm a human!"_ he barked. _"Besides... I'm worthless. Just... send me back or whatever. I can't help you out with anything."_

 _"Don't say such ridiculous things,"_ Golem scoffed. Growlithe's tail fell between his legs and his whimpers intensified. Golem approached him. _"Let me ask you something, human. How would you like the opportunity to be a hero?"_

Growlithe lifted up his head, frowning. _"Dude, do you realize how cheesy that sounds? What am I, five? I told you I'm not interested. Send me back. I don't want anything to do with any of you."_

 _"Now, now, there's no need to get testy. I really mean it. With my help, you can become something truly special. You see…"_ Golem stroked what little remained of his beard. _"You are our chosen one. Our savior. It is your destiny to become our protector and save us all from terrible calamities."_

Growlithe's face scrunched up. _"I don't believe you. You're lying to me. Just like everyone back home did. I'm not falling for it."_ He growled threateningly at Golem.

 _"Oh dear, it seems I picked a lousy human."_ Golem shook his head. _"But fear not, boy! For I, the Illustrious Golem, am going to help you. Even if you don't believe me, I'll make you beloved by every Pokémon around the world!"_

 _"And how exactly would you do that, huh? You're just a Golem. A weird, ridiculous Golem... with facial hair."_ Growlithe lowered his head, face contorting in anger. _"I'm so sick and tired of everyone's lies. Just look me in the eyes and tell me the real reason I'm here, already! Looks like we're in a lab. So, what, am I gonna be your experiment? Man up and tell me!"_

 _"My, my. You must've been through quite the ordeal in your world to act so hostile,"_ Golem said. _"But don't you fret. I'm a 'mon of my word. When I say I'm going to make you special, I mean it. You'll have so many friends, you won't even know what to do with yourself."_

 _"God, you're still going on about that? No deal. I'm not working with you_. _You're just going to take advantage of me!"_ Growlithe said

Shane's brow furrowed. Growlithe's combative attitude felt familiar. The fur on the back of his neck stood on end. He tried to concentrate, but his thoughts were still jumbled up with unwanted flashbacks to Moonrise Marsh. He even heard Tessa consoling Null in the distance.

Epseon gulped. "They used a child. Dear gods, they brought a child here to experiment on?"

Back on the video, Golem sighed and shook his head disapprovingly. _"Well, I tried to be reasonable."_ He turned to Claydol and whispered, _"Do it."_

One of the repaired lasers descended behind Growlithe, and a beam struck him in the back. Growlithe briefly hollered, before collapsing on his side. _"Now then, it's time to get started,"_ Golem said. He snapped his fingers. Claydol levitated Growlithe into the air. The shot turned to the right, where five depleted emera ores sat arranged in an upside-down pentagram. Claydol lowered Growlithe into the center of the structure. Golem's magnet whirred to life. He electrocuted the ground, tracing over the outline of the pentagram and then drawing in a circle around it.

 _"Now, for the runes."_ Golem approached the nearest crystal and traced a circle. He added a small semicircle on top of it, and then a tiny cross sticking out. _"Mind,"_ he said. The sigil alighted. Golem sidestepped to the second crystal and drew a circle with a horizontal bar running through it. _"Body,"_ he whispered. The second rune glowed.

Porygon2 followed him to the third crystal. Golem traced a triangle, with a cross protruding from its base. _"Spirit,"_ he said, lighting up the rune. Golem moved onto the fourth crystal and drew a circle with a dot in the center. _"Sun,"_ he said. The rune lit up. Finally, he walked to the last crystal and traced a crescent into it. _"Moon."_

He stepped back outside of the circle. The five runes flashed in unison. Their light spread out across the dead emera ores. One by one, the crystals melted into shining, bubbling piles of molten rock. The liquid ore swirled around, forming a circle around Growlithe's slumbering form. It progressively shrank in size, until the liquified ore swallowed Growlithe up whole. Golem turned and electrocuted a nearby cluster of emera ores. The crystals burst apart. Black chains surrounded the silver and gold bubble encasing Growlithe.

 _"And now, we wait for the void's power to cement itself,"_ Goldem declared. Static overtook the projected screen again.

Shane cautiously approached Porygon2. But he froze when he heard an unseen voice say, " _So, this guy's actually recording all of this? Am I, like, supposed to say something?"_

Shane looked up at the ceiling and barked in fright. "What the–? What am I looking at?" He dropped to his belly, instinctively curling his forepaws up in an attempt to shield his face. Above him, the projection showed off a blinding light that seemed to fill the entire screen. Espeon stared utterly transfixed at the projection, noting the crystalline face staring Porygon2 down. It blinked its rainbow eyes and curved its beak into a warm smile.

"Huh. That thing's face looks a bit like Null's did without his helmet. I think it's the angles of the eyes and the beak," Espeon said.

 _"Now, now,"_ Golem chided from offscreen. He stepped into the shot, blunting some of the light. _"Do be careful. You're giving off an awful lot of light. You wouldn't want to blind poor Porygon2 over here, would you?"_

 _"Yeah, yeah. Whatever."_ The glowing dimmed somewhat, allowing Shane and Espeon to see a large light dragon sticking out against the darkened world. Its head resembled a pointed star, with its multicolored eyes lacking pupils. Four ethereal wings sat folded against its crystalline chest. Its tail was made of crystal rings spaced out between segments of light. The dragon curled its tail around its crystalline legs.

 _"It's quite alright,"_ Golem insisted. _"I just need to give my progress report and then you can go practice channeling your energy."_

 _"Fine,"_ the dragon huffed. Shane realized the voice was similar to Growlithe's. _"I've gotta ask, though… what happened to your moon? Does it just not exist?"_

Golem sighed. _"We've been over this already. Our world has no sun. And no moon. They were taken from us by selfish gods who you're here to save us from."_

The dragon blinked. The yellow and green in his eyes expanded. His tail vibrated. _"Well, can't we just bring them back?"_ he asked.

Golem's brow furrowed. _"Of course not. There's no way to—"_

The light dragon frowned. _"I don't believe that."_ He looked up. " _There's a fix. I can_ feel _it… deep inside."_ A rainbow of colors swirling through his eyes. His chest flared with golden light, revealing a winged-heart carved around his central chest spike.

Golem's eyes widened as the dragon hovered into the air. _"Now wait just a second. You are my creation, and I'm ordering you to cease this at on—"_

An Ultra Wormhole opened behind the dragon. He vanished inside of it, leaving Golem standing there slack-jawed. "Ah! That can't be." Espeon backpedalled in surprise. "Those are just like the portals Lunala could make."

"They're the ones Zero used," Shane added. "But why– _agh!_ "

The projection erupted in a brilliant flash of light. Shane and Espeon turned away, scrunching their faces in pain. He briefly wondered how Porygon2 held up through all of this in the past. But those thoughts went away when Claydol shouted, " _Golem, look! The sun… daytime! It's back! It's_ back!"

Shane and Espeon turned around. Their jaws dropped. Claydol was right. The sun shined brilliantly from a bright-blue sky. And the light dragon had returned. He now floated in front of Golem. Claydol hovered up to him, cheering enthusiastically. Several other Pokémon streamed in after him.

 _"The sun's back! Our creation's saving us already!"_ a Druddigon cheered.

 _"We have light in our world once more!"_ a Bronzong bellowed.

 _"Praise be to our vaunted protector! Praise the Guiding Light!"_ a Clefable declared.

 _"Guiding Light! Guiding Light! Guiding Light!"_ they all shouted in unison.

The light dragon's tail thumped against the ground. Colors swirled around in his eyes. He opened his beak, looking like he wanted to say something, but all that came out was a joyful squawk.

Golem stroked his beard. _"Remarkable. This is even more of a resounding success than I, the Illustrious Golem, could have predicted. Yes, this 'Guiding Light' shall protect us all. And I, as his creator, shall be revered for all eternity. Ho ho ho ho! This is truly a great day for Pokémon everywhere."_

The dragon continued to bask in the praise of Golem's assistants until static cut the footage out. Shane jolted up and looked at Porygon2 "No, wait! Go back! That stuff looked important." He jumped next to Porygon2 and jostled its body. However, it shifted to a new recording. Enraged cries made Shane's ears twitch, then fold against his face. Espeon likewise grimaced and looked away.

 _"Let me out of here! You can't take my light from me! I'm doing good!"_ the light dragon roared. " _I'm a good Pokémon! I have friends now!"_ He slammed up against an blue energy dome. It flashed brightly. " _Zek! Latios!_ Xern! _Please, help me!_ Help me!" Blue and purple expanded in his eyes, pushing the other colors to the peripheries.

 _"Silence!"_ Golem declared. Another bright flash exploded across the projection. Shane's pupils shrank and he stumbled back, rapidly blinking the stars out of his vision. _"What were you thinking, making a new Solgaleo and Lunala? I didn't tell you to do that!"_

The dragon release a blinding burst of light, but the barrier held firm. " _I was doing it for my friends— for my_ mate! _Something a bas[size=4]t[/size]ard like you wouldn't understand!"_ he barked. " _You're wrong about this world! It_ can _function with gods! Let me go! I can show you! I can prove it! Please…"_ Shudders wracked his body. " _Give me a chance!"_

 _"Backstabbing cretin!"_ Golem shouted. The light dragon winced. _"I created you to_ kill _those contemptible gods. Not befriend them!"_ He shook his head. " _And, did I just hear you say you had a_ mate?" Golem slammed a fist into a metal table. " _You let them brainwash you!"_ He pointed an accusatory claw toward the dragon.

" _No! Nobody brainwashed me! I saw the gods for what they are… well-meaning 'mons who need help!"_ The dragon released another series of blasts. Shane and Espeon looked away. Neither of them could say a word. They knew what they were watching disgusted them, but couldn't force themselves to stop.

" _That's what you brought me here for. To_ help _people."_ The dragon slammed into the energy dome and bounced off it. " _I want to_ help! _I deserve to be happy! I gave you all light! I brought your happiness back! It was me…_ me… **me!** "

Shane tensed. It was brief, but he saw the winged-heart carving flash red. Dark shadows had rippled through the dragon's eyes.

" _I gave you permission to go out unsupervised… with the understanding you were faking winning over the gods' trust so you could destroy them!"_ Golem snarled. " _I will not be made a fool of, human!"_

Shane finally found his voice. "It's really true, then. The Horizon legends were wrong. Ho-Oh didn't make Solgaleo and Lunala. This 'Guiding Light' did."

Golem shook his head. _"And you know what? I_ might _have_ _been willing to look past your transgression, but then you went and shared your life energy with those blasted Tapus!"_ He stomped his foot angrily.

" _I was_ _ **helping!**_ " the dragon thundered. " _You complained the gods did a bad job protecting the world, so I was giving them means to do a better job!"_ He trembled with rage. " _If you'd let me out, I could show you exactly what my plan is. Please! I'm confident it will work!"_

" _Not a chance!"_ Golem huffed.

The dragon resumed struggling, roaring in anguish. He squeezed his eyes shut. " _Xern?_ Xern?! _Where are you? I need you! P… please! Save me!"_ His eyes shot open and he looked around. The golden glow began to fade from his head and tail. He shook his head " _N… no. She can hear me. She's coming. She'll save me! I can't… I can't… be used…_ _ **again!**_ "

 _"Hmph. You've made a mockery of me. Perhaps some time without your precious light will do you some good, child,"_ Golem scoffed. " _Then, maybe you will understand the importance of the fate I've created for you. Now, Claydol, engage!"_

The rune above the barrier glowed blue. The light dragon let out a hair-raising scream as energy erupted inside of the barrier. Shane and Espeon shut their eyes and looked away. The projection glowed so bright it made Porygon2 tremble. They sensed the bright flash die down and slowly opened their eyes. In the projection, they noticed the light dragon was gone. Dark black crystals littered the ground. A triangular prism sat outside the forcefield, filled with small patches of multicolored light. At the center of the pile of crystals lay Growlithe's colorless, unmoving body.

Golem's eyes widened. _"What's going on here? What happened to the human?"_

Suddenly, the triangular prism rose into the air. Black electricity crackled around it. " _ **You… YoU!"**_

Shane's tails shot between his legs. There was a voice coming from somewhere, but it was incredibly distorted and hard to make out.

The prism twitched in midair. " _No! P-Please, I—"_

" _ **I wArNED YoU! YoU CoST Us OUr LiGhT!"**_

One by one, the black crystals lying on the ground shot up toward the prism, slamming against it. What was one the light dragon's head became a torso around the prism. The tail rings formed into a head. Each leg attached itself to one of the dragon's lower wing bones. They forcibly inserted themselves into the beast's body, giving it two new arms. It flailed the arms about wildly. " _N-nngh… you're wrong! I can fix this! I can—"_

Golem staggered backwards. _"This is impossible. I stripped you of your power. You shouldn't have any energy left! You should be a Growlithe again!"_ He looked toward Claydol. _"Claydol, Where did this prism come from? Dispose of it, now!"_

"Wait… prism?" Shane's eyes widened. "Oh my god!"

The light dragon's upper wing bones jammed themselves into the base of the black, crystalline beast. They dangled uselessly in midair. The beast bashed its face with its arms. " _ **yOU hAd YoUR cHAnCE. I wIlL… I…"**_ _Its arms trembled._ " _ **VoId… TeR—"**_

" _G-Golem, please!"_ the original voice shouted while the beast lurched away from Golem. " _Give me back my light! Give me… back…"_

The beast looked up and belted out a loud scream. Rainbow energy gathered around it. Claydol had managed to float behind the prism, but it detonated the energy it was gathering. The rainbow light burned Claydol and the comatose Growlithe into ashes and blew their remains away. Golem turned and tried to run, but the prism released another rainbow laser. Golem turned to dust before Shane's and Espeon's eyes.

" _ **Light! Where is… my light? I need light!"**_ the prism howled, the distortion fading from his voice. He swiveled about, looking around the empty lab.

"Human! Look, on the back of that _thing's_ head!" Espy's tail ducked between her legs.

"It's that star pattern Zero had on her chest," Shane said.

"And Lunala was covered in black armor that looked exactly like this thing!" Espeon squeaked. Violent tremors racked her body, nearly causing her to faint.

 _ **"Heeheeheehee! Your friends… didn't come. Your precious Xern didn't come. You called them... and they didn't come. Everyone turned their backs on you. They used you, just like I said they would!"**_ the beast shouted, hovering erratically. _**"It's time to forget about them. You don't need them. You don't need**_ **anyone!** _**Not anymore!**_

" _ **Give yourself up to the void and destroy them! Destroy everyone who hurt you!"**_ The beast looked around. " _ **I'll get us light. I will consume. I will**_ **destroy!** "

He shot a burst of psychic energy above him, blowing apart the lab's roof. _**"I am Necrozma, Devourer of Light!"**_ he shouted. Black crystals jutted out of the ground around him, spreading across the floor and racing up the walls. Necrozma flew into the air and looked down at Porygon2. _**"You. You have… light. I want your light. I must have your light!"**_

The shot grew smaller. Presumably a result of Porygon2 trying to flee. The gesture proved futile. Rainbow lasers streamed down everywhere. Porygon2 seemed to fall to the ground, because Necrozma disappeared from the shot. A furious roar sounded and a portal appeared from the ground.

"Hey, that's Solgaleo. And he's got Lunala with him," Shane said.

The rainbow lights in Necrozma's prism dimmed. He raked his claws across his face. " _G-Guys! Puh… please! H-help me!"_

Necrozma's arms flailed. His lights flared up. " _ **No. You abandoned me! I gave you life… and this is how you repay me?"**_ Necrozma drift offscreen and screeched. " _ **No matter. You're filled with plenty of light.**_ **My** _**light. And I'm going to take it back. Your light is mine! All light is mine!"**_

Solgaleo and Lunala darted out of the shot. More black crystals suddenly shot out of the ground, growing steadily closer to the camera. The shot rolled upward, offering Shane and Espeon a glimpse of Solgaleo and Lunala striking in unison. Another explosion of light emerged, and static filled up the projection.

"A single burst of light… gave the world its stardust," Espeon whispered. Her gaze fell to the ground. "It's true. All of it's true!" She started to hyperventilate. "Th… this is… I…"

Shane stumbled back from Porygon2, his heart hammering in his chest while his mind struggled to process everything. His hind paw struck something soft. He yipped and whirled around, ice particles forming in his mouth. But his attack faded when he saw a small doll lying on the ground. It was worn out and covered in dust.

"Are you alright, human? You look a bit shell-shocked," Espeon said, shakily walking toward him

"I found this doll," Shane whispered, beckoning Espeon over.

"It's a Pikachu," Espeon said. "Do you suppose it belonged to Growlithe?"

"I think so," Shane said. He looked down and his brow furrowed at the sight of some torn cloth attached to the doll's stomach. It felt oddly familiar, but he couldn't put his paw on it.

Espeon turned to face Porygon2. "You owe us an explanation. What were you thinking, trying to make Pokémon with alchemy?"

 **No… trust,** Porygon2 muttered. **Ruined… never… us. Protect ourselves… danger.**

"And just what's that supposed to mean, huh?" Shane huffed.

In response to this, Porygon2's body stiffened. **Power cells… drained. Cannot sustain life force.**

Shane's eyes widened. He had gotten so engrossed in the video, he forgot the real reason behind freeing Porygon2 was to figure out how to stop the booby trap. And that opportunity was about slip away. "Whoa, hold up! You're not going out on us like that." He turned to face the other room. "Riolu! Get up. We need an oran berry in here, stat!" But his shouting proved a wasted gesture. Porygon2's eyes shut and its head slumped over against the rocks. Its body glowed bright-blue and burst into light particles that disappeared before Shane's eyes.

"Dang it! We need answers from him!" he hissed, slamming his forepaw on the ground.

"We forgot to ask him about the trap Null's stuck in," Espeon added. "Though, after what we just saw, I don't exactly blame Riolu for not wanting to help him out. That was… tough to stomach."

Shane frowned. "Yeah," he sighed. "You have no idea how tempted I am to ditch him and get out of here. But…" He took a deep breath. "We shouldn't do it. Because Tessa was right. None of this is Null's fault. She believes there's a way to fix him, so I'm going to trust her. Besides, if we just left him down here to rot… we'd be no better than Golem and his ilk."

Espeon grimaced. "I see your point."

Before either could say anything else, an explosion echoed from the main room, followed by a loud, throaty roar. Shane and Espeon abruptly turned around. "Do… do you smell smoke?" Espeon squeaked.

"Yeah. And did it get hotter in here all of a sudden or what?" Shane said.

They heard a scream. Their ears twitched and they exchanged panicked looks. They sprinted out of the tunnel and back into the main laboratory area, where they found Tessa hiding in the corner behind an inactive emera ore, shivering.

"What the— Entei? What are you doing here?" Espeon gasped, her tail falling between her legs at the sight of the fire-type god standing in front of the remains of the earlier cave-in.

"You! You collapsed the cave on us. You tried to kill us!" he roared, smoke billowing from his nostrils. Entei pointed his forepaw at Shane, whose eyes widened.

"That's not Entei… it's the Unown!" Shane cried. "Crap! How they heck did they survive that?"

"We'll make you pay. We'll burn you to ashes!" He stomped the ground with his forepaws. Molten fire erupted around him. Shane and Espeon had no escape from the Lava Plume. The flames washed across them, upending both of them and sending their scorched bodies rolling back to a stop by the emera ore that Tessa sat hidden behind.

Tessa roused herself from her stupified state. She grabbed a pair of oran berries from her bag and shoved them in her teammates' mouths. They managed to get back to their feet. Entei roared his fury. He shot forward, paws leave a trail of flames on the ground. Shane's tails scrunched up in a panic. "Ah, no! Move, move, move!" he shouted, shoving Espeon next to Tessa behind the emera ore.

He pivoted and screeched at Entei. Roar's sound waves stopped Entei in his tracks and sent him skidding back along the ground. "You will not escape. We will make you suffer as our kind have suffered," he snarled. More fire gathered around him. Shane squealed in terror and scrambled over toward a rock shard. He dove for cover just as the Lava Plume raced forward. He pressed himself against the rock and hugged it for dear life. Shane didn't see a way out of this. After all, he had to resort to causing a cave-in to beat the Unown-powered Golurk. What chance did he have against a copy of _Entei?_

Sweat pooled up under his fur as heat from Entei's attack raced around him. Shane looked over and spotted Espeon poking her head out from cover. Her eyes flashed blue, only for the glow to fade. She bit her lip. Espeon shot a pink Psybeam toward the ceiling, much to her relief. The drill apparatus detached from the wall and fell right onto Entei's head. His eyes shut and he staggered backward, howling in pain.

"There's your opening. Go!" Espeon shouted, charging forward. Shane leaped over the debris and sprinted toward Entei, a layer of water coating his tails. Tessa remained rooted to her spot, trembling in fear. She heard a roar of pain and looked up to see Espeon using another Psybeam to knock Entei toward Shane, who clubbed him with his Aqua Tails. Entei hissed as he stumbled backwards.

"Nice work, Espeon," Shane said. But any further celebration was cut short as a blue glow encased Entei.

"We will not submit. Not until we've destroyed you all," Entei snarled. He reared up on his hind legs. Blue light erupted around him. When the light faded, what landed on the ground was most definitely not Entei.

"It changed to Suicune?" Espeon gasped. "They can do that?"

"You saw the recordings for yourself," Shane said, dodging a blast of steaming-hot water from Suicune. "Get a bunch of these little guys together in a room and they can do all kinds of crazy stuff."

Espeon gathered purple energy above her head. But before she could throw the Shadow Ball forward, a gray Ice Beam struck her right in the muzzle. She recoiled and the Shadow Ball detonated prematurely. Smoke filled up the area.

"No, Espeon!" Shane cried, but found himself backpedaling to dodge Suicune, who had jumped between him and Espeon. He then saw a small blur rushing through the smoke. Tessa lunged for Suicune, electricity rippling across her fists. Suicune turned in time for Tessa to connect with her cheek. She howled in pain and fell onto her side. Tessa hit the ground and shot a panicked look at Shane.

"Look, the cave-in's cleared. We need to get out of here _now_ ," she said. She started to reach into her bag when the strap gave a violent lurch upward. Tessa yelped as her item bag hoisted her into the air. Her torso started to fall through the open strap and she looked down to see Suicune's eyes glowing. Suicune stood tall against a Psybeam from Esepeon. Her eyes flashed purple. Tessa felt a burning sensation race across her paw and looked up. She stared at her glowing item pouch before it burst into flames.

Suicune shifted back into Entei in the process. Tessa screamed as fire engulfed her body and she plummeted down to the ground. "Tessa!" Shane cried. He leaped into the air and wrapped himself around her. They both fell to the ground, rolling into a heap by a dead emera ore.

"One down. Two to go," Entei said. His eyes burned with anger. He lunged for Espeon. She raised up a pink barrier and Entei bounced off of it, though the contact made Espeon flinch and grit her teeth. She looked back and saw Shane standing over Tessa, looking despondently at his teammate. Her fur was charred from head to toe. She lay unmoving on the ground.

Flames enveloped Entei's body. Roaring, another Lava Plume exploded out from him. Espeon gritted her teeth and concentrated. A Psybeam flung Shane and the unconscious Tessa behind a large crystal. This left Espeon to take the Lava Plume by herself. She yelped in pain and her knees quivered. She fell to the ground, but before all her strength failed her, she managed to shoot a ball of light over her head. Morning Sun energy washed over her, erasing the burns in her fur and restoring her vitality.

"Stop it! You're not allowed to do that. You have to pay. You all have to pay!" Entei barked.

"You don't understand. We're not trying to hurt you," Espeon said. "We saw what happened to those Unown. How they got made into Null. That wasn't us!"

"You all let it happen! You are guilty!" Entei bellowed. In a flash of light, he transformed into Raikou.

He sent electricity surging forward, but a cloud of frosty air stalemated the attack. Shane charged in, his eyes flashing pink after Tessa's injuries had sparked a second wind. "Entei, Suicune, or Raikou. It doesn't matter how often you shift between them. You hurt my friend and you're going to pay!" he hissed, sending Extrasensory waves surging toward Raikou.

Raikou pivoted and fired his own Extrasensory ripples. The psychic waves collided in midair. A pink blast enveloped the area, followed by a fresh cloud of smoke. Another flash of light ensued and a gust of wind immediately dispelled the smog. Suicune spun around, a Hydro Pump gushing from her muzzle. In the midst of running, Shane had no means to dodge. The torrent swept him up and the force of the water blasted him directly into a wall with a sickening _crunch._

"N-no…" he wheezed, the air rushing out of him. "This is… not fair…" He sank down onto the ground and his eyes slowly closed. Espeon hunched over in fright.

"That just leaves you," Suicune said, her voice far calmer and serene compared to Entei's. "And then we can properly dispose of the Abomination."

"You're making a mistake," Espeon said, shrinking back toward the wall. "We didn't have anything to do with Null's creation. We ended up here by complete accident."

"But you're associating with him," Suicune pointed out.

"Because he's part of Team Radiance," Espeon retorted. "You're blaming the wrong Pokémon. Null's as much a victim in this thing as you Unown are. Attacking him won't change anything. It's not going to bring back all the Unown that were used to make him. You'd need powerful alchemy to make that happen!"

"That's not true," Suicune growled. Her form shifted back to Entei. "The emera ores. He could've used them. He could've reversed the hexes. But he didn't. He's kept our kind bound together… suffering as that monstrosity! We will wipe him off the earth, so that our fellow Unown can pass to the spirit realm peacefully."

Espeon squealed in fright as she stared down an oncoming fireball. She dashed to the right, watching the fireball detonate into a wall of blue flames. Her eyes widened. If Entei's Sacred Fire connected with her, she wouldn't stand a chance of surviving the blow.

"Get back here!" Entei roared. He leaped forward, shifting to Raikou, and sprinted toward her. Electricity crackled across his body. Espeon channeled a tiny amount psychic energy and flicked her tail. A Psybeam fired out behind her, catching Raikou by surprise. He was forced to discharge the electricity he'd gathered to negate her attack. Espeon found herself standing next to the hole where Null was trapped.

"Null, you have to get out of there," Espeon begged. "I need your help. Riolu and Vulpix… they're… they're…"

Her eyes widened at the sight of a wall of electricity racing toward her. She dived into the hole, landing on the chained-up Null. The lightning surged over her. She sighed in relief. However, it didn't take long for her plan to backfire tremendously. She looked up to find Suicune glaring at her. Suicune opened her muzzle. Espeon yelped as torrential waters pummeled her and Null. Espeon's strength failed her. She went limp on top of Null. He glanced up at Suicune and resumed struggling against his chains.

"How does it feel to be bound up by a magical force, unable to break free no matter what you try?" Suicune asked, tone full of malice. " That is how our brothers and sisters felt in their last moments before they were turned into you." She tilted her head up. "And now, we'll bury you in a watery grave and toss your so-called friends in alongside you."

She pointed her head down. Null howled in pain from the onslaught of high-pressure water. His heart raced as water pooled up around him, quickly reaching his underbelly. Though Suicune strained to maintain her Hydro Pump, it eventually reached a point where Null was completely submerged. Espeon briefly floated along the surface, before the bag around her torso dragged her underwater.

Null resumed thrashing, grimacing as the chains rubbed up against his fur and scales. This wasn't fair. His friends didn't deserve this. None of this was their faults. It all went back to him. And Golem. All that "power of the void" nonsense had led to this. Espeon was about to drown. All because of him.

 _ **Let her drown. She is worthless.**_

The rising water blurred his vision. Null had to shut his eyes while he struggled against his chains. Yet, he found a single eye with a violet, reptilian iris staring back at him. The slit-like pupil expanded.

 _ **These so-called friends were never worth your time. Forget them. Embrace the powers bestowed upon you to break your restraints and dispose of these vermin.**_

Null's breathing grew heavy. Vermin? No, his friends weren't vermin. He thought back to the guild. Of how Tessa went up to him, offering to let him join her team. She wasn't coerced. It was all voluntarily. There was never any pressure.

He thought about the evenings spent talking to Tessa. She made him feel welcomed. It was the first time he thought he actually mattered. Null remembered how Tessa rushed to his defense against Sticky's accusations, then was there to stop him from flying off the handle at Shane. She could've— no, _should've_ abandoned him after that, but she didn't.

 _ **Worthless memories.**_ The eye staring back at him rippled. _**They will do you no good. You cannot have friends. You are a destroyer! Act like it!**_

But Null didn't want to hurt anyone. He hated the things he heard in Golem's recordings. He wanted his friends to be happy. And he wanted to be happy, too. Null lurched his head upward. It broke the surface of the water.

Suicune's brow furrowed. "Not backing down, are you? Fine. We'll flood this whole lab if we have to. Anything to ensure you do not leave here alive."

Anger burned deep inside of Null. The calming sensation that his Lunar Wing provided subsided.

 _ **Happiness means**_ **nothing.** _ **Only destruction matters. Accept it! Accept my power!**_

Null shook his head. He tried to block out the eye with thoughts of Shane offering to buy him TMs and sessions with Bruxish. By all accounts, Shane had no reason to go out of his way to help Null like that. Yet he did. And, even if it didn't amount to anything, Null appreciated the gesture.

He squirmed. His helmet brushed against the chains. The existing cracks widened… and a cacophony of voices rose up in his mind.

 _Weak!_

 _Pathetic!_

 _Good for nothing!_

 _You should have killed Vulpix. We're going to die because of him!_

 _We are supposed to be strong enough to destroy anything. Your spinelessness will cost us our life._

 _Get angry! Destroy the chains!_

 _Kill the Unown! Kill Espeon, Riolu, and Vulpix!_

 _ **You see? You have resisted far too long. It's time to accept your calling. Toss your emotions aside and destroy!**_

Null thrashed his head about. He flashed back to Azure Cape. Sitting there with Tessa, listening as she spilled her heart out to him. He remembered saying how Tessa matters to him, followed by her response...

 _If it's for you... I guess I can give it one more try._

He jerked his body forward. His head smacked against the wall. The mask's pressure faded slightly. The hisses and snarls in the back of his head grew louder. A chorus of voices chanted, " _Destroy!"_ in unison.

Null shooks his head again. He thought of Shane. He'd almost given in to his instincts in Moonrise Marsh. And yet, things between him and Shane were turning around. Shane poured his heart out to Null after Tessa's breakdown. Shane gave _him_ credit for Tessa's hatch day party… all for his friendship with Tessa. And, even before the Unown had showed up, Shane was willing to help save him.

His teammates cared about him.

They _liked_ him.

And he liked them.

 _ **You are deluding yourself! Accept my power**_ **now!**

Null refused. Nobody had to die. He could save his friends! If he could just dig deep… dig deep… dig _deep._

 _ **You will fail on your own.**_

"That's _it!_ I've… had… _enough!_ "

Howling his fury, Null strained every muscle he could think of against his restraints. The chains squeezed his body and mask, but he refused to give in and relax.

His friends needed him.

Null squeezed his eyes shut, clinging to every pleasant memory he had made with Team Radiance.

Every hug Tessa had given him. Every smile he'd seen on Tessa. Shane inviting him into a group hug.

All of those moments cycled through Null's mind on an endless loop, blocking out all the voices and spurring on his struggle against the chains.

Before Suicune could muster up the energy to fire another Hydro Pump, Null tucked in his head. He tensed up his entire body, then jerked his head and neck upward. The chains strangled him. Null didn't care. All he could think about was Shane and Tessa lying up above… hurt and in desperate need of help. Just like his situation in Moonrise Marsh. Tessa had pulled him back from the brink of disaster. Now, he needed to save them. He _had_ to save his friends.

Rocks crumbled. Metal snapped around him. The chains loosened. Water splashed across Null's eyes.

His mask was breaking.

Water flooded his vision, so Null shut his eyes even tighter and pushed against the ground with all his might.

" _Tessa! Shane!_ "

The chains burst apart. Shards of metal flew upward. Yipping in fright, Suicune backpedaled.

Null leaped out of the hole. His stone helmet crumbled against the jagged remnants of the booby trap. Pitch-black blood trickled out of gashes the chains left in his body, splashing on the ground. Null landed beside the hole, panting heavily. Espeon's unconscious body slid off his back, landing in a puddle of black fluid. The Lunar Wing gently drifted down to land atop her torso.

Null locked up. A flood of sensations raced into his mind. Air brushed against the face he had forgotten. Dust tickled the tip of his metal beak, making it tingle. His field of vision had greatly expanded. The weight — the agonizing, crushing weight that had born down on his shoulders had vanished. He pointed his head skyward and opened his beak

What came out was a mixture of roars, shouts, howls, and angry caws.

The feathers around Null's face bristled. His head crest fanned out. Three white blades of solidified energy burst forth from the back of his crest, bathing his body in white light. The shabby-gray coloration of his tail instantly changed to match the white of his eyes.

His vision blurred. The cave vanished, along with Suicune. Suddenly, Null was staring down a Druddigon, thorny limbs and all. Then, in an instant, he found himself looking at a Prinplup with the smarmiest expression imaginable. The scene continued to shift from Persian to Turtonator to Chestnaught to Tyranitar. All of them sneering at him, silently judging him. Each scene— each _memory_ from a past spirit made Null boil with rage.

When he managed to snap back to the present, Null reared up on his hind legs. Holographic swords encircled his body. His white aura intensified. Null dropped back to all-fours and sprinted forward, bulging muscles rippling with every step.

"That's impossible!" Suicune gasped. She got over her momentary shock and blasted a Hydro Pump right toward Null. But he strafed the massive water tunnel and lunged at Suicune.

"Nobody hurts my friends! You hear me? _Nobody!_ " he cried. Null bludgeoned Suicune across the head with glowing talons. She staggered backwards in a daze. Her body distorted, giving Null a brief glance of a cluster of terrified Unown. However, Suicune restabilized. A soft, healing glow encased her body. The cuts Null inflicted vanished before his eyes.

Again, Null experienced a flashback. He was a Magikarp, flopping up and down while a haughty Milotic showered herself in the warm light of a Recover.

Null shook his head, dispelling the memory. He refused to let the Unown dismiss him. Null raised his head high and a ball of wind gathered at the tip of his crest. He thrust his head forward, hurtling Air Slash crescents toward Suicune. She got her legs tangled trying to weave through the attack. Several blades nicked her fur.

"Th-That power… where did you get such power?" Suicune whimpered. With a roar, she shifted into Raikou. She lunged for Null, lightning at the ready. He jumped into the air, hardening his head and face into steel. His Iron Head bashed Raikou's ribcage in.

Raikou buckled from the blow, barking in pain. But Null latched onto Raikou as he fell to the ground. The two Pokémon rolled across the laboratory floor, Null slashing at Raikou's hide with his talons and Raikou desperately biting down onto Null's neck with his massive fangs. Black blood splattered against Raikou's face. The blow brought the voices back, but they were incomprehensible. They only added to Null's swelling anger.

Both Pokémon broke off from one another. Null darted to his feet, gazing at the wound on his neck, while Raikou staggered back up, panting heavily. Null redid his Swords Dance ritual. The glow surrounding him grew so strong that Raikou was forced to look away.

"This isn't right," Raikou snarled. "You can't do this. You're making our brothers and sisters suffer. You must let me strike you down, so they can finally know peace!"

Null landed back on all-fours and glared at Raikou. For an instant, he saw Golem staring back at him, followed by purple eye. Null squeezed his eyes shut. "You think I _wanted_ this? I never asked for this!" he shouted.

"There are _thousands_ of voices screaming at me to kill you. To tear you to pieces!" He slammed a foreleg on the ground. "I have all these memories running through my head and I can't control them!"

He tensed. Null found himself standing over a Lopunny, watching it bleed out with an empty look in its eyes. Then he snapped to a cliffside just in time to kick a Luxray off and watch it fall into a dense cloud of fog, screaming like a banshee. A second later, he was in a dark, murky swamp, hearing the screams of Gastlys and Duskulls as they dissolved into nothingness.

With a startled gasp, Null returned to the present. His breathing was labored. He could faintly see the violet eye in his periphery. But, more importantly, Raikou still stood in front of him.

"I keep seeing horrible, painful deaths. Pokémon burnt alive or drowned or left in the middle of a dungeon, broken and bleeding!." Tears streamed down Null's face. " _I don't want this!_ It's miserable! I'm in so much pain. My head still hurts…

He looked over at his limp teammates. "But even when I was at my lowest, my teammates were there to pick me back up. They believe in me! They support me in spite of all the hardships they've faced!"

Null crouched low to the ground. "I'm sorry about what happened to all those Unown. But I'm not about to let you do the same thing to my teammates… _to my friends!_ " He howled in fury and raced forward. As he sprinted toward Raikou, the white glow enveloping him shifted to a golden aura.

Raikou staggered backward. His eyes widened as Null's aura encircled his chest and took the shape of a wheel-like object. Raikou shifted to Entei. He shot a massive fireball straight at Null, who sidestepped it. Null didn't even flinch when the Sacred Fire erupted behind him in a blue glaze. His golden wheel burst into balls of light that raced around Null's body, coalescing around his forelegs.

"N-No… stay back! Stay back!" Entei screamed as Null lunged for him. The glowing talons struck Entei's side, leaving trails of golden energy behind them. The force of the blow rocketed Entei back into the nearby wall. He struck it and exploded into two dozen Unown. They all fell to the ground, their tiny bodies twitching. Null landed in between them, panting heavily.

An Unown R managed to flip onto its back. "P-Please… don't do this," it sputtered. "We're sorry! We won't hurt your friends anymore."

"It's too late for that," Null hissed, slamming his talons against the metal floor. "You almost killed them! And you destroyed our quickest way out of here!"

Unown R teared up. "It was an honest mistake. I swear!"

"Then it's a mistake you're going to fix," Null ordered, running over to put his teammates onto his bloody back one-by-one. The voices were growing louder again. A heaviness gripped his chest. Null doubled over in pain. He had to keep fighting it. His friends weren't saved yet.

Trembling, Null tucked the Lunar Wing into his looplet. The voices faded, though he could still hear them murmuring about abandoning everyone. Panting hard, Null forced himself to stand tall and look at Unown R. "Rally your siblings and help me get out of these caves. After that, I'll be out of your guys' lives forever. I promise."

Unown R floated shakily into the air, nodding the top half of its body. "Of course! Of course! We'll get you out of here. Just please don't hurt us anymore!"

* * *

 **~Glyphic Falls~**

Gallian landed on the rock pathway, wincing as the shock of the impact rattled his legs. Behind him, Toucannon landed in a puddle with an unceremonious _fwump._

 **"Sk-rr-aww,"** it weakly cawed, raising one of its metallic wings upward. The limb fell to the ground, and the black crystals littering its body shattered. Toucannon's metal wings dissolved into thin air, along with the rest of its colors.

"Good riddance," Gallian scoffed, flicking his snout upward. His eyes returned to their normal coloration. He limped back over to his teammates.

"Captain, is that Toucannon—"

"Dead? Most likely," Luxeira said. "It appears that defeating it drained it of its life force."

Gallian's muzzle stiffened. "Does that happen to all the Pokémon who get infected by the Prism Virus?"

"It's not an unreasonable hypothesis," Sticky responded. "Now do you see the importance of sticking with us and wearing that harness?"

Gallian winced. "Whatever," he whispered.

Then a nearby portion of the cliff face exploded, sending rock shards flying forward, followed by a large cloud of smoke. "What the heck?" Gallian snarled, throwing a foreleg over his face. His scythe flickered with pink energy and he swiveled his head around. Psycho Cut blades raced into the smoke, dispelling it. He looked ahead and spotted Null running down the pathway, flanked by a few Unown.

Sticky gasped. "Captain, it's the Beast Killer! We need to give chase, or it'll get away."

Gallian narrowed his eyes and sprinted forward before either member of Team Paradox could stop him. However, to his utter shock, he failed to make up any ground with Null. In fact, Null had managed to widen the gap. Gallian jogged to a stop, flanks heaving. "But that… doesn't make sense," he panted. "That guy's… supposed to be slow."

Sticky and Luxeira caught up with him. Worry filled Sticky's expression. "If he's moving that fast, I fear he may have broken free of the restraining mask. Captain, did you get any energy signature readings?"

Luxeira shook her head. "No. I think we should just cut our losses and call it a day."

Gallian's eyes widened at this. "Call it a day? Are you kidding me? With those lying guild members wandering around and that _freak_ free of its mask and running off with _my sister?_ " He glared at them. "We're going after him. He's probably heading for the Observatory, so we can try to ambush him there."

"Rookie, stop. We could barely hold our own against the smattering of guild members we found earlier. There's no way we're going to take an unrestrained Beast Killer and whatever terrestrials are lingering at this 'Observatory' place."

Gallian's claws dug into the rocks. "But… that's… you…" He squeezed his eyes shut. "You know what? Forget this! I'm done with you guys. I'm done with all of this!" He stormed off down the path.

Sticky's eyes widened. "Gallian, wait! We can't keep the Prism Virus infection in check if you just leave. Stop!" He floated after Gallian, with Luxeira running along beside him.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Primarina and Serperior lay on a cushion in the assembly area, tails coiled around one another. Serperior's head rested in Primarina's lap. He slowly stroked the leafy scales on her back.

 _"There, there, Serpy. Don't despair.  
_ _You'll reunite with Dragonair.  
_ _As far as friends go, she's a fantastic find.  
_ _I'm sure she has Team Captivate fresh on her mind!  
_ _Shooo-bee-do-doo.  
_ _Sha-zippity-doo-bop-bah-woo."_

A loud thump jolted Primarina out of his song. He looked up at the ceiling. "Whoa. Vappy, you're not trying anything risqué up there, are you, babe?"

A frightened squeal echoed through the Observatory, followed by a panicked shout of, "Hey, wait a second. You can't just run through here like that. Stop! _Thief!_ "

Primarina and Serperior uncoiled and sprang up, ready to meet whatever threat awaited them. But to their utter surprise, they saw a pair of chitinous forelegs appear on the railing. Null leaped over it and soared over the duo's heads. He struck the ground in front of them and sprinted off toward the infirmary, leaving them standing there in shock.

"Was that… Null?" Serperior asked.

Vaporeon ran down the stairs, his fins quivering. "Did… did you guys just see a big Pokémon run by here?"

Primarina pointed a flipper toward the infirmary and Vaporeon ran off down the hallway. He managed to make to make it halfway to his destination when he heard Comfey gasp, "Null, is that you? Your helmet… it's…"

"Gone, I know. But who cares about that? My friends are hurt. You've got to heal them up. I'm begging you!"

Vaporeon heard the thumping of multiple bodies hitting the floor. Comfey's startled gasps made him resume walking. "Good gracious. What happened to you all?" she said.

"We were attacked," Null said. "Please save them."

"I'll see what I can do. But don't you want to someone to tend to your injuries, too?" Comfey asked.

"N-No… I have to go," Null whimpered.

"Are you sure? Because—"

Vaporeon jolted stiff. Null sprinted toward him, only to turn his face away. Vaporeon frowned. "H-Hey, hold up. I just want to ta—"

"Get away from me!" Null cried. He tucked his head into his chest and ran right past Vaporeon, leaving him standing there with a confused expression plastered on his face.

* * *

This chapter underwent a rewrite in April 2019 because I was deeply unsatisfied with the original version. Still, it has the fic's official "roll credits" moment. Yes, "Guiding Light" was an antagonist title.

Next time: a friendship needs mending, but Team Radiance will need to find Null... assuming he wants to be found.


	49. Gaining a Full-Powered Ally

I'm a bit late on the uptake, but as of the last chapter the story's hit a number of little milestones. We passed 50 favorites, 100 reviews, and 15,000 views. I'm sure spambots may have contributed to that number, but I am still blown back by the support. It's far exceeded my expectations, that's for sure! So, to celebrate, I've got a few extra-special treats. First off, there will be another impromptu bonus chapter coming next week. It's kind of similar to the Valentine's Day special. Next, I've taken the liberty of crafting "boss bios" for the major battles in the story thus far. Think of it like what you'd see in the recent Kirby games. They're available to view on my profile page, under the Just For Fun section.

Guest: Glad you caught that, because Faba is totally what I was going for. Really, I picked Alolan Golem because it has that luxurious facial hair. But if you disliked him that much, then that means I did my job right.

Another guest: Unfortunately, I don't really think this site lets you put emotes into reviews, unfortunately. I'm... really not sure how it works, to be honest. As for Null, this chapter ought to clear things up a bit for you.

Anon: I try to notice everyone! I wish there was a better system to respond to reviews, but this is the best I can come up with. Unfortunately, I think your four leaf clover brought a big snowstorm to my area on the first day of spring. Maybe it's saving its good luck powers for later?

Alright, with that out of the way, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 43: Gaining a Full-Powered Ally**

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Nnngghh… nuh… no!"

Tessa's eyes shot open and she sat up on an infirmary bed, aura feelers tensed. Her eyes darted about the room in a panic. "What the–? Wait, this is the Observatory. But how did we even get here? The last thing I remember was…" Images quickly flashed through her mind. She recalled the footage of Null attacking his creators. Then the screams of the second experiment as he demanded the return of his light. And finally, the Unown-created Entei blasting her teammates with Lava Plume. Tessa shuddered and threw her paws up to shoulders. _'How did we make it out of the Catacombs?'_ She stiffened. _'Wait a second.'_ She looked around the room, noting Shane and Espeon sleeping soundly on their own beds. _'What happened to Null?'_

"Oh, good. You're up," Comfey said, floating into the room. "Your team gave me quite the scare… again. I swear, each day you guys keep getting closer and closer to getting hurt in ways I can't fix. What happened to you, anyway?"

"I…" Tessa shivered. "I don't want to talk about it." Her ears folded against her head and she whined softly. "But how did we get back here? Do you know?"

"Null dropped you off."

Tessa's aura feelers swung upward. "H… he did?" she squeaked.

"Yeah, but he ran away before I could ask him what had happened. Also, his mask was gone," Comfey said. "I saw a lot of feathers, but he wouldn't show me his face. And he seemed… really upset. Like, he was practically on the verge of tears. I've never seen him so shaken up. Whatever happened to your team, it hit him hard."

Tessa looked down at her lap. She started fidgeting with her paws. _'He's free of his mask? But then that would mean that he's…'_ She shuddered. _'No. I can't think like that. He brought us back here, didn't he?'_ She looked over to the window and gulped. _'But… what if he did that with the last of his willpower? He probably ran off because he knew he would end up attacking everyone if he just stayed.'_ She squeezed her eyes shut and grabbed hold of the bedsheets. _'What have I done? I'm the one who pushed him to start taking missions. Everything that went wrong today… it's all on me. I made Null realize just how much of a monster he really is.'_

"Espy!"

Tessa's ear twitched at a holler accompanied by a chorus of footsteps. Umbreon sprinted into the infirmary, followed closely behind by Latias, Magearna, and Togedemaru. He spotted Espeon and darted over to her, a worried look on his face. Espeon woke up and Umbreon immediately embraced her. "Oh, Espy! You're okay. Thank gods, you're okay!" he blubbered, rubbing his head against her shoulder.

"Oof! Easy, Umbry. I'm… really sore," Espeon groaned, prompting Umbreon to back away. Umbreon rubbed his eyes with a forepaw and gently nuzzled Espeon. "Umbry," she whispered, "my psychic powers. They're… they're damaged. I can only use Psybeams."

Umbreon's eyes widened. Comfrey floated over between the two of them. "I'm afraid there's nothing I can do about it," she said. "I can't seem to identify what's damaged, so I don't know how to treat this."

Espeon whined softly. "I understand."

Umbreon frowned. "Espy, I'm so sorry. I should've insisted on going with your group," he said. "If I'd been there, then maybe–"

Espeon placed a forepaw on Umbreon's muzzle, quieting him. She slowly shook her head. "It wouldn't have made a difference, Umbry."

Tessa noticed that Shane had also woken up. He studied the two Eeveelutions, biting his lower lip. Shane spotted her staring and hastily looked away, a flush forming on his face. "Just what ended up happening to you guys, huh?" Togedemaru wondered.

"We fell into the Catacombs," Shane explained.

"No duh," Togedemaru scoffed. "I'm talking specifics. We need details here."

In response to this, Espeon said, "You were right, Latias."

Latias' ears twitched. "What do you mean by that?"

"I… I… Null…" She shot a despondent look toward Shane. He stared back at her in confusion. She lowered her head. "Maybe it's just best if you see it for yourself."

Latias' snout stiffened. "You're letting me read your mind?"

"Yes. And project it for everyone else, too. I'm afraid words can't do this justice," Espeon said.

Tessa's eyes widened and her aura feelers tensed. "No, wait! Don't–"

But she wasn't fast enough on the draw. Latias' eyes glowed blue. In an instant, the entire room transformed into the cavern. Through Espeon's eyes, the assembled Pokémon watched as the events in the Catacombs played out like a video put on fast-forward. Tessa squealed in fright and lay back down on her bed. She threw the covers up over her body, trying to hide from the images.

The glow faded from Latias' eyes and the room returned to normal. Silence hung over the room. Latias eventually broke it by whispering, "So, Null's even more of an amalgamation than his appearance lets on. I can't believe it."

 **The Horizon legends… are incorrect?** Magearna muttered, her mechanical eyes slowly blinking. She looked away from the group.

"Hey, Riolu, are you doing okay?" Umbreon wondered.

"No, I'm not okay!" Tessa whimpered from beneath the covers. "You saw it for yourselves. My best friend's a savage beast. And I dragged him to the place that made him what he is now." She shivered violently. "And… and Comfey said that Null brought us here, but his mask his gone. So that means… that means he's turned back into the psycho from the footage!"

Shane's tails crinkled in fright. "His mask's gone? How? When? Why?" He looked about the room in a panic. "Where'd he run off to, then?"

"I'm not sure," Comfey said. "He dropped you three off and ran out of the guild."

"In-deed-illy-deed, babe!" Primarina said as he hopped into the room. "That big fella gave the ol' ticker a start when he came flying down the stairs, carrying you three on his back. He ran back out of the guild like the place was going up in smoke. He was really booking it, babe." He looked at Serperior, who nodded her agreement.

"I don't get it. Does that mean he's just gone… forever?" Shane asked. "You guys saw it for yourselves. None of this is his fault." His ears drooped. "I feel so awful for everything I've said to him. Am I really never gonna get the chance to apologize?"

"Um… guys?" Milotic said as she slithered into the room. She dropped a looplet, a silver explorer's badge, and the Lunar Wing to the floor. Shane's eyes widened in recognition. "Those are all Null's! But then that means…"

"… he's gone," Milotic confirmed. "And it doesn't look like he wants to come back."

Under her bed covers, Tessa winced. _'I was right, then. Null… he must've known he was going to go berserk again. And so, he left us all behind before the voices could drive him crazy.'_ She squeezed her eyes shut and pull the covers tight against her body.

"Comfey, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to give these three a little boost," Latias offered, floating forward. Comfey nodded her approval. A pink glow encased Latias' body. She pointed a paw at Shane and shot a small, multicolored beam at him. It struck Shane, and he felt all his soreness and fatigue wash away. She repeated the gesture with Tessa, despite the fact that she still lay under the covers.

She then turned to Espeon, who stopped her, saying, "I can handle it myself, Latias." She sat up and bathed herself in the gentle glow of Morning Sun. Then she shook out her fur and hopped off of the bed. She stretched out her hind legs and tail, and then slowly walked up to Latias alongside Umbreon.

"So, now what do we do?" Shane asked, sliding off his bed. He looked over toward Tessa, and still saw a lump underneath white blankets.

"Well, I can sense the other guild members returning," Latias announced. "So, maybe we should take the opportunity to bring them up to speed on what's happened?"

"Oh… yeah. I guess so," Shane muttered. He took one last look back at Tessa and, seeing she had no intention of following him, trudged out of the infirmary. He found Metagross, Braviary, and the other guild members on the expedition waiting in the assembly area. Latias, Espeon, and Umbreon immediately went up to greet them.

Shane tried to follow them, only for a raggedy cloth to move in his path. "Ah! Mi-Mimikyu," Shane stammered, nearly toppling into the ghost.

"Oops. Sorry, Shane. I should've watched where I was walking," Mimikyu apologized. "Please don't get mad at me."

"It's fine, dude," Shane dismissed. "But I think I should go talk to the others." He tried to avoid letting Mimikyu see him glancing nervously at Metagross and Braviary.

"Right, right, of course." Mimikyu scuttled to the side. "I'm just glad you and your friends are okay. We got so worried when we heard what happened." His disguise's head fell forward. "But nobody would let me run off to try and help you."

"Well, it's in the past now," Shane said. "We'll talk later or something, okay?"

"Oh-okay," Mimikyu stammered, nodding slowly. Shane sidestepped the ghost-type and walked forward, joining the rest of the guild.

 **Understood,** Metagross declared, nodding slowly. He locked eyes with Shane, who immediately stiffened.

"Did… did you guys cut the expedition short because of us?" Shane muttered, pawing guiltily at the ground.

 **Affirmative,** Metagross replied. **Fact: we found the information that we needed.**

Shane's ears perked up. "Wait, you did? So, you know how to contact the Tapus?"

"I reckon we do," Braviary replied. "We managed to find some old runes in one of the caves we visited."

Magearna nodded. **Yes, as the Guildmaster just relaytiated to me, there are two ways to gain access to a Tapu's temple. The first is to offer up a gift.**

Shane gulped. "You mean… like a sacrifice?" He looked nervously at Metagross, who returned the look with his typical neutral expression.

Magearna shook her head. **Gracious, no. Whatever would give you that idea?**

"Err… nothing," Shane lied. "Forget I said anything. Continue."

 **The gift is a Tapumera,** Magearna said. **It's a special emera that you need to synthesize using very specific types of stardust, mixed together with a powerful spell.**

 **Fact: I have memorized the necessary components. Fact: we have sufficient materials to make one Tapumera. Fact: I have dispatched Yungoos, Trapinch and Growlithe to locate ingredients to make more of them,** Metagross announced.

"Does that mean you're going to need my help to make the emera, Magearna, dahling?" Bruxish asked. "I'm haaaaaaappy to lend a fin or two."

 **Yes, that would be most beneficiary,** Magearna exclaimed. She turned back to Shane. **There is another way, of course. And it's one that your team can take advantage of.** She pointed an arm toward Shane's looplet. **If you have a Naturia Looplet giftilated to you by one of the Tapus, you can request access to any of their temples, since they've judged you a worthy Pokémon.**

Shane glanced down at his looplet. The embedded gemstone sparkled in the glow of the guild's light fixtures. "Which means that you guys are going to need me to help you find these temples," he said, looking cautiously at Braviary.

 **Correct,** Metagross replied. **Fact: time is needed to synthesize Tapumeras. Conclusion: you will return to Aurora Vale and attempt to locate the Temple of Mind. Fact: it is Tapu Lele's domain.**

"And Zero thinks Tapu Lele is the one holding the Dawn Hourglass," Umbreon reminded Shane.

Shane's ears fell flat against his face. "Do we need to go right this second?" He glanced back toward the north hallway. "My teammates are not exactly in the right frame of mind to track down a Tapu."

Metagross gave Shane an unamused look. "Err, Guildmaster?" Braviary waved a wing in front of his face. "If'n I may? The sun's setting, and with the state that Aurora Vale's in, I imagine even the both of us would be hard-pressed to try and find the Temple of Mind in the dark. I think we need to take the time to rest up, so we're at our fighting best."

Shane sighed in relief. "Yeah. Not to mention, that gives you the time to synthesize enough Tapumeras to send guild members to the other temples," Latias added. "Even if the Prism Virus is currently after Tapu Lele, we really should try to warn the other Land Spirits about what's happened."

"Say, if you're a Legendary, why can't you just get the Tapus to open their temples, huh?" Togedemaru asked. "I thought all you gods were, like, tight-knit and stuff."

"O-Oh, well…" Latias fidgeted with her paws. "It's, um, it's not really that simple. I mean, I'm a Legendary, but… I'm not a god or anything. I'm more like, uh, a lesser Legendary, or something."

"So, what you're saying is, you don't deserve the title, huh?" Togedemaru scoffed. "Guess the Expedition Society isn't as worried about us as we thought."

"Hey!" Shane huffed, stepping in front of Togedemaru. "Lay off her. She's generously offering to help us. So what if she can't get the Tapus to open their temples? We'll take whatever help we can get."

"It's… it's okay…" Latias squeaked, waving Shane off. She looked at Togedemaru. "You have to understand that not all Legendaries are created equal. Some of us are much more like you. Our lifespans are finite, and we can't wield the same degree of raw power as gods. But, I still live here. And I want to do whatever I can to help."

"Actually, I think I could really use your help right now," Shane said. "We need to find Null. Comfey told us that he dropped us off at the guild and then ran away."

Latias stiffened. "But she also said his mask came off." She started to fidget with her flight goggles. "You… you do know that I'm the type of Pokémon that he was designed to kill, right?"

"I didn't say you needed to come with me," Shane elaborated. "You're a powerful psychic. And so are Metagross and Espeon. So–"

"Ahem, forgetting someone, daaaahling?"

Shane let out a nervous laugh. "Aha ha ha… and Bruxish, too. I'll bet if you four put your heads together, you'd be able to find Null."

 **Fact: my previous attempts to sense Null's life force have been unsuccessful,** Metagross said, glaring at Shane.

"Because his mask was jamming your ESP," Shane retorted. "If he has no mask, you should be able to sense him, right? Please, just try it for me. I…" He looked down at the floor. "I don't want to lose my teammate like this. Not without trying to help him. Especially since he just saved my life."

"Okay," Latias said. "I'll do my best." Her face scrunched up as she concentrated. A tense silence gripped the room while Latias proceeded with her psychic scan. But to Shane's surprise, her facial features softened quickly. She wore a bewildered expression her face.

"Well?" he asked.

"I got something," she whispered. "It doesn't look like Null went very far. I sensed this _peculiar_ energy in the forest on the outskirts of town."

Metagross shut his eyes at mention of this. He slowly nodded. "Peculiar in what way?" Braviary asked.

"It's um… it's kind of tough to explain," Latias mumbled. "But unlike aura reading, where things are seen in lay lines and blue flames of various intensities, sensing life forces involves swathes of color. I can usually tell what kind of Pokémon I'm sensing by the colors I visualize and how bright they are in my mind's eye." She frowned. "But Null's energy — if it _is_ his — looks like a small, rainbow ball."

"That actually makes sense," Espeon piped up. "In the footage we saw, Null's creators said they wanted him to be able to change his typing at will. In which case, you'd expect his spirit to have a little bit of every type mingled together."

"Good enough for me," Shane said. "Where exactly did you think you sensed him?"

"Um, off to the west. Not too far off the path that leads to Sunrise Village, I suppose," Latias replied.

"Great. Then I'll go tell Tessa and we can take off after him," Shane said, jogging back down to the infirmary. His pace slowed to a trot as he saw Tessa still lay beneath the covers. Shane's muzzle stiffened. "Hey, uh, Tessa?" He scratched the back of his neck with a paw. "Um, we think we know where Null ran off to. So, I was, y'know, thinking that maybe we should go try to bring him back here… together."

He saw movement underneath the covers. "Forget it," Tessa mumbled, sliding away from her teammate.

Shane frowned. "But Null's your best friend," he reminded her. "He needs you right now."

"No, he doesn't," Tessa tersely replied. "I can't help him. There's nothing I can do. Don't you get it? He ran off because he knows he's going crazy. Look, he left all his stuff behind. And you saw that footage. He's… he's vicious without his mask! I was able to stop him back in Moonrise Marsh, but I don't think I could do it again. Especially with all our items gone." Shane's shoulders slumped. He took a deep breath, walked up to Tessa's bed, and yanked the covers off with his mouth. "Hey!" Tessa squealed, lunging for the covers. She managed to grab them before Shane could drop them to the floor. "I'm cold. Give those back," she growled, tugging on the bedsheets. Shane lurched forward, but maintained his grip. He dug his paws into the ground.

"No," he replied, linens muffling his voice. "He's our teammate. We can't just give up on him."

"Yes, we can," Tessa countered, giving the bedsheets another tug. Shane struck the edge of the bed and dropped the sheets. Tessa hoisted them back onto the bed and threw them up over her body. Shane's brow furrowed and he stomped over beside her. He jumped onto the bed and yanked the covers off once again. Tessa glared at him. "I said I'm not going," she barked.

"I can't believe you're acting like this," he said. "You're the one who's defended him all this time. You've stood by him while the rest of the guild gave him the cold shoulder." He lowered his head. "And while I bullied him."

"It's a little late to be forming a guilty conscience about all of this, don't you think?" Tessa huffed. "And none of that matters. Because… because he's not the Pokémon I grew close to. Not anymore. My friend's gone. He's buried deep underground… with his mask."

"But you're basing that off what you saw in the recordings," Shane claimed. "You don't know for a fact he isn't still the same Null you've grown so close to. What's wrong? Why have you suddenly turned against him like this?"

"Because I'm scared of him!" Tessa blurted out. She grabbed hold of a nearby pillow and squeezed it against her face. "I'm terrified, okay. I saw him _eviscerate_ his creators. All that blood on his body just… just freaked me out." She started shivering. "I thought… I thought what he did in Moonrise Marsh was a fluke. A one-time issue. But it's not. It could happen at any time. And now that the mask's gone, I can't… I'm worried he'll attack me." She dug her face into the pillow. "So, go on. Say it. I'm a selfish coward. And a sucky friend. It's not going to make me change my mind."

But, rather than doing that, Shane lay down beside his partner. "Tessa," he whispered.

"Please don't call me that!" she squealed, making Shane wince.

"Riolu." He put a forepaw on her back and started to rub it. "I understand. This all scares me too. But, I still think we need to help him."

"How can you say that?" she blubbered. "He tried to kill you."

"I know. But I see now that it really wasn't his fault," Shane muttered. "Plus, he just saved my life. Both our lives, technically. Not to mention, he was there for both of us when we were at our worst after that disciplinary assignment." He gently lowered the pillow from Tessa's face and met her tearful gaze. "Now, Null's at his lowest point. Don't you think we owe it to him to try and help?" Tessa tensed up. Shane leaned in toward her. "Come on, Riolu. Do you mean to tell me that, after everything that's happened — after how you said you feel so lonely and unloved — you're really going to let your best friend walk out of your life?" He put a paw on her shoulder. "If your dad were still here, what would he do?"

Tessa squeezed her pillow harder. Shane held his breath, fearing he'd against stepped over the line. But, to his relief, Tessa slowly nodded. "You're right. Null never gave up on us. So, I need to try and get him back."

A smile crossed Shane's muzzle. "Then what are we waiting for? We've got a friend to help."

* * *

 **~Aeon Town~**

"You know, it _probably_ would've been a good idea to try and get a more specific location from Latias," Shane sighed, looking over at the forest. "Everything looks the same. Just trees and rocks, and more trees and rocks. Oh, and leaves. Lots of leaves."

 _Crunch!_

Leaves crinkled and made Shane's ears twitch. "Look," he gasped, "over there." He pointed a forepaw forward, just in time for Tessa to see a blur dart between the trees. A nearby bush rustled.

"That's gotta be him. C'mon," Tessa said, running into the forest. Shane trotted after her, weaving his way through the tree roots. "Null. Null, it's us! Come on out. We just want to talk to you."

"Nuh… no!"

Tessa stopped and threw an arm up. Shane stopped right next to her. She pointed ahead of them. Shane spotted Null lying in the middle of the forest, head and neck buried in a thick bush. His torso and tail stuck out, like he was doing a poor ostrich imitation. "Null, pull your head out of there. You look ridiculous," Shane said.

"Go away," Null whimpered, trying to push himself deeper inside the bush, to no avail. "I can't control myself anymore." Shane noted that his voice sounded much higher-pitched now, but something still seemed to muffle his speech.

"We know, Null," Tessa whispered, stepping forward. The crinkling leaves caused Null to tense up.

"Please don't come closer!" he begged.

His body lurched violently. "What are you waiting for? There are no more restraints. Attack them! Destroy them!" Null dug his legs into the ground, shivering.

"We're not about to leave you out here, dude. You're our teammate," Shane said. "We're worried about you."

"Don't be. I'm not… strong enough… to stop them!" Null squawked, trying to push himself further into the bush. "I remember everything. The voices are so loud now. It's… it's taking every ounce of strength not to lash out. Please," he croaked, "save yourselves. Run away!"

He slashed through some of the bush's leaves and hissed, "No… stay! Stay and let us kill you. We want you dead, beast! We—"

Tessa stepped forward and shoved Null's Lunar Wing against his right flank. Null initially stiffened, before the rise and fall of his chest slowed. He slid down onto his stomach and, in the process, his head slid out of the bush. To Tessa's surprise, an oversized, raggedy towel sat atop Null's head, covering his face. "Feeling better?" Tessa whispered.

"A little," Null muttered.

"What's with the rag?" Shane asked. "If you're trying to do a Mimikyu impression, it's not really working." Tessa gave him an incredulous look. "Sorry. I thought I could lighten the mood a bit," he sighed. "Guess not."

"Why did you come for me?" Null mumbled. "You saw the footage." He took in a shuddering breath. "I'm no Pokémon. I'm a monster. A freak! I… I…" They watched Null dig his talons into the dirt. To their surprise, he let out a squeak, his voice cracking. "I don't want to be a killer. I don't want to hurt anyone." He lowered his head to the ground, brushing the rag against the soil. "But the voices… they're so awful. They're so _angry._ " He brought his talons up against the rag. "I can't keep them at bay. Now that the mask's gone, I can't force them back anymore. The spirits inside me… they were not good Pokémon. Their memories… I can't get them out of my head." Null squeaked again. "I can't believe I'm saying this… but I wish I had the helmet back. I'd rather be in physical pain then have to deal with this."

"Don't say that," Tessa scolded, placing a paw on his hip. Null whined loudly. "Null, you're—" She abruptly cut herself off, making Null tense up. Tessa took in a deep breath, and continued, "Null, I have something I need to confess. At first… I didn't want to try and find you." Null winced and Shane shot Tessa a concerned look. "But," she said, rubbing his hind leg, "Shane reminded me of the good that you've done for me. You've done good for both of us. I'm sure you realize that."

"But I tried to kill you, Shane," Null blubbered.

"I know. That was— no, _is_ still lingering in my mind," Shane said. "And, yeah, I do get very nervous around you. But after the stuff we saw down in the Catacombs, I realize I can't blame you for it. If I was in your situation, things would've probably gone the exact same way. And Riolu's right, you've been doing good as part of the guild. A monster wouldn't be there to comfort a miserable Riolu when she's suffering. A monster wouldn't have saved us from those Unown." He inched closer to Null. "You're a good Pokémon at heart, Null. And yes, I do mean _Pokémon._ "

Null shuffled away from them. "You're just saying that to make me feel better. I'm not a real Pokémon and I never will be. I'm just a sorry mish-mash… a failed attempt at an Arceus clone." He shook his head. "Do the folks at the guild know?"

"Yes," Tessa replied glumly.

"Then it's worthless," Null said, pulling his forelegs up on top of his rag-covered head. "I can't go back there. How am I supposed to look any of them in the eye, huh?"

Tessa bit her lip and withdrew her paw. "W-Well… um… that is…" She failed to think of a response to him.

"Null," Shane spoke up. "I know this looks really bad. But, I want to share something with you." Null stopped squirming and turned his head to face Shane. His eyes glowed from beneath the rag. "It's, um, a quote. From something Pokémon-related back in the human world."

"But I thought Pokémon weren't real in your world?" Null whimpered.

"Err, yeah, I mean that's true, but…" Shane bit his lower lip. "Look, just hear me out, okay? I really think it applies to your situation."

"… fine," Null said. "What is it?"

Shane took a deep breath, and then recited off memory, "The circumstances of one's birth are irrelevant. It is what you do with the gift of life that determines who you are."

Silence fell over the trio. Tessa gave Shane a bewildered look, while Null appeared to shift his gaze to look at the ground. "Who said that?" he asked.

"Mewtwo," Shane replied. "In my world, he was created in a laboratory, as a clone of Mew. He was designed to be an incredibly powerful battler. Sound familiar?"

"Y… yes…" Null rasped.

"Now, I don't think the Mewtwo in this world has the same origin. But, I think what he said applies here," Shane said. "Are you really going to let Golem and his horrible flunkies dictate what you do with your life? Are you going to give into all the angry voices in your head?" Null met his gaze once again. "Or are you going to show the world that you're not just some tool? That you can rise above what you were created for… and become a force that inspires hope?" Shane stepped back and shook his head. "That… probably sounded really sappy, didn't it?" His ears folded against his head. "I'm sorry, guys. I'm not too good at motivational speeches."

To the duo's surprise, Null lumbered to his feet. The two of them thought they heard a soft whine and exchanged nervous looks. "You guys…" Null hiccuped. His teammates' ears twitched. He slowly pivoted around, facing them. "You really mean it? You want me to stay on the team, even after all that stuff you saw?"

Tessa stepped forward. Slowly, she brought her paw up to clasp the rag over Null's face. "You're our friend, Null. And you've gotten us through some really tough times. We're not about to let you slip through the cracks." Tessa gingerly pulled the rag away from Null's face, whispering, "Team Radiance needs you."

Null tucked his chin against his neck, allowing the rest of the rag to fall away. And, for the first time, Tessa and Shane were truly able to look their teammate right in the eyes. His silver, watery eyes. "I get it," he whispered. "It's like you guys said on Riolu's hatch day."

Shane picked up on Null's cue. He stuck a forepaw forward, saying "Through darkest night…"

Tessa added her paw and said, "… and brightest day…"

Null put his talons on top of his friends' paws and finished, "… Team Radiance always finds a way." He shut his eyes, tears streaming down them, and leaned forward. He brushed his torso up against his teammates and craned his head and neck down, nuzzling the two of them. Shane and Tessa both returned the embrace.

"Thank you," he whispered, "for everything." They kept the embrace for a moment, before Null stepped back. He bent down, picked up the Lunar Wing in his beak, and nestled it in the feathers on his chest plume.

"How are you feeling?" Shane asked.

Null a took a deep breath. "… okay," he replied. "I'm… I'm okay." He titled his head upward. Slowly, Null made his way out of the forest, with Shane and Tessa following him. He walked onto the grass and that sat down, craning his neck up toward the afternoon sun. Warm sunlight spilled over his face. Null sat there, humming as his tail swished back and forth through the grass.

"So, this is what it feels like," he said.

"What do you mean?" Tessa asked.

"Having the sun shining down on you. And soaking up the rays with your face," Null continued. "This is the first time I've ever felt something like this."

Shane cocked an eyebrow. "And?"

Null's beak opened in a smile. "I like it," he trilled. He flopped over onto his side and started rubbing his face against the grass. "It tickles!" he squeaked, rolling across the grass until he lay in front of Tessa's feet.

 _'Gee… how very, uh, dog,'_ Shane mused, keeping that thought to himself.

"You seem to be in better spirits," Tessa noted.

"I think I am," Null said, sitting back up. "I feel so much lighter. So… full of energy!" He sprang up to his feet, earning a confused look from Tessa.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

In response, Null reached out, and bopped the tip of Tessa's snout with his beak. Her eyes widened. "I've always wanted to do that," Null confessed, stifling a giggle. "Oh, by the way, I think the phrase is, 'tag, you're it!'"

"Wait, what?" Tessa gasped, but Null turned and sprinted away. "Hey… hey! You can't just call an impromptu game of tag like that. We've gotta agree on the rules first! Back me up here, Shane." She looked over to her side, only to see that Shane had turned tail and ran away from her, laughing. She narrowed her eyes. "Oh, so that's how it is, huh? Fine. I'm going for you first!" She stuck her arms out by her sides and sprinted after Shane.

Across the grass, Null trotted to a stop, watching Tessa close the gap as Shane reached a dead end. Shane tried to get around Tessa by faking going to his right and then juking left. But he got tripped up in the process. A triumphant Tessa stood over him. She knelt down and tapped him on the shoulder, saying, "Tag." She turned and ran away laughing. But Shane quickly got to his feet. He coated the grass in a layer of ice and slid onto his belly.

Null's eyes widened as Shane bowled into Tessa from behind, upending her and making her fall onto the grass. Shane spun to a stop by Null, his eyes swirling about in his sockets. "Oooooog. Did I get her?" he groaned.

"You sure did," Null said. He ran over to Tessa, his face ripe with worry. "Are you okay? That looked like it stung." He looked down at Tessa, but she didn't respond. "Riolu? Riolu?" Null called, leaning down to get a closer look. "Say something. Anything!"

A blue paw reached up and tapped edge of Null's beak. "Okay, how about, 'tag, you're it?'"

Null's jaw dropped and Tessa used the opportunity to roll away from him. She stumbled to her feet but didn't make it very far before Null playfully tackled her from behind. They rolled across the grass, bursting into laughter as they came to a stop. Shane shook his head at the sight. _'Who would've thought this would be how our day ended up?'_ A smile crept onto his lips as he watched Null nuzzle Tessa's cheek. _'But I'm glad they were able to work things out. They both seem so much happier. And Tessa could really use something positive in her life right now.'_

"It looks like you're feeling much better, Null."

All three members of Team Radiance turned and stood at attention as Latias materialized behind them. Espeon and Umbreon also walked in from the nearby trail. "I hope you don't mind us interrupting. It was starting to get kind of late, and we were getting worried," Latias said.

"It's no big deal," Shane dismissed.

"How did she just _appear_ like that?" Tessa gasped, her aura feelers pulsating wildly.

Both Shane and Latias opened their mouths in unison, only for Null to cut them off, saying, "Latias can use her down to turn invisible."

"How do you know that?" Shane and Latias asked simultaneously. Latias turned her confused look on Shane.

Null's brow furrowed. "I don't know. I just _do,_ " he replied. "Maybe it's because I, y'know…" He sheepishly picked at the dirt with his talons. "… needed to know that in order to kill her." Null noticed Latias' feathers prickle. "Buh-but that's not me. I don't want to do that stuff. I look okay to you, right?"

"Yes," Latias muttered. "And, um, you seem pretty lucid." Null nodded. "So, um, I have something here for you." Latias pulled the Memory Looplet out from her satchel.

Null's eyes widened in recognition. "Ah… that's my looplet! That's the one Golem made for me."

"I know," Latias said. "This is what Team Captivate found in the Nocturnus Catacombs. I took it back to the Expedition Society, where Mawile's been researching it extensively." She gently set the looplet on the ground. "Based on her investigating, she put this together." Latias pulled out the stack of pages and floated it over toward Team Radiance.

Shane glanced at the top page and his jaw dropped. "Everything You Always Wanted to Know About the RKS System (But Were Afraid to Ask)? Are you serious, here?"

"Very," Latias replied. "That's what Null's ability is called, according to the papers Mawile uncovered. Why, something wrong?"

"Nuh-no. Of course not!" Shane said. Blood rushed into his face and stepped away from his teammates. "So, what, you want to put the looplet on him and see what happens? Be my guest."

Null shot a nervous glance at the looplet. "Why didn't Team Captivate say anything to me about this?"

Latias scratched the back of her neck. "Ah, well, that's probably my fault. I may have intentionally made it a bit difficult for them to believe your, y'know, _unique_ origins."

"Alternatively, they were just scared of how you'd react," Umbreon added. Tessa gave him a nasty look, to which Umbreon raised a forepaw up innocently. "What? I'm sure we were all thinking it."

"It's okay," Null said. He looked back down at the looplet. "Are you sure this is safe to try?"

"Well, not really," Latias conceded, drawing panicked expressions from the other Pokémon present. "But I have an idea," she hastily added, floating closer to Null. "If I could just see that Lunar Wing of yours for a second."

Null glanced at the feather, and then cautiously plucked it up with his beak and presented it to Latias. His tensed up and his talons dug into the dirt as Latias took the Lunar Wing and the Memory Looplet. She brought them close together and, to everyone's shock, breathed out a small, quick stream of dragonfire.

"Are you _nuts?_ " Shane cried. "You're going to break them both!"

Latias ended the attack and encased the items in a psychic bubble with some lingering dragonfire. She shut her eyes and concentrated. The others looked on in confusion as the bubble's contents seemed to pulsate and swirl around. After a couple of minutes, Latias broke the bubble and dispelled the dragonfire. The looplet floated in the air, completely unharmed. However, the metal banding and Arceus-like wheel were now gold-plated. Latias levitated the Memory Looplet over to Null.

"What did you do?" he asked.

"I welded the Lunar Wing into the looplet," Latias explained. "From what I saw in Espeon's memories, you went berserk because of this thing. But the Lunar Wing has a calming effect on you. I figured that, if I could incorporate its psychic energy into the very essence of the looplet, you might be able to use it successfully."

Null blinked. "Right," he whispered. He lifted up his right foreleg. Latias took a deep breath and cautiously slid the Memory Looplet onto his limb. Null watched it move up and clamped his beak shut as it brushed against his fur. The moment it reached a point where it snuggly surrounded his leg, his entire body went rigid.

Tessa's aura feelers shot into the air and she backed away. "Null? Are… are you okay?"

Latias' face blanched. "Come on, Null. It's okay. Deep breaths. You… you're alright." But she was starting to float away, readying herself for a hasty retreat.

Tessa abruptly leaped to Null's side. She put her paws against his leg and rubbed it. "It's going to be okay," she whispered.

"Guys, look," Shane said, pointing his forepaw at Null. "His eyes are changing color." Everyone looked up at Null's face, watching his irises shift from white to blue. And then again to red. And then _again_ to green.

"Null, are you feeling alright?" Tessa asked. Null didn't respond. He remained still as his eyes cycled through multiple different colors. Everyone stood in silence, until Null's eyes regained their white coloration.

Then, to their surprise, Null declared in monotone, "Biolink established. RKS System online." He blinked a few times and then shook his head about. "Unnnngh… w-what happened?" he groaned, lowering his head and brushing his feathers with his talons.

"We were hoping you could tell us," Espeon said. "Your eyes were changing color there."

"They were?" Null gasped. He looked down at the Memory Looplet, and noticed the gems embedded in the golden wheel now sparkled with a rainbow glow.

"It's in the instructions," Umbreon exclaimed, looking down at the stack of papers. "Says here, 'The RKS System enables the God Killer to alter its typing as it sees fit. All it needs to do is think of which type it wants to assume. The Memory Looplet reads its thoughts, and uses the life energy stored in it to do the necessary type conversion. Certain energy-based parts of the God Killer's body will reflect the type changes.'"

Null looked down at the looplet. "Hmm… lemme try something, then." His brow furrowed and then, to everyone's surprise, a change occurred. His eyes, tail membrane, cheek bolts, and energy blades all turned a bright shade of blue.

"Whoa!" Shane jumped back. "Are you sure you should be doing that?"

In response to this. Null tensed up. The blue coloration across his body shifted to red. Null darted forward. Golden energy emerged around his torso in a wheel shape that matched the looplet. The energy raced around his body, until it gathered around his forelegs, where it suddenly erupted, setting his forelegs ablaze. Null raised his talons and slashed a nearby tree. Burning chunks of wood exploded out in all directions.

Everyone's eyes widened at the sight. Null looked down at his flaming talons. His tail started wagging. "I think I could get used to this," he chirped. "I mean, it's a little weird. When I change, I have all these memories of different fire-type Pokémon running around in my head. Like, I saw a Magcargo bathing in a lava bath. And a Pyroar pushing a Luxray off of a cliff." He shuddered. "But it's not like when the voices were there." He lowered his talons and tensed up again. But nothing happened, drawing a confused look from Null. "Hey, why can't I become a water-type again?"

Umbreon flipped through the pages and pressed a forepaw down on one, "According to this, if you change out of a certain type, there's a bit of a cooldown period before you can change back to it. Otherwise, you might overload the looplet."

Null nodded. "Is there anything else I should know?" he asked.

"Mawile managed to add emera slots into the looplet," Latias exclaimed. "There are only three of them. But hopefully you'll manage to put them to good use."

Null examined the notches in the looplet's band. "Well, we kind of lost a lot of our items, but we stored our emeras at Dhelmise Depot. I'm sure we can find a good combination," Tessa declared, giving her friend a reassuring smile.

"And I'll get these instructions back to the guild for your guys," Umbreon offered, "so you can look them over later." He and Espeon scooped the papers up and started to make their way back toward the road.

"Yeah, it's getting late. Probably best to start heading back," Latias declared, letting out a yawn. "I'm king of running on fumes here." She slowly floated off after Espeon and Umbreon.

"I guess we should follow them, huh?" Null said.

"Hang on. There's still one more thing we need to take care of," Shane said, drawing confused looks from his teammates. "You need a name," he said.

"A… name?" Null parroted.

"Of course," Shane replied. "You said it yourself. The Guildmaster just labeled you Null because he had no idea what you were supposed to be. But now we know. And you're free of that restraining mask. I don't think it's fair to keep going around calling you that. You deserve something better!"

Null blinked. "But, what should I call myself?"

Shane pursed his lips. While his idea _sounded_ good, he clearly lacked the foresight to think up any ideas. "Um, well, I guess we'd need to have a quick brainstorming session." He started pacing back and forth. "How about Buddy? You look like a dog. In the human world, dogs are man's best friend. And you don't want to hurt people, so it sounds very friendly!"

Null shook his head. "Sorry, that seems rather silly."

"Okay, well there are lots of other great dog names. Like Rex, Baxter, Spot, Jackson, Archie, or my personal favorite, Barkley!" Shane grinned at his teammates, who stared back at him in surprise. "Err... I think I got carried away again."

"I'll say," Tessa said. "None of those sound like what you'd call a Pokémon."

"What about something cool, then? Like… like… Razorclaw!" Shane pointed at Null's talons. "Or how about–"

"What about Silvally?" Tessa offered.

Shane shot Tessa a confused look. "You can't be serious. Now _that's_ a silly name. It kind of sounds like putty. Y'know, that slime-like stuff you can play around with?"

Tessa shrugged. "I mean, he looks pretty silver to me now that the mask is gone. And he wants to be the opposite of an enemy to all Legendaries, and that'd be an ally. So, yeah, I just kind of mashed them together." She scratched the back of her head. "I know it sounds stupid, but–"

"I like it!" their teammate chirped. "Yeah… Silvally. Silvally! Silvally!" he repeated the name several times, before proceeding to hop about in a circle, tail wagging excitedly. "That's me," he said, planting his forelegs in the ground and puffing his chest out.

 _'Talk about a 180 in personality,'_ Shane thought. "Okay then. Silvally it is."

"Alright!" he cheered. He looked at Tessa. "Hey, race you back to the Observatory." He started jogging in place.

A broad smile appeared on Tessa's face. "Oh, you're _so_ going down!" she declared, and broke into a run.

"Hey, I never said 'go!'" Silvally cawed, and bounded after her.

"You never set any rules," Tessa called back with a laugh.

Shane watched the two of them round a bend in the forest to rejoin the road. _'They seem really happy now. Thank goodness.'_ But as he heard their footsteps retreat, his smile slowly started to fade. He looked down at the ground, and his ears and tail drooped. _'So, why do I have this awful, sinking feeling in my stomach about Silvally?'_ He started walking off toward the road, furrowing his brow as he tried to reason out the cause. _'He seems to be under control. And he's got the RKS System working, from what it looks like. What's the problem, then? Am I just being paranoid, like with Lycanroc?'_

As he approached the edge of Aeon Town, he abruptly stopped. Distorted black cubes filled up his field of vision, erasing Aeon Town. Flames washed away the cubes and a pair of blue eyes appeared in the center, looking right back at Shane. A hole appeared in the wall of fire, showing a Dusknoir getting dragged through a wormhole by a pair of lanky green arms. The flames circled around the sight and vanished, leaving Shane standing atop the hill overlooking the town.

 _'Wait. An older, more-experienced Pokémon is working with two kids. He has lightning-fast reflexes and powerful attacks at his disposal. And he's been displaced from the time he's originally from…'_ His eyes widened and his muzzle fell agape. _'Oh my god, he's not just some random coincidence. I'll bet he's our Grovyle. And that means… no matter what we try, we're gonna lose him!'_

Shane's legs locked up and his gaze fell back to the ground. The soil beneath him swirled around in circles, until he found himself staring at the armored face of Solgaleo's imposter.

 _ **"Heeheehee… yes, exactly! One by one, those fakers will disappear, until you realize that your one and only friend is me… Necrozma!"**_

Shane's heart skipped a beat. He slammed his eyes shut and sprinted down the hill, whimpering loudly.

 **End of Episode 9**

* * *

And there you have it! As a reminder, a pair of bonuses will be coming for the next two updates, followed by Episode 10. It is a meaty one, currently standing at eight chapters. Quite a lot is going to happen there, and I hope that it serves to shake things up even further.

Next time: the God Killer speaks his mind.


	50. Bonus: Memories

Please see the end of the chapter for review replies, guests. It's getting too cramped to put them up here.

Anyway, here's the bonus. I apologize if there are any snafus. My grandfather literally just passed away this weekend, and I'm hastily posting this ahead of a busy week. Thanks for understanding!

* * *

 **Bonus: Memories**

The first thing I remembered was waking up. I was on a floor. It was cold. And dark. I was so confused. But I couldn't form the words needed to ask what was happening. Golem never gave me the time to. He descended on me with his assistants. He frightened me. I wanted to tell him to stop. I wanted to ask who I was. And why I was in such a strange room. But I was still trying to figure out how to get my body to work. It wasn't listening to me.

Nobody out there can understand how I felt. No Pokémon has ever had to deal with thinking they don't belong in their body. To feel like they want to burst out of their scales. But that's what it was like for me. In those first few moments, something simmered inside of me. Trying to claw its way through the flesh Golem had created for me. I wanted to scream. To shout. To tell them all to back off. But then he slipped that looplet onto my leg… and my world descended into chaos.

Suddenly, I wasn't me. I was a wild Manectric, stalking the cliffs of Aurora Vale. Launching myself at an unsuspecting Eevee and slaying it with my claws. Then, I was a Sharpedo, prowling through the Midnight Sea to pray on unsuspecting Magikarp. And then I became a Snorunt, looking up in terror as an avalanche descended upon me. A thousand memories flashed by in a matter of seconds. I now had hundreds of sets of parents. I was hundreds of Pokémon's mothers. I was hundreds of Pokémon's fathers. But none of the thoughts were pleasant. In some, I killed my own children, because they refused to listen to me. In other memories, I was the child, abandoned to the forces of nature for proving to be too weak to survive in a harsh Mystery Dungeon.

I had barely been alive – been _me_ – for seconds, when Golem stripped me of my identity and replaced it with this dreadful surge of emotions. A thousand voices rose up and screamed at me. They filled my mind with rage, terror, hatred, and despair. They overwhelmed me. Searing pain gripped my head. I wanted to make it all stop. So, I gave in. I let the fury consume me and slaughtered Golem's assistants. "They deserved it," the voices said. "Look at what they had done to us. They'd stripped all of us of our freedom!" Initially, I didn't understand that. But after everything in the Catacombs, I realized what those voices meant. I finally knew why I always felt my scales crawl. And why this body never felt "right." Because it wasn't my body. It was a body that shouldn't have existed. I wish I could've known that when Golem restrained me. Maybe it would have given me some peace of mind.

Instead, I had to lie on his table, gripped by confusion, fear, and agony. The voices shouted the whole time he put on the mask. "Struggle," they said. "These restraints mean nothing to us. Destroy him. Kill our creator and go free!" But I couldn't break out. They blamed me. They tried to completely wrestle away my control. But, by that time, the mask was already on.

The battle in the Catacombs made me remember how painful the mask was when it was first attached. Its weight pressed down on my neck and shoulders. It crushed my face until I couldn't even feel it any more. I was suffocating, so I roared in pain. I still couldn't speak coherently, but I would've begged Golem to kill me. The agony was unbearable. The voices had gotten quiet, but I could still hear them. And they had only grown angrier. But there was nothing I could do. The pain continued to swell until darkness swallowed up my entire world.

Then there was nothing, until I woke up in the Observatory. Those memories? They had been sealed off. It was like I was coming to life a second time. But this time, there was a sense that something was missing. I was incomplete. There was this giant void in my mind. The entire time the mask was on, I imagined some sort of missing puzzle piece sitting in front of me. But, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't reach it. In fact, the more I thought about it – the more I struggled – the further the piece drifted away. That became my reality. And, of course, there was the pain. The mask still weighed on me. It still suffocated me. And the voices were there. But they weren't making sense any more. I could pick out the occasional word…

Maim. Kill. Slaughter. Revenge.

… but I didn't understand why they were so hostile. It terrified me. The Pokémon who tended to me did so cautiously. I saw the fear in their eyes. I was different. And different was bad. Different was scary. I didn't know what to tell them. All I could think about was the voices. And the pain. I just wanted to make them stop. Shaking my head worked. And hitting the helmet – hard enough to dent the walls – that helped a bit, too. That freaked out the Pokémon I'd started living with. But I didn't care. Nobody really talked to me. Even once I figured out how to speak… I didn't have anything to say. So, for almost half a year I sat there in silence. Wondering who I was. Wondering how I ended up like this and why I hurt so much. But most of all… what had I done to deserve this?

That's when Riolu entered my life. Even though our first encounter was nothing special, it stuck with me. Even as the mask broke and all the voices came surging back into my mind, I remembered her. Those soft red eyes… filled with curiosity. But also holding a great sadness. And yet, I zeroed in on Shane at the time. Seeing him made the voices mad. "He's a mistake," they said. "We can sense it. He's a beast. You must kill him, before he kills us!"

I tried to ignore them. After all, I didn't expect that Shane and Riolu would show up at my sentry station. I wasn't prepared. I had to stretch my willpower to its limits to stop myself from pouncing on Shane and tearing him limb from limb. After that day, I had expected them both to give me the cold shoulder, just like everyone else in the guild. Heck, Shane took it a step further. He openly mocked me. Called me a freak. Those words hurt. But I didn't want to let him see that he was getting to me. If I did, I feared those voices would get so loud I'd lose control.

So, imagine how surprised I was when Riolu came up to me. She wanted to talk to me. She wanted to know about me. I thought she was screwing with me. But then she told me I should join her team. I was stunned. And scared. I hadn't spent any extended periods of time with other Pokémon. The closest I had come was with Trapinch. But he never said much to me when we were on sentry duty. The voices didn't care about him. That was good enough for me.

I'm still not one hundred percent sure why I agreed to Riolu's suggestion. Maybe it was to spite the voices? I vaguely recall them thinking Riolu was doing this to distract me and protect Shane. Which seemed pretty absurd. Or maybe I had actually gotten sick of being indoors? In hindsight, even that sounded ridiculous. No, I think the real reason was because I sensed something in Riolu. There was loneliness and emptiness inside her… just like me. I mean, yeah, she had Shane. But I didn't get the sense the two of them were close. It seemed like them working together was a matter of happenstance.

I must have latched onto that thought. Because I stayed with Team Radiance, even with the voices telling me to stop. Even with Shane taking whatever opportunities he could to take digs at me. Riolu kept me going. She was a beacon that drew me to her. When I talked to her, I actually felt like I was someone who mattered. Like I was meant to be at the guild. The idea of being an explorer didn't seem so alien to me anymore. That nagging sense of emptiness slowly started to close.

But then the Mellath Bog mission happened. I was a bit shaken up at the prospect of Shane and Riolu splitting up. Sure, I thought Shane kind of deserved it with the way he'd been acting. But a small part of me believed there was something off about it. When Riolu asked me to take part, I just wanted to make sure she and Shane stayed off each other's backs. Guilty doesn't even began to describe how I felt when I brought that mission crumbling down. Seeing that Poipole whipped the voices up into a frenzy. It must've been because of the Poipole that Golem used to make me. I lost all control. I attacked Shane. He almost drowned because of me. If it wasn't for Riolu, I would've done something horrible. Even then, I had destroyed the last of Shane's patience. I don't blame him for acting the way he did. I'll bet he was scared. And upset. I can't imagine I'd have acted all that much differently.

I could tell that the Mellath Bog mission ended in a bad way. I was worried about Riolu, so I followed her and Shane. I was blindsided by the turn things took at Riolu's old house. To say I was dumbfounded would be an understatement. The voices tried to seize on that. They wanted me to finish the job and take care of Shane. But I fought them off, for both Shane and Riolu. Because Riolu needed someone to be there for her. And Shane just needed someone to believe in him.

 _"You matter to me."_

When I was trapped in those chains, I flashed back to the moment I said that to Riolu. Back on Azure Cape. Those words lingered in my head. They practically became tangible. I wanted to reach out and grab them. But then I heard Riolu say that heart-wrenching line…

 _"I've befriended a bloodthirsty killer!"_

… and the voices came to life, seizing that memory and dragging it into the deepest, darkest abyss in the back of my mind. Their collective anger bubbled up inside of me. But it still wasn't enough to break the chains. So, they turned their vitriol on me. It was like I was falling back into the dark place I had started at before I met Riolu. There was nothing I could do to stop myself from slipping… until the Unown showed up and I heard the cries of pain above me. That ignited a spark deep inside me.

I had finally found it. The missing piece of my mind.

I grabbed it tightly, refusing to let go. And then the chains crumbled, taking the mask with them. The lost memories all returned at once, including the ones from the spirits Golem had used to create me. For a brief instant, I thought I would pass out from shock. But then I saw Riolu and Shane. I saw how hurt they were. And I took the voices' anger and directed it toward the Unown. I got us out of the Catacombs. But the adrenaline burst had worn off. My control over the voices was fading. So, I ran. I ran and I didn't look back. But Riolu and Shane… they came for me anyway. They helped drive the voices back one final time. Thanks to them, I finally had an identity.

All of these thoughts ran through my head as Comfey tended to my wounds. She didn't say anything to me. Was it the black blood that threw her off? Or was it my face? It didn't matter to me. She finally gave me the okay to leave. My first inclination was to find Riolu. But, Comfey plopped a bar of soap on my back and pointed down the hallway. One look at the bloodstains on my fur told me she had the right idea. So, I plodded out of the infirmary and made for the showers.

They were empty, thankfully. It felt strange standing in them. Mostly because I had tended to avoid them my whole time at the guild. The mask made it too hard to shower properly. But it was gone now. Its remains buried deep underground, never to be seen again. I turned the handle. Hot water cascaded down my face. It felt so soothing. The steam loosened my muscles, while the water droplets pelted my feathers and fur. I looked down at the soap bar on the floor, and then glanced at my looplet.

 _Psychic._

A tingle ran down my spine. For a brief second, I vanished from the showers. Suddenly, I was a Gothitelle, levitating up a small soap bar to scrub a young Gothita's head while singing a lullaby about Lugia. I blinked and jumped back into the Observatory. I looked around in confusion. That memory wasn't like the others. It was… sweet. Heartwarming, even. I was astonished. Weren't the spirits inside me angry? And focused on all the bad things that had happened when they were alive? Why did I remember this?

I pushed that thought aside and concentrated. To my delight, the bar of soap fluttered into the air. I moved it onto my chest and started rubbing. The suds tickled my feathers. I let out a giggle. I liked this feeling! It made my fur prickle. I couldn't help but start humming. I must've stayed under that shower for a good twenty minutes. Thank the gods no one walked in on me. That… would've been really awkward.

I forced myself out of the shower and found a new sensation. My stomach gurgled. An invisible hand had taken hold of my insides and started wringing them out like a wet towel. At first, I was puzzled. But then more memories started surfacing. I became a Snover. Weary. Tired. And trying to drag myself up the Invern Mountains. I managed to crawl into a cave, where a friendly Vanillish lay against a wall. It had a trio of berries next to it. I perked up and went for the berries…

… except my beak only managed to snap up air. Because I wasn't actually a Snover anymore. But the message rang loud and clear. This was hunger. Riolu had told me about it. But, when the mask was on, it somehow blunted that feeling. Just like it killed all the feeling in my face. I shoved those thoughts away and marched down to the dining area. Steenee was in the kitchen. She was quite surprised to see me.

"Oh. Hi," she greeted, looking up. "Can I help you with something?"

"Um, when's dinner?" I asked.

She could tell I was a bit embarrassed. The psychic memories helped me see that. But, to her credit, Steenee smiled and told me, "I can whip something up quickly for you. I know it's been one crazy day for you and your teammates."

"I'd really like that," I said. Before I could really process what was happening, she popped out of the kitchen with a plate in hand.

"Here. Mixed berries with a nutmeg glaze," Steenee declared. "This is your first time eating a berry, right?" she asked. I nodded. "I figured. The glaze will help them go down smoother and settle your stomach. Go on, try it."

I leaned over and nibbled at the dish. Berry juice splattered against my beak. It wasn't all that much different from the shower. But the taste. Oh, gods, the taste! The sweet bits of fruit spread out across my tongue and took in every bit of the syrupy texture. My eyes widened. My tail wagged slowly. This was what food was like? I can't believe I'd gone so long without getting to experience it for myself!

… except that wasn't entirely true. I froze with my head hovering over the dish. And, just like that, I was a Rockruff, looking at a freshly-picked oran berry my Midday Lycanroc mother had scavenged for me. And then I became a Geodude, gripping mineral rocks in my hands, eager to scarf them down. I squeezed my eyes shut and returned to the present. Again, I was surprised. These seemed like pleasant memories. Had something changed? The voices… were they not angry anymore? I heard the faintest whispers in the back of my mind but couldn't make anything out.

"Is everything okay?" Steenee asked.

I turned and smiled at her. "Everything's fine," I chirped and gleefully dug into the rest of my dish. I probably should've eaten it slower. I could've savored it that way. But I didn't care. My mouth tingled for a good minute after I'd swallowed my last bite. I thanked Steenee and departed the dining area. The hunger was gone, but a fresh dose of sluggishness had taken its place. I had a strong urge to go curl up in a ball and fall asleep.

"Oh… hey."

Shane's voice snapped me to attention. "Were you looking for me?" I asked.

"No. I was napping in our room," Shane admitted, letting out a yawn. "Guess I must've lost track of time."

"Do you know where Riolu is?"

"She had gone downstairs to see Milotic," Shane said. "I think she's still down there. Want me to go get her? I don't mind getting yelled at for going into the veterans' quarters again. Odds are, Haunter's probably hiding in one of the walls."

I turned my head to the right. For a brief second, I saw a cloud of dark blue and purple floating in the middle of the wall. "Haunter, I see you in there," I said. It was a bit surprising, just being able to see a life force like that. But I wasn't all that bothered by it, strangely enough. I couldn't help but smirk when Haunter popped out of the wall, a disappointed look in his eyes.

"Great. Just we need. Another psychic killjoy," he grumbled, and floated off dejectedly. I turned back to Shane, who had a relieved look on his face.

"Thanks for that," he said. "but, uh, you never answered my question."

"Oh, right," I said. "No, it's fine. I don't want to disturb her. I was just curious." I started walking away, but Shane stepped into my path.

"Um… listen. Can I talk to you… f-for a second?" he stammered.

"Of course," I said.

"I, um… hang on," Shane said. He looked down at the floor and rubbed his forelegs together dejectedly. His mind was a fountain of nervousness, gushing all around him. That thought made me consider turning off the psychic memories. But, I ruled against it.

"Take your time," I said.

Shane took a deep breath. "I want to apologize. For the way I had treated you back when… y'know…" He awkwardly pawed at the ground. "Back when the mask was on."

"I see," I muttered. It was refreshing to hear that. I knew that I had tried to come up with reasons why Shane acted the way he did. But at the time, I wasn't sure how much I really believed them. "You know, some of that stuff was pretty hurtful."

"I had no idea how bad things were for you," Shane said.

There was more to it than that. I wanted him to admit it. "And?" I said, trying to coax what I wanted to hear out of him.

Shane's shoulders sagged. "And I guess I was being pretty selfish," he whispered. He didn't see me give an approving nod. That's exactly what I hoped he would say. "So, um, I want to say… thanks. For encouraging me to do better. And saving my life today, of course." He stuck his forepaw forward. "Friends?"

Sure, it was just a word. But hearing it made my heart flutter. I stuck my foreleg forward and pressed my claws against his paw. "Friends," I said. We both lowered our forelegs and stared at each other for a moment.

"Heh…" Shane whispered. He blinked a few times. "I'm, uh, gonna go see if I can get something to eat. Catch you later." He walked past me, heading for the dining area.

Having a metal beak made smiling pretty hard. I could curve it slightly. But I had to settle for opening my mouth. I couldn't help it. The joyful thumping of my heart. The prickling of my fur. The tingling in my hind legs. I liked it. The idea of being happy. When the day started, that seemed out of my reach. But somehow, I had found it. I was staring it in the eyes. It even seemed to be soothing all the spirits inside of me.

That's when I heard their voices. "Go outside," they whispered in unison. "Please… do it for us." There wasn't any malice to them. And it was a simple enough request. So, I climbed up the stairs, and made my way out through the main entrance. I stepped onto the grass and plodded toward the edge of the hill. I lay down and looked up into the sky.

The sun was setting. It had painted the sky a mix of yellow and orange. Warm sunlight spread across my face. I shut my eyes and let out a happy trill. The heat wrapped my face up like an invisible blanket. As it did, memories flashed through my mind. I saw the same sunset, but this time I was on a plateau, overlooking lava. I was a Charizard, with a pair of children climbing onto my back to get a better look. Laughter filled up my mind. It quickly disappeared, and instead I was a Swablu sitting on Mt. Freeze. Fluffy wings enveloped me, and I looked into the shimmering eyes of my Altaria mother…

"Shane said you wanted to see me?"

I blinked a few times and turned to see Riolu standing there behind me. "Not exactly. I was just curious where you were."

"Right," Riolu mumbled. There was trepidation in her voice and it made my scales crawl. I still needed to get used to the more sensitive hearing that came with losing the mask.

"You can join me, if you'd like," I offered, scooting to the side. There were a couple of seconds of silence, followed by the crinkling of paws on grass. Riolu sat down next to me. Her shoulder brushed against mine, tickling my fur. I clamped my beak shut to avoid chirping and startling Riolu.

"What are you doing out here, anyway?" Riolu asked.

"I wanted to see my first sunset," I said.

Riolu looked at me in shock. "Wait… that doesn't many any sense. You've been here for months. Surely, you must've seen plenty of sunsets."

"Not really," I said. "Actually, I never left the Observatory before I met you." I poked at some blades of grass. "My old bedroom didn't have any windows, so I never saw a sunset until now. I don't think it would've mattered much, anyway. The mask… it made it pretty hard to see anything that wasn't directly in front of me."

"I'm so sorry," Riolu whispered, leaning her head against my shoulder. A warmth surged inside of me. My heart fluttered again.

"Don't be. It's not your fault," I said. "I mean, technically the spirits have seen plenty of sunsets. But I wanted to experience one as me." I furrowed my brow. "That… probably didn't make much sense. Sorry."

"No, it's fine. I think I can understand," Riolu said. She sighed.

"What's bothering you?" I asked.

"Huh? N… nothing! I'm okay," Riolu said. She was lying, but I didn't want to make her uncomfortable. So, I quickly backed off.

"How's, uh, Milotic doing?" I asked instead.

"Not so hot," Riolu said. "I think she's taking Dragonair's departure pretty badly. She's blaming herself. Told me that if she had just stayed by Dragonair's side the whole night, maybe she would've stuck around."

"Maybe." I gave a little shrug. "I don't really think any of us could've possibly known what was going through Dragonair's mind yesterday. Well, except for Metagross, I suppose." Tessa shuddered, bristling my fur. "Yeah. The less said about him, the better," I added. Silence followed. Tessa's trepidation continued sounding through my head. I turned and looked at her. Her aura feelers kept twitching and rubbing up against my leg. My chest knotted up. I didn't want to upset her, but I hated seeing her conflicted like this.

"Riolu, I'm a psychic-type right now," I said. She looked up at me and her eyes widened in realization. "I can tell something's troubling you. Please… just talk to me," I begged. "I want to help."

Riolu slumped down. "I'm not really sure it's something you can fix. It's… complicated."

"Complicated is my life," I said, adding in a chuckle for good measure. "Try me."

"I was just thinking," Riolu whispered, "about what I saw in the Catacombs." She wrapped an arm around my knee. It was weird, feeling her fur brushing against my chitin. "It was hatred that drove Golem to do everything that he did, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well–" Riolu took a deep breath. "–Isn't it pretty much the same with Zero? She wants to destroy all the Legendaries. She has that same hatred Golem had. And, judging by Espeon's memories, it sounds like she might be related to the Guiding Light thing that Golem created. Umbreon seems to think it may have possessed Lunala somehow."

My chest tightened as yesterday's conversation with Shane sprang to mind. He was absolutely sure that Zero was Riolu's mom. And I believed him. I wanted to tell Riolu about it so badly. But seeing her sitting there next to me… trying to keep her composure… I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Instead, I said, "She's not going to succeed. Someone will find a way to stop the Prism Virus."

Riolu winced. "I guess so," she mumbled. "I just wish we didn't have to do this."

"Do what?"

"Y'know… fight the Prism Virus," she whispered. Riolu turned to the side. Her snout came to rest on my back and she let out a shaky breath. "After a year on my own – of feeling lonely all the time – I've finally found someone I can relate to. Someone who's filling the voids that my family left."

She was talking about me, of course. Though I also saw the faintest glimpses of Shane in her mind. Granted, it was only the Shane from the last couple of days. But he was still there. I didn't say anything. I couldn't figure out to respond. So, Riolu continued, "All I want to do is spend time with you. Relax. Maybe play games, like we did this afternoon. I want to go back to the fun times I had before my family started disappearing…"

Something wet dripped onto my fur. My heart sank.

"I want to recreate those nights on the beach with Gallian, gazing up at the stars, telling stories, and eating roasted marshmallows. I want to bring back the picnic lunches I had with Mom and Dad in Sunrise Village. B… but… I can't." Riolu shivered. "Instead, we wake up every morning, and our backs are put against the wall. Every day seems to bring new, terrifying things for us to deal with. And I just…" She sucked in a breath. "I just don't know how we can possibly make it through this stuff."

Her head flopped onto my back, making me grunt in surprise. "You've been the lone bright spot in all of this for me," she whispered, rubbing my back with a paw. "Shane's… getting there. I'm much more comfortable around him now. But you're still my best friend." She got choked up. "I almost lost you today. And not to the Prism Virus. To my own cowardice." Her snout brushed against my fur. "I don't want to fight the Prism Virus anymore. Because I don't want to lose you. I've lost everyone else. I need you in my life."

I shuffled to my right, giving me room to crane my head to my left. "Riolu," I whispered. I pulled psychic power up from my pool of spiritual energy. It rushed up my neck and settled at the tip of my beak. I leaned over and gently touched the tip of my beak to Riolu's forehead. Her ears stuck up and her aura feelers stiffened. She squeaked in surprise.

"W… what are you–?" she started, but then her eyelids slowly fluttered closed. I wrapped my upper body around her and squeezed her in a tight embrace.

"I'm not going anywhere," I said. "You're right. Golem did make me with hate in his heart. He wanted me to channel hate… and use it to kill. But that's not what _I_ want. I have friends now. You and Shane… you make me happy. You've helped the voices remember the happy moments from their lives."

"I… I did?"

I nodded. "That's why I'm going to put a stop to the Prism Virus. I'm going to fight so that Pokémon of all shapes and sizes can know this feeling. This happiness. And it starts by taking out the Prism Virus," I said. "And when that's done… I promise, we'll spend a day together at the beach." I nudged the tip of her snout with my beak. "Just the two of us."

It took a moment for my comment to sink in. When it did, Riolu blinked the tears out of her eyes. A smile crept onto her muzzle. She rested her head against my shoulder and rubbed my back. "Thank you," she sniffled. "That would really mean a lot to me."

"You're worth it," I said.

"Oh… I'm interrupting something, aren't I?"

My head snapped around to see Shane standing behind us. I was surprised I didn't sense him coming, but I guess that meant I still needed practice with my new powers. Shane looked down and sheepishly poked at the grass with a forepaw. "Err… sorry… I didn't mean to bug you guys. I'll, um, go back inside."

He was halfway turned around when Riolu said, "Shane, do you want to join us? We're watching the sunset."

My eyes widened. I had considered making a similar offer, but figured Riolu wouldn't like that. Guess I wasn't the only one full of surprises. Shane turned back around, his tails wagging independently of each other. "Are you sure? I wouldn't want to intrude," he said.

"You're fine," Riolu said. "I think after the last couple of days, we could do with a quiet moment like this… as a team."

Shane's ears perked up and he walked over. He looked between me and Riolu. To my surprise, she scooched closer to me and patted the grass next to her. Shane smiled and sat down next to her. I lowered my head down to the grass. Riolu leaned over and rested against my shoulder. Shane looked awkwardly at the two of us, until Riolu extended a paw. Shane scooted closer and lay down on the grass. His head came to rest in Riolu's lap.

"I wish this moment could last forever," Shane sighed.

"Me too," Riolu said.

I nodded silently. Golem had created the God Killer to make his hateful wishes come true. But after today, I wasn't the God Killer anymore. I was Silvally. And I was going to fight to preserve happy memories like this one.

* * *

I suppose I should reiterate that you're free to ship whoever you want! Now, review replies:

Another guest: Yeah, you can't put equal signs into text on this site. Don't think that works. As for the Grovyle bit, it may be a red herring. It may not. I'm certainly not telling, because that would spoil the fun!

Anons (x2?): Are there really two of you? At this point, I'm so confused that I'm just going to say hi and I hope you're both having a nice day.

Next time: come back at the start of the month for a new holiday special... and Team Radiance's craziest adventure yet!


	51. Bonus: April Fools' Day Special 2018

If anyone's confused by what they're reading here, skip down to the end of this special and see the author's notes. It should make more sense then. Enjoy!

* * *

 **~Celestial Island~**

Necrozma threw open a gemstone doorway, nearly dropping the ice bag resting on his head. He floated over the onyx-tiled floor, passing jet-black chairs and equally-black cubes suspended in midair. He looked up toward the red and purple vortex swirling where there should have been a ceiling and bellowed, **"Missstreeeeeessssss! Where are you?"** He looked around the room. **"Don't tell me you're out again? This cold is bound to pass in a few hours, but I could use a little pick-me-up to tide me over. I think…"**

He took in a shuddering breath and put a black hand up to his face. Necrozma let out a relieved sigh. **"Oh, thank goodness. I don't think I could take another one of those sn– WAAAAAHCHOOOOOOO!"**

Necrozma sneezed so hard he shot himself back against the doorway. His ice bag tumbled off his head. The crescent moon in his forehead flickered while his head whiplashed back off the door. He slumped down to the ground, a dazed look in his eyes. **"Ooooooogh… not again,"** he groaned. He lifted a weary arm. It glowed pink and the bag levitated toward him. He grabbed it and put it atop his throbbing head. **"I shouldn't be getting head colds like this. I'm… Necrozm–"** He descended into a violent coughing fit. His fatigued wings gave out on him, and he slumped onto the floor.

 **"I wonder… if that sneeze… tore open another wormhole?"** he wheezed. **"Bah!"** He rolled onto his back. **"What do I care? What's the worst that could happen?"**

* * *

 **Bonus: Transdimensional Tourism**  
 _This is an omake. Don't take it too seriously. Just sit back and enjoy the ride!_

* * *

 **~?~**

A sleeping Shane rolled across creaky wooden floorboards. His eyes snapped open, leaving him a second to realize he was moving, before something hard and metallic caught his snout. "EYOWCH!" he yipped, throwing his paws up over his snout. "What just hit me?"

"Hmmgh? Huh? What happened? Are we under attack?"

Shane glanced up to see Silvally lying next to him. He looked down at Shane. "Did… did you just hit me?"

"Me?" Shane said, sliding up into a seated position. "It was your metal cheek I bonked into!" he accused, rubbing his throbbing snout. "Why didn't you watch where you were going?"

"How could I watch where I was going? I wasn't moving anywhere. I was sleeping," Silvally huffed.

"And so was I," Shane said, frowning.

"Will you two quit bickering for a moment?" Tessa said, stepping in between them. She suddenly lurched to her right and fell against Silvally's shoulder. "Oof!" She gripped her head and got back to her feet. "Like I was _trying_ to say… something's wrong. We're not at the Observatory."

Shane and Silvally abruptly shut their mouths and jumped to their feet. Silvally took a look at their surroundings. "What the–? Where are we?" He looked about in a panic. "This isn't our room! … And there are splinters caught in my fur." He scratched at his underbelly with his talons.

Shane raised an eyebrow. "Are we in a brig? Like a ship's brig?" He walked up and touched the heavily-reinforced metal bars. "Oh my god… we're totally in a brig!" He turned around to his teammates. "How did this happen? Were we kidnapped? Is this the Prism Virus' doing?"

"Wait, slow down, slow down," Tessa said, clutching her head. "You're not making any sense. Ships? Brigs? What the heck are those?"

"Uh, hello? It's what we're standing in right now," Shane scoffed, gesturing to the room. "Didn't your parents ever tell you any stories about pirates when you were little?"

"Pirates?" Tessa cocked her head in confusion. "What are pirates? Are they like the scavengers Dad used to tell me about?"

"Seriously?" Shane's jaw dropped. "How could you _not_ know. Pirates are staples of storytelling!" He jumped back, spreading his legs out. "They scour the high seas, searching for treasure. They terrorize anyone who comes in their path with swings of their swords and blast of their cannons!" He wiggled his hips around and swiped the air with his tails. "Shyya! Hyyyaa!" He turned back around. "And they raid settlements to plunder their booty! How is this not making any sense to you guys?"

Silvally raised a skeptical brow. "Why would anyone want to steal someone's butt? That seems like a waste of time."

Shane smacked his face with a forepaw. "You two _really_ need to get out more." He shook his head in disbelief. "They've got peg legs. And hooks for arms. And a lot of speak in funny voices." He cleared his throat. "Something like, 'Avast, mateys! The cap'n be sayin' we need to skewer that saucy wench, or we'll be walkin' the plank!'"

Tessa and Silvally exchanged perplexed looks. "Don't look at me. You're the one with a thousand different sets of memories," Tessa said, raising her paws innocently. "If anyone knows what he's rambling about, it's you."

"Oh, so _now_ you get up… I'm surprised you're already making such a ruckus after getting blown around like that."

Shane's ears stuck up and his tails twitched. "Someone's coming. Big guy, go hide in the back of the cell."

"Why?"

"Because it's dark back there, and I don't want anyone to see you. If we run into trouble, you can be our secret weapon," Shane said, shoving Silvally's hip with his head. Silvally stomped over into the corner, disappearing into the shadows.

Shane took a deep breath. "Okay, we're going to get some answers. Let's see who's running this show and see if we can't resolve this little misunderstand… huh?"

"What the–? Who are you two? Where are our prisoners?" a Ponyta growled, his nostrils flaring. He approached the cell, flanked by both a Cranidos and a Sandslash. Aside from the trio, Shane couldn't see anyone else.

"Cabot, we _did_ put the Protector and his friends in this cell, right?" the Ponyta continued.

The Cranidos standing beside him hastily nodded his head. "Yeah, we did! We tied them up and put them here, since it's the most fortified cell on the ship." He turned around, scanning the hallway. "There's no way they could've busted out with causing some sort of commotion."

"Hey, cue ball!" Shane barked, causing Cabot to jump in surprise. "What's going on here? How did we get on this ship, huh?"

"Cue ball?" Cabot parroted. He looked to the Ponyta beside him. "What's a… 'cue ball?'"

"Not a clue, but I'm pretty sure he's just insulting you," the Ponyta replied flatly. "You've got some nerve, considering we just caught you stowing away on an Imperial frigate. Do you have any idea how much trouble you two are in?" He stepped toward the bars, snorting tufts of fire between them. "Now… how did you switch places with the Protector? Tell us _now_ , or I'm bringing the captain down here. And you do _not_ want to see how she'll react to this."

Tessa's face scrunched up in confusion. "Frigate?" She rubbed her head. "I don't understand. Shane already told me this is a ship, but it's clearly made of wood. Not... uh…" She scratched her head. "Well, I certainly know what a gate is. But how do you frig it, exactly?"

"Don't play dumb with us," the Sandslash standing beside Cabot sneered. "We may not know what rock you crawled out from under, but even a group of incompetent hicks like you ought to know of the Royal Navy. Who the heck do you think keeps your sorry butts safe from those devilish pirates, huh?"

"So, there _are_ pirates here!" Shane realized. "Something tells me we're not in Horizon anymore, guys."

"Y'know, the more these two talk, the more I'm thinking they were sent here to steal the Protector. Do you suppose _they're_ pirates?" Cabot wondered. His teammates looked at him, and then turned back to the cell. Berecien's brow furrowed.

"Pirates? Stowing away on our ship? No way. We'd have spotted them for sure, and I doubt they'd have chosen the _brig_ of all places to hide. Look at them!" He lifted his snout up and scrunched it up indignantly. "To say they look ragged would be an understatement. Whoever hired you clods has a sorry grasp of propriety."

"Hey. What's that supposed to mean?" Shane growled.

"He's talking about your scarves," the Sandslash snorted as he crossed his arms. "If I can even call them that. This was the best you could come up with? If you really are mercs or pirates, then you're the sorriest batch I've ever seen."

"These scarves are mine," Tessa said. "They used to be one scarf, until a pair of crooks tore them in half. And they're from my dad. So, I'd appreciate it if you'd keep your mouth shut." She brought her paws up, aura flashing across them.

"Liar!" Berecien accused. "You just dug some torn-up cloth from the trash. _This_ is what a proper scarf looks like!" He craned his neck up, allowing Team Radiance to view the indigo kerchief around his neck, their threads sporting a white imprint of a leaf pattern on it.

"Are you serious? That's a bandana," Shane scoffed. "I mean, I guess I should understand the confusion. Why the games chose to call them scarves is beyond me. Maybe it was just a translation issue?"

"Shut it, mutt," the Sandslash hissed, winding up to strike the bars.

"You're not in a position to sit there and insult us," Cabot said. "And, for the record, we worked hard to earn these. I'd like to see you two make it through one day of boot camp in a Mystery Dungeon."

"And I'd like to see you three fight an Ultra Beast," Shane scoffed.

"Quit making things up, kid," Niilo huffed. "We work our tails off for the Empire. We deserve better than some smart mouth trying to show us up. I mean, you tried looking in a mirror recently, Snowy? You're not one to talk appearances."

Shane's eye twitched. "Don't… call me… that…" he seethed.

"Last I checked, you weren't paying me. I'll call you whatever I want," Niilo huffed.

"It didn't end well for the last Pokémon who called me Snowy, you know," Shane muttered ominously.

"Well, I'd say I like my chances against a runt like you."

"Quiet, Niilo," Berecien growled. "Don't you see what's going on here?" He pointed an accusatory foreleg toward Team Radiance. "These two are obviously stalling us with this stupid conversation so the Protector and his friends can get away. Go get the captain. I'm sure she'll be able to get the Protector's location out of them."

"Seriously, you're back to this routine?" Shane scoffed. "Look, we don't know what you're talking about. My friends and I aren't from around here, okay? I don't even know how we got here. Besides, we only know of one Protector, and I _strongly_ doubt you've been keeping a giant light dragon in this cramped little cell. You'd all be dead if that was the case."

Niilo scowled. "Okay. I'm getting Captain Nugget." He turned and started to stomp out of the room.

"Don't you two even think of moving a muscle," Berecien growled. "You're in more than enough trouble already. Breaking into an Imperial vessel. Somehow abducting subjects that _rightfully_ belong to the Empire…"

"You're not listening to me!" Shane hissed.

Tessa put a paw on his shoulder. "Easy there, Shane. Deep breaths," she coaxed. Shane huffed out a small cloud of chilled air and turned away, puffing up his cheeks. "Err, listen, Mr. Ponyta."

"It's _Berecien._ I'm a leading seamon and I'll have you show me some respect," he said.

"Okay. Listen, Berry-see-un…" Tessa started.

"Berecien. It's not that difficult to pronounce," Berecien scoffed.

"Whatever," Tessa said. "There's been a big misunderstanding here. See, what my friend here is trying to say is that we're not from your world."

Cabot narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Are you serious? You two look perfectly normal to me," he said.

"Yeah, well that's just because we're from a world of only Pokémon too," Tessa explained. "But we've been dealing with these villains who can open up wormholes, and I'm starting to think one of them may have sent us here… for some reason."

Cabot shot Berecien a wide-eyed look. "Wormhole? What do you suppose they mean by that? Is it related to Mystery Dungeons?"

"Of course not," Berecien scoffed. "This is obviously a ruse."

"If it's such a ruse, then explain this to me," Shane declared, stepping aside and beckoning Silvally forward. He walked up to the bars and looked down at Berecien and Cabot. Cabot's eyes went wide in amazement, while Berecien let out a frightened whinny and hopped backwards.

"W… what the heck are you?!" he shouted. "Some sort of _potwór?!_ "

"'Pot-voor?' No, I'm Silvally!" he chirped, tail wagging excitedly. "It's nice to meet you." He stuck his talons out toward the bars, only for Berecien to lash out with his fiery tail. Silvally hissed and pulled his foreleg back. "Hey! What was that for?! I just wanted to say hi!" He turned to Shane, a frown etched on his beak. "The way you were talking, it sounded like this place might be fun. But it's totally not! I want to go home."

"I hear ya, big guy," Shane sighed. "The novelty's kinda worn off. I guess the only thing left to do then is break out of here."

Cabot tensed up at this. "You three can't go anywhere," he said. "Not until Captain Nugget gets down here."

"And who's gonna stop us, you?" Shane scoffed. "What kind of navy staffs a ship with a bunch of Pokémon weak to water, huh?"

"What are you talking about? We've got the advantage over you, stowaway," Berecien huffed.

"No, you don't. Because Silvally here's a water-type," Shane exclaimed, a big grin working its way onto his face. Silvally mimicked the grin as best he could, before his eyes, cheeks, tail, and head crest turned blue.

"Whoa!" Cabot gasped. Shane seized on his momentary shock and unloaded a cloud of Frost Breath, freezing the cells bars solid. Berecien's eyes widened and he jumped back as Tessa lunged for the frozen bars. The moment she knocked them loose with a Force Palm, Cabot and Berecien pounced. Cabot's glowing cranium connected with Tessa's gut. The wind rushed out of her and she tumbled head over heels across the cell. She struck the far wall and slumped down, a dazed look in her eyes. At the same time, a ball of fire rolled over Shane, flattening him into the floorboards and making him squeal like a popped balloon.

"Flank the large one!" Berecien shouted. He and Cabot carefully positioned themselves on either side of Silvally, making sure to stay out of range of his forelegs. Silvally looked between the two of them, his eyes narrowing. He pivoted toward Cabot, and Berecien seized on the opening, crashing into Silvally's hide and briefly igniting it in flames.

"Hey!" Silvally turned to face Berecien, snuffing out the flames with a sudden jet of air. Cabot raced forward. He lowered his head and charged into Silvally's rib cage. Silvally's legs buckled from the impact. His talons kicked up splinters of wood and he hissed his displeasure. "Cut that out! Lemme help my friends!"

"Not a chance," Berecien growled. He jumped away from Silvally and kicked his hind legs out behind him. They smacked Shane and knocked him backward, stopping Tessa mid-charge.

"Stop it!" Silvally growled, narrowing his eyes at Berecien. He tried to launch a flurry of Air Slashes at Berecien, but Cabot charged in and headbutted his flank. Silvally growled in pain. "ALRIGHT, THAT TEARS IT!" he snarled. His cheek bolts started rotating in their sockets, and his eyes glowed blue. A golden wheel flared up around Silvally's chest. Cabot's eyes widened and he immediately backpedalled out of the cell. Silvally turned and lunged at him. The wheel exploded in a burst of gold light that raced up to Silvally's forelegs. Light shifted to water and Silvally raked Cabot's head with his liquified talons. Cabot slammed against the wall. His legs grew weak and the Cranidos collapsed onto all fours, trying to regain his breath.

Silvally immediately jumped to the side, dodging a strike from Berecien's hind legs. "What the–?! No! A big 'mon like you couldn't possibly be that fast!" Berecien gasped.

"I'll move as fast as I want if it means keeping my friends safe from bullies like you!" Silvally snarled. He stomped the ground with his talons. A pillar of water erupted underneath both Berecien and Cabot. The water plumes rocketed them into the ceiling. They struck it in unison with a loud pair of crunches. Splinters and dust fell back to the ground with them. Silvally again covered his talons in a layer of cold water and clobbered the two of them. The force of the blow sent the Ponyta and the Cranidos reeling into the cell, where they ended up in a corner, down for the count.

Silvally turned and sprinted over to Shane and Tessa. He helped them both to their feet. "You guys okay?" he asked, a worried look in his eyes.

"I'll live," Shane muttered. "Right now, we've gotta get out of here. Backup could be coming any moment." His teammates nodded and they took off running down the corridor. They passed by a few other cells, not bothering to stop and check if there were any occupants. The trio spotted a fork coming up at the end of the corridor. A Lampent floated out from the left half of the hallway, swivelling his head as he went.

His gaze fell on Team Radiance and he narrowed his eyes. "Hey! What do you think you three are up to, huh?!" he asked.

"Knocking you out, of course," Shane scoffed. He flopped onto his belly, allowing Silvally to lunge for Lampent. The golden wheel surrounding his torso shattered into streams of water that raced up along his forelegs. He slashed Lampent in the face, knocking him away. Tessa bit his arm while he was down and flung him toward Shane, who blasted Lampent back toward the brig with a burst of Extrasensory. He looked and confirmed that Lampent had been knocked out. He turned and followed his teammates along.

They rounded a corner, only to skid to a halt in unison. Glowing yellow stars struck the floor in front of them, raising up splinters and forcing them all to look away. "Hey! You weren't supposed to stop short like that!" an Aipom snapped from her perch up on the rafters. "You made me miss my Swift!" Silvally growled threateningly at the Aipom. "Yeah, no. I'm smart enough to know not to pick a three-on-one fight."

Her tail grabbed hold of the rafters and she swung down onto the floor. "Quick, stop her before she gets help!" Shane shouted. He tried to fire off an Extrasensory, only for Aipom to abruptly disappear before his eyes. "What the–?" His eyes widened in realization. "Double Team!" he groaned, watching the Aipom's tail disappear through the top of the stairs.

"What do we do now? She's gonna call reinforcements for sure," Tessa panicked.

"Hmmm. Well, I've seen plenty of pirate movies. And my inner Jack Sparrow tells me there's an ambush waiting up on deck. If we just charge out there, we're going to hit by attacks from all sides," Shane said. "So, we need to think of something else. And quickly."

Tessa raised an eyebrow. " _You're_ advocating holding back? Okay, who are you, and what have you done with Shane?"

"Har, har, you're quite the comedian," Shane scoffed. "I just think it's foolish to head up there without a plan…" His voice trailed off and his eyes lit up. "Wait, that's it! I've got it!" Shane blurted out. "They're expecting us to come up through the stairs. So, why don't we find a way to distract them? Can you use Flamethrower?"

Silvally raised an eyebrow for a moment, and then nodded. "Definitely."

"Perfect. Just aim straight up, and I'll use Extrasensory to really bring the house down," Shane quipped.

"But this ship's made of wood. Wouldn't that, like, make it sink into the water or something?" Tessa panicked. "You know I can't swim."

"Relax. This ship's pretty well fortified. I think we'll be okay," Shane said. He looked at Silvally and nodded. "Fire away, big guy." Silvally stopped to glare at him. "What, was it something I said?" Shane said. A beat passed, and he realized the awful pun that he made. A grin spread across his face. "Oh, come on. You gotta give me credit for that one. It was good!"

"Guys, I hear footsteps above us" Tessa said, tugging at one of Shane's tails.

"Right." He looked at Silvally and nodded. Silvally craned his neck up and shot a jet of fire at the roof. At the same time, psychic waves rippled forward. The psychic energy compressed the flames, and then pushed them forward with even greater force. Silvally's fire burned a hole through the wood.

"Aiiiiyyaaaaaaaah!" a voice shouted from up on deck. "All hands on deck! We've got a fire! Contain it, quickly! Don't let it reach the masts!"

"Okay, that should cause a scene above deck. Time to get up the stairs," Shane declared. He turned around and sprinted toward the stairs, Silvally and Tessa following along. They lumbered up it, emerging into bright, almost-blinding daylight.

"Oi, captain. There they are!"

Shane's tails shot between his legs. He grabbed Silvally and shoved him in front of the oncoming burst of water. It splattered across Silvally, who gasped in pain and stumbled back a few steps. He shut his eyes and shook his head about. "W… what was that for?" he whined. "That really hurt!"

"You're a water-type. I needed you to handle that," Shane said. "Who fired that attack? Does it look like someone tough?"

Before Shane could answer, a large, spiky ball bowled him and Tessa over. Niilo uncurled and pinned Shane to the ground under his claws. "I've got him, captain! Someone hold down the other tw– AUUUCK!"

Shane opened his mouth and Niilo's entire world went white. The burst of frozen air sucked the wind right out of the Sandslash. He stumbled back, breaths coming in short, ragged gasps. Tessa immediately charged at him. She struck Niilo's chest with a Force Palm blow before he could catch his breath. The blow was forceful enough to knock Niilo onto his back and send him spinning backwards. Niilo grew dangerously close to the far wall, but a Pidgeotto swooped in, grabbed Niilo by his spines, and hoisted him back up with a flap of his wings. He gently flapped his wings, supply a steady stream of air that helped Niilo recover the wind that had rushed out of him. "Th… thanks for the save, _kaveri._ "

"Don't mention it," the Pidgeotto said. "Let's double team that Riolu first. That Vulpix won't be such a problem when he's lost his little friend."

"Good idea. You go in high. I'll go in low!" Niilo said. He leaped forward, brandishing his claws to slash at Tessa… only for a wayward Water Pulse to strike him and send him reeling to the side. He spun to a stop by one of the ship's masts. Niilo tried to sit up, but his strength failed him and he flopped back, trying to catch his breath.

The Pidgeotto noticed this. "Captain Nugget! You just blasted one of our own!"

A couple of meters below him, a Clawitzer fired a shimmering blue Dragon Pulse. It zipped across the deck, but Silvally easily outran it. Electricity crackled across his fur, making it stand on end. "Not now!" the Clawitzer growled, turning to point her large pincer at Silvally. "These brigands think they can raid _my_ ship and take the Protector from us?" Blue aura started gathering up in her pincer. "Well, you crooks have another thing coming."

An Aura Sphere shot forward. At the same time, Silvally dug his talons in and sent the gathered electricity corkscrewing forward. The two attacks met in midair, neutralizing each other in an explosive burst of wind. Shane's and Silvally's fur stood on end when the wind buffeted them, and the Clawitzer's scarf crackled with lingering static electricity.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Shane said, jumping in between the two of them. "Time out for a second." He turned to the Clawitzer. "Your name's Captain _Nugget?_ Are you kidding me? That's hilarious!"

The Clawitzer raised her pincer. "… it's _Nagant,_ " she stated, and shot another Aura Sphere forward. An explosion of blue enveloped Shane, leaving no traces of him when it subsided. Instead, a loud _crunch_ sounded from across the ship. Tessa and Silvally looked over in surprise to see Shane laying in the wreckage of a wooden barrel.

"Hey! You can't just blast my friend like that!" Silvally hissed.

"Oh? I wasn't aware maritime laws had changed to allow trespassers to order around a ship's captain," Nagant declared. "I'm going to ask you nicely… whatever you are. Where is Tromba's Protector?"

Silvally cocked his head in confusion. "What's a Tromba? Is that a type of fruit? Because it sounds pretty yummy!"

"Sounds more like the kind of thing you'd order at Crabrawler's Café," Tessa mused.

A sparking blue Dragon Pulse raced forward. Silvally jumped in front of Tessa. The pink glow of fairy energy lit up his eyes, cheeks, tail, and energy blades. The Dragon Pulse enveloped him, but Silvally harmlessly absorbed the attack. "I just told you to leave my friends alone. We don't know anything about your Protector. We're not even from here."

Nagant slowly lowered her pincer, staring wide-eyed at Silvally. "Jun," she whispered, turning to the Beedrill hovering beside her.

"Yes, captain?"

"Am I crazy, or did this stranger just change colors like a startled Kecleon?"

"Oh, good. You saw it too," Jun said, letting out a relieved sigh. He watched Cabot and Berecien run up the stairs, with the Aipom from earlier beside them, clutching a bucket with her tail. She pointed right at Tessa and Silvally, and the two of them charged forward, leaving their fellow crew member to run off to contain the fire. Having gotten back to his feet, Niilo curled up into a ball and rolled toward them, letting out a battle cry. The Beedrill nodded approvingly as the three crew members struck Tessa in unison, bringing her to her knees. "It was such a strange sight, I thought I was getting a touch of seasickness."

Nagant's right eye twitched. "You hover off the ground, Jun. How could you–? No, forget it. We need to subdue that trespasser right away."

Jun's eyes widened. "Whatever for, captain?"

"Isn't it obvious? That weird dog… bird… _thing_ just swapped its typing. And it's no Kecleon or Ditto. Which means, fate has seen fit to take that blasted Lugia and replace it with a different Protector." Nagant narrowed her eyes, examining Silvally's movements. He zigzagged through a set of rocks and fire launched by Cabot and Berecien in tandem. Iron coated his body, but to Cabot's surprise, Silvally pivoted and headbutted the charging Niilo. The blow was strong enough to force Niilo out of his ball. "A Protector who _actually_ seems to know how to use his powers."

Nagant hopped forward. She was about to fire an Aura Sphere when a cloud of frosty air blindsided her. "Hey! Fo… forgetting someone, Captain _Nugget?_ " Shane wheezed, struggling to remain standing. A pink glow overtook his eyes. Ripples of pink energy raced toward Nagant. She pivoted and effortlessly blew Shane's attack apart with a single Dark Pulse. Black shadows drifted off her open pincer, like smoke from a gun barrel.

"Let's get one thing clear, _lesá,_ " Nagant growled. "You and your little friends will pay _dearly_ for this. Anyone who attacks my ship and puts my crew members' lives at risk, answers to _me_ afterwards."

Shane shook his head. "Are you serious? _Lesá?_ " He let out a laugh. "Da, is very nice accent you have, comrade! Come now. Why not put aside differences and talk things out over nice, cold bowl of borscht?"

Another Aura Sphere smacked Shane in the chest. The resulting explosion blew him sky-high. Shane soared through the air, limbs flailing about, and careened over the edge of the ship. He landed in the water with a small splash.

Tessa and Silvally immediately froze, eyes widened in horror. "SHANE!" they cried in unison. Neither of them noticed Jun fly behind them and hurl a glass orb forward. It conked Silvally in the head and shattered, releasing pink gas on the remaining members Team Radiance.

"Fuh… feeling… kinda tired all of a sudden," Silvally mumbled and let out a loud yawn. His eyes fluttered shut and he snored loudly.

"Aww, he looks kind of peaceful when he's sleeping like that," Cabot chuckled.

Berecien blinked and stared at his Cranidos friend incredulously. "Seriously, Cabot? That brigand nearly burned down the ship!"

Cabot winced. "Er… right." He plodded over toward Nagant and Jun. "So, what do you want us to do with them, Captain Nugget?"

Nagant glared at him. "First off, it's _Nagant,_ " she seethed. "And second, I want this new Protector bound…"

The crew members positioned around Team Radiance turned to their captain with shocked expressions. "Wait, this _thing_ is a Protector?" Berecien gasped. "But it's so unsightly!"

Nagant scowled at him. "Appearances matter not. It has powers that only a Protector can display. If we can't have the Lugia, then he's an acceptable substitute. As I was saying, I want him bound and gagged. I want his talons stuck together. No possibility of escape whatsoever. Whatever frilly little trick he's doing to change his colors… I'd like to see him try when he can't even move a muscle."

"Not to question your authority, captain, but if he can't move any muscles, then how's he supposed to breathe?" the Aipom from earlier asked, scratching her head with her tail. "Don't we need a _living_ Protector?"

"… go swab the deck," Nagant ordered, letting out a groan. Jun hovered by Nagant's side and shooed Aipom away with his stingers. "Now then, as I was saying. We're going to _fully_ restrain this Protector. As for the Riolu?" She looked out over the helm of the ship. "Toss her overboard."

Jun's eyes widened. "Captain, are you _sure_ about that? That sounds like pirate-level skullduggery."

"I have had enough games, Jun. And those two had the gall to burn a hole in my ship while we were out in the middle of the sea," Nagant growled. "If they're going to endanger my crew's lives so callously, I'm _not_ in the mood to show any sort of charity back toward this Riolu. Send her over with her friend!"

Jun nodded. "You heard her. Toss the pup off the ship! And confiscate hidden items, too."

Cabot and Niilo exchanged uneasy looks. Niilo ran his claws across Tessa's fur and confirmed that she wasn't hiding anything. He scooped Tessa up, dragged her over to the edge of the ship, and hurled her into the sparkling blue water. She floated up to the surface and the waves swept her away from the ship.

* * *

"Uuuuuuuuurrrrrrrgggghhh!"

Shane woke up on the shores of a beach and rolled onto his back, groaning in pain. He turned to his right and saw Tessa lying face-down beside him. Sand covered her damp fur, turning her face, and chest brown. Shane staggered over to her and shoved her with his muzzle. Tessa's eyes opened and she slowly rose to her knees, coughing up water.

"I cannot believe this," Shane whined. "I get thrown into another universe from the universe I got thrown into… and I _still_ end up soaked to the bone. Who died and made me into a cosmic punching bag, huh?"

"Shut up, Shane. I'm not in the mood for your whining," Tessa groaned, spitting out a mouthful of wet sand.

"No, I will not just shut up! It needs to be said!" Shane huffed. He tilted his head forward and shook it out. His soaked mane collapsed onto his face and, in the process, sent a small Tynamo tumbling out of it. It hit the sand, and then floated into the air. It zapped Shane, who convulsed in midair before dropping to the sand, his fur now dry but thoroughly charbroiled. "See? See? This isn't fair!" he shouted.

"Next time, watch where you're floating… jerk," the Tynamo hissed and hopped back into the ocean. Tessa let out a sigh and helped her partner to his feet.

"Complaining's not going to help us get Silvally back," Tessa said. "We have no items and no idea where we are."

"Well, we've got our looplets," Shane noted. "But, yeah, those aren't very good odds." He looked around the beach. "Whoa! Look over there. There's this giant wall off in the distance!"

Tessa followed Shane's gaze and gulped at the sight. "What do you suppose is in there?"

"No idea. I see a sign over at that road. Maybe that'll give us an answer?" he said, beckoning Tessa to follow him. They trudged through the sand, eventually reaching a dirt road running across the edge of the area. A large white post stuck out of the ground on the other side of the road. It had arrows pointing off to the left and right. "Hmm… go right to get to Tidemill City. Go left and we reach Plowder… no, Chowder, uh…" He squinted his eyes at the sign. "Cloverfield Town?"

"Brush your hair out of your eyes, dummy. It says Polderfield Town," Tessa exclaimed.

"Ah, okay. That makes the choice easy, then," Shane said. He flipped his head upward, flinging locks of fur back onto his neck. "I'm pretty sure that if Silvally's being held on a big ship, it would be bound for a city, as opposed to a smaller town. I guess the city's inside that big wall."

Tessa's aura feelers twitched. "Then that must be where Silvally is!" she broke into a run, arms stuck out by her side. "Come on. We have to go get him back."

"Wait up!" Shane shouted, running after her. "Ugggh, of all the times to decide to take up triathlon training, why right now?" He winced with every step he took. His legs were sore from getting blasted off the ship, and this was hardly helping his situation.

Eventually, the road brought Team Radiance to the edge of the beach. A small gated checkpoint was stationed by the large wall, separating them from the outskirts of the city. A particularly bored looking Quilava and Leafeon sat in the security station. The Quilava traced a paw along the desk he was resting his head on. He spotted Team Radiance and quickly sat up, adjusting the indigo scarf around his neck. He bit down on the Leafeon's ear, prompting her to snap to attention.

"Hold it!" the Quilava called, holding up a forepaw. "You better think twice if I'm about to let a couple of ferals go wandering into the city. Go on, scat! Go back to whatever hole you crawled out of."

"We're not ferals," Shane said. "Our friend got separated from us and he's in this, uh, Tidemill City."

"Ha! Likely story," the Leafeon huffed. "If you're not ferals then I bet you're just a couple of beggars looking to cause trouble. In which case, you're _definitely_ not getting in."

Tessa rubbed her temples. "Seriously? We don't have time for this." She walked up toward the checkpoint.

"Hey! I said to keep your distance!" Quilava said, snorting out a few warning embers into the dirt.

"Sir, could you please just listen to us for a second?" Tessa begged. "We're not wild Pokémon and we're not homeless either. We… um…" She rubbed her shoulder nervously.

"We're tourists!" Shane chirped. "My, uh, _girlfriend_ and I came to Tidemill to see the sights. We're from… uh… Polderfield Town! And it's always been her dream to see this place in person." Tessa gave Shane a thoroughly dumbfounded expression, but he ignored her and continued, "We came with a mutual friend, but we left him in the city so we could take a stroll along the beach together." He scooted next to Tessa, nuzzling her shoulder. Tessa's aura feelers shot straight up and heat blanketed her face. "But we were getting a bit worried, so we want to go back to the hotel and check on him."

"And why, pray tell, are you so filthy if you just went on a stroll, hmm?" the Leafeon asked, eyeing Tessa skeptically.

"Well… we may have decided to splash around a bit in the shallows and then cuddle together on the shoreline," Shane exclaimed, a goofy grin on his face. "I just can't help myself, sometimes. Isn't that right, gorgeous?" Tessa looked as if she'd been slapped across the face. Shane immediately shot her a glare, screaming for her to get with the program.

"Y… Yup!" Tessa stammered. "I'm, uh, still feeling a little light-headed from it. He's… uh…" She gritted her teeth. "… really good kisser."

They looked up and noticed both guards shifting about uneasily at the direction the conversation had taken. "Alright, alright, I've heard enough," the Quilava said. The gate opened up. "Just, head on back and keep your paws where I can see them. You lovey-dovey touristy types make me sick sometimes. Blech!"

"Thank you, sir," Shane said. He and Tessa made their way through the gate and into Tidemill City.

* * *

 **~Tidemill City~**

Shane and Tessa barely made it a few steps onto the stone streets before their senses were assaulted. Buildings lay in every direction around them. Many had three or four floors to them. Foot traffic pounded against the stone, combining with a chorus of different conversations from various Pokémon walking down the streets. Tessa's aura feelers scrunched up and her ears flattened against her head. "I don't like it here. It's way too noisy," she squeaked.

Shane ignored her. His attention was drawn to a nearby fruit stand surrounded by several Pokémon. He crept toward the stand and swiped a quartet of oran berries that looked about ready to fall out of the basket holding them. Shane trotted back over to Tessa, plopping two of the berries at her feet. "Here," he said, the berry in his mouth muffling his speech. "Eat up. We need to get our strength back if we're gonna get Silvally back."

"Where did you get these? We don't have any money," Tessa gasped.

"I applied the old two-forepaw discount," Shane said, a nervous look on his face. Tessa gave him a confused look. "I stole 'em, okay," he said in a whisper. Her eyes widened. "Quiet. Desperate times call for desperate measures." He scarfed his two berries down, feeling his vitality return. Tessa at her berries, albeit more hesitantly than her partner.

They continued walking down one of the main streets. "This is totally crazy!" she said. "Aeon Town doesn't even hold a candle to this. Some of those buildings are _huge!_ You could fit, like, four versions of my house in them! And what's with the water running where streets should be?"

"Those would be canals," Shane explained.

"How would you know that?"

"I've seen buildings like this before," Shane said. "See the arches in some of those buildings? Those are classic Gothic lancet arches. These buildings look like they jumped right out of Venice, Italy!"

"What the heck is a Venice?" Tessa asked. "Is that what you call Venipedes in the human world?" She raised a skeptical eyebrow. "And why are you suddenly so interested in buildings, anyway? I've never heard you marvel about any of the buildings in Aeon Town before."

"Of course not!" Shane scoffed. "Because this is so much different. They're a little rough around the edges and the doors and windows are a bit shoddy, but they're just like the buildings I saw in this one human city I took a vacation to with my family, my best friend, and his family." His tails started wagging excitedly. "I'll bet they make some amazing pasta dishes here… not that we'd be able to get any." His ears folded against his face. "Aaaaaaand I just made myself hungry. Great."

"Wait, you're saying this is a human city?" Tessa said. "Then… there are actual humans walking around it? Or would they be humans turned into Pokémon?"

"No, it just _looks_ like a human city. I doubt humans are here. If anything, it's far more likely that humans _used_ to exist here, and then they didn't, so the Pokémon just kind of took inspiration from them," Shane said. His eyes widened. "Wait… look over there. By the water! It's a shipyard. And I think I recognize those sails from that Clawitzer's ship. We've just got to find a way over there." He pointed a forepaw ahead of him. "There. We'll take the bridge."

They walked up a stone bridge hanging over one of the canals. Tessa peered out over the railing, observing two-way traffic from water-types swimming below her. Shane hopped onto his hind legs and braced himself against the side of the bridge. He examined the vast array of ships moored up in the different rows of docks ahead of them. "Crap," he said, "they all look the same to me. Doesn't help they all got the same indigo sails, too. Ugh, how are we going to find Silvally like this?"

"I'm not sure," Tessa said, stepping to the side to allow a Machoke carrying several large planks of wood on one shoulder to pass by. "Also, while we've got a second… seriously, Shane? Your girlfriend?"

"Hey, it got us past those guards, didn't it?"

"Well… yeah," Tessa murmured, fidgeting with her paws. "But you didn't have to jump right to that, you know? We could've been friends or siblings."

"Look, I went with the first thing that came to mind. Sorry for not consulting you first," Shane said. "Dwelling on the issue isn't going to get us our friend back. So, why don't you help me look around a bit?"

"Fine," Tessa said. She crossed her arms over her chest. "But don't get any ideas. If anyone else asks, we're friends from work."

"Yeah, yeah. I got it," Shane muttered. He resumed walking forward, only to step on an uneven stone wedge. He let out a yip and fell onto his front. Shane rolled down the other side of the bridge, shouting, "Tessssssaaaaa! Help meeeeeeeeee!"

"Oh, for the love of–" Tessa smacked her face with her paw. "Wait up, you doofus." She jogged after him.

"Augh!"

An unfamiliar voice caught her attention. Tessa looked down at the edge of the bridge. There, Shane lay tangled up with a Mothim, his eyes spinning about in their sockets. "Why does gravity hate me so muuuuuuch?" Shane groaned.

The Mothim wriggled out from underneath Shane and hovered into the air. "Watch where you're walking, you unkempt little miscreant!" He glanced down at his scarf and frantically dusted it off.

"Sorry about that," Shane mumbled. "Stupid bridge wasn't laid down right."

"Hmph. That's hardly a fitting excuse. You have eyes. You can see," the Mothim huffed. "Whatever. I don't have time to deal with a mangy mutt. I've business to attend to."

"Yo, Elmer. Nice wipeout there!"

The Mothim flinched as a Weavile casually strolled up beside him. "We've been over this, Ketu. It's _Ellsberg,_ " the Mothim seethed.

 _'Nugget? Elmer? Jeez, it's no wonder everyone in Horizon skimps on the naming thing. Pokémon suck at naming themselves!'_ Shane thought. "Uh, sorry to bump into your friend, Mr. Ketu. We'll just be on our way."

Ketu shrugged and rolled his eyes. He started to walk away, when he glimpsed Shane's Looplet out of the corner of his eyes. _'What the–?'_ His face momentarily blanched. _'No… that's impossible! What are a couple of street rats out here in Tidemill City doing with our prototypes?'_

"Err, hold up one moment," Ketu said, sticking a claw out. Ellsberg gave him a confused look as Shane and Tessa turned back around. "I couldn't help but notice those lovely pieces of jewelry you and your friend have. I don't think I have seen such exquisite craftsmanship in all of Tidemill." Ellsberg's look turned from one of confusion to one of utter disbelief. "Tell me, are you tourists? Where did you get those from?"

"What? This?" Shane stuck his left foreleg out. "It's just a looplet. What, are there no explorers here?" Tessa shot him a horrified look. "Because I could've sworn there are Mystery Dungeons."

Ellsberg gave a derisive snort. "Looplet? What a childish name for an even more childish looking toy. Ketu, if this is your way of stalling because you don't want to work, then I suggest you shape up and get a move on. We're burning daylight as it–"

Ketu held his claw up and flicked it, swatting Ellsberg back like an overgrown fly. He took in a breath and resumed his usual detached expression. _'This doesn't make any sense. Administrator Elilan said the Looplet Project hit a number of snags during testing since the last time I used one. How can a couple of sewer Mareanies like them know about the project? It's supposed to be top-secret!'_ A gleam flashed in his eyes. _'And yet, they're flaunting a couple of prototypes at me. Did the Imps somehow steal our design and beat us to the punch?'_

"Ketu. What is your problem? Do I need to go back to the ship and tell Lyn you're slacking off as usual?" Ellsberg fumed.

"Sorry, my claw slipped," Ketu lied, keeping his expression neutral. "Actually, Elmer, why _don't_ you run along back to the ship."

"Are you crazy? Lyn's expecting a report on–" Ellsberg started, but cut himself off. "Err, well, he's expecting a log about the, um, status of that cargo we're picking up."

Ketu glared at Ellsberg. A gesture that Team Radiance couldn't see, since his back was turned to them. "Tell him that I'm pretty close to finding its location, then," Ketu growled.

"What? And leave you here by yourself so you can keep slacking off?" Ellsberg harrumphed. "Fat chance."

"Uh… you guys seem a bit busy at the moment," Shane muttered, trying awkwardly to look behind him. "So, we're just gonna keep on going. C'mon, Tessa." He and Tessa turned and walked down the cobblestone street.

Ketu watched them go. His left eye twitched. _'Stupid Lyn pairing me up with this obnoxious little bug. He's a perpetual itch I can't scratch! Guess I'm just gonna have to work a bit of the old charm and lie through my teeth to him. That notary's gullible, he'll fall for it.'_ He grabbed hold of Ellsberg's scarf and pulled him down so they were eye to eye. "Listen up, _buddy,_ " he whispered with a venomous tone. "See those two kids? They're _Imperial spies._ And I bet they're heading off to tell their higher-ups about us."

Ellsberg's eyes widened. "How can you be so sure?" he asked in a whisper.

"Those little trinkets on their legs?" Ketu paused, his face scrunching up. "I saw a report about it on Lyn's desk back on the ship. Straight from Director Inler himself. The gems inside them are incredibly rare and extremely valuable tools for the Company."

Ellsberg's brow furrowed. "That sounds pretty far-fetched. How could gems possibly be so important to Director Inler?"

Ketu shook his head. "Because they use psychic energy. I'm telling you, I was getting briefed by Lyn and saw the documents on his desk. Those anklets are memory-snatchers. And the memo said that the Imps had stolen them from us."

"Wait… those foofy little trinkets are _ours?_ " Ellsberg gasped. He shook his head. "I… I still don't believe you," he said, his voice wavering and his wings steadily beating faster. "Why have I never heard about this before?"

"Because you're a _notary,_ " Ketu scoffed. "I'm serious here, the things are ingenious. All you have to do is pin your victim down and touch them with the anklets. It sends a sharp psychic current through your body that digs through your mind and pulls out your memories." Ketu leaned over. "Think about it. You looked pretty dazed when that Vulpix crashed into you. And didn't it seem like that encounter was all just a bit too convenient? Why, I'll bet he's got your whole life's worth of memories sitting in that anklet. He's about to bring everything you know about the Company's inner workings to his superiors. What would Administrator Elilan think if word got out?"

Ellsberg's eyes widened, his mind jumping to a mental image of a Zoroark grabbing him by the scarf, yanking him up to eye level with bared fangs. _"It would seem, that I must inform Administrator Farn that we're about to have a new opening among our Second-Ranks…"_ the Zoroark hissed. _"I'm sure my Commander will be able to find some time to process you as a new inmate."_ The Mothim daydreamt of the fox flashing a set of ruddy claws which sliced into his face, jolting his attention back on the streets of Tidemill with a startled buzz. His wings seized up, prompting the moth to drop in the air before a hasty, fluttering scramble to stop himself from crashing into the ground.

Sweat beads trickled down Ellsberg's head. "This is clearly a huge problem. We have to do something! But what?"

"Isn't it obvious? Take 'em out and drag them back to the ship," Ketu harrumphed.

"Need I remind you that our objective is to remain _undetected_ by the Imps?" Ellsberg huffed. "Kidnapping two of their spies in their own capital? That's the kind of action that can lead to war!"

"It's a bit late for that, Buzzy," Ketu said. "Just relax, okay? Follow my lead, and we'll have this little problem wrapped up rather quickly." He turned back around, making sure he could still see Shane and Tessa. "Whoa, hold up there!" he called, jogging after them. "Sorry about that. Elmer can be a bit of a scatterbrain sometimes."

Ellsberg nearly fell out of the air. "Seriously, Ketu?" he groaned.

Ketu ignored him. "Anyway. You two look a bit lost. I was going to offer to help with directions before Elmer started running his mouth." He chuckled and shook his head. "Isn't that right, _buddy?_ "

Ellsberg slouched in defeat. "Yes. My sincere apologies," he said. Ketu had to fight the urge to smirk at his partner's unfortunate position.

"Oh," Shane said. "Actually, yeah, we could really use some help. Especially if you're working with cargo. Do you two have a ship?"

"We do," Ketu replied.

"Great! Then maybe you can help us figure out how to get to the docks down there?" Shane asked, pointing ahead of him. "We lost our friend, and I think he's on one of those ships."

Ketu stood on his tiptoes to prevent Shane and Tessa from seeing Ellsberg's panicked expression. "Perfect. We were just heading over there, actually. Follow me." Ketu beckoned them forward and led them down one of the stone streets. It sloped downward, growing steadily closer to the canal it borders. Tessa soon found herself dwarfed by the long, slender neck of a Lapras. Excited giggles made her ears twitch. She spotted a group of kids sitting on the back of Lapras, pointing excitedly as he ferried them down the canal.

"Err, does everyone use these waterways to get around this place?" Tessa wondered.

"Of course not," Ketu dismissed. "Otherwise the canals would be too crowded for anyone to get through."

"And, of course, it'd be a waste of time for someone like me," Ellsberg said. "Ah, the benefits of wings."

"Yup. They sure did you a lot of good when that fuzzball was rolling down the bridge, huh?" Ketu sneered. Ellsberg looked about ready to pop a blood vessel. "Okay, we can cut through this side street to get down to the docks. You looking for any ship in particular?"

"Um. Our friend said he wanted to take a gander at some of the naval ships," Tessa lied. She didn't see Ketu turn to give Ellsberg a knowing smirk. "I'm just really worried about him. He has a tendency to cause a bit of a scene when he runs off by himself. So, we just want to make sure he's okay."

"Totally understandable. We've had a couple of instances where we've lost track of employees. Makes for one hell of a headache," Ketu said. "Guess we shouldn't dawdle, then."

As the group continued down the alleyway, Ketu quickened his pace, while Ellsberg hung behind Shane and Tessa. Ketu scanned the area and when he was absolutely sure there weren't any other Pokémon around, turned to face Team Radiance. "Alright, looks to me like we've made it."

"What are you talking about? We're in the middle of an alley, not at the shipyard," Shane said. "I thought you told us you knew where you were going."

"Oh, my mistake," Ketu exclaimed, giving Shane an innocent grin. "I should've clarified, this is the spot we'll be using to shove you two brats into Apricorns." His innocent grin immediately darkened into a scowl. "Hope you enjoyed the sights, kiddos, because we're taking you to Company waters for a nice, long incarceration."

Shane's tails shot up in alarm. "Ap… Apricorns? They have those here?!"

Tessa looked at him in confusion. "You know what they're talking about?"

"Yeah! They're… uh… kind of like what Espeon and Umbreon told us Zero used to capture them!" Shane panicked. He tried to back away from Ketu, but the Weavile swung a glowing arm around in the blink of an eye. His claws connected with Shane's sternum, rocketing him back into the wall. Ketu hopped backwards and Ellsberg, still hovering behind Team Radiance, flapped his wings rapidly, sending Air Slash currents at Tessa. She had enough time to turn around in surprise before they peppered her body. She stumbled back toward Ketu, who spread his claws and sent a volley of Ice Shards to pummel Tessa. She hollered and dropped to her knees. Her world spun and it took every ounce of willpower not to puke.

"W… what the heck is your problem?" Shane whimpered.

"What? You didn't _really_ think you could get away with stealing our looplets, did you?" Ketu sneered. "But hey, I know some Pokémon on Nagrobek Island who'd _love_ to question you."

He raised his claws and hurled Ice Shards at Shane. His tails shot up in alarm and he blasted the projectiles apart with Extrasensory ripples. Ellsberg fluttered behind him, however, and his eyes glowed pink. Shane and Tessa floated into the air. Their limbs flailed about as they struggled against Ellsberg's psychic grip.

"You're just a Mothim. Why are you so strong?" Shane gasped. Ellsberg flung them over Ketu's head, and they rolled down the alley, stopping in a tangled mess of fur and paws. Ketu left them no time to recover, working quickly to close the distance. Panicking, Shane breathed out a cloud of Frost Breath. It raced along the alleyway, but Ketu threw up an arm and ran right through it.

"Sh… Shane…" Tessa groaned. "It's no good. They're too strong! We can't take them like this."

Shane staggered to his feet, wincing in pain. Rapid footsteps and wingbeats made his ears twitch. He leaned over, bit down on Tessa's scarf, and yanked her to her feet. Shane dragged her backwards seconds before Ketu's icy fist connected with the spot she had been lying on. Ketu's brow furrowed as he realized his claws were stuck in the ground.

"You're right. No fighting. Only running!" he cried, and took off down the street. Tessa's aura feelers raised in alarm as Ketu pulled his claws out of the ground. She turned and ran after Shane, narrowly dodging Air Slash crescents fired by Ellsberg.

"Damn it!" Ketu hissed. "Of all the strokes of dumb luck. Now they're making a run for it!"

"Well then, hurry up and catch them!" Ellsberg cried. "Don't let them get back to their boss!"

"What do you think I'm doing?" Ketu snarled. He brandished his claws by his sides and charged ahead. Ellsberg flew along behind, looking between the nearby buildings to make sure that no one was watching. The Mothim's gaze fell on Team Radiance and his eyes widened.

"Ketu, wait. Stop!" he shouted. The Weavile skidded to a halt and looked back at him, a glare spreading across his face.

"This isn't a good time, Bugzzy," he hissed.

"Look. The Imps are heading onto a main street. If you try to attack them in a crowd of people, we'll have a whole squadron of guards breathing down our necks," Ellsberg said.

"Not if we get them in the Apricorns and slip them out of there fast enough to miss the guards," Ketu muttered.

"That's ridiculous," Ellsberg huffed. "You'll get us both jailed… or killed!"

Ketu's eyes lit up. "I've got an idea." He burst into the street, honing in on Shane and Tessa. "STOP!" he shouted. "THIEVES!" Several folks paused in the middle of their on-foot commutes to look at Ketu with widened eyes. "Stop the Vulpix and Riolu. They took my jewelry!"

"Are you kidding me?" Shane shouted. "That's a lie!" He slammed his eyes shut, gritting his teeth in pain, and tried to run faster. "We're not even from around here. We're just tourists." He and Tessa pulled away from the crowd in the street, making for a smaller road that descended toward the docks. Behind him, Tessa narrowly escaped a set of Air Slash crescents hurled by Ellsberg.

"Shane, I think that story's run its course," Tessa groaned.

"Fine." Shane glanced over his shoulder and shouted, "My partner's right. We're not tourists. We're from another world entirely. And we're trying to find our friend and get back there. So, please, leave us alone!"

"Another world? Ha!" Ketu lunged at Shane. The Weavile just barely missed striking Shane's flank with his icy claws. "How stupid do you think I am, huh? What's next? You gonna try to tell me you're actually a human on a mission to save the world?"

"Aha ha… ha… funny you should mention that," Shane said, a sheepish grin spreading across his face.

Ketu rolled his eyes. "Please. You're gonna have to think of a better cover story than that, kid." He spun around, claws outstretched, and shot Ice Shards at Shane and Tessa. Shane turned around and eyes glowed pink. Extrasensory waves blew the Ice Shards apart into harmless frost clouds. Ketu saw a blur of motion through the frost. He immediately braced himself, expecting to dodge a Force Palm from Tessa.

But Tessa didn't make a move toward him. Instead, electricity gathered in her fist as she hopped toward a nearby railing. "What the–?" Ketu wondered, only for his eyes to widen as Tessa kicked off the railing and careened toward an unsuspecting Ellsberg. Her Thunder Punch struck him right between the eyes. Electricity took hold of Ellsberg's body and he fell to the ground.

Ketu slightly tilted his head, before taking on a bemused expression. "Well, aren't you full of surprises?" he scoffed. "Not that it really matters once you're locked up in Nagrobek."

Tessa's eyes bugged out at the thought, but then Shane screamed at the top of his lungs. The sound waves pushed Ketu back down the street, giving Tessa the opening she needed to run back to her partner. Ketu dug his claws into the ground, preventing him from being pushed back any further. "You're not getting away from me that easily," he barked, and resumed chasing Team Radiance.

"Nuh… not so fast!" Ellsberg groaned. The Mothim hovered wearily in the air as psychic energy gathered around him. He tried to send the energy forward, but paralysis seized his body and sent him crashing to the ground.

Ketu skidded to a halt. "Elmer, you _idiot!_ " the Weavile growled. "You're screwing everything up!" He dashed to Ellsberg's side and scooped him up.

"Me? Th… this was your… asinine idea…"

"Save your excuses for later," Ketu snapped. "We've gotta stop those pipsqueaks." The Weavile produced a cheri berry from the satchel slung over his shoulder and held it in front of Ellsberg's proboscis so he could eat the berry. Ellsberg descended into a coughing fit as his paralysis subsided and Ketu broke into a run, chasing after Team Radiance. It didn't take long for Ketu to once again close the gap between the two parties.

"Tessa, what do we do? He's gaining on us!" Shane panicked.

"I don't know. If we had items, I could throw something, but we don't," Tessa groaned. She looked ahead of her. "The docks are just up there. But there's another guard post."

"Maybe we could ask them for help?" Shane proposed. He noticed the Barbaracle and Meowstic at the guard station looking over at them in confusion. "HELP! HELP! Some thugs are chasing us!"

Ketu narrowed his eyes. _'Crap! That stupid mutt beat me to the guards. There goes my idea,'_ he thought. The Weavile raced toward the guard post, readying to strike as the guards popped out of their station.

"Hey, just what do you think you're doing? This is a restricted area!" the Barbaracle shouted.

"Yeah!" his Meowstic partner chimed in. "Authorized 'mons on–"

Ketu lunged at the Meowstic and slashed her with his shadowy-black claws. "Sorry, but I'm gonna have to cut in," he quipped. He pivoted toward the Barbaracle and slashed at the guard's knees. In the process, he put his back to Team Radiance. Tessa and Shane used the momentary distraction to run forward. Shane coated the gate in a thick layer of ice and Tessa wound up to smash through it.

Ketu looked up just in time to see the frozen gate burst open. "Hey!" he barked, trying to lunge for Team Radiance. However, the Barbaracle guard stepped into his path, looking to strike him with several sharp slabs of rock. Ketu dodged the attack and struck the guard's chest with a glowing fist. His Brick Break knocked the wind out of the Barbaracle, who collapsed onto the ground with a dazed look in his eyes. Ketu again looked through the broken gate, but saw no sign of Team Radiance.

"Damn it! This is _not_ how things were supposed to go down," he snarled.

Ellsberg finally caught up to Ketu. He fluttered beside the Weavile, panting heavily. "Are you alright?"

"No!" Ketu hissed, swatting Ellsberg away. "Those brats have _officially_ pissed me off. Get after them and keep them distracted! I'll freeze them with Blizzard."

"Err, but what about any naval officers on the docks?" Ellsberg asked.

"Do I look like I care about them right now?"

Ellsberg's wings fluttered rapidly in surprise. He buzzed ahead after Team Radiance. Ketu immediately took off after him, scraping dust off his claws as he ran.

* * *

Nagant let out a groan. "What is the matter with you Slakoths? Put your backs into it!"

The crew members Nagant had gathered pushed themselves up against Silvally's side, trying to push him along the deck of the ship. Above him, Jun and a Pidgeotto flapped their wings and tugged on ropes, trying to hoist Silvally up and help give the crew some traction for movement. However, they failed to make any progress, and most of them slumped against Silvally's hide, panting in exhaustion.

"S… sorry, captain," Cabot wheezed, "but this new Protector's a fair bit heavier than a baby Lugia."

"Yeah, he must weigh as much as a Boldore!" Niilo said. "Can't we get some more members of the crew to help?"

"They're tending to the hole in the ship. Or did you all conveniently forget about that?" Nagant growled. "Fine then. Stand aside and let me show you how a naval officer gets a payload moved." She flexed her large pincer and was about to press it up against Silvally.

"Silvally? Where are you?!"

Tessa's cry echoed through the shipyard. Nagant's eyes widened. "No, that can't be." She hopped toward the edge of the ship and spotted Tessa and Shane sprinting down the far docks. "Unbelievable. Those kids _again?_ " She whirled around, glaring at Jun. "Just how much daylight did we burn waiting out here, huh?"

The Beedrill rubbed his stingers together nervously. "Err, well, it _did_ take the courier awhile to return from the palace with the queen's permission to bring this new Protector to her. I'd say it's been at least a few hours."

Nagant's brow furrowed. "I have no intention of letting a pair of obnoxious children run around _our_ shipyard and cause trouble. Least of all after damaging my ship." She took a closer look at Team Radiance, only to do a double-take at the sight of Ellsberg flying after them and Ketu trailing behind the Mothim. "Eh?! That Weavile from Sormus is here too?! But-! Bah, I don't have time for this!" Nagant raised her pincer and narrowed her eyes. "Jun! Be ready to attack on my mark!"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Wait for them to get closer. I'll snipe the kids from the ship, and then you swoop in and scoop them up," Nagant ordered. Jun saluted her with a stinger and buzzed higher into the air. Nagant peered out over the edge of the ship as she saw Team Radiance coming closer.

"Hey, watch it!"

Tessa bumped into a Shieldon wearing a naval grunt scarf, nearly knocking him off the dock in the process. "Sorry, we're kind of in a hurry!" she shouted, not bothering to look back and make sure the Shieldon was okay.

"Are you even authorized to be here?" the Shieldon shouted, noticing Tessa's rainbow scarf fluttering as she ran. But at that moment, Shane bumped into the fossil Pokémon. Shieldon stumbled to the side. His right leg slipped off the deck, and the rest of him followed suit, landing in the water with a large splash.

A sheepish look overtook Shane's face. He wanted to ask Shieldon if he was okay, but a few Air Slash blades whizzed by him. His tails shot up and he started running after Tessa. Shane looked over his shoulder and spotted Ellsberg buzzing toward him. "This isn't working!" he shouted. "And we're going to run out of space to run pretty soon."

Tessa tried to look back at him, only for a burst of water to pummel her from the sky. She fell to her belly, grunting in pain. Shane screeched to a halt and looked up at the ship he was standing beside. "Wait." His eyes widened. "Are there Pokémon firing at us from up there?" He turned around in time for a psychic force to hoist him into the air and throw him back across the docks. Shane tumbled to a stop near the dock's edge. He struggled to get to his feet. Exhaustion made his legs tremble.

"Ketu, are you ready?" Ellsberg asked. "If I attack them again, I'll knock them into the water."

Ketu appeared by Ellsberg's side and dug in his feet, getting ready to attack. "You've done your part, Elmer. Now it's time to put these kiddies on ice."

Up on the ship, Nagant waved Jun back with her pincer. "Is something the matter, Captain?" Jun asked.

"It looks like we don't need to intervene after all. If that hack from Sormus wants to keep himself busy with those brigands, then we can simply shoo them out when they're weaker," Nagant declared. Frosty air drifted up toward the ship. The two of them looked down and saw a massive snowstorm racing forward.

Shane's eyes widened at the approaching Blizzard. It buffeted Tessa from behind, freezing her solid with a shocked expression plastered on her face. "No… Tessa!" Shane shouted. A flash of light burst forth from his Naturia Looplet and enveloped his left foreleg, something that did not go unnoticed by Ketu. The attack reached Shane just as an orange glow took over his body. The Blizzard's gale force winds struck the light and funneled completely around Shane, leaving him standing in front of a bewildered Ketu.

"What's going on? Why isn't your attack hurting him? And why is he glowing like that?" Ellsberg panicked. He fluttered in front of Ketu and waved his digits around frantically, as the Weavile continued to look at Shane while gritting his teeth. "Ketu, you said these were Imperial spies. Since when could spies do something like _this?!_ "

The Blizzard fizzled out. Shane's orange glow intensified. He opened his eyes, revealing the same orange energy leaking out of them. "You do _not_ hurt my friend like that!" he shouted. Shane stamped a forepaw on the ground and a gigantic iceberg shot up from the dock, with him positioned on top of it. It rose high enough to give him full view of the deck of Nagant's ship, complete with the shocked expressions of the crew.

"H… how…" Jun stammered.

"Is he also a Protector?" Cabot wondered.

"What? No way! He's just a Vulpix!" Berecien cried, backpedaling from Silvally. "What sort of trick is this?!"

Back on the ground, Ellsberg now had a grip on Ketu's scarf. "Do something, you lazy oaf! He's looking right at us. He's–"

Shane's tails fanned out, liquid ice funneling to the tip of his open mouth and firing down in a giant beam. "Get to cover!" Ketu shouted. He pushed Ellsberg off of him and dove into the water, disappearing under the surface. Ellsberg had just enough time to look back at Shane before the attack froze him solid.

"Everybody down!" Nagant shouted, as the fringes of Shane's Z-Move rocked the side of the ship. Ice coated the wooden walls and quickly spilled out across the deck. Cabot and Jun couldn't move away fast enough, and the ice froze them to the ground instantly. Niilo and Berecien slipped while trying to flee toward the far end of the ship. A wave of ice washed over them, freezing them to the deck in two large icebergs that jutted up into the air. Nagant just barely managed to hop free of the ice, shivering from the frigid air. The wave of ice came to a stop halfway across the ship deck. In the process, lingering icy air froze Silvally's restraints and jostled him awake. He opened his beak and thrust his limbs apart, shattering the frozen bindings.

Silvally hopped to his feet, narrowed his eyes, and charged across the deck, preparing to strike Nagant. She was too preoccupied taking aim at Shane, who had leaped off the iceberg he summoned before it melted into the water and sprinted across the icy deck, making a beeline for his teammate. "Silvally! Silvally! Silvally!" Shane shouted.

Nagant's eyes widened and she turned around. "No, the Protector!" She found herself staring down Silvally as he lunged toward her, golden light encasing his body. Nagant tried to shoot a Water Pulse at him, but couldn't form the attack up fast enough. Silvally's lightning-coated talons clubbed her pincer. It squished up against her face, offering Silvally a moment to see her shocked expression before the force of his blow sent her reeling across the deck. Nagant struck one of the ship's masts and crumpled to the ground, clutching her head and groaning in pain.

The crew members that hadn't been frozen stood in complete shock. Silvally turned around. A current ran across his body, giving his fur a jagged, spiked appearance. He fired several warning bolts of electricity in front of him, scattering the terrified crew. Shane jumped up onto his back. Silvally's legs momentarily buckled. "Where's Tessa?" he asked.

"Frozen down on the docks. We've gotta break her out and get as far away from this place as possible!" Shane slid his forepaw back and slapped Silvally's rear. "Hi ho, Silvally! Away!"

Silvally gave a surprised trill and reared up on his hind legs, clawing at the air. He dropped back to all fours and sprinted across the deck. Shane curled up tight on Silvally's back as the chimera's leg muscles tensed up. "For the record," Silvally said, springing into the air, "next time you want to hit me like that, you better have chocolate and flowers."

Shane's expression blanked just seconds before he and Silvally hit the docks. The impact jostled Shane upward, but he managed to stay on Silvally's back.

"Gah, I can't believe I had to dive in this disgusting seawater!"

Shane's head shot up in alarm as he saw Ketu dragging himself back onto the docks, looking at his soaked body.

"Hey, what's with the Weavile?" Silvally wondered.

"I don't know what you Imps did to modify _our_ designs, but I'm definitely gonna find out," Ketu snarled. "I'll get you to Nagrobek, even if I have to take down some _freak_ along the way."

"… Trouble," Shane said, "Just get him out of the way so we can get Tessa!"

Silvally tapped into his fire memories, shifting the glowing parts of his body to red. He opened his beak and spewed out a Flamethrower, prompting Ketu to jump to the side in order to dodge the attack. "Ha! Is that the best you g–? Ack!"

A Water Pulse struck Ketu from above, leaving him sprawled out in a puddle of water. "Nobody's… going anywhere!" Nagant's voice rang out. She hopped down onto the docks, landing rather unsteadily. "So, you're Company scum after all!" Nagant spat, pointing her pincer at Ketu as he glared back at her. "Well, there'll be plenty of time to discuss this further during interrogation."

"In your dreams, little shrimp," Ketu hissed. He sprang to his feet, looking to uppercut Nagant with his claws. She shielded herself with her pincer, but Ketu lunged for her before she could retaliate.

"Uh… did I miss something, here?" Silvally asked. "Why are they fighting?"

"Who cares! We'll take any opening we can get. Hurry up and free Tessa so we can leave," Shane said. Silvally nodded and lunged for Tessa, fire encasing his forelegs. Silvally dug his talons into her icy prison. They radiated enough heat to thaw her out.

"Th-th-th-th-thanks," she said, teeth chattering.

"Don't thank me yet. We've still got to find a way home," Silvally said. He turned around and bounded across the docks, passing Ketu and Nagant in the process. Silvally nearly managed to round a corner when a jet of water immediately shot up from the right side of the dock. Shane blew the water apart with a strong burst of Extrasensory. He looked over and noticed a Tentacruel and Sharpedo in indigo scarves trying to keep with the party from within the water. "I think we've got company. Run faster!"

"I'm going as fast as I can," Silvally groaned. He tucked his head down and started increasing his speed, moving away from the waterside.

"Halt, in the name of the Imperial Navy!" the Tentacruel shouted. Another jet of water raced toward Team Radiance. Tessa grabbed hold of Shane's scarf and tightened her grip on Silvally's neck. Shane used her anchoring to turn around and fire another Extrasensory. The psychic blast ripped through the water, causing it to drizzle harmlessly onto the docks. Shane turned back around and resumed clutching Silvally as the chimera bolted behind a nearby ship. The water-types giving chase drifted to a stop, the Tentacruel slapping the water angrily as her Sharpedo companion shook her head.

"Forget it, Cyanea," she said. "We're not catching up to them in a million years."

Up at the edge of the docks, Silvally raced through the already-busted guard station, surprising a Meowstic and Pelipper that were attending to the guards Ketu had knocked out earlier. "H… hey! You're not supposed to be here!" the Meowstic squeaked.

Silvally looked over his shoulder, frowned, and then immediately booked it to his right. "Whoa! What's the big idea? We didn't agree to go right!" Shane complained.

"Uh, Shane?" Tessa mumbled, tugging on his shoulder. Shane looked back at her and she pointed a paw forward. "Maybe that has something to do with why Silvally went right?"

Shane turned his head back, his jaw dropping at the sight of two dozen Pokémon of all different shapes and sizes running after them. "Stop right there, criminal scum!" the Magnezone at the head of the group shouted. Electricity darted between his magnets and he narrowed his central eye at Team Radiance.

"No, don't stop! Go! Go faster!" Shane hollered, digging his paws into Silvally's fur and grabbing onto his scales for dear life.

Silvally gulped and raced forward, looking around for any signs of a clear escape route. A sudden flash of light brought his attention straight forward. The light swirled around, forming a familiar-looking checkered wormhole. "Ah! I see a portal up ahead of us. It's just like the ones the Prism Virus uses."

"Then head for it. It's our only real shot of getting home!" Shane said. He then let out a frightened yip as a lightning bolt and an ectoplasmic arrow whizzed past Silvally in unison.

"Guys, I think we've got a problem," Silvally whimpered. "Look… they've got a Lugia helping them!" he cried, eyes bulging out in surprise. "It's in that alleyway!"

"What? You've gotta be kidding me!" Shane groaned.

Silvally's beak stiffened and he started funneling electricity toward his cheek bolts. "I'm gonna zap him!" But before he could shoot his Thunderbolt, panic washed over the Lugia's face and it immediately disappeared. "Wait… what? It just ran away!" Silvally's eyes scrunched up in confusion, but given the crowd of Pokémon chasing him, he didn't dare stop to investigate the matter.

Instead, Shane poked his head up just in time to see the Lugia shove a Growlithe, Cubone, and female Nidoran further back in the alley. "Wait. It's a baby Lugia?" He shook his head. "Never mind. Just keep running, Silvally!"

"What the–?" the Cubone asked dumbfounded as Silvally ran past the alley.

"Sorry, we're in a bit of a hurry, here!" Shane shouted, before turning back around and clinging to Silvally's head crest. Silvally approached the Ultra Wormhole and lunged into it. Bright white light swallowed Team Radiance up.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

A faint twinkle of light shimmered in Team Radiance's room. An Ultra Wormhole opened up on the far wall, facing the door.

"EYYYYYAAAAAAAAAH!"

Shane flew out of the portal, limbs flailing, and belly-flopped onto the ground. "Oooooog… my aching head…" he groaned. He was in the process of sitting up, when Tessa tumbled out of the wormhole and rolled into him, knocking him back onto his belly. "Ow! Hey! Watch it," Shane growled.

"Sorry," Tessa squeaked.

The wormhole flashed and, next thing Shane and Tessa knew, they were pinned down underneath Silvally's large frame. He turned and watched the Ultra Wormhole shut behind him. "Hey, I think we're back!" he declared. "Isn't that great?"

"Mmrrrggggh!"

Something jabbed Silvally's belly, causing him to look down. His cheeks grew warm. "O-Oh… my bad," he muttered, and stood up. Tessa crawled forward, while Shane rolled onto his back, gasping for air. "Hi, guys," Silvally chirped. "Heh… I was wondering why my landing was so soft and cushy. How'd you get down there when you were sitting on top of me?"

"Seriously, dude?" Shane hissed, rubbing his face with a forepaw. "Do you use any soap when you shower?"

"Of course I do!" Silvally said. "Why, is something wrong?"

"Yes, you reek!" Shane groaned. "Or, more specifically, your underbelly reeks."

"Too much information," Tessa cut in, a disgusted look on her face.

"Oh, really?" Silvally lifted a foreleg and awkwardly tried to look across his underbelly. "I showered yesterday. But I didn't scrub my belly much. I'm 'monmade, after all, so I doubt I can make any weird scents there."

"What part of 'too much information' didn't register, Silvally?" Tessa growled, throwing up her paws and cringing.

"I don't want to hear any complaining from you, missy," Shane grumbled. "I'm the one who had to steal berries just to keep the two of us alive, you know. Frankly, this is both of your faults!"

"Excuse me? You're just as much to blame for all of this as we are," Tessa said, pointing a paw at him accusingly.

"What are you talking about? I told my agent when I booked this gig: 'no stupid crossovers with someone else's production,'" Shane scoffed.

"Well then, you should've read your contract closely, doofus. Because we all signed on for April Fool's Day world-swap pranks for as long as this is under production," Tessa explained, crossing her arms and giving a smirk.

Shane went slack-jawed. "You're kidding. There's no way…" His voice trailed off. He took the satchel off his neck and walked over to a small shelf. He pulled out a stack of papers and startled shuffling through them. His eyes widened. "Son of a bitch! 'As part of your main character status, it is expected that you will take part in an April Fool's Day crossover event. Said event will run without any prior notice from the production team.'" He crumpled that particular page up with his forepaw. "I don't believe this! I've been had."

"It could be worse. The original plan was for an Easter special that'd put you in a Lopunny costume," Tessa mused while Silvally fought to hide a snicker.

Shane's jaw dropped. "Seriously?! Don't I look foofy and girly enough already? That's just demeaning!" He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Tessa. "And wait… how do you know about that? I'm supposed to be the star here!"

 **"Excuuuuuse me?"** a booming voice echoed through the room. Necrozma popped in behind Shane in a puff of black smoke. Shane yipped and hopped forward, burying his head in his forepaws. **"You want to rephrase that one? Last I checked, it's my name in the title, bub.** _ **I'm**_ **the star here… literally!"**

Shane couldn't think of a retort. Necrozma shook his head disapprovingly and teleported out of the room. Shane got back to his feet. "This is totally ridiculous," he huffed. "I'm getting such a crap deal. Where the devil is my agent?"

"… you rang, buddy?"

Shane turned to his right and let out a girlish shriek at the sight of Giratina's head sticking out of the wall.

"Ohhhh… I get it. He asked 'where the devil is my agent?' so you popped up," Silvally said. "I like it!" His tail wagged.

"Yes, thank you! I was worried no one was gonna get the joke," Giratina cheered. He turned to Tessa. "By the way, this totally counts as me appearing in the special. I expect compensation. Or else I'll steal all your sugary sweets!" He disappeared back into the wall, leaving Shane standing there, his right eye twitching rapidly.

"Aww, c'mon, Shane," Tessa said, walking over to him and throwing an arm around his neck. "Didn't you have fun? I thought the folks in Anyilla seemed great. Even if, y'know, they were all trying to capture us and throw us in jail."

"Yeah!" Silvally agreed, tail wagging even faster. "I'll bet their exploits would make for a real great read. A light-hearted, colorful adventure that everyone could enjoy!"

"Oh, shove off," Shane hissed, stomping toward the door. "Nothing in our contracts says we have to suck up to them or anything."

"It's not sucking up if it's true," Silvally exclaimed in a singsong voice. "Besides, they're the top dog in our genre. You should feel honored to get to work with them!"

Shane snorted out tufts of frost. "Whatever. I'm outta here."

"Where are you going?" Tessa asked. "Don't you want to rest up at all?"

"No," Shane growled. "If anyone needs me, I'll be at Glyphic Falls. I'm feeling rather spiteful, and think I'll take it out on a Murkrow flock there." He angrily marched out of the room, muttering under his breath.

Tessa and Silvally exchanged concerned looks. "You don't think he meant anything by that, do you?" Silvally asked.

Tessa rubbed the bridge of her snout with her paw. "I don't know. But I think I see why we Pokémon don't have an April Fool's Day. Or an April, for that matter."

 **END**

* * *

 **Footnotes**  
1) _Potwór_ : monster, fiend (Polish)  
2) _Kaveri_ : pal, friend, buddy, mate (Finnish, possibly from the Yiddish word _kahver_ )  
3) _Lesá_ (лиса): fox (Russian, English romanization used)  
All info from Wiktionary

* * *

If you haven't caught on by now… April Fools! What you've been reading here is a giant April Fool's Day special. More specifically a crossover with another Mystery Dungeon fic that's criminally underappreciated around here: _Fledglings_ , by Fobbie. By extension, it's also crossing over with the story's spinoff _Casting Off_ , by Virgil134. They're a couple of friends I mostly interact with through Discord and who generously agreed to my (ridiculous) suggestion of doing a world-swapping April Fool's Day prank way back in December. As such, they both wrote this chapter alongside me. They also wrote their own half, which features some of their main characters going around the Horizon Continent and confronting some familiar faces from this story.

If you're interested in seeing that, I have both their stories Favorited on my profile page (because this site just hates links). The crossover should be the 64th part on _Fledglings_ , entitled Turbulent Roadtrip. And, if you were interested at all by what you saw here – or maybe you're looking for something new to read – consider checking out their stories. Like I said, they really deserve more love. Yes, _Fledglings_ has quite a lot of content already (it's about twice as long as what I've done so far), but I think it's worth it. It's paced a lot like a long-running TV show, with an expansive cast that all gets time in the spotlight. One Piece and Avatar: The Last Airbender definitely come to mind. If you do give the stories a look, let them know what you thought.

And, if this greatly annoyed you for some reason, sorry. We'll be back to our regularly-scheduled program next update.

Next time: a peeping Shane, an angered Necrozma, and an increased sense of urgency to find the Tapus.


	52. Instinctual Reactions

My apologies for the slight delay getting this chapter up. I was travelling and had limited internet access last weekend. Onto Episode 10!

* * *

 **~Pokémon Paradise~**

Despite the fact that it was already late morning in the thriving Mist Continent community, the area seemed eerily quiet. Word from the Expedition Society was that Zapdos would be passing over the area, bringing with him a major storm. Thus, the townsfolk had opted to remain in their homes, and keep their businesses shuddered. So, when the sky darkened and rain drops began to fall against the ground, only a single, three-headed dragon found himself getting soaked.

Hydreigon booked it toward his cozy little house on the outskirts of the area, but he couldn't get there before the heavens opened up. "Blech! Ugh! It's like getting hit by a Hydro Pump from above," he groaned, using his two smaller heads as cover for his main one. He reached his house and threw the door open, fumbling inside. He was so focused on entering the house, he failed to account for the wooden chair sitting in the middle of the floor. Hydreigon flew right into it and flipped over it, landing on the floor with a thud.

Swirls appeared in all six of his eyes. "Ooooogh, when did that chair get there?" he muttered, waving his limbs in front of his main head.

 **"Wow. Impressive. I see some things just never change. Even in a floating body with three heads, you're still as clumsy as ever!"**

Hydreigon's heads shot up at this, and the smaller two hissed at the sight of Necrozma sitting comfortably in the house's other chair. A small fire crackled next to him, and Hydreigon could see threads of firelight trickling toward Necrozma's face.

 **"Now, now, there's no need to get all flustered,"** Necrozma assured. **"All I want to do is spend some quality time and catch up. See? I even started your fire for you. Come on… dry yourself off. Pull up a chair. Let's have ourselves a chat, Voice of Life."**

Hydreigon raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Lunala, is that you? I know it's been a few years, but some advanced notice would've been appreciated." He floated closer toward the fire, only to freeze up. "Wait a second." He narrowed his eyes at Necrozma. "Your life force… it's tainted. You're not Lunala, are you?" He raised his smaller heads and snapped at the air with them. "Who are you and what do you want?"

 **"Heeheehee. You really don't remember me?"** Necrozma said. **"It's me. Your old friend… Necrozma!"**

Hydreigon's face scrunched up in confusion, only for the realization to slowly set in. Surprise spread across all three of his heads. "You're… the Guiding Light?" He backed away, hissing at Necrozma with his smaller heads. "That's impossible! Solgaleo and Lunala assured me they had put you in some sort of inescapable void!"

Necrozma frowned. **"So… it's true. You know what happened to me."** His frown contorted into a snarl. **"And yet… you saw fit to help everyone try and pretend like I never existed! There wouldn't have been a Solgaleo and Lunala if it wasn't for me!"** His claws dug into the arms on the chair. **"But… oh no… we can't give Necrozma credit. Heaven forbid the** _ **lowly mortals**_ **ask questions we don't want to answer. Better to lie! Tell them** _ **Ho-Oh**_ – **that fat, worthless sack of feathers – made them. They'll buy that for sure!"**

"I think there's been a misunderstanding. Solgaleo and Lunala… they said you were on a rampage. It was either they contain your or kill you," Hydreigon said.

 **"A rampage? I was in pain!"** Necrozma shouted, slamming his arms onto the chair and shattering it. He floated into the air and draped his wings over his body. **"Golem** _ **hurt me.**_ **He took my light. He** _ **fractured**_ **my spirit! You… Arceus** _ **created you**_ **to help Pokémon like me! Why didn't you come to my aid when you heard what happened?"**

Sensing the escalating tension, Hydreigon floated back toward the door. Necrozma immediately teleported behind him. Hydreigon turned around and the flaps of scales around his three heads curled up in fright. "Hold on. Calm down. Please! I… I had no idea what was going on then. And there's no way I could've gotten there quick enough to–"

 **"Liar!"** Necrozma reached out and clamped his arms around Hydreigon's neck. **"You called me your friend! You made me a cake when I brought light back into the world. I really appreciated that. And yet, when I told you I was worried about Golem… you and the rest of the gods did** _ **nothing!**_ **"**

Hydreigon gasped for air. His smaller heads shakily raised up, trying to gather up dragonfire. Necrozma's red eyes flashed. Black crystals shot out of the ground and muzzled Hydreigon's smaller heads. Necrozma dug his claws into Hydreigon's throat. His gasps turned into panicked wheezes.

 **"Heeheeheehee. What's the matter? Bat got your tongue?"** Necrozma crooned, opening his mouth and licking his fangs. **"You know… the humans you love so much… they did research. Yes… lots of research. About what happens when you leave a person alone. No friends… no family… no one to even talk to."** Necrozma dropped Hydreigon, who fell to the floor in a crumpled heap. Hydreigon descended into a fit of raucous coughing. **"If I was** _ **really**_ **your friend… you would've helped me. You could've told Solgaleo and Lunala to bring me back. You could've tried to fix me."**

"I… I'm sorry…" Hydreigon wheezed. "Look, if you just give me time, I can…"

 **"It's too late for that!"** Necrozma snarled. He hoisted Hydreigon back into the air again. **"My core – my Ultranecrozmera – it's stuck in some** _ **stupid**_ **Lucario's skull! All because of you! Because you gods turned your backs on me!"** He brought Hydreigon close to his face. The red crescent moon in his forehead morphed into a piercing red eye. **"I want my light back. I want** _ **my spirit**_ **back. But Mistress Zero… heeheehee… she has my power!"**

Necrozma's wings spasmed and he nearly lost his grip on Hydreigon. **"See how Lunala fights my control? All because I don't have my Ultranecrozmera. I'm tired of this pain. I want light. I want** _ **life energy.**_ **"** He opened his mouth wide and drool trickled out of it. **"So, I've decided to take it… by force!"**

Hydreigon's eyes widened in horror. He again gathered dragonfire in his mouth but Necrozma slammed him onto the floor. **"What did Guildmaster Wigglytuff like to say, again? 'Truly evil Pokémon… don't really exist.' Well, that's a farce. But I'll play along. If you follow that logic… there isn't a drop of darkness in** _ **any**_ **of you. You're all brimming with light! Light for** _ **me**_ **to devour."**

Hydreigon burst up from the floor. Instead of dragonfire, three bolts of Dragon Pulse spiraled forward, coalescing into one large wave. Necrozma thrust an arm forward and split the Dragon Pulse in half with a single Shadow Ball. The attack exploded before it could reach Hydreigon, flooding the entire house with smoke. Hydreigon made for one of the windows, bursting through the wooden shutters. Rain pounded on his back the moment he exited the house, and smoke trailed out of the busted window.

"Somebody sound the alarm!" he roared. "There's an enemy attacking the Paradi– AIIIIIYYYYSSSSSSE!"

His warning turned into a cry of pain as dark black crystals speared him from below, knocking his smaller heads into his main one. The force of the blow made Hydreigon's entire world spin, to the point where he could only vaguely see swirls of blue and black in his vision. Necrozma reached out and caught Hydreigon before he could hit the ground. The dragon let out a weak groan.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Well now, isn't this fitting for a god who loves to pluck innocent, unsuspecting people from their homes?"** Necrozma taunted. **"It's not much fun when the shoe's on the other foot, is it? Oh, who am I kidding? Neither of us have feet!"**

Necrozma bent his head downward and sank his fangs into Hydreigon's gut. His three mouths opened wide and the life instantly faded from his eyes. Necrozma jerked his head upward, pulling the colors off of Hydreigon's body. He proceeded to slurp the dragon's life force up like it was an oversized pasta noodle. When all was said and done, he let his arms fall, and Hydreigon's colorless body fell to the ground with a thug.

"Hydreigon? Oh gods… Hydreigon!"

Necrozma smiled as Virizion charged forward. A blade of energy had appeared atop her forehead. "You monster! You're going to pay for this," she cried, lunging for Necrozma. Her angered expression slowly morphed into one of utter horror as her Sacred Sword passed harmlessly through Necrozma's crystalline body, poking out of his back. His grin widened.

 **"Hey, that tickles!"** he exclaimed. **"And I appreciate the mid-meal entertainment. Honestly… using a fighting-type move on a ghost. I thought you Legendaries were supposed to be clever. I know Mistress Zero wanted to kill you herself, but I'm not going to wait around if you're all** _ **this**_ **incompetent!"**

Virizion had no time to offer a retort, as Necrozma hands grabbed both sides of her body. She flailed about, letting out a scream. Necrozma dug his talons into her hide, and Virizion immediately went silent. Her head lolled lifelessly against her shoulder. Drool poured out of her mouth while her colors raced across Necrozma's arms and funneled into his open mouth. But rather than releasing her, Necrozma tightened his grip. As he did, black crystals spread across every inch of her dead body. Cracks appeared in the crystals seconds before Necrozma's iron grip shattered her into a thousand pieces.

"NO! VIRIZIIIOOOOOOOON!"

Necrozma looked up and noticed a tearful Emolga trying to fly toward him, with Dunsparce and Keldeo barely able to hold him back.

 **"Heeheeheehee. This just keeps getting better and better. Yes! Attack me! I'll take your light as my own!"** Necrozma cackled.

But before he could move to attack the newcomers, he felt a presence in the back of his mind. Zero's voice growled, _"Necky, where are you? I thought you were going to track down Tapu Lele. We had a deal!"_

His mouth clamped shut and his wings twitched. **"Of course, mistress. Just taking a moment to fill up on a little light before I go."**

 _"Well, hurry up. For all we know, Tapu Lele may have fled her temple. So, quit wasting time!"_

Necrozma felt the mental connection fade. **"Ah… the Tapu. Another batch of two-faced deceivers! I'll deal with them soon enough. But first…" He fixed his gaze on the Pokémon streaming out of various buildings, stealing panicked glances at him. "I'll suck the life right out of this town. Because your friendships are meaningless before Necrozma, Devourer of Light!"**

* * *

 **Episode 10: Tapu Fever**

 **Chapter 44: Instinctual Reactions**

* * *

 _"Phew. That was a tough one, team, but we managed to pull through in the end," Shane exclaimed, hoisting his Nintendo DS into the air with a smile on his face. "Good work, everyone!"_

 _Shane looked across his bed, where Nicky lay on the other end. He folded up his DS and slid it into his bag with a sigh. "Yeah. Good work… as usual."_

 _Shane's brow furrowed. "That's not how you're supposed to react, you know."_

 _"Huh?" Nicky blinked twice. "Oh… right." He sat up on the bed and snapped his fingers. "Curses… foiled again! You might've won this time… but Team Rocket never gives in so easily. We'll be back… just you wait!" Nicky proceeded to roll halfheartedly off the bed. He sat up on the floor and slumped back against the bedframe, sighing loudly again._

 _"That definitely wasn't your best take," Shane scoffed. "Is something the matter? You're acting kind of funny."_

 _Nicky rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Yes, Shane. Something is the matter. Why do I always have to play the bad guy?"_

 _Shane looked down at his DS. "Uh… well… b-because you're so good at it," he mumbled, opening and closing the DS repeatedly. "You can do all those funny voices. It makes the battles more fun that way. Aren't you having fun?"_

 _"No… not really," Nicky replied. "Because I'm tired of losing. Couldn't you just let me win one battle? Or at least let me be player one on occasion when we're doing a co-op game?"_

 _Shane looked at Nicky. Distorted rippled encircled Nicky's head. A pair of blue eyes glared back at him._ _ **"This boy means nothing to you,"**_ _a deep voice growled._

 _"H… huh?" Shane rubbed his eyes, sending the strange image away._

 _"Did you hear me?" Nicky asked._

 _"Y-yeah!" Shane said. "And I don't know what you're talking about. You've won plenty of battles. You beat me at Smash all the time."_

 _"Because you suck at Smash, dude," Nicky retorted. "No offense, but you self-destruct so often you'd make a Golem cry."_

 _"The controls are confusing!" Shane harrumphed. "Look, I don't see what the big deal is. It's just harmless fun."_

 _Nicky's expression darkened. "Right… harmless fun…"_

 _Shane looked down and noticed ripples of black cubes spreading across Nicky's face. They dissolved, replacing his head with that of a metal lion._ _ **"Forget this nonsense! It's all meaningless to you! Wake up! Remember who you are!"**_

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Shane's eyes shot open, silver filling his vision. He became acutely aware of the fact that he wasn't resting against his pillow. He turned his head and Silvally's feathers brushed against his cheek. Silvally's exhale came out as a soft whistle and he shifted. A paw brushed Shane's backside. He glanced over to see Tessa fast asleep beside him, attempting to drape an arm around him like he was a plush toy. He blinked a few times, steadily adjusting to the darkness in the room, and slowly slid out from between his teammates. As he got to his feet, he noticed Silvally curl into a tighter ball, wrapping Tessa up in the process. The sight brought a small grin to his muzzle, but it faded quickly.

 _'Looks like it's another sleepless night for me,'_ he thought, glancing out the window. The eerie purple glow of the moonlight had grown darker. It only served to unsettle Shane's stomach, forcing him to retreat out of the room. He stopped in the doorway. _'What is wrong with me? First these dream visions turn out to be a big lie. And now…'_ He shuddered.

Warmth hit Shane's cheek. He turned to the right and his whole face grew hot. His tails slowly fluttered at this. It took him a second to conclude that steam was filling up the hallway. _'Is someone showering… at this ungodly hour?'_

He padded forward, steam gradually enveloping his entire body. He noticed some dim, yellow lights to his right. Shane glanced over his shoulder, where he could just make out Umbreon sleeping in the room he'd been assigned. The rings on his body slowly pulsated with light as he breathed in and out. In the process, he managed to illuminate a faint outline of Latias' body. She was curled into a little ball, resting her head underneath her wing.

 _'If Latias and Umbreon are here, then that must mean…'_ His thoughts trailed off as light trickled out of the end of the hallway. Shane proceeded into the shower area, the floor dampening under his paws. He froze, absolutely certain that any further steps may alert whoever was in here to his presence. Shane looked toward the far corner of the room, where the clouds of steam were the thickest. He saw a luminous orb hovering by the wall. There was an outline next to it. He squinted, trying to see through the water and steam.

Eventually, he noticed a forked tail lazily drifting back and forth. Shane throat grew dry, despite all the moisture in the room. His face was already red from the heat, but now he felt more blood rushing toward it. He continued staring, failing to realize there was a problem until the tail disappeared in the steam, and a pair of glowing blue eyes replaced it. Shane realized his mistake one second before hot water drenched him, sending him to the ground. He slid across the room, coming to rest atop one of the drains.

Shane looked up and found Espeon standing over him, water dripping off her fur. "Enjoying the view?" she asked. Shane rolled onto his belly and planted his head against the wet drain. But a forepaw grabbed his head and yanked it back up. "No, no, by all means, keep staring," Espeon exclaimed. She let go of his head and slowly spun around in a circle, flicking her tail against Shane's snout. "Take it all in, why don't you."

"I… I was sleepwalking! I didn't realize–"

Espeon grabbed a towel from a nearby hook and wrapped it around her torso. "Don't lie to me," she said. "In fact, let's have ourselves a little chat."

"In here?" Shane gulped. "But what if–"

"You clearly don't seem to have a problem with coming in here for stupid reasons," Espeon scoffed. "So, yes, in here." She slid the towel along her body and let it hang over her hips. "Why have you been staring at me all day, huh?"

"Muh-me? I wasn't… that wouldn't…" Shane stammered, his face bright red.

"I wasn't born yesterday, you know," Espeon said. "You think you're the first guy to check me out? Far from it. Probably won't be the last, either. Mom warned me about this. 'Espeons have a certain _physique_ that a large number of Pokémon in our egg group will find appealing. So, I hope you're prepared to deal with that.'" Espeon shook her head. "I'm just surprised because you're supposed to be human. So, what's the deal? I want an explanation."

Shane dug his head under his forepaws. But Espeon grabbed one of his ears and yanked it up. Shane let out a whine. "Ow, ow, OW! Stop it! That hurts. We're gonna wake everyone up like this."

"I don't care," Espeon said. "Answer my question."

"Alright, alright," Shane groaned. Espeon released his ear. He flopped down against a puddle and spit up some water. "I know… it's stupid. I'm stupid. I just…" He let out a loud sigh. "Look, you exist in my world. Sort of." He sheepishly poked at the puddle of water with a forepaw. "So, I already knew about you and Umbreon. And, well, Espeon happens to be one of my favorite species. So, I definitely liked you for that reason. But then…" He lowered his head shamefully. "… I woke up in this body. And suddenly, liking Espeons didn't feel good enough anymore."

Espeon sat down and curled her tail around her legs. "Go on," she said.

"I have different instincts. Every time I see you, my heart starts racing. Then there's a tingle that runs along my back, right to the tips of my tails," Shane said, covering his eyes up with his forepaws. "And when I actually met you, you... y'know... made some advances toward me. Yeah, you were working for the Prism Virus, so I was a bit creeped out. But then you told us that you were well aware of everything you were doing. So… so I thought that… maybe… you were attracted to me, too."

Espeon closed her eyes and let out a sigh. "Well then. That's, um, certainly something. So, you really do have a crush on me?"

Shane nodded shamefully. "I know how ridiculous it sounds. But ever since that Bewear attacked me, it's just…" He trailed off and let out a frustrated hiss. "I feel like I'm losing my mind!"

"That's your excuse?" Espeon said, looking unamused.

"You wouldn't understand," Shane whispered meekly. "Each day that passes… every time I wake up… it feels less and less like I'm a human. Like I was _ever_ a human."

"You're right. I don't understand," Espeon said. "Sounds like you're speaking in riddles to me."

"I'm not," Shane insisted. "I tried to fall asleep this evening. But I just woke right up. Because my dream… it was just someone yelling at me. Telling me all my memories are fake. And I need to wake up and remember… something." He smacked his head with a forepaw. "What if it's true? What if I'm actually just a Vulpix? What if all these human memories are actually fake?"

Espeon seemed taken aback at this. "You're right, that does sound bad," she said. "But that's no excuse to keep checking me out. It's making me uncomfortable." Her brow furrowed. "And, I'm sorry, but I don't return your feelings. At all."

"Because of Umbreon?" Shane croaked.

Espeon's eyes narrowed at him. "No, of course not. What would make you think that?"

Shane blinked in surprise. "A… aren't you two intimate? You have pet names for each other, don't you?"

Espeon hissed in frustration. "You found that old tabloid article, didn't you? The one those _stupid_ Jellicent wrote about us." Shane's eyes widened. "It's a hoax. A load of crock. Someone saw us snuggling together for warmth one evening. That's _all_ that happened! We're brother and sister, understand? We've been by each other's sides since the day we both hatched. I have _no_ interest in _any_ romantic relationships. If I did, I'd have settled down to start a family years ago." She shook her head angrily. "Who showed you that article, huh? I swear, I'll make that 'mon wish they were never born!"

Shane's muzzled stiffened. _'Maybe I should just leave out her thoughts about Umbreon from the Connection Orb, then. I'm already in enough hot water as it is… literally.'_ He coughed weakly. "Okay. I understand. I'm really sorry and I'll try not to let it happen again."

Espeon's gaze turned icy. "You'll _try?_ " she growled.

Shane's ears shot up and his face went bright red. "No. I mean yes! I mean… we can still be friends, right?"

Espeon slapped him across the snout. Shane gingerly placed a paw on his stinging cheek. "Control your urges, perv. And then we can talk," she said, and left the room in a huff.

Shane hung his head in shame. "Nice going, you moron," he whispered. "No wonder you never dated."

"… you should consider yourself lucky. When she found out about that gossip article, she tied the Jellicents' limbs together and tossed them into the Altar of Ice. I had to drag her out before she could summon Kyurem to eat them."

Shane's ears twitched, and he looked up to see Umbreon standing in the doorway. He clearly looked tired, but this was the first time he didn't look as serious as Espeon. Still, a panicked expression overtook Shane's face. "How much of that did you hear?" he whimpered.

"I came in at the part where you said your heart starts racing when you see Espy," Umbreon replied stoically.

Shane's fur bristled. "I'm sorry. I didn't… I wasn't going to try anything, I swear!"

Umbreon sighed. He walked over and offered his forepaw. Shane looked at it skeptically, but clasped it anyway. Umbreon hoisted him back to his feet. "Look. Espy's… changed over the years. Between the Bittercold and Dark Matter, she's not the same sister I grew up with."

"I think I can see that," Shane said.

"I figured. She's a lot more… emotionally volatile, to say the least," Umbreon declared. "Little things set her off these days. One moment, she can be walking about cheerfully, and then the next, she's a sobbing wreck." He lowered his head. "I've tried to do the best I can to support her. It's tough sometimes." He scrunched his face up. "I love her… I really do. But ever since Dark Matter's attack… she's been driving me up a wall!"

He shook his head forcefully. "So many nights of sleep lost to Espy waking up, shouting about Void Shadows that aren't really there. Evenings coming home to broken glasses and spiked berry juice scattered around the house." He shuddered. "Stardust hidden under her pillow." That comment drew a confused look from Shane, but Umbreon paid him no mind. He let out an unhinged laugh. "I don't even know why I'm telling you this. You're nothing to us. Espy would try to strip the fur off my skin if she heard me saying this."

"But I don't care. I need to get it off my chest. She's unbearable! And, after all that stuff with Zero, it's just too much for me to handle. I'm afraid of what the future holds for her. I can't keep her grounded anymore. I'm exhausted. And I really don't know what to do." He stopped walking and lowered his head shamefully. "Know how Espy and I got split up today? It wasn't your Guildmaster's doing… it was me."

"What are you talking about?"

"I told him to split us up!" Umbreon declared. "Because if I had to spend an afternoon dungeon-crawling with her after all of this, I was gonna start pulling out my fur." Another unhinged laugh escaped his lips. "Imagine how horrified I was to hear she fell down a ravine and got crushed in a cave-in."

"I… I had no idea things were this bad," Shane whimpered. "Is there anything I can do to help? Please! I… I don't want to see you two like this."

"Ha!" Umbreon laughed again, his voice cracking. "You've done enough already. If you want Espy's friendship so badly, keep your conversations with her superficial," Umbreon said. Shane blinked in confusion at this. "It's what our friends back in the Mist and Water Continents do," he continued. "But, enough about that. Because I want to talk about what happened underground." His eyes narrowed at Shane. "Specifically, about what you did to Espy."

"It was an accident. I didn't mean to… I mean, I know it was reckless, but it was do or die, so…" Shane's voice trailed off and he shrank down to the floor. "Please don't hurt me," he squeaked.

"… tch. It's in the past, now. I don't have anything to gain by attacking you. Especially if we're on the same side," Umbreon scoffed. "No, I wanted to know how in the world you managed to heal my sister up with _Morning Sun_ when you're a Vulpix."

Shane gulped. "Ah, you, uh, know about that?"

"I heard about it from Silvally. He had no idea what you did. But, from the way he described it, there's nothing else it could've been," Umbreon explained. "I've seen Espy use it hundreds of times, after all."

Shane scratched the back of his neck. "Um, I don't really know what to tell you. I'm not sure how I did it, either." He looked back at Umbreon. "But that's part of why it feels like my humanity is slipping away from me. Something's really wrong here. Bruxish told me my ability is not normal. And now I'm using moves I shouldn't know."

Umbreon raised a skeptical brow. "Based on what I'd heard from your guild mates, I expected you to start prancing around boasting about how awesome you are."

Shane's ears drooped. "No, it's not awesome. It's scary!" he whined.

"I can't help you there," Umbreon said. "Speak to Latias tomorrow. She's an empath, so she might be able to help." He turned and left the room. Shane remained standing there for another minute before plodding out of the shower area. He winced with each squelching noise his wet paws made against the ground.

Shane brushed his sides against the doorway to his room, trying to get off as much water as possible. It hardly proved effective. Shane let out a defeated sigh and lay down on the floor, not wanting to wake up his teammates. He started to curl up into a ball, when he felt fur and feathers against his back. Shane's body stiffened, and he looked up to see a pair of silver eyes sparkling in the moonlight.

"What are you doing?" Shane whispered.

In response to this, Silvally curled up around Shane. Cold metal pressed against Shane's wet fur as Silvally's Looplet touched his shoulder. "I think you could use some positive vibes right now," he replied.

A soothing sensation rippled across Shane's body. He let out a yawn and his eyelids slowly closed. "Th… thanks…" he muttered.

"What are friends for?" Silvally replied.

Shane drifted off into a dreamless sleep. He slept through the remainder of the night, waking up to the sound of footsteps, followed by Tessa shouting, "You guys gotta get up right now!" Shane's muzzle twitched and he sat up, blinking the sleep from his eyes. As his vision cleared, he noticed the worried look on Tessa's face.

"Is something wrong?" he asked, getting to his feet. Silvally looked between his teammates, beak clamped shut.

"Yes, I think. I don't know all the details, but Espeon and Umbreon are really upset! They said Pokémon Paradise was attacked last night."

Shane's tails shot up and his fur bristled. "Attacked? But that's… that's… no way!" He sprinted out of the room, leaving his teammates standing there with bewildered expressions on their faces. They jogged after him, stopping when they reached the assembly area.

"Nooooo. Umbrrryyyyyyy! This can't be truuuuuuuuuue!"

Espeon collapsed onto the floor, her face buried in her forelegs. Umbreon sat beside her, a stunned look on his face. He looked right at Tessa and Null, but they could both tell he was practically catatonic. Slowly, he lowered his head to face his sister. "E-Espy…"

"This is all our fault!" Espeon wailed. "Our home… _our friends_ … gone! And it's our fault, Umbry. Our fault!" Without warning, she grabbed his torso and dragged him to the ground. She buried her face in the scruff of his neck and continued crying, her body quivering.

"I can't believe this," Shane whispered from beside his teammates.

"I know," Primarina said, fins pressed against his head. "She cries half an octave flat, babe. It's absolutely terrible."

Shane shot Primarina a look that screamed "Seriously, dude?"

"How did this happen?" Tessa wondered.

"I'm still trying to figure that one out for myself," Latias exclaimed, floating over to join Team Radiance. Her eyes glowed bright-blue. "Latios is sight-sharing with me right now. It's… it's really not pretty. The Prism Virus got Post Town too, by the look of it."

"Can we take a look?" Shane asked.

Tessa's aura feelers jolted up at this. "Are you sure that's such a good idea?" she squeaked. But it was too late. A powerful presence filled up her mind and, in an instant, Tessa found herself standing in open air. She barked frightfully, expecting to plummet to her death. But, to her surprise, she remained suspended in midair.

"Oh my god," Shane muttered. "This is horrible!" He and his teammates surveyed the wreckage. Crystals jutted out of the ground, covering every square inch of settlement. The ground was littered with scattered patches of soil and broken rocks from the buildings that previously stood there. But it wasn't long before those also turned into black gems, sucking in the light from the air around them.

"And now this place has one of those monoliths too," Silvally said, glancing at the spire sticking out of the ground. The star insignia now had a piercing red eye in its center that stared out across the ruined town, sending shivers down Team Radiance's spines. Latias severed the mental connections, returning Team Radiance to the assembly area with grim expressions on their faces.

She floated back from them. "Sorry I can't show you more. I've got to deal with the Expedition Society right now." She floated off toward the staircase, a worried look spreading across her face. Latias left Team Radiance standing in silence. All of them exchanged worried looks.

"What's going to happen now?" Tessa wondered. "Are they going to evacuate the Mist Continent? Send everyone into the Mystery Dungeons because at least they're not out in the open that way?" She fidgeted with her paws. "Did Zero do all of that?"

"No… it had to have been Lunala… or whatever's really controlling him."

The team turned to see Umbreon looking at them. They could see tears brimming in his eyes. "He can take a Pokémon's life force, and then turn its lifeless body into black crystals." A shudder ran across his body. "We saw it for ourselves multiple times."

Tessa tensed up this. She thought back to her conversation with Shane in Glyphic Falls. _'That can't be true. Maybe there's just another Lunala. An evil Lunala. Mom's okay. The Prism Virus hasn't gotten to her. She's the strongest Pokémon I know.'_

"If that's the case, shouldn't we be doing something?" Shane spoke up. "Why are we all still working separately from one another?" Tessa and Silvally looked over at Shane. "We need to start pooling our resources together or the Prism Virus is going to just take down one community at a time."

"It's not that easy, human," Umbreon replied. "You're acting like the groups back home are just sitting around, twiddling their paws."

"And how would you know what they've been doing?" Shane wondered.

"Shane, don't you think you're being a little harsh?" Tessa asked.

Shane's muzzle stiffened as he noticed Umbreon's ears drooping. While Espeon's sobs had quieted, she still lay on the ground, unresponsive. "Sorry," he said, taking a deep breath. "It's just… there are other humans living over there. And they've dealt with this kind of stuff before. If we could just get there help, then–"

 _Ruuuuuuuumble!_

The ground started to shake, making Shane in surprise. "Wha-what's going on? Is this an earthquake?" His tails jolted into the air. "Are we under attack?"

Latias' head poked over the staircase. "You guys are going to want to see this!" she shouted. Team Radiance exchanged nervous looks but ran up the stairs in unison. They found the front entrance open and several guild staff members assembled around a large metal rod that pulsated with blue and gold energy.

"That wasn't there before," Tessa realized. "What the heck is it?"

"Only one way to find out," Shane said, and proceeded out the guild's main entrance. His teammates joined him just as the tip of the rod shot a beam into the air. The trio looked up and watched the energy rise above them until it exploded outward. Blue and gold energy raced across the sky, blanketing Aeon Town. Slowly it trickled down toward the ground, eventually connecting to the outskirts of the city to form a dome.

"Did you guys just erect a forcefield?" Shane gasped. "How? Why?" He looked up at the energy dome again.

 **Affirmative,** Metagross replied. **Fact: after becoming Guildmaster, I ordered Magearna to construct a barrier device for the town. Fact: it is powered by emera ores.**

"But I thought these days it was taboo to use them for anything," Latias squeaked, stealing frightful glances at the glowing rod.

 **It might be. But I deemed this action necessary to protect Horizon's citizens from malevolent forces,** Metagross replied. **Fact: we have placed similar devices underground in other communities. Fact: Braviary and Volcarona have departed to activate these devices. Fact: we also installed them in Lively Town, Treasure Town, Post Town, and Pokémon Square.**

 **I placated a call to the Expedition Society telling them to activate their barrier and get other towns to do the same,** Magearna added. **The primal energy in the emera ores should be strong enough to repellenate the infected Lunala.**

"How are we supposed to get in or out of the city, though?" Shane asked. "Does this mean we're trapped here?"

 **Negative,** Metagross replied. **Fact: small, temporary holes can be made in the barrier to permit entrance and exit from Aeon Town.**

"And what's just stopping the Prism Virus from teleporting someone in here, huh?" Shane wondered.

 **Primal energy,** Magearna answered. **Most of the world's Legendaries use primal energy to keep their domains protected. For example, it's primal energy that forms the basis of the sealed pockets that Temporal Tower and Spacial Rift sit in.**

"And didn't Espeon say that Zero was after the Dawn Hourglass in order to get around those barriers?" Tessa thought aloud.

"Okay, point taken. But, if you guys can do all this fancy-schmancy barrier stuff, why aren't we trying to get the Expedition Society and other guilds over here to help us out?" Shane asked. "What happened to strength in numbers, huh?"

Metagross turned and glared at Shane, sending his tails shooting between his legs. His eyes glowed blue and he said, **That is illogical for a number of reasons. Fact: the fastest method to get us in one location we be use of Hoopa's rings, which is far too risky. Fact: putting us all in one location would create an enormous target for the Prism Virus to strike with. Fact: it would also leave other parts of the world vulnerable to attack.**

 **I heard it from Dedenne. The Expedition Society is stretched thin right now,** Magearna continued. **Numerous reports of Pokémon getting sucked into wormholes and plopped into the middle of Mystery Dungeons. Not to mention the weather-relatiated issues that the enlarged moon's bringing about.**

"I get it. I get it. Sorry for bringing it up," Shane growled. "It's just… it doesn't feel like we're making any progress here."

 **Fact: our top priority is now to locate the Tapus and the Dawn and Dusk Hourglasses,** Metagross declared. **Order: Team Radiance will depart for Aurora Vale posthaste. Order: you will locate the Temple of Mind.**

"And what exactly do we do if we find it?" Silvally asked.

 **Order: get Tapu Lele to bring the Dawn Hourglass to Aeon Town,** Metagross exclaimed. **Once we have both hourglasses, I will explain my plan in greater detail.**

Tessa and Silvally exchanged concerned looks. Shane slumped over. "You mean we have to go through the entirety of Aurora Vale again?" he asked. "That place is dangerous now. And we need to be at our best."

 **I concurbulate,** Magearna said. **Which is why you're going to use my Geartronic Dungeon Penetratorizer to immediately warp to the end of Aurora Vale. Thanks to some fine-tuning, I've gotten its error rate down to three percent. I believe you should have no difficultifiers using it.**

Shane looked at the metal device apprehensively. "Isn't that the thing you said could _explode_ if we don't use it right?"

 **Yes. However, I estimate the odds of it spontaneously combusting as one in six thousand, six hundred, and thirty-seven, with rounding,** Magearna reported.

"I like those odds!" Silvally chirped. "Besides, it beats trudging through that place again, right? I mean, it could be fun to skate across the ice, sure. And I suppose I could use my fire memories to try and burn us a path through. But I think we'd run out of elixirs if we did that." He scratched at his cheek bolt with a hind leg. "Not that I wouldn't enjoy torching the place after all the flak it gave us. We've gotta be practical here, right?"

He turned to give Shane the closest thing to a smile he could manage with his stiff beak. Sweat drops appeared on the back of Shane's head. "Uh, sure. Whatever makes it quick for us, I guess." He looked back at Metagross. "And what's everyone else doing while we're charging into danger, huh?"

 **Fact: teams will be sent to the locations where we believe the other temples are. They will offer the Tapumeras we created to gain access,** Metagross replied.

"Hopefully, this means we can get the Dusk Hourglass, too," Latias exclaimed.

Metagross nodded. **You are in sufficient health to fly the teams to their respective locations?**

Latias' face blanched. "You want me to take _everyone?_ "

 **Affirmative. Fact: your in-air velocity exceeds that of a Sharpedo in the water,** Metagross replied. **Conclusion: you can cover the distances in Horizon much quicker.**

Latias gulped. "I'll, um, do my best, I guess," she whispered.

 **Team Radiance, are you prepared to depart?** Metagross asked.

Shane and Silvally nodded, but Tessa put her paws against her chest and stiffened. "No, wait! I forgot our new item bag. I should go back and–"

"Wait! Please wait! I've got it right here!"

Mimikyu scuttled out of the Observatory, only to trip on his rag and faceplant on the ground. Shane's stiffened at the sight of ectoplasmic wisps seeping out from the base of Mimikyu's disguise. "S-Sorry… I'm sorry," he mumbled, pulling himself upright. He slipped the bag off his neck and pushed it over to Tessa. "Here. I grabbed it out of your room. Please don't be mad at me for going in!"

"It's fine, dude," Shane dismissed. "You saved us a little bit of time." He helped Tessa sling the new item bag over her shoulder. "Alright, I guess we've got everything we need. So, what, we go outside this forcefield and activate the device?" Magearna nodded and the team started walking away from the Observatory.

"Wait! Please wait… err… again!"

Shane stopped short. Silvally walked into him and knocked him onto his belly. Mimikyu sped forward. "Tuh… take me with you!" he begged, before seeing Shane collapsed on the ground. "Oh. Or, y'know, don't. It's entirely up to you and I wouldn't want to be a burden–"

"Hold up. You actually _want_ to come with us?" Tessa asked. "Have you _seen_ the stuff we've been dealing with lately?"

"Nuh-no. I mean… uh…" Mimikyu tugged at his disguise. "Of course I've _seen_ what you guys look like coming back from your missions. And… and that's why I want to help. I know I'm not _really_ a guild member. But there's bad stuff happening out there. If I don't do anything, then I'm just going to end up in danger anyway! At least this way, I can take a stand, right?" He looked away from Tessa. "Oh, who am I kidding? You guys probably think I'm just a nuisance, don't you?"

"Eh, why not let him come?" Shane said, shrugging. "You don't need him for anything, do you Guildmaster?"

 **Fact: I had assigned him to clean dishes in the dining area,** Metagross replied.

Mimikyu's raggedy head perked up. "You really mean it?"

"We need all the help we can get at this point," Shane said. "And it's probably not good to rely on Silvally here to carry the team."

Silvally shrugged. "I'm willing to battle as much as it takes."

 **Order: enough idle chatter. Depart for Aurora Vale at once,** Metagross thundered. A rainbow of different colors flashed across his eyes, drawing alarm from the entire group. They hastily left, making for the edge of town. Latias floated along after them.

"Hey, uh, human," she called, flying up to Shane.

"What?"

"That suggestion you made earlier and Metagross shot down… I think I'm going to try and contact my brother about it," Latias said.

"To do what, exactly?" Shane asked.

"I'm going to see if we can convince Hoopa to help us," Latias said. "I… um… I'm not really sure I trust what your Guildmaster's doing here."

Shane's ears folded against his face. _'So she thinks there's something wrong… and she's actually a powerful psychic!'_ He gulped. "W… what do you mean by that?"

"I don't agree with his belief that we shouldn't be pooling resources," she said. "That's the kind of circular thinking that led to problems in the past. That's why I want to reach out to Hoopa. If we're lucky, _maybe_ he'll agree to help without asking for anything unreasonable in return."

"Seriously? Isn't, y'know, being allowed to live enough of a reward?" Shane groaned.

"Not for Hoopa. He's… um… he's a bit of a character," Latias muttered. "Anyway, good luck with Tapu Lele." She waved farewell to the team and zoomed back off to the Observatory.

Tessa wanted to press the issue further with Shane, but they had reached the edge of the town. "Okay then," Shane said, setting Magearna's device on the ground. "Magearna said she put in all the coordinates. So, all I need to do is press this suspicious-looking big red button, and it should take us to the end of Aurora Vale."

"Then we find the temple, talk to Tapu Lele, and bring her back with the Dawn Hourglass," Silvally said. "With any luck, we'll be back in time for a real lunch!"

Tessa's ears drooped. "Knowing our luck, there's no way that's happening."

"C'mon, don't think like that," Silvally said. "We've had such a lousy streak, that it's about time for something to go our way. Be positive!"

"I think it's best that we stay on our guard," Shane exclaimed. "Everyone ready?" His teammates nodded. "Then let's hope this thing really works." He stuck his forepaw out and pressed the large red button. The device started to vibrate and sparks flew around it. Shane stepped backward, biting his lower lip.

"Is it supposed to be doing that?" Silvally asked.

"I don't know. But back in the human world, if things starting smoking and shaking like this, it was usually a bad sign," Shane whimpered.

Suddenly, beams of light shot out of the metal plate, swallowing up each member of Team Radiance. They instantly retreated into the plate, and a small portal appeared underneath it. The plate fell through the portal, which then disappeared in a blinding flash of light. Only a scorch mark remained on the ground, giving off a trail of black smoke. The area fell into silence for a few moments, before a nearby set of bushes rustled.

"Ha! Told you gits this was the perfect place to lay low."

Lycanroc popped out of the bush, stretching out his back. "We found Snowy and his band of freaks without needing to lift a paw. Not bad, eh?"

Jangmo-o stepped out of the bush, spitting out a mouthful of leaves. "Did we have to pick such a thorny bush to hide in, though? I think I pricked the underside of my tail… and it's really sensitive down there."

A rock flew out of the bush and conked Jangmo-o on the head. He toppled over, swirls in his eyes, while Sneasel stomped out. His body was covered in nicks and scrapes. "What're you complaining about, you dunce? You've got a body of scales. Thanks to you, I look like I just hugged a Pyukumuku!"

"How's it my fault?" Jangmo-o whimpered, sitting back up. His eyes spun about in their sockets.

"You sat on me, tubby! That wasn't a thorn pricking your tail, it was _me!_ " Sneasel hissed, brandishing his claws.

"Quiet, mates," Lycanroc growled. "Ain't my fault you two are a pair of softies. Not even a prison stint can harden you up. I ought to toss ya both back in that bush."

Their faces blanched at this. "Oh yeah? Well… well… your breath stinks!" Jangmo-o countered, causing Lycanroc to roll his eyes.

"And what was the point of finding Snowy if we just let him run off, anyway?" Sneasel asked.

In response to this, Lycanroc smacked Sneasel's head. "Use your brain, mate. Assuming you've got one, of course. Didn't you hear 'em? They're trying to find one of the Tapus. That means, they're going to come back with some banging treasure." He rubbed his hands together. "All we have to do is wait for them to come back and–"

"But boss, there's, like, one more of them than there is of us," Jangmo-o squeaked. "We ain't supposed to pick fights where we're outnumbered. That's bad maths!"

Lycanroc sarcastically applauded the dragon. "Bravo, mate. You can count. I was kinda worried there for a moment." He crouched on all fours and then flicked the tip of Jangmo-o's snout.

"Owie! My schnozzle," he whimpered, eyes tearing up.

"Think about it, mate. They'll be super tired from their mission. Meaning they'll be easy pickings," Lycanroc said. "Now, as I was saying, we jump them, take their treasure, and bring it back to the guild. Then _we'll_ be welcomed in with open arms, while Snowy and his flunkies'll be the laughing stock of Horizon."

He pointed a paw back toward the bush. "Now get your butts back in there, mates. I ain't bailing your hides out if you get seen by someone." Sneasel and Jangmo-o sighed and trudged back into the thorny bush. Lycanroc smirked. "That's right, Snowy. Have fun with Tapu Lele. Team Fang'll have a nice surprise waiting for when you get back."

* * *

Some review replies before I go...

Another guest: glad you got a kick out of the joke. It was fun to write.

Commenter: I enjoy it quite a lot. I even have a little headcanon soundtrack going for it that works pretty well.

Anon Omega: that's a solid Shane-tier dad joke you've got there. Are you sure you're not stealing my chapter drafts from my computer?

Next time: Tapu Lele's temple forces Team Radiance to do some serious mental gymnastics.


	53. Temple Traversing Troubles

The question and answer session is now available for viewing on my profile page. And with perfect timing, since this story just passed 20,000 views! I'm astounded and very thankful to you all. Give it a read if you're interested and let me know what you think. Otherwise, here's a new chapter slightly ahead of schedule. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 45: Temple Traversing Troubles**

 **~Celestial Island~**

 _SMACK!_

Necrozma's head slammed into glass table, shattering it instantly. His ethereal body flopped to the ground. Zero pressed down harder on his skull, making him squeal. **"Muh-mistress, stop it! I was just… doing what you wanted. I needed more light. Can you blame me?"**

Zero's outstretched paw flickered in and out of existence. The distortion spread to Necrozma's body and he began screeching loudly. "You overstepped your boundaries, Necky. The Prism Virus is after Legendaries. _Only_ Legendaries," she growled. Her crystalline claws dug into the armor covering Necrozma's head. An eerie noise reverberated through the room.

 **"Skreeeeep! I'm sorry, mistress. I couldn't control myself. So many Pokémon… so much light! I had to eat it all. It helped send the pain away,"** Necrozma sputtered, his body spasming under Zero's grip. **"How is it any different… from what you did to Sylveon and Eevee, huh?"**

"The Prism Virus is trying to make a better world and that will all go to waste if there are no Pokémon to inhabit it," Zero growled. "I don't care how 'hungry' you claim to be. Exercise a little restraint. Or I'll be forced to renege on our agreement."

Necrozma's jolted in surprise. Zero clamped down on his head even harder. **"No… you wouldn't. You promised I'd get my light back!"** he barked. **"I must devour it! I must consume it!"**

"Then do as I tell you to," Zero ordered. She released her grip on Necrozma and stood back up, dusting off her armor. She glanced at the octahedron in her staff, her red eye flickering with rainbow light. "Once I've reshaped the world, I can try to bring back the mortal Pokémon you so recklessly did away with."

 **"I won't let you!"** Necrozma shouted, floating into the air and spreading his wings apart. **"They're** _ **all**_ **part of me now. I can feel their spirits inside me… wriggling around! Filling the emptiness** _ **you**_ **left me with. I won't give them back. Their spirits… they're too succulent!"**

"You should have thought about that before crashing into me in Glyphic Falls," Zero snapped. "You have no one but yourself to blame for your current situation."

 **"Me?"** Necrozma glared at Zero. **"You're the one keeping my light hostage! This is all on your head!"** He wrapped his wings over his body to stop his arms from spasming. **"If you didn't have my Ultranecrozmera I'd** _ **annihilate**_ **you on the spot! You don't care about me at all, do you?"**

"You're not exactly my idea of a good friend, Necky," Zero said, tapping her staff.

Necrozma's red eyes flashed ominously. **"I knew it. Even with all my light powering you, you can't stand me!"** He floated back and shook his head violently. He dragged his wing-claws across his forehead. **"All of you… are the same. Every time I try to do something good… to make someone happy… they don't care! They try to get rid of me!"** He craned his head down look Zero in the eye. **"Maybe… I shouldn't wait. My core… you've drained it. But better a greatly-damaged core than no core at all!"**

Zero snarled and raised her staff. Dark energy swirled around it. "If you try anything funny, I'll yank your tiny spirit fragment out of Lunala and obliterate it. And before you laugh it off, look at how well I've done since I melded part of your spirit to Lunala's. I have control of my body back." Her eye narrowed. "Like it or not, you need me around if you want free will."

Necrozma opened his mouth to retort, only to shut it. He floated away from Zero, gnashing his teeth together. **"Then what is your order…** _ **mistress.**_ **"**

"You know what I want. Go to Aurora Vale. Get the Dawn Hourglass from Tapu Lele," Zero said. "No dawdling. And none of your stupid little games. Do whatever you feel is necessary. And if you encounter any unexpected opposition…" Her eye narrowed and she clenched her free paw. "… get rid of it."

 **"As you wish, mistress,"** Necrozma said, giving a comically overexaggerated bow. **"Anything else?"**

"I need an Ultra Wormhole stabilized to the base of Mt. Thunder," Zero instructed, gesturing beside her.

 **"Oh? And why should I waste my light doing that?"**

"Because it's time I paid Zapdos a visit. He owes me some answers," Zero said, eye flashing dark blue. "Now, do as you're told!"

Necrozma lazily raised his arm and pointed it beside Zero. An Ultra Wormhole popped up next to her. Zero raised her staff and slammed it against the ground. A yellow and black blur shot through the room, disappearing into the wormhole. Seconds later, Dragonite fluttered back out of it. She dusted off the black, armored helmet on her head, exposing an insignia of a broken red heart. The same sigil appeared on each of her black, crystalline wings, superimposed on Necrozma's star icon.

"That's Mt. Thunder all right," Dragonite said, keeping her electric-blue eyes focus on Necrozma. The Xurkitree-like antennae sticking out of her helmet bobbed up and down in front of her face.

 **"Come now. What, did you think I was going to open a portal into the mouth of a volcano or something?"** Necrozma sneered.

"Yes," Zero replied. "Now, stop dawdling and leave."

Necrozma grinned. **"Very well. After all, I wouldn't want to arrive at the Temple of Mind too… Tapu Le-** _ **late**_ **! Heeheeheehee!'** He turned and gave a flap of his wings. A second Ultra Wormhole opened in front of Necrozma and he flew right into it. The portal shut behind him before he could see Zero rubbing her temple.

"Mistress, if I may?" Dragonite spoke up, tapping her talons on her black, heart-shaped chest plate. "Why are you still putting up with him? Is Necrozma really that essential, here?"

Zero tightened her grip on her scepter. "Yes," she seethed. "Loathe as I am to admit it, his Ultranecrozmera is the only thing keeping me alive." She nudged her helmet. "It's taking every ounce of willpower to keep his broken spirit subdued inside of me. It's trying to wrestle away control of my own body. If I try to kill the part of Necky's spirit I corrupted Lunala with, I'm confident his core will fly into a violent rage that I won't be able to stop."

Dragonite's eyes widened. She opened her mouth, only to freeze. After a moment of silence, she finally asked, "Okay, how does that work?"

"It's all about balance… or _imbalance,_ " Zero hissed. "Necky is barely who he thinks he is. That's Lunala's body, Lunala's mind, and Lunala's spirit. I drained a small portion of Necky's life energy from his core into Lunala. And then I transferred all of Necky's memories to her. Thus, Lunala's infected by Necrozma." She shook her head. "I can't lie… having Ultra Wormholes at our disposal is immensely helpful."

"But Necrozma's growing harder to control," Dragonite pointed out. "He could undo everything we're working for."

"I'm aware of that," Zero snapped. "Which is why we just need to beat him to the punch. Did you find what I asked for?"

Dragonite produced a worn, tattered book from inside her chest plate. "Yup. It was in the researchers' old room, just like you thought." She handed the book over to Zero, who started flipping through it. "But what's that dusty old thing going to help us accomplish?"

Zero froze mid-page turn and looked down. Her lone eye slowly widened. "I'll have to look this over more thoroughly while we're climbing Mt. Thunder. But, I might have found a way to keep the world's daylight _and_ dispose of Necrozma in one fell swoop."

She held up the book, allowing Dragonite to see the page it was turned to. It held a drawing of a green, compass-like rune with spokes poking out of it. And in the rune's center sat a silver, six-pronged gear.

* * *

 **~Aurora Vale~**

Magearna's invention popped up out of a golden portal. Four balls of light arced up from the metal plate. They landed on the ground and burst apart. A single member of Team Radiance emerged from each one. "Ooooooogh," Tessa groaned, clutching at her stomach. "I think–" She threw a paw over her muzzle and belched. "–we made it."

Shane's face looked a particularly off shade of yellow. "All in favor of never doing that again?"

"Aye!" his teammates shouted in unison.

"Great. Motion passes unanimously. Go team," Shane deadpanned, before collapsing on his belly, stars swirling around his vision.

"So, this is Aurora Vale?" Mimikyu asked. He hunched down, trying to keep the winds from blowing off his disguise. "I didn't think it'd be so… cold."

"That would be thanks to the Prism Virus," Silvally exclaimed. His appendages glowed dark red, signifying he'd taken on the mantle of a fire-type. Steam rose off his body as harsh, snowy winds made contact. His gaze fell on the monolith, which still towered over the end area of the dungeon.

"How would a temple even hide here, anyway?" Mimikyu wondered. "This place is wide open." He noticed Silvally giving him a skeptical look. "Eep! Sorry! I didn't mean to ask a stupid question."

A frightened squeak drew Silvally's attention. He and Shane turned around and noticed Tessa's gaze had fallen toward the ground. "Sylveon… Eevee…" she whimpered, jamming her eyes shut and shivering. Unpleasant memories flashed through her mind, prompting her aura feelers to shoot up.

Her teammates raced forward. Silvally reached her side first and bent over, nestling the side of her cheek. "It's okay, Riolu," he whispered. "You're safe right now. You're with friends. And only friends."

"I know. I know," Tessa said. "I just…" Her digits dug into the ice. "I can't stop thinking about them. About Zero! When she had me in her grip and I–"

Shane stepped beside her and gave her a nudge in Silvally's direction. "You should stick with the big guy. He can keep you warm this time." He looked down at Tessa, but she continued shivering. "Hey," he said, taking her chin in his forepaw and swiveling her head to face him, "I know it sucks to be back here. But we have to press on and find the temple. The sooner we get to it, the sooner we get out of this place. That's what you want, right?"

Tessa's reply consisted of a sniffle. She stood up and rubbed her eyes with her arm. "Stay close to me… please," she whispered, putting her left paw against Silvally's knee. Silvally nodded and they started walked forward in unison.

"How do you suppose we even summon this temple, anyway?" Shane wondered. "The Guildmaster said I should be able to use my Looplet to do something, right?" He stuck out his foreleg and shouted, "Open sesame!" His teammates all gave him confused looks. "Crud. That didn't work. Let's see here…" His brow furrowed. "How about this? By the power of the looplet, show me the temple!"

Again, nothing but silence followed.

"Uh, Tapu Barada Nikto?" Shane mumbled, flicking his forepaw ahead of him much less confidently.

"I don't think it's working," Silvally observed.

"Darn, those ideas always worked in movies," Shane grumbled. "And I can't just hold my looplet up to the sun and expect a magical beam of light to point us the right way since, well, there's no sun over this dungeon anymore."

Mimikyu looked up and his eyes nearly bugged out of his costume at the sight of the red vortex swirling through the sky. "Bwaaaah! That thing in the sky's going to eat us," he panicked, fleeing behind Silvally for cover.

"Wouldn't we already be dead then?" Silvally thought aloud.

"This isn't getting us anywhere," Tessa growled. "If only we could get something more concrete from the ruins in Glyphic Falls."

"It's a bit late for that," Shane said. He was nearly at the end of the clearing, approaching a large sheet of ice. "I guess we just need to comb through the snow and see if we find anyth–OOF!"

Shane struck an invisible wall. His teammates did double-takes while he fell back on his rear, snout bright red and throbbing. "Ow, ow!" he whined, sticking his snout in the snow. "What kind of obnoxious jerk puts a barrier right there of all places?" He rubbed the bridge of his snout, completely ignoring the fact that the gem on his looplet had started glowing.

"Shane, look. Your looplet's reacting!" Tessa called out. Silvally grabbed her and Mimikyu. He trotted toward Shane. Shane looked down at his looplet just in time for a bright flash of light to erupt out of it and startle him. Silvally immediately broke into a run. But the blinding flash forced him to skid to a halt. Luckily, the light died down quickly. Shane looked up and his eyes widened as the previously invisible barrier revealed itself to be a bright pink doorway.

Shane shuffled back along the ground. He nearly fell onto his back from craning his neck up to look at the large, neon-pink building that now sat embedded in the wall of ice. Hanging above the massive doorway was the very same insignia Team Radiance's exploration badges had emblazoned upon them.

"Guys. I, uh, think we just found the temple," Mimikyu noted.

"This is Tapu Lele's place?" Shane gasped. "This is no temple. This is more like one of those ritzy Beverly Hill mansions!" He looked over at Tessa. "Are the Tapus celebrities or something?"

"Um, not that I know of," Tessa replied, staring in awe at the building. The group continued to take in the sights of the temple's exterior in complete silence. "So, do we just go up and knock?"

"I don't see any other way in," Silvally replied. "I nominate Shane to do it!"

"What?" Shane's tails shot between his legs. "Why me? You're so gung-ho about it. You go!"

"I don't have the Naturia Looplet," Silvally pointed out, his tone far too enthusiastic for Shane's liking.

"But what if there's some sort of, I dunno, evil security system?" Shane wondered. "Places like these tend to have things like that."

"Then you have us to back you up," Silvally encouraged. Mimikyu poked his head out from behind Silvally and waved a raggedy hand at Shane.

"My heroes," Shane deadpanned, walking up toward the doorway. "Just so you know, if something bad happens to me, I'm not letting you guys hear the end of this."

"Love you too!" Silvally shouted back, giving Shane the closest he could manage to a thumb's up with his talons.

Shane took a deep breath and rapped the door three times. Loud, metal clangs echoed through the valley. Shane hastily retreated from the door, crouching low into a fighting stance. But, to his surprise, nothing happened. He was about to turn and say something to his teammates, when the door slowly swung inward. A loud creak sounded. Shane's fur frizzled in displeasure. His ears reflexively curled against his forehead. He looked into the open doorway, but couldn't see anything inside. He gulped. "W-Well? I got it open. Are you guys coming or what?"

Silvally bounded toward him, stopping to let Tessa and Mimikyu disembark. The foursome slowly made their way inside the temple and the door closed behind them. Seconds after the door finished closing, a trail of shadows raced down the ice wall and slipped into some cracks along the side of the temple.

 **"Heeheeheehee. Time for Dr. Necrozma to make his first house call!"**

* * *

 **~The Temple of Mind~**

Team Radiance stood in the shadow of the massive doorway, staring into the spacious room that they entered. Sparkling pink and black tiles lines the floor, giving way to walls and a ceiling that looked as if Tapu Lele had ripped it out of the night sky. "This is… really not what I was expecting," Tessa muttered. She took a step forward and the tile beneath her started glowing.

"I'll say." Shane let out a whistle. "Yo, Tapu Lele! Olympia called, she wants her gym's decor back."

"What's an Olympia?" Silvally asked.

"Another human world thing," Shane replied.

"You know, it defeats the purpose of making a quip if you're the only one who can understand it," Silvally scoffed, joining Tessa on the tile floor. The tile underneath him lit up and a ball of light formed up in the center of the room.

"Uh oh. I think Shane was right about a security trap," Mimikyu gulped, skirting back toward the door. However, the light disappeared, revealing a cube standing twice as tall as Silvally. Its outline was made of tough metal, while its interior had pink, curved glass. Mimikyu's head lolled to the side. "Um, that's not very scary," he muttered.

"What's it doing here?" Tessa wondered.

As if to answer, a beam of pink light descended from the cluster of stars on the ceiling. It struck the top face of the cube. Light then shot out its four other faces. Tessa's eyes widened at the sight of a pink beam flying toward her. She dived onto the floor and the light whizzed by her seconds later. She rolled onto her back and looked into the beam, breath coming in short rasps. "That thing nearly torched me!" she gasped, paw resting on her chest. "Guys, you need to be care–"

Shane stepped out of the light, a confused look on his face. Tessa's muzzle went agape. "Sorry. Did you say something?" he asked.

Tessa's face flushed. She got to her feet, brushing herself off. "Nope. Must have been your imagination," she lied. "Anyway, I guess we should move on?"

"Uh, guys? I don't think we can go much of anywhere," Silvally called, pointing a talon ahead of him. His teammates looked toward the other side of the room where a pink, cast iron door stood. A heavy metal lock hung over the door. No keyhole could be seen in it, but each of the chains holding the lock in place contained a different colored crystal.

"Pink, red, purple, and white," Shane stated. He raised his forepaw and snapped his digits. "I've got it. We've just got to use psychic, fire, poison, and ice-type moves in unison on the door. I'll supply the ice. And… uh…" He looked over at his teammates, focusing on Tessa and Mimikyu in particular. "Hey, Silvally, I don't suppose you can, like, clone yourself, can you?"

"That sounds crazy," Silvally replied. "But I'm willing to try!"

Tessa's eyes widened and she jumped in front of Shane. "Or… or we could try solving this puzzle to open the door," she suggested.

"What puzzle?" Shane asked. Tessa grabbed his head and pivoted it to the right. Shane noticed a purple statue of a round Pokémon with a conical hat on its head. "Um, do we have to guess who that's a statue of?"

"No. And it's Tapu Lele," Tessa said. "But there are three other statues, and their colors all match the gems on the locks."

Shane nodded in understanding. "Oh, I think I get it. We've got to get the light to shine on the statues. That'll activate the crystals, break the lock, and open the door." He approached the purple Tapu Lele statue. "Could be worse. We could've had to assemble the statue of the Shrine of the Silver Monkey. Then we'd _never_ get out of here alive."

"Hate to… urrrrrgh… interrupt your human reminiscing… _unnnnngh_ … but you want to give me a hand trying to move this thing?"

Shane turned around to see Mimikyu trying (and failing) to push the block in the center of the room. "This thing's… really heavy…" he groaned. Silvally walked up beside him and pressed his head against the block. It immediately started sliding along the floor, causing Mimikyu to fall forward onto his face. "Aha… ha… that's just 'cuz I softened it up for you."

But by pushing the block forward, Silvally had moved it out from underneath the light. He shut his eyes and walked out from the light beam. "Okay, that's really bright," he said. "But, beyond that, how are we supposed to move the light beam to keep up with the block?"

Tessa and Shane both scanned the room, looking for anything suspicious. "There, by the door," Shane declared, and jogged in the direction he was looking. A large white floor tile sat at the base of the door, with four directional arrows positioned on its edges. "Ten Poké says these move whatever's generating that light."

"I'm not taking that bet. It's pretty obvious," Tessa scoffed.

Shane pouted. "Fine, ruin my fun." He stepped onto the arrow pointing toward the main entrance. Sure enough, the light beam moved further away from the box. "Right, so I suppose the best way to do this is first to position the block so the glass faces the four statues, and then move the light beam to shine on the cube."

His teammates nodded their approval. Tessa ran over toward Shane and proceeded to give directions to Silvally, who pushed the block around the room. When she was satisfied with its placement on the tile floor, she and Mimikyu helped their teammate rotate the block so that each its faces pointed toward one of the statues. "You're up, Shane," Tessa called, stepping back from the cube.

Shane nodded and turned toward the up-facing arrow. He was about to step on it, when its color shifted from pink to red. "Huh?" He cocked his head in confusion, but pressed a forepaw to the arrow.

"Hey! What are you doing? You're moving it in the wrong direction," Tessa barked. Shane looked over his shoulder, and realized the light had indeed move down, putting it further away from the cube. He glanced back at the arrow, which had turned pink again. He cautiously pressed it a second time. When he looked back over his shoulder, he spotted the light moving in the correct direction.

 _'Oh, I see. If I press the arrows while they're pink, the light moves in the same direction. But if I press them while they're red, it goes in the opposite direction. Great, I always hated timing-based puzzles,'_ he thought. Shane carefully used the up and right arrows to slowly move the light in the cube's direction, pausing whenever the arrows turned red to avoid getting confused.

"What's taking so long? Why do you keep stopping?" Tessa asked. Shane explained the timing mechanics to her, and then resumed moving the light fixture. Eventually, he maneuvered it atop the cube. Light beams spilled out from its sides. Each beam struck one of the Tapu Lele statues. They lit up with their respective colors. Bright light filled Shane's vision, forcing him to shut his eyes and look away from the door. Overhead, the colored crystals on the locks glowed as bright as their corresponding statues. They shattered simultaneously. Shane backpedaled from the door, opening his eyes in time to see the massive metal chains fall to the ground with a set of heavy _thuds._

The large door opened inward, and fine pink mist spilled out from inside. Shane's muzzle twitched and he couldn't help but take a whiff of the air. A blush fell over his cheeks. "Guh," he grunted. "That smells great! Better than one of Steenee's Sweet Scents, even."

"I agree," Tessa said. "But don't let it go to your head. What if it's meant to distract Pokémon? Y'know, get them to lower their guard or something?"

Shane's ears twitched. He rapidly shook his head and slapped his cheek with a forepaw. "You're absolutely right. This isn't the time for playing 'Guess That Smell.' We have to forge on ahead!" He stiffened his muzzle and stomped through the doorway.

Mimikyu turned to Tessa. "Is 'Guess That Smell' really a thing?"

Tessa shrugged and followed her teammate through the doorway. The next room of the temple contained an identical puzzle to the first room. Only this time, there were mirrors scattered around the floor. This proved to hinder Team Radiance's progress, as there were a couple of instances where they believed they had solved the puzzle, only for a mirror to get in their way. It wasn't until Tessa made the suggestion that they try using some of the mirrors to reflect the light at the statues that they were able to figure the second puzzle out and move on.

The temple's third floor held another light puzzle. But this time, the floor was broken up by a staircase. Two of the statues sat on the upper level, while two of them sat on the lower level. In addition to this, unseen forces levitated the mirrors in midair. After several minutes of standing about, bewildered, Silvally noticed certain tiles on the floor glowing blue. Pressing one caused a nearby mirror to pivot, adjusting its angle. A quick brainstorming session followed. The result of which being that Team Radiance pushed the single cube onto the staircase, and used the mirrors to direct the light toward both the upper and lower levels of the floor.

"We better be done with this nonsense," Shane groaned as he followed his teammates into the door. "What's next? Having to do this puzzle with zero gravity?"

"Don't say that. You'll jinx us!" Mimikyu squeaked.

"Uh, something tells me we don't need to worry about doing another one of those puzzles," Tessa said, stopping dead in her tracks. Her teammates paused beside her and looked across the room.

The tiled floor was gone, replaced by marble. It gave the floor the appearance of a star-filled sky, just like the walls and ceilings in the previous rooms. Pink tapestries descended from the ceiling. Their golden trims made them sparkle in the light of the purple chandelier hanging from the ceiling, bathing the room in a soft lavender glow. At the other end of the room stood a massive black wall. Light reflected off the wall's numerous glass tiles.

"Huh. Y'know, when you guys kept mentioning that the Tapus are 'Land Spirits,' I got the idea that their homes would be rather… rustic. And this is anything but rustic," Shane mused. "It's like I'm in some prissy noblewoman's castle. I bet Tapu Lele's going to ride down and greet us in a Rapidash-drawn carriage."

"Don't be ridiculous," Tessa scoffed. "Rapidash aren't native to Horizon."

Shane faceplanted onto the ground. "That's all you took from what I was saying?"

"It's unimportant," Tessa dismissed. "What we need to focus on is finding a way forward."

"But the only door in here is the one we came through," Mimikyu pointed out. "Oh no… what if this is actually a dead end?"

"Calm down, dude. There's no way this is a dead end," Shane insisted, walking toward the center of the room. "If this _was_ a dead end, then we would have already triggered some sort of–"

Shane stepped on the room's center tile and a puddle of black shadows materialized right in front of him.

"–trap?" He let out a squeak and hastily backpedaled toward his teammates.

 **"Heeheeheehee. What's this? It seems I have guests!"**

Silvally's eyes narrowed. "I don't think Tapu Lele's the only other 'mon in this temple. And that sure doesn't sound like someone dropping by for a friendly visit."

Shane's ears stuck straight up. "Wa-wait, I recognize that voice." His eyes widened and he turned around, running up and pushing his teammates. "We've gotta get out of here. Quick, Tessa, grab an Escape Orb and let's–"

Necrozma appeared beside Shane, sending him scrambling back with a yelp. **"Hold up. There's no need to walk out on me. I'm just… passing through. Please… don't mind me. After all… no one else does."** His wings twitched and he lifted up an Escape Orb. Tessa's eyes widened and she frantically started digging through her item bag.

"Hey, that's ours! Give it back."

Necrozma clenched his fist and the Escape Orb shattered. **"Oops! Looks like the Voice of Life's light has made me rather clumsy. I really should be more careful."** He shook his head. **"Tell you what. Since you're all with Shane, I'll make it up to you!"** His use of Shane's real name drew alarmed looks from everyone on Team Radiance.

"Wait." Silvally's eyes widened. "Those black crystals… you're the Guiding Light, aren't you? You're Necrozma!"

The realization made Tessa's aura feelers shoot up in fright. Likewise, Shane shuffled backwards, tails falling between his legs. _'He knows my name. He knows. My. Name. Why does he know that? Is he reading my mind right now?'_

"Where's my mom?" Tessa demanded, her voice wavering. "I... I know you did something to her! Give her back!"

 **"Your mother? Well, I have run into a Lucario many times,"** Necrozma declared to Tessa's abject horror. **"But I left her alone. She seemed...** _ **perfectly happy**_ **to be on her own. I think... she was like me. She realized... how stupid... relationships are. Friends... family... they don't mean anything. Heeheeheehee."**

Tessa shivered. "No... you're lying!" she squeaked.

Silvally took a defensive stance in front of her. "Don't indulge him, Riolu. He's clearly trying to rile you up."

 **"Aw, shucks. You found me out. So sorry about that. But I'll make it up to you, I swear! How about we grab some pizza? I know it's your favorite, Shane! I'll get us pepperoni… just like the good old days!"** Necrozma declared, an eager grin on his face.

Mimikyu fidgeted with the edge of his rag. "Do… do I want to know what a pepperoni is?"

"It's meat," Shane said.

Tessa looked at him in shock. "Wait… you were a predator when you were human?"

 **"Easy now, Riolu. Don't judge him until you try it for yourself!"** Necrozma taunted. He stuck his right arm out and a small Ultra Wormhole popped up beside him.

"Ah! That's just like the portal Zero appeared out of," Tessa squealed, fur bristling.

 **"Silence! Can't you see I'm trying to make a phone call here?"** Necrozma growled, pulling out a telephone stylized to look like a Pikachu. **"Honestly, the nerve of some people."** He shook his head disapprovingly.

"What's a phone?" Silvally asked.

Shane's muzzle stiffened. "It's kind of like a Gear-Com, but for humans. Which begs the question… how is this guy doing that?"

Necrozma brought the phone up to his head. **"Yes, hello? Zippy Zeraora's Ultra Pizza Delivery Service? I'd like to place an order."** Necrozma paused. **"Uh-huh. Yes… give me one extra-large pepperoni pizza, with– oh, hang on one second."** He put a hand up against the receiver. **"You guys want Wishiwashis on your pizza? They're quite delectable."**

Team Radiance responded with disgust looks. In Mimikyu's case, his disguise head flopped over his eye holes.

Necrozma brought the phone up to his head. **"You never were adventurous, Shane. Fine. Let's just make it a bland ol' pepproni pizza."** He paused. **"No, no extra cheese or sauce. Crust?** _ **Extra thiiiick,**_ **obviously. Oh, and gimme an order of those cinnamon desert sticks. Drinks? No, we're fine."** Another pause followed. **"Name and species?"** Necrozma sighed and rubbed the bridge of his metallic helmet. **"Necky. I'm a N– Lunala. My location? Let's see here. I'm at the Temple of Mind in–"**

He abruptly cut himself off and his eyes flashed angrily. **"What?"** He lifted the phone in front of his phase and started shaking it, shouting, **"What do you mean you don't deliver outside of Ultra Space? This is an outrage. Do you hear me? OUTRAGE! I demand to speak to your supervisor!"**

 _Click!_

A loud dial tone echoed through the room. Necrozma's red eyes glowed even brighter. He grabbed the telephone cord extending through the Ultra Wormhole and gave it a hearty yank. The telephone's base hurtled out of the portal. Necrozma released his grip on the phone and it sailed across the room. He turned and blasted it to smithereens with a Shadow Ball. **"Bah! How disgraceful,"** he scoffed. **"No matter where I go. No matter what I do… everyone disappoints me! Surely you can understand such a sentiment… right, Shane?"**

Shane throat ran dry. He tried to open his mouth and say something, but all that came out was a scratchy squeak.

 **"Heeheeheehee. What's the matter, buddy? You look white as a sheet!"** Necrozma grinned wickedly. **"I know it's been awhile, but I thought you'd be happy to see me! After all. It's me… your best friend."**

Shane felt his teammates' gazes fall on him. "Wha-what are you talking about?" he stammered. "You're no friend of mine. You're… you're the voice that was pretending to be Solgaleo in my dreams!" He looked down, his jaw stiffening in worry. "Espeon and Umbreon were right then," he whispered. He shot an accusatory look toward Necrozma. "Necrozma! You're part of the Prism Virus, aren't you?"

 **"So, the brave little hero finally pieces it all together, huh? Bravo! Splendid!"** Necrozma bellowed. He thrust his wings apart and burst into a round of applause. **"And here I thought the cowardly blue fuzzball would catch on quicker."**

Shane shook his head in disbelief. "I can't believe I didn't realize it sooner. You're calling yourself _Necrozma,_ for god's sake! I know you used to be human, so surely you realize 'necro' means death! You're practically hanging a sign around your neck that says, "Hi, I'm Evil. Nice to meet you!'"

Necrozma's grin widened. **"Of course. After all, I'm just doing what I know best: playing the bad guy."**

A chill ran down Shane's spine as Necrozma locked eyes with him. "I… I don't understand," Shane said. "Are you the one who brought me here, then? Why are you doing all of this? Is this about what Golem did to you?"

 **"Do not bring that wretched worm's name up in front of me!"** Necrozma thundered, his eyes taking on a rainbow shimmer. **"As for you,** _ **Shane,**_ **I brought you here to save the day, of course. To be the hero that you always wanted so desperately to be."**

Shane's face scrunched up in confusion. "You brought me here… to stop you? That doesn't make any sense!"

Necrozma sighed loudly. **"Of course not. You're here to** _ **save**_ **me. I'm giving you a second chance… to fix the biggest mistake you ever made in your life."**

Shane's eyes darted about the room in a panic. He could feel his teammates' gazes on the back of his neck. "I… You…" he stammered. "We don't know each other. We _can't_ know each other. You were brought here _centuries_ before me."

Necrozma merely grinned at Shane, licking his lips in anticipation. **"You're assuming time moves linearly between this world and the human world."** He leaned over, arms spasming. **"But that couldn't be farther from the truth."**

Shane's legs trembled. "Wh… who are you?"

 **"Come now. If I told you, that'd be spoilers!"** Necrozma crooned. **"And I don't want to be that guy. No, it'll be much more fun if you find out on your own. Besides… you're not ready to save me. Look at you. You're still stuck inside that meek,** _ **pathetic**_ **body. There's a sliver of my light coiled around that leg of yours… but it's not enough."**

Panic overtook Shane's face. "Did you do something to me?" His eyes widened in realization. "Are… are you the reason why my ability's not normal? Are you sending someone to yell at me in my dreams and tell me I'm not human? Answer me!"

 **"Bzzzzzzt! Sorry, buddy. But we've run out of time,"** Necrozma said. **"Don't worry, though. You won't be leaving empty-handed. Your good buddy Necrozma's prepared a lovely parting gift for you. Please…"** He leaned forward, bowing like he was making a curtain call and continued, **"… enjoy it."** He folded his wings back up.

An Ultra Wormhole opened behind Necrozma and he drifted back into it. Shane sprinted forward, shouting, "Wait, stop!" But the wormhole vanished in a flash of light. Shane skidded to a halt, looking up ahead of him. The glass wall now glowed red.

"Um, guys?" Mimikyu squeaked, as dozens of bright pink exclamation points popped up on the wall in front of them. "I think it's time to make our exit!" But as he turned around, the door slammed shut. Black chains shot out from the wall, wrapping themselves around the door. A large padlock, bearing Necrozma's star and a piercing red eye, grew out of the chains. "Eep! We're trapped!"

"What are those things on the wall?" Tessa asked, her aura feelers trembling. "They kind of look like the Unown, but…"

"It's… it's human writing," Shane gasped. "It says, 'Threat Detected: Deploying Security System TPLE.'"

"Sounds to me like this is Necrozma's parting gift," Silvally stated grimly. The exclamation points vanished. In their place, dozens of glowing red eyes appeared. They all turned to look down at Team Radiance. Tessa's aura feelers shot skyward at this.

"I don't like this!" she squealed.

"Well, we lost our Escape Orb. So, the only way out is to deal with this threat," Silvally declared.

 **Unauthorized access detected. All intruders will be destroyed by Prism Virus Security System TAPU LELE.**

"Ahhh! Who said that?" Mimikyu shouted, looking around the room in a panic. The red eyes vanished from the wall, taking some of the glass tiles with them. Streaks of electricity appeared in their places. A red octahedron crystal floated out from the electricity.

 **System ready. Extracting program "Prism RBRT Meanies dot exe."**

The crystal shattered, shrouding the other end of the room in thick black smoke. Silvally thrust his head forward and Air Slash jets raced ahead, slicing through the smoke. "No way!" he gasped. "The crystal, it made gemstone versions of a Medicham, a Gengar, and… an Ekans?"

Shane's eyes widened. But before he could respond to his teammate, the glass tiles and red eyes reappeared on the wall. The three crystalline Pokémon in front of him snapped to attention, their eyes glowing the same shade of red.

 **Engage.**

* * *

Review reply time!

Another guest: that was not how I intended "tabloids" to be interpreted. But that's actually a good (and meta) way of looking at it.

Guest: their relationship will get developed, since they'll be spending time around one another. However, she _did_ just stomp on Shane's heart. I wouldn't expect a budding romance to stem from that.

Gruntbones: Dark Matter is the main antagonist of Super Mystery Dungeon. That said, it's based on the Kirby villain. So, yes, Zero is named after the Kirby villain. But it's also a reference to "patient zero," a medical term for the first person to contract a disease in an outbreak.

Anon Omega: ah. That's a show I've never seen, so I'll have to take your word for it. Also, there _has_ been a Lion King joke in this story, but it didn't relate to Solgaleo.

Guest #2: yes, Silvally is a good boy! Give him hugs and pets!

Next time: shadows of the past, present, and future!


	54. Mind Over Matter

Are you ready for the deadliest nostalgia trip imaginable? I hope so! Since we're finally at a new boss, I'm bringing back the boss descriptions. They're at the end of the chapter. You're going to want to read them, because they have some juicy nuggets of information. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 46: Mind Over Matter**

No one on Team Radiance had time to react as Prism Medicham sprang forward, socking Shane in the jaw with a Mach Punch. He howled in pain and skidded back across the ground. Prism Gengar levitated into the air and launched a Shadow Ball toward Mimikyu. His eyes widened and he threw a cloth arm up, looking to deflect the attack with a Shadow Claw. But to his surprise, Silvally jumped in front him. The Shadow Ball struck and fizzled out harmlessly. Prism Gengar's eyes widened in surprise.

"How the–? You're a normal-type?" Mimikyu gasped.

"Right now I am," Silvally said, turning to face Gengar. His eyes narrowed and his cheek bolts rotated in their sockets. "You go help Shane with Medicham. I've got this guy."

"Are you sure?" Mimikyu squeaked.

"GUUUUYS! SOMEBODY HELP MEEEEE!" Shane wailed, flying back through the air and landing in a heap on the ground. Beside him, Tessa sidestepped Prism Ekans' lunge and slammed into him from behind with a burst of speed. He slumped forward, some of the crystals lining his body grinding into dust on impact.

Mimikyu nodded to Silvally and hopped forward. His spectral arm shot out from his disguise. But Prism Medicham's eyes flashed blue. A shield appeared and deflected Mimikyu's Shadow Claw, much to his frustration. Behind him, Silvally lunged at Prism Gengar, opening his beak wide so black shadows could flood into it and take the form of a massive set of fangs. Gengar tried to gather the toxins needed to toss a Sludge Bomb at his attacker, but Silvally proved too quick. He bit down on Prism Gengar's forehead, shattering some of the red crystals sticking out of it. Gengar hissed and staggered backward.

"Silvally, look out!" Shane cried. His teammate turned in time to see Prism Medicham descend from the air. Her foot connected with Silvally's right flank, propelling him back across the room. He struck the far wall with a hard _thud._ Shane sprinted forward. He opened his mouth, expecting an Icy Wind to rush out. What he got instead was a multicolored energy beam. Prism Medicham turned around in time for the Aurora Beam to strike her in the face, freezing it solid.

Mimikyu paused in the midst of readying a Shadow Claw and broke down laughing at the shocked expression on Prism Medicham's face. "Hey, stay focused!" Shane scolded, before a Shadow Ball struck him in the chest, knocking him backward. Mimikyu stiffened and sent an ectoplasmic arm toward Prism Gengar. Mimikyu's Shadow Claw caught him between the eyes. Gengar threw his arms up over his face and levitated into the air, growling. Mimikyu looked over his shoulder and noticed Prism Medicham about to break out of the ice, when several blades of air struck her from behind. She fell flat on her stomach.

Mimikyu's body glowed white and he raced forward. Prism Gengar noticed him moving in and fired a Shadow Ball. It struck Mimikyu, but he was completely unaffected. The sounds of a deflating balloon filled the room and the head of Mimikyu's disguise flopped against his shoulder. He reached Prism Medicham and dived on top of her. A massive animated fight cloud encased both of them. Prism Gengar winced, but immediately turned and hurled a Sludge Bomb forward. It struck the charging Shane, tripping him up and sending him crashing to the ground. Gengar snickered, but his victory proved short lived. Silvally jumped up behind him, golden energy swirling around his body. His talons flashed bright pink and he slashed Gengar.

The gems lining Gengar's back turned to dust and he screeched as he fell toward the ground. He bounced up from the floor, and then shattered like a broken mirror. Silvally hit the ground, pink energy streaming from his glowing eyes. He prepared to charge at Prism Medicham, when Prism Ekans leaped onto his back. Black energy filled his mouth and he sank his fangs into Silvally's hide. Silvally screeched and hopped around, trying to buck Ekans off.

"Sorry, Silvally!" Tessa cried. She hopped onto his back and socked Ekans between the eyes with a Thunder Punch. Paralysis raced across his body, allowing Tessa to roundhouse kick him off Silvally. She jumped down, tossing Silvally an oran berry as she went.

"What about me?" Shane croaked, coughing up a mouthful of black sludge. Purple splotches now peppered his hide.

"We have an upgraded item bag, you know," Tessa said. "If you think about the item you want, it should appear in front of you." She grabbed a pecha and oran berry from the bag and tossed them over to Shane anyway. He gave her a thankful nod and gobbled up the berries. The poison faded and his vitality returned. He looked back up in time to see Mimikyu land another blow with Play Rough. Prism Medicham staggered backward. She dropped to one knee and slammed her fist against the ground before shattering into thousands of pieces.

That only left Ekans. The three unoccupied members of Team Radiance ran over toward Tessa, watching her dodge a poisonous strike from Prism Ekans' tail. She retaliated with a Quick Attack shoulder-ram, knocking Ekans to the ground and pinning him down with a foot. Ekans looked up and saw the other members of Team Radiance staring right at him. The color drained out of his face, and he raised his tail up in surrender. Tessa's fists glowed red and she punched Ekans in the snout. He exploded into glass shards.

 **System error. System error.**

The room started shaking. Team Radiance turned toward the glass wall and saw the eyes disappear, along with the centermost glass tiles. "Look! Right there, in the middle of the electricity! That's gotta be Tapu Lele!" Mimikyu cried, pointing a ragged arm forward.

Tapu Lele fell out from behind the glass wall. Four bundles of electric wires stuck out from her back, anchoring her into place. She bounced around in midair until a series of small explosions destroyed the top right bundle. Tapu Lele lurched violently toward the floor. Behind her, electricity wildly shot around. Some stray bolts fell onto the ground and shot forward, forcing Team Radiance to scatter. Shane looked back at Tapu Lele and noticed the thick metal hoops surrounding her body like a planet's rings. A large antenna stuck out from her head, topped by Necrozma's star icon. She fixed her empty black eyes on Shane and her antenna flickered red. The remaining wire cables yanked her back inside the wall and the glass tiles reappeared.

 _'What the heck did the Prism Virus do to her?'_ Shane thought as the red eyes returned to the glass tiles.

 **Reboot complete. System ready.**

The room resumed shaking violently. Tessa and Mimikyu frightened squeaks rang out. They looked around in a panic.

 **Charging space-time transceiver. Charging complete. Extracting program "Prism TDS Dark Future dot exe."**

Shane's ears stuck straight up _'Wait, 'Dark Future?' She doesn't mean–?'_

The centermost glass tile disappeared and a green crystal floated out. It split in half, flooding the area in front of the wall with green smoke. Team Radiance immediately regrouped, assuming fighting stances.

 **Engage.**

A green blur shot out of the mist, a pair of glowing Leaf Blades sticking out of its arms. "I've got Grovyle!" Shane shouted, spitting out an Aurora Beam without a second thought. Prism Grovyle was far too agile, however. His Leaf Blade connected against Shane's right shoulder. Shane buckled, allowing Grovyle to strike him with his other arm and knock him into Mimikyu. The two collapsed into a heap. Silvally looked up and noticed a Shadow Ball drifting toward his teammates. He deactivated his Memory Looplet and leaped into the attack's path, rendering the Shadow Ball harmless.

"I guess I'll take Dusknoir, then" he said, and sprinted forward.

Tessa jumped toward Prism Grovyle, aiming to strike him with a Force Palm. But he ran out of her range. Pain immediately wracked Tessa's body. An unseen force hurtled her back across the room and she struck the wall, grunting. Mimikyu scuttled forward, narrowly dodging slashes from Prism Grovyle's Leaf Blades. His Shadowy Arm raced into the lingering mist cloud. The fog disappeared, but Mimikyu only succeeded in slashing air.

"Celebi's right above you!" Shane hollered, firing an Aurora Beam skyward. Prism Celebi summoned a barrier. Shane's attack pinged off it harmlessly. But she had no defense against Mimikyu's Shadow Claw. It struck her tiny, translucent wings, sending her into a freefall. Mimikyu hopped forward, trying to avoid blocking Silvally, who was weaving through Shadow Balls launched by Prism Dusknoir. Mimikyu spun back around, hoping to strike Prism Celebi from behind yet again. But his Shadow Claw barely made it a few inches in front of him when a metal-coated tail struck him in the neck. Mimikyu lurched violently to his side and toppled over, down for the count.

 **Beast Boost activated.**

Prism Grovyle gave a triumphant smirk and raised a fist. A red glow enveloped his body, prompting Tessa to halt her charge and turn around to retreat. Grovyle hunched over and ran after her, Leaf Blades at the ready. He noticed a blur of motion out of the corner of his eyes and quickly twirled around, striking Shane in the side.

Shane squealed in pain and dropped to his knees. "Wait, did that Leaf Blade just hit me harder?" he gasped, staggering to his feet. "Don't tell me he knows Swords Dance or something."

Grovyle's smirk widened and he readied an Iron Tail. Tessa came charging in, fists glowing red, and socked Grovyle in the gut as hard as she could. Bits of gemstone flew off his body and he skidded back across the floor, hissing his displeasure. "He's much too quick," she muttered, tossing Shane another oran berry. "We've got to find a way to slow him down or he's going to run circles around us!"

"Don't you have a wand or a seed that could do that?" Shane wondered.

"Yes, but I need you to keep him busy," Tessa said. Shane nodded and squeakily Roared Grovyle. This flung him back against the wall. Shane took a protective stance in front of Tessa.

However, their focuses were momentarily shaken by the sounds of an explosion. Behind them, Silvally slammed into the ground. Prism Dusknoir descended from a cloud of smoke, Will-O-Wisp fireballs circling around his body. He pointed a hand forward and the flames descended on Silvally. He got to his feet, his Memory Looplet channeling water-type energy into his body. Silvally stomped the ground with his forelegs. Plumes of water shot up, dousing each of the fireballs. Prism Dusknoir was undeterred. Electricity encased his fist and he descended toward Silvally.

Dark energy once again filled Silvally's mouth. He stood his ground, watching Dusknoir rear back to Thunder Punch him. At the last moment, Silvally sprang forward, sliding along the floor. Wisps of electricity grazed the tips of Silvally's head crest, but he skirted the brunt of the attack. He dug his talons into the floor, using them as a fulcrum to pivot his body around. He lunged at Prism Dusknoir, biting down on his shadowy tail and slamming him into the ground. Dusknoir grunted loudly. Silvally hastily jumped back, fearing a retaliatory strike. What he wasn't expecting was a bevy of razor-sharp leaves peppering his body.

Silvally screeched in pain and turned toward the source of the leaves. Prism Celebi stuck her tongue out, then turned and fired a blast of Psychic behind her. She caught Mimikyu in midair and knocked him back to the ground. Despite the attack hitting, Mimikyu's Shadow Claw still managed to clip Celebi's shoulder. She squeaked and grabbed it in pain. Silvally prepared to launch an attack, when he sensed movement behind him. He ran toward Prism Celebi, narrowly dodging another Thunder Punch from Dusknoir. As Silvally lunged for Celebi, Dusknoir levitated upward, gathering the energy needed for a Shadow Ball.

He hurtled it forward and, just as Silvally sliced Prism Celebi into fourths with X-Scissor, detonated it like a bomb. Silvally roared in frustration and plummeted to the ground, landing unconscious in a small impact crater. Mimikyu's eyes widened as a red aura encased Prism Dusknoir.

 **Beast Boost activated.**

Prism Dusknoir opened the mouth in his stomach wide. A ball of swirling black and red energy gathered inside it, distorting the air around him. Mimikyu looked over and confirmed Silvally was staggering back to his feet. He launched a Shadow Claw at Prism Dusknoir. However, the black hole forming in Dusknoir's stomach swallowed up the attack. Mimikyu's arm tugged against his body. Prism Dusknoir yanked Mimikyu off the ground, drawing terrified squeals.

"Aggggh! Only… gonna have… one shot at this…" Mimikyu hollered. As the distance between him and Dusknoir lessened, Mimikyu's disguise turned dark black. Prism Dusknoir didn't notice the change. He pointed his hands up and the black hole exploded outward into a massive shockwave. Mimikyu had no means of escape. His body spasmed in midair before he fell to the ground in a smoking heap.

Prism Dusknoir crossed his arms, a pleased look on his face. The victory lasted for a few seconds, before the same black glow that had enveloped Mimikyu wrapped around Dusknoir. His eyes widened and then his body exploded into tiny glass fragments. Silvally looked up in confusion, before racing to Mimikyu's side. A loud hiss drew his attention and he crouched low into a fighting stance. But a look toward the other side of the room showed that Shane and Tessa had finally managed to corral Prism Grovyle and freeze him in place.

Tessa stood in front of him, wound up, and struck him in the gut with Force Palm. The impact knocked Prism Grovyle backwards, where Shane waited. A cloud of Frost Breath enveloped Grovyle. He screeched in agony and fell to one knee, where the ice again froze him. Tessa socked Grovyle in the snout. Cracks splintered across the ice, before Grovyle crumbled into dust.

"This… this is getting too tough," she grunted, grabbing an oran berry and an elixir from the item bag. "How much longer do we have to keep this up for, huh?"

 **System error. System error.**

Just like before, the room shook. The middle glass panels in the wall disappeared and Tapu Lele fell out of the electric machinery. Explosions destroyed her bottom left bundle of wires. Tapu Lele bounced around like a ragdoll, the remaining wires keeping her suspended in midair. The wires seized on her, yanking her backwards into the electricity once again.

 **Xurkitree power cells at fifty percent ca-pa-pa-pa-pa–**

Static overtook some of the glass panels and loud hissing filled the room. Both Shane and Tessa grabbed their ears and pressed them flat against their heads. "It looks like we're making progress," Shane said through gritted teeth. "But at this rate, we're going to run out of stuff to heal with before we can beat everything Tapu Lele throws at us."

Tessa tightened her item bag. "Then we need to make use of some more attack items. Let's get the jump on whatever she summons next." She pulled a blast seed out from the item bag and held her paw behind it. "Everyone else think of an item you'd like to draw on."

While Team Radiance armed themselves, the red eyes reappeared on the glass tiles that were still functioning.

 **Re… re… boot complete. System read-y-y-y-y-y-y-y.**

The room start to shake again. Tessa waved her paws in each direction. "Fan out, guys. If we're together, we'll just leave them with one easy target to hit." Her teammates did as she instructed, forming a semicircle around the center of the wall.

 **Server access compromised. Backup data initialized. Extracting program "Prism GTI Cold and Calculating dot exe."**

For the third time, the central panel disappeared. A blue crystal floated out, and broke off into two halves. Blue energy exploded out from each half. "Now!" Tessa shouted, hurling the blast seed forward. It struck one of the energy bursts and exploded. Shane watched as the blast flung Prism Kyurem backwards.

"Nighty night, you ugly dragon!" Shane cried, pointing the sleep wand in his mouth at Kyurem. Still dazed from the explosion, he didn't see the attack, and slumped onto his side, snoring loudly. Beside him, a massive whirlwind whipped up, flinging Prism Munna into the air. Her stubby little legs flailed about.

"Get ready, Mimikyu!" Silvally called. He shifted to a flying-type and thrust his head upward. Air Slash blades whizzed forward, pummeling Prism Munna and shattering most of the crystals jutting out of her body. She plummeted from the air, only to get cut off by Mimikyu. He slammed into her and they crashed into the ground. Dual Shadow Claws raked Prism Munna's sides. Mimikyu launched her back into the glass wall. She struck it, screaming in agony. A large crack appeared along her back, leaking blue energy.

She saw her injury in her reflection and her eyes widened. She turned and glared at Mimikyu, only to burst into a shower of pink powder. Prism Kyurem didn't even get the opportunity to realize he had lost his battle partner. Shane and Tessa flanked him on either side while he slumbered. Tessa uppercut him with Brick Break while Shane hit him between the eyes with Aurora Beam. Kyurem briefly stirred, before another blast seed hit him. The explosion sent Kyurem into a marble pillar, destroying it. The resulting cascade of rubble buried Prism Kyurem. Muffling sounds of shattered glass filled the room.

"Wow, you don't think that was overkill, was it?" Tessa squeaked.

"For those two? Not a chance," Shane scoffed.

"Not a fan of them when you were human?" Tessa wondered.

"Yes, in a manner of speaking," Shane grumbled. Their conversations were interrupted by the room shaking again. They exchanged panicked looks and raced back to the center of the battlefield.

 **Critical systems failure. Sys… tem… fail-ur-ur-ur-ur-ur–**

More glass panels filled with static. The central ones shattered and Tapu Lele fell forward as the bottom right set of wires exploded beneath her. She bounced around like a slinky as the lone remaining set of cables tried to reign her back in.

"Now's our chance to save her!" Shane cried. He raced forward, the gemstone on his Naturia Looplet glowing brightly. But a surge of electricity blindsided him. Shane skidded backwards, howling in pain.

"Shane!" Tessa hollered, running over to him with a pair of berries at the ready.

The wires yanked Tapu Lele back into the electricity. Red eyes popped up on the glass tiles that still functioned.

 **Power circuit overload. Circuit overload… load… load… load…**

One of the glass tiles exploded. Silvally and Mimiky backpedaled to avoid the glass shards. Smoke vented out of the hole in the wall.

 **Auxiliary power cells engaged. Reboot complete. System ready.**

The room once again began shaking, this time even more violently. "Oh gods, what's she summoning now?" Mimikyu groaned. Team Radiance collectively flinched as, one by one, more glass tiles exploded, exposing sparking pieces of machinery and circuitry.

 **Cha… cha… charging… extra-dimensional tran… tran… transceiver. System… access granted.**

Tapu Lele trembled and the rings encasing her revolved wildly around her.

 **Extracting program "Prism PSMD Dark Matter dot exe."**

Shane's eyes widened. "Wait, did she just say Dark Matter?"

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "We've gotta get out of here!" she screamed.

Tapu Lele's eyes glowed bright purple and she summoned a purple crystal. Rather than exploding into mist or bright energy like the ones before it, this one liquified in midair. The gelatinous blob pulsated wildly, forming into a red sphere. A white dot appeared in the center of the sphere. Corrosive black crystals formed a cage around it. Prism Dark Matter let out a mighty roar. Black-tinted wind exploded out in all directions.

Team Radiance all shouted as the wind blew them back across the room. The wind also buffeted Tapu Lele, destroying the last set of cables. Tapu Lele dropped to the floor and the last of her glass tiles exploded, revealing bits of machinery venting smoke and other parts that were on fire.

 **Fa… tal… err… or…**

Prism Dark Matter started taking in large amounts of energy. Light distorted around it. "Everybody back! Take cover behind the pillars!" Shane bellowed, sprinting for the nearest marble column. He leaped into the air, freezing a part of the column with Aurora Beam, and dug his paws into the ice. He stopped sliding down with his tails dangling inches above the floor. To his right, Tessa climbed up the remnants of the destroyed pillar from earlier.

Dark Matter finished gathering energy. Shadows raced across the floor and massive, spike-shaped tendrils shot up, looking to impale whoever stood in their way. Fortunately, Shane's teammates heeded his advice, and they all safely avoided the attack. Dark Matter sank down to the ground, its core pulsating as it tried to recharge. Shane leaped off the column and fired an Extrasensory. The psychic blast raced forward, gradually weakening until a small portion struck Dark Matter, shattering a few pieces of its gemstone shell.

"What are we supposed to do to hit this thing?" Tessa wondered, producing another blast seed from the item bag.

"It doesn't have a type. Just hit it with whatever!" Shane barked. He raced toward Dark Matter, readying an Aurora Beam. But it rose into the air, red core glowing. A black laser surged toward Shane. He stopped running and fell to his side, rolling over to dodge the attack. Dark energy grazed his fur, drawing a pained squeal. When he came to a stop, smoke rose off the left side of his body. However, Dark Matter kept up its attack. "Tessa, watch out!" Shane shouted.

Tessa was preoccupied with throwing the blast seed forward. Dark Matter's beam vaporized it instantly. The beam struck Tessa's chest and hurtled her off the rubble pile. "TESSA!" Shane screamed as she struck the wall, leaving a noticeable crack. She fell toward the ground. Shane raced forward, not bothering to notice that Dark Matter aimed to sweep its beam back onto him.

A roar caught Dark Matter by surprise and, an instant later, golden talons struck its shell and hammered it into the ground. Mimikyu jumped off Silvally's back. He successfully slipped an arm through Dark Matter's shell and slashed the core with Shadow Claw. It screeched its annoyance at this turn of events. Spiky black thorns jutted out of its shell in all directions. Silvally barely managed to jump out of the way, but Mimikyu's arm was pricked by the spikes. Poisonous splotches popped up on his disguise.

Across the room, Shane had dragged an unconscious Tessa back behind the rubble. "Tessa? Tessa! Oh, please god, no! I can't lose you too. Wake up! Wake up!" he blubbered, shaking her body with his forepaws. He managed to roll her onto her belly, only to recoil at the sight of her smoldering, furless torso. "No, no, no, no, no, no!" he panicked, yanking the item bag off his teammate. Images of Espeon's battered, mangled body from the Catacombs flashed through his mind. "I've got to save her, I've got to save her!"

A weak cough made his ears twitch. He looked up from the item bag to see Tessa's eyes wide open and filled with terror. Her jaw fell open. She was trying to scream, but only a gasp of air escaped her. Shane managed to dig an oran berry out of the bag, but spotted movement out of the corner of his eyes. Silvally and Mimikyu were fleeing toward the other side of the room, shadows racing along the floor behind them. He saw the shadows moving in his direction and his tails shot up in fright.

Shane lunged forward, pressing himself against Tessa and pushing her against the pile of rubble. A black energy spear shot up behind Shane. The spear grazed his back. Pain surged through him, lingering even as the spike retreated and the smell of burnt fur intensified. Shane fell off his partner, his world growing blurry. In desperation, he managed to grab the oran berry and squish it against Tessa's chest. Then he collapsed onto the floor. Tessa stopped hyperventilating, slowly regaining her wits.

Before she could sit up, the room shook. She squeaked and poked her head out between pieces of rock. She saw Silvally ferrying Mimikyu out of the way of Dark Matter's latest attack: serrated crystal blades jutting out from the ground like they were Stone Edge shards. Silvally dropped Mimikyu to the ground and turned around, shooting Air Slash blades at Dark Matter.

 _'It's totally distracted. I might be able to hit it from here!'_ she thought. She raised a paw and a fresh blast seed popped into her it. _'Come on, Riolu. You've got to make this one count.'_ She stood perched on the rubble, watching Dark Matter dispel Silvally's attack with a gust of shadowy wind. Mimikyu conjured up a Shadow Ball and hurtled it forward, but a gem-encrusted tendril shot out of Dark Matter's shell and destroyed the Shadow Ball.

Tessa hurled the blast seed forward. She immediately ducked back behind the rubble, not bothering to see if it hit. Silvally spotted the seed flying through the air. He roared and fired more Air Slash blades at Prism Dark Matter. It once again dispelled the attack using a gust of black wind. It couldn't multitask, however, so the blast seed struck it and exploded. Silvally jumped in front of Mimikyu, forming up an Iron Head and using it to deflect the gem shards that rained down on them from Dark Matter's shell.

Prism Dark Matter roared furiously. It turned in the direction of the explosion, and started gathering up dark energy. Realizing it intended to go for Tessa, Silvally switched forms to a dark-type. A golden wheel appeared around his torso and he lunged for Dark Matter. The golden energy raced into his forelegs, turning them pitch-black. Silvally slashed Dark Matter with his talons and threw the entirety of his weight onto it. Dark Matter struck the ground. It detonated the energy it was charging. Mimikyu toppled over from the massive eruption of black shadows.

Tessa watched the explosion and her aura feelers shot up. She heard shuffling behind. "Was… was that Dark Matter blowing up?" Shane croaked.

"Sort of? Maybe?" Tessa mumbled, voice riddled with uncertainty. "Silvally attacked it, but I think he got caught in the explosion, so–"

Shane's eyes widened in horror. "WHAT? NO!" He sprinted forward, back muscles spasming in pain.

"Shane, wait!" she called, to no avail.

 _'He's gotta be okay. He's gotta go be okay. This isn't how we're losing him. I refuse to lose him!'_ Shane thought, trying to see through the smoke. But as Shane neared the site of the explosion, what he spotted wasn't his teammate, but the glowing red core of Dark Matter. Shane skidded to a halt, eyes widening as a red laser swept toward him. At the very last second, Mimikyu's cloth arm wrapped Shane up and yanked him out of the way. Shane watched the laser stream right past him, heart pounding in his chest.

Prism Dark Matter floated back into the air. The bulk of its shell had fallen away, and the core hovered in place erratically. Tiny cracks dotted the red sphere, giving off small beams of black light. To Shane, it looked as if it could explode at any second. But somehow, someway, the core stayed together. It rotated around, and Shane's gaze fell on Silvally. The blast had charred every square inch of Silvally. Smoke billowed off his body.

"No… no, it can't be," Shane whispered. Dark Matter started charging up. The slivers of light poking out of its core glowed even brighter. Shane wrestled himself free of Mimikyu, ignoring his teammate's panicked cries. "Get away from him!" Shane shouted, racing toward Dark Matter. Orange light gathered in his foreleg and spread across his body. His core temperature plummeted. Chilled air encased him and he jumped into the air.

"GET AWAY!"

A massive iceberg jutted out of the ground, catching Prism Dark Matter by surprise. It floated backwards, its core spinning about in a frenzied panic. Shane landed atop the iceberg and fanned out his tails. The frigid air encasing his body coalesced in his mouth. He opened it wide and shot a gigantic ice river at Dark Matter, instantly freezing its core solid. Shane maintained the ice beam, pushing Dark Matter back toward the destroyed wall. It struck a shard of broken glass and ricocheted down toward the floor. Shane cut off his attack in time to watch Dark Matter slam into the unconscious Tapu Lele. Dark Matter shattered, spreading bits of glowing ice across her body.

The iceberg promptly melted. Shane hopped off of it. His attention returned to Silvally and he sprinted over to him, ignoring the fact that all of the metal pieces were breaking off of Tapu Lele. He paused beside his teammate as an agonized yell echoed through the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw black smoke evaporate up to the ceiling. He ignored it and focused on Silvally.

"Hang on, big guy," Shane pleaded, pressing his forepaws to his torso. _'Come on… come on… just like you did with Espeon in the Catacombs.'_ He shut his eyes and gritted his teeth. Warmth spread across his body, weaving its way into his forepaws. Bright orange light washed over Silvally, restoring his feathers, scales, and fur to their natural colors. Silvally's eyes slowly opened. He shakily lifted up his head to look at Shane, who let out a relieved sigh.

"Did… did we win?" he whispered.

"We did, big guy," Shane said, voice trembling. Without warning, he threw himself against Silvally's shoulder. "We did."

* * *

 **~Mt. Thunder Peak~**

Waves of distorted red energy spread across the mountaintop, turning the neon-yellow rocks black and the dark gray storm clouds blood-red. The first wave buffeted Zapdos, freezing him in midair. The remaining waves battered his convulsing frame. Zapdos' wings locked up. He plummeted from the sky, screeching in agony, and slammed into the ground with tremendous force. Zero's distorted waves fizzled out, restoring the mountain's normal colors.

Zapdos weakly raised his head, only for his eyes to bulge out as a yellow and black blur raced toward him. Dragonite reared back and drove her ice-covered fist into Zapdos' beak. It scrunched up like an accordion. The force of the collision rippled through Zapdos' body, rattling his bones and snapping his joints. Zapdos sunk deeper into his impact crater and slumped over, breaths coming in short ragged gasps.

Dragonite stood triumphantly atop Zapdos' stomach. "How pathetic. You hardly proved a fitting test for my strength!" She looked up across the area and beckoned Zero over. "He's all yours, mistress!"

Zero strode forward, pointing her glowing staff at Zapdos' broken, bloody face. "I've waited a year for this moment," she said. "Now that it's finally here, I must say I'm disappointed."

"W… what are you… talking about?" Zapdos wheezed. "Who are you? Why… why are you doing this?"

Zero knelt down beside Zapdos. She grabbed his injured beak and squeezed. A muffled squawk rang out. "There we go. That's more like it," she said. "That look of hopelessness and despair in your eyes. That sense of unimaginable pain... of everything you worked for unraveling before your eyes. That's what I've been waiting for. I want you to know _exactly_ what I felt when you stole the most important thing in my life away from me." Zero gripped Zapdos' beak even harder. Tears welled up in his eyes.

"Mmmmmffffrrrggggggh!" Zapdos groaned, eyes darting about in a panicked frenzy. He tried to move his wings, but they spasmed uselessly by his sides.

"I just have one question for you," Zero hissed. "One year ago, did you fly over Aeon Town and Sunrise Village without giving prior warning?"

Zero released Zapdos' beak. His head slumped back against the ground. "I don't… how should I know?"

Zero's lone eye flickered in rage. "Wrong answer." She snapped her digits.

Dragonite leaned over, putting the full force of her weight on Zapdos' sternum. "AHHH! AHHHH!" Zapdos screeched, eyes wide open in agony. "YES! YESSS! I was there! I was there! Make her sta-ha-ha-ha-p!"

Zero grabbed a pawful of feathers on Zapdos' forehead and yanked him back up. "And did you bring a storm over the area?" she snarled.

"I did! I did!" Zapdos wailed. "What does it matter? I bring storms wherever I go!"

Zero slammed Zapdos' head back against the ground. "That storm ruined my second life," she seethed. "It cost me my soulmate. The one and only thing I valued in this wretched world… you stole it from me!"

Zapdos shuddered under Zero's piercing gaze. "Nuh-no! That's a… that's a mistake! I'd never intentionally kill someone with a storm! This has to be some sort of misunderstand–"

" **Consume!** " Zero shouted, shoving her scepter into Zapdos' face. Corrupted energy blanketed his body, sucking the life and color out of him and sending it into Zero's mask. A faint rainbow glow spilled out of her mask. Zero pulled her staff back and nudged the mask up. " **Destroy,** " she whispered, holding her free paw over Zapdos. Dark shadows strangled Zapdos' lifeless body, covering it in crystals that immediately shattered when Zero clenched her paw into a fist.

"Farewell Zapdos. And good riddance," Zero spat.

"That was anticlimactic," Dragonite said, smirking. "Here I thought the gods would prove a much greater challenge."

"Gods or not, they're still Pokémon. They all have weaknesses," Zero said, waving a paw dismissively. "You'll find a worthy challenger in time. Besides, wouldn't you like to share in this wondrous moment with some old friends of yours?"

Dragonite frowned. "We don't need them. I can handle everything by myself."

"I'm sure you can," Zero agreed. "But there's this old human saying: 'if you fail to prepare, then you're prepared to fail.' Don't remember who said that, but it's a good piece of advice. I want some insurance." Blue aura sparked across her eye. "Besides, I'm sure with a little convincing, your friends will be more than happy to join us in our endeavors." She tapped her staff against the ground and stared into the octahedron. "What if I threw in one of the Tapus as an added bonus for helping me run this little errand?"

Dragonite grinned wickedly. "I'd say you got yourself a deal."

* * *

 **Mindless Machine, Ultra Tapu Lele  
** _Necrozma has stripped Tapu Lele of her free will, imprisoning it underneath layers of Prism Armor and Xurkitree wiring. He's replaced her mind with the memories he received from Zero to help him possess Lunala. Her psychic powers are now being channeled toward giving these memories violent physical forms. Stop her before she burns herself out!_

 **Mischief Makers, Prism Team Meanies  
** _A greedy trainer once ran afoul of a Ninetales, leaving his Gardevoir to take Ninetales' curse in his place. His guilty spirit drifted into this world, bringing forth natural disasters culminating in a gigantic meteor that threatened to destroy the planet. It took the strength Rayquaza's Dragon Ascent to shatter it. However, the energy released by the meteor's destruction tore open countless Ultra Wormholes. When the Voice of Life surveyed the damage, it found only a single Riolu washed up on a beach…_

 **Time-Displaced Warriors, Prism Dark Future Trio  
** _Darkrai disrupted Temporal Tower by trapping Solgaleo and Lunala in their own nightmares, leading them to invade the Hidden Land. Ultra Beasts swarmed Temporal Tower, damaging it enough to break Dialga's sanity. But as the damage weaved its way through the time stream, it generated Ultra Wormholes. One of which would throw an unsuspecting human into the lightless future Darkrai had created, unknowingly setting his demise in motion._

 **Black-Hearted Beasts, Prism Kyurem & Prism Munna  
** _While imprisoned in the Ultra Nexus, Necrozma came across a lost, severely weakened Munna. She cried out for her one true friend's icy embrace. When Necrozma devoured her light, he learned that some of the world's negativity has traveled through Ultra Wormholes in the past. The negative energy gathered in a seemingly-empty void of Ultra Space, where it formed a heartless, frigid creature known as Bittercold. There are undoubtedly others drifting through Ultra Space, looking for worlds to plunge into darkness._

 **Revitalized Mastermind, Prism Dark Matter  
** _Tapu Lele lacked the energy needed to fully manifest this horrible creature. But even so, this clone is not to be trifled with. How could Necrozma get her to recreate Dark Matter so perfectly if he was never around for either of its attacks? Could there be a dark, twisted secret lurking at the heart of the Prism Virus?_

* * *

There you have it. A quick footnote, Zero's quote is from Olympic swimmer, Mark Spitz. I'll leave you theorists to start theorizing. In the meantime, review replies!

Anon Omega: Well, Necrozma considers himself a good actor, so I'm sure he appreciates it. I don't watch much TV, though. And I'm pretty sure I don't get the channel Gravity Falls is on. Sorry. As for Zero, she's most definitely Prisma. Whether you think Necrozma's controlling her or not is another story.

Another Guest: You may get to find out how Tessa reacts to Zero this very episode!

Yoshimaste: Shane's missing memories are of his last day as a human. He doesn't conscious remember getting killed in a car accident way back in chapter 1.

Guest (Veralix?): You guys are all difficult to keep track of (*nervous laugh*). The Valentine's special confirmed that Necrozma is, at least in part, Shane's friend. And yes, Necrozma was referencing Aku. I see you have excellent taste in TV shows!

SuperOmegaGuest: The answer is yes and no. Because, if you look back at Episode 9, you'll see that the Growlithe (Nicky) that was used to make Necrozma was destroyed. So, I'll leave it to you to guess how much of Nicky's spirit is part of Necrozma.

That's all for now. Next time: a real dead-ringer of a chapter! Because it features rings... and someone's gonna die. Get it? Aha ha... ha. I'll show myself out.


	55. A Ring and a Prayer

Time for things to start unraveling. I'd appreciate any thoughts about this chapter, as it has a few revelations in it. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 47: A Ring and a Prayer**

Silence hung over the room. Shane quietly broke off his embrace with Silvally, leaving the latter blinking in confusion. "Um, are you okay? Did I do something wrong?" he muttered.

"Yes!" Shane barked, wincing when he realized that had come out far louder than he intended it. "Err… it's just… that was really reckless of you. You frightened me."

Silvally raised an eyebrow. "Wow, pot calling the kettle black much?" he said.

Shane frowned. "Okay, yeah, I know I've made reckless decisions before. But there's one key difference here," he said. He leaned over and whispered, "I don't have someone who cares about me as much as Riolu cares about you. After everything she's been through, she can't afford to lose her best friend, too. Breaking your mask won't mean a thing if you don't use your new powers responsibly, y'know. You're not invincible."

Silvally hung his head. "Yeah, I see your point. I just heard your cries of pain and, without really thinking, I lunged for Dark Matter." He awkwardly poked at the ground with his talons. "I don't understand, though. I was in so much pain before I passed out. I don't think a Reviver Seed could make me feel good as new. So, what happened?"

"I, um…" Shane started, but his voice trailed off. He shook his head. "Sorry, I can't really explain it," Shane said. Before Silvally could protest, Shane turned and ran toward Tapu Lele. He found Tessa kneeling next to her, a paw resting on her pink helmet. "Is she… y'know… dead?"

"I'm not sure," Tessa said. Her aura feelers twitched. "I think I can sense something. And she's got all her colors."

"But I didn't hit her with my Z-Move," Shane noted.

"True," Tessa said, "unless that Dark Matter clone was actually part of her… somehow. Because you _did_ knock it into her body, so…" She stopped. "Wait, what am I saying? We've got to wake her up and get the Dawn Hourglass… quickly!" She fumbled through the item bag and produced a Reviver Seed. She paused, holding her paw over Tapu Lele's face. "Um, do you see a mouth on her?"

"Just, I dunno, mash it against her face or something," Shane suggested. He had turned around and was looking all over the room. "The longer we stay here, the more we risk that Necrozma guy realizing something's wrong and coming back."

Tessa went with his proposal and pressed the Reviver Seed to Tapu Lele's face. It dissolved into her skin. Tessa yanked her paw back in surprise. A couple of seconds passed, and then Tapu Lele began to stir. Her eyes slowly opened and her gaze met Tessa's. She tried to sit up, only to grab her right shoulder and fall back against the ground.

"Cuh-careful now," Tessa cautioned, kneeling beside her. "You're still hurt. Do you… um… remember what just happened?"

Tapu Lele nodded quietly. She turned and glimpsed Shane out of the corner of her eyes, spotting the Naturia Looplet on his foreleg. "You… you saved me, didn't you?" she whispered.

"It was a team effort, to be honest. These two were putting in most of the legwork," Shane said, gesturing to Silvally and Mimikyu. "Are you feeling okay? Any, y'know, weird stuff going on in your head?" he asked, twirling a digit around his temple and adding a cuckoo whistle for good measure.

Tapu Lele again struggled to sit up. This time, Tessa offered her a shoulder to lean on, and she rested against it, breathing heavily. "My head's tingling a lot. And…" Tapu Lele's voice trailed off. She shakily raised her hand. It briefly flickered pink, but the energy promptly faded. "My powers are nearly drained." Tears welled up in her eyes. "That monster… that horrible monster is still here. I can sense him."

"We know," Shane said grimly. "And that's why we need to ask you about the Dawn Hourglass."

Tapu Lele's eyes widened. She looked at Shane's looplet again. "You've been recognized by Bulu," she noted.

"Huh?" Shane looked down at the looplet. "Oh, yeah, I guess. Look, I'm sorry if I sound rude, but we're in the thick of a really serious situation, here. And we really, _really_ need your help." Tessa shot him a concerned look, to which Shane looked back at her and shrugged his shoulders.

"No… I understand," Tapu Lele muttered, propping herself up higher. "It's not like I blacked out. I remember everything that happened. That monster… the one who looked like Lunala… he showed up and attacked me. He hit me with this weird beam." She shuddered. "I thought I was going to die! These… these slimy wires came out of nowhere, and jabbed themselves into my back. And I–"

"If you don't mind, I'd really prefer if we skipped the descriptions," Shane said, looking a bit queasy. "We need to keep the Dawn Hourglass from falling into Necrozma's hands. So, where is it hiding?" A guilty look appeared on Tapu Lele's face in response. Shane frowned. "Is there something wrong?"

"Necrozma doesn't have it already, does he?" Silvally asked, an alarmed look in his eyes.

"No," Tapu Lele squeaked. "It's… it's not here." Panicked expressions overtook Team Radiance's faces. "I'm sorry," she said, looking away from them. "I screwed up. Like, majorly."

"Why? What happened?" Tessa asked.

The room started shaking again. Mimikyu looked about in a panic. "Guh-guys? I think we need to speed it up a bit, here."

Tessa yelped as Tapu Lele grabbed hold of her paw. "Hey! What are you doing? That's my looplet. It was a hatch day present!" she barked, tugging on her arm.

"There's no time," Tapu Lele said. Pink energy funneled into her hands, and she channeled it into Tessa's looplet. Tessa's eyes widened and her aura feelers stood straight up. "I sensed that something was wrong in Aurora Vale, so I sent out a Ditto to investigate. When Ditto didn't return, I began to panic. I was going to get the Dawn Hourglass and flee the Temple but I was careless… and I broke it."

"You _WHAT?_ " Shane shouted, the volume making his teammates wince. "Well, where are the pieces, then?"

"Gone," Tapu Lele whispered. "The moment it shattered, all of its pieces vanished. My siblings and I placed hexes on the Hourglasses. If someone were to break them, the shards would scatter. Otherwise, large amounts of energy would leak out of the shards and create a huge explosion!"

Silvally's eyes widened and he winced, recalling the blast he had taken from Dark Matter. "But what are we supposed to do, then? We need to keep that power away from the Prism Virus," Shane growled. "Don't you know where they went?"

"I'm sorry," Tapu Lele whimpered. "If I was feeling alright, I'm sure I could help you. But my powers are totally sapped right now. Even doing this… is taking a lot of me."

The glow faded from her hands and she pulled them back. Pins and needles ran along Tessa's arm. She looked down at her looplet and her eyes widened. "Wh… what did you do to this?" Tessa gasped.

"I've… charged your looplet," Tapu Lele wheezed. She slid back down onto the floor, brushing sweat from her brow. "If you're really… going to go against that monster… you need Z-Power. It's the least… I can do for you. Heck… it's about all… I can do for you… right now. Again… I can't apologize… enough."

Before Tapu Lele could say anything else, a column of shadows swallowed her up and she cried out in terror. Tessa scrambled backwards, heart pounding in her chest. Silvally took up a protective stance in front of her, narrowing his eyes as the shadows shaped themselves back into Necrozma. He pinned Tapu Lele against the destroyed wall.

 **"Broken? BROKEN?!"** Necrozma snarled. **"You told me it was downstairs in the Temple cellar!"**

"I know. I… urgh… did you really think… I was going to tell you the truth? You came in here… and threatened me," Tapu Lele groaned. Necrozma pressed down on her torso, eliciting a pained squeal.

 **"You lied to me!"** Necrozma roared, to Team Radiance's alarm. **"LIAR! LIAAAAAAR!"** He reared his arm back and slammed Tapu Lele into the wall several times. Tears welled up in her eyes. **"I gave you light! I gave you Z-Power! It was me! MEEE! And this is how you repay me? BY LYING TO ME?!"**

Tapu Lele meekly struggled in Necrozma's grip. "Nuh… no…" she rasped. "That can't be… that's impossible! You're… you're supposed to be gone. Solgaleo and Lunala took care of you!"

Necrozma paid her no mind. **"You're no better than the Pokémon that took my light away from me. Everyone lies to me… everyone** _ **uses**_ **me for whatever suits them. Nobody cares about what Necrozma thinks!"** His arms and wings twitched. **"You gods… if you're really a symbol of what this world has to offer… then I'm in the right! Pokémon… they don't really care about each other at all. No… you're just like humans! Lying and back-stabbing and** _ **twisting**_ **reality until you get the result that you want!"**

 **"And Mistress Zero really believes she can save this world. She wants to use my light to make things better. But none of you deserve it! The only thing you fools deserve… is to spend eternity** _ **in oblivion!**_ **ON MY TERMS! I gave this world a future and it gave me nothing in return! It's only fair that I take it all away! Burn it down in a blaze of glorious light!"** Necrozma ranted, drenching Tapu Lele in spittle. **"But I can't do that. The power I need… is stuck with someone else! So, I'll have to settle for** _ **your**_ **life energy as a consolation prize. My Z-Power flows through you. And it's time I took it back."**

Shane's jaw dropped. _'Oh my god… this Necrozma guy… he's gone completely off the deep end! He's gonna kill her! He's gonna kill_ us! _'_ He found himself staggering back toward his teammates. "Guys," he whispered. "We've got to get out of here… now!"

"But what about Tapu Lele?" Tessa asked.

"Forget about her. What about us?" Shane panicked. "Look, the door's open. Let's get the heck out of dodge before _we_ wind up just like h–"

A bloodcurdling scream filled the room. Shane looked back to see Necrozma squeezing Tapu Lele's tiny frame between his large, metallic hands. Her eyes bulged out of her head briefly before a loud popping noise sounded. Tessa's knees grew weak. She sank to the floor, watching Tapu Lele's eyes roll back in her head. Necrozma then dug his claws into her torso. He forcibly yanked his right hand back, pulling all of the color off of Tapu Lele. He took the swirling globe of energy and swallowed it in a single bite. Dark energy ran down his left hand. It raced along Tapu Lele's body, turning her into crystal.

Necrozma clenched his fist and Tapu Lele's body shattered into tiny fragments. "NO!" Tessa shouted. Her mind flooded with the memory of Zero killing Sylveon and Eevee in a similar manner. She turned and buried her head in Silvally's shoulder. "Make him stop! Make him stop!" she squealed, shuddering against his hide.

"What are you doing?" Shane hissed, trying to shove his teammate to her feet. "Get up! Get up! We need to get out of here while he's still distracted, or else!"

But Necrozma teleported in front of Team Radiance. **"What's that? Leaving already?"** he said. **"Come now. There's no need for that."** His arms twitched again. **"I can't believe** _ **this**_ **is the company you're choosing to keep, Shane. It leaves much to be desired."**

"We don't have anything to say to the likes of you," Shane said, but his voice cracked and his gaze fell to the ground.

Necrozma frowned. **"Nothing at all? Even after all my hints?"** he muttered. **"My god, you really are the densest moron in all of reality."** He shoved his head under his wing and whispered under his breath, **"No wonder I had to spell it out for you that we were being bullied back in school."**

"Of course we don't want to talk to you. You're trying to kill us!" Mimikyu shouted. Necrozma looked right at Mimikyu and he shrank back behind Silvally, letting out a frightened, "Meep! Please don't hurt me!"

 **"I get it. It's fine. You think I'm some sort of freak, don't you? Now that Tapu Lele's light is** _ **rightfully mine,**_ **you want to slink off and forget you even met me. That's it, isn't it?"** Necrozma's wings tensed and he flicked an arm toward the door. **"I'm not surprised. After all… heeheeheehee… forgetting and moving on is what you specialize in, isn't it, Shane?"**

"I don't know what you're talking abo–" Shane started, only for Necrozma to vanish. He reappeared behind Tessa. Silvally immediately unleashed a flurry of Air Slash blades in Necrozma's direction. He hissed and teleported across the room. Necrozma dusted off his right wing.

 **"My, my. Aren't we testy?"** Necrozma taunted. **"Tell me something,** _ **Tessa.**_ **Did Shane ever tell you that his one and only human friend took his own life?"**

Tessa turned so her right eye poked out from Silvally's fur. "Wh… what do you mean?" she gasped.

Shane bared his tiny fangs. "Hey! You're not allowed in my brain!" He panicked when he realized what he had said. "Um… that's… I mean… liar, liar, wings on fire?" Shane shrank down toward the ground, feeling his teammates gazes fall toward him.

 **"I mean that your 'precious' little human… the one whose sob story you've bought… is really an idiotic, ignorant** _ **LOSER!**_ **He is a failure in every facet imaginable… so he clung to his games. He hunkered down in his room – in his perfect little fantasy worlds where he could always be the hero – and hoped that all his problems would just go away. And the one guy who felt** _ **sorry**_ **enough to keep hanging out with him? Mocked! Bullied!** _ **Humiliated**_ **by his fellow humans! And when he turned to Shane, begging for a bit of kindness to reel him in from the brink, you know what Shane did? Casually brushed his so-called friend aside and went on like nothing was wrong in his life,"** Necrozma exclaimed, his arms twitching. His tongue fell out of his mouth and he forcibly slurped it back in.

 **"Then his human friend killed himself. And just like that… little Shane was all alone."** Necrozma clawed at his forehead. **"It's all there in your partner's mind, Tessa! And you stand as proof that he can't learn from his mistakes!"** he crooned before turning back to Shane. **"You never made another friend, did you? Heeheeheehee. No wonder you latched onto the first Pokémon you met when you got here. It helps that she has the potential to be a Lucario, despite your bumbling making that increasingly more unlikely with each passing day."**

A wicked grin spread across his face. **"Don't try to hide it, Shane. I know that's what you want to see. Your mind's as easy to read as a baby's first pop-up book. Those… ahem…** _ **pictures**_ **on your computer? Your human friend knew about them. He was just** _ **too embarrassed**_ **to say anything."**

Shane turned to Tessa, a look of utter horror on his face. But his gaze faltered when she made eye contact. Tessa tightened her grip on Silvally's leg and buried her face in his fur again. Images of Zero holding her in the air and strangling her with psychic energy flashed through her mind. She squeezed her eyes shut and bit her lower lip. "I can't… take this anymore," she whispered.

Silvally once again launched a bevy of Air Slash crescents. This time Necrozma's eyes flashed. A psychic ripple raced forward, breaking Silvally's attack apart. **"Tell me, Shane. Why did you help Tessa, anyway?"** Necrozma asked. **"Do you really care about her? Or… heeheeheehee… were you just doing it to ease your own guilt."** His lips curled into another unhinged smile. **"Yes… the guilt from turning your back on your** _ **real**_ **friend."**

"Sh… shut up!" Shane hissed, slamming a forepaw on the ground. "My teammates mean the world to me! Even if things haven't been perfect between us, I consider them my friends!" He glanced at them, and then turned back to Necrozma. "In the past, I'd have probably just given up… and turned myself over to you and Zero. But that's not who I am anymore. I'll do whatever it takes to stop you!"

 **"Stop me? Heeheehee… bwahahahahaha! You've got it backwards, Shane. Why would I want to do anything to you?"** Necrozma's head lolled to the side and his wings spasmed. **"No… I need you alive. I want you around… so that we can** _ **annihilate**_ **this worthless world… and have ourselves** _ **an eternity's worth of fun with what remains!**_ **"** He swung his head to his other side. **"But that can't happen without the Dawn Hourglass. So, it looks like, we're going to have to gather the pieces somehow."**

He vanished, reappearing next to Shane's teammates. **"You three, on the other hand, are not needed. Mistress Zero wants interlopers dealt with. And the happier she is, the easier things are for me. You see where I'm going with this?"**

"Get away from them!" Shane hollered. He spat an Aurora Beam but Necrozma teleported to his right and easily dodged the attack.

 **"What are you getting so worked up about, Shane?"** Necrozma sneered. **"Why do you care what happens to them? You only know how to think about yourself!"** Ectoplasmic energy gathered up in his mouth and he shot a Shadow Ball right toward Tessa and Silvally. The latter stepped into the attack's path, letting it harmlessly strike him in the face. He lunged at Necrozma, darkness filling up his mouth. Silvally crunched down on Necrozma's torso, generating a pained screech. Necrozma swatted Silvally off of him. Silvally landed on the ground, growling.

 **"Skrrreeeeeeeevvvvk! You pathetic, miserable fool! I'll feast upon your light and then rip your girlfriend to fuzzy shreds!"** Necrozma snarled. He pointed an arm forward and psychic energy raced ahead of him. Silvally changed to a dark-type and, once again, the attack harmlessly washed over him. Silvally sprang up toward a startled Necrozma, who just barely managed to teleport out of the way. Silvally hit the floor and skidded forward.

 **"FOOOOOL! You left Tessa wide open,"** Necrozma cackled, having reappeared over the Riolu. **"Your light is mine!"**

"TESSA, NO!" Shane screamed. He started to gather the energy needed for an Aurora Beam when a golden ring appeared on the floor underneath him. The icy energy dissipated. Shane dropped into the ring with a frightened shout. Seconds later, his teammates all fell into identical-looking rings. Necrozma looked down. His arms and wings spasmed in protest.

 **"What? That can't be!"** he shouted, looking about the room. **"How could they have warped out of here? My powers should've blocked them! Who is responsible for this nonsense?"**

* * *

 **~Aeon Town~**

"Bum-da-da-daaaaaaah! Alléhoopariiiiiiiiiiing!"

Shane tumbled out of a ring-shaped portal. He faceplanted into the ground and skidded forward, scuffing his fur. He didn't even have a second to get his bearings straight before Tessa was flung out of a second, identical portal. She slammed into Shane's rear. Shane yipped in surprise and scooted forward. Mimikyu next flew out of the second portal, ending up draped over Tessa's arm. And then Silvally struck her from behind. Team Radiance collapsed into a heap.

"Ooooooooogh. What just happened?" Shane groaned, eyes spinning around in their sockets.

"Why, Hoopa saved your sorry butts, of course," a high-pitched voice replied.

Shane blinked a few times and managed to crawl out from the bottom of the pile. "Wait, did someone just say Hoopa?"

"Hoopa did! Hoopa did!" the small djinn cheered, floating right up to Shane's face. Shane shuffled back uneasily, contacting Silvally's face.

"Hey!" Silvally grunted. "Watch where you're pointing those tails. This is hardly my idea of a flattering view."

Shane looked over his shoulder and his face went red enough to make a tamato berry jealous. He stumbled forward, tails reflexively curling against his hips. "Heh heh heh! You're pretty funny," Hoopa chuckled. "Are you the human Latias was talking about?" He floated above Shane and his expression immediately went stern. In a pale imitation of Latias' voice, he said, "Hoopa, you need to help these explorers in Horizon. I sense that they're in trouble. And you're the only one brave enough, smart enough, and cool enough to get the job done!"

Hoopa smirked and crossed his arms. "And so, Hoopa bailed you out. Once again, the day is saved… thanks to Hoopa!" He raised his right arm, posing dramatically. One of his ring portals opened behind him and a trio of fireworks shot up.

Shane's teammates had managed to untangle themselves and joined him in watching Hoopa. "Is this really happening?" Mimikyu whispered.

"I don't know. At this point, I'm waiting for the giant tap-dancing rubber chicken to show up and tell me this has all been some crazy nightmare brought on by eating too much ice cream," Shane groaned, rubbing his forehead.

Hoopa broke off his pose and furrowed his brow at Team Radiance. "Hey, what's the matter with you guys? Why aren't you cheering for Hoopa?"

"Because we're still a bit confused, to be honest," Silvally replied. "You yanked us out of Mystery Dungeon like it was nothing." He walked forward and sniffed the air. "What's your secret, huh? Because you don't _smell_ like you're made of Escape Orb."

Tessa facepalmed. "That's… not how it works, buddy."

Hoopa rolled his eyes. "What's there to know? You needed rescuing. So, Hoopa gave you a rescue. Isn't that what we guild folk do?"

Tessa's jaw dropped. "You're part of a guild?"

Hoopa twirled around to show off the Expedition Society badge dangling from his neck. "You betcha! Hoopa is Team Gaia's trump card. When trouble's afoot, Hoopa swoops in to save the day. Like this!" He threw his hands to the sides and shouted, "Alléhoopariiiiiiiing!"

A ring portal opened over Shane's head. He just had enough time to look up before a column of water gushed out of the portal. "AUUUUUUUUGH!" Shane shouted, collapsing on his belly. Hoopa shut the portal, snickering loudly.

"There. Now you're squeaky clean," Hoopa declared, dusting off his hands. "No need to thank Hoopa. Hoopa will put it on your tab."

"Wait, what tab?" Tessa gasped. "We didn't agree to anything like that."

Shane spat out a mouthful of water and coughed up a string of kelp. "Oh… great. You're one of _those_ genies," he growled.

Tessa raised an eyebrow. "Do you know something I don't?"

Shane shook out his fur. Tessa hissed in displeasure and threw an arm up over her face. "Of course I do," he said. "In human stories, genies are conniving little buggers. There's always a catch to accepting help from them."

"Oh no, there are no catches with Hoopa. It's really simple. Hoopa helps you and you do a favor in return for Hoopa," Hoopa explained. He shot a glance over toward the forest and his eyes flashed blue. An annoyed howl erupted in the distance, making everyone jump in surprise.

 _Splaaaaaash!_

"Make that two favors," Hoopa declared, crossing his arms and smiling. "There was a group of thugs in the bushes over there. They were waiting to ambush you." He jerked his head in that direction. "But, no need to thank Hoopa. You can make up for it lat–"

"That's enough out of you, Hoopa."

Latias materialized beside him and bit down on the horn protruding from the right side of his face. "Ow! Ow! No biting!" Hoopa wailed, flailing his arms about. Latias released her grip and Hoopa started rubbing his injured horn. "No fair. You snuck up on Hoopa!"

"I thought we had a deal. Whatever favors you need taken care of, I'll handle them," Latias huffed.

"Aww, Hoopa just wanted to have some fun with the kiddies," Hoopa said. "What's so bad about that?" Latias' response consisted of biting him on the same horn again. "OW! Okay, okay! Hoopa's sorry! Hoopa's sorry!" Latias again released her grip.

"Thank goodness you're all okay," Latias said. "Hoopa here can see through the ley lines in dungeons. I was worried the Prism Virus might be able to block his powers, but Hoopa didn't have any problems monitoring your situation." Hoopa grinned triumphantly behind Latias. Despite this, she put on a grim expression. "It looks like this is worse than we thought."

"What are we supposed to do, then?" Shane wondered.

Latias looked up toward the sky. "I think it's best you guys regroup back at the Observatory. It's not safe to stay outside the barrier too long. That monster that attacked you guys could try to follow you here."

"What about you two?" Shane asked. "You have to come with us!"

"Not a chance," Latias replied, a nervous look on her face. "Metagross didn't want me bringing in outside help and, quite frankly, I don't want to be there to see how he reacts. Plus, Hoopa and I have some work that we need to do anyway. Isn't that right?" She turned to Hoopa, who rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. We're stopping for lunch first though, right?" Hoopa said as he and Latias disappeared into one of his portals. Once they were gone, Team Radiance headed for Aeon Town. A small hole appeared in the barrier, allowing them all to pass. It resealed itself as soon as they were inside it.

None of them looked back and spotted the ripples in the water as a soggy Lycanroc staggered out. "This blows!" he hissed, resting his head against his shoulder and smacking it. Water trickled out of his ear.

"Yeah! I hate water… especially wet water!" Jangmo-o whined, shaking off his body.

Sneasel smacked him upside the head. "How many times do I gotta tell you? If you're thinking of saying something stupid, bite your tongue instead." He turned to Lycanroc. "So, now what? You saw the Pokémon Snowy's running with. We can't deal with that much firepower!"

Lycanroc backhanded Sneasel, knocking him back into the water. "I ain't blind, mate. I can see that for myself." He crossed his arms. "If we can't ambush Snowy, then we look for an unsuspecting target and get the leg up on 'em."

"Um, not to question your decision-making, but how will extra legs help us in this situation, exactly?" Jangmo-o wondered.

Lycanroc sighed and slumped over. "Just… get back in the bushes, ya dumb git."

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Well, I reckon this complicates things… uh… a lot," Braviary groaned, burying his face in his right wing. "So, lemme make sure I have this straight. The Dawn Hourglass is gone?"

"Smashed into pieces, apparently," Shane replied. "According to Tapu Lele, if the Hourglass breaks, the pieces scatter themselves. Something about chain reactions and explosions if that doesn't happen."

Braviary's brow furrowed. "Which means the Prism Virus ain't got it. Fer now, anyway."

Shane's stance slouched. "Yeah, thanks for the reminder that we blew it… again."

"Shane…" Tessa muttered.

"I know, I know. 'Now's not the time,'" he grumbled. "Sorry, Braviary. Continue."

Braviary started pacing in front of the Observatory's front entrance. "Tapu Lele was done in by the Prism Virus, though. Which means a whole quarter of Horizon ain't got no Land Spirit looking after the Mystery Dungeons there."

Tessa stiffened. "Um, is that a problem?"

 **In the short term, no,** Magearna replied. **But without a Land Spirit exercising control over a dungeon, there is a one-hundred percent chance that the ley lines will become unstable.**

"Which means what, exactly?" Silvally asked.

 **The Tapus used ley lines to anchor the Horizon Continent to the ocean floor,** Magearna explained. **If they are not properly maintenanced, then they could detach and set Horizon adrift once again. Or worse… the continent could just sink into the ocean.**

"WHAT?" Tessa gasped, aura feelers shooting up and tail bristling. "But… but that…"

"Settle down, now. We've still got three of the Land Spirits around," Braviary said. "If'n anything, we ought to be worried about this… uh…" He rubbed the back of his head. "Now, what did that feller who attacked you guys call himself?"

"Necrozma," Silvally replied.

"Right." Braviary nodded slowly. "And, from what it sounds like, he's actually possessing Lunala?"

"Either that, or he's made himself look like Lunala to throw us off," Shane exclaimed. "In any case, he's definitely working with the Prism Virus. He infected Tapu Lele, and then sucked the life out of her."

"Working for? I wouldn't be surprised if Necrozma's the mastermind, here," Tessa mumbled. "He could teleport. And… and…"

Silvally shot Shane a scathing look. He quickly looked away, biting his lower lip. _'Oooooh, I really hope you're right, Tessa. Because that's the only way I can see things ending well for you, here.'_

Shane snapped back to attention when he heard Mimikyu say, "He also seemed to know Shane for some reason."

Braviary looked over at him and raised an eyebrow. Shane went stiff as a board. "I… well… he read my mind, that's all. Probably trying to mess with me or… or…" His eyes darted around as he tried to come up with an answer. "Look, I have no idea who Necrozma is, okay. Honest! All of this is just as confusing to me as it is to you."

But the skeptical look didn't vanish from Braviary's face. "Hrrrrm. Well, I'm gonna have a word with the Guildmaster. See if he has any thoughts on the matter. Y'all wait out here for the moment. Yer day might not be over yet." He walked into the Guildmaster's office. The door immediately slammed shut behind him, drawing worried looks from Team Radiance. They stared at Metagross' office with baited breath. But when they all determined they couldn't hear anything, they relaxed.

Shane lowered his head. "We failed again," he whispered. "Why do we keep failing?" He snorted out tufts of ice. "This is getting ridiculous. Ever since Twilight Forest we can't seem to do anything right. All of our missions turn into disasters. And the Prism Virus' forces are getting tougher and tougher." He squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth. "I can't believe I was stupid enough to think I could really save the world. We're… I'm…"

He flopped onto his belly and buried his head in his forepaws. "It's too much! It's hopeless! Things keep getting worse each time we face the Prism Virus. At this rate, we're going to get killed tomorrow."

"Hey!" Tessa barked, walking up to Shane and shoving him with her foot. "What happened to trying to stay positive and actually mean it, huh?"

Shane looked up at her. "How can I possibly be positive after the last few days?"

"Well… uh…" Tessa turned to her right and rubbed her shoulder. "We have Silvally now." She looked toward Silvally, who puffed his chest out.

"And he nearly got himself killed in his first battle," Shane pointed out. Silvally deflated and poked guiltily at the ground with a talon. "Face it, guys. We're so far out of our league. It's just a matter of time before our luck runs out."

Tessa's ears and aura feelers drooped. "You don't think I don't know that?" she whimpered, to Shane's displeasure. "But we have to keep fighting. If Necrozma and Zero have their ways, then… then…"

"No," Shane whispered.

"No?" Tessa repeated.

"You two… you should go," Shane said.

"Excuse me?" Tessa raised an eyebrow.

"You heard me. Go!" He turned to Mimikyu. "You too, li'l guy. You all saw it for yourselves. _I'm_ the one Necrozma's fixated on. You're only putting yourselves at risk by sticking with me." He shook his head. "Zero said something about trying to make things better for normal Pokémon. And you fit the bill…" He looked up at Silvally, whose head was cocked in confusion. "… well, reasonably speaking, anyway."

"Look, the point is. This doesn't have to be your guys' fight. I don't…" Shane lowered his head. "If the Prism Virus kills you guys because of me, I'll never be able to forgive myself."

Tessa grabbed the scruff of Shane's neck and yanked him to his feet despite a yip of protest. "Seriously, Shane?" Tessa growled. "What, do you think you're being heroic or something? You're not just some sort of walking sacrifice."

"But I don't want you getting hurt," Shane whimpered.

"It's a little late for that, don't you think?" Tessa said. "Sure, we could run away. But what if Zero's lying? What if the Prism Virus isn't going to ignore us, huh? Then we're basically rolling over and dying!" She put a paw on his shoulder. "So, sorry, but we're going to keep fighting."

"Yeah! And we've pulled through as a team so far," Silvally chirped. "Which means our best bet is to stick together." He bent down to make eye contact with Shane. "Besides, it's not all doom and gloom! You've given us some good times. Like when you get blown up… or dropped in water and mud and…"

Shane put a forepaw on Silvally's beak. "I get the idea," he said, sighing. "Okay, I guess I might've overreacted just a little bit."

"I don't know. It sounded like a lot bit to me," Mimikyu muttered. Shane gave him a stink eye and Mimikyu tensed up. "Meep! I'm sorry… I was just making an observation." He threw a raggedy arm up over his eyes.

"Still, if we're going to stand a chance against the Prism Virus, we need to make improvements," Shane said. He turned to Tessa. "And that means we both have to evolve."

Tessa tensed up at this. "Evolve? Are you serious?"

"Yes. Right here. Right now," Shane declared.

"Uh, not to offend, but did you hit your head really hard when Hoopa brought us back here?" Tessa growled. "I can't just magically wave my arms around and turn into a Lucario! It doesn't work that way."

"I'm aware of that," Shane retorted. "But we can make it happen!"

"You can?" Silvally's eyes widened. "Does this mean you're secretly made of evolution pheromones?"

"Yes, I– wait, what? No!" Shane recoiled, only to pause and sniff at his backside. "Yeah, no, that's just sweat. Look, we already discussed this the other day. You just need to fully tap into your aura powers." He poked Tessa's Naturia Looplet with his snout. "And now we can try testing out Umbreon's theory."

"Huh?"

"It's simple! You just use a Z-Move on me," Shane declared. He stepped back and puffed out his chest. "Just, I don't know, remember when you hated me and wanted to yank my tails off. Then channel that anger into an attack. That oughta do it, right?"

Silvally and Mimikyu exchanged unconvinced looks. Tessa rubbed her shoulder. "Um… but I don't feel anything."

"What are you talking about? You've just got to focus!" Shane insisted.

"That's such a vague way of describing it," Tessa growled frustratingly. "What does 'focus' really mean, huh?"

"Uh… well…" Shane's brow furrowed. "Okay, so you got me there."

" _You're_ the one who's used a Z-Move twice already. So why don't _you_ tell me how you did it?" Tessa said, jabbing him in the chest with a digit.

Shane looked down at his Looplet. "How I did it?" he repeated. "Um… lemme think…"

Tessa's eyes widened. "You mean you don't even know how you used your Z-Move?"

"Hey, give me a break! Both times were in the middle of really stressful situations where I thought one of you was going to die. I didn't think… I just sort of leaped into action," Shane explained, his tails twitching nervously. "I was desperate. I guess, I dunno, the looplet sensed that desperation and channeled it into a Z-Move? Which means, the best way to get a Z-Move to work for you would be to put you in an extremely stressful situation."

Tessa crossed her arms and gave Shane the most sinister glare she could muster. Shane shuffled backward, the back of his head turning dark blue. "Aha ha… uh… that came out wrong."

"What we really ought to do is speak to someone who knows more about Z-Moves," Silvally thought aloud. "Like Magearna."

"See, now _that's_ a much more reasonable solution," Tessa exclaimed, gesturing toward her friend.

"Thanks!" Silvally chirped. "I figured since she was the one who explained them to us in the first place, she must have some sort of theory about making it work."

 _WHAM!_

"Ah!" Tessa jumped into the air, squeaking in fright. She landed in a collapsed heap on the floor.

"Now, Guildmaster, don't ya th–"

 **I will not have Latias' reckless abandon get the lot of us killed!**

Worry flashed across Shane's face. "He… he sounds mad," Shane squeaked.

"Really mad," Mimikyu agreed, hunching low to the ground.

"I understand, sir. I feel the same way, but–"

 **You do not. You are skeptical of my plans. I can see it. Are you questioning me? Are you siding with** _ **her**_ **over me… your best friend?**

"Of course not! I reckon I'd never…"

Metagross' door slammed open. Team Radiance jumped to attention. Braviary fluttered out, his feathery head crest completely disheveled. "But, Guildmaster, don't ya think it's a bit unreasonable to send all of us down there, sir?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head with a wing.

Metagross walked out of his office. Shane could just barely see the corner of one of his eyes, which had a rainbow gleam in it. The gleam abruptly disappeared. At the same time, Espeon, Umbreon, and Magearna appeared from the hallway leading to the latter's workshop. They all fixed curious looks on Metagross.

 **Negative,** Metagross replied. **The only avenue for success is for you all to proceed to the Solaris Wastelands.** He turned to Team Radiance. **That includes Espeon, Umbreon, and you four.**

"Wait, what? But we just got back from a really tough mission!" Shane complained. "Can't we at least wait until tomorrow?"

 **Negative. Fact: time is of the essence,** Metagross answered. **Fact: Yungoos, Trapinch, and Growlithe reached the Temple of Body. Fact: they discovered that Tapu Bulu is holding the Dusk Hourglass, but were promptly ejected from the vicinity. With the Dawn Hourglass fractured, we must prevent it from falling into the Prism Virus' hands.**

"And you need to send all of us out there just to get it?" Umbreon said. "Espy and I really don't feel up to–"

Metagross turned and glared at Umbreon. **You have much to atone for. Do as I command or I will hand you over to the authorities.**

Umbreon and Espeon wilted at this. Shane bit his lower lip. _'I don't like the sound of this,'_ he muttered. _'If he's sending all of us, then there'll practically be no one left in the guild besides him.'_ Thoughts of Gallian flashed through is mind. _'Wait… he couldn't have an ulterior motive for wanting to do this, could he?'_

"Why have us go, then?" Shane asked. "We're weary from battling Tapu Lele and we need rest."

 **Fact: you have a looplet gifted to you from Tapu Bulu. You are far more likely to be able to get through to him than Yungoos, Trapinch, and Growlithe,** Metagross replied.

"So, why do I need all this backup, then? Is Tapu Bulu super hostile?"

The rainbow gleam flashed across Metagross' eyes. Everyone in the room noticed. Several Pokémon tensed up. Metagross glanced around the room and proceeded to glare directly at Shane. **You are not in a position to question my strategy! The backup is in anticipation of a possible attack by the Prism Virus!** Metagross replied. His eyes glowed blue. **You would dare challenge my authority, human?**

Shane shuffled backward. "Nuh-no…" he squeaked, avoiding Metagross' glare.

"Well, I sure am, sir," Braviary exclaimed. "Why are ya sending me? I know that there's my home turf. But don't you think I'm of better use here coordinating and whatnot?"

Metagross turned his glare on Braviary. **No!**

This time Shane jumped in alarm. _'His voice… it's getting higher-pitched. What's going on here?'_

 **You know the fastest, safest routes through the Solaris Wastelands,** Metagross said. **With the harsh sandstorms, I'm unwilling to take any chances. We must succeed at all costs!**

"Then why not have Latias and Hoopa send 'em all over?" Braviary asked.

 **Did you not hear me before? They're going to get us all killed with their poor decision-making!** Metagross thundered. Espeon and Umbreon exchanged panicked looks and shrank backwards, looking as if they were ready to bolt at a moment's notice. Metagross ignored them. **Magearna, give them their supplies so they can get going.**

Magearna remained frozen in place, staring curiously at Metagross. Again, a rainbow gleam flickered in his eyes. **Now, Magearna!**

 **Oh… right!** Magearna jumped to attention. She placed a large bag on the ground, and several pairs of goggles tumbled out. **Behold, my patented Geatronic Weather Optical Dehazardification Units!**

Happy for any sort of distraction from Metagross, Shane looked down at the goggles. He raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong?" Tessa asked.

"I was half expecting her to introduce them with something along the lines of, 'the future is now, thanks to science!'" he mused.

 **Science is not about catchphrases. Especially cheesy ones like that,** Magearna harrumphed. **I will have you know that these goggles all releasemit special protective forcefields that will keep you safe from any hazarterious effects of the desert sandstorms.**

"Yeah, I know. They're just Safety Goggles, after all," Shane scoffed, grabbing a pair and sliding them onto his face.

 **They are not. They are Geatronic Weather Optical Dehazardification Units, and I would appreciate it if you gave them the respect they deserve,** Magearna corrected, crossing her arms.

"Whatever," Shane said, rolling his eyes. "So, I guess this means we're going to the desert, then?" He cast a glance at Metagross. _'Trap or not, I'd rather go there than stay here with him. He looks like he's gonna blow a gasket. And even with all of us here, could we really take him if he went on a rampage? What if he has an Awakening Emera hidden somewhere?'_

Metagross tapped a foreleg impatiently on the **Your Sharpedos will arrive at the port in fifteen minutes,** he declared.

 _'Great. But I still have a really bad feeling about all of this,'_ Shane thought, his stomaching churning.

 **Do not delay! Go! Now!** Metagross thundered, stomping his foreleg on the ground. Several of the guild members again jumped in surprise. The group hurried toward the stairs, scampering up them without a second thought. Only Magearna remained, eyeing Metagross cautiously. **What are you looking at? You have work to do! Monitor the forcefields or this will all be for naught!**

He turned and stormed back into his office. The door slammed shut behind him. Metagross' right eye twitched. **Ngggrrggghhh… that stupid,** _ **stupid**_ **human! He's going to be the death of me! I can see it in his eyes… in all their eyes! They want me dead. They're trying to off me! ME! After everything I've done for them!**

Metagross stomped forward, his gaze darting back and forth across the room. **It's all the same. Incineroar… Lucario… now their children… trying to put an end to me. I have just as much right to live as any of them!** He reached his tapestry handing from the wall and tore it off, revealing a small safe. **It doesn't matter… it doesn't matter… they won't succeed. I will persist. I will** _ **survive.**_ **No matter what it takes! I'll get rid of them before they get rid of me!**

His eyes flashed blue and the safe's dial turned. The handle moved into the open position and Metagross flung the door open. He reached inside and pulled out a smoothed, obsidian stone. A familiar star emblem was carved into it. Metagross set the stone on the ground and pressed a foreleg to it. Rainbow glows overtook his eyes. Dark energy swirled around the stone, expanding into a cloud of black shadows. Necrozma's hollow red eyes stared back at him.

 _ **"What do you want? I told you not to bother me unless it was important!"**_ Necrozma spat.

 **I have news…** Metagross exclaimed. **Important news. I've sent Team Radiance to the Solaris Wastelands. Tapu Bulu is the one with the Dusk Hourglass. Espeon, Umbreon, and Braviary are with them. Just go there… and you can get the Hourglass** _ **and**_ **the spirits of all of those conniving miscreants.**

 _ **"Heeheeheehee! Is that so? I see you're working very hard to keep up your end of the bargain,"**_ Necrozma said, laughing jovially.

 **Yes. And I expect you to honor our agreement.**

 _ **"Of course. You give me what I want… you get to live on even after I wipe this world out of existence,"**_ Necrozma replied. _**"Of course, I'll need to verify that you're not misleading me. Because I would really hate to show up there and find myself deceived."**_ His red eyes flashed and black mist swirled around Metagross.

 **I am telling you the honest truth.**

 _ **"What of Tapu Koko, then? I thought you suspected he was holding the Dusk Hourglass,"**_ Necrozma exclaimed.

 **I have not heard back from Teams Captivate and Buzz Buzz, the scouts that went to Tapu Bulu's temple found the Hourglass,** Metagross explained.

Necrozma's eyes flickered with interest. _**"So, Team Captivate is tying to get to Tapu Koko? I have a partner with a vested interest in them, so if you value our deal, you'd best answer truthfully."**_

 **They are proceeding through Voltaic Crater,** Metagross replied.

 _ **"Heeheeheehee! How very informative. Thank you so much for your help, Guildmaster."**_ Necrozma's eyes vanished and the black cloud spiraled into the stone.

Metagross looked down at it and shut his eyes. **Just a bit longer. All of my enemies will be gone. I will finally…** _ **finally**_ **know true peace.**

* * *

And we end with guest review replies:

Anon Omega: this story does love its Kirby references. Trust me.

SuperOmegaGuest: I promise there will be answer about exactly how much. But it won't come for a little while.

Guest #1: Primal Dialga is obnoxiously tough, you say? I wonder if this story might tackle that subject sometime down the road?

Another guest: all of them were copies, not the originals. They're gone now, though, so it can't matter much.

Guest #2: I'm not sure if you're the same person as the other unnamed guest or not. You sure sound different, anyway. I think you might want to go back and read Episode 8, especially the Valentine's Day special. Because that makes it pretty clear what Zero's motives are here. I did not start watching DB Super until after I began writing this story, so any Beerus similarities are a happy accident. Her powers are supposed to be similar to Dark Matter (except her victims end up crystallized instead of turned to stone). And, well, she wouldn't have been able to use them on a full-strength Zapdos, so she had Dragonite weaken him enough to go in for the kill.

That's all for this week. Next time: a trek through the desert sands.


	56. Sands of Time

Time for the second half of Episode 10. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 48: Sands of Time**

 **~High Noon Gulch~**

"Welp. It's been some time, but I'm back in my old stomping grounds."

Braviary swooped in for a landing as everyone else disembarked from their Sharpedos. He slipped his Safety Goggles on and green light flashed across his body. Once it disappeared, the sand blowing through the air funneled around him.

"Blech! Plebth! Fffft!" Shane coughed and waved a forepaw in front of his face. "Ugh, how could anyone stand to live in a place like this? This air is so thick and hot! Not to mention full of sand."

Braviary took in a deep breath. "Eeyup. That's why I like it."

' _Maybe that explains why I don't want to trust him anymore,'_ Shane thought.

"I'm willing to bet there are a lot of ground-types living here," Silvally said. Unlike the rest of the group, he lacked Safety Goggles. Instead, he channeled his ground memories, marked by his glowing brown appendages. The dry, sandy air brushed against his fur. Silvally hummed pleasantly.

"Right you are, pardner," Braviary acknowledged.

Umbreon looked around the town, only spotting two parallel rows of small wooden buildings, with a dusty road laying in between them. Most of the buildings seemed to function as both homes and business, with signs bolted to their walls at ground level. Umbreon immediately picked out a post office and a general store sitting side by side. Directly across from them was a building with a wooden Maractus painted on the door. The sign on it read, "The Watering Hole Saloon."

"So, why exactly did we come here?" he asked. "This place is nothing but empty buildings and cacti."

"Careful. Some of them may be Maracti," Braviary quipped, drawing groans from the rest of the group. "In any case, we need to grab us some escorts for our trek through the wastelands."

Shane's jaw stiffened. _'I don't like the sound of that,'_ he thought. He shot Tessa a worried look, which his partner returned with a shrug. _'Easy there, Shane. Deep breaths. This isn't one of those mobster movies where you're getting taken somewhere off the grid to get killed. Braviary seemed just as confused as to why he was coming as you were.'_

He gulped. _'Unless he's only_ acting confused _and this is totally a trap!'_

"What exactly do you mean by escorts?" Espeon wondered. "Aren't there enough of us here already?"

"Oh, sure," Braviary replied. "But getting through them desert sands ain't exactly easy for 'mons like us. Heck, the sandstorms are so bad I can't even fly straight in the wastelands. That's why we're getting us some Mudsdales to ferry us across."

"Mudsdale?" Shane parroted. He looked over at Tessa. "Um, any chance you know what that is? Because I sure don't."

"Err…" Tessa poked her digits together. "How do I describe it, then?"

"It's like a Rapidash, but it's a ground-type," Silvally offered.

Shane blinked a few times, and then conjured up a mental image of a brown Rapidash with a mane of flowing sand. He looked back at his hips. "Ugh, no thanks! I don't want to sit on one of those. I hate sand. It's rough. It's coarse. And it gets in some… sensitive areas."

"Nonsense." Braviary waved him off. "Mudsdales are very comfortable Pokémon to ride on. Just you wait."

Shane paused mid-step, a somewhat nauseous look appearing on his face. _'I really hope there isn't a double meaning behind that…'_

Hearing no response from Shane, Braviary turned back around and squinted. "Speak of the devil. Mudsdale!" He flapped his wings about. "Come here, you ol' so-and-so!"

The sounds of heavy hoofbeats spread through the town. Within a few seconds, Mudsdale's massive frame came into view. He galloped forward, jogging to a stop in front of Braviary. "Well, I'll be an Ambipom's uncle!" he gasped. "Braviary, as I live and breathe. Shoot… put her there, pardner." Mudsdale stuck out a foreleg. Braviary returned the gesture with his own leg.

"Oh, great. Just what we needed. A whole town of yokels," Shane groaned.

Tessa raised an eyebrow. "What's a yokel?"

"That's a story for another time," Shane dismissed, which only served to heighten Tessa's confusion.

"Gotta say, I figured we wouldn't be seeing you 'round these parts no more," Mudsdale said to Braviary. "Ever since ya done became one of them city-slickers, feels like yer dropping by less and less often."

"Well, work's been keeping me mighty busy," Braviary said with a nervous laugh. "Ever since Metagross took over, feels like I ain't even had a day off."

Tessa and Shane exchanged worried looks at this. They immediately looked away, feeling Espeon and Umbreon studying them.

"I hear ya," Mudsdale said with a sigh. "But, hey, what're we standing around here for? Why don't ya bring yer friends on over to the saloon? We'll have some drinks and catch up on things."

Braviary sighed. "Sorry, pardner. I'm afraid it's work that's brought me here. We need to head into the wastelands."

"Oh?" Mudsdale looked behind Braviary, glancing over the assembled group. "This is a mighty large search party you've got here. Is it serious?"

"I reckon so," Braviary replied. "Some guild members are done stuck in the wastelands. Tried to get into Tapu Bulu's temple and ran into some hiccups."

Mudsdale's eyes widened. "Yer messing with the Tapus? Oh, lordy." He shook his head. "Yer playing with fire, pardner. That's just begging to have a big ol' curse dropped on ya."

"But there's no such thing as curses… right?" Mimikyu squeaked.

Shane held up his forepaw. "Relax. As long as we've got these looplets, we should be fine."

"But I don't have one," Mimikyu sighed, his head slumping over.

Mudsdale walked around Braviary and took a better look at the rest of the group. "Hrrrm… well, I'm sure if I grab one or two of my buddies, we can get you through the desert alright. But…" His voice trailed off as he looked over Silvally. "Yer friend here is, uh, looking mighty heavy. I'm reckon we might not be able to help him out."

"Oh, don't worry. I'm a ground-type, I don't need an escort," Silvally said. He beamed and extended a foreleg forward. "I'm Silvally! Nice to meet you."

"Uh… luh-likewise…" Mudsdale said, hesitantly sticking out his own foreleg to shake Silvally's. "Yer, uh, quite the interesting sight. You from around these parts?"

"I'm from Glyphic Falls," Silvally chirped. "I know I look funny, but that's because I'm made of Unown." His tail wagged slowly.

Mudsdale's eyes momentarily widened. He looked up and down Silvally's body and then stepped back. "I see," he muttered. "Well now." He turned back to Braviary. "You continue to surprise me every time you come back here, pardner."

"Heh." Braviary rubbed the tip of his beak with a wing. "You don't even know the half of it."

Mudsdale chuckled. "Well, why don't we save the catching up fer after we've gotten your friends out of the wastelands? C'mon, I'll take ya back to the ranch and let ya pick out a couple of my buddies to join us."

* * *

 **~Solaris Wastelands~**

Shane and Tessa didn't need to speak to each other to tell they were both a bit uneasy with the idea of riding Mudsdale through the desert. They wondered how they were supposed to hold on to the horse as he galloped through the sands. But their fears were quickly put to rest. As it turned out, Braviary's friend ran a service analogous to the Sharpedo Sailors. Typically, they ferried cargo and supplies across the harsher terrains in southern and eastern Horizon. But, they had specialized booster seats, including ones suited to four-legged Pokémon like Shane, Espeon, and Umbreon.

They split up into two groups. Shane, Mimikyu, and Tessa boarded the Mudsdale they had met in town. Espeon and Umbreon saddled up with a much larger Mudsdale, jokingly called "Tiny" by the other staff on the ranch. Braviary hopped atop Silvally, with the two of them leading the group and serving as lookouts.

With logistics settled, they began their trek into the desert. Tessa was quite surprised at how easily Mudsdale moved across the sand. At the same time, she was extremely thankful that his head served as a shield against the air, which had grown even hotter and drier the moment they'd entered the Mystery Dungeon. She glanced over her shoulder and looked out across the sandy expanse. Swirling sandstorms blotted out the sun. Rather than shining bright yellow, it appeared as an orange fireball sitting still in the center of a tan-colored sky that faded to a rusted red along the horizon. The dunes in the distance shimmered from the effects of heat haze.

"Hey, why is all this sand blood red?" Shane asked, staring down at the ground. Nearby, a small hole opened up in the sand and a Sandile scuttled out. Its face blanched upon seeing the Mudsdale towering over it and it retreated back into its hovel, covering the hole up with sand.

"Shoot. You mean you don't know?" Mudsdale gasped. "The air here is superheated, thanks to all the sandstorms. Heck, in some parts of the dungeon it gets so bad, the sand turns to glass. Them parts are just _crawling_ with traps and wild Pokémon. We're trying to stay clear of 'em."

Shane's brow furrowed. "Okay, but what's making the air so hot to begin with? I know it's dry here, but this place is _sweltering._ " He popped open a canteen and gulped down a mouthful of water.

"Oh, well that'd be on account of all the magma flowing underneath the desert," Mudsdale replied.

Shane promptly spat out the water in his mouth. "Muh… magma?" He squealed, his fur standing on end. The very mention of the word filled his mind with unpleasant thoughts.

"Well, yeah. The Volcanic Wastes are just to the east of us. Ain't you supposed to know that if yer an explorer?" Mudsdale asked.

"You'll have to forgive him, sir. He's not from Horizon," Tessa explained. She turned to Shane. "The Volcanic Wastes are the southernmost part of Horizon. Like the name suggests, the region's littered with volcanoes. But the biggest and most active one is Mount Supernova. That's the one whose magma is running under the desert."

Shane's ears folded against his face. "Just how big is that volcano for its magma to extend all the way over here?"

"Well, it's not quite as tall as Solstice Summit. That's the highest point in all of Horizon," Tessa mused. "Dad told me he went there once. He got such a bad nosebleed he had to get rushed back to the Observatory."

Shane reflexively curled up against his booster seat. "Tuh… tell me… no, _promise me_ we'll never have to go somewhere like that."

"Not good with heights?" Mimikyu wondered.

"Of course I'm not! Do I _look_ like a flying-type to you?" Shane growled.

"Gah! Sorry! I was just asking," Mimikyu whimpered, turning away.

"Now, now, settle down you lot," Mudsdale chided. "I won't be tolerating no bickering while y'all are on my back, understand?"

At that, the group fell into silence once again. The rescue party had reached a considerably large sand dune and were now proceeding up it. Silvally appeared to struggle against the harsh winds. But he channeled earth energy into his talons and dug them into the sand. This gave him the traction needed to continue up the steep slope. Tessa found herself watching Braviary as they all hiked up. He stood perched on Silvally's back, scanning the desert. His gaze fixed to his right. Tessa followed his line of sight and saw a sand geyser erupt in the distance.

"Hrmm. I reckon something's got the Gibles all hot and bothered," Braviary said. "I don't suppose yer packing any ice-type moves, are ya, pardner?"

"I am! Ice Fang and Ice Beam. Though that first one would be a bit hard to use while you're on my back," Silvally reported.

Braviary raised a curious eyebrow at this. "That's funny. Ain't never seen ya use them moves before. Ya finally get around to trying out some TMs and tutor sessions with Bruxish?"

Silvally shook his head. "Nope. I think it's my Memory Looplet. Once I got it working, I suddenly found that I could use a ton of different moves."

"Well now… ain't that mighty nice," Braviary muttered.

Tessa noticed Braviary's beak stiffen. She started fidgeting with her paws. "Hey, something bugging you?" Shane whispered. "Is there something wrong with Silvally?"

"What? No… he's fine," Tessa dismissed. "I just… uh…" She gently tugged at Mudsdale's mane. "Um, Mr. Mudsdale, sir? Can I ask you a question… a-about Braviary?"

"Of course," Mudsdale replied. "Though, I haven't seen him all that much this past year, so I may not be the best 'mon fer the job."

"That's okay," Tessa mumbled. She now had paws wrapped around her scarf and pendant. "Um… do you…" She cut herself off. "No, that's not right," she whispered. "What I meant to say was…" She squeezed her eyes shut. "Ugh! Why can't I phrase this right?"

"Hey." Shane leaned forward a put a paw on her shoulder. "Come on. Deep breath. Sounds like you're overthinking this."

"Right," Tessa said. She did as Shane instructed, and then asked, "Do you think Braviary's trustworthy?"

Tessa was jostled about in her seat as Mudsdale shook out his head and neck. "Well, 'course I do. I mean, he ain't exactly been living 'round these parts much since he joined the guild. But I've always taken him to be a straight shooter. Heck, without any hesitation, he was willing to tell me that my old lady-friend was done cheating on me behind my back before we tried to mate. And that was _after_ he got threatened by her."

"I see," Tessa whispered, gaze falling onto her lap. "That's… okay… yeah…" She gulped. "Um, when he's visited you guys in the past, has he ever mentioned anything about an Incineroar?"

Before Mudsdale could answer, the group felt him buckle. Shane gave a startled yip and grabbed onto his seat. He looked to his right and noticed a small sinkhole forming in the sand. Mudsdale huffed and kicked back with his hind legs. A pained yowl caught the groups attention. They turned to see a Krokorok staggering backwards, hands pressed firmly over his snout.

"Go on! Git! Or the next kick'll be even harder," Mudsdale warned. Krokorok looked up at Mudsdale, and took note of the three Pokémon sitting on his back that all held some form of advantage over him. He quickly dropped to all fours and ran away, diving back into the sand for cover. "I tell ya, feels like them buggers have been crawling up from the sand more and more often these days," Mudsdale said with a shake of his head. He turned around and trotted ahead to rejoin the rest of the group.

"Now, what was it you were asking again, li'l missy?" Mudsdale asked.

"Um, about Incineroar?"

Mudsdale slowed his trotting. He turned to look back at Tessa. "Well… shoot," he gasped. "I'd only met the feller a couple of times, but I should've realized it sooner. Yer his pup, ain't ya?"

Tessa's aura feelers twitched and she looked down at her pendant.

"I'm real sorry about what happened to him. Seemed like a nice feller," Mudsdale said. "Braviary always gushed about the guy. 'Bless him. He can cause me a headache or two, but he'll always find a way to make it up to me,' is more-or-less what he would always say." Mudsdale's brow furrowed. "That said, he did seem a bit concerned about yer mother."

Tessa stiffened. "He did?"

Mudsdale's jaw stiffened. He looked up at Braviary, and then glanced back at Tessa. "Err… I weren't supposed to say that out loud."

"Please, tell me what you meant by that," Tessa begged. "My mom's been gone for the last eight months. I'm still trying to figure out what happened to her."

"Sorry, li'l missy. Braviary made me swear not to tell," Mudsdale insisted.

Tessa shot a panicked look back at Shane. _'That certainly doesn't bode well,'_ he thought. _'Sounds to me like Gallian might've been telling the truth after all.'_ He poked at the bottom of his seat with a forepaw. _'Poor Tessa…'_

"Hey now. It's not like Braviary has to know," Mimikyu offered. "Why can't you just whisper it to us all quiet-like? Braviary seems preoccupied anyway. C'mon, this is Riolu's mom we're talking about, here."

Mudsdale sighed. "Alright, fine. But y'all didn't hear this from me, understand?" Tessa nodded vigorously. "Truth is, Braviary thinks yer mom was keeping something from yer dad. Something _big_. He wouldn't tell me what, but he said he always had a bad feeling about her, and that it had only gotten worse when he found something belonging to her. Told me that when he went to talk to Lucario about it, she done said something like, 'If you say even one word about this to Incineroar, I'll pluck every feather off your body.'" Mudsdale shivered.

Tessa's aura feelers stood up. _'Mom was keeping secrets from Dad? But why would she do that? They loved each other… like… a lot!'_ She fidgeted with her scarf. _'Unless… Braviary was trying to make Mom look suspicious on purpose.'_ She bit her lower lip. _'What if he was just trying to cover his tracks? Gallian said that he and Metagross tried to kill Mom, didn't he?'_

Shane heard her whining and frowned. _'Oh, Tessa. I wish there was something I could do for you. I hate seeing you like this.'_ He looked up toward Silvally. _'Too bad we're stuck in the middle of this ridiculous mission.'_ He held up a forepaw and tried to fan himself off. _'Ugh, I can't take this heat for much longer.'_

A loud whistle caused his ears to swivel and drew his attention. Tessa also looked up and spotted Braviary waving a wing at them. "I've got 'em!" he shouted. "They're right on over to the east. Let's get moving!"

He and Silvally made off to the left. Mudsdale slowly followed along. Together, the group found its way toward the basin of a particularly large sand dune. Unlike the rest of the desert expanse, this area had ruined pieces of a stone building littering the area. Shane could make out fragments of stone flooring and pillars protruding from the sand.

"I think I see them," Tessa said, peering out from behind Mudsdale's head. Shane and Mimikyu followed her gaze and spotted Yungoos standing atop one of the pillars, waving his stubby little forelegs at them. They then saw him lose balance and fall down into a mound of sand. Growlithe and Trapinch both sat in the sand. The former turned and helped Yungoos up. Growlithe draped Yungoos over his back to keep him off the hot sand.

Mudsdale broke into a gallop, enabling Team Radiance to make it down to their guild mates' location. Sensing a considerable amount of heat rising off the stone and sand, they opted to remain on Mudsdale for their own safety.

"Thank da Tapus youse found us," Yungoos wheezed. Braviary hoisted him up onto Silvally back and offered him some water. He graciously gulped it down. "I was starting to think I was gonna melt out here."

"Well, we're here now. That's all that matters," Braviary exclaimed.

"What exactly happened with Tapu Bulu?" Mimikyu wondered.

"Oh, it was awful!" Trapinch said. "We tried to tell him about the Prism Virus and he got really mad. Next thing we knew, we were flying through the desert air and crashed down over here."

"Wait." Shane's brow furrowed. "So, then, where's the temple at, huh?" A flicker of light drew his attention and he looked down at his looplet. The gem had started flashing just like in Aurora Vale. "My looplet's reacting. We must not be too far," he said.

"Mine too," Tessa added. She lifted her paw up and a beam of light shot toward a sand dune opposite them. An intense gust of wind blew across the dune, exposing the temple as an inverted pyramid embedded in the dune as an extension of the stone rubble scattered around the area. Tessa cautiously brought her paw back and held it against her chest. "Um, do we all go in together?"

"I reckon so," Braviary declared. "Tapu Bulu ought to settle down and listen if'n all of us are together."

"Are you sure that's really such a good idea?" Mimikyu asked. "Maybe he got mad because three guys went into his temple instead of one."

"At this point, I'd rather have strength in numbers," Shane said. _'Even if I don't necessarily trust one of them. At least, if he tries to step out of line, there's enough of us that we can take him.'_

"Alrighty then. Y'all better get off yer Mudsdales. No reason to ask them to head inside, right?" He looked over at Mudsdale. His friend nodded slowly, staring transfixed at the temple.

"Yeah. I'd, uh, rather not set a hoof down in that place. Superstitions and whatnot," Mudsdale mumbled.

Braviary fluttered into the air. "C'mon, y'all. We'd better get inside, quickly!"

* * *

 **~Voltaic Crater~**

"Whoa!"

Serperior jumped back, holding her tail up defensively. A bolt of blue lightning surged inches in front of her. It struck a bright, flashing rock to her left. The lightning then raced back down the path, toward another flashing rock in the distance. Fluorescent blue light streamed up the dungeon's dark-blue wall. "I'm getting real sick and tired of all these charge-stones!" Serperior hissed, rapping her tail against the ground.

Beside her, Araquanid scuttled away from a cluster of floating charge-stones. "Careful, if you keep yelling like that, you'll wake up all the sleeping Charjabugs," he warned, glancing nervously at half a dozen Charjabugs clinging to the largest floating charge-stone. "And the last thing we need is for them to call for any help. Our report said Totem Vikavolt lives around here, remember?"

"Quit being such a scaredy-bug," Serperior scoffed. "You're supposed to be a veteran. Act like it."

"Excuse for me for wanting to make sure this mission goes okay," Araquanid.

"Both of you be quiet," Milotic huffed, holding her tail up. Her brow furrowed. "I hear something buzzing in the distance."

Araquanid shuffled backwards. "Crap! It's Totem Vikavolt! Quick, Volcarona, you have to be ready to–"

A distorted ripple ran across the path, bathing the area in a sinister red glow and freezing the foursome in place.

"I was wondering what had held you four up. Turns out it was just some petty squabbling."

Zero floated out from behind a large, flashing boulder. Dark energy crackled in her paws. She thrust them forward just as Teams Captivate and Buzz Buzz regained the ability to move. A pitch-black Dark Pulse raced forward, hammering Milotic and knocking her back into Serperior. They rolled to a stop in a coiled, knotted-up mess.

"Uwaaaaah! Wh… who are you?" Araquanid gasped. He wasted no time in launching a stream of water at Zero from his bubble. Zero raised a paw and a wall of black cubes formed in front of her. They caught the water, then spat it back at Volcarona. She gasped in surprise and let loose a Flamethrower, vaporizing the water before it could hit her.

Zero slammed the cube wall with an open palm and it sped forward. Confused by the attack, Araquanid and Volcarona bolted in opposite directions, watching the wall whizz by them. Zero clenched her paw into a fist and the wall exploded, flinging the cubes in all directions. They pelted Araquanid and Volcarona, knocking the latter to the ground.

"Hey, back off!" Serperior snarled. A Dragon Pulse raced toward Zero. She pivoted, keeping her paw outstretched, and retaliated with a Dragon Pulse of her own. The blue bolts collided in a burst of draconic energy. Smoke spread across the area, prompting Milotic to spit up a torrent of water.

Zero sensed the attack coming, however, and sped away in the blink of an eye. Her Extreme Speed left her outside the smoke cloud. A red Aura Sphere raced toward Milotic, giving her no time to react. Her struck her square in the face and knocked her into a floating charge-stone. Lightning poured over her body. Milotic wailed in agony, body flailing wildly, and then dropped to the ground. Her marvelous scales were charred from head to tail.

"Millie!" Serperior gasped. She wheeled on Zero. "You're gonna pay for that, you heartless witch!" She slammed her tail into the ground, launching a volley of wind and leaves at Zero. Zero retaliated by bringing her paws together. A ripple of distortion formed in front of her and opened up, sending out a stream of glitchy black cubes that effortlessly snuffed out Serperior's Leaf Storm.

Serperior stared down the oncoming attack, a look of horror on her face. At the last second, Araquanid hammered her left side, knocking her out of the way and taking the attack in her place. He yelped in pain and collapsed onto his stomach, swirls in his eyes. Serperior shakily got up, looking at her defeated allies. Volcarona weekly flapped her wings but was unable to get airborne again.

"Pathetic," Zero dismissed. "I had a sneaking suspicion that Dragonair might be the glue that held your unimpressive team together, but I didn't realize things would be this bad without her."

Serperior's face contorted in rage. "You… you did something to Airy!" she accused. "You're the reason she left! Give her back to us, now!"

Zero nudged her mask, body flickering in and out of existence. "I can't do that," she said. "Dragonair… or should I say _Dragonite_ has finally found true happiness."

"No…" Serperior whispered, eyes slowly widening. "What did you do to her?"

"Nothing. I made her see that she needed to ditch a couple of superficial, self-absorbed blowhards, and channel her abilities into something worth her time and energy," Zero said. "Like, say, killing the Legendaries that keep us mortals fighting amongst one another." She held her right paw out and her staff materialized. "Don't give me that look. Deep down, I'm sure you know I speak the truth. Your precious reputation was built on going into wild Pokémon's homes and beating them within an inch of their lives. I understand... I had made the same folly for many years until I had my eye opened to the truth."

Zero glanced at Volcarona. She lifted her paw up. A pink glow encapsulated Volcarona as Zero hoisted her into the air. Volcarona squirmed about fruitlessly. "P… please. You don't have to do this! I won't say anything about what happened here. I… I swear!"

"You see?" Zero continued. "When a Pokémon's back is pressed to the wall, they'll say and do just about anything. This is the kind of society we've created. This is what we've let gods and Mystery Dungeons do to us."

"You're lying through your teeth," Serperior growled. "I don't believe a word of your garbage!"

 **"Well you should!"**

Serperior's blood ran cold. The leaves along her body wilted and she defensively coiled up, shivering. An Ultra Wormhole opened behind Araquanid and a cloud of shadows raced out of it, swallowing him up. The shadows formed into Necrozma, leaving Araquanid's lifeless, colorless body laying upside down on the ground.

 **"After all… heeheeheehee… you have your Guildmaster to thank for all of this!"** Necrozma cackled. **"Your light… it's going to be such a delicious treat!"** He looked down at Milotic, licking his lips in anticipation. However, before he got the chance to move in for the kill, a black orb struck Milotic's limp body. It cracked open and red light sucked Milotic into the ball, which then shut and fell to the ground.

"No, Millie!" Serperior hollered.

 **"Skrreeeeeeeeeevp! What do you think you're doing?!"** Necrozma snarled. **"They're my prey! You don't get to capture them and waste my light powering them up! We never agreed to this!"**

"I said I wanted to replenish my ranks. We lost Espeon and Umbreon… and you got carried away with Musharna. Dragonite's not good enough," Zero scoffed, levitating the black ball over to her. Serperior launched a retaliatory Leaf Storm. But Zero pointed her staff in Serperior's direction. Volcarona drifted in the attack's path and took the Leaf Storm head on. Serperior lashed out with her tail in frustration.

 **"At least let me take Serperior, then,"** Necrozma growled. **"Or Volcarona. You don't care about that worthless bug one bit, do you?"**

Zero looked at Volcarona, watching her occasionally twitch in a half-hearted attempt at breaking free. "Fine. Take her." She released her psychic grip. Volcarona didn't even get the chance to hit the ground. A black beam struck her back, sucking the life and colors off her body. They funneled into Necrozma's open mouth.

 **"How very spicy,"** Necrozma declared, licking his lips. He pointed a claw at Volcarona's corpse. Black crystals surrounded it. A series of pops and crunches sounded as the crystals formed a spherical, makeshift cocoon. Necrozma levitated it up into the air and grasped it with both his crystalline hands. **"I think I can put this to good use in the future, mistress. You won't be disappointed."**

Serperior was backed up against a neon-blue rock, breath coming in sharp, ragged gasps. "You two… you're a couple of monsters!"

 **"Ultra Beasts, actually. If you're going to insult me, get it right!"** Necrozma teased. **"And really, how is what we're doing that bad? This world… the way it is right now… it's beyond saving! Filled with spineless, miserable fools! You build your flimsy little friendships, talking about how important they are, and then tear them down with reckless abandon!"** Rainbow energy flashed in his eyes. **"For example: your Guildmaster was happy to offer you up as sacrifices to save his own metal hide!"**

Serperior's eyes widened. "You're lying! Metagross would never do something like that. He works to help Pokémon. We all do!"

"The only Pokémon your Guildmaster helps is himself," Zero replied harshly. "We were able to find you so easily because he happily revealed your location to us."

"That's… there's no way…" Serperior stuttered, her resolve faltering. "That's not like him."

"Is that so? It's not like him to stab his own subordinates in the back?" Zero growled. She shakily reached a paw up, slowly removing her mask. Necrozma leaned over, grinning with interest. "Just like it's not like him… to kill his own friend? And _try_ to kill said friend's mate?"

Serperior went slack-jawed. "Lucario?" She looked back and forth between Necrozma and Zero. "No… no! Lucario, you have to snap out of it! Think of what you're doing! Think about Tessa and Gallian! They need you! They–"

"–are nothing more than victims of circumstance. My children…" Zero hissed, putting her mask back on, "… do need me. Because I was taken from them. By gods you're willing to defend, even though they refuse to return the favor." She raised her free paw up. A black ball formed against her palm. Zero hurled it at Serperior, who was in too much shock to dodge it. The ball struck her and, like Milotic before her, sucked her up in a beam of red light.

Zero called the ball back to her. She plucked it and the one she caught Milotic in out of the air. "Three beautiful maidens to make my beautiful vision of the future into reality. Fitting enough, I'd say," she declared. "All that's missing is their new leader. Speaking of which…"

She looked over her shoulder, watching as a massive chunk of rock exploded in the distance. Tapu Koko careened through the air, looking extremely worse for wear. A white blur shot out of the smoke, striking him in midair and slamming him to the ground in front of Zero and Necrozma. The dust settled, revealing Dragonite standing triumphantly over Tapu Koko's colorless body.

"Well done, Dragonite," Zero congratulated. She tossed the two balls to Dragonite, who caught them. "I got your friends back. I think you'll find they're much more loyal."

 **"No, you fool! Tapu Koko had my light! I was supposed to take his life away!"** Necrozma snarled, teleporting in front of Zero and leering down at her. **"What is the meaning of this? We had a deal! I help you, you give me my light!"** His red eyes flashed. **"Are you trying to deceive me?** _ **Are you?!**_ **"**

"Sorry, Necrozma. I just got caught up in the moment," Dragonite sneered, drawing Necrozma's attention. "It was an honest mistake."

 **"Right… of course… an 'honest mistake,'"** Necrozma huffed. **"You really think I'm going to believe that? People have said that wretched lie to my face time and time again! You two are working against me, aren't you?"** Rainbow energy surged around his crystalline torso. **"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't blow you both to smithereens!"**

"Because if I go down, your Ultranecrozmera goes with me," Zero threatened, pointing her scepter forward. "As does your chances of ever getting your real body and spirit back!" Necrozma floated back, wings twitched and grip tightening on Volcarona's cocoon. Zero turned to Dragonite. "I see you don't have the Dusk Hourglass. Which means he didn't have it, did he?"

Dragonite nodded. "I searched high and low, but there's no sign of it."

Zero's eye narrowed. "Necky… where is the Dusk Hourglass?"

 **"Me? Why should I know?"** Necrozma scoffed.

"Because I strongly doubt Team Captivate's location is all you got out of the Guildmaster," Zero said. "Tell me where the Dusk Hourglass is… _or else._ "

Necrozma tucked his head against his right wing. **"Bulu has it. It's somewhere in the Solaris Wastelands."**

"Then it would seem we have one last stop to make today," Zero declared. "Dragonite, take your friends back to Celestial Island. Necky and I will return there when we're done."

Dragonite bowed. "As you wish, mistress." With a mighty flap of her wings, she rocketed into the sky.

Zero gestured behind her. "Come, Necky. It's time to crash the Temple of Body."

Frowning, Necrozma opened an Ultra Wormhole in front of Zero.

* * *

 **~The Temple of Body~**

"Uh… wow. Just… just wow."

Shane's head lolled to his right.

"Something the matter?" Silvally asked.

"Just… um… admiring the décor," Shane muttered. _'Which really leaves something to be desired.'_

"Yeah. _Someone's_ clearly got a high opinion of demselves," Yungoos scoffed. "Look at all dese flexing Tapu Bulu statues. What an eyesore!"

"Gwoooooooooooooooh!"

"Eeeek!"

Trapinch and Mimikyu both shrieked and jumped up in unison. They collided in midair and sank to the ground, stars swirling around their eyes. The door atop the staircase at the back of the room burst open.

"Who dares enter Bulu's temple without permission?" a deep voice thundered through the room.

Shane felt all eyes in the room fall toward him. "Well, go on, newbie," Yungoos said. "Youse da one wit' his looplet, aren't ya?"

Shane looked up at the open doorway and gulped. He stepped forward. "I… I do," he rasped. "Um… I think we've met before. You, uh, gave me this looplet." He shakily held up his forepaw. The gem in the center of his Naturia Looplet sparkled under the light of the torches lining the walls.

A green blur shot forward from the doorway and Shane soon found himself dangling in the air. His eyes widened as he looked directly into Tapu Bulu's fierce expression. He could see his companions stepping backward. Save for Silvally, who had changed into a poison-type and crouched low to the ground, ready to pounce if things got out of hand.

But, to Shane's relief, Tapu Bulu released him and lowered him gently to the ground. "It's you!" he gasped. "Bulu remember you. You drowning in ocean, so Bulu save you."

"I was… drowning?" Shane squeaked, shrinking down to the ground. "I don't remember that."

Tapu Bulu nodded sagely. "Found you while returning from visit to Fini's temple," he explained. "Big hole open in sky. Drop puny fuzzball into ocean." He thrust his arms apart. "Sploosh! Bulu see splashdown. It… not very impressive."

' _Yeah, well your grammar's not very impressive, but you don't see me complaining,'_ Shane thought. _'Oh, wait… I kind of am.'_

"So, Bulu linger by water. But puny fuzzball no surface," Tapu Bulu continued. "That's when Bulu sense something off with you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Shane asked.

"Bulu think you feel like Solgaleo," Tapu Bulu reported.

"Well, I think he's tied into how I ended up here… somehow," Shane mumbled. _'At least, I really hope so, at this point. Because Necrozma couldn't have brought me here. I refuse to believe him.'_

"Wait, youse mean to say dat Vulpix was actually telling da truth about dat stuff?" Yungoos gasped.

Tapu Bulu turned and fixed an angry glare on Yungoos. "You no speak or Bulu throw you from temple again." Yungoos' face paled at that and he promptly hid behind Braviary. Tapu Bulu turned back to Shane and declared, "Bulu not believe puny fuzzball's claims."

"What?" Shane's brow furrowed and his muzzle stiffened. "How can you not believe me? Search my memories, you'll see that I was a human before I was a Vulpix."

Bulu shook his head. "Bulu no psychic. Can't do that."

"Then why are you making such a ridiculous accusation?" Shane growled. His eyes widened when he realized Tapu Bulu was now glaring at him.

"Err… f-forgive him, Tapu Bulu," Tessa said, hastily stepping up beside Shane a cupping a paw over his mouth. "He's not feeling that well. Y'know, we did have to trek through the desert to get here. Desert heat doesn't go well with Vulpixes." She took a digit and twirled it around her temple in a cuckoo gesture.

"Bulu know that. Why wimpy blue puppy think Tapu Bulu put temple in middle of desert? No want annoying visitors," Tapu Bulu scoffed.

"And we totally understand that," Tessa said. "It's just, I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but there are problems going on in Horizon, right now."

"Bulu know," Tapu Bulu said, crossing his arms. "But Bulu's turf no having problems, so Bulu remain here."

Tessa and Shane exchanged nervous looks. "Well… um…" Tessa muttered. "See, that's kind of why we need to talk to you, though. We… um…"

"Dark forces are after the Dusk Hourglass. We need to make sure it's safe," Silvally declared. Tapu Bulu sized him up, an unamused look on his face.

"Bulu not like your tone," he harrumphed. "Bulu look after Dusk Hourglass well. Too well. Bulu think he deserve medal… or at least really, really big cake. But Bulu no get such things. Not even thank you card. It sad... really."

"The proof is that the Dawn Hourglass got shattered into pieces and Tapu Lele's dead," Silvally declared.

"Wait, WHAT?" Trapinch's eyes widened. "When were you going to tell us that, huh?"

Tapu Bulu slammed into the ground, causing it to shake. Braviary fluttered into the air, squawking. Silvally angrily took a fighting stance in front of his teammates.

" _Enough!_ " Tapu Bulu thundered. "You barge into Bulu's home. You question Bulu's thinking. Now you tell Bulu he bad at job? You try to say Lele dead? Bulu not stand for this! Bulu will make you–" A tiny beam of light flickered by his eyes, causing him to abruptly stop shouting. He looked down at Tessa and his brow furrowed. "Wait. That looplet. Lele give you Naturia Looplet?" He hovered back into the air. "But Lele not mention anything about gifting a Naturia Looplet at last family dinner." He glared at Tessa. "Where wimpy blue puppy get that?"

"I got it from Tapu Lele," she squeaked. "And… and she gave it to me right before she was killed by Necrozma!"

Tapu Bulu snorted out white clouds. A vein seemed to bulge out of his forehead. "Oh, real smooth dere, Riolu. Youse done pissed him off for reals!"

Tessa winced. "That wasn't my intention."

"Wimpy blue puppy lies!" Tapu Bulu shouted. "Necrozma long gone from this world. Solgaleo and Lunala banish him after he go on rampage."

"Well, he's not banished anymore," Silvally said. "He attacked Tapu Lele in her temple, then sucked the life right out of her."

"Bulu no believe you."

"It's the truth!" Silvally growled. His mechanical cheek bolts whirred in their sockets, generating purple sparks. "He drained the color off her body, turned her into a gem, and smashed her into itty-bitty pieces." Tapu Bulu's facial expression hardened at this. "I know you said you're not psychic, but isn't there some way you can try to reach out the other Tapus? Don't you have some sort of connection? You've got to believe us. We're worried that you might be next!"

"… wait here."

Tapu Bulu turned and floated out of the room. He disappeared into the open doorway. Silvally turned to his teammates, a pleased expression on his face. "Well, I think that went rather well."

"What part of _that_ do you consider 'going well,' huh?" Shane scoffed.

"The part where we didn't get flattened into pancakes or thrown out of the temple by some sort of creepy magic voodoo," Silvally chirped in response, tail slowly fanning back and forth.

"GWOOOOOH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Tapu Bulu streamed out of the doorway, arms flailing about in a panic. He wasn't watching where he was floating, however, and crashed into one of his statues. It careened to the ground and broke into several large chunks. Tapu Bulu floated about in a daze and shook his head out.

"Hey, can I burn the broken statue?" Growlithe wondered. His answer came in the form of several glares from his guild mates. "Okay, okay, I get the memo. Sheesh."

"This… this not possible…" Tapu Bulu muttered. "Lele gone. Dawn Hourglass… broken."

"So, you believe us now?" Silvally asked. "Because, we're trying to prevent the Dusk Hourglass from falling into Necrozma's clutches. We're hoping that we can find the broken pieces of the Dawn Hourglass, too. But we need you to be willing to work together with us."

Tapu Bulu's brow furrowed. "What does beak-face have in mind?"

"Well…"

"The Horizon Guild has protective barriers up around Aeon Town," Braviary jumped in. "If'n ya come back with us, and bring the Dawn Hourglass along, we can keep ya safe."

Shane raised a skeptical brow at this. _'Wait, he actually wants us to take the Tapu back with us to Aeon Town?'_ He bit his lower lip. _'I'm not sure I like the sound of that.'_ Thoughts of Metagross flashed through his mind and he shuddered.

Tapu Bulu floated forward until he hovered over Braviary, who immediately tensed up. "You want Bulu come with you? To town of mortals? How that safer than temple? Bulu can camouflage temple. Bulu can reshape desert to throw off Necrozma."

"And that clearly didn't help Tapu Lele," Shane retorted. "Necrozma found his way into her temple and was able to attack her. Do you _really_ think you're totally safe here?"

"We've got other guild members talking to the other Tapus as well," Braviary added. Tapu Bulu glared at him again. Braviary clamped his beak shut.

"If Bulu come to Aeon Town, how Bulu supposed to manage the ley lines here?" Tapu Bulu asked. "Bulu still have important job to do."

Braviary's beak stiffened. "Err… that's… well, I'm a bit unsure about that one. I'd have to run it past the Guildmaster and see what he comes up–"

"You don't have to come with us," Silvally said, cutting Braviary off, much to his chagrin. "If you think you can take Necrozma, then we can't stop you. But we can't risk letting the Prism Virus take the Dusk Hourglass. Would you at least be willing to give it to us for safekeeping?"

Tapu Bulu's eyes widened and his brow immediately furrowed. "Please, sir," Shane begged, stepping forward. "We really need your help here."

Tapu Bulu glanced at Shane's Naturia Looplet. "And puny fuzzball is sure magic barrier can keep Dusk Hourglass safe?"

Shane nodded slowly. _'I mean… I'm not entirely sure I trust Metagross. But Magearna designed the shields, right? She hasn't done anything to seem untrustworthy. This is the right thing to do,'_ he tried to convince himself.

Tapu Bulu sighed "Very well. Bulu get Hourglass. Give to puny fuzzball. Then you mortals leave Bulu's home." He once again turned and floated out of the room.

Shane turned to Silvally. "Thanks for the help, big guy. I think you were able to win him over… somehow."

"Not a problem. Glad I could make a difference," Silvally trilled.

"Don't y'all go patting yerselves on the back until we're back in Aeon Town, safe and sound," Braviary harrumphed.

Tapu Bulu reappeared from the doorway. Floating beside him was an hourglass about half his size. Its framework was black and the sand inside of it was purple. A gemstone styled to look like a crescent moon sat notched into the top of the hourglass.

"This be Dusk Hourglass. Handle it carefully. If it breaks, pieces will scatter," Tapu Bulu warned. Shane stepped forward, gulping. He watched the Dawn Hourglass slowly float down toward him. He began to reach a paw out toward it, only to freeze up. His heart rate spiked and a sharp, throbbing pain struck his right temple.

 _'Ow… my head!'_ he groaned. _'Why do I suddenly have such a splitting headache?'_ He tried to grab the Dawn Hourglass, but his arm locked up.

"Shane, what are you doing? Just take it so that we can go already," Tessa whispered.

"I… I'm trying," Shane hissed back. _'C'mon, stupid brain. What's the problem here?'_ He winced as his headache intensified. He again reached for the Dawn Hourglass. This time, warm energy brushed against his forepaw.

 _Claaaaaaaaaaaaaang!_

Shane's heart skipped a beat and he jumped, turning around to see that the front door had been blown wide open. To his horror, thick black smoke poured in from the desert outside.

 **"Looks like we showed up at just the right time! How wonderful to see you again…** _ **Shane!**_ **"**

* * *

Some review replies to end off.

SuperOmegaGuest: I'm a beginner at storytelling, actually. If folks are enjoying this stuff, then that makes me happy!

Veralix: You won't have to wait too much longer for Necrozma's secret to finally get through Shane's thick skull. Of course, you might be surprised how it happens.

Another Guest: You're correct, Necrozma's not a huge fan of brokering deals. But, then again, neither is Metagross.

Anon Omega: Metagross is the type of guy who would only play Melee, because he thinks it's perfect. So, I'm afraid your trick won't work.

That'll do it for this week. Next time: the Prism Virus brings the guild to its knees... and permanently splits up a brother and a sister. Those of you who yelled at me back in Episode 9 might want to bring a box of tissues.


	57. Divide by Zero

I wanted to take the opportunity to thank you all, again, for the continued support. I'm amazed at how well-received these last few chapters have been. And, because of that, I wanted to make sure this chapter was done right. I ended up having to completely rewrite it from the ground up. The original draft had been written following an infusion treatment that left my mind a bit scrambled. It was incoherent as a result. Also, I wanted to change things up to incorporate some of your guys' feedback. Namely, "Shane can't possibly be this stupid and not realize what's going on."

A lot of effort went into this one. I hope you enjoy it and that you'll let me know what you think!

* * *

 **Chapter 49: Divide by Zero**

Necrozma popped out of the black smoke, with Zero by his side. **"Trying to run off with the Hourglass while my back is turned, huh? Well, too bad! It's** _ **my**_ **light and I'm here to take it back!"**

Braviary took off into the air, making for the Dusk Hourglass. At the same time, he yanked an Escape Orb from his satchel. Necrozma noticed this and disappeared in a burst of black smoke. He materialized in front of Braviary, eliciting a frightened squawk. Braviary gave a powerful flap of his wings, bringing his forward momentum to a screeching halt. However, he couldn't maintain a grip on the Escape Orb. A Shadow Ball met the falling item in midair and blew it into multicolored dust.

 **"Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I didn't make myself clear. None of you fools will be leaving this place in one piece! All of your light belongs to me and only me!"** Necrozma bellowed. His red eyes flashed pink and the entrance to the temple slammed shut seconds before Tapu Bulu would have escaped through it with the Dusk Hourglass in his arms. A set of black, cast iron chains exploded out of the wall and wrapped themselves tightly around the door. Padlocks appeared in the chains, bearing Necrozma's star icon.

Tapu Bulu fled away from Zero, eyes widened in panic. "This no make sense. Why you look like Lunala?" he asked.

Necrozma frowned. **"You can thank** _ **her**_ **for that,"** he hissed disdainfully, glaring at Zero. **"She took the tiniest fraction of my spirit and shoved me inside this insipid body… forcing me to leech off Lunala's light or wither away into another awful stasis!"**

"Now, now," Zero said, "if you're looking to point fingers, they should go in the right direction. Zero turned to Braviary. "After all, if it wasn't for this winged Neanderthal and his miserable excuse for a boss, none of this would've happened."

A volley of Air Slashes, a Flamethrower, and a small sand vortex all raced toward Zero. A massive pillar of yellow light blew the attacks apart like they were nothing. **"Don't you dare try to attack her!"** Necrozma snarled. **"I won't see more of my precious light wasted on you fools and your asinine, uphill battle."** He folded his wings over his chest, covering up his spasming arms.

"I don't take kindly to varmints who call me things I don't right understand!" Braviary shouted. "And I _especially_ can't stand insensitive clods who insult the guild!"

Necrozma thrust his wings apart. Crimson energy exploded out all around him, forcing the various guild members to retreat farther into the temple. Tapu Bulu couldn't float away fast enough and the shockwave struck him from behind. It didn't appear to hurt all that much, but its intensity knocked him into one of his own statues, smashing it to pieces. Tapu Bulu kept a tight grip on the Dusk Hourglass and tried to fly for the door leading deeper into the table. Like the main entrance, however, it had been sealed shut with chains and heavy padlocks.

"Was… was that Night Daze?" Shane gasped. "As in, Zoroark's move?"

 **"You can't get mad at the truth, Braviary,"** Necrozma sneered. **"After all… the only reason we're here right now is thanks to your wonderful,** _ **trusted**_ **Guildmaster."**

Shane's and Tessa's hearts were up in their throats. They both looked at each other, eyes filled with horror. _'No, that has to be a lie!'_ Shane thought. _'I don't want my worst fears confirmed! I want to be wrong about Metagross! Please, god, just let me be wrong!'_

Braviary didn't back down. Instead, he slung more wind blades toward Necrozma and Zero. Yungoos and Trapinch back him up with volleys of sand, Growlithe added a Flamethrower, Mimikyu contributed a purple Shadow Ball, and Umbreon sent a Dark Pulse rifling forward. The attacks coalesced into a swirling, dark gray vortex. Necrozma spread his wings in front of Zero. Multiple Shadow Balls surrounded him, brimming with pink energy. Necrozma thrust his arms in front of him. Bursts of psychic waves launched the Shadow Balls forward, destroying the guild members' combined attacks.

 **"I told you to knock that off!"** Necrozma sneered. **"You can act as angry as you want, it won't change the fact that your Guildmaster told me where you would be. He was practically** _ **begging**_ **me to take your light for myself!"** He cocked his head to the side. **"He sold you out. He sold** _ **all of you**_ **out! Your guild will soon be nothing but a memory!"**

"I've already taken Team Captivate firmly under my possession," Zero exclaimed. "I think that they, like me, realize how futile it is to be an explorer. To prop up a world where we're at the mercy of ley lines and Mystery Dungeons."

 **"And those pathetic bugs provided a juicy little meal for me on the way over!"** Necrozma added, licking his lips. **"A nice palette cleanser after I got through that yappy rodent and the stupid fish with the** _ **obnoxiooooooooous**_ **voice!"**

Shane's chest tightened. _'No way. He got Bruxish and Togedemaru, too?'_ He staggered backward, looking despondently at his teammates. _'This is horrible! We've played right into their hands!'_ He tugged Tessa's arm. "We have to get out of here. Grab an Escape Orb and get on Silvally. Then make a mad dash for Tapu Bulu."

"B-But… what if they attack us?" Tessa squeaked, shivering violently. "I… I can't stand up to them. None of us can!"

"If we stay here, we're as good as dead," Shane said. "There's nothing else we can do."

Espeon and Umbreon both overhead their conversation and exchanged nervous looks. "C'mon, Umbry. Surely, you've got something in mind that we can do, right?"

"I… I…" Umbreon got choked up on his words. He shut his eyes and looked away from Espy. Worry spread across her face.

"Umbry, what are you thinking about?"

"I have a plan," he croaked. "Just lay low for a moment. I have to see how this plays out."

"What do you mean you have a plan?" Espeon hissed in a whisper. "You're going to tell me what it is, right? _Right?_ " Much to her horror, Umbreon stepped forward. "Umbry! Talk to me, Umbry! This isn't like you at all. We're a team, remember?"

"I know. Which is why I need you to trust me," he said, though he refused to make eye contact with her. "This is going to work. I can feel it in my bones." He took another cautious step forward, ignoring the growing fright in Espeon's expression.

In front of them, Braviary lashed at the air with his talons. "Y'all don't know what yer talking about," he squawked. "I know Metagross better than anyone and–"

 _CLANG!_

Zero slammed her staff into the ground. "No, you don't. None of you do. Because he pulled the wool over your eyes. He kept the guild functioning, so no one bothered to question him. Everyone was complacent. This whole wretched hive of a world is complacent!" Distorted ripples raced across her body and afterimages flickered around her. "No one questions the Legendaries. No one's held them accountable for the destruction they've wrought… for the lives they've ruined!"

"They've created a situation where a _repugnant_ creature like Metagross can go out and _murder_ a selfless, _innocent_ man for seemingly no good reason! And then turn around and stalk his victim's mate when she tries to get to the truth… culminating in an attempt to permanently silence her, too!" Zero snarled. "Your whole organization is a sham! It's photographic evidence that this world is _sick._ It must be _cured._ Your gods – your world's persistent, _intractable_ infection – must be _purged_. That is my purpose! It's why I'm here!" She pointed her sparking scepter right at Braviary. "And it's why I have no qualms about stripping you spineless cowards of your lives right here and now!"

A square beam made of glitchy black cubes raced toward Braviary, Mimikyu, Trapinch, Yungoos, and Growlithe. "Everybody move!" Braviary shouted, flapping his wings as hard as he could to ascend. Mimikyu shot his ragged arms out, shoving his guild mates to the side and barely skirting Zero's attack.

"Guys, we have to help them!" Silvally shouted. His cheek bolts spun about intensely in their sockets and lightning crackled across his body. He launched Thunderbolts toward Zero, but Necrozma popped up in front of her in a cloud of black smoke.

 **"Stop attacking, mistress! You're wasting my light! If anyone's killing these nobodies, it's me!"** Necrozma thundered, snuffing out the electricity with pulses of pink psychic energy.

"We've gotta move in! We've got the numbers!" Braviary shouted, pointing a wing toward Zero and Necrozma. "We ain't letting your varmints do a doggone thing to us, is that clear?" He smacked his wings together and Air Slash crescents rippled forward. They were joined by a Dark Pulse, Flamethrower, Shadow Ball, and two plumes of sand. On the other side of the room, Silvally launched his own stream of razor-sharp wind blades. Shane added a multicolored Aurora Beam while Espeon contributed a pink Psybeam.

 **"I… said… that's…** _ **enough!**_ **"**

Necrozma brought his arms crashing down into the ground. Another crimson dome exploded out around him. It raced forward, harmlessly passing by Zero but greatly weakening the two combined attacks the guild members had put together. Zero pushed him aside and stuck a flickering paw up. Distorted red waves raced ahead of her, dispelling the remains of the guild's attacks and leaving everyone standing there with mixed looks of shock and confusion.

The lone exceptions were Shane and Tessa, who sprinted along the side of the expansive entrance, trying to get to Tapu Bulu. He was feeling around at the walls with one of his arms, looking for a means of breaking it apart and making an exit. Zero caught them in her line of sight and hurled a red Aura Sphere forward as fast as she could. Silvally jumped into the air, a golden wheel encompassing his body. The wheel burst into surges of orange energy that coated his forelegs. He slashed the Aura Sphere in half and its energy flickered out harmlessly.

"Don't just float there, Necky. You're so adamant about all of this… do something!" Zero barked, charging up another Aura Sphere.

"We ain't gonna give you the chance!" Braviary shouted. Another combination attack spiraled toward Necrozma, whose wings twitched and armed spasmed.

 **"You… you fools… you will not keep all this light away from me!"** Necrozma roared. He thrust his arms and wings apart. The former's light-blue coloration suddenly grew blindingly bright. Six glowing balls of light encircled Necrozma's body. A stream of blue energy raced from each ball to the center of Necrozma's body.

 **"I'll annihilate you all!"**

A massive beam of light-blue and distorted black energy raced out of Necrozma's body. It not only effortlessly swallowed up the guild members' attacks, it continued heading toward them, growing steadily larger.

Yungoos' eyes widened. "No! NOOOOOOOOOO!"

"Get outta there, y'all!" Braviary hollered, desperately beating his wings.

 **"It's useless! Witness the raw power of Moongeist Beam and** _ **die!**_ **"** Necrozma screeched. His attack completely engulfed Yungoos, Growlithe, Trapinch, and Mimikyu. Silvally looked up and saw the beam strike Braviary's right wing.

Braviary screamed and spiraled down to the ground, smoke funneling off his limb. "Hang on!" Silvally shouted, racing toward him at top speeds.

 **"Foolish Legendary knock-off! I won't let you get between me and my prey!"** Necrozma snarled. Two purple Shadow Balls rifled toward Silvally, but the chimera deactivated his Memory Looplet. They harmlessly struck him as he caught Braviary out of the sky. Braviary had completely lost consciousness, but Silvally looked at his injured wing.

"Ah! Your wing's totally crystallized!" Silvally gasped. He turned around, blowing the smoke from Necrozma's Moongeist Beam away. What he found were four piles of sickly-black crystals, each of which sucked the light of the room away. Silvally turned back to Necrozma, his silver eyes glowing brightly. "You monster! None of them deserved to die like that!" He shook Braviary off his back. "I'll rip you apart! I'll tear you to shreds! I'll–"

 **"Heeheeheehee! Now** _ **that**_ **sounds more like a proper God Killer,"** Necrozma taunted, licking rainbow-colored juiced from his lips. **"But it's utterly meaningless. We're cut from the same cloth, you and I. We're both monstrosities…** _ **immortal monstrosities**_ **. None of these Pokémon here should mean anything to you!"**

 **"Even if you somehow stopped me… you'd end up having to watch as the friends you claim to love so much** _ **die**_ **one by one until you're left all alone!"** Necrozma ranted, his red eyes flashing erratically. **"And then what will you do,** _ **Silvally?**_ **Go slink off and spend your existence alone in some cave like the Legendaries you were molded after? Or will the losses prove too heartbreaking? Will you drown in the depths of your own despair… and end your life like I did?"**

Zero paused in the midst of charging an attack to strike Shane and Tessa at the far end of the room. The attack faded and she stepped away from Necrozma, her lone eye narrowing. Across the room, Shane abruptly skidded to a halt, tripping Tessa up in the process. His eyes slowly widened. "No…" he whispered. "No… it can't be! That's… this… there's no way…" His gaze fell to the ground and he started making dry heaving motions.

"Shane? What's wrong?" Tessa asked, waving a paw in front of her face. "You're scaring me!"

Necrozma paid them no mind. He leaned forward, leering at Silvally with a wide grin on his face. **"Well, go on. Tell us!"** He gestured toward Shane and Tessa. **"Look your 'friends' in the eyes and tell them that, as they wither away into** _ **dust,**_ **you won't look any different than you do right now."**

Silence fell over the room. Zero held her scepter close to her, opting to keep her eye trained on Tapu Bulu, who continued to ignore the conversation and move his free arm along the room's far wall.

"N… Nicky?"

Necrozma disappeared from Zero's side, teleporting over to Shane's location. Tessa yelped and scrambled backwards, aura feelers pulsing in step with her heartrate. **"What's that? Speak up… we couldn't hear you over in the cheap seats!"**

"Y… You're Nicky," Shane rasped, his voice filled with dread. "I'm so stupid. I should've realized it before." He looked up at Necrozma. "Dude, I can't… I… what _happened_ to you?"

 **"… Nicky's dead,"** Necrozma replied coldly. **"You made sure of that."**

A stabbing pain gripped Shane's chest. "N… Nicky…"

 **"That name is meaningless! Nicky died centuries ago!** _ **I am Necrozma… Devourer of Light!**_ **"**

Necrozma turned to his right and launched a red and black beam toward Tapu Bulu. The Land Spirit floated out of the attack's path. He raised an arm up and giant, ethereal vines shot out of the floor, looking to skewer Necrozma. Shane remained standing there, dumbstruck, as Necrozma used bursts of psychic energy to turn each of the vines aside and shatter them. Tessa, meanwhile, ran away from the scene as fast as she could.

"Nicky, you have to stop this! I… I'm sorry!" Shane begged. "I didn't know how you were feeling, I swear. I never realized the bullies had gotten to you so badly. I–"

 **"Of course you didn't know! Because you only care about yourself!"** Necrozma roared. He pulled his right wing back. Three dark orbs resembling tiny meteors crackled into existence against his wing's membrane. Necrozma pointed toward Tapu Bulu. Two of the meteors streamed toward him, leaving trails of dark smoke. The remaining one went toward Espeon and Umbreon, forcing them to flee to the opposite corner of the room.

Shane's jaw dropped in shock. "Th… that's… just like... Drac–"

 **"Heeheeheehee! If I'm going to be stuck as a bat… I may as well make the most of it, right?"** Necrozma said, a big grin on his face. In front of him, two pronged horns made of green energy formed in front of Tapu Bulu. He raced toward Necrozma, skewering his dark meteors and hurtling them into a wall, where they exploded.

Zero took advantage of the ongoing struggle. She pointed her free paw at Tessa and clenched it into a fist. A red circle surrounded Tessa, distorting the space it occupied. Tessa looked around and her aura feelers rose in alarm as she realized something was terribly wrong. Silvally noticed what Zero was doing. "Hey, you leave her alone!" he shouted, launching a Flamethrower toward her.

"This doesn't concern you, mutt," Zero growled. She pivoted and the red dome that had encircled Tessa went with her. Silvally's Flamethrower sailed inside the dome. Zero brought her fist to her chest and the dome collapsed, snuffing out the flames. But Silvally charged toward Zero, claws brimming with golden energy. He swung a foreleg at Zero, but she parried the blow with her staff.

Silvally's superior weight nearly left Zero open to a second strike from his other foreleg. But she raised her free arm up and absorbed some of the strike with the black claws protruding from her paw. The collision made her stumble backward. Silvally immediately readied another Flamethrower. "You're making a huge mistake," Zero hissed. "Though, if you're really molded after the Legendaries, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised you're this willing to protect them."

"This is about protecting everyone! I'm not going to let you ruin the world!" Silvally cried and breathed out another Flamethrower. Zero pointed her free paw forward, unleashing a gray stream of liquid metal. The attacks met in midair and stalemate, resulting in an intense burst of heat pushing Zero and Silvally back.

"I'm not ruining the world. I'm the one who's going to fix it!" Zero barked, her eye sparking with blue fire. Tessa noticed the blue glint in Zero's eye and tensed up, bending over and clasping her paws to her chest. "Fix it so that there will be no more heinous crimes. And no more humans dragged here against their wills!" Zero pointed toward Tapu Bulu with her scepter, who was busy parrying more dark meteors from Necrozma with his energy vines. "Look at that. All Tapu Bulu cares about is himself. He's fighting for his own survival."

"That's not true! He gave Shane Z-Power which can put a stop to your awful schemes!" Silvally spat. A current ran over his fur and electricity jumped off his head crest, streaming toward Zero. She tapped her staff to the ground and a wall of black cubes formed in front of her. It absorbed the Thunderbolt, turning red in the process. The wall collapsed and hastily reformed to Zero's left. When it did, it launched the Thunderbolt in Tessa's direction. She yelped and fell to her belly, dodging the attack by a hair.

"It was a half-baked gesture he did on a whim to suit his own fancy. These Tapus are all fickle-minded cretins," Zero spat. "One of them is happy to give some worthless Vulpix a Naturia Looplet. But when I went to Tapu Fini, _begging_ for an audience with Ho-Oh to restore a life that was unjustly snuffed out in its prime, you know what I got told? To shove off!"

Zero raised her glowing paw skyward. Giant red cubes formed in the air over Silvally and fell to the ground. Silvally sprinted over toward Tessa, dodging the avalanche of cubes as they struck the floor, sending out shockwaves of dark energy. He couldn't move fast enough, however. The last cube hammered him into the ground, leaving him writhing in pain in a crater.

"Tapu Fini told me that I was 'impure.' She called my soul tainted and told me she'd never grant such a ridiculous request," Zero continued. "What right did she have to judge me? I had come to her with noble intentions and was turned aside like a piece of filthy trash!"

Tessa dropped to her knees, staring at the floor in disbelief. _'Zero… the way she's shouting…'_ Tessa glanced up at Zero and her aura feelers scrunched up painfully. "That's Mom," she whispered. "There's nobody else it can be. Mom's totally lost it." Tessa looked over her shoulder, watching Shane stagger backwards from Necrozma. "Necrozma… he did something to her! He _had_ to have!"

"Nicky!" Shane cried out again, making Tessa jump. "You don't have to do this, anymore. I'm here! I understand now! We can just forget about all of this!"

 **"Forget? There is no forgetting!"** Necrozma shouted. He thrust his wings apart and another blue and black Moongeist Beam gathered around his chest. He launched the attack at Tapu Bulu, who barely managed to dodge. Shane looked at the wall the attack struck, noting a huge cluster of black crystals in its place.

Necrozma whirled on Shane. **"While I was trapped in the Ultra Nexus, I had a very,** _ **very**_ **long time to think about everything that happened to me,"** he said, banging his arms against his wings. **"About how laughably one-sided our friendship had become."** He pointed an accusatory arm at Shane. **"And it all falls back on you."**

Tapu Bulu struck the ground with his free arm. A shockwave rippled toward Necrozma, but he teleported higher into the air, dodging it. Luckily for Shane, it fizzled out before it could strike him or Tessa. "I… I wasn't doing anything wrong!" Shane squeaked. "Maybe things weren't perfect, but I never realized how badly you felt."

 **"LIAR!"** Necrozma roared. **"You knew exactly how bad things were. You just didn't care. Because you're a self-serving,** _ **manipulative**_ **jerk!"** He turned back toward Tapu Bulu and launched three Shadow Balls at him, driving him back. One of the Shadow Balls clearly missed its mark, but Necrozma struck it with a psychic pulse, pushing it into the far corner in an attempt to strike Espeon. Umbreon jumped in front and blew the attack apart with a Dark Pulse.

"But we had fun together. You never told me there was something wrong between us," Shane said, voice growing more unsteady.

 **"I couldn't do that! Because you, being a conniving wretch, knew exactly all the buttons you needed to push to guilt trip!"** Necrozma accused, eyes flashing with anger. **"No matter what kind of situation I was in – even ones that didn't involve you – you could** _ **twist**_ **the issue around to make it about you!"**

Tessa turned to Shane, her head tilting. "That's not true!" Shane fired back, voice filled with uncertainty. "I was… I was confused and scared because you were upset and wouldn't tell me why."

 **"Don't give me that crap. The truth is that you were– no,** _ **are**_ **masterful at playing the victim card!"** Necrozma thundered. **"In your eyes, you can do no wrong. Everything bad happens** _ **to**_ **you, but never** _ **because**_ **of you."** Necrozma shook his head. He turned around, using a blast of psychic energy to repel Tapu Bulu and shatter his Horn Leech prongs. **"I had stuck by you because we had shared interests… things that no one else in our class liked. But by the time I chose to end it, you were browbeating me into sticking by your side… always making me feel guilty enough to think I was at fault when the problem was really** _ **you!**_ **"**

Shane was backed up against the wall now, heart hammering in his chest. "I…" he started but couldn't figure out anything else to say. "I've changed. Even if that stuff was true, it's not anymore."

Necrozma whirled around, slamming a fist into the wall above Shane. Debris rained down on Shane's head. His tails shot between his legs. **"Yes, it is!"** Necrozma bellowed. **"Because you've done the exact same things to Tessa, your so-called 'new best friend.'"** He fixed his gaze on Tessa, who jolted stiff. **"You dug into her so badly you made her want to kill herself... just like me."** Necrozma's head lolled to the side. **"But don't worry. I'm going to fix that. Once I have my real body back, I'll make you into the** _ **perfect friend**_ **. And we will** _ **destroy**_ **this worthless world and every miserable creature living in it!"**

Before Shane had the opportunity to respond, a blinding flash of light erupted across the room. Necrozma screeched, throwing his arms up over his face. Zero likewise staggered backwards, rubbing her eyes. "Necky, what are you doing?" she shouted.

 **"That wasn't me, mistress!"** Necrozma hissed.

"Well, get rid of the light! I can't see a damn thing!" Zero barked.

Necrozma's red eyes flashed a red crescent moon appeared on his forehead. He sucked all the white light in the room toward him. Only, with the light dispelled, he immediately realized something was wrong. **"What the–?"**

"U-Umbry, what are you doing?!"

Necrozma and Zero looked up. Umbreon stood in the center of the room. His head was bowed in resignation and stardust coated his black fur. Far behind him, Team Radiance, Espeon, Braviary, and Tapu Bulu sat in the corner of the room, the latter clutching the Dusk Hourglass tightly. In front of them sat an activated Entercard. It spun in place, opening up a shimmering blue portal that started to swallow the group up.

 **"No! NOOOO! I'm not letting you escape again!"** Necrozma snarled. But a Dark Pulse struck his wing before he could teleport. It folded up against his body, sending him crashing into the floor.

"Umbry, get over here!" Espeon shouted. "We're not leaving without you!"

Zero sprinted toward the corner, using a burst of Extreme Speed to try and close the gap. However, Umbreon blocked her path. Zero ran right into him, knocking him backward. Umbreon got to his feet and looked back at Espeon. "I'm sorry, Espy. This was the only thing I could think of."

"No, Umbry! I'm not leaving you here!" Espeon cried, tears welling up in her eyes. "Hurry! There's still time! You can still make it! You can't leave me alone! You said we're a team!"

"It's too late for me, Espy," Umbreon said, firing a black beam from his mouth to force Zero away from the portal.

"UMBRY!"

"I love you, Espy. Take care."

The Entercard portal vanished in a pillar of light, just as Necrozma teleported over it. He flew directly into the corner of the room and bounced off the wall, clutching at his head in pain. "You _ingrate!_ " Zero snarled. "Do you have any idea what you've done?"

"Yes. I've kept the Dawn Hourglass away from you," Umbreon replied, glaring defiantly at her.

Zero raised her staff, dark energy crackling around it. "Well then, I think it's only fair I take something from you in retribution."

She didn't get the chance to attack him, however. A cloud of shadows engulfed Umbreon, drawing a frightened howl. The clouds materialized into Necrozma. He floated in the air, one hand firmly gripped around Umbreon's throat and the other pressing down on his forehead, cutting off his means of channeling energy for an attack.

 **"Do you think what you did is noble?"** Necrozma hissed in a whisper. **"This is no heroic sacrifice. I see your futile gesture for what it really is: a spineless, feeble** _ **whelp**_ **who's turning his back on his sister… on his mate!"**

Zero stiffened and Umbreon's eyes widened. Necrozma squeezed Umbreon's neck, drawing out a garbled gasp. **"Oh, please. There's no need for the looks. It was obvious... not that it matters. Egg-making is nothing like how humans have kids. There's no DNA and no worries. But I digress."** Necrozma pulled Umbreon close, so their foreheads were touching. He locked eyes with Umbreon. **"You abandoned her… because you couldn't stand to be around her anymore."**

Necrozma held Umbreon away from him. **"It's just as I've come to expect from you all. You don't care about each other. You'd rather face my fury than spend another second with your** _ **precious**_ **Espy."**

"That's… not… tr… ue…" Umbreon wheezed.

 **"Lying fool!"** Necrozma hissed. **"If you don't have the spine to admit your treachery, then you can** _ **disappear**_ **like every other soulless mortal!"** He leaned over again. The crescent moon on his forehead disappeared, only to be replaced by a red eye that looked right at Umbreon, who cried out in pain.

"Wh… at… are… you?"

Zero tilted her head curiously, watching as tiny fragments of Necrozma's crystal armor fell to the floor. Rainbow light radiated out from his torso, forming a peculiar pattern against the wall: a winged heart, with two demonic horns sprouting out from the top like a crown and a piercing eye in the center.

 **"Heeheeheehee! I thought the Expedition Society would've made it clear to the world, but it seems I was wrong. I'll need to spell it out for you, then,"** Necrozma said. **"As long as there's a** _ **single ounce**_ **of negativity in the world…"**

Necrozma tightened his grip on Umbreon's neck. Umbreon gasped and tried to paw at Necrozma's arms to no avail.

 **"… there will** _ **always**_ **be a Dark Matter,"** Necrozma whispered. He dug his claws into Umbreon's neck. Tears welled up in Umbreon's eyes.

 **"I wanted to help people… and then, after being brought here, I was willing to help Pokémon, too. But when the time came for them to return that favor, they ignored me! I hoped things would be different here than in the human world, but I was wrong! No matter what world you're in, you'll find nothing but a toxic cesspool of negativity!"** Necrozma ranted as he slowly siphoned Umbreon's life energy.

 **"They brought me here to protect this world. But it cannot be saved! The only way to protect it is to burn it all down. So, I will fulfill Dark Matter's vision! I will regain my light and** _ **erase this world**_ **, leaving nothing but chaos behind!"**

Necrozma snapped Umbreon's neck. The last of Umbreon's light trickled into Necrozma's mouth and his head slumped against his shoulder. Necrozma tossed his colorless body to the ground. **"Shall we get going, mistress?"** He turned around, only to find Zero wasn't standing there. The door to the temple had been forcefully opened and Necrozma's locks lay shattered along the ground.

 **"Oh? Well now… this should be interesting,"** Necrozma whispered, disappearing into the shadows.

* * *

 _"She's gone."_

 _Shane blinked in confusion, his gaze fixed on a tearful Lunala. "Wh… what do you mean? Who's gone?"_

 _"Cresselia!" Lunala blurted out. "She passed away last night."_

 _"Oh. Uh… that's… I'm sorry to hear that," Shane whispered, except his voice was much deeper than usual. "I know you two were close."_

 _"Of course we were close! We were best friends!" Lunala sobbed. "She was one of the few Pokémon who was active at night. But she didn't even tell me she was ready to pass on! No goodbye… not even a letter!" She threw a wing up over her face. "And now she's gone… forever!"_

 _"I mean, that's not technically true," Shane muttered._

 _"We both know her daughter doesn't give a lick about either of us," Lunala said, rubbing her eyes with her wing. "She cares about Darkrai… and only Darkrai."_

 _Shane shook out his unusually heavy, metallic body. "Yeah… the less said about that guy, the better." He stepped toward Lunala. "I'm sorry for your loss." He saw her shiver. "Listen, you want to talk about it?"_

 _"With you? Please. You weren't close with Cresselia like I was," Lunala dismissed, giving him a shove._

 _"Maybe not, but I am close to you," Shane said. "If you're hurting, then I want to help."_

 _Lunala pulled her wing away from her face. "Do you really mean that? Or are you just saying that to make yourself look better?"_

 _Shane winced. "I…" He paused. "We're partners, Lunala. We stand by each other, no matter what," he whispered. "Whatever you want to say… say it. And if you'd rather sit in silence, we can do that too."_

 _Lunala sighed. She pulled Shane into an embrace and rested her head on his shoulder. "Just give me a minute," she said._

 _"Of course."_

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Shane's body jerked forward. He looked to his right and spotted the Dusk Hourglass sitting next to him. A fine black mist evaporated off of the artifact, some of which brushed his fur. He took a few hesitant steps back. Suddenly, his ears twitched and folded against his head.

"UMBRYYYYYYYY!"

He turned around to find Espeon sprawled out of the ground. Tears poured out of her glowing eyes, while pink vapors streamed out of the broken gem on her forehead. She thrashed about from underneath Silvally. The chimera had his dark-type form active, absorbing the energy Espeon tried to channel.

"LEMME GO! I HAVE TO GO BACK! UMBRY! UMBRYYYYYYYYYY!" she wailed, turning to try and bite Silvally's foreleg. He quickly moved it back, out of range of her snout.

"You can't do that, Espeon," Silvally said. "You'd just be walking right into certain death."

"I don't care!" Espeon screamed. Silvally squawked loudly, hind legs tensing. He looked back to see Espeon brushing her tail against the base of his. She tried to seize on his momentary discomfort and slide out from under him. But Silvally dug his talons into the ground, and she went nowhere. "Get off of me!" she hissed. "I need to go back for him! I can't lose him too! Not after today… not after I've lost everything else!"

"Espeon, you need to be reasonable," Tessa pleaded. "I know this is bad, but trying to go back to the temple isn't going to bring Umbreon back."

"DON'T SAY THAT!" she shouted. A Shadow Ball raced toward a wide-eyed Tessa, only for pink energy to detonate it prematurely.

"Espeon, what are you doing? You have to calm down," Silvally begged. "I know this is bad… but… but we can work through this… together."

"SHUT UP!" she screeched, again trying unsuccessfully to escape Silvally. "You don't understand. Umbry was all I had left. And now he's… he's gone too! How he could do this? We said we'd always be there for each other! But now he's gone and I'm alone and…"

Espeon burst into tears, burying her face in the ground. Shane stepped away from his teammates, biting his lower lip. He thought back to his overnight conversation with Umbreon.

 _I've tried to do the best I can to support her. It's tough sometimes._

 _'Wait…'_ Shane's brow furrowed. He looked back up at Espeon, who shuddered as Tessa rubbed one of her shoulders.

 _She's unbearable! And, after all that stuff with Zero, it's just too much for me to handle. I'm afraid of what the future holds for her. I can't keep her grounded anymore. I'm exhausted. And I really don't know what to do._

 _'No,'_ Shane thought. _'He couldn't have done this on purpose, could he?'_ His gaze fell back toward the ground. He squeezed his eyes shut. _'But, did he really need to sacrifice himself like that? Oh god… oh god!'_ He shook his head rapidly. _'No, please don't tell me I let it happen again. I can't have let someone just throw their life away again!'_

His chest tightened. _'Nicky… how did this all get so out of control? That couldn't… you were like a completely different person!'_

 **I see you've returned with the Dusk Hourglass… and Tapu Bulu.**

Shane's fur crawled. Before he had the chance to turn and look to his right, Silvally sprang off of Espeon. He channeled his dark memories and sheathed his forelegs in black shadows.

 _CLANG!_

Silvally's shadowy talons met Metagross' foreleg. The chimera bounced back, black shadows streaming out of his eyes. A shockwave of dark energy raced forward, leaving Metagross with no means of countering. The Guildmaster's legs buckled, black bolts crackling across his body.

 **Wh… what is the meaning of this?**

A weak cough drew Metagross' attention. Braviary stood propping himself up against a wall. "Guildmaster…" He shuddered. "No… Mets… what have you done?"

Metagross stepped back toward his office, and then lunged for Silvally, his forelegs glowing bright orange. Silvally jumped upward, dodging the Hammer Arms and landed on top of Metagross. He bit down on Metagross' head with his blackened beak. Shadows raced across the Guildmaster's vibrating body.

 **Get off of me. This behavior is unacceptable!**

"No, it ain't!" Braviary cawed. "You sent us out to that desert to get slaughtered!" He pointed his good wing at Metagross.

 **Negative. I sent you all in anticipation of a Prism Virus attack.**

"Liar!" Silvally snarled. He raised his shadow-covered talons to strike, but Metagross knocked Silvally off of his head. Metagross then kicked Silvally in the stomach with his hind legs. Silvally rocketed back into the office door, bouncing off of it with a sickening crack.

"We heard everything… you done turned traitor on us! You told the Prism Virus everything!" Braviary accused. "We lost almost everyone. Look at what happened to me!" He tried to raise his crystallized wing to no avail. "I'm ruined! I'm never gonna fly again! And it's all yer fault!"

Multicolored glows overtook Metagross' eyes. **You have no right to stand there accusing me! You were trying to kill me first! You… and Incineroar… and that wretched human-turned-Lucario…**

"Wait, _what?_ " Tessa gasped, looking like she'd been punched in the gut.

… **you all had it in for me. All of you wanted me dead! Incineroar left me to flounder while Dark Matter wreaked havoc. Only sheer dumb luck prevented my death, but I know that you all kept scheming,** Metagross continued stomping toward Braviary, whose eyes had gone wide. Silvally let loose a Flamethrower, but Metagross spun around and pushed the flames back with a blast of psychic energy.

"How could ya ever think that, Mets? I've been yer best pal for ages! We were teammates! We–"

 _CLANG!_

Braviary's head hit the wall and rebounded off it. His beak opened and closed a few times but no words came out. Trembling, he placed his good wing against his head and then let go. He glanced at the blood staining his feathers. His eyes then rolled back into his head and he slumped down onto his side, drool trickling out of his mouth.

"It was you…"

Metagross turned around, locking eyes with Tessa. She pointed right at him with a shaky paw. "Gallian was right. You killed Dad."

 **Of course I did! He tried to have me killed. Just like you all! You all want me to disappear, but I refuse. I deserve to live! I will not disappear!** Metagross said. **Necrozma was supposed to destroy you all. Then I could forge a path toward a new life... in a new reality. Away from all of you and your minds. Your obnoxious minds! No more intrusive thoughts! No more intrusive people! And no more threats to my existence!**

"You're totally delirious!" Silvally spat. "Nobody's been trying to kill you at all!"

 **LIES!** Metagross shouted, slamming a foreleg on the ground. **It was Incineroar who got the ball rolling. Ever since he evolved, I knew he had it out for me. Everyone has it out for me!** He took a step toward the Dusk Hourglass. **I will be taking this. If you dare to oppose me, then I will strike you do–**

Silvally sprinted across the room as fast as he had ever run. Dark energy erupted around his forelegs. He slashed the center of Metagross' face, shattering the metal cross and exposing the gray plating underneath. Metagross stepped backward, eyes flashing a multitude of different colors and screaming in a voice that constantly shifted its pitch.

 **That will be quite sufficientary, criminal.**

A pink gas washed across Metagross' body. His eyes turned black and he collapsed onto his belly, not moving a muscle. Silvally looked up to see Magearna standing by the hallway leading toward her workshop, an arm pointed at Metagross.

"What did you do to him?" Silvally asked.

 **I applicated a sleeping agent,** Magearna declared. **This should hold him until Officer Magnezone gets here. Then he'll be out of our lives for good.** She held up her other arm and a grappling hook shot out of it. It wrapped tightly around Metagross. Magearna started walking toward the stairs.

"Do you, uh, want any help with that?" Silvally asked.

 **I'm alright,** Magearna replied. **Right now, you all need to focus on recovering. I think you've been through quite the ordeal.**

Team Radiance watched her disappear up the stairs, dragging Metagross' limp body behind her. Tessa's shoulders, ears, and aura feelers drooped. "This is… unbelievable," she whispered. "What are we supposed to do now?" Thoughts of Zero's angry comments filled her mind. _'Mom is Zero. How can I possibly fight the Prism Virus knowing that? Did she know about Metagross and Dad? Is that what really led her to leave me behind?'_

Silvally looked between Tessa and Shane, who was similarly lost in thought. "G… guys? Are you, um, doing okay?"

Neither of them responded. They both continued to stare at the floor. "Umbry," Espeon suddenly sniffled, drawing everyone's attentions. "Why did you have to go? You'd know just what to do right now." She rubbed her face against the floor.

"This… I…" Shane stammered, immediately looking back down at his feet. _'Everything's spiraling out of control. I can't deal with this! I want out. I've had enough. If Nicky's the one behind all of this, then I can't go forward anymore. The Prism Virus can have this world… just send me home!'_ he thought, shuffling backward. In the process, his right hind food brushed against the Dusk Hourglass. It wobbled from the contact. At the same time, some of the purple mist swirling around it raced up Shane's leg.

His fur stood on end and his tails shot into the air. A tingle raced up toward his head. Shane's jaw fell open and a weak gasp of air escaped. The assembly room melted away around him, replaced by the vast expanse of outer space. Stars twinkled around him and, in the distance, a bright yellow fireball hovered there. Solar flares raced around it, making Shane's eyes sparkle.

Shane looked about in a panic, only for a loud roar to echo in his mind. A burning, lion-shaped silhouette charged out from the fireball, drawing closer and closer to Shane with each step. He tried to move, but his limbs failed him. All he could do was squeak in fright as the flaming lion charged into him. The instant he did, Shane snapped back to reality. His pupils dilated and he doubled over in a coughing fit.

"Shane," Tessa gasped, looking concerned. "Are you okay? You look like you're about to puke."

Shane opened his mouth, trying to say something. But instead of words, he gave a single, violent cough. With that cough came a large, bright-red fireball. It flew across the room, grazing an unsuspecting Espeon's tail before hitting the far wall and burning a hole in the purple tapestry.

Silvally turned to look at Shane. "Did… did you just _breath fire?_ "

Shane's legs trembled. He took a few shaky steps forward. "I… I don't…" His voice trailed off while his eyes darted about the room in confusion. He looked over at Tessa, but she seemed just as confused as she did.

"You… you stupid… _stupid_ loser!"

Shane jumped from Espeon's angry shout. He looked over to see her staring at the blackened end of her tail. She turned and locked eyes with him. "This is all your fault!" she accused, stepping toward him. Her eyes turned blue and her irises vanished. "You did this to us! You're the reason Necrozma's here! You're the reason the Prism Virus is terrorizing all of us!" Tears poured out of her eyes. "It's all on your head! If you had just given up, then everyone in Pokémon Paradise would still be alive! Umbry would still be alive!"

"Espeon, wait. I'm sorry," Shane said. "I swear, I could never have known Nicky would end up here! Everything's just–"

"I hate you!" she shrieked, smacking a forepaw on the ground. "You ruined my life! I want you gone! You hear me? _GONE!_ "

Pink energy leaked out of Espeon's cracked gem. More splinters appeared in it as Espeon levitated Shane into the air. Shane flailed his limbs about in vain before Espeon tossed him down the southern hallway.

 _Craaaaaaash!_

Before Silvally could try to subdue her, Espeon turned and sprinted off toward the housing wing, sobbing uncontrollably. Silvally and Tessa stood in stunned silence. They traded looks with each other, but neither of them could find their voice. The silence persisted, until they heard a groan coming from Shane's direction.

"We should go help him," Tessa muttered. Silvally stepped in her path, blocking off the southern hallway.

"What about Espeon?" he asked. "We shouldn't just leave her alone while she's…" His brow furrowed. "… like that."

"Then you deal with her," Tessa said. "I'm not going anywhere near her until she's simmered down."

Silvally blinked. "But…"

"Look, things are… everyone's in a bad place right now," Tessa said. Her mind was filled with thoughts of her mother, but she forced herself to push them aside. "Shane's our teammate. We should tend to him first," she insisted. Tessa moved to shove Silvally out of the way, but he stood firm.

"Tessa," he whispered. "Think about what's happened to Espeon today. I'm not saying it was okay for her to attack Shane like that. But… I think she has a right to feel that awful. Don't you?"

Tessa again thought about Zero. But then thoughts of Gallian popped up in her mind. She tucked her head against her chest and fidgeted with her paws. "I… I guess."

"I don't think there's anyone here who has a better idea of what she's going through than you do," Silvally said. "Which is why you should go talk to her."

"But what about Shane? I should–"

"I'll go help him," Silvally said. Tessa's fidgeting intensified. Silvally crouched down and leaned in toward her face. "Please," he whispered, gently bopping her snout with his beak. "She needs a friend right now."

 _'And so do I,'_ Tessa thought.

Silvally frowned. "Is there something wrong?"

Tessa stiffened. "It's just… I'm not Espeon's friend," she whispered meekly.

"Then, as cheesy as it sounds, just give her a shoulder to cry on," Silvally said. "I'm not the right Pokémon to help her. You are. I'm just asking you to trust me on this one."

Tessa sighed and nodded slowly. "Okay," she said. "And you're sure you can tend to Shane?"

Silvally nodded. "You have my word."

The two exchanged silent looks, before slowly turning and departing down different hallways. Tessa knew she would have to confront the truth about Zero, since those thoughts were racing through her head.

 _'But maybe, if I can calm Espeon down, I can start to feel better, too.'_

* * *

Remember how Espeon almost died? That was a deliberate fake-out... because **Umbreon** was going to bite the big one instead. Again, I need to stress I really like Gates to Infinity. But I also like Super. And, just like in that game, everyone's dying. It's just happening a lot earlier into the story. I _did_ say Episode 10 would shake up the status quo. I'll answer some guest reviews before I go and hide from all the angry Umbreon fans.

Veralix: I trust you're happy that Shane's finally caught on to things?

Anon Omega: Necrozma has different themes depending on what form he's in. As Dawn Wings Necrozma, his theme is "The Smokehouse" from Edgar Wright's film, _The World's End_. I think it suits an Ultra Beast rather well.

Commenter: I tend to write a thousand words a day. It's only about a 35-40 minute process, so I'll either do it before work or during lunch. I actually keep a buffer of chapters going. So, as I'm posting this, I just finished drafting Chapter 59. I'll then go back and revise 59 in about 10 weeks to post it up here.

SuperOmegaGuest: Yes, this is the first chapter fic I've ever written.

Unnamed Guest: Uh, I do not speak Russian. But, if Google Translate is to be believed, Благодаря!

That's all for now. Next time: the healing process begins.


	58. Ties That Bind Us

**Content Advisory:** while nothing is explained in detail, a method of suicide is brought up in this chapter.

We have made it to the milestone fiftieth chapter! My apology to anyone expecting some sort of big, huge, celebratory chapter. Unfortunately, the story wasn't outlined for that to happen. However, we _did_ pass the 25,000 view mark! I'm sure bots contributed to that, but it's still mind-blowing. In the words of Strong Bad, "That is not a small number... that is a big number!" So, I've got another bonus in the works to celebrate. Look forward to that. In the meantime, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 50: Ties That Bind Us**

Silvally heard wood creaking as he walked toward the sentry station. Upon entering, he discovered that Shane had broken the table. His tails stuck out of its remains. "Hey. Uh, are you okay?" Silvally asked.

One of Shane's tails twitched. Silvally walked forward, pushing wooden fragments aside with his beak. He finally found Shane at the bottom of the rubble. Shane's fur was disheveled and had clusters of splinters sticking out of it. Silvally repeated his earlier question.

"No," Shane whimpered. "I'm not okay." Silvally frowned, but still offered a foreleg to help Shane to his feet. Shane stumbled out onto the floor, trying to shake the splinters from his fur to little avail. "None of this is okay," he said. "Necrozma is right… I'm a miserable failure."

"Shane, you can't beat yourself up over this," Silvally scolded.

"It's not beating myself up if it's true," Shane responded, lashing out at one of the broken planks of wood. He pulled his paw back and glanced at the splinters that had gotten caught on it. "Everything's spiraled out of control. Pokémon are dying left and right at the hands of the guy who used to be my best friend. I'm seeing all these memories from Solgaleo, who's apparently dead. And it… it…" He collapsed onto his belly, shivering.

"What is it? What's the problem? Tell me. I wanna help!" Silvally begged.

"… it feels like my humanity's slipping away."

Silvally's jaw stiffened. "I don't understand."

"I don't either!" Shane cried, smacking his head against his forelegs. "Ever since Mellath Bog… there's been this little voice in the back of my head that keeps telling me that this is all wrong. That I'm not Shane. I was _never_ Shane. That my mind is filled with memories that are mine… but aren't mine. And… and…" He threw his forepaws over his head and started rubbing his temples. "It's getting worse! Because Necrozma… he said all this stuff about me that I _know_ is true… but then that other voice starts screaming in my mind that it isn't! I don't know what to believe anymore!"

Shane looked up at Silvally. "Is this what it's like for you?" he whimpered.

"Well, not anymore," Silvally replied. "You guys helped me with that." He let himself slide down to his belly and shuffled next to Shane. "We can get through this together, though."

"Nuh… no…" Shane whimpered. Silvally could feel him shaking. "We can't do this," he said. "The Prism Virus is too strong. I'm too weak. Even with Z-Power, I can't face down Zero. I can't face down Necrozma… I mean Nicky. I mean… ugh, see? I don't even know what I'm talking about anymore." He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head. "It's just like Espeon said. Everything's my fault."

"Shane…"

"Look, I get it. We can't _not_ do something about the Prism Virus. But, like, you guys should come up with a plan that doesn't involve me," Shane insisted. He lay his head on the ground. "I'm just… I'm not going to be of any help here."

"That's not true. You have Z-Power. That can undo the effects of the Prism Virus," Silvally reminded him.

Shane sniffled. "It won't matter if I don't get the opportunity to actually use it. And, let's face it, with how badly I'm getting my butt whupped, that chance isn't going to happen again. Nicky knows my weaknesses… he'll just end up making me more useless than I already am."

Silvally's brow furrowed and he gave Shane a concerned look. "So, everything Necrozma said is really true?"

Shane flinched, squeaking loudly. He tried turning away from Silvally. But Silvally grabbed Shane's shoulder with his talons and turned him so they were face to face. "Shane, you can tell me. I want to help. And I can't do that if you're keeping secrets."

Shane's eyes glossed over. "Please don't make me say it," he said, choking up.

Silvally sighed. "But if you don't say anything, this will keep eating at you and making you feel even worse. I don't want to see you like this."

"It's not your problem," Shane said. "Don't you get it? I want you and Tessa to stay safe, not worry about me. I'm… I'm a nobody. I don't matter." He winced. "Wait… that just sounds like I'm playing the victim, doesn't it? See? Nicky's right…"

"Shane, we're a team," Silvally said. "And you're my friend. I _want_ to see you happy again." He lowered his head to Shane's eye level. "It's just like back when I tried to quit the guild. You wouldn't give up on me. So, I'm not giving up on you."

Shane's muzzle stiffened. "Ugh… you just had to pull that line out, didn't you?" he said, blinking tears out of his eyes.

"What can I say? I have quite the memory now," Silvally mused, gesturing to his looplet.

Shane couldn't help but laugh. "Okay… I'll give you that one," he conceded, his tone bittersweet. "I just… give me a second to gather my thoughts." He slowly rose into a seated position. "If Necrozma's really Nicky… then, yes, he killed himself. And I didn't realize it until it was too late to save him."

"What happened back in the human world?" Silvally asked.

Shane sighed and shook his head. "Nicky and I were really close. He was… pretty much my only friend that I had growing up. I mean… I tried to make friends. I really did. My parents… they even made the people running my school try to help. They set up these social group thingies that they made me go to. But it never worked. I'd say something stupid… or do something that would make people laugh at me. Not Nicky, though. He never seemed bothered by it."

He paused to see if Silvally had any comments. When Silvally remained quiet, he continued, "But I had a problem. See, everyone's interests changed as they got older, while mine… I dunno… just sort of stayed the same. Nicky was the same way, too. We had a lot in common and we _kept_ a lot in common, including loving Pokémon." Shane hung his head. "But… that was a big mistake. I should've stopped paying attention to Pokémon. We both should have."

"Why?" Silvally wondered.

"Well, like I said, people's interests changed as they got older. A lot of people around me thought it wasn't okay to like Pokémon."

Silvally looked confused. "Why should they care what you like?"

"Because that's just what humans are like, okay?" Shane snapped. Silvally recoiled, frowning. "They're judgmental! Nothing you do will ever be good enough for them. They'll do whatever they think is necessary to put you down and make themselves look better." Shane rubbed tears out of his eyes. "I was too stupid to realize that. I thought if I ignored people I didn't like, they wouldn't bother me. I focused my attention on Nicky… or things that I could do by myself. And when I did that, my problems just disappeared."

Shane glanced at Silvally, who was still frowning. "I… sorry, I just. This is hard for me." He took a deep breath. "The older Nicky and I got, the more it seemed like everyone around us made friends with each other. I didn't like that. So, I spent more and more time by myself. And that made me happy. At the same time, though, I still tried to see Nicky when I could. Because I had the most fun playing Pokémon with him."

"The only problem was Nicky got busier," Shane said, ears folding against his face. "I would beg him to come hang out with me. He'd usually say yes, but sometimes it felt like his mind was someplace else. I never said anything to him about that, though. I figured if I did, he'd get upset. And I didn't want to lose my one and only friend."

"Eventually, I noticed other people would come up to me and Nicky… and say hurtful things," Shane whispered, poking at the ground with a forepaw.

"You mean, like the things you used to say to me?" Silvally whispered.

Shane winced. "Worse," he mumbled. Silvally leaned in curiously, but Shane pushed his face away with a forepaw. "I'm not saying anything else," he growled. "I don't _want_ to remember that stuff, got it?" Silvally nodded. "Good. Because it made me upset. But my parents had always told me that if I got upset, then the bullies would win. I just needed to ignore them. Then they'd get bored and stop. So, I tried ignoring them and told Nicky that nothing was wrong. Except, Nicky started to push back against our classmates. He'd get upset when they said mean things." Shane shook his head. "I didn't really think much of it. I was still having fun with Nicky. And I was worried if I said something, we wouldn't be friends anymore."

"But one day, after one of our classmates broke something important to Nicky, he called me out of the blue," Shane said. Silvally started to open his beak, when Shane cut him off. "We humans have something like the Gear-Coms. That's what he used." Silvally shut his mouth, nodding his understanding. "Anyway, he called me up. And… he seemed off. But I was on my way to my job. So, I brushed him off. I told him I didn't have time to deal with him." Shane's eyes snapped shut.

"Wh… what happened after that?" Silvally asked, though he had a pretty good idea of what the answer was.

"I got home from work… and Nicky… he…" Shane's breaths came in sharp shudders. Tears trickled down his cheeks. "My mom told me… Nicky had been rushed to the hospital. He had taken a bunch of pills and gotten hold of his parents' vodka."

A confused look spread across Silvally's face, but he remained silent.

"Nicky… didn't make it," Shane croaked. "Died in the emergency room. And I let it happen." Shane rubbed his head against his shoulders, trying to stop snot from trickling out of his nostrils. "All because I was too afraid of making people upset."

"I… uh…" Silvally looked away. "That does sound pretty rough."

"I'm not looking for sympathy!" Shane growled, catching Silvally by surprise. "Nicky's the one who suffered. I was his friend and I didn't do anything to help him!" He shook his head. "That's why he said all that awful stuff. And that's why you and Tessa shouldn't be wasting your time with me. Because all I know how to do is turn my back on people. I'm not a hero. I was never meant to be one. I'm just a loser… no matter what universe I'm in."

"I don't believe that."

"Because you barely know me!" Shane shouted. This time he shoved Silvally, who stumbled to his feet with a concerned look on his face. "I had _nothing_ going for me as a human. Every youth sport I tried, I sucked at. Every gym class I went to, the teams practically fought each other _not_ to have to pick me. Whenever there was group work in school, I was always the odd man out. I either ended up working with the teacher or by myself. I couldn't even get into college after two attempts. I just… found some random job and spent whatever free time I had locked away in my room. Nicky was the _only_ bright spot and I didn't lift a finger to help him because I was too scared!" Shane collapsed onto the ground, ears folding against his head.

Silvally stepped toward Shane, but he turned away, crying into his forelegs. "When I woke up here… I thought it meant that finally… _finally_ I was going to be something special. That something good was going to happen to me. But it's the exact opposite. This isn't a gift. It's a punishment!" He racked his paws across his cheeks. "A punishment for being a horrible person who tries to milk sympathy out of everyone! I mean… that's what I'm doing right now, isn't it?"

"And Tessa… oh gods… I treated her _worse_ than Nicky," Shane bawled. "The things I did… the things I said. I'm… I'm not friend material. I brought all these problems onto her. I brought Necrozma onto this world. If I had just listened to Nicky… everyone here would be safe. This is my fault."

He looked up at Silvally, his eyes red and puffy. "You should take Tessa and Espeon and leave. Please! Maybe you guys can still live out a peaceful life somewhere. But that won't happen if you stay around me. So, stop trying to help me. Because I deserve whatever Necrozma has planned for me. I deserve to disappear forever."

"I don't believe that!"

Shane tensed up. Silvally wrapped him up in an embrace, nestling his head underneath Shane's. "Stop. Don't say that stuff anymore," Silvally whimpered. "Please… you can't think like that. You can't believe those lies."

"I don't know what to believe anymore," Shane blubbered, his voice cracking. "It's too confusing. And Tessa… and her mom… and Nicky… it's too much to deal with. I can't handle this responsibility. I was an idiot to think I ever could."

Silvally pressed his head against Shane's neck. "I told you… you're not in this alone. Not anymore. As long as I'm standing… I'll be here to help you. You and Riolu."

"And what about the fact that you almost got yourself killed today, huh?" Shane sniffled. "I almost cost Tessa her best friend. If there was no Necrozma, then Tapu Lele wouldn't have attacked and you wouldn't have gotten blown up."

"Shane, you're blowing that out of proportion… no pun intended."

Shane gave Silvally the evil eye. Silvally sighed. "Look. I'm sorry that I scared you. I didn't think things through back in the temple. I just saw you guys in trouble and leaped into action. I couldn't stand the sight of you two in pain." Silvally blinked tears out of his eyes. "I thought about the mask and how much it hurt… and before I knew it I was running at that Dark Matter clone. Nothing else mattered but trying to make your pain stop."

"Is that what you're thinking right now?"

Silvally's jaw stiffened. He pulled out of the embrace to look Shane in the eyes. "Yes," he conceded. "It's because of what you said to me when I broke my mask. I want to use my powers to do good. I… I want to make other Pokémon's pain go away." Silvally's eyes watered. "I know things are far from perfect, here. In fact, everything sucks right now. But I refuse to give up hope. We can make things right… but only if we stick together." He slowly traced a talon along Shane's foreleg. "I mean… that's what's gotten us this far, right?"

Shane's shoulders slumped. "I guess. I just chalked it up to dumb luck," he whispered. He shook his head. "I can't believe you're this willing to act like this when I was such a jerk to you before."

"I left that stuff behind with that awful mask," Silvally said.

He offered up his head. Shane leaned forward, craning his neck against Silvally's in a tight embrace. "Thanks," Shane said. "I really don't think I deserve a friend like you."

"And I really don't think you deserve to keep putting yourself down like that," Silvally whispered. "That's part of what got you into this mess. It's one thing to be nervous… and maybe lack self-confidence. But you beat yourself up so badly that you make it hard for anyone around you to say anything other than 'I'm sorry.' I think... with everything that happened to you as a human... that you've managed to convince yourself that the only way you can get anyone to pay attention to you is by trying to earn their sympathy... instead of their friendship. That's where you've been messing up."

Shane winced. "I've… I've really done a lot of that, haven't I?"

Silvally nodded. "I know I'm being blunt, but it's for your own good. There's a good person inside you Shane. I believe that you're capable of changing for the better... of becoming that person. You can get down on yourself when you're feeling blue. That's fine. And I'm not saying you need to go back to your old, cheerful self. But trying to milk people's sympathy... that's not how you make friends. You make friends with kindness and caring."

"I just don't know how to stop it," Shane said. "This is who I am. And it's gotten steadily worse since Nicky died."

"But you can change. You _have_ changed. Remember Tessa's hatch day party? That was all you. You _are_ capable of doing good when you put your mind to it. That's what you have to focus on," Silvally said. He brushed his beak against Shane's neck. "This kind of change won't happen overnight. So, take it one step at a time."

Shane broke off the embrace. "What does that mean?"

"It means that, with each passing day, you should resolve to be a better person than you were the day before," Silvally replied. "Even if it's just doing one teeny, _tiny_ good deed more than you did yesterday, it still counts. That's how you can change. By making small, gradual improvements in your thinking and behavior."

A tingle slowly spread across Shane's face. "Uh… okay. I think… I see what you're getting at." He took a deep breath, suppressing a shudder. "In which case… we should really start by telling Tessa about her mom. After all, it _is_ the right thing to do."

Silvally nodded. "I can help with that. We just have to go see if she's doing okay with Espeon."

"Wait, Tessa went after Espeon?" Shane jumped to his feet, wincing as his splinter-covered paws contacted the floor. "What were you thinking letting her do that?"

"That she understands what Espeon's going through right now," Silvally replied. Shane opened his mouth to respond, only to close it and nod in understanding. They exchanged one last look and walked down the hallway in silence.

* * *

Espeon's crying echoed throughout the housing wing. Tessa walked forward, all the while trying to rehearse what she could say to make Espeon feel better. But she was drawing a total blank. _'I don't know how I'm supposed to do this without coming off as selfish,'_ she realized, thinking of Shane's previous half-baked attempts at offering comfort. _'Maybe I'm better off just keeping silent?'_

She reached the door to Espeon's room and hung outside of it. A few rounds of hiccupping interrupted Espeon's sobs. "I know you're out there!" she shouted. Tessa backed out of the doorway, biting her lower lip. "I don't want to talk to you or your friends, got it? Leave me alone!"

Tessa recalled their most recent encounter in Sunrise Village. She shuddered at the memory of watching Espeon blast the fur off Shane's body. _'If I don't listen to her, she could do the same thing to me,'_ she thought. She threw her paws up to clasp her shoulders and shuffled back from the door. _'What was I thinking? I can't talk to her alone. Not like this…'_

She hung her head in defeat and turned away from Espeon's room. Espeon resumed crying. Her mournful wailing made Tessa's fur prickle and aura feelers scrunch up. _'Come on, Riolu. You said you'd handle this,'_ she scolded herself. _'Now, go in there and help her. She's counting on you… even if she doesn't realize it right now.'_

Taking a deep breath to steel her resolve, Tessa marched into Espeon's room. Espeon lifted her head up and fixed her watery eyes on Tessa. "I told you to leave," she growled. "Get lost!"

"No."

Espeon glared at Tessa. "Leave, or I'll blast you clean across the hallway," she said threateningly.

"Then go ahead," Tessa said, her tone shaky. She spread her arms out wide. "I wouldn't blame you."

Espeon blinked in confusion. She brushed her head against her foreleg. "What is this?" she asked. "What are you up to? I don't like it when Pokémon screw around with me."

"I'm not up to anything. I want to help," Tessa said adamantly. "I get what you're going through." She looked down. "I'll bet it feels like the ground is giving out from under you. And that you're tumbling head-first into a deep, dark abyss…"

"… and there's nothing I can do to save myself," Espeon gasped. She pursed her lips, and then looked away from Tessa. "I see what this is about," she sniffled. "You're here to tell me this is karma, aren't you? That Umbry and I deserve this after all the trouble we caused." She laughed bitterly. Tessa's feelers curled up against her head, bristling her fur to make their displeasure known. "Well, you're right," Espeon admitted. "So, go on… say your fill. Tell me why I'm an awful Pokémon."

"I'm not going to do that," Tessa insisted. She sat down across from Espeon. "Because you're hurting."

"It's not like Umbry and I were brainwashed," Espeon scoffed. "We knew what we were doing. We didn't care."

"It sure seems like _something_ happened to you," Tessa said. "But this isn't about that. I can't change the past… no matter how much I want to. I can only focus on the present." Thoughts of her mother lingered in the back of her head. Tessa forced them away. She scooted forward, but Espeon rolled away from her and faced the wall. "Talk to me, Espeon."

"Why? You barely knew Umbry. He was… he was…" She blinked tears out of her eyes. "… he was everything to me. Family… my closest friend… my sou– err, the Pokémon I could confide anything and everything to! And now he's gone." Tessa managed to crawl over to Espeon's side in time for her to bury her face in Tessa's chest and resume bawling her eyes out. "He's gone. I'm all alone!" she wailed. "We've always been together… since the day we hatched! Even when we were staring Yveltal down… and we knew the end was coming… we were _together._ "

She looked up at Tessa, eyes brimming with tears. "So, why? Why would he just throw himself at Necrozma like that? He knew how important he was to me… and he did it anyway!" She pressed her head against Tessa's chest. Tessa grunted and rubbed the top of her sternum. She wanted to say something, but continued to hold her tongue. Espeon rubbed her face against Tessa's fur. Her crying quieted. "What if… what if I did this to him?" Espeon whispered.

"Huh?"

"What if I drove him away?" Espeon wondered. "Oh, gods… what if there was something wrong between us? And… and he didn't tell me because he didn't want to upset me?" A horrified look spread across Espeon's face. "This is terrible! It's really all my fault. I must've driven him to do this. We've been arguing so much since we joined up with Zero." She shook her head. "I've made a terrible mistake. Umbry! UMBRYYYYY!"

This time Tessa couldn't keep her balance. She fell back to the floor, a sobbing Espeon lying on top of her. "Urk… you're kinda heavy," she wheezed, trying to push Espeon to the side. Tessa quickly realized it was a futile effort and simply lay there, awkwardly patting Espeon's shoulder. "I don't… think it's your fault…"

"But you don't _know_ that. Umbry and I have been here for all of two days," Espeon said.

"He still… cared about you…" Tessa grunted. She lightly shoved Espeon and managed to push her down toward her lap. Tessa sat up, taking in a big gasp of air. After she caught her breath, she continued, "When Silvally brought us back from Glyphic Falls, Umbreon ran all the way back here to check on you, didn't he?"

"Y… yeah…" Espeon admitted.

"And he's stayed with you both nights you've slept here, hasn't he?" Tessa asked. Again, Espeon nodded. "So… I'll bet he did this to make sure that you were safe. Maybe he was thinking of the time you guys encountered Yveltal. It seems to me like he wanted to make sure you made it out alive… no matter what."

"Umbry…" Espeon sniffled. "You didn't have to do this."

Tessa got to her feet. "I know you're in a rough spot right now. A few days ago, I felt exactly like you did. Like there was nothing left for me. Like I didn't even have a reason to wake up." Espeon looked away from her. "But then my friends stepped in and showed me that I was wrong." She poked her digits together. "I know we're not your friends. And that, well, they're gone too. But, I don't think any of us want you to suffer through this alone."

"Team Radiance… we're a right mess. But, in spite of that, we haven't given up. I know I'm not about to turn away from a Pokémon who needs help. And I'm sure my teammates feel the same way," Tessa continued. "I doubt Umbreon would want you to just give up, right?"

Espeon rubbed the snot off her nose and nodded slowly. "I can't join you guys. It's just… it wouldn't work."

Tessa frowned. "I guess I can't force you to do anything. But your situation makes you a lot like the three of us. We're all alone. And we're all just trying to keep pushing forward."

Espeon shook her head. "It would be too awkward," she whispered. "Your teammate, Vulpix. Did he mention he's got a crush on me?"

Tessa's eyes widened. "He… he does?"

"Yeah. Snuck into the showers to try and peek at my hidden parts and everything," Espeon muttered.

"Oh…" Tessa squeaked. "I had no idea." She closed her eyes and stuck out her paw. "Then… I think we should have a chat. The four of us."

"I don't like the sound of that."

"Could you at least give it a try?" Tessa said, a pleading look in her eye. "My teammates really want to help you. I do too."

"… fine," Espeon sighed. She rose to her feet. "Lead the way."

They walked out of the room in unison and headed down the hallway. Shane and Silvally stood in the assembly area. Shane was speaking with Tapu Bulu and Comfey, but the moment Tessa and Espeon entered the room, Comfey brought Tapu Bulu back toward the infirmary. Silvally tugged at Shane's fur and gestured in their direction.

"O-Oh… uh… hi," Shane greeted, shifting uneasily. "Um, are you feeling any better?" Espeon shook her head, and Shane looked away guiltily. "I'm sorry," he whispered, voice cracking.

"I thought it might be a good idea if we all just talked for a bit," Tessa exclaimed. "Shane, maybe you should start? Because Espeon told me something… rather interesting."

Shane's eyes widened and he looked between the two girls. Silvally gave him an encouraging look. "Okay," he sighed. "Where do you want me to start?"

"Do you have a crush on Espeon?" Tessa asked.

"Yes," he admitted, head hung down. "But… it's not what you think!" He relayed the same spiel he had given Silvally about the voices in his dreams. "I know it sounds crazy, but it's true." He looked at Espeon. "The louder the voice in my head that says I'm not human gets, the stronger my feelings for you grow."

"And I told you last night that's no excuse," Espeon said with an indignant flick of her tail.

"I know, I know," Shane said, squirming under Espeon's glare. "And I'm sorry. About everything! You've had such a rough time of things… you don't deserve to stand there and listen to me say stupid stuff like this." He shuffled back toward Silvally. "I just… I want you to know that I talked with Umbreon last night."

Espeon stiffened. _'Did he walk into the showers after I left? Ugh, I wish my psychic powers were working.'_

"And he, um, said that he knows things have been rough between you two. But you're still his sister. And that makes you the most important Pokémon in his life," Shane said. Silvally raised an eyebrow at this. "I can't say for certain, but I think he stood up to Necrozma for your sake. Because he didn't want you to have to relive what happened with Yveltal."

Espeon teared up again. Her legs shook. "He didn't have to do that. It's more important to me that he stayed by my side."

"… I know," Shane muttered. "And that's why I want to try and get him back for you."

Espeon's ears pointed up. "What are you talking about? You've seen what Zero and Necrozma do. There's no coming back from that!"

"Just like there's no coming back from getting turned to stone by Dark Matter?" Shane pointed out.

Silvally nodded. "I agree with Shane. I think there's a way. If we can stop Necrozma, then somehow… someway… we can bring back everyone we've lost. It may take a miracle, but we've had no shortage of those around the world." He stepped toward Tessa and Espeon. "However, if we're going to make that happen, we need all the help we can get."

He nodded at Tessa, who placed a paw on Espeon's shoulder. "If the situation were the other way around, don't you think Umbreon would do whatever it would take to get you back?" Tessa asked.

Espeon bobbed her head up and down. "He would." She sighed heavily. "You guys are really gung-ho about this, aren't you? I'm going to be honest, I'm not sure how much help I could really be to you three. I don't have the same resolve that I did back in the days of the Bittercold."

"That's fine," Silvally said, offering up a reassuring smile. "Team Radiance has always managed to have each other's backs… no matter how chaotic the situation."

Espeon laughed bitterly. "Gods, the way you talk, it sounds like the three of you are some stupid, dysfunctional family. That's hardly a good thing to say about an exploration team."

"Well, yeah, we're far from perfect," Silvally said. "But I won't let that stop us. I'm going to keep pressing forward. Because that's all I can do right now. Right, guys?" He looked to his teammates, who both nodded.

"And… um…" Shane stepped forward. "For whatever it's worth, I figured this might be able to help." He stepped to the side and kicked a looplet over to Espeon. She looked down at it, face scrunching up in confusion.

"But… this is your Naturia Looplet."

"Not quite," Shane said, sticking out his left foreleg. "Mine's still stuck to me. I asked Tapu Bulu to give you one of your own."

Espeon's jaw dropped. "I… I don't deserve this. I've already misused power like this working for the Prism Virus."

"Team Radiance is all about second chances," Silvally chirped. "Also, the more Z-Power we have, the better our odds are against Necrozma, right?"

Espeon gingerly rolled the looplet back and forth under her forepaw. "I… I guess so." She shot Shane a suspicious look. "This isn't some sort of stupid love gesture, is it?"

Shane rubbed the beck of his neck, squeaking when Espeon glared at him. "No, wait, it's not like that!" he insisted. "I mean… yes, it's a gesture of love. But it's your love for your brother. Nothing to do with me. I swear!" Shane shuffled backward, giving Silvally a nervous look.

Espeon slid the looplet along her right foreleg. The instant it wrapped around her thigh, a tiny beam of light flickered on her forehead. Her ears stuck up in surprise. "Hey! I can feel my psychic powers, again," she gasped. "They're not quite where they used to be… but I'm actually sensing stuff."

She received smiles from Team Radiance. "Okay," Espeon said. "I'm still a bit iffy on you, human. But… you're right. I can't give up on Umbry. This world _has_ had its fair share of miracles. And I guess it's up to us to make another one."

"That's the spirit!" Silvally cheered. His teammates looked at him and he sheepishly brushed his talons along the ground. "Aha… sorry, I got caught up in the moment, there."

Tessa walked forward and hugged Silvally's foreleg. "It's okay," she said. "I'm just happy you were here to help smooth everything over."

Silvally's tail wagged. "Well, what can I say? I had the perfect partner for the job." He winked at Tessa, whose face grew hot. "Um, but there is one other thing I wanted to bring up… as long as we're all here." He looked to his right. "Or, rather, Shane wants to bring it up."

Shane stepped toward Tessa, a nervous look on his face. "Hey," he said, his voice rather quiet.

"Hey," she whispered, rubbing her shoulder. "Rough day today, huh?"

Shane's ears drooped. "We make sandpaper look comfortable." An awkward silence fell between them. Silvally nudged Shane's flank. He squeaked and cleared his throat. "First, I want to apologize," Shane said. "I, uh, haven't been at my best these past couple of days."

"Because of Espeon?" Tessa asked.

Shane lowered his head, avoiding Espeon's gaze. "Yeah."

"You really like her that much, huh?"

Shane's face grew warm. "Well, if it helps, she kinda stomped my heart into pieces last night," he squeaked. He shut his eyes and shook his head. "The point is, that behavior is hurting the team. So, I'm going to try and stop thinking about her, y'know, in that way. Which is why I need your help."

"Oh?"

"I need you to hold me accountable," Shane said. "Like, if you see me… y'know… _staring_ at her… tell me to stop." He glanced at Espeon. "I guess that goes for you, too."

"So, smack you in the back of the head then?" Tessa proposed with an amused grin.

Shane's tails scrunched up. "Err… if you really have to…" he mumbled. They lapsed into another round of silence. Their gazes met for a moment. Shane bit his lip. "Um, Riolu? Have you, y'know, given any thought… to what I mentioned yesterday?" Tessa gave him a blank look. "Before we fell underground, we were talking about those dreams you had with your mom in them."

Tessa's paws balled up into fists. She had managed to keep herself distracted helping her teammates, but now there was nothing stopping memories of Zero from flashing through her mind. Tessa lingered on that pivotal moment in Aurora Vale, where Zero had her locked in place with her psychic powers. Her pupils dilated in fear and she squeaked in fright.

Shane's ears stuck up, and he took a cautious step backward, wincing. "Riolu." He took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, but we have to talk about your mom. Because… because I'm confident that she's actually human."

Tessa's aura feelers twitched. They scrunched up, brushing her fur and causing her to shiver. "You… you don't know that for a fact."

Shane slouched over, ears drooping down. "It has to be true. Why do you think she calls you Tessa and your brother Gallian, anyway? Did that idea really not occur to you this whole time we've been together?"

Tessa's locket rubbed against her neck. She clasped it in a paw, repeatedly flicking it open and shut. "Mom told me… that it was an old Lucario custom," she squeaked. "No one ever said anything otherwise." She shut her eyes and shook her head. "You can't say that you're right for certain," she insisted. Tessa had no idea why she was saying that. Deep down, she believed Shane. And yet, she had immediately jumped onto the denial train.

Shane took another deep breath. This was it. He had to lay it out in the open now. He figured this was his best chance to tell her what he thought. "Tessa…" he whispered.

"Why are you calling me that?"

"To hammer home my point," Shane said. He looked over at Silvally and shook his head. "I… I'm sorry, Silvally. I just don't think I can do this."

"Yes, you can," Silvally insisted.

"Wait… you think my mom's human, too?" Tessa gasped.

Silvally sighed. "It's not just that. Shane and I… we think your mother's Zero."

A blank expression set in on Tessa's face. Her gaze drifted toward an empty spot in the stone wall. Her jaw hung open uselessly and she stood in front of her friends, practically dead to the world around her. "T… Tessa?" Shane squeaked.

"… so, you realized it, too?"

Espeon's eyes widened. She looked at Shane and Silvally, both of whom seemed dumbstruck at Tessa's response. "Wait, you mean you've known about this the whole time?" Shane gasped.

Tessa's eyes narrowed. Her irises flashed blue. Shane suddenly felt as though he had ice in his veins. "What do you mean 'the whole time?'" Tessa growled. Her irises flashed blue again. This time, wisps of blue fire crackled in her eyes. She looked between Shane and Silvally. "How long were you two thinking about this?"

"Uh… w-well… th-that is…" Shane's voice trailed off. He whirled on Silvally, anger flashing across his vision. "I can't believe I managed to let you talk me into this! I _knew_ we shouldn't have told her anything."

"Excuse me? We agreed we had to tell her. And we decided this was as good a time as any," Silvally said, frowning.

"Answer my question!" Tessa shouted, stomping the ground. This time, the blue flames remained in her eyes. Identical licks of blue energy crackled around her paws, making her aura feelers flap up and down. "How long were you two thinking about this?"

"Since the moment we encountered Zero!" Shane confessed, a pang of guilt stabbing at his chest. "It just… it made too much sense," he said. "Zero knows about all sorts of human ideas. She dresses like a human. And your mom seemed to do a number of things that humans do. Unless there's some other human-turned-Lucario running around this world that none of us know about, it's got to be her."

Tessa's paws were balled up into fists. "Why didn't… you say anything?" she seethed. "You knew how much I'd been worrying about her. You knew how important she was to me. Why did you stay quiet?"

Shane pawed at the ground. "I'm sorry. I was afraid this was how you'd react. And that's why I didn't want to say anything." He looked up toward Tessa, expecting some kind of rebuttal. Instead, she stepped back, grabbing her head with her paws and shaking it wildly. "T… Tessa?" he squeaked, shooting a panicked look at Silvally.

"Give her some space," Silvally said, extending a foreleg to block Shane off. "She needs to process this."

"That's not… really Mom… is it?" Tessa whispered. She shook her head about violently. "But… with the aura training… and after Dad died…" Tessa smacked herself in the head. "No, it's gotta be Necrozma, right?"

Hearing Necrozma's name made Shane's tails stick up in alarm. He jumped over a surprised Silvally's foreleg and ran over to Tessa. "Tessa, listen to me," he said, hopping up on his hind legs and putting his forepaws on Tessa's shoulders. His resolve momentarily faltered under the piercing gaze of her glowing-blue eyes. He took a deep breath.

"Look at me," he whispered, tilting Tessa's tear-soaked face to look him in the eyes. "I don't think she's doing this willingly. It has to be Necrozma. He's controlling her. I don't know how. I'm not entirely sure why, either. Still, you can't let it get to you. I know I've been wrong about a lot of things, but you have to trust me on this one."

Shane shook his head. "No, you have to trust _us_ ," he said, looking at Silvally and Espeon. "We'll get her back. We'll free her from Necrozma's control. But the only way we can do that is as a team." He dropped back down to all-fours and stepped back.

The blue glow dimmed in Tessa's eyes. "Tell me why…" she whispered. "Why didn't you tell me this from the start?"

"Because I was scared, that's why!" Shane blurted out. He looked away from Tessa. "Silvally wanted to tell you from the get-go, but I was too worried you'd… well…" His gaze fell to the floor. "I thought if we told you, you'd try to kill yourself."

Shane squared his feet on the floor. "I'm sorry that I ever thought I should keep that a secret from you. That was a mistake. If you want to be mad at anyone, be mad at me. Because it's my fault." He took a deep breath. "And if… if you're really looking to take you anger out somehow, then… then I'm prepared to suffer the consequences." Shane immediately shut his eyes and gritted his teeth.

Silence fell over the quartet.

 _WHAM!_

Shane's right foreleg buckled. He toppled over onto his side, hissing loudly. "I… deserved that," he said through clenched teeth. Shane poked his head up, noticing Tessa's glowing blue fist hanging over him, along with Silvally's and Espeon's astonished expressions.

"That," she said, pulling her paw back, "was for doubting me." A look of confusion spread over Shane's face. "I made you a promise… that I would never go to such a dark place again." She rubbed her shoulder. "Hearing all of that stings. My heart's aching. But, if it's really true…" Her voice trailed off. Tessa took in a shuddering breath. "I can't just run away from this and hide like I used to. Even if I want to. Even if my gut is screaming for me to. There's too much at stake here." The blue glow faded from her eyes and paws. She stepped toward Silvally and rested her head on his shoulder. "Besides, I want to help my friends any way that I can."

Silvally smiled and leaned over to nuzzle Tessa with his beak. Shane's tails curled up and his face grew hot. "R… right…" he said, voice cracking. "That's… that's really good."

"There is one thing I want to know, though," Tessa said. Her expression grew serious. "I get that Necrozma was your human friend. But was he telling the truth?"

Shane gulped. "About what?"

"Did you really help me because you felt guilty about what happened to him?" Tessa asked.

The wind rushed out of Shane, like he had taken a punch to his gut. "Riolu, I… of course not!" He stepped toward her, but misjudged the distance. His snout bumped Tessa's. She stumbled back, throwing a paw up to rub her nose. "S… sorry," he squeaked, face reddening. "I just… you caught me off guard, that's all."

He shut his eyes and shook his head. "Riolu, this has nothing to do with Nicky. I hurt you and wanted to make up for what I'd done. But, more importantly, I just wanted you to be happy. Even for a tiny bit."

Shane rubbed his forepaws together. "It feels like I should just give up on this Prism Virus stuff. But I'm not going to do that. You deserve to get your mom and brother back. And if that means stopping Necrozma, then I guess that's what I've got to do." He looked up at Silvally. "The big guy's right. We can't give up hope yet." A warm smile crept onto his face. "Do I have to break out the team motto?"

"No. I get your point," Tessa whispered. She took another deep breath. "Which is why I need to stop trying and forgetting like my past didn't happen." She smiled back at Shane. "So, if it's alright with you, would you start calling me Tessa?"

Shane's eyes widened. "Are you sure?"

Tessa nodded. "Yes. I clung to being called Riolu because I thought I could make everything bad that's happened go away. But, the more I've tried to pretend like that stuff never happened, the more my past has reared its ugly head. So, no more hiding. It's time to make a stand." She pulled her arm up to look at her looplet. "I'm going to get my Z-Move working. And… and I'm going to tap into my aura and evolve."

Silvally raised his brows at this. "You really think it'll work?"

Tessa shook her head. "No." She leaned her head against Silvally's thigh. "But I have hope. And I have you guys. It's a start, right?"

Shane's tails slowly fanned up and down. "You've got that right." He stepped forward and joined his teammates in an embrace.

 _Groooooooowl!_

Tessa clutched her stomach with a paw and turned away. "Aha ha. I guess it has been awhile since I've eaten anything."

"Thank goodness… someone finally brought it up," Espeon said, walking past them. "I could eat an entire berry bush… branches and all."

In response to that, Shane's stomach growled even louder. Tessa put a paw to her snout, stifling a giggle. Shane rolled his eyes. "Let's just go get some dinner," he said. "It's been a long day… and we could do with a moment to decompress."

His teammates nodded their agreements and the group set off down the eastern hallway.

* * *

Time for review replies!

SuperOmegaGuest: yeah, Necrozma's got himself quite the high body count. And it may just keep going up as the story progresses. Unless, y'know, somebody puts a stop to him. As far as your guesses go, you'll have to wait to find out.

Anon Omega: we're not edgy. That's just Gallian. Besides, if Super can kill everyone off, so can I! As far as alternate endings go, that would take a lot of effort on my part. Not sure I could really commit. Maybe for April Fool's Day 2019? As for Kirby, I'm a huge fan, yes.

Veralix: every time you see Necrozma's arms or wings spasm, that's Lunala trying to drive out his corrupting life energy. So, yes, she's fighting him from within.

Another guest: Moongeist Beam hits a target regardless of its ability. So, it can hit through Disguise. Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom works the same way. I think it was even shown off against a Mimikyu, if I remember correctly?

AngryUmbreonFan: sorry, buddy. Want me to smile and turn the other cheek?

Oooooo: I think you tried to put a URL in your review that got removed, so I'm not sure what you're saying. Sorry!

That's all for now. Next time: a new bonus seeks to fill the leadership void on the Horizon Continent.


	59. Bonus: Taking Charge

It's time for the next canon bonus. Like the last few, this one's a bit experimental in nature. So, any feedback is greatly appreciated. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Bonus: Taking Charge**

I am stupid.

So, so stupid.

So super, terribly, awfully, extremely stupid.

But what else is new?

I couldn't believe it. I was there. I was _right there... w_ atching everything happen. I could've stepped in. I could've intervened before Braviary got clubbed upside the head. I _should've_ done something to make absolutely sure they were all safe.

But I didn't.

Instead, I hid in Bruxish's pond… paralyzed by fear. Hoping I'd be able to keep myself invisible and silently praying that something would happen so that I wouldn't need to get involved. My prayers were answered, but that didn't make me feel any better at the time. Instead of leaping into action, I just sat in the water while Silvally – someone who, by all means, shouldn't even exist in the first place – fought Metagross off.

And when everything settled down, did I reveal myself? Did I offer to help Team Radiance, when it clearly looked like they were struggling? No, of course not. Because I was still afraid. Afraid of getting chewed out for doing nothing. Of sitting by while everything spiraled out of control. I'd done exactly what the Prism Virus complained of: nothing. All I could think about was getting out of there and trying to clear my mind.

Except Hoopa had gone away to rest and I was there by myself. So, I made for the guild's entrance, keeping my cloak up. I passed by Magearna and Metagross. That's when I made my next big mistake: reading Metagross' mind. I figured, since he was unconscious, it would offer me the best possible chance to figure out why this had happened.

Instead, it only served to show me how dumb I really am… how right Rayquaza was to talk down to me all the time.

I was an explorer. I knew that the only way a Metagross could exist was if two Metangs fused together… uniting their minds and their spirits. Naturally, I had assumed that Horizon's Guildmaster found a willing partner to fuse with and everything was peachy keen. It didn't even occur to me that maybe, just maybe, there was foul play involved.

In other words, I was proven wrong. Again.

One of the perils of being an empath is encountering someone whose mind and spirit are completely twisted. It can be overwhelming. When I was staring down Yveltal, it felt like someone was stabbing me in the head from every conceivable angle. It was awful. There were many nights after Dark Matter's attack that I would just lie awake, remembering that feeling, begging fate to keep me from ever experiencing it again.

Thanks to Metagross, that wish never came true.

My glimpse into his mind was so shocking, it nearly made me drop my invisibility. Things grew fuzzy around me. An intense pressure surrounded my head. I thought my skull was going to be crushed for a second. Before I could black out, I sped out of the Observatory and away from Aeon Town. I triggered my Mega Evolution as soon as I was on the other side of the forcefield. The intense surge of energy kept me from passing out.

I shot forward, leaving the Horizon Continent behind in a matter of minutes. Even if Hoopa wasn't around, I knew I needed to get back across the ocean as fast as I could. Still, it was tough to fly straight with my mind still reeling. I couldn't stop myself from thinking about what I'd seen… trying to piece it together like the puzzles big brother and I did when we were hatchlings.

Metagross wasn't the explorer who had started with the guild as a Metang. He was someone else entirely.

His memories played out in the back of my head. He had grown up in the wild… in Voltaic Crater… constantly battered by wayward electric currents. It fried his brain. He slowly lost his grip on reality. It got so bad that he firmly believed that everyone and every _thing_ was out to kill him. I was flabbergasted, to say the least. Over where I lived, we knew that most wild Pokémon in dungeons weren't real, genuine living beings. They were constructs formed from the constantly shifting ley lines. To see that Horizon's wild Pokémon were _real_... and that they could suffer so horribly in these dungeons... I couldn't help feeling bad for Metagross' plight.

I shook my head about. What was I saying? This guy had blood on his hands! Figuratively speaking, of course. No, I needed to concentrate. I still didn't have the whole picture, did I? Where had I left off, again?

Right, Voltaic Crater. Beldum turned into Metang and dedicated his life toward trying to figure a way out of the Mystery Dungeon. But he couldn't. Every direction he levitated… every time he made progress… there would be another surge. His vision would fail him. He'd collapse to the ground and loose all sense of himself.

It was in one of those bouts of confusion that Team MIB's Metang stumbled upon him. This Metang was everything he wasn't: composed, confident, and knowledgeable about what he wanted. Except, instead of offering help, he attacked.

I felt another round of intense pressure and nearly dropped out of the sky. I shook my head about again. That was the moment they fused together and became Metagross. Except… since one of the Metang was unwilling, the resulting evolution _wasn't_ a union of the Metangs' minds and spirits. Instead, the two fought for control. The wild mind grew steadily more panicked the longer Metagross was in the guild. And when Dark Matter attacked and sent Horizon into a panic…

"AHHHH!"

My eyes widened and I fired an intense Psychic straight down. It propelled me upward. I floated in midair, heart hammering in my chest, staring down at the ocean I'd nearly crashed into.

It was plain as day to me that I couldn't think about this stuff anymore. I had to make it back to Lively Town. I sped off again, trying to focus on the sky in front of me. But Metagross' memories kept trying to worm their ways into my mind.

Arrrgh! Why did this have to be so hard? I was tired enough from jumping between different sides of the world. This flight needed all my attention, but it was slipping away with every passing second. And… well… passing out while speeding over the ocean was _not_ an option. If the impact didn't break every bone in my body, I'd probably drown!

I forced myself to go on, trying to remember the game that Jirachi had been teaching me a few weeks ago as a means of distraction. It did the job. Before I knew it, Lively Town popped into view on the horizon. I gave a sigh of relief and sped forward, drawing closer and closer. The moment I breached the town's forcefield, I twisted the gear in the center of my looplet. The Awakening Emera dissolved into thin air.

My Mega Evolution faded. The sudden withdrawal of energy struck me like a tidal wave of fatigue. I fell out of the air much faster than I intended. Which was bad news for poor Slurpuff. He was so soft and fluffy-looking, I couldn't stop myself from using him as a makeshift crash pad.

"Ow! Goodness, Latias. It's not time for breakfast yet. And I don't have any snacks on hand."

"S-Sorry," I squeaked. "I wasn't watching where I was going." I floated off of him, shaking dust off my feathers. "Listen, I'm in a bit of a hurry right now. Where's Ampharos?"

"That's a good question," Slurpuff said.

I groaned far louder than I meant to. "You… don't know where he is, do you?"

"Do I look like Mawile to you?"

It was times like that where I wished my arms were actually long enough for my paws to reach my face. I'd have facepalmed _sooooooo_ hard. But there was no time to throw a hissy fit. There was serious work to do! I sped off into our headquarters.

"Heeeeey! Anybody home? I need to speak to Ampharos right away!" I shouted. To my surprise, the main assembly area was empty. I didn't even think that was possible.

"Sis?"

My ears perked up. I spun to my right and saw Latios floating in a doorway, rubbing sleep out of his eyes. "What are you doing back here?"

 _Big brother!_ I chirped, turning to my telepathy without even thinking. I flew right toward him, wrapping him up in a big hug.

 _Ah! Ahh! Hey, stop it! Th… that tickles!_ Latios said, squealing and squirming around in my grasp.

 _Sorry,_ I said, backing away from him. _It's just… after seeing what happened to the Mist Continent, I was really worried about you. And you weren't here when I came to get Hoopa._

 _I was sleeping, Latias,_ big brother said, looking concerned. _Is your ESP on the fritz or something? You should've been able to sense me easily._

I blinked a few times. Metagross' memories tried to crawl back into my mind's eyes but I shoved them away. _I… uh… am having some empath issues, actually,_ I admitted. _I read someone's mind over in Horizon and saw something… that I wasn't supposed to see._ Worry spread across big brother's face. I winced. I hated seeing him worry like that.

 _Did something happen to you?_ Latios asked. _Spirits above, you're not actually planning to go back to Horizon this time, are you?_

 _I… I have to,_ I said, audibly squeaking. _Ampharos and Mawile are counting on me to support them over there._

 _But if something bad's happening, you need extra help,_ Latios said. _Why don't you talk to Ampharos about it?_

My patience was starting to wear a bit thin at big brother's worrying. _Why do you think I came back here, huh?_ I winced again when Latios frowned at me. _Sorry. I'm just… in a bit of a hurry. Is Ampharos here?_

 _I think he's upstairs tending to an important visitor,_ Latios said, looking up at the ceiling. _I can't sense anything up there. It's like someone put up a psychic block._

I followed his gaze and squinted. Sure enough, instead of sensing bright, vibrant balls of life energy hovering above us, I only got an energy void. _That can't be good,_ I said, gulping. _You don't think someone's about to attack us, do you?_

More worry flashed across Latios' face. Evidently, he hadn't considered that avenue at all. _No way! If that's the case, we need to get you out of here, now!_ He flew toward me, trying to push me toward the main entrance.

 _No, wait… I can't leave yet! I have to talk to Ampharos,_ I said, trying to fly around Latios. _C'mon, big bro, this isn't funny._

 _I'm not being funny. I'm trying to keep you safe,_ Latios insisted. _I don't want to screw up like I did with–_

"Don't say it!" I hissed. A second of silence passed and I tucked my head down to my belly, covering my mouth with my paws. _S-Sorry, big bro. I shouldn't've shouted like that…_

Latios floated back from me. _No. You're right,_ he said. _You're in the middle of an important assignment. I've… uh… I need to respect that. I'm overstepping my bounds again._ He bowed his head and moved to the side. _Just know that I'm here if you need anything._

 _Thanks,_ I said, giving him a short hug. I then flew off up the stairs. About halfway to the upper level, an intense pressure struck me from above, nearly knocking me to the ground. I looked about in a panic, eyes wide in surprise. But nothing was there. To make matters worse, I was inside the energy void. I couldn't even sense Latios' spirit anymore.

Taking some deep breaths to steel myself, I flew up into the Pokémon Nexus' room. There, I found Ampharos and Jirachi standing in front of the machine. Their backs were turned to me.

"U… um… Ampharos, sir? I… I need to talk to you!" I squeaked, waving my hands around.

 _What are you doing here? This is a private meeting. Get lost!_

"EEEEP!"

Mewtwo teleported in front of me. His face twisted into a nasty glare that brought Rayquaza to mind. All my feathers prickled and I floated back toward the stairs.

"Leave her be, Mewtwo," Ampharos said, waving him off. "Latias is just following up on an errand I had her running." He walked past Mewtwo and rested a hand on the base of my left wing. "So, how fares your assignment?"

 _Which part?_ I telepathed, casting a wary glance at Mewtwo.

His glare intensified. _You can drop the cloak and dagger routine, Latias. Your nervous looks betray whatever words you're trying to keep hidden. And I'm well aware about this_ ridiculous _plan to hide folks from the Prism Virus._ Mewtwo turned his angry scowl on Ampharos. _Do you honestly expect something so ridiculous to work? Legendary Pokémon are what this world needs to combat this threat._

Ampharos kept up his calm smile, much to my shock. "You're also exactly the group of Pokémon the Prism Virus is after. The key here is to trick this 'Prism Virus' thing into believing that it's accomplishing its goals."

 _And making us disappear is the best thing you can think of?_ Mewtwo growled. He narrowed his eyes at Ampharos, only to float back with a confused look on his face.

"So, let's focus on that first, Latias," Ampharos said.

My feathers prickled. He was really just going to ignore Mewtwo like that? Was he trying to get us both killed or something? That look in Mewtwo's eyes said we were making a huge mistake. "Um, you mean the Legendary stuff, right?" I whispered, trying my best to avoid Mewtwo's gaze.

"Correct."

I tapped my claws together. "I was able to swap Zapdos and Tapu Koko out for their replicas before the Prism Virus got to them… but I wasn't quick enough for Tapu Lele."

 _Replicas? What sort of drivel are you referring to?_ Mewtwo demanded. I squeaked and flinched back at his harsh tone. He raised a glowing hand. _I suggest you explain yourself right this second._

"It's simple," Ampharos said, keeping his calm, goofy grin, "we're gathering Unown and getting them to band together to copy different Legendaries. Latias and Hoopa then replace the actual Legendaries with these replicas and send the real ones through one of Hoopa's rings into a small pocket dimension."

Mewtwo's eyes flashed blue. I shut my eyes, bracing myself for some sort of attack. To my relief, nothing happened. I poked an eye open and watched Mewtwo float there, looking completely baffled. _Your mind,_ he said, addressing Ampharos, _is completely and utterly empty. This is nonsensical! You really expect the rest of my cohorts to agree to this ridiculous idea?_ He looked right at me. _Well, the ones who actually matter, anyway._

My wings drooped. "I'm just trying to help…" I whispered meekly.

"I don't expect everyone to agree. That's why I have contingencies in place," Ampharos said. I don't know how he kept up such confidence with Mewtwo staring him down. It was honestly awe-inspiring.

 _What contingencies? I can't see anything in that mind of yours. It's as blank as a Claydol's expression! You're making this all up, aren't you?_

"The plan's success is predicated on everyone knowing as little as possible… including me," Ampharos said, grinning broadly and puffing out his chest.

 _But… that… I…_ Mewtwo stammered, his right eye twitching. _Well, answer me this. What if Hoopa is found by the Prism Virus?_ Mewtwo asked.

"That won't happen," Ampharos said. "We know the Prism Virus can move around using portals. But so can Hoopa. In a sense, he's beating them at their own game."

"Trust me, Mewtwo. It's best not to think about how Ampharos works. You'll just give yourself a giant headache," Jirachi said, chuckling.

Mewtwo scowled at the two of them. _Hmph! Your plan is asinine and I'm not interested. I'm the world's strongest Pokémon. If the Prism Virus tries to face me, then I will defeat it. I'm sure any other Legendaries who turn you down feel the exact same way._

And with that, he teleported out of the room, leaving the three of us there. "Well, he's a real charmer, isn't he?" Jirachi quipped.

"I had a feeling I'd get responses like that," Ampharos said, sighing. "Oh well. We'll just need to press on, anyway. Which reminds me, Latias, did you manage to salvage _anything_ from Tapu Lele's death?"

"Jeez, that's a bit morbid of you to ask, don't you think?" Jirachi scoffed.

"Um, actually…" I mumbled, futzing through my bag. My claws grazed across a cluster of jagged crystal shards and I pulled them out. "I did manage to get these." I passed them over to Ampharos, noting the skeptical look on Jirachi's face. "Um, exactly what are these for?"

"My contingency, of course," Ampharos said, his goofy smile returning.

Jirachi looked at him in confusion. "And that contingency is…?"

"A secret, naturally," Ampharos replied. "It's our Trump Card… figuratively speaking. It doesn't involve Eevee in any way." He chuckled at his own lame joke.

My jaw dropped in disbelief. How could he possibly be acting so nonchalant about all of this? I heard these stories about how the great Ampharos had managed to outwit the likes of Dark Matter with a brilliant plan. And yet, here he was, in the face of another crisis, acting like there wasn't a thing wrong. Was he like this during Dark Matter's attack, too? Or had the victory made him overconfident?

"Latias, you seem troubled," Ampharos spoke up. I squeaked and shrank back toward the door, unsure of what to say. "Come now, if something's bugging you, I'm all ears."

"Uh… well… the thing is…" I fidgeted with my claws. "The Horizon Guild… it's… um… kind of done for."

"Eh?" Jirachi titled his head in confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"

I couldn't contain my worry any more. I drew on my psychic powers and poured the memories of what I had witnessed in the Aeon Observatory out into Jirachi's and Ampharos' minds. When I finished, I lowered my head. "I'm sorry, Ampharos. I completely panicked. I saw what was happening with Metagross and froze up. Just like I did with Dark Matter." I wrung my paws out nervously. "It was stupid of me. How am I supposed to go back there and face them now?"

"Hmm… you did put yourself in a bit of a bind," Ampharos said. "But you've grown a lot since you joined us. I have faith you can come up with a plan that'll turn things around. Especially since I'm drawing a bit of a blank myself." He laughed nervously.

"S… seriously?" I gasped, biting my lower lip. "Couldn't you at least give me some backup? Hoopa's not enough here. I can't bounce any ideas off him or anything."

This time, Ampharos' smile disappeared. "I wish I could, Latias. But we're really stretched thin right now. The Mist Continent is a total mess. Wormholes popping out of nowhere and dropping innocent townsfolk into Mystery Dungeons. It's happening here, too. The folks in Pokémon Square are having significant problems with the weather, as is the whole Grass Continent."

"We tried to put out a request for volunteers, but nobody responded," Jirachi said. "People are just afraid right now."

"What about Raichu and Haxorus?" Latias asked.

"Working in the Mist Continent," Jirachi replied.

"And Team Gaia?"

"They took off for Purifying Cave. Apparently, it's flooding and they're trying to find a way to get the water out," Jirachi said.

My heart sank even lower. "What about big brother?"

"We need Latios as a relay 'mon right now. He's our fastest means of getting to the different continents, especially since you're working with Hoopa," Ampharos said. "I'm sorry, Latias, we're just out of options right now. Trust me, the instant things calm down, here, I'll be sure to make someone available to help you."

"We're keeping in touch with Guildmaster Wigglytuff. He's, um, aware of the situation," Jirachi said. "I sent Mawile over there, though. Frankly, uh… it's the best way for us to get _reliable_ information since Wigglytuff's a bit of a basket case, to put in nicely."

I was tempted to point out the irony in that statement, considering who we were working for, but I held my tongue. Instead, I just sighed. Loudly, I might add. "I understand," I said. "I guess… I'll just have to come up with something. Thanks anyways."

"Best of luck, Latias. I have full confidence in your abilities," Ampharos said, giving me an enthusiastic nod.

"Right," I whispered, turning to float dejectedly out of the room. I wanted to go talk to Latios, but to my disappointment, I couldn't sense his life force. My brow furrowed as I tapped into my ESP. _Big brother, where are you?_ I asked.

No sight-sharing popped up, but I felt a faint presence in the back of my mind. _Sis? I'm sorry, I can't talk right now. I'm flying to the Sand Continent. There's a huge sandstorm that's threatening to blow in on Sahra Town and I need to help contain it._

 _Oh. R-right… good luck!_

The mental link quickly faded, leaving me floating in the stairwell. Without hesitating, I flew out of the building, darting up through the forcefield around Lively Town. When I reached the shoreline, I dove into the ocean. Normally, the cool water running across my feathers would feel refreshing. Instead, it intensified the sinking feeling I had in my stomach.

Come up with a plan, huh? What was I supposed to do? Me… the little dragon that the other Legendaries laughed at… saying that I would never be able to defend myself. The girl Rayquaza called a disgrace to dragon-kind. The klutz who couldn't fly straight and crashed into Pitfall Valley… and shamefully needed a rescue team to come to her aid. The coward who ran from Dark Matter, instead of taking a stand and fighting…

Amidst the whirlwind of unpleasant thoughts running through my head, I finally managed to find what I was looking for: a sharp, spiraling current cutting through the water. I braced myself and flew threw it. Once inside the current, I sped forward. Eventually, the ocean grew warmer. The water around me sparkled with an ethereal quality, signifying I was in the Sea of Wonders. I flew through the current until it petered out.

With a loud splash, I popped out of the water, emerging in the Sea Shrine's basin. The familiar stone pillars and dark blue rocks greeted me. It took me a second to get my bearings straight, however, so I didn't immediately realize whether this trip was going to be worth it or not.

"T-Tia?"

My heart fluttered in my chest. I turned to my left and spotted Lugia poking his head up from his nest. Oh… how I had missed those deep blue eyes and shimmering silver-white feathers of his. I raced toward him without a second thought. But that jubilation disappeared when I got close enough to see the black splotches on his neck.

"Lugia… your neck…" I squeaked.

Lugia slid down into his nest. "It's nothing."

"My left wing it's nothing!" I hissed, trying to float over the nest to get a better view. Lugia anticipated this and rolled onto his belly, throwing his wings up over his neck.

"You have to stay back, Tia," he said. "Please. It's for your own good."

His cryptic behavior made me gnash my teeth together. Spirits above, how I hated it when he did this. "You can't just keep in the dark like that, Lugia," I said. "I'm not some dainty hatchling in need of your protection. I'm your _mate_ and I deserve to know what's wrong with you."

Lugia eyed me waywardly. "You're stressed out," he said. "Did something happen in Horizon?"

"Yes, something happened in Horizon! And I'm here because I need your support right now, but you're doing your stupid 'I'm a big sea god, I can take care of myself,' routine," I said.

The last thing I wanted was to get into an argument with him. But he could be so stubborn sometimes! Couldn't he see that I needed help right now? Why was he being so defensive about this?

"Oh… uh… s-sorry…" Lugia stammered. "You just surprised me with your visit, that's all."

"That's _all?_ " My temper started to falter. The constant travelling back and forth had worn me out. "Lugia… I'm not in a good place right now. I need you. Please tell me what's wrong. I'm a healer, remember? I can help you! But only if you let me."

"Tia, I can't ask you to waste your energy on me when the world's in danger."

"It's not wasting my energy if it's going to a worthwhile cause!" I shouted. My voice echoed through the cave. Trembling, I approached him. "Stop being distant. This isn't helping anyone, least of all you."

"I want to keep you out of trouble, Latias. You won't be able to stay focused if you're too busy worrying about me."

"THEN LET ME HEAL YOU!"

My psychic powers flared up, blowing bits of wooden branches and sand out of Lugia's nest. "You're treating me like a kid again! I… I…"

I couldn't hold it back anymore. I burst into tears, dropping to the ground next to Lugia's next. "I'm a coward… I'm a screw-up! The Pokémon in Horizon needed me and I was too scared to lift a claw to help them," I blubbered. Lugia looked at me in alarm. "Rayquaza was right. And you're right to treat me like a hatchling. It's all I'm capable of."

"Tia, that's not true," Lugia cut in sternly.

"Yes, it is! See for yourself." Psychic power flowed into my head and I shared my memories about Metagross with him. "I don't know what to do," I said the moment the sight-sharing faded. "Things are out of control there. Everything that can go wrong is going wrong. Ampharos has no backup for me. I'm on my own. With Hoopa! _Hoopa!_ The guy's great for travelling, but he won't lift a finger to help me. I can't do this, Lugia. I can't help them… it's too much for me."

Through my blurry vision, I could see Lugia studying me intently. "Is that really what you think?" he asked.

"Y… yes…"

"I disagree," Lugia said. "You're letting your past mistakes weigh you down. Rayquaza's condemnations have gotten stuck in your head. It seems like everything you do, good or bad, your mind drifts back to what he said to you after Dark Matter." He craned his neck over his nest to get to eye level with me. "Latias, let me ask you something. Do you want to help the Pokémon in Horizon?"

What kind of question was that? Of course, I did!

"Yes," I whispered.

"Then you need to focus on that. You joined the Expedition Society to help Pokémon, didn't you?" Lugia asked. I nodded. "I might not agree with your decision. But I do know that this is your chance to make that dream a reality. You're acting as your own biggest roadblock here. You need to focus on that desire to help Pokémon and go from there."

"But what should I do? What _can_ I do?"

Lugia sighed. "For starters, you have to get them out of there."

"You mean Team Radiance?" I asked.

"Anyone who isn't Metagross. Get them out of that guild and somewhere safe," Lugia said.

"But Metagross is getting arrested. The Observatory should be perfectly safe," I said.

Lugia shook his head. "Tia, do you really think that'll keep Team Radiance safe?"

"I… well… maybe not," I whispered. "Where would I take them, though?"

"That's where the other part comes into play," Lugia said. "You need to find out where the pieces of the Dawn Hourglass ended up. Surely they emit enough energy for you to get a vague idea of where they are, even if they're in Mystery Dungeons."

I let that idea roll around in my head for a minute. "That's not too unreasonable," I said. "If I can get Hoopa to wake up, then we can cover all of Horizon pretty quickly, I'd imagine."

Lugia smiled. "That sounds more like it."

"You really think this'll work, though?"

"Well, you might have to improvise a bit," Lugia admitted. "But that's where you need to remember to focus on that burning desire to do good. Don't let Rayquaza's harsh words drag you down, Tia."

"But weren't you the one telling me I didn't owe the Pokémon in Horizon anything?" I pointed out, a frown on my face.

"That was… before I realized the gravity of the situation," Lugia said. He shifted in his nest and stood up. Not only could I see the black splotches on his neck, but I could see that they were coming from a swirling black stain on his chest. I gasped, feathers bristling. "Lugia… your chest… is that a puncture wound?"

Lugia brushed a wing against his stomach. When he lifted it up, sticky, dark-red liquid clung to his feathers. "Lugia, what happened?" I asked.

"I got… thrashed around… by a cyclone off the coast of the Air Continent," Lugia said. "I got tossed into a rock spire… it stabbed me in the chest. That's also where the black marks came from. I fell back into the water and got wrapped up in some poisonous undersea reeds. I'm pretty sure the toxins are contagious… that's why I don't want to touch you." He shook his head. "You were right to be worried, Latias. Something is very wrong. That was no ordinary storm. The ley lines… they're out of control. My powers over undersea currents aren't enough to keep them in check."

"Lugia…" I whispered, tears brimming in my eyes. "Come with me, then. Come to Horizon. We can work together on this! Please! I don't want to see you get hurt. I… don't want to lose you."

"Tia… I can't go now. Kyogre has barricaded herself deep in her undersea home. Someone has to try and keep the tides at bay. Otherwise… towns will be destroyed… lives will be lost." Lugia looked toward the water. "Sorry, Tia, but my place is here. I've got a job to do."

"Then hold still," I whispered, lifting my claws into the air. Concentrating, I drew on my psychic powers. Warm healing energy gathered in my claws and I sent the Heal Pulse right at Lugia. It hit his chest and washed across his body. His injuries faded in a flash of pink light.

"T-Tia! I told you I–"

Without thinking, I flew right into him, knocking him to the ground. I pressed my snout against his as hard as I could and brushed my claws against his shoulders. Lugia accepted my kiss, his muscles slowly relaxing as he sank back against his nest. "I told you… I can't lose you," I whispered.

"And I don't want to lose you, either," Lugia whispered back. He brushed a wing along my back, sending a shock through my system. "We have to have faith. We can get through this."

I nodded, rubbing my cheek against his. "I hope so," I whispered. "I really do."

I knew I had to get back to Horizon. But that could wait a few more minutes, while I stayed in his embrace.

* * *

Review reply time!

SuperOmegaGuest: yes, team-building is fun. As to the Espeon/Umbreon relationship, that is their official relationship in canon, as far as I'm aware. A promotional video for Super Mystery Dungeon confirmed the two were intimate with each other.

Another guest: that's not a bad guess at all, buddy! You should hang onto it for later.

Unnamed guest: that is also a good guess you should hold onto. As far as a Lucario duel, I don't know. Maybe you'll get your wish very far down the road.

Anon Omega: I thought Kirby Star Allies was fun... but was designed to be a multiplayer game, which made it weaker than the other games in the "Return saga." As for Zero and Necrozma, I think it's safe to say after last chapter they're not going to be working together anymore.

Next time: laying the foundations for a quest to reclaim the Dawn Hourglass!


	60. The Planning Stages

Boy, it seems like this episode's gone on awhile. Let's wrap it up, shall we?

 **Content Advisory:** chapter contains unhealthy alcohol consumption.

* * *

 **Chapter 51: The Planning Stages**

 **~Solaris Wastelands~**

Night was falling over the desert dungeon. Harsh sandstorms swept across the dunes, blowing red sand in all directions. The sand combined with the deep purple light from the oversized moon to cast an eerie lavender glow throughout the sky. Zero stood in the middle of a trough between three dunes, surrounded by lifeless, colorless Sandiles, Krokoroks, and the occasional Gible and Gabite. She leaned over on her staff, panting heavily and scanning the area for any sign of movement beneath the surface.

A flicker of light drew her attention forward. She stood up straight, watching as Xatu toppled over into the sand. His wings were spread open, each one coated in a thick layer of ice to prevent them from moving. His beak was frozen shut and his torso peppered with small stab wounds. Xatu remained motionless even as Dragonite stepped on his back. She raised a hand over her head. Electricity swirled around it, forming a javelin-like spear. Dragonite lowered the spear, pointing the tip against Xatu's neck.

"No sudden movements, birdie. You got that?" she said.

"So, your trip to the Air Continent was successful," Zero said. Her four, tentacle-like aura feelers lashed at the air. "Milotic, Serperior, quit hiding behind Dragonite. I want to make sure you both made it here in one piece."

Milotic and Serperior slithered out on either side of Dragonite. "We're here," Milotic said. She hoisted up her tail, showing off her icy-blue scales and the ice-coated, hexagonal blade that sat where her tail fins should have been. The tail blade had a snowflake carved into its center, which emitted frosty air that evaporated in the harsh desert heat.

"Why do we need this old geezer again?" Serperior scoffed, using her own tail blade to flick up a clump of sand with an annoyed huff. Hers was a wavy sword that crackled with bright-blue flames, matching the blue, fire-shaped markings along her body.

"We need to make an adjustment to our plans," Zero said. "And I want to be absolutely sure that my new idea can safely come to fruition." She glared at Xatu, who returned her gaze with an empty one.

"That's a bit cryptic, don't you think?" Serperior sneered.

"Don't talk to Mistress Zero like that!" Dragonite barked. She rapped Serperior on the back of her head, knocking her emerald helmet askew. The mohawk-shaped stream of green fire shooting out from the helmet weakened, until Serperior readjusted it. The flames then resumed their normal intensity and the small sigil on the helmet's brim glowed. Zero immediately recognized it as the same one Necrozma had on his torso when he killed Umbreon: a winged heart, with demonic horns protruding from its top and a piercing eye in its center.

"No, I'm with Serpy, here," Milotic agreed. "I'd like some details… since we did just join the team, after all."

Zero glanced at Milotic, staring at her helmet. It was shaped similarly to Serperior's, except it was bright blue, with a mohawk of icicles jutting out of it. The same insignia was carved into the helmet. Zero glanced down and noticed the red strip of cloth hanging from her waist also had the same sigil. It was even on the Prism Armor sitting over Dragonite's chest. Zero tightened her grip on her staff.

"We're ditching the Hourglasses to go after the Time Gears," Zero said. "After that business with Tapu Lele, I suspect that Ampharos and Guildmaster Wigglytuff may be attempting to replicate their success in going around Dark Matter. Though they are god-abetting fools, we shouldn't underestimate them. To add to that… Necrozma cannot be trusted anymore."

"Wait… you just let him go?" Milotic gasped.

Zero balled her free paw into a fist. "… yes. But he won't go after us. As long as I have his core, he won't try anything directly."

Dragonite crossed her arms. "So, what, that just means he'll be looking for a way to get rid of us indirectly?"

"Perhaps," Zero said. "However, with the Time Gears, I may have a way to fulfill our goal _and_ be rid of Necrozma… permanently." She pulled the book Dragonite had given her out from her robes. "Dialga forged the Time Gears from Necrozma's life energy. If I bring them to the top of Temporal Tower, I should be able to use the alchemical spells in this book to alter the fabric of time."

"Wait, seriously? Alchemy is a forbidden art for good reason," Serperior said. "Bad things happen if you use it–"

"Because alchemy draws on the power of ley lines," Zero said, cutting Serperior off. "Which can, of course, have disastrous consequences. My plan is to use that power to _erase ley lines from history._ And, of course, take the gods out with them. Not only will that kill them off… no one will remember they existed in the first place. Aside from us, of course. So, not a single Pokémon will be upset." She gazed into her octahedron. "Beyond that, I can repair all of the damage Necrozma has done… and ensure he disappears while maintaining his powers."

"Is that where Xatu comes in?" Milotic asked, poking Xatu with the edge of her tail blade.

"Correct," Zero said. She marched up to Xatu and knelt down in front of him. Then she grabbed his head with her free paw and hoisted him up. "Alright, I know you're listening in there. Tell me what I want to know. Can I gather the Time Gears and safely rewrite history with these spells?"

Xatu didn't respond. Zero shook him, shouting, "Answer me, bird!"

 _You can… but you will not succeed in making a world safe for all mortal Pokémon._

Zero's lone eye flashed blue. "That doesn't make any sense. If I rid the world of ley lines, it will be _perfectly_ _safe_. Mystery Dungeons are the cause of all our misery. If I eliminate them–"

 _You can only keep the ley lines at bay for so long. They will return in time,_ Xatu said, his gaze drifting off toward the sky.

Zero tightened her grip, shattering the ice around Xatu's beak. "Not if I erase them from history!"

 _You are mistaken in your logic. Ley lines were not born of this world,_ Xatu replied.

Zero slammed Xatu's head into the sand. "I see what you're doing," she growled. "You're being cryptic to try and cover for your worthless gods. I have no intention of sparing them. They have done nothing but perpetuate the ley line epidemic. To think a 'trusted' seer like you would be ensnared by their collective grip on this world… how disgraceful."

 _Won't work…_ Xatu groaned. _Need gods… to keep ley lines… under control._

"My vaunted team and I are more than enough to keep this world safe once it's free of its gods," Zero snarled.

 _Not sufficient,_ Xatu said, finally coughing as a sign of distress. _The ley lines will overwhelm you._

"Lies!" Zero hissed, digging Xatu's head into the sand. "Give me the _real_ truth or I'll take your life right this second."

 _J-Jamba Heart… too strong. Only gods… can repel…_ Xatu croaked.

"I've heard enough of your worthless lies. **Consume!** " Zero shouted, cupping her paw over Xatu's eyes. The ice encasing his wings shattered and the colors rushed off his body. They spiraled up Zero's arm and spread across her mask. A rainbow ripple overtook her body and then disappeared. Zero released Xatu's head. He fell into the sand as she got back to her feet.

"Well, this won't be a complete loss," she exclaimed. Zero held her free paw up. Black cubes flickered around her paw, forming into a glass orb with the winged heart sigil on it. "Thanks to Xatu's life energy, I should be able to get us around much quicker. No need for Necrozma… and no worry about wasting time traversing the world."

"So, what's the plan?" Dragonite asked.

"Milotic, Serperior, you're to stay here and search out the fragments of the Dawn Hourglass," Zero ordered. "They're not what I'm interested in, but I don't want Necrozma getting his clutches on them. If he does, he could easily throw a wrench in our plan." She turned to Dragonite. "You and I will make for the Grass Continent and begin gathering the Time Gears. With any luck, we'll have all five with minimal effort."

"Meaning… I get to take down their guardians?" Dragonite said, an eager grin on her face.

Zero shattered the orb in her paw. A distorted black portal appeared behind her. "Correct. Uxie, Azelf, and Mesprit will be swept aside by the Prism Virus."

Dragonite licked her lips in anticipation. "This should be fun," she said, cracking her knuckles. She followed Zero inside the portal, which shut behind them. Milotic and Serperior nodded to one another and activated an Escape Orb, vanishing in a pillar of rainbow light.

For a full minute, gusts of wind blew clouds of sand through the area, until a single plume of black smoke formed on the ground where Zero had previously been standing.

 **"So, that's your ploy, is it,** _ **mistress?**_ **"**

Necrozma rose out of the cloud, draping his wings over his body to settle his spasming arms. **"Heeheeheehee… you want to make me disappear, huh? I should've known… you were never going to give me my light back,"** he growled. **"Everyone just takes and takes and** _ **takes**_ **while giving me nothing! But it's okay… it's fine."**

He spread his wings apart and took off into the air.

 **"If you want the Time Gears, then I'll go right for their source, instead!"**

* * *

 _ **Rory Gardner, Attorney at Law**_

 _Shane stood in front of a door made of fake wood. The kind that looked convincing at first glance, only for the illusion to quickly fall apart. A small indentation sat in the center of the door, housing the name placard that Shane was reading over. For the past five minutes, he had been trying to muster up the courage to knock on the door. But the best he could manage was raising his fist up to chest height, only to have it flop back down uselessly._

 _"Hey, Rory. You in there? There's a kid waiting outside your door."_

 _Shane jumped. He hadn't even heard the woman walking up behind him._

 _"Whoops. Didn't mean to scare you, kid. You know, I'm pretty sure Rory's just in his office. All you've gotta do is knock."_

 _As Shane reached up toward the door, it swung inward. Shane stumbled forward, nearly bumping into the man standing in the doorway. Luckily, he managed to catch himself before any collisions happened. To Shane's complete surprise, instead of a fierce, intimidating man standing before him in an immaculate suit like he had firmly expected, he found a bald, lanky, middle-aged man with a goatee and a slight five o'clock shadow. And, in place of formal business wear, he had on gray khakis, an orange belt with a flame-shaped buckle, and a red flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up. An orange bow tie sat neatly around his neck._

 _"Oh, good, you made it," Rory said, extending a hand toward him. "Rory Gardner, come on in." Shane looked at Rory's hand like it was an alien object. An awkward silence fell between the two of them and Rory withdrew his hand. He nudged up his thin, wireframe glasses. "Not a handshaker, huh? I don't blame you. It's flu season and my wife's been going on and on about how easily it'll spread… and how I'm not safe even with the vaccine."_

 _"Yeah," Shane mumbled as he walked into Rory's office. He hadn't exactly set foot inside a lawyer's office before. But his parents were huge fans of law procedural shows, so he'd seen plenty of them on TV._

 _Rory's was nothing like that. There were no solid oak desks or fancy office chairs. No tray filled with expensive alcohol whose brands Shane would never recognize. And no glimmering, golden picture frames proudly showing off Rory's degrees. Instead, there were plain white walls, a window to look out over a parking lot, a plain leather couch with an accompanying coffee table, and a modest-sized desk sticking out of the wall. Papers and files were haphazardly strewn across it, some of them sitting on top of Rory's laptop computer. A metal tray housed various office utensils and writing instruments, though it was hidden underneath a half-eaten deli sandwich poking out of its wrapper._

 _"Go on, have a seat," Rory said, gesturing toward a small leather sofa. Shane walked over to it and sat down, looking at the shelves across from him. Legal textbooks and publications lined the shelves, with framed pictures sitting neatly in front of them. In one of them, a small girl smiled back at Shane, arms wrapped around a stuffed Pikachu._

 _"Your kids like Pokémon?" Shane asked. A beat followed, and then he realized he had said that out loud and abruptly looked toward the door, doing his best to avoid eye contact with Rory._

 _"Of course they do," Rory said with a laugh. "My wife and I are fans, too. You know, when the originals came out, we gave each other copies as an anniversary present." Rory sat down, sighing contently._

 _"But that doesn't make any sense," Shane said. "Why would you like Pokémon? No offense, but you're kinda old."_

 _"True," Rory said with a nod. "But, speaking as a legal expert, there are no laws written anywhere saying you can't like Pokémon once you're past a certain age." His statement made Shane flinch. Rory frowned. "Of course, the high school court of public opinion does tend to operate by a different set of rules." He shuffled some of the folders around on his desk, producing a clean yellow notepad. "My son's actually starting high school next year. He's excited, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous for him."_

 _Shane scowled. "You should tell him to keep his head down, then."_

 _"Well, we're not in the same school district as you," Rory said. "But, let's drop that subject for the time being and focus on the here and the now." He clicked open his pen and leaned forward. "First off, let me just start by saying that I'm real sorry to hear about what happened to Nicholas."_

 _Shane winced again. "It's not like you knew him."_

 _"Well, I did get to meet him a few times" Rory exclaimed._

 _Shane grabbed the backpack he had dropped to the floor and threw it on his lap. "Remind me why I'm here, again?"_

 _"The Eisenbergs hired me, Shane," Rory replied. "They just want some answers about what happened to Nicholas. And I was hoping that you could help me out in that regard." Shane squeezed his backpack tighter. The opened zippers slid a little bit farther apart and a plush Umbreon ear popped out of the bag. Rory raised an eyebrow._

 _"Shane, did you ever notice any of your classmates say anything hurtful to Nicholas?"_

 _Shane didn't reply._

 _Rory nudged up his glasses. "It's alright. Take your time, if you have to."_

 _"… yeah," Shane muttered. The whole head of the Umbreon doll was out of his bag, which was sliding down toward the floor again. He held the toy in his hands and hunched over, pulling it into his gut._

 _"Do you think you could tell me the stuff that they said to him?"_

 _Shane shook his head. "… no."_

 _Rory clicked his pen a couple of times. "Is that a 'no' because you don't remember?"_

 _"No," Shane sighed. "I don't… want to say that stuff. It made Nicky upset. I didn't like it when he was upset."_

 _Rory took a deep breath. He placed his pen against the notepad and got up from his chair. He walked over to the couch and kneeled down in front of Shane. "Shane, I get that this must be very hard for you. I can't imagine how you're feeling."_

 _"Yeah, you can't," Shane mumbled._

 _Rory put on a hand on his shoulder. "I understand how difficult this can be. But… I need you to look at me and listen." Shane hesitantly lifted his head. Rory continued, "Let me tell you a little bit about what I do. See, schools like the one you go to have a responsibility. They're supposed to provide safe, welcoming learning environments for kids like you and Nicky." His expression stiffened. "But when they fail to do that, parents can turn to me. I do some digging. If I find out that schools knowingly created an unsafe environment, then I take action."_

 _"You mean you sue them," Shane said, eyeing Rory skeptically._

 _Rory stood up. "Not necessarily. And, in this case, all I want right now is just to get a better understanding of what happened to Nicholas." He sat back down at his desk. "Shane, this isn't like one of those shows you see on TV. I can't magically produce perfect pieces of evidence or set some trap to get someone at your school to confess to bullying Nicholas. No… for me to do my job, I need help from folks like you."_

 _"What could I possibly do to help you? I'm just a nobody."_

 _"No, I know that's not true," Rory scolded. "For starters, you were one of Nicholas' best friends. And, I'm sure that, if the chips were down, he would do whatever he could to help you out, right?"_

 _Shane looked his Umbreon doll in the eyes and nodded slowly. "I guess he would."_

 _"Now, I can't force you to do anything you don't want to do, but I think it would mean a lot to Nicholas' parents if you answered some of my questions. That way, I have somewhere to start in trying to help the Eisenberg's," Rory said._

 _Shane took a deep breath in. "Okay," he whispered. "What do you want to know?"_

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Shane. Wake up, Shane," Tessa whispered, shoving him hard with both paws.

"Nnnnrghh… I'm a real human. I'm… a real human," Shane groaned, brushing a forepaw across his snout.

Tessa dug her fists into his ribcage, pressing down with all the weight her upper body could muster. Shane's eyes snapped open and coughed, producing a sound similar to a balloon getting deflated. "Gah!" He sat up, looking around the room. "What is it? It's the middle of the night… lemme sleep."

"You were having a nightmare," Tessa muttered.

Shane felt cold metal on his rear. He sprang to his feet, yipping. "Shhh, keep your voice down," Silvally hissed in a whisper.

Shane blinked. "What's going on?"

"Officer Magnezone is tending to Metagross and we're leaving," Tessa replied. She draped Shane's scarf around his neck.

"Leaving? To go where?" Shane asked. In response, Tessa pushed his head to the right, where one of Hoopa's ring portals hovered in front of him. Shane whimpered, tails curling against his underbelly.

"Trust me. I'm confused, too. Latias said she'd explain when we're safe," Tessa said

Shane tried to issue a rebuttal, but Silvally pushed him into the portal. He and Tessa followed along after Shane and the ring shrank out of existence.

* * *

 **~The Temple of Balance~**

 _Splash!_

"Are you freaking kidding me?!"

Shane popped out of a chest-high pool of water. Silvally fell out of the portal with a surprised squawk, flattening Shane and sending him underwater. Tessa slogged to the edge of the pool and climbed out, shaking water off her fur.

"What was that all about?" she groaned, peeling off her scarf to wring it out.

"Mwee hee hee! Oh man, did you see Snowball's face before Silvally struck him? Gold, I tell ya! Pure gold!" Haunter cackled. "I _told_ you putting the portal there was a good idea."

Hoopa had a hand over his mouth, suppressing a giggle fit. "You were so right. Hoopa likes you. You have a good sense of humor."

"I. Am. Going. To. _Kill._ You."

A dripping-wet Shane stood in front of Haunter, giving him the most enraged look that he could muster. "Ah, ah, ah." Haunter waved a finger at him. "You can't kill me. I'm a ghost. I'm already dead! Mwee hee hee!"

"Haunter!"

"Zoinks!" Haunter snapped to attention and floated to the side, allowing Braviary to limp past him.

"I expect better of ya," he scolded. Haunter frowned and poked his index fingers together dejectedly. "Say yer sorry to Team Radiance."

"I'm sorry to Team Radiance."

Latias flicked his ethereal ear. "Ow. OW! Okay, sheesh, I'm sorry." His eyes comically teared up. "You guys take all the fun out of everything… just like Tapu Fini. Waah!" He flew away dejectedly, settling inside a blown glass vase in the corner of the room.

"I don't believe this," Shane growled. "Out of everyone who could've survived the Prism Virus' rampage… it _had_ to be those three."

"Wait, did Haunter say Tapu Fini?" Tessa gasped. She finally took in her surroundings. Aside from the many pools of water lining the room, there were several mirrors on the walls. Ornate blue tapestries hung beside each of them. At the other end of the room, she spotted Tapu Bulu laying down next to a similar creature, with light blue hair, and a purple shell enclosing her body.

"We're… at another temple? Why? How?" Tessa looked up at Braviary. "And what are you doing here?"

Latias floated next to Hoopa. "I'm sure you're all a bit confused right now. To put it simply… we needed to get you out of the guild."

 **More specificatory, we needed to get away from Aeon Town,** Magearna exclaimed, walking up to join the group. Team Radiance noticed Comfey, Steenee, and Espeon at her side. **We left Metagross behind, in Officer Magnezone's custodiary.**

"You mean… everyone's gone except him? Why?" Tessa asked. She shot a panicked look back at Shane. "You don't think this is because of–"

Braviary interrupted her with a long, drawn out sigh. "I was a fool," he exclaimed. "I don't know what got into the Gu–" He cut himself off. "Sorry… what got into Metagross. But, something ain't right with him. I thought it pretty strange that he'd send so many of us to the desert, but to have expected Necrozma to attack like that… and not even care about who we lost…" He shook his head. "How could I be so blind to think nothing were wrong?"

Shane frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

Latias put a paw on Braviary's good shoulder. "If I may?" she said. Braviary nodded. "I had a look at Metagross' memories." Team Radiance looked at her skeptically. "I was actually there… in the guild… when Metagross was flying off the handle."

"And you didn't do anything?" Espeon growled.

Latias winced. "No… I didn't," she said. "But I'm going to try to make up for that. Starting with telling you guys that Metagross' behavior is the result of an evolution gone awry."

Tessa tilted her head. "I'm sorry… what?"

"Two Metangs fuse together to make a Metagross," Latias said. "Normally, the two do so willingly, making a Metagross that is a combination of two minds, two bodies, and two spirits. If that _doesn't_ happen, the two spirits will wind up fighting each other for control of the body. Said mental war could last a Metagross' entire life."

"So, the Guildmaster was really two Metangs' spirits waging battle in his body?" Shane gasped.

"Not exactly," Latias said. "It's… um… I could show you the memories, but I think it might confuse you guys more. So, I'll try to explain it as best I can." She glanced at Braviary. "You joined the guild with a Metang, correct?"

"Yeah. He and Incineroar were my best friends," Braviary said.

Latias' wings drooped. "I thought so. See, when I read Metagross' mind, there were barely any traces of thoughts or memories from that Metang. Instead… I mostly saw memories of a Metang that had lived in Voltaic Crater."

Shane's tails shot up in surprise. "You mean this whole time, the Guildmaster was some upset wild Pokémon?"

"Yes," Latias said. "Admittedly, I couldn't believe it at first. Because overseas, most of the wild Pokémon we find in Mystery Dungeons are really just figments made from ley lines. Here in Horizon, however, they're all real, living creatures."

Tessa's muzzle stiffened. "Of course they're real. Why wouldn't they be? And where are you going with this, exactly?"

"The wild Metang was subject to years of harmful electric shocks from living in the dungeon. They were so intense that they warped his mind and his psychic powers," Latias said. "He believed that everyone and everything in the world was out to kill him."

Shane's jaw slackened. "You can't be serious. How could a psychic… who can _read minds_ … possibly think that? Wouldn't he just have to read our minds to see that we mean him no harm?"

"He had become too delusional," Latias said. "The guild's Metang snuck up on him and forced him to combine. And that caused such an intense degree of panic that he was able to completely overwhelm the rival spirit and win complete control over his new body."

"And the good Metang's spirit... never tried to reach out for help?" Shane asked.

"He never got that opportunity," Latias replied. "You may as well think of it as Metang dying while he tried to evolve, with an impostor taking his place."

Tessa's gaze fell to the ground. "But that doesn't make any sense," she whispered. "Metagross seemed totally put-together when we met him. Heck, he had to have acted composed for _years._ Otherwise _someone_ would've realized something was wrong!" She looked back and forth between Braviary and Latias. "How could no one have realized something was off?"

"Because he hardly said nothing to nobody," Braviary whispered, his eyes slowly widening in realization. "He'd spend almost all his time hiding in his room unless Incineroar gave him an assignment. But once he became Guildmaster, he was always in his office."

Latias' ears and wings drooped. "He did it because that was how he could feel safe. Locking himself in his room shut out all the people he thought were trying to kill him. But Incineroar kept giving him orders as Guildmaster… so Metagross killed him and took over." She looked at Braviary. "He delegated all his responsibilities to you and the other staff, yes?"

Braviary nodded, a stunned look on his face.

"As I thought. This let him hide away in his office… until he realized that Lucario was trying to get answers about Incineroar's death," Latias said glumly.

"So… so it's really true, then? Metagross killed Dad? And he tried to kill Mom, too?" Tessa squeaked, her eyes tearing up. "Is… is he the reason she's Zero, now?"

Latias winced. "I don't know for certain. He pushed Lucario off a cliff, expecting her to fall to her death like Incineroar did. But then there was an explosion…" Her voice trailed off and she shuddered. "His memories turn into an absolute mess after that. The only thing I could pick out was that he was actively trying to get rid of you three." She pointed at Shane, Silvally, and Tessa.

"Us?" Shane said.

"He wanted you to leave the guild, first," Latias said. "When that didn't work, he sent you to Mellath Bog, tracking your movements in secret. It was tough to squeeze this out, but he banked on Tessa bringing Silvally. He expected Shane to bullyTessa to the point that she'd drown herself in the swamp… and then Silvally would kill Shane in retaliation and flee to live in isolation."

The three Team Radiance members looked at each other in horror. Each of them wanted to say something, but no one could find the right words. Instead, Tessa whirled on Braviary. Her irises flared up and blue aura crackled through her paws. "You," she seethed. "You were there… this whole time…"

"T… Tessa?" Shane said. "Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not okay!" she shouted, tears streaming down her face. "How could you fail to see that something was wrong, Braviary?!" she shrieked, stomping the ground. "You… you were Dad's best friend. He trusted you… and you let him down! I want to know why… why did you think there was nothing wrong?"

"I… I…" Braviary tried to shuffle back, but Espeon stepped in his path. Her forked tail flicked beside her, as if it was challenging Braviary to try and make a move in his current condition. Braviary's legs gave out and he dropped to the floor. "It was Dark Matter! Dark Matter, I tell ya! It's all that varmint's fault. He… he cost me my friends!"

The room descended into silence, until Tessa growled, "You really expect me to believe that?"

"Y'all don't get it! Ya weren't around fer it," Braviary said. "When we heard Dark Matter threatening to turn us all to stone, we panicked! Nobody really knew what to do. Metagross and I… we turned to Incineroar fer help. But all he did was tell us to start getting folks underground and then he sprinted out of the Observatory, shouting fer Lucario at the top of his lungs."

"I ain't never seen him so worried as I did in that very moment," Braviary continued. His voice grew more unhinged the longer he rambled. "Metagross and I were left to try and deal with all the folks panicking in Aeon Town until he got back. Neither of us were prepared to do that. It was total chaos!" He gazed off into the distance. "When Incineroar finally got back, he made sure Lucario could get safely underground. Then, he told Metagross and me to keep an eye on her and ran off!"

"Maybe he was just trying to make sure you guys would be safe?" Shane said.

"I was too angry to care… or notice anything was off with Metagross," Braviary said. "Incineroar was my best friend… and it felt like he had completely abandoned me just fer Lucario's sake!"

"So, you were mad… at Mom?" Tessa hissed. "But she didn't do anything wrong!"

"Of course I was! She was distracting Incineroar… stopping him from doing his job," Braviary squawked, weakly flapping his good wing. "I never raised a stink about it, because I didn't want to upset Incineroar. Then one afternoon, out of the blue, Metagross told me that Incineroar needed to go to Glyphic Falls. Wouldn't tell me why, he just said it was extremely urgent. Then he looked me right in the eyes and done said to tell anyone who asked that he had been in the Observatory the whole day!"

"You mean you just lied to cover for him? What is wrong with you?" Shane snarled.

"I didn't think anything of it at the time, alright?" Braviary shouted. "Cause Metagross done stomped into my room that same evening, asking where Incineroar was and why he hadn't come back. I thought fer sure that there weren't a thing wrong. He seemed completely surprised when we found yer dad's scarf in Glyphic Falls."

"It really didn't occur to you that he might be tricking you?" Shane said. "My god, how dense can you possibly be?" He glanced at his teammates, expecting one of them to berate him for badmouthing Braviary. But, to his surprise, Silvally and Tessa continued to stare Braviary down, looks of disgust on their faces. Espeon still stood behind Braviary, narrowing her eyes.

"What d'y'all want from me?" Braviary croaked. He sank down to the ground. "I admit it, okay. Something felt off about that day. But I didn't do anything. Because Metagross stepped into the Guildmaster slot and just kept me busy tending to all y'all. I never got the chance to ask him about what had happened." He shook his head. "And then… Lucario had her meltdown and stormed out of the Observatory. Metagross… he left a little while later. Saying he was gonna try and see to her." He flinched and looked at the floor. "And, well, he came back. But she didn't. That's when he started talking all funny like."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Tessa asked.

"Y'know. It's when he started doing that 'Fact' and 'Order' nonsense of his," Braviary said, letting out a deranged laugh. "It should've clicked fer me. Something had to have happened at Glyphic Falls. Something that knocked him completely off his rocker."

"So, you just let Metagross go after my mom? Are you serious?" Tessa snarled. Silvally had to restrain her, activating ground memories to negate the electricity surging toward her fists. "Gallian was right!" she hissed, blue irises flashing. "You… you helped let this happen! Dad was never really your closest friend, was he? I'll bet you stopped caring about him when he fell in love with Mom!"

"Well, what'd ya really expect?" Braviary shouted, slamming his wing on the ground. "Yer dad had blinders on. Big, _huge_ blinders! He threw caution into the wind! He wouldn't even listen to me try to tell him that Lucario was a human!"

Tessa's temper snapped. She wriggled out of Silvally's grasp and charged toward Braviary, screaming at the top of her lungs. But a psychic force knocked her to the ground. "Beating him up is not going to help this situation, Tessa," Espeon chided.

"How could you stand there and say that?" Shane growled, watching Silvally tend to Tessa. "Didn't you just hear him? This whole time, he's known Tessa's mom was a human. And he never said anything!"

"She threatened me!" Braviary cawed. "Said she'd done try to kill me if I ever told anyone in her family. And Metagross… I didn't wanna get on his bad side. Especially not after whatever happened to him and Lucario at Glyphic Falls!"

The room descended into silence.

"… you have no one to blame for your current state but yourself."

Tapu Fini floating up to Braviary, a stoic expression on her face. "You have an explorer's spirit and body, but the mind of a coward. This past year has been one of imbalance for a broken creature like you. And fate has seen fit to grant you a broken, useless body to match such a sorry state."

"N… no…" he rasped. "Please don't say that. I never meant to hurt anyone!"

"Meaning is irrelevant," Tapu Fini scoffed, flicking her hand dismissively. "Your actions led to harm. And your mental justifications are… lacking." She narrowed her eyes at Braviary. "And if your acquaintances cannot find a way to reverse the damage to your body, then you'll have the rest of your life to lament your poor decision-making."

Braviary slumped over in defeat. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

"If you were really sorry, you'd have done something earlier," Shane growled.

"Silence, human," Tapu Fini said, hovering in front of him. Shane's tails scrunched up.

"Me? What did I do?"

"You are in no position to judge this miserable soul," Tapu Fini said, eyeing him suspiciously. "As bad as he is, you are a _far_ more tainted being."

Shane whimpered. "Wh… what's that supposed to mean? Do you know why I keep having nightmares?"

"I do not," Tapu Fini replied. "I sense that every facet of you is _warped_. Your body is alien, just like every human who has passed into this world. But unlike them, your mind and spirit are fragmented. You are so out of balance, it's a wonder you're up and walking about."

"Wow… rub it in some more, why don't you?" Shane whined, ears folding against his face.

Silvally put a foreleg in front of Shane. He stepped in front of him protectively. "Don't get me wrong, Tapu Fini. We appreciate you extending your home to us, like this. But, if you're just going to float there and talk down to my friend – to Team Radiance's leader – then I think we'll just take our chances forging on ahead by ourselves."

He looked to Tessa and Espeon, who both gave hesitant nods. "L… Leader?" Shane parroted, the surprise in his voice making it crack. His stance slouched. "But… but I'm not…"

Tapu Fini stared down Silvally. "I see your point," she said. "Arguing is not going to get us anywhere. Despite the _dreadful imbalance_ that all of Team Radiance is, well, radiating–"

"Boooooooooooooo! That was awful!" Hoopa jeered, only to be silenced by a scathing look from Latias.

Tapu Fini cleared her throat and continued, "Though I dislike how your team carries itself, you may use my domain to shelter yourselves from the Prism Virus while you figure out the best way forward."

"And what are you going to do in the meantime, huh?" Shane wondered.

"Tend to the ley lines," Tapu Fini replied. "With Lele and Koko gone, Bulu and I have to work the portions of the continent they were watching over."

Shane didn't look pleased with that response. Tessa put a paw on his shoulder. "We won't be able to stop the Prism Virus if the continent sinks into the ocean."

Shane flinched. "Oh… yeah. Right. I keep forgetting about that." His tails drooped. The room descended into silence once again.

"Wait! There is something you can help us with," Silvally said. "Tell us about Necrozma."

Tapu Fini gave Silvally a confused look. "Necrozma?"

"That what Guiding Light call himself," Tapu Bulu shouted from across the room.

Tapu Fini's stoic expression descended into one filled with worry. "Wait… the Guiding Light is back? Is that the strange presence I was sensing in your temple? It was so out of balance… I thought I might faint."

Espeon took the opportunity to explain about the footage Team Radiance saw in the Nocturnus Catacombs. "Do you know if Necrozma's really telling the truth? About Solgaleo and Lunala? And Z-Power? And… and…" Her voice trailed off and she looked down at the ground.

"Yes, he is," Tapu Fini replied bluntly.

Espeon's ears twitched. Her tail shot between her legs. "You're kidding," she squealed. "But he… he looked so powerful."

"When he restored the sun and moon to our world, Necrozma gave us a new Solgaleo and Lunala to watch over them," Tapu Fini explained. "A short while later, he gathered us up in my temple and presented us with a gift. He transferred some of his energy to us. In essence, he gave us what you know as Z-Power. He said we could use it to help Pokémon in trouble. He hoped it would make lots of Pokémon happy."

"But that caused his creators to imprison him and pull out his, uh, core, for lack of a better word," Silvally exclaimed.

Tapu Fini nodded. "That is what I was told. While none of us were there, we heard about it from Solgaleo and Lunala. Necrozma was stripped of his light by his creators in retribution for helping us. The explosion of light that resulted led to the creation of all the stardust that falls from the sky. That's how much energy was drained from him."

"It's really true then? All of our equipment is made from Necrozma's life force?" Tessa gasped.

"Correct. Orbs, wands, looplets, and emeras are all derived from the stardust Necrozma unwillingly created," Tapu Fini said. "The Totem Crystals that Totem Pokémon hold are also imbued with Necrozma's life force."

"Totem Crystals?" Shane cocked his head to the side.

"They contain Z-Power, much like a Naturia Looplet," Tapu Fini explained. "They're wielded by Totem Pokémon as a sign of their authority."

"But we ran into a Totem and she didn't have any crystals," Shane muttered.

Silvally's expression saddened. "We've only seen an infected Totem. I'll bet Necrozma took the crystal's powers back for himself."

"It wouldn't surprise me," Tapu Fini said. "Apparently, Necrozma's core went berserk as a result of being drained of its light."

"We saw. It formed up some grotesque zombie body from Necrozma's remains and started shooting rainbow lasers everywhere," Shane recalled. "That's when Solgaleo and Lunala appeared and tossed Necrozma into some sort of portal."

"And now he's back," Tapu Fini said. "No doubt, Necrozma is looking to regain the power that was taken from him. He wants to become the Guiding Light once more."

"That's what this must be about," Espeon gasped. "The Prism Virus… it's not trying to make things better for Pokémon like us. It's just trying to make things better for Necrozma!" Her brow furrowed. "He's targeting Legendaries because I'll bet he thinks they have enough life energy to fix his broken core."

"And he's using my mom to try and throw us off," Tessa whimpered, aura feelers drooping. She hung her head and the group lapsed into another round of silence. "Shane… I know we need to gather the Dawn Shards. But where do we even start? Do we have any idea where they are?"

"I do," Latias spoke up. "Hoopa and I tracked strange energy patterns while we were preparing to get you guys out of Aeon Town. We think we know where to look."

Magearna nodded. **Correct. According to Latias, the Dawn Shards ended up in the Volcanic Wastes, Cosmic Cavern, Circadian Coast, and Rem Canyon.**

"So, there's four of them, then?" Shane said. He rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Typical. Every time a band of heroes needs to gather magical doodads to save the world, it's always four or seven. Four or seven. It's the Warriors of Light and the Elemental Fiends all over again."

"What are you talking about?" Tessa asked. "Aren't there five Time Gears?"

"Sounds like another human world thing," Silvally mused.

"Well, for the sake of avoiding confusion, I suggest we name each Shard," Shane said. "Based on the areas Magearna mentioned, I'm thinking Sizzle Shard, Subterranean Shard, Seaside Shard, and… uh…"

"Scalebound Shard," Silvally offered. "Because Rem Canyon's full of dragons."

"I like it!" Shane chirped.

"None of that's important," Espeon dismissed. "If I remember what Zero told me, aside from Circadian Coast, those places aren't hospitable to travelers."

Tessa's expression blanched. "R… really?" she squeaked.

Silvally nodded. "Yeah, I agree. There were some pretty painful memories that flared up at the mention of Rem Canyon, in particular."

 **Well, on the bright side, those areas all border one another. Which means you can just traversitate them in succession,** Magearna noted.

"Hoopa and I are happy to get you where you need to go," Latias exclaimed. "Assuming we're available, of course."

"Can't you help us fly in and grab the Dawn Shards?" Shane sighed.

"I'm sorry, but we can't," Latias said. "I can coordinate things for you, but I'm still needed back overseas and Hoopa…"

"Hoopa needs to keep his reputation as hide and seek champion of the world!" Hoopa declared.

Shane blinked in confusion. "Okay, fine. Still, if the Shards are just out in the open, what's stopping Necrozma from swooping in and grabbing them while we're here? I mean, the guy can just put portals into Mystery Dungeons, can't he?"

Panic flashed across everyone's faces as the realizations from Shane's comment sank in. **It's the barriers,** Magearna declared. **I designed them to mask ley line energy signatures. If Necrozma can't read the ley lines of our Mystery Dungeons, it stands to reason that he shouldn't be able to warp into them.**

Shane gulped. "I really hope that's true. Because we can't afford to run into him again. Not like this." His stance wilted. "We're not strong enough to take him."

Silvally nudged Shane's chin up with the tip of his beak. "Then we focus on what we _are_ strong enough to do. And that's traverse the continent and get the Dawn Shards back."

Shane blinked. "R… right."

 **A fair warning, however,** Magearna cut in. **In those four locales, the communities all have Totem Pokémon to speak of. Odds are, if you're going to have any successination, you will need to win them over.**

"Assuming they haven't already been infected," Espeon stated grimly.

Magearna nodded. **Also a truthity.** She blinked her mechanical eyes. **Now, I understand there is significant urgitude to gaining the Dawn Shards, but you four are not exactly fighting fit. My suggestion is you rest up tonight and be ready to leave in the morning. Latias, will you and Hoopa be available at sunrise?**

"We're needed back in the Water Continent, but I think we can make that work," Latias replied. "Right, Hoopa?"

"Aww man, is Hoopa gonna have to miss his beauty sleep?" Hoopa pouted. Latias gave him a stern look. He scowled and crossed his arms. "This all you can eat donut party better be worth it," he muttered under his breath.

Tapu Fini turned and floated over to Tapu Bulu. "Unfortunately, this temple has only one bed, and it's mine. I could bring some spare cushions out here, if that will make you mortals more comfortable."

"Thanks. We'd really appreciate that," Silvally said. Tapu Fini nodded and then floated through a doorway, carrying Tapu Bulu with her. Magearna also broke away from the group, leaving Team Radiance in the middle of the room.

"So, I guess this is it, then," Shane said. "One last night with a roof over our heads before god only knows what." He laughed nervously. "Um… Silvally? About that 'leader' comment… you were just joking, right?"

Silvally shook his head. "No. That'd be an awfully strange thing for me to joke about."

Shane's tails curled up against his hips. "But I'm not meant to be a leader. I don't know how to do anything but make bad decisions."

"Yes, you've certainly made a lot of missteps. But, well, all of us have," Silvally said, looking at Tessa and Espeon. They both nodded glumly. "The fact is that Team Radiance wouldn't exist if it wasn't for you. So, yeah, that kind of makes you the leader in my eyes." He gave Shane a reassuring smile. "And I think the Dawn Shards are the team's chance to finally turn things around."

"I see your point," Shane said. "Don't get me wrong. I appreciate the kind words." Silvally wagged his tail at this. "But… in my eyes… I don't match up to you guys. We're a team, yeah. But I can't be its leader. If anything… you deserve that title. You're so supportive and encouraging… like a leader should be."

"Um," Tessa whispered, "Given our situation, I think we're more like a family. I mean, all we really have is each other."

"… feh. If this is a family, then it's the most dysfunctional, gloomy, and unlucky one I've ever been a part of," Espeon huffed. She turned and walked toward a nearby hallway, exiting the room just as Tapu Fini arrived with cushions floating beside her. Espeon walked down the hallway, passing blown glass sculptures of Tapu Fini and purple tapestries hanging from the ceiling.

As she reached the end of the hallway, her breath grew ragged.

 _That wasn't very nice of you._

"B… be quiet…" she whispered, ears folding against her head.

 _You hate them, don't you? Just like you hate me._

Espeon looked to her right and flinched. A black shadowy cloud had formed up beside her, taking the shape of Umbreon. "N… no… you're not real. You're… not real…"

 _Of course you would say that. After all… I'm gone because of you._

"That's… no…" Espeon curled up on the ground, cupping her forepaws over her face. "No… you did this… because you cared about me."

The phantom leaned down, hovering beside Espeon.

 _You killed me, Espy. Your angry rants… your unstable mood… it was too much for me._

"U-Umbry, I'm–" Espeon started, only to lash at the air with a forepaw. "No! You… stupid Void Shadow… get away!"

 _Why did you push me away, Espy?_ the Void Shadow said.

 _Isn't it obvious? Because she's totally useless,_ a new, female voice declared. Espeon poked her head up and saw a phantom of Virizion standing beside Umbreon, glaring at her.

"N… no… get away…" Espeon mumbled, pushing herself up against the wall. Her satchel brushed up against her shoulder.

 _What are you going to do when this new team runs into danger, Espeon?_ Virizion's Void Shadow wondered. _I bet you'll throw a tantrum… and leave them behind to suffer at Necrozma's hands… just as we did!_

"Th… that's not true. That's not true," Espeon whimpered, tears welling up in her eyes. "Umbry, I'm going to get you back, I–" She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. "This isn't real. This isn't real!"

 _You can't ignore us, Espy!_ Umbreon's Void Shadow shouted, taking a step toward her.

 _We're going to make you pay for leaving us out to dry,_ Virizion's Void Shadow hissed.

"P… please… stop this…" Espeon squeaked. Forelegs trembling, she opened her satchel up. A small metal bottle tumbled out of it. Espeon glanced at the Void Shadows, who glared at her with glowing red eyes. She lunged for the bottle, yanking the cork out with her mouth and guzzling down its contents so quickly she broke down coughing from the bitter taste.

The Void Shadows evaporated into fine black mist, leaving Espeon laying there, her heart rate steadily slowing until she passed out, body wracked with tremors and drool trickling from her mouth.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

 _CRAAAAAAAAAASH!_

The assembly room's ceiling gave way, sending slabs of stone dropping to the ground. Two jagged metal balls dropped down in the center of the rubble, each one emitting wayward electric sparks. A large gray figure dropped atop the metal orbs and kicked them away, revealing that Magnezone's body had been cleaved in half.

 **It's empty,** Metagross said. He staggered forward, rainbow glows flickering in and out of his eyes. Metagross opening his mouth, but only static came out. A small twinge of electricity jumped off Magnezone's corpse. It hit Metagross' leg, turning black and racing across his body. The rainbow glow completely overtook his eyes.

 **Hourglass... gone...**

Metagross stomped forward, more static escaping his lips. He looked around the destroyed room.

 **Must get... back...**

Metagross pointed a foreleg at the wall. Sonar-like bursts of pink energy rushed out from his foreleg. The wall exploded, sending dozens of glimmering gemstones racing on the floor. Their multitudes of colors blanketed Metagross' gray body.

 **Must escape...** he muttered, walking up toward the giant pile of emeras. **Must find Hourglass... escape world... escape everyone...**

He reached the pile of emeras and began scarfing them down, the rainbow glow in his eyes intensifying with each bite he took.

 **End of Episode 10**

* * *

Reply time!

Another guest: as I hope this chapter answered, yes, they are working against each other now.

SuperOmegaGuest: it's not technically fluff if their bodies are covered in feathers, instead! ... I'll shut up now.

Veralix: funny you mention Marshadow. I'd hold that thought for a few episodes, if I were you.

Anon Omega: Shadow Dedede, obviously. And it's hard to judge someone I've never met in person. The "patient zero" thing, is actually a historical artifact from the early years of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. People just started using the term for communicable diseases and it started popping up it media and literature. Which makes it too late to change, even if you think it doesn't make sense.

That's all for this week. Next time: Team Radiance's adventure is about to _really_ heat up! ... because they're going to a volcano, duh. Get your heads out of the gutter.


	61. Split Decisions

This chapter is being posted during E3 week. So, if you happen to read it the week it was posted and leave your thoughts, I want you to know in advance I greatly appreciate it! Especially because my desktop's hard drive died on me this week... and I had a brief moment of panic where I thought I had lost all of the chapters I'd drafted. This is why you backup your files, kids!

Of course, if you're reading this in the future, do let me know what you think. I try to reply to all comments I receive. Anyhow, enjoy!

* * *

 **~Cosmic Cavern~**

Gallian crept through a narrow tunnel. His eyes darted to each and every glowing gemstone that passed him by. A few of them brushed against his fur, but he refused to flinch. He marched forward, keeping his head low and his expression firm.

"I do not understand, Gallian," Sticky spoke up. He trailed a considerable distance behind Gallian. The purple-colored gems held his attention and he stared at them intently. "Exactly what is the purpose of you coming here?"

Gallian's brow furrowed. "It's none of your business," he growled. "Didn't I already tell you? I'm through with all of this. So, just go away. Take your captain and get out of my life."

"We can't do that, rookie," Luxeira growled. She stood in between Sticky and Gallian, looking at the latter's backside. "If we're not around to monitor your ultra aura levels, the corrupted Z-Power you've absorbed could run rampant and turn you into an Ultra Beast just like that Toucannon you vanquished."

"Tch. What do I care?" Gallian growled. "There's nothing left for me here. I'm tired of my disaster sense firing. I'm tired of feeling like I can't do anything to make it stop. I'm…" He dug his claws into the rocky path. "I just want to be alone, okay?"

"Which is why you went into a cave?" Sticky asked.

Gallian sighed in defeat. "Cosmic Cavern… is where I used to live. Before I had my little run in with you two." Luxeira and Sticky frowned in unison. "I had food. I had a shelter. I had a job. I…" He sucked in a deep breath. "I had someone to come home to. Someone who made me feel like I mattered." He turned slightly, fixing an angry eye on his teammates. "And then you both happened. My disaster sense started acting up so badly, I fled. Because that's all I'm really good at!" He lashed out at a nearby crystal with his scythe. Tiny glowing fragments crumbled to the ground beside him. "It doesn't matter how hard I battle. In the end, I only know how to run away and save my own hide."

"… so, that's how it is, huh?"

Gallian tensed up. He hunched low to the ground and red light sheathed his scythe. Sticky put a hand up against his visor. "Captain, we're definitely not alone!" he gasped.

"Z… Zoroark…" Gallian whispered. His legs quivered. "You're… you're up and walking again?"

Sticky and Luxeira peered over Gallian's shoulder. A single blue eye hovered in the shadows ahead of Gallian. A furry black arm shot out of the darkness. Red claws dug into a light crystal sticking horizontally out of the cave wall. "Yeah, I'm walking," Zoroark whispered, limping forward to brace himself against the crystal. Jagged claws marks ran down the left side of his face, across his stomach, and around his left thigh. Blotches of scar tissue peppered his left eye, funneling out from the dull gray iris.

Gallian's eyes widened in horror. "Oh, gods," he whispered. "Zoroark. This is… this is worse than I thought." He squeezed his eyes shut.

"You wanna say that a little louder?" Zoroark hissed, turning his head to show off the stump of flesh sitting where his left ear should have been. "I'm not hearing things so great these days."

"Captain. It appears these two are connected," Sticky whispered. "You don't suppose Gallian did all of that, do you?"

Gallian gritted his teeth. "Well… I hope you're not expecting an apology," he growled. "I told you not to follow me."

"Yeah… you did," Zoroark said. "That's not what I'm pissed about." He leaned over and bared his fangs at Gallian. "I'm pissed… because you ran out on me. And now I know why. For all your tough talk… for all that strength you claimed you had… you're really nothing but a giant coward."

"Gallian, what is this terrestrial referring to?" Sticky asked, tilting his head in confusion.

Gallian whirled his head around. Psionic energy made his scythe ripple. "Butt out! This doesn't concern you." He turned back to Zoroark. "You don't understand. My disaster sense–"

"Oh, shove off with that disaster sense drivel, Gallian," Zoroark growled, scraping his claws against the crystal. Team Paradox all cringed from the noise. Zoroarks' right arm trembled against the crystal. "You said…" He choked up mid-sentence. "You told me I was more important. That you cared more about me than whatever your stupid disaster sense told you." He smacked his right paw against the crystal. "I offered myself up to you, Gallian. We were mates! That's a sacred bond. You don't just get to break that bond because a little voice in your head tells you to."

"Look, I was scared, okay!" Gallian cried, shutting his eyes and looking away from Zoroark. "I… I just saw you lying in the healer's hut. And all the blood and…" He grimaced. "I panicked! I didn't… I couldn't handle it, alright? So, I ran." He lowered his head in shame. "I'm not asking for you to forgive me. I'm just asking you to let us pass."

Zoroark looked at Sticky and Luxeira. "And who are these freak shows, huh? Houndooms are a pretty decent catch, sure. But you told me you only had eyes for other guys." He narrowed his eyes at Sticky. "And I don't even know what to make of that pinhead over there." He glared at Gallian.

"They showed up when I was fighting the thing that attacked you," Gallian muttered. "And now they won't leave me alone."

"We're here for this terrestrial's safety. As well as yours," Luxeira exclaimed. "I'm Captain Luxeira of the Ultra Recon Squad's Team Paradox. This Poipole is my subordinate, Sticky."

Zoroark looked down at Gallian. "Are you lying to me?" he seethed. "Because between the purple guy and your freaky-deaky harnesses, it sure looks like you ditched me to go fulfill some crazy fetish you never told me about."

Gallian's face burned and he looked down. "I'm not in love with either of them," he growled. "You're the only guy I want to be with, Zoroark."

Sticky floated next to Luxeira and whispered, "Captain, am I missing something here? I did not think it possible for Pokémon of the same sex to procreate. Does this world contain some sort of unique reproductive mechanism?"

"Quiet, Sticky," Luxeira ordered. "It's not our place to comment or judge."

Zoroark stepped back, crossing his arms. "You'll have to excuse me if I don't believe that. If you really cared about me, you wouldn't have run out on me."

Gallian winced and shrank toward the ground. "I know," he croaked. "I screwed up. But… but I had to come back here."

Zoroark looked unconvinced. "For what?" In response, Gallian walked up toward Zoroark, his fierce expression softening. Zoroark shrank back, warning Gallian with a growl. Gallian ignored him and continued walking forward. Zoroark's good eye flickered red and he clubbed Gallian upside the head.

Gallian fell to the ground, touching a forepaw to his cheek. He looked up to see crimson energy retreating from Zoroark's claws. "What the heck is your problem?" Zoroark snarled.

"You don't understand," Gallian whispered. "Zoroark… something's happened. I… I'm dying."

* * *

 **Episode 11: The Sizzle Shard Scramble**

 **Chapter 52: Split Decisions**

* * *

 **~Volcanic Rim~**

One of Hoopa's rings opened up and tossed Team Radiance onto a flat stretch of igneous rock exuding a faint orange glow. Silvally skidded to a stop, kicking up plumes of black volcanic ash in the process. He looked down and flicked soot off his talons with an annoyed huff. "Well, this place is rather dusty," he exclaimed.

"I don't think that's dust," Shane replied, looking in dismay at the tips of his forepaws.

"Ugh, what's with the awful smell?" Tessa whined, throwing her paws up over her snout. Beside her, Espeon wrinkled her snout and grimaced.

"That'd be sulfur and brimstone, I imagine," Shane said. "So, uh, is _that_ Mount Supernova?" He pointed a foreleg upward. His teammates all looked up. The rock they were standing on was a relatively small circular islet. Lava flowed in on either side of them. The two lava streams merged just south of them, forming a large, slowly-moving river that trickled down several yards before the lava started to cool, forming up a circular wall of igneous rock.

Ahead of them, rocky steps led up to a cliff face. And that cliff face gave way to a massive mountain jutting into the air. Gigantic black rocks protruded from the mountain, several of which had streams of lava trickling down from them and gathering by the cliff face. Numerous plateaus were stationed on the mountain, some of which had emera ores sitting proudly atop them. Lava flows crisscrossed between the plateaus. Many had massive fireballs leaping out of them to douse nearby rocky bedsheets with molten lava. The volcano's peak wasn't visible from Team Radiance's current vantage point. All they could see was a mix of smog and dark purple thunderhead clouds that sporadically flashed white. They coalesced to form a vortex with a pitch-black eye.

"Yeah, that sure looks like it," Tessa whimpered. Behind her, a glob of lava struck the edge of the rock islet. Molten rock spilled onto the platform. Tessa squealed and scrambled forward, clutching Silvally's foreleg in terror. "How are we ever going to find a Dawn Shard here, huh? I'll bet the volcano's not even safely navigable."

"But, it's a Mystery Dungeon, isn't it?" Shane asked.

"Yes. Tapu Bulu told me he constantly makes new plateaus and trails to get to the peak," Espeon explained. "He seemed pretty confident that there was something off with Mount Supernova's ley lines. Odds are, that's where the Sizzle Shard ended up."

Shane's stance slouched. "How much you wanna bet it's all the way up at the summit?"

Tessa's eyes bugged out. "No way. I'm not about to go up by the mouth of an _active volcano._ We've had too many close calls to try something so ridiculous," she said, squeezing Silvally's leg tighter. "Besides, Mount Supernova is plenty big as is. The Sizzle Shard could easily be somewhere else."

Shane sighed. "I wish I could believe that, but it never seems to work that way in artifact quests." His teammates gave him confused looks.

"So, do humans need to summit volcanoes regularly to get what they want? That seems like a pretty wild lifestyle," Silvally said, adding in a chuckle.

Shane's shoulders sagged. "Okay, no, but in every video game ever made, the precious item that the heroes need is _always_ at the top of the volcano. And we haven't exactly had the best luck with easy missions."

Espeon flicked her tail. "We're burning daylight sitting here squabbling about locations. The only way we're gonna find out for sure is to head onto the mountain." She walked up toward the steps at the other end of the islet. Silvally raised a curious eyebrow, noting Espeon swayed back and forth uneasily as she walked.

Espeon managed to put a forepaw on the bottom step when the ground began to shake. "Eh?" Her eyes widened and she hopped off the stairs, trying to steady herself. "What's going on? An earthquake?"

 _CRACKA-THOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!_

Lava and fireballs rained down from the heavens, striking the sides of Mt. Supernova, and setting some of the rocks on fire. "The volcano just erupted!" Shane gasped. He turned around and spotted two additional sets of stairs leading to another cliff face further away from the base of the volcano. "We have to get higher ground or we're gonna die! Quickly, up here!"

He sprinted up the closest set of stairs, beckoning his teammates to follow along. Tessa dashed up after him. Silvally ran up to Espeon and bit down on her tail, stopping her from falling off the shaking ground.

"Thanks for the save," she sighed in relief. Silvally nodded and hoisted her onto her back. But by that time, a burst of lava had shot out from the molten river and set the stairs that Shane and Tessa had used ablaze.

"Silvally!" Tessa cried.

"Espeon!" Shane shouted. "Hurry, use the other stairs!"

Silvally looked to his left and spotted a swell of lava racing toward him. He bounded forward and leaped onto the staircase on his right. Espeon grunted as Silvally impacted the middle stair, jostling her. She grabbed his head crest to avoid falling off. Silvally hopped up the remainder of the stairs, landing safely on the cliff face. Espeon slid off him and watched lava buffet the stairs they had just used.

"That was… closer than I would've liked," she squeaked, tail curling up against her underbelly.

Silvally's gaze remained fixed on Mount Supernova. The eruption had stopped. But it left new rivers of lava in its wake. They slid down the mountain, merging with the existing pools of lava to enlarge them. More fireballs jumped out of the lava, with tails of orange flames trailing behind them. "And there goes our path to the mountain," he said. "Now what are we supposed to do?"

"Nothing!"

"Huh?" Silvally looked over his shoulder just in time to see a bone wreathed in flames clobber his skull. His legs gave out from under him and he collapsed onto his side. Espeon's eyes widened seconds before a second flaming bone connected with her sternum. The wind rushed out of her and she fell unconscious on top of Silvally.

"Hey!" Tessa shouted. "Get away from my friends!" Blue aura encased her paws and she prepared to run down her teammates' unknown assailants. But Shane's pained cries caused her to turn around in surprise and find him lying unconscious at her feet. Burnt fur peppered his body. "W… what the–?" Tessa gasped, only for a cloud of purple gas to surround her on all sides. She dropped to her knees, coughing loudly. Tears clouded up her vision as she struggled to take in a gasp of air. Swathes of blue, black, and dark gray appeared inside the cloud.

As the last of Tessa's consciousness faded, she heard a deep, wheezy voice cackle, "You two, tie 'em up. I'm going to tell Totem Salazzle we found the outsiders who're ruining the Volcanic Wastes!"

* * *

 **~Western Volcanic Wastes~**

Tessa awakened with a gasp to find a dark gray tail jabbing her chest. "Ah! W… what? Huh? What's going on here?" She blinked in confusion. "Why is there a Salandit tail in my face?"

Salandit turned around, looking at Tessa with his beady-blue eyes. His tongue flopped out of his mouth. "Good. Good, you're awake. I'll go tell the Totem." He scurried off down a dirt pathway, passing by numerous huts made of dark onyx and agate crystals.

"Wait a second. Where am I?" Tessa asked, looking around. Behind her, she found identical rounded huts to the one her captor had passed. They stopped just before a cliff that dropped off, with nothing but smoldering ash emerging from behind it. Tessa squinted, making out glowing lava flows from Mt. Supernova in the distance. She turned her attention in front of her, where a fire crackled in a fire pit. Two Salandits stood next to the fire, staring her down.

Tessa tried to move, but found her arms and legs tied together. "Lemme go, you jerks! I didn't do anything wrong. Silvally? Espeon? Shane? Someone… help!"

"Mmmmmrrrggghhh!"

Tessa's eyes widened and she looked up. A wooden pole sat beside her, wedged into the dirt. Shane was suspended halfway up the pole. Ropes extended down from the top of the pole, keeping his forelegs and tails restrained. His rainbow scarf was fixed over his muzzle, acting as a makeshift gag. "Shane? What happened to you?" Tessa gasped. Shane squirmed in midair, trying in vain to break free of his restraints. Tessa looked accusingly at the Salandits. "What did you do to him?"

"Keh heh… we tied him up for the Totem," the larger of the two Salandit exclaimed. "She'll decide if he'll get put to work… or tossed into the lava to appease Volcanion."

Shane's eyes widened. "MRRRGH! MRRRRRRRGH!" he cried, his scarf muffling him. He thrust his body forward but couldn't break free of the ropes. He then tried to breath out an Aurora Beam, only to inhale microfibers from the scarf and descend into a coughing fit.

"It won't do you any good to struggle, outsider. After all, my knot-tiers didn't get their jobs by sheer, dumb luck."

Shane and Tessa stiffened at a booming, authoritative female voice. They looked back to see the Salandit from earlier walking back toward them. A significantly larger lizard walked beside him on all-fours. Her backside was a far darker shade of gray than the Salandits'. And she had a purple underbelly with pink markings strewn across it. She had additional symbols painted along her arms and legs, to go with the spiked choker around her neck, spiked wristbands, and spiked anklets. A gem-encrusted headdress sat atop her head, with a rainbow diamond in the middle.

 _'Wait a second,'_ Tessa thought, _'That diamond… it has some winged heart icon on it! Is that a Totem Crystal, then?'_ She gulped. _'If that is… she's Totem Salazzle!'_

Totem Salazzle stopped behind the fire. "Heralder… to me!" she bellowed.

A short, squat Salandit raced forward, with a rolled-up piece of paper in his mouth. He dropped it to the ground, where it unfurled. He loudly declared, "Welcome the mightiest of all Totems… whose beauty and power are unmatched throughout Horizon. Let her love envelope you and be utterly transfixed by her infectious presence. Presenting our vaunted leader… Totem Salazzle!"

Totem Salazzle snapped her fingers. "Applauders!" Three Salandits ran in from behind her and erupted in a thunderous round of applause. Totem Salazzle bowed to Shane and Tessa. "Thank you. Thank you all so much. You are dismissed."

She reared up on her hind legs, resting one hand against her chest and the other down on her thigh. "So, outsider. My patrollers caught you in our domain, angering the mighty Volcanion. What say you to such charges?" She gazed fiercely at Tessa, not even bothering to pay attention to the fact that Shane was thrashing about even harder in his restraints.

Shane succeeded in forcing off his rainbow scarf and groaned loudly. Totem Salazzle's tail flicked in surprise and she looked toward the pole. "Okay. No. Time out," Shane said, looking down at Totem Salazzle. "Someone has to say something for the sake of common decency."

"Shane, what are you talking abo–?"

"The lizard lady has breasts! And a thick rear!" Shane shouted, swinging around on his restraints. Totem Salazzle's eyes narrowed in anger. "That is so many levels of wrong, I could write an essay about it."

"You dare to open your mouth at me, _boy?_ " Totem Salazzle hissed.

"Yes, I dare," Shane growled. "You look like you jumped out of a Victoria's Secret catalog, for god's sake! I can't be the only one who thinks this is weird, right? Not even Grovyles and Sceptiles look so, uh, voluptuous."

Totem Salazzle opened her mouth and spewed a massive fire stream. Flames swallowed Shane up, stifling his cries of pain. The attack burnt his restraints, sending his charbroiled body crashing into the ground. Totem Salazzle snapped her fingers and her Salandit flunkies surrounded Shane on all sides. She returned her gaze to Tessa. "I will never understand why you outsiders cannot keep your man-servants in check. This type of behavior is completely unacceptable."

Shane somehow found the strength to let his jaw drop to the ground. "M… man-servant?!" he shouted. A Salandit tail broadsided him across the head, and its owner hissed at him.

Totem Salazzle remained fixed on Tessa. "You would do well to instruct your man-servant to remain silent in my presence. In the Eastern Volcanic Tribe, men may not speak freely. They exist to serve us women in all capacities. Nothing more." She flicked her snout skyward dismissively.

A stoic expression took over Shane's face. "Okay, I think I see what's going on here. You're another Vespiquen, aren't yo– OWW!" He cut himself off with a yelp and looked to see two Salandits had bit down on two of his tails. He tried to shake them off, to no avail. The other Salandits leered at him.

Totem Salazzle shook her head dismissively. "Honestly, why you would keep a Vulpix with such a barbed tongue is beyond me, outsider," she scoffed. "But the way he so brazenly disregards our customs… I am sure this is what has angered Volcanion and brought wave after wave of volcanic eruptions to the Wastes." She dropped down to all-fours and glared at Tessa. "Tell me, who sent you? Was it that infernal Western Tribe? Figured they would try a stunt like this."

"No, wait. You're making a huge mistake," Tessa insisted. "We don't know anything about a Western Tribe or Volcanion or frequent eruptions. We just got here a short time ago. We're from the Horizon Guild." She craned her neck to the side to show off the explorer's badge pinned to her scarf.

"And you expect that to impress me?" Totem Salazzle scoffed. She stood back up on her hind legs and snapped her fingers. "Where is my insulter?"

A plump Salandit wearing a pair of black sunglasses awkwardly waddled forward and saluted her.

"Laugh at the outsider for me. I do not wish to waste my noble breath on the likes of her," Totem Salazzle declared.

Insulter Salandit nodded. He pointed at Tessa and belted out, "Keh heh heh heh! What a dumb thing to say."

Totem Salazzle's tail conked Insulter over the head. "I said laugh, not speak," she growled. Insulter bowed his apologies and scurried back. "Many of your kind have made their presence here in the past and angered the Volcano God. Therefore, my tribe does not acknowledge your guild's authority."

"Wait… please, wait!" Shane blurted out, finally kicking the Salandits off his tails. "You don't understand. The world's in danger! The Dawn Hourglass is broken and we're trying to repair it before it's too late. We need your help!"

Totem Salazzle turned and glared at Shane. The Salandit guards around him all blanched as she walked up toward him. She unfurled the scaly flaps lying across her tail and released a pink vapor into the air. It surrounded Shane and trickled into his nostrils. "G… guh…" Shane grunted. His jaw fell open, then his tongue lolled out of his mouth and drool trickled off it.

Tessa stared at the scene in confusion, only to realize the Salandit guards had the exact same dopey looks on their faces. One of the Salandits held up his tiny hands to form a heart. "You see, outsider? This is why I do not acknowledge any man. They are driven by their most basic instinctual urges," she scoffed.

She plucked a woozy Salandit guard off the ground and planted a kiss on his forehead. He went as straight and rigid as an arrow. Totem Salazzle dropped him to the ground, where his tail became lodged in the dirt, making him stick out of the ground like a road sign.

"But my partner's telling the truth, ma'am," Tessa said, a pleading look in her eyes. "There's a dangerous threat out there trying to destroy Legendary Pokémon. It's been transforming dungeons and changing Pokémon into monsters called Ultra Beasts. You have to let us go, so we can find the Sizzle Shard on Mount Supernova!"

Totem Salazzle narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "You want free access to Mount Supernova? Out of the question!" she hissed, tail lashing against air. "I'll bet that's exactly what the Western Tribe wants you to do. You go up to the mountain, trigger an eruption, and send lava coursing into our village to destroy our land."

"What?" Tessa gasped. "No, I'd never think of destroying a village. That's crazy talk. Please, you have to listen to me."

Totem Salazzle shook her head. "The interests of my tribe come before anything else. Even if there is merit to what you're saying, then that means we, the Eastern Tribe, must acquire this Sizzle Shard before the Western Tribe can lay claim to it." She walked forward, shouting, "Royal Advisors, to me!"

A flurry of footsteps echoed through the village. Tessa watched as a quartet of smaller Salazzles marched up to their Totem in unison. They formed up a circle with Totem Salazzle and proceeded to talk to one another in hushed whispers. "You're making… a mistake!" Shane grunted, coughing up a mouthful of smoke. "I'll bet the whole reason your Volcano God is angry is because of the Prism Virus!"

One of the Salazzle advisors turned to give Shane a scathing look. He gulped and looked over at a trio of snickering Salandit guards. "What's so funny, huh?" he growled.

"Keh heh heh. You talk crazy," a slender Salandit said. "Being a man in this tribe is easy. You just to what you're told and you get quality time with one of those beauties over there."

Shane's snout wrinkled in disgust. "You and I have a very different definition of what constitutes beauty," he growled.

A second Salandit turned to his friends and made a cuckoo gesture. "He don't know what he's talking about, bro," the Salandit exclaimed.

"I have reached a decision!" Totem Salazzle declared as her circle of advisors parted. She walked up toward Tessa. "Given your statements, and the fact that my guards reported two others were taken by the Western Tribe, I believe you are telling a half-truth."

"What?!" Shane shouted, prompting two Salandit guards to muzzle him.

"The Western Tribe has hired you in an attempt to help them seize our land," Totem Salazzle declared. "No doubt they will try to climb Mount Supernova and take the Sizzle Shard, since this plan of theirs failed. Therefore, we shall ascend the mountain to acquire the Sizzle Shard with you in tow…"

Tessa let out a sigh of relief.

"… so that we may also toss you two into the volcano's mouth and appease the mighty Volcanion," Totem Salazzle finished, to Tessa's utter horror. "Guards, prepare to move out!"

Before Shane or Tessa could protest, swarms of Salandits descended upon them. They quickly muzzled Tessa and tied her up against a pole. The remaining Salandits dragged Shane over to the pole and proceeded to tie him up on the other half. Totem Salazzle snapped her fingers and her royal advisors hefted the pole up into the air. They started marching up toward the cliff face.

"We'll take the back entrance," Totem Salazzle said. "With any luck, we'll get the jump on the Western Tribe for sure."

* * *

 **~Eastern Volcanic Wastes~**

"Hey. Boneheads. Wake up!"

A large white bone jabbed Silvally square between the eyes. They shot open and he immediately tried to bite down on the bone, only to find a ring made of bone clamping his beak shut. He narrowed his eyes and hissed at the black lizard towering in front of him, gripping a bone in his hands. A white skull sat over his face, making his expression unreadable. A black, flame-like marking sat in the center of the skull, while charcoal insignias littered its sides. The middle of the flame drawing held a Totem Crystal in it, bathing the lizard in a red aura.

Espeon, who lay next to Silvally, raised an eyebrow at the Totem. "You're a Marowak?" she gasped. "Did the volcanic ash turn your scales black?"

Silvally looked at Espeon and shook his head. Totem Marowak rested his bone on his shoulder. "Your flesh… it houses not the bones of a Horizon-born," he said, staring down Espeon. "You are not just an outsider, but a _far outsider_."

"Well, yeah, I'm from the Mist Continent," Espeon said. "But that's unimportant. Why'd you tie us up? We weren't doing anything wrong!"

Two smaller Marowak peered out from behind their Totem. The one on Totem Marowak's right brandished a flaming bone at Espeon. His skull had spikes protruding from the center of its forehead. "You really expect us to believe such a boneheaded lie? You were walking right up to the volcano and it erupted. You're a psychic. You clearly did some sort of voodoo to it," he accused.

"What? I did nothing of the sort!" Espeon said, eyes widening when she saw a glob of spit fly out of her mouth and land at Totem Marowak's feet. Silvally gave her a horrified look while Espeon sat there, face reddening.

"I'll pretend you didn't just do that," Totem Marowak. He looked to his left. "Go ahead. Speak your mind."

"Yes, Totem. See, there's the matter of this… this _thing_ the outsider brought along with her," the other Marowak exclaimed. Unlike his two partners, his bone had a metal wire around it, with different-colored feathers dangling off. "I'll bet such unnatural bones forced the Volcano God awake, leading to the eruption." He turned to Totem Marowak and asked, "Do you think the Eastern Tribe put these outsiders up to this?"

"Eastern Tribe? We don't know anything about any tribes," Espeon insisted. "We were going up to the volcano because we're from the Horizon Guild and we need to check out the Mystery Dungeon. We think a piece of the Dawn Hourglass is stuck in–"

Totem Marowak slammed his bone club down in front of Espeon. Shadowy flames erupted from its end, sending Espeon scooting back along the ground. Nervous beads of sweat rolled down her face. "Silence," Totem Marowak ordered. "You will not speak. The Dance of Revelations shall make your true motivations clear for all to see."

Espeon pursed her lips. "And just what is that supposed to mean?"

"Quiet, you!" the spike-skulled Marowak hissed.

Totem Marowak held his hand up. "There is no need for shouting," he insisted. "Remember, she is an outsider. I wouldn't expect her to understand our customs." He turned back to Espeon. "I lead the Western Tribe of the Volcanic Wastes. We pay tribute to our god, the mighty Volcanion, through the sacred art of dance. The dances of the Western Tribe have been passed down through the generations. Dance is a window into the soul. And once our High Priest and his most devout students complete the Dance of Revelations, we shall know for sure if you are friend," his expression darkened, "or foe."

He turned to the Marowak with feathers on his bone club. "High Priest, do you have everything you need?"

The High Priest nodded. Silvally's eyes widened and he started to look about nervously. This wasn't lost on the spike-skulled Marowak. "You have something to hide, Odd-Bones?" he asked. Silvally shook his head, trying not to let his nerves show through. "I'll believe that when I see it in the dance," Spike-Skull scoffed.

He turned around and leaned against his bone club. Two additional Marowak had joined the High Priest. Each of them had painted their skulls. The Marowak on the High Priest's right used shades of red and purple on his skull, while the Marowak to the High Priest's left had orange and yellow swirls around her mask.

"Then, let us begin the Dance of Revelations!" the High Priest bellowed. "Oh, great Volcano God, slumbering beneath earth's crust. Hear our pleas. Show us the truth behind these outsiders' appearances." He raised his bone club above his head and glanced over his shoulder. Behind him, a row of Cubones sat behind homemade drums. They all raised their bone clubs in unison and began to strike the drums.

Flames engulfed the bone clubs of the dancing Marowak trio. The High Priest began spinning his club in his hands, while his two students twirled slowly away from him. His spinning rapidly increased, to the point where it looked like a ring of fire encased his head. The High Priest transferred his bone club to one hand and used the other for a hand stand.

His students stood an equal distance away from him. Each one planted their bone club into the ground. They slowly walked around them, keeping their left hands placed on the clubs and their right hands held up into the air. When they finished their circle, the High Priest tossed his flaming club up into the air and, with a surprising amount of upper-body strength, pushed off the ground with his other hand.

He caught the bone club in the middle of its descent. His students turned and pointed their bone clubs at the spot the High Priest would land on. Two jets of fire raced out. Espeon's and Silvally's eyes widened as the white flames swallowed the High Priest. But the flames quickly formed into a spiral that coalesced at the tip of the High Priest's bone club. His students dropped to their knees, bowing and resting their bone clubs on their shins.

The High Priest finished by pointing the bone club directly at Espeon and Silvally. The Cubones gave one loud, final beat of their drums and held their smaller bone clubs high. Silence fell over the area. The High Priest opened his eyes and stared into the fire on the tip of his bone club. "Hmm… I see," he muttered.

"Well, High Priest? What do the spirits have to say about these outsiders?" Totem Marowak asked.

"They are telling the truth. They did not arrive with malicious intents toward Mount Supernova. And they do not know of the Eastern Tribe," the High Priest announced. The assembled Marowaks and Cubones whispered to one another in surprise, while Silvally and Espeon sighed in relief.

"However," the High Priest continued, silencing the crowd's murmurs, "these outsiders are not entirely benevolent. Espeon's frail bones have brought destructive forces to Horizon. And Odd-Bones is a creature born of forbidden magic. He would seek to strike the mighty Volcanion down if he were to have free reign to explore Mount Supernova."

"Wait, no!" Espeon cried, as the crowd erupted into concerned murmurs. "Listen, you don't understand. We're here to help save Horizon. Not destroy it!" She squinted her eyes, trying to call on her psychic powers, but her vision blurred and her forehead gem didn't respond.

Totem Marowak slammed his bone club down in front of her. "The Dance of Revelations has spoken, outsider," he exclaimed. "We know everything we need to make a decision about what to do with you and Odd-Bones."

"Ffrrrghh eerffghh!" Silvally barked, his gag still muffling his speech.

"No, you don't," Espeon countered. "Listen, I brought destruction to Horizon because I was being controlled by someone. An awful, terrifying pair of Pokémon want to destroy _all_ Legendaries and plunge the world into chaos. I was working for them unwillingly. We're trying to get the Dawn Hourglass to stop them, but it's broken. And one of the pieces is on Mount Supernova. Please, you have to let us go get it back!"

Totem Marowak looked over to the High Priest. "Do the spirits say her bones speak the truth?"

The High Priest stared at his bone club. Its white flame grew in size, making his eyes widen. "Yes, Totem," he declared. A fresh chorus of confused murmurs came to life in the crowd. Totem Marowak raised his bone club and silenced his tribe. "Totem, if I may?" the High Priest said. Totem Marowak nodded. "Frail-Bones, about how long ago did these Pokémon start to terrorize Horizon?"

"Hmm… it'sh been almost a couple of monshh," Espeon muttered. Her face stiffened as she realized her speech was slurred. She shook her head rapidly. "Err... well... the Dawn Hourglass was just broken yesterday."

Totem Marowak shut his eyes and rested his chin on his fist. "It all makes sense now," he whispered. "The past several weeks, Mount Supernova has been far more volatile. That eruption you witnessed was the third one in the last day. We believed the Volcano God was angered. But perhaps it's the Dawn Hourglass' unstable power at work?"

"Sir?" a Torkoal said, stepping forward. She wore a helmet made to look like a skull. "I know it's risky, but maybe we ought to help these outsiders? Our wall needs to be refortified. It can't withstand any more eruptions. We'll lose the whole village if we don't do something."

Totem Marowak crossed his arms. "Is that so? That is quite troubling news," he muttered.

"What about the Eastern Tribe?" the female dancer asked. "Didn't they take two outsiders as well? If they learn about the Dawn Hourglass, they might try to trigger an eruption and destroy our village!"

Espeon's eyes widened. "What? Why would they want to do something like that?"

Totem Marowak sighed heavily. "Because they know the land they occupy is rightfully ours." He turned toward Silvally. "If I remove your restraints, you swear you won't attack?" Silvally nodded.

Totem Marowak removed the gag and bindings from Silvally's limbs, allowing him to stand up. He opened and shut his beak a few times, taking in large gulps of air. At the same time, the dancers removed Espeon's restraints, allowing her to stand up and stretch out. Silvally noticed her balance seemed off once again but decided not to comment on it.

"Thank you," Silvally said. "Oh, by the way, Odd-Bones is a weird name. You can call me Silvally. If you'd just let me move, I could've showed you guys that I don't mean any harm."

"My apologies… Odd-Bones," Totem Marowak said. Silvally fell over in disbelief, forelegs twitching. "It appears we need to make for Mount Supernova, then. We cannot allow the Eastern Tribe to bring ruin upon us once again." He raised a fist and shook it. Turning back to his tribe, he declared, "I want our best dancers and battlers coming with me up the mountain. We must be prepared to confront those foul Eastern Tribe Pokémon!"

Silvally and Espeon exchanged concerned looks. "But, if the Eastern Tribe has Shane and Tessa… then they could be in trouble, too," Silvally said. "What are we supposed to do?"

"I guess we have to figure out what's happened to make these two tribes hate each other," Espeon said. "And see if we can stop them from fighting long enough to get the Sizzle Shard."

Silvally nodded. "Right. Not the easiest way to get the Sizzle Shard. But, at this point, I'm used to it."

"Odd-Bones! Frail-Bones! We're leaving," Totem Marowak announced, beckoning them over with his bone club.

Espeon's ears drooped. "I get the feeling we're in for another long day."

Silvally gave her a reassuring grin. "At least it's bound to be exciting, right?"

Espeon gulped. _'That's exactly what I'm worried about.'_

* * *

Review replies:

Anon Omega: no franchise switching. There may be nods and references, but only Pokémon characters show up officially in this story.

Another guest: I'm no lord and savior of anything. I mean, I lost my hard drive this week. There won't be any crossovers, exactly. I do, however, headcanon that Kirby's Dark Matter and Super Mystery Dungeon's Dark Matter both come from the same "ultimate evil." Which you might be able to guess.

Veralix: don't discount your theory. You might end up surprised. Just like I'm sure I'll catch you off guard with what Marshadow's role might be if he returns.

Next time: tempers flare as the two parties make their ways up Mount Supernova... and find a sizzling serpent waiting for them!


	62. Bonus: Father & Son

We're moving ahead into the summer, which means I expect readership to taper off as people go do summery things. If you are still reading, I greatly appreciate it! Here, we have a short (and hopefully sweet) little bonus. The next proper chapter will be posted ahead of its usual weekend update, because I will be travelling.

 **Content advisory:** chapter contains some adult themes, but nothing is described in detail.

* * *

 **Bonus: Father & Son**

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_

Incineroar pushed his large, striped, wooden chair away from the small, circular table at the back of his office. He stood up and walked across the carpet, passing a hand-stitched quilt hanging up on the wall, baring the guild's insignia. Next to it sat a pair of fluffy black cushions, which matched up with the office's red carpet to resemble Incineroar's color scheme.

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_

He reached the office door just as the second set of knocks finished and swung the door open. Incineroar smiled at the Absol standing in front of the door with his gaze fixed on the ground. "Hiya, Gallian. What can I do you for, son?"

"You, um, asked to see me… Guildmaster," Gallian muttered, stealing nervous glances back at the assembly room.

"Oh-ho, right," Incineroar said, chuckling. "It wasn't anything urgent, kiddo. Just, y'know, wanted to check in on your first week here, that's all."

Gallian winced. "Ah… gotcha…" he whispered.

"Something bugging you, Gallian?" Incineroar wondered. He stepped to the side. "We can always talk in private, if you'd prefer."

"I don't want any special treatment, Guildmaster," Gallian said.

"Ha ha! There's nothing out of the ordinary about this, son," Incineroar said, giving Gallian a thumbs up. "I check on all my new recruits as they're settling in. And you're no different."

Gallian's expression brightened a bit. "O-Oh… uh… okay. In that case…" His voice trailed off and he walked into Incineroar's office. "… I guess privacy is better." Gallian stopped in the middle of the office and looked around. His attention fell on a shelf opposite Incineroar's quilt. It was lined with an assortment of different knickknacks. Gallian was particularly drawn to a porcelain Cresselia figurine, some wind chimes carved out of bamboo, and a pair of custom-sculpted clay bracelets.

"Geez, Guildmaster…"

"Come on now, kiddo. When we're alone like this, you can drop the formalities. 'Dad' will do just fine," Incineroar said, approaching one of the cushions on the floor. He sat down and patted the open cushion with his paw.

Gallian crept up to the free cushion and hesitantly sat on it. "R-Right… sorry, Dad." He looked back toward the shelf. "You, um, have a lot of stuff."

Incineroar grinned broadly. "Ah, noticed my little collection, did ya? I'm awfully proud of it!"

"A collection?" Gallian said, blinking in confusion.

"You bet! I've gotten a souvenir from every community I've visited, including the ones overseas," Incineroar said, winking at Gallian. "Like that Cresselia figurine. It was a gift from Team Poképals over at the Wigglytuff Guild."

"Wait, they gave that to you? Why didn't you ever tell us? Do you have any idea how floored Tessa would be? You know how much she idolizes them," Gallian said.

"Aha ha… that's a pretty good point," Incineroar said, scratching the back of his head. "To be honest, I wanted to keep it a bit of a surprise."

"Why's that?" Gallian asked.

"I was thinking of giving it to Tessa as a gift… y'know, for when she joins the guild," Incineroar said. "A little something to get her jazzed about exploring." He winked at Gallian again. "Can I trust you to keep it a secret?"

Gallian frowned. "Well… I guess so. I don't really like keeping things from Tessa, but I suppose it's okay in this instance. You'll make sure to let me see her reaction, right?"

"Of course!" Incineroar said. "Granted, it may still be a few years until Tessa feels she's ready to join us. I don't want to push her into doing this, even if she says she wants to."

"Yeah, I agree," Gallian said. "Just so you know, if she does join, I want to help her out as much as I can. I don't plan to get veteran status anytime soon."

Incineroar raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Well… I think that I'd be most helpful to Tessa as an apprentice. That way, we could room together at the start," Gallian said.

"You don't have to do that, Gallian," Incineroar said. "I could always make some tweaks to the rooming rules."

Gallian shook his head. "I don't want you treating me special because you're my dad," he said. "It's more important that I earn my keep here… the old-fashioned way."

Incineroar smiled. "I think we're gonna make a heck of an explorer out of you, son," he proclaimed. Gallian's face reddened at this. Silence fell over the duo. "Hmm… right. I suppose that's enough friendly chit-chat." He sat up straight on his cushion. "What's on your mind son? Anything I can do to help?"

Gallian pawed at the corner of his cushion. "I'm… um… I don't really know, Dad."

Incineroar rubbed his chin. "Sounds like this is pretty serious." He adjusted his positioning so he was sitting cross-legged on his cushion. "Let's see if I can tease out what the problem is. How did your first few assignments go?"

"Fine, I guess," Gallian muttered.

"That's what I thought," Incineroar said. "I didn't see anything out of the ordinary in the paperwork Braviary gave me. And I trust Vaporeon's done a good job introducing you to everything?"

Gallian stiffened, biting his lower lip. "Yuh-yeah! He's been great," he squeaked, voice cracking. Gallian realized this happened and sank down against his cushion, burying his head in the soft fabric.

Concern spread across Incineroar's face. "Did something happen between you and Vaporeon, son?" He rubbed the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. "Hold on… I didn't mean to sound so forceful there. What I should've asked was, 'Are you sure?' Because I'm here if you need me. You know that, right?"

Gallian nodded. "It's… really not what you think, Dad," he whispered. "Vaporeon's fine. The problem is me."

Incineroar's face scrunched up in confusion. "I'm not exactly sure what you mean by that, son."

"I… well… um…" Gallian stuttered. After stumbling to try and form up a sentence, he swiped at his cushion's edge in frustration. "I just can't stay focused around him, Dad! He's just… those sparkling scales… and that glitter on his crest… and his soft blue eyes… I just… uuuuurgh!" He buried his face in his cushion and shook it. "I'm sorry, Dad. I bet I sound like such an idiot…"

Incineroar took in Gallian's words, nodding slowly. "I see," he said. "Y'know, that's quite the bold claim. What would make you think you're sounding like an idiot?"

"Listen to me! I just said I think I like Vaporeon. Whenever I'm around him, I just can't stop thinking about him. He looks so _good_ … it's hypnotizing! And… and that's a problem, isn't it?" Gallian picked his head up from the pillow, a frown on his face. "I'm a guy. Vaporeon's a guy. I'm not supposed to like him that way… right?"

"Whatever gave you that idea?" Incineroar asked.

"W-Well… all the couples I know are one guy and one girl. There's you and Mom… Primarina and Serperior… and Sylveon's mate was a guy too, right?" Gallian said. He shook his head. "I was hoping that maybe something was wrong… like I was sick. But Comfey checked me out and said everything was fine."

"Gallian…" Incineroar said.

"I don't want another reason for people to look at me funny," Gallian said. "I already get enough nervous looks just for being an Absol. But an Absol that isn't attracted to girls? That just screams 'messed up.' I mean… for all I know… this could all be from my egg getting abandoned in the snow. What if my head's all screwed up from the cold?"

Incineroar leaned over and draped an arm over Gallian, who flinched at the gesture. "Shhhhh… it's okay, kiddo. You're beating yourself up for no good reason," he said. "Gallian, I want you to look at me." He put his free hand under his son's chin and hoisted his head up so they were making eye contact. "There is nothing… I repeat… _nothing_ wrong with being attracted to the same gender."

Gallian blinked in confusion. "I don't understand. Don't you need two Pokémon who are opposite genders to make an egg?"

"Not at all," Incineroar said. He pulled his hand back from Gallian's chin and proceeded to rub his son's back. "All this means… is that you're growing up."

"I thought I was finished growing," Gallian said.

"Maybe physically, yeah, but not _emotionally,_ " Incineroar elaborated. "You're making the transition from kid to mature adult. Those feelings of attraction? They're a natural part of that process. Let me ask you something: do you _really_ love Vaporeon? Like… from the bottom of your heart?"

Gallian's tensed. "Um… maybe?"

"Well, what is it you like most about him?"

"His… uh… his looks," Gallian said, face growing hot.

Incineroar nodded. "Uh-huh. And is that it?"

Gallian's brow furrowed. "Now that you mention it… I guess so."

"Then it sounds to me like you've got yourself a crush," Incineroar said, offering up a reassuring grin. "And that's nothing to be ashamed of. Crushes are a normal part of growing up. Plenty of Pokémon have them."

"E-Even if the Pokémon's the same gender as you?" Gallian wondered.

"Heh…" Incineroar rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I guess it's about time the two of us had 'the talk.' I mean, your grandpa gave it to me not long after I had joined the guild, so it only seems right. Especially with what you've told me."

"What do you mean?"

Incineroar scooted his pillow across the carpet so he was facing Gallian. "I'm talking about love and mating." He paused until he saw a degree of understanding in Gallian's eyes. "See… what sets 'mons like you and me apart from mechanical 'mons like Metagross and Magearna is our ability to form a loving bond with someone we care deeply about and express that love through an intimate relationship."

Gallian pursed his lips. "Is that like the time I walked into your room and saw you in your bed, lying on top of Mo–"

Incineroar's face flushed and he threw a paw up over Gallian's muzzle. "Aha ha… ha… I guess you know a bit more about this than I thought." He took his paw off Gallian's snout and sat back. "Huh… guess your Mom's aura sense isn't always on if you could sneak in on us like that."

"Um… did I do something wrong?" Gallian asked.

"Err… it's in the past, son," Incineroar said, laughing awkwardly. "The point I was trying to make is that, now that you're getting older, you're going to start finding that you may have feelings about other Pokémon around you… regardless of what their gender is." He put a paw on Gallian's shoulder. "You see… when it coves to love… every 'mon has some degree of attraction for both guys and girls. Which one a 'mon prefers… well, it depends on a bunch of different things."

Gallian blinked slowly, taking his dad's explanation in. "So… there isn't anything wrong with me if I… um… like other guys?"

"Not in the slightest," Incineroar said.

"Then how come I've never seen any couples made up of two guys?" Gallian asked.

Incineroar rubbed his chin. "It's just a matter of you having not traveled around enough. Give it some time while you're in the guild. Heck… I'm pretty sure I know some mates who are the same gender. I've got a lot of acquaintances… it can be hard to keep track of them all sometimes."

Gallian's brow furrowed. "Mates," he repeated. "That's what you and Mom are, right? Is that different from love?"

"Oh… I forgot to explain that, didn't I?" Incineroar said, chuckling. "See, 'mate' is actually just slang. It's shorthand for 'soulmate.'" Gallian parroted the word at him. "Basically… when two Pokémon are convinced they want to spend the rest of their lives with each other… they mate with one another." Incineroar paused. "That's… um… what you saw your mother and I doing that one time."

"The–"

"Yes, yes, there's no need to say it out loud," Incineroar said, looking a bit flustered. "The point is… the act of mating binds two Pokémon together physically and spiritually. Breaking that bond is something..." His expression grew serious. "... it's something our society frowns on. It should only ever happen under extenuating circumstances."

Panic washed over Gallian's face. "W… what do you mean by that?"

"Well, I've read reports of Pokémon getting exiled from their villages for violating the sacred soulmate bond," Incineroar said.

Gallian's gaze fell to the floor. "And… and you're absolutely, _positively_ sure I can have a mate who's a guy?"

Incineroar nodded.

"What about having an egg? How would that work?" Gallian asked.

"Eggs are made when two Pokémon combine their spiritual energy. Many of them choose to do that while mating, sure. Doesn't change the fact that, yes, you can have an egg if your mate's the same gender," Incineroar said. "Trust me. Your grandpa told all of this stuff to me back when I was a Torracat. I don't think he'd steer me wrong."

"Okay," Gallian whispered, taking a deep breath. "Okay. I… yeah. That… that sounds okay."

"Sounds to me like there's still something bothering you," Incineroar said.

"It's just… how am I supposed to know?" Gallian said, looking up at his dad. "Like, when will I know I really _love_ another guy… versus just liking the way he looks?"

Incineroar rubbed his chin. "That's a bit more complicated, son. It depends a lot on what's going through your head. Even if I was a psychic, I doubt I could give you a straight answer."

Gallian frowned. "Well, what about you? How did you know that Mom was, y'know, the one for you?"

"I thought I already told you that story," Incineroar said.

"Could you just give me the main points?" Gallian asked, smiling meekly.

Incineroar playfully nudged Gallian in the side. "I suppose I can. Let me think for a second here." He shut his eyes and rested his head on his hand. "At first… I felt bad for your mom. I didn't think it was fair what was happening to her with the scavengers. But once we got her out of that situation and into the guild… I just noticed little things. Her smile… the way she looked at me… how she could make me laugh. But it grew from there. Seeing her out in the field... genuinely dedicated to helping others... it just made my heart flutter. The joy she expressed when other Pokémon thanked her always brought a smile to my face."

"Eventually, it got to a point where, every time I was around her, there was a tingle that would run down my spine. My heart would race and my palms would get all sweaty, too," Incineroar said. "And it didn't really have much to do with how your mother looked. It was just her thoughtful personality that ended up winning me over. I realized that, deep down, I could see myself making a life together with her."

He sighed. "Sorry, son. I'm not sure how helpful that was," Incineroar said. "I think, when it gets down to it, it's all about what your heart tells you." He reached out and tapped Gallian's sternum with a claw. "Listen to it… and I'm sure that you'll find the right guy."

Gallian slumped over. "That makes one of us," he said.

"C'mon, son. That sounds nothing like the Gallian I know," Incineroar said.

"I'm serious, Dad. What if… what if there isn't a guy out there for me," Gallian whispered. "I mean… I'm an Absol. No one's going to want to date me given the superstitions." He bowed his head solemnly. "Maybe… maybe there's a reason my egg was abandoned."

"Son, I want you to listen to me," Incineroar said, his voice growing stern. "You are a kind, sensitive Pokémon who wants nothing more than to help others. You're nothing like the stereotypes folks make about Absols." He scooched over and wrapped an arm around Gallian. "Any guy would be lucky to have you as his mate. And I'm not just saying that because I'm your dad. It's the truth."

Gallian sniffled. "You really mean that?"

"From the bottom of my heart," Incineroar said. "And I like to think I know a thing or two when it comes to relationships," he added, winking.

"Heh…" Gallian rubbed his head against his shoulder. "Thanks, Dad. I feel… a lot better now."

Incineroar leaned over and nuzzled Gallian's neck. "Don't mention it, kiddo. And you know that, if you ever want to talk, that you can drop by any time, right?"

Gallian nodded. "I do now." He paused. "Just... um... do me one little favor."

"What did you have in mind?"

"Um... could you please not tell Mom about any of this?" Gallian asked.

Incineroar frowned. "If that's really what you want, then my lips are sealed. Can I ask why, though?"

"It's just, well, from what I've seen so far... Mom is, like, a completely different Pokémon around the guild," Gallian whispered. "She seems really uptight and serious... it kind of scares me a bit."

"Oh... that!" Incineroar said, chuckling. "There's no need to worry about it. Your mom is a very headstrong Pokémon. When she gets focused on her work... she _really_ gets focused. I can't fault her for the enthusiasm, really."

"R-Right..." Gallian squeaked. "But I've been getting nervous whenever I'm around her. I'm worried she might get upset if I tell her... y'know... that I want to date another guy."

Incineroar closed his eyes in pensive thought. "I can't think of any reason why your mom would get upset at that. But I can see that this is bugging you... so I won't say a word about this to her. Just understand that there's going to come a time when you'll have to tell her."

"I know," Gallian said, taking a deep breath. "I just want to wait for the right moment to do that. Maybe a time when we're back home and Mom isn't so focused on her work. I promise I'll tell her... just not right now."

"And you know I'm here to help if you need it, right?" Incineroar said.

"Yeah," Gallian whispered.

"Good. In that case…" Incineroar's voice trailed off as he got to his feet. "How about we grab some dinner and see what everyone else is up to?"

Gallian got up beside his dad. "Sounds good to me."

* * *

Quicky review replies:

Anon Omega: I see what you did there. Very punny.

SuperOmegaGuest: I'm still going with a main trio. But, realistically, the three of them need help if they're going to win. Expect their ranks to continue growing. Also, you have no idea if Espeon kept drinking after waking up or if she's just hungover. Which is intentional.

Veralix: I'm just incorporating Salazzle's Dex entries into her character, so don't lame me if it's very sultry. Blame the Rotom Dex. As for the gay pairing, it's a nod to shipping in the PMD games, which frequently ends up as a same-sex pairing due to the results of the personality quizzes.

Another guest: Absol/Zoroark is actually a pairing that shows up on Bulbapedia's giant compendium of shipping names. Together, they're DangerWolfShipping. Latias/Lugia is also listed there, under GuardianShipping. Yeah, I didn't know about this before a couple of weeks ago, so I was quite surprised.

Thanks again for the support, as always. Next time, for real: volcano climbing. Like mountain-climbing but twenty times deadlier!


	63. Turning up the Heat

Surprise! It's an early update, because I'm travelling and won't be able to post this chapter at its usual time. Obviously, if you're reading this in the future, this part doesn't apply to you. But I do appreciate your support either way. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 53: Turning up the Heat**

 **~Mount Supernova, Eastern Face~**

Thunder rumbled throughout the mountainside as lightning danced across the storm clouds swirling around the volcano's peak. Espeon had to stop herself from veering to the right as she walked.

"Keep it moving, missy," Torkoal ordered.

Espeon continued forward, positioned between Totem Marowak and Torkoal. She looked to her left, where the pathway abruptly dropped off. There, lava flowed freely, descending down the mountainside. Behind her, Silvally looked at the lava pond bubbling to the right of the path. A giant, meteor-like fireball remained suspended above the ground. Flames licked at its edges, bathing the black onyx of the mountainside in a soft orange glow.

"Um… are floating fireballs normal here?" Silvally asked, an uneasy look etched on his face.

"No," Torkoal said. "Totem, have you ever seen something like this before?"

Totem Marowak shook his head. "It would seem that something unruly stirs deep within the rock-bones of this mountain. Strange magics, perhaps?"

The fireball vibrated and spat out two solar flares. The High Priest and Spike-Skull both widened their eyes as the flares careened toward them. Silvally turned around, channeling his water memories. He dragged his right foreleg across the ground and a wave of water swept forward, extinguishing the solar flares and creating a wall of gray steam in their place.

"What the–?" Torkoal's eyes widened. "Did you just change into a water-type?"

"I did," Silvally chirped. "I mean, if there's gonna be fire everywhere, it kind of makes sense, right?"

"Are you some kind of Legendary?" Torkoal wondered.

"No, I'm just Silvally," he replied.

"Eyyyaaaaah!"

Silvally and Torkoal turned around to find Espeon and Totem Marowak staring down a pair of floating globules of black paint. The paint blob duo each had a single, hollow white eye. They turned and floated slowly toward the path. Espeon stepped forward and rifled off a pink beam from the gem on her forehead. It sliced through the blobs. They exploded in tiny puffs of multicolored dust.

"What manner of Pokémon was that?" Totem Marowak asked. "I haven't seen such strange bones striding this mountain in my entire life."

"Those definitely weren't Pokémon," Espeon said. "If anything… they might've been tiny little Ultra Beasts."

Totem Marowak scratched the top of his skull. "Ultra Beasts? Did you just make that up?"

"No," Espeon replied. "It's what the Prism Virus calls these powerful monsters that it turns Pokémon into. I don't suppose there are Slugmas or Magcargos living in the lava here, are there?"

Totem Marowak shook his head, sighing. "Not in this volcano. Well, I suppose we just need to continue forward." He beckoned the rest of the group with a wave of his bone club, toward an area where the path steepened considerably. Totem Marowak slowed his pace, minding his steps so as not to go tumbling off the side of the mountain. The lava pool to the left gradually shrank away. Instead, there was a sharp drop off to a set of jagged rocks jutting out from the lava pool at the base of the mountain.

"Everyone, watch your step. The lava has broken through the path," Totem Marowak announced, hopping from one section of the pathway to another. However, the part of the ground he landed on immediately broke apart, with pieces sinking down into the lava. His eyes widened as he slowly fell back, limbs flailing. Espeon shut her eyes and concentrated. A small pulse of telekinetic energy wrapped Totem Marowak up from behind and pushed him forward. He stumbled and fell to his belly, heart pounding in his chest.

"Are you all right?" Espeon asked as Totem Marowak shakily got to his feet. "It doesn't look like the ground up here is all that firm."

"I see that," Totem Marowak muttered. "But it's so strange. The rock-bones up here are supposed to be strong enough to withstand the lava flows."

The High Priest poked his head out from behind Silvally. "Do you think the Eastern Tribe figured out some method to weaken the rock-bones of the mountain?"

Torkoal frowned. "I wouldn't put it past those conniving jerks."

"How are we supposed to get across, though?" Spike-Skull asked. "That gap is too far to jump." He rubbed the back of his helmet. "And, I am ashamed to admit I have not been practicing my bone-vaulting much, recently."

"At least you _can_ jump," Torkoal said. "I'm pretty much useless in this scenario. Totem, what should we do? I think there are a couple of Talonflames living amongst us. Should we seek their aid?"

"There's no need for that," Silvally said, puffing his chest out. "Have no fear, because Silvally's here!" He hopped to Torkoal's side and bent down. "Get on. I'll ferry you across."

Torkoal's eyes widened. "Are you crazy? There's no way you can jump across carrying me."

"Try me," Silvally said. Torkoal looked uneasily at Silvally's back. But the mountainside started rumbling. The lava pools farther down the path bubbled and more black paint blobs rose out from them.

Torkoal's eyes widened. "Oh… this is _so_ not how I wanted to spend today," she groaned, climbing onto Silvally's back. He got a running start and lunged across the gap. Totem Marowak gasped and stumbled backward to prevent Silvally from crashing into him. Silvally landed, skidding to a halt. He kneeled, letting a queasy-looking Torkoal climb off. Silvally nodded his approval and jumped back across the lava, where Espeon and the two Marowaks worked to keep the black blobs at bay. They hurled their bone clubs forward while Espeon charged them with psychic energy. The bone clubs effortlessly smashed through the blobs and returned to their holders.

"Get on. It looks like things are getting a bit too dicey down here," Silvally said. The trio hopped onto his back. Silvally broke into a run but got tripped up as the path crumbled behind him. A larger, dark brown blob emerged from the lava. Some of the brown paint parted to form a mouth with an outline of jagged teeth. The blob roared loudly and, next thing Silvally knew, portions of the broken path were flying toward him.

"Run! I'll take care of these," Espeon said. Silvally resumed running, while she turned around and blasted the rocks apart with a ring of psychic energy. The attack fizzled out before it reached the brown blob. It hissed its displeasure and flew after them. Silvally landed safely on the other side, turned around, and swept a wave of water at the blob. The wave crashed on top of it, dissolving it into brown dust that disappeared amongst the thick volcanic smoke.

"Well, that was certainly unexpected," Silvally said. "You guys must lead pretty exciting lives here if you're coming up this mountain all the time."

"This is not something that we are used to dealing with," Totem Marowak harrumphed. "Clearly, the Dawn Hourglass is messing with the volcano's integrity. Perhaps it has done something to Volcanion?"

The ground trembled beneath Espeon's paws. "Guys? Maybe we ought to talk less and walk more?" she squeaked, trying to push her way toward the front of the group. Everyone else got the message and continued forward. They managed to reached a part of the mountain where the path leveled off, when the ground began rumbling again.

"Now what's going on?" Torkoal groaned.

"Look, over there!" Silvally gasped, pointing a talon at the face of the mountain. A crack had appeared in its rocky foundations and it was rapidly spreading out.

"Run!" Espeon shouted. She tucked her head in, only to stumble and fall on her belly. Espeon shot back up, ignoring the suspicious look from Silvally, and sprinted up the path. Silvally followed suit, along with the rest of the Western Tribe. They looked back in time to see the rock wall burst apart. A geyser of lava shot out, washing across the path and cascading down the mountain toward the fiery depths below.

Totem Marowak's eyes widened. "This is very bad," he said. "If the mountain's foundations are crumbling, then our village doesn't stand a chance."

"But what should we do, Totem?" the High Priest asked.

Totem Marowak sighed. "My bones shudder to even say this, but we might need to prepare everyone for fleeing the Volcanic Wastes."

"What? No way!" Torkoal gasped. "This is our home. We can't just leave it behind like this."

"Would you rather drown in lava?" Totem Marowak snapped, pointing his bone club at Torkoal.

"But… but where would we go?" Torkoal asked.

"I don't know," Totem Marowak said. "I was just thinking out loud, that's all."

"Aha! I knew it! You unsightly Western Tribesmon _were_ up to something!"

The assembled group all tensed up in unison. "Oh no… that voice…" Spike-Skull muttered. "It's Totem Salazzle!"

Totem Salazzle proudly strode toward them, flanked by two of her attendants and a horde of her Salandit minions. Silvally's eyes bulged out at the sight of Shane and Tessa tied to a large pole. "Hey!" he shouted, eyes narrowing and cheek bolts whirring in their sockets. "Put my friends down right now… or else!" Golden energy swirled around his forelegs, bristling his fur.

"I think not," Totem Salazzle exclaimed. "They are my prisoners. And, bizarre appearance or not, you are a male, and thus your words are meaningless."

Silvally screeched and charged forward. Totem Salazzle's attendants moved in front of her and both released clouds of pink gas into the air. Silvally moved right into them and his running slowly stumbled to a stop. "G… guhhhh…" he grunted, staggering backwards.

Totem Marowak's shoulders slumped. "So, even Odd-Bones is not immune to their hypnotic pheromones."

"Call of your attack mongrel, Marowak," Totem Salazzle ordered. "Or I'll take his two accomplices here and drop them into the lava." Shane's and Tessa's eyes widened in unison. They struggled against their restraints, but a pair of Salandit slapped them across their faces.

"You can't!" Espeon begged. "Those are my teammates!"

"We know," Totem Salazzle exclaimed. "And we caught you all in the act of trying to sabotage Mount Supernova." She narrowed her eyes at Marowak. "To think you'd go to such extreme lengths to take our land from us. You are a shining example of why males cannot be trusted, you worthless Totem!"

"You spout nothing but lies!" the High Priest accused, pointing his bone club forward. "We are just as unfamiliar with these outsiders as you are. But the Dance of Revelations has cleared them. They seek the fragment of the Dawn Hourglass lying within the mountain. We think it may be responsible for upsetting Volcanion."

"Ha! So, you know about the Sizzle Shard, as expected," Totem Salazzle scoffed. "Well, my tribe acknowledges no stupid customs created by a pack of barbaric males. You're just lying to cover up your own heinous acts. Now, stand aside and allow us to pass. We will appease Volcanion by sacrificing these outsiders to him. And he will reward us with the Sizzle Shard, allowing us to protect our land from the likes of you."

Totem Marowak slammed the ground with his bone club. His eyes blazed. "There you go again, spitting upon our dances. Do you not see the hypocrisy in your words? You dismiss every male you come across, but your tribe sings praises to a god who is male!"

"I cannot help it if Arceus was mistaken when she created Volcanion," Totem Salazzle exclaimed, shrugging. "Even the mighty creator is prone to lapses in judgment. Thus, we forgive her, and move on."

"Arceus is male, too, you cretin!" Spike-Skull barked.

"Prove it," a Salazzle attendant countered.

"It's written in the stories of the heroes who defeated Dark Matter," Torkoal replied. "But you wouldn't care about that, would you? After all, you're the crook who took our land from us while Dark Matter wreaked havoc upon the world!"

Espeon raised a curious brow. From their bounded positions, Shane and Tessa turned their wide eyes on Totem Salazzle. Her right eye twitched. "I only took… what was rightfully mine… in the first place," she seethed. Flames gathered around her mouth. "This is your last chance. Stand aside or we'll mow you all down!"

"Heh heh heh. Look at this heartwarming little reunion going on here. It's almost as sizzling as this volcano!"

Silvally turned to his right and frowned. "That voice… it sounds familiar. But something's off with it."

"It very well should sound familiar, Beak Boy!"

"Totem, watch out!" Spike-Skull shouted, lunging to grab Totem Marowak's tail. Silvally looked up and spotted a large orange meteor streaming down toward the entire group. He slammed his forelegs on the ground and a plume of water shot into the air. It struck the meteor, but only managed to put a few cracks in it. Silvally staggered backward, eyes widened in terror. A trio of bone clubs smacked the meteor in unison, accentuating the crack. The meteor shattered, shards of fiery rocks raining down on the ground.

"Meat shields!" Totem Salazzle called, snapping her fingers. A group of Salandit scuttled in front of her and climbed up on one another's shoulders. They spat globs of poison forward, disintegrating the rocky shards heading for the large group. The remaining shards fell into the scattered pools of lava. Totem Salazzle turned and glared at Totem Marowak. "See? Your presence is driving the volcano to anger once again. Get out of here, before you cause any more wanton destruction."

Totem Marowak snorted. "Always quick to accuse me, aren't you?"

"My accusations have merit! Things were going perfectly fine for us before you and your ragged ilk showed up on the mountain," Totem Salazzle scoffed. "I'd smite you for these transgressions… if I hadn't left my smiting staff back in the village."

" _Our_ village. That you took from us!" the High Priest hissed.

"Heh heh. Yes! Excellent! Rip each other apart! Tear yourselves to pieces! You'll just be making my job all that much easier."

Panic overtook Silvally's expression. "Wait a second… Serperior? Is that you? Are you okay? We heard you were captured by the Prism Virus yesterday!"

Totem Marowak whirled on Silvally. "Serperior? Is she another one of your outsider friends?"

A Salandit tapped Totem Salazzle's knee. "My Totem… look up there. On that alcove." He pointed his free arm skyward.

The rest of the Eastern Tribe followed it. They found Serperior sitting coiled up at the edge of a rock spire jutting out from the lava, blue flame markings, fiery helmet, and all.

"Serperior! Oh gods, no!" Tessa gasped. "What happened to you?"

"Me? Well, quite a lot, actually. We found Airy… or should I say 'Nighty?'" Serperior mused.

"She's infected," Silvally whimpered. "And by the sounds of it, Dragonair's the one responsible."

"I think you mean Dragonite," Espeon corrected, shrinking back and looking away from Serperior. She shut her eyes and shook her head. "We, um, need to snap her out of it, right?" Her tail curled up against her rear and she whined loudly.

"What are you saying?" Totem Marowak asked. "Is Leafy-Bones connected to all of the damage being done to the mountain?"

"Without a doubt," Totem Salazzle declared. "And it was these outsiders who brought her here. Yet more evidence of your skullduggery. We should toss them into the volcano and placate Volcanion!"

"No!" Tessa cried. "This isn't our faults, we swear. Serperior, you have to snap out of it. Think about what you're saying. That's not what Team Captivate's about!"

"Shut your pie hole, you sniveling coward,"Serperior hissed. "Nighty and Mistress Zero have opened my eyes. Team Captivate was superficial. Meaningless! But now… now I have a sense of purpose. With the Prism Virus' power, I am the epitome of grace. A maiden that will help create a perfect, Legendary-free world." Serperior looked over her shoulder. "Wouldn't you agree, Volky?"

An orange, membranous cocoon floated in the air next to her. Small cracks ran through its scaly exterior, giving off rainbow flashes of light. The cocoon pulsated. Red liquid trickled out of some of the cracks and dripped onto the ground. "Wait a sec," Tessa whispered. "'Volky?' As in… Volcarona? What did you do to her?"

"Nothing," Serperior scoffed. "Necrozma got his grubby hands on Volky. I heard him say something about a 'shining metamorphosis.'" She looked down at the Eastern Tribe. "Though, from the looks of things, you won't be around long enough to witness it for yourself."

"You there," Totem Marowak barked, pointing his bone club forward. "Remove yourself from our sacred volcano at once! You are disturbing the mighty Volcanion."

"I know. That's the point," Serperior said, grinning wickedly. "I want to wake him up and bring him out here… so I can kill him for Mistress Zero. I think I've done a pretty good job messing up this place already, wouldn't you say?"

"You're the one who's making the floating meteors? And the weird blob monsters?" Silvally gasped.

"Necrozma prefered to call them 'Emeravegers.' All I did was add Z-Power to the emeras I found. And… voila! Instant Ultra Beasts! Pretty slick, huh?"Serperior explained. "I'd love to stay and chat with you more, but I have a Dawn Shard to find. So, I think I'll just have to send you all back from where you came." Serperior uncoiled herself and raised her tail. Blue flames engulfed her wavy tail blade. She turned to left and swung her tail down against the ground. The free part of the rock spire split off and exploded, creating a volley of meteors that hurtled toward both tribes.

"Later, losers!" she shouted, disappearing into a wall of volcanic smoke.

Silvally shrank down and whimpered. "I can't destroy that many of them. We have to run!" He tried to turn around, but a jet of fire washed across his shoulder. He looked down at his singed fur in shock.

"This is all your faults!" Totem Salazzle accused. "You brought these outsiders in and led havoc into our valley. We'll never forgive you for these transgressions. We'll–"

 _Ka-boooooooooom!_

The meteors exploded right above the two tribes. Smaller rock fragments rained down on them, while other chunks landed in the lava, splashing some up on the path. The two tribes quickly descended into utter chaos. They stopped leering at one another and started running in opposite directions. But the meteor fragments destroyed both halves of the paths they had used to get to this point. The array of Salandits all screeched in terror and scurried back toward their Totem. In the process, they dropped Shane and Tessa, who fell to the ground and struggled against their restraints as the crumbling ground worked its way up toward them.

Silvally noticed this and raced forward, ignoring Espeon's cry of, "What do you think you're doing?" He lowered his head and rammed the advisor Salazzles standing in his way. Silvally stuck his beak out and clamped it down on the pole holding Shane and Tessa. He lurched his neck backwards and dragged the duo back onto stable ground. Shane looked back, whimpering at the sight of his tails smoking from their close proximity to the lava.

"Totem, what should we do? The ground up here could give way at any moment. And Leafy-Bones destroyed the path leading farther up the mountain," the High Priest said, panic filling his voice.

Totem Marowak shut his eyes, deep in thought. A second later, they opened back up. "The secret passage!" he gasped. "It's been weeks since Tapu Bulu reshaped the mountain. It should still be there." Totem Marowak hoisted his bone club into the air and threw it toward a rounded rock spire jutting out from the lava in front of him. It struck the rock, making it sink down into the lava. A strip of lava fizzled, giving way to a narrow path leading to the mountain wall. Part of the mountain face sank down into the lava, revealing a dark cave.

"Everyone, get across," Totem Marowak said, pointing his bone club forward. "Quickly!"

He was about to step onto the path when Totem Salazzle shoved him aside. "Out of the way, you worthless man. Come, Eastern Tribe. We must take shelter within the mountain!"

Totem Marowak glared at her as she ran across the secret path. The rest of her tribe quickly followed suit. "Ugh, you mean we're going to be stuck in the mountain with them?" Spike-Skull groaned. "Could this day possibly get any worse?"

 _Ruuuuuuuuuuumble!_

The spire that Serperior stood on earlier exploded. A geyser of lava shot out from inside the mountain, sending molten rock plummeting toward the group. Totem Marowak shoved Spike-Skull onto the secret path, saying, "You just had to open your big mouth, didn't you?" He ducked his head down and ran across the path. His cohorts followed suit, with the newly-reunited Team Radiance bringing up the rear.

They all disappeared into the cave entrance. The ground immediately grew even warmer than the paths they had used outside the volcano. Shane started hopping about from paw to paw, whimpering loudly. "This hurts to walk on. It's burning my feet!"

"It's probably the magma flowing underneath us," Espeon said, swaying uneasily and blinking her eyes rapidly to acclimate to the cave. "Look, there are cracks in the floor with orange light streaming out of them."

Shane's tails fell between his legs. "Do we really have to use this to get up the rest of the volcano? This heat has been bad enough already. I'm not sure I can take much more of this!" They proceeded deeper into the cave and the orange glow intensified. The cracks in the floors grew even larger. Team Radiance found themselves pausing in the middle of the cave, as jets of fire shot out from the cracks in the floor. "Yeah, you know what, I think I can officially say I'd take a Monster House over thi— OW!"

A welt appeared on the back of Shane's head and his eyes teared up. He looked back to see Totem Marowak brandishing his bone club. "You would do well to keep that trap of yours shut, lest you bring more misfortune upon us, Whiny-Bones."

Shane's ears folded his against his face. "Whiny-Bones? Aww, c'mon, that's not fair. I'm not whining… I'm complaining!"

"What's the difference?" Spike-Skull scoffed, walking past the group.

Shane's stance slouched. _'Man, and here I thought I'd never be more humiliated than the time they had to run me under the emergency shower in chemistry class.'_

"… I don't care if we're all stuck inside the mountain. _My_ tribe got here first. Take your sorry tails and march over to the other side."

Totem Salazzle's voice carried through the caverns. Team Radiance managed to find their way closer to the center of the mountain's interior, where a bright orange glow washed over them. The pitch-black walls had given way to red and orange rocks radiating massive amounts of heat. Small streams of magma drifted through parts of the pathway that spiraled along the mountain in either direction. Occasional walls of magma flowed down from higher areas, making the walls unsafe to stand near.

"We can't just march over to the other side," Torkoal growled, trying to crane her neck up to get in Totem Salazzle's face. "We'd have to go right through the mountain's molten core. And that'd kill us!"

"That's no scales off my bones," Totem Salazzle scoffed. "Because it's all your faults that we're in this mess. You brought in these outsiders. You've brought ruin to my tribe! Just like you did when my mother was in charge."

"That's an egregious lie if I ever heard one," Spike-Skull said, raising up his bone club and sheathing its ends in fire. "You would hold us accountable for an eruption that not even Volcanion could contain? You have a lot of nerve!"

"It was your faults! You angered Volcanion! You didn't take action to keep the entire Volcanic Wastes safe," Totem Salazzle hissed. Flames liked the corners of her mouth. "And now you're doing this again. You've put us all in grave danger!"

Totem Marowak stepped forward. "My tribe would do no such thing. Salazzle, please, this issue has become bigger than a quarter-century feud. You saw what Leafy-Bones was capable of. She must be stopped. She is bringing ruin to Mount Supernova. And that could put an end to our beloved home."

Totem Salazzle responded by shooting a stream of fire directly at Totem Marowak. He brought his bone club up and spun it, rapidly dispelling the flames. Totem Salazzle merely smirked and snapped her fingers. An advisor Salazzle had managed to get beside Totem Marowak. At Totem Salazzle's command, she unfurled the flaps on her dorsal tail and released a cloud of green gas.

"Totem!" the High Priest shouted. He leaped in front of the green cloud, tackling Totem Marowak to the ground. In the process, he inhaled the pheromones. The High Priest's body relaxed, and his eyes turned pink. "Oh… oh my!" he said, getting back to his feet. He walked up to the advisor Salazzle, swaying from side to side. "I'm sorry. Did I interfere? That was quite rude of me. Please…" He got down on one knee and extended an arm toward the advisor. "… accept my humblest of apologies."

The advisor smirked and planted a kiss on the brim of the High Priest's snout. His body went totally rigid and he collapsed onto his side. "You see?" Totem Salazzle sneered. "Your actions betray your words. You cannot protect the Wastes if you are so easily distracted by our pheromones. And that is why I demand you unruly boneheads get off the mountain and let me finish sacrificing the outsiders to Volcanion!"

"Oh, come on. Not this nonsense again!" Shane groaned, immediately causing the Salandits to jump in front of their Totem and hiss a warning at Shane. But, much to his surprise, Tessa stomped up toward the Salandits.

"Will you just _shut up already?_ " Tessa shouted. The Salandits all craned their necks forward, readying fireballs in their mouths. "You," she growled, pointing at Totem Salazzle, "are not helping anyone in the slightest! Least of all these Salandits and Salazzles that depend on you. Don't you get it? We're all in danger, here. We need to stop arguing and start working together! This is exactly what Serperior is counting on! For you guys to fight amongst yourselves when you need to be fighting her!"

Totem Salazzle leered at Tessa, but Shane noticed the other Salazzle advisor in the group shrinking back and fidgeting uneasily. She had a spiked, pink collar around her neck, much like the Totem's.

Tessa took a deep breath and continued, "I'm sorry that we showed up at such a bad time. And I'm sorry that one of our fellow guild members is wreaking havoc on the mountain. But this is _not_ our faults! Serperior is being controlled… by a wicked Ultra Beast called Necrozma. And if we don't get the Dawn Shard that she's looking for, too, then a lot worse stuff is going to happen not just here… but everywhere!"

Tessa's arms trembled. "You don't like us. I get it. But could you please just stop insulting us and let us do our jobs?"

Totem Salazzle drew her lips back in a snarl. "You would _dare_ raise your voice at me like that, you measly pup?"

"I am _not_ just some measly pup!" Tessa shouted back, catching her teammates by surprise. Espeon's tail went as stiff as an arrow at the sight of Tessa's eyes flashing bright blue. "I am an explorer! I've stared down creatures the likes of which you couldn't possibly understand! So, when I say to listen to me… _I mean it!_ "

Shane took a cautious step back. _'Whoa. Where has this Tessa been the entire time?'_

"Totem," the collar-wearing Salazzle croaked, "perhaps we should listen to the outsider? She seems to know what she's talking about."

Totem Salazzle shoved her advisor back. "Has the heat rotted your brain? She is but a child! Even if she is female, her opinion is not worth my time and energy. Perhaps if she were a Lucario, her words might hold meaning. But the day I trust a baby Pokémon is the day I turn over my Totem Crystal."

 _WHAM!_

A Force Palm struck Totem Salazzle's belly. She toppled over, landing on half a dozen Salandits, who all groaned in unison. Aura swirled around Tessa's paws like two tufts of blue fire. "You better stay down!" Tessa screamed, her paws balling into fists. "Or I'll hit you as many times as it takes to shut you up!"

Silvally and Shane were at Tessa's sides in an instant. "Tessa… deep breaths," Shane coaxed. "You're losing your temper."

Tessa hung her head. The aura faded as she turned to Totem Marowak. "I'm sorry, sir," she said, "but that Pokémon, Necrozma. He has our friends. And…" Her eyes teared up. "And he has my mom. I'm not going to sit around and be distracted by Salazzle… Totem or not. Is there anything you could do to get through to her?"

Totem Marowak sighed. "I was hoping it wouldn't come to this. But I see that she refuses to listen to reason."

"Impudent outsider," Totem Salazzle hissed, getting back to her feet. "Nobody strikes the Totem of the Eastern Tribe and gets away with it!" She smacked the ground with her tail. "Don't just stand there gawking, you dunderheads. Get her!"

Before any of the Salandits could attack, Totem Marowak brought his bone club down in front of Totem Salazzle. Her eyes widened and she looked over at her rival. Totem Marowak lifted the bone club up and began to twirl it around in his hands. Fire sheathed the bone club, creating a massive flaming circle as Totem Marowak continued twirling it. He started dancing around in a circle, shaking his tail back and forth at Totem Salazzle.

Tessa's brow furrowed. "Wait, what's he doing?"

 _'Oh god, please don't let this be some sort of weird mating dance,'_ Shane thought, craning his upper body down and cupping his forepaws over his eyes.

Totem Marowak spun around faster, increasing the speed that he twirled the bone club. The Eastern Tribe looked on, their jaws slackening in sequence. Finally, Totem Marowak shouted and brought his bone club down to his waist. At the same time, he pelvic thrusted, and a flurry of bright pink hearts flew out in front of him. Tessa and Espeon realized what was happening and looked away. They both pressed their faces against Silvally's hide, drawing a discomforted grunt.

"What is the meaning of this nons–?" Totem Salazzle started, only for one of the hearts to smack her right in the face. Her jaw dropped. A bit of drool trickled out of it, landing on a poor Salandit standing right below her.

"Hey!" the Salandit whined. "What's the big idea?"

"T… Totem?" another Salandit said, looked up in concern. Both Totem Salazzle and her lankiest advisor slowly approached Totem Marowak. The choker-wearing Salazzle hung back, a hand covering up her eyes.

"You," Totem Salazzle whispered, leaning in toward Marowak, "have _gorgeous_ eyes."

The Salandits tails all shot up in alarm and they started whispered among themselves nervously.

"She… complemented another man?" "And the Western Tribe's Totem, to boot!" "What's wrong?" "I'll bet he did something to her!"

Totem Salazzle pressed a hand to Totem Marowak's chest. "… and you are _such_ a good dancer. Shaking that tail of yours around like it was nothing. You ought to teach me sometime."

Now it was the Western Tribe's turn to have its members' jaws drop in unison. Even Team Radiance seemed stunned at the display. "Okay, I didn't think Attract was _that_ strong," Espeon gasped.

"Maybe there was something in the dance that Marowak did that bolstered its effectiveness," Silvally mused. "There's at least a small part of me that found that dance _alluring_." His tail slowly swayed back and forth in a gesture of agreement.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up," Shane groaned, cupping his forepaws over his ears. "God, I'm really starting to think one of those Tapus drugged us while we were sleeping. This whole day has 'bad trip' written all over it."

"I'm pretty sure all of our trips have been bad," Tessa muttered.

Shane facepalmed. "Not the right kind of trip, Tessa."

"Then what–?"

"I'll tell you when you're older," Shane deadpanned, turning away from his partner and ignoring the flabbergasted look on her face.

"As nice as that sounds, Salazzle, I think we'd best spend our time preparing to evacuate, don't you?" Totem Marowak said, fluttering his eyelids at Totem Salazzle and her assistant. They both nodded vigorously.

"Oh yes! Yes! Absolutely!" Totem Salazzle said. "How can we have some quality time if lava burns us to ashes? We need to get back down to the Volcanic Wastes right away!"

Totem Marowak nodded. "That's a fine idea." He turned to Spike-Skull. "You stay with the outsiders and help them. If they run into Leafy-Bones again, they may require some extra muscle."

"I'll help too!" Choker Salazzle offered, waving a hand.

"Of course, of course," Totem Salazzle said. "You kids go have fun."

Sweat drops trickled down the back of Shane's head. _'She's totally lost it,'_ he thought, as Team Radiance's newly-assigned helpers walked up beside them.

"Outsiders," Totem Marowak said, "we leave this to you. Please stop your friend from driving Volcanion to anger. Our home cannot take another eruption."

 _Ruuuuuuuuuuuuumble!_

Silvally stuck a foreleg out to stop Tessa from falling flat on her face. "And it doesn't look like we have a lot of time to spare," he said. "This volcano's stirring again."

"Great. A treasure hunt inside an _active volcano_ ," Shane groaned. "I'll bet the other human heroes didn't have to deal with nonsense like this."

"Come on," Choker Salazzle said, beckoning Team Radiance forward, "I know a shortcut through the caves. The group exchanged skeptical looks, but then they noticed Spike-Skull walk up to the Salazzle and place an arm around her shoulder.

"I'll watch your six," he said. "Lead the way."

A smirk crossed Choker Salazzle's face. "That better be all you're watching, big guy. I've gotten Dragon Pulse down since our last spar, you know." They both chuckled as they started walking forward.

Shane's brow furrowed. "Wait a sec… aren't these two supposed to hate each other? Don't tell me they're actually…"

"Seeing each other? We are," Choker Salazzle said, cutting Shane off. "And we're doing it behind my mother's back."

" _You're_ Totem Salazzle's daughter?" Tessa gasped. "But that's…" She grabbed her aura feelers.

"Guilty as charged. I'm her daughter… and her eventual replacement. But right now, I'm merely the village's healer," she replied. "Mother and I… we don't entirely see eye to eye on stuff."

"And you couldn't put in a single word to stop her from tying us up?" Shane fumed.

Spike-Skull turned around and glared at Shane. "You make it sound so easy, Whiny-Bones. Tell me, have you stood up to a Totem Pokémon before? With the Z-Power they wield, they are nigh unbeatable in battle!"

 _'If that's the case, then how did we beat a Totem Lurantis, huh?'_ Shane thought, ultimately holding his tongue.

"I can't just defy Mother like that. I'm not looking to get exiled," Healer squeaked, quickening her pace. "I'm sorry about all the trouble. Really. But I'm afraid it's a delicate situation."

"Well, we've got some time to kill while we're walking," Silvally said. "Maybe you could fill us in? All we want to do is help."

"I don't know. It's not really my place to tell outsiders about our tribes," Healer said.

Spike-Skull stroked his chin in thought. "Mmm… but perhaps this is the out that we've been looking for? A way to finally get rid of the wedge stuck between our tribes." He put a hand on her shoulder. "We can do this together."

"Okay." Healer took a deep breath. "The thing is… our two tribes… used to be one and the same." She paused, expecting Team Radiance to react. "You're not surprised?"

"Uh, well, let's just say I had a really strong feeling about it," Silvally said, laughing nervously.

"I may have gleamed that from a cursory glance at your life energy," Espeon admitted, her speech slightly slurred.

"Your auras seemed to suggest something like that," Tessa said, rubbing her shoulder.

All eyes fell on Shane. "What, me? Please, I've watched enough TV to see that 'we used to be all together' plot twist coming from a mile away." Shane got a bunch of bewildered looks. "Err… maybe you oughta just continue talking."

Healer nodded. "Basically, the Volcanic Wastes used to be one continuous strip of land lying at the base of Mount Supernova. Our two tribes were one. In ancient times, we had united under the leadership of two Totems who had emerged from a brilliant flash of light to save our land from a rush of lava."

Healer Salazzle placed her hand on a part of the rock wall and peered ahead. She beckoned Spike-Skull and Team Radiance forward. They continued along the path. It spiraled upward, with interior wall getting more cracks in it the higher they went. They glanced bubbling pools of magma on the other side.

"Things were great for all of us… until the natural disasters started plaguing the world," Spike-Skull continued.

"I thought Horizon was mostly safe from that stuff," Silvally exclaimed.

"We were. The Tapus did a fine job protecting us," Healer said. "But an earthquake struck the Wastes. And, in the process, multiple volcanoes erupted, including Mount Supernova." She shuddered. "There was nothing we could do to stop the lava. It split the Wastes in half. And, in that desperate scramble, our tribe was split in half. The Salazzles and Salandits were left in the east, where fireballs rained down from the sky and replaced the fertile berry-growing grounds with rock."

Spike-Skull sighed. "My father told me that they tried to get across and help, but the lava rivers proved too harsh. And Mount Supernova wasn't safe to traverse. So, they focused on building a new village. Eventually, they got used to not having any Salazzles or Salandits around. When we finally could cross over, we realized that we didn't have enough land to accommodate the Salazzles and Salandits. So, our Totem at the time struck an agreement."

"An agreement which Mother grew more and more upset with when the years went on," Healer continued. She paused and held her arms out. Healer pointed ahead, where Team Radiance spotted a couple of Emeravagers floating around in the tunnel. Silvally stepped forward and shot a water globs at them, blowing them apart. He waved the group onward. They continued on the path as it went sharply uphill. The gaps in the interior wall grew larger, exposing more of the bubbling magma down below.

"The magma level's rising!" Shane gasped. "It's not that far away from us. I don't think we have that much time." He quickened his pace, looking nervously over his shoulder.

"It should be alright," Healer insisted. "Even with the mountain unstable, it would take a solid half hour for the magma to rise from that point to where we are. And we still have a bit more of a climb."

Espeon sighed in relief. "So, how did your tribes end up switching places, then?" she asked.

Healer and Spike-Skull exchanged frowns. "Dark Matter," they replied in unison.

Espeon's look of relief vanished. Her tail shot between her legs. "What about it?" she squeaked.

"When word of Dark Matter's threat reached Horizon, panic gripped my tribe," Spike-Skull said. "Everyone was fearful. When the guild showed up to evacuate us, nobody even gave it a second thought."

"Mother didn't see things that way," Healer sighed. "She believed that this was a sign from Volcanion that the fertile land in the west was rightfully ours. Instead of fleeing underground, she ordered us all to march into the Western Tribe's village and occupy it for ourselves." She fidgeted with her choker. "When the Western Tribe came out of hiding, we sprang an attack on them."

Spike-Skull's shoulders sagged. "There was nothing we could do. We gave up and fled to the unoccupied land in the east. After that, our Totem tried to negotiate with Totem Salazzle. She would dismiss him every time."

"And Mother was not as eager to supply the Pokémon she viewed as enemies with any berries that we grew," Healer added. "Needless to say, tensions rose very quickly."

"Soon, our Totem was making attempts to take the land back by force. But we couldn't deal with their toxic attacks, so eventually we gave up," Spike-Skull exclaimed. He shot a nervous look over at Healer. "Err… no offense."

"None taken," the Salazzle assured him. "I'm aware of my species… reputation." She placed a hand on her hip. "The gods gave me these powerful pheromones. And I'd rather use them for love… not war."

Shane made an audible gagging noise. Tessa elbowed him in the ribs with a disapproving look. "Hey, don't elbow me. We both know what she said was so stupidly mushy it borders on cliché. And… it's probably double entendre, too." He shuddered.

"You know, you could stand to learn something from her about how to make connections with those around you, Vulpix," Espeon said icily. "If you were a Salazzle, I bet you'd be using those pheromones nonstop."

Shane's ears drooped. "I thought we'd moved past our little misunderstanding."

Espeon again stumbled to her right, earning an annoyed look from Silvally. She composed herself and pointed her snout skyward. "If that was really the case, then why do you keep slowing down when you catch up to me?" she asked.

Shane's tails shot into the air and he shrank backwards. He saddled up to Silvally, trying to position himself in a way so that he couldn't see Espeon's and Tessa's disappointed looks. Silvally smirked. "Forgive me for being blunt, but I don't think it's a good idea to dodge Espeon by ducking behind my rear. You're kind of just proving her point." He turned and gave him a wink, adding, "Not that I don't appreciate the flattery or anything. If you really want to see the exciting stuff, you'll have to wait until we can find some privacy."

Shane came to an abrupt stop and looked away, face cherry red and left eye twitching. _'Okay, it's official. This_ is _the most humiliating day of my life.'_ He gritted his teeth and looked ahead toward his Marowak and Salazzle guides. "Hey, how much further do we have to go, anyway?"

Spike-Skull suddenly disappeared behind a rock wall, leaving Shane to tilt his head curiously. He poked his head out about a minute later, beckoning the group forward. "I see the path leading up to the volcano's mouth. It's right through this tunnel."

Team Radiance followed their guides through a hot, rocky cavern much like the one that had brought them inside the mountain. Fewer cracks ran through the foundations and those that did only vented off jets of heat and the occasional ember. Shane still went through it as quickly as he could, looking increasingly uncomfortable with each jet of heat he ran across.

The group emerged onto a thin stretch of trail. Tessa gulped at the sight of the long, steep drop in front of her. The volcano's base was no longer visible, lost amid a sea of thick black smoke and flames. Lava falls inched down the mountainside, giving off occasional fireballs that added to the smoke. Above them, the swirling storm clouds had gotten much closer. Every crackle of lightning now produced an audible, ominous rumbling that sent a chill down Tessa's spine.

"Quickly. Follow me," Spike-Skull said, beckoning the group forward. He guided them along the path as it sloped upward. After a minute of hiking, it flattened out, and Team Radiance found themselves confronted by an intense wall of heat. Their eyes collectively widened as they took in the sight in front of them. The ground sloped downward, giving way to a gigantic hole that led down to the magma they saw bubbling up earlier.

"Beautiful sight, isn't it? It's quite the view to take in when you're all at the end of your ropes!"

"Crap! Serperior beat us up here," Shane groaned.

"Ahhhh!" Healer shrieked. "Marowak, look over there!" She tugged on his shoulder and pointed to her right. Team Radiance all looked over their shoulders and immediately tensed up.

"Under Serperior," Shane gasped, "is that…?"

Spike-Skull nodded. "It is. That fiend got Volcanion."

* * *

Review reply time!

Another guest: Yes, younger Gallian is a big bundle of nerves. I imagine most Absols are perpetually anxious because of their disaster senses. Probably why they live in secluded mountains.

SuperOmegaGuest: Well, corn definitely exists. And fire-types can heat up that corn. Therefore, popcorn must exist!

Veralix: Bonus parts are always on the short side, including this last one. It was just supposed to be a quiet little conversation.

Anon Omega: Nobody can touch you because you're a guest account, so I think you're safe. I wasn't expecting everyone to be on board with this. That's why it involves side characters and not the main characters. Regarding time passage, you're doing exactly what Necrozma said not to: thinking linearly. There is no correlation between the flow of time in the PMD world and human world. It's completely random, though time generally moves faster in the PMD world.

Next time: after over 60 parts, a moment many of you have been waiting for: a certain someone achieves a feat she thought would be impossible. You don't want to miss this one!


	64. An Explosive Awakening

It's time for a very important chapter. I worked hard on it, so I hope it's to your liking!

* * *

 **Chapter 54: An Explosive Awakening**

Team Radiance stood side by side, tensed and ready to pounce at a moment's notice. Healer and Spike-Skull both wavered, stepping cautiously back toward the path and holding each other's hands. "Why does the Volcano God lack color?" Spike-Skull asked, voice ripe with worry.

"Because I relieved him of his life," Serperior declared, patting the dead Legendary's back with her bladed tail. "He had something I was looking for, see?" She hoisted her tail into the air, revealing a large crystal fragment that shimmered with gold and silver energy.

"The Sizzle Shard!" Shane gasped. "You drop that right now!" He immediately shot a sparkling, multicolored beam ahead of him. But his eyes widened as he noticed the attack weakening before it even reached Serperior. She opened her mouth and, to Team Radiance's abject horror, spewed a torrent of fire. It easily suffocated Shane's ice and sent Team Radiance scurrying back to avoid the flames.

"Simmer down there, hot stuff. Seems to me like you're losing your cool. Wouldn't be the first time, I suppose. You've been nothing but a stuffy little prick since day one, after all," Serperior sneered. "I'll be honest… from the day I met you, I've wanted to wrap you up and squeeze you until your head pops off your shoulders."

Shane shuffled backwards, ears folding against his face. _'She doesn't really think that. It's the Prism Virus talking,'_ he told himself.

"And that's not the Prism Virus talking," Serperior said, chuckling. A dumbfounded expression overtook Shane's face. His teammates assumed fighting stances as a cloud of black mist surrounded Serperior. "Sneaking around the veterans' quarters? Going to spy on someone in the shower? You're a creep! And I ought to skin you alive!" She flicked her slender tongue at Shane. "But I'm not about to waste my time with you losers. I've got what I need. So, I'm going to be on my w–"

The mist formed into the shape of a familiar Absol. His glowing-green scythe pierced Serperior's back, causing her to scream in pain and drop the Sizzle Shard. "Gallian?" Tessa gasped, jaw dropping. "What the–? How the–? When did you even get here?" Gallian scooped up the Sizzle Shard and leaped away from Serperior, dodging a retaliatory swipe from her tail. "Wait! What are you doing? We need the Sizzle Shard!"

"No… you don't," Gallian growled, eyes flickering purple. "Your dopey team getting a hold of these would spell disaster for us all! So, buzz off!" He looked over his shoulder and barked, "Do it, Sticky!"

Sticky's head popped up from behind a rocky slab. A small rainbow tile fell to the ground and shattered. Gallian turned to give his sister one last derisive snort before he and the Sizzle Shard disappeared in a bright flash of light. " **No!** " Serperior roared. "You can't be serious here! I did all the hard work. That Dawn Hourglass fragment is mine!" Flames wreathed the end of her tail and she lashed it against the ground, leaving scorch marks. "You explorer-types are nothing but a bunch of lowlife, glory-hogging, _ingrates!_ Nighty was right… you all need to be put in your place!"

"What are you talking about, Serperior? You're supposed to be one of us!" Tessa said, a hurt look in her eyes. "How can you say something like that? What would Primarina say if he saw you acting like this?"

"Aha ha ha ha! You seriously think I care about him anymore?" Serperior gave a dismissive shake of her head. "He's washed up, just like this stale, pathetic world. Once we perfect this place, Team Captivate won't be measly explorers. We'll be the vaunted defense force of a Legendary-free world! The dazzling queens of a beautiful new _reality_." She narrowed her eyes at Team Radiance. "And I'm not about to have a _sniveling_ little Riolu and her sorry excuses for friends stand in my way."

"Hey! That was totally uncalled for," Tessa growled. Blue flames of aura flickered across her paws.

"Oooh, yes. That's good. Get all fired up. It'll make this all the more exciting!" Serperior taunted. She lashed the ground with her tail again.

Before Tessa could respond, however, Shane dashed forward. The gemstone in his Naturia Looplet glowed brightly, surrounding him in orange light. "Not if I have anything to say about it! You don't insult Tessa like that and get away with it!" He hopped into the air. A giant glacier rushed up from the ground to meet him, shooing away volcanic smoke and embers in the process. Shane stood atop the glacier and glared down at Serperior, who twisted her facial features into a sinister smirk.

"Eat this!" Shane hollered, ice swirling around his body. It coalesced into a huge beam that streamed down toward Serperior. She coiled her body up and launched herself back across the face of the volcano. Serperior landed safely on a sloped patch of rock, watching as Shane tried to steer the subzero vortex toward her.

Tessa's aura feelers jolted upright. "It didn't work!" she gasped as Shane's attack died out before it could reach Serperior.

"Aha ha ha ha! What? Nobody said I had to just stand there and take a Z-Move to the face," Serperior said, laughing gleefully. "Why… you'd have to be a complete and total _moron_ to do something that stupid!" She turned her gaze onto Espeon, who wilted at the gesture. "I'm going to thoroughly enjoy this. Say hi to Incineroar for me, Tessa!"

Flames shrouded Serperior's tail and she swiped the air in front of her. A crescent of fireballs launched toward Team Radiance. Espeon's eyes widened and she shot a psychic beam from her forehead gem. It snuffed out two of the fireballs. Silvally blasted apart four more with a pillar of water. But Shane's pink wave missed their mark. He turned to his right and dove on top of Tessa. They fell onto their bellies, watching the fireballs soar over their heads.

"Ouch! Watch it!" Tessa growled, shoving Shane away from her. She rolled back to her feet and looked over to where Serperior had been standing. Her eyes widened. "Wait, she's gone!"

"Auuuugh!"

"Salazzle!"

Alarm overtook Team Radiance's faces. They spun around just in time to see Healer crumple to the ground, with Spike-Skull looking on in horror. A sizeable welt sat on her head, with a small amount of blood trickling down her face. Serperior stood on top of her. Volcanic rock had encrusted her tail blade, transforming it into a molten sledgehammer.

"You fiend!" Spike-Skull roared, brandishing his bone club. Purple shadows encircled it and he threw it at Serperior. She turned around, swinging her tail in the process. It came into contact with the bone club and shattered it into hundreds of white, splintery fragments. Spike-Skull's eyes widened and the fight drained right out of him as the club's remains rolled back toward him.

"Dude, look out!" Shane shouted, breaking into a run. He shot a frigid aurora ahead of him, but it completely evaporated in the sweltering heat. Serperior bore down on Spike-Skull and brought her tail-hammer crashing down onto his skull. A large crack splintered down it and cinders raced down the sides. Spike-Skull dropped to his knees and flopped onto his stomach, unconscious.

"Cut it out, Serperior!" Tessa barked, running up toward her. Silvally dashed ahead, golden light erupting around his torso. Serperior hopped backward and slammed her tail into the ground. A large crack wove its way toward Tessa and Silvally, with orange light spilling out of it. Silvally's eyes widened and he quickly dove to his left, knocking Tessa out of the way. Orange rocks jutted out of the fissure, radiating with fiery energy. Silvally's gathered energy raced down his forelegs, covering them in water. He lashed out at the rocks, shattering them and flinging fiery shards in Serperior's direction. She uncoiled herself and slithered forward, deftly dodging the rocks.

However, this limited her maneuverability, leaving her vulnerable to a Shadow Ball that raced in from her right. Serperior hissed her displeasure but kept up her charge. She coiled back up and opened her mouth, unleashing a stream of fire. Silvally stomped the ground, sending up a plume of water that negated the Flamethrower. Tessa raced out from the hot steam and socked Serperior in the jaw with a glowing fist. Serperior recoiled from the blow, but her tail curled up behind Tessa as she landed. Serperior's tail wrapped Tessa up.

"Nowhere to run," Serperior taunted. The flames on her helmet grew larger and the blue markings all over her body glowed like neon signs. Serperior's tail heated up, torching Tessa. She screamed in pain, prompting Serperior to squeeze her tighter.

"Let her go!" Silvally snarled. His cheek bolts whirred in their sockets and green energy made of tiny glowing bugs bathed his forelegs. He reared up and slashed Serperior's side. The bug energy hurt Serperior enough to get her to slacken her grip. Shane popped up to Serperior's left and screeched at her. Tessa fell to the ground as Serperior skidded back along the volcano's rim. She dug her tail blade into the ground and anchored herself into place. Serperior pointed her head forward and a torrent of flaming leaves raced toward Team Radiance.

"A _flaming_ Leaf Storm? Are you seriously kidding me right now?" Shane whimpered, trying to run outside of the attack's range. He wasn't fast enough to escape. Burning leaves peppered his hide. Shane yipped in pain and fell onto his side, trying to put out the smoldering leaves. Across from him, Silvally had curled up around Tessa, hissing painfully as flaming leaves sliced through his fur. Espeon was the only member of Team Radiance to escape the attack. She fired a retaliatory pink beam toward Serperior. But Serperior pivoted and unleashed another Flamethrower, swallowing up the beam and sending Espeon jumping down from her perch.

"You suckers are making this all too easy!" Serperior gloated. "I don't know how you managed to accomplish much of anything. Especially if this is the best you can do when you actually like each other!"

Silvally got back to his feet and opened his mouth. A multicolored waveform beam raced toward a bewildered Serperior. She dug her tail deeper into the ground and a glowing shard of rock shot up and deflected the attack. Serperior withdrew her tail, allowing molten rock to swirl around it and form up another giant hammer. She smashed the rock, sending flaming chunks toward Team Radiance. Shane's eyes flashed pink and rippling psychic waves smashed several of the rocks apart. Silvally and Tessa charged forward in unison, ducking underneath the rocks.

Serperior's brow furrowed. She turned toward Silvally, figuring him to be more threatening, and swung her tail hammer around. But Silvally screeched to a halt, ceasing the flow of bug energy to his legs and instead shooting air crescents directly into Serperior's face. She swayed back and forth uneasily, groaning in pain. Tessa successfully approached her and hammered her back with her bright-red fists. Serperior flopped onto the ground, tongue falling out of her mouth in the process.

A sudden burst of orange light spilled out from behind Silvally and Tessa. They looked over their shoulders and both blanched. Gigantic, ectoplasmic arms shot up out of the ground. They quickly ran away from Serperior, who had managed to blink the stars out of her vision just in time to see the ghostly limbs crashing down toward her.

" _Noooooo!_ "she roared, before the shadowy arms piled on top of her and erupted in a burst of ghostly energy.

"Wh… what the heck was that?" Tessa gasped.

"Unnngh… s-so that's what using a Z-Move's like…"

Tessa looked over her shoulder to see Espeon stagger out from behind a torn-up portion of the ground. Light faded from her Naturia Looplet, leaving the central gemstone colorless. "Nice work, Espeon!" Silvally chirped. "That was some quick thinking."

"Th… thanks…" she panted. "I figured… if she could dodge the Z-Move… I just needed… to wait… until her guard was down."

Shane's muzzle stiffened. _'I guess I'd be wise to keep that in mind going forward,'_ he thought. He walked toward Espeon. "Are you doing alright? You seem pretty out of it."

"I'm jussssht a bit dazed," Espeon slurred, blinking her eyes rapidly.

"Nnngggrrrgggggghhhaaaaaaa!"

The ground began shaking. Team Radiance all backpedaled in surprise, watching in horror as a portion of the ground gave out before their eyes. A flaming Serperior shot out of the hole in the ground, eyes bright red in rage. She unleashed another bloodthirsty screech.

"B… but that's impossible!" Espeon gasped. "The Z-Move is supposed to cure her of the Prism Virus. That's how it worked for me."

The fire surrounding Serperior swarmed the end of her tail blade, turning it into a giant, flamng falchion. Serperior drove the blade into the ground. Silvally immediately ran forward, a golden wheel of light surrounding him. But he only made if half the distance toward Serperior when a massive flaming vine jutted out of the ground. It speared Silvally's underbelly. He screamed in pain as he careened across the volcano's rim, coming to a stop by the unconscious forms of Healer and Spike-Skull.

"I'm not rolling over for your pathetic little Z-Moves!"Serperior snarled. Flames danced around her body and shot down into the hole made by her tail blade.

"Everyone… run!" Shane screamed and bolted from his location. Tessa and Espeon both shot off in opposite directions. Espeon looked back in horror as another flame-coated vine shot out of the ground where she had previously stood. Her fear intensified as a second vine shot up even closer to her. She turned back around, only to feel the ground give way beneath her paws. Flames spread across her lower torso, followed closely by one of Serperior's vines jutting out of the ground. It speared Espeon's groin, triggering a shrill wail of pain. Espeon sailed through the air and crashed into the ground, writhing in agony.

Similar pained cries echoed across the rim, as Serperior struck Tessa and Shane with another set of vines. Shane's legs trembled and he collapsed onto the ground, eyes widened in shock. Tessa fell to one knee, clutching the burnt fur on her chest in pain. "S… Serperior. Please… stop this! You've got to fight it!"

"I don't _want_ to resist this!"Serperior crooned. "You're all a bunch of fools. Fighting a battle for a group of 'mons who don't give a lick about any of you!" She yanked her tail blade out of the ground and dusted debris off her body. "You should just give up. Mistress Zero has no desire to hurt normal Pokémon. If you'd just stand aside and let her do her job, we'd finally know what _real_ peace and happiness are like. You could make friendships that actually matter. Not flimsy little ones where you wander around dungeons and cry into each other's arms every night!"

"That's a load of crock and you know it!" Silvally snarled, dashing forward in leaps and bounds. Tessa looked at the burnt patches of fur on his underbelly and winced. But she saw Silvally's eyes glowing and his cheek bolts sparking in their sockets. He uttered a battle cry and thrust his head forward. A flurry of wind blades darted toward Serperior.

Her eyes flashed red and she swung her tail blade around. A trail of fireballs arced ahead of her, burning through Silvally's attack. This only intensified his anger. Silvally roared and fired a waveform beam at Serperior. She retaliated with a Flamethrower. The two Pokémon engaged in a beam struggle, only for it to break off as a wayward pink laser struck Serperior's backside. She screeched her displeasure, but the sounds were hastily drowned out when Silvally's beam struck her lower jaw.

Shane staggered forward, clumsily firing a psychic blast that served to upend Serperior. He cast a glance at Tessa. "What are you waiting for? You've got the only working Naturia Looplet. Use your Z-Move!"

"W… what? Right now?" Tessa squeaked. She looked at her right arm and stared into the glowing gem on her looplet. "But… but I thought it's not working."

"I guess we need to use a Z-Move to make her faint. That's how we freed Espeon and Umbreon," Shane said. He looked over and saw Serperior meeting Silvally's water-coated talons with her tail blade. The two clashed their appendages together and bounced back, staring at each other with vicious hatred spread across their faces. "Come on! Don't just stand there… hurry up!"

"I'm trying! I'm trying!" Tessa insisted. "C'mon… work you stupid thing." She bonked the looplet with her left paw, but it didn't respond. "How did you get yours to work, huh?"

Shane gave her an incredulous look. "Are you serious here? I don't know! You just… uh… gotta think about it or something." He looked back as Silvally's pained roar echoed across the mountaintop. Shane flinched at the sight of black blood staining his friend's chest plume. Serperior glanced at the blood on her tail blade and smiled.

"Some God Killer you turned out to be," she taunted.

"Shut up! I can't believe you'd do this to us! You make me sick!" Silvally shouted.

"The feeling's mutual, _freak!_ " Serperior spat. "You guys are a bunch of blind, sorry _nobodies!_ Honestly, you four probably have the single worst track record I've ever seen for an exploration t– AUUUGH!"

Air blades battered Serperior, slicing through her leafy scales and coating her body in nicks. "Oh, I'm sorry, did I interrupt you?" Silvally said mockingly. "It's just… I was worried if I didn't do something, all this heat would make that swell head of yours pop."

A vein bulged out of Serperior's forehead. "Well, aren't you a little jokester? Let's see you say something funny when I rip your tongue out of your mouth!" She slammed the ground with her tail and spires of glowing rock shot up. Shane and Espeon darted forward, each firing off explosive pink blasts. Horror took over Serperior's face as she watched Silvally leap through the dusty remnants of her failed attack. The golden wheel around his body burst into microcurrents of air that swished around his forelegs. He raked Serperior's face with his claws, sending her to the ground, squirming about in pain.

Shane stepped to the side. "Now, Tessa!"

Tessa's aura feelers jolted stiff in surprise. "I… I… I…" she stammered, looking down at her looplet. The gem briefly sparked, only to return to its normal, soft glow. "I can't do it!"

Shane stamped a forepaw on the ground. "Yes, you can. Don't think of this as your old friend. Think of it as Necrozma! Think of it as the guy keeping your mom prisoner!"

Tessa looked up at Serperior, trying to channel the mental image that Shane spoke of. But to her horror, Serperior got back up, forcing Tessa's teammates to flee and dodge an explosive burst of fire that erupted around Serperior.

"Aha ha ha! Please… you're relying on _Tessa_ to finish the job? How stupid can you possibly be, huh? Look at her! She's the walking definition of weak. A spineless little runt who wants everyone to feel sorry for how sad her pathetic little life is. She's a disgrace to her mom– no, her whole species!" Serperior locked eyes with Tessa, flames gathering in her mouth. Tessa squeaked and slammed her eyes shut, thinking back to similar sentiments that Shane had voiced about her during the Mellath Bog mission.

"Th… that's…" Tessa whimpered, paws quivering.

An enraged roar from Silvally cut her off. He charged Serperior, a killer look in his eyes, but she whirled around and fired the Flamethrower intended for Tessa at him instead. Silvally skidded to a halt and his blue eyes flashed. A water geyser erupted underneath him, carrying him over the Flamethrower to Serperior's shock. Espeon sniped her from behind with another psychic beam, leaving her vulnerable as the water crashed into her from above, carrying Silvally with it.

Black shadows coated Silvally's beak and he bit down on Serperior's neck. He thrust his head into the air and started jerking it back and forth, whipping Serperior about as if she were a balled-up sock.

"Silvally, stop! _Stop!_ " Shane shouted, running over toward him. "We're not trying to kill her, remember? If we push her too hard, she'll have the life drained from her like the other infected Pokémon."

Silvally froze. His pupils expanded out from their feral slits. He slackened his jaw and released Serperior onto the ground, blood trickling from his beak. She violently coughed up a mouthful of blood and tunneled underground, to Team Radiance's surprise. "Are you kidding me? All that and she's still not backing down?" Shane groaned. "C'mon, Tessa! We need you to pull through right now!" He shot a pleading look back at his teammate.

"I can't do it!" Tessa blurted out, tears streaming down her eyes. "I don't know how! She's right… I just…" She lowered her head. "I'm too weak."

"Ex… actly…"

Tessa's aura feelers shivered. She looked up to see Serperior leaning against Volcanion, panting hard. The bite marks on her neck had closed up, leaving dry splotches of red on her scales. "Aha… ha… see? I knew it. You four… you're never gonna succeed. You don't… have the stomach for this. If you were really… committed to protecting… your precious gods… you'd have done me in." She looked down at Volcanion. "But you blew it. And if I can't have… the Dawn Shard…" Her expression darkened. "Then you and the rest of this valley can _burn!_ "

She spun around and clubbed Volcanion with her tail-blade. His corpse tumbled down the rim of Mount Supernova, falling into the bubbling magma. " _No!_ " Shane shouted, eyes widening in horror. "What have you done?"

 _Ruuuuuuuuuuuumble!_

Shane fell onto his stomach and bounced around on the ground. "W-W-What's g-g-g-going on-n-n-n?" he asked, the ground's vibrations making him stutter.

"What's going on is that this volcano's about to blow sky high! I'm gonna flood the Wastes with lava. And all you worthless Legendary-worshippers will drown in it!" Serperior shouted. "Enjoy the spirit realm, assholes!" She produced an ominous black sphere with the winged heart insignia. Serperior slammed it onto the ground and a black Ultra Wormhole swallowed her up.

Espeon sprinted toward Tessa, panic strewn across her face. "The volcano's gonna blow! Quick, we've got to use an Escape Orb and get out of here!" Before Tessa had the chance to respond to that, the item in question appeared in Espeon's mouth. She spat it onto the ground and destroyed it with a forepaw.

As light started surrounding the six Pokémon to carry them off the mountain, Tessa's gaze fell to the ground. _'This is all my fault,'_ she thought. _'My teammates were counting on me… and I failed them big time!'_

* * *

 **~Volcanic Rim~**

"Dear gods! What happened to you all?"

Torkoal ran at Team Radiance, looking aghast at the group's sorry state. "M… Marowak!" she cried. "Are you okay? Say something, man!"

"What are you doing here?" Shane asked. "I thought the tribes were trying to evacuate." Behind him, Tessa tended to Silvally's wounds with mushed bits of oran berry. Espeon hovered over the unconscious forms of Spike-Skull and Healer, pushing Reviver Seeds into their mouths and an oran berry onto Healer's swollen head. They both sat up, clearly looking dazed.

"The Totem ordered me to wait here in case you all returned. They're still gathering the necessary supplies to–"

"What?! No way, forget it! This volcano's about to blow! You've all gotta get out of here right now!" Shane hollered.

 _KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!_

The ground shook so violently that everyone except Silvally fell down. Torkoal looked up at the peak of the volcano and her legs flailed about in a panic. "Th… the volcano!" she shrieked. "Oh, gods… it's not just erupting. It's _exploding!_ "

Lava didn't merely spew out from Mount Supernova's mouth. Cracks and fissures appeared across the mountainside. Lava geysers burst forth from the inside, blowing apart chunks of rock and sending them hurtling down into the lava pools below. "Ahhh!" Shane's tails shot between his legs. "What are we gonna do? Where do we go? We've gotta get out of here!"

"B… but the villages…" Torkoal muttered. "We're not ready to leave. The Totems are still helping our tribe."

"Wait, does that mean Mother's with the Western Tribe?" Healer asked. Torkoal nodded and Healer's eyes widened. "We can't just leave everyone here. We have to do something!" She looked around at the group of assembled Pokémon. "Please… outsiders. I realize I have no place to ask you for assistance. But I must save my family!" She looked over at Spike-Skull. "I must protect our tribes."

Silvally looked at the lava pouring out of the volcano. "I think I have an idea," he said, glancing at Shane's Naturia Looplet and noting the color had returned to its gemstone. "We transported to a new area. So, all your Z-Moves are back!"

"How does that help with anything?" Shane said, hopping in place with a panicked expression on his face.

"We can block the lava!" Silvally declared. "Shane and Tessa will go to the Eastern Tribe. Shane's giant iceberg thingy could cool down the lava and stop it from burning their village. Meanwhile, Espeon and I will go with you three to the Western Tribe. That attack Espeon used when we were fighting Serperior might be able to blast the lava away."

"I'm not sure I really like this idea," Espeon whimpered.

The ground started rumbling again. Everyone looked up and noticed the amount of lava making its way down the mountain growing steadily larger. "There's no time to debate this one! Everyone needs to get going _now!_ " Silvally ordered. He shoved Shane and Tessa down the path leading to the Eastern Tribe's village. Both of them ran along the path, their eyes remaining fixed on the metaphorical rival of hot, molten death streaming down toward them.

"Ohhh… this is terrible!" Tessa cried, throwing her paws up over her eyes and shaking her head. "Why did I have to just freeze up like that? We could've avoided this!"

"Hey!"

Tessa's aura feelers tensed in surprised. She poked her digits apart to see Shane looking back at her disapprovingly. "Don't say stuff like that! Serperior was lying through her teeth to throw you off!"

"Well, then it worked! Which means it's true!" Tessa retorted. "I couldn't do a thing to help you guys in that battle. All because I can't attack if I'm not in close range. Serperior's right… I'm useless to the team like this!"

The duo had reached the village. Shane ran up toward the edge of the plateau and looked down. Lava was quickly filling up the ravine that used to sit between the village and the mountain. He shot a glance back at Tessa. Her face was a mix of defeat and dread. "Tessa! Look at me!" he shouted, jolting her to attention.

"H-huh? What is it?"

"I don't care what Serperior or any Prism Virus Pokémon says! Silvally told me something yesterday. Even with all the ups and downs, we've made it this far _together_. And it's going to stay that way!" Shane declared.

Orange light surrounded his body. The various Salandits and Salazzles scurrying away from the mountain in terror paused and looked back with widened eyes as a giant glacier hoisted Shane up off the ground. Frozen air spilled out in front of the giant slab of ice, flash-freezing the surface of the lava. The ice rapidly melted and the lava crusted over, abruptly coming to a stop.

Shane launched his massive ice storm, sweeping it along the side of the mountain and freezing over the lava pouring down the mountainside. Like the lava filling up the ravine, the ice melted away, revealing massive baubles of igneous rock sprouting out from the mountain like pimples protruding from skin. Steam and smog rose into the air, swirling around each other to thicken the storm clouds lying over the mountain.

Tessa's jaw slackened as the glacier melted away. The cold water rushed down into the ravine and snaked its way toward the mountain's entrance, crusting over the lava in the process. Shane staggered backwards but managed to remain standing.

"S… see?" He shakily turned toward Tessa and gave her a smile. "As long as I've got you around… I'm not backing down. Not anymore. I'm… I'm gonna try to do a little better… every day."

Blood rushed into Tessa's cheeks. She bit down on one of her digits and looked to her left, where the assembled lizards of the Eastern Tribe had burst into applause. Many of the Salandits were hugging each other, while some of the Salazzles scooped up their unevolved brethren and smothered them in big hugs.

* * *

 **~Eastern Volcanic Wastes~**

"I cannot _believe_ you manipulated me into this!" Totem Salazzle screamed, shoving Totem Marowak away from her. All around her, the members of the Western Tribe piled things into baskets and wooden boxes. They started running away from the mountain, with Spike-Skull directing them toward the hills overlooking the southern part of the village. "You've sentenced us to death!"

"Mother, control yourself!" Healer shouted, pulling her off of Totem Marowak. "This isn't the time for exchanging petty insults. We have to help the outsiders stop the lava flow or we're all going to die!"

"Stop it? _Stop it?!_ Look at it!" Totem Salazzle pointed up toward the mountain. "That is not just an eruption. That is the very foundation of the mountain crumbling. Not even Volcanion could stand up to that. We would need Groudon to come to our rescue!"

"That kind of talk will doom us to the spirit realm," Totem Marowak shouted, slamming his bone club down. "We don't have any other choice here. Our tribes _need_ us. It's time we used these Totem Crystals for what they were intended for." He extended a hand toward her. "Now, are you with me or not?"

Totem Salazzle looked over to see Silvally and Espeon standing on a ridge facing the mountain. Light from Espeon's Naturia Looplet spread across her body. Her eyes turned bright orange and she flicked her head and tail skyward. Gigantic ectoplasmic arms funneled out of the ground and launched toward the oncoming lava. They started to form up a large dome around the lava.

Worry spread across Espeon's face. "I don't think this is going to be strong enough to work, Silvally!" she cried.

Totem Salazzle took Totem Marowak's hand. Their Totem Crystals flared up with bright light in unison and they sprinted toward Espeon. Bright orange auras appeared around their bodies, matching the one Espeon struggled to maintain. They took their positions beside her. Totem Marowak raised his bone club skyward as shadow-fire engulfed it. "Hear me, spirits! I call upon you! Give me strength so we may defend our home!"

He drove his bone club into the ground. The instant it struck, a fresh wave of spectral arms launched forward, joining the pile made by Espeon. It swelled up, trapping even more of the lava trying to flow down into the village. Totem Salazzle released her grip on Totem Marowak's hand and turned around. Her tail flaps opened up and sickly-purple juices bubbled up on the end of her tail. The toxins dribbled onto the ground, forming a circle around Totem Salazzle. She spun her tail around, launching the circle of poison directly at the giant pile of swirling arms.

The toxins reached the large hill of ghost energy just as it exploded. Totem Salazzle thrust her tail upward and the ring transformed into a massive whirlpool, drawing in the lava that hadn't been destroyed by the ectoplasmic blast. Espeon and Silvally backed away slowly, eyes widening as Totem Salazzle's poisonous whirlpool swallowed up the lava and dragged it down into the ravine. The lava quickly crusted over, removing any lingering toxins and leaving nothing but thick clouds of black smoke behind.

Totem Salazzle staggered backward. Her Marowak counterpart immediately appeared at her side, catching her before she collapsed onto the ground. Totem Salazzle's eyes widened at the gesture. "Y… you! I can't believe you're doing this after you manipulated me!"

"I'm sorry I had to resort to using Attract like that," Totem Marowak exclaimed. "But it was a desperate situation."

"And look at what happened under your guidance. Everything spiraled out of control. If not for my help… we all would have perished!" Totem Salazzle exclaimed. "I–"

"That's quite enough, Mother!"

Totem Salazzle stood back up, watching Healer run up toward her with Spike-Skull at her side. "Don't you get it? The two of you working together… that's what made the difference!" Healer declared. "You combined your Z-Power with the outsider's and saved us from a catastrophe. How can you possibly stand there and continue to judge the Western Tribe so harshly? It wasn't that long ago that we all lived together. There are good Pokémon amongst this tribe. There are," she continued, reaching out and clutching Spike-Skull's hand, "Pokémon that I _love_ here."

Totem Salazzle's jaw dropped. She stared at her daughter and then at Spike-Skull. She continued swiveling her head between the two of them, saying nothing. Totem Marowak stepped in front of her. "You are not the only one at fault here," he said. "I foolishly let this status quo persist for the sake of my own pride. But perhaps the young ones are right. Perhaps it's time we put this sorry feud behind us."

"But… but my people. How can I hope to keep them fed?"

"Well, this might sound silly," Silvally interjected, poking is head between the two Totems, "but in the process of stopping the lava, we turned that ravine into a gigantic stretch of land."

Both Totems went wide-eyed and turned around. Totem Salazzle walked up toward what had been the edge of the ravine. "There's mostly igneous rock," she said.

"But there's bound to be sediment mixed in there. Which makes that land a good candidate to use for growing more food," Totem Marowak exclaimed.

Totem Salazzle looked stunned. She slowly nodded. "Yes… you're right. Why, I think this could even double the size of the fertile land we have in the western half of the Volcanic Wastes." She looked over at Totem Marowak. "But what does this mean? It's so close to the mountain. Wouldn't it be too dangerous?"

They looked up at the mountain. The once proud peak that jutted majestically into the sky had collapsed on itself. Now it was just an extremely large pile of uneven, pitch-black rocks. "The mountain…" Totem Salazzle whispered.

"It's entirely possible that last eruption may have caused such a tremendous outpouring of energy that there are few, if any, ley lines left," Espeon said, her brow furrowed. "I'm… honestly not sure what that would mean. But we have a way to get in touch with Tapu Bulu. He could come investigate this."

The Totems exchanged astonished looks, only for Totem Marowak to hold up a hand. "That would explain the use of Z-Power," he muttered. "So, the Tapus have judged you worthy." He let out a sigh. "You'll have to forgive us. It would seem we made some pretty boneheaded decisions today."

"It's in the past," Silvally said. "Why don't we go regroup with the Eastern Tribe? Then you guys can start talking about how you're going to move forward."

Totem Marowak nodded. "I'd say that's a splendid idea."

* * *

 **~Western Volcanic Wastes~**

Tessa helped Shane back toward the Eastern Tribe's village. "I'm fine. I can walk myself over," he insisted. But when he tried to step away from Tessa, he stumbled. Shane would've face planted had Tessa not managed to grab two of his tails and keep him from falling over. Shane yipped, uncomfortable with having such a sensitive area grabbed.

"You're not fine, Shane," Tessa scolded. "You've used two Z-Moves pretty close to one another. And that's on top of battling Serperior and climbing the volcano. You must be exhausted." She pulled an elixir from the team's item bag. "Here. This should help you get some of your kick back."

Shane graciously accepted the vial and gulped down its tangy, glowing contents. The empty elixir dissolved into thin air. Shane nodded his thanks to Tessa. "So, I guess we should find Espeon and Silvally. We have to figure out our next move, after all."

Tessa flinched, recalling Gallian swooping in and scooping up the Sizzle Shard. _'If we're going to gather them all, then I'm gonna have to face down Gallian again.'_ She gulped.

"Hey, what's the problem?" Shane asked. "Wait… you're worried about Gallian, aren't you?"

"How did you–?"

 _Ruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuumble!_

The Salandits and Salazzles stopped cheering. They turned back toward the remains of Mount Supernova, as did Shane and Tessa. "But… but we stopped the eruption from spreading over the village! How could there possibly still be something wrong?" Shane shouted.

"I don't know. Maybe it's some sort of earthquake?" Tessa proposed, worry plastered across her face. A new crack suddenly appeared in the mountain's remains. It grew wider and wider until it burst apart, launching a gigantic volcanic meteor down toward the Wastes.

Shane backed away. "No, no, _no!_ After all that… the village is _still_ going down!" He turned to Tessa and the Eastern Tribe Pokémon. "We've gotta run east! If we're lucky, we might get out of the blast range!" He sprinted past his teammate, heading for the Volcanic Rim. "C'mon, Tessa! What are you doing?"

Tessa stood facing the ridge, watching the meteor slowly drift down toward her. She slammed her eyes shut and balled her paws up into fists. _'This isn't fair!'_ she thought. _'Every day…_ every _mission. No matter how hard we try – how much we struggle – it doesn't make a difference. We always end up coming up short! And I'm tired of it!'_

She thought of Gallian swooping in and taking the Sizzle Shard, telling Team Radiance to buzz off. Then mental images of Serperior and Totem Salazzle appeared.

 _She is but a child! Even if she is female, her opinion is not worth my time and energy. Perhaps if she were a Lucario, her words might hold meaning. But the day I trust a baby Pokémon is the day I turn over my Totem Crystal._

 _Aha ha ha! Please… you're relying on_ Tessa _to finish the job? How stupid can you possibly be, huh? Look at her! She's the walking definition of weak. A spineless little runt who wants everyone to feel sorry for how sad her pathetic little life is._

' _Everyone keeps calling me useless,'_ Tessa thought. _'Team Radiance can barely tread water… and I can't even hold my own in battle. Tapu Lele nearly killed me. And I couldn't even do anything against Serperior…'_

But then the mental images dissolved. In their place, Tessa imagined Shane standing in front of her.

 _Silvally told me something yesterday. Even with all the ups and downs, we've made it this far_ together _. And it's going to stay that way!_

' _My teammates,'_ Tessa thought. _'My friends! Even with how bad things have gotten, they still haven't given up on me…'_

"That's _enough!_ " she shouted. Her eyes opened up, revealing vibrant blue irises that flickered like a campfire. "I'm tired of not being able to do anything in these situations! My teammates are right! I'm not weak! I'm… I'm… _a strong explorer!_ " Blue flames encased Tessa's paws and her Naturia Looplet flared to life, bathing her in orange light. "I am _not_ having another day end in complete failure!"

"Tessa, what are you doing?!" Shane cried, watching in horror as his teammate charged toward the edge of the ridge.

The orange glow around her intensified. A war cry escaped Tessa's lips and she leaped into the air. Tessa proceeded to rapidly punch and kick the air in front of her. Each move she made resulted in a giant hand or foot made of raw orange energy speeding forward. The giant constructs struck the meteor one after the other, leaving multiple large welts and cracks that quickly connected to one another.

With the meteor baring down on Tessa, she wound up and punched the air in front of her as hard as she could. A massive fist of orange energy shot forward like a comet, with a trail of aura streaming behind it. The final fist connected with the center of the meteor, obliterating it before it could strike Tessa. She dropped to the ground, orange steam rising off her body.

"Oh my god. Tessa, that was _amazing!_ " Shane fawned, running toward her. He slowed his pace, however, as he noticed that Tessa's orange aura failed to die down. Instead she took two shaky steps forward, and then fell to her paws and knees. "Tessa? Is something wrong?"

Tessa buried her face in the dirt and screamed in agony. White light swallowed her up, orange aura and all. Shane's muzzle went agape. "Th… that light," he gasped. "Tessa… she's…" But Tessa's cries of pain caused Shane to stagger backwards. He stared dumbstruck at the glowing white sphere laying in front of him as it doubled in size. "Tessa! Say something!" he shouted.

He took one cautious step toward his teammate, only for the light to fade. When it did, the Riolu he had come to know was gone. Tessa's rainbow scarf lay in the dirt. And kneeling beside it was a Lucario. A Lucario with an extra tuft of fur over each ear, rings of black fur around her tail, and aura feelers that went all the way down to her shoulder blades.

"Tessa, you did it! You evolved! You're a Lucario!" Shane cheered, a big grin erupting across his face. He ran toward Tessa, expecting to embrace her. But he skidded to a halt when he saw her fix her wide-eyed gaze on the blue aura flames flickering in her paws. "T… Tessa?" he squeaked. "Is everything all right?"

Tessa slowly opened her muzzle, but all that escaped was a weak cough. Her eyes rolled back in her head and she toppled over, face hitting the dirt.

" _Tessa!_ " Shane cried, tails shooting up in alarm. He sprinted up to his teammate and nudged her repeatedly with his snout. "Wake up! Wake up! C'mon, this isn't funny!" He looked up and noticed the Salandits and Salazzles looking over in confusion. His ears twitched and he realized he could hear footsteps in the distance.

"Heeeeeeey!" he shouted, waving a forepaw. "Somebody… anybody… _help!_ "

* * *

 **Fiery Maiden, Ultra** **Serperior  
** _Exposure to the Prism Virus flooded Serperior's life energy with raging wildfire, resulting in her gaining the fire-type, alongside a hair-trigger temper. She now wields powerful magic, letting her tap into the earth's volcanic core and use it to mold attacks no average Pokémon is capable of. Little does she know, her body is filled with napalm from an explosive Ultra Beast. If she pushes herself too hard, the napalm will spontaneously combust, bringing a violent end to her life. Be careful, Team Radiance!_

* * *

Yup, that just happened. What? You thought the happiness evolution would be sunshine and rainbows? What fic do you think you're reading here? Aha ha... ha... ha. Maybe I should just get to the reviews.

Another guest: lots of crazy stuff in this episode, yes. If only I could've had these chapters coming out around Valentine's Day.

Anon Omega: I think what the pheromones smell light are best left to the imagination.

SuperOmegaGuest: I imagine popcorn would just get sold at a store, like a Kecleon Shop.

Veralix: you're welcome to theorize whatever, but I can't just alter the story to do that. That'd be a bit weird.

And some reviews from other chapters. Hopefully you folks see these responses, because I have no other way to contact you if you don't have an account...

I only eat meat: bonus chapters are optional, so don't feel compelled to read them. Sorry the main cast isn't to your liking, but I can't please everyone.

Striker: glad to hear you're enjoying things. I can't really say what'll happen to any of the characters, alive or dead. If I did, you wouldn't have a reason to keep reading. You'll have to stick around and find out.

Shawn vermilion: I'm flattered, but I don't really think there's any way to work for them. Especially since I don't know any Japanese.

Phew, that's it. Next time: some serious changes need to be grappled with.


	65. Literal Growing Pains

Thanks again for all the support, everyone. It means quite a lot. Enjoy the next chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 55: Literal Growing Pains**

Everything moved quickly after Tessa passed out. Silvally and Espeon came over from the other side of the Volcanic Wastes, bringing the Totems and the Western Tribe along with them. The cheerful reunions and celebrations were immediately put on hold when they spotted Shane panicking. His teammates descended on Tessa, with Spike-Skull and Healer following right behind them. Even Totem Salazzle looked alarmed at the sight of an unconscious Lucario lying on the ground, aura feelers spasming wildly.

Silvally scooped Tessa up while Spike-Skull grabbed her now soot-covered scarf. Healer tugged Silvally's neck and gestured toward one of the houses made of igneous rock. As they ran toward the house, Healer started barking orders for Pokémon to gather berries, towels, and rags soaked in water. Shane immediately ran off with Totem Salazzle and Totem Marowak, desperately hoping to get the supplies necessary to help his ailing teammate.

 _'I don't understand,'_ he thought as he watched Totem Salazzle emerge from her home with a handful of blankets and rags, _'evolution is supposed to be a good thing! The games celebrate it with fanfare. The anime had whole episodes dedicated to evolving… with triumphant music and everything!'_ Tessa's agonized cries flashed through his mind like a bolt of lightning. A mental image of her horrified face stared back at him. Shane shuddered and squeezed his eyes shut. _'Why can't something good happen to Tessa for once? She deserves it, damn it!'_

"Outsider."

Shane's ears pointed straight up. He found Totem Salazzle looking right at him. "I can see the worry for your lea– err, for your _friend_ in your eyes. You must keep a level head. My daughter has nursed many in our tribe back to health. Lucario is in good hands." She held the rags in front of her. "Now, would you please douse these in your Frost Breath?"

"Y-yes! Of course," Shane squeaked. He released a cloud of icy air. It made it right up to the rags before the thick volcanic heat choked the attack, leaving the rags soaked in water. Totem Salazzle nodded and dashed off toward Healer's house. Shane followed hot on her heels. He entered the house and found Tessa lying on a straw bed, her rainbow scarf draped over a chair in the back of the room.

Healer stood beside her at a table, mashing up berries with a mortar and pestle. Spike-Skull coated the tip of his bone club in a colorless, sparkling gel. He proceeded to rub the club against Tessa's neck.

Tessa initially tensed, before her breathing steadied out. "What's going on? Why did she pass out like this? Is she going to be okay?" Shane asked. "What can I do to help?"

"Peace, outsider," Healer whispered, raising a hand. "You are giving off far too much nervous energy. That will complicate the healing process."

Shane whined softly and looked down. Silvally stepped to Shane's side and nudged him. "She's going to be okay," he assured her

"You don't know that for a fact," Shane said meekly. He looked up at Healer. "Please," he croaked, "let me do something to help. _Anything!_ "

"Fan her with your tails."

Shane blinked in confusion. "I beg your pardon?"

"You are a Vulpix," Healer said. "Your tails give off chilled air. Lucario is burning up right now. And the hot air of the Wastes will only make it harder for me to help her. Fan her head with your tails. We have to try and cool her off."

Shane nodded his understanding. He hopped up onto the table and took a look at Tessa. Even though she was unconscious, a grimace lay across her face. Her aura feelers twitched erratically, making Shane's heart skip a beat. He turned around and moved his tails up and down in unison.

"You're going to have to do it faster than that," Spike-Skull harrumphed.

Shane intensified his efforts. He looked over his shoulder and his spirits lifted at the sight of chilled air emerging from his tails and gently drifting across Tessa's face. Spike-Skull applied more of the gel around her neck. Tessa's breathing slowed down further. Healer nodded her approval and walked over with some of the wet blankets. She wrapped them around Tessa, leaving only her waist exposed. Shane watched as the twitches in Tessa's aura feelers gradually subsided.

"I think that's enough," Healer exclaimed, waving Shane off. She took one of her last remaining rags and wrung out a pair of berries over it. She placed the berry-soaked rag on Tessa's forehead and pressed down firmly. Healer snapped her fingers and pointed to the smaller of the two bowls sitting on her table. Shane leaped onto the table and scooped it up in his mouth. In the process, his rainbow scarf fell off. Spike-Skull grabbed it and tossed it over by Tessa's.

"Okay, what now?" Shane asked as Healer held the small bowl up toward Tessa's snout. She swirled the green powder inside it around. Tessa inhaled some vapors and descended into a coughing fit. Shane's tails shot up in panic. "How is that helping her?" he growled.

"Patience, outsider," Healer chided. "I have tended to something like this before. Please, just take a deep breath before you start making _me_ nervous." Shane frowned but backed off and did as Healer instructed. "Good. Now, please get me the other bowl from my table," Healer requested. Silvally started to approach the bowl, but Shane once again jumped to the table. He picked up the bowl, hopped back onto the straw bed, and walked the bowl up to Healer.

"Thank you," Healer said. "However, I'm afraid that's all I can have you do. This next part is extremely sensitive and I must ask that you and your friends step outside and wait."

"Why?" Shane asked.

"It's essential that this berry juice mixture get into Lucario's body," Healer exclaimed. "But since she's unconscious, I can't simply have her drink it." She took a deep breath. "So, I'm going to need to use an… ahem… _alternative method_."

Espeon's and Silvally's expressions both blanched and they walked out of the room without a second thought. Shane still didn't understand, however. "What exactly is that supposed to mean, huh?" he asked.

Healer sighed and rubbed her temples. She leaned over and whispered to Shane. When she finished, Shane's tails shot up in alarm and then curled against his hips. He jumped off of the bed and ran out the door without looking back. Shane found his teammates waiting for him outside. He looked back at Healer's home and whimpered, "Why did this have to happen to Tessa?"

Silvally frowned. "Because, despite our best efforts, bad things happen to good Pokémon." He hung his head. "I think I'd know better than anyone else. Still…" He locked eyes with Shane. "Tessa's tough. She's going to make it through this. I'm confident."

Espeon sat down and curled her tail around her legs. "I think I've got a pretty good guess as to what might've happened." Shane looked at her expectantly, while Silvally furrowed his brow for a few seconds before his eyes widened in realization. "I believe Tessa evolved prematurely."

Shane's eyes narrowed. "That's it? Wasn't it you and Umbreon who suggested she use a Z-Move to kickstart her aura powers and evolve? I thought that was the whole point!"

"Could you please just let me finish talking for once before you start running your big mouth?" Espeon hissed. Shane's ears drooped and he stepped backward, poking dejectedly at the ground with a forepaw. Espeon took a calming breath. "The fact of the matter is that part of the evolution process involves a Pokémon _mentally_ preparing themselves for the _physical_ changes and influx of spiritual energy that accompanies an evolution. If that _isn't_ done – if something happens to trigger an evolution that a Pokémon wasn't ready for – their mind may not be able to acclimate to all the changes."

The revelation alarmed Shane. "And what happens?"

"Usually the Pokémon ends up in such a great deal of pain that their mind shuts down and they go comatose," Espeon declared ominously. "In our research, Umbry and I read papers that claimed Pokémon had died trying to force an evolution before they were properly prepared."

" _What?!_ " Shane shouted, panic spreading across his face. "Oh my god… Tessa! _Tessa!_ " He tried to sprint back into Healer's house, but Silvally stepped in his path.

"Shane, you have to calm down. Let Salazzle and Marowak tend to Tessa," Silvally said. "I don't like this one bit, either. But this is the best chance that she has."

Shane gritted his teeth and looked away, blinking tears out of his eyes. "Tessa," he blubbered.

"I'm sorry things turned out this way," Espeon said. "I wish Umbry and I had never made that suggestion about using a Z-Move." She looked at Silvally. "Tessa… she had mentioned something about her aura sense being weak, didn't she?"

"She thought it was underdeveloped for someone her age," Silvally said.

Espeon sighed. "That must be it, then. You saw the size of her new aura feelers, right? They're larger than your average Lucario's. To go from being underdeveloped to that…" Espeon shook her head. "No wonder she just shut down. And that's not even getting into the physical changes. Doubling in size… growing in new fur… having metal coat her skeleton…"

"That's enough, okay!" Shane barked, shaking his head. His legs shook uncontrollably. "How can Pokémon stand to evolve if _that's_ what could happen to them? All of this sounds terrifying!"

"Shane, you have to understand, it's rare that something like that happens," Espeon assured him.

Shane laughed uneasily. "Yeah… right. Knowing my luck, if I try evolving into Ninetales, I'm just gonna end up dead!"

"Outsiders."

Team Radiance snapped to attention. They turned toward Healer's house. She stood there, leaning on Spike-Skull's bone club and clutching the rainbow scarves in her other arm. "I'm finished. Lucario is resting. I think she's going to be okay."

Shane sped into Healer's home, nearly bowling her over in the process. Inside, he found Spike-Skull cleaning up the supplies. "Careful, Whi– no, Valiant-Bones," he cautioned. "You must let her wake up naturally. The medicine Salazzle used may still be working its way through her system." He carried his armful of supplies into the kitchen area.

Silvally and Espeon entered the house as Shane went up to the bed. His snout wrinkled at the sight of purple juice dripping off Tessa's hip and trickling down to the floor. He turned his gaze on Tessa's face. The pained grimace had gone away, replaced by a calm expression. Tessa's chest slowly rose and fell, moving her paws up and down along with it.

"She seems to look a bit better," Espeon observed, forehead gem flickering. "Her life force was unstable when I tried to sense it earlier. It's much steadier now."

"See? It's just like I told you, Shane. Salazzle and Marowak knew what they were doing," Silvally said. He walked up to Shane's side, looking Tessa over and nodding. "Now we just have to let her rest."

Shane ignored Silvally and hopped onto the bed. He sat down beside Tessa's head and looked right at her. The longer he stared, the more his vision blurred. Eventually, Tessa faded out entirely, along with the bed. Instead, Shane found himself looking at a lavender cushion. Instead of a Lucario, Lunala rested atop it. Shane focused on her red, spectral eyes, which blinked slowly.

 _"How are you feeling?"_ Shane heard himself ask in a deep voice.

 _"Awful,"_ Lunala replied with a groan. She covered her face with part of her left wing. _"How could I get food poisoning so easily? I thought we were immune to stuff like this."_

 _"I did, too."_ Shane heard a deep sigh. He leaned over and licked Lunala on the cheek. _"We're going to get through this. I promise… I'll have you up and flying about before you know it."_

Shane jolted back into reality, shaking his head vigorously. "Something the matter?" Silvally asked, staring at him curiously. "You spaced out for a bit."

"I'm fine," Shane lied. "I just…" His voice trailed off and he looked down at Tessa. Even though she didn't appear to be in any pain, Shane's heart still sank. He craned his neck downward. Shane whined softly and nudged Tessa's cheek with the tip of his snout. "Please wake up." He whined again and licked the side of Tessa's face.

Silvally went wide-eyed. "Shane, what are you doing? Salazzle said to let Tessa rest."

Blood rushed into Shane's cheeks. He took a step back and looked away guiltily. "I… sorry. I just…" His shoulders sagged. "You wouldn't get it." Espeon raised a curious brow at this, but ultimately stayed silent.

"I know you want to make sure she's okay," Silvally continued. "Trust me, I feel the same way. But this is just one of those things that's out of our control, whether we like it or not." His head crest bristled and the energy blades slightly drooped. "So much seems to be out of control these days. I wish it were different."

Before Shane could respond, his ears twitched. They stuck straight up, enabling him to hear the sounds of crinkling straw. He looked down at his paws but saw that they weren't moving.

"Unnnnngh…"

"Tessa's stirring," Espeon gasped, pointing a forepaw ahead of her. Shane and Silvally both followed her gaze just in time to see Tessa's eyelids flutter open. Silvally's tail slowly wagged as Tessa sat up, clutching her head with a paw.

"T… Tessa…" Shane squeaked.

"Shane?" Tessa murmured. She took a look around at Healer's house and confusion spread across her face. "What are we doing in someone's house?" She looked at him with a furrowed brow. "And… did you shrink?"

Silvally stepped beside Shane, a worried look on his face. "Do you not remember what happened?"

Tessa frowned. "There was a volcanic meteor coming toward us. Shane was running away from the village but I went up toward it. And then I felt this _tremendous_ surge of energy flowing through my body and…" Her voice trailed off and her gaze fell onto her left arm. She stared at the black fur covering her paw and running up past her wrist. Tessa held up her paws. Her arms trembled as she flipped her paws over and glanced at the metal spikes protruding from her flesh.

"I… I…" she stammered. She looked down and noticed a third metal spike protruding from her chest. Her _cream-colored_ chest. "I'm a Lucario," she whispered. "But… but how?"

"It looks like Umbry's theory was right. You used a Z-Move. The energy you channeled jump-started your aura sense and triggered an evolution," Espeon explained. "We found you passed out on the ground with Shane calling for help. Our guides from earlier healed you."

Tessa's eyes widened. Silvally placed a foreleg on Tessa's thigh. "Hey. I know this is alarming for you, but you don't have to handle it alone. We're all here for you. If there's anything that any of us can do to help… just name it."

"Yeah," Shane said, stepping into Tessa's field of vision. "We were really worried about you."

"Some of us a bit more than others," Espeon whispered under her breath.

Tessa looked right into Shane's watery eyes. "I… I'm doing okay… I think," she said. "Is that true? Were you really calling for help?"

Silvally nodded. "And he had whipped himself up into a frenzy trying to help gather Salazzle's healing supplies."

"Oh," Tessa gasped. "Well, uh, thanks."

Shane sniffled. Without warning, he pressed his face against up Tessa's chest, avoiding the metal spike. Her aura feelers shot up in surprise. "I… I'm just so glad you're okay," he blubbered. "I was so worried! I thought we were gonna lose you!"

"Uh… well, I'm here now," Tessa said, arms raised and eyes darting about the room uncomfortably. "So, like, there's no need to worry, I guess."

Sensing Tessa's discomfort, Silvally grabbed one of Shane's tails in his beak and dragged him off of Tessa. "I think she wants a little personal space right now," Silvally muttered.

Shane's face reddened. "R-right," he stammered. "Sorry. I guess I got a little carried away." He rubbed his eyes with a foreleg. "I meant what I said, though. If there's anything I can do to make this whole situation better for you, tell me."

Tessa nodded. Her gaze fell back into her lap. "I understand," she said. "I'm sorry if I don't sound like myself. This is… a lot to take in." She held up her paws again and slowly turned them back and forth. "I just can't believe this is happening. I thought… that I was gonna be a Riolu my whole life."

"Aren't you at least a little bit happy?" Shane asked.

"I'm not really sure what to feel right now," Tessa said, lowering her arms. She hunched over and her shoulders sagged. "When I was little… I dreamed about evolving, sure. I heard such great things about the 'evolution high' that Pokémon get and how euphoric it is. But this… this is nothing like what I had in mind."

She looked up and spotted Healer walking out of the kitchen, a basket slung over her shoulder. "Um, excuse me? Do you have a mirror, by any chance?" Tessa asked.

Healer paused in the doorway. "Yes. I think I keep one in the supply closet. Hold on." She turned and reentered the kitchen. Healer returned a minute later with Spike-Skull in tow. They both carried a full-sized mirror into the room and lowered it to rest against the wall. "Is there anything else you need?"

"Uh…" Tessa rubbed her shoulder nervously. "Could I request some privacy, please?" She looked over at her teammates. "I need some time to myself… to gather my thoughts."

"I am not sure that's the wisest decision, outsider. Your life force could run out of control again, if you're not careful," Healer warned. Tessa looked at her pleadingly. Healer sighed in defeat. "Very well. I have work to do, anyway. It's not too important, but it'll keep me away from the house. Promise me that if something's going wrong, you'll yell for me at the top of your lungs."

Tessa nodded and watched as everyone departed the room, leaving her sitting on the straw bed. She looked over toward the mirror, unable to properly see her reflection. Slowly, Tessa pivoted, allowing her feet to touch the warm rocky floor. Tessa scooted to the bed's edge and cautiously stood up. But the instant she no longer had the bed supporting her, she collapsed onto her side with a startled yelp.

She propped herself up with her arms and looked down at her feet, wiggling her toes. Initially, they didn't seem too different than what she was used to. However, as she tried to stand herself back up, she realized that her feet now had more pronounced arches than they did before she evolved. Tessa shifted more of her weight onto her toes. She stumbled forward, panic spreading across her face as she braced herself to faceplant. Tessa threw her arms out to either side of her, barely managing to steady herself. She hesitantly took one step forward, remaining upright in the process. Then she took another. And another. Tessa walked up toward the front door, and then casually jogged toward the back of the room.

 _'Okay, so I can't rely on the balls of my feet anymore,'_ she concluded with a frown. _'I sure hope Lucario toes don't get sore easily.'_ Tessa shakily lifted her right leg up. Her left leg wobbled and threatened to give out from under her.

Suddenly, a strong prickling sensation fanned out across her aura feelers, which raised up in unison. The instant they all stiffened, the muscles in Tessa's left leg stopped twitching and tightened. She stood perfectly still on her left leg. Tessa raised a curious brow. She then kicked at the air in front of her with her right leg. To her surprise, she kept her balance through the entire motion.

Tessa resumed standing on two legs. At the same time, her aura feelers relaxed. Satisfied, Tessa walked up toward the mirror. She immediately tensed at the sight of her own reflection. Her eyes worriedly ran up and down the length of the mirror. Tessa's legs grew weak, so she shut her eyes and stepped away from the mirror, whimpering.

 _'Come on, Tessa. Snap out of it!'_ she scolded. _'This is who you are now. And you've got to come to grips with that. Your friends are counting on you to hold your own.'_ Tessa took a deep breath and gazed back into the mirror. She looked right into her reflection's eyes. Her irises were still red, but her pupils were less rounded. Instead, they were slit-shaped, giving her gaze a hint of ferocity. The thought prickled the fur on the back of her neck, but she steeled her resolve and continued examining her head in detail.

The only frame of reference Tessa had as far as real live Lucarios went was her mother. Because of that, she was surprised at the lack of any white, diamond-shaped patches of fur on her forehead. Instead, a stripe of black fur ran back from the bridge of her snout. A few quick glances at her body revealed other differences. She still had the extra tuft of fur atop each ear, but her ears themselves were longer and thinner than her mother's. Her shoulders were broader. Coupled with her wider hips, it gave her torso a pronounced hourglass shape to it. She also noticed her thighs were thicker; much closer to Incineroar's in size.

There were two big surprises awaiting her, however. The first lay on her chest, where the fur surrounding her new spike was black. Thin lines of black fur branched out from her chest spike, giving off the appearance of cracked glass. Tessa winced and pivoted to her right, revealing the second surprise: three concentric rings of black fur on her tail.

They immediately reminded her of her dad's arms. Memories of Incineroar wrapping her up in warm hugs flooded through her mind. Tessa's eyes watered and she tore herself away from the mirror, rubbing her face with a paw. She stood with her back to the mirror, trying her hardest to stop shivering and slow her breathing down.

"Why do I have all these extra features?" she whispered. Tessa looked down at her paws and her brow furrowed. Her attention fell on her right paw, which started shaking as she looked at it.

At first glance, it looked exactly like her left paw. But on closer inspection, Tessa saw something horrifying staring back at her: faint red fur taking the appearance of the winged heart sigil she had seen on Serperior's helmet… and her mother's robes. Her metal spike sat where the eye should've been, but there was no mistaking the sinister horns pointing down toward her digits.

"No," she squeaked. "Why is this here?" She wrung her paw out, as if she was trying to flick water off her fur. "This… this marking shouldn't be here! I… I'm not infected! I… I…"

 _Evolution is proof of an aura sense awakening. Something that you will never understand… because you're a lost cause._

Tessa looked up, right into the eyes of her mother's ghostly silhouette. The silhouette didn't speak, yet Prisma's voice echoed through Tessa's mind. Tessa stiffened, clasping her marked paw and placing it against her chest.

 _"I… I'm not a lost cause, Mom! Please… just let me try again! I'll get it right this time!"_ A slightly-younger Tessa squeaked.

The silhouette's eyes flashed purple. _I gave you enough chances, Tessa. But you're undisciplined… unfocused. I can't work with you. This was all a mistake._

"N… no," Tessa whispered. "Please don't say that! It's not true! I–"

Tessa winced at the sight of the silhouette glaring daggers at her. _It's futile, Tessa. Your aura feelers are too small. There's no way they could properly channel the aura surge a Riolu experiences when it evolves into a Lucario._

"You were wrong, Mom," Tessa whispered, raising up her paw and slowly rotating it. "I did it… on my own. Without you. I'm…" She clenched her paw into a fist. "I'm not a failure."

The sigil on her paw flashed. Tessa tensed. She looked back at Prisma's silhouette, only to recoil in horror. The mental image distorted. It flickered in and out of existence. Each time it returned, more and more of Prisma's body was covered in black, crystalline armor. Tessa staggered backward, trying to look away from the silhouette. But it kept following her, even popping up in her mind when she tried closing her eyes. Eventually, she found herself looking directly into Zero's lone red eye.

 _ **I gave you light! I gave you Z-Power! It was me! MEEE!**_

"That voice," Tessa gasped. Zero raised her left paw and vanished in a swirling cloud of smoke. "Mom, no!" Tessa shouted. She threw an arm up over her face, stumbling backwards as Necrozma flew toward her, wings spread wide and red eyes glowing brightly. The specter looked to wrap its wings around Tessa. She screamed and crumpled to the ground.

The silhouette abruptly dissolved into the air, leaving Tessa lying on the floor, wracked by shudders. She lost control and broke down crying. Cool metal contacted her shoulder and made her sit up in surprise. "S… Silvally?" she sputtered. "I just tripped."

"No, you didn't," he said. Tessa looked up into his eyes and realized they were bright pink. "You were in distress. Is it about your mom?"

"It's... um... see for yourself," Tessa whispered, rubbing her eyes with her arm. Trembling, she held her right paw up. Silvally's jaw tightened.

"Tessa," he whispered.

"The same symbol… it's etched into that gem on your looplet, isn't it?" Tessa said, sniffling.

"It is?" Silvally gasped. He looked down and his eyes widened. "It's faint… but it's there, yeah. I'm not surprised though. It popped up during some of the alchemical spells Golem used."

Tessa shook her head rapidly. "You don't understand, Silvally. I used Z-Power… _Necrozma's_ power… to evolve," she squeaked, staring into her quivering paw. "I don't…" She choked back more tears. "What's going to happen to me? Have I been infected? Am I going to lose control like Mom? Am I going to turn into another Zero?!"

"Tessa… I have no idea," Silvally said.

She placed her paw against her chest, breathing heavily. "I can't… I can't go through that. Zero doesn't even look like a Lucario's supposed to. She doesn't have a tail. Her aura feelers reach down to her waist! I don't want my body to change on me anymore!"

"Tessa." Silvally scooted closer and offered up his shoulder. Tessa immediately lay against it. Silvally gently brought his beak to Tessa's forehead. Warmth flowed down Tessa's body, stemming from her head. They sat there in silence for several minutes, until Tessa's sobs died down.

"Your mom never told you, did she?" Silvally asked.

"About what?"

"Lucario can take on another form… beyond what they achieve when they evolve from Riolu," Silvally said. "Have you ever heard of Mega Evolution?"

"Um… maybe? I think Dad mentioned it a few times. Gallian might've, too."

"Some Pokémon can channel energy from Awakening Emeras to achieve a more powerful form in battle," Silvally said. "From the looks of things, Zero is a Mega Lucario." His eyelids lowered slightly. "Perhaps something in the Prism Virus is keeping her stuck in that form. A Pokémon should never stay Mega Evolved for too long. The risks are…" His voice trailed off as he noticed panic spreading across Tessa's face. "Hey now," he whispered, nudging her forehead again. "We're going to rescue her."

Tessa looked at her marked paw again. "But what about me?"

Silvally reached a foreleg up and clasped Tessa's chin. He tilted her head up until their gazes met. "We have each other," he said. "I won't let you turn into someone like Zero. And you'll help make sure I don't lose control… like I almost did with Serperior."

"Right," Tessa said, but her gaze fell toward the ground.

"Is something else bugging you?" Silvally asked.

Tessa rubbed her eyes with a paw. "When Mom started my aura training, she had such high expectations for me. She thought she could get me to evolve with just a year of hard work." Tessa hung her head. "But when weeks turned into months and I couldn't figure out how to use Force Palm, I could _see_ the disappointment all over her face."

She teared up. "And that disappointment turned into frustration… and then Dad died, so she… she… she…"

Silvally pressed his face up against Tessa's, bringing her shuddering to an immediate stop. "It's okay. You can tell me anything."

Tessa sucked in a deep, shuddering breath. "Mom told me… that I was a lost cause." She dug her face into Silvally's hide. "After that, she left me behind to stay at the Observatory until she walked out on the guild."

"Tessa, I'm sorry," Silvally said. "You know that's not true, right? I mean… look at what just happened."

"I know," Tessa hiccuped. "It's just… all I can think about is how bad I want Mom to see me like this. But not because I'd expect her to be proud or anything." Her irises flickered blue. Silvally's head crest tensed. "I want her to see me… so I can show her how wrong she was… and give her a piece of my mind."

Before Silvally could respond, Tessa rubbed her left thigh with a paw. "I'm sorry. I bet this sounds pretty stupid. I'm complaining about _evolving_. That's, like," she laughed nervously, "a really dumb thing for me to do."

"I don't see it that way," Silvally said. "This was rough on you. And that's not getting into what else has happened today." He frowned and shook his head. "Speak your mind. Don't let this stuff eat away at you."

Tessa sighed. "You don't have to do that just for me, you know."

Silvally nudged Tessa's forehead. "I want to, since I seem to recall our situations being reversed two days ago."

"Yeah, but it was Shane who convinced me to find you," Tessa mumbled guiltily.

"You were still there for me. And I want to return that favor," Silvally said. "That's what friends are for, right?"

Tessa nodded slowly. "Okay." She took a deep breath. "I keep looking at myself – my _new_ self – and remembering all the things I've lost and how bad I want it all back. Except I'll never get it back, no matter how hard I try." Her shoulders slumped. "Gallian always said that he was confident I'd evolve at the guild. He was willing to work with me to help me reach that goal. And when it happened, he'd make sure Dad was around to throw some sort of party." An uneasy smile crossed her muzzle. "I know that sounds super corny, but back then I was _stoked_ at the idea."

"I don't blame you. An evolution party sounds fun," Silvally said. His tail lightly rapped Tessa's waist. Blood poured into her cheeks. She covered them with her paws.

"Yeah…" Her voice trailed off. "Only, well, that became an impossibility." She sat up and draped her arm over his back. "I had actually given up, you know."

"Huh?"

"When Mom left, I took her words to heart," Tessa continued. "I really believed that I was a failure as a Riolu. And that meant that I'd be stuck as one for my entire life. Weak… frail… no working aura sense…"

Silvally tensed. Tessa had some of his fur in her digits. Her fidgeting was making him uncomfortable, but he held his tongue. "Is that, y'know, what made you so depressed?"

Tessa nodded. "My life became an endless cycle of wishing I could be like my heroes... only to run away every time I got close to the guild. At least, until Shane showed up and started me down this... _insane_ path we've been on."

"Well, I hope you know that you're not a failure," Silvally said. "I know things aren't great for you at the moment, but we're going to work through this… together. Shane really wants to help however he can, too." He smiled. "He actually told me he's confident you'll come to view your evolution as a good thing."

"He said that?" Tessa gasped.

"I was pretty surprised, too," Silvally admitted. "I think you've really changed him."

Tessa's ears stuck up in surprise. "M-Me? Oh… c-come now… I can't take credit for anything like that."

Silvally shrugged. "If it wasn't for you, Shane would still be acting like the whole world revolves around him." He turned to show the pink energy blades on his head crest. "Call it psychic intuition, if you want. But I believe you mean more to Shane than you realize. Possibly more than he realizes, too."

"That's… um… a lot to take in," Tessa said with a nervous laugh. "I'm just happy we're not fighting anymore. Let's leave it at that for now."

"Fair enough," Silvally said. Tessa slowly got to her feet and Silvally stood up beside her. "Something you want to do?" he asked.

"Um, kind of," Tessa replied. "I had wanted to do it by myself…"

"I can leave you alone, if you'd like."

"Oh, no." Tessa held up her paws and shook her head. "Now that I've had a moment to think on it, I'd rather have someone around in case something bad happens."

Silvally grew worried. "What is it you want to do?"

Tessa took a deep breath and her gaze sharpened. "I want to try out my aura sense. Right here, right now."

Silvally looked back at Tessa, his beak agape. "Are you sure that's a good idea?" he asked, voice ripe with concern.

"Maybe not," Tessa admitted, rubbing the back of her neck. "I can't exactly explain it well. There's this warmth." She brought her paw to tap her chest spike. "It's in my chest and the back of my head. It feels _inviting,_ like a long-lost sibling that I just want to run toward and wrap up in a big hug."

Silvally sat down and raised a curious eyebrow. "Huh. Y'know, it sounds familiar when you phrase it like that.

"Well, it might be because there are Lucario spirits inside you," Tessa said.

"Probably, but this isn't about me," Silvally dismissed. "If you feel comfortable trying it, then try it. I'll be right here in case something happens."

Tessa nodded slowly. Her soft expression stiffened to a firm one as she brought her paws to her sides. She took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "Aura is pure… and raw." She balled her paws into fists, and then relaxed them, flexing her digits. "Our spirits are all unique mixtures of the different types of life energy. Psychics sense living creatures as mosaics of different colors."

She curled both of her arms, bringing her paws up toward her shoulders as she took another breath. "But aura lies at the core of every spirit. Aura produces life energy. We draw on life energy to use our abilities." Tessa clasped her paws together in front of her chest. "With proper training and concentration, you can reach deep inside and pull your aura out!"

Tessa squeezed her eyes shut. The moment she did, her feelers twitched. They slowly rose up and tensed. Faint blue outlines appeared around them, drawing a surprised look from Silvally. He remained perfectly still, eyes locked on Tessa, wondering what was going to happen. Tessa slowly took in another breath. All she saw was the insides of her own eyelids. Darkness filled her world but she didn't react. She took another breath.

A silver flicker appeared in her eyelids. Tessa remained still. The light formed into a silver line. In a matter of seconds, dozens of silver lines raced onto Tessa's inner eyelids. Her heart rate spiked. Her head pounded. A wisp of blue fire appeared in the corner of her mental image. But when it did, the pressure on her head became so intense she forced her eyes open. Tessa's aura feelers relaxed and she dropped to one knee, panting heavily. Sweat pooled down her face, matting her new coat.

Silvally darted toward her. "Are you okay?" he asked.

Tessa rubbed her forehead with her free paw. "I… uh…"

"Maybe you should focus on resting. You can always try this again, later," Silvally pointed out.

"No!" Tessa shouted, eyes widening in surprise at how loud she was. "S-sorry. That was…" She cut herself off and stood back up. "I don't mean to worry you, Silvally. It's just… I _need_ to do this. For myself. If… if that makes any sense."

Silvally sighed. "It does. I don't like it… but I understand."

"Thanks," Tessa said. She stepped back from Silvally and closed her eyes again. This time, her aura feelers didn't immediately react. Instead, a memory formed in her mind's eye.

She was a Riolu again. Standing on the sands of Azure Cape and looking up at Prisma's stern face. _"Mom, if aura is supposed to be pure, why is yours red? Aura's blue in all my picture books."_

Prisma's lips twitched, offering Tessa a view of the single fang protruding from her mouth. _"It's… nothing you need to be concerned with, Tessa,"_ she replied, looking away from her daughter.

 _"Does it mean you're special?"_ Tessa asked. _"Is my aura gonna be red, too?"_

Prisma's expression fiercened. _"No,"_ she growled. _"Yours won't be red. Neither of us are special. I found a way to change the color of my Aura Spheres to red because it's my favorite color. Nothing more. Nothing less"_

 _"Will you tell me how to, then? I want make mine a rainbow!"_

 _"Quiet, Tessa!"_ Prisma snapped, stomping down on the sand. Tessa skirted back, shrinking toward the ground. _"None of this will mean anything if you keep slacking in your training. Understand?"_

 _"Y… yes, Mom,"_ Tessa squeaked.

 _"Good. Don't let me catch you thinking such ridiculous thoughts out loud again."_

Tessa's eyes shot open, her irises smoldering with blue fire. Silvally jumped up in surprise, his gaze fixed on Tessa's right paw. The winged heart was glowing with the same intensity as Tessa's eyes. She turned to her right and, with a shout, lashed out at the nearby mirror. It shattered. Mirror shards dug into Tessa's paw, snapping her out of her trance. Tessa stumbled back from the mirror, looking in horror at the blood on her paw.

"Tessa," Silvally said, stepping toward her.

"No! Get back!" Tessa hollered, holding her healthy paw up. Her eyes were still burning blue. "I… I can see it," she whispered, cupping her injured paw against her stomach. She shut her eyes again and took a deep breath. Silver lights streaked through her vision. Her head and paw throbbed, but she refused to focus on them. Tessa remained fixated on the silver lines, watching as they formed a picture.

Tessa realized she was looking at the very room she stood in. Except the walls and ceiling were just faint silver outlines. Her mental image extended beyond Healer's house into Totem Salazzle's village. Similar houses popped up as faint silver squares.

"It… it's working," she whispered. Tessa turned to her left and nearly recoiled. A vibrant blue flame that was nearly her height stood right in front of her. She assumed it had to be Silvally. It would make sense for his aura to be large, given he was full of spirits.

She was focused so intently on Silvally that she wasn't prepared for a second, equally-brilliant flame pop up. Tessa jerked her head to her right and looked right at the door to Healer's house. "Shane?" she asked.

"How did you know? I didn't even get to say anything, yet!"

Tessa opened her eyes, but her vision of the room didn't return. She blinked several times, until finally her aura sight faded and her normal vision returned. Shane stared directly up at her, a look of concern on his face.

"I heard shouts… and glass shattering. So, I sprinted right over," Shane said. He did a double-take at Tessa's bloodstained fur. "What happened, Tessa? Oh god, we've gotta get Salazzle back here right away!"

"I'm fine," Tessa insisted. She walked back toward the straw bed and grabbed the rag soaked in berry juice from earlier. Tessa wrapped it around her injured paw, taking care to hide the marking on it. "I appreciate you coming to check on me, though. Still," her brow furrowed, "how did I know it was you?"

"Your aura sense must naturally know the auras of Pokémon you're familiar with," Silvally suggested. "At least, that's what came to mind for me."

Shane's ears perked up. "Wait, you got your aura sense working?" His tails wagged. "That's really great, Tessa! I'm so happy for you!"

"Y… yeah… I guess it is," Tessa muttered, rubbing her shoulder. She watched the smile fade from Shane's face.

"Is something wrong?" Shane asked, voice ripe with concern.

"Nuh… no! Of course not. I'm just… still a bit out of it, that's all," Tessa lied, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. She glanced Silvally's disapproving look out of the corner of her eye. His pink eyes glowed with psychic energy.

"Why don't I give you two some space?" Silvally said. "I think you ought to have a chat."

"Huh? What for?" Tessa asked, only for Silvally to walk out of the house. Her gaze returned to Shane, noting the mixture of worry and confusion in his face.

"If something's bothering you, you can tell me," Shane said. "Or maybe you just want to vent?"

"No. I–" Tessa cut herself off. She remembered Silvally's earlier comment about not bubbling up her thoughts. Tessa sighed and slumped back down to the floor. Shane cautiously approached her, but Tessa held up her healthy paw. "Shane, hold up. I need to get something off my chest."

Shane grinned sheepishly. "I don't think you can get that metal spike out," he quipped. Tessa responded with a scathing look that made Shane wilt. "Sorry… I was just joking."

"Shane," Tessa said. "I'm a bit worried… about you. About _us._ "

Shane's ears stuck up. "H-Huh? What's there to be worried about?"

"When I sensed your aura, I remembered how much you gushed about Riolus and Lucarios when we first met," Tessa explained, fidgeting nervously with her bandages. She crossed one leg over the other, a defensive look on her face. "And after seeing what happened between you and Espeon, I… um…" Her brow furrowed. "Oh, the heck with it. Shane, I don't want you checking me out like you did to Espeon."

Shane took a step back, looking flabbergasted. "I… wait what? I don't… that's not…" His gaze darted around the room. "T… Tessa, that's not gonna happen." He met Tessa's gaze. But her smoldering blue irises made him look away, biting his lower lip. "You're reading my aura, aren't you?"

"Yes," Tessa replied. "And it's pulsating wildly. Your heart's racing, isn't it? Just like you said it did around Espeon."

"I can't help it! It's instinctual!" Shane protested. A tense silence fell between the two of them. Shane's ears and tails drooped. "I'm sorry," he squeaked. "You have my word… I'm not going to try or say anything stupid, okay?"

"Do you really mean that?"

Shane nodded repeatedly. "Tessa, I'm being serious here. I…" His voice trailed off and his face scrunched up in thought. "It's more important that we stay friends. I wouldn't want to do anything that would make you uncomfortable and put our friendship in jeopardy." He pawed sheepishly at the ground. "You deserve better than that. With all the stuff you've been through… you're definitely the strongest person I've ever met. And I, y'know, admire that."

"Shane," Tessa growled, turning away to hide the blush in her cheeks. "You're not keeping your promise."

Shane shut his eyes. "I'm sorry. The point I was trying to make is that it's not about what you look like. It's the Tessa on the inside that counts. The one who's always nervous, but selfless enough to try and help everyone around her… in spite of all her struggles. That's the Tessa I care about." He shuffled backwards, frowning. "Gah… that sounded so stupid. I'm making this all about me again." He shook his head and looked back at Tessa. "Listen. I know the circumstances around your evolution weren't great."

"Don't remind me," Tessa said.

"But I still think you deserve something special," Shane continued. "To celebrate. Evolving is still a big accomplishment. It's something to proud of. You ought to have _something_ nice to remember this by, don't you think?"

Tessa rubbed the top of her snout. "I suppose you're right."

"I'm glad you think that."

Tessa and Shane looked toward the door in unison and found Healer standing in it. "Salazzle, were you eavesdropping?" Tessa gasped.

"A little bit," Healer admitted. "Sorry, it was getting late and I figured I should pop in and see how you're doing." She lazily flicked her tail to her right. "And, uh, both of you lost your scarves in all the commotion."

The realization finally dawned on the duo and they brought their paws up toward their necks. Shane and Tessa exchanged shocked expressions. "Tessa, I'm so sorry! I–" Shane started.

"Relax, you two," Healer said. "I scooped them up. And I figured that, with all the abuse they've taken, I could spruce them up a little bit." She stepped into the house and opened the basket over her shoulder. Two bandanas, each bearing the same rainbow fabric as the scarves Shane and Tessa had, sat inside the basket.

"You… you changed them!" Tessa gasped.

"They were starting to unravel, seeing as each one had a frayed edge," Healer explained. "Besides, with these, you'll look the part of seasoned explorers. Or so I've been told, anyway. I even had enough material to make one for your odd-looking partner. Go on, take 'em."

Shane and Tessa nodded to each other and walked up to Healer. A glimmer caught Tessa's eye. She looked down at her new scarf and did a double-take. "Wait. Did you weave my locket into the new scarf?"

Shane's eyes widened. "She did? I wanna see!" he said. Tessa picked up her scarf and unfurled it, showcasing the pendant sitting in the center of the moon pattern. "Whoa, that's incredible, Salazzle! How did you do that?"

"Oh, that? It's no big deal… really," Salazzle insisted. "I've done little patchwork projects like that before. Truthfully, it was a nice way to take my mind off the day's events."

Shane graciously accepted his new rainbow scarf, smiling at the sun pattern in its center. Tessa helped tie it around his neck. He nudged at it with his snout and then posed heroically. "Well, what do you think?" he asked, tails wagging.

Tessa smirked. "You look pretty stylish… for a small fry."

Shane's expression deflated. "S… seriously?" he groaned.

"Relax, Shane. You're fine," Tessa giggled. "Just a little friendly ribbing. I mean, you _are_ the smallest one on the team now."

"By like a solid foot, I think," Healer added.

Shane's ears drooped. "Thanks for rubbing it in, guys."

Tessa rolled her eyes. She plucked Shane off the ground, much to his complete surprise. "Will you relax? We're only teasing." Minding her chest spike, she pulled him into a big hug. "Besides, you're all cute and snuggly like this."

Shane blinked in surprise, face turning bright red. "That was... another joke, right?" He shook his head about. Tessa laughed and set him back on the ground. "Okay, well, Salazzle kind of cut in before I had actually finished my thought from earlier." He looked up at Tessa. "So, listen. I talked to Totem Salazzle–"

"And she listened?" Tessa gasped.

"Yeah," Shane chuckled. "I was just as surprised as you are. Seems like Totem Marowak really got through to her. Anyway, she said she's willing to whip up a special meal for you, if you'd like."

"But what about the Sizzle Shard?" Tessa asked. "We have to go after Gallian before he does something reckless!"

Shane frowned. "And how do you propose we do that? We don't even have any idea where he went."

"Oh… right," Tessa muttered. "I guess we can just regroup tomorrow, then?" Her stomach gurgled loudly. She clutched it with a paw. "Oh… oh man…" she whispered. "A meal actually sounds _really_ good. I'm positively famished! I don't think I've ever felt this hungry in my whole life!"

"Then I say we take Totem Salazzle up on her offer," Shane said.

Tessa nodded enthusiastically. "Definitely!" They started to walk toward the door with Healer in tow. "Think she could make us something with chocolate? I've got a _massive_ chocolate craving right now."

"Uh, I don't think they keep any chocolate here. It's too hot. It would all melt," Shane mused.

"That's okay! Liquid chocolate's just as good," Tessa said, licking her lips to the sounds of Shane's laughter. As they walked through the village, they all failed to notice a black-tailed Salazzle leaning against Healer's house. Her eyes narrowed and her eyes flashed, turning her purple sclera white and her irises sky-blue.

"… so, they're after Gallian, huh?" the Salazzle muttered. "Then I'd better steer them in the right direction tomorrow. They may be my best shot at getting through to him."

* * *

This episode wound up getting extended by a chapter. I intended to add in some scenes to this one on revisions, but this chapter was long enough already. Let's get to review replies:

SuperOmegaGuest: I mean, you care enough to keep commenting and I consider that very important. It makes me happy!

Another guest: correct, Spike-Skull is just another member of the tribe. Totem Marowak doesn't have kids, only Totem Salazzle does. No plans for a Kirby fic, but there may be some references here and there.

Veralix: I would advise you to stay tuned for six or seven chapters and you might get an answer about that Zeraora question you've got rolling around.

Anon Omega: I think this would be a bit too long for a proper game. I'll have to take your word on the bible stuff because that is not something I'm familiar with. And thanks for the Independence Day wishes. Hope you had a good one, too.

Next time...

...

"I've finally found it! A Time Gear!"


	66. Time Forms All Wounds

Fingers crossed that the site doesn't choose to go belly-up when I post an update this time. If I didn't reply to a review, it's because of that. Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 56: Time Forms All Wounds**

 _"Oh, for god's sake…_ another _Monster House, game? Are we serious, here?" Shane hissed in a whisper, staring down at his 3DS in dismay. "See, this is why I used an EXP multiplier to get Discharge quickly." He tapped the A-button lazily and leaned back in his chair. "This better stop. I'm trying to move the story forward, here."_

WHAM!

 _Shane jumped in his chair, dropping the 3DS on the table in the process. A large thumb pressed down on the power button and then the rest of the pale-white hand closed the system. "H… hey!" Shane protested. "I was in the middle of something. What's the big id–"_

 _The rest of his sentence got caught in his throat as he looked up to identify the source of the hand. Shane's face paled. "G… Geoff," he whispered, shrinking down in his chair. "Um… can this wait for a better time? I've, uh, got a meeting to run to."_

 _Standing before Shane was a much taller, broad-shouldered boy. Geoff's brown hair was in a crew cut and his hazel eyes were sizing Shane up. A gray hoodie with the school's emblematic C hung loosely around Geoff's torso. "A meeting with what… this useless hunk of plastic?" he said, lifting up the 3DS and shaking it around._

 _"Put that down right now… or I'm going to the principal," Shane threatened, gripping the arms of his chair to the point where his knuckles turned white._

 _Geoff set the 3DS down and slid it toward Shane. "All I want to know is who the hell you've been talking to and what you've been saying," he said, narrowing his eyes at Shane. "You seeing a shrink about Prissy Nicky or something, huh? Everyone knows he was your only friend, dude. No point hiding it."_

 _Shane blinked. "I… wait, huh? You're confusing me, here. Please go away." He turned his chair to his left and hastily stood up, ready to make an exit. Geoff blocked his path._

 _"Answer my question,_ buddy, _" Geoff growled. "Who are you talking to, huh?"_

 _"I don't know what you're talking about," Shane said, looking around nervously. "Mr. Esposito said that you and your friends have to leave me alone or you're getting in trouble."_

 _Geoff raised his hands but the angry look didn't disappear from his face. "I ain't done nothing wrong here. Just like I didn't do nothing to Prissy Nicky. Which is not what your lying ass is saying behind my back, is it?"_

 _"Guh… get out of my way, Geoff. I'm late," Shane stammered, squeezing his eyes shut._

 _Geoff turned, pulled a piece of paper from his pocket, and slammed it down on the table. "Not until you tell me what kind of whacko stunt you're pulling here. Why am I getting ordered to speak to some lawyer guy, huh?" Geoff took a step toward Shane. "You trying to have me arrested or something? I didn't do anything wrong! It ain't my fault you were too dense to realize something was wrong with your boyfriend until it was too late."_

 _"N… Nicky wasn't my b… boyfriend," Shane muttered._

 _Shane looked down at the page in Geoff's hand. He recognized Rory's signature on one of the lines and hastily looked away. Geoff stepped back into Shane's field of view. "Tell me what you're up to, Shane. I swear to god, if you do something to get my scholarship pulled I'm gonna make your life a living_ hell. _Just because your life's on the fast track to nowheresville doesn't mean you get to drag me or my friends down with you."_

 _"This has nothing to do with me, Geoff. What about Nicky's parents, huh? They could be doing stuff," Shane said._

 _"Bull-freaking-sh_ _i_ _t!" Geoff spat. "You're the guy who followed Prissy Nicky around like a sad, lost puppy dog. And you say tons of weird sh_ _i_ _t that makes no sense all the time." He grabbed Shane's 3DS again._

 _"Put that down right now!" Shane shouted, and then shoved Geoff's chest. Geoff raised his hands up innocently, still clutching the 3DS._

 _"See? You've got it out for me!" he accused. "You lost the only guy who'd play these gay-ass games with you and that made you_ mad _, didn't it? Mad enough to start lying about how it was me and my friends' faults that Nicky died. He made his choice, man. You've gotta live with it." Geoff put the 3DS back down on the table. "And one last thing to keep in mind,_ buddy. _People_ like _me. Which is more than I can say for you. So, go on, keep spreading your lies." He turned away from Shane. "We'll see which one of us walks away from this smelling like a rose."_

 _Geoff stomped away, shoving his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. Shane looked around the hallway, noticing a couple of students had stopped to take in the conversation. They had now gathered up and were whispering excitedly among each other. Shane sat back down in the chair, limbs trembling. He grabbed his 3DS and barely managed to shove it back into his bag._

 _Shane shakily produced a flip phone from his bag but dropped it on the ground. He fell to his knees trying to pick it back up. After a few failed attempts at pressing the right buttons on the dial pad, he punched in a speed dial code and hit the green SEND button. The phone rang a few times, with Shane squeezing his eyes shut._

 _"H-Hello… Mr. Gardner? It's… it's Shane. I need to see you… like, right now."_

 _He paused, waiting for a response. But static greeted him, only to fade and be replaced by a deep voice roaring at him._

 _ **This isn't who you are! Wake up… remember your true self!**_

* * *

 **~Western Volcanic Wastes~**

Shane shot up, his eyes wide and his pupils dilated. In front of Shane, Silvally's faint outline expanded and shrunk with each sleeping breath. Shane looked around the room, but could hardly make anything out. There was a faint orange glow lying on the other side of a shuddered window.

"Not again," Shane groaned, only to cup a forepaw over his muzzle and look around in worry. To his relief, he didn't see any movement from Silvally's outline aside from breathing. _'Ugh, why can I never remember my inner monologue when I need it?'_ He cautiously felt around him until his forepaw brushed a strip of bare rock. _'This looks like a safe spot to stand.'_

Shane inched his way forward until he was off of his cushion and got to his feet. He took a hesitant step forward. Carpet fibers brushed his paw pads. Shane looked over his shoulder and squinted. Silvally's energy blades flickered, allowing him to glance Tessa's outline. She couldn't curl up into a ball anymore, but she still slept against Silvally, using his side as a makeshift pillow.

Satisfied his teammates were asleep, Shane crept across the floor, inching toward the small bit of light streaming in through the closed window. When he reached it, he paused and glanced through a crack in the blinds. _'Hmm… I'm pretty sure it's still nighttime. Tough to tell with all these storm clouds.'_

He bared his fangs and huffed out a cloud of frost. _'Ugh, I can't believe this. Even after such a delightful meal, I still can't get a decent night's sleep.'_ Shane's ears and tails drooped. _'I'm so exhausted. I just want to sleep through one night…_ one night _without all these awful memories and that voice screaming at me. It's going to drive me crazy!'_

Shane took a deep breath. _'There's nothing I can do about this. We have to get the Dawn Shards. I have to stay focused… can't drag the rest of the team down with my sleep problems.'_ Shane shook his head. _'Oh, how I wish there was a way to make it stop.'_ He turned toward where he knew Silvally was sleeping. _'He's so lucky. What I wouldn't give for a Lunar Wing right now. Hell, I'd take Darkrai trapping me in a nightmare if it meant I could sleep longer than a few hours.'_

"… just shut up! You… you don't know what you're talking about!"

Shane's ears stuck up. His tails curled against his hips and he shrank up against the wall. _'Someone's out there,'_ he gasped. _'Is… is it trouble?'_ Shane again looked at his teammates, wondering if he should say anything to rouse them.

"That's not true. I tried my best. I saved lives today! I'm… I'm doing better!"

 _'Wait… I know that voice! That's Espeon,'_ Shane realized. _'But who's she talking to? I don't hear anyone else out there.'_ He got up on his hind legs and gently nudged the window shade open with the tip of his snout. Shane was able to make enough of a gap to stick his head through and peer outside.

A few yards away, Espeon lay on the ground, batting at the air in front of her with her forepaws. "Stop it!" she whimpered. "I'm… this is the best I've got. I swear! I'm going to save you guys! Please… just hold out a bit longer!"

Shane frowned. He looked around for some sign of who Espeon was talking to, but there wasn't a single soul out in the village. Shane ducked his head back inside, the shade shutting behind him. He sank down to the floor. The scene he just witnessed was familiar. After a couple of seconds, it dawned on him that he had encountered a similar situation back at the Observatory. He found Espeon in the assembly room, shouting at someone he couldn't see.

 _'Maybe she can sense something?'_ Shane proposed. _'But if that was the case, then Silvally and Tessa would know about it too, right? Can ESP and aura sense work while you're sleeping? I feel like it would, anyway?'_

"Get away from me! I hate you… you stupid Void Shadows! Give me back my friends! Give me back Umbry!" Espeon cried.

 _'Wait… Void Shadows? Here? But that's impossible!'_ Shane gasped. He heard a loud, elongated snort, followed by raucous coughing. Shane sprang to his feet and hopped up toward the windowsill again. He looked outside and found Espeon standing all alone in an empty part of the village. She was doubled over, face scrunched up in pain and coughing loudly.

Shane was about to head for the door when he glanced movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned back on the windowsill and watched Espeon levitate a small cloth bag into her satchel. Faint multicolored sparkles littered the ground around her. Something immediately seemed off with Espeon. Her eyes were bloodshot and her white, hollow irises constricted. Espeon's tail twitched and erratically jerked back and forth. As she stumbled forward, Shane got a closer look at her face and gasped.

 _'Is that blood on her snout?'_ he wondered, trying to lean forward on the window sill. Espeon's ears twitched and, before she could look up, Shane ducked back inside Totem Salazzle's house. He fell to the floor, blinking in confusion. _'I don't understand. What was Espeon doing?'_ Shane clenched his jaw tightly. _'Did she inhale something? I heard a snorting noise, after all.'_

Shane waited a few minutes before daring to poke his head out of the window again. When he did, there was no sign of Espeon as far as he could see.

 _'Did… did she just walk out on us? After everything we did for her?'_ he thought. _'No… there's gotta be another explanation… right?'_

* * *

 **~Quicksand Cave, Underground Lake~**

"Mesprit, I know you're out there! Come out and face me!"

Dragonite stomped across the rocky alcove overlooking a glistening lake, lightning crackling through her arms. All around her, sand streams trickled down stone walls, piling up at the edges of the lake. Small rock platforms littered the water, with a circular arrangement positioned in the middle. There, a green compass-like rune sat, glowing brightly. Mesprit floated above it, a look of worry on her face.

"You're…" Mesprit started, before her tails flashed and alarm washed over her face. "What are you?"

"The ones who will be taking that Time Gear."

Dragonite stepped to her side, allowing Zero to walk past her. She pointed her scepter at Mesprit. "Hand it over, Mesprit. You have failed as a god in protecting this world. We are here to relieve you of that Time Gear… and your life."

Mesprit's eyes narrowed. Her tails rose up, brimming with psychic energy. Dragonite wasted no time in speeding forward, bolts of electricity streaming behind her from her scales. She failed to reach Mesprit, however, before a wall of sand rose up in front of her. Dragonite skidded to a halt. Blue energy shrouded her body and she charged the wall. Dragonite bounced off of it, a look of surprise on her face.

"Wait… that's not sand anymore. It's… it's more like glass, but a lot harder!" Dragonite said. Dragonfire gathered in her mouth and she shot an explosive, blue-violet meteor at the wall. The meteor burst apart, showering the wall with dragonfire. Dragonite floated back, jaw agape at the sight of the wall sitting there, completely unharmed. Some spots on the mysterious glass twinkled.

Zero's eye widened. "Dragonite, get back!" she barked. Dragonite zipped backward in an electric stream. Seconds later, pink baubles of energy erupted where Dragonite had previously hovered. Zero stepped toward the edge of the lake, tightening her grip on her staff. "Future Sight… clever. But not good enough." She pointed her scepter forward and a black beam raced toward the wall.

The wall glowed bright pink. Zero's beam bounced off of it, heading directly back toward her. She held up her free paw and batted the attack aside, leaving it to strike a part of the nearby wall and blow it up. Sand poured into the lake from the missing chunk of wall. "Interesting," Zero said, looking at the sand stream. "And where were these tricks when Darkrai was making his move on Temporal Tower, hmm? If you and the other gods had actually put in _effort_ toward stopping him, crises would've been averted. Lives would've been saved!"

 _What are you talking about?_ Mesprit's voice echoed through the chamber. _Everything worked out fine thanks to Team Poképals!_

"Lies!" Zero spat, metal swirling around her paws. Her scepter disappeared in a flash of light. She thrusted her paws forward, sending out a wave of liquid metal.

"Lightning Partisan!" Dragonite shouted, bringing her right arm up like she was about to throw a ball. Electricity shot down from the ceiling, forming into a crackling spear in Dragonite's hand. She threw it forward, where it coalesced with Zero's metal wave. The attack struck the glass wall. This time, cracks appeared in the wall. They spread out from its center, much to Dragonite's satisfaction.

The wall suddenly exploded. Multicolored stars streamed toward Dragonite. She zipped to her left, leaving a trail of electricity. But the stars immediately altered course. They peppered Dragonite's armored hide, forcing her back.

Zero retaliated with a black energy beam, which flew toward the dusty cloud left behind by the destroyed wall. Water geysers erupted from the lake, forcing Zero to cut off her attack and leap backward. As she did, her aura dreadlocks tensed. Seconds later, a crushing force struck her from all sides. Static blurred Zero's body as she dropped to one knee. She braced herself until the sensation faded. Her eye darted about the room.

"Another Future Sight," she growled. "She's got us in a game of cat and mouse, here." She got back to her feet. "Impressive, Mesprit. For a god with little reputation in battle, you've managed to put on a more impressive display than Zapdos. Which only heightens my disappointment in your inability to take action."

 _I hear a lot of words coming out of your mouth, whatever you are,_ Mesprit said. _But it's all hot air if you ask me._

Zero's aura dreadlocks twitched. She pivoted, her paws flickering in and out of existence. Red cubes descended from the ceiling, eliciting a frightened scream. "There, Dragonite!" Zero shouted, pointing a distorted paw forward.

With a burst of electrically-charged speed, Dragonite was at a dazed Mesprit's side. Another electric spear appeared in her hand and she slashed Mesprit in the face. The electricity froze Mesprit in midair, body spasming wildly. Then the force of the blow kicked in and knocked Mesprit back into a sand stream.

Dragonite wasted no time in prepping her next attack. She brought her hands up to her mouth and unleashed a blue-violet energy stream that took the shape of a winged dragon. It corkscrewed forward, only to meet a pink shield. Mesprit howled from the strain of trying to keep her shield up against Dragonite's attack.

Zero raised her right paw up. Staticky black cubes swirled over Mesprit's head, forming a small vortex that immediately exploded. Mesprit's shield shattered and Dragonite's attack struck her simultaneously. Her charred, smoking body fell into the water with a small splash. Dragonite dove right in, a trail of lightning fanning behind her. She zipped out of the water seconds later, only to bank in midair and dash to the edge of the platform Zero stood on.

Dragonite dropped Mesprit's scorched, bloody form. Mesprit rolled to a stop in front of Zero. "And so it ends," Zero said, raising a paw brimming with red energy. But before she could fire her attack, her aura dreadlocks crinkled up. Zero turned to her right just in time for a barrage of pink explosions to race over her and Dragonite. She skidded across the ground, digging her crystalline claws into the ground to keep herself from falling into the lake. Dragonite spread out her wings to steady herself.

"What the heck?!" Zero barked. She looked toward the spot where Mesprit was supposed to be lying, only to find the smoldering remnants of a Ninjask, its chitin burnt to a crisp. "How is this possible?"

 _Sorry, that's a secret,_ Mesprit's voice echoed through the cavern. _After the whole situation with Temporal Tower, I decided to take whatever steps I could think of to better protect this Time Gear from malevolent forces. You're part of this 'Prism Virus' thing I've been hearing about, yes? I don't know what sorts of twisted ideas have poisoned your mind, but I'll defend this Time Gear with every ounce of my power!_

The room rumbled. Pink ripples spread across the remaining parts of the lake. Dragonite gasped and lightning-dashed back toward Zero. Tan-colored crystals jutted out of the lake, rising higher and higher until they hit the ceiling, effectively cutting off the rest of the room from the Time Gear.

"Oh… clever. Very clever," Zero declared, employing a sarcastic slow clap. "You learned Uxie's feeble parlor trick. Tell me, why did you not think to use this against Darkrai? Why was there no effort made to protect Temporal Tower?!"

 _I don't owe you any explanation,_ Mesprit said.

"Yes, you do!" Zero snarled, afterimages popping up around her as she angrily nudged her mask. "Thanks to you and your fellow gods failing miserably, lives were _ruined!_ "

 _What are you talking about? I already told you–_

"I'm not talking about Pokémon, here!" Zero barked, a rainbow glow brimming underneath her helmet. "I'm talking about _humans._ How many innocent humans fell victim to the Ultra Wormholes that Primal Dialga's rampage spurned? How many were torn from their homes… _from their families…_ only to end up in some wretched, alien world? Assuming, of course, they were lucky enough to survive in the first place!"

 _Ultra Wormholes? I have no idea what you're talking about!_

"Again, you spout lies! They've been plaguing this world for as long as Solgaleo and Lunala have occupied it!" Zero hissed. "Thousands upon thousands of humans have unwillingly had their lives _destroyed_ as a result of your failures at keeping this world safe and under control! And that doesn't even begin to get into all the anguish and sadness your shortcomings have brought to the Pokémon of this world. You are all _failures_. When humans fail at their jobs… we dismiss them. It's only fair I do the same here. I _must_ have that Time Gear, so that no one ever has to suffer injustice again!"

Zero snapped her digits. "Dragonite, go! Dispose of this futile barrier!"

Dragonite zipped to the edge of the platform, a grin plastered on her face. _You won't lay a claw on that barrier!_ Mesprit shouted. The temperature in the room dropped drastically. Dragonite crouched low, seeing every breath she took.

"Dragonite, get back here!" Zero shouted. She threw her paws up, creating three walls of black cubes. Dragonite surged toward Zero, but even her lightning-dash wasn't quick enough to avoid the massive snowstorm that suddenly erupted throughout the room. Zero closed the cube walls together into a triangle, shielding her from the gale-force winds.

Dragonite hissed in pain and dropped to one knee. Ice crusted over her body, freezing her to the ground. When the howling wind died down, Zero dropped her barrier. Her eye narrowed at Dragonite's frozen form. She pointed her paws forward. Red cubes circled around Dragonite, unleashing a ring of fire that thawed her out.

"You're going to pay for that one, stupid pixie!" Dragonite snarled. Electricity and blue energy crackled down her body. A royal-blue aura erupted around her. In the process, a metallic ring formed behind Dragonite's wings. Atop the ring sat three crystalline dragon heads, their eyes glowing and their maws filled with blue-violet light.

"Now, Dragonite! I'll shield you," Zero barked. Dragonite zipped into the air, more energy gathering in the crystal dragons' mouths. Pink baubles raced across the room from all directions, threatening to close in on Zero and Dragonite. Zero punched the ground with a glowing fist. A black shockwave raced out, pushing the psychic energy away from Dragonite.

"Take this… _Ultimate Meteor Swarm!_ " Dragonite shouted. She thrusted her hands forward and the crystal dragons unleashed multiple volleys of dark blue meteors, each brimming with blue lightning and purple dragonfire. The meteors battered Mesprit's barrier one after another. Initially, pink hexagonal shields snuffed the meteors out. But they quickly shattered, letting the meteors pound away at the crystals.

"Huuuuurrrrrrrrrrrgh… _yaaaaaaaaaaaah!_ " Dragonite yelled, and then launched three gigantic meteors from the crystal dragon heads. They collided with Mesprit's barrier, resulting in a massive explosion of lightning and dragonfire that Dragonite had to dash away from.

At the same time, Zero hurled a red Aura Sphere into the explosion. She clenched her open paw into a fist, intensifying the explosion. Glitchy red cubes surged around the room. "Get rid of the dust, Dragonite," Zero ordered.

Dragonite flapped her wings, whipping up a whirlwind that cleared the room right up. Mesprit's crystal barrier was completely destroyed. With the water in the lake having been used to make the barrier, the Time Gear now sat in a crater. The glowing rune accompanying it had vanished. Mesprit lay face down next to it, her body covered in lacerations. Dragonite zipped down and nabbed the Time Gear. She banked off the crater and rebounded back toward Zero.

The instant Dragonite landed, the entire room shook. "Time's about to freeze in this area," Zero declared. She held out her right paw, summoning her scepter, and pointed it at Mesprit. "You cost me a great deal of energy, you worthless god. Time to make up for it. **Consume!** "

Zero fired a red and black beam at Mesprit. It struck her, siphoning the colors off her body and sending them up to Zero's helmet. "Come, Dragonite. Let us take our leave and make for the next Time Gear. Treeshroud Forest should be our next stop." She raised her free paw, summoning a black orb. Zero shattered the orb, leading to a black portal appearing at her feet. She calmly walked inside it, with Dragonite flying along after her.

Seconds after the portal closed, ripples of white energy raced throughout the room. The tan coloration of the rocks and crystals faded. The few sand streams remaining after the battle instantly stopped flowing and the gray blood seeping from Mesprit's wounds paused. Blood droplets hovered around her body, inches from the floor.

Then a crackle of white light appeared above her. A purple Ultra Wormhole burst forth in the middle of the room. Necrozma flew out of it, only to spread his wings out and screech to a halt.

 **"Huh?"** He looked around the room. **"Blast it! Must've taken a wrong turn somewhere! This is…"** His voice trailed off and his gaze fell on Mesprit. **"Oh?"** he whispered, grinning. **"Do my eyes deceive me? Mesprit, guardian of Quicksand Cave's Time Gear, lying dead before my non-existent feet?"**

Necrozma floated down toward Mesprit. He reached his right arm down and plucked her off the ground by her head. Necrozma brought his left arm to his chest, trying to keep it from spasming. **"Alas, poor Mesprit! I knew her, Lunala, a pixie of most excellent fancy!"** he shouted. Necrozma brought Mesprit up to eye level. **"We had some good times together, did we not?"** he said. **"Remember the tea parties with Uxie and Azelf? The many games of tag with Mew? Those were great fun… weren't they?"**

He squeezed Mesprit's head, digging his claws into her skull. Black crystals slowly encased her corpse. **"But, in the end, those 'sweet memories' were just lies. Because when I needed you to save my spirit, you ignored my call! And now I return to this world and what do I find? You're sitting guard over some** _ **wretched**_ **artifact forged from my stolen light!"**

Necrozma finished encasing Mesprit in crystals. He held her up and throttled her violently. **"Did Dialga ever tell you how he made these Time Gears? How he used my life energy after all of you let me get tossed aside like a piece of insignificant trash? Well…** _ **did he?!**_ **"** Silence followed. **"Oh, right, you can't answer me. You're dead! What a waste of good light."** He haphazardly tossed Mesprit over his shoulder. She struck a wall and shattered, the fragments of her corpse raining down onto the frozen ground.

 **"So, Mesprit's gone… and time's come to a stop in this room,"** Necrozma said. His wings twitched and his eyes flashed. He held up his right hand and black shadows swirled around his claws. **"How did the tale go, again?"** His head lolled to one side. The shadows coalesced forming a black, miniature Dusknoir in the palm of Necrozma's hand. He lifted it up to eye level.

 **"When a Time Gear is removed, the flow of time slows in its region,"** Necrozma recited, manipulating the tiny Dusknoir like it was a hand puppet. **"As many more are taken, time slows in an ever-larger area. Eventually, the planet's flow slows down so much that it stops entirely."** His opened his mouth and drool trickled off his tongue. **"In a world where the planet has become paralyzed… no winds blow… the day never comes… neither spring nor summer ever comes… it's a world of unrelenting** _ **darkness…**_ **"**

A smile crept onto his lips. He crushed the Dusknoir copy in his grip, leaving only shadowy wisps in its place. **"That's the story and everyone really believes it. But a paralyzed planet… heeheeheehee… it still has form… function…** _ **life.**_ **It is not true chaos. It is not the destruction I seek,"** Necrozma said, giggling excitedly. He raised his right hand again, pausing as it spasmed in protest, and then wiggled his claws.

The shadows swirled around in front of him. This time they combined into small, ethereal representation of Dialga. **"Pokémon can still live on a paralyzed planet… all because of you."** His grin widened. **"Dialga… the Temporal Pokémon. It is said that time flows when Dialga's heart beats."**

He glided up toward the phantom he created. **"Heeheeheehee… look at you. You arrogant fool of a god. Controlling all of time and yet you needed** _ **months**_ **to fix your precious Temporal Tower when it should've taken mere seconds,"** he whispered. **"You say you heard your savior's suffering, but it took you half a year to decide to restore his partner. But... at least you did it. You gave Team Poképals a happy ending. Everyone got what they wanted… bright,** _ **joyful**_ **futures together."**

Necrozma leveled himself with the illusion's empty eyes. **"What about me? What about the things that I did for you? For everyone in the world?!"** he snarled, his spittle falling through the shadowy Dialga copy. **"You sensed my suffering. I know you did. Any of you useless gods could've sensed it. Yet you** _ **ignored**_ **it** _ **.**_ **You took no action to help this world's** _ **true**_ **savior! There wouldn't have** _ **been**_ **an attack on Temporal Tower if I hadn't brought light back to this world! Instead everyone would've drowned in the despair of endless night… including you!"**

 **"If time flows when your heart beats, then it stands to reason that if I** _ **devour**_ **your light, I won't just paralyze the planet… but** _ **every creature living on it!**_ **Heeheeheehee!"** Necrozma cackled, folding up his wings to contain their protesting twitches. He swiped at Dialga's phantom, tearing holes in the cloud of black shadows. **"No… I'm not giving you enough credit, am I? After Darkrai's attack, you surely realized what a fatal flaw that was."**

 **"It doesn't matter, though. Paralyzing everything still leaves order. It leaves a way to undo that damage. I want destruction! I crave** _ **total oblivion!**_ **"** Necrozma continued. He raised his arms high. Two orange circles brimming with runes containing demonic eyes formed around his wrists. The paralyzed ground trembled. Holes suddenly opened under Necrozma. Black, cast-iron chains popped out of the holes, pointing their ends at the spectral Dialga.

 **"Primal Dialga will stop at nothing to maintain an irregular flow of time. If he were to come under someone else's control… if I used ley lines to subdue him to** _ **my will**_ … **"** Necrozma pointed his hands forward. The chains descended on Dialga's phantom, wrapping around it and squeezing it. It popped like a balloon, the shadows evaporating into the air. **"… then I could** _ **destroy time itself**_ **and bring this world to ruin! Heeheeheehee!"**

His red eyes flashed and the chains retreated into the ground. Necrozma turned to his right and tore open an Ultra Wormhole. **"Now then, let's not take any more detours this time. Otherwise, I risk missing my ride!"**

With a flap of his wings, Necrozma flew into the Ultra Wormhole, giggling excitedly.

* * *

 **~Invern Mountains, Base Camp~**

"Lycanroooooc, my tootsies hurt! How much further do we have to keep walking, huh?"

A vein bulged out of Lycanroc's forehead. He whirled around on Jangmo-o and held up a fist. "We keep walking until I say we're done walking, mate!" he barked. "Ain't you recognized where we are yet? We can't stop here!"

He gestured behind him to a fork in the path they were on. One direction continued forward through the clammy gray grass that rippled against the harsh winds. The other path disappeared in a dense gray cloud. In front of the cloud, a pair of stone houses faced each other. Neither had any windows, likely due to the blustery winds rolling through the area. However, each house's roof had a small layer of frost on it.

"Of course I recognize this place. It's the Invern Mountains. A paradise for ice-types like me. Kweh heh heh!" Sneasel declared. "It's the perfect place to lie low until we get another crack at Snowy!"

"Shut yer trap, featherhead! I ain't staying around here. It's bloody cold. And the Invern Mountains ain't nothing but a load of snowstorms," Lycanroc growled. "So, quit your moaning and keep walking."

"Aw, jeez, ain't there somewhere we can stop for a break or something?" Jangmo-o sighed, trudging forward with his head slumped over. "Surely you know somewhere we can crash, right?"

A rock formed in Lycanroc's paw and he hurtled it into Jangmo-o's snout. "Owie! Not the schnozzle!" Jangmo-o squealed, eyes tearing up and snout throbbing. He dropped to the ground and rubbed his face against the dirt.

"Use your head for just a minute, you ditz," Lycanroc said. "We're wanted outlaws who got out of jail. Do you honestly _think_ there's anywhere we can go?" He threw his paws up in exasperation. "Trust me, I'd love to go crawling back to bloody Cosmic Cavern, but Totem Decidueye ain't no dunce. He keeps up with outlaw postings. He'll turn us in without a second thought."

"Then what's the point of walking anywhere, huh?" Sneasel wondered. "If we've got bounties, then there's nowhere we can go that we'll be safe."

A smirk crossed Jangmo-o's face. "At least we've got bounties. That makes us hardened criminals! Nobody's gonna cross us anymore except dumb old Snowy."

"Will you shut your trap? You're as hard as wet paper, mate," Lycanroc sneered. "Can't even beat up a sorry Vulpix pup."

 _Rrrrrrruuuuuuuuuuuuuumble!_

Jamgmo-o froze mid-step. "S… Sneasel? That was your tummy doing that, right?"

"Kweh? What are you talking about? I've got an iron stomach, it never growls!" Sneasel scoffed.

Jangmo-o winced. "Then what was that rumbling all about?"

A multicolored explosion knocked Team Fang skyward. All of them shouted in surprised, flailing their limbs around desperately. They fell back to the ground. Sneasel faceplanted, while Jangmo-o landed atop Lycanroc, his tail draped over Lycanroc's mane. Lycanroc's eyes widened.

"What the–?! Get your scaly ass out of my face, you stupid worm!" he barked. Lycanroc swatted Jangmo'o, knocking him to the ground.

"Oww! Hey, don't yell at me. That wasn't my fault!" Jangmo-o squealed.

"Well then what was that drivel all about, huh?" Lycanroc snarled.

 **Not here… no Hourglass…**

Team Fang sat up in unison, stoic expressions on their faces. "Hey, Sneasel. Ain't that voice familiar?" Jangmo-o asked. Lycanroc tackled Jangmo-o to the ground, cupping a paw over Jangmo-o's snout. They all turned toward the large storm cloud, watching as a quartet of multicolored, crystalline limbs appeared.

"Mmmmffrrrgh hrrrkkk," Jangmo-o said, his voice muffled by Lycanroc's paw.

"That's… the Metagross guy from the guild that poisoned the berries," Sneasel gasped. Lycanroc turned around. His arms slackened in surprise, releasing Jangmo-o in the process.

"He's all sparkly and colorful now. Like he's made of gems," Jangmo-o said, a twinkle in his eyes. "We should totally try to rip off part of his hide and flip it for a profit!"

Metagross hovered out of the clouds. Team Fang's jaws dropped at the sight of the extra four limbs sticking out of his back and the large, crystal spike jutting out from his chin. His body had become completely translucent, allowing Team Fang to see rainbow energy swirling around Metagross' insides.

 **Hourglass… find… must get…** Metagross muttered, his rainbow eyes twitching. He pivoted to face where Team Fang sat in the grass.

Sneasel's eyes widened. "W… whoa now! I didn't sign up for none of this! Jangmo-o… plan R… on the double!"

Metagross raised his upper limbs, which started glowing. "You don't need to tell me twice!" Jangmo-o squealed.

" _Run away!_ " they shouted and sprinted back down the path.

Lycanroc's eyes widened. "H… hey! Where do you think you're going, mates? Don't just leave me here!" He sprinted off after them, stealing glances back at Metagross as he ran.

* * *

 **~Treasure Town~**

Two Chatots stood on the shores of the town's beach. Infernape and Feraligatr were behind them, talking to Mawile. Several yards in front of them, Magearna's special barrier projected up from the water, filling the sky with a bright green glow. It reflected off the water, giving the Lapras stationed on the shoreline an ethereal appearance.

"… and so I'm asking for your permission, Elder Chatot," Lapras said. "I'd like to bring my family here and let them stay in that small alcove near Beach Cave." He gestured to his right with a flipper. "It wouldn't be long, hopefully. Just until we're sure it's safe." He looked expectantly at the Chatot on his left, whose feathers were duller and whose musical note head showed signs of graying.

"Say no more, Lapras. We would be more than happy to accommodate you for the time being," Chatot said, nodding repeatedly. "Isn't that right, Guildmaster?" He glanced over his right shoulder, where a Wigglytuff stood, eyes open wide and staring off into the distance. "Erm… Guildmaster?" Chatot repeated, waving his right wing.

"He's conked out, Dad," the younger Chatot said. Unlike his father, his beak was bright blue and he had a matching ribbon tied proudly around his neck.

"Oh dear," Elder Chatot sighed. "Cresselia, I hate to be a bother, but could you wake the Guildmaster? Gently, of course."

"Mwee hee hee hee! Why not let me take a crack at it, sir?"

Haunter materialized up from the beach next to Elder Chatot. Misdreavus and Drifloon appeared at his side. "I can wake him up... no problem!"

"Hrrrmph... absolutely not!" Elder Chatot squawked. "Magearna and Latias may have vouched for your team, but I've still got my eye on you, buster. Don't think I haven't forgotten the trouble you gave Sunflora and Exploud all those years ago. 'The Invincible Haunter'... pah!"

Haunter recoiled, flipping upside down. "Aww, come on, my outlaw days are far behind me. I've turned over a new leaf and everything! Isn't that right, you two?" He glanced at his teammates, who nodded along.

Elder Chatot fluttered his wings at Team Specter, shooing them backwards. "Even so, I have it on good authority you're still a bunch of tricksters. So, back away from the Guildmaster!"

"Boy, tough crowd," Haunter said, slumping over. "We never should've left Horizon."

"Golly, Haunter, I don't think we would've had to do that if you hadn't messed with Tapu Fini," Misdreavus said.

"Aww, come on! Swapping out an oran berry for an _oren_ berry is a classic prank! How could she not have liked that?" Haunter complained.

"That's quite enough out of you lot," Elder Chatot said, putting a wing to his beak. "Cresselia, are you ready yet?"

Cresselia's blue, swan-like form floated out from behind Infernape and Feraligatr. Her eyes flashed blue. Moments later, Wigglytuff slowly blinked his eyes and yawned. He looked over at the Chatots and then at Lapras. "Oh, what's this, a friendly visit?" he asked. "Friendly visits are always welcome, especially from old friends!" He grinned at Lapras.

"Erm… Guildmaster… I was just saying that we would be happy to house Lapras and his family here in Treasure Town until the Prism Virus crisis passes," Elder Chatot exclaimed. "I trust you have no qualms about that?"

"Of course not. It'll be great having Lapras here," Wigglytuff declared, drawing surprised looks from Feraligatr, Infernape, and Mawile. "Friendly friends always make things better."

Both Chatots looked at each other, blinking. "Err… yes, of course," Blue-Beak said.

Lapras smiled. "Thank you all very much. I'm going to go get my family and bring them over. I should be back in a few hours, tops. The current's quite favorable today," he said, and then turned and sailed off. Lapras paddled through the water. Eventually, he reached the barrier. A small hole opened in it, allowing Lapras to pass. A tingle ran down his spine when he emerged on the other side and glanced the barrier closing behind him.

 _'I wonder how they got that to work, anyway,'_ Lapras wondered. He continued forward, with Treasure Town growing father and farther away. Lapras kept his speed steady, a small wake trailing out from the water behind him.

After about half an hour of swimming, Lapras lost sight of Treasure Town on the horizon. It was at this point that bubbles formed around Lapras. His brow furrowed. "Huh? Is someone down there?" he called out.

The bubbling was quickly replaced by a swirling torrent. Lapras gasped as a forceful current grabbed hold of his body and tossed him to the right. He swirled around the newly-formed whirlpool, yelping in pain as his body was dragged down toward the bright, purple portal lying at the center of the wormhole.

"Wh… what's going on heeeeeeeere?!" Lapras shouted. He slammed up against a jagged rock jutting out from the ocean floor. The blow left a bruise on his membranous neck. The whirlpool tossed him into several more rocks, each one eliciting a cry of pain.

 **"What's going on here… is that you're coming with me! Heeheeheehee!"**

Lapras' eyes widened seconds before his body reached the edge of the portal. It sucked Lapras up and then disappeared. The whirlpool settled down, restoring the ocean to normal.

* * *

 **~Brine Cave Pit~**

Salty water slowly lapped up against the cavern floor, leaving a dark outline against the brown rock. Sunlight trickled in through the opening out to the ocean, shining directly on the Relic Fragment insignia carved into the cave's wall. Water droplets trickled off the stalactites jutting out of the ceiling, creating soft _pitter-patter_ noises that echoed through the cave.

But the tranquil scene was abruptly ruined by an Ultra Wormhole flickering into existence right over the Relic Fragment rune. The portal expanded, pulsating with intense bursts of white light. A terrified scream sent the wild Omastars crawling around on the ceiling fleeing up into higher floors of the cave. The portal flashed white and Lapras' bruised, scuffed-up body fell out of it. He struck the ground and tumbled across it, coming to a stop half a foot away from the water's edge.

Trembling, Lapras raised his head and glanced the small waves trickling up along the ground. He hopped forward, wincing in pain. "Have to… escape. Gotta get back to… Treasure Town. Tell the others that– _Gnaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!_ "

 _Crrrraaaaack!_

A powerful pink blast slammed Lapras' body against the ground. He shakily turned his head back and the color drained from his face when he realized the knobs had been blasted off his shell. Lapras' vision flickered, blurring his view of Necrozma, who now floated right behind him.

 **"What's this? Trying to run out on me, are you?"** Necrozma asked. **"And after I went through so much trouble to find you?"** He shook his head disapprovingly. **"Seriously… I wasted precious light tracking you down. Did you never think to make a second Relic Fragment? You mortals really don't plan for contingencies."**

"Wh… what do you want… from me?" Lapras wheezed.

Necrozma grinned. **"Isn't it obvious? You're Lapras. You give lifts across the sea. What do you think I want, fool?"**

"I can't… I can't help you," Lapras coughed, eyes tearing up. "Please… you can fly. Leave me alone. I… I have a mate! And two kids!"

Necrozma teleported next to Lapras and grabbed his head. He yanked Lapras into the air, muffling his cries with his large black arm. Lapras dangled there, limbs flailing uselessly. **"You think a sob story about some family I've never met is really going to make me go away? If they were really so important, why weren't you with them when I found you, huh?"**

He leaned in to Lapras' horrified face. **"Are you** _ **really**_ **a loving father? Or do you just show up sporadically and give your kids empty,** _ **meaningless**_ **platitudes about how much they mean to you? Considering how often you ferry explorers around the world, I bet it's the latter. You're just another buoy floating** _ **uselessly**_ **in the sea of pathetic, miserable parents."**

"Mfffrgh! Rrrrghhh!" Lapras grunted loudly. Necrozma unceremoniously dropped him to the ground, where Lapras landed in a heap.

 **"You want to know what my favorite part of school was?"** Necrozma asked, floating up to the edge of the water and spreading his wings to block Lapras from moving forward. **"The field trips! I loved the changes of scenery and the freedom they brought. No homework… no studying for tests. Not to mention, getting to sit in the back of the bus with Shane and keep to our own devices without any** _ **obnoxious**_ **classmates butting in and** _ **judging**_ **us."**

Lapras stared up at Necrozma in confusion. "I don't... know what you're talking about," he wheezed.

 **"Don't you get it?"** Necrozma bellowed, grin widened. **"You're here to help me recreate that magical feeling... and give me some** _ **tasty**_ **light to blunt this pain, in the process."**

"What are you–?" Lapras started, only for Necrozma to bring his black arms crashing down. They connected with Lapras' shell, splintering it. Lapras' eyes widened. He opened his mouth to scream, but nothing came out. His eyes blanked and the colors on his body darkened. Necrozma raised his hands, tracing pentagrams in the air with his claws.

Two large black chains shot out of the ground. Necrozma grabbed them and yanked them into the air. He whipped them down onto Lapras, where they attached to the large crack in the middle of Lapras' shell. Necrozma's red eyes flashed and the Relic Fragment rune glowed the same color. A white beam shot out toward the water, creating a small twinkle far off in the distance.

Necrozma floated higher into the air, gripping the chains like a pair of reins. Lapras' body seized up. Necrozma flew forward, jerking Lapras into the water with a small splash. Lapras swam forward, Necrozma controlling his limbs with the chains.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Next stop… the Sea of Time!"**

 **End of Episode 11**

* * *

Necrozma is parodying Shakespeare and then quotes Dusknoir from the _Explorers_ games verbatim. That's about the best source citing I can do for this chapter. Onto replies!

SuperOmegaGuest: in Shane's defense, he doesn't have experience with a lot of Ninetales. He was always more of an Arcanine guy, anyway. Whether or not he evolves, though, you'll have to stick around and find out.

Another guest: technically speaking, we're a long ways off from chapter 69, since bonus parts don't factor into the numbering. That chapter's already planned out it's gonna be a tear-jerker, so you'll want some tissues on standby.

Anon Omega: as you can see, they're involved in this, too.

Shawn vermilion: assuming you see this, I'm not quite sure what you're referring to, here. You'll have to be more specific.

That's all for now. Next time: grab your spelunking equipment, because we're off to Cosmic Cavern!


	67. Cosmic Congregating

As of the date this chapter was posted, I _finally_ went back and added the revisions that I made to the first 28 parts of the story, along with a few chapters involving Necrozma in episodes 8 and 9. These changes had been made elsewhere, but because FFN is a very tough site for me to work with, I struggled to implemented the changes to this version. They'e there now, however, including newly-added scenes or scenes that were rewritten from the ground up.

Or you could read this new chapter instead. Enjoy!

* * *

 **~Wigglytuff's Guild~**

"N-No!" Latias gasped, her glowing eyes wide in shock. "Tell me you're kidding. This is all just a sick joke, right?"

Cresselia shook her head, frowning. "I wish from the bottom of my heart it was true, Latias, but I know what I saw." She poked her tiny hands together. "Time has completely stopped over Quicksand Cave. Worse, I couldn't pick up the faintest trace of Mesprit's aura."

All of the Pokémon standing in attendance gasped, as did the flickering images of the Pokémon taking part in the conversation through Latias' sight-sharing. "Th… this is unthinkable!" Elder Chatot squawked, hopping up and down and fluttering his wings. "Can anyone here confirm this report? Not that I wouldn't trust Cresselia, of course, but we need to know the truth beyond a shadow of a doubt."

"I concur," Mawile said. "Latias, would you be able to sense Quicksand Cave from our location?"

Latias gulped. "It… um… it'd be a struggle, for sure. Especially with the sight-sharing. But I can certainly try!" She squeezed her eyes shut. The group of projected Pokémon disappeared from the guild's assembly area for a few seconds as Latias concentrated. Eventually, she opened her eyes back up, restoring the connection.

"It's true," she whispered meekly. "I'm not getting anything."

A ring portal opened beside Latias. Hoopa popped out. "Yeah, time is _definitely_ frozen there. Hoopa saw it for himself," he declared.

 _"Oh… right… we should've just asked Hoopa to do that from the get-go,"_ Delphox said, projecting through Latias' mind. _"So, what does this mean, exactly?"_

"That someone's after the Time Gears," Infernape said. "The 'who' and 'why' are the big questions for me."

"I'm willing to stake my claim on it being the Prism Virus," Mawile exclaimed. "If it is after Legendary Pokémon, acquiring the Time Gears would give it the means to cause a mess of trouble, would it not?"

Latias bit her lower lip. "Wait." She tucked her head into her paws and shook it. "Ugh, how could I not have seen this coming?"

Meganium looked at Delphox in concern. _"What's wrong, Latias?"_ Delphox asked.

"It's the creature that's at the core of the Prism Virus… the Guiding Light," Latias said.

"Guiding… Light?" Cresselia repeated. "That's not ringing any bells." She turned to the shadowy specter hovering in the corner. "I could always ask Darkrai, but I doubt he'd know anything."

"I wouldn't expect anyone to know about it," Latias said. "It's… um… tough to explain."

"Of course it is! Because you're practically speaking in riddles," Haunter suddenly shouted, hovering with his teammates by a bubbling cauldron in the room's northwest corner. "We don't know what it is because it's alien. Team Radiance calls it and its flunkies Ultra Beasts. Pretty fitting since, even by my standards, they're quite… ghastly! Mwee hee hee… hee… hee…"

He looked around at the room and shrank toward the ground. "Boy, tough crowd," Haunter whispered, stealing glances at a Sunflora and Exploud eying him suspiciously from across the room.

"Erm… yes…" Latias whispered. Her blue eyes flashed yellow and she produced a psychic projection of Necrozma's true form. "This is the Guiding Light. He's a human spirit that was infused with the power of ley lines, resulting in what you see here."

"Eek! He's totally scary-looking," Sunflora gasped, wrapping her arms around Exploud. Other Pokémon wore similarly-concerned looks on their faces.

 _"How does that connect him to the Time Gears?"_ Delphox asked, eyeing the projection nervously.

"His creators fractured his spirit when he disobeyed them and befriended the gods. Huge amounts of his life energy spread throughout the world, falling to the ground as stardust," Latias explained.

"H-Hang on a second!" Feraligatr jumped in, taken aback by Latias' statement. "Stardust… as in the stuff that makes orbs, wands, and emeras?" He looked at the band around his right arm. "Does that mean I'm going to go crazy if I don't get rid of these things?"

"I think you should be fine, buddy," Infernape said, sweat drops rolling down the back of his head.

"The key point I was trying to make is that Dialga used stardust to forge the Time Gears," Latias said.

Elder Chatot's face blanched. "But… but that would mean that… the Time Gears we hold in such high regard…"

"… are actually fragments of the Guiding Light's broken spirit," Mawile said. "That's the logical conclusion, yes."

Latias dispelled her psychic projection. "As I'm sure you all know, Post Town and Pokémon Paradise were ravaged by what appeared to be Lunala. I've come to learn that it wasn't Lunala's fault. Rather, the remnants of the Guiding Light possessed her. He calls himself Necrozma, Devourer of Light."

"Needless to say, we can't let him or his flunkies get any more Time Gears," Mawile said. "Ampharos, I propose we pool our resources to secure the other four Time Gears."

"Now wait just a second!" Elder Chatot interjected, flapping his wings frantically. "I still recall the gr– err, that fiendish _Dusknoir's_ words. If we remove every Time Gear from its proper place, it will result in no less than the planet's paralysis!"

"And if Necrozma gets his hands on them, then the exact same thing will happen," Infernape countered. "At bare minimum, we must go to their hiding spots."

 _"Agreed,"_ Delphox said. _"If this Necrozma guy could dispose of Mesprit so quickly, I doubt Azelf, Ditto, or Uxie stand much of a chance. And then there's the unguarded one in Treeshroud Forest."_

"Shouldn't we be forging a plan to confront Necrozma?" Feraligatr wondered.

"Oh my gosh… I don't really think I could even begin to fathom how to stop a Pokémon that can possess a Legendary like Lunala," Sunflora said.

 _"Not to worry, everyone! Latias is on top of things in that department,"_ Ampharos declared, a broad grin on his face.

All eyes – real and projected – fell on Latias' horrified face. "Err… um… well… it's kind of a work in progress. Team Radiance is in pursuit of the Dawn Hourglass. We think it has the power needed to stop Necrozma." A bunch of confused stares met her in response.

"Mwee hee hee hee! I can't believe we're pinning our hopes on the human, Riolu, and whatever the heck Silvally's supposed to be," Haunter said.

"There's a human in Horizon?!" Infernape, Feraligatr, and Delphox all shouted in unison. They exchanged surprised looks.

"Eh heh heh… did that not come up in conversation?" Latias said, grinning sheepishly. "My bad."

Infernape's brow furrowed. "And this Riolu that Haunter mentioned… her dad wouldn't happen to be–"

"Incineroar? Hooo-whee, you're spot-on, buddy. She's our old Guildmaster's daughter, yup yup," Misdreavus declared.

"Ah," Infernape said, scratching his head nervously. "That's… quite ironic, I must say."

"Is she the one that kept sending us fan mail?" Feraligatr whispered. Infernape nodded. "Oh… huh. That _is_ ironic!"

"Let's try to stay focused, everyone," Mawile said. "I think we reached an agreement, yes? We'll split up to protect the Time Gears?"

Ampharos nodded. _"I'm all for bringing them back to Lively Town or Treasure Town for safekeeping."_

"Agreed. Any incident the Time Gears would cause would be temporary. All we'd need to do is bring them to Temporal Tower once everything's safe," Infernape declared.

Elder Chatot's brow furrowed. "And what say you to this, Guildmaster?" He glanced at Wigglytuff, who stood beside Blue-Beak.

Wigglytuff puffed out his chest. "The safety of the Time Gears is paramount! We'll put all our resources toward grabbing them before these misguided miscreants! _Yoom-tah!_ "

Blue-Beak pulled his wings off his head. "And there you have it, Dad."

"What about the folks in Horizon?" Latias asked.

 _"As I said before, they're your responsibility,"_ Ampharos said. _"But I have full confidence in your abilities."_

Latias' wings drooped. _'That's what I was worried you'd say.'_

* * *

 **Episode 12: Family Matters**

 **Chapter 57: Cosmic Congregating**

* * *

 **~Western Volcanic Wastes~**

Shane tried to fall back asleep but gave up after a fitful hour of tossing and turning. He walked outside of Totem Salazzle's house and sat down to watch the storm clouds overhead. Eventually, he spotted Espeon approaching the house. Dried blood sat on her snout and her tail twitched erratically. He opened his mouth to say something but Espeon walked inside, completely ignoring him.

Eventually, Tessa and Silvally woke up. Shane preoccupied himself with helping them prepare to depart the Volcanic Wastes. Totem Marowak arranged to restock the team's supplies using resources both tribes had gathered, but never found a use for. He even offered up some Awakening Emeras for Tessa, which she took with a great degree of hesitation. Once she pocketed them, she lifted Shane up and positioned him on her shoulder. Team Radiance then proceeded toward the edge of the village.

"Man, I think I see why Pikachu liked riding on Ash's shoulder so much. This is pretty comfy!" Shane chirped, tails thumping against Tessa's shoulder blade. "Thanks for the lift! Any special reason?"

"No. But as long as you're my passenger, I expect you to behave yourself," Tessa exclaimed, crossing her arms.

"I'll bet she did it to stop you from trying to look somewhere unsavory," Espeon exclaimed stoically. "That's what I'd do if I walked on two paws instead of four."

Shane's ears drooped. "Are you going to hold that over my head the whole time we're travelling together?"

"Yup," Espeon replied.

"You know she's doing that to get a rise out of you, right?" Tessa whispered. "I think she's just teasing."

"I still don't like it," Shane whimpered.

Silvally stepped between Tessa and Espeon. "Now, Espeon. Let's be fair, here. It's got nothing to do with that." He looked over and Tessa and smirked. "Tessa's just a smart cookie. She's using Shane's tails to cool herself off."

Espeon's ears and tails stiffened. She abruptly stopped walking and blinked several times. "That's… that's…" She slumped over. "… brilliant."

Silvally and Shane burst into laughter. Tessa's brow furrowed, the joke having gone over her head. "Actually, now that you mention it, the heat _doesn't_ feel as awful as it did yesterday."

"That's the point," Silvally whispered. "A Vulpix's tails can give off chilled air. Think of it like a layer of insulation from the heat."

Tessa's eyes widened in realization. "I think we might have to make this arrangement permanent, then. Sorry, Shane, looks like you won't be evolving anytime soon if I have anything to say about it."

Shane rolled his eyes. "Please. You're a Lucario now. You can carry me with your aura-powered super strength. Ninetales are mostly fluff anyway. I bet I'd barely weigh a thing."

"Yeah, but Ninetales also curse anyone who touches one of their tails," Tessa said, putting on a scary face and waving her arms around comically. "I'm not looking for any curses in my near future. I'm already saddled with you, after all."

Shane nearly face faulted right off her shoulder. Tessa stuck her paw up to catch him. "Okay, ouch. Did your evolution come with a boost to your sarcasm stat or something?"

"It's a possibility," Tessa said, sticking her tongue out.

"You guys are such dorks," Espeon scoffed, rolling her eyes. Karma quickly caught up with her, as her forepaw struck a small depression in the ground. She yelped in surprise and fell to the ground. Espeon shot back up, her face and chest covered in ash. She held her snout up and sauntered forward, silently willing everyone to forget what they just saw.

"Actually, speaking of cool aura powers, doesn't this mean that you can use Aura Spheres now?" Shane asked, looking at her expectantly.

"Um… I'm not actually sure," Tessa said. "I don't even know how to try."

"Oh, that's an easy one!" Shane exclaimed. "I know exactly what you need to do." He leaned over and whispered into her ear. Said ear twitched and Tessa's face scrunched up in disapproval.

"Absolutely not," she said. "That sounds completely ridiculous. I'll bet you're lying to me."

"I'm not," Shane said.

"You totally are. There's no way that the key to learning Aura Sphere is cupping my paws together and thrusting them forward while shouting 'Kamehameha' at the top of my lungs," Tessa scoffed. "Where did you even pull that idea out of, huh? Is this another one of your weird human tricks?"

"Yes," Shane mumbled, pouting. "But… c'mon… couldn't you just do it once! You'd be making one of my biggest dreams come true."

"No."

Shane batted his eyelids at Tessa. "Pretty please with berry glaze on top?"

"No!"

"I'll be your bestest friend in the whole wide world!" Shane said, awkwardly forming a little heart with his forepaws. Silvally's head crest fanned out in surprise.

"Oh, well when you put it that way…"

Shane's eyes sparkled in anticipation, only for Tessa to shove him off her shoulder. He unceremoniously tumbled into an ash pile.

"… the answer's _definitely_ no."

Silvally dusted Shane off and helped him to his feet. "I'm no expert here but _maybe_ you ought to lay off the aura subject. At least until Tessa's figured out how to get that stuff working completely."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. I was just trying to have a little fun," Shane muttered. "Lesson learned."

Before he and Silvally could resume walking, Tessa froze. Her aura feelers rose and she held up a paw. "Guys, I think Latias is flying toward us. And she's going _really_ fast."

Silvally looked over his shoulder just in time to see a red and white blur zooming toward him. He quickly jumped to his right, barreling Shane over in the process. Latias slammed her metaphorical breaks, screeching to a halt with an embarrassed look on her face. "Sorry. I, uh, am usually _much_ better at stopping."

"Are you kidding? That was great!" Hoopa cheered, popping up from Latias' back. "You're way more fun than Hoopa remembers the last Latias being. Let's go again!"

"Another time, maybe," Latias said, sweat drops rolling down the back of her head. Her eyes fell on Tessa. "Oh, congrats on evolving." She shook her head. "I'd love to hear about it. Really. But we've got a serious situation, here."

"I'll say," Shane huffed, looking in dismay at his soot-covered right flank. "Where's the fire? Y'know, besides down in the lava pits?"

Latias fidgeted nervously with her claws. "It's the Underground Lake. No, wait… Quicksand Cave!" Shane ears stuck up and he fixed a worried look on Latias. "Time's frozen around the whole dungeon!" Latias blurted out.

" _What?!_ " everyone on Team Radiance shouted in unison. Tessa looked the most confused of the group, while Espeon, Shane, and Silvally were starting to panic.

"N… no way. Someone took one of the Time Gears?" Shane squeaked, his gaze falling to the ground.

Latias nodded glumly. "They didn't just take the Time Gear. Mesprit… she's gone."

"It has to be the Prism Virus," Silvally said.

"But that doesn't make any sense," Espeon said. "Zero said she had no intention of trying to mess with the flow of time like that. She wants the world to function just like it does now… but with no gods."

"Zero may have said that, but _Necrozma_ is another story entirely," Shane declared ominously. "There are just too many possibilities to consider."

He started pacing back and forth. "Maybe he needs to combine them with the Hourglasses to execute whatever the Prism Virus' plan is for wiping out Legendaries. Or it could be a giant smoking gun. A red herring that'll get us to stop looking for the Dawn Shards. Think about it. If we dropped everything to go protect the Time Gears, then Zero can just swoop in and grab the Dawn Shards unopposed." Shane shook his head. "If the whole point behind those things is that the Prism Virus can use them to remove all the protective forcefields around the gods' domains, then we can't just _stop_ looking for them."

"But we also can't let the Time Gears fall by the wayside either," Silvally said. "Don't you guys remember Espeon telling us that theory that the Time Gears were forged from stardust?" His teammates eyes slowly widened. "If that's true, and the stardust that falls from the heavens is really the life energy Necrozma lost to Golem, then he might be after the Time Gears to get that energy back."

Latias' face blanched. "But… but if that's the case, he's probably already destroyed the Time Gear he has!" She started hyperventilating. "Oh no… oh no… this is bad. This is bad!"

"Do the guilds overseas know about this?" Shane asked. "Do they have _any_ kind of plan to deal with this?"

"I… uh… it's really confusing to keep track of all this!" Latias blurted out. "Yes, we're trying to do something about the Time Gears. But then Ampharos said that that means _I_ need to figure out a plan of action about Horizon and so I had Hoopa portal us over here without even taking the time to think about anything and I'm not a leader in the slightest and I don't know how to make big decisions and this is all just–"

Espeon reached a forepaw up and tapped Latias on the snout. "Easy, Latias," she said. "I thought you were gonna stop breathing for a second, there."

Hoopa crossed his arms and pouted. "Aww, you should have let her continue. Hoopa wanted to see her face turn blue."

Espeon glared at Hoopa, who stuck his tongue out in response. "Let's just take this one step at a time. Now, you said the Expedition Society has a plan?"

"Y… yeah," Latias stammered. "They're working with Wigglytuff's Guild. I think Hoopa transported different groups over to the four remaining Time Gears' dungeons. But I'm not sure if they're going to just stay there and protect them… or bring all of them back to Lively Town."

Shane frowned. "It shouldn't matter, should it? If they're stuck guarding the Time Gears, then that leaves everywhere else open to a Prism Virus attack!"

"But the towns' forcefields are still working, right?" Tessa asked. She sighed in relief when Latias nodded. "Okay, then it sounds like it's smarter to bring them back to Lively Town and stall until we can get the Dawn Hourglass back together."

Latias frowned. "I wish it was that simple. But… but I'm pretty sure I need to take some precautions here. This is…" She gripped her head and shook it.

"It's okay, Latias," Espeon assured her. "We're all on the same side, here. Let us know how we can help."

"No!" Latias cupped her paws over her mouth. "Sorry. I didn't mean to shout." She took a deep breath. "I need you four to keep looking for these Dawn Shards. That's still important. You did find the one that was here, right?" Deflated expressions appeared on Team Radiance's faces. Latias' wings drooped. "You… didn't get it?"

"It was taken from us," Tessa said, "by my brother."

"Dun dun _daaaaaaaaaaaa!_ What a twiiiiiiiist!" Hoopa shouted, waving his hands around enthusiastically. Five scathing looks met him in response. "Hoopa was just trying to lighten the mood. Sheesh."

"Hoopa, can you just be quiet for a few minutes?" Latias groaned. "Um, listen, can I just read someone's mind? I think it'd get me up to speed much quicker." Espeon nodded her approval. Latias' eyes flashed blue and she sifted through Espeon's memories of the previous day. Doing so added an even greater degree of exhaustion to her expression. "Unbelievable. So, Gallian made off with the Sizzle Shard? Has he totally lost it?"

Tessa's shoulders slumped. "The only times I've seen him in the last, like, eight months have been with those two alien Pokémon calling themselves Team Paradox." She cupped a paw over her eyes and rubbed her temples. "I don't know what's come over him. He's become so detached… and he keeps spouting off about his disaster sense but he won't take the time to stop and explain why his disaster sense is going wild." She frowned. "All he does is take one look at me and dismiss me as a waste of his time. And I'm his sister! He never used to be like this, I swear."

Latias frowned. "Hold that thought," she said, to Tessa's surprise. " _Hey!_ " Latias shouted, floating through the group and looking back toward the village. "Quit hiding and trying to spy on us! I know you're out there, Zoroark! Show yourself!"

Shane's tails ducked under his legs. "A Zoroark? And it's been stalking us?"

Tessa shut her eyes. Her aura feelers tensed and she gasped. "She's right." Tessa grabbed her ears and pulled them against her forehead. "Ohhh… how could I be so blind as to miss something like that? They could've gotten the drop on us and I'd have been none the wiser."

"It's not your fault," Silvally assured her. "You just started learning how to use your aura sense." He turned toward the village, watching a Salazzle pop up from behind a very large boulder, hands raised in surrender.

"Hold up! Hold up! Please… this is just a misunderstanding," the Salazzle exclaimed. A blue ripple raced across her body, revealing a male Zoroark. Team Radiance's expressions blanked at the sight of his scars, missing left ear, and damaged left eye.

"Dear god, what happened to that guy?" Shane gasped.

"Careful," Espeon said, frowning, "it could be a trick to get us to lower our guard."

"I said get out here!" Latias shouted, dragon fire licking at her lips.

"No… wait! Stop! I've got a bum leg! I'm serious!" Zoroark begged. He limped away from the rock, wincing with every step he took. Zoroark dropped to his knees, keeping his arms raised high. "C-Come on… you don't really think I'd be stupid enough to challenge a Lucario _and_ two Legendaries, do you?" he rasped.

"You Zoroarks have a penchant for recklessness," Espeon accused. "Maybe start with telling us why you were snooping in our conversation."

"Okay, okay," Zoroark said, nodding vigorously. "Just call off Latias! And, uh…" His voice trailed off and he glanced at Silvally. "Tell your friend to ease off the suspicious glare. He's… he's kind of frightening."

Silvally took a step back, raising a skeptical brow. "He sure seems rather nervous. I was expecting him to be a smug, quick-witted jerk."

"… like the Zoroark inside of you?" Shane wondered, drawing a nod from Silvally. "Remember, it could just be an act."

"I followed you guys because I heard you mention Gallian," Zoroark confessed, avoiding everyone's gazes by boring holes into the ground. "I was trying to keep tabs on his whereabouts yesterday. But, well, I can't move around all that great. By the time I got here, I saw him and his freaky colleagues fleeing Mt. Supernova with some sparkly stone.

Shane's eyes widened. "That's the Sizzle Shard!" he gasped. "Did you see them? Which way were they going?"

Zoroark sighed. "I was too tired to give chase, so I figured I'd lay low with the Salazzles until I could get my strength back. But then I heard you guys bring Gallian up, so I thought I'd follow you and see why you were looking for him. As for where he is… I'm extremely confident he's back in Cosmic Cavern."

"Cosmic Cavern?" Tessa parroted. "But how would you know that? And, for that matter, how do you even know Gallian, huh?"

Zoroark got to his feet. "You're… you're the little sister, aren't you?" he asked. He gripped some of the fur on his chest and twisted it around his claw. "Oh man… and you just evolved yesterday, didn't you? I, uh, was really hoping we'd be able to meet under better circumstances."

Tessa tensed up. "What's that supposed to mean? Answer my question!"

Zoroark winced. "I… I know Gallian because I'm his mate. Or at least… I _was_ his mate… until he ran out on me."

Silence fell over the group. Tessa stumbled backwards, clutching her chest like someone had just given her the hardest gut punch she'd ever felt. "Y… you're his… _mate?_ " she squeaked. "Oh… oh gods… I think I'm gonna be sick."

Silvally darted over to Tessa's side, offering up his shoulder for her to lean against. Tessa braced herself against his side and shuddered. "Jeez, Tessa. Don't you think you're overreacting a bit?" Shane said. "So, your brother had himself a boyfriend. Is that really a big deal?"

"Is your fur blocking your hearing, human? He didn't say boyfriend, he said 'mate.' As in _soulmate,_ " Espeon exclaimed, giving Shane an icy look that'd make a Glaceon jealous.

Shane's resolve faltered a bit. "Is there some kind of difference?"

"Yes!" Espeon said. "There's a _huge_ difference! How could you not know that?"

"Uh, hello! Human, remember?" Shane said, looking rather hurt. "Seriously. If it's really that big a deal, then just explain it to me."

Latias floated down to him and placed a paw on his shoulder. "Human… soul-mating is a gesture that two Pokémon use to show their eternal commitment to one another. It bonds a couple together _for life._ Breaking that bond is taboo, unless there are dire circumstances surrounding it."

Shane blinked a few times. At which point, Latias' message finally became clear. He took a few shaky steps backwards. "D… dear god. So, mating is like marriage… but dialed all the way up to eleven!"

"Oh, so you _do_ understand it?" Espeon said. "Then maybe now you realize why Tessa's so shocked?"

"Y… yeah!" Shane's gaze darted back and forth between Zoroark and Tessa. "I mean… if I ever learned from one of my sister's spouses that they had gotten married, never told me, and then broken it off, I'm pretty sure I would pass out on the spot."

Zoroark winced. "I'm sorry this is how you had to find out, Tessa. Trust me… this isn't the direction I'd wanted my life to go in."

Tessa looked right at Zoroark. Then, to everyone's surprise, she burst out laughing. Tessa slid down Silvally's foreleg until she was sitting on the ground. "I… I'm sorry. I can't… I shouldn't…" She doubled over, kicking her legs against the ground. "It's just… this is… oh gods… why can't I stop?"

Silvally looked down at her in concern. "Are you _sure_ you're okay?"

Espeon blinked in surprise. "Tessa, seriously? Pull yourself together!"

"Do you realize how hypocritical that sounds coming from _you?_ " Shane scoffed.

"Not the time, human," Espeon hissed.

Tessa's laughter slowed down. She dabbed tears out of her eyes. "I'm sorry, guys. Really. I just couldn't help it. I mean… look at this!" She gestured at Zoroark. "Just how screwed up is my life going to get, huh? I find out I have a _spirit-brother_ –"

Shane raised a forepaw in question. "That's what you call your sibling's mate," Silvally whispered. Shane nodded in recognition and lowered his forepaw.

"–And it turns out that not only has Gallian gotten to be as screwed up as me, but he passed it on to him!" Tessa continued, throwing a paw over her muzzle to try and choke back her laughter. "This is totally ridiculous. My life's a mess. My family's an even bigger mess." She slowly got back to her feet and took a few deep breaths. Her gaze fell on Zoroark, whose eyes flickered angrily. Tessa realized what she had just said.

"Oh gods," she whispered. "Zoroark, I'm so sorry! I didn't…" She bit her lower lip. "That came out wrong!"

Zoroark drew his muzzle back in a snarl. "That's your best apology? You just said I'm screwed up!" He narrowed his eye at her. "You're just as callous as your brother's gotten!" He threw his arms up and turned away from Team Radiance. "Why did I think trailing you all would be a good idea? All it managed to accomplish was getting egg thrown on my face!"

"Wait, wait, wait!" Shane shouted, dashing toward Zoroark. "You've got this all backwards. This is a big misunderstanding." Shane skidded to a halt. "Listen, my friends and I have been under a _huge_ amount of stress lately. And that's before we ran into you. I mean, you know that Tessa evolved yesterday. So, you've got to understand that she's _really_ not herself right now. I know that she's really sorry. Trust me… Tessa's my best friend. I know she'd never insult you on purpose."

Tessa did a double-take at the mention of "best friend." Zoroark turned back around and Tessa rubbed her shoulder. "Um… I think we may have gotten off on the wrong foot," she squeaked. "Could we start over, by any chance?"

Zoroark crossed his arms. "I'm not one to give second chances freely. Just ask your brother."

"Then, um, how about revising your first impression?" Tessa said, fidgeting with her paws. "Please, Zoroark. If… if you really were involved with Gallian, I don't want to push you out of my life. I want you in it!" Her gaze fell toward the ground. "My family's crumbling all around me. Gallian wants nothing to do with me. Team Radiance… is pretty much all I have now."

"Well, I don't know what to tell you," Zoroark said. "Heck, the whole reason I was following you guys was because I was hoping maybe you could be the ones to talk some sense into him. But it sounds like you're having just as many problems with him as I did yesterday." His shoulders sagged. "It's hopeless then, isn't it? He's… he's too far gone."

"You can't think like that," Silvally said. "I know how much Gallian means to Tessa. And I'm sure he means the world to you, too. If we all put our heads together, we can come up with a way to get through to him. We need that Dawn Shard. And you deserve to have your mate back… the way you remembered him."

Zoroark gripped his shoulder and looked away. "That's just it, though. I'm not even sure I _want_ him back. Not after he left me."

"Yaaaaaaaawn. This is _sooooo_ boring," Hoopa cut in. "Where's the drama? The intrigue! The make-out sessions interrupted by slaps across the face? You guys _suck_ at romantic relationships!"

"Hoopa!" Latias scolded. She sighed loudly. "Listen, guys. I really shouldn't be hanging around here. Hoopa and I are happy to portal you over to Cosmic Cavern, if you're going to go there. But otherwise, we have to get going. I need to get to the Temple of Balance, because I have an idea and it's time-sensitive in more ways than one."

Tessa looked at Zoroark. "Are you okay going with us?"

Zoroark nodded slowly. "Yeah, I guess so." He looked at his scarred leg. "It sure beats walking back, that's for sure."

* * *

 **~Cosmic Cavern~**

Hoopa's ring deposited Team Radiance on the edges of a cliff overlooking the Midnight Sea. Jagged rocks lay scattered along the cliff face. In the distance, they could see the storm clouds and thick black smoke encircling the Volcanic Wastes. "In here," Zoroark said, beckoning them toward a small tunnel. They all proceeded inside, with Silvally having to duck in order to maneuver safely through the cave.

"It's a bit of a cramped fit," he complained.

"Nothing much we can do about that," Zoroark said. "Just try not to smack your face against any of the crys–"

 _Wham!_

"Ow!" Silvally squawked, dropping to the ground and rubbing his beak against it.

"Never mind," Zoroark said, sighing.

"So, um, Zoroark?" Tessa asked. "What was it like… for you and Gallian?" She frowned when Zoroark froze. "Err… I mean… you don't have to answer that if you don't want to!"

"No. It's fine," Zoroark dismissed. "You're his sister. You deserve to know." Zoroark shuffled forward, bracing himself against the cavern wall. "Gallian was… the guy I needed in my life." He craned his head back, his scarred eye falling on Tessa and making her look away. "I'm not sure if you're aware about the stereotypes my kind tends to carry."

"That you're malicious tricksters never to be trusted?" Espeon said. Silvally gave her a disapproving look. "Oh please. Don't act like you weren't thinking that."

Zoroark dragged his claws against the rock wall, making Espeon's fur stand on end. "Yeah, nobody's more aware of that than me," he rasped. "Probably why my folks ditched me. Because I wasn't interested in trickery. Or thieving. Y'know, the 'usual' Zoroark stuff."

"Your parents just abandoned you?" Tessa gasped. _'Just like Gallian's egg…'_

"They kicked me into the Midnight Sea and fled," Zoroark muttered grimly. "I'll bet they were hoping I drowned. I didn't know how to swim when I was a kit." He paused at a fork in the tunnel and gestured to his right. Team Radiance followed after Zoroark, moving slowly to accommodate his injured leg.

"I owe my life to Totem Decidueye," Zoroark said. "He rescued me from the water and took me in. The guy raised me up from a little pup when he didn't know the first thing about Zoruas or Zoroarks. He even got the other villagers to treat me alright." He sighed loudly. "But, even with all the good he did, I never felt a real connection to him. He's our Totem. He always had a lot of work to do. So, I spent a lot of time by myself. Sure, it gave me plenty of time to practice illusion-making. But… I was never big on using them."

"Why not?" Tessa asked.

"Because they're meaningless fakes," Zoroark growled. "I want people to like me for, well, me. What's so bad about that, huh? I love my body. Or, at least, I did, before…" He pivoted to show Team Radiance his scars. "I suppose I should start using illusions to make myself look uninjured, but my heart wouldn't be in it." He lowered his head and shook it. "Sorry, I went off on a tangent, didn't I? You wanted to know about me and your brother."

"If it's not too much trouble," Tessa whispered. "Gallian… he walked out of my life eight months ago. Angrier than I had ever seen him before. I just want to know what happened to him to make him so cold and distant."

"I honestly wish I could tell you, but I'm just as confused about that one as you are," Zoroark admitted. "When he showed up out of the blue yesterday, he was nothing like the guy I'd fallen for."

Tessa's aura feelers tensed. A heavy, unseen force tugged against them. She looked up at Zoroark. _'Is this what it's like to see someone's emotions play out?'_ she wondered. It made Tessa's heart sink. She shut her aura sense off and broke eye contact with Zoroark, biting her lip. "Um, what was he like? When you were together, I mean?"

Zoroark rubbed his eyes. "When he first stumbled into Cosmic Cavern, he was scared… and confused. I was working as a sentry at the time, so I came across him first. He passed out from exhaustion. I brought him to Totem Decidueye and helped nurse him back to health." Zoroark limped forward. "I was the first guy he saw when he woke up. And he…" Zoroark started chuckling. "He was so flustered. Like, I was so used to people avoiding eye contact with me. Because folks always find me intimidating-looking. Gallian was the exact opposite. Guy couldn't take his eyes off of me. He was the one who had been through an ordeal, but he was asking _me_ all the questions. About the village… the roll I played in it… what things were like here…"

"He wound up staying with me," Zoroark continued. "Even offered to help me with my sentry job. I really appreciated it. My shifts were either lonely or annoying. But having Gallian there to talk to changed all of that." He rubbed his shoulder awkwardly. "Sure, I couldn't get him to talk much about himself, at first. But after years of lingering in the background, I appreciated the attention."

Zoroark passed underneath a light crystal. Tessa noticed his longing gaze and shut her eyes. But that kicked on her aura sense. Zoroark's melancholy thoughts weaved through her body, exhausting her.

"Hey, watch it!" Shane barked, jolting Tessa to attention. "You nearly stepped on me." He scrunched his tails up against his hips and gave her a concerned look.

"You okay back there?" Zoroark asked, pausing to lean against the cavern wall and catch his breath.

"I'm fine," Tessa insisted. "Sorry to interrupt you. Continue."

Zoroark's brow furrowed. "What else do you want to me say?"

Tessa poked her index digits together. "Well, how did things get from working together to… y'know…"

"Sleeping together," Shane interjected, ignoring Tessa's surprised squeak.

Zoroark ran his claws through his mane. "I guess after a few weeks with Gallian by my side, I started to see him in a different light. He wasn't just this guy who had stuck around because he owed his life to anyone. As we got closer together, we started doing things other than sentry shifts together. Like sparring, for example."

"I kept trying to prod into Gallian's past, but he would always dodge the issue. One night, I took him out to that ridge your friends dropped us off at. We had dinner together on the cliffside." Zoroark took a deep breath. "That's when he told me about what had happened to him." Zoroark bit his lip. "I was concerned when he told me he'd left you with some family friends, so I made him promise that we'd go to visit you at some point."

"You... you did?" Tessa gasped, nervously rubbing the mark on her right paw.

"Yeah. That's when I went for broke and told Gallian I loved him," Zoroark replied.

"So, you did the whole love confession in front of a sunset routine? Sheesh, never would've taken a Zoroark to be such a romantic," Shane mused. "I suppose it beats the Lucario and Zoroark couples that were omnipresent back in the human world."

Silvally's face scrunched up in confusion. "Wait, how can there be couples like that if Pokémon are fictional where you're from?"

Shane grinned sheepishly. "Never underestimate the power of fandoms and shipping, big guy."

"That… really doesn't answer my question," Silvally griped.

"Do you guys mind?" Tessa growled. Her teammates went quiet and looked down guiltily. "Sorry, Zoroark. You were saying?"

Zoroark scratched at his dismembered ear. "Yeah, I told Gallian I loved him. He had already let slip that he was attracted to guys after our snouts had accidentally touched during a spar. But I didn't say anything at the time." Zoroark's eyes glazed over. "His response… wasn't what I was expecting. He panicked, actually. I still remember how terrified he looked."

"His disaster sense?" Tessa wondered.

"Yeah," Zoroark replied, nodding. "He was so spooked that he tried to bolt." Zoroark cringed. "But he misjudged his steps and wound up tumbling down the ridge and into the Midnight Sea."

Tessa's eyes widened. "Oh gods! What happened?"

"I jumped in… thinking I'd need to save him," Zoroark admitted. Embarrassment spread across his face. "Turns out he landed in a shallow part where he could stand. Which was bad news for me, because I smacked head-first into the ground underwater." He rubbed his forehead.

Shane couldn't help but laugh. "Wow, so in the process of trying to avoid disaster, Gallian had actually managed to cause it? That's pretty hilarious." But a scathing look from Tessa made him regret opening his mouth. He shrank down and dejectedly flicked a pebble down the path.

"I blacked out after that," Zoroark confessed. "Seeing me get hurt must've given Gallian the kick he needed to work past his disaster sense, because I woke up in a little grotto, lying by a fire. Gallian had dried me off and tended to the lump on my head." Zoroark blinked tears out of his eyes. "When I asked him if he saved me, he told me that he realized some things were more important than his disaster sense. The rest is history, I guess."

Tessa tilted her head. "Meaning?"

"We were soulmates before the end of the night," Zoroark said, turning away from the group so they couldn't see his satisfied grin.

"Ah," Tessa said, cringing. "I think I get the point."

Zoroark stopped walking and held his arm up. "We're here," he announced, shuffling forward to let Team Radiance have a look at his home. They filed in behind him, with Shane getting up on Silvally's back so he could see.

Light crystals lay embedded in the ground and walls. But a small bit of natural sunlight trickled in near the cavern's ceiling, making the higher-up rocks sparkle. Unlike the villages Team Radiance was used to, Cosmic Cavern didn't have any buildings to speak of. Instead, there were outcroppings of rock that had doors and windows carved into them. Some of the abodes were located above ground. Shane looked to his left and right and spotted two paths that curved upwards in opposite directions to reach the cavern's upper level. Large crystals jutted out into the air, forming bridges that connected the two sides.

"I think I see another level to this place," Tessa gasped, craning her neck to make out a second set of crystal bridges even higher than the ones the group could plainly see. "Is it annoying to go up and down all the time?"

"Well, it certainly is _now,_ " Zoroark conceded. "But it wasn't so bad when I could walk fine. The only important thing up at the top is Totem Decidueye's lookout, anyway." Zoroark pointed a claw up and to his right. Off in the distance sat a circular expanse of rock. Grass and moss were piled atop it, as if they were a hood and the rock itself was someone's head. Someone had carved two windows into the rock and circled them with orange paint, almost making them look like eyes.

"So, should we go up there and talk to your Totem?" Shane wondered, continuing to scrutinize the building.

"What do you mean you're not letting anyone in the Cavernous Depths? I _have_ to get in there, now!"

"That's Gallian!" Tessa gasped, aura feelers throbbing. Zoroark's demeanor immediately changed. He hunched over, fur prickling. A growl rumbled in his throat.

Silvally stepped in front of them. "Keep it down. If we're too loud, we're just gonna make him mad." He glanced at Zoroark. "We haven't been able to face down Gallian without things descending into a battle."

Zoroark scowled. "I really wish you'd have mentioned that earlier."

The group looked ahead to see Gallian storming out from one of the rocky domains, a wild look in his eyes. Sicky and Luxeira appeared behind him. "Sir, I understand your reservations, but Captain Luxeira and I specializing in investigating these matters. If this dungeon is really full of such strange abnormalities, then we would greatly appreciate it if you could grant us permission to conduct reconnaissance inside it," Sticky said.

"I'm sorry, but the answer's still no. Especially to you outsiders," a deep, unfamiliar voice exclaimed. "These pools of water that popped up everywhere have made the ground too unstable to traverse. I will not have well-meaning Pokémon falling to their deaths on my watch."

Sticky and Luxeira moved away from each other, allowing a white, owl-like creature to stride forth between them. His brown wings sat over his body like a cloak. And a leafy-green hood lay over his head and neck, with a single white feather protruding from it. At the feather's base lay a sparkling rainbow Totem Crystal.

"That's Totem Decidueye?" Shane gasped. He grinned amusingly. "Lemme guess. He can shoot arrows made of leaves? Maybe we ought to call him Robin Hoot. No… wait… I've got something even better: _Owl_ iver Queen! Aha ha ha ha!"

Gallian heard Shane's laughter and looked up. His eyes flashed purple. "You!" he snarled, leering at Shane. "What are you doing here?" Gallian glanced to his left, where the sight of Zoroark made his expression soften considerably. "Zuh… Zoroark," he rasped. "When did you get here?" His eyes darted back and forth between Zoroark and Shane. Anger slowly overtook his expression once again. "Wait… did you bring them here?"

"I did," Zoroark replied, not backing down from Gallian's glare. "Because you need help, Gallian. And if you won't listen to me, then maybe your sister can talk some sense into you."

Gallian stamped a forepaw on the ground. His eyes and scythe violently flashed red. "You complete and utter _idiot!_ " he roared. "Do you have any idea what you've done? Get them out of here… now! Just having them around is pushing this whole village to the brink of complete disaster!"

"Rookie!" Luxeira gasped. "You can't just say things like that. We already knew there were problems stemming from the Mystery Dungeon. Their arrival changes nothing."

"It changes _everything!_ " Gallian snarled. Dark lightning surged across his body, spiking up his fur. Zoroark gasped in surprise and staggered back, heart pounding in his chest. Sticky and Luxeria exchanged concerned looks. "They're here to take the Dawn Hourglass fragment we got… and snag the one in the Cavernous Depths," Gallian accused. He turned back to Team Radiance. "Well, you can't have them! Any of them! If you want to get your grubby paws on them so badly, you'll have to pry them from my cold, dead paws!"

"We need those Dawn Shards," Shane said. "We have to use them to stop the Prism Virus!"

Totem Decidueye stepped in between Shane and Gallian and held up his wings. "Both of you need to calm down and explain yourselves," he commanded. "Are you telling me the Dawn Hourglass is broken? And one of its pieces is here?"

"Yes!" Shane said. "We're from the Horizon Guild. We're trying to get the Dawn Shards back so we can stop a vicious monster called Necrozma from killing all the Legendary Pokémon. But Gallian swiped one of the shards and ran off with it."

"Is this true?" Totem Decidueye gasped.

"No!" Gallian spat. "I mean, yeah, I have a Dawn Shard. But those guys won't help anyone if they get all the pieces!" His eyes and scythe flashed red. "If the whole Dawn Hourglass falls into their paws, we're all finished! They'll doom the whole world to the worst disaster imaginable!"

"That's enough, Gallian!"

Tessa stormed out from behind Silvally, fists clenched and face contorted in a venomous glare that was on par with Gallian's. Blue flames blazed in her irises. "I'm so tired of hearing you trash us every time we run into you. All it is with you is 'disaster this!' and 'disaster that!' But not once… _not once_ have you taken the time to stop and say what you think the problem even is! Gods, Gallian, are you even listening to yourself right now? You sound like a rambling maniac!"

She stomped toward him, the sigil on her paw flickering. "Stop this nonsense! Fork over the Sizzle Shard and… and come back to me!" She looked over her shoulder at Zoroark. "Come back to _us_. Please, Gallian. I–"

"Tessa, look out!"

Silvally turned on his dark memories and leaped forward, tackling a yelping Tessa to the ground. Seconds later, Psycho Cuts peppered his body, exploding into harmless clouds of pink mist. "Gallian!" Zoroark gasped, looking in horror toward his former mate. What he saw only furthered his surprise.

Gallian's eyes were wide and his pupils dilated in a frenzied panic. He staggered back across the ground, fur standing up on end and jaw quivering. His gaze remained locked on Tessa as she got out from underneath Silvally. "G… get away from me…" he rasped, shuffling toward the blocked off tunnel that led down into the Cavernous Depths.

Tessa regained her wits and focused on Gallian. "Gallian, what are you doing? Stop! Nobody's trying to hurt you. We just want to talk!"

Gallian thrashed his head about. Black energy surged across his body. "No! _Get away!_ " he roared. Without warning, Gallian turned and shot a black energy beam out of the gem on his forehead. It destroyed Totem Decidueye's barricade with little effort. Gallian sprinted forward, not even flinching from the charred wood splinters raining down on his body.

"Gallian, no!" Tessa shouted, dashing off after him.

"Young lady, what are you doing? You can't go down there!" Totem Decidueye shouted. He flew toward Tessa, but she used flash-stepped ahead of him. Likewise, a streak of red and black whooshed by Totem Decidueye. Zoroark stumbled out of his illusionary fog, a pained expression on his face.

Next thing anyone knew, they both disappeared into the tunnel, leaving the others standing in the village, shocked at the sudden turn of events.

* * *

Onto review replies!

Anon Omega: you are in the minority if you consider Mesprit your favorite. And I imagine it's a very small minority. I gave Mesprit the attention because it's usually ignored.

Veralix: I have no intention of telling you the role of any character we haven't met yet before the time's right. After all, that would ruin the fun!

Another guest: this site is a bit constrained in that it numbers everything. We've got a few months until we hit the _real_ chapter 69.

SuperOmegaGuest: I can't comment on those caps statements, except to tell you to stay tuned!

Next time: a conclusive brother-sister showdown you don't want to miss!


	68. Settling a Sibling Rivalry

**Chapter 58: Settling a Sibling Rivalry**

"Well, what are we waiting for? We have to go after them!" Silvally barked. He marched toward the Mystery Dungeon's entrance, only for Totem Decidueye to step into his path and hold up a wing.

"Not so fast," he said. "Those two might've gotten by me, but I'm still Totem around here. I will not have a… uh…" His voice trailed off and he stared at Silvally in abject confusion. "Actually, what the heck even are you?" He glanced over at Team Paradox. "One of their cohorts, perhaps? I'll admit… I still don't fully understand what's going on. Gallian refused to explain anything. But I'm not letting anyone else run off into the Depths."

"He is not affiliated with us!" Sticky blurted out, clinging frightfully to Luxeira's harness. "That is a Beast Killer and you must get it away from me right this second!"

Silvally turned and narrowed his eyes at Sticky. This only made Sticky cling tighter to Luxeira. "You need to cut that out. I'm not here to hurt you. I'm worried about Tessa," he said. "So, if you're not going to offer anything to help us out, then stand aside and let some real explorers handle this."

Sticky looked at Luxeira in a panic. "You can't let him go in there. He will sense Gallian's ultra aura and fly into a berserk rage."

"No, I won't!" Silvally snapped, stomping a foreleg on the ground. His cheek bolts spun in their sockets. "You're wrong about me. I'm stable. I've gotten everything under control. Your hostility's not helping anyone."

"Wait, Gallian has an ultra aura?" Shane gasped. "So, we're sure he has the Prism Virus?"

Sticky refused to answer that question, turning his back on Team Radiance. Luxeira chomped down on his tail and spun him around to face the group. "Buck up, Sticky. That's an order."

"C… captain?" Sticky stammered.

"Everyone needs to step back and take a deep breath," Luxeira said. "You've let the events of the past few days rile you up. Team Paradox is still an Ultra Recon Squad unit. When there are problems stemming from uncontrolled Z-Power, it's our job to investigate."

Shane cocked his head in confusion. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold up a second. I only got, like, half the stuff you were saying, there. What's this about Ultra Recon Squads?"

Luxeira sighed. "I'm afraid it's a long and complicated story. One that's better told in a less dire situation." She stepped toward Team Radiance. "To keep things brief, I'll just say that, yes, Gallian is afflicted by the same corrupted Z-Power other Pokémon here have succumbed to. Luckily, we managed to get a hold of him before his ultra aura ran out of control. We fitted him with our extra harness. It suppresses ultra auras and negates Z-Power."

Espeon frowned. "But if it negates Z-Power, then how can we purge the Prism Virus from his system?"

"We're still investigating if that's possible," Luxeira replied.

"But it _is_ possible!" Espeon exclaimed. "I'm living proof!"

Luxeira looked at Espeon in confusion. "Wait, have we met before?"

"Yes. In Sunrise Village. I attacked Gallian while I was under the Prism Virus' influence," Espeon admitted.

"Oh my," Luxeira gasped. "I'm sorry. I should've recognized you sooner. It's just, your energy patterns are nothing like they used to be. I figured you were a different Espeon." She turned to Shane and Silvally. "Does that mean you know how to get rid of the Prism Virus?"

"Yes," Shane said. "We're pretty confident that if we knock an infected Pokémon out using a Z-Move, that removes the Prism Virus. It's already worked a few times." He held up his left foreleg. "This looplet lets me use a Z-Move. Tessa and Espeon have them, too."

Sticky floated up to Shane, his visor flashing. "Ah, he's right! They're both giving off significant Z-Power readings, captain!"

"You have Naturia Looplets?" Totem Decidueye gasped. He stepped back from the group and pecked at his shoulder in thought. "Hmm… what to do? I don't want more folks going into the Cavernous Depths with the state it's in. But if the Tapu have judged you worthy, that's another matter entirely. I would be betraying my position by slighting them."

"Please, sir. You have to let us through," Shane begged. "We're with the Horizon Guild, see?" He pivoted to show the explorer's badge on his bandana. "This wouldn't be the first time we've been in a warped dungeon. Plus, we really need to get in there. One of–" He cut himself off and frowned. "Oh, wait, if Gallian's in there, I guess that means _two_ of the Dawn Shards are in there. And we _really_ need to get them!"

"Dawn Shards?" Totem Decidueye raised an eyebrow. "As in… the Dawn Hourglass? It's really broken?"

"And Gallian just ran off into the Cavernous Depths with a piece of it," Silvally said. "Now do you understand why we need to get in there?"

"Absolutely!" Totem Decidueye exclaimed. "This is extremely serious. I would have liked to formulate some sort of plan, but it looks like that can't be helped." He turned over his shoulder and shouted, "Lycanroc, get out here!"

Shane's tails shot between his legs in alarm. "Di… did he just say… Lyacanroc?" He shuffled next to Silvally, whining loudly. But to his surprise, the wolf that appeared look nothing like the one he had a falling out with. She stood on four paws and her lithe body was a bright, gaudy shade of orange. However, her white mane greatly resembled Midnight Lycanroc's, right down to the brown, rocky tip. "Wait, that can't be Lycanroc. It looks completely different," Shane said. "What's going on here?"

The new Lycanroc sized Shane up. "You're yanking my tail, right? How can you be in the guild and not know Lycanrocs have three different forms?"

"Uh… um…" Shane stammered. "I'm human, so…"

"Guys, we really don't have time for this," Silvally cut in. "That's a Dusk Lycanroc, Shane. There, satisfied?" Shane nodded, but stayed close to Silvally.

"You can call me Dusk if it makes it easier." She turned to Totem Decidueye. "What did you need me for, chief?"

"I need your help to take this group into the Cavernous Depths," Totem Decidueye exclaimed.

Dusk's eyes widened. "I thought no one was allowed in there." She turned around and stiffened upon seeing the busted barricade. "Oh… we've got trouble, huh?"

Totem Decidueye nodded. "It's Gallian. You remember him, right?"

"Of course I do," Dusk said. "He finally came back?"

"Guys, seriously?" Silvally growled. "Every second we're talking is time we're wasting!" He stomped toward the tunnel. "We've got to hurry up! Tessa could be utterly lost in there, for all we know!"

His teammates nodded their agreement and filed along after him. "You two coming?" Totem Decidueye asked, looking at Team Paradox.

"Absolutely," Luxeira replied, much to Sticky's chagrin.

* * *

 **~Cavernous Depths~**

"Will you… please hold up… for a second?"

Zoroark staggered to a stop, sweat frazzling his already-disheveled mane. He leaned against a nearby rock slab. Tessa turned around, an impatient look on her face. "I didn't ask you to follow me down here, you know. You're really in no condition to be waltzing through a Mystery Dungeon," she said. "I have to catch up to Gallian!"

"I want to help him, too!" Zoroark insisted, hunching over as he struggled to catch his breath. "Besides, you don't know this place like I do. When I was a sentry, I did patrols down here with Gallian." He slowly righted himself. "And I can tell you already that something's _very_ wrong here."

"Really? You mean the part of the ground we passed that gave way to a giant pool of water dropping off into an abyss _isn't_ a normal part of this place?" Tessa scoffed. "I've already dealt with stuff like this. We just have to grin and bear it."

"Well, I haven't," Zoroark exclaimed. "So, this is all pretty surprising to me." His eyes suddenly widened and he lunged for Tessa, shouting, " _And so is that!_ " He wrapped a startled Tessa up in his arms, wincing from her chest spike, and fell back onto the ground. Tessa landed on top of him.

"What the heck was that for?" she barked.

 _WHAM!_

Tessa yipped and jumped to her feet, landing on Zoroark's chest in the process, much to his discomfort. She looked over her shoulder and her aura feelers shot up in surprise the moment she glimpsed the giant, spiked metal crusher that had dropped from the ceiling and smashed into the spot where she previously stood. The crusher was covered in yellow and black stripes and had flashing red lights all around it. Her tail twitched in fright.

"Dear gods," Tessa whispered, "what _is_ that thing?"

"No idea," Zoroark croaked, rubbing his chest and groaning in pain. "But if this place is filled with stuff like that, then we can't just charge on ahead. We'll be walking into certain death." The crusher detached from the ground and slowly retracted back into the ceiling. Tessa grabbed Zoroark around his wrists and ran forward, dragging him along with her. "Ow… _ow!_ Hey, hold up! You're hurting me!"

"We don't have time to hold up," Tessa growled. "Did you even listen to yourself? If you and I don't know about these traps, then that means Gallian's probably just as confused! The longer we leave him on his own, the greater the chance of something bad happening to him. Now, come on!"

"Will you at least let go of me?" Zoroark huffed. Tessa released her grip and started running off without a second thought. Zoroark's shoulders sagged. "Wait up! I didn't mean for you to just ditch me like that! Seriously?"

"I'm not ditching you. I'm trying to scout ahead," Tessa exclaimed. She paused and climbed up onto a stalagmite, scanning the area. "Just what happened here?" she wondered. There were the typical hallmarks of a cave: rocks everywhere, with some random light crystals embedded in the walls, floor and ceiling. But unlike Cosmic Cavern, the rocks in the Depths were a dark shade of lavender. They had small twinkling lights inside them, making Tessa feel like she was completely surrounded by the night sky.

The uniformity of the dungeon only served to make the things that weren't normal in the cave brazenly stick out. Up ahead of her, parts of the rocky floor had disappeared entirely. Pools of water sat in their places and shot up into the ceiling, forming columns maintained by some unseen force.

"None of this makes any sense," Tessa growled, digging her paws into the stalagmite. "In what universe can a body of water suspend itself into a pillar like that?"

"Beats me," Zoroark said, looking at the upcoming parts of the tunnel with a frown on his face. "Tapu Bulu would never do something like this. If he did, Totem Decidueye would surely know about it." He crossed his arms and scowled. "Just what is going on here?"

"I think I've got a pretty good idea, but that explanation's gonna have to come later," Tessa said. She hopped off the stalagmite and sprinted forward, arms out by her sides. "Come on! At this rate, we're gonna fall behind him!"

"Unnngh, seriously?" Zoroark groaned, rubbing his left thigh. "Sprinting through here won't do us any good. It won't be long before we're gonna hit branching paths. And there could be more traps waiting to be sprung."

No sooner did Zoroark finish saying that then Tessa stepped on a part of the rocky ground. It glowed bright red beneath her foot. The area in front of her suddenly erupted in two bursts of dust and debris. Tessa barked in surprise and fell back on her rear. Her aura feelers immediately tightened and her ears folded against her face.

 _Whiiiiiiiiiiiirrrrr!_

Tessa looked up to find two red, mechanical arms sticking out of the newly-made holes in the ground. Each one was topped by a spinning circular buzz saw. The arms rotated so the blades faced Tessa, then shot toward her. Tessa screamed and scooted back along the ground. The saws impacted inches in front of her, shaving off strands of black fur from the sole of her left foot. Aura feelers throbbing, Tessa looked down at her foot to confirm it was still in one piece.

"Don't just sit there gawking! Get up! Do something!" Zoroark shouted, pointing frantically ahead of him. Tessa continued to stare dumbstruck at the buzz saws, which had detached from their arms and were now revving up in the ground. Just as they started to move forward with the intent of slicing through Tessa's legs, a fireball struck each one of them, melting them into slag.

Tessa scrambled to her feet, backpedaling from the molten metal as it spread out and cooled. "Okay, even by Prism Virus standards this is nuts," she said, shivering wildly.

"Were you listening to me? Why'd you freeze up?" Zoroark growled, walking up to her. "You're a Lucario, for pity's sake!"

Tessa wheeled on Zoroark "Hel _lo!_ I just evolved yesterday, remember? I don't have any ranged attacks to deal with those things!"

Zoroark's jaw slackened. "Seriously? And you just thought it'd be a good idea to charge into this Mystery Dungeon without any backup?"

Tessa bit her lip. "Okay, so this wasn't exactly my finest moment. But it's too late to turn back now. I'm not willing to risk something bad happening to Gallian! Now, come on!" She waved Zoroark forward and the two continued ahead, minding the holes in the ground. The mechanical arms had ducked back inside them, much to Tessa's relief.

However, they got about half way toward the clearing at the end of the tunnel when said mechanical arms popped back out of the ground, wielding fresh buzz saws. "Oh crap! Run, _run,_ _ **run!**_ " Tessa shouted, ducking her head down and sprinting forward. Zoroark turned and spewed a wall of fire behind him. But this time, the blades were spinning so fast they dispelled the flames. With a look of disbelief, Zoroark stumbled after Tessa.

The arms placed their blades into the ground and they shot toward the duo. Zoroark's eyes widened. He braced himself, expecting the blades to run through him. Instead, Tessa grabbed hold of him and yanked him to the side. They both fell down into the clearing, watching the spinning blades shoot right past them. Tessa scrambled to her feet and pointed both her paws forward.

"Go, Aura Sphere!" she shouted, aura feelers rising and eyes flashing blue. However, blue flames meekly flickered around her paws, then quickly subsided. "Oh, come on! That's not fair!" she groaned. The saw blades made their ways across the clearing and climbed toward the ceiling.

"They're coming back around!" Zoroark panicked. He looked around the room, scowling. "Arrrgh! There's too many different ways to go! How are we supposed to find Gallian like this?"

Tessa glanced up at the buzz saws moving around the ceiling. She grabbed Zoroark and shoved him toward the spacious room's corner. The buzz saws descended from the ceiling and once again harmlessly passed them by. Tessa squeezed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth. _'Come on, aura sense. Show me something. Anything that'll give me a hint about Gallian!'_

Her aura sight activated. With each beat of her racing heart, Tessa saw ripples of ley lines spreading out all around her. She gasped, nearly losing her concentration. _'Focus, Tessa! Look for Gallian!'_

"Hey, what are you doing? Those blades are making another pass," Zoroark said, tugging at Tessa's shoulder. She swatted his arm away and scrunched her face up.

"Come on… come on…" she whispered. Zoroark turned to run away from Tessa when her eyes shot open. "Over there!" Tessa shouted, pointing to the tunnel behind them. "Gallian went that way!" She scooped Zoroark up in her arms, much to his complete surprise, and hopped over the buzz saws as they descended from the ceiling. This time, however, they spun around on the ground and doubled back toward her. "This is getting ridiculous!" Tessa groaned, running for the tunnel. "What are we supposed to do?"

"I have an idea!" Zoroark said. "How strong of a swimmer are you?"

Tessa blanched. "I… I can't swim," she squeaked.

Zoroark frowned. "Then you're just gonna have to trust me… and hold your breath."

"Wait, what's that supposed to me– AGGGH!"

Zoroark jumped out of Tessa's arms and kicked her in the back. Tessa stumbled forward, entering a suspended column of water with a loud _splash._ Zoroark sucked in a breath and lunged in after her. He wrapped his arm around the thrashing Lucario's neck and scissor-kicked his legs, propelling them higher in the column. The buzz blades charged into the water after them. In doing so, their blades interlocked, jamming both of them. Zoroark swam forward, reaching the end of the water column. He dropped down to the ground and released Tessa.

Tessa stumbled forward, coughing loudly. Cold water streamed off her sopping fur, forming a puddle around her. Zoroark didn't look much better, with his wet mane plastered against his face. "Wh… what the heck?" Tessa sputtered. "Are you trying to kill me?"

"No. But I needed a way to get rid of those blades," Zoroark replied. He hunched down on all fours and shook himself out. Tessa yowled in protest, throwing her arms up over her face. Zoroark ignored her glare and looked behind him, confirming the buzz saws had been stopped. "It worked, didn't it?"

Tessa looked at the stalled blades and bit her lip. "I guess so," she said. "But why did it have to involve going for a dip?" She tried to shake out her limbs, but it did little to dry her off given the cave's damp atmosphere.

"You think I wanted to do that?" Zoroark huffed. He flicked his mane around and it smacked against his rear. "This thing gets rather heavy when it's wet. And it's a right headache to deal with."

Tessa rolled her eyes at Zoroark's pun. "Well, hopefully we can just blast apart any more blades that we come across."

 _WHAM!_

"Oh, for crying out loud! What is wrong with this miserable cave?!"

Tessa's aura feelers tightened up. "That's Gallian!" she realized. "Come on!" She waved Zoroark along and the two of them took off down the tunnel. In the process, they were forced to dive through two more water columns. Tessa again relied on Zoroark to get her through them. After the second water tunnel, another metal crusher came into view. Gallian stood in front of it, an annoyed look on his face.

"Move, you useless hunk of metal!" Gallian snarled, swiping the crusher with his serrated horn. It _clanged_ off the crusher. The noise sent Gallian stumbling back. Likewise, Tessa's and Zoroark's ears scrunched up in displeasure.

"Gallian, cut it out!" Tessa called. Gallian turned around, regaining his frenzied look from before he ran off into the dungeon.

"Get away from me!" Gallian snarled. He thrust his head up and glowing pink crescents arced toward Tessa. She dropped back behind Zoroark, who let the attacks harmlessly strike him. Gallian growled disdainfully, digging his claws into the rock.

"Gallian, please. Don't do this," Zoroark begged. "We don't want to hurt you. All we want to do is talk."

" _Liar!_ " Gallian roared. "You brought _her_ here. I can't trust you anymore!" He vanished in a swirl of dark shadows. Tessa was unable to see him against the darker backdrop of the Cavernous Depths, but her aura feelers tensed, tugging her head to her right. Without much thought, Tessa turned to her right, aura swirling around her right paw and obscuring the mark burned in her fur. Just as Gallian rematerialized, she struck him on the nose with her palm. Gallian hit the wall and scrambled backwards, whining in surprise.

Tessa looked at her outstretched paw in horror. She held it behind her back. "Gallian, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to–"

Gallian's eyes flashed red with rage. "I knew it! You're just like her now! I want you gone, do you hear me? _Get out of my life!_ " His forehead gem crackled with dark energy. Tessa dropped to her belly right as a black energy beam with red stripes surrounding it shot forward. Zoroark was left completely vulnerable. The attack blindsided him, striking his chest and leaving a smoldering mark in his fur.

Zoroark staggered back, gasping in surprise. After he took two steps, ever muscle in his body locked up, freezing the shocked expression on his face. Gallian's face blanked. Tessa used the opportunity to smack his sternum with a flaming-blue paw. Gallian fell backwards, tumbling down the tunnel and coming to a rest against the metal crusher. The moment he felt cold steel on his back, he scrambled to his feet.

Tessa bounced up, only for her aura feelers to shoot up in panic at the sight of Zoroark. She looked down at Gallian in complete shock. "You… you petrified him!" she gasped. Her eyes slowly widened. "You were… going to petrify _me!_ What the–? How the–?"

The metal crusher started to retract into the ceiling. "I don't owe you any explanations!" Gallian shouted. "Not when you're looking like that… like Mom!" He squeezed himself underneath the crusher. Tessa's eyes narrowed. She shoved Zoroark against the wall, the impact freeing him from the petrification.

"Hurry up! We're gonna lose him again!" she cried, beckoning him forward. The two of them dashed down the tunnel. But Tessa noticed the crusher was about to reach the ceiling. She grabbed Zoroark by the mane and flung him out into the clearing. Then she tucked her head in, spread her arms out, and propelled herself forward with a sudden burst of speed.

 _WHAM!_

The crusher slammed into the ground seconds after Tessa ran into the clearing. "Gallian, stop!" she shouted, seeing him running toward the tunnel on the far side of the room. She reared her paw back, producing a stun seed, and hurled it at her brother. Gallian whirled around, scythe brimming with psychic energy. But Zoroark acted quicker, blowing a stream of fire that forced Gallian to retreat. The stun seed struck the tip of Gallian's nose. His joints immediately locked up, leaving him standing there with a disdainful glare on his face.

Tessa walked forward, a frown etched on her face. "Why do you keep trying push me away, Gallian? I'm your sister! I don't want to hurt you!" she said, voice straining. "And what's with the comparisons to Mom? Is it because I'm a Lucario now?"

Gallian tried to move his mouth, but his muscles twitched unresponsively. "Let me guess," Zoroark growled, hunching low to catch his breath, "you won't tell us anything because 'it'll bring disaster on you!'" He leered at Gallian. "I can't believe that _this_ is what you've turned into."

Zoroark's shoulders sagged. "You said I was more important than your disaster sense… that's why you rescued me that night out on the ridge! I believed you! I… I…" He shut his eyes and shook his head. "You were my soulmate! We were supposed to have a life together! You were the first Pokémon… the _first one_ who accepted me for me! And then you threw that all away! Why, Gallian?"

Again, Gallian tried to move. But the effects of the stun seed kept him rooted to the spot. Zoroark limped up to Gallian, orange energy running down his right foot. He swept his right leg around, kicking Gallian's shins as hard as he could. Zoroark's kick swept Gallian off his feet and sent him crashing to the ground. Zoroark immediately fell on Gallian, locking the Absol's forelegs up with his arms.

"Nnnrrrrgh! Get… off of… me!" Gallian howled, thrashing on the ground. His scythe flickered with bug-shaped bits of green energy, but he couldn't point it in Zoroark's direction. Tessa watched the scene unfold with a growing look of concern.

"Not until… you answer me!" Zoroark panted. He kneed Gallian's back, drawing out a pained howl. Tessa's aura feelers crinkled, sensing Gallian's pain. "Why did you leave me behind?"

"I had to," Gallian said. Tessa recognized the black shadows overtaking his eyes. With a twinge of regret, she socked Gallian in the snout with an electrified fist. The contact broke Gallian's concentration, preventing him from shadow melding to escape Zoroark's grasp.

"That's not a good enough answer, Gallian!" Zoroark snarled. "Why did you leave me?"

Gallian's breathing quickened. His pupils dilated and he opened his mouth wide, showing off gleaming fangs. Red energy spilled out of his eyes. Electricity surged across his fur. Zoroark yelped, his grip slackening. Gallian dissolved into a cloud of shadows that raced behind Zoroark. He reformed and speared Zoroark in the back with a bright-green horn.

"Because I didn't want to die!" Gallian cried.

Zoroark's eyes widened in agony. He fell to the ground, gripping his back, and passed out immediately. Gallian stood over Zoroark's unconscious body, eyes hollow and fur bristling with electricity like a Pikachu's cheek-pouches. "G… Gallian!" Tessa gasped, aura feelers throbbing. She looked down at Zoroark, and then back up at her brother.

"I don't want to die! I don't want to die!" Gallian shouted. "You…" He narrowed his eyes at Tessa. "You're just like Mom. Just like she was… when she tried to kill me!" Gallian ran forward, melting into a wave of shadows mid-stride. Tessa staggered backwards, utterly unsure of how she could stop him. Blue aura encased her paws. She raised them up, scrunching her face and grunting in concentration. But the aura failed to coalesce into an attack. Seconds later, Gallian's shadowy scythe raked her shoulder, leaving a noticeable gash.

Tessa stumbled backward, clutching a paw to her bleeding shoulder. Her eyes went wide and the throbbing in her aura feelers intensified. She shakily grabbed an oran berry out of her bag and smooshed it against her wound, making a liquid sealant. But when she looked back at Gallian, she saw him charging up to use his energy beam attack again. He fired right at her. Tessa dove to her right, hitting the ground and rolling back to her feet.

She pulled a sleep seed out from her bag and threw it. Tessa didn't expect it to hit, but it did manage to preoccupy Gallian. Again, she thrust her paws forward, trying to reach into her reserves of energy and call on her new aura powers. However, she got no response, leaving Gallian time to prepare to strike again.

"Wait!" she begged, throwing her paws up. "We don't have to fight like this, Gallian. Please! Just… just talk to me. Why did you say that Mom tried to kill you? Did you notice that something was wrong with her, perhaps? That maybe she wasn't acting herself?"

"Idiot! You know nothing!" Gallian roared. He zigzagged toward her, readying to strike with his black scythe. Tessa gathered aura around her paws and thrust them into Gallian's scythe. The blows knocked each battler back. Gallian bounced to his feet quicker than Tessa did. "I found her… in the valley near these mountains. And she… she flew off the handle at me!" Gallian said, energy gathering in his forehead diamond. Tessa took off running around the edge of the room. Gallian anticipated her movements and fired a beam ahead of her.

But to his shock, Tessa saw his trick coming. She doubled back toward him, using blinding speeds to close the gap between them. An electric fist struck Gallian's diamond. The sight of it shattering brought a frown to Tessa's face. Gallian stumbled backward, the blow rippling through his body. His eyes narrowed in rage. Tessa immediately found herself on the defensive, trying to duck swipes of his pitch-black horn and turn him away with a palm strike. After pushing her halfway across the clearing, Gallian slashed her chest. His horn clanged off her metal spike and he stepped back.

Tessa's eyes fell to the expanding bloodstain on her black and tan fur. She threw her left paw over the wound and shuffled back, producing a berry in her other paw. "Gallian, how could you do this? I'm your sister. Why are you trying to kill me?" she said.

Eyes twitching manically, Gallian dug his claws into the ground. "I want you out of my life. You… you're bringing disaster. Lucarios are scum! They've made my life an endless nightmare! They…" He shot a despondent look at Zoroark. "Mom used Zoroark as the tipping point… the excuse she needed to try and kill me!"

Tessa smashed the berry against her chest and hunched over, trying to catch her breath. "I still don't understand. I mean… I know now that she's Zero. Are you saying Zero tried to kill you?" she asked

"Who's Zero? It was Mom!" Gallian shouted. Pink crescents raced toward Tessa. She rolled to her right, wincing from the pain in her chest and shoulder. Tessa arrived beside Zoroark and hastily stuffed a tiny reviver seed into his mouth. Zoroark's eyes shot open and he sat up, coughing loudly. His eyes fell on Tessa, widening at her injuries. Gallian noticed Zoroark was awake. He thrashed his head about in a poor imitation of Silvally when his helmet was on.

"I told you… Mom never cared about us," Gallian growled, crouching low to the ground. "I heard her… I heard her call me a mistake. I heard her call _us_ mistakes." He glanced at Zoroark. "She saw Zoroark running over and embracing me. Next thing I know, she's screaming about how disgraceful I am. How her life's ruined. And then crystal blades flew right at me."

"Cry… crystal blades…" Zoroark gasped. Tessa looked back at him in alarm. Gallian seized on the opportunity and shot a red energy beam toward Tessa's head. She fell onto her back, stretching out her good arm to drag Zoroark down with her.

"It _was_ Zero, then," Tessa gasped. "Gallian, you have to listen to me. I–"

Gallian stomped toward them, his fur crackling. Tessa cut herself off. "Zoroark took the attack for me." Tears welled up in his eyes. "Can you imagine it? Falling to the ground, watching blades draw the blood of the Pokémon you love? Feeling like a failure… like you couldn't protect him… like _you brought disaster upon him?_ "

Zoroark stiffened. "No. Absols don't bring disasters. It's superstition," he whispered.

"It's not!" Gallian keened. He lunged for Tessa, claws outstretched. Tessa retaliated with a glowing palm to Gallian's underbelly, knocking him backwards. "Look at yourself. I did that to you!" Gallian shouted, tears streaming down his face. "I just sat there… _useless_. I couldn't move. I couldn't attack. I just watched… watched Mom shoot this beam toward me. It felt like something was trying to rip me apart from my insides. Next thing I know, I'm in this weird harness, Zoroark is gone, and those two alien weirdos are by my side."

Tessa's eyes slowly widened. "You really are infected," she realized. Tessa threw her paws up. "Gallian, please listen to me for a minute! I know this all sounds bad, but I know why Mom did this. She's being controlled, by an evil Ultra Beast called Necrozma!"

Gallian's eyes flashed with rage. "You mean that dumb 'Lightless Black' thing my partners keep harping on about?" He shook his head. "You're deluding yourself, Tessa. I was there in the guild with her. Mom _always_ hated us, but she liked Dad. So, she had to pretend she was a kind, loving mother." He stomped a forepaw on the ground. "Don't be dumb. Think about it! I know you hated your aura training sessions. You always told me how mean you thought Mom was being."

The realization was a figurative stab in Tessa's chest. "I… but… she always told me that it was necessary. That that's how Riolus are supposed to learn." Her face scrunched up, recalling how she had lamented the way Prisma made her feel bad. _'Gallian's right,'_ she concluded.

"Okay… so maybe that's true. I still think there's _some_ good inside her," Tessa said. "Otherwise, she never would have worked as hard as she did for the guild. We can free her from Necrozma… together!" She took a step toward him, offering a paw. "Gallian, I know how to make what Mom did go away. I can cure you with Z-Power."

"That won't work," Gallian snarled, stepping back from her. "This harness blocks Z-Power. It's the only thing that's keeping me from completely losing control!"

"You've already lost control! Please take it off and let me use my Z-Move. I promise, I can fix this!" Tessa said. "Give me a chance."

Gallian looked toward the ground, then to Zoroark, and then back toward Tessa. His eyes turned pitch-black and his scythe flared up with dark energy. Tessa gasped, hopping backwards to dodge Gallian's slash. "Back off!" Gallian howled. "You want to take my harness off? I knew it! You're trying to drag me into the pit of disaster with you!" He again slashed at her. Tessa sucked in a breath and Gallian's swipe missed her by inches.

"Gallian, stop!" she begged.

"No!" Gallian snarled. "We can't work together, because we're not good for each other! All we'll do is bring endless disasters upon ourselves! And you know exactly why!" He dissolved into shadows, which blanketed Tessa, drawing a frightened cry.

Zoroark took a step toward the black cloud, only for Gallian to reform with Tessa pinned to the ground. The serrated part of Gallian's scythe lay against the tip of her snout. "Trust your sister, Gallian," Zoroark pleaded. "Do it for me!"

"I won't!" Gallian barked defiantly. "I don't trust her to cure me of whatever Mom did. Because she's a failure… just like me!"

Tessa abruptly stopped squirming. "W… what did you just call me?"

"You heard me! We're failures!" Gallian spat. "Every time we've tried to put our best paws forward, we've missed the mark… ruining lives in the process!" He looked at Zoroark. "That's why we need to stay as far away from each other as possible. No good will come from us working together. Only disaster."

"That's quite enough!"

An ectoplasmic arrow whizzed through the air. Gallian hopped off his sister, dodging it. But the arrow looped around and embedded itself in the ground. Purple wisps raced out of it and struck Gallian's left flank. He growled in displeasure, shaking out his fur. "What the–?"

Zoroark looked to the end of the clearing he and Tessa had come from. Team Radiance stood there, flanked by the other folks he had encountered in the village. Totem Decidueye was at the head of the group, holding up his wing as a makeshift bow. "How did you all find us?" Zoroark gasped.

"I tracked your scents with Odor Sleuth," Dusk boasted. "And the big guy here could sense your auras." She rapped a paw on Silvally's knee. He trilled happily, brandishing his bright pink head crest for Zoroark to see.

"Tessa? Tessa! Are you okay?" Shane cried, running forward.

"Get back!" Tessa shouted, making Shane jump. She slowly got to her feet, arms trembling and paws balled up into fists. "I don't want any of you getting involved!"

"Are you nuts?" Dusk cried. "You're clearly in rough shape, girl!"

"I said _stay back!_ " Tessa snarled, whirling around to show the blue flames burning in her irises. The sigil on her right paw crackled with white light, leading aura wisps to swirl around Tessa's palms.

 _'It's just like back at the Volcanic Wastes,'_ Shane realized, tails twisted in worry. _'All those pent-up frustrations are finally bursting out of her!'_

"You," Tessa seethed, turning toward Gallian. "You ran out on me! You left me alone… when I needed someone with me! And now you're just going to stand there and call me a failure? Do you have any idea what I've been through since you left? _Do you?!_ "

"That stuff doesn't matter," Gallian growled. "My disaster sense tells me everything I need to know."

"No, it doesn't!" Tessa shrieked. She bolted forward, striking Gallian's ribs with her knee. The wind rushed out of him, as did a mouthful of spittle. Gallian fell to the floor, groaning in pain. "I'm done sitting around listening to you talk down to me!" She lunged for Gallian, striking his harness with a glowing palm. "I'm done letting Pokémon walk all over me!" Tessa shouted, hitting his harness again. The crystals started to splinter. A glowing orange rock flew out of the harness, landing by Espeon.

"I've got the Sizzle Shard!" she shouted, scooping it up into her small satchel. Warmth spread across her flank and her fur tingled.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Sticky gasped. "If you break that harness, he's going to lose control and succumb to the Prism Virus!"

"No, he won't!" Tessa thundered. She stood up and cupped her paws together. "Because _I'm tired of people telling me I can't succeed!_ "

Tessa thrust her paws at Gallian. A sphere of fiery aura gathered between them and shot forward. It hit the central gem in Gallian's harness and exploded in a brilliant blue blaze. Shane and Silvally shot each other alarmed looks. They were about to rush forward when Espeon stepped in their path. "Don't get involved," she said, looking toward Tessa. "This is something she wants to do for herself."

The dust cleared, revealing Gallian writhing about on the floor. His harness lay in pieces all around him. "Ahhhhhhhhhh!" Sticky gasped, visor going askew. "The harness. Our technology! She totally trashed it!" He whirled on Luxeira. "Captain, how can you be so calm in this situation? That was some of the last bits of our home we had left!"

"I'm sorry, Gallian. But this is for your own good!" Tessa shouted. She crossed her arms in front of her face. The winged heart flickered with rainbow light, and then her Naturia Looplet flared to life. Orange energy surrounded Tessa, forcing her friends to look away. Gallian glanced up at her, terror etched on his face. Before he had the chance to escape, Tessa vanished. A pillar of crimson energy erupted all around Gallian. He screamed as paws and feet slammed into every square inch of his body, knocking him about like a rag doll.

After several seconds, the blows ceased. Gallian slumped over, out for the count. The purple arrow sitting in the center of the room dematerialized. Tessa stood over Gallian, her back turned to the group. Orange steam trailed off her body, making her aura feelers flow like locks of hair in the wind. After a few seconds, she turned around and knelt down. The glow faded from her eyes and her marked paw. A relieved expression washed over her face.

"It's gone… the Prism Virus is gone," Tessa said. "Look. His scythe isn't messed up anymore!"

A flood of relief washed across everyone's faces, especially Zoroark's. He lumbered forward, nearly falling to his knees. "You can wake him up, right?"

"Yeah," Tessa said, scooping up a tiny reviver seed. She opened Gallian's mouth and shoved it inside. A few moments passed, then Gallian's eyes shot open. He clubbed Tessa across the cheek with the flat of his scythe. " _Ow!_ " she hollered, putting a paw on her cheek. "What the heck was that for?"

"Get away from me!" Gallian shouted, his eyes widened in primal fear. He scrambled to his feet, booking it toward the nearest tunnel. "All of you… stay away!"

"Oh, come on! Seriously? This routine again?" Shane groaned. This time, he ran forward without hesitation. Silvally closed the gap the quickest of the group, but it was too late. Gallian disappeared down the tunnel. Moments later, his screams of terror echoed through the room.

"So nice of you to join me down here, Gallian! I've been looking forward to our reunion!"

Panic spread across Silvally's face. "That was Milotic!" he realized.

Shane's eyes bugged out. "Wait, there's still the Subterranean Shard down here! Crap!" He turned to the rest of the group. "Everyone, this way! And get ready to attack!" He beckoned them forward and sprinted into the tunnel, flanked by his teammates.

* * *

 **Paradox Enforcer, Gallian  
** _The first Pokémon to be infected by the Prism Virus, Gallian was spared the full effects thanks to a certain Lucario's inability to control her corrupted Z-Power at the time. The limiter harness Team Paradox placed on him prevented the Prism Virus from fully morphing him into an Ultra Beast. However, Gallian still experienced significant changes. His disaster sense was kicked into overdrive, firing at instances when it otherwise would be calm. And he inexplicably gained the power of Yveltal's Oblivion Wing. Why did this happen? Could his mother really have been fully responsible for these changes?_

* * *

I decided to take a few creative liberties at the end, here. As a Lucario, Tessa's version of All-Out Pummeling is based on the Shun Goku Satsu (aka the Raging Demon) from _Street Fighter_. Make of that what you will. Now, replies...

SuperOmegaGuest: thanks! Hopefully you liked this one, too.

Anon Omega: as you can see from this chapter, that guess of yours was a good one. Good call!

Another guest: I'm flattered, I think? I know what TV Tropes is, sure. But I have _no_ idea how that site works... at all. If people want a page that badly, then someone's going to have to make it themselves, because I sure won't be able to.

That'll do for this week. Next time: an _ultra-nasty_ battle leading to a startling turn of events for an unprepared Shane. Don't miss it!


	69. Bonus: Shane & Tessa

If you're confused at all, skip to the author's notes at the end.

 **Content Advisory:** mental health, depression, suicide allusions.

* * *

 **Bonus: Shane & Tessa**

I wish you could understand that it's hard for me to think straight, but I'm worried that, if I tried to explain myself, I wouldn't make any sense. I'm not sure Pokémon can study their minds the same way humans can. Like, in the human world, we have ways of looking at brain activity. In the Pokémon world, I guess it falls to psychic-types… but I don't know how reliable that is.

As a human – hell, as a Vulpix, too, I suppose – my thoughts were always racing. My mind jumped from one idea to another. It didn't stop. It _couldn't_ stop. Anything that seemed remotely appealing… it would latch onto, even if it didn't entirely make sense. Once a thought was in my head, I _had_ to share it. I had no filter. The thought went into my brain and out through my lips… no matter how ridiculous it was. I never understood that people didn't want to hear what I was thinking. It didn't "click."

A lot of things didn't "click" for me. I wish I could show you that I'm… not a good representation of what humans are really like. That I'm strange. That there's something wrong with me. Or, at least, that's what people told me. I just refused to believe them… until Nicky died.

I wish I could tell you that I never understood other people. That's probably still true, even now. I couldn't connect to other humans… much like how I didn't really connect with you or Silvally, at first. I wish I had an answer why, but I don't. I'm too afraid to say anything. How can I make a Pokémon understand that I couldn't grasp why socializing is important? I figured it didn't matter. It's not like I didn't _try_ talking to people. They just didn't seem interested in what I had to say. Looking back on it now, I finally realize that my big problem was that I always _needed_ to share my thoughts.

I wish I could find a way to properly express how it felt to have this compulsive urge to say whatever was on my mind. The best way I can think of describing it is like an itch that will never go away no matter how much you scratch it. But I get the feeling you wouldn't really believe me if I said that to you. I wish I could _show_ you how uncomfortable I'd get when someone forced me to stay silent… but I'm too worried it would freak you out.

Why? Because it freaked other humans out. I know it did. If I didn't get to let my thoughts out somehow – talking, writing, drawing, playing a game – bad things would happen. When I was much younger, I'd scream. As I got older, I'd just shut down. I wouldn't respond to anyone. I'd just stare at the floor, silently willing whoever or whatever was bothering me to leave me alone. That made it hard to "function." Would a Pokémon understand "function" in that context? I'm not really sure, but I wish there was a good way for me to explain it. Sadly, nothing comes to mind.

I wish there were Pokémon like me. I know there are humans that are like me in some respects, but that was information I didn't have as a kid. It might've helped me a lot, but my parents were determined to keep that knowledge away from me. See? Yet another reason I'm too afraid of bringing this stuff up in front of you. I know about your family issues… and I don't want to make you feel even worse about them.

It's not that I don't like my parents, I just don't understand why they were so insistent that I try to be "normal." In the Pokémon world, normal's just a type. But in the human world, "normal" is something much more dangerous. It was a state of mind... some you had to conform to, or face consequences. At least, that's how I think of it. I could be wrong. I'm wrong about lots of things. But my parents used "normal" to justify a lot of stuff they made me do… and I never stood up for myself against it.

"We're just trying to make sure that you can have a normal, happy life, like your sisters," they'd say, but would never tell me what exactly a "normal, happy life" was. I guessed it meant going to a good college, getting a well-paying job, finding a wife, and starting a family. All things that never crossed my mind because I couldn't connect with others.

So, my parents intervened. I wish I could accurately explain what they did, but none of it was stuff that exists in the Pokémon world. They'd send me to these groups after school where I was supposed to learn how to socialize better. It didn't work. They forced me to try out for different sports: football, soccer, basketball, baseball, swimming, cross-country, and tennis. Not a single one worked. They never sat well with me. They always felt like attempts to force me to stay silent and bottle up whatever I was thinking. So, sometimes I screamed and other times I shut down.

The more I think about it, the more it feels like it's all my fault. I wish I could've been more flexible back then, but I wasn't. When I had to do something that I didn't like, it made me extremely upset. I never effectively communicated _why_ , it just _did_. How could I ever make you understand that? I can't… which is why I haven't said anything.

I suppose all of this contributed to me getting engrossed in games. Fantasy became more and more appealing as reality became more unpleasant and made me more and more uncomfortable. Online, I could express my thoughts as much as I wanted. Sure, some people wouldn't like it. But others would say things that felt encouraging… validating, even. It was relieving. In some respects, it was invigorating! The more I did stuff online, the less obnoxious that itch felt. But that just meant that when I had to go do something else – schoolwork, extracurriculars, family dinners – the itch became a raging inferno that wouldn't die down.

I wish I could find something in the Pokémon world to compare my experiences to, but I can't. Human towns and cities – with their loud cars, crowds of people, flashy lights, and strange smells – were too overwhelming. My human house was safe. It was quiet. That's all I wanted, so I couldn't understand why I _needed_ to go out into places that unsettled me so much.

Conflicts were even worse for me. I couldn't stomach getting in an argument as a human. Even the slightest hint of someone raising their voice caused such an intense degree of panic I'd completely shut down. It was the same online, too. If people started fighting, I'd do whatever I could to avoid having to see it. That's all I was capable of; ignoring the problem and hoping it solved itself. I wish I could convey that sense of powerlessness to you, but it wouldn't make sense. I'm still trying to figure out how I'm still alive when I was such a meek human. By all accounts, I never should've offered to chase after Team Fang with you. I guess my Vulpix instincts managed to fight through my human hesitancies? That's the only thing I can think of.

I wish I could make this all clear for you, so that maybe it would make sense why I had started off as such an awful Pokémon. I had promised myself I'd stop making the same mistakes I did with Nicky, but I only wound up finding new, stupid ways to act on my impulses. I'm pretty sure that's what happened with Nicky, too. As we got older, he was trying to set me straight and help me fit in. I didn't like that, so I resisted… and fell back into a routine I _knew_ I liked. All the while, I failed to see that something was wrong with Nicky. Throughout high school, he offered me fake smiles that I stupidly assumed were real.

… and then, just like that, he was gone.

In the weeks that followed Nicky's death, I gave in and started believing the things that other people said about me. That there was something wrong with me… that I was sick… that I was some sort of freak. But instead of trying to make any positive changes to my life, I simply doubled down… devoting more time to hobbies. My online activities became an obsession. Anything that took time away from my interests frustrated me. And since a lot of those things involved other people, I became frustrated with _them._ That frustration turned into negativity… and everything spiraled out of control from there.

I wish there was a way for me to safely talk about this stuff with you, but there isn't. Not after hearing what Nicky had to say back in the Temple of Body. He was right. I'll take any opportunity to play the victim. Any way I look it, a conversation about my troubles would just amount to me begging for sympathy… because it's true. I _want_ sympathy. I _crave_ sympathy. It's the only way I could get other people to pay attention to me when I was human, without devolving into put-downs or nasty comments. That frightens me a lot... because I was so uncertain about all of this when I was human, but now that I'm a Vulpix it's suddenly so clear. Could it be because that voice haunting my dreams is right? Is all of this fake? Am I human? Am I... something else entirely?

More importantly, though, I don't want to say anything because I get the sense you're not okay… that there's still this cloud of sadness lingering over you. Seeing you lay into Gallian like you did… it made me worried. Even though we're not fighting anymore, we haven't had that many good things happen to us. You've been put under such tremendous stress that I fear you're starting to crack. I really do want to help, but I'm too afraid that anything I try will make things worse, not better.

I guess that's why, above all else, I wish for you to be happy… Tessa. Because no one deserves it more than you.

* * *

I made a promise to you not to let myself go into a dark place again. But the truth is, I'm not sure I ever really left.

I've talked a bit about it with Silvally, but I've avoided the subject around you. It's not that I don't want to tell you or anything… I'm just nervous. The two of us… we call each other friends now… but our relationship has had a lot of lows. Silvally told me that our bonds come from the challenges we've all faced together. I can understand where he's coming from, but I have trouble seeing it for myself.

It's probably because I'm not "okay." There've been a few moments these past couple of weeks that have actually made me smile. But they were fleeting glimpses of happiness. Within a few hours, they were always gone… and I would sink right back down into the middle of this gloomy pit right in the center of my mind. I don't want to be here. I want to have hope. I want to envision a day we can wake up and just be together… enjoying each other's company without the threat of something trying to kill us. But every time I try, it's like there's this invisible rope that wraps me up and drags me back into the depths of despair.

I still haven't told you or Silvally that the morning of my hatch day wasn't the first time I tried to end things. Before I met you, there were a lot of lonely days spent lying under my covers at home or standing in the middle of Azure Cape… trying to find the energy to walk into the sea and let the tide carry me out. One time I acted on the urge and… well… I'm still here, aren't I? I'd like to think that means someone is really looking out for me, but I doubt it. It was just a coincidence. The Midnight Sea is full of wild 'mons, after all, and one just happened to spot me.

I wonder if your human friend felt the same way I do. Would he understand what it's like to wake up in the morning just as exhausted as you were when you went to bed? Were there days when he'd feel so heavy that he just couldn't help but cry? Did he spend waking hours lying about, unwilling to get up and do something productive? I'm not sure and I get the feeling you wouldn't know. Given what I've seen of Necrozma, I doubt he would really give me a straight answer, anyway. The only thing I'm confident about is that he, like me, had days when he would think to himself, "What if I just disappeared? Would anyone really care? Do I matter at all?"

Maybe he does know exactly how I feel. After all, the Prism Virus mark is a part of me, now… burned into my fur as a permanent reminder of what _should_ have been a happy moment, but instead was twisted into something unsettling. I showed it to Silvally, but you haven't caught on yet. I don't want to talk about it with either of you. I'm too terrified of the connotations. Especially after what I did to Gallian. Am I losing control? Am I going to slip and become a deranged monster like Necrozma? The mere thought makes me want to hurl.

I don't know what to think about being a Lucario. In some respects, I resent it. Those days I spent lying in my house, alone? Sometimes I'd find myself wishing I could have hatched a Litten instead of a Riolu. Being a Lucario... makes me feel like there's an impossible standard everyone's going to expect me to live up to. Lucarios stood up against the warring gods in ancient times. The Air Continent named their highest rescue team rank after us. I can't meet those expectations! It's just... just setting me up for failure. Your enthusiasm about my evolution doesn't help in that regard.

Truthfully, I'm still nervous around you because I haven't fessed up to the fact that, initially, I was just trying to ride your coattails to success. I know I always acted skeptical of your "saving the world" remarks, but I did buy into it. The four human-Pokémon teams are my heroes. When I was younger, I sent fan mail to Team Go-Getters and Team Poképals, asking how I could be like them. However, when my aura training went badly, I gave up hope of ever being somebody who mattered… until you came along. You reignited that drive in me, only it wasn't healthy. I convinced myself that becoming a world-saving hero was the _only_ way I could find happiness. Otherwise, I'd be alone and miserable for the rest of my life.

So, in that regard, I contributed to the early tension in our relationship. I was determined to keep your head on straight because I couldn't bear the thought of us failing. I was desperately clinging to the idea that I could be the next Swampert, Feraligatr, Raichu, or Delphox. That's why I got so upset when the Lycanroc-Bewear situation blew up and the guild's impression of you soured. I figured you had blown our chances… and that I had failed.

I've seen the differences, though. I can tell you're trying to do better, but I'm just too nervous to talk with you about all of this. I mean, in some regards, we _are_ living out my fantasy by fighting the Prism Virus. It's just… I finally realize how much I sensationalized the heroes' stories. I can't believe I was dumb enough to think that the other humans and their partners were never bothered by any of the hardships they faced. Nevertheless, that happened.

Now, as we run along after Gallian and face the prospect of _another_ grueling battle, I find myself receding into that dark part of my mind once again. The same thoughts that have weighed me down at other points in our journey are coming back with a vengeance. Can we really win? Can we really bring back those that we've lost? And, above all else, how am I supposed to live with everything that's happened? Because, even if we do succeed, that won't erase the horrifying experiences I've had. I can't just _forget_ seeing Necrozma killing our guild mates… or the footage we saw of Silvally's creation… or, worst of all, my mom standing there, strangling me with her psychic powers.

I'm frightened for what the future holds for us. The temptation is there to just lay down and quit… and yet I can't bring myself to do that. I keep wondering why and it falls back to you and Silvally. Even though my mind is trapped in this deep, dark pit, when we get quiet moments together, it doesn't seem so bad. Heck, sometimes I think that there might be a way to break out. It's just that we don't get enough of those... or I'm too worried about how I should act around you. I guess that's why I can't give up, even though everything's overwhelming.

Because if we can find a way – if we can _succeed_ – then we can have those quiet moments together. And I can finally get to know you for you… Shane.

* * *

Exactly one year ago, with no prior creative writing experience, I posted the prologue for _Guiding Light_ on another site. I confess that I initially had no intentions of putting the story here. It was only at the request of an acquaintance asking for a version they could put on their Kindle that I ended up uploading this here starting in October. Originally, I wanted to write a story that pokes fun at Mystery Dungeon tropes by using Gen VII mechanics, but the story wound up morphing into something a lot bigger than that. I hesitate to call it a full-on deconstruction fic, but it's look more and more like one, I suppose. I'm absolutely astounded by the attention this has gotten, especially the darker and more serious parts that I didn't feel comfortable writing.

So, I whipped up something special for this ficaversary. I was waffling back and forth on whether to go the silly or serious route. Ultimately, since I did that silly Q&A on my profile, I decided to go for somber and serious. I made it similar to the Valentine's Day special, only focusing on our main protagonists, instead of our main antagonists.

With that in mind, I would like to take the opportunity to thank you all for your continued support. Throughout the story, the site has, for the most part, refused to send me any alerts. I've only been able to reply to reviews and have loved reading them. But, I'd also like to thank those who simply read or favorite the story, whether it was near the beginning or just recently. As much as I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts, I know not everyone wants to share them or even feels comfortable doing so. Regardless, I hope you continue to enjoy what I have to offer as the story enters its second year. There's still plenty of adventure to be had, with ups, downs, and all arounds, as Sonic the Hedgehog fans would say. Who knows? We may just end up here for a second anniversary special.

Some review replies to end off...

Anon Omega: at this point, I'm just gonna say that, yeah, the Gladion comparisons are spot-on.

SuperOmegaGuest: if Shane were a Ducklett, I'd have to up and quit writing this. Duckletts are awful.

Another guest: easy there, buddy. I can't play Street Fighter to save my life.

Commenter: so, I've actually revised chapter one to show that Shane was taken in December of 2015. Remember, he knows about the events of Super, which wouldn't have existed in 2014.

Next time, for real: Ultra Milotic makes a splash!


	70. Frozen in Anticipation

**Chapter 59: Frozen in Anticipation**

 **~Temporal Tower~**

Dialga stood perched atop his domain, looking out across the Hidden Land. Swathes of light brown sat arrayed far below him, representing the many floating rocks and islands combining to form the path to Temporal Tower's entrance. In the distance, patches of green lay interspersed between fluffy yellow clouds. Dialga knew that under one of those clouds sat the Old Ruins, housing the one means for mortals to reach him.

He stepped back from the edge of the gray tower, huffing and dragging a foreleg across the floor. "You sense it too, don't you?" he muttered, looking over his shoulder. "The faintest traces of Lapras swimming up the Sea of Time."

Mewtwo floated a body length behind Dialga, eyes shut, arms crossed, and tail flicking back and forth impatiently. _Except this aura is like no Lapras I've ever laid eyes on,_ he said. _Certainly not one I could see you entrusting with the means to reach the Hidden Land._

"I don't like it," Dialga growled. "That corrupting force suffocating Lapras' energy… I don't want it setting foot in the Hidden Land."

Mewtwo drifted beside Dialga, eyes opening and psychic energy pooling in his hands. _You want me to roll out the welcome mat? For all we know, this could be the alien force that's gotten the other gods in such a tizzy._ He tilted his head to the right, neck cricking satisfyingly. _I'm eager to show this strange visitor what real power looks like._

 _Wait! You can't do that!_

Dialga whirled around, raw blue energy gathering in his mouth. Hoopa's ring portal crackled into existence in front of Temporal Tower's shrine. Latias sped out of the portal, with an amused Hoopa tagging along after her. Mewtwo's and Dialga's eyes widened in utter shock. "Latias?" Dialga scoffed. "What is the meaning of this? How are you even here? Nothing can penetrate my barrier!" His eyes glowed red and he leered down at Latias, who shrank back in fright.

 _Please just listen for a second,_ Latias squeaked. _This is an emergency!_ _Surely you've realized something's off with the Time Gears, right?_

"Of course I have!" Dialga snarled. "Are you implying I don't know how to do my job? That's a bit rich, coming from you!"

Latias wilted, wings drooping. _I… I'm sorry for showing up announced, Dialga, but desperate times call for desperate measures._ She reached into her satchel and produced the Dusk Hourglass. Both Mewtwo and Dialga did doubletakes.

"Why do you have that?" Dialga growled. "You're not supposed to have that. You're a careless worrywart. Go bring that back to Horizon right this sec–"

 _No,_ Latias said, trembling. Dialga and Mewtwo inched closer to her. _This is what I used to get here. The life energy inside is powerful enough to let Hoopa's rings bypass the shielding around Hidden Land._

"You worthless cur!" Dialga spat. A shining blue bolt of energy raced toward Latias. She blanched and threw up a pink barrier, barely able to stave off his attack. "You would show up here for nothing more than a meager demonstration? I should strike you down for such insolence!" He shook his head. "Clearly Rayquaza was right. You're a know-nothing miscreant who can't be trusted to keep her snout clean!"

 _I am not!_ Latias replied, regaining some of her resolve. _Will you stop talking down to me like I'm some little kid and listen for a few minutes? I'm trying to help, here._

"I don't want your help," Dialga snorted, "because you're useless. You thought you could run from Dark Matter. And I'll bet that's why you're here, too."

 _Enough, Dialga,_ Mewtwo interjected, sticking his right arm out. _Hear her out._

Dialga glared at Mewtwo. "You're really siding with her?"

 _Not necessarily,_ Mewtwo replied. _But I think she deserves the floor. After all, she's worked with the mortals since Dark Matter's defeat. A similar group to the ones who rescued you from the brink of insanity, if I'm not mistaken._

Dialga's eyes flashed dangerously. "You watch your words, Mewtwo. You are here as my guest. If you upset me, I won't hesitate to rescind that generosity."

"Oh, for pity's sake, pull your head out of your ass, Dialga!" Latias snarled, abandoning her telepathy. Dialga looked as if he'd been slapped across the face.

"What did you just say to me?" he growled, tail rapping the ground as a warning.

Hoopa rubbed his hands together gleefully. "Ooooooooh! This is getting exciting! Hoopa wishes he brought some popcorn."

"You heard me! You're. Being. An. _Ass!_ But what else is new?" Latias seethed, stunning her counterparts.

"Hey, language! You're hurting Hoopa's sweet virgin ears!" Hoopa said, sniggering into one hand. A stream of dragonfire whizzed by him in response, shutting him up.

"I'm here because one of the Time Gears was taken," Latias said. "I already knew Mewtwo refused to go along with the Expedition Society's plan, but I needed to see whether or not you were staying behind, too."

"Of course I'm staying behind. Temporal Tower is my responsibility! I will not let it fall again!" Dialga sneered. "So, turn your feathery rear around and leave before I make you _sorely_ regret demeaning me in my own domain."

Latias huffed out tufts of blue-purple fire. "You're kidding me, right? You really think that sitting around and waiting until the Prism Virus gets here will keep Temporal Tower safe? I don't believe this! You… you learned nothing from Darkrai's actions, did you?"

Mewtwo teleported directly in front of Latias. She squeaked in surprise, staring at the purple sphere held inches in front of her snout. _I'm starting to agree with Dialga. You say you want to help us… yet you come here spouting hypocrisy. You say we're patronizing you but all I hear is you talking down to Dialga. Even with Mega Evolution, you could not stand up to either of us. I've grown tired of this abhorrent waste of time._

"Boooooooooo! That was an awful pun! You should feel ashamed!" Hoopa heckled, drawing Mewtwo's ire toward him. He backed away, whistling innocently.

"You… you're right," Latias sighed, wings drooping. She rubbed her bloodshot eyes. "I'm sorry. I've been under a lot of stress and haven't gotten much sleep. I wasn't prepared for this Time Gear business to pop up." She took a deep breath. "Will you please let me say my fill?"

"… you have thirty seconds," Dialga sneered. "And I _will_ tell Rayquaza about this injustice." Latias' horrified gaze fell to the ground. "Well, go on, you're already burning up your own time."

"Team Poképals is working with the Expedition Society to relocate the Time Gears to Lively Town. We have a forcefield there," Latias explained. "It's going to freeze time for parts of the world, but better a temporary disruption in time than the Prism Virus getting the Time Gears." She looked up at Dialga. "I came here to tell you that… so you would remain calm when it happens."

Dialga's brow furrowed. After a moment of silence, he nodded. "Very well. I… err… appreciate the forewarning," he said. "As long as I am here, I suppose I can mitigate the effects of removing the Time Gears from their pedestals and keep ley lines from running haywire. Is that all?"

Latias shook her head. "Err… well… that _was_ all I wanted, but I can sense trouble swimming up the Sea of Time." She tapped her claws together. "You have to repel it, Dialga."

 _We already have a plan. I shall confront this anomaly and dispose of it. It will be quick work for the world's strongest Pokémon,_ Mewtwo scoffed.

"No, you shouldn't do that!" Latias blurted out. Mewtwo raised his brow skeptically.

 _Are you questioning my power?_ he said.

"Not at all," Latias squeaked, voice cracking. "It's just… that's not going to work. Necrozma doesn't behave like a normal Pokémon. You can't just draw him into a battle and expect things to go okay." She tried to peer past Mewtwo and look at Dialga, but Mewtwo continued blocking her gaze. "If you really want to repel him, then you're going to have to get involved, Dialga."

"By doing what, exactly?" Dialga asked.

"Make some sort of temporal distortion," Latias said, hastily turning her head to the side to avoid Dialga's shocked expression. "If Necrozma gets to the Hidden Land, you can freeze him in a time pocket, couldn't you?"

Dialga's tail again rapped the ground angrily. "Yes, I could. But do you have any idea how unstable a time pocket is? Especially one where time isn't moving at all? Why, it would generate so many ley lines that wild Pokémon would sprout up everywhere and turn the Hidden Land into a giant battlefield!" He narrowed his eyes at Latias. "You honestly expect me to pick an option like that over sending in Mewtwo?"

"Yes, because you can't underestimate Necrozma!" Latias said. "Or maybe I should call him what you remember him as… the Guiding Light?"

Dialga's exhale turned into a surprised snort. "The Guiding Light… here? Impossible! Solgaleo and Lunala–"

"–are gone, Dialga," Latias cut in. "In fact, Necrozma's possessing Lunala to go about his destructive rampage. He and his flunkies would've killed Tapu Koko and Zapdos if the Expedition Society hadn't intervened. Heck, they've already taken out Tapu Lele and Mesprit." She frowned at Dialga. "Need I honestly remind you about the last time a possessed Lunala was allowed in here?"

To Mewtwo's surprise, a shudder ran through Dialga's metal spine. He looked up toward Temporal Tower's shrine. "He knows," Dialga rasped.

 _What are you muttering about?_ Mewtwo asked.

"The Guiding Light… he must know about the Time Gears! I forged them with remnants of his life energy," Dialga elaborated. He looked back at Latias. "Why didn't you just cut to the chase from the get-go? We could've avoided a lot of unnecessary hostilities if you'd just led with that bit."

"I'm sorry! I told you, I'm really stressed and I'm not entirely thinking straight," Latias said. "I still have to follow up with Tapu Fini and Ampharos after this."

Dialga rolled his eyes. "… hmph. Seems your training didn't amount to much if flying and talking are enough to make you so tired." He turned away from Latias. "But… I see your point. I'll trap Necrozma in a time pocket. Mewtwo, I may need you to 'handle' the wild Pokémon onslaught should things get out of hand."

Mewtwo crossed his arms. _Hardly a fitting challenge, but I'll accept._

Latias sighed in relief. "Okay, Hoopa, let's get going."

* * *

 **~Cavernous Lagoon~**

Silvally reached the end of the tunnel first. He skidded to a halt, kicking up gravel, and scanned the area. He had arrived in a purple basin. The room had an ovoid shape to it, with only one other tunnel present. It lay on the other side of the room, across a small lagoon that twinkled under the purple glow of star-shaped rocks and light crystals. He didn't take in the view for long, however, because a strained cry drew his attention to his right.

"Gallian!" Silvally gasped. He narrowed his eyes, electric memories coursing through him, turning the white parts of his body yellow. "Let him go, Milotic!"

At the edge of the lagoon stood Milotic, clutching Gallian in her axe-tipped tail. She dangled Gallian over the water so the edge of his tail bobbed in and out of it. Milotic turned and fixed her vibrant blue eyes on Silvally, showcasing her ice helmet with the mohawk of spikes. Silvally frowned upon seeing the glyph carved into it: a broken heart, with wings on either side, devilish horns protruding from the top, and a piercing red eye in the center.

"I think not," Milotic said, lowering Gallian so his rear touched the water's surface. Gallian thrashed in her grip, flinging water droplets all around him.

"Gallian!"

The rest of the group caught up to Silvally. Tessa held her marked paw up to her snout in surprise. "Milotic, what do you think you're doing?"

"Teaching your stupid brother how to swim the old-fashioned way: by tossing him into this lagoon!" Milotic sneered.

"Nnngggrhh… st… stop!" Gallian wheezed. "Wh… why are you doing this?"

"Your little sister and her merry band of screwups have something I want," Milotic said venomously. "And you're here to foster a little exchange." She turned to the group, locking eyes with Tessa. "Well, kiddo, you've got a choice to make. You hand over your Dawn Shard, you get your prickly brother back. Refuse…" She narrowed her eyes and lowered Gallian into the water further.

"Agggh! C-c-c-cold! So cold!" Gallian howled, trying to swing his lower body up and out of the water.

"… and we all get to find out how long an Absol can survive frigid waters."

Electricity gathered around Silvally's cheeks. "You wouldn't dare. We have numbers on you!"

A grin weaved its way onto Milotic's face. "You do, huh? Well then… I better fix that." She turned around and whistled loudly.

"Krrr-rrr-rrr-rrr!"

Everyone but Milotic dropped to the ground, clutching their respective heads in pain. "Oh god, it's like a hundred nails are scraping a chalkboard!" Shane howled.

"C… captain! We've got incoming Nihilegos!" Sticky panicked, one hand pressed firmly against his visor. Luxeira shakily looked up, jaw locking. Two Nihilegos had funneled out of the other tunnel and were now lazily floating above Milotic.

"Krrr-rrr-rrr-rrr!" they chittered, rubbing their tentacles together.

"What the–?" Shane's tails shot up in panic. "What kind of sorry imitation Tentacruels am I looking at, here?"

Silvally gnashed at the air in front of him, eyes sparking. "Ultra Beasts," he hissed. "Real, genuine Ultra Beasts."

"You mean _that's_ what the Prism Virus mashes Pokémon with?" Shane gasped. He turned back to Milotic. "You're horrible! How can you do something like this?"

"Easy. I just think about how great things will be when the gods are erased from history and take all these hideous Mystery Dungeons with them," Milotic scoffed. She looked up at the Nihilego. "Now, attack!"

As soon as she said that, the room erupted into udder bedlam. The Nihilegos turned in opposite directions and hurtled massive balls of purple sludge in front of them. They both darted after their attacks, one making for Shane, Sticky, and Luxeira while the other floated toward Dusk, Totem Decidueye, and Zoroark. Silvally didn't bother with either Nihilego, instead funneling electricity to the tip of his head crest and launching it directly at Milotic. A disdainful look appeared on her face. She threw Gallian back toward the water.

"No!" Tessa hollered, sprinting forward without a second thought. But to her surprise, Milotic stood tall, taking Silvally's attack. With an effortful grunt, Milotic turned and slammed her tail against the surface of the water. Tessa skidded to a halt, watching in horror as ice spread across the entire lagoon. "Gallian, get out of there!" she shrieked.

Milotic turned around, her tail whipping the air. Large shards of ice arced out in different directions. Tessa was too close to Milotic and took a blow in her right leg. She collapsed onto her side, howling in pain and clutching the injured limb. Silvally screeched angrily and blew the remaining ice shards apart with lightning. Beside him, Espeon's face scrunched up in frustration at the sight of Milotic swatting a sickly-purple energy ball effortlessly aside.

In the water, Gallian's eyes widened in terror at the oncoming ice. But all he could do was thrash about uselessly. He squeezed his eyes shut, expecting his world to black out. Instead, a pair of claws dug into his back. With a powerful, flap of his wings, Totem Decidueye took off. Gallian broke the surface of the water just seconds before the ice passed him by. He looked down at the frozen lagoon, shuddering in Totem Decidueye's grip.

His sense of relief proved fleeting, however. A purple tendril speared Totem Decidueye's wing. It involuntarily buckled and the pain made Totem Decidueye release his grip on Gallian. He plummeted to the ground. One of the Nihilegos flew forward, looking to intercept Gallian and wrap him with its tentacles. A large orange rock collided with the Nihilego, preventing it from capturing Gallian. He struck the ground and Zoroark raced to his side. Opposite them, the Nihilego hit the frozen pond. Its assailant landed in front of them, revealing a curled-up Dusk. She hastily got back to her feet, starting Nihilego down.

"Hmph! You uncouth vermin really know how to louse something simple up, don't you?" Milotic scoffed, glaring at the downed Nihilego. To her left, the other Nihilego had Shane, Sticky, and Luxeira pushed back toward a corner. "Perhaps I just need to fully embrace a divide and conquer strategy."

Milotic held her tail aloft. The icy snowflake glowed sky-blue. Within seconds, the frozen pond shattered into thousands of pieces. Milotic thrust her tail forward and the icy fragments spread out. Silvally's eyes widened. He shifted his steel memories on. Iron encased his head and he charged forward, looking to ram Milotic and cut off her attack. But a stream of liquid ice lofted Milotic into the air. Silvally charged right through it, his momentum disappearing from the sudden cold exposure.

"Ahh! No way… she's separating us!" Tessa cried, looking around in horror. On either side of her, massive sheets of ice extended from the ground all the way to the ceiling. They were so thick that Tessa couldn't even see through to the other side. Espeon wasted no time in turning and shooting a pink beam right at Milotic.

"Oh, please. You think that boring little attack can hurt me?" Milotic scoffed. She hopped off the stream of liquid ice and struck it with her tail. The ice surged forward, snuffing Espeon's beam out and forcing her to backpedal lest she be buffeted with subzero water. Milotic saw Silvally getting ready to pounce and swung her tail underneath her. Frigid air gathered all around it. Silvally blanched and backed off, switching back to his electric memories and charging energy up in his cheek bolts.

As he expected, Milotic struck the ground. The impact drove her tail blade into the floor, generating plumes of chilled air all around her. "Everyone, fire now!" Silvally barked, letting loose a stream of electricity. A smirk appeared on Milotic's face. She didn't bother trying to dislodge her tail. Instead a veil of water and ice surrounded her. Milotic sprang forward, corkscrewing her body as she moved.

The rotating water and ice turned Silvally's lightning aside, along with Tessa's aura sphere and Espeon's ectoplasmic blast. The trail of water Milotic left behind her erupted in a line of ice shards. Silvally was caught off guard and speared on the tip of his beak by one of the ice shards. He stumbled backward, shutting his eyes and shaking his head. Milotic reached the other side of the room. Her water veil disappeared, leaving her standing on the ground, trying to catch her breath.

Espeon and Tessa wasted no time in launching more attacks at her. A ball of blue fire collided with a pink beam right in front of Milotic. The explosion sent her reeling. She struck the wall with an audible _splat_ and slowly peeled off of it, a dazed look in her eyes. Silvally ran up to join his teammates, launching more lightning in Milotic's direction. She was too dizzy to dodge or counter this time, so the electricity shocked her slender form. Milotic dropped to the floor, convulsing rapidly. Lingering plasma wisps stung her wet scales.

"Tessa, try a Z-Move based on Thunder Punch," Silvally suggested. "Quickly, while she's still out of it."

"I can't!" Tessa said, looking despondently at the grayed-out gem in her looplet. "The only way the looplet recharges is if we leave the dungeon, remember?"

"But I still have Z-Power," Espeon declared, stepping toward Milotic. "Let's see how much she likes thi–"

A sparking blue energy bolt struck her in the chest. Espeon dropped to her knees, face scrunched up in pain. She shakily looked up to see Milotic back on her feet. Soft white light covered her body, making her rainbow scales glisten. "Oh crap! She's using Recover!" Silvally hissed, sending more lightning bolts racing toward her. Milotic swiped her tail upward. A pillar of ice rose from the ground, absorbing the blow and breaking in a cloud of mist.

Milotic sprang forward, shooting through the cloud of mist tail-first. "Get down!" Silvally barked, shoving Tessa out of the way and channeling his steel memories. Metal encased his head and torso. Silvally dug his legs in, grunting as Milotic's tail struck him right in the gut. She rebounded off of him, landing gracefully and swinging her tail around in an attempt to slice through Silvally's legs. He reared up just in time to dodge her. Tessa brought her lightning-coated fist around, only to meet Milotic's tail blade and stumble back, wringing out her paw in pain.

Searing water then battered Tessa, flinging her into the ice wall. She bounced off it, leaving a Lucario-shaped imprint, and hit the floor. The blow knocked the wind out of Tessa. Milotic sprang to her right, dodging a ball of purple shadows. She dug her tail into the ice, leaving her suspended in midair with ice and water gathering in her mouth. The sigil on her helmet glistened with a rainbow hue.

"Eat _this!_ " she cried, attack garbling her speech. Milotic spat a stream of rime toward Tessa. Tessa ran forward without any hesitation, but to her horror, the flash-frozen water rebounded off the wall, all while Milotic continued to pump out more of it. Espeon threw a bright-pink barrier up in front of her, but the rime beam shattered it and swallowed Espeon up, drowning out any cries of pain.

"Espeon!" Tessa gasped, only to suck in a breath and throw herself against the wall as the water torrent rebounded a second time toward her. It continued zigzagging across the ground, forcing Silvally to backpedal. He failed to judge his distance properly, however, and his left hind foot slipped off the edge of where the lagoon used to be. Silvally tumbled downward, clawing at the rock with a distressed squawk.

Milotic ceased the attack and dropped off the wall, struggling to catch her breath. Tessa dislodged herself from the wall, visibly recoiling upon seeing the lump of ice that stood where Espeon was supposed to be. Milotic took advantage of Tessa's distraction, launching herself backward and wrapping herself around a light crystal. More rime gathered in her mouth and she unleashed it.

Tessa's ears and aura feelers twitched. She threw herself to the ground, foot tingling as ice water grazed the tips of her toes. Like before, the rime rebounded toward the ceiling, only to strike it and double back toward Tessa. She crab-walked across the ground as fast as she could, barely getting out of the attack's range. Tessa scrambled to her feet. White-hot pain shot up her leg. She looked down and noticed her left foot encased in a thick layer of ice.

"What's the matter, Tessa? Getting cold feet?" Milotic quipped. "If you ask me, that's the perfect representation of your life right there!"

Milotic lunged off her perch, a water veil swirling around her. Tessa desperately hurled a blue fireball forward but Milotic's spinning barrier shattered it. She threw her arms up, bracing for ice-cold pain. Instead, something heavy slammed her from behind, knocking her to her belly. Her chest spike struck the floor and sent a jolt through her. The heaviness quickly subsided. Tessa rolled onto her back and sat up just in time to see Silvally standing opposite a dazed Milotic. Ice shards peppered his sopping-wet torso. Black blood oozed from a gash running across his face.

"You're going… to pay for that one…" Milotic wheezed, looking rather winded. A large crack had split her ice helmet.

Silvally didn't respond. He deactivated his Memory Looplet and lunged for Milotic, who was too out of breath to dodge him. Silvally pinned Milotic to the ground, digging her face in with his talons. "E… Espeon!" he shouted, pressing harder on Milotic's face as she writhed under his grip. Milotic tried summoning an icy cloud to get Silvally off her, but he retaliated by clamping his electrified beak onto one of her hair-like fins. She screamed in agony, her attempts at an attack fizzling out.

"Don't just stand there, Tessa! Break Espeon out of the ice!" Silvally barked.

"R… right!" Tessa squeaked. She sprinted ahead, throwing a lum berry at Espeon. It hit the ice and its juices started bubbling. Espeon thawed out, stumbling forward with a foggy look in her eyes.

"What happened? Why… why am I… so cold?" she asked, teeth chattering.

Tessa enveloped her in a hug, wincing from her cold, wet fur. "Milotic froze you," she said. "Silvally's got her pinned down, though."

"Espeon!" Silvally shouted again. "Use your Z-Move… now!

"Huh?" Espeon blinked. "But I don't want to hit you."

"I'm a normal-type now. Use that Z-Move from the Volcanic Wastes. I'll be fine!" Silvally insisted, before biting Milotic's neck. She abruptly stopped squirming and tensed up, screeching in pain.

"Right! Okay! Just… uh…" Espeon looked down at her looplet. "Gimme a second."

But before Espeon could channel any Z-Power from the looplet, the ice wall beside her started to break apart. Tessa's aura feelers shot up. She looked right into the widening crack. "Everyone… take cover!" she cried, sprinting for the empty water basin. Espeon ran after her, tucking her head in.

Silvally looked up at the ice wall. Pink light streamed out of the widening crack. Silvally slammed his eyes shut and pressed all of his weight down on Milotic. "What are you doing, you idiot?" she screeched. "You're gonna get us killed! Lemme go!"

Before Silvally could answer, the wall exploded.

* * *

"Don't just stand there gawking, idiots. Do something! Attack!"

Dusk dashed to her left, trying to draw Nihilego's attention. It didn't take the bait, however, instead launching three balls of purple sludge at Totem Decidueye. His maneuverability was cut off, with Zoroark and Gallian standing petrified on either side of him. Totem Decidueye drew back his wing and shot out shadowy arrows as fast as he could. But he only managed to stop two globs of gunk. The third one splattered across his face. Totem Decidueye fell onto his back, trying to wipe the poison off with a wing before they set in.

"Idiots!" Dusk howled. She launched herself skyward, curling up into a ball. Dusk moved far too quickly for Nihilego to react, hammering its head and flinging it back across the cave. Dusk landed safely, uncurling and glaring at her cohorts. "You two are supposed to be sentries! I know this thing's a freak of nature, but you need to buck up and start attacking!"

"N… no…" Gallian rasped, staring up at Nihilego in horror. "It'll just… disaster… that…"

Gallian's incoherent mumbling snapped Zoroark out of his stupor. He shot Gallian a frustrated glare. "Oh, for heaven's sake, you're still on about that nonsense? I thought your sister got that all out of your system." Zoroark stepped forward. Crimson energy crackled through his claws. "Wake up, Gallian! You're in danger! We need you here!"

Zoroark slammed the ground. A dome of crimson energy exploded out around him, striking the reeling Nihilego and knocking it back into the cave's far wall. Nihilego hit it, producing a noise that mimicked shattering glass. Zoroark got down on all fours. A blur ripple raced across his body, leaving him standing there in a perfect copy of Gallian's appearance. He turned and locked eyes with his former mate. "You're still just standing there? Gods, I can't believe you!" he spat.

"I can't," Gallian whispered, looking at his mirror image with a hurt expression in his eyes. Far ahead of him, Nihilego launched a bevy of glowing rocks forward. Dusk backpedaled, leaving Zoroark and Totem Decidueye to try and stop Nihilego's attack. A volley of spectral arrows and what looked like pink crescents sailed through the air, blowing Nihilego's rocks apart. It abruptly screeched to a halt, swaying back and forth.

"Krrr-rrr-rrr?" it chittered, looking between Gallian and Zoroark and scratching its head in confusion.

"Now's your chance," Zoroark whispered, glancing at Dusk.

Dusk charged forward, metal coating her fluffy white tail. Nihilego was too preoccupied trying to work out why two Gallians stood in front of it. Dusk's tail blindsided it, knocking it into the ice wall. Totem Decidueye drew a wing back, conjuring up a purple ball. He hurled it at Nihilego, but to his shock Nihilego parried it aside with one of its tentacles.

"Krrr-rrr-rrr-rrr!" Nihilego shrieked. Even more glowing rocks rose out from the ground. Nihilego slung globs of poison onto the rocks and launched them forward. Dusk sheathed her tail in iron, trying to bat the rocks away. But she misjudged her swing and two rocks beaned her in the head, knocking her to the ground. Totem Decidueye couldn't fly up out of their trajectory and also got hit. Purple splotches peppered his wings as he dropped to one knee, panting heavily.

Zoroark looked to be in the clear when his left hind leg spasmed. His illusion collapsed, leaving him to get pelted in the back by three rocks. Zoroark's howls of pain snapped Gallian to attention. He looked down, seeing his former mate lying at his feet, grimacing and clutching his left thigh.

"H… help me…" Zoroark wheezed, looking up into Gallian's eyes.

"Krrr-rrr-rrr-rrr!" Nihilego shouted. It swam through the air, toxins gathering in the tips of its tendrils. Totem Decidueye shakily raised a wing, only for his eyes to widen as a volley of liquid lances raced down toward him.

" _Totem!_ " Dusk shouted, tackling him to the ground and spreading herself across his torso. The poisonous tendrils speared her back and legs, tearing holes open in her fur. Dusk's agonized cries echoed through the small part of the cave the quartet was stuck in. The bloodstains on her back made Gallian recoil in horror.

"No," he whispered. "This isn't happening." He lowered his head and shook it rapidly. "I can't have done it again… I can't have brought disaster to you guys again!"

Nihilego rubbed its tentacles together, conjuring up more poisons. Gallian looked between Zoroark and Dusk. The sight of the two canines lying there made him flash back to the shallows of the Midnight Sea, where a soaked Zoroark floated in the water, completely unconscious. Gallian envisioned himself padding through the knee-high water and scooping Zoroark up and onto his back.

 _"I don't care how crazy my disaster sense drives me… I'm not leaving you. Not now. Not ever. You're more important to me."_

Gallian looked up, where Nihilego prepared to hurtle purple toxins at the hapless Cosmic Cavern residents. His eyes flashed red with rage and pink energy brimmed along his scythe.

"You get away from them right now!" Gallian snarled, thrusting his head forward. Psychic blades arced into Nihilego from both sides, battering its body and knocking it backwards. Gallian charged forward, funneling more of his energy into his scythe. "I'm not going to let you or anyone else bring disaster on these Pokémon when they've done nothing but try to help me!"

Gallian leaped up, swiping the air in front of him with his scythe. More pink blades spun forward, striking Nihilego's tentacles and slicing them clean off its blanket-like body. Nihilego shrieked, flailing about in midair. Green fluid shot out of the stubby remnants of its limbs. Some of it splattered across Gallian's face and chest before he landed back on the ground. A rotten, nauseating scent overwhelmed him. He staggered back a couple of steps before turning and puking on the ground beside him.

Nihilego crashed into the bottom of the empty lagoon. A puddle of green liquid pooled around it. Its glassy-white body progressively grayed until it dissolved into the puddle, which then crusted over. Zoroark approached the edge of the lagoon, flinching upon seeing Nihilego's remains.

"We got it," he wheezed. Zoroark turned back to Gallian, watching him desperately trying to rid his fur of Nihilego's noxious slime. "You going to be okay there, Gallian?"

"No!" Gallian hissed. "Don't just stand there… find a way to break that ice way down!"

Zoroark frowned. "Geez, you didn't have to yell," he mumbled. Zoroark turned to the ice wall, only to step back in surprise. "Guys, the wall's melting!" He looked over at his companions. "You've gotta move back or all that water's gonna spill onto you!"

Visibly struggling to fight through the poison seeping his strength, Totem Decidueye slung Dusk over his shoulder and limped away. However, Gallian stood his ground, digging his claws in as the ice liquified and came crashing down onto him. A veritable wave of ice water raced across the floor, fading to a trickling puddle by the time it reached Zoroark and Totem Decidueye. Zoroark looked over in a panic. To his relief, Gallian stood there. He was soaked and shivering, but all traces of Nihilego's juices were gone.

"Gallian! Oh, thank the gods, you're okay!"

Before Gallian could process what was happening, Tessa wrapped him up in a huge hug. Zoroark's brow furrowed. He looked over and did a mental head count of the Pokémon that had been on the other side of the wall.

"Wait a second… where'd Vulpix end up?"

* * *

"What are you guys doing? If you know what this Nihilego thing is, then you should be hitting it with everything you've got!" Shane hissed, running away from Luxeira and Sticky. He skidded and spun around, shooting a multicolored aurora at Nihilego. It raised up its tentacles and shot two streams of poison forward, snuffing out his attack.

"There isn't much we can do here," Luxeira barked. She opened her mouth, spitting a black beam toward Nihilego. It struck Nihilego's back but did little to phase it. Nihilego continued focusing on Shane, swinging its body forward. Glowing rocks materialized all around Shane. He barked shrilly, hoping to push Nihilego away. But it was too high in the air, so Shane missed his mark. Nihilego swayed to its left. The rocks battered Shane from all sides. He crumpled to the ground, ears ringing and head pounding.

"Captain, my attacks are entirely poison-based," Sticky said. "There's nothing I can use against it!"

"Then you'll need to provide support," Luxeira ordered, glancing at Shane with a wince. "Start by getting that terrestrial back up on his feet." Sticky nodded and floated over to Shane. Nihilego screeched an objection and launched a volley of rocks toward Sticky. Luxeira stayed rooted to her spot, pivoting to rifle off short bursts of fire. They proved strong enough to destroy Nihilego's rocks before they could hit Sticky.

Nihilego whirled around. Poisonous arrows streamed toward Luxeira. She ran to her left, barely dodging the attack. Luxeira skidded to a halt, firing another black beam at Nihilego. This time the attack hit Nihilego in the center of its dome-shaped head. Nihilego hurtled back through the air, squishing up against the edge of the cave. "How are you holding up, Sticky?" Luxeira barked.

In response, a pink shimmer rippled across Nihilego's body. Psychic energy exploded all around it, propelling it into the ground where it landed with a sharp crack. "Krrr-rrr-rrr-rrr!" Nihilego hissed, waving its tentacles around hysterically.

"Don't you have any sort of projectiles you can use?" Shane asked, looking up at Sticky. "You had plenty of them when we were fighting."

Sticky frowned. "I mean, I do, but…" He glanced at Nihilego, who was shakily rising back into the air. "Even if it's not thinking straight, it's still a fellow Ultra Beast. I don't want to harm it."

Nihilego swung its body forward, launching purple globs around the area. Shane's tails shot up in alarm and he rushed toward the corner of the room, tripping and falling to the ground in the process. "Hurry… do something!" he cried, scooting up against the wall. A sludge ball struck the ground in front of him, leaving a bubbling purple puddle that threated to lap up against his tails.

Sticky moved into the path of another pair of sludgy globs. They hit him in the head but their toxins harmlessly splashed across his face. He wiped them from his visor. "Please, Nihilego. Cease this reckless endeavor. If you don't, I'll… I'll be forced to take action!" He produced a sparking orb from his harness.

Beside him, Luxeira shot a black beam at Nihilego's head. Nihilego was prepared this time, however. A shimmer of rainbow light encased its body. The beam struck Nihilego's face, but instead of sending it reeling, Luxeira's attack raced down toward Nihilego's tentacles. It pointed them at Luxeira and a stream of blinding white light raced out. Luxeira was frozen in shock. The blast engulfed her, flinging her into the wall by the basin's entrance. The impact shattered her visor and helmet, leaving a gash in the middle of her now-exposed forehead.

"Captain!" Sticky gasped. He whirled on Nihilego, throwing the orb at it. "If you can't see reason, then I must neutralize you!"

"Krr-rrr-rrr-rrr!" Nihilego chittered. It raised its tentacles, stopping the orb in midair with a ripple of pink energy.

Sticky's eyes widened. "Nuh… no… that's impossible!" Nihilego pivoted to its left. A second psychic ripple washed over the orb, flinging it in Shane's direction. Shane poked his head up right before the orb struck him square between the eyes.

 _Booooooooooom!_

"Eyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!"

A brilliant explosion filled up the corner of the basin. Sticky tail and shoulders sagged. "Oh no. Oh no, no, no, no! That wasn't supposed to happen!" he panicked.

"Krr-rrr-rrr-rrr!" Nihilego trilled, drifting lazily back and forth. It wasted no time in summoning more glowing rocks and hurtling them at Sticky. He yelped and darted about through the air, pausing only to blast an occasional rock with a stream of poison.

"Terrestrial! No, wait, human! Are you okay?" Sticky shouted. Dust had settled from the blast, revealing a giant whole venting thick back smoke. Sticky blanched. "That's… that's not good." He glanced over his shoulder and saw Nihilego preparing to launch another volley of glowing rocks. Sticky groaned and continued flying forward, hoping to keep Nihilego away from the hole in the wall.

"Hey! Hey! I'm over here!" Sticky shouted, waving his arms around. Nihilego turned and hurtled the rocks at him. Sticky sucked in a breath and zipped about, zigzagging erratically in the air in an effort to confuse Nihilego and throw off its targeting.

While this happened, dust and pebbles tricked out of the hole left in the wall by the explosion. Shane rolled about inside the crevice, clutching his bloody head in agony. The ringing in his ears had returned, now so loud it deafened the sounds of Sticky's struggle with Nihilego. Shane's eyes were open and blinking rapidly, but all he could see was white.

"H… help me…" he coughed. "Somebody… please help…" Shane shut his eyes, hoping that could stop the white light burning his eyes. It didn't. Instead, his head throbbed in time with his steadily-rising heartbeat. "Make it stop!" he whimpered. "Make it stop! I don't… I don't want to die!"

Shane tried to roll over, but white-hot pain flashed through his back, eliciting an anguished howl. When the pain subsided, however, Shane's tails curled up against his hips. Intense warmth pooled inside his lower body. _'Oh god… oh god… this is it!'_ Shane thought. _'I'm bleeding out! I'm a goner! I couldn't help. I wasn't strong enough. Silvally… Tessa… I'm sorry!'_

The warmth spread up across Shane's torso. Only, instead of sapping the last of his strength, the sensation reinvigorated Shane. It replaced the pins and needles in his forelegs, giving him the freedom to move them without any pain. The warmth spread around his trunk, soothing his aching back. Finally, it spilled into his face, silencing the ringing in his ears and dulling the white light eroding his vision.

Shane slowly opened his eyes. In doing so, he identified the source of the warmth: a sparkling, golden rock fragment lying embedded deep within the cave's wall. "That's… the Subterranean Shard," Shane realized. Without even thinking, he reached over and pressed both forepaws against it.

A weak gasp escaped his lips. An unseen force grabbed hold of his head and tails and yanked them in opposite directions. Shane couldn't muster the energy to scream. His field of vision erupted in a blazing orange fire. Loud, furious roaring echoed inside his pounding head.

 _'What's happening to me?'_ Shane panicked. _'Where's that awful noise coming from?'_ He tried to take his forepaws off the Subterranean Shard but found they wouldn't respond. The warmth flowing through him grew steadily hotter. Shane's breathing quickened until he was hyperventilating, preventing him from calling for help.

In the center of the orange flames, a pair of fierce blue eyes stared back at Shane. _'Huh? Who's there? Is someone watching me?'_ Shane tried shouting, but all he managed was a forceful exhale.

 _ **Find the other shards! Get our power back!**_

 _'Huh?'_ Shane blinked, but the flames didn't subside. _'Are those eyes… talking to me?'_ The flames flickered in his vision, producing a dark blue circle around the pair of eyes. A third, compass-like eye appeared in the center of the circle. It steadily glowed brighter and brighter until its shimmering blue light filled Shane's whole field of vision.

"Ah!"

Shane briefly found his voice just in time for the psychic force pulling on his head and tails to yank him upright. "W-What the–?! Hey! Put me down!" He tried to move his limbs but they seemed to have developed minds of their own. His forepaws rose up, still grasping the Subterranean Shard. Its marvelous golden light spilled onto his looplet and spread across his body.

"Wait… stop! This is not okay!" Shane hollered, squinting his eyes shut and turning away as the golden light grew brighter. _'Too bright! Too bright! My eyes! My–'_ Shane's face scrunched up. _'Hold up. Why is it suddenly getting colder? Everything felt super-warm a second ago.'_ His breathing quickened again. _'I don't like this! I'm totally losing my mind, here!'_

Shane opened his eyes. His looplet vibrated against foreleg, clanging against the Subterranean Shard. _'Why is the Shard white now?'_ he wondered, blinking in surprise. _'No, wait… there's a second rock here. It's… it's… a white stone? But how did it get here?'_ Shane had little time to ponder that thought, because his right forepaw slipped off the Subterranean Shard and grabbed hold of the stone.

The moment he did, the psychic force grabbing onto him intensified. Shane's forelegs and hindlegs were violently pulled away from each other. His torso elongated, producing loud pops and snaps that reverberated through the crevice, drowned out by Shane's screaming. The tugging stopped, only to be replaced by a set of invisible hands grabbing hold of his hips and yanking his tails apart. Splotches of white energy peppered his rear, giving rise to three new tails that shot out behind him.

All the while, his looplet continued shining brightly. So brightly that it dispelled all the smoke from the explosion. The light pooled out of the hole in the wall, drawing Sticky's attention. He abruptly stopped flying. "Huh?" Sticky put a hand up to his visor and his jaw dropped. "I'm picking up Z-Power readings… and they're completely off the charts!"

He turned back to Nihilego, who had frozen in place. Bright white light surrounded its body. It suddenly lurched violently in midair and slammed against the ice wall. Nihilego struggled against an invisible force. The white light faded to pink. Lines of psychic energy raced out from Nihilego's body, spreading across the ice wall. Sticky backed away from it, grabbing Luxeira by her horns and dragging her as far up against the opposite wall as he could.

The lines stopped forming and lit up bright pink in unison. Then, psychic energy erupted from every line, producing such intense forces that the ice wall exploded. Having been pinned up against it, Nihilego was crushed by the combination of ice shards and psychic energy. Its battered body fell to the ground, where it melted into a puddle of toxins that immediately crusted over.

Sticky poked his head up from behind Luxeira's unconscious body. There, he saw Tessa and Espeon racing toward a battered, bloody Silvally, who lay under a pile of ice chunks. He also noticed Milotic splayed out on the ground a short distance from them. He floated into the air and shot a stream of poison right at Milotic, fearing she would attempt to hit Tessa and Espeon while they were preoccupied.

However, to Sticky's surprise, Milotic rolled out of the way of the attack. She produced a black orb and smashed it to pieces with her tail. An Ultra Wormhole formed underneath her, swallowing her whole. "You fools, you let her get away!" Sticky shouted, pointing wildly at the spot where Milotic had been standing.

As soon as he said that, the ice entrapping Silvally melted, leaving him sprawled in a puddle of chilly water. The room then shook as the remaining ice wall broke apart, crashing down on the far side of the cavern as a wave of ice water. Tessa paused in the middle of helping Silvally to look up. She spotted Zoroark and Totem Decidueye, the latter carrying Dusk on his shoulder and wobbling back and forth unsteadily. But, more importantly to her, Gallian stood a few yards away from her, shivering wildly.

"Gallian! Oh, thank the gods, you're okay!"

Tessa sprinted forward and embraced Gallian, hoisting him off the ground in the process. Gallian's eyes widened and he kicked his legs about. His pleas for Tessa to put him down were snuffed out against her shoulder. Tessa nestled Gallian with her snout. "I thought… I thought you were done for. I thought I was going to lose you."

"Mffffrrgggh! Frrrrffgh hhrrrrgggh!" Gallian said, Tessa's fur muffling his speech. She realized she was inadvertently covering up his snout and set him back on the ground. Gallian fought to catch his breath. "Tessa? I still don't really understand what just happened. It was all moving so quickly," he said.

"It doesn't matter now," Tessa insisted. "It's all over. You're safe now. _We're_ safe now."

"Wait a second… where'd Vulpix end up?" Zoroark said, a frown on his face.

Tessa's relieved look abruptly vanished. She whirled around, scanning the cave. "How could he not be here?" She turned to Sticky. "He got trapped with you, didn't he? What happened?"

"Well… I threw an explosive device and Nihilego deflected it into the human, so–"

"You did _what?!_ " Tessa gasped, eyes widened in horror.

"Tessa, wait! Look over there!" Espeon shouted, pointing a forepaw toward the farthest corner of the cave.

"Hmm?" Tessa followed Espeon's forepaw, only for her aura feelers to shoot up into the air. "No way," she squeaked.

Silvally's beak fell open. "I don't believe it," he whispered. "Shane… he's…"

Four snow-white paws gracefully glided toward the rest of the group, carrying a svelte, pale-blue body. Nine glistening tails fanned out behind Shane, combining with his newly-formed mane and tuft of chest fur to make him look like an elegant, walking nimbus cloud.

"H… hey guys," Shane said, chuckling weakly. "What did I miss?"

* * *

 **Bitter Cold Maiden, Ultra Milotic  
** _Infused with the icy energy of an Ultra Beast familiar to this world, Milotic has attained the power of cryokinesis. By channeling Z-Power through her head and tail, she can manipulate water and ice to suit her whims. Little does Milotic know that if she pushes her spirit too hard, these same abilities are likely to freeze her body solid from the inside out. Could Zero really have done this to her or are there more malevolent forces at play?_

* * *

And with that, our main trio is fully-evolved! No more cute little fuzzballs here, but it was necessary to keep the story moving. I had, at one point in time, considered making Team Radiance's rainbow scarves operate like the Harmony Scarves in Super with temporary evolutions, but I tossed that idea out in favor of giving them Z-Moves instead. I think it was a good decision. In case you couldn't tell, Shane uses Shattered Psyche to defeat a Nihilego.

Another guest: since you're stuck on Shane's memories, you might enjoy the next couple of chapters. I'm staying silent, though. Don't want to spoil the fun!

Anon Omega: glad you've been enjoying it. Hopefully this chapter was fun for you, too. Also, don't make me call the bad meme police on you, because I will.

Veralix: all I can say is that our heroes have to _work_ to earn their happy ending. Assuming, of course, I'm going to give them one in the first place. Who knows what tricks I've got up my sleeves?

SuperOmegaGuest: glad we cleared that up, then.

Next time: verbal confrontations!


	71. Serious Attitude Adjustments

After a lot of action-heavy chapters, it's time we calm things down a bit, starting with this update. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 60: Serious Attitude Adjustments**

 **~Cosmic Cavern~**

A pillar of golden light surrounded the center of the village, depositing the entire group in front of the entrance to the Cavernous Depths. Espeon brushed the dusty remains of her used Escape Orb off her foreleg and quickly dispensed healing items around to the Pokémon that needed them.

Everyone else's attentions remained fixed on Shane, who held the Subterranean Shard in his mouth. He dropped it to the ground. "What? What's everyone staring at me for?" He swiveled his face around for everyone in the group to see. "Do I have rock in my teeth?" He paused when he noticed Tessa and Silvally staring back at him in disbelief.

"Uh, Shane, you _do_ realize you're a Ninetales now, right?" Tessa spoke up.

"Well, yeah, but it's not like a Ninetales is some sort of super-incredible sight or anything," he dismissed. "Even if I've never seen one with white fur." His brow furrowed. "Or, I guess I'm kind of blue now? Must be channeling my inner popsicle." Shane did a quick turnaround to inspect his fur. "So, seriously, what's with the staring? I'm getting a little worried."

"It's just… y'know… you _evolved_ ," Silvally said. "How are you feeling? Happy? Upset? Invigorated? Some bizarre combination of all three?"

Shane sat down, tilting his head in confusion. "I, uh, don't actually know, honestly." He scratched at his right ear with his right hind leg. "Maybe my brain hasn't fully processed that this has happened yet? I mean, Tessa didn't pick up on her evolution right away." He winced, realizing he might've said something to upset her. "Err, sorry, I didn't mean to bring that up."

"It's fine," Tessa insisted.

Espeon cleared her throat. "Hey, guys? Hate to interrupt, but the rest of the group's broken apart."

Tessa's aura feelers tensed. "Wait, what?" She turned around, scanning the area for any signs of her brother. All she saw was a Golett, Golurk, and a pair of Graveler staring down at her from the second level. She looked away from them, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. "Where did Gallian go? I need to talk to him."

Espeon pointed a forepaw toward an outcropping of rock near the village's entrance. "Zoroark limped off into that den and Gallian followed after him." She craned her head upward. "Totem Decidueye took Dusk and Team Paradox up there. I'm assuming they're all going to his home to recuperate. Houndoom and Dusk were in pretty rough shape. I think Houndoom even lost her helmet. She might have a concussion that needs tending to. From what I could see, Dusk looked like a bloody mess, too."

"Then… I have to go," Tessa said. She clasped her paws against her chest and walked toward Zoroark's home. Tessa paused, turning back to Shane with a frown. "Um… sorry I'm walking out. We can talk later or something. I just…" She rubbed her shoulder. "I've got some words for Gallian. Like… a lot of them."

Silvally was at her side before she could move any farther. "Tessa, are you sure that's a good idea right now? Maybe we should go with you?"

"No, I have to do this myself," Tessa said. "He's my brother. It's time I set things straight with him."

"I understand," Silvally said. Still, he blocked her path. "But if you're going to go in there by yourself, I need you to promise me you'll keep a level head."

Tessa blinked in surprise. "What's gotten into you? Why would you think I'd fly off the handle at him?"

Silvally frowned. "Tessa… we saw what happened when you were battling Gallian. You've had quite a few of those outbursts ever since we got back from Tapu Bulu's temple." Tessa's brow furrowed. Silvally stepped toward her, nudging her muzzle with his beak. "I just don't want you to lose control. You rescued your brother, yeah, but getting him to warm back up to you is another story entirely."

"I know," Tessa sighed, shoulders slumping. "Still, I'm going to try. I deserve to say my piece after he walked out on me." She put a paw up onto his shoulder. "I appreciate the concern, but I'm fine. Really."

"Okay," Silvally said, stepping to the side. "Good luck."

Tessa nodded and continued forward, entering Zoroark's house. Silvally turned back around, only to find that Shane had walked away, taking the Subterranean Shard with him. Only Espeon still remained in the area, eyes closed and head bowed in silent thought. "Hey, where did Shane go?" Silvally asked. He channeled his psychic memories and did a scan of the area. It didn't take him long to sense Shane's life force a few dozen yards away.

"He walked off in that direction," Espeon replied, pointing her tail toward a staircase that had been carved into the rocks. A sign indicated they led to natural hot springs. "No idea why he'd slink off over there, but I wasn't gonna ask."

"Ah. I see," Silvally muttered. He stood in front of Espeon, poking a pebble with one of his talons. Silvally kept looking up at her, wanting to say something, but unable to gather his thoughts properly. Finally, after a minute of silence, he said, "Espeon, are you alright?"

Espeon's ears stuck up. "Huh?"

Silvally walked up and sat down next to her. Espeon flinched and tried to scoot away, but Silvally craned his neck down so he was at eye level with her. "I'm serious. How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine. What does it matter, anyway?" Espeon said, turning her head away. Silvally got up and stepped in her field of vision. She shrank back defensively. "Hey, mind backing up? You're creeping me out, here."

"I just want to know that you're doing okay," Silvally whispered. "With everything that's happened today between Tessa and Gallian… I couldn't help but think about you."

Espeon frowned. "I don't need your pity. We've barely spoken to one another."

"I know. I'm sorry about that," Silvally said. "But you're part of the team. Shane and Tessa really care about you and I do, too." He sat down again. "You've got something on your mind, don't you?"

"Are you reading my mind?" Espeon growled, taking up a defensive dance.

"No, of course not!" Silvally insisted. "I just… I figured that seeing Tessa and Gallian fight… might've made you think about Umbreon." Silvally immediately knew he hit the nail on the head, because Espeon looked away from him, eyes glazing over and tail falling between her legs.

"That's… not something I want to talk about," she whispered. "You wouldn't understand."

"Try me," Silvally said. "Plenty of my spirits had siblings. And many of them had shaky relationships. I think I would understand pretty well." He scooted back, giving Espeon a bit more breathing room. "Just because I'm not your closest friend doesn't mean I'm not willing to hear you out."

"Okay, fine!" Espeon relented. "Yes, I admit it. Everything that's happened today is upsetting. _Very_ upsetting! I look at Gallian and… and… I see myself." She bowed her head guiltily. "I see him making the same mistake that I did: acting out toward the people trying to help him. Worst of all, he's pushing Tessa away. Just like…" She sniffled and rubbed her head against her shoulder. "Just like I did to Umbry."

Espeon dropped to her stomach, burying her head in her paws. "So, yes, I'm upset. And I'm jealous. Gallian… he has a doting sister, a mate that was willing to fight through some nasty injuries for him even after he walked out of the guy's life, and biggest of all… he has a chance to fix his life. To set everything right with the people who love him." Espeon took in a shuddering breath. "And that's a chance… I'm never going to have."

She fixed her watery eyes on Silvally. "There, I talked about it. Happy now?"

Silvally laid down in front of Espeon. "I'm so sorry. I couldn't have imagined that's what you thought."

"Ha! Oh please, do you think I buy that garbage?" Espeon sneered. "You're a psychic-type… in a manner of speaking. You probably knew about this all along. You just wanted to hear me say it." Her eyes narrowed at Silvally. "You honestly think that you can help everyone around you, don't you? It doesn't work that way. People help each other… because they expect to get something in return. Guilds take job requests to earn a living. It's not about warm, fuzzy feelings, it's about getting by in life, plain and simple."

"I don't really believe that," Silvally said. "I think anyone who willingly chooses the path of an explorer does so because they care about the Pokémon around them."

Espeon laughed at him. "You're so naïve. Tell me something, then. What are you getting out of this?"

Silvally shrugged. "The satisfaction that comes with seeing my friends happy."

Her gaze fiercened. "Yeah, right. I don't buy it. I heard what Necrozma said to you the other day. No matter how much 'good' you do, it's not going to change the fact that you'll outlive everyone you claim to care about. We'll just be more memories to add to your massive collection." Her tail drifted to her side, as if it was a second head joining her in staring Silvally down. "It's guilt, then, isn't it? I mean, you're pretty much Legendary in my eyes. The way I see it, you're trying to pick up the slack for the gods. That way you don't have to think about the fact that the only reason you exist is because they all suck at their jobs."

Silvally sighed. "Well, yeah, I admit that I'm a bit stuck on what's going to happen to you guys… and to me." He blinked slowly. "But that's far into the future and not worth worrying about. Right now, I'm focused on helping you guys because I think we can make this world a better place, together. It all starts by beating the Prism Virus."

"You can keep saying that as much you want. It's not going to change how I feel about all of this… and about you," Espeon countered. "Not everyone's going to want to be your friend. And not everyone's going to be grateful to have you around. Sooner or later, you'll realize that, despite your best efforts, you can't do it all. My advice? Start picking and choosing your battles." She turned her head away from Silvally. "Or you're just going to end up getting burned."

"No wonder Zero persuaded you to join her," Silvally whispered, frowning.

Espeon's ears stuck up. "What did you just say to me?" She turned back around, only to tense up as Silvally stared her down, a hardened look in his eyes.

"I thought that Tessa had gotten through to you back at the Observatory, but I guess I was wrong," Silvally said. "You're not just cynical… you're bitter and spiteful." His pink eyes glowed. Espeon shuffled back, narrowing her eyes at Silvally. "There's a part of you that _wants_ things to completely break down between Tessa and Gallian, isn't there? I can't believe that, after Tessa tried to help you when you needed it most, you'd think like that. It's disgusting."

"Of _course_ a part of me wants to see it!" Espeon yelled, jumped up to her feet. "Because I screwed up with Umbry! And if Gallian torches his relationship with Tessa, then I don't have to feel like the only 'mon on the planet who ruined her sibling's life!" She couldn't hold her tears back any longer and collapsed back on the ground, crying.

Silvally's expression relaxed. He scooted over toward her, offering up his shoulder. Espeon leaned against it, shuddering with each sob she made. "Shhhh… it's okay. Just let it out," Silvally coaxed. "I understand… really."

"No… no you don't," Espeon blubbered. "The human– I mean Shane… he said Umbry sacrificed himself for my sake, but the more I think about… the less it makes sense. I was… I treated him so badly. I was a mess… no, I _am_ a mess. Hoarding spiked berry juice… finding stardust to sniff up… stomping around Post Town, cursing everyone out. I said Umbry and I had friends on the Mist Continent… but really, I burned those bridges. Burned them to ashes."

"That stumbling around you did yesterday… you were hungover, weren't you?" Silvally growled. Espeon lifted her head off his shoulder, a guilty look on her face. Silvally frowned disapprovingly. "And you were acting pretty nasty this morning, too," Silvally accused. "Were you drinking again?"

"No. You were all asleep last night. I had some stardust from Mount Supernova, so I went outside Totem Salazzle's house and used it," Espeon said, to Silvally's displeasure. "What? Don't give me that look. You wouldn't understand. I need that stuff. It… it keeps them away."

"Keeps who away?"

"The Void Shadows!" Espeon said, looking around nervously. "They've been following me ever since Dark Matter attacked. I can't always see them, but I can hear them. Taunting me. Ridiculing me for all my failures." She curled up against Silvally again. "They told me it's my fault Umbry's gone. I was so pushy and callous toward him, that I broke his spirit." Her ears folded against her head. "I made him so miserable, that he would rather suffer at Necrozma's hands than spend another moment with me."

"That's not true. He really cared about you," Silvally said.

"Because he didn't have a choice," Espeon countered. "I… we…" She scrunched her face up. "We were mates."

Silvally stiffened. "Oh. I… uh…" His brow furrowed. "Not gonna lie to ya, I kind of figured that was the case."

Espeon's tail crinkled up. "Y… you knew? But… but that's not…" Her voice trailed off and she reached up to rub the gem on her forehead. "Of course," she hissed, "thanks to that stupid cave-in, I can't mask my life energy all that well." She shook her head. "Great! Wonderful! I'll bet Tessa can sense Umbry on me, too. What _isn't_ going wrong in my life, huh?" Espeon rolled onto her back, kicking at the air in frustration. "I tried so hard… so damn hard to keep that under wraps. I figured when I convinced Shane that nothing was happening, my work was done."

"The problem there is that Shane is rather… dense. But that's straying off topic," Silvally said. "I don't understand. Why were you trying so hard to keep that hidden?"

"Because it was a stupid mistake," Espeon fired back. "Neither of us were thinking straight. The world was crumbling around us. It was just so _cold_. We started to huddle together and one thing led to another and… well… I think you get the idea." She rolled over to her side, angling herself so she faced away from Silvally. "You know how it works. Once you have a mate, you're bound for life. Even if we both wanted to break it off, we'd have been looked down on by everyone."

"But what would have been so bad about folks finding out?" Silvally wondered. "You're not the only relatives to end up as mates, you know."

"That wasn't the problem," Espeon growled. "The problem was that if people found out, they'd want details. I wasn't about to stand there and tell my friends about that stuff. How, instead of offering support against the Bittercold, we mated to forget about everything that was falling apart." Espeon rolled back into a sitting position, a defeated look on her face. "Only, when all the dust settled, Umbry bounced back and returned to his usual self and I… just didn't."

Silvally bowed his head solemnly. "I guess you're right. I can't imagine what was going through your head back then." He flinched. "Well, I guess I _could_ see it for myself. But even if I read your mind, I don't think I'd have the full picture." He stood up and walked over toward her.

"Don't–" Espeon started, only for Silvally to lay down next to her. "Ugh, when will you just give it a rest? Haven't I said enough, already?"

"Espeon, look at me," Silvally said. When she turned away from him, Silvally poked her between the shoulder blades with his beak. Espeon gasped and turned around, an angry look on her face. "I wasn't finished talking to you," he said, drawing a scowl from Espeon. "Look… will you just hear me out for a few minutes? If you really don't like what I have to say, then I'll walk away and we don't have to talk to each other like this ever again. Sound good?"

Espeon curled her tail around her legs. "I'm listening."

"It's easy to let your mind drift to the worst-case scenario… and convince yourself that it has to be true. _Especially_ when your life's not on solid footing," Silvally said. "I get it. Really, I do. So many of these spirits inside me died angry and upset because they felt like they weren't in control of their own lives. When the mask was on… that's exactly how I felt, too." He inched closer to Espeon. This time she didn't shrink back. "Still, I want you to take a good, hard look at your life with Umbreon. I get the taboo behind leaving your mate, but don't you think that, if he really, _truly_ thought you were making him miserable like you're claiming he did, he would have walked out years ago?"

"N… no… the stigma, it's…"

"It hasn't stopped other Pokémon," Silvally cut in. "You remember Sylveon, from Sunrise Village?" Espeon's winced, sending a pang of guild through Silvally's chest. Silvally focused on his breathing to steady himself. "Tessa told me her mate walked out on her. Didn't even say why. She thinks he ran off to Solstice Summit with a Glaceon." Silvally's words irritated Espeon. He coughed nervously. "A-Anyway… the point I'm trying to make is that you've let your negative thoughts take hold of your life and drive all your actions. I think that's why these 'Void Shadows' are driving you mad."

Espeon blinked slowly. "I… uh…" Her jaw hung open.

Silvally opted to continue. "You need to start pushing back. Umbreon stuck by you through all the rough days, arguments with friends, and questionable choices." He grasped the tip of Espeon's muzzle with a talon and lifted it up. "And, from what I can gather, you two kept up some degree of intimacy. Otherwise that gossip article would've never existed, right?"

"Th… that was just a mistake," Espeon said, sniffling. "I… I told him mating would make me feel better. He believed me."

"You're letting those negative thoughts win again," Silvally said, his gaze sharpening. "For all you know, he did it because he genuinely, truly loves you." He let go of Espeon's muzzle and stepped back. "I know it's hard for you to hear this, but what you're doing right now… it's not working. It'll _never_ work. You can get as much stardust and berry juice as you want, but it won't drive the Void Shadows in your head away. It's a temporary solution, at best." Silvally lowered his head. "Like shaking your head around… or bashing your helmeted skull against whatever wall you can find."

Espeon's looked straight at Silvally, eyes widening.

"I know this is hurting you, but the only way to make the pain stop is to make a change," Silvally continued. "In your case, you have to challenge those negative thoughts."

"I already tried that. It didn't work," Espeon muttered.

"Then, you need friends by your side to support you," Silvally said.

"I don't have any friends left. Even if they were willing to forgive me, Necrozma made sure that'll never happen."

"Yes, you do," Silvally said. "You have me, Tessa, and Shane." Espeon frowned and looked away again. "Hey." Silvally hopped to the side, reentering Espeon's field of view. "I used to be like you. Convinced that nobody could possibly help me… and no one would understand what I'm going through. But then I met Tessa… and everything changed."

Espeon didn't respond, instead fixating on her satchel. Silvally sighed. "Okay, I get the message. You're done with me." He turned away from her. "I guess I'll just… I dunno… go check on Tessa."

"… don't go."

Silvally froze mid-step. He craned his neck back to see Espeon staring down at her bag, into one glistening side of the Sizzle Shard. "Please," she whispered. "Stay with me. You're right… I don't want to be alone. I want," she choked back tears, "to feel like I fit in somewhere again." Espeon looked up at Silvally. "What… what do you think I need to do… to make all these bad thoughts go away?"

Before Silvally could respond, he and Espeon heard footsteps. They both looked back toward the village and watched Gallian walk out of Zoroark's house with a neutral expression on his face. He glanced at the two of them and then took off for the tunnel leading outside Cosmic Cavern. Seconds later, Totem Decidueye glided down from the upper levels and walked into Zoroark's den.

"I think going after Gallian might be a good place to start," Silvally said. "You said you saw some of yourself in him, right? Well, now's your chance to make sure he doesn't make the same mistake you did."

Espeon's ears drooped. "But I don't even know the guy. What if he lashes out at me?"

"I'll go with you," Silvally offered. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you. You're a teammate… and a friend." He extended his foreleg to Espeon. "What do you say? Are you willing to give it a try?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

* * *

Gallian entered Zoroark's house. His former mate lay on a straw bed, rubbing his scarred abdomen and leg and groaning loudly. "You shouldn't have followed me," Gallian said. "This wouldn't have happened if you'd just stayed back here." Gallian shook his head. "You tailed me all the way to the Volcanic Wastes, didn't you? What were you thinking?"

"I don't… really want to talk about that… right now," Zoroark replied.

"Well, I'm not just gonna drop the issue," Gallian said. "You can answer me now… or later."

Zoroark laughed bitterly. "Seriously? After everything that's happened today… you're gonna try and throw it all on me?"

Gallian shrank back at this. "I–"

"Gallian."

Tessa appeared in the doorway. Gallian jumped up, yipping in surprise, and scrambled toward the far corner of the room. He whirled around to face Tessa, adopting a guarded stance. "What's your problem? I want some privacy. Go away!"

Anger momentarily flashed through Tessa's eyes. Zoroark sat up, muzzle stiffened, while Gallian crouched lower to the ground. In doing so, however, pain shot through his legs and he collapsed on his stomach. "Gallian, I don't want to fight with you anymore," Tessa said. "Stop trying to push me away. I'm your _sister_ and I just want to talk."

"I… I don't have anything to say to you," Gallian whimpered.

Tessa stomped a foot on the ground, making Gallian's fur stand on end. "Yes, you do," she said. "You're just… you're just… _beyond_ stubborn." Tessa shook her head in disbelief. "Like… I just don't understand it. How could you go from the warm, caring brother I spent nights on the beach with to… to… this _angry_ guy spouting off nonsense about impending disaster?" Tessa got down on her knees so she was at eye level with Gallian. "Please, help me see what happened. Because you're nothing like the guy I remember. You're not the brother I love anymore."

Claws scraped against rock and Tessa's ears twitched. "I already told you," Gallian said, voice cracking, "Mom tried to kill me."

"You said that back in the dungeon, too," Tessa said. "But that would've happened _after_ you left the guild. I'm talking about earlier than that… when you stormed up to Sylveon's house, locked eyes with me, and, with the scariest-sounding voice I'd ever heard from someone other than Mom, told me, 'Don't you ever let me catch you setting foot in that guild. If you do, I won't hesitate to strike you down!'"

Gallian flinched. "I had to keep you safe."

"By threatening me with violence?" Tessa countered, a glare spreading across her face. Gallian recognized the look in her eyes and gulped.

"My disaster sense," Gallian whispered, his defiant attitude from earlier having completely vanished.

"That's not a good enough answer, Gallian," Tessa said. She nearly slapped the floor with her paw but managed to stop herself and instead rest it on her thigh. "I want to know why. What was going through your head that you thought you needed to frighten me? Mom had made me feel awful enough in the months after Dad died. When you showed up, I thought you were there to lift my spirits." Her ears folded against her head. "And then you yelled at me. You scared me. And I… I felt so miserable after that."

Gallian scooted back on the floor. "I… I didn't have a choice. It was the only way… the only thing I could think of that didn't set off my disaster sense. I needed to stay away from you… and the guild," he insisted. "It's all because of Metagross. I found out that he killed Dad. Mom ran out on us because of him."

"Why didn't you just tell me that?" Tessa asked, a hurt look in her eyes. "If you said that, don't you think I would've heeded your advice and stayed as far away from there as possible?" Tessa leaned back, resting against her heels. "I looked up to you back then. You were my role model. I wanted to be just like you: confident, caring, and brave." Her eyes glazed over. "Hearing you say that stuff… tore a hole through my heart. One that's only just started to heal."

Tessa scooched backwards, giving Gallian some more breathing room. "I panicked," Gallian admitted. "I just… the disaster sense was so strong. I wasn't sure who to trust or what to do. I thought if I told you what had happened, that you'd try to investigate yourself." Gallian's brow furrowed and he looked away. "I was trying…" He took a shuddering breath. "I wanted to keep you away from a potential disaster. But in doing that… I just brought disaster on you, didn't I?"

He slowly shut his eyes and hug his head. "How bad was it?" he asked. "You still had Eevee and Sylveon, right?"

"That wasn't enough," Tessa said. "Besides… they're gone now, thanks to Mom."

Gallian winced. "I see," he whispered.

Tessa put a paw up to her rainbow scarf. "It was bad, Gallian," she said. "I kept sinking lower and lower… and then I met Shane. Things spiraled out of control after that."

"What do you mean?"

"I was–" Tessa cut herself off. She could feel Zoroark studying her from his bed. A part of her wanted to ask him to leave, but this was his home. He was her spirit-brother. It didn't seem like the right thing to do. So, Tessa took a deep breath and said, "I was going to let myself starve."

Gallian finally met Tessa's gaze, a shocked look on his face. "Tessa," he said. "No. You… you shouldn't stay stuff like that! You–"

"It's true, Gallian," Tessa whispered. "Shane and Silvally… they stopped me from going through with it."

Tessa's ears twitched at the sound of footsteps. Zoroark's arm slung across her shoulder. She involuntarily tensed. "Are you okay, now?" Zoroark asked.

"Well, things aren't spectacular," Tessa said. "But I'm hanging in there. Besides, I made a promise to my friends… that I wouldn't go to such a dark place again."

Gallian had scooched closer to the wall, still looking completely baffled at Tessa's confession. "This doesn't make any sense," he muttered. "You're a Lucario now. Riolus evolve when they're happy. How–?"

Tessa held her left arm up, showing off her Naturia Looplet. "The Z-Power from my looplet jump-started my aura abilities… and made me evolve prematurely." She paused. "Or, I guess, I kind of evolved pretty late into life, but it's still premature because I wasn't mentally ready." Tessa rubbed her head. "Espeon explained it a lot better."

Zoroark nodded. "I'm just glad to hear you're okay. That's… nobody should have to experience that kind of sadness." He looked over at Gallian. "Isn't that right?"

Gallian's eyes darted back and forth between the two of them. "I, uh, yeah."

"I knew it," Zoroark said, brow furrowing, "you're still putting up barriers."

Gallian bit his lower lip and looked away. "Gallian, nobody's trying to hurt you," Tessa said.

"It's… this is all my fault," Gallian croaked, shutting his eyes. "Mom was right. I'm a failure. I'm the worst kind of Absol you can be: one that brings disaster onto everyone who comes across him."

Zoroark frowned. "What happened to some things being more important than your disaster sense?" he asked. "That's what you said to me. I know you still feel that way… somewhere deep down. Why can't you pull those thoughts back up again?"

Gallian's eyes flashed pink. Zoroark and Tessa tensed. "Weren't you the one who told me, 'You really expect me to welcome you back with open arms after what you did?'" Gallian said, directing a glare at Zoroark.

"I said that because you hurt me, Gallian," Zoroark said. "I laid my life on the line for you… and you ran away… because you were scared. Your disaster sense told you bad things were happening. So, you listened to it… instead of me." Zoroark's ear drooped. "That's how I interpreted what happened. You lied to me… after we'd bared our souls to each other. That pain… it cut deep. Deeper than what your Mom did, as cliché as it sounds." He sat down next to Tessa, crossing his arms and legs. "I deserve an explanation… and a sincere apology."

Gallian's response consisted of him brushing his scythe against the wall. "It was because you were infected, right?" Tessa said. "That's what drove you away. It had to be." She glanced at Zoroark. "I'll bet you were just worried that you might attack him or something." Tessa leaned over but stopped when Gallian shrank back toward the corner. "Go on, Gallian. You don't have to keep it a secret anymore."

She reached her paw out toward Gallian. He sat up, looking intently at the wall. "I had to follow those two. They said it was the only way they could monitor the harness… and keep me from going totally crazy," Gallian whispered. "I didn't want to do it. Zoroark… I meant what I said. Really." He turned and buried his head in his shoulder, trying to muffle his sniffles. "But hearing what those aliens had to say just… it _terrified_ me. I ran off with them. I thought… I thought if I told you that I was leaving…"

"… there would be disaster?" Zoroark said, raising an eyebrow. Gallian bowed his head and nodded it slowly. "Seriously? I just…" Zoroark rubbed his forehead. "Okay. It's clear there's been a lot of miscommunication. I'm… not sure where we can really go from here, to be honest."

Gallian tensed. "What do you mean by that?"

"Gallian… I want to forgive you," Zoroark said. "Now that you're back… I'm starting to imagine a life with you again. Only…" He rubbed his shoulder. "I'm worried you'll run out on me as soon as something bothers you." He swished his mane in front of him and fiddled with locks of his hair. "I can't go through that again, Gallian."

"So, what, do you want me to promise I'll always stay by you or something?" Gallian grunted. "I can do that… I guess. If it'll make you feel better."

"That's not good enough," Zoroark said. "I need to see it for myself. Prove that you're willing to stand by me. I…" Zoroark gripped his mane tightly. "You have to earn my trust back. It's the only way we can go forward as mates."

A spark of green energy raced across Gallian's scythe. Tessa got on one knee, ready to intervene if things got bad. "What exactly did you have in mind, then?" Gallian asked, unable to meet Zoroark's gaze.

Zoroark released his mane and gently traced his scars with his claws. "I want to go with your sister."

Gallian turned around, a defiant look in his eyes. "What, are you crazy? You've seen what she's dealing with! That's a recipe for–"

"–disaster. Yes, I'm aware," Zoroark said. "I'm certainly not in top battling shape, that's for sure. But now that I know what's going on, I can't just sit by and do nothing." He frowned. "How could the two of us even have a future together if these Ultra Beasts are allowed to run wild? They'll bring the world to ruin, won't they?"

"Maybe," Gallian muttered. "But there's not much we can do against them. I might've had a shot if I was still infected, but I lost all my special powers."

"I could contact Latias and see if we could get you a Naturia Looplet of your own," Tessa offered.

Gallian's eyes widened. "You met _Latias?_ " He shook his head. "I've really missed a lot, haven't I? This is just too much to take in."

"You asked me what you needed to do to win my trust back and I gave you my answer," Zoroark said. "So, are you willing to join me or not?"

"I… I…" Gallian looked between Tessa and Zoroark. He shuddered, fur prickling along the back of his neck. Gallian suddenly got to his feet. "I need to step out. F-For some air…"

"Gallian, wait!" Tessa called. But her brother walked right past her, staring off into space. He silently departed the house. Gallian walked up toward the village's entrance and disappeared into the nearby tunnel. Tessa hung her head, aura feelers drooping. "Great. Well, so much for that."

"I'm sorry," Zoroark said. "I thought for sure we had gotten through to him. Guess I was wrong."

A shadow appeared outside the doorway. Tessa got to her feet, but she immediately relaxed upon seeing Totem Decidueye landing in front of her. He knocked on the side of the doorway with his wing. "May I come in?" he asked.

Zoroark staggered to his feet. "Of course, Totem," he said. "Can I get you something? A berry or a cup of water, perhaps?"

"I'm quite alright," Totem Decidueye said. "I just wanted to come check on you, that's all. Things got rough in the Cavernous Depths."

"Ah. Well, I'm about as good as I can get," Zoroark said, limping over to a chair and sitting down in it.

"How is Team Paradox doing?" Tessa asked.

"Hmm? Oh, you must mean the alien and the blue Houndoom," Totem Decidueye said. "They're alright. I did have to tear off Houndoom's outfit to better tend to her wounds. She's a bit shaken up, for sure, but she'll be fine. Dusk is also doing okay. I got her the proper berries in time to close her wounds."

"That's a relief," Zoroark said, leaning over to rest his head against his arm. "She looked especially worse for wear. That Nihilego thing really roughed her up."

Totem Decidueye nodded. "You know Dusk, though. She's too proud to admit when something's wrong. I get the feeling we'll need to have a conversation about all of this, eventually. But for right now, she's just sleeping." He walked farther into the house. "And how about you, Lucario? I understand you're Gallian's sister."

"Yes," Tessa said, nodding. "Please, c-call me Tessa. It's, um, an old Lucario custom."

"If that's what you wish," Totem Decidueye said, bobbing his head. Tessa looked over his shoulder and spotted Espeon and Silvally walking toward the tunnel exiting the village. Silvally briefly locked eyes with her and gave her a reassuring nod. He and Espeon then trotted into the tunnel.

 _'I guess they saw Gallian head there. They must have something in mind for him,'_ she thought.

"Now that the dust has settled, I was hoping that maybe you could fill me in on exactly what happened with Gallian… and what brought your team here," Totem Decidueye asked. "I have a number of questions, but I wouldn't want to make you uncomfortable."

Tessa sighed. "I guess I could try," she said. Tessa explained the circumstances surrounding the Dawn Shards and then discussed the events that happened to her family. Totem Decidueye nodded along slowly while Zoroark sat up in his chair.

"Gods, you've really had it rough, haven't you?" Zoroark said, shaking his head. "I'm so sorry, Tessa. Gallian barely ever brought you up. If I'd known how bad things were, I'd have tried to come and find you right away. Honest!"

"It's quite alright, Zoroark," Tessa assured him. "You don't have to apologize for anything. I appreciate all your help today."

"Well, I'm still going to try and make it up for it," Zoroark said. "I know I'm not the first Pokémon anyone would turn to when they need help, but–"

Tessa shook her head. "I don't care about your species' reputation. I'm sure my teammates don't, either. We're really not in a position to turn down outside help."

"I guess not," Zoroark said. "I just hope Gallian can see it the same way. I don't want to lose him again, but this isn't something I can turn my back on."

Totem Decidueye tapped a foot on the ground. "From what I can gather, Gallian is conflicted," he said. "He can't reconcile his feelings for you and Lucario with the abject fear he has about this whole situation." Totem Decidueye closed his eyes in thought. "Even just hearing what you had to say has left me quite stunned. To think that we've actually lost two of the Land Spirits to these Ultra Beasts."

"That's why we have to gather the other two Dawn Shards as quickly as we can," Tessa said. "Every day that passes is a day where the Prism Virus could be getting closer to achieving its goal." She sat down on the arm of Zoroark's chair. "I wish Gallian could come around. I think he's stronger than he gives himself credit for... even without his extra powers. It's just…" Her voice trailed off and she sighed. "I don't think he can come to the terms with the fact that our mom is causing a lot of this destruction."

"Have you?" Totem Decidueye asked, looking right at Tessa.

Tessa shut her eyes and shook her head. "No… I don't think I have," she whispered. "I've been clinging to the idea that Necrozma did something to corrupt Mom... and that I don't have to fight her, I just have to stop Necrozma. That will free her… and make her the kind, loving Lucario that I sort of remember." She sighed heavily and slumped back. "The problem is that, the more I think about, the less plausible that idea sounds."

"About your mom getting corrupted?" Zoroark asked.

"No… that she loved me," Tessa whispered. "I want to believe she does. After all, she made the choice to have my egg. It's just… more and more unpleasant memories keep popping up surrounding her. It's at a point where I feel like the only times she was actually loving to me and Gallian were when Dad was around."

Totem Decidueye shuffled in place. "I think you may have hit on the issue," he said.

Tessa's head titled to the side. "Huh?"

"The mental block your brother's facing… is you," Totem Decidueye said, a grim look in his eyes. "Before today, your brother only knew you as Riolu, yes?" Tessa nodded slowly. "Therein lies the problem. As it stands right now, Gallian can't separate you, his sister, from the only Lucario he's previously known: your mother."

Tessa recalled the accusations Gallian had made toward their mother, along with the frightful look he had given Tessa when she freed him from the Prism Virus. She held up her right paw and stared at the marking on it. "But… but I can't do anything about that," she whimpered. "Is it hopeless, then? Will Gallian just be afraid of me his whole life?" She lowered her paws, looking at Zoroark. "I don't… I want my brother in my life. He's family… and I love him."

Zoroark's ear drooped. "Totem, isn't there anything we can do?"

"Give it time," Totem Decidueye said. He turned back toward the doorway. "Your friends, they went after Gallian, yes?"

"I think so," Tessa replied.

"Then it's best to put your faith in them for the moment," Totem Decidueye said. "Sometimes it takes an outsider's perspective to get a Pokémon to change how they view a certain situation. I know both of your hearts were in the right place, but Gallian couldn't look past the unpleasant memories he had associated with each of you. But your friends… he doesn't have any real connections to them. If they can make him see how important it is that you're both a part of his life, perhaps he will come around."

Tessa fidgeted with her paws. "I… I guess so," she whispered. "Silvally's my best friend. I trust him to help. But Espeon… can be a bit problematic."

"It won't do you any good to continue fretting over this," Totem Decidueye said. "Especially not when you should be recovering." Tessa frowned at him. Totem Decidueye raised his wings up innocently. "I'm not saying drop the issue entirely. Just… wait and see what happens. If your friends can't get through to Gallian, I'll have some words with him." He walked toward them. "In the meantime, how about some drinks to take the edge off? I can have some tea ready in seconds."

Tessa and Zoroark exchanged unimpressed looks. "Err, sorry, Totem. I'm not really in the mood for tea," Zoroark said.

"What about some tapu cocoa, then?" Totem Decidueye offered.

Tessa's ears stuck up. "Um, do you have marshmallows?" she asked.

"Ha! What kind of stick in the mud wouldn't have marshmallows sitting around for making tapu cocoa?" Totem Decidueye said, chuckling.

A small smile appeared on Tessa's muzzle. "In that case, I think I'd really like some. Um, but could I perhaps ask a favor?"

"Oh? What did you have in mind?"

"Could you make a fourth cup? There's someone I'd like to go see," Tessa said, looking out into the village.

Totem Decidueye nodded and walked off into the kitchen.

* * *

Ending off with review replies.

Another guest: all of the gods are dicks. Why do you think this world's nearly been destroyed several times? For your other question, it's been about two and a half months since Shane arrived in the Pokémon world.

Anon Omega: Floral Healing is an actual move that Comfey gets exclusively. You're thinking the right thoughts about Shane, but I'm not about to have him bust out the lyrics to Unknown from ME. I have something... else in mind. And it's a long way off.

Just a reader: it's partially that and partially due to the Subterranean Shard. Shane would've evolved if he had gotten a paw on the Sizzle Shard, but Gallian stopped that from happening.

SuperOmegaGuest: what can I say? I'm full of surprises.

Veralix: as you can see, things are calming down for a little while. I promise, you'll get your Zeraora within the next few chapters.

Next time: even more heart-to-hearts! ... wait, seriously? Who's writing this drivel? And when did they turn it into a Xenoblade fanfiction?!


	72. Time for Reflection

Once again, I'm astounded by all the support. But let's save that for the author's notes at the end.

* * *

 **Chapter 61: Time for Reflection**

Gallian sat perched on the ridge outside Cosmic Cavern's entrance. He stared out across the Midnight Sea, watching the rippling orange semicircle reflecting off the water's surface. Gallian flicked a pebbled with his claws. It skipped off the cliff face and tumbled into the water, producing a tiny splash. He lay down on his belly, sighing loudly.

"I see why you guys call this place the Horizon Continent. That's quite a breathtaking sunset."

Espeon appeared in the entrance tunnel. Gallian stood up, his forehead scythe flashing pink. "What do you want?" he growled.

"To talk to you, that's all," Espeon said.

Gallian lowered his scythe. The pink glow turned pitch-black. "Do I even know you?" He narrowed his eyes at Espeon. "Wait… you're the one who kidnapped Sylveon and Eevee!" Gallian stepped toward Espeon, who shrank back with a wince. "You're the reason they're gone!"

"I… I know," Espeon squeaked, tail curling against her belly. "I did so many awful things before your sister and her friends freed me from the Prism Virus." She pawed nervously at the ground. "But I'm not here about that. I'm here about you… and Tessa."

Gallian turned away from her. "I don't have any intention of listening to you. Buzz off."

Espeon winced again and looked back into the tunnel. Silvally gestured toward Gallian with his head, giving her a reassuring nod. Espeon took a deep breath and said, "No."

"No?" Gallian turned back, raising a skeptical eyebrow.

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm here to stop you from making the biggest mistake of your life," Espeon said. "Don't push Tessa away. The bond between a brother and a sister… is special. It's something you don't realize the importance of… until it's gone."

Gallian's brow furrowed. "Hold up," he muttered, "wasn't there an Umbreon with you the last time we met? Where–"

"Umbry was my brother. He's gone now," Espeon said. "He… sacrificed himself to save me from Necrozma." Gallian was taken aback by this. Espeon slowly walked out to the ridge. "And for the past few days, I haven't been able to stop thinking about how bad a sister I was to him." She hung her head. "Umbry stuck by me, despite my attempts to push him away. I didn't see it for myself until it was too late to try and make it up to him."

"… that's not my problem."

"I know," Espeon said. "But what you're doing right now… it's a lot like what I did to Umbry." She reached the ridge's edge and sat down beside Gallian. He immediately scooched away from her, fixing his gaze back on the Midnight Sea. "You're self-destructing."

Gallian tensed up.

"Don't act like it's not true," Espeon said. "I know what that kind of behavior looks like. Because I'm guilty of it, myself."

"That makes you a hypocrite," Gallian huffed, flicking his snout up indignantly.

Espeon smirked. "Perhaps, but that's not going to get me to shut up, because I'm also pretty stubborn." Gallian resumed staring stone-faced into the water down below. Espeon sighed. "Look, the point I was trying to make is that you might've convinced yourself that you're actually helping Tessa by keeping her at arm's length. But you're not. You're hurting her."

"No… I'm keeping her from disaster," Gallian whispered. "That's all I am… Absol, the walking disaster." He lowered his head. "It was stupid to think I could be anything else. Absols live in solitude for a reason." He shut his eyes.

"There's no law out there saying you have to conform to stereotypes," Espeon said.

"Then why did my parents… or, rather, my _real parents_ abandon my egg, huh?" Gallian asked. "They must've known I would bring disaster to them, so they left me out in the snow… hoping I'd freeze to death."

Espeon blinked in surprise. She looked at the cave entrance. Silvally nodded at her. "You don't know that for a fact, Gallian," Espeon said, turning back to him. "I think it's far more likely they lost your egg to, say, an avalanche."

"Which just proves my point. Disaster follows me wherever I go," Gallian said. "I brought it on my real parents… I brought it on the family who raised me… and I brought it on my mate. That's why I can't go with you guys. Tessa is better off forgetting that I existed. She can live a long, happy life that way."

Espeon stepped on Gallian's forepaw. He yanked it back, wringing it out and giving her a vindictive look. "What was that for?"

"For doing exactly what I accused you of before: self-destructing," Espeon said. "If I brought the rest of Team Radiance out here, I think they'd all agree that you aren't the direct cause of those things. However, your poor decisions _created_ problems for the people you care about most." She got up and stared Gallian down. "If you leave Tessa, it'll break her heart. She's your family. And, I get it, families aren't perfect. Most have problems, even if they're not like yours. Yet, from what I've seen of Tessa, she's a kind-hearted, doting sibling. She loves you and wants you in her life. Do you really think you're going to help her by leaving her behind?"

Gallian dug his claws into the ground, kicking up some dirt that trickled down the ridge. "It's for her own good."

"Can you really say that for a fact?" Espeon asked. Gallian opened his mouth to answer, but Espeon's gaze sharpened. "When I say really, I mean do you have proof that you're acting in her best interests? And, for that matter, are you doing what's best for _you?_ "

"I… I…" Gallian lowered his head in defeat. "I guess not."

"Tessa's not a Riolu anymore. It may take you some time to come to grips with that change, but I think it'll end up good in the long run," Espeon said. "Of course, that won't mean a thing if you just walk away from all of this. Besides, you've seen for yourself how dire things are. Team Radiance will keep gathering the Dawn Shards. So, Tessa will find herself in trouble no matter what you end up doing." She tilted her head to the side. "Wouldn't you rather help us? At this point, we'll take what we can get as far as allies go."

Gallian frowned. "I'm not too sure I'd be all that much help against these Ultra Beasts."

"I thought the exact same thing when I joined the team," Espeon admitted. "But, here I am, a few days later, and I've held my own." She flashed her looplet at him. "I've even got Z-Power. If it wasn't for this thing, my psychic powers wouldn't work."

Espeon stepped back from him. _'Huh, I guess I hadn't really considered the good things that've happened since we left Aeon Town. I blocked it all out because of Umbry.'_

"Tessa mentioned something about trying to get me one of those looplets," Gallian said. "Do you really think I could actually work with you guys? What if my disaster sense keeps going off so badly that I can't think straight?"

"You'll have us there to support you," Espeon said. "Even if we were to split up, there's no way you'd end up on your own. I'm sure those alien teammates of yours would come with us, for example. Maybe Zoroark would, too."

"He already says he wants to," Gallian exclaimed. He took a deep breath and got to his feet. "Alright, you've made your point loud and clear." Gallian turned away from the ridge and walked past Espeon. "There's just one thing I'd like to take care of."

"Oh?"

"If we're going to work together, you guys deserve to know exactly what happened to me. And to Team Paradox, for that matter. Who knows? Maybe you can learn something useful about Necrozma," Gallian said. "I'll talk to Luxeira and Sticky. I can hopefully convince them to say their parts." He reached the start of the tunnel and found Silvally standing there. Gallian jumped back in surprise. "What the–? Were you there the whole time?"

Silvally chuckled. "Guilty as charged," he said. "For what it's worth, I think you're making the right decision."

They began walking back through the tunnel. Gallian's neck fur prickled. "No offense, but hearing you say that doesn't exactly fill me with confidence."

"I understand," Silvally said, sighing. "I know I'm a pretty unusual sight."

"Pretty unusual?" Espeon guffawed.

"Okay, _very_ unusual," Silvally said, rolling his eyes. He turned back to Gallian. "Look, I realize I'm not the Pokémon you'd have wanted to be your sister's close friend–"

"That's putting it mildly," Gallian scoffed.

Silvally cleared his throat. "The point is that I'm really glad I met her. I think you're going to be impressed with how much she's changed in the last couple of months."

Gallian's brow furrowed. "Okaaaaay… I feel like you're trying to preface something, here. What… is she in a relationship or something?" His eyes widened. "Oh gods… you two don't have a thing going, do you? Mom and Dad mated as soon as they were evolved… maybe Tessa's apple didn't fall far from the tree." He did a quick visual inspection of Silvally's frame. "I mean, your physique ain't half-bad, but your mish-mash appearance is a turnoff. And that size difference ought to make things pretty rough... assuming, of course, you have the… ahem… _equipment_ for that kind of stuff."

Espeon let loose a stream of snorts, actively trying to hold back laughing. "I did _not_ just hear you say that," she said.

Silvally ignored her jab. "Well I, for one, appreciate the thought," he said, grinning. Espeon tripped on her own paws and nearly faceplanted. "As flattering as your comments are," Silvally continued, addressing Gallian, "we're just friends." He then leaned over and whispered, "Besides, now that Shane's evolved, too, your sister's gonna have some _real_ eye candy around."

This time it was Gallian's turn to stumble. Silvally stuck a foreleg out to catch him. "Wait… did you just call your team's leader hot?"

"Of course not. Shane's an ice-type," Silvally replied matter-of-factly.

"Dude, seriously? I thought you three were at each other's throats?" Gallian said. "What did I miss?"

"It's not really my place to tell. A lot can happen in a couple of weeks," Silvally mused. "That's just the nature of exploring, I guess."

Patches of light caught their attentions. The trio emerged from the tunnel, stepping into Cosmic Cavern's village. Gallian's gaze immediately went to Zoroark's den. The Pokémon in question stood in the doorway, speaking to Dusk and Totem Decidueye. Zoroark caught Gallian's eye and his ear stuck up in surprise.

"Zoroark!" Gallian called, bounding toward his former mate with youthful vigor. He had to skid to a halt to stop himself from crashing into Zoroark.

"Gallian? What's going on? You seem so lively all of a sudden," Zoroark gasped.

Gallian seated himself in front of Zoroark and offered up his forepaw. "My answer's yes," he said. Zoroark cocked his head in confusion. "I'll do it. I'll go with you."

Zoroark stood there, clasping Gallian's forepaw in his claws. "You really mean it?" he whispered.

"Absolutely," Gallian responded.

It took a second for Zoroark to process the awful pun. When he did, a goofy grin wove its way onto his face. Zoroark leaned over and embraced Gallian. "Thank you," he whispered, nuzzling Gallian's cheek.

"Anything for you," Gallian replied, returning the embrace. "Now, uh, do you know where Tessa went?"

"She headed over to the hot springs," Zoroark said. "But I don't think she wanted anyone to follow. I'd give her some time, if I were you."

"Gotcha," Gallian said. "So, uh, want to go for a walk in the meantime? I need to talk to Luxeira and Sticky."

Zoroark broke off the embrace and gestured to his side. "Lead the way." The two of them proceeded off toward the upper levels of the village. Totem Decidueye and Dusk nodded to each other and silently departed in the other direction.

Silvally turned to Espeon, a grin on his face. "See? Doesn't it feel nice to help out?"

"Yeah… it does," Espeon said. She traced a forepaw in the dirt. "But I don't think I'd have been able to do this if you weren't there to back me up. So, uh, thanks… y'know, for believing in me and stuff."

"What are friends for?"

* * *

The natural springs area consisted of a large, circular cave. The left side had a series of small ponds stationed on ledges. Each one vented steam, obscuring the rocky path that sloped up to the various ledges. The right side had a much larger body of water. It went the entire length of the cave, starting shallower on its edges and getting deeper toward the middle. It was also very wide, extending all the way to the wall. Rock shards hung off the ceiling, most of them slowly dripping water into the pond. Each drip created a small ripple that distorted the reflection of the cave's twinkling ceiling.

Shane sat on the edge of the cavern's lake, staring at his distorted reflection. His new mane hung daintily over his right shoulder, brushing against his large tuft of fluffy chest fur. His tails – far longer in proportion to his body than they were as a Vulpix – sat by his side. It hadn't taken him long to discover that his tails had a new level of freedom. They were more mobile than his old tails, having greater flexibility and muscular coiling. He easily curled them around his legs, making his reflection look like a white ball, with two blue dots for his eyes and a green one to represent his looplet.

He craned his newly-elongated neck up to stare at the twinkling rocks in the ceiling. Then his gaze returned down to the lake. He continued watching his reflection, noting the subtle expansions and contractions of his chest with every breath he took. The longer Shane stared, the more he found his mind drifting. Initially, he caught himself, jolting stiff and returning his attention to the water. But after several minutes of silence, the lake grew fuzzy.

The twinkling lights suddenly faded. Shane looked up, blinking in confusion as the cavern walls and ceiling dissolved all around him. Swathes of dark green and indigo swirled about through the air, painting a nighttime landscape in front of him. Trees sprouted up, each one filling up with luminescent blue leaves. They cast a gentle glow on the lake, as did the reflection of the bright-blue moon.

Shane stood up, examining the moon with a furrowed brow. Upon closer inspection, he realized there was something in the center of the lake, hidden in the moonlight. A pair of soft, cerulean eyes gazed out at him. The eyes moved toward Shane, causing him to take a cautious step back. He froze, however, when the eyes exited the moonlight and a lithe, blue figure came into view.

"S… Suicune?" Shane gasped. "What are you doing here?" He looked about in confusion. "And where the heck am I?"

Suicune gracefully strode across the lake's surface. Each step she took released white ripples from her paw pads. They spread through the water, enveloping the lake in a heavenly glow. She approached Shane, stopping a foot in front of him.

 _"This is rather unexpected of you, Solgaleo,"_ Suicune greeted. _"To what do I owe the pleasure?"_

"Wait, what? Are you blind? I'm a Ninetales!" Shane said.

Suicune didn't appear to hear him, however. Instead, to Shane's complete surprise, an invisible force took hold of his snout and forced it open. _"My apologies for the unannounced arrival, Suicune. Lunala wanted some alone time on Celestial Island to meditate. I had stumbled across this lake on past visits to the surface and thought it would make a nice to spot to retreat to until she's done."_

Though it was Shane's mouth moving, the voice that emerged was not his own. It was several octaves deeper and carried a sense of warmth to it. Shane tried to open his mouth and speak but found that his body wouldn't cooperate. _'Hey, what's going on here? Why can't I move?'_

Shane unwittingly stepped toward the edge of the pond. He momentarily looked down and panic shot through his system. _'Wait, that can't be my reflection. That's no Ninetales… that's Solgaleo!'_ He lifted his head back up to make eye contact with Suicune. _'Is this another one of his memories? Because it feels so real this time! And I don't think I'm asleep.'_

 _"If this is too much trouble for you, I could just take my leave,"_ Solgaleo said, once again speaking through Shane's mouth. _"I wouldn't want to impose, after all."_

 _"It's quite alright,"_ Suicune said. She finished walking to the edge of the pond and stepped out right beside Shane. In doing so, her mane brushed against his hide. To Shane, it was like a stream of water gently brushed his metal coat. He turned his head to face Suicune and noticed his white, shimmering body. His legs ended not with white paws, but black ones with yellow claws sticking out. Shane also saw that, rather than a cloud-like quaff of nine tails, he had a single, slender tail that ended in a black spot.

 _'This doesn't make any sense. The only reason I should be looking like this is…'_ his thoughts trailed off as he looked into Suicune's soft eyes.

She scooted next to Shane, who shuddered as her mane rested against his flank. _"Truthfully, I'm actually glad you found this place,"_ she whispered.

 _"What is it, exactly?"_ Solgaleo wondered. Shane looked out at the glowing lake again. Translucent wisps of white energy streamed upward from the water's surface.

 _"This is the lake where I first learned to use my water-purifying powers,"_ Suicune said. _"Every day, my mom would bring me out here to train. She'd fill the water up with dirt, rocks, dead grass, and other icky things."_

A laugh rumbled in the back of Shane's throat. _"Really, Suicune? 'Icky?'"_

Suicune nestled her forepaw up against Shane's. His cheeks immediately flushed and he turned away from her. _"Yes, 'icky.' I was just a pup back then, after all."_

 _"True. It's just weird hearing such a dainty Pokémon use such a silly word,"_ Solgaleo said. Shane chuckled again.

 _"It's nostalgic for me. This whole place is,"_ Suicune said, looking out across the lake. _"Whenever I want to try a new technique, I come here. When Entei and Raikou are getting insufferable, I come here."_ She bowed her head solemnly. _"And when I find those awful, insidious memories of the Voidlands popping up… I come here."_

Shane immediately turned back to Suicune and put a forepaw on her shoulder. She looked up at him. _"It's in the past,"_ Solgaleo said. _"Dark Matter is gone… and it can never come back."_

 _"I know,"_ Suicune said, shuddering. _"It's just… tough sometimes. The memories still seem so fresh. I've done my best to keep busy, but…"_ Her voice trailed off.

 _"Sounds like you could benefit from joining Lunala in those meditations,"_ Solgaleo mused. To Shane's surprise, he leaned over, nuzzling Suicune's cheek with his own. _"What if I talked her into letting me bring you up to Celestial Island on occasion? The view's quite remarkable, you know. We don't have any lakes, sure, but it's great for clearing your mind."_

Suicune turned and licked Shane's cheek. If Shane had control of his body, his tail would've stuck straight back like it was an hour. _"I think I'd like that,"_ she said. _"But you better not forget to ask."_

Shane raised a forepaw. _"I'm not gonna forget. It'll be the first thing I do when I get back… I promise."_ He got to his feet, Suicune watching him curiously. _"As long as I'm stuck down here, though, care to take a stroll?"_ Shane gestured out to the shining lake.

 _"You can do that?"_ Suicune gasped.

 _"Walk on water? No. But I_ can _levitate,"_ Solgaleo said as Shane winked. He started to extend a forepaw out over the water.

 _'Not gonna… forget,'_ Shane repeated.

"I'm… Solgaleo…"

"Shane? Shane, what are you doing?"

The moonlit plains dissolved around Shane in a swirl of dark colors. For a split second, a smoldering violet eye formed in the darkness. However, it disappeared the instant Shane looked at it. Shane then found himself back in Cosmic Cavern, staring at his Ninetales reflection in the water. One of his forepaws hung in the air. Shane retracted the forepaw and fell back onto his rear, grunting in surprise.

"T… Tessa? Is that you?" Shane asked, blinking rapidly to reacclimate to the cave's dim lighting. He turned around to find his teammate standing behind him with a look of concern on her face. She held a clay mug in each paw, both of which gave off trails of steam like the hot springs on the other side of the cave.

"I wanted to check up on you," Tessa said, walking carefully up toward him. "In all the commotion after getting back to Cosmic Cavern, we left you by the wayside." She paused beside him. "So, uh, how are you feeling?"

"Pretty good, I'd say," Shane responded, turning his gaze between Tessa and his own reflection. "At first, I was a bit miffed with how girly I looked. But, you know what? After mulling it over for a while… I honestly like what I see. I'm so happy that I don't look like a puffy marshmallow anymore. I think it's a more pleasant appearance than my fire-type counterpart has." He stuck his snout up proudly and swished his mane about. "Yeah, I think I look great, actually! Don't you?" Shane flashed Tessa toothy grin.

"Uh… y… yes," Tessa whispered, lifting up the mugs to hide her face.

"But enough about me," Shane said. "How are, y'know, things between you and Gallian?"

"It's… complicated," Tessa said.

Alarm spread across Shane's face. "Oh no," he said. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Tessa exhaled loudly. "There's not much to say. Gallian needs some time to adjust to, well, everything," she said, looking down at her chest spike. "But I have faith he's going to come around."

Shane pawed at the edge of the lake. "That's a good thing, right?"

"Well, for once a day is ending and I'm not bursting into tears. So, yeah, I'd say it's okay," Tessa said. "Maybe Silvally's optimism is finally rubbing off on me." The two exchanged a brief laugh. "Anyway, I brought you some tapu cocoa," Tessa continued, offering Shane the mug in her left paw.

"You brought me what now?" Shane gasped as Tessa set the cup down next to him. "Oh, it's hot chocolate," he realized, looking into the cup. Tiny marshmallows bounced around inside it.

Tessa sat down next to him, crossing her legs so they didn't drop into the lake. "Is that what humans call it? Seems rather strange… since chocolate's a solid, not a liquid."

"Never mind," Shane said, leaning over to lap up some of the drink. His eyes widened. "Wow… this is really good. It's warming my insides up."

"Um, wait, isn't that a bad thing if you're an ice-type?" Tessa wondered, pawing at her aura feelers. "Then again, you haven't had any problems with hot showers, so…" Her voice trailed off and she facepalmed. "Forget it. If I keep this line of thinking going, I'll give myself a headache."

"Y… yeah," Shane mumbled, sipping up more hot chocolate.

"Is something the matter, Shane?" Tessa wondered, aura feelers twitching. "You seem distressed."

"It's… um…" Shane's gaze fell back on his reflection in the water. He frowned. "Tessa, I… uh… there's something I need to confess to you."

"O-Okay," Tessa said, brows raising in surprise. "This is kind of sudden. Should I be worried?"

"I don't know," Shane whispered. "I'm a bit confused myself, to be honest." He looked at the Subterranean Shard sitting to his left and sighed.

Tessa clutched her mug with both paws. "Shane, you're scaring me. What's going on?"

Shane gulped. "Tessa… I think I might be Solgaleo." He immediately turned away and winced, expecting an astonished reaction from his teammate. Metal clinked against stone, making his ears twitch. Shane hesitantly turned back to Tessa, only to see her staring at him. Her cup trembled in her paws and her eyes flickered with blue flames.

"Tessa? Oh gods, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything. I–"

"That's why your aura is so vibrant," she whispered. Tessa shakily set her mug down and massaged her temples. "I'll bet that's why there's a voice telling you your human memories are fake, too."

Shane's jaw dropped. "I hadn't considered that," he whispered.

"Sh-Shane… I, uh, I mean Solgaleo. No, wait…" Tessa pulled her ears flat against her head and shook it. "I'm sorry, this is a bit confusing."

"Well, I'm still shaky on the details," Shane admitted. "My best guess is that Solgaleo's spirit is trapped inside of me. It's probably Necrozma's doing." He nudged the Subterranean Shard with one of his tails. "I don't know how to describe it, but when I touched this shard, those feelings… the ones that said I'm not human… they surged through my mind." Shane bowed his head solemnly. "I wasn't entirely sure what to make of it at first, but I just experienced one of Solgaleo's memories and it was so _real_. It felt like I was there… like I had lived through it."

"When you called out to me, I noticed my looplet." Shane turned and offered his left forepaw up to Tessa. "Look at the gem in the middle. See that compass-shaped rune? It wasn't there before."

Tessa nodded. "What does that have to do with Solgaleo, though?"

Shane lowered his paw, frowning. "I… um… you'll have to brush my mane aside to see it for yourself."

Tessa's face flushed. "Are you serious? I can't–"

"It's okay, Tessa. You have my permission," Shane said. He leaned over toward her. His wavy locks of snow-white hair made Tessa's eyes bulge. She gingerly reached out with her right paw and pushed Shane's mane aside. Intense tingling swirled around her paw as she did this. To her horror, Necrozma's sigil momentarily flashed with rainbow light. Tessa was tempted to let go but forced herself to hold on. She noticed a circular outline faintly glowing on Shane's forehead.

"Shane, isn't that the same symbol that's on your looplet?" Tessa gasped.

"It is," Shane said, leaning back. "I remember seeing it on the picture of Solgaleo that Magearna showed me. It was right in the middle of his forehead… almost like a third eye."

Tessa clasped her marked paw against her chest. "Then, what does this mean?"

"That's the part I'm… um…" Shane trailed off, shuddering. Tessa's aura feelers tensed while Shane squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head. "Touching the Subterranean Shard made this happen," he whispered, pointing to his forehead. "Now I've got a burning desire to find Espeon and grab the Sizzle Shard."

"Okay," Tessa said. "Isn't this what you wanted, though? To be some sort of chosen hero who gets to save the world?"

Shane flinched. "Not anymore," he said, shaking his head. "This is not what I want. It's scary!"

He opened his eyes, fixing a now-tearful gaze on Tessa. Her aura feelers scrunched up. "Shane, what are you saying?"

"If we succeed… if we fix the Dawn Hourglass… then Solgaleo will come back," Shane said. "But if Necrozma destroyed his body… and his spirit's stuck inside me… then that must mean… that _I'll be his new body._ And the only way that'll happen… is if I disappear."

The realization slowly spread over Tessa's face. "O-Oh," she whispered. "I hadn't… considered that."

"Tessa," Shane squeaked, "I don't want to disappear. I want to stay w-with you… and Silvally, too. I can't–" He cut himself off with a sniffle. "I finally feel like there's somewhere I belong… but now it doesn't look like I get to stay."

"Shane, I don't know what to say," Tessa whispered.

"I need you to tell me that I'm not thinking straight," Shane blubbered, shivering. "Tell me… tell me that this is another Lycanroc situation. Say that I'm just rushing to conclusions. Please!" Shane reached out toward her, only to stop himself. His forepaw trembled in midair.

"I'm not ready to leave you," he whispered.

Tessa's brows raised. Her eyes darted about the room. "I, um, well…" She poked her digits together nervously. "You might be wrong, yeah. It wouldn't be the first time. It's just… this isn't like when you compared things to your games back in the human world. Hearing you say that stuff… my gut tells me that you're right."

"No… please don't say that," Shane whimpered, eyes brimming with tears.

"I'm sorry," Tessa said, ears drooping. "I don't like hearing it. I agree with you. I know we've had more downs than ups together… but after everything we've been through this past week…" She closed her eyes and rested a paw on her chest spike. "I don't want to lose you either." Tessa took a shuddering breath. "But maybe… maybe you don't have to worry too much."

Shane's ears twitched. "I don't follow."

"Well, we've already lost so many people," Tessa said. "We're holding out hope that we can bring back everyone the Prism Virus killed, right?" Shane nodded slowly. "In that case, why couldn't the same thing happen to you?" Tessa rubbed her shoulder. "At the risk of sounding like you… every other time the world's been in danger, one of the heroes had to disappear… except they were always brought back. So, I don't see why that doesn't apply to you."

"I wish I could believe that," Shane said, blinking tears out of his eyes. "But we both know that the Prism Virus… this is all so much different from the other times the world was in danger. Besides, I'm not really a hero. I wasn't brought here intentionally to save this world." He hung his head. "It was an accident, just like you told me the night we met. Nicky brought me here for his own reasons."

"And yet… you've found a way to rise to the occasion," Tessa said. "I know things have gotten… rough, to say the least, but look at how we've rebounded since leaving Aeon Town. We held our own against our infected friends. We've gotten Z-Moves down. We got half the Dawn Hourglass. We've _evolved_ , Shane."

Tessa looked out at the lake. "I know the odds are overwhelming. Heck, I'm not sure we really can stop the Prism Virus. Still, we keep finding a way to win… together. Bit by bit… we're beating back those odds. I thought Silvally was talking crazy when he said not to give up hope, but I think I'm starting to understand. I see a path forward. It's narrow. Frankly, I don't think we can navigate it. Still, it's better than the total failure I thought we were destined for."

She turned back to Shane and smiled. He blinked in surprise. "I guess… that's true," he mumbled. Shane sighed and slumped down onto his belly. "I wish I could go back… and do everything over again. I honestly want to just kick my own ass for how badly I treated you. I made so many mistakes when I first got here… now I'm on a timer." He looked up at Tessa. "All I want is to be able to wake up to a day where our backs aren't up against the wall. I want to have fun with you. Silvally, too. But… I'm not going to get that opportunity, am I?"

Tessa's brow furrowed. "You're trying to drum up sympathy again."

Shane blinked. His ears drooped. "I'm sorry. I'm not sure how to phrase it, really. I just want you to know that you mean the world to me, Tessa. I don't know if I'm ever going to get over what I did to you in Moonrise Marsh."

"Stop it, Shane," Tessa growled, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Huh?"

"You're putting me on a pedestal. I asked you not to do that," Tessa said. She tucked her legs up to her chest and rested her head on her knees. "I'm not special. I don't want you singing my praises."

"That wasn't my intention," Shane said, wincing.

"It's the Lucario thing, isn't it?" Tessa asked. "Be honest, Shane."

Shane leaned over and lapped up some of his drink. "What do you want me to say?"

"I want the truth, Shane," Tessa said. "Necrozma… he mentioned something about strange pictures on a 'comb-pew-fur.' Does that have anything to do with me?"

Shane's ears stuck up in alarm. He pulled himself away from his drink, coughing loudly. "N… no!" he sputtered. "That's… it's… something else entirely," he said.

Tessa frowned, unconvinced by his behavior. "Shane… I promise, I won't get mad at you. Whatever you have to say, I'll hear it out. I need to know what's going through your head. If I don't, it'll keep eating at the back of my mind. It's going to get in the way of our ability to work together. So, please…" She blinked slowly. "Do it for me.

Shane pawed nervously at the ground. After a minute of silence, he sighed loudly. "The truth is…" He hesitated for a moment. "… yes, I do like Lucarios a lot. And I did when I was human, despite the fact that they weren't real." He looked down into his hot chocolate, fearful of seeing Tessa's expression. "I tended to daydream a lot as a human… about Pokémon being real… and being able to befriend a Lucario. Sometimes I'd have those dreams while I slept. Then I'd wake up in the same old bed… and just feel sad that those dreams would never be real."

Tessa picked her cup back up and sipped her hot chocolate silently, as if she could will Shane to continue. After lapping up a few mouthfuls of his drink, Shane sat back up. "So, I spent a lot of free time playing games where I could pretend to be a Riolu or a Lucario. And that… they were fun. I was happy when I got to do that stuff."

"You pretended… to be a Lucario? Like, with your human friend?" Tessa asked, fidgeting nervously with her scarf.

"Sometimes," Shane replied. "But as we got older, Nicky was less willing to do that. So, I found other people I could play games with."

"Really? I thought you struggled making friends." She winced when Shane frowned at her comment. "S-Sorry for being so blunt."

"It's okay," Shane assured her. "In the human world… I had ways to stay in touch with people all over the world. Kinda like our Gear-Coms… but much, much more powerful."

"Is that the 'comb-pew-fur' thing Necrozma mentioned?" Tessa asked.

Shane nodded. "It's pronounced 'com-pew-tur.' But, yes, you're right. It's also where I could find pictures of Lucarios… and read stories that other humans would write about them."

"Humans wrote stories… about Pokémon?" Tessa gasped.

"They were so much fun to read," Shane said. "I could just get lost in one of those stories. All my troubles would melt away," he looked down, "until I had to stop reading. Then, I'd just be reminded of how that stuff was nothing but a fantasy."

"Except it's not a fantasy for you anymore," Tessa whispered. She traced a digit along the rim of her mug.

"That's why I gravitated toward you so strongly," Shane said. He finally met Tessa's gaze again. "You… I saw you… and I was overjoyed."

"You thought you were dreaming at first," she reminded Shane.

"Yeah. Because I had dreamed about stuff like this so often," Shane said. "When I realized it _wasn't_ a dream, I became determined. I had a chance… to live out my greatest dream: to have you as a friend." A flush fell across his face. "I acted bold and brash… because I thought that if I was my usual negative self, you'd hate me. So, I behaved the same way I did when I played games with Nicky or with people on my computer."

His eyes watered again. "The problem is… that behavior was bad. At times, other people tried to tell me how bad I was being. But I didn't listen to them. They were getting in the way of my fun and that made me upset… so, I ignored them." Shane swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat. "Tessa… I admit… I was excited to see you evolve… because of my old dream."

He shuddered. "And... and the fact that I can see that... and _understand_ it... when I couldn't as a human..." His voice trailed and the two sat in silence. Then, Shane said, "What if I haven't changed?"

"I beg your pardon?"

Shane scrunched his face up. "What if the only reason I've been acting different – acting _nicer_ – is because of Solgaleo's spirit? What if... deep down... I'm really still the bitter, angry Shane who bullied you in Moonrise Marsh?"

"I don't know what to tell you," Tessa said, rubbing her shoulder. "Somehow... I don't believe that. Even if Solgaleo's spirit is stirring, you're still the one in control. You're still spouting off things about the human world and your human life. So, no, I think you're wrong. These changes... you made them happen."

"That's because I had a great reason to want to change," Shane said. He hesitantly scooched closer toward Tessa. She got a glimpse into his blue eyes. They weren't quite the same as when he was a Vulpix. Instead, they had a spectral appearance to them, almost like she was looking up at the starry night sky.

"Shane," Tessa whispered. "I'm not someone to look up to. I'm far from a good example of a Lucario." Her shoulders sagged. "Dad always told me stories of what Lucarios did in ancient times. How they rushed around the different continents, saving lives imperiled by the Super-Ancient Pokémon's battles. They rallied other Pokémon together to help forge a truce between Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza."

"Wait… that really happened?" Shane gasped.

"It must've. Why else would the Air Continent chose to name its highest rescue team rank after my species?" Tessa growled, her paws balling up into fists. "Don't you get it? I can't live up to those kinds of expectations! They're astronomical! Everyone's going to look at me and deem me a failure of a Lucario."

"Tessa, that's not true."

"It _is_ ," Tessa replied harshly. "Shane, look at what my mom's doing. Sooner or later… the world will find out that I'm Zero's daughter. And then what am I supposed to do? For the rest of my life, I'll be the daughter of the Lucario who tried to slaughter the gods that Lucarios worked alongside in ancient times."

"That shouldn't matter," Shane said. "You're fighting against her. You'll be remembered as the Lucario who took a stand against her own mother in order to save the world. Why would you even think about something so awful?"

"It's my temper," Tessa squeaked, shrinking back from a frowning Shane. "I… I'm scared, Shane. You've seen it for yourself. The way I reacted to hearing about Zero… shouting at Totem Salazzle… a-and n-now… with Gallian…" She ran a paw across her eyes. "It's just like what happened to Mom after Dad died." Tessa turned her tearful gaze on Shane. "I don't want to lose control, Shane. The anger… it's frightening." She put her paws up on her shoulders and shivered. "When I saw what I'd done to Gallian in a fit of rage…"

"You saved him," Shane countered.

"That was luck," Tessa whispered. "I just kept hitting him and hitting him and _hitting him_." She punched her right palm with her left paw repeatedly, shaking her head. "I could have killed him, Shane. My own brother!" Tessa slumped over, her aura feelers falling across her shoulders. "That's why I don't want you putting me on a pedestal. All you're going to make me do is think of the Lucarios in the stories Dad told me and how I'll never be like them…"

"I don't want you to be like them."

Tessa's ears stuck up. "Wh… what do you mean?" Shane scooched close enough to Tessa to put a forepaw on her shoulder. "Shane," Tessa gasped, looking at his paw uncertainly.

"Tessa, I don't like you solely because you're a Lucario," Shane said. "I like you… because of your spirit. You could turn into a Muk for all I care… and that wouldn't change how I feel." He paused. "Okay, wait, that's a lie." Tessa frowned. "Look, as I said before, a part of me does like you for being a Lucario. But it goes beyond that. Tessa…" He gazed into her eyes.

Tessa's eyes slowly widened. Her aura feelers tensed. "Sh… Shane… what are you doing?" she squeaked.

"You've taught me what it means to be a real friend," Shane said, offering her a warm smile. "It's not just about having fun… or forgetting your troubles. It's about enjoying the good times… but also being there for each other during the bad times. It's about sticking up for one another, but also having the trust and comfort to respect each other's boundaries. True friendships… survive all the ups and downs."

Tessa's aura feelers slowly relaxed. "I never said anything like that to you."

Shane shook his head. "You didn't have to. I saw it for myself in the things you've done. Like how you bonded with Silvally… or how you helped Espeon after Umbreon died… or even yesterday, when you stood up to Totem Salazzle for me." He scooted across the ground so that he was nestled up against her. "That's why I don't want you to think about those stories. Because I like you for you."

He closed his eyed and took a deep breath. "I know the future is murky right now. Maybe I'll have to disappear… and maybe I won't. That thought scares me, but," his eyes fluttering open, "regardless of what happens… I'm really glad I met you. My biggest regret is that it took me so long to realize how amazingly strong you are."

Tessa leaned forward, wrapped her arms around Shane's shoulders, and nestled her head against his neck. "That means a lot to me," she hiccupped.

Warmth spread down Shane's spine. They held the embrace for a minute, before Shane brushed his cheek against Tessa's. "I'm just telling the truth. That's what you wanted, right?"

"Heh…" Tessa ran one of her paws through Shane's mane. "Espeon's right. You really are a dork sometimes, you know that?"

Shane pulled his head away to flash her a toothy grin. "Oh, I know. But I'm not just a dork anymore… I'm a _stylish_ one!" He sprang to his feet, stepped toward the lake, and gazed at his reflection. "I can actually look someone in the eye and shout, 'Bitch, I'm _fabulous!'_ "

He flipped his mane back behind his head and fanned out his tails. They released a tiny cloud of snowflakes that fluttered across Shane's body, making it sparkle under the cavern's dim glow. Tessa blinked at the sight, utterly dumfounded. Then she put a paw up to her face, trying to stifle her giggling to little avail.

"You two sure sound like you're having fun."

Tessa's aura feelers rose up. She and Shane turned to see Espeon and Silvally approached them. Tessa sighed. "Man, I'm still struggling with this aura reading thing. I didn't even sense you guys coming."

"It's tough to read energies early on," Espeon said. "With time and practice, you'll learn to do it passively so you can pay attention to other stuff."

"Is everything okay?" Shane asked.

Silvally looked at Espeon and grinned. "I think we're doing pretty well, yeah?"

Espeon nodded. "And you two? How are things?"

Tessa got to her feet. "We're doing pretty well, too," she said.

"That's great!" Silvally trilled. "And I've got news that'll make it even better. Gallian's agreed to come with us."

"Really?" Tessa gasped. Silvally nodded. "Oh, that makes me so happy to hear!" She rushed forward, embracing Silvally.

"Glad to hear it," Silvally said, "but the credit ought to go to Espeon. She's the one who got him to come around."

Tessa stepped away from Silvally. "Is that true?" she asked.

"I guess so," Espeon said. "Oh, that reminds me… this is for you three." She nudged her satchel open and levitated out a large ripe apple.

"A Perfect Apple?" Shane gasped.

"Everyone should have the chance to try one at some point," Espeon said. "I found it while we were going through the Cavernous Depths." She levitated the apple toward them. "Consider it an apology from me."

"What for? You haven't done anything wrong," Tessa said.

"My attitude," Espeon said. "I haven't really gotten in the team spirit since we left Tapu Fini's temple. I want to change that." She glanced at Silvally. "I think that, deep down, I've missed being a part of an exploration team. I wish Umbry was here, but I'm going to try to make the most of this. Maybe then, when we bring him back, he'll be able to recognize his sister."

Tessa nodded, smiling. "I think that sounds pretty good. What about you, Shane?"

"Uh, does this mean you're going to stop calling me a pervert?" Shane muttered. "Because it's gotten annoying."

"I'll see what I can do," Espeon mused, giggling when Shane's expression deflated. "I was kidding. I brought you the apology apple, didn't I?"

Silvally sliced the Perfect Apple into four pieces with his talons. He offered one up to Shane and Tessa before presenting the fourth piece to Espeon. "Well?" he said.

"But I saved that for you three," she said.

"And I think it's better off if we share it as a team… together," Silvally said.

"You'd better take it, Espeon. He's quite persuasive," Tessa said, chuckling.

"O-Okay," Espeon whispered, grabbing the apple slice with her telekinesis.

Silvally held his piece aloft. "To Team Radiance!" he said.

"To Team Radiance!" Shane and Tessa repeated, sticking their apple slices out so they touched Silvally's.

Espeon looked at them in surprise. After a few seconds of indecision, she levitated her piece to touch the other three. "To Team Radiance," she said. The quartet then happily dug into their apple slices.

"Ah, so this is where you four ran off to."

Sticky floated over toward them, continuously casting suspicious looks on Silvally. "When you're done with your… uh… whatever it is you're doing… Gallian and Captain Luxeira would like to see you. It's not urgent, but they'd like to talk before you all retire for the night."

"What for?" Shane asked.

"We think it's time you knew about what happened to us," Sticky said. "Namely, how we lost our home to the one you call Necrozma."

A clear understanding silently passed through Team Radiance's members. Each one scarfed their Perfect Apple portion down quickly. "Alright, I guess we'll head back to the village, then," Tessa said, then started off toward the tunnel. Sticky and Espeon tailed along after her. Silvally paused in the middle of a stride and turned back toward Shane.

"Aren't you coming with?" he asked.

"Y… yeah," Shane said, his breathing growing heavy. "Just… just gimme a sec…" His brow furrowed. Shane leaned over, brushing his forepaws against his face. "Nrrrrgh," he groaned.

"Shane, what's wrong? You were looking great a minute ago," Silvally said, trotting toward him with a look of concern.

"I… I don't know," Shane panted, shaking his body out. "Suddenly I'm feeling really restless." His tails lashed out in different directions. A flush fell across his face. "I don't understand. It's like my body's screaming at me to go climb a mountain!" He looked up at Silvally. "What's wrong with me? Was there something in that apple? Are Perfect Apples bad for ice-types?"

"I don't think so," Silvally said, tapping a talon on the ground. "It's a bit delayed, sure, but it sounds to me like you've gotten hit by the evolution high."

Shane huffed out clouds of frost. "Well, how do I get rid of it? It's annoying!" He hopped up and down, his gaze darting about the room.

"You need to burn the energy off," Silvally said. "Some Pokémon do it through battling, others through dungeon-crawling. Oh, you could try mating…"

Shane landed and stumbled forward, a wide-eyed look on his face. "Ex _cuse_ me?" he gasped. "Is that supposed to be a joke?"

"Not at all," Silvally said. "I… uh… okay, thinking about it, maybe I shouldn't have suggested that last one. Not that I don't think you'd make a good partner or anything, but–"

"Okay, no, stop! Quiet! Don't say anything else!" Shane growled, pawing at the ground and spewing a cloud of frosty air. It drifted harmlessly over Silvally's head. "The more you talk about it, the more there's a tiny voice in my head yelling at me to do it. So, suggest something else… _please_."

"If you insist," Silvally said. He walked up to Shane, whose tails shot up in alarm, and promptly headbutted him. Shane skidded across the ground with a surprised holler, coming dangerously close to the edge of a nearby hot spring. His hind legs slipped out from behind him and Shane fell into the water with a splash and a frightened yip.

Silvally cautiously approached the hot spring. "Sorry about that. I figured this was an okay alternative… y'know, a way to loosen you up a bit?" he said. "It was the best I could do on such short notice." He looked down into the water, where bubbles formed on the surface. Shane popped up, his sopping mane plastered over his face. "Err… uh… you doing okay there, buddy?" Silvally asked, laughing nervously.

Shane shook his head back and forth, his hair smacking his shoulders. "Actually, I do feel a bit better," he conceded. "So, I guess I can't be too–"

He suddenly doubled over, his blue eyes glowing brightly. A pink outline surrounded Silvally, hoisting him into the air and then flinging him back across the cave. Limbs flailing, Silvally careened into the cold-water pond, splashing down with a startled squawk. The noise roused Shane to his sense, who promptly hopped out of the hot spring with a nervous look on his face.

"Silvally? Oh, gods, Silvally!" he gasped, scrambling toward the other end of the cave. "Are you okay?" he called. "I didn't mean to attack! I'm not even sure what happened!"

Ripples appeared in the pond and Silvally surged into the air, his appendages flashing blue as he channeled his water memories. To Shane's surprise, Silvally landed on the surface of the water and hopped across the pond. Silvally didn't judge his angle correctly, however, and barreled into Shane. In the process, his beak pressed up against Shane's lips.

The two exchanged wide-eyed looks, before Shane scrambled backwards, rubbing his snout in the dirt. "I... uh..." Silvally's voice trailed off.

"If anyone asks, that _didn't_ happen," Shane said, brushing his snout with a forepaw.

"R... right," Silvally said.

"Well, at least that little system shock seemed to have made the restlessness go away. So, thanks, I guess," Shane muttered. "I still don't understand what happened there, though."

"That makes two of us. Because I have _never_ heard of a Ninetales that could use _Psychic,_ " Silvally said, eyeing Shane skeptically.

Shane tensed up. "Th… that was… Psychic? Not Extrasensory?" he stuttered. Silvally nodded. "Uh… um…" He glanced toward the tunnel. "We should really get back to the village… before anyone thinks something's wrong."

Before Silvally could press Shane further, he took off toward the tunnel.

* * *

With this chapter, we've hit a milestone of sorts. According to FFN's word counter, we've surpassed 500k words! Now, the counter is a bit bogus, because it includes author's notes like these. Still, that is a mind-boggling number. When I set out to write this, I thought I'd be done by now... not looking at the possibility of reaching _Silver Resistance's_ length by the end of the year. So, with that said, I must again offer my thanks to everyone following this long story. As we start the push toward 500 reviews, I hope you continue to enjoy what I've got to offer. With that said, for my guest accounts out there, please be respectful toward other reviewers. Don't be pushy about things like update speeds, for example. Anyway, onto replies...

SuperMarioGuest: as you can see, I poured gasoline onto the shipping fire. I shall now laugh maniacally.

Another guest: Totem Decidueye knows what's up. I say that as someone who can't drink hot chocolate. I'll take your word for it.

Lawnmower: interesting. Here's hoping the eggs have some decent stats and are useful!

Anon Omega: as you can see, Shane is no Pit. Hot springs don't give him strength.

Commenter: _very_ interesting prediction you've got there. But, yeah, I'm not saying anything.

Just a reader: I don't think Shane wants to try stardust, given he _knows_ it's from Necrozma.

Veralix: well, if I made you hate the current Team Captivate, then I did my job right. Because they're not in a good place at all.

Okay, I think that's everything. Next time: planning, plotting scheming, maneuvering and other synonyms I'm too lazy to look up. Don't miss it!


	73. Unwanted Improvisation

Thank you all once again for the support! I'm glad to see so many of you are enjoying this and your comments really make my day considering how stressful my days are. Here's the next chapter. I hope it's to your liking.

* * *

 **Chapter 62: Unwanted Improvisation**

 **~Hidden Land~**

Lapras' hollow-eyed form glided slowly across the tube of water floating in midair. Each awkward movement of his flippers furthered the cracks in his shell. A small chunk dropped off of his back and fell into the water. The current pushed it toward the edge of the Sea of Time, where it dropped off the water tube, falling into the expansive abyss of swirling yellow clouds below. Lapras moved his flippers forward again and a tiny amount of blood trickled out of the new hole in his shell.

 **"Ugh. This is infuriating! Move faster, you worthless hunk of flesh. Our destination is finally in sight."**

Black ley line chains stuck out of Lapras' back, streaming up toward Necrozma's arms. Necrozma slowly rotated his arms in small circles, as if he were operating the paddles for a kayak. Each revolution of his arms made Lapras' flippers glide forward and back, pushing them closer to the floating island at the end of the water tube.

Thick yellow clouds obscured the island. They were identical to the clouds lingering far below the water. There was one lone landmark Necrozma could make out, however. Far off in the distance, two rows of pillars emerged from the top of the yellow clouds, facing one another. In between them, multicolor light trickled through the clouds, projecting the familiar Relic Fragment rune into the air.

 **"The Rainbow Stoneship. So, it bears my light after all,"** Necrozma hissed. Drool trickled out of his mouth and he lapped it up with his tongue. **"Dialga, you miserable thief. Instead of trying to help me, you took my light to fortify your own domain. You used me… just like everyone else. But that's okay… heeheeheehee… soon, you'll have the chance to make up for it."**

He gripped the chains with his claws and spurred them. **"Hya! Faster, Lapras!"** he shouted. Lapras moaned, his lifeless head bobbing downward and then jerking back up. He gave a powerful thrust of his fins, propelling himself forward through the water. **"I can feel the forcefield coming,"** Necrozma announced. **"We can't slow down now."**

Necrozma's three red eyes flashed. A wall of bright crimson energy appeared before him. A Time Gear's silhouette hovered over the water. Necrozma spurred Lapras' makeshift reigns. Lapras squealed and pitched forward. His head reached the barrier and passed through it, orange light flowing across his body. Necrozma tightened his grip on the chains, curling his wings around his body.

To his relief, he passed through the barrier completely unharmed. **"Heeheeheehee! Yes… excellent! It worked!"** He looked up, noticing the Hidden Land's primary floating island drawing closer. He maneuvered Lapras further along the water, passing through the island's cloud covering in the process.

A thick, dense tree line lay several yards ahead of Necrozma. The trees' leaves all glowed with blue ethereal light, creating a haze that hung between the tree line and cloud line. Necrozma frowned at the sight. He could sense energy radiating from that area. No doubt, if he tried to fly over the Hidden Land, it would prove a painful experience.

 **"You just think of everything, don't you, Dialga?"** Necrozma sneered. **"Anything to protect your** _ **precious**_ **tower after Darkrai ran afoul of it."**

His gaze fell to the stone archway sitting in a rock wall at the edge of the island. There was a small grassy knoll in front of it, though the grass itself was crabby and looked as though it'd been trampled on. Some withered bushes sat around it, dried remnants of berries clinging to their dying branches. Necrozma maneuvered Lapras' reigns, steering him through the water until they reached the end of the Sea of Time.

Lapras fell out of the water tube and struck the ground hard. The cracks widened even further in his shell, shattering it completely. Necrozma tugged hard on the chains and they disconnected from Lapras' back, taking all of his colors with them. Lapras' life energy rushed toward Necrozma, who slurped it up gleefully. Necrozma looked down, watching as gray blood pooled out around Lapras.

 **"Ooooh. I'm no doctor, but I think you might want to have that checked out,"** Necrozma sneered. **"Here, let me get that for you."** He raised an arm and dark energy crackled around it. Black crystals swarmed Lapras' body, covering him from head to tail. **"There. All better!"** He floated past Lapras' body, keeping his gaze fixed on the archway leading into the forest. **"So, if I want to reach Temporal Tower, I'll need to take the long way,"** he said. **"Fine. There are undoubtedly plenty of wild Pokémon in here. So, I'll unravel them and take their lay lines to use on you, Dialga!"**

However, the instant Necrozma glided underneath the archway, he froze. His red eyes flashed and his jaw fell open. **"W… what the–?"** A weak cough escaped his mouth. The air around him began to distort. Hexagons of blue light flickered to life. Necrozma attempted to turn around but found himself unable to move. He tried flexing his claws to no avail. Even his jaw, hanging open limply, couldn't be closed properly. His gaze remained fixed ahead of him, seeing nothing but a wall of blue hexagons surrounding him.

Necrozma wanted to scream, but only a small, high-pitched squeal escaped his gaping mouth.

* * *

 **~Temporal Tower~**

"I've got him!" Dialga declared, his fierce eyes brimming with blue energy. He stood in the center of the Temporal Pinnacle. Blue lines raced out across the floor in different directions, forming strange glyphs and sigils that Mewtwo didn't recognize.

 _By 'him,' you mean Necrozma, yes?_ Mewtwo said, raising a skeptical brow. He gazed out into the clouds swirling around the tower. Their presences had multiplied since Dialga had started channeling his powers over the time stream.

"Correct. It looks like this time stasis bubble might work after all," Dialga said, taking deep breaths. Mewtwo sensed his life force spiking. Though Dialga could wield control over time, it seemed that doing so for extended bursts proved costly.

 _How long do you think you can keep this up for? I do have some berries that I brought along, but I'm not sure how much good they'll do for your stamina,_ Mewtwo said.

"I'm doing alright," Dialga said, exhaling calmly. "I'm manipulating time over a very small area. This isn't too bad. The problem stems from not having done this in quite a while. But, as Latias said, desperate times mean desperate measures." He turned his hardened look on Mewtwo. "Do _not_ tell her I said that. If I let her know that she was right, it's going to go right to her head."

 _Understood,_ Mewtwo said, uncrossing his arms. _What does this mean for the Hidden Land, then?_

"I'm drawing on its ley lines to stabilize the time energy," Dialga said. He dug his left foreleg into the floor. Blue energy swirled around it, striking the floor and spreading out to add to the growing rings of light surrounding Dialga. "As we speak, the dungeon area is probably morphing. Wild Pokémon will be springing up left and right."

Mewtwo floated up to the edge of Temporal Tower. _Which is where I come in._

"Don't go anywhere," Dialga ordered, fixing his gaze on the runes in the ground. "If you get too close to Necrozma, he might be able to sense your life energy, even trapped inside the time stasis bubble. The last thing I want is for him to find sudden motivation to try and break free."

 _Then what would you have me do?_ Mewtwo asked, eyes flashing blue. _I won't just float by idly, you know. Wouldn't he sense the new Pokémon the ley lines are making?_

"He will. But they're all artificial… all they have to offer him are ley lines, not life energy," Dialga said. "Just hang on. I want to be confident that I've repelled Necrozma before I send you in there to clean things up."

Mewtwo crossed his arms, scowling. _Hmph. The world's strongest Pokémon… reduced to nothing but a glorified maid. This is degrading._

* * *

 **~Hidden Land~**

Necrozma's view of the dungeon entrance had completely faded. The light tiles had gotten so close to him that they blurred together in his limited field of vision. He tried to force himself forward, but none of his muscles responded. Around him, small clouds of dust hung in midair, neither floating upward nor drifting toward the ground. Droplets of water sat still on moss clinging to the inside of the stone arch. Even the thick yellow fog indicating the start of the Mystery Dungeon wasn't moving.

Everything was frozen. Including him.

Though he couldn't move his body, Necrozma's mind still worked. Even with his viewpoint greatly restricted, he had a strong idea what was happening. The strange light tiles, the total paralysis, and the parts of the environment around him coming to a complete standstill all pointed toward one conclusion: time had frozen in the gate. And he was stuck right in the middle of the temporal anomaly.

Another muffled cry escaped his open mouth. Necrozma attempted to shout Dialga's name in frustration, but he couldn't produce anything more than a grunt. He immediately gave up trying to progress further against the time energy holding him in place. Instead, Necrozma relaxed his muscles. Or, rather, sent the mental signals for them to relax. His frozen state even prevented him from achieving this simple goal.

Necrozma remained suspended in midair with no knowledge of exactly how much time had passed. He tried to mentally count out the seconds, but with each attempt, sharp pain struck his head from all sides. Dialga had such strong control over time in this pocket, that even _thinking_ about the concept was a struggle for Necrozma. Instead, his mind went blank, as if Necrozma were trying to lull himself to sleep despite being trapped in stasis.

His red eyes suddenly flashed. Necrozma's body violently lurched backward. The hexagon tiles behind him shattered like glass and he fell back onto the grassy knoll. Wisps of blue energy streamed off of his body and he thrashed his arms and wings about, hissing madly.

 **"Skrrreeeeeep!"** Necrozma shouted, rising shakily back into the air. He was hunched over and panting heavily. **"So… you don't intend… to back down… with making me work for it… huh?"** he muttered. **"You're so eager to hold onto the light you stole from me. Is that it?"** Necrozma floated back from the dungeon entrance and glanced up at the sky. **"You think you can get away with this? I alone saved this world from crisis. I gave this world its past, its present,** _ **and**_ **its future."**

The red eye in his forehead glowed brightly, as did red patches under his chest armor. Necrozma slammed his arms on the ground, digging his claws into the dirt. He opened his mouth wide, drool trickling down his tongue. **"My stardust is here... on your island... iN yOUr ToWeR! eVeRYtHinG hErE iS nECroZmA's!"**

He enveloped his arms with his wings, breath coming in ragged gasps. The glow faded from his third eye. After a minute, he floated back into the air. **"Fine… you win, Dialga,"** Necrozma said. **"I cede this round to you. If I'm to take Temporal Tower for my own, it would seem I'm going to need to get creative!"**

Necrozma floated back until he was at the edge of the floating island. He turned around and looked down toward the yellow clouds swirling far beneath him. A frown crossed his face. There was one thing that came to mind, of course: the Hourglasses. They had his light. Even just getting one of them could offer enough Z-Power to get around Dialga's stupid forcefields.

But he already knew for a fact that the Dawn Hourglass had been shattered. Undoubtedly, Shane and his fake friends were trying to find them. He could try and face them, sure, but if they were to use their Z-Power– no, _his_ Z-Power successfully, that would be it. His tiny spirit fragment would be flung from Lunala's body.

 **"So, it has to be the Dusk Hourglass, then,"** Necrozma concluded. **"I just have to find it… and stay out of sight!"**

He gave a powerful flap of his wings and soared away from the floating island. Necrozma tucked his wings in and summoned an Ultra Wormhole below him. He flew inside the portal, which promptly faded from existence.

* * *

 **~Temporal Tower~**

 _Well? What happened?_ Mewtwo asked, eyeing Dialga skeptically. The runes and light had faded from around Dialga, who sat on his haunches, catching his breath.

"Necrozma tore himself back from the time bubble," Dialga said. "He appears to have left the Hidden Land."

 _So, do we consider that a success?_ Mewtwo asked.

"I would say so, yes," Dialga said. "Trying to keep Necrozma restrained indefinitely would've put a significant strain on the time stream. The longer I was forced to use that time stasis bubble, the greater the risk of ley lines running out of control and potentially damaging Temporal Tower."

 _I would have prevented the damage if that were to happen,_ Mewtwo scoffed.

Dialga shook his head. "I believe even your powers would struggle to reign in ley lines. You've never had to control them, correct?"

Mewtwo casually flicked an arm. _I'm the fastest learner on the planet, I assure you._

"Well, it's a moot point," Dialga scoffed. "Now then, I believe you have some work to do in the Hidden Land." He gestured in front of him with a foreleg.

Mewtwo hovered forward. _I'll be done in ten minutes… tops._ He sped off, disappearing into the vortex of yellow clouds.

* * *

 **~Treeshroud Forest~**

"This is beyond disappointing. You had all that extra power and multiple Nihilegos backing you up and you still couldn't finish the job!"

Static raced up and down Zero's body even as she walked along the cobblestone path inexplicably positioned in the middle of two lines of trees bearing orange, autumnal leaves. Milotic slithered slowly behind Zero, keeping her gaze trained on the ground.

"They had backup… a lot of backup," Milotic whispered.

"Backup that was amateurish," Zero spat. Her left arm momentarily disappeared, taking her scepter with it. It then flickered back into place. Afterimages popped up around Zero. Milotic noticed one out of the corner of her eye and shrank back further.

"She's right, you know," Dragonite scoffed. "Your divide and conquer strategy was a decent idea, but the execution left something to be desired. You should've made sure to keep all of Team Radiance within your sight. That way you could stop them from using any Z-Moves."

"It goes beyond Z-Moves," Serperior growled, bringing up the rear of the group. "It's Silvally. The guy's a battling _machine_. Every time I tried to use one of my stronger attacks, he was right there to counter me. And his constant type-changing makes him a nightmare to deal with!"

"I'm not interested in your excuses," Zero sneered. "You'll just have to do a better job the next time you deal with them. Might I suggest recruiting some cannon fodder of your own? If Team Radiance is going to hide behind worthless bystanders, then we can sacrifice a few wild Pokémon for our cause." She narrowed her eye. "Like the ones in these dungeons that are merely clusters of ley lines smashed together because the gods can't do their jobs properly."

Dragonite crossed her arms. "We're already at the end of the dungeon, we won't find any wild Pokémon here."

Zero nudged her mask. "Pity."

The group reached a point where the cobblestone path started to widen. Zero stretched out her free arm, her lone eye narrowing in suspicion. "This isn't right," she growled. "I'm not getting even the faintest trace of the Time Gear."

"Look over there," Milotic gasped, pointing her bladed tail forward. "The middle of the clearing's been completely drained of its colors."

"It's not just that. There are leaves that are just _floating_ in midair," Serperior said. "It's like time's all… not working and stuff… but just in that small patch."

Zero slammed her staff into the ground, jolting Serperior and Milotic to attention. "That means the Time Gear's already gone!" she snarled. "That patch of frozen time will spread until it's taken out this entire dungeon."

As soon as she finished saying that, the gray patch of land in the middle of the clearing widened slightly. A gust blew through the area, sweeping leaves off their branches. Several of them drifted into the strip of frozen time. They all lost their orange coloration and immediately froze in place. Milotic and Serperior backed away uneasily.

"How could the Time Gear be gone?" Milotic wondered. "Everyone who lives in the Grass Continent knows not to take any of them from their respective dungeons. We're the ones who want to change the flow of time."

Zero tightened her trip on her scepter. Her paw flickered, with more afterimages appeared up and down the scepter. "It would seem… that someone doesn't want the Time Gears falling into our clutches. And they're willing to risk messing with the flow of time just to see to it that we don't get them." She nudged up her mask. "But who took this Time Gear? Was it one of the gods attempting to intervene?"

"I think it was a guild. Or multiple guilds," Dragonite said. "We know for a fact that the Horizon Guild was talking with the Expedition Society about everything you were doing. I wouldn't be surprised if Ampharos learned you're after the Time Gears and decided to act preemptively."

Zero turned to face Team Captivate, her lone eye brimming with blue flames. "So, even as I attempt to work around _him,_ he's still making alterations to whatever crazed plan he's drawn up to try and stop me. That arrogant moron. He really thinks he can replicate his success in working around Dark Matter. The gods have instilled him with a perverted sense of self-importance!" She raised her free paw and tiny red cubes gathered up in it. "How else could a buffoon who can't even navigate his hometown manage to put together such an ingenious plan? There's divine trickery at work here, I'm sure of it."

"What does that mean for us, then?" Serperior said. "If Ampharos managed to trick Dark Matter, then he must be thinking, like, five steps ahead of us already!"

Dragonite whirled on her teammate. Blue lightning crackled in her eyes. "You would dare doubt Mistress Zero like that? What is wrong with you?"

"Nothing!" Serperior insisted, raising her tail in self-defense. "I was curious, that's all."

"… I'll admit, I hadn't expected them to actually take the Time Gears out of their respective dungeons," Zero said, catching Dragonite by surprise. "I have an idea of how we can get around this… unfortunate roadblock. But it's going to require some finesse."

The ladies of Team Captivate all leaned in with interest. "What did you have in mind?" Milotic asked.

Zero's eye glowed blue again. "Well, if we're going to make this work, we'll have to recruit some outside help."

Dragonite frowned. "Bah! I'm more than capable of doing whatever it is you need."

"No, Dragonite," Zero said, holding up her scepter. "If this plan is going to work… we'll need a real _pal_ on our side… if you catch my drift."

A grin wove its way onto Dragonite's face.

* * *

 **~Pokémon Square~**

Hoopa and Latias floated away from the limestone-filled central plaza, toward a dirt road heading north. Round, dome-shaped houses lined the street, most of them covered with a layer of leaves and large sprouts. No one else was out on the streets, although Latias could see luminous orbs flickering inside some of the buildings, indicating Pokémon were indeed inside them. After passing their fourth pair of houses, the road narrowed and sloped upward. Rows of trees sprouted up from the ground on either side of the path.

"Hoopa thinks you look like an old lady with those bags under your eyes."

Latias tucked her head into her chest and rubbed her eyes. "Hoopa, can you just do me a favor and be quiet? We're here on important business. These are old friends of mine and we really need their help. So, I'd appreciate it if you didn't act like your usual self."

"Tch. What are you worried about? Hoopa's charm is infectious. Hoopa can help smooth things over with these 'Team Go-Getters' characters," Hoopa scoffed. He floated further ahead of Latias and rolled onto his back, resting his hands behind his head. "When was the last time you saw these two, anyway?"

Latias froze, wings sticking up. "Uh… well…" She tapped her claws together. "I think I went to Swampert's hatch day… six months ago?"

Hoopa snickered. "Yeah, Hoopa's sure they're gonna be real open to working with us." He opened up a ring portal next to him and pulled out a donut. "Maybe Hoopa will stay silent this time. If only because Hoopa thinks this is gonna be entertaining." He took a large bite out of the donut and held it up to look through it at Latias.

"I've been busy. As have they. I'm sure they'll understand," Latias said, before whispering under her breath, "I hope."

The duo emerged into a spacious clearing where the trail turned into cobblestones. The road sloped downward, coming to a stop by a pond full of sparkling water. A small cliff face sat in the distance, with three waterfalls feeding into the pond. There were also three small rock platforms in the middle of the pond serving as stepping stones to get to a rock island in the center of the pond.

"Oh, good. They're already here," Latias chirped. "Hi guys!"

On the central platform, a Blaziken and a Swampert turned around to face Latias. Blaziken noticeably had an X-shaped scar running across the bridge of his beak, while Swampert's three large fins were bright red instead of the expected black. Both of them had a maroon bandanna around their necks, each with a rusty rescuer's badge clipped to it.

"Latias, hey!" Swampert greeted, his nasally voice causing Hoopa to sit up and tilt his head in surprise. "Great to see you again!"

"Yeah, it's been ages," Blaziken agreed, his voice deeper but scratchier than Swampert's. "Would it have killed you to send a letter or two?"

Hoopa smirked at Latias while nervous sweat droplets formed in her neck. "Aha ha… ha… I would've, but things have been very busy over in Lively Town."

"For six months?" Blaziken said, eyebrow raised skeptically.

"Um… maybe?"

An awkward silence ensued until Blaziken leaned over, laughing and smacking his knees. "Ha! C'mon, Latias, lighten up. I was just ribbing ya!"

Hoopa tilted his head to the other side while Latias sighed in relief. "That's good to hear," she said.

"Wouldn't you have known he was joking, being an empath an all?" Swampert said, a goofy smile plastered on his face.

Latias dropped out of the air and faceplanted into the ground. She quickly floated back up, dusting herself off. "Yes, I should have. Sorry, I'm just under a lot of pressure. I've been jumping back and forth between different continents so much, I'm starting to think I may have time traveled." She ran her claws through her neck-feathers.

"Pffbt, don't be ridiculous. You're not that special," Hoopa scoffed. He turned to face Blaziken and Swampert. "So, you're the guys who stopped that meteor from squishing us all, right?"

Blaziken smirked. "You got it. Team Go-Getters, at your service!" He put his hands on his hips and winked at Hoopa.

"… meh. Hoopa's seen better."

Blaziken nearly fell back into the pond in disbelief. "Jeez, Latias, where did you find this guy, huh?" Swampert asked.

"He's a fellow recruit for Team Gaia," Latias sighed. "The Expedition Society… has some interesting characters."

"See? I _told_ you we had a good reason never to make a guild here," Blaziken quipped. "All the rescue teams work independently and we don't have any problems to speak of."

Swampert frowned. "What about the time when–"

Blaziken threw his arm around Swampert's neck and let out an overexaggerated laugh. "Oh, Swampy, you're such a kidder!" He put on a serious expression and stood back up. "We should really get down to business, though. What did you want to see us for?"

"I'm here to ask for your help," Latias said. "I'd like you guys to come with me to the Horizon Continent."

Blaziken whistled. "That's an awful lot of flight time."

"Hoopa can get you all there instantly," Hoopa boasted, spinning one of his rings in his hand.

"Uh, Whiscash warned me about going through strange portals with gods," Swampert said, poking absentmindedly at the ground. "Besides, what could be so important that you need us to go halfway around the world?"

"It's a bit of a complicated story. I can use my sight-sharing to give you two the quick and dirty version, if that's alright," Latias replied.

"Sight-sharing?" Swampert parroted, shooting Blaziken a worried look. "That doesn't hurt, does it?"

"Of course not. I'm quite well-trained at it. Latios and I do it all the time," Latias insisted.

"I don't see a problem with it," Blaziken said. "If it saves us time, then let's get to it."

Latias nodded. Her eyes brimmed with blue energy as she filled Team Go-Getters' minds with her recent experiences in the Horizon Continent. After several seconds, she cut off the mental link and floated back from them. "So, uh, yeah. That's the situation," she said. "Any questions?"

Swampert's arm shot up into the air. "Yeah, I've got at least ten! Want me to write them down?"

Blaziken facepalmed. "We don't exactly have time to stand here all day and play twenty questions, you know." He rubbed the bridge of his beak. "What exactly are we going to do in the Horizon Continent? Look for the missing Dawn Hourglass?"

"Yes," Latias said. "Err… sort of." She fidgeted with her satchel's strand. "See, we kind of need to coordinate with Team Radiance, first."

Swampert and Blaziken exchanged confused looks. "Team… Radiance?" Swampert said.

"They're the explorers I'm working with in the Horizon Guild," Latias explained.

"Huh. Can't say I've heard of them," Blaziken said. "Must be a pack of rookies." He elbowed Swampert in the ribs. "Bring back any memories, buddy?"

"Sure, of course they do," Swampert said, with a nervous laugh. "Who could forget that time you accidentally drop-kicked Absol into a snow bank on Mt. Freeze?"

Blaziken looked away, biting the tip of a talon in embarrassment. "Aha ha… ha… I thought he was a Sneasel!"

"Guys, focus!" Latias said, snapping her claws. "We need to get going. You can meet Team Radiance for yourselves when we get to Cosmic Cavern." She looked over her shoulder. "Are we good to go, Hoopa?"

"Pfbt. Hoopa's good to go whenever." Hoopa raised his hand up and shouted, "Alléhooparing!" The ring portal immediately formed behind him and he bowed gracefully.

Sweat drops trickled down Blaziken's head. He leaned over toward Latias and whispered, "This guy's not seriously gonna do that every time he makes one of those portals, is he?"

Latias' ears drooped. "You'll get used to it."

Blaziken shook his head. "Something tells me I won't."

* * *

 **~Cosmic Cavern~**

There was a fire pit set up on the opposite side of the cave from the tunnel leading to the hot springs. Luxeira, Gallian, Zoroark, Espeon, and Tessa sat around a small, crackling fire. Behind them, Totem Decidueye perched on a rock. Dusk was also lying atop the rock, still heavily-bandaged. Sticky floated behind Luxeira, casting wayward glances at the tunnel across the village and poking his nubby arms together.

"I thought your companions were following us," Sticky said. "What happened to them?"

"I think they hung back to talk," Tessa said, shrugging.

"They picked a lousy time, then," Sticky harrumphed. "We've got important information we need to pass on."

"Relax, Sticky," Luxeira said. With her helmet and uniform removed, she had a fairly youthful appearance about her. Her blue fur was vibrant and her orange eyes looked lively. "The sun only set a short time ago. It's not too late into the evening, yet."

"What do you suppose they hung back for, anyway?" Zoroark wondered, poking at the outer rim of the fire with a long stick.

"Beats me," Tessa replied. "Silvally's hard to get a read on, sometimes." The moment she stopped speaking, her aura feelers quivered. Tessa looked over her shoulder at Espeon. "Hey, did you just sense something?"

"Yeah," Espeon said, ears twitching. "It felt a bit familiar, but–"

A ring portal opened by the entrance to the Cavernous Depths. Latias and Hoopa flew out of it. Everyone besides Tessa, Espeon, and Zoroark reacted in complete surprise at their appearance, almost to the point of ignoring Blaziken and Swampert as they stumbled out of the portal.

Swampert put a hand up to his mouth, his face paling. "Let's… uh… let's not do that again," he said before belching loudly.

Blaziken's feathers bristled. "Good gods, Swampert. What did you eat last night?" he asked, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Uh, wouldn't that be _this night?_ Since, y'know, we just jumped backwards half a day," Swampert said, chuckling nervously. "Or… did we move forwards? Gah, now I'm confused."

"All right, what's the meaning of this?" Totem Decidueye called, taking off from his perch and landing in front of Latias and Hoopa. He looked off toward the village's houses and confirmed no one was outside to witness the portal. "I'm the Totem here and I would like an explanation as to why you're barging into our home."

"It's okay, sir," Tessa said, sitting up from the fire pit and waving Latias over with a paw. "Latias is with us."

"And the other three?" Totem Decidueye asked, ignoring the confused looks Blaziken and Swampert gave him.

"Uh… they're with us, too," Tessa said, albeit a lot less confidently.

Totem Decidueye lowered his outstretched wing. "Fair enough. Though I would ask you take care of whatever business you need to quickly. It's been a trying day for us and I'd like the village to return to some semblance of normalcy."

Latias nodded. She beckoned Blaziken and Swampert to follow her over to the fire pit. "I got Espeon's message. You guys have two Dawn Shards?"

"Yeah," Espeon said. "We got the Sizzle Shard from Gallian." She jerked her head in the Absol's direction, causing him to look down guiltily. "And we found the Subterranean Shard in the Mystery Dungeon here, though we had to fight off Milotic and a couple of Ultra Beasts to get it."

"Well, I'm glad you're all okay," Latias said. She noticed the shocked looks she was getting. "O-Oh… right… where are my manners?" Latias hoisted up her satchel to show off the Expedition Society badge pinned to it. "I'm Latias. I normally work with Team Gaia over at the Expedition Society, but I've decided to help out the Horizon Guild… or what's left of it, anyway."

"And Hoopa's her boss, making sure she does a good job and doesn't slack off," Hoopa said, patting Latias' left wing. She turned around and gave him a stink eye. Hoopa shrugged her off, snickering loudly.

"And your friends over there?" Dusk asked, shakily pointing a forepaw at Blaziken and Swampert.

"Heh…" Blaziken rubbed the tip of his beak. "We're–"

Tessa sprang to her feet fast enough to make Espeon squeak in surprise. "You're Team Go-Getters," she gasped, pointing a paw at them. "I can't believe this!" She turned to Espeon. "Team Go-Getters is really here! This is, like… I've had dreams about getting to meet you guys, but I never actually imagined this'd really be happening. Oh, I have so many questions! Like how did it feel to meet Rayquaza and–"

A pink glow formed around Tessa's snout. Espeon used her telekinesis to forcibly shut Tessa's mouth. She gave Tessa a stern look. "I'd have expected that reaction from Shane, not from you," Espeon said, shaking her head. "I'm starting to think he's a bad influence."

"Wow," Swampert said, whistling, "I didn't realize we had fans."

"Yeah, seriously," Blaziken said, laughing. "I'd have charged for autographs!"

Tessa sat back down, blushing badly. "Aha ha… sorry about that. Got a bit carried away," she said. "It's just, my dad always told me stories about the explorers that saved the world in the past. You guys and Team Poképals always stood out to me. I sent you fan mail and everything."

"Well, I certainly can't fault your tastes," Blaziken said, laughing. He paused for a moment. "Oh, wait, you're _that_ Riolu?" He scratched his chin. "Huh… small world. Look at you… all grown up and stuff. I dig the scarf, too."

Tessa's face flushed and she twirled the edge of her bandanna around her digit. "Thanks," she whispered.

"No problem. From what Latias told us, you've been through quite the ordeal of your own," Blaziken said.

"Yeah. Pokémon getting turned into vicious alien monsters? I'm not sure what I'd do in that situation," Swampert said, shuddering. It was at that point he noticed Sticky out of the corner of his eye. "Ah… Blaziken! Look, that's one of the aliens, isn't it?"

"Relax," Gallian huffed. "Sticky's about as harmful as a wet blanket."

Sticky tilted his head in confusion. "Wouldn't a wet blanket hurt if you hit someone with sufficient force?"

"Yeah. Just like it hurts to step in your Toxic Spikes," Gallian said.

 _Squeeeelch!_

Everyone in the group fixed their attentions toward the tunnel leading to the hot springs. Shane froze in the tunnel's mouth, a forepaw hovering in the air. Water dripped off of him, puddling up on the ground.

"There you are, Shane," Tessa said, standing up with a look of concern. "What was the hold up all about?"

"And why are you soaking wet?" Espeon added. "Guuugh… I can smell that wet fur all the way over here." She waved a forepaw in front of her snout.

"Yeah, well you can thank the big guy for that one," Shane huffed, flicking his head to the side. His wet mane smacked against his neck, flinging water onto the cave wall. Silvally sauntered up to his side, equally soaked but grinning broadly.

"Eyyyyyaaaaaaaaagh!" Swampert shouted, jumping back in surprise. "Is that another one of the aliens?"

"No, that's… um… Silvally," Latias said.

"Pleased to meet you," Silvally chirped, his fish tail wagging excitedly. "Making new friends is always great."

"Uh… likewise," Blaziken said.

"You still didn't answer our questions, you know," Espeon piped up. "What happened to you two?"

Shane's ears stuck up and a blush took over his face. "Oh… um… well…"

"Poor Shane here got hit with a late case of the evolution high," Silvally said. "So, I kicked him into one of the hot springs. I figured it might burn off that excess energy."

"Shane?" Swampert said, looking at the Ninetales and scratching his chin. "Does that mean you're human?"

Shane's ears drooped. "Um… it's a bit complicated, actually." A beat followed, and then Shane asked, 'Wait, are _you_ human?"

Swampert shook his head. "I'm not… but Blaziken is. Or… err… he _was._ We're Team Go-Getters. I guess if you came from the human world, then you don't really know about us."

"Of _course_ I know about you," Shane said. "You stopped all the natural disasters that Gengar brought onto the world, including that big meteor."

Blaziken whistled. "Huh. The kid's done his homework. Not half-bad."

Tessa flicked a paw at this. "Please. You should've seen him when I first found him washed up on the beach. Stumbling around… spouting crazy things like he'd hit the spiked berry juice too hard."

Espeon and Silvally chuckled at this. Meanwhile, Gallian and Zoroark exchanged looks. Both raised an eyebrow in amusement. "You two sure that's all that happened?" Zoroark asked, a smirk on his lips. Tessa glanced quizzically at Zoroark, while Dusk immediately caught the gist of his comment and faced Shane and Silvally, blinking in surprise.

"Well… not exactly," Silvally said, drawing wide-eyes looks from everyone besides Shane and Tessa. "I got blasted into the water by a Psychic. That was quite surprising."

Latias spun around, brow furrowed. "That's impossible. Sure, Ninetales can manifest psychic powers, but none of them can actually use the move Psychic," she said. "Are you sure he didn't just hit you with Extrasensory?"

"It was Psychic," Silvally replied. "Read his life force if you don't believe me."

Latias' eyes flashed blue. She hovered backward, gasping in surprise. "E… Espeon," she said. "Give me the Sizzle Shard, please."

"Uh, are you sure that's a good idea?" Espeon asked.

"Yes. This is very important," Latias said, an eager look in her eyes. Espeon levitated the Sizzle Shard to Latias. She grabbed it with her own telekinesis and thrust it in Shane's face. "Touch this, if you would."

Shane looked at the Sizzle Shard and whimpered. "Do I have to?"

"You did it for the Subterranean Shard, yes?" Latias said.

"Only because I was disoriented at the time," Shane said. He shot a quick glance at Tessa, who had a worried look on her face. Nevertheless, Tessa nodded toward him.

"You'll be okay," she mouthed, offering him a friendly smile.

Shane closed his eyes and touched the tip of his snout to the Sizzle Shard. All at one, his muscles tensed up. The wind rushed out of Shane and he collapsed onto his knees, gasping loudly. Silvally was down beside him in an instant. "Shane? Shane! You're doing okay, buddy. Just breathe. C'mon… deep breath in… deep breath out." He reached his foreleg up and rubbed Shane's back.

Shane's pupils shrank. The scene of the cave dissolved all around him. Shane suddenly found himself floating in midair surrounded by the star-filled vista of outer space. He opened his mouth to say something, when two blobs swirled into existence in front of him. After a few seconds of static, the blobs revealed themselves to be a Chikorita and a Fennekin. Each one had a striped, blue and green scarf sitting around their necks. They both stared back at Shane, looks of intense determination on their faces.

 _'What the… what am I seeing here? Another experience I had as Solgaleo?'_ Shane wondered. A flash of violet light caught his attention. Shane looked past Chikorita and Fennekin, where a smoldering purple eye sat in the middle of the starry sky, staring back at Shane.

 _ **hALfWaY tHeRe nOW. DoN't DiSaPpOInt mE!**_

The purple eye disappeared, only to be replaced with a silhouette of Solgaleo's face. Then, the scene surrounding Shane vanished in a swirl of black and blue, leaving him kneeling on the ground, making dry heaving motions. Shane stumbled to his feet with a dazed look in his eyes.

"Uh, are you feeling any better?" Silvally asked.

In response to this, Shane belched loudly, launching a stream of superheated air forward. Latias squealed in surprise, nearly dropping the Sizzle Shard as she flew out of the way of the attack. Shane promptly shut his mouth and went cross-eyed looking at his muzzle. "I… uh… excuse me?" he said.

Everyone in the group collectively jaw-dropped. "Wait, since when can the ice-type Ninetales use Heat Wave? What kind of sense does that make?" Blaziken wondered.

"Aha ha… yeah… that's… um… kind of where the 'it's complicated' answer to the human question comes into play," Shane said, laughing nervously. He scratched at the back of his head. "Would you guys believe me if I told you that Solgaleo's spirit is trapped inside of me?"

An awkward silence ensued, until Gallian punctuated the group's disbelief with a stern, "No."

"How badly did you get roughed up in the Depths?" Zoroark asked.

"It's the truth," Shane said. "When Necrozma dragged me into this world, he must've stuffed Solgaleo's spirit inside of me. If we gather up the pieces of the Dawn Hourglass, then we can bring him back." He opted not to say anything else on the matter, hoping his teammates wouldn't pry.

"I believe him," Tessa said, paw raised in the air. "We've seen a lot of weird stuff in our time together. I'm not entirely sure I like the implications behind all of it, but I can't think of a reasonable alternative."

Latias nodded. "That would explain the strange vibes I got from your life energy, Shane. Err… no offense."

"None taken," Shane said. "For all I know, I could still be wrong. My gut's just telling me I'm not." He slowly closed his eyes. _'But what was up with that odd memory I just saw? No, I can't dwell on it right now. My teammates need me focused.'_

"Understood," Latias said. "Then, I guess we should figure out where we go from here." She floated over to the campfire, followed by the four Pokémon that were standing by her.

"Yeah, uh, about that," Silvally said. "Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful you've brought reinforcements and everything… but why exactly should we be taking orders from you?" His head titled to the side. "Or Ampharos… assuming he's the one directing you to do this."

Latias flinched. "Err… wait, what do you mean by that?"

Silvally sat down on his haunches. "It's just… Ampharos isn't here. He doesn't know what we've been doing. I'm sure you've looped him in and everything, but I don't trust his judgment on this matter."

"I… uh… sorry," Latias squeaked, tapping her claws together. "Was I coming off as too bossy? That wasn't my intent at all. I just… I want to help however I can, but they still need me overseas. So, I thought I'd coordinate things for you. Y'know, alleviate the stress of planning?"

"I don't think you were too bossy," Silvally said. He glanced at his teammates. "Look, I can't speak for them, but after what happened with Metagross, you'll have to forgive me if I'm a bit hesitant to have a powerful psychic bossing me around."

"That's… understandable," Latias said, biting her lower lip. "I'm sorry. I won't overstep again. So… um… would you like me to help you strategize?"

Silvally nodded. "That'd be great."

Latias gave him a tired smile. "Okay. In that case, we have these two Dawn Shards in our possession. That leaves the Seaside Shard in Sunset Shoals and the Scalebound Sh– OW!"

Latias tucked her head into her chest and rubbed her mouth, squeaking loudly. "What's the matter, Latias?" Swampert asked.

 _I bit my tongue,_ she said, using her telepathy. There were a few snickers amongst the group. "As I was saying, with this many of us working together, I think it might be wise to split up and tackle the remaining shards in separate groups."

"No way," Shane interjected. "What about strength in numbers? More of us together means an easier time dealing with whatever gets thrown at us. Because, let's face it, we're not just going to be able to waltz into the next Mystery Dungeon and take one of the shards for ourselves."

"You don't necessarily know that," Silvally said. Shane turned around, looking at Silvally in disbelief. "Okay, you're right. With everything that's happened to us, I'm expecting to have to swim away from a tidal wave if we go to Sunset Shoals," Silvally conceded.

"Well don't jinx us, you dummy," Tessa said, shoving Silvally playfully. She then wiped her wet paws against the rock.

"See, that's why I think we need to split up… at least a little bit," Latias said. "Heaven forbid _something_ bad happens to you guys, you need allies who can come in and bail you out." She glanced toward Luxeira and Sticky. "I was thinking that you two could go with Team Go-Getters. You're not the strongest battlers, from what I've seen, while Team Go-Getters don't really know about Ultra Beasts. So, you guys complement each other."

"I can go with them, too," Dusk offered, raising a forepaw. "Now that I've seen what the problem is, I don't want to sit on my ass hoping things will work out. I've got to do something."

Totem Decidueye turned to Dusk in surprise. "Are you sure that's such a good idea? You're not exactly in the best shape after this afternoon."

Dusk looked at the medicinal leaves on her back and winced. "O-Oh yeah," she whispered.

"Not to worry. I can have that patched up for you in a jiffy," Latias said. She raised a glowing paw and bright light sparkled underneath the bandages. Dusk blinked in surprise and looked toward her back. Blood still stained her fur, but she was able to move around without any pain or difficulties.

"Hey, that's much better," she gasped. "Wow… y'know, I had always heard you Legends were big, intimidating types who didn't care for us mortals."

Latias' expression wilted. "I'm… uh… not really much of a Legend, according to the others," she said, tapping her claws together.

"Yeah. You should see the names they call her when they see her in person," Hoopa heckled.

"Dude, seriously? Have some tact," Silvally said, fixing a disapproving look on Hoopa.

"It's okay," Latias said. "I don't care about what they think anymore. This is about doing what's right." She turned back to Team Paradox. "Anyway, I thought you two, Dusk, and Team Go-Getters could head to Rem Canyon."

Gallian's brow furrowed. "Hang on, is that really a good idea? Rem Canyon's hardly an inviting place for explorers."

"Relax, kiddo. Swampert and I have seen our fair share of inhospitable dungeons," Blaziken said.

"That and these guys collectively have a pretty big weakness to water-based attacks. Sunset Shoals wouldn't be a good fit," Latias said. "That's where you two and Team Radiance come in."

Gallian looked away from Latias, pouting. "Aww, c'mon, what's the matter? Afraid of your fur getting a little wet?" Zoroark teased. "Didn't we always talk about taking a trip to Circadian Coast for some quality time… alone?"

"Th… that was ages ago," Gallian said, face going bright red. "Besides, we're not going there to sightsee."

"I know. I'm just teasing," Zoroark said, chuckling. "I see your ordeal over the last few weeks cost you your sense of humor."

Gallian scowled. "I didn't think it was very funny."

"What are you going to be doing, Latias?" Shane asked.

"Running more errands," Latias said, rubbing her eyes. "I've actually got the Dusk Hourglass right now, so Hoopa and I need to stay on the move. Plus, we have to check on things overseas. But you can contact me on my Expedition Gadget at any time."

"You sure you don't want to stay and hear what Gallian and Team Paradox have to say? It sounds pretty important," Tessa said.

Latias looked around nervously. "Well… um… I suppose I could spare a _little_ bit of time."

"Excellent!" Hoopa said, floating down to rest between two rocks. "Wake Hoopa up when something interesting happens." He turned over onto his side and promptly began snoring.

"He's… he's faking, right?" Shane gasped.

Latias sighed. "No. He's just that good at falling asleep." She turned back to Team Paradox. "But don't let that stop you guys. Whatever it is you have to tell us, we want to hear out."

Luxeira scooted toward the fire, nodding. "Right. I'll try to sum things up as best I can, but I don't want to leave out any important details." She glanced at Sticky. "The first think you ought to know about us is that we're not experienced at this exploring business… at all."

Gallian whirled on them. "Wait, seriously?"

"Yes," Luxeira said. "In fact, the day we lost our home to the Lightless Black – the one you call Necrozma – was shortly after we had joined the Ultra Recon Squad. It was supposed to be a simple mission for training purposes. Neither of us could've possibly seen what was coming…"

 **End of Episode 12**

* * *

Time for review replies!

SuperOmegaGuest: friendship is really more the focus of this story. Look at the genres if you don't believe me. So, teasing is just teasing at this point and nothing more.

Anon Omega: well this _is_ a PMD story, so I've got to try my best to have feels-filled moments.

Another guest: omnishipping? uh, no, everyone's just friends with other. I swear it!

Veralix: I'm flattered, really. Like I said, I really enjoy these comments. They're fun to read through. I get the feeling there are plenty of silent readers who don't feel like saying anything. I wish I could convince them otherwise. I'd like to think I'm not a scary guy. But I can't force anyone to do anything. In any case, Shane almost burnt Latias. Is that good enough for you?

Commenter: thank you very much. All I can hope for is that people continue to like what I have to offer.

Just a reader: it's funny, because Carracosta actually says that line verbatim in Super Mystery Dungeon, if I'm not mistaken. I guess that means we've gone full circle?

That's all for now. Next time: after all this time, we're finally getting another special episode. Join us as we go beyond the Ultra Wormhole!


	74. Doing the Jitterbug

I strongly recommend anyone playing a drinking game for this story with the rule "take a drink every time the world 'ultra' appears," put that rule aside for these next several chapters. Otherwise, I can't guarantee your liver will survive.

More stuff in the ending author's notes. For now, enjoy!

* * *

 _As best I can describe it to you all, Ultra Space is… a network. A highly-chaotic and unpredictable network squeezed between universes like your world and the one Shane claims to come from. I couldn't tell you terrestrials how large it is, because nobody's entirely sure. Heck, I don't even know where the terms "Pokémon" and "Ultra Beast" came from. They just existed when I hatched and I accepted them without question. Now, my superiors believed that, at some nebulous point in the distant past, all of reality was simply one contiguous void of Ultra Space… and it remained that way until a small ripple of energy gave way to the creation of the first universe._

 _Since then, more worlds have popped up. And each time it happens, Ultra Space contorts itself to accommodate the changes. This is what led to its current architecture: a vast, expansive realm where time and space do not flow properly… punctuated by Ultra Wormholes sporadically appearing and disappearing with no discernible pattern to them._

 _These portals can lead to one of two possible destinations. First is a full-fledged universe like yours, housing one or more galaxies with several large planets. Second is where Sticky and I hail from: a pocket dimension. Simply speaking, it's a small habitat nestled within a gap in Ultra Space. Pockets can be entirely empty or have Pokémon, Ultra Beasts, or some combination of the two living inside them. I even heard rumors of other creatures residing in these pockets, but never had the chance to see it for myself._

 _Ultra Village was one of the pockets where Pokémon and Ultra Beasts lived and worked side by side. We were a fairly large community, but everyone always went out of their way to acknowledge one another when walking the streets. Still, we all knew that Ultra Space could bring unexpected challenges to our village. For example, unlike your world, we lacked a natural light source. Ultra Village was one of the pockets that didn't have a Solgaleo or a Lunala living amongst us. We realized we might have to take extra steps to keep our home safe… leading to the formation of our Ultra Recon Squad._

 _I don't exactly know where the concept came from. Supposedly it originates from an Ultra Space pocket that is completely off-limits to all Pokémon and all but a select few Ultra Beasts. Regardless, our community was visited by a group of Pokémon dressed in harnesses and jumpsuits like the one you saw me wearing. They offered to help us fortify our light source, the Ultra Village Core, in exchange for us joining their network and establishing an Ultra Recon Squad command center._

 _Even though I wasn't much of a battler, I heard all about the Ultra Recon Squad from my parents. So, naturally, when I evolved from a Houndour, the first thing I thought about was trying to join. I studied hard and passed the entrance exam with flying colors. My first week on the job was supposed to be the start of something exciting. A bold new beginning, if you would. I had no idea it would instead turn out to be the start of a gigantic nightmare…_

* * *

 **Special Episode 3: The Edge of Reality**

 **Chapter 63: Doing the Jitterbug**

* * *

 **~Ultra Village, Northern District~**

A series of neat, uniform, white domes sat in evenly spaced out rows, with the last set of domes sitting near a purple forcefield that stretched up high into the sky. Ripples of bright pink energy raced through the shield, emanating from the tip of a large, silver, needle-like tower standing proudly in the distance. The tower had three large, circular rings surrounding a brightly-glowing area near its apex. No other building was nearly as tall as this tower. The closest ones were right nearby; rectangular prisms that barely reached a quarter of the tower's height.

It was this tower that Luxeira remained fixed on. "Somewhere up there… the Recon Squad members are protecting the Ultra Village Core," she said. "And, starting today, I'm going to be one of them."

"Are you talking to yourself again, Lucy?"

Luxeira hopped up, barking in surprise. In the process, the white gym bag slung over her neck launched skyward. Its contents spilled out all around Luxeira, leaving her staring at the ground in embarrassment. "I… uh…" She glanced up at the door to the dome she had just walked out of. Standing in the doorway was a Mightyena whose fur had a copper tint to it. He wore a neon-orange vest that ran down to his hips and a bright yellow hard-hat with spaces for his ears to poke out.

"Forgot to zipper the bag, huh?"

Luxeira moved cautiously, grabbing the strewn papers in her mouth and shoving them back into the gym bag. "You don't have to rub it in, Silus."

Silus smirked. "I'm not rubbing anything in. On the contrary… I'm proud." He held his head high. "You must've had a lot of fun last night if you're this jumpy. Normally, you're unflappable. No one in the district can match your poker face."

"That's… um," Luxeira whispered, face beet-red. She finished stuffing her belongings back into her bag and zipped it up tight. "I'm just nervous about today, okay," she said, tugging at the loose-fitting gray jacket around her torso.

"What for? You were born for this job, Lucy," Silus said. A worried look overtook his face. "Wait, you didn't get reassigned to the combat unit at the last second or something, did you?"

Luxeira shook her head. "No. I'm still joining the surveillance unit. It's just… uh…" She opened her bag back up and produced an envelope in her mouth. "My assignment," she muttered, her voice muffled. "I don't know who this Sticky fella is, but the paperwork says he's a Poipole." Luxeira stuffed the envelope back in her bag. "I specifically requested to be partnered with another Pokémon. What am I supposed to do? I really want this job… but not if I'm going to be stuck with a UB as my partner. Do you think they made some sort of mistake and will let me change it?"

"I think," Silus leaned over and pecked Luxeira on the forehead, "that you're overthinking this. You've been talking about the Ultra Recon Squad nonstop since we moved in together. This is _definitely_ what you want to do. Go out there, explore strange worlds, and save the day. Y'know, all that jazz. When you're done, I'll be waiting for you." He leaned closer to her and purred loudly before whispering, "After all, we didn't get to finish our little game last night because _someone_ got a bit too excited."

Luxeria's face reddened once more. She stepped back from Silus, adjusting the bag around her neck. "Y… yes. That's, um… a discussion for another night." Luxeira turned around, glancing back to give Silus one last look. "You… uh… you take care of yourself. And the house, too."

"Ha! What, you think I'm going to throw some crazy party while you're away?" Silus said, laughing.

"I wouldn't put it past you," Luxeira said, reassuming her usual stoic expression. "Even if I'm on the surveillance unit, I still have to train regularly." She smirked. "I bet I'll have Flamethrower down pat within a month. So, you won't want to get on my bad side."

"Ha! Like you'd really burn off my fur. You _looooove_ it," Silus said, smirking back at her. "Better hurry. Don't want to be late on your first day."

Luxeira nodded and waved goodbye. She proceeded down the street, offering a friendly nod to a pair of Xurkitree tending to a broken street light. "Morning, Miss Luxeira," one of the Xurkitree said, waving one of its limbs at her. "Is today the big day?"

"It is, Xurkvy," Luxeira replied. "Wish me luck."

"Ah, you don't need any luck. You'll do fine," Xurkvy replied, before turning back to the broken street light.

 _'He's right. I've got nothing to worry about,'_ Luxeira thought. _'After all, I was in the ninety-eighth percentile across all Ultra Space pockets on the SUQE. They're going to be falling head over heels for me at the base. I'm sure they'll understand that I can't work with a UB from the get-go.'_

Luxeira approached a small, square, orange barrier manned by a hot-pink Blastoise with an onyx shell and cannons. He wore a white jumpsuit with a black harness sitting over it. A red visor sat over his eyes, but Luxeira grinned when he offered her a warm smile. "Hey, there she is! Our newest recruit. Surveillance unit, right?"

"You know it, Tentor," Luxeira replied, blue tail wagging slowly back and forth. "Any advice for the new girl?"

"Ha ha! Just try not to lose your breakfast on your first Ultra Warp Ride. Happened to me during basic training and the other officers still haven't let me live it down. Ol' Magnum is still calling me 'Barfolomew' every time he sees me," Tentor said. He turned to his right and pulled on a red lever. The barrier disappeared, revealing a silver, metal road proceeding through a block of larger, rectangular buildings.

"Magnum?" Luxeira asked, raising an eyebrow. "Like… Commander Magnum?"

"Yeah. Real swell guy… or 'swole guy,' if you wanna get punny. Maybe a bit too enthusiastic for my liking," Tentor said, scratching the back of his head. "That big, booming voice of his always catches me by surprise." Luxeira tilted her head to the side. "You, uh, do know what our squad's commander looks like, right?" Tentor asked.

"I… uh… well, I certainly heard some things. Like how he suplexed a Guzzlord," Luxeira said. "I just figured people were making that stuff up."

Tentor shook his head. "Nah, it's all for real. The guy's a Buzzwole after all. What'd you expect?"

Luxeira's face blanched. "He is?" she squeaked. Images of a burly, muscular bug towering over her flashed through her mind.

"Yeah. That isn't a problem, is it?" Tentor asked. "After all, you'll be meeting plenty of UBs working this job."

"Nuh-no, of course not," Luxeira said. "Well… I, uh, better get going. Don't want to be late." She trotted through the security checkpoint, moving into the city's central district. As soon as Tentor was safely out of sight, she bit her lip. _'The commander's a Buzzwole. Of_ course _it has to be a Buzzwole. Damn it! Why didn't I do the proper research ahead of time?'_

Once again, she envisioned a Buzzwole towering over her, wearing a black leather vest and holding an empty pitcher. But this time, Luxeira wasn't standing on the street. She was in a hallway. Lockers lined either side of her, while a cluster of different Pokémon stood behind the Buzzwole, pointing at Luxeira and laughing.

 _"Oops. Sorry about that, li'l puppy,"_ the Buzzwole said. _"I just wanted to make sure the school egghead looked the part!"_

Luxeira shook her head, dispelling the memory. _'No, that was a long time ago. I can't think about that anymore. I'm not some dorky kid. I'm a Houndoom. And soon I'll be a full-fledged Ultra Recon Squad officer. Everyone in the northern district is rooting for me. I'm not gonna let them do–'_

Something hard and sharp pricked her left flank. Luxiera yowled and hopped forward, eyes tearing up. She whirled around, an angry look on her face, only to freeze. Laying on the ground in front of her was a small Poipole. His central head-needle had a tiny tuft of blue fur clinging to it. Luxeira turned to look at her hip.

"You inconsiderate klutz!" Luxeira barked, causing the Poipole to float into the air frightfully. "I spent an hour grooming my fur to get ready for today and you totally ruined it! Why the hell weren't you watching where you were going?"

"I… I'm so sorry," the Poipole muttered, fidgeting with the backpack in his arms. "I lost track of time, see, and I thought I was late for something incredibly important. I was floating so fast, I must've lost control."

"What kind of explanation is that?" Luxeira sneered. "I swear, if you got poison–" She cut herself off upon seeing a familiar silver envelope protruding from the Poipole's backpack. "Hang on… that's an official assignment from the Ultra Recon Squad. Which means… you're Sticky, aren't you?"

Sticky abruptly stopped fidgeting. He locked eyes with Luxeira, and then looked down at his backpack. "Oh… oh my," he whispered. "Don't tell me… you're Luxeira? My, uh, Houndoom partner?"

A glare overtook Luxeira's features. "For the next few minutes, maybe. The second we walk into headquarters, I'm requesting a change," she said, jets of smog shooting out her nostrils. Luxeira turned around and marched down the street, keeping her gaze fixed squarely in front of her.

"W-Wait, wait, wait!" Sticky cried, flying after her. "I'm very, truly, sincerely sorry about crashing into you. Aren't first-day jitters to be expected? Surely you must be a little bit nervous about this, right?"

" _Hardly._ This is what I've dreamed of doing for quite a while," Luxeira said, refusing to meet Sticky's gaze. "I'm not going to have that experienced ruine by some clumsy, careless UB who can't even float straight."

Sticky stopped flying and winced. He watched Luxeira walk down the street, a frown on his face. "But… but… you can't just avoid UBs working for the Ultra Recon Squad. We're an integral part of the organization!" He flew after her, again. "I promise… I'll make it up to you. Want me to give you my rations for today? Err… not that I really know how food gets handled at headquarters or anything. I just thought I'd offer."

"You're not changing my mind," Luxeira huffed. "I don't have a problem with UBs. I just don't want to spend every waking minute with one. Especially not a messy, poison-spewing dweeb like you."

The duo reached another security checkpoint. This one was manned by a pair of Celesteelas. Each one had a harness around their necks and tiny goggles over their beady little eyes. They both extended one of their arms to block the pink barrier sealing off the entrance to the tower. "Halt. Please present proper credentials," they declared in unison.

Luxeira opened her bag and produced the envelope with her assignment. Sticky did the same but fumbled his envelope. It fell to the ground and the papers spilled out in front of him. "S-Sorry. So sorry," he mumbled, floating down to pick everything up.

 _'Ugh, this guy's a basket case. I'll be the laughing stock of the whole Ultra Recon Squad if I'm stuck with this sad sack,'_ Luxeira thought. One of the Celesteela guards gave her permission to pass, so she broke into a run, not bothering to look back and see if Sticky was behind her. She trotted up to a large, white, metal door with a red circle in the center of it. The red circle spun around, leading to the door's halves retracting into the wall.

Luxeira proceeded inside, only to freeze up after taking a few steps. She was standing in an expansive circular room. There was another set of electronic doors like the ones she entered to her left. The metal floor gave way to glass in the center, showing off gears and circuitry Luxeria assumed were helping to power the building. Painted on the glass was the Ultra Recon Squad's logo: a golden semicircular arch with a circle inside it.

What it stood for, she had absolutely no idea. Nonetheless, Luxeira assumed it had to be important. It was emblazoned on the glass desk sitting on the other side of the room, as well as the sliding glass doors leading to white, sterile-looking hallways with elevator doors inside them. Her gaze returned to the desk, where she spotted a charcoal-gray Beheeyem floating behind it, a white jacket fastened securely around his body. His back was turned to her as he stared up at a series of LED screens, most of which contained fluctuating lines and bars Luxeira wasn't entirely familiar with.

Luxeira approached the Beheeyem, noting a placard at the front of the desk reading, "Relay Station Coordinator, Tham."

"Um, excuse me?" Luxeira said, tapping a forepaw on the glass. "Can you help me? I'm–"

Tham turned around and looked down at her, an unreadable look in his eyes. "New recruit? You're seven minutes early. Impressive," he said, glancing to one of the screens which displayed the time in the bottom right corner. Luxeira wagged her tail, beaming. "The other recruits were here twenty-three minutes ago," Tham continued, not making eye contact.

Luxeira's expression deflated. "O… oh. Is that bad?"

"I suppose not," Tham said, uninterested. "They were all combat unit recruits, after all. Eager to kiss-up and impress. I see them all the time." He levitated a series of papers up in front of his face. "Let's see here… ah, yes, Miss Luxeira Blue from the northern district. Impressive test scores." Tham pointed his right arm at Luxeira and the papers fluttered down toward her. "Try not to let it go to your head. It's one thing to answer some multiple-choice questions. It's another to actually get out in the field."

"Oh, I know, sir," Luxeira said. "This is what I've dreamed of doing for quite a while. There is, however–"

"Wait a second. I'm here! I'm he– _eeeeeeeeeere!_ "

Luxeira turned to her right just in time to see Sticky crash into her torso, slamming her against the desk. Sticky fell to the ground, stars filling his vision. "Oooooooogh. I think I came in too fast," he groaned.

Tham glanced down at them, his eyes betraying no amusement. "Well, this is certainly convenient," he said. "You're Mr. Sticky Purple, from the eastern district, yes?"

Sticky didn't get the chance to answer, as Luxeira kicked him away with her hind legs. She popped back up to her feet, smoothing her gray jacket with her snout. "Don't pay any attention to that klutz. Actually, I wanted to ask you about something, sir. See, he's been assigned to be my partner…"

"I'm aware," Tham said. "I've got your basic training assignments right here." He waved two folders in front of her.

"No, no, you didn't let me finish," Luxeira growled. "On my application, I specifically requested a Pokémon partner, not a UB. I would like to know why that request was not upheld and how I can change it. I'm not working with that fool."

Sticky floated up to her, rubbing his head. "It was an honest accident, Luxeira."

"Quiet, you," Luxeira snapped, glaring at Sticky.

"Yes, you did request a Pokémon partner," Tham said. "However, you two were the only applicants for the surveillance unit to get accepted. So, we have to work with what we've got." He dropped the two folders on his desk and nudged them toward Luxeira and Sticky with his telekinesis. "Either you accept the assignment and join us… or you walk away and take your chances the next time we put out hiring applications." He turned his back on the two of them. "Though, I've been told that the Commander doesn't look highly upon reapplicants who once rejected an employment offer from us."

Luxeira's face stiffened. She looked at Sticky, who flinched under her gaze, and then at the file with her name and picture on it. She scooped the file up, leering at Sticky. "Just stay out of my way, _partner_. Unlike you, I want to make a name for myself here."

Sticky sighed and grabbed his folder. "I do, too," he whispered.

"Those folders contain temporary ID badges, along with your boarding assignments, a map of headquarters, your personalized orientation schedules, a list of required medical tests to complete within your first week, and your contracts, which both of you are expected to sign today," Tham explained.

"Those IDs will only get you through that door," he pointed to the glass door on his left, "and up to the seventh floor. There, you'll be given your official badges and escorted to the washrooms for decontamination. We can't risk any outdoor dust and debris getting near our equipment, after all. Following that, you'll suit up and begin orientation and basic training." Tham turned back toward the LED screens. "Dismissed," he said, waving them off with his right hand.

Luxeira walked toward the door with Sticky following her. "Look, this doesn't have to be permanent, you know," Sticky said. "I'm sure we can work out an arrangement that makes us both happy while we're cadets. And then, once we've assumed ranks as officers, we can ask to be split up."

"Oh, I firmly intend to do that," Luxeira said. She held her blank white badge up to the scanner. It turned green and the glass door slid open. Sticky went inside with her.

"What exactly is it that's causing the problem here?" Sticky asked. "I think I have a right to know if we're going to be working together."

"You're clumsy and careless," Luxeira said. "I want a partner who's competent and won't put me in harm's way."

"It's just first-day jitters," Sticky said as the two moved into a bright-white elevator. As soon as it started moving, Sticky dropped to the ground, leaning against a wall for support. "I'm sure you're nervous about this too, right?"

"Hardly," Luxeira huffed, sticking her snout up. "I told you already… I was born to be here. If I'm nervous, it's because _you're_ giving off too much nervous energy. And constantly repeating yourself isn't helping your case."

 **Level seven reached. Please disembark.**

The elevator doors slid open and Luxeira marched out of them. Sticky hovered back into the air and followed after her, dragging his bag along with him. "Once we get out into the field, I'll be fine, I assure you," he said.

"You'll have to excuse me if I don't believe that," Luxeira said. "What'd you even get on the SUQE, anyway?"

The duo approached a dark green Bronzor floating behind a desk bearing a small printer. **Present for photo ID,** the Bronzor requested, turning to face a greenscreen.

"Sixty-fifth percentile, but what does that matter?" Sticky said, floating up to photo area.

"Sixty-fifth? Are you freaking kidding me?! What an absolute joke!" Luxeira spat, causing Sticky to tense up just as the Bronzor flashed brightly. They swiveled toward the printer, where a small ID popped out, containing Sticky's panicked expression on it.

 **ID ready,** the Bronzor declared, levitating the plastic card to Sticky, who looked at it glumly.

Luxeira marched into the photo area and shoved Sticky aside. "Yeah, the numbers don't lie, pinhead. We're not going to work out," she said, snout pointed at the ceiling.

Sticky frowned. "And just what's that supposed to mean?"

Luxeira initially remained silent, looking coldly at the Bronzor, who proceeded to take her photo. Her ID printed out and she walked over to scoop it up before the Bronzor could. She clipped it to her jacket immediately, and then turned to Sticky, saying, "It means that I lead and you follow. I was in the ninety-eighth percentile, so I'll be damned if I'm going let you hold me back."

 **Please proceed to the changing and bathing facilities. You are wasting my time,** the Bronzor said, its tone completely neutral. Luxeira approached a glass door and touched her shoulder to the scanner. It turned green and the door slid open. Luxeira walked forward, moving down the hall. Sticky trailed behind her. They proceeded in complete silence until they saw electricity crackling from around the corner.

"Is this your idea of a joke?! You can't do this to me, Commander! I'm not getting lumped in with a bunch of bush-league scrubs!" a harsh female voice shouted, making Sticky wince. More electricity surged down the hallway.

 _'C-Commander? Magnum's here?'_ Luxeira thought. She cautiously approached the corner and peered out around it. There, she found a Buzzwole standing tall with his arms crossed. A harness sat across his rippling chest muscles. In front of him, barely standing as tall as his waist, was a yellow-furred, two-legged cat. Her torso, legs, and coil-like arms had black fur, while a yellow, scarf-like ponytail trailed down behind her, touching the floor. She wore combat boots and a white vest with the Ultra Recon Squad's logo stitched into the back.

 **"Haaaaa ha ha ha ha! I admire your enthusiasm, Seraph!"** Magnum said, his booming voice making Luxeira press up against the wall. **"That's the kind of attitude that sells** _ **ultra justice**_ **phenomenally!"** he shouted, flexing his large arms skyward. **"Unfortunately, it's also the kind of attitude that gets you written up on fifty-seven separate citations for excessive force in three weeks. Financially speaking, we ultra-can't afford to cover your 'episodes' if we want to keep the lights on in this place."**

"Excessive force? More like excessive _farce!_ " Seraph spat, lightning gathering in her fists. "What a load of Tauros! I take care of threats _efficiently_ and _effectively_. I'm the best damn combat unit member you've got here. You can't do this to me!"

Magnum laughed enthusiastically, flexing as he put his hands on his hips. **"Actually, I ultra-can! I'm the Commander, here, after all, so what I say goes."** He then leaned down and said, **"Don't think of this as a temporary reassignment, Seraph. Think of it as an opportunity to expand your** _ **justice repertoire**_ **to include** _ **knowledgeable justiiiiice!**_ **"**

"I'm not going to babysit newbies," Seraph huffed, crossing her arms and tapping a foot on the ground impatiently. "I deserve to be out there kicking ass and taking names! The combat unit will be a total wreck without me."

"Luxeira, shouldn't we get a move on? We're going to be late," Sticky said, fidgeting nervously.

 **"Oh… hey! Perfect timing, cadets!"** Magnum thundered, pointed a flexed arm at them. **"Right this way… right this way."**

Luxeira and Sticky froze, exchanging startled looks with one another. They turned into looks of panic upon seeing the ire on Seraph's face. "U… us, sir?" Sticky said, pointing at his face.

 **"Aha ha ha ha! Why, yes, of course!"** Magnum replied, returning his hand to his hip. **"You're the two surveillance unit recruits, right? Let's see here…"** He reached his right hand up, flexing in the process, and a file materialized in it from the gemstone on his harness. **"Ah, here we are. Sticky and Lucina!"**

Luxeira had to steady herself to avoid faceplanting in disbelief. _'The Commander doesn't even know my name?'_ she thought. "Um… it's Luxeira, Commander Magnum, sir."

Magnum checked down at his file and then threw his head back in a hearty laugh. **"So it is! What an ultra-unfortunate slip of the tongue on my part. Forgive me, cadet, I've got a lot of new names and faces to learn, but you can bet that the Mighty Magnum will work** _ **ultra-hard**_ **to learn them all in time! Now then…"** He patted Seraph on the back, sending her stumbling toward Luxeira and Sticky. **"Meet your new teammate, Lieutenant Seraph. I have the utmost confidence she'll get you two through basic training with ultra-flying colors!"**

He swung his arm around, flexing and giving the trio a thumbs up. **"I'll see you cadets at orientation. In the meantime, enjoy the decontamination showers. And yes, Seraph, that includes you, too."** Magnum turned and walked off down the corridor, back muscles tensing and relaxing with each step.

"Err… um… a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lieutenant Seraph," Sticky greeted, holding an arm out toward her.

Seraph swatted Sticky's arm away. "Alright, listen up, dweebs!" she shouted, spooking Sticky into floating at attention. "Rule one: you don't talk unless I say to talk. Rule two: you don't move unless I say to move. If you can't follow those, then I'm gonna kick your asses so hard your grandkids will feel it in _their_ rears. Do I make myself clear?"

"C-Crystal, ma'am!" Sticky shouted, far too loud for the trio's close proximity.

"Ma'am?" Seraph fumed. "Do I look like my whiskers are graying to you, cue ball?"

"No, sir! I mean ma'am! I mean… uh…" Sticky looked about the room in a panic.

Seraph turned to Luxeira. "And what are you looking at, mutt? Never seen a Zeraora before? Well, take a good look, because if I find you ogling me during training assignments I'll drag you up to the Commander's office by that wiry tail of yours." She stormed forward, shoving Luxeira aside in the process. Seraph walked about ten steps before turning around. "Well? What are you two standing there gawking for? You heard the Commander… to the changing rooms _yesterday._ "

"B-But you, um, you told us not to move unless you said it was okay," Sticky mumbled.

A lightning bolt raced by Sticky's right shoulder. He ducked his head down, squealing at an octave Luxeira didn't think he could reach. "I don't have a shred of patience for smartasses. Quit floating there and march, cue ball!" Seraph shouted, pointing down the hallway. "Or… I guess… whatever the levitating equivalent of marching is."

Luxeira furrowed her brow and walked forward, not making eye contact with Sticky. The trio approached two gray doors sitting opposite one another in the hallway. Sticky flew into one of the doors, leaving Luxeira and Seraph standing outside the other. "Don't you think that was unnecessarily harsh?" she said. "I mean, the guy's a total screwball from what I can tell. But there's no reason to yell at him like that."

Seraph turned her icy gaze on Luxeira. "Yelling? Bitch, please. I hardly raised my voice at the guy," she scoffed, shoving the changing room door open and marching inside.

Luxeira followed her, looking around at the lockers. Seraph approached one and pressed her paw to a scanner on the door. A _click_ sounded and the door swung open. Seraph removed her vest and slung it inside. She leaned over and shook her torso, whipping her ponytail back and forth. "This is great. Just great," she growled. "Hey, word of warning, newbie, the surveillance unit jumpsuits chafe you something fierce. If you don't want a sore rear and groin I suggest you invest in a good silk cloth to wear underneath your uniform."

"Don't try to dodge the issue by offering up 'friendly advice,'" Luxeira scolded. "I raised a valid point. And we need to talk about it now."

Seraph turned around, crossing her arms over her chest and raising an eyebrow at Luxeira. "That so?" she said, clicking her tongue. "Hey!" she suddenly shouted, snapping her claws. Luxeira stiffened, biting her lower lip. "My eyes are up here, newbie. If you're gonna call me out, at least have the guts to do it face to face instead of trying to check me out. Besides," she turned back around and leaned over, as if she was taunting Luxeira to try something, "I don't screw cadets. _Especially_ not surveillance unit nobodies."

Luxeira squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. "Drop the attitude, Seraph," she barked, embers licking at her teeth. "I busted my tail off putting my application together for this place. I'm not about to let some juvenile feline ruin all my hard work with a few temper tantrums."

A smirk crossed Seraph's face. She pivoted to her right, swishing her ponytail to the side and leaning against her locker door. "Look, newbie. I get you're trying to be all big and stuff, but you can drop the act. I've already seen everything I need to know about you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Luxeira growled.

"You project a confident, composed demeanor to try and compensate for the fact that deep down you're incredibly insecure and rely on others giving you compliments to make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside," Seraph said, her smirk broadening. "You didn't join the Ultra Recon Squad to help anyone. You did it to make yourself look better."

"Oh, that's plenty rich, coming from the likes of you," Luxeira said, stomping a forepaw on the ground.

"Ha! The fact that you pounced on that so quickly tells me I'm right," Seraph said, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Face it. If you were really in this to explore worlds and help others… you'd be in the combat unit. But you chose the surveillance unit. That tells me you're in this only for vanity." She pulled a towel out from her locker and wrapped it around her torso. "You _think_ you're all that, but the reality is you're more than happy to have someone stand over you and bark orders. Because that's all the surveillance unit is. Heck, I'll bet my whole month's salary that you're actually a botto–"

Luxeira growled loudly, snorting out smoke tufts. "I'm not about to stand here and take that from you!" She pawed at the ground.

Seraph slammed her locker shut. Lightning crackled through the door. "You really want to do this here, hotshot?" She grinned mischievously at Luxeira. "Normally I'd be thrilled to tangle with a sweet girl like you, but like I said, I don't go for surveillance unit losers. Now, you'd best get moving or you're going to be late. And I _know_ that'd just chap your ass." Seraph sauntered off, ponytail swishing across her waist.

Luxeira frowned. _'Deep breaths, Luxeira. So, maybe this isn't the start you envisioned. But you can't let it get you down! This is your dream and nothing will stand in the way of that.'_ She looked at the folder she'd received and then proceeded toward a locker in the corner of the room. Luxeira's frown deepened when she saw the dent in the door and the cracked screen on the paw scanner.

She sighed loudly. _'Why me, universe? Seriously, who did I piss off to end up in such a lousy situation?'_ Luxeira pressed her forepaw to the scanner. To her relief, it identified her paw and the locker door swung open. Luxeira removed her outfit and stuffed it into her locker along with her bag. There was a brand-new towel sitting neatly on the little shelf at the top of the locker. Luxeira took the towel in her mouth and closed the locker. She walked off in the same direction she saw Seraph go.

A line of sliding glass doors sat before her. One of them had a red light on the ceiling above it, while the rest were green. Luxeira walked up to the first door. She hung her towel on a hook and watched the door slide open, revealing a small white capsule with water jets stationed all around it. Luxeira hesitantly stepped inside.

 **Germ-bearing lifeform detected. Beginning decontamination process.**

"Wait, what?" Luxeira said, looking around the room. She turned around and saw the door shut behind her. "Hey, hold on a second! Don't I get to decide when to start this thing?"

As if to respond to her, the shower jets all turned on simultaneously, blasting Luxeira with piping hot water jets from all directions. Being a fire-type, the temperature wasn't what startled her. Rather, it was the intensity of the water. It struck her hard enough to knock her to the floor with a loud whine.

"Ow… _ow!_ Stop it… that hurts!" she barked, kicking at the water with all four legs. The shower jets continued pumping out water for a solid minute, until they abruptly shut off. Luxeira lay in a puddle on the floor, fur sopping wet and breath coming in short, ragged gasps. She poked her eyes open and hesitantly staggered to her feet.

 **Initial rinse complete. Deploying antimicrobial body wash.**

"Antimicrobial… huh?" Luxeira gasped, crouching low to the ground. The water jets suddenly retracted into the walls, only to be immediately replaced by a series of white, cylindrical nodules. Before Luxeira could get her bearings straight, each nodule fired a pressurized stream of soap at her. Luxeira yowled in surprise as the soap pelted her wet fur. The instant it made contact, the soap expanded, until Luxeira was covered from head to tail in a thick layer of sudsy bubbles.

"Gack… augh… g-get this stuff… off me!" Luxeira wheezed, trying to shake herself off to no avail.

 **Please try to remain still. Excessive moment will compromise the decontamination process.**

"I'd like to see you come in here and take this," Luxeira growled, spitting suds out of her mouth.

 **Well, that's just rude.**

Luxeira's tail shot up. "Wait… is someone actually controlling this all manually?" She looked up toward the ceiling. "I swear, if there's a camera filming me–"

 **Us computer programs have feelings too, you know.**

"Seriously?" Luxeira groaned. She looked up again, expecting the computer voice to answer her. Instead, the soap dispensers retracted back into the wall.

 **Antimicrobial body wash deployed. Commencing proton scrub.**

Several wall panels opened up and mechanical arms launched out of them. Each arm bore an electronic scrubber rotating rapidly. Luxeira stared at one of them, eyes widening. "Get that thing away from me! Help! Somebody help! There's a deranged computer trying to kill me in here!"

One of the arms Luxeira wasn't watching contacted her left flank. Luxeira tried to jump back, but another arm appeared on her right. In a matter of seconds, the scrubbers boxed her in and proceeded to run along her body, rubbing in the soap. Luxeira vibrated from the scrubbers' intensity, fangs chattering together. A scrubber went up toward her forehead and she immediately slammed her eyes shut. It then ran over her face, dredging up nauseous feelings in the pit of her stomach.

While the nausea persisted, two of the scrubbers proceeded down her belly. She yipped in fright and her legs gave out. To her complete surprise, the scrubbers supported her weight, keeping her upright while they did her job. Luxeira squeezed her eyes shut even tighter, whimpering loudly as the scrubbers completed their work. After another two minutes, they retracted into the wall. In trying to regain her balance, Luxeira slipped and fell on her belly, her vision growing hazy.

"Oooooogh… is it over?" she groaned, putting a forepaw up to her muzzle to stop herself from puking.

 **Negative. And please try not to throw up in here. We'd have to restart the entire process.**

Luxeira scrambled to her feet, nearly slipping a second time. "Well, what do you still have left to do?"

 **Engaging second rinse cycle.**

"Oh crap," Luxeira whispered. She dug her paws into the floor as best she could and tensed up her legs. Hot water blasted her from all directions again, cleaning off the remnants of the soap. The water persisted for a minute before stopping. Luxeira stood in the middle of the steam-filled room. " _Now_ are we done?"

 **Negative. Stand by for light-speed drying cycle.**

"Wait, what does that even me–"

More wall panels opened up, revealing glowing orange thermal plates. Intense gusts of heat struck Luxeira from every angle. Her fur tingled for a few seconds, before her entire coat poofed up, making her look like a blue cotton ball.

 **Decontamination process complete. Please step into the sterile changing room and don your designated uniform.**

Luxeira was surprised to see the opposite wall in the shower open up, revealing a plain white room. She stepped out into it, eyes blinking rapidly as they adjusted to the bright lights. _'Wait, was the point of the towel, then?'_ she wondered, glancing back over her shoulder as the door closed.

"Pfffbt… that's a good look for you, newbie. Suits you nicely."

Luxeira turned back around, a growl rumbling in the back of her throat. Seraph sat on one of the room's two gray benches. She had on a white, full-body jumpsuit, black combat boots, and a gray, helmeted visor. A harness sat over her shoulders, with a sapphire gemstone in the center. Only Seraph's claws and the lower half of her face were visible.

"Let me guess," Seraph said. "You moved around a lot, didn't you?" She shook her head. "Pro tip: decontamination showers are easier the more you stay still. But I can see how a nervous pup like you would jump around a ton." She pointed to a small space in the corner. "Electronic groomer is over there. You're gonna want it if you have any hope of fitting into your jumpsuit."

"Did you wait around just to taunt me?" Luxeira said. "Because it's not working. I was just… caught off guard by how _intrusive_ that decontamination shower was."

"Aww, boo hoo," Seraph said, rubbing her paws over her visor. "If you think that's bothersome, you're not cut out for this line of work. Getting on a rabid Xurkitree's bad side, for example, could put you in the medical wards seizing up for the rest of your life."

Luxeira walked past Seraph, holding her snout high. "Your petulant little attempts to unnerve me won't work, Seraph. I'm here to do my job and do it well. I don't care what you think."

"You'd be wise to heed my advice, newbie. Or you're gonna have a record-short tenure here," Seraph warned. She exited the room through another glass sliding door.

Luxeira gnashed her fangs. _'I'll show her,'_ she thought. _'I'm gonna be the best damn surveillance unit cadet this Ultra Recon Squad has ever seen! And no clumsy Poipole is going to stop me!'_

* * *

As you can see, this is another flashback. After the lukewarm response to Special Episode 1, I decided to stick with the usual narration style. This means you guys, the readers, will get more details than Team Radiance does. You might also notice many of the Pokémon here are not their usual colors. This is in reference to the Ultra Warp Ride minigame in Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, where you can find Ultra Wormholes that have a one hundred percent chance of spawning a shiny Pokémon. Lastly, if you can spot the blatant anime reference one character in this chapter is presenting, you win three Shane points! They're not good for anything, but they give you a warm, fuzzy feeling inside.

Once again, thank you all for the support. I'm amazed we're actually closing in on five hundred comments. Warms my heart enough to put out chapters even when I'm sick. Onto replies!

WonderBread: interesting name choice. I'm more of a Pepperidge Farm guy, myself... aha ha. As for your question, Silvally was definitely happy because he got a kiss.

Another guest: we'll be exploring why Blaziken (and the other humans) don't go by their normal names later on. So, you're just going to have to stick around.

SuperOmegaGuest: I can't confirm or deny anything. You'll have to wait and see.

Anon Omega: I promise answers will come, as long as you're patient. I don't plan to leave anything hanging.

JesusChrist: just keep that guess in the back of your head. Either you'll be right and can celebrate or I'm going to catch you by surprise. Or maybe both! Only time will tell.

That's it for now. I hope you all enjoy this little sci-fi adventure! Next time: basic training turmoil.


	75. Mission Implausible

My apologies for the slight delay getting this up. I've been dealing with recurrent eye infections. Good news is I can still see, so I can still bring you the update. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 64: Mission Implausible**

 **~Ultra Village Recon Base, Tenth Floor~**

"Rrrrgh. Sticky, will you _please_ just float behind me if you're not going to move any faster?" Luxeira growled. "It's awkward enough trying to walk around with this helmet. You are _not_ helping."

Sticky turned around, only to bump his head against the glass wall. He floated back from it, adjusting the visor over his eyes. "Hang on. There's supposed to be a way to deactivate this cursed contraption," he said.

Luxeira sighed loudly. "There's a button on the left side of your helmet. Did you read the instructions at all?"

Sticky turned toward her. "There were instructions?"

Luxeira stormed past Sticky, baring her fangs. "This is why I lead and you follow," she said, scanning the white, electronic doors on her left as she walked. Eventually, she found one claiming to be an entrance to a briefing room. Luxeira pressed her new ID to the scanner. The door clicked and slid open, allowing her to step inside. Sticky barely managed to float in after her before the door slid shut.

 **"Ah, Sticky and Lucina… ultra-perfect timing! We were just about to get started!"**

Luxeira looked around the room, where several Pokémon were sitting around a glass, rectangular table. However, with the room's dim lighting and all the Pokémon wearing black or white jumpsuits like hers, Luxeira couldn't immediately identify their species. Instead, she focused on Magnum, who stood at the head of the table, an electronic screen behind him broadcasting a digital map with several different colored dots on it. On his right were an Entei, a Raikou, and a Suicune. They each had matching red jumpsuits on, the shoulders bearing gold badges with the Ultra Recon Squad's logo. Like Luxeira, they wore helmets with special visors that covered their eyes.

"Ha! See that, newbie? Commander can't even get your name right," Seraph heckled. Unlike the other Pokémon in the room, she stood in the back corner, leaning against the wall.

Luxeira marched toward the empty chair at the far end of the table. Sticky floated after her, waving at the different combat and security unit recruits who looked at him. "Stop it. You're embarrassing both of us," Luxeira hissed in a whisper.

"I feel just fine," Sticky said, settling beside her.

 **"Well then. Allow me to properly introduce myself,"** Magnum said. He flexed his arms skyward, pointing his thumbs at his head. **"I am the Mighty Magnum! Commander of Ultra Village's branch of the Ultra Recon Squad."** He held an open palm up toward the group. **"Please, hold your applause until the end of the presentation."**

Sweat drops trickled down Luxeira's neck. _'Does the Commander really need to shout like that? We're not even five yards away from him.'_

Magnum paced back and forth at the head of the table. **"I myself did not grow up in Ultra Village. Rather, I am here so that I may guide you fine Pokémon and Ultra Beasts."** He flexed his right arm and slammed it down on the table. **"There's a crazy, ultra-chaotic network lying beyond your world. Yup… Ultra Space can swallow up innocent creatures at a moment's notice! That's why the Ultra Recon Squad must be ultra-ready to leap into action, spreading justice where we travel!"**

An Arcanine and a Beartic whooped and hollered, smacking the table with their limbs. Beside them, a Chestnaught thumped his chest while a Pheromosa rolled her eyes at Magnum's antics. **"Alright, alright, settle down, all of you,"** Magnum exclaimed. **"Enthusiasm is great, but I don't need it wrecking my ultra-conference table."** He coughed a couple of times and turned to his right. **"I'd like to introduce the three folks who will lead you all through basic training. They're three of our branch's highest-ranking officers!"**

"A pleasure to meet all of you. I'm Anthus and I help oversee the security unit," the Suicune greeted, waving his left forepaw at the cadets. "I look forward to seeing what all of you are capable of."

Entei stepped up beside Anthus. "My name's Phygen. If you're a combat unit cadet, then you can bet you'll be working with me. I expect a lot out of you… but don't go overboard or you'll end up like that gal in the corner." He pointed a forepaw over at Seraph.

"Blow me, Phygen," Seraph huffed, turning her nose skyward.

"That's _Captain_ Phygen to you, lieutenant," Phygen barked. "And, unlike you, I prefer committed relationships."

 **"That's enough, both of you. Seraph, I ultra-expect better of someone on probation,"** Magnum scolded. Luxeira turned to Seraph, only to find her scowling at the nearby trash bin.

"Err… right," the Raikou next to Phygen whispered. "I guess that just leaves me. Hi, everyone. Name's Tori. Been on the surveillance unit since I came to this base from my world. I've heard good things about you all and can't want to see you in action."

 **"Excellent intros, captains!"** Magnum thundered, flexing in between each clap he gave them. **"So, I'd like to take this opportunity to talk a bit more about basic training. Despite you all being assigned to different units, you will all complete the same regiment so we can be ultra-sure that, not only can you fulfill your assignments, but we can count on you in the event of an emergency."**

Luxeira stiffened. _'Hold on. I knew I'd have to train, yeah. But is Magnum saying I may actually get called on… to fight?'_ She gulped down a mouthful of spit. _'This training better work wonders, then. I can barely cough up a fireball.'_ Over her shoulder, she could feel Seraph studying her intently.

The Pheromosa on Luxeira's left threw up her hand. "Like, question, Commander Magnum. We're supposed to get these medical tests done in our first week. When are we, like, going to have the time to do that if we're doing basic training?"

 **"Not to worry, cadet! We're not here to overtax you to the point of exhaustion. You have late afternoons and nights off for these first couple of weeks,"** Magnum said. **"You will, however, be required to take an overnight surveillance shift before you can clear basic training."**

"O-Oh dear," Sticky whispered. "I've never pulled an all-nighter before."

Luxeira looked at him. "Seriously? I suppose you never went to any parties then, either?"

"You mean, like a birthday party? With cake and games?" Sticky wondered.

"Forget it, pinhead," Luxeira groaned, letting her head fall onto the table. _'Keep it together, Luxeira. Everyone's watching you now. Including that stuck-up hussy.'_ She glanced at Seraph, who was filing her claws with some sort of metal rod. Seraph flashed Luxeira a toothy grin before returning her attention to her claws.

 **"Any other questions?"** Magnum asked. Silence followed. **"Spectacular! Now… go out there and give those basic training assignments the ultra-workaround! Haaa ha ha ha ha!"** He stomped out of the room, leaving the captains at the head of the table. Tori immediately caught Luxeira's gaze and trotted over to her. Luxeira sat up, holding her head high.

"H-Hello, Captain," Luxeira greeted.

Tori smirked. "You can relax, cadet. No need to get all stiff and formal with me. I think you'll find I'm a pretty flexible 'mon," she said, chuckling. "You're Luxeira, yes?"

Luxeira nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I've been looking forward to this for a while. So, what's our first basic training assignment going to me?"

"Oh brother. What a kiss up," Seraph scoffed, walking over. "I see your fur is as matted as ever, Tori."

Tori tapped her helmet and her visor disappeared, revealing an unamused look on her face. "Seraph," she said icily. "I saw the report from Commander Magnum on my desk this morning, but I sincerely thought it was some sort of prank."

"Nobody wishes that were truer than me," Seraph huffed. "Look, neither of us want to do this. So, why don't you let me go about my business and you can just sign off on the forms ending my probation."

"I could," Tori said, smirking, "but I think you could do with a little dose of humility. So, I'll be keeping you with these cadets for the duration of their basic training."

Lightning crackled down Seraph's wiry arms. "Fine then." She shrugged and shook her head. "Don't come crawling to me when I overshadow these two and make them run home to their mommies and daddies."

Tori didn't flinch. "If that's the case, then I look forward to seeing you handle the Gravi-Mill's max difficulty package _._ "

Seraph's smarmy grin promptly vanished. "Max difficulty? Are you kidding me?"

"If you want to get off probation quickly, then you're going to follow my orders," Tori said, a gleam in her eyes. Luxeira couldn't help but grin at Seraph's displeasure. That moment of joy quickly came to an end, however, as a question lingered in her mind.

"Um… what exactly is a Gravi-Mill?" she asked.

* * *

 **~Ultra Village Recon Base, Ninth Floor~**

As it turned out, the Gravi-Mill was a spherical chamber housed in one of the base's numerous training rooms. The room itself was a glass bubble protruding from the main tower, offering up a panoramic view of Ultra Village. Various workout equipment lined the room, including treadmills, ellipticals for two and four-legged Pokémon, multiple weight machines, and free-standing barbells and dumbbells. The Gravi-Mill machines had treads reminiscent of a treadmill. However, as soon as Tori fiddled with the control panel outside each machine, gravity inside the sphere intensified. Luxeira found herself struggling to move her limbs.

"Not every world you end up in is going to have the gravitational force you're used to," Tori explained, pacing in front of three Gravi-Mills as her charges tried to run along the moving treads. Seraph was the most exhausted, her jumpsuit thoroughly soaked with sweat and her legs pulsating with each step she took. Nevertheless, she was outperforming Luxeira and Sticky, as evidenced by the projection screen behind the Gravi-Mills showing that Seraph had run the farthest.

"Let's go, you three. You never know when you're going to have to run from an aggressive UB during a mission," Tori said. She looked disapprovingly at Sticky, who was under the lowest of the gravity settings but having difficulty running on the treadmill.

"With… all do respect… ma'am," Sticky wheezed, "why can't… I just… float?"

"The gravity you're subject to on assignment may be too intense for you to float properly," Tori explained.

"What exactly… would we be doing… that would have us… in weird gravity?" Luxeira asked, flanks heaving as she ran.

Tori raised an eyebrow. "Huh. And here I thought you were all studied up on the surveillance unit," she said, to Luxeira's momentary panic.

"I… I am! I know we go investigate strange ultra aura signals… but that's all the information I could get," Luxeira said, trying to look away from Seraph's derisive grin.

"Oh… right. We _do_ tend to keep our work a bit under wraps," Tori said, chuckling. "I can give you guys a brief rundown."

"Don't need it," Seraph scoffed. "And these two… won't be around… long enough… for it to matter."

In response to Seraph's insult, Tori walked over and upped the gravity level on Seraph's pod. Seraph collapsed onto the treadmill, which pushed her into the wall. "Dick move!" she groaned, rubbing her neck.

Tori ignored Seraph and turned to Luxeira and Sticky. "The surveillance unit, as the name implies, investigates any abnormal signals we detect from nearby worlds," she explained. "But we're also the Ultra Recon Squad's first line of response to distress signals." Tori noticed the confusion on her trainees' faces. "From time to time, other worlds or individuals with the means to broadcast messages through the Ultra Space network will send out requests for help. The surveillance unit is the first to respond to them."

"So, what? We go to the world… scope it out… and send info back for the combat unit?" Luxeira asked.

"Pretty much. You're like the set-up crew… and us combat unit members are the star attraction!" Seraph boasted, nearly slipping as she got back on the treadmill.

Tori shook her head. "Except you're part of the 'set-up crew' until further notice. That must sting, huh?" she said, flashing her large teeth at Seraph.

Seraph growled her displeasure and focused her efforts on staying up with the treadmill. Luxeira smirked, satisfied with Seraph's unhappy predicament. "Still… surely not every distress signal we get is a hostile situation, right?" Luxeira asked.

"Good hypothesis there, cadet. You've got a decent head on your shoulders, I can tell," Tori said, prompting Luxeira to flash a toothy grin of her own at Seraph. "When situations are hostile, we call in the combat unit. Otherwise, we provide the rescue to the party that needs it. Sometimes that means we bring fallers back to base to try and help them out," Tori explained.

"Begging your pardon, captain, but what exactly is a faller?" Sticky asked.

"Seriously? How do you _not_ know about them?" Luxeira gasped.

"Yeah, what heavy rock were you living under, cue ball?" Seraph sneered.

"No, it's not just that. There are questions about fallers on the SUQE," Luxeira said. "Did you just guess wildly on all of them?"

"Um… maybe?" Sticky mumbled.

"Baaa ha ha ha ha! Seriously?!" Seraph roared with laughter, not even caring that she tumbled off the treadmill and slammed into the wall of her pod.

"Enough, Seraph," Tori barked. "Luxeira, why don't you loop your fellow cadet in? We're all about helping each other on the surveillance unit."

Luxeira wrinkled her snout, but obliged. "Fallers are individuals from full-scale universes that are unintentionally sucked into an Ultra Wormhole, carried through Ultra Space, and deposited in another world. They tend to suffer from varying degrees of memory loss and disorientation. Other possible symptoms include radiation poisoning, vision or hearing loss, paralysis, and, rarest of all, transformation into another species entirely."

"Nice work, cadet," Tori said, nodding approvingly. "It's the surveillance unit's responsibility to take in fallers, ensure they're in good health, and try to return them to their world of origin. And if we _can't_ , then we try our best to set up a new life for them in Ultra Village. That's always considered a last-ditch option, but one we need to keep in mind."

"So, when exactly will we be taking one of those missions?" Luxeira wondered. Her legs burned and she was finding it increasingly hard to keep up with the treadmill. Much to her surprise, however, the treadmill slowed to a stop. Luxeira collapsed onto her belly, tongue lolling out of her mouth as she panted heavily.

Tori stood by Luxeira's control panel. The Gravi-Mill sphere opened up while Tori stepped back from the panel. "Well, I prefer to take a paws-on approach with my cadets," Tori said, walking up to Luxeira and offering a foreleg. Luxeira lightly bit down on Tori's thigh. Tori helped Luxeira stumble back to her feet. She produced a water bottle from one of the large pockets on her jumpsuit. "Open up," Tori said.

Luxeira obliged and Tori squeezed the bottle, squirting a stream of water into Luxeira's mouth. "Thanks," Luxeira said, rubbing her snout. "What do you mean by paws-on approach, though?"

"I mean that we'll be heading out on our first assignment in just a couple of days," Tori said, walking over to Sticky to offer him some water as well.

"Hold up… seriously?" Seraph said, staggering out of her pod and dropping to her knees to catch her breath. "These two… grade-A dorks… won't be ready… for an Ultra Warp Ride."

"Well, if that's the case, then consider me excited," Luxeira said, smirking defiantly at Seraph. "I'm ready and willing to help as many folks as I can."

Tori turned around, a smile on her muzzle. "That's exactly what I want to hear."

"That's exactly what I want to hear," Seraph repeated mockingly, her voice squeaky. "Pah. She doesn't really mean that."

Tori sighed and shook her head at Seraph. "The more of an attitude you give me, the longer you can expect to be working with us," she said. "It's not going to kill you to try and show a bit of team spirit."

Seraph staggered to her feet, arms hanging down by her hips. "I'm not… about to give you… the satisfaction," she growled. "Let's just get a move on, already."

* * *

 **~Ultra Village Recon Base, Fifth Floor~**

Luxeira proceeded down the rounded metal corridor. Her jumpsuit and helmet were gone, replaced by a silk dress she enjoyed lounging around in. She was returning to her new room after enjoying a solitary breakfast. The past couple of days had been filled with more physical training, interspersed with important lessons by Tori. Luxeira learned how to operate equipment like her harness and visor and how to read ultra auras and signals received on the base's computer systems. Then she used a virtual training station to practice navigating through Ultra Space in preparation for her first Ultra Warp Ride, which would be happening very soon.

Of course, her stomach was doing backflips. She hoped a nice bowl of oatmeal with a cup of hot tea would settle her nerves. But her thoughts kept drifting to Seraph. She had taken every opportunity to throw in a snide remark or a disapproving look at everything Luxeira did, as if Seraph was actively trying to get Luxeira to quit. Sometimes Tori was quick to jump in, but other times it was just the two of them together. Each time, Luxeira tried to muster up the courage to fire something back, but her nerves kept getting in the way.

 _'If I actually knew how to hold my own in battle, you can bet I'd show that hussy what's what,'_ Luxeira thought. _'Ugh. I just need to forget about her. Maybe once we're actually on a mission, Seraph will settle down.'_ Luxeira nodded. _'Yeah, I bet that's it. She's just got a bad case of cabin fever. Like when Silus broke his leg and was cooped up at home for a month. He made me want to pull my fur out, but we got through it.'_

Luxeira finally reached her room. She tapped her ID card to the scanner on a white door. It turned green and the door slid open. Luxeira paused in the doorway, frowning at the lack of light in the room. "Seraph, are you still sleeping? C'mon, we've got to report to the surveillance unit staging room in thirty minutes." She touched her snout to the light panel on the wall. Bright white light flickered on in the room.

Luxeira turned around, only to bark in surprise and backpedal into the corner. "W-What the hell, Seraph?!"

In front of her, Seraph stood, arms raised in the air and mouth opened wide, revealing her fangs. She held the pose for a couple more seconds before she broke down laughing, falling onto her back and kicking her legs wildly in the air. "Baaaa ha ha ha ha! Oh man, did you _see_ your face? Priceless! Absolutely priceless!"

"Were you trying to scare me to death? What is wrong with you?!" Luxeira snarled, snorting tufts of smoke from her snout.

Seraph rolled to her feet, grabbing her helmet from her bed in the process. "Just wanted to see how nervous you were before your first mission. And the answer is… very." She plopped her helmet over her head. "Now I'm definitely looking forward to seeing you in action." Seraph strode confidently toward the door, but not before turning to say, "Try not to lose your breakfast on the Ultra Warp Ride. No one will ever let you live it down."

Luxeira watched Seraph leave the room, whistling jovially to herself. She gnashed her teeth together. _'Keep it together, Luxeira. Today's about showing what you're made of. You're going to go out there… explore a brand-new world… and impress Captain Tori. None of Seraph's dumb jokes will matter once you show her up out in the field. She's been reprimanded so much, she's bound to do a poor job as a surveillance unit member, right?'_

She froze with her open mouth hovering over her jumpsuit. _'Wait… if she actually is that bad, won't she just end up making problems for me?'_ Luxeira pushed that thought from her mind and proceeded to the corner of the room. There, a set of mechanical arms helped to put on her jumpsuit and helmet. Once she suited up, she threw her harness onto her torso. It buckled into place, adding weight to her shoulders and chest that nearly made her fall over.

Luxeira stumbled about until she had properly regained her balance. Then she set off from her room, proceeding through the glass hallway. Outside, she could see some Pokémon emerging from their homes onto the streets of Ultra Village's central district. _'Remember, you're doing this to help these folks,'_ she thought.

She reached the elevators and rode one up to the building's second-highest floor. After disembarking, Luxeira found Tori and Sticky standing next to a grated metal door. "Ah, good, you made it. Sometimes the elevators can be finicky letting cadets up here during basic training," Tori said, beckoning Luxeira over. "This here is our staging room. When you're on duty, you hang out here and wait to receive your assignment from higher-ranking officers."

Tori touched her ID card to the scanner. The metal grates retracted into the floor and walls, allowing the trio to pass. "FYI, I've gone ahead and put in a preliminary name for your unit. You two okay with going by 'Team Paradox?'"

Luxeira's muzzle stiffened. "That sounds intimidating, doesn't it? Why'd you pick it?"

"I thought it fit. After all, you, Sticky, and Seraph are practically polar opposites of each other. In other words, it's _paradoxical_ that you're all working together," Tori said, grinning at her own lame joke. Sticky chuckled awkwardly until Luxeira shot him a scathing look. "In any event, that's how you guys will receive your assignment pages. They should pop up on your visors, complete with coordinate details and where in the room you should report for the appropriate Ultra Warp Ride."

 _Beep beep beep beep beep beep!_

Sticky flailed about in midair. "Ah! Bright! The screen's too bright!" He grabbed hold of his helmet with both arms and tried to pull it off.

"The brightness calibrator is on the right side of the helmet, Sticky," Luxeira groaned. "I told you to read the instructions."

Sticky stiffened. "I, uh, must've missed that part," he muttered, fidgeting with the knob on his helmet.

 _'Liar,'_ Luxeira thought. _'I'd better take care to stay close to Tori and keep this guy around Seraph. That's the only way I see this first mission going smoothly.'_ She focused on the information displayed in her visor. "So, this is an… wait, what kind of signal is this?" Luxeira wondered. "It's really garbled and doesn't match any of the patterns we saw yesterday."

"That's a good question," Tori said, scrunching up her snout in thought. "Some of the fragments _look_ like a proper SOS signal, but this is rather unclear." She turned to a Nihilego and a Gengar sitting next to each other on a couch and looking through a magazine. "Hey, are you two seeing this? What gives? Are we having reception issues around the base?"

"Not at all," the Nihilego replied. "I was able to tune into the new 'All My Stakatakas' with no problems. And that just ended five minutes ago."

"What could this mean, Captain?" Sticky wondered.

"… tch. It means you scrubs aren't going to be taking this mission," Seraph scoffed. She was perched on a chair, filing her flaws and doing her best to look as bored as possible.

"On the contrary. I think this would be a great test of the cadets' abilities to improvise under pressure," Tori said. Luxeira nodded confidently, while Sticky's face blanched. "Relax, you two. Seraph and I will be with you every step of the way."

"Pfbt. Speak for yourself," Seraph said, rolling her neck to the right so that it cricked loudly. "I don't want to spend forever in some unknown pocket dimension while these two babies fumble about. I'll take the lead. They can watch how a _real_ specialist gets things done."

"You'll do no such thing, unless you want another citation to add to your record," Tori said, her thin tail rapping against her side. Seraph briefly glared at her, but ultimately stomped toward the door. "Come on, you two. Time for your first real Ultra Warp Ride."

Luxeira took a deep breath and followed Tori out of the staging room, trying her best to look as calm and composed as possible while her heart rate steadily picked up. Tori guided the two cadets along a hallway until they reached a steel-plated door. She used her ID to open the door up, revealing a railed walkway on the outside of the tower. Sticky floated through the door and threw an arm up over his head.

"G… goodness! We're quite high up," he said, trying his best not to look over the railing at the buildings and roads far below him.

"What do you have to worry about, cue ball? You float," Seraph scoffed from her vantage point at the top of a set of metal-grated stairs. "Hurry it up, newbies. You're wasting my time with all your gawking."

 _'I'll show her who's wasting time,'_ Luxeira thought, taking another deep breath. She stomped up the stairs, stopping to take in the base's rooftop. It was a gigantic metal platform. Stationed all around it where pitch-black, four-legged, mechanical lions. The one closest to her was on, its electronic eyes glowing bright red, like headlights on a car.

"Is that what we're using for the Ultra Warp Ride?" Sticky wondered, staring transfixed at the machine.

"Correct! Meet S0L30," Tori declared. "We were supposed to partner up with a Solgaleo and a Lunala, but our branch never managed to get into contact with any free ones. So, our lab team configured these as a substitute." She patted the artificial Solgaleo's foreleg.

"You're just going to use some machine to rip open an Ultra Wormhole? Isn't that dangerous?" Luxeira asked.

"Ha! See, what did I tell you? These two don't have what it takes," Seraph said, swishing her ponytail to the side.

Growling, Luxeira climbed on S0L30, fastening herself into one of the seats. "I'm ready to go, Captain," she declared.

Tori nodded. "Excellent. You two get on, too," she said, looking at Seraph and Sticky. "Sticky, I'll want you in the middle. That seat has a stabilizer for levitating 'mons."

"Much obliged," Sticky said, floating up and strapping himself into the appropriate seat. Seraph rolled her eyes and hopped into the front seat, until a scathing look from Tori made her shuffle back into the second seat. Tori then positioned herself in the front seat. A holographic screen appeared in front of her.

"Everyone ready?" she asked. Tori didn't wait for any responses before she said, "Activate Ultra Warp Ride!"

S0L30 stomped each of its mechanical legs on the ground. Steam vented out of its joints. The machine rumbled, whirring to life as it lifted its mechanical head up. Its red eyes flashed and a red, compass-like insignia appeared between its eyes. It grew brighter and brighter until a ball of red light launched over the heads of Team Paradox. It rose about ten feet into the air before expanding into a red, checkered portal.

Luxeira stared up into portal, watching the energy swirl around overhead. _'So, that's an Ultra Wormhole. On the other side of that thing… lies all of Ultra Space and countless other worlds!'_

"Try not to let go, newbies. You'll go flying off through Ultra Space if you do," Seraph heckled.

"Knock it off, Seraph," Tori barked. "Alright, crew. We're setting out into the Ultra Wormhole. Brace yourselves!" She leaned over against S0L30's back and pressed a button on its right shoulder. S0L30 crouched low to the ground and sprang up, its momentum carrying it through the portal.

As soon as swirling red energy surrounded Team Paradox, they all felt an immense gravitational force suck S0L30 upward, pulling it further from the base. In a matter of seconds, Ultra Village disappeared before their very eyes, replaced by a vast purple expanse. Luxeira clamped her muzzle shut and a mask phased into existence, supplying her with air.

 _'My goodness… the virtual reality machine can't prepare a 'mon for something like this,'_ she thought. _'Look at this place!'_

S0L30 ran forward, its paws striking nothing but empty space. Instead, small jet nozzles on its feet produced bursts of air that steered it forward. As it moved, Luxeira noticed massive crystal clusters floating about in limbo. Far in the distance, she could even see bright fireballs soaring through Ultra Space like comets. Other quadrants had solar flares erupting from orange stars, with each flare taking various geometric shapes.

"Can you guys hear me?" Tori asked. Her voice crackled in through Luxeira's helmet. Luxeira could tell Tori's oxygen mask muffled her voice.

"Yeah, yeah, we've got you," Seraph scoffed. "What's the hold up? Let's get moving, already."

"You're gonna have to give me a moment," Tori said. "The SOS signal is pretty weak. I'm having trouble localizing it."

As soon as she finished saying that, a purple Ultra Wormhole exploded into existence right next to S0L30. Luxeira and Sticky gasped as a trio of Nihilego floated out of the wormhole, passing directly over their heads and into a second purple portal to their left. "Goodness!" Sticky gasped. "I thought Ultra Warp Rides were the only way to safely pass through Ultra Space."

"Not if you're a UB," Tori said. "Which reminds me, you can ditch the mask, Sticky. You should be fine, here."

"R-Really?" Sticky muttered. He deactivated his mask and, to his surprise, found himself able to breathe perfectly fine. "Oh. Well, that's embarrassing," he muttered, rubbing his head sheepishly.

"Oh, brother," Seraph scoffed. "What kind of sorry excuse for a UB doesn't realize they're safe in the Ultra Space network?"

"Quiet down, everyone!" Tori barked, shutting Seraph up immediately. "This is so strange," she said, "I can't seem to pinpoint this signal. I'm… I'm not even sure there's an Ultra Wormhole that can get us to wherever this signal is coming from?"

"How heavily are you filtering out the background noise?" Seraph asked.

"I'm at max noise reduction," Tori exclaimed. "Hang on… there's one more thing I can try." She once again braced herself against S0L30. The machine broke into a sprint, dashing past several different-colored Ultra Wormholes. "If we can find a clear space, we might be able to get a better signal."

Luxeira kept her paws tightly wrapped around her grips, jostling about on S0L30's back. _'Okay, I can see why they were warning me about puking,'_ she thought, stomach gurgling every time she bounced around. _'Keep it together, Luxeira. You know Seraph is just waiting for something to go wrong. Don't give her that satisfaction!'_

"Hmm… this is odd," Tori said. "Guys, check your visors. I think we're only about one light year away from the signal's origin point, but I'm not seeing any evidence there's an Ultra Wormhole we can generate."

"… tch. You're just not trying hard enough," Seraph sneered. She tapped her visor with a claw and it glowed red. Seraph growled in annoyance. "Is this supposed to be some sort of joke? This signal's weaker than the mild salsa they use in the cafeteria on taco nights."

"It's not a joke," Tori insisted. "Hang on… I'm going to radio base and see what we should do." Tori tapped the side of her helmet. "Tham, this is Captain Tori with Team Paradox. Do you copy?"

 _"I read you loud and clear, captain,"_ Tham said, voice sounding through everyone's helmets. _"What's the problem? My tracker's showing you stopped in the middle of an Ultra Warp Ride."_

"Well, that's the problem. We're one light year from the distress signal's origin… and I'm not sensing any spikes signifying there's a world we can access," Tori explained. "I know it's been awhile since we've done this, but I may need to employ S0L30's dimensional shears and force a tear in Ultra Space."

 _"Hmm… that's rather risky,"_ Tham said.

"Are we even sure this signal's the real deal? It could be a prank," Seraph said.

 _"From what I can see… there are multiple lifeforms stranded at the signal's origin point,"_ Tham said. _"Hang on, let me contact Commander Magnum and see what he has to say about all of this."_ The line went silent, leaving Team Paradox sitting atop S0L30's back for a couple of minutes. Then, the speakers in their headphones crackled once again. _"Alright, the Commander says you're free to use the shears. Just don't go overboard,"_ Tham said.

"You know me. Caution's the name of the game," Tori said, chuckling.

 _"It's not you we're worried about, Captain,"_ Tham said.

"Very funny, chrome dome," Seraph spat. "Why don't you go back to your lame-ass TV screens, huh?"

"Quiet, Seraph," Tori said. "Thanks, Tham. You've been a big help, as always."

 _"My pleasure,"_ Tham replied. Everyone's speakers then went silent again.

"Alright, we're going to employ the dimensional shears," Tori said. "You cadets might want to shut your eyes. Tearing open the fabric of reality can leave some unexpectedly bright lights."

"Wait, we're doing what now?" Sticky asked.

Tori didn't respond, focusing her attention on S0L30's head. It split apart, revealing a mechanical arm holding a device that greatly resembled a welding torch. The dimensional shears extended forward, with Tori operating them from her control panel. A brilliant blue flame shot out from the shears. It traced a line of blinding white light through Ultra Space.

"Whoa!" Sticky gasped. "That's extremely bright!" Luxeira had to resist the urge to snap at Sticky for not listening to Tori.

After a few seconds, Tori turned off the dimensional shears. They retracted into S0L30's head, which then closed up. The fiery line rippled for a solid minute before splitting apart, revealing a jagged tear with a checkboard pattern matching the Ultra Wormhole that the group had traveled through.

"Phew… it looks like it worked!" Tori said. She pressed a button on S0L30's controls and it dashed forward, using bursts of air to shoot itself into the makeshift wormhole before it sealed itself up. Luxeira braced herself, gritting her teeth as white light raced around her on all sides.

Then, as suddenly as the light appeared, it completely vanished. S0L30's glowing eyes created two red beams that seemed to stretch out infinitely, growing progressively dimmer the farther they went. "W… what the?" Sticky gasped. "What's going on? Who turned off all the lights."

"It's not just the lights," Tori whispered. She lifted a paw up from S0L30's controls, only to recoil in surprise at how easily it shot up. "Just as I thought… no resistance. There's no gravity to speak of here. Everyone, keep hold of S0L30."

"Forget all of that. There's _nothing_ here," Seraph growled. "Like… _literally_ nothing. No people… no _places_ … this is a damn void! I can't believe you got tricked into coming here. Ugh… this is so stupid!"

"That's enough out of you, _lieutenant_ ," Tori shouted, electricity sparking around her helmet. "I want you to stay quiet or I _will_ write you up for insubordination!"

"Hey, did you guys hear that?" Sticky said, head shooting up. "Captain, there _is_ someone here." He shook his head. "But I can't localize the direction of his voice."

A flickering orange light drew Team Paradox's attention toward their right. " _Over here!_ " a loud, gruff, female voice shouted.

Luxeira couldn't help but smile. "Well, well. Seems it wasn't a trick after all," she said, wishing she could turn around to see Seraph's surprise, before realizing it wouldn't be possible with Seraph's visor, helmet, and oxygen mask. "Can we steer S0L30 over to them?"

"Of course," Tori said. She focused her attention down and began operating S0L30's controls.

"Question, captain," Sticky said. "I understood those voices perfectly. Is that normal?"

"It is when we're dealing with other Pokémon or Ultra Beasts. We mostly seem to share a common means of communication, as far as we know," Tori explained. "There could be exceptions, of course, but I haven't seen them. Try not to think too hard about it. You'll just give yourself a giant headache."

"Pfbt. He's already got a headache from how big and bulbous his head is," Seraph scoffed.

"My head's proportions are perfectly normal for a Poipole," Sticky muttered dejectedly. S0L30 trotted through the dark, empty void. The flashing orange light grew progressively larger, until Team Paradox could faintly see some outlines huddled around a large black crystal. The crystal weakly radiated an array of different colors.

S0L30 came to a stop a couple of feet away from the crystal. "I'm Captain Tori from the Ultra Village branch of the Ultra Recon Squad. This is Team Paradox. Can you tell us who you are?"

"Scanners are showing Zorua, Fennekin, an ice Vulpix, and a fire Vulpix," Luxeira reported. "Let's shine a little light on this situation."

Seraph smacked her helmet, groaning loudly. "I should've stayed in bed this morning."

S0L30 pivoted to shine its headlights on the distressed Pokémon. In doing so, Team Paradox saw that they all wore similar white jumpsuits and helmets. "Wait, you're with an Ultra Recon Squad, too?" Sticky gasped.

"You're darn right we are!" Zorua declared, revealing herself as the source of the loud voice the group heard earlier.

Fennekin waved at the group. "I'm Flint," he said.

"I'm Sherbet," the ice Vulpix greeted, her voice trembling a bit.

The fire Vulpix shoved Sherbet lightly. "Show some backbone, girl. These are fellow Recon Squad 'mons." He turned back to Team Paradox. "Ignore her. I'm Cole, by the way."

"And I'm Captain Vixen," Zorua said, puffing out her chest. "Together… we're Team Foxtrot!"

"Seriously?" Seraph groaned, burying her head in her paws. "Okay, I _really_ should've stayed in bed this morning."

"Quiet, officer," Tori said, her scathing look hidden behind her mask and visor. "So, Team Foxtrot, huh? Not familiar with you folks."

"We're from Axiom City. It's a pocket world located fifty-three light years from this spot… or so we think," Vixen explained.

"Ohh… the big-toothed lady doesn't believe us, does she?" Sherbet squeaked, her tails drooping.

"Don't worry your tails off, Sherbet," Cole scoffed. "Here. I'm pinging you our base's coordinates."

Tori nodded as the information displayed on her visor. "Axiom City, huh? I think I did a couple of missions in tandem with your branch when I was first starting out." She tapped the gemstone in her harness. A tether shot out, connecting to S0L30's back. Tori hopped off the machine, floating in front of Team Foxtrot. "What exactly happened to get your team stranded out here, huh?"

"Ugh, it was the absolute worst!" Cole growled, snorting embers out from his mask. "There we were, returning from a scheduled delivery to Ultra Deep Sea Gamma Seven, when a Cosmog pops up during our Ultra Warp Ride and flings us off our Solgaleo and into this void dimension!"

"It's positively awful. We haven't the slightest idea what's going on here," Sherbet said, tails curling around her flank. "For all we know, up is down, down is up, and yes means no!"

"Girl, what are you talking about? There's literally _nothing_ here except this crystal we found floating in the middle of this place!" Cole barked, gesturing to the large, smooth crystal the foxes sat on top of.

Seraph raised her paws. "I don't like the look of that thing, captain. It's giving off an ultra aura."

"We're already aware of that," Vixen said. "But the signal's extremely weak. We think we might have found in injured UB that crystalized themselves to avoid further harm."

"How do you know that thing isn't hostile, huh?" Seraph asked, eyeing the crystal suspiciously.

"It hasn't budged in the slightest since we found it," Flint explained. "And we have no idea how long we've been trapped here since, well, there's nothing around here. No time or movement or nothing." He looked down at the crystal. "I figured if it were hostile, it would've tried attacking us by now."

Tori placed a forepaw on the crystal. She leaned over, adjusting her visor to get a better look at Team Foxtrot's strange discovery. "The ultra aura isn't just weak… it barely crosses the threshold frequency to get picked up by our scanners. If there _is_ a UB in here, it's completely comatose." She pushed back from the crystal. "In which case, we have an obligation to rescue this poor soul."

"And if there isn't a living creature inside it?" Luxeira wondered.

"Then we'll have our lab team run a scan to figure out why it's projecting an ultra aura," Tori said. "Usually inanimate objects exposed to Ultra Space show trace radiation levels. This is more in line with what a living creature would have… barely."

"That was my thought, exactly," Vixen declared.

"Nuh-uh! You're just saying that because the big-toothed lady said it first," Cole accused.

"C'mon, Cole. Don't cheese off the captain like that," Flint said, ears twitching. "Especially when these folks are kind enough to respond to our signal."

"Hmph. We wouldn't have needed their help if that stupid Cosmog hadn't been messing around in Ultra Space," Cole growled, his tails lashing out in different directions. "I swear, when I get my paws on that little ball of mischief and find out what universe they're from… Flamethrowers are gonna fly!"

 _'Funny. I have the strangest sense of déjà vu right now,'_ Luxeira thought, glancing at Seraph.

"And what are you looking at, newbie?" Seraph huffed. "Take a picture, why don't you? Your visor's equipped with a camera."

"That's enough arguing from everyone," Tori ordered. "I'm gonna tether the crystal to S0L30, here. You four hop into the side pods and we'll get everyone back to our base. You should be able to get home from there after we file an incident report."

"You're not gonna write us up, are you? We have a perfect record at our branch," Sherbet said, her voice ripe with worry.

"Relax, you four are fine," Tori said. "Now come on. The less time we spend here, the better in my book."

Team Foxtrot all leaped off the crystal, landing on seats that had popped out of S0L30's torso. Its tail sprouted a grappling hook that launched back and embedded into the crystal. Seraph stiffened in her seat. "Hold the phone, the ultra aura just spiked for a second. Something's _definitely_ stirring in there."

"What are you talking about? I didn't see any spikes," Tori huffed.

"I'm serious here, captain," Seraph growled. "We need to ditch this thing."

"That's against protocol, lieutenant," Tori fired back. "Now, strap in. We're heading back to base." She fiddled with S0L30's controls and the dimensional shears popped out of its head. They tore open a rift in the lightless void. S0L30 braced itself and lunged into the rift, disappearing from the empty world with the crystal in tow.

* * *

For anyone interested, I've got a spiffy new profile picture... of Necrozma! It's drawn by the wonderful Cresselia92. More details are on my profile page. In answer to the trivia question from the last chapter, yes, Magnum is unashamedly channeling All Might. Enjoy your Shane points if you got that right.

WonderBread: good, you're not supposed to like Seraph right now. You'll just have to wait and see what winds up happening to her next chapter.

SuperOmegaGuest: yeah, I think that's how the wormhole thing works. Don't know. The Ultra Warp Ride is a bad minigame and I hate that the Legends are hidden behind it. There was nothing wrong with Soaring.

Veralix: hey, I wouldn't just introduce a 'mon like Zeraora and not put it to good use. Stick around, you might be surprised.

Anon Omega: that wasn't actually what I was going for, but I'll take it!

Another guest: Tessa has definitely dropped that habit now that she's a Lucario.

Next time: a prismatic puppeteer presents... "La Follia d'amore."


	76. A Matter Most Dark

Disappointed the Mystery Dungeon in this week's Direct was Chocobos and not Pokémon? Did the Necrozma Arc in the anime leave you feeling empty inside? No worries, because _Guiding Light's_ got you covered! It's astounding to think we're closing in on five hundred comments before we hit one year of the story being up on FFN. I may just have an autumn-themed bonus in the works as a celebration. But enough of that, onto the chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 65: A Matter Most Dark**

 **~Ultra Village Recon Base, Third Floor~**

The return Ultra Warp Ride proved uneventful for Teams Paradox and Foxtrot. Once they touched down, Seraph leaped off S0L30 and attempted to grab the crystal despite it being much larger than her. A stern set of orders from Tori made her stop, however. Tori instead assigned Sticky and Luxeira to use a motorized platform to bring the crystal down to the medical bay on the third floor with Team Foxtrot in tow. She then dragged Seraph off to fill out the required paperwork, much to the latter's outrage.

Sticky and Luxeira sat in the medical wing's waiting area. Despite the bright white color scheme of the entire base, the metal floors and walls were somehow even whiter. It was likely a result of the extremely powerful LED lights used reflecting off the pristine glass tables positioned between white chairs of different shapes and sizes. Sticky constantly leaned over to rub his eyes with his hands.

"I don't see how anyone could work in these conditions," he said. "There's bright… and then there's _uncomfortably_ bright."

Luxeira kept her gaze fixed on the double doors across the room. Medical staff had escorted Team Foxtrot and the crystal through the doors without giving her an explanation about what they'd be doing. Thirty minutes had passed since their arrival and no one had emerged from the doors to give any sort of update.

"Um, Luxeira? You… uh… didn't respond to my comment," Sticky said, laughing nervously.

"Quiet, Sticky," Luxeira growled, eyes locked on the red light above the double doors.

"I was just trying to strike up some idle chatter," Sticky said, tail drooping. "This is all rather boring. I didn't thing there'd be this much processing between individual assignments, that's all."

"This is an unusual circumstance, from the look of it," Luxeira said stoically. "Besides, with your track record so far, you'd find a way to knock all our paperwork into a shredder and ruin it."

Sticky winced and turned away from Luxeira, poking his arms together. "I didn't bungle up this mission," he whispered dejectedly.

Luxeira ignored him and continued staring at the door. _'What if Seraph was actually right? What if we need to be worried about what's inside that crystal?'_ She gnashed her teeth together. _'Tch! Listen to yourself, Luxeira. You were hoping to see that skank bomb this mission and get told off for it. You don't really think she's right.'_

"You seem like you have something on your mind," Sticky said, leaning his head over so it fell in Luxeira's line of sight. "I'm happy to talk about it, if you want."

"I'm fine," Luxeira huffed, pointing her snout up.

Sticky slumped back in his chair. "You know… you say you don't hate UBs, but your behavior indicates otherwise. Were you involved in some sort of altercation in the past?"

"I'm not talking about this," Luxeira said, slapping a forepaw on the arm of her chair. "And if you know what's good for you, you'll keep your mouth shut."

"I'm trying to be flexible, you know," Sticky said. "If you keep all this stuff bottled up, I can't imagine you'll go on to be very popular here. You could even end up like Lieutena–"

Luxeira turned to Sticky, her visor disappearing in a flicker of static so she could stare him down. "You want to know what my problem is?" she said. "The UBs in my old school liked to pick on me… a lot. They called me 'Luxeira the Egghead.' And for what? Because I sat on the sidelines reading books during phys-ed... and I preferred to spend my days in the library, getting lost in a good book. Well, I don't think it's fair."

She huffed out embers and watched them fizzle out as they drifted toward the ceiling. "Us Pokémon were here first. You UBs came later. We're all different… but because you cretins are so much stronger, you think you can push around an innocent pup," Luxeira said, her tone bitter.

"Oh," Sticky whispered, fidgeting. "Look, I'm sorry you had to go through that. But don't you think you're projecting just a smidge? You're complaining about bullies… but what about the way you're treating me?" He floated up in front of Luxeira. "One bad incident shouldn't sour your perception of all of–"

Luxeira turned her visor back on. "I'm not talking about his anymore," she said.

"I just want to help… that's why I'm here," Sticky said.

"I don't need your help," Luxeira said. "My life is great. I've got a wonderful mate, a nice house, and a job that I'm _mostly_ excited about." She cast an annoyed look at Sticky as she enunciated "mostly," sending him shrinking back into his chair. "As I said, this conversation is over."

Luxeira hopped off her seat and was about to walk away when the red light above the door switched to green. A white Blissey in a pink jumpsuit walked through the doorway. Team Foxtrot then proceeded out behind her in a single-file line. "I finished my workups," the Blissey announced. "These four are all set to return home."

"Told you there was nothing wrong with us," Cole scoffed. "Otherwise, we wouldn't have made it through an Ultra Warp Ride in one piece."

"C'mon, Cole, be nice to the nurse. She's just doing her part," Sherbet said. She turned to the Blissey and bowed her thanks.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Who do we have to talk to about paging our Solgaleo to go back home?" Cole said.

"Hang on a second," Luxeira cut in, walking over to Vixen. "What happened to the crystal you guys found?"

"Beats me," Vixen said, shrugging. "Your medics carted the thing off to a separate wing."

"Actually, I overheard one of the medics say something interesting," Flint said, tail wagging excitedly. "He mentioned a 'lightless black' and I got curious, so I ran the term through our search engine. Tell me… you guys ever hear of the Radiant One?"

Luxeira frowned. "Can't say that I have."

Vixen whirled on Flint, a look of surprise on her face. "And just when were you going to mention your find to your _captain_ , huh?"

"Aha ha… sorry, cap! It kind of slipped my mind while I was getting checked out," Flint said. Vixen fell over in disbelief. "Anyway, it seems like the Radiant One is a codename for some kind of super-rare Ultra Beast. Or, rather, one of _several_ codenames. 'Lightless Black' was linked with it… but there's also 'Blinding One.' Apparently, the folks in Ultra Megalopolis itself came up with that one!"

"Ultra Megalopolis? Get out!" Cole gasped, ears sticking up. "Just how important is this Lightless Black thingy anyway?"

"It must be pretty critical… because all the files I tried to pull up require high-level security clearances," Flint said, chuckling nervously.

None of Team Foxtrot noticed the worried look on Luxeira's face. _'Classified files? Seraph may actually be right here. I've got to ring up Captain Tori on the double!'_ She pressed a forepaw to her helmet. "Captain, can you hear me? It's Luxeira.''

 _"Oh, funny timing there, cadet. Seraph and I are heading down to the medical wing,"_ Seraph replied through the helmet's radio. _"How is Team Foxtrot doing?"_

"They cleared their physicals and they're in the waiting room with me," Luxeira said.

 _"Great! You can tell them their Solgaleo is on the rooftop,"_ Tori said.

"No need. I heard it for myself," Vixen said. "You really ought to turn the volume down on that thing. C'mon, team. It's back to base for us!"

"Wait!" Sticky shouted, floating up from his seat. "You're not supposed to run around the base unsuper–"

Team Foxtrot sprinted out of the medical wing, leaving Sticky floating there, a defeated look on his face.

"–vised. Never mind… forget I said anything."

The doors to the medical wing slid open and Seraph marched through them, sleeves rolled up and an unamused look on her face. "Way to let those fuzballs run off on you, newbie," Seraph said. "You're just lucky Captain Tori was there to escort them away."

"Save the lecture for another time," Luxeira growled, stomping a forepaw on the ground. "We've got a problem, here."

Seraph's eyes narrowed. "What kind of problem?"

"Team Foxtrot overheard some of the medical staff talking about that crystal they found. From the sound of things, I think we may have stumbled across a weakened Lightless Black," Luxeira said.

In the span of a second, Seraph was up in Luxeira face, cupping her paw around the Houndoom's snout. "Is this your idea of a joke, newbie? Because I'm not laughing," she spat.

"I don't understand. What's the problem?" Sticky asked.

"The _problem_ is that you Ultra Village bumpkins don't know what a Lightless Black is or what it's capable of," Seraph growled. "Hell, all I've heard are stories, myself. There are only, like, a handful of them in all of Ultra Space. And if the rumors are to be believed, Lightless Blacks are under constant surveillance by Ultra Recon Squads."

Seraph released Luxeira's snout. Luxeira rubbed it, an annoyed look on her face. "And this is an issue because…?"

"Because, if you're right, it means one of two things," Seraph said, holding up her paw with two outstretched digits. "One… that a Lightless Black was critically wounded without any of us knowing. Two… that we've stumbled on an unregistered Lightless Black. Either way means the biggest shitstorm imaginable is about to blow into town."

Seraph tugged at her left whisker. "I'm talking the most important brass from the most important URS branches all congregating in this base. And then there'll be hearings… and meetings… and new policies drafted… and so much red tape put up it's gonna suffocate us!" She kicked at the nearby garbage bin. "No wonder those Team Foxtrot nobodies got the hell out of dodge."

"But isn't this discovery exactly what Ultra Village needs to put us on the map?" Sticky said. "That all sounds like it could attract a lot of attention to us. If we get the credit… we could be famous!"

Luxeira swatted Sticky away with a foreleg. "Seriously? That's what you're gravitating toward? How about the fact that we found that poor thing in a coma… in some sort of empty void? That raises a lot of alarming questions, don't you think?"

"Which is exactly why I want definitive proof that we found a Lightless Black and not just some freaky-deaky crystal," Seraph said. "Stand aside, I'm going into the medical bay." She marched toward the door, rolling up the sleeves of her jumpsuit, when the door slid open. The Blissey nurse was back, holding a clipboard in her hands.

"Oh… Lieutenant Seraph. You're not due for a check-up."

"I'm not hear about a damn check-up," Seraph said, jabbing a claw into the nurse's clipboard. "I'm here about that crystal you were delivered. I need to see it… stat."

The Blissey frowned. "I'm sorry, but we're still running tests on–"

"Did it _sound_ like I was asking you? That was an order, damn it. Now, stand aside," Seraph barked.

"Last I heard, you'd been put on probation," the Blissey nurse said, her expression souring. "You have no right to order any of us around."

The blue tuft of fur on Seraph's forehead glowed with electricity. "Stand aside right now, or I'm gonna–"

"Gyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaah!"

A huge fireball spilled out from a hallway behind the nurse. She turned around, dropping her clipboard in shock as the charred, bloody remnants of a Sawk slid down from the blackened wall. Seraph's eyes widened. "Outta the way, outta the way!" she shouted, shoving the nurse into the door.

Luxeira stood in the middle of the room, heart pounding in her chest. _'Oh no… something's gone wrong! What am I supposed to do? I wasn't trained for this! I–'_

"Newbie!" Seraph thundered, standing in the middle of the scorched part of the hallway. "Don't just stand there, gawking. This is a Code Red! Sound the alarms! Start evacuation procedures! We have to get everyone to safety right this sec–"

Another explosion wracked the medical wing, taking out a portion of the ceiling in front of Seraph. A glass table fell through the hole, shattering on impact. Plaster and debris piled up in the middle of the ruined hallway. Seraph tried to look up through the destroyed ceiling but couldn't make anything out through all the smoke.

"Like hell I'm letting you get away," Seraph said. She crouched low and lunged forward. Her body turned into an electric current, racing forward, pinging off the rubble pile, and shooting up to the next floor. Luxeira and the nurse ran out the main door. After a moment of indecision, Sticky floated after Seraph, keeping his distance.

He found Seraph on the next floor, shaking soot off her face. She placed a paw against the side of her see-through helmet.

"This is Lieutenant Seraph of the com– surveillance unit, Team Paradox," Seraph said, speaking into her helmet's communicator. "I'm requesting immediate assistance. We have a Code Red! Repeat: Code Red! An injured Ultra Beast has blown up the medical wing and is trying to run rampant through the base. We think it might be an unregistered Lightless Black. I need Commander Magnum and the captains down here, ASAP!"

Static came out of her helmet's speakers. "Are you kidding me? Communication lines are down _now?!_ " she shouted. Seraph looked around and, despite all the smoke and frayed wires, determined she was in some sort of large supply closet, with the broken remnants of shelves on the walls and powdered cleaning solvents spilled out on the floor.

"Show yourself, Lightless Black!" she yelled, raising up her paws. The black streaks of fur on her arms glowed blue as lightning gathered in her claws.

The room suddenly darkened. Seraph looked over her shoulder to see a ball of dark-purple energy forming between two racks of supplies. "Take this!" she cried, firing streams of electricity from her paws.

 **"gYaAaAaAaAaAaAaAaAaAgH!"**

A heavily-distorted cry of pain forced Seraph to her knees and nearly made Sticky fall to the ground. Seraph shut her eyes, gritted her teeth, and squeezed her helmet in a vain attempt to make the shouts stop. While she was incapacitated, the energy ball flew up into the ceiling. Next thing Seraph knew, the room was rumbling. More shelves toppled over, flinging boxes onto her. One of the shelves knocked Sticky against the wall, keeping him hidden from Seraph, who was preoccupied vaporizing cases of detergent with her lightning.

Seraph looked up, where cracks splintered through the ceiling. "Damn it… no!" she said. Seraph jumped into the air, turning into a lightning stream and shooting toward the hole that the mysterious creature had made. She reformed to catch her breath, then launched herself upward just as the rest of the ceiling crumbled.

Seraph emerged from her lightning-dash, digging her claws into the wall to brace herself. She looked to her right and found the smoldering remains of a metal door. _'You've gotta be kidding me! Those things are supposed to be resistant to our attacks. What kind of UB could do something like this, huh?'_

Just as Sticky succeeded in floating out of the rubble, Seraph lightning-dashed from her spot on the wall into the hallway, where she found the black crystal slowly moving forward, hovering inches off the ground. It dragged its two metallic arms along the floor, making loud scraping noises that had Seraph's ears reflexively curling up inside her helmet. Sticky saw the crystal and opted to hang back inside the destroyed room, glancing out into the hall.

"Hey, you!" Seraph shouted. "Hold it!"

The crystal immediately stopped. **"… jUh?"**

"Yeah, you heard me!" Seraph said, punching her balled-up paws together. Electricity surged down her arms. "You just ran amuck in our base. I'm not about to let that stand, Lightless Black!"

 **"… nECrOZma… lIgHtLeSS?"** the crystal muttered, swaying back and forth. **"… wHeRe iS mY lIgHt?"**

Seraph smirked confidently. "Oh, I've got light for you, buddy. Right here!" She lightning-dashed forward, popped up in front of the crystal, and punched its right arm. The limb shot off Necrozma's body and rolled across the floor, where it came to a stop in front of a bewildered turquoise Sceptile.

"W… what's going on here?!" the Sceptile gasped. Before Seraph could respond, Necrozma's arm shot into the air, socked the Sceptile in the jaw, and knocked him into the ceiling. He was out cold before he could hit the floor.

Seraph didn't bother yelling at Necrozma. She sheathed her arms in electricity, ready to pummel Necrozma from point-blank range. Instead, Necrozma hovered up until his head _plinked_ against the ceiling. Seraph pointed her arms up, shooting two electric beams at him. They struck what appeared to be his chest. But rather than damaging him, the multicolored lights hidden underneath his black exterior glowed brighter.

 **"… yOu hAvE… lIgHt,"** Necrozma muttered. His dislodged arm shot back into the empty socket on its body. **"… yOu wIlL gIvE iT… tO mE…"**

"It just… absorbed my attack?" Seraph whispered, lowering her arms and ceasing the flow of electricity. "Just… what are you, huh? We helped you… and now you're blowing up our base? Give me one good reason I shouldn't blast you into pieces!"

 **"… hElP… mE?"** Necrozma said, resuming his swaying missions.

Seraph crouched low to the ground, black shadows swirling around her arms. Necrozma jerked violently to his right, flinging his arms to the left. Two spheres of swirling purple energy shot toward Seraph. She pounced, snuffing out the energy balls with her pitch-black fists.

 **"nOoOoOoOoOoO!"** Necrozma shouted, drifting backwards and aimlessly flailing his arms about. He swiped upward with his right arm and two more purple spheres shot toward Seraph, who lightning-dashed out of the way. **"yOu wOn'T hElP mE. nObOdY wIlL."**

 _'Come on! What is taking so long to get some help down here? Did the elevator system go completely offline with the communicators?'_ Seraph wondered. _'Guess it's just going to fall to me, then.'_ She hopped off the ground, somersaulting in midair to kick off the glass wall. Her scarf-like tail hardened into iron. But just as she was ready to club Necrozma in his chest, a quartet of white, thread-like needles speared her back.

Seraph went off course and crashed into the ground, hissing in pain. She reached a paw back, expecting to yank the needles out, but they had mysteriously vanished into thin air. Seraph whirled back around, expecting another attack to be flying her way. Instead, Necrozma drifted clumsily down the hallway.

"Hey, get back here! I'm not finished with you!" Seraph said, preparing to lightning-dash once again.

 **"sIlEnCe!"** Necrozma said. He thrust his left arm backwards, sending two more purple spheres drifting toward her. Growling, Seraph vaporized them with two well-aimed lightning bolts. **"yOu… I cAn fEEl iT,"** Necrozma continued, slowly rotating until he was upside down. **"hAtReD… iN tHe dEpTHs oF yOuR sOUl."**

"You're damn right I've got something to hate… it's you!" Seraph said. "Now, get out of my sight! Focus Blast!" She raised a paw over her head. A bright red energy ball popped up and Seraph hurled it forward.

 **"… JuH?"**

Necrozma floated to his left. Though he managed to skirt the attack's trajectory, he couldn't completely get out of the way. The energy ball detonated, taking out the glass wall.

 **"GyAaAaAaAaAaAaAaAaAaAeEaRgCh!"**

A klaxon horn sounded off. Red emergency lights popped out of the floor and ceiling. Seraph rolled her eyes and ran forward, waving away smoke. _'Oh, sure._ Now _the alarm sounds. Because heaven forbid someone breaks the expensive glass.'_

Upon reaching the spot where Necrozma had previously floated, she found a large hole in the metal wall on her right. Most of the smoke was funneling out from it. She tried to get rid of it with her arms.

"What the hell is going on down here, Seraph?"

A gust of chilled air blew away all the smoke in the area. Seraph looked to her left to find Anthus, Phygen, and Tori emerging from a doorway. Tori had a look of horror on her face. "It's not me!" Seraph said, gesturing to the hole in the wall. "It's that god damn crystal I told you to leave behind. The thing's _alive!_ And I think it might be an unregistered Lightless–"

 **"NyYyYyYyYyYaAaAaAgH!"**

The three captains raced through the hole in the wall, with Seraph hot on their heels. Sticky cautiously floated forward, rubbing his arms together nervously. His superiors had entered an empty cafeteria. Overturned metal tables lay strewn about on the floor, along with trays, paper napkins, and plastic cutlery. "What the heck was that _awful_ screeching sound?" Anthus asked.

"Up there!" Phygen said, pointing his snout toward the ceiling. Necrozma floated overhead, flapping his arms about wildly. His forehead had partially shattered. Above his triangular core sat an eyeball with shadowy-black sclera and a sinister purple iris. The eye looked at the captains and flashed red.

 **"lIe… LiE… lIiIiIiIiIiIgGgGgGgGgGhHhHhHt!"**

Necrozma swung his arms around from left to right, shaking them angrily. Three glowing circles appeared around him, each one bearing a sigil of a winged heart, with demonic horns and piercing eyes in their centers. Three bright flashes of light filled the room, sending Seraph stumbling back into the hall while Sticky floated away from the destroyed wall.

"What the heck?!" she growled, throwing an arm up over her eyes.

 **"Seraph! What seems to be the problem here?"**

Commander Magnum strutted down the hallway, with an anxious Luxeira behind him. Three cries of pain immediately drew Seraph's attention back to the room. "No… the captains!" Seraph shouted, staring in horror as they struggled feebly inside Necrozma's alchemical circles.

 **"Seraph, what is the meaning of this? Why is there a Lightless Black floating in the middle of the room?"** Magnum asked. **"And… why does he look ultra-messed up?"**

Necrozma screeched and raised his arms skyward. Heavy, black chains wrapped around each of the captains and shadowfire shrouded their motionless bodies, turning their fur pitch black. The eye in Necrozma's forehead focused directly on Seraph and pulsated dark red.

 **"de… DE… dEsTrOoOY!"**

Necrozma pointed his right arm at Seraph. Anthus shot toward her like a bullet. Too stunned to properly react to the situation, Anthus hammered Seraph in the chest. Icy air engulfed her body, freezing her solid from head to toe and knocking her toward the edge of the hallway, where the glass wall had already been blown apart. Sticky and Luxeira both moved backward in opposite directions, silently praying Necrozma couldn't somehow see them through the wall.

Magnum darted to his left, stretching out an arm to keep Seraph from careening out of the base and plummeting to her death. Necrozma shouted loudly and, before Magnum could look up, his world ignited and flames spread across his body. Magnum stumbled around the hallway, with a comatose Phygen laying at his feet, still wrapped in heavy chains and doused in shadowfire.

Luckily, Phygen's flames thawed Seraph out. She looked up at Necrozma, who floated there, eyeball staring her down and Tori's body rotating helplessly around him like a moon going around a planet. Necrozma pointed his right arm forward and Tori's body flew toward Seraph. She lightning-dashed into the cafeteria to dodge. Tori struck the ground in the hallway, releasing stored up electricity that zapped Magnum and knocked him onto his back with a dazed look in his eyes.

Necrozma waved his arms back and forth, muttering garbled gibberish. "What the heck is wrong with this thing? Has it _completely_ lost its mind?" Seraph said. Necrozma responded by putting both hands in front of him and yanking them backwards violently. Seraph heard movement behind her and looked over shoulder. Her expression blanched and she dropped to her belly. Seconds later, the three captains flew over her head. They settled back around Necrozma and resumed orbiting him.

 **"I will not let this injustice stand!"** Magnum bellowed, staggering into the ruined cafeteria. **"We must subdue it… ultra-quickly!"** He raised his arms skyward and flexed. Red light sheathed his arms and Magnum charged down Necrozma, winding up to strike him.

 **"hYecH,"** Necrozma said, floating aimlessly to his left. Magnum's punch only succeeded in connecting with Anthus' chains. Ice encased Magnum's arm, freezing it solid and making it drop to the ground, dragging the rest of Magnum down along with it. **"kYaShAcK!"** Necrozma said. He raised his left arm and Phygen shot up toward it. Necrozma grabbed hold of Phygen with both hands and drifted forward.

"Grrr… take this, you monster!" Seraph shouted, lunging for him while dark energy raced down her paws. She succeeded in slipping past Tori and Anthus before they could levitate forward and block her path.

 **"HaAaGh!"**

Necrozma swung Phygen's body like a furry, oversized club. He connected with Seraph's skull, shattering her helmet and sending her reeling across the ground. Luxeira gasped and jumped forward, bracing herself. Once Seraph collided with her, she barely managed to dig her paws in and bring their forward momentum a stop before they went sailing out of the building. Meanwhile, Necrozma turned around and swung Phygen wildly at Magnum. This time Magnum avoided Necrozma. Using his tiny wings, he went momentarily airborne, preventing Anthus from crashing into him.

Magnum shrouded himself in green energy and lunged at Necrozma. The green blur slipped past Tori and struck Necrozma in the side. Magnum shoved Necrozma as hard as he could, sending Necrozma floating backward, still tightly gripping Phygen's body. Though Necrozma faced Magnum, the eye had rotated back so Seraph and Luxeira were in its line of sight. It flashed violet, then Necrozma floated in their direction.

 **"Trying to run from the Mighty Magnum is an ultra-huge mistake, villain!"** Magnum said, flexing his arms out while green energy encased his body again.

"Luxeira… Seraph… run! The Lightless Black's coming for you!" Sticky cried, waving his arms about frantically.

Seraph shakily lifted her head up, revealing the bloodstained fur around her face. Her eyes widened at the sight of the approaching Necrozma, with Magnum charging him down from behind. She grabbed Luxeira around her harness and dived to her left, taking the Houndoom with her. Seconds later, Magnum hit Necrozma from behind. But he didn't succeed in pushing Necrozma forward. Instead, Necrozma whirled around, beaning Magnum with Phygen.

Magnum hurtled back into the cafeteria, but Necrozma didn't let up. His eye flashed red. Necrozma hefted Phygen above his head and slammed him into the floor. Two streams of fire raced out on either side of Necrozma. Sticky turned and floated down the hall, shouting in terror. His teammates were less fortunate, however, as their half of the hallway quickly led to a dead end. Luxeira jumped toward the oncoming flames, wincing as they ran across her suit.

Seraph limped up to Luxeira, arms shaking and fur matted with blood. Luxeira expected to get chewed out for daring to come back and investigate what was wrong, but a quick glance into Seraph's eyes showed not her usual fiery demeanor, but one of pure terror. "Th… thanks for the save," Seraph whispered, her gaze fixed on the floor.

"What are we going to do about this guy?" Luxeira said. "I can't battle to save my life!"

Seraph grimaced. "You've got supplies, right? I could use a pick-me-up…"

"Gotcha," Luxeira said.

 **"GyRgHuIlK,"** Necrozma blabbered. He yanked his arms up and Phygen shot back toward him. Necrozma retreated into the cafeteria, the captains orbiting around him even faster.

"C'mon, newbie!" Seraph growled, grabbing her left shoulder in pain and, much to Luxeira's shock, eyes darting about the room in desperation.

 _'If she's this shaken up about all this, then what chance do we realistically have?'_ Luxeira thought. The medical kid dropped out of her harness. Seraph threw it open and grabbed the corked syringe inside it. She jabbed it against her thigh, briefly wincing in pain, and pressed the plunger. In an instant, the fatigue drained from her eyes and her wounds stopped bleeding.

"What should we do?" Luxeira asked.

"Go get the cue ball… and make sure he didn't ink himself or whatever it is Poipoles do when they get scared," Seraph said. "I'm going to make this thing wish it was never born." She crouched onto all fours and darted into the cafeteria.

Luxeira scrambled down the hallway, fur standing on end as static electricity rushed out from the wrecked cafeteria. _'I started the evac procedures… because that's the standard policy,'_ she thought, searching the halls for any signs of Sticky.

 **"Get down, Seraph! He's about to throw Tori at you!"** Magnum's voice carried from the cafeteria, eliciting a wince from Luxeira.

 _'But now I wish I'd been more like Seraph and not listened! We need reinforcements,'_ she continued, her frown deepening. She tried her helmet's communicator, but static greeted her. Luxeira located Sticky, curled up in a tiny ball in front of a locked doorway. "Come on, Sticky," she said. "You can't just stay crouched down there. We've got to offer support for our superiors."

"Th… there's… I… nothing," Sticky said, clicking on his visor to hide his terrified expression.

"We have supplies," Luxeira said. "C'mon. You've got to get up. We…" She stopped and took a breath, trying to steady her trembling voice. "The people of Ultra Village need us."

Sticky poked his head up. "R… right…"

Pained screams drew their attentions back toward the cafeteria. Luxeira sprinted forward, Sticky trailing behind her. But she screeched to a halt when Magnum's limp body struck the ground in front of her. Luxeira reared up on her hind legs, barking in surprise.

"Oh no," Sticky said. "The Commander… is he dead?"

"No!" Seraph hollered, ducking underneath Necrozma's attempts to strike her using Anthus as a club.

 **"hOiGhT fSsShK!"** Necrozma snarled. He released his grip on Anthus. His eye flashed bright orange and looked straight up at the ceiling. Necrozma pointed his arms down at the ground. Four orange circles formed in the floor, each bearing the same winged heart rune Seraph had seen earlier. The circles bubbled and the floor underneath them fizzled.

Seraph's nose twitched. "Is… is that metal burning?" She looked down. " _Holy shit… that's lava! He's summoning lava!_ " She looked up to see Phygen hovering over Necrozma, glowing brightly and spinning rapidly.

 **"KzZaAbB sYuUoH!"** Necrozma screamed, hoisting his arms up toward the ceiling. The four circles erupted into columns of lava. Seraph backpedaled out of the room with a yelp, shoving Magnum through the busted wall in the process. Luxeira and Sticky looked at the lava, their jaws dropping in terror. Above Necrozma, the ceiling melted. Molten metal dripped onto the ground around Necrozma, burning holes through the floor.

"Gimme another med pack!" Seraph shouted, drawing Luxeira's attention. She stumbled over to Seraph, stealing glances back at Necrozma, who had succeeded in burning a hole in the ceiling large enough for him to fit through.

"G… guys? He's doing something else!" Sticky said.

"Then fire an attack at him!" Seraph barked, yanking another syringe out of the new med pack and jabbing it into Magnum's abdomen.

"B… but I… uh…" Sticky stared down Necrozma, who paid him little mind and instead clasped his hands together. Tori hovered over Necrozma and spun in place, lightning crackling around her.

 **"fRaCkLe!"** Necrozma yelled. He thrust his hands toward the ground. A massive lightning bolt descended from above, complete with the sounds of metal shattering. The lightning contacted the floor, releasing a shockwave in all directions.

"Get up! Move!" Sticky shouted. Seraph looked over her shoulder at the oncoming shockwave and jumped at it. She punched the ground with both fists. Pillars of plasma shot up, safely diverting the shockwaves. The plasma raced forward and struck Necrozma. But he didn't so much as flinch from the attack. Instead, the eyeball simply rotated around wildly, before coming to a stop and flashing blue.

 **"Thanks for the Helping Hand, Seraph… aha ha ha!"** Magnum said, his normally thunderous laugh lacking its usual punch. **"Let's rush this guy in tandem. He's not ultra-bright, so I doubt he can focus on both of us at once."**

Necrozma swayed back and forth, raising his arms up again. This time Anthus hovered over him. Five blue circles appeared in the air around the cafeteria, all containing a winged heart. Necrozma brought his hands to his sides and the circles erupted into tornadoes of frozen air.

"Agggggh!" Seraph howled, halting her charge. She threw her arms up to keep slush and ice from battering her face.

Magnum jumped in front of her and spread his arms out wide.

 **"Go! Attack him now!"** Magnum said. Seraph zipped forward, lightning-dashing through the frigid winds.

Necrozma was in the process of floating up to the next floor with the limp captains in tow. His eye looked down and spotted Seraph shooting up toward him. Necrozma raised his left arm and Anthus shot toward Seraph. She was prepared this time, however, and changed course. Seraph lightning-dashed onto the wall and rebounded off it. She rematerialized, fists turning pitch black.

"Now I've got you! Suck on this Throat Chop!" Seraph roared. She swung her fists around, hammering Necrozma in what appeared to constitute his face. Black crystal shards broke off his body, dropping to the ground along with the three captains. Necrozma hovered away from Seraph, flailing his arms about and hissing angrily.

Seraph landed safely on the ground. "C'mon, guys! We've got to free the captains quickly before–"

 **"UwAvPsQoP gYaRnNGH!"** Necrozma hollered. The unpleasant sounds of scraping metal echoed through the cafeteria, making Seraph's eyes water. Through her blurry vision she could see the crystalline parts of Necrozma's body moving around, briefly exposing his triangular core. Necrozma pointed his hands down and made a yanking gesture. The three captains flew back toward him, offering no resistance.

"Aww, come on!" Seraph hissed. She readied herself to attack Necrozma, only to notice him contorting into a grotesque, crystalline sphere. The captains then surrounded Necrozma from all sides, forming a ball of swirling ice, fire, and electricity. "What the heck?" Seraph gasped.

The ball landed on the ground, forcing Seraph back to dodge a fireball racing toward her. She rifled off a burst of plasma from her paw, but it struck Tori's chains and deflected into a wall. The giant ball revved up and then raced forward, looking to flatten Seraph.

 **"vRrRrOoOoOoOoOoOm!"**

"Out of the way!" Luxeira shouted, tackling Seraph to the ground just in time to avoid Necrozma's ball. It didn't stop, however. Its momentum carried it to the edge of the room, where it proceeded up the wall and disappeared through the hole in the ceiling.

"Wh… where is it going?" Sticky said, floating up toward the wrecked ceiling. "Ah! It's already up on the seventh floor and it's revving up again!"

Seraph's eyes widened and she leaped to her feet. "No! This is worse than bad! That monster's heading for the Ultra Village Core!"

"No way, that thing's supposed to be highly protected, isn't it?" Luxeira said.

Seraph lunged at the wall, digging her claws in to get a look up through the hole. "Commander, we've got to stop this thing! If it gets to the core… it could destroy it!"

 **"Not to worry. The core is ultra-fortified,"** Magnum said.

"But he can spew _lava_ , Commander!" Seraph said. "The core's in a heap of trouble!"

"What happens if the core gets destroyed?" Luxeira asked.

 **"It could set off an ultra-devastating chain reaction that could atomize this entire city!"** Magnum said. He stomped off after Seraph, who shot up through the whole in the ceiling. **"Come, Lucina! There isn't a moment to lose!"**

Luxeira raced toward Magnum, not even bothering to correct him. He scooped her up in his massive arms and leaped upward, easily reaching the next floor. Sticky floated at the head of the group, stealing glances back down at them to monitor their progress. "He's broken through to the eighth floor!" Sticky shouted.

Seraph lightning-dashed up through the next hole in the ceiling, with Magnum soaring up behind her. She banked off a wall and continued sailing upward, while Magnum had to stop so he could reangle himself and jump again. Seraph managed to catch up to Sticky, who floated a fair distance away from Necrozma's rolling ball.

"C'mon, you dunce! You have to slow it down! Attack it!" Seraph growled, rematerializing in the middle of a conference room and leaning against the table to catch her breath.

"I… I'm trying," Sticky said. He pointed his head at the spinning ball and shot a tiny ball of orange acid toward it. It harmlessly plinked off the ball, bouncing back in Seraph's direction. Her eyes widened and she rolled to her right, watching as the glass table she was resting on dissolved in the acid.

"Seriously, dude?!" she groaned. Having caught her breath, Seraph lightning-dashed upward.

"I'm not much of a fighter," Sticky said, following her. Necrozma burst through yet another ceiling with Seraph and Sticky hot on his tail. They had arrived in a room bathed in red light from warning signs stationed throughout it. Various computer terminals lay dotted around the room, with four of them surrounding a gray cylinder in the center. Heavy steel plates hid whatever was inside the cylinder.

 **"pReOaWrRRrrRRrr!"** Necrozma growled, spinning his ball around faster and faster in midair. The ball broke apart, with Necrozma shooting the captains at Seraph and Sticky. Seraph sprinted forward. Phygen grazed her backside, burning off her ponytail and leaving behind a tiny yellow stump between her shoulder blades.

Tori collided with Sticky, slamming him back into one of the computer screens on the wall and destroying it. Lightning raced across the wall from Tori getting lodged in it like she was an oversized tack. Likewise, Anthus and Phygen were stuck into the floor like pegs, venting wind and fire, respectively.

Seraph lunged for Necrozma, who floated in midair in a daze. She pushed a red energy ball right into Necrozma's exposed eye. The resulting blast sent Necrozma reeling. His spinning form collided with one of the central computer consoles, destroying it along with the metal pipe extending out of it. White gas began filling up the room.

 **Danger! Core ventilation system compromised,** a mechanized voice declared. **System functioning at seventy-five percent. Diagnostic recommended.**

Magnum finally made it up into the room, dropping Luxeira to the ground. She dashed over toward Sticky but had to tread carefully due to the static Tori gave off. Necrozma floated back into the air and raised his arms up. Magnum halted his charge in order to dodge the incoming captains as they floated back to Necrozma.

 **"LuWeK,"** Necrozma whispered, thrusting his arms out to the side while his cracked head rotated around in a circle. The captains smushed up against one another, forming a circular wall that Necrozma ducked behind. The wall floated toward Magnum, brimming with ice, fire, and plasma. Magnum retreated, while Seraph charged around it, trying to find an opening.

 **"pOiGhT!"** Necrozma shouted, popping up from inside the wall and waving his right arm. Three purple, meteor-like energy balls shot toward Seraph. She raised her paws up and blasted them apart with her lightning. But before she could attack Necrozma, he ducked inside the wall again. Her lightning plinked off Tori's chains, instead striking one of computer terminals lying on the wall and blowing it apart.

 **Core paneling deactivated.**

Seraph and Magnum both froze. They turned their horrified gazes on the center of the room, where the shielding was retracting into the ceiling. "Crud! The core's completely exposed! We have to shut it down, now!" Seraph said.

 **"pEeKaAbOooOOo!"** Necrozma yelled, poking his head and arm out to toss three more energy balls. Magnum flew into their path and sliced them cleanly in half with a glowing arm. He tried to smack Necrozma as well, but Necrozma ducked back into the wall and Magnum instead punched Tori. Electricity surged through his arm. He dropped to the ground, frantically massaging his injured arm with his good one.

 **"Lucina! Head to the terminal over there,"** Magnum said, pointing weakly toward a lone red console in the corner. **"It's the emergency lockdown system. Turn it on and enter one-three–"**

"Duck and cover!" Seraph said, blasting two plasma streams toward Necrozma, who had popped up from the wall, gathering purple energy over his head. Her attack was fast enough to strike him right in the eye, which spun about wildly. Necrozma nonetheless hurtled his large meteor forward.

"Someone stop it! It's heading for the emergency lockdown terminal!" Luxeira cried. She opened her mouth wide, but only coughed up a single fireball which fizzled out before reaching Necrozma's attack. Seraph zipped across the room, sliding in front of the terminal and spinning around to shoot lightning bolts at the meteor. Seraph's jaw slackened as her attacks failed to destroy it.

Plasma gathered in her paws and she lunged for the meteor. She swung her arms at it, only for the meteor to suddenly explode, tearing Seraph's jumpsuit to smithereens and jettisoning her right into the computer terminal she was trying so desperately to protect. A yellow and blue explosion erupted around the terminal.

"Seraph!" Luxeira gasped, breaking into a clumsy run toward the other side of the room. Magnum, on the other hand, immediately leaped into action. Green energy shrouded his body and he charged Necrozma down as fast as he could possibly manage. Necrozma ducked behind his wall again, but Magnum didn't slow down. He collided with the wall at top speeds, forcing the captains apart and sending them crashing to the ground while Necrozma reeled back through the air.

 **"NyArGhAiIgGhHt!"**

A heavy thud echoed through the room. Seraph poked her weary, bloodied head up. "N… no," she whispered. "The core… it…"

Luxeira froze and turned around. Behind her, Necrozma lay amongst the remains of another computer terminal. A broken pipe vented cooler fluid into the room. About a foot above him sat a large crack in the glass containing the core's raw light energy.

 **Alert! Alert! Reactor system compromised. Unable to engage emergency shutdown.**

Inside the fragmenting glass, the core's light spiraled about wildly. The room started shaking. Computer monitors fell from their hinges, with one striking Sticky right in the back of head and knocking him out. Luxeira tried to heft Seraph back to her feet but stumbled and fell to her side. "No… this can't be happening!" Luxeira cried, eyes darting about the room. "We have to shut that thing off! We–"

Necrozma hovered into the air, sputtering about as he moved. The eye in his forehead rotated around, staring into the core of light. **"lIgHt… LeIgHt?"** he grunted. **"WaNt… tAkE…"** Necrozma spun around and struck the core with both of his arms, digging his claws into the glass and splintering it further.

 **"No… stop! You mustn't touch that!"** Magnum shouted, lunging at Necrozma. But a massive swarm of golden light erupted around Necrozma, blasting Magnum into the ceiling. Rather than bouncing off it, Magnum's large frame broke through the metal grates, leaving a large hole. The hole slowly expanded, until a S0L30 unit tumbled down from the roof, slamming into the floor in front of a dazed Luxeira.

She finally managed to stagger back to her feet, only to freeze in terror at the sight of Necrozma. His arms had penetrated the glass and his own core was flashing brightly with each surge of light rushing down his body. **"I fEeL iT… pOWeR rEtURning… thOughts becoming… clearer!"** A surge of light repaired the damage to his head, hiding the eye underneath a fresh layer of black crystal.

 **"Yes…** _ **yes!**_ **I… am… Necrozma!"**

"N… newbie," Seraph croaked, reaching a bloody paw up and tugging at Luxeira's jumpsuit. "W… we… have to… go…" She pointed shakily at the S0L30 unit lying in front of them. "The core… it's gonna blow…"

 **Danger! Danger! Reactor levels critical! Manual shutdown required!**

Necrozma backed away from the core, his black arms still pulsating with light. **"What's going on here?"** he said, his voice much deeper and more coherent. Necrozma looked around the room. **"Wait… the Ultra Nexus… it's gone?"** He raised his hands up and looked at the core. **"I… I'm free? I'm** _ **finally**_ **free?!"** Necrozma dug his arms into the core once again and resumed siphoning its light. **"I must get my light back! I want my power back…** _ **now!**_ **"**

A surge of golden light shot out from the core. It soared over Luxeira's head and blew a large hole in the wall. She scrambled toward the other end of the room, grabbed Sticky in her jaws, and sprinted toward the S0L30 unit. Seraph was leaning against it, frantically typing commands into the system.

Luxeira howled in fright as more tendrils of light shot out of the core, blasting more holes in the wall. Necrozma withdrew his arms. **"What's going on here? Where is that infernal racket coming from?!"** he said.

 **Danger! Danger! Reactor levels critical! Manual shutdown requ–**

It all happened in the blink of an eye. Seraph hammered S0L30's ignition, opening an Ultra Wormhole underneath the massive machine. Luxeira lunged for it, landing on its back just as it disappeared into the Ultra Wormhole. At the same time, they heard a massive explosion, followed by a loud cry of pain.

Luxeira looked back at the closing wormhole. She saw the remnants of the room she was in vaporizing before her very eyes. Seconds later, a solar flare shot through the Ultra Wormhole. The bright light died away, revealing Necrozma's limp body flying toward them like a black, flaming comet.

" _Seraph!_ Steer us left! _Left!_ " Luxeira shouted, grabbing Seraph by the shoulders and jerking her to the left.

Seraph wasn't fast enough on the uptake, however. Necrozma careened into S0L30's backside, destroying the machine in a large blast of napalm and scrap metal. The force of the blow sent Team Paradox and Necrozma hurtling through open Ultra Space. Thick purple crystals encased Team Paradox's unconscious bodies, leaving them completely unaware of their situation.

Alongside Necrozma, they fell into a nearby Ultra Wormhole. They spiraled through the portal, which shot them out into a mist-covered series of cliffs and waterfalls. There, they all careened toward the ground. The members of Team Paradox landed with a splash in a waterfall basin, while Necrozma hurtled toward a cliff, shedding off fragments of his crystalline body as he fell. Only his core was left when he struck the ground and created a giant, rainbow explosion punctuated by a single, bloodcurdling scream.

* * *

 **Lightless Black, Necrozma  
** _So long was Necrozma's fractured spirit imprisoned in the Ultra Nexus that most of his life energy withered away. But his alchemically-forged body refused to crumble. The result is an empty, mindless husk that carves a path of wanton destruction, desperately seeking light to mend a broken soul. Unbeknownst to his foes, a terrifying dark power forms the foundations holding his core together._

* * *

I'm pretty sure the inspiration for this battle's obvious, so I can only offer half a Shane point if you know it. Better than nothing, of course. Also, assuming the change went through, this story finally has a nice little picture of its own that's not badly photoshopped concept art. A huge thanks to canisaries (aka wolframclaws) for the drawing. A "link" to her deviantArt is on my profile page. Onto replies!

SuperOmegaGuest: you're right. When I saw the USUM trailer with the Ultra Recon Squad, I thought to myself, 'Dang, I've _got_ to make this the Ultra Space equivalent of Rescue Teams. It's _too_ perfect!' And so Team Paradox came to be!

Anon Omega: that quote would be far more appropriate if they were flying through Ultra Space on a Lunala. You'll have to wait a while to see something like that happen.

Veralix: as I hope you could tell, things went a bit differently from what you predicted. Still hope it was satisfying and fun to read.

Another guest: I was going for Zoids vibes with S0L30, since Solgaleo looks so much like the Liger Zero, but I'll take it! Also, please be nice to Namo. He's a swell guy and his story's been fun to read so far.

That'll do it. Next time: fall-weather friends?


	77. Bonus: As the Autumn Breeze Blows

Here's another bonus chapter as a thanks for all of the support. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Bonus: As the Autumn Breeze Blows**

 **~Glyphic Falls, Hidden Laboratory~**

A long, protracted sigh sounded through the room. The metal dome encapsulating the area trembled, golden light particles shining off its panels and reflecting onto the cold, steel ground. Golem dropped the quill he was holding onto a slab of rock and rubbed his temple with a groan. He turned and stomped toward the far side of the room.

The God Killer sat behind a dim orange barrier, with a winged heart sigil glowing faintly in the center. He draped his four wings across his crystalline chest, scratching at his topmost spike with his upper right claws. Golem stopped in front of the barrier, tapping a foot impatiently on the ground. "Well, what is it, God Killer? Out with it… you're interrupting my work," Golem said, narrowing his eyes.

Behind the barrier, the God Killer winced. The pointed tendrils of light on his head retracted and the glow in his multicolored eyes dimmed. "Why do you keep calling me that?" he said, increasing the speed with which he traced his claw around his chest spike. "I told you before, my name's Nicky. If you're not going to address me by name, then at least call me Light like all of your assistants."

"Pah… fine," Golem said, waving his right hand dismissively. "What's the problem, _Light?_ "

"I want to go outside," Nicky said, brushing his lower left wing against the barrier. "You said I'm allowed to spend four hours every day on my own. I'd like to use those four hours… now."

Golem turned away from Nicky, rubbing his right eyebrow. "I thought I told you this morning… today's not going to work. I'll just… erm… I'll add those hours onto another day. For now, you have to stay here."

Nicky's wings flared with yellow light as he pressed them up against the barrier. "Please, Golem… I'm going stir crazy sitting in here. I just want to fly around and stretch my wings. What makes today so special that you have to keep me in here, huh?"

"Well… erm… that is," Golem stammered, electricity pulsating from the magnet-like rock formation on his head. "Today is the first day of autumn," Golem finally said. "The start of each season is… an important day for _normal_ Pokémon and their families. I'd go so far as to consider the start of autumn to be the _most_ important." He walked away from Nicky, waving him off with his right hand. "I can't have you flying around out there… drawing undue attention onto yourself."

"That's a weak-ass excuse if I've ever heard one," Nicky huffed, his ethereal tail thumping against the barrier. Golem hopped up, trying to keep a neutral expression on his face. "You already monitor where I go when I'm out," Nicky continued, holding up his right leg to show off the metal band melded onto the crystal spike jutting out in front of him. "I'm not going to go near any towns. I just want to fly around… maybe go for a swim."

"A… absolutely not!" Golem said, whirling back around and stomping toward Nicky. "There are wild 'mons in the water. They'll see you! And wild birds fly through the air! They'll all be out taking in the first day of autumn." He crossed his stubby arms as best he could. "I'm sorry, but you can't do it. You'll need to stay here."

"I thought you said I was here to help Pokémon," Nicky said, slumping over onto his side and whipping his right wings into the barrier. They bounced off it with a loud pair of _plinks_. "How can I help them if you won't let me out of your lab, huh? Isn't it important that I learn about your holidays or celebrations or whatever?"

Golem tapped his right claws against his side. After a half-minute, he slumped over. "Fine, you win," he said. Golem knelt down awkwardly and traced a diamond shaped rune in the ground, and then a star symbol in its center. The barrier surrounding Nicky faded. Golden light spilled through the room, forcing Golem to turn away.

"Thanks, chief," Nicky said, slowly sitting up while being cautious of the ceiling.

"But you'd _better_ stay out of trouble!" Golem said. "So help me… if that sensor picks up any funny business…"

"Yeah, yeah, you'll detonate this stupid anklet and reduce me back into a tiny Growlithe," Nicky said, lazily stretching his right leg out. "I promise, no wormhole-opening or anything like that. I'm just going to take in the sights of autumn in this world for myself."

"Mmmm… fair enough," Golem said, stroking his rocky beard. "I'm holding you to that." He walked up to a crystal positioned next to his rocky desk and pressed his right hand to it. The dome's metal panels began to disappear, until there was a large hole in the center of the ceiling. Nicky slid across the ground. When he reached the middle of the room, he shot into the air, leaving the lab behind him.

Within a few seconds, Nicky had flown over the highest waterfalls in the area. He flapped his four wings, propelling himself forward and dispelling the haze in the area. The craggy rocks and raging rapids of Glyphic Falls quickly disappeared, replaced by a long, winding river surrounded by stretches of mud. Off in the distance, Nicky spotted a faint purple glow.

He followed the light source, slender body and tail whipping up and down like a gigantic worm as he flew. It didn't take long for Nicky to discover the source of the light: a forest of trees whose leaves glowed purple. Nicky paused his flight, using psychic powers to levitate over the trees. _'What a curious sight,'_ he thought. _'I don't think the leaves themselves are purple. It looks more like light is striking them from the northeast.'_

Throwing caution into the wind, Nicky descended. A few startled squawks drew his attention. On his right, a pair of Trumbeaks screeched to a halt in midair. The half-dozen Pikipeks surrounding them also stopped, staring in awe at the large light dragon floating above the trees. "Oh… hello!" Nicky greeted, offering the best wave he could manage with his upper right wing. His rainbow eyes brimmed with light and the glow around his body intensified.

The flock of birds turned tail and flew off, exchanging frightened chirps and chitters. Nicky's head tendrils retracted slightly. His eyes and wings dimmed. "Ah… guess I came in too strong," he whispered. Nicky glanced at his spiked chest and sighed. Golem told him he would be beloved by all Pokémon, but he found that hard to believe when he looked so frightening.

He shook the thought from his mind and continued forward, inspecting the trees as he flew. It was only a matter of seconds before the trees abruptly gave way to a cliff face. Nicky stopped flying and righted himself so he could get a better look ahead. Large, puffy gray clouds sat in front of him, obscuring his view. Though he could see the occasional snow-covered tree poking out from gaps in the clouds. The clouds stretched up like a tower, growing progressively darker toward the top.

 _'I wonder what's up there,'_ he thought, flapping his wings to move forward. Nicky didn't get far, however, before blistering cold wings sent him racing backwards, right wings held up over his face and stomach. _'Tch! Guess I really must be a dragon if the cold's bothering me that much,'_ he thought.

Nicky was just about to turn and leave when a glimmer of light caught his eye. He turned to his left, where a stream of purple light funneled out from the clouds, striking the leaves of the forest down below. Nicky guessed that the stormy mountains were the source of the purple glow. Wanting to test his hypothesis, Nicky ascended higher. His multicolored eyes swirled about, the yellow spots expanding and pushing the other colors to the periphery of his eyes. Nicky spread his wings apart and yellow light streamed down from his body.

The storm clouds swallowed up his light, but to his surprise, even more purple light trickled down into the forest. The leaves erupted in a bright purple glow. Nicky cut off the light trail, the colors in his eyes swirling back around until they took up equal amounts of space. Satisfied with his discovery, Nicky turned and flew off toward the coastline.

 _'This world is so strange. Clouds that sit in place, constantly summoning snowstorms and reflecting light. Purple forests. And let's not forget the sentient Pokémon,'_ Nicky mused. _'This place is pretty much Shane's fever dream.'_

The thought made Nicky stop over open waters. Waves gently rolled below him, carrying frothy white water with them. Sunlight struck his body from above and bounced off, bathing the surrounding ocean in an array of different colors . Nicky floated closer to the water, gazing at his rippling reflection distorted by each passing wave.

 _'The first day of autumn,'_ Nicky thought, as his mind started to wander. Had things not gone the way they did in his former life, he would've been back at school, starting off his senior year. The year where he would've been a top dog on campus. A year that everyone seemed to look forward from the moment they stepped into high school. He thought of all the events senior year would've brought: pep rallies where his classmates would cheer for him instead of vice versa, a chance to captain the swim team, senior prom, and, of course, graduation. The mental image of walking onto a stage in a cap and gown sent a shiver down his spine.

Nicky's reflection disappeared from the water. He blinked his rainbow eyes and frowned as two silhouettes appeared under the glow of his light… two _human_ silhouettes. One with distinctly broad shoulders and a short, military-style haircut, the other with a thinner, frailer physique.

 _Now, sweetie, I'm sure there are loads of fun times ahead of you. But right now, you need to focus on your grades. You've already got colleges keeping a close eye on you, but that won't mean anything if your grades aren't up to snuff,_ a woman's voice echoed in Nicky's mind.

"My grades are as good as they get, Mom," Nicky growled, his eyes turning red. His tail and head tendrils darkened.

 _If that was the case, you'd have gotten scholarship offers at the end of junior year like all them boys on the football team,_ a man said, his voice stern. _It's that needy little friend of yours, Shane. He's sucking away the time you should be using to build your future._

"I'm not just going to spend every waking minute studying and swimming, Dad. I get to have a life," Nicky said, long tail lashing out at the surface of the water.

 _What have you even gotten out of being that kid's friend, huh?_ his dad asked. _Let me answer that… a whole, heaping helping of nothing. The kid's a screw-up!_

 _Now, George…_

 _Don't, Margie. I know you and Estelle are friends, but you gotta admit… their son's a lost cause at this point,_ George said. _I don't know what's wrong with him, but it's not worth getting involved in. Seriously, son, why do you still hang around him? It's because of those stupid video games you playing together, isn't it?_

Golden sparks raced around Nicky's head. "Those… games… aren't… _stupid!_ " he shouted. A ball of light formed in front of his face and he was prepared to hurl it into the water, when he glanced at the band around his leg. With a wince, he dispelled the light, which raced back into his body. His eyes returned to their normal mismatched glow.

He lowered his head, gnashing his crystalline fangs. Technically speaking, his parents weren't wrong. His friendship with Shane had amounted to nothing. Shane was too blind and too self-centered to see how miserable he was as the weeks went on in high school and his classmates picked on him more and more just for associating with Shane. And when he reached out to Shane in a last-ditch effort to find some semblance of comfort, Shane brushed him aside, too worried about a pointless, menial job.

Nicky plunged into the water. All around him, water-types of various shapes and sizes swam away, save for one tiny Goldeen with forest-green lips who remained in front of Nicky, staring at him in awe.

"What do you want?" Nicky barked, water fizzing around him as his yellow glow intensified. A Seaking swam up beside Forest-Lips and shoved her away from Nicky. They took off swimming, Forest-Lips turning to steal glances at Nicky as they went.

Nicky sank deeper in the water, his body lighting up the ocean. Rocky crags lay far below him, with some venting out bubbles and others containing clusters of coral or seaweed. Nicky watched a school of tiny blue fish swim along a gap in the rocks. Their formation resembled an even bigger fish.

 _'All of these Pokémon have homes. Families and friends that care about them,'_ Nicky thought. _'And what do I have?'_ He looked down at his chest spikes and the tips of his wings. The best answer he could come up with was power. Power he didn't entirely know how to control. And with that power came constant surveillance at Golem's hands. Nicky knew exactly what Golem was: a control freak, just like his dad. He shut his eyes and flutter-kicked his legs, heading for the surface.

Nicky broke the surface and rose up into the sky. The water on his body evaporated instantly, leaving behind a stream of rainbow mist as he ascended higher and higher. He flew up toward a cloud and burst through it, vaporizing it with the light his body gave off. Nicky turned around, flapping his wings to stay in place. He stared down at the ocean and the donut-shaped continent below him.

A flurry of questions ran through Nicky's mind. What if Golem lied to him? What if killing the gods wouldn't make him appreciated? What if, instead, it made him an outcase, just like back in school? Nicky clenched his upper wing digits into fists. Red and violet swirled around his eyes.

 _'Stop thinking about Shane,'_ he told himself. _'He ruined your life. I hope he's just as miserable back in school as I was before I ended things.'_

Something caught the corner of Nicky's left eye, bringing his train of thought to a screeching halt. He looked to his left and spotted an island floating even higher in the sky than he was. It had an inverted pyramid shape to it. Yet, despite the high altitude, cherry blossom trees sprouted up, their bright-pink petals sticking out against the darkening blue backdrop signifying the edge of the stratosphere.

His curiosity piqued, Nicky flew toward the island as fast as he could, flapping his wings and whipping his tail up and down to propel himself forward. The higher he climbed, the thinner the air grew. Yet, it didn't bother him. He wasn't short of breath or lightheaded. Nicky figured his new body's psychic powers were the culprit.

It didn't take long for the island to come into full view. Beyond the cherry blossom trees, the island had fields of crisp, green grass punctuated by sunflowers on its eastern border and moonflowers on its western border. A lagoon sat in the center of the island, flanked on each side by a statue. The one on Nicky's right depicted Solgaleo, standing proudly and gazing off into the cosmos. On Nicky's left was Lunala, wings spread wide.

 _'What is this place?'_ Nicky wondered, swooping down toward the island. He had just barely touched town when a loud hum caught his attention. Nicky turned to his right, flaring out his wings. "Hey, who goes there? Show yourself!" Nicky said, shining brightly in an attempt to scare off whatever had made the noise.

"Huh?"

A deep yet feminine voice carried from behind a thicket directly in front of Nicky. The large cluster of bushes rustled and Nicky fluttered back in surprise as Zekrom's head poked out from a gap between two bushes. Nicky frowned, unsure why Zekrom looked so oily.

"Ahh!" she shouted, to Nicky's confusion. "What the–? How the–? You're that new guy… the Guiding Light! How did you find this place?"

Nicky cocked his head to the side. "I was out for a fly and–"

"Oh, never mind that," Zekrom said, then disappeared back into the bushes. More frenzied rustling ensued, punctuated by Zekrom saying, "No, Latios… we can't do that right now. We have company!"

 _'Did I… interrupt something?'_ Nicky wondered, head tendrils curling up.

After another few seconds of rustling, Zekrom said, "Well, _obviously_ you couldn't sense him… you were busy!"

A pause ensued.

"C'mon… quit messing around. And wipe your face off or you're going to embarrass the both of us," Zekrom hissed. Another round of rustling took place, until Zekrom finally stepped out of the bushes, her pitch-black scales slick as if she had lathered herself in grease. This time, a Latios flew out beside her, sweat dripping off his belly and the feathers on his head and face disheveled.

"Uh… hi," Latios said, stretching out his wings. "I think we met once or twice before. You're… um… you're that guy! The one who got the sun and moon to shine down on us again."

"Yeah… that's me," Nicky said, tail brushing against the soft grass. The sensation sent a pleasurable chill up his spine that he fought to hide. "Am I… um… did I interrupt something?"

Latios glanced at Zekrom. "Well, you kind of–" he started, only for Zekrom to silence him with a sharp elbow to his ribcage.

"You're fine, Light," Zekrom said. "Latios and I were just taking in the first day of autumn together… somewhere far away from all the normal Pokémon."

"I see," Nicky said, colors swirling about in his eyes. He had seen enough movies and TV shows to know what was happening. "Forgive me for being blunt, but do you two have a thing going on?"

Zekrom's wings flared out in surprise. "Ugh… see! I told you," Latios said, punching Zekrom's shoulder. "We can't hide anything from him. The dude's psychic! He probably sensed an energy spike and that's why he came flying over."

"Latios, sweetie… could you show at least a _little_ tact?" Zekrom said, frowning as she put her hands on her hips.

"Wait… but you're both Legendary Pokémon," Nicky said, rubbing the back of his neck with his upper left wing. "How does…" He shook his head. "Aren't you two supposed to be celibate or aromantic or whatever? At the very least, Zekrom should."

"What are you talking about?" Latios said, brow raised.

"Latios," Zekrom said, placing a hand on his right wing. "Light's not from our world, remember? He's just… confused, that's all."

 _'In more ways than one,'_ Nicky thought. "Look… I can see I'm bothering you. I'll just…" He hovered higher in the air. "Guess I'll just head somewhere else."

"No, no, you don't have to leave," Zekrom said, hopping into the air and grabbing hold of Nicky's lower wings.

"But what about–" Latios began, before Zekrom shot him an icy look saying back off.

"I don't want to be a burden," Nicky said, the glow around his body dimming as the blue and indigo in his eyes grew more prominent.

"I _insist_ ," Zekrom said, tugging on his wings and drifting down toward the ground. "It's the first day of autumn, after all. Whether you're from this world or not, nobody should have to spend it on their own." Her feet touched down on the grass and she pulled him in the direction of the bushes. "Come on… let's go sit somewhere comfier and chat."

"O… okay," Nicky stuttered, shooting Latios a worried look. He simply shrugged and followed Zekrom along. Nicky remained tense, worried he had stumbled into some sort of mean-spirited trick.

"Fact of the matter is that Latios and I are lesser gods. Or lesser Legends, if you'd prefer," Zekrom explained as she guided Nicky through the bushes and into another field of soft green grass that tickled the tips of Nicky's toes. "We weren't involved in creating the world. We're just… incredibly powerful Pokémon that work to keep the world safe from serious threats."

"Unlike the immortal gods, our lives our finite," Latios said, scooping up blades of grass in his claws. "So, we find mates to settle down with and have kids of our own to carry on after we've passed away."

"Does that mean there are other Latioses flying about? Because you're the only one I've met," Nicky said. The threesome approached the edge of the floating island, at which point Zekrom sat down, dangling her legs over the edge and putting her arms in the grass next to her tail to brace herself. Latios sunk down into the grass, sighing as he rested his head on the island's edge. Nicky awkwardly sat beside them, draping his legs off the island and folding up his wings as best he could. Some of his initial apprehension subsided.

"No," Latios finally replied. "I'm the only Latios until Zek and I decide to have kids. Once we do… we can only have one Zekrom and one Latios. I'm not really sure why that is… something about the balance of power in the world and all that nonsense. But, as long as I get to start a family with this lovely bundle of scales, I ain't complaining." He nudged Zekrom's left leg with his head.

"Quit teasing, Lala. I told you, we'll start our family when I'm ready," Zekrom said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Neither of them noticed Nicky tuck his head down. Colors swirled rapidly in his eyes and he gnashed his crystalline teeth together. A brunette with healthy tan skin, a black t-shirt, and gray short shorts appeared in his mind's eye. She reached out toward him, as if she was going to tussle his nonexistent hair.

 _I always get a kick out of seeing you so flustered, Nicky,_ the girl said, voice echoing in Nicky's head. A growl rumbled in the back of Nicky's throat, with red and orange light flaring on the tips of his head tendrils, wings, and tail.

Latios and Zekrom looked up toward him. "Something wrong, Light?" Zekrom asked, worried.

Nicky blinked several times. "Hmm?" He looked down at the other dragons and shook his head. The red and orange rescinded in his eyes. "It's nothing," he said, slouching over and draping his wings across his lap. "Just… still a bit confused by all of this, that's all. I had this fr–" He paused, crystalline jaw clenched. "There was this guy I knew, back in my old world. Only one that was convinced Legendary Pokémon could… y'know…" He whistled and tapped his lower wing claws together. Latios' and Zekrom's expressions blanched.

"I guess I'm a bit weirded out to learn he was actually right," Nicky said, leaning back. "But, whatever, it's not worth dwelling on." He looked over his shoulder. "So, what exactly is this place, huh? Some sort of grotto for Legends to go on dates in?"

"Not quite," Zekrom said, chuckling. "This is Celestial Island. It… um… it used to be Solgaleo's and Lunala's home."

Nicky sat on that statement. "Never heard of them," he said. "Wait… are they the bat and lion with statues by the pond?"

"Uh… I don't know what a 'lion' is… and Lunala's no Crobat… but you're right about the statues," Latios said. "They were the gods who originally brought the light of the sun and the moon to our world. That is, until there was an accident."

Zekrom's shoulders sagged. "Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza struck up a conflict, generating a torrential storm. Ho-Oh went in to try and stop it and shield the normal Pokémon from its wrath… but she was overwhelmed," she said. "Solgaleo and Lunala appeared and saved Ho-Oh from being torn apart by the storm. But," she lowered her head, "they didn't make it out."

"That's why the world was dark, then?" Nicky asked, tilting his head up toward the edge of the stratosphere.

"Yeah. When Solgaleo and Lunala died, light stopped reaching the planet," Latios said.

"Truthfully, we owe you a huge debt of gratitude, Light," Zekrom said, gazing down at the clouds drifting beneath the island. "When autumn started last year… Pokémon were huddled up in their homes, miserable and afraid. Latios and I…" She trailed off and looked at Latios. "We were honestly wondering if we would ever get to experience another day like this."

"It was worse than that," Latios said. "We weren't even sure how long the world could last shrouded in darkness."

"That's why we were all so grateful when you met us that first time," Zekrom said. "You didn't just bring day and night back to the world, you gave Pokémon their joy and happiness back." She put her right paw on Nicky's left leg. "We wouldn't be out here celebrating the start of autumn if not for you."

Nicky stared down at Zekrom's arm. The silhouette of a girl's arm superimposed itself over Zekrom's. His head tendrils flared up with red light. "Don't touch me!" Nicky shouted, thrusting his wings apart. Zekrom barely managed to pull her arm back and hover into the air in front of the island to avoid Nicky's wings. Nicky sat hunched over, head tendrils twitching as he panted loudly.

Latios and Zekrom fixed confused looks on him. "Suh… sorry. I don't like being touched," Nicky said, rubbing his left leg with his lower left wing. Even though they seemed sincere, Nicky couldn't fully trust them. Rebecca kept popping up in his mind, living proof of what would happen if he let his guard down. An awkward silence fell over the trio, with Zekrom eventually settling back down between them. When Nicky finally worked up the courage to speak again, he asked, "So, what exactly is so special about the start of autumn, anyway?"

"You mean nobody told you?" Zekrom gasped. She leaped off the island, tail whirring to life with blue sparks. Zekrom waved Nicky and Latios on. "In that case, we ought to show you. Come on, guys!" She turned around and shot forward, a trail of blue streaming out from her tail.

"Where's she going?" Nicky asked, floating into the air.

"The Tree of Life, I imagine," Latios said. He tucked his arms into his chest and zoomed after Zekrom. Nicky blinked, concerned they were leading him toward a trap. But he forced those paranoid thoughts from his mind and flew after them. Within a half-minute, he had caught up.

"What's this Tree of Life thingy about?" Nicky shouted over the roar of the wind.

"You'll see," Zekrom called back, winking. Her tail turbine spun even faster and she shot forward again, with Latios racing after her.

Nicky's body brightened as he released a powerful bust of telekinesis, jettisoning himself forward. The high-speed flight was exhilarating. An excited chill ran down his spine. Nicky figured this was how Rayquaza felt speeding around the planet. "How far do we have to go to get to the Tree of Life?" Nicky asked.

"Not much farther," Zekrom said. "Celestial Island moves through the sky. Even if you couldn't feel it, we moved quite a ways west during our conversation." She pointed her right arm ahead. "It's right down there. See the aurora? It's coming from the Tree of Life."

The sky had darkened all around them. Three green, wavy, luminescent lines carved through the air ahead of them. Far below them sat a shimmering, multicolored tree, its branches filled to the brim with fluorescent leaves proudly displaying a wide assortment of hot and cold colors. "Wow," Nicky whispered.

"Race you down there!" Zekrom said, then shot toward the ground like a large black bullet.

"Oh, you're going down!" Latios declared, tucking in his wings and diving ahead.

"H… hey! Wait for me!" Nicky said. He whipped his tail around in a circular motion and sped off after them. His body glowed brighter and brighter as he increased his speed. Nicky flew past a bewildered Latios and then shot ahead of Zekrom. But he failed to realize just how fast he was approaching the ground. Unable to expel enough psychic energy to stop his momentum, Nicky struck the ground, kicking up an explosive plume of soil.

Latios and Zekrom touched down near the impact crater, trying their best not to laugh. "Pffft… nice landing there, Light. Need some flying lessons? I'm always available," Latios said, puffing out his chest.

Nicky popped his upper half out of the crater, head dimmed and covered in soil. A clump of dirt sat across the bridge of his crystalline snout, with a tiny daisy poking out of it. Nicky stared cross-eyed at the daisy and shook his head violently, tossing off all the dirt and restoring some of the glow to his body. Latios, meanwhile, broke down laughing, dropping from the air and banging his right paw against the ground.

"Latios, seriously? This is the Tree of Life… not game night at Temporal Tower. Get up… you're embarrassing me," Zekrom said, hoisting Latios back into the air by his wings.

"Are you three quite finished with your little routine?"

Latios and Zekrom turned around, both as stiff as arrows. Nicky, still half-positioned in his impact crater, turned to his left. Xerneas stood at the base of the brightly-glowing tree, glancing at the trio over her left shoulder.

"Who's she?" Nicky asked, too awestruck to notice his friends' jaws drop in unison.

"How could you not know who Xerneas is?" Latios gasped. "She's the guardian of the Tree of Life! She's the very essence of grace and elegance! She's… uh… like, the embodiment of nature… or something?" Zekrom fixed a scathing look on Latios, at which point he realized what he had just said. "O… oh, but she could never hold a candle to you in the looks department," he said, laughing nervously.

Xerneas cleared her throat and the three dragons tensed. "I'm glad to see you all having so much fun," she said, her voice as soft as velvet linens. "I'd hate to put a damper on it, really, but I _am_ in the middle of something quite important. And I doubt you three are here for an urgent visit, given your demeanors. So, may I humbly ask for a few minutes of peace and quiet? We can talk when I'm finished."

"O… of course," Latios said, face bright-red. "Go right ahead! S-sorry about all the ruckus."

"Thank you," Xerneas said, turning back toward the Tree of Life.

 _'Finished? Finished with what… exactly?'_ Nicky wondered.

As if to answer, Xerneas reared up on her hind legs, antlers and forelegs brimming with multicolored light and pink fairy energy. Xerneas lowered her forelegs. The instant their tips struck the soil, intricate patterns of circular light swirled out all around her. On either side of Xerneas, bushes bloomed with flowers and berries. Behind her, a pair of fresh saplings sprouted out from the soil. And in front of her, the light rushed up the Tree of Life, making the swirl-shaped sigil in its bark release a bright flash.

"Whoa," Nicky said, shielding his eyes with his upper right wing. "What's she doing? I've never seen anything like it before."

"Geomancy," Zekrom said, wrapping her right arm around Latios and pulling him into an embrace. "To be honest… I don't know exactly what it does, either. But every time I'm around Xerneas and she uses it… I feel positively full of life."

The light died down and the three dragons looked up. An unseen force propelled the Tree of Life's leaves high into the sky, where they then blew off in every direction. "The reason why the first day of autumn is so important is because of the Tree of Life," Latios said. "During spring and summer, leaves full of magical energy grow on the tree. When autumn starts, Xerneas uses her powers to release the leaves so the autumn winds can carry them throughout the world. Then, the leaves settle and disperse their energy during the winter, restoring any damage that ley lines might've done to the earth over the course of the year."

Nicky frowned. He had no idea what ley lines were, but he was too worried he'd make his new friends upset if he asked.

Satisfied with her job, Xerneas turned and walked toward the dragons. "There we are. All done," she said. "Now then… what did you need me for?"

"Nothing," Zekrom said. "Light isn't from around here and he doesn't know why the beginning of autumn's important. So, we brought him over here to see it for himself." She gestured in Nicky's direction. Xerneas turned to him, to which Nicky could only stare back blankly.

"Uh… hi?" Nicky said. He realized he was still slumped over against the impact crater and floated out. But that just made him concerned that the height difference was awkward, so he sat cross-legged on the ground and bowed his head respectfully. "A pleasure to meet you… again, I guess," he said. "I hope this won't sound rude, but I've never seen a Pokémon like you before."

Xerneas giggled, brushing a foreleg across the ground. "It's quite alright. I mean, we've met a couple of times prior. Despite that, I can safely say I've never seen a Pokémon like _you_ before," she said, jabbing a blade-like hoof into Nicky's leg.

Nicky looked down at Xerneas' leg and saw a silhouette of the same human arm as back on the island. Red and orange momentarily strengthened in his eyes, before he snapped to attention. "Aha… well… it's complicated," Nicky said, silently willing himself to keep it together.

Xerneas' X-shaped pupils constricted. "I can't even begin to imagine," she said. "Still, I'm not sure if I ever got the chance to properly thank you in person from restoring light to our world." She gazed up toward the full moon lighting up the night sky. "After all, were it not for you, I wouldn't have been able to send off the leaves without a hitch. So, please," she bowed gracious to Nicky, "accept my heartfelt thanks."

Nicky glanced at Latios and Zekrom, who were exchanging an affectionate nuzzle. Without thinking, his tail unfurled behind him and struck a tree, splintering it but not outright toppling it. The others tensed up, looking to Nicky for an explanation. "S… sorry 'bout that. I'm, uh, not too good at keeping this sucker still," he said, mentally cursing himself for losing his cool again.

"Latios. Zekrom. May I ask you to return to your homes?" Xerneas said.

The two dragons exchanged concerned looks. "Uh… I guess we can go," Zekrom said, hovering into the air. "Take care, Light. You too, Xerneas."

"It was fun hanging out, dude," Latios said, waving to Nicky as he took off after Zekrom.

When the dragons were gone, Xerneas stepped in front of Nicky, a heavyset look in her eyes. "Did… did I do something wrong? If it's about the tree, I can fix it," Nicky said, glancing at chunks of wood strewn behind him.

"It's fine. I'll tend to it later," Xerneas said. "It's _you_ I'm worried about." She sat down on her haunches. "I'm not psychic, but I like to think being in tune with the planet makes me pretty observant."

Nicky raised his right brow. "Meaning?"

"You bear a heavy burden," Xerneas said. Silence followed that statement, with Nicky and Xerneas staring one another down.

"I'm fine," Nicky said, blue and violet expanding in his eyes. He barely knew this Pokémon, so he was confident he'd scare her off if he told her what was on his mind.

Xerneas sighed. "My apologies. It is not my place to pry into your personal life when we are so poorly acquainted," she said. "It's just…" She traced a hoof through the dirt. "You did such a good thing for us… without even knowing who we were or what our world is like. I figured the least I could do is try to help you feel better."

The well-tanned girl flashed through Nicky's mind again, smiling at him. "I'm fine," Nicky whispered, his eyes almost entirely a mix of blue and purple. "Don't concern yourself with me."

"I don't believe you're fine," Xerneas said. "And it would be unfitting of me as the embodiment of the Tree of Life to turn my back on you."

Nicky flinched. Was Xerneas really telling the truth? Did she really want to help him? Before he could dwell on it further, Golem's scowling face lingered in his head. Nicky shuddered, his eyes returned to their usual, mismatched color scheme. "I'm sorry," Nicky said, bowing his head. "I really can't stay out here much longer."

Xerneas frowned. "You're going back into hiding, then?" she said.

Nicky glanced at his anklet. "I don't have a choice," he said. Before he could float into the air, Xerneas got up and trotted to his side.

"I'd like to see you again," she said, the jewels in her antlers sparkling.

"Why?" Nicky said.

"You strike me as someone who could really do with a friend right now," Xerneas said, offering a warm smile. "If you'd like, we can meet somewhere different."

"Don't you have to guard this place?" Nicky asked, still worried he was being played.

"I can get Yveltal and Celebi to look after it for a bit," Xerneas said.

"You don't have to do that just for me," Nicky said.

"But I want to," Xerneas said, inching closer to him. "How about tomorrow?"

Nicky considered the offer. His heart fluttered at the realization the doubtful thoughts in his head were wrong. Slowly, yellow and gold grew in his eyes and his body's glow intensified. He looked down at Xerneas and said, "How does going to Celestial Island sound?"

"I think it sounds lovely," she said, returning his look with a smile.

* * *

 **~The Tree of Life~**

Xerneas sat at the base of the tree, staring up at the green barrier surrounding it and, by extension, her. Under the shield's glow, the Tree of Life lacked its usual mystifying aura. She knew nothing was wrong with it, yet the sight of it failed to bring a smile to her face like it usually did.

Perhaps it wasn't just the tree's lackluster appearance that had her down. Her mind drifted off to a scene from a few days ago, in which Latias and Hoopa appeared before her, saying the Guiding Light had returned. He had possessed Lunala and sought to consume the spirits of all Legendary Pokémon. Latias begged her to follow Hoopa to a hidden location, where she would be safe until the Expedition Society figured out how to free Lunala. Xerneas politely declined the offer, unwilling to part with the Tree of Life. Celebi, on the other hand, accepted. He flew off into one of Hoopa's portals without so much as a goodbye.

With a nod, Xerneas concluded that was the source of her unhappiness. In the years since Dark Matter's last attack, she had struck up a friendship with Celebi, something she had refused to do for multiple prior generations. So, she was heartbroken to see him drop everything and leave her behind without a second thought.

A ripple of light snapped her out of her thoughts. Xerneas looked ahead of her, toward the Road to Primeval Forest. The wall of trees distorted, with a glowing crack appearing in the center. Black claws grabbed the edges of the tear and ripped them further apart, creating a gap in the air wide enough for Necrozma to fly through. He flew forward, shrouded in black mist, only to bounce off the barrier. Necrozma thrust his wings apart, dispelling the shadows.

 **"Xerneas,"** Necrozma said, his voice cold and distant. **"It's been awhile. I see this place hasn't changed much. And... you're alone. Guess that means... heeheeheehee... Celebi wasn't as close of a friend as you were hoping."**

"Light," Xerneas said, stepping closer to the barrier. "I figured you would come sooner or later. A god and the Tree of Life… both enticing to someone gobbling up spirits."

Necrozma floated there, saying nothing. He wrapped his wings over his torso to hide his twitching arms. After a minute of silence, he said, **"The Tree of Life… isn't good enough to bring my real body back. It is a shadow of what it once was… just like you."**

Xerneas narrowed her eyes. "The Tree and I have never been better," she said.

 **"Lies,"** Necrozma said, shadows swirling around him. **"We both know it bears only a fragment of its former power, thanks to Dark Matter."** Necrozma opened his wings up and floated closer to the barrier. **"All those spirits…** _ **ripped**_ **from its branches… lost for all eternity. Once again, you failed at protecting something that mattered."** He raised his right arm up, staring at his claws as he flexed them out. **"I shouldn't be surprised, honestly."**

Xerneas' antler-gems pulsated with light. "Your belittling won't work," she said. "If you won't release Lunala, then I will do everything in my power to free her."

 **"More lies,"** Necrozma hissed, striking the barrier with purple energy balls that harmlessly bounced off. **"All you gods know how to do is pile lie on top of lie until you manage to get exactly what you want."** His words sent a chill down Xerneas' spine. She tried to turn away, but Necrozma drifted to his left, staying in her field of vision. **"Why have you all gone to such great lengths to purge me from the world's history?"**

Xerneas silently channeled energy down her forelegs. Two cracks opened in the ground and pillars of pink, sparkle-filled light shot up under Necrozma. **"You told me…** _ **all**_ **the gods told me how grateful they were to have light restored to this world!"** Necrozma said, dodging and blasting the barrier with a purple beam. **"So, tell me why! Why do you refuse to speak the truth? Why have you all hidden my accomplishments from countless generations of Pokémon?"** he continued, barrier swallowing his attack.

Hooves slammed the soil yet again. More pink light pillars erupted around Necrozma. One struck his back and slammed him against the barrier. "Release Lunala!" Xerneas said, narrowing her eyes.

 **"How** _ **wonderful**_ **it is to see you go to great lengths for a Pokémon who wouldn't exist if it wasn't for me!"** Necrozma snarled. **"Where were you when I pleaded for help!"** He rolled past pink balls of fairy energy. **"I told you gods about Golem… about his plans for me. You all ignored me!"** He thrust his right wing forward, shooting black meteors that plinked off the barrier.

 **"We had a mental link!"** Necrozma said, ramming the barrier at top speed. **"Did that mean nothing to you?!"** He scraped his claws against the barrier while Xerneas gathered more energy in her forelegs. **"I deSErVe aN aNSweR!"**

Xerneas tensed up, the fairy energy in her forelegs disappeared. She looked into Necrozma's third eye. "Light," she whispered.

 **"I dON't aCKnoWlEdGE tHAt nAmE aNYmORe. I aM nECrOZma, DevOUrEr oF lIGhT!"** Necrozma shouted, banging his right arm on the rippling barrier.

"Light, you need to stop this. Release Lunala," Xerneas said, antlers flashing erratically. "You are trifling with a power you can't possibly hope to control. It's consuming you!"

 **"AnSWeR! mY! QuEStIoN!"** Necrozma said, bashing the barrier with every word. The ground shook all around Xerneas. **"You have Geomancy… you embody the essence of life. Why didn't you help me? You could've repaired my core! But you sat back and did nothing! YoU AlL sAT bAck And dId NOtHinG!"**

"I didn't have a choice!" Xerneas said, slamming her hooves into the ground. Pink fairy energy struck Necrozma from above. He bounced off the ground and landed on his stomach, wings spread apart. "I didn't have a choice," Xerneas whispered, tucking her head in and stepping back from the barrier. "Please, Light. Don't make this any harder than it has to be."

 **"Any harder?"** Necrozma said, rising back into the air like a mummy from its corpse. **"AnY hARder?!"** he shouted, third eye glowing bright. **"You had a choice! You** _ **chose**_ **to sit by idly–"**

Xerneas winced. "I had no choice. I had orders–"

 **"Orders… from Arceus?"** Necrozma said, wrapping himself up in his wings to still his shaking limbs. **"No… heeheeheehee… it was still your choice. You chose to** _ **blindly**_ **follow Arceus' words. It was your decision! You didn't question him… you yielded to his whim! You said I was important!"** He rushed the barrier and slammed up against it. Purple shockwaves raced out, vaporizing the nearest tries. **"You told me I mattered but that was just a lie… wASn'T iT, ReBeCCa?!"**

Silence followed. Necrozma clung to the barrier, breath coming in ragged gasps. Xerneas stared him down, white light swirling around her body. "Who's Rebecca?" she said.

Necrozma backed off the barrier, arms trembling. Thorny vines sprouted from the earth. He released a crimson shockwave, vaporizing as many vines as possible, but it wasn't good enough. Vine after vine slammed him against the ground. They piled on top of him until Xerneas stomped a hoof on the ground.

"I'm sorry, Light," Xerneas said, staring down the pile of vines and the pink mist evaporating off them. "All us gods were told to ignore you… for the sake of this world's survival. I had to put personal feelings aside." She looked down guiltily. "Arceus was right… I never should've let myself get close to you. It clouded my judgement… and almost made me lose sight of what's most important: keeping this world stable."

The vine pile trembled. Xerneas stepped back, X-shaped pupils dilating in fear. She gathered up more fairy energy in her antlers. A terrifying screech rang out and the vine pile exploded. Necrozma floated black clumsily, blood trickling down the tears in his wings. The winged heard in his chest flickered erratically, as did his third eye.

 **"YoU,"** he whispered, tears dripping out from his armored eyes. **"You are not doing anything but propping up a farce."** His arms involuntarily shot out to either side. Necrozma wrapped his darkening wings around his body. **"This world… and all who inhabit it… is nothing but a cover… for Arceus' recklessness… for the lives he extinguished in a fit of blind rage!"**

Xerneas reared up, but Necrozma rushed forward. **"YoU aRE a MiSTaKE!"** he snarled, wings turning light blue again as he slammed his arms into the barrier. **"EVerYtHiNG hERe Is a MiStAke!"**

He floated upward, avoiding the vines sprouting up beneath him. **"I will be back… and I'll make you see how worthless you really are!"** Necrozma said, an Ultra Wormhole forming up behind him. **"I'll take your antlers and** _ **rip**_ **them off your head one by one until you know** _ **exactly**_ **how hopeless I felt when my light was stolen!"** Drool seeped out of his mouth. **"By the time I'm finished… heeheeheehee… you'll be** _ **begging**_ **me to take your spirit!"**

Xerneas made one last attempt at blasting Necrozma with a light pillar, but he was already through the Ultra Wormhole. The instant the portal closed, Xerneas' legs gave out and she collapsed onto her side, racked by shudders. Tears streamed down onto the soil beneath her head.

* * *

I thought it was well past time Necrozma get a bit more depth added to his character. For anyone who's confused, Zekrom and Latios are not the same ones that appeared in previous chapters, they're ancestors. Hence why Zekrom is a girl in this bonus. Onto replies!

Anon Omega: sorry, man, pretty sure your guess a few chapters back was incorrect, so that'd be a no. You got the reference last chapter right, of course.

Veralix: as you can see here, there were some happy times for Necrozma. Sadly, the didn't last.

WonderBread: I, uh, don't pay much attention to the music when I'm watching TV, so I can't say.

SuperOmegaGuest: he didn't eat the reactor. After all, Necrozma doesn't exactly have a mouth in his base form.

Another guest: you're right, most of the time they don't go by Necrozma. I mean, that's a pretty frightening name, so I'd want to avoid it if I was one of them.

Next time: we head back to the present, where Team Paradox fills in some gaps and Totem Decidueye comes to a shocking realization.


	78. Electrifying Intermission

I don't know about anyone else, but the site's stopped sending me notifications for anything. So, as a reminder, this fic currently updates on Saturdays. Onto the chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 66: Electrifying Intermission**

 **~Cosmic Cavern~**

Silence hung over the campfire as the various explorers sat there, processing what Luxeira and Sticky had told them. Gallian stared at the ground, brow furrowed and scraping the rocks with his claws.

"So, you guys lost consciousness inside of an Ultra Wormhole?" Tessa asked. Both members of Team Paradox nodded. "That sounds really rough. How were you able to survive, anyway?"

"We're not entirely sure," Luxeira said.

"You didn't wake up right away when after arriving in this world?" Latias said.

"It's tough to answer that, since we have no idea when we actually showed up in this world… or how the flow of time differs from Ultra Village," Luxeira said. "All I can tell you is that, eventually, we awoke to find a Honchkrow and a Toucannon tending to us. The latter introduced herself as Totem Toucannon. I suspect she's rather important in Glyphic Falls. Anyway, they claimed they had found us at a waterfall basin… trapped inside crystals."

Zoroark frowned. "From the sound of it, you two were comatose for gods only know how long," he said, resting his arms on his thighs and hanging his head. "This is… a lot to take in."

"I'll say. Feels like everything I know has been turned upside down," Dusk said. "To think… there are other worlds out there with Pokémon like us… but at the same time _not_ like us. Ugh, I'm getting a headache just thinking about it."

"What happened when Totem Toucannon found you?" Latias asked, though the worried look on her face suggested she had a good idea what the answer was.

"She offered us berries to get our strength back," Luxeira said, "but then politely asked that we leave Glyphic Falls to avoid riling her flock up. At least she was willing to give us a ride to the outskirts of some village. From there, we, erm…" She cast a wayward glance at Gallian. "Well, to be honest, I think Gallian could explain it better from here. I don't want to step on his toes."

Shane shook his head in disbelief. "You mean to tell me that all that crazy stuff happened to you guys when you hadn't even been on the job for a week?" he said.

"Affirmative," Sticky said. "It was a disastrous endeavor, to be sure."

"Okay… wow. So, you two are total novices, then. You're even less experienced than me and Tessa."

"Shane," Tessa said, a disapproving frown on her face.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I just had to say it. Because it's so… so…" Shane bit down on his lip. "Actually, I'm not even sure what to classify it as. Ironic? Cruel? Some combination of both?" In response, Tessa's look grew sterner. Shane flinched and looked down. "Sorry," he said. "I guess that was inappropriate."

"Why did you keep so much of this from me?" Gallian growled, getting to his feet. "Don't you think I deserved to know the whole story?"

"I thought it irrelevant to the matter at hand," Luxeira said. "Our focus was on keeping your ultra aura levels under control and trying to make sense of the world we had arrived in."

Gallian's eyes flashed red. "Well, fat lot of good that did. If you hadn't acted so mysterious, then maybe we could've been more productive."

"Gallian," Zoroark said, reaching a paw out toward him. Gallian stepped away.

"Don't 'Gallian' me!" He pointed his black scythe at Luxeira. "I followed your 'commands' because you identified yourself as a captain. You made it sound like you knew what you were talking about. But you were just lying to me!"

Luxeira shrank back. "I… well…" She looked at Sticky. "I had to step into the captain role. Sticky and I were utterly lost, so–"

"I could've given you _real_ leadership if you'd actually taken the time to explain things to me," Gallian snarled.

"That's enough, both of you," Latias interjected, flying between Gallian and Luxeira with a nervous look on her face. Beside her, Hoopa rolled his eyes.

"Feh. You're such a buzzkill, always stopping these things right as they're getting interesting," he said, shrugging.

Latias ignored him. "I think everyone ought to take a few deep breaths and calm down. We're all on the same side, after all." She turned to Gallian. "It's clear that there were a lot of missteps… but that's all in the past. There's nothing anyone can do about it except try not to repeat those same mistakes in the future. Are we clear?"

Gallian frowned. Latias floated closer to him, looking unamused. "I said… are we clear?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Get off my back," Gallian growled, stepping back toward his seat.

"There are still a few concerns I have," Silvally said. "The first one being you, Sticky." He pointed a talon at Sticky, whose expression blanched. "You're acting a lot different than you used to. What happened?"

Sticky rubbed the side of his head nervously. "I suspect the blow I sustained to my cranium battling Necrozma may have caused some sort of cognitive disturbance. It's not a hypothesis I feel like testing," he said.

"Fair enough," Silvally said. "Then the only question left is… what happened to Seraph? She _was_ with you when Necrozma blew up your ship."

Luxeira and Sticky exchanged frowns. "We honestly have no idea," Luxeira said. "As we've gone around the Horizon Continent, we've tried searching for some sort of evidence that she's here… but we haven't come across anything."

Totem Decidueye stiffened on his perch, brushing the tip of his right wing against Dusk in the process. She looked up at him. "Something the matter, Totem?"

He tucked his head down, eyes closing contemplatively. "Totem Toucannon found them in a waterfall basin… trapped in crystals," he said. "Excuse me, Houndoom." Totem Decidueye fluttered off his perch, gliding down to a spot behind Luxeira. "Per chance, did Totem Touncannon or Honchkrow tell you anything about what you two looked like when you were found?"

Luxeira gave Totem Decidueye a confused look. "No… I don't think so."

"Actually, I think there was an offhanded remark about the crystals 'being very dark,'" Sticky said. "If my memory is serving me adequately, of course."

"I see," Totem Decidueye whispered. "If that's the case… I believe I may know the location of your missing teammate."

Everyone turned to Totem Decidueye in stock. "Y… you're kidding!" Luxeira gasped.

"Hold up!" Dusk barked. She tried to get to her feet, but her injuries strained her movements and she quickly gave up, falling back onto her belly. "You mean you found some frozen alien Pokémon and just _hid it_ from the village this whole time?"

Zoroark stood up. "You're racing to conclusions, Dusk," he said. "Look at his face. Our Totem _just_ realized what was going on."

Dusk looked down, wrinkling her snout. "I guess. Still… I'm one of the village's guards. If something bad happens… I'm supposed to know."

"I'm truly sorry for the mix-up, Dusk," Totem Decidueye said. "To be honest, I wasn't sure what to make of the situation. I was returning from a supply run to Midday Valley, when I spotted a peculiar dark stone bobbing up along the surface of the Midnight Sea." He took a step back from Team Paradox and spread his wings out. "I swooped down for a closer look… and low and behold it turned out to be a massive crystal. But it was so dark… it didn't look very valuable."

"So, Seraph ended up in the Midnight Sea?" Luxeira said. "How did she get there when we were still in Glyphic Falls?"

"The rivers in Glyphic Falls all run right into the Midnight Sea," Gallian explained. "I guess the currents must have swept her to the south. I'm just amazed some wild water-types didn't go after her."

"Perhaps they were scared off by the sight? Even in the midst of the harshest storms, crystals don't pop up in the Midnight Sea," Zoroark said, scratching at the remnants of his left ear.

"Regardless… I was concerned," Totem Decidueye continued. "I could clearly see _something_ inside the crystal… but had no idea what to do with my discovery. So, I stuck it in one of the smaller caves on the south face of the mountain."

"You mean the part facing the ocean? Don't wild flying-types roost in those caves?" Dusk gasped.

"Not this one. It's a personal little hovel of mine," Totem Decidueye said, chuckling. He turned back to Team Paradox. "I'm happy to fetch your teammate for you, but it would take me a little while."

"Do you need any help lifting anything?" Tessa asked. "I'm happy to–"

Totem Decidueye shook his head. "After the ordeal you all have been through, I insist you rest."

"Why not have Hoopa fetch it for you?" Latias offered, to Hoopa's annoyance.

Totem Decidueye frowned. "While I am humbled by your offer, I must decline. That cave is a… personal area. I'd prefer no one enter it aside from me." He started walking away from the fire pit.

"What if we waited outside?" Blaziken said, shrugging. "It's nighttime now, right? There could be some wild 'mons out and about, if I'm remembering what I heard about Horizon correctly."

"Yeah! We can be your backup muscle," Swampert said, holding up a beefy arm. "Or, rather, your only muscle. Cause you don't really look to have any… aha ha ha!"

Totem Decidueye sighed. "Very well." He looked to Latias, Hoopa, and Team Go-Getters. "Follow me, please." He beckoned them along with a wing.

As the group left the fire pit, Luxeira shakily got to her feet. "Actually… as long as we're taking a break… I'm going to just… um…" She looked at the tunnel behind her. "I think I'll go down there. I need a minute to myself."

Panic flashed across Sticky's face. "C-Captain, hang on. You can't just leave me here with–"

Luxeira was already in the tunnel when Sticky floated up to try and stop her from leaving. He slowly turned back toward Team Radiance, flinching at the sight of Silvally. "I… um… I just realized there's something important that I… erm… really should be remembering… to do."

Tessa tugged the corner of Shane's scarf. "Hey," she whispered, "come with me. I'm going after Luxeira."

"Why? She said she wanted to be alone, didn't she?" Shane said.

"She may have _said_ that, yeah, but her body language suggested otherwise," Tessa countered. Before Shane could retort, she pointed at her aura feelers. "Also, I felt some really unpleasant ripples when she was speaking. I think she needs someone to talk to."

Shane had no counterargument to her aura powers. He got to his feet, saying, "You should've just led with that."

"Sorry… I'm still kind of getting used to this aura reading thing," Tessa said, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. Shane bit his lip, worrying he offended his friend.

"It's fine. Don't worry about it," he said.

"Hey, where are you guys going?" Dusk asked, poking her head up. "Didn't Houndoom say she wanted to be left alone."

"Hang on… if you're going after her then I'm coming with you," Sticky said, only to squeak and flutter back as Silvally walked in front of him, blocking off the path.

"Let them go," he said, gesturing at Shane and Tessa with his beak. "Judging by what Luxeira told us, you're really not the guy to help her out right now."

"And you think your teammates are?" Sticky said, his expression growing more restless.

"I think they understand exactly what's bothering her… and what they can do to help," Silvally said. "Besides… I think the two of us need to chat." As he finished that statement, he turned his gaze on Gallian, Zoroark, and Espeon.

Espeon's ears stuck up. "Um, Dusk… how long has it been since Totem Decidueye applied those medicinal leaves?"

"Dunno… a few hours, maybe?" Dusk said.

"In that case, we'd better change them out," Espeon said. She hopped off her seat and trotted toward Dusk's little perch.

"Yeah," Zoroark whispered, scratching his mane. "And I think Gallian and I will go after your friends."

Gallian frowned. "What's the point? You just heard the big guy… they've got things under control."

Zoroark leaned in close to Gallian, a frown on his muzzle. "Think about it, Gallian. Luxeira probably lost her home and her family… and she just had to sit here and tell that to all of us." Gallian winced, realizing Zoroark was right. "Yeah, this entire time you've know her, she's been shouldering that heavy burden. I'll bet she never said anything about it, did she?" Zoroark said.

"No, she didn't," Gallian replied. He sighed and got to his feet. "Hey… try not to kill each other or anything while we're gone," he said, casting a wayward look at Silvally before walking toward the tunnel with Zoroark limping beside him.

"P… please… whatever business you have with me… can't you just drop it?" Sticky begged, voice ripe with worry.

"I just want to understand something," Silvally said, his psychic memories activating and turning his glowing appendages bright pink. "When we first met… it seemed like you knew me somehow. I want to know why that is. And I want to know why you're always frightened to be around me. I'm not out to hurt you, especially when I barely know you."

Sticky floated further from Silvally, but it did little good. Silvally marched after him, still wearing a hurt look on his face. Eventually, Sticky brushed up against the cavern wall and slouched over in defeat. "I know what Beast Killers are capable of," Sticky said. "I've heard what your kind do to us Ultra Beasts."

Silvally frowned. "I don't understand. Are you telling me there are others out there that are just like me?"

"Yes!" Sticky said, flinching at how loud he answered. "You Beast Killers… are ruthless monsters. You slaughter Ultra Beasts callously. That's what they told me back in Ultra Village, anyway."

"But I'm not just some 'Beast Killer,'" Silvally said. "I'm…" His voice trailed off and his expression grew stern. "Sticky… the day I broke out of my mask, I saw how I'd been created."

"To kill Ultra Beasts, I imagine," Sticky said. Silvally shook his head.

"No. I was made… to kill the gods of our world," Silvally whispered. "And, once they were gone, I was supposed to be this 'protector against evil.' But the Pokémon that created me… he did so by forcibly binding Unowns to spirits that he pulled from the spirit realm."

"Whether it was science or some arcane art that gave rise to you matters not to me," Sticky said. "After everything I've been through, I don't want to suffer at the hands of a Beast Killer. Even if you're fine _now_ , there's no guarantee you won't fly off the handle and attack me at some point."

"Sticky… there's a Poipole's spirit inside of me," Silvally said, a nervous look on his face. "Like, I'm pretty sure she's at the center of my core, too." Sticky stared back at him in stunned silence, leading Silvally to poke at the ground. "I'm sure it sounds crazy. I just thought you'd want to know."

Sticky's gaze darted about the cavern. "That can't be true… can it?"

"I heard it for myself. My creator even said she was from Ultra Village. My teammates saw it, too. I'm sure they'd attest to it if they were here," Silvally said.

"Unbelievable," Sticky said, sliding down along the wall until he lay on the ground. "I had heard rumors that, before I existed, there was a Poipole who had managed to go off into Ultra Space, hoping to make contact with another world. This… has to be some sort of bizarre coincidence."

"I strongly doubt it," Silvally said. "Still, I had to get that off my chest. I don't want to hurt you. Especially after hearing what happened to you and Luxeira." Silvally's head drooped, his eyes turning glassy. "Losing your home, friends, and family must have taken a real toll on you."

Sticky shrugged. "It's really not as bad for me as it is for Luxeira."

"What do you mean by that?" Silvally asked.

"Well, to start with, UBs don't really have families to speak of," Sticky said. "When an Ultra Beast grows old, it simply decomposes. Its remains drift toward the edge of whatever world the UB inhabited. Then, there's a chance an Ultra Wormhole will open, exposing the remains to Ultra Space radiation, which catalyzes the creation of a new Ultra Beast."

As Sticky's explanation droned on, Silvally appeared increasingly weary. He blinked his eyes repeatedly in an effort to stave off sleep. "From there, it becomes a matter of whether or not the new UB is taken in by anyone," Sticky continued. "I… wasn't. After floating around Ultra Village aimlessly, I found a shelter. I stayed there. The staff were polite and respectful. They were the ones who actually pointed me in the Ultra Recon Squad's direction."

"I see," Silvally said. A beat passed and then his jaw dropped. "Wait a second… wouldn't that make you even younger than Tessa?!"

"Perhaps by the standards of time measurement in your universe," Sticky replied. "I prefer not to ruminate on it too much." He sighed again and shook his head. "If anything, my feelings about this whole situation are the exact opposite of what you'd expect."

Silvally sat down, raising an eyebrow. "I'm not sure I follow."

"I don't deserve to be here right now," Sticky said. "I didn't deserve to survive Ultra Village's destruction. I _barely_ passed the required examination, then proceeded to fumble my way through basic training. The only reason I wasn't vaporized is because I stuck around Seraph when I'm confident she didn't want me there." He fidgeted with his hands. "I was completely useless. I got knocked out by Necrozma without doing anything to help."

"I've spent the last few weeks trying to reconcile why Luxeira stopped to grab me as she and Seraph were fleeing," Sticky continued. "And I just can't think of a good reason. Instead, I keep returning to the same thought: if Luxeira had left me behind, she and Seraph might've been able to avoid Necrozma." He lowered his head shamefully. "They could've reached another base and avoided this nightmare."

"You don't know that for a fact, though," Silvally said.

"There isn't a lot of evidence suggesting another possibility," Sticky countered.

Silvally sighed deeply and slumped onto his stomach so he wasn't towering over Sticky. "Trust me, Sticky. I get where you're coming from," Silvally said.

"Do you really?" Sticky said. "Look at you. You're big and imposing. You're a far more useful asset to your team than I could possibly be to mine."

"It's easy to feel like you have nothing to offer when things aren't going well in your life," Silvally said, almost as if he was reciting the line from memory. "Those spirits I told you about? Plenty of them had times where they felt useless or, worse, were _told_ how useless they were. But that kind of thinking is a slippery slope." He lifted a foreleg up. "Once you start sliding down it…" He whistled and lowered his foreleg, twirling one talon in a circle. "You'll just keep going and going until you hit the ground hard."

"I don't believe I comprehend the comparison," Sticky said.

"My point is that you shouldn't call yourself worthless and you need to stop dwelling on why you're here. Instead, focus on how you've made a difference so far," Silvally said. "I mean… take yesterday, for example. It was _your_ special tile that let Team Paradox get off Mount Supernova with the Sizzle Shard."

"That's true," Sticky said.

"And, for whatever it's worth, you were hardly a pushover when we had to fight," Silvally said. "You're more valuable to Team Paradox than you realize."

"You really think so?" Sticky gasped.

Silvally nodded. "I know so. I'm sure Latias saw it, too. Otherwise she wouldn't ask you to get involved with finding the Scalebound Shard." He poked his head up and looked to his left. "Speaking of which… I think they're coming back." He glanced at Sticky. "Are you gonna be okay?"

"I guess so," Sticky said. "I'm just worried about Seraph… and how she'll react to all of this if we can free her."

"Don't worry. I'm not about to let anything bad happen… to anyone," Silvally said, offering a reassuring smile.

"… you're a very strange Beast Killer," Sticky mused, floating up beside Silvally.

"That may be, but I think I make an alright Silvally," he said, winking at Sticky.

"Um, where did everyone go?" Latias asked, floating up to the fire bit. She was levitating a large black slab beside her. Staring at it, Silvally was immediately reminded of the black monoliths used to infect other Mystery Dungeons. However, upon closer examination, he noticed glints of yellow and black inside.

"I see something in there," Silvally said. "I can't really tell what it is, but there's definitely _something_ there."

"You're right, but I'm not sensing any life energy at all," Latias said, eyeing the crystal with a frown. "Besides, do we even know how we can break this thing open?"

"I was going to propose Z-Power, since it's worked against the Prism Virus, which also comes from Necrozma," Silvally said.

Totem Decidueye stepped forward, dusting off his Totem Crystal. "It's been awhile since I've used any Z-Power, but I suppose I could give it a try."

"Maybe we ought to wait until Luxeira's back?" Espeon said, still tending to Dusk's injuries away from the fire pit. "She's probably the one who's best suited to keeping Seraph under control."

"… or make everything worse, judging from what she told us," Blaziken said, drawing a bunch of annoyed looks. "What? Aww, c'mon, don't look at me like that. We're all thinking it!"

* * *

Shane and Tessa paused at the end of the tunnel, which had led them to a dead end. Vibrant purple crystals sat in piles lined up neatly around the edge of the room. In the middle stood a hand-made, wooden sign, reading, "Light crystal stockpile. No entry without Totem Decidueye's permission."

This fact didn't matter much to Luxeira, who was sitting down in front of the crystal pile on the far side of the room. She leaned against one of the larger ones, weeping loudly into it. "Well… are you going to go up to her or what? This was all your idea," Shane whispered, worried Luxeira would snap at him.

Tessa rubbed the bridge of her snout. "Gimme a sec, here. I'm trying to think of what to say."

"Why not just pat her on the back and go 'there, there?' Seems pretty appropriate for this situation," Shane said. He figured Tessa would make for a better shoulder to cry on.

"If you're so confident about that, then go on," Tessa said, gesturing to Luxeira. "I'm sure she'd appreciate it."

"… I can hear you two, you know."

Shane and Tessa stiffened, the latter's aura feelers and ears sticking up in alarm. "L-Luxeira, we didn't… err, I meant to say…" Tessa struggled to find her voice with Luxeira's tearful gaze directed at her.

They couldn't turn back now, so Shane decided to act. "We wanted to come check up on you," he said, taking a step forward.

"I asked to be left alone," Luxeira growled, flames licking at her jowls. Shane winced and stepped backward, ears reflexively folding up against his head. "Whatever sympathy you plan on spewing… stuff it. You've heard what I've been through. All you can offer me are empty words and meaningless platitudes."

Shane could tell things were already going south fast, but had no response. "We don't have to talk," Tessa whispered. "We could just listen."

Luxeira frowned. "I don't have much to say."

"I'm not sure I believe that," Tessa said, placing a paw on her chest. "My guess is you don't want to hear this… but you have every right to be upset, given what's happened to you. These past few days, I've been… well… struggling to come to terms with my life's circumstances." Her aura feelers tensed up and she shut her eyes. Sensing Gallian's and Zoroark's presences lingering in the tunnel, she continued, "You saw some of that for yourself… when I pummeled the living daylights out of Gallian."

"What's your point?" Luxeira asked. Shane shot her a worried look. To him, it sounded like Tessa was making Luxeira's situation about her. Something Shane was guilty of doing numerous times before.

"My point is that you've kept your feelings about everything inside for too long," Tessa said. "You have to let them out… or they're going to turn vicious… just like mine did." She looked down shamefully.

Tears welled up in Luxeira's eyes again. She whirled around, butting her curved horns against a nearby light crystal. "It's not fair!" she said, breath coming in ragged hisses. "We were doing our jobs! I was trying to make a difference in the world! And what did I get for it, huh? What did the powers that be reward me with for sticking my neck out? Nothing!" She banged her horns against the crystal again. "I lost everything! My home. My friends. My…" Luxeira choked back her tears.

Then, without warning, she unleashed a black energy beam on the light crystal in front of her. It burst apart, tiny crystal shards flying out in all directions. Shane and Tessa winced, the latter throwing an arm up to shield her face. Tessa took a cautious step forward, only to freeze upon seeing flames gathering in Luxeira's mouth. Shane resisted the urge to bite Tessa's tail and drag her away from a potential fight.

"That bastard… he took it all away from me! I want him to pay… I want him dead and gone! But I can't do anything because I'm too weak!" Luxeira shouted, then broke down sobbing. Tessa rushed to Luxeira's side, catching her before she collapsed onto her belly. Luxeira bawled her eyes out into Tessa's thigh as Shane watched silently. He wondered how Nicky could do something this horrible. What had Golem's spells done to make Nicky such a horrible monster?

"It's okay, Luxeira. Let it out," Tessa said. "Nobody should have to experience what you're going through."

Shane's brow furrowed. He realized that, like Luxeira, Espeon was dealing with similar demons. It struck him that maybe she should have been the one to talk to Luxeira. A second voice told him that would only make things worse, not better.

Everyone stood in place silently for a few more minutes, until Luxeira's sobs quieted into muffled whimpers. "How are you feeling now?" Tessa asked.

"Upset," Luxeira said.

Tessa pursed her lips and nodded. "I can see that. I know the feeling. There's this crushing weight all around you. It makes you want to curl up into the tiniest little ball imaginable, close your eyes, and pray they don't open back up."

Luxeira sighed heavily. "That… sounds pretty accurate. It's like I told you back at the fire pit… I'm living out a bona fide nightmare. No matter how much I wish this were all a dream… it isn't. I can pray that I'll somehow wake up and find myself snuggled up with Silus… but it won't mean anything."

A few feet back in the tunnel, Gallian watched his sister with a furrowed brow. "I don't understand it," he whispered. "The way Tessa talks… it sounds like she's had a sinking sense of dread in her gut for a while."

"Probably because she has," Zoroark said.

Gallian's gaze fell to the ground. "Tessa," he said. Zoroark put a paw on his back, eliciting a wince.

"Blaming yourself won't do any good, here," Zoroark said.

"But it has to be my fault," Gallian whimpered. "The way I treated her when I left–"

"I'm not disagreeing with you," Zoroark said. "She made it perfectly clear that you hurt her."

"Then why bring it up? To make me feel bad?" Gallian growled.

"To tell you that you can't look back," Zoroark said. "If you want a good relationship with your sister again, then you have to focus on the present."

Gallian hung his head. "You make it sound so easy. She's nothing like I remember her. The Tessa I grew up with… was a bundle of sunshine. Bright, bubbly, and eager to please. Now… it's like she's an entirely different Pokémon." He looked back at Tessa, who was helping Luxeira up to her feet.

"Well, she _did_ evolve," Zoroark said, shrugging off the glare that followed. "Look, she's your sister. If she's that important to you, then I'm sure you'll figure something out… like you're going to do with me, right?"

Gallian winced. "I'm… uh… I'm working on it."

Luxeira, Shane, and Tessa caught up with the two of them. "Why are you here?" Luxeira asked. "Were you eavesdropping on us?"

Gallian bit his lip. "N-no… of course not."

"Gallian wanted to check on you," Zoroark said. "Maybe you guys didn't have the greatest working relationship, but he _does_ owe his life to you."

"Y… yeah," Gallian squeaked, shifting uncomfortably. "Are you, y'know, doing okay? Anything I can help you with?"

Luxeira glanced at Tessa, who gave her a reassuring nod. "I think I'm going to be okay," she said. "Let's go see what Totem Decidueye dug up."

The group proceeded back through the tunnel and reentered the fire pit. They found their allies huddled around the black slab. "That's dark alright," Gallian said, eyeing it. "But something's off with it."

"Yeah. It's not sparkling," Shane said, ruffling his tails. "Crystals should sparkle, right?"

"Seraph's definitely in here, though," Luxeira declared, looking down into crystal. "I wish I could say how this happened, but I'd just be throwing out wild guesses." She hung her head. "If Tori were here, I'm sure she'd know what was going on." Tessa walked up to Luxeira, her face ripe with concern, but Luxeira waved her off. "I'm fine."

"The Beast Kill– I mean… _Silvally_ had a suggestion for getting Seraph out," Sticky said.

"Let me guess, Z-Power?" Tessa said, flexing her digits and tilting her head from side to side until her neck cricked. "I guess I'll handle it, then. Everyone stand back."

Totem Decidueye stuck a wing out in front of her. "Easy there, child. While I can't fault your enthusiasm, we must be cautious. If you were to strike this crystal too forcefully, you might end up killing the lady inside."

"Assuming she's even still alive in the first place," Dusk said, drawing annoyed looks. "What? Oh, come on. I can't be the only one thinking that."

"Stuff like that is best kept to yourself," Silvally said, an unamused look on his face. He turned back to Totem Decidueye. "So, how do you want to go about this?"

"I think using the fighting Z-Move on this crystal is too forceful," Totem Decidueye said. "I think my grass Z-Move might prove effective enough to free Seraph without risking her life in the process."

Luxeira nodded. "I like that idea."

"I'm going to need space, though. Would you kindly step back?" Totem Decidueye asked, fluttering his wings and hopping up and down to get his blood pumping. The rest of the group moved back toward the nearby tunnel. Totem Decidueye tapped a wing to his Totem Crystal and orange light encased his body.

"Kcch! Wow, that's bright when you're in close quarters," Shane said, swishing his long mane in front of his eyes. Silvally shifted his dark memories on and shut his eyes, pressing his face against the rock wall.

Tessa's muzzle twitched. "Does anyone else smell freshly-grown grass?" she gasped, putting a paw to her nose.

"Yeah! Look… around the ice!" Swampert gasped, pointing downward. A patch of grassy terrain had formed under Seraph's icy prison. Brightly-colored flowers popped up from the grass, each one emitting soothing aromas that drained the tension from everyone in the group. " _Wow_ … smells like a freshly-blooming garden in springtime," Swampert said, drool trickling from his mouth.

Blaziken rubbed his stomach. "Suddenly I've got a _huge_ craving for salad and fresh berries."

Beside them, Hoopa pulled a wedge of iceberg lettuce out of one of his rings and sniffed it. "Nah… this isn't nearly fresh enough," he said. Hoopa tossed it back into the portal, muttering, "Stupid fancy-schmancy Z-Power. If Hoopa had that… he could make his rings even more incredible."

The flowers all gave off tiny beams of green light, which coalesced together, forming a giant flower made of green energy. It swallowed the crystal up whole. Totem Decidueye then kneeled down, striking the ground with his wings. The flower opened up, releasing an explosive pillar of green light.

"Too bright," Shane said, turning and burying his head against Tessa's belly. He hoped it would end quickly.

"H-Hey!" Tessa said. She shoved Shane back, her face reddening. "Warn me if you're going to try something like that." It took Shane a second to process what she meant, but when he did, his face also went red.

The green light faded, allowing everyone to see that the flowery field had vanished. And, to everyone's surprise, so had the crystal. "That's her!" Luxeira said, cautiously approaching the Zeraora lying on the ground. Nicks, scrapes, and patches of burnt fur lined Seraph's body. Bloodstains still peppered her face from her fight against Necrozma.

Luxeira frowned. "Is she alive?"

Tessa jogged up to Seraph and knelt down beside her. She placed a paw against Seraph's chest and shifted to her aura sight. "It's faint, but I've got something," she said. "Her aura's really weak, though. Latias, do you think you could try using Heal Pulse on her?"

"I don't see why not," Latias said. She raised her claws, releasing soft pink waves that rippled over Seraph's body. One by one, her wounds closed up. New strands of yellow and black fur sprouted up to cover Seraph's burnt areas. While it didn't clean the blood off, Tessa sensed Seraph's aura growing progressively stronger.

Seraph began to stir. "H… hnnngh," she muttered, eyes opening and blinking multiple times. "W… what happened? Where… am I?" She brought her large paws up to her eyes and rubbed them.

Tessa beckoned Luxeira and Sticky over. "Seraph? I imagine you must be really confused right now. But–"

Seraph sat straight up, looking into Tessa's eyes. "Hel- _lo_ ," she purred, licking a digit and using it to straighten out her whiskers. Tessa's look of concern was quickly replaced by one of confusion.

"Seraph… are you feeling alright?" Tessa asked. "Look, your teammates from Team Paradox are–"

Seraph gingerly placed a paw under Tessa's chin. "I must've died and ended up in the afterlife because you, my dear, are positively _heavenly_."

Tessa's eyes widened. "Wait, wha–"

Without warning, Seraph wrapped her arms around Tessa's shoulders and pulled her into a kiss. Tessa's aura feelers shot up in alarm while, behind her, her teammates' jaws dropped in unison. "W… we should do something, right?" Silvally said.

"Are you kidding me? This is better than that one dream I had," Shane replied, drawing an astonished look from Silvally. "Err… I meant… it's better than this one dream _Solgaleo_ had. Aha ha… ha…" He silently cursed his poor choice of words.

While the group stood watching in shock, Tessa finally got her bearings back and socked Seraph in the gut with a glowing fist. Seraph doubled over, clutching her chest in pain. Tessa got back to her feet, aura feelers pulsating. "Okay," Seraph wheezed. "Guess I'm not dead… because that one _hurt._ "

"Seriously, Seraph?" Luxeira groaned, stepping between Seraph and Tessa and rolling her eyes.

Seraph looked up at Luxeira. "What? Don't give me that look. Lucario's not wearing anything and neither am I. If that's not sending a signal, I don't know what is," she scoffed, staggering to her feet. "Come to think of it… you've ditched your clothing, too," she said, grinning at Luxeira. "And just what am I supposed to make of this, huh? Getting some pretty mixed messages from you, newbie. I already told you, I don't sleep with co–"

"Get a grip, Seraph!" Luxeira barked, snorting tufts of fire from her nostrils as a warning. Seraph stepped back, staring at Luxeira's smoke trails. "Look around you. We're clearly not in Ultra Village anymore. Don't you remember what happened?"

"Of course I do," Seraph said. "We–" She cut herself off, gaze falling on the rest of the group. "Hang on… what's going on here?" Seraph whispered. She gingerly placed a paw up to her forehead and recoiled in horror when she pulled her paw away and saw blood on it. Her eyes widened, pupils dilating in fear. "I… we… we were fighting a Lightless Black," she said. "We got onto a S0L30 because he had irreversibly damaged the Ultra Village Core."

Luxeira nodded grimly. "The core exploded, jettisoning the Lightless Black, Necrozma, into our Ultra Wormhole before it could close. He smashed into S0L30 and destroyed it. We all fell through Ultra Space and ended up in this world," she said.

Seraph dropped to her knees, staring at her trembling paws. "We… we should be dead. Ultra Space radiation… without a protective field, it renders an average 'mon like you or me comatose."

"We were all trapped in big crystals, apparently," Luxeira said. "Sticky and I were found by some locals, but you ended up near this community of cave-dwellers."

Seraph squeezed her eyes shut. "If… if the core blew up… then Ultra Village…"

"… is likely gone, yes," Luxeira said, her voice trembling. "I'm sorry, Seraph." Her expression grew strewn. "I realize how bad all of this is for both of us, but Necrozma is still out there. He's in this world now… wreaking havoc and threatening to destroy it. Sticky and I are going to work with these terrestrials to try and stop him. Please…" She held her forepaw out to Seraph. "We could really use your guidance."

"Get that thing out of my face," Seraph whispered, her paws balling up into fists.

"Seraph," Luxeira said, frowning.

"I said get it out!" Seraph shouted, swatting Luxeira's forepaw aside. She bolted to her feet, looking around the cave in a frenzy. "I… I need space." She tugged at the fur tufts on her shoulders. "I need air! _I need air!_ "

"Wait, Seraph!" Luxeira called, but Seraph had already raced across the cave in a stream of lightning. The current banked off light crystals and entered the tunnel leading to the hot springs area. Luxeira hung her head. "That… somehow went even worse than I thought it would."

"I did not anticipate her reception to our predicament being very positive," Sticky said, rubbing the back of his head.

"I suppose I should go after her, then," Luxeira said. Before she started walking, however, Espeon hopped down from Dusk's perch, landing gracefully and curling her tail against her hips.

"Let me go," Espeon said. "I think I have a good idea of what to say to her." She glanced back at the group. "Besides, you all still need to hear what Gallian has to say, don't you? And I think you should stay to help fill in the gaps."

"But what about you?" Silvally said.

Espeon's eyes flashed blue. "I'll get the summary version from one of you later… if that's okay." No one voiced any objections, so Espeon turned and padded off for the hot springs, leaving the group behind.

Gallian sighed, drawing everyone's attention. "I guess that means it's time for me to pick up where Luxeira left off… so to speak." He sat down in front of the dying fire. Silvally opened his beak and spat out a fireball, reigniting the remaining wood. The rest of the group situated themselves throughout the fire pit. Gallian took a heavy breath. "The truth is… that I didn't discover Team Paradox. They found me."

He glanced at Zoroark. "And they found me because I gave into my disaster sense… and let it ruin my life."

* * *

Time for review replies!

SuperOmegaGuest: that's not a bad guess, I'd say. But you'll have to stick around and see what happens to him.

WonderBread: well, perhaps if you stick around you'll see exactly what Nicky's and Xerneas' was like.

Anon Omega: it is real and it exists. Nicky's and Shane's spirits were dragged into the world. That's all I'm going to say.

VerbalCupcakes: you're actually the first person to pose that theory. Not saying how right or wrong it is, though.

Veralix: keep calm, buddy. We'll be exploring the creation myth and exactly what role Arceus had in it... eventually. But that houses some of the biggest twists of the story, so I'm staying silent on it.

JesusChrist: that's true. But, well, I can't say anything else because of spoilers.

Another guest: Nicky's parents weren't evil. Just... a bit demanding. And you'll see more about Arceus in the future. I promise!

Next time: we learn what drove Gallian out of Aeon Town... and Tessa's life.


	79. Run Away, Wayward Soul

**Special announcement:** I've put up a poll about the story on my profile page. It's going to run until the end of the month. I'm really curious as to what you readers are thinking, so I'd appreciate it if you took part in it, even if you're a silent reader who hasn't commented on the story.

These next few chapters will be a bit more experimental. Namely because, compared to the rest of the fic, the cast is a lot smaller and there's a lot more introspection than you're used to. Let me know what you think. Enjoy!

* * *

 _I want you to understand something, Tessa. Just because Mom took care of us and did fun activities with us doesn't mean that she loved us. She was doing it for Dad's sake. I'm sure of it. You only got a glimpse of it with your failed aura training, but when it came to work, Mom was a completely different Pokémon. She had laser focus, adopting a serious tone and never letting her emotions show through. The one exception was when she was with Dad. Then she'd make wry jokes and laugh like there wasn't anything wrong. The rest of the time though, being around her in the guild made me exceptionally nervous, like she was judging every little thing I did._

 _It was particularly bad for me at the start, because Braviary had Vaporeon handle my training. That first week in the guild was full of me discovering things about myself I had never even considered. I wound up having to go see Dad and talk through all my concerns. When I did, I brought up the fact that Mom made me uncomfortable. Dad waved it off, saying something about how Mom's just very strong-willed and she shows that through her work._

 _I guess that's why the months following Dad's death were so jarring. Because Mom went from being stoic and distant to all over the place emotionally. She gained a hair-trigger temper. Little things now set her off. Like I told you back in Sunrise Village, she'd repeatedly tell me how insufferable you were. I didn't even know how to react to something like that. My own Mom badmouthing my little sister? It was awful! But, despite that, I was too scared to do or say anything. So, I kept my head down and went about my business._

 _Then Mom went away on what she called an "important mission." When she got back, however, she flew into a rage. That's when I saw her stomping about her room, tearing the place up and muttering things angrily to herself. A couple of weeks later, she told me she's going away "on guild business." Then she just walked out. No saying good bye. No hug or "I love you." None of that._

 _At first, I didn't think much of it. Mom went away to do guild stuff all the time and none of us batted an eye about it. But the days wore on and Mom didn't return to the Observatory, so I got worried. I tried to talk to Braviary, but he didn't really have anything he could offer me. Then I asked to speak to Guildmaster Metagross. He said he didn't have the time and slammed his office door on me. At that point, I figured I had to take matters into my own paws._

 _With the way Mom had been behaving, I suspected that maybe she was actually looking into Dad's death. Braviary and Metagross had told us there was an accident, so my best guess was that Mom didn't believe them. Thus, I found myself setting out for Glyphic Falls, hoping to find some answers…_

* * *

 **Chapter 67: Run Away, Wayward Soul**

* * *

 **~Glyphic Falls~**

Roaring rapids and the pounding of waterfalls rose to a crescendo as Gallian padded his way through the dense evening fog at the area's base. Ahead of him, several different pathways fanned out in a semicircle, each one snaking along a river with a sharp current. Some of them immediately shot up, disappearing into the fog, while others remained at ground level.

Gallian figured the only way he could get to the bottom of things was to reach higher ground, since his dad fell from a cliff. He swiveled his head around, biting his lip as he looked at each separate pathway. Gallian wished he had an idea which way Incineroar had gone when he was here, but nothing sprang to mind. Not helping things for him was the fact that nighttime served to reduce his visibility even further.

 _'Maybe I have an emera that could help with this?'_ Gallian thought. He opened up his satchel and stuck his snout into it. But what emera could light up the falls? Galian ruled out clairvoyance ones, since they're for picking up items. _'Think, Gallian, think! Remember Magearna's big spiel about emeras.'_ He shook his head. That would be possible. He had nodded off the moment Magearna launched into exposition mode.

Gallian's eyes widened. There was something he could use: a sun's blessing emera! He sighed in relief as the gem in question materialized in his mouth. Gallian pulled his head out from his bag and fastened the gemstone into the looplet around his left foreleg. It clicked into place and emitted a green aura.

A vibrant orange fireball materialized in front of Gallian. After a few seconds hovering in place, it rose up into the air, flooding the basin with warm light. Some of the heavy mist moved away, offering Gallian a clearer view of the different paths. He could even see that some of them continued branching off further ahead. Most of them climbed upward until they were out of range of the artificial sun his emera had created.

"Auuugh! That light… it's dreadful! Get it out! Get it out!"

Gallian jumped in fright, looking about desperately to identify the source of the loud, screechy voice that had echoed through the area. Before he could offer a response, a chorus of angry cawing rose up from all directions. Gallian shrank back toward the fog near the entrance, looking about ready to bolt from the scene.

"Light! Bad light!"

"Turn it off!"

"Make it go away!"

"W… who's out there?" Gallian cried, teeth chattering. "I'm… uh…" He gulped. "I'm an explorer in the Horizon Guild. I'm just passing through and I'm not looking for trouble!"

Under the fireball's light, Gallian spotted multiple shadows along the different paths. He squinted and made out the forms of a dozen Murkrows. They all took to the air in unison, fluttering up to his artificial sun with disgruntled looks on their faces.

"No trouble, huh?" a portly Murkrow harrumphed. "Then what're you doing setting off this doohickey?"

"Yeah! It hurts my eyes and makes it hard to fly straight," an extremely skinny Murkrow chimed in.

"That's because you can't fly straight even in nighttime, doofus," a Murkrow with red tail feathers taunted. She turned to Gallian. "In any case, you better put this thing out right now!"

Gallian winced. "I… um… I don't really know how," he squeaked. An angry round of cawing met him in response. Gallian held up his left foreleg. "It's my looplet! My looplet, see? I already activated the emera… and there's no way to get it out until its effects fade. I'm sorry, guys! Please… just let me pass through and the light will move with me."

"Not good enough!" Red-Tail said. "If you take the light with you, you'll disturb the rest of our flock. Either turn the light out or leave!"

"I already told you guys I can't do that," Gallian said. "I have to get further. Just let me go on ahead."

"No!" the Murkrows all cawed in unison. He saw movement to his left and jumped back, clumsily dodging a pair of Murkrows who dive-bombed him from his right.

"C'mon, guys. We really don't have to do this!" Gallian begged.

"That's enough… all of you!"

The Murkrows froze in the middle of their jeers and looked over their shoulders. A red-crested Honchkrow swooped in above Gallian's fireball, flapping his wings to hover in place above all the Murkrows. "Now, what's all this shouting about? For pity's sake, I can hear you lot all the way up north. You're disturbing the sleeping members of our flock."

"Sorry, sir," Red-Tail said. "But Absol brought this awful light into the falls. Look at how bright it is!"

"It's disturbingly bright," the skinny Murkrow said, rapidly flapping his wings to stay airborne.

"That's no reason to go causing such a ruckus," Honchkrow scolded.

"But we want Absol and his light to go away," Red-Tail said. "He's with the guild. Why would they be running missions in the dead of night, anyway? That's _our_ time, not theirs!"

Honchkrow scowled at Red-Tail, prompting her to flutter back with a look of embarrassment on our face. "Clearly, I'll have to handle this," Honchkrow said, sighing. "You there!" He pointed his wing at Gallian. "Don't move a muscle. I'm coming down."

As Honchkrow glided to Gallian's spot, both of them heard a scratchy female voice calling out, "Dear? Did you figure out why our brethren were making so much noise?"

Honchkrow descended to the ground as fast as possible and stood at attention. Likewise, the Murkrows landed behind him and arranged themselves in a neat, single-file line. Gallian heard loud wingbeats overhead and looked up. A Toucannon flew into view. On her head sat a crown made of various feathers encompassing an array of different colors. Gallian spotted a rainbow crystal in the center of the crown and gulped.

 _'Oh gods, I've really gone and screwed this up,'_ he thought. _'They brought their Totem out and everything!'_

Totem Toucannon landed beside Honchkrow. "I was actually attending to the noise issue, sweetie," Honchkrow said. "There really was no need for you to drag yourself out of the nest."

"I was already awake thanks to that lot's _incessant_ cawing," Totem Toucannon said, fixing a disdainful look on the Murkrows. They all shuffled about nervously, poking the ground with their feet.

"It was her idea!" Portly Murkrow said, pointing to Red-Tail.

"Me? You're the lout who got whipped up into a frenzy by Absol's light ball!" Red-Tail said, flapping her wings.

Totem Toucannon's beak began glowing and radiating hot air. "I don't care which one of you started it. Only that you all prolonged it. Now, be quiet so the adults can talk."

Red-Tail and Portly Murkrow stepped back, looking down guiltily. "As I was saying," Honchkrow continued, clearing his throat, "it appears Absol here created some sort of artificial light. I recognize the badge and the band on his leg. He's with the guild."

"I see," Totem Toucannon said. She glanced at the fireball in the sky and then hopped around to face Gallian. He could only stare down the length of her large beak for a few seconds before shrinking back. "That was a bit brash of you, don't you think?" she said, pointing to the artificial sun. "Generally speaking, my flock tries to stay out of the way of you civilized 'mons. We have an understanding, after all. You let us go about our lives and we stay out of your business."

"But this is… rather intrusive of you," she continued. "It's hard keeping order in a flock where the Pokémon are active at different times of day. In the past, I tried to make it clear to you all to stay out of our domain at nighttime. You see, despite my mate's hard work, the night-fliers are much more easily startled. And I really don't want any misunderstandings spiraling out of control."

"Suh-Sorry, Totem… ma'am… m-miss… err… something like that," Gallian said, wincing. "I wasn't trying to rile anyone up. H-Honest!"

"Then tell us… what was so important that you had to come here at night?" Honchkrow asked, eyeing Gallian skeptically.

"That's… um…" Gallian bit his lower lip. "It's hard to explain."

Totem Toucannon sighed. "You there!" she called to Red-Tail, who immediately saluted her with a wing. "Take your friends and go the watering hole in the east." Red-Tail opened her beak to protest, which she immediately cut off with a, "Quickly, _please._ "

Red-Tail nodded rapidly, shooing the other Murkrows off with flutters of her wings. She then flew off after them, disappearing into the mist. Totem Toucannon nodded. "There. Perhaps now you'll be a little less nervous." she said.

"I think you're the one who made him nervous, to be honest," Honchkrow said, chuckling.

Totem Toucannon was not amused by the joke. "Be serious here, dear. Civilized or not, I am deeply uncomfortable with an Absol being in our midst." She locked eyes with Gallian. "I'm sorry, but I have to look out for my flock's best interests. And that would involve getting you out of here quickly. So, either give me a reason why you're here or leave."

Gallian flinched. "It's my mom," he squeaked. "She's a Lucario with the guild. I… um… I think something bad happened to her here." He mustered up the courage to look Totem Toucannon in the eyes, only to wilt in the face of her unconvinced expression. "She came here a couple of weeks ago to poke around the place and hasn't come back to the guild since. I'm just trying to figure out what might've happened."

"So, you're here on nothing more than a hunch?" Honchkrow said, shaking his head disapprovingly. "That sounds like a prelude to bringing trouble upon us. You don't seem that aggressive, kid, but we know what Absols are capable of. Why you're not living in the mountains where you can't cause any trouble is beyond me."

"I have to press onward," Gallian said, squeezing his eyes shut. "My mom only came here because of my dad: Guildmaster Incineroar. Maybe you've, y'know, met him before?"

Both birds tensed up, exchanging nervous looks. "You're Incineroar's kid?" Honchkrow gasped. "That doesn't make a lick of sense if your mom's a Lucario."

"They found my egg left in the middle of a winter storm," Gallian explained. "But that's not the point. About six months ago, my dad came here to do… something. I'm not entirely sure what. But… but there was an accident and my dad died! I think my mom came here because she's not convinced there was any accident. That's why I need to investigate."

Honchkrow looked expectantly at Totem Touncannon. He fluttered over to her, holding up a wing to shield his head from Gallian's view. "Um, dear. Not to alarm you, but doesn't that sound an awful lot like what I told you about? When I got caught in that nasty storm?"

Totem Toucannon nodded. "It does."

"What should we do, then? If Absol's the guy's kid, we should tell him what happened, right?" Honchkrow said.

"Can you even still accurately remember what you saw?" Totem Toucannon asked.

"Well, I think Absol helped clear things up a bit. I wasn't honestly sure what to make of that night until now," Honchkrow said.

"Then go ahead," Totem Toucannon said. "Just be prepared for the possibility he might get upset."

Honchkrow nodded and lowered his wing. Behind him, Gallian shuffled about nervously. "Did… did I do something wrong?" he asked.

"No," Honchkrow said. "I just needed to consult with my mate for a moment. The truth is… I think I know what you're talking about with your dad."

Gallian stood up straight. "You do?"

"Several months ago, a nasty storm fell over the area. As it got worse, my mate noticed that members of the flock were missing," Honchkrow explained. "I volunteered to head out into the storm and locate the missing birds. Flying proved difficult, but I managed to find them as the storm was dying down. In the process of returning to our flock's home, however, I got turned around in all the fog and rain."

Honchkrow took a deep breath. "As I tried to find my way back, I stumbled upon a scene that… confused me. There was an Incineroar standing at the edge of a cliff. I couldn't really tell what was happening at first, but then I heard a loud clan. Metal legs shot out from the fog and struck Incineroar. He stumbled back and dropped off the cliff. I couldn't do anything to save him, because I was still carrying the younglings."

Gallian tightly clenched his jaws, breath coming in short, ragged gasps. "You saw… metal legs?" he said. That couldn't be right. There was no way Metagross could be the one responsible for his dad's death. He was at the guild all night with Braviary. That's what he was told. "Did you… um… see anything else?" Gallian asked.

"Well, there were a pair of glowing eyes," Honchkrow said. "They lit up a metal cross… so I guess there was another Pokémon there with Incineroar? I'm sorry, but that's about all I know."

Gallian inhaled sharply and descended into a raucous coughing fit. Totem Toucannon tensed, slightly unfurling her wings. "What's the problem here?" she said. "You look as if you're staring death in the face."

"We have a Pokémon like that in the guild," Gallian wheezed. "But that's… he's…" He shook his head. "Metagross was Dad's friend. He'd never… kill him. This has to be… some mistake. Another Metagross, maybe?"

Honchkrow shrugged. "I'm sorry, kid, but that's all I know… honest. A Pokémon with metal legs sent an Incineroar off one of the cliffs. I didn't bother hanging around to check out what else happened. I was too worried about the flock."

Gallian squeezed his eyes shut, scraping his claws against the rocky ground. This couldn't be right. Everyone loved his dad. Why would Metagross do something so drastic? Gallian took a cautious step back from the birds. "Thanks for the heads up… I guess," he said.

"Does this mean you'll be leaving?" Totem Toucannon asked.

"Yeah," Gallian whispered. "Sorry for disturbing you." He turned and walked into the fog around the entrance, a neutral expression on his face. As he made his way deeper into the mist, the green glow from his emera faded. Gallian emerged from the fog into a clearing. There were a couple of wood cabins on either side and a rocky incline leading down to a set of docks.

Gallian made it about halfway down the hill before doubling over in pain. His eyes went wide and darted around the clearing. Gallian's heart pounded faster and faster while his chest constricted. His breathing lapsed into an irregular wheezes.

What was happening? Why did his head hurt so much? Gallian cupped his shaking forepaws over his head, wincing as they brush the fur on his neck. It was all standing on end!

 _'Why do I feel so afraid? It's like I'm staring down an avalanche… and I'm just rooted to the spot!'_

Gallian stiffened. He forced his eyes shut and a single thought flickered through his mind.

 _'Disaster.'_

His eyes shot open. Disaster? But what was going wrong? He looked around clearing, panic spreading across his face. Was something about to happen to him? He had no clue, which only served to make him more nervous.

Gallian looked over his shoulder. Off in the distance, thunderhead clouds gave off clusters of white light. There was no doubt in Gallian's mind. He had to leave. It wasn't safe here. Gallian reached into his satchel and produced a flare for the Sharpedo Sailors. He fired it into the air, where it erupted in a bright blue flash.

As he waited for his lift, Gallian paced back and forth. What could he do? Where should he go? He paused. The Observatory was the obvious answer, but the thought made his chest tighten again. He hunched close to the ground, gasping for air. Gallian shook his head about and stumbled backward.

 _'No, I can't go there. It's… it's a bad idea,'_ he thought.

Gallian froze once again, blinking rapidly. What was he saying? A huge storm was coming straight for him! He couldn't just stand around and get caught in it. There was no choice. He _had_ to back to the Observatory for his own safety.

This time, Gallian's scythe crackled with black energy. He dropped to his belly, brushing his forelegs against his head. That idea didn't sit right with him. The Observatory wasn't safe. Not with Metagross around. Because if Honchkrow had told the truth, then Gallian knew he couldn't take Metagross. Besides, what could he possibly say against Metagross?

"Ahoy there! You need a lift?"

Gallian sprang to his feet, a nervous look on his face. A Sharpedo bobbed in the water in front of Gallian, a gray cross on his forehead instead of a yellow one. "Y-Yessir!" Gallian said. "I've… I've got to go to… um…"

The sky rumbled overhead. "I suggest you think quickly, lad. That storm brewing in the distance looks mighty fierce. You're probably my last fare for the day," Sharpedo said.

"Coming," Gallian said, trotting up to the dock and hopping onto Sharpedo's back. He fastened himself into the specialized seat. "Can you… um… get me to Sunrise Village?" Gallian asked.

"Sure thing, lad. There's a small inlet I can follow from the Midnight Sea," Sharpedo explained. "Off we go!" Sharpedo swam into the night, cutting through the large waves. Their sharp angles led to numerous plumes of water spraying Gallian in the face, to his serious displeasure. "Sorry about that. That storm's really churning the sea up something fierce! You hanging on back there?" Sharpedo said.

Gallian pursed his lips and repeatedly made spat out saliva, trying to get rid of the salty taste in his mouth. "I'm fine," he lied, suppressing a shiver. Each wave that washed over Gallian made his heart skip a beat. His chest kept tightening no matter how much Gallian tried to take deep, calming breaths. He made the decision to stay away from the Observatory, so why did he still have a sinking sensation that something was going to happen?

He shut his eyes, trying to focus on the anxiety running rampant through his system instead of the frigid water dousing him every minute. Before he knew it, his teeth were chattering. Gallian tried to push that thought from his mind. What was the problem? Was Sunrise Village still too close to Metagross? And wasn't his dark-typing supposed to keep him safe from Metagross' mind-reading?

Gallian tensed up, expecting a fresh round of stabbing pains in his torso. But nothing happened. Which meant he wasn't on the right track. Gallian just had to think harder! Why was he going to Sunrise Village? To lay low at Sylveon's house. _'She'll surely be there,'_ Gallian thought. _'As will Eevee and Tes–'_

Despite being soaked to the bone, Gallian's fur stood on end. It was like his ribs had grabbed hold of his lungs and squeezed. "Argh!" he cried.

Sharpedo slowed down. "Whoa! Everything alright back there?"

"I… I'm fine. Keep… going," Gallian wheezed. Sharpedo increased his speed again. Gallian took a few sharp breaths.

Tessa was the problem. It had to be. Gallian's chest was so tight, he thought it would explode!

He opened his mouth to speak, when Sharpedo struck a particularly sharp wave, bouncing into the air. Sharpedo kicked up sea spray that flew into Gallian's mouth. Gallian turned to his right, coughing and spitting into the choppy ocean. "Sorry again, lad. The storm must be getting close," Sharpedo said. "I don't even think I'll be able to make it back to my cave at this rate."

This was bad. _Worse_ than bad, even. Gallian couldn't survive a night stuck with Tessa. Not in this much pain. He wouldn't survive until morning. All it would take is Tessa starting to talk and he envisioned such searing pain in his head that he would drop dead on the spot. In fact, his head was throbbing right this second! He shook it, wincing.

A second later, Sharpedo passed through another wave. Cold water splattered across Gallian's face. The salt water stung his eyes, but thankfully took his focus off his aching head. That shift in focus brought a sudden moment of clarity, with his scythe flickering bright-pink.

The problem wasn't just Tessa. It was Tessa and the guild. Gallian knew she wanted to join it. But after what he heard, he couldn't let Tessa get anywhere near Metagross. If he had killed Incineroar, he could have done the same to Prisma. So, what would stop him from going after Tessa? Or both of them?

 _'What can I do about that, though?'_ Gallian wondered. Could he really look his sister in the eyes and tell her the Guildmaster had killed Incineroar?

An involuntary tensing of his claws against his seat told him that no, he didn't have the guts to try something like that. And before he could give the situation any more thought, the rough waters died down around him. Sharpedo swam up to a small stream on the edge of Azure Cape and proceeded through it. The water jets he used to propel himself forward easily let him maneuver against the current.

"We're pretty much here," Sharpedo announced. A few seconds later, a grassy path came into view. Even with storm clouds covering up the moon, Gallian could spot the white and pink outlines of Sylveon's house sitting in the distance. Sharpedo pulled up to the stream's embankment. Gallian got off Sharpedo's back and produced several coins from his satchel.

"Stay safe out there, lad," Sharpedo said, before turning and swimming back down the river. Gallian watched him go, tensing from the lightning flashes going off in the distance.

He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. _'You can do this, Gallian. Just go up to her… and tell her that she can't try to join the guild because it's too dangerous.'_

Gallian nodded and walked toward Sylveon's house, leaving a trail of water droplets behind him. But with every step he took, his heart rate steadily rose. By the time the front door was in full view, Gallian's heart was racing so quickly, he thought he might pass out. He froze and then took a cautious step backwards.

This was a bad idea, he was sure of it. If he went through with it, Tessa would ask questions. Questions he had no answers to.

His eyes darted about the grassy road. What could he do? What could he say to her to keep her away from the guild?

A raindrop fell into Gallian's eye. He shut it and shook his head violently, flinging water off his fur. Another rain drop struck his tail, then another hit the tip of his scythe. Within seconds, the heavens opened. Sheets of rain poured down on him. Soaked white fur draped over Gallian's eyes, blocking his vision. He stumbled forward, only for his left forepaw to strike a newly-made mud puddle. Gallian lost his balance and toppled over, taking a face full of mud.

It mostly washed off when he got back to his feet, as the torrential downpour showed no signs of stopping. Gallian's breathing quickened, growing heavier and heavier the longer he stood in the rain. He shakily approached the door to Sylveon's house, barely able to make out what was in front of him with the mud and water in his eyes.

Gallian walked right into the door, his scythe knocking against the damp wood. He stumbled back, heart hammering in his chest.

What had he done?

His chest was so tight, he couldn't breath.

 _'Run, you idiot!_ Run! _'_

The door creaked open, but between his blurry vision, the damp fur in his face, and the dark of night, Gallian couldn't make out who stood in the doorway until they started speaking.

"Gallian, is that you?"

It was Tessa.

Tessa was standing there.

And now Gallian had a choice to make.

 _'Get out of there!'_

"Gods, you look awful! Come inside, quickly. You're gonna catch a cold if you stay out there," Tessa said. She reached out, flinching as she grabbed his looplet.

"Nuh… no… I can't," Gallian said, tugging his foreleg back.

 _'Run away!'_

Tessa frowned. "Well, you can't stay outside. It's late enough already and this storm's showing no signs of letting up. C'mon, Gallian, I don't want to see you getting sick." She again reached out toward Gallian's looplet. "I'm sure Sylveon wouldn't mind you spending the night here. Anything's better than trying to trudge back to the guild in this weather. What if Mom comes home to find you sick, huh?"

 _'… sick? From staying out in a storm?'_

Gallian snapped. Without warning, he headbutted Tessa. She staggered backward, rubbing her damp snout with her paws. "G… Gallian?" she squeaked, eyes tearing up. "Why did you hit me like that?"

 _'Get out! Run! This is your chance!'_

Gallian stood there, hyperventilating. Pink energy flashed in his eyes and his scythe. He pointed the scythe right at Tessa. "You have to stay here!" he shouted. "Stay here… a-and don't follow me! Not to the guild! Not anywhere!"

 _'I have to do this.'_

Tessa stared down the tip of Gallian's scythe, blinking in surprise. "I… I don't understand," she whispered.

 _'This is for her own good.'_

"Listen to me, damn it!" Gallian snarled, stomping a forepaw on the ground and spraying mud onto Tessa's legs. She fell back on her rear, shivering in fright. "Don't you ever let me catch you setting foot in that guild. If you do, I won't hesitate to strike you down!"

Gallian turned and sprinted away, never looking back. He made it several yards before slipping and falling. Gallian slid across the ground, brown muck caking his wet fur and his scythe. He staggered to his feet, spitting out a mouthful of mud and then forcefully coughing as if he were choking on something.

The coughs grew louder and more violent. Gallian tasted copper in the back of his throat. He staggered forward a few more steps in the rain, before his legs shook so aggressively that he collapsed onto his side. Gallian curled up into a ball, trembling uncontrollably. All the while, rain drops pounded on his side, each one stinging like a Pin Needle. He lay in the mud, teeth gritted and breath coming in short, irregular gasps.

Black spots soon dotted his vision.

 _'I did… what I had… to do…'_

All Gallian remembered before passing out was the sensation of the rain easing up on him.

* * *

Blades of muddy grass tickled Gallian's nose. He sneezed loudly, eyes shooting open. Shock appeared on his face when he realized he was lying on the side of the road to Sunrise Village. Gallian tried to get to his feet, only to slip and fall. His face landed right in a semi-solidified mud puddle. Gallian slowly sat up, blinking his eyes repeatedly.

How long was he out for?

After a few more seconds of blinking, Gallian's vision slightly cleared up. He used his shoulder to brush his muddy fur out of his eyes. Orange light spilled across the road. A cursory glance upward told Gallian the sun was making its way up higher into the sky.

Gallian stood up and shook himself out. Much to his dismay, his actions did little to lighten the extra weight dragging his fur down. Gallian spotted a puddle and walked up to it. He grimaced at the sight of his reflection. His fur was matted, with numerous knots present that would take more than a quick shower to deal with. The fur on his forehead had unfurled and dangled in front of his face, which was completely caked in a thick, grimy layer of brown mud.

His heart sank. He found himself drifting back years ago, to days when he and Tessa would dash out of Aeon Town following a storm and play around in mud puddles. Those times always ended with the two of them rolling about, laughing joyfully and sometimes getting an earful from their exasperated mother.

Instead, Gallian had put the fear of the gods in Tessa. He thought back to the last thing he said to her before turning tail and running off into the storm. It was all he could think of to make his unease– no, make his _pain_ stop. He had no other options.

For a moment, Gallian considered turning back toward Sunrise Village and going to apologize to Tessa. But his neck fur prickled and pressure grew in his skull. Gallian lowered his head, eyes shut in resignation.

There was no turning back. He couldn't return to Tessa. Not now. Not ever.

 _'But then, what am I supposed to do?'_

Gallian glanced at the puddle again. At the very least, he could go clean himself up. Azure Cape wasn't too far away and it would keep him away from Sunrise Village and the guild.

His mind made up, Gallian broke into a run.

 _'I'm sorry, Tessa. I hope you can forgive me someday.'_

* * *

I decided to essentially treat Gallian's disaster sense like an aggressive panic attack. Hopefully that showed through. Onto the replies.

SuperOmegaGuest: thanks for pointing that out. I can never seem to put up a chapter without there being at least one typo.

Chaz: glad to hear you're enjoying things. And sorry for stressing you out during class. That definitely wasn't my intention, but it's nice to see folks get so invested in these characters. Hopefully you'll continue to enjoy what I have to offer!

Anon Omega: don't worry, it was a one-time joke with Tessa.

Veralix: well, Mega Lucarios are pretty much the PMD equivalent of a Super Saiyan, so as soon as you see one you can start shouting DBZ references, I suppose.

WonderBread: Seraph is a lesbian. She's only hit on women in this story. As to your question, well, Shane would never admit to the first option.

Another guest: stick around and you might just get a glimpse of Arceus in a few weeks!

Next time: Gallian attempts to go into hiding, but runs into more trouble than he bargained for.


	80. Starting Over from Scratch

Another chapter with a lot of introspection in it. An acquaintance suggested I try to get inside my characters' heads a bit more, so I've been experimenting these last several chapters. Please let me know what you think of them. Now then, enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 68: Starting Over from Scratch**

 **~Azure Cape~**

Gallian walked across the beach, a dismayed look on his face. Damp sand caked his paws, filling up the bridges between his digits. He paused to glance at his right shoulder, sighing heavily. After leaving Sunrise Village behind, it took him until his arrival at the beach to realize that his satchel and looplet had gone missing. He considered the possibility that they had been stolen while he was unconscious, but quickly dismissed that idea. After all, Sunrise Village was rather peaceful and he couldn't imagine any outlaws staying out in last night's storm.

 _'Which means they must've fallen off when I was slipping and sliding through the mud like an idiot,'_ he concluded, a frown on his face. Gallian briefly considered going back to try and find them, but a shudder racked his spine in response. If he went back, he risked Tessa seeing him. And after last night, that would be a huge problem.

So, Gallian plodded toward the shoreline. The sand went from damp to wet. Each step produced an audible squelch and left a deep pawprint. Seconds later, a wave drifted in, washing away Gallian's prints and some of the dirt and sand on his paws. The cold water made him wince, but he knew he had to bear it. If he tried to go anywhere looking so ragged, he would be mistaken for a wild Pokémon. Nothing good would come of that.

Gallian sucked in a deep breath and charged forward, gradually sinking into the water with each step. He ducked under the surface. The salt water forced the grime off his body, dirt and sand grains brushing against his fur. After staying submerged for half a minute, Gallian popped back out. Dirty water streamed off his torso. He trudged back toward the shore, shaking out his fur once he was past the shoreline.

To Gallian's annoyance, his wet paws attracted sand as he walked back across the beach. Had he showered back at the guild, this wouldn't be an issue. But just the mere thought of the guild made his head throb. Gallian's scythe crackled with dark energy. He had to stop thinking about the guild. The only thing he could do now was leave all that stuff behind.

He turned to look out at the water. Sure, leaving Aeon Town sounded nice. The problem was that he just lost all his stuff. Gallian's bag had his money. Without it, he couldn't pay a Sharpedo Sailor to take him anywhere. Gallian mulled his predicament as he walked onto the road connecting Aeon Town and Sunrise Village.

 _'I guess I could go see what I have stored in Dhelmise Depot,'_ he thought, only to freeze mid-step, fur standing on end.

He couldn't do that. Someone would surely recognize him and tell the guild he was there. Then Metagross would send someone to track him down and–

Gallian shook his head, panting. Now wasn't the time to let his thoughts run out of control. He needed to focus. Gallian shut his eyes, trying to envision a map of the Horizon Continent. He realized he could avoid Aeon Town entirely if he went south. But what places were south of him? Gallian scrunched his face up. The answer was on the tip of his tongue. He just had to think a little harder.

After several seconds, Gallian's eyes snapped open. He had his answer: Borea Heights! Gallian was confident Grandpa Lycanroc didn't have friends left in the village that would remember what he looked like. Especially since he looked pretty scruffy.

His mind made up, Gallian proceeded down the path heading back toward Sunrise Village. But before he got anywhere close to any of the buildings, he ducked into the small forest standing opposite the massive row of trees marking the boundary of Dewdrop Woods. Gallian dashed through the trees and bushes, wincing from the occasional branch that grazed his side.

 _'Hopefully I can find someone willing to give me a ride further south,'_ he thought. While he didn't have the most concrete plan, he had something in mind. Once Gallian exited the small forest and was free of Sunrise Village, he continued at a slower pace, again pulling up a fuzzy mental map of Horizon. Gallian tried focusing on the southeastern part of the continent.

 _'What was it that Dad told me, again?'_ Gallian wondered. _'There was something about quiet communities nestled into mountains and caves. That sounds like it could work out well for me.'_ The further he walked, the more he toyed with that idea. He could offer himself up as a guard or patrol nearby Mystery Dungeons to keep the community safe. Gallian figured if he lived on the outskirts of one of these towns, he could avoid unwanted attention. After all, he had helped Steenee prepare meals plenty of times at the Observatory. He could tend to his own diet.

The one issue that he found himself stuck on was something he had no control over. And that was just how the Pokémon living in the mountains would react to him. Memories of his unwelcome reception at the hands of Totem Toucannon surface. Gallian grimaced. Clearly, Absols weren't well-liked. There was a good chance no one would let him into their town. If that happened, what would he do?

A shiver ran down his spine. There were the Invern Mountains as a backup. Wild Absols lived there, but Gallian feared he wouldn't last a week with them. And could he even muster the stamina to get up to Solstice Summit by himself, with absolutely no supplies?

At the thought of no supplies, Gallian's stomach growled. He wondered if he would be able to find food in Borea Heights. It struck him that he had no idea if he could even make it there by nightfall. _'How long of a walk is this, anyway?'_ he thought.

His stomach growled again. Gallian lifted his head high and took a big whiff, hoping he could locate nearby berries. To his delight, he smelled pecha berries off in the distance. He trotted after the scent and located the bush in question. Gallian downed several pecha berries, hoping they would serve him well until he reached his destination. Then, he continued on his way.

The rest of his trek proceeded quietly. Occasional swathes of trees popped up on either side of the path, but, for the most part, Gallian continued following the waters of the Midnight Sea. The grassy road eventually turned into dirt and gravel. As the ground got more uneven, hills popped up around Gallian. The path itself wove between the hills, sometimes following one up and down.

Eventually, the forest patches disappeared. Instead, rock formations surrounded Gallian, with the ones on his left blocking his view of the water. He hit a part of the trail that went steeply uphill. At the top of the hill, Gallian spotted rock faces in the distance. The sky above the rocks had brief flashes of rainbow trails.

 _'That must be Aurora Vale,'_ Gallian thought. _'Which means Borea Heights should be close by.'_ He craned his head to his left and, sure enough, found a cluster of stone buildings. The sight of his destination filled Gallian with renewed vigor. He trotted the rest of the way to the town, stopping only to gulp down some water from a tiny brook.

Gallian arrived at the outskirts of Borea Heights just as the sun was beginning to set. Orange light swept through the town. Gallian had to shield his eyes from the light bouncing off the buildings and the cobblestone pathways. When he finally got a good look at the place, he realized the town's roads were empty. He knew that older folks lived here, but they couldn't all have turned in this early. Gallian wondered if the town had some place for visitors to check in.

"You! You there! You scruffy, unscrupulous fellow! What do you think you're doing?"

Gallian jumped in fright and whirled around, frowning. "You're… um… a Drampa, right? Is… is there something wrong?"

Drampa stomped toward Gallian, his large head bobbing up and down with each step. "Yes! There are many things wrong. Many, I tell you!" he huffed. "First off… it's _Town Supervisor_ Drampa, you filthy mongrel. And second off, you are sullying my lovely town roads. I go to great effort to keep them clean. If you cannot show the same level of effort to your own coat, then you don't deserve to walk these streets. Which brings me to my most important point…."

Drampa cleared his throat. "Borea Heights does not welcome wild Pokémon," he said. "I don't care what Mystery Dungeon you decided to crawl out of. You are not welcome here! So, out, _out,_ _ **out!**_ "

"H-Hang on a second," Gallian said. "I'm not a wild 'mon. I–"

"Ha! Likely story. Your appearance says otherwise," Drampa said, snorting out tufts of smoke. "Absols cannot live outside Mystery Dungeons. Your kind brings misery to tranquil communities like mine. I will give you thirty seconds to march your rump out of my village before I use my authority as Town Supervisor to give myself permission to use excessive force!"

Gallian gulped. What was up with this windbag? He was acting far more aggressive than Totem Toucannon did. And if Gallian told Drampa that he was with the guild, Drampa would surely contact Metagross. Then he would _really_ be in for it.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Drampa huffed. "If you're looking to switch dungeons, Aurora Vale is that-a-way." He stuck his neck out and pointed toward the other end of town. "Get marching! Your thirty seconds are up and I'm about ready to Dragon Pulse your face."

"Listen, sir, I don't want to stay," Gallian said. "I was just trying to find a lift to get me to Eastern Horizon. My money was stolen from me, see, so I can't afford a Sharpedo Sailor."

Drampa eyed Gallian skeptically. "Hrmph. You really expect me to believe such a bold-faced lie, Absol?" He shook his head. "Odds are you take one step near the Midnight Sea and you'll send a tidal wave crashing over my beautiful town. I will not have it! Into the Mystery Dungeon with you!"

A stream of dragonfire raced toward a flabbergasted Gallian. He got his bearings straight just in time to dive to the ground and safely avoid the attack. "Nrrrgh! Stand still you hoodlum! That's an order from a Town Supervisor!" Drampa said.

"Seriously? Look, just order me a Sharpdeo Sailor and I'll be out of your hair forever!" Gallian groaned, collecting dark energy in his scythe just in case things escalated. This geezer had clearly lost it!

Drampa froze. "Hrrrrrmmmm…" He tapped his claws in thought. "You're asking me, Town Supervisor Drampa, to dip into either _my_ precious personal finances or the town's funds? Absolutely not! What a ridiculous idea!"

"Isn't it worth it to rid your town of the risk of disaster?" Gallian said, rolling his eyes.

Drampa shuffled backwards furrowing his brow. He shut his eyes in thought for a full minute. "Alright… fine," Drampa said. "I will get you a ride to Eastern Horizon. It should be a simple feat for a Town Supervisor like myself." He turned and waddled away from the town's entrance. "Well? Don't just stand there. Come along. You're wasting my time."

 _'Somebody must be jealous of the Totems,'_ Gallian mused, following Drampa. To his surprise, Drampa moved quickly toward the docks bobbing along the edge of the Midnight Sea. By the time Gallian reached caught up, there was already a Sharpedo waiting for him. Gallian double-checked and confirmed it wasn't the same Sharpedo he had last night. Unlike his previous ride, this Sharpedo had extra notches on his dorsal fin.

Drampa was conversing with Sharpedo as Gallian walked up to them. Sharpedo nodded and turned to Gallian. "Ready to set sail, kiddo?"

"Yeah," Gallian said. He stepped onto Sharpedo's back and turned to nod at Drampa. "Thanks for your help, Town Supervisor Drampa."

"Yes, yes, best of luck and all that," Drampa said, shooing Sharpedo away with flicks of his tiny paws. Sharpedo sped off across the water. Gallian watched the coast disappear behind him. The setting sun cast an orange glow across the normally-black Midnight Sea, resulting in a harsh glare that Gallian abruptly turned around to avoid.

"So, uh, I don't know what Drampa told you, but I've heard there are some quiet villages in the southeast part of the continent," Gallian explained. "Think you can take me there?"

"Aye. That won't be any trouble," Sharpedo replied. "Just hang tight, kiddo. With any luck, we won't be there too long after sundown."

Satisfied, Gallian nodded and sat back in his seat, focusing his attention on the rolling waves. Looks like he would be able to get to the mountainside after all. Yet, the thought didn't make him as happy as he was hoping. He was too worried that other Pokémon would react to him like Drampa did. Which would make his entire trip completely pointless.

Gallian shook his head. He would just have to figure something out. The Horizon Guild had trained him, even if those days were now over. A pang of guild struck him as thoughts of Tessa filled his head. No matter what he did, he kept coming back to her. He took a deep breath. _'She'll be fine. She's got Sylveon and Eevee,'_ he told himself.

His stomach growled again. Gallian ignored it, fixing his gaze upward. Far in the distance, there was a small mass of storm clouds giving way to a wall of thick black smoke. As Sharpedo continued speeding through the water, he grew progressively closer to the smoke. At first, Gallian grew concerned that Sharpedo didn't actually know where he was going. But it wasn't long before the two of them passed by the jagged rocks sticking out of the water, leaving the wall of smoke behind.

When the last remnants of the sun disappeared in the west, Sharpedo slowed down. Gallian sat up straight in his seat and looked around. To his confusion, he didn't spot any docks. Was Sharpedo getting tired? "Um, excuse me? Do you have any idea how much longer we'll be travelling for?" he asked.

"Oh… yeah. We're nearly there," Sharpedo replied. "There's a small dock nestled within those rocks sticking out of the water. It's just to the right of us."

Gallian turned his head in the direction Sharpedo indicated and frowned. "What are you talking about? I don't see any–"

Without warning, Sharpedo unleashed a burst of speed. Gallian gasped as the sudden shift in momentum made him lean back. Sharpedo then stopped and bucked his body forward. Hollering in surprise, Gallian careened into the Midnight Sea, landing with a large splash.

Sharpedo bobbed in the water, a look of regret on his face. After several seconds, he spotted bubbles on the surface. Gallian's head popped up, gasping for air. "W… what the hell?!" he sputtered. Though his vision was blurry, he could just make out Sharpedo in front of him. "Don't just float there. H… help me!"

"Sorry, kid, but I ain't trying to get myself jinxed or cursed or nothing," Sharpedo said, moving away from Gallian. "You Absols are nothing but bad news. Especially wild ones thinking they can pass for a civilized 'mon."

"But I–" Gallian started, only to duck underneath the surface of the water as a wave swept over him. He thrashed his limbs about and managed to push himself up once again. When he had steadied himself, he noticed that he was all alone. Salt water in his eyes kept him from seeing that Sharpedo swimming away at breakneck speeds. Gallian's heart pounded.

It was all a trick.

Drampa hadn't gotten him a ride. He had laid a trap… and Gallian walked right into it! He was a goner! He was going to drown! What could he do?

Land! He had to find land! Somehow… someway…

Gallian swept his legs around in circular motions, all while trying to keep his head above the surface. Eventually, a cliff came into view several yards away. It was steep, but it was the closest stretch of land available. Gallian didn't have a choice. With a deep breath, he doggie-paddled through the water.

It was slow going, but the water eventually grew shallower. Gallian was soon able to stand up and trudge the rest of the distance to dry land. He had to dig his claws into the rock to stop himself from sliding under the surface and onto his belly. Gallian glanced up the steep slope, flinching from the painful gurgling of his stomach.

There was a trail a long way up the cliff. Surely, it had to lead somewhere. And that meant Gallian had to climb up it. With a loud groan, Gallian sprang out of the water. He dug his claws into the cliff face, legs screaming in protest from the exertion. Gallian was able to stop sliding down with his tail dangling inches above the water. He hung there, taking in big gulps of air. His stomach growled loudly. Gallian shook his head and, with an effortful grunt, swung his left foreleg up, digging his claws into a crack in the cliff.

It was actually working. Maybe he really could do this! Gallian moved his right foreleg up to join his left. Gallian braced himself, but it proved unnecessary. He found a foothold that kept him from sliding down. Gallian's sense of relief was fleeting, however, when his stomach cramped up again, growling its discontent with the current situation.

 _'Just hang on for a little longer,'_ Gallian told himself. He continued scaling the cliff using slow, deliberate swinging motions with his forelegs and claws. Every so often, he would make himself a foothold by channeling dark energy into his scythe and firing it into the cliff, taking out a chunk of rock. Each time he did that, however, he would have to hang from the cliff, trying to catch his breath.

After what seemed like an eternity to Gallian, he succeeded in dragging his damp, raggedy body over the edge of the cliff and onto a dusty path that curved around the mountain. Gallian lay on his side, panting heavily. His limbs shook and his stomach flared up with a fresh round of cramps. "N… nnnnrrrggggh," he groaned, writhing about in pain. "Gotta get up… gotta move… can't just… pass out here…"

With considerable effort, Gallian staggered to his feet. He tried to take a step forward, but almost collapsed in the process. Gallian stood on the edge of the trail, legs locked in position, worried that any sudden movement would cause him to pass out. His stomach lurched and his vision went fuzzy.

 _'No…'_

Gallian's head pounded.

 _'I just can't…'_

His vision flashed white.

 _'I can't move another step.'_

His chest tightened up.

 _'This is it… isn't it?'_

"Hey, you okay there, Absol?"

Gallian blinked rapidly, but he couldn't get the fuzziness out of his vision. He saw a black figure moving toward him, carrying a bright, circular light and waving a limb at him. Gallian slowly opened his mouth and weakly coughed out a, "Help me… please."

"Oh, gods… you don't look so good," the figure gasped, his male voice sounding rather quiet to Gallian. He closed the distance with Gallian, revealing himself to be a Zoroark with streaks of red fur across his chest. Zoroark got down on one knee and held the Luminous Orb he was carrying in front of Gallian. "Absol, you still with me? Can you walk?"

Gallian coughed again and crumpled onto his side. Zoroark dropped the Luminous Orb and barely managed to catch Gallian's head before it hit the ground. "Crap! No, no, _no!_ C'mon, buddy, stay with me here!" He bent over and, with a loud grunt, hefted Gallian up over his shoulder. Zoroark adjusted his positioning so he could grab his Luminous Orb and then took off sprinting down the mountain path.

"Dusk! _Dusk!_ " Zoroark shouted. "We've got trouble!"

Several yards down the path, Dusk turned to look at Zoroark. "What's going on?" she said.

"I found a wild Absol and he's in real bad shape! Run back into the village and wake Totem Decidueye! We're gonna need his help," Zoroark ordered. Dusk nodded and disappeared into the cave behind her. Zoroark glanced at Gallian, whispering, "Hang in there, Absol. I don't know what happened, but we'll get you patched up. That's a promise."

Zoroark ran through the entrance tunnel to Cosmic Cavern, ducking light crystals at every turn. After several minutes, he entered the village. He sprinted up the path to his right without a second thought. Zoroark rounded a bend to another ramp that took him even higher. Once he was up on the third floor, he walked past some homes nestled into the rocks. He reached a narrow bridge extending to Totem Decidueye's moss-covered lookout.

"Totem? It's Zoroark. I've got someone here who needs your help," Zoroark said as he entered Totem Decidueye's home. He found Totem Decidueye standing beside Dusk and a Midnight Lycanroc. Next to them sat a table carved out of stone. It had been cleared of all its contents, save for a thatched, green and brown tablecloth.

Totem Decidueye examined the newcomer lying limp on Zoroark's shoulder. "An Absol? And you found him out on the mountain?" he said.

"Yeah, I did. What's the problem?" Zoroark said, laying Gallian down on the table and hunching over to catch his breath.

"We don't have wild Absols around here," Totem Decidueye said. "They all live in the Invern Mountains."

"And for good reason! You've heard the stories, ya git. They bring disaster wherever they go," Lycanroc growled, looking disdainfully at Gallian. "Rack off with him, Zoroark. Otherwise he's gonna bring the cavern ceiling crashing down on all of us!"

"Midnight, that's quite enough," Totem Decidueye said, waving him off with a wing. "I'm well aware of the superstitions."

"You're not just going to ditch him because of that, are you?" Zoroark said. "You can't do that, Totem! He's…" Zoroark looked down at Gallian. "He's kind of like me."

"I'm no hypocrite, Zoroark," Totem Decidueye said. "Of course we'll tend to Absol."

Lycanroc stepped back from the table, piercing red eyes staring down Zoroark. Dusk shifted about uncomfortably next to him. Zoroark fixed his attention on Totem Decidueye. He expected his fellow guards to react like this, yet it still irked him. Zoroark bit his lower lip. He had to focus on Absol. That's all that mattered.

Totem Decidueye approached the table and leaned down, gently placing a wing on Gallian's chest. "Alright, he's still breathing. By the looks of things, I'd say he took a dip in the Midnight Sea."

"But Zoroark found him up on the mountain trail," Dusk said, frowning. "How could he have gotten up there?"

"A bad run in with a rogue flying-type?" Zoroark said.

"Don't make me laugh, mongrel," Lycanroc sneered. "I'll bet someone tossed him in there for a good reason."

"Butt out, Midnight," Zoroark hissed, scraping his claws against the table.

"It's all rather curious," Totem Decidueye said. "If Absol did indeed come from the Invern Mountains, then he left that Mystery Dungeon. But why would he do that?"

"How would a wild Pokémon even be able to get all the way to the other side of Horizon?" Zoroark said.

"I'm not sure. And that's where the problem lies," Totem Decidueye said. "Look here." He lifted one of Gallian's forepaws. "Even if they're dirty, these claws are filed. I don't think Absol is wild. I think he came from another town."

"Piss off with that nonsense! What Totem has enough of a death wish to let an Absol live in their midst?" Lycanroc said, drawing disapproving looks from his colleagues. "Don't look at me like that. "Every minute he stays here, it puts the village at greater risk of a bloody catastrophe!"

"Dusk… Midnight… why don't you two return to your patrols?" Totem Decidueye said, though his tone made it sound far more like an order than a suggestion. Dusk hastily left while Lycanroc followed behind her, glaring at Zoroark.

Once Lycanroc was gone, Zoroark sighed in relief. He thought he'd have Lycanroc shouting in his ear all night. Now, he could actually focus on helping Absol.

"Zoroark, do I have an elixir anywhere in my supplies?" Totem Decidueye asked.

Zoroark knelt down to look into a wicker basket sitting on a smaller table. He pulled a glass bottle out of the middle of the basket. "Right here, sir," he said, waving the tonic around. "Want me to give it to Absol?"

"No. Take that bowl over there and mix the elixir with mashed oran berry. Absol's stamina is depleted and I fear his health is suffering as a result," Totem Decidueye said. Zoroark grabbed the bowl and the oran berry and used a stone pestle to mash the latter into a paste. He poured in the elixir and stirred it around with his claws.

"How's this?" he asked, holding up the bowl.

Totem Decidueye examined Zoroark's handywork. "It'll do," he said, grabbing the bowl from Zoroark's hands. "Now, lift Absol's head up for me and hold his mouth open. We're going to have to force this down."

The prospect made Zoroark queasy. "Eww. You're not gonna, like, feed it to him, are you?" he said. "Because you're a bird, so–"

"I had you mash the berry for a reason, you know," Totem Decidueye said, chuckling. Zoroark walked back to the table, looking embarrassed. Using lifted Gallian's head up by the scythe, grabbed his jaw, and yanked it downward. Totem Decidueye poured the mixture into Gallian throat. When he finished, Zoroark closed Gallian's mouth and lifted his head up higher, making sure the medicine went down his throat and not his windpipe.

The effect was immediate. Gallian coughed loudly and his eyes fluttered open. Zoroark lowered Gallian to the table and stepped back, kneeling until he was eye level with Gallian. "Hey there, Absol. You awake?" Zoroark whispered. He waved a paw in front of his face.

Gallian blinked several times, trying to get his bearings straight. He fixed his gaze on Zoroark and his mouth hung open. "Uh… uhh," Gallian said. A red tint fell over his cheeks. He tried to cup his forepaws over his face but flinched in pain from the gesture.

"I'm going to see if I have any more oran berries," Totem Decidueye whispered to Zoroark. "Keep him occupied in the meantime." He walked out of the room, leaving Zoroark alone with Gallian.

Zoroark reached out and gently placed a paw on Gallian's shoulder. Gallian's eyes widened in surprise. _'Who's this guy? And… did he bring me to his house?!'_

"Shh… it's alright," Zoroark coaxed, holding his free paw out in front of him. "I'm sure you're a bit confused. Let me explain. You're in Cosmic Cavern. I'm Zoroark, one of the villagers here. I'm a guard, see, and I ran into you while patrolling the mountainside. You passed out, so I brought you back here to our Totem's house."

"Zoro… ark," Gallian said. "You're… you're…"

He figured this had to be some sort of dream.

"Take your time. I don't exactly know what happened to you, but it can't have been good considering how haggard you look," Zoroark said, offering Gallian a reassuring smile.

"You… you saved me," Gallian rasped.

Zoroark's ears twitched. "Oh… aha ha… it was nothing, really," he said, rubbing the back of his head. "Just a part of the job, that's all."

"No," Gallian whispered. "I was so exhausted… and so hungry. I thought I was a goner for sure." Gallian slowly sat up and glanced around Totem Decidueye's house. It was relatively plain, housing a couple of chairs, a shelf with some pottery, and a green carpet that was made entirely of feathers. He glanced out the window, where light crystals twinkled in the distance.

Everything was so… quiet. Quiet and calm.

"This place… it's a village, yeah?" Gallian said.

"Yup."

"And it's in a cave?" Gallian said.

"Yeah," Zoroark said, raising a brow. "Um, you know, if you want to talk about what happened, I'm happy to–"

"Do Pokémon like it down here?" Gallian said. "I mean, you don't get any sunlight. Wouldn't that get gloomy? Then again, I guess Zoroarks would prefer nighttime…" He stopped himself and blinked. "I'm sorry. Were you saying something?"

Zoroark scratched his head. "I was just going to ask if you were okay telling me what happened to you. But it seems like you have other things on your mind and I don't want to pry," he said.

Gallian stiffened. Of course this guy would want to know what happened. "Well… it's just… complicated. I was trying to reach a place like this… because I wanted somewhere quiet to live," he said.

"Are you from the Invern Mountains, then?" Zoroark asked.

"Um… I…" Gallian bit his lip and looked away. What was he supposed to say to this guy? Zoroarks were expert liars, so Gallian was sure this one would know if he's lying. Yet, he couldn't just talk about the guild. If he did, the Totem here would contact Metagross.

Zoroark frowned and looked away. "I… I'm sorry," he whispered. "You've been through a lot. I shouldn't have tried to pry." He twiddled his claws nervously. "It's just… you know… you're a dark-type with a bit of a dubious reputation. Kinda like me. I figured we oughta look out for each other." He glanced toward the back room in Totem Decidueye's house. "Maybe I should just go help the Totem? I can't imagine why it'd be this hard to find another oran berry."

"N… no," Gallian said, reaching a foreleg out. He misjudged the angle, however, and his paw brushed against Zoroark's waist. More blood rushed into Gallian's cheeks.

Zoroark looked back at him in concern. He'd really gone and mucked things up now! Gallian knew he had to say something to make things less awkward.

"I… well… c-can you keep a secret?" Gallian asked, wincing as his voice cracked.

Zoroark knelt down again, his sharp blue eyes meeting Gallian's gaze. "Hey, like I said, us dark-types gotta stick together." His ears twitched and he glanced over his shoulder. "Hold that thought. Totem Decidueye is coming back."

Totem Decidueye reentered the room, carrying the same bowl as before. "I figured I may as well mash this berry up, too," he said, setting the bowl down in front of Gallian. "Here. You need to get your health back."

Gallian tried to reach for the bowl, but his aching head refused to budge. "I've got it," Zoroark offered, gripping the bowl and gently placing it up by Gallian's snout. Gallian graciously lapped up the berry paste, trying to avoid eye contact with Zoroark. He was sure Zoroark could tell he was flustered. The last thing Gallian wanted was for things to go south because he felt like ogling a stranger.

He squirmed around on the table, his joints popping loudly the more he moved around. "How are you feeling now? Do you think anything's broken?" Totem Decidueye asked.

"I'm just… sore," Gallian said. "My legs are throbbing and my head's pounding. But there isn't any massive pain or anything." His heart was also racing, but that was for an entirely different reason he didn't want anyone knowing about.

Totem Decidueye nodded. "That's good to hear." He tucked his head down. "I must confess, Absol–"

"Gallian."

"Huh?" Zoroark said, raising a brow.

Gallian lapped up some more berry juice, then said, "My name. It's… it's Gallian."

"I'm not sure I follow," Zoroark said, brow furrowed.

"W-well…" Gallian's voice trailed off and he bit his lip. "There's, uh, a Lucario in my family. Apparently, they gave each other names in ancient times, so it's kind of a family tradition."

Totem Decidueye's brow furrowed. "So, you _are_ a civilized 'mon, then," he said.

Gallian stiffened in alarm. Why did he have to open his big mouth?

Zoroark noticed the shift in Gallian's demeanor and stepped in front of him. "Um, hey, Totem. Why don't you let me take Absol back to recover at my place?" he said. "I know you're worried about the superstitions… and you've got to lead the village, so you'll be busy. I've got spare medicine from my last trip to Midday Valley, so I can tend to him and do my guard shift at night."

Gallian's jaw slackened. Zoroark was willing to take him in? No strings attached? That was a _huge_ step up from being willing to keep a secret! Gallian caught the corner of Zoroark's gaze and Zoroark winked at him reassuringly. Warmth spread across Gallian's face again.

Gods, what was he doing? If he didn't control himself, then he was going to turn Zoroark's kindness into another Vaporeon situation. _'Deep breaths… deep breaths… stop staring at him, for pity's sake!'_ Gallian told himself.

Totem Decidueye hummed in thought. "I don't have a problem with that offer, Zoroark. I'm just… concerned. Y'know, about what the other townsfolk will think if they see Absol in your presence."

Gallian winced. Sure, this was more like what happened with Totem Toucannon than with Drampa, but the prospect still hurt. Would the other villagers really try to run him out just because of superstitions?

Zoroark looked about ready to defend Gallian, but Totem Decidueye held up a wing. "Relax, you two. I am not going to kick a wounded Pokémon out of the village," he said. "I still remember hearing about the exploits of Team Go-Getters. They befriended a wild Absol and things turned out fine for them." He looked at Gallian. "You don't come across as hostile. Far from it, actually."

"My den's the perfect spot for him. It's in the corner of the village, so I can keep him out of sight," Zoroark said. "The only real issue is getting him there. You can't walk, right?"

Gallian strained to lift his head up higher and flopped back against the table. "I'm sorry. I've never been this tired before," he croaked.

"Then I'll carry you," Zoroark said, pounding his chest. "I got you all the way here, didn't I? It'll be a piece of cake."

Gallian bit down on his tongue in a half-baked effort to keep his runaway thoughts under control. "Well, Absol? Is that agreeable?" Totem Decidueye asked.

"Y… yeah. Sure. Of course," Gallian replied, perhaps a bit too quickly and enthusiastically. He mentally kicked himself. What part of staying calm didn't he understand?

Totem Decidueye gave him a skeptical look and shrugged. "Very well, then," he said. "Zoroark, I'll have Midnight cover your shift tomorrow. I think it's best you focus on getting Absol up and walking again."

"If that's what you think is best, I won't complain," Zoroark said, nodding. He leaned down and scooped Gallian up. Gallian tensed up, squeezing his eyes shut. "Everything okay there?" Zoroark asked.

"I'm fine. T-totally perfectly fine," Gallian squeaked.

 _'Don't think about him… don't think about him… don't think about him…'_

"Okay then. Let's get going," Zoroark said. He hoisted Gallian over his shoulder and walked out of Totem Decidueye's house. Gallian was relieved at the change of scenery, since it offered him a distraction. He looked down at the different levels of the village.

"The Pokémon here made their homes within these rocks?" Gallian asked.

"Yeah. We can hollow out parts of the cavern walls to make homes for 'mons who want them," Zoroark whispered. "Try to keep your voice down, by the way. We don't really get sunlight in here, but most 'mons manage to sleep during the night."

"Sorry," Gallian whispered back, taking in the sights of the tiny light crystals embedded into the rocks all around him. "Um… so, you said you're a guard here? How does that work?"

"Oh, that. It's nothing special, really," Zoroark said, chuckling. "See, our village is inside of a mountain, right? Well, there are other parts to the mountain. Some of which may house wild Pokémon or offer a good hiding spot for outlaws. I patrol the mountainside and make sure that trouble doesn't come to the village."

Gallian raised an eyebrow. "Is that everything? Because it sounds like there's more to it than that," he said, hoping he was right. Zoroark's job sounded perfect for him. It was the exact idea he had thought about earlier.

Zoroark chuckled again. "You're a sharp one, there. Fitting with the scythe and claws, I suppose." Gallian snorted, a result of trying to hold back laughing. Zoroark turned and shushed him again. "Yeah, there's more to my job. Sometimes I help make supply runs to Midday Valley or go there to get information on things like weather patterns or changes in outlaw status."

"I suppose the biggest part, though, is going into the Cavernous Depths," Zoroark said, glancing toward a tunnel opening behind them.

"Is that a mystery dungeon?" Gallian asked, looking at the shadowy mist swirling around the tunnel.

"Yup. Strange things pop up there, so I need to go explore it," Zoroark said. "Sometimes I'll find supplies or an unruly wild Pokémon that needs calming down." He shrugged. "It might not be as glamorous as, say, working for the Horizon Guild. But it's a solid job and I'm happy with it."

Gallian stiffened against Zoroark's shoulder. That was exactly what he did over at the guild. Gallian didn't see any reason why he couldn't be a guard here. If he did that, maybe the villagers would accept him.

Zoroark reached the village's ground level and made his way toward the nearest outcropping of rock. "Here we are," he announced quietly. Zoroark carried Gallian in through the door. "You'll have to, uh, excuse the mess. I'm not really used to having guests." He walked to the back of the room and laid Gallian down on a straw bed. Gallian winced, his sore muscles objecting to the prickly fibers bristling his legs and underbelly.

Gallian had a look around the room. There were some bowls and cups made from clay positioned on a pair of tables, caked with the remnants of past meals. Like Totem Decidueye, Zoroark had a carpet. This one was black and shaggy, however. In a sense, it resembled the fur on Zoroark's chest. Open books lay scattered around the floor. Zoroark dashed toward them, scooping them up in his arms and sticking them in his mane.

"Anything I could get you that'd make you more comfortable?" Zoroark asked. "I could make some tapu cocoa for you. I'm not as good with the recipe as Totem Decidueye is, but it's great for trying to relax."

Gallian's face grew hot and he rested it against the straw. "I think I'm okay," he whispered. His eyes fell on a small square cloth situated in front of him. Like Zoroark's dishes, the cloth had crusty patches on it. Before Gallian could examine it further, however, Zoroark's arm swiped it off the ground. Gallian glanced up and watched Zoroark stuff the cloth in his mane, an embarrassed look on his face. What was so important about a dirty piece of cloth, anyway?

"So… uh…" Zoroark tapped his claws together. "I guess I'll let you get some rest."

"Where are you gonna sleep?" Gallian asked.

Zoroark jerked his head toward a doorway to his right. "I've got some towels in there. I'll make myself a little mat in my dining nook. If you need me… uh…" His voice trailed off and he looked around the room. He grabbed one of the used bowls and set it down by Gallian. "Just hit this with your scythe. I'm kind of a deep sleeper, so I apologize in advance if I don't wake up."

"Okay," Gallian said. He tried to curl into a ball, but his legs refused to budge. Zoroark nodded and walked out of the room. He came back moments later with towels in his arms and walked toward the only other doorway in the house.

"Sleep well, okay?" he whispered.

"Thanks. You too," Gallian said. Zoroark disappeared into the kitchen, leaving Gallian alone on the straw bed. He stared into the darkness, a mental image of Zoroark lingering in front of him.

 _'If I could stay here… with him… maybe all this trouble will be worth it.'_

* * *

 **~Cavernous Depths~**

"An Absol? A _bloody_ Absol? Has the Totem _completely_ lost it?!" Lycanroc snarled, pacing back and forth by the black cloud marking the way back to Cosmic Cavern. "I mean… I knew he was a sucker for Zoroark, but to bend over for him like this… it's bloody unforgivable!"

Dusk sat on her haunches and curled her tail around her waist. "I don't know, Midnight. Don't you think you're overreacting just a little bit to this?" she said. "Don't get me wrong, I'm worried, too. But I don't think Zoroark would do something to intentionally bring trouble to the village."

Lycanroc whirled on Dusk, his crimson eyes gleaming in the shadows. "What are you talking about? The guy's a total drongo! Everything he does is suspicious," Lycanroc barked, shaking his right fist at Dusk.

"Midnight… you're letting your anger get the better of you, again," Dusk said, sighing and lowering her head. "We've talked about this… you've got to control your temper."

"I'll control my bloody temper when Totem Decidueye mons up and gives Absol the boot!" Lycanroc growled, kicking pebbles in Dusk's direction. "I ain't about to go to sleep tonight knowing there's a disaster-bringer in our midst… staying in the company of a two-face, conniving prick of a dark-type!"

"That's enough, Midnight," Dusk said, getting to her feet. Her green eyes flashed red. "Look… I know you're still upset about what happened at that party, but you have to move past it. You can't keep holding grudges like this, Midnight. The other villagers are sick of it–"

"Holding grudges? Moving past it?!" Lycanroc hissed, hunching over so his paws rested on the ground. He flashed his canines at Dusk. "That root rat almost claimed me! How am I supposed to look past that? Even if he was a sheila, I still wouldn't want him!"

"You're blowing it out of proportion… _again,_ " Dusk said, shaking her head. "It was one kiss–"

"He groped my ass!" Lycanroc snarled, paws glowing blue.

"Yeah, well, both of you were drunk and you were teasing him after I told you not to," Dusk said, taking a hesitant step back. "Look, Midnight, I'm _trying_ to stick up for you around the others. But you're making it really hard. If you could just control your temper–"

Dusk never saw Lycanroc's glowing fist coming. She fell to the ground, wondering how he had closed the gap so fast. Lycanroc grabbed her bloody snout and yanked her up. "S… stop! Midnight… please!" she squealed. "I'm… I just want… to help. You're my… friend. I… I…"

"I shouldn't _need_ to worry about my bloody temper. If I'd evolved into Midday like I _wanted_ … then maybe I wouldn't be so _angry_ all the time," Lycanroc hissed. He threw Dusk to the ground. "All of this is your fault!" he shouted, nostrils flaring. "You had already evolved! You could've taken those Geodudes! Instead, I had to bail your ass out… and look what happened! Why weren't you paying attention?!"

Dusk didn't answer. She lay on the ground, shuddering, with Lycanroc panting above her. Finally, she squeaked, "I'm sorry. I got distracted. It was a mistake."

"A mistake that _ruined_ my bloody life," Lycanroc snarled.

"Midnight, please… you have to calm down," Dusk begged, lifting her head up. "I know the playful, energetic Rockruff I had a huge crush on is still in there somewhere. Let me help you find him!"

Lycanroc hocked up a loogie and spat it into Dusk's face. "I don't want your help," he whispered. "If you're not going to convince Absol to leave, then stay out of my way." Lycanroc turned and marched into the black fog, leaving Dusk lying on the ground, clutching her injured snout.

* * *

Some of you astute readers might remember the Q&A event I posted back on my profile in April that had Lycanroc saying he wanted to evolve into Midnight form. That was a bit of intentional misdirection. Nobody said all of those answers would be truthful.

And, with this update, we've officially reached one whole year of _Guiding Light_ on FFN... give or take a couple of days. I'm seriously amazed by all of the support this story's received. I certainly didn't expect it to get as big as it has. So, once again, I'd like to thank everyone who's taken the time to read this, whether you're brand new or have been following for a while. There are a plethora of Mystery Dungeon fics out there, so I'm humbled that you're here. Especially with how long this story is. I hope you'll continue to enjoy the fic as we keep moving forward. Now, onto the replies.

SuperOmegaGuest: oops, thanks for pointing that out. I'll add it to the list of edits.

Anon Omega: funny you mention Mega Man. When I wrote scenes with infected!Gallian, I had Craft's theme from the Mega Man Zero 4 Remastered Tracks album playing. His battle theme was even "Power Field."

Another guest: normally, an Absol grows up around other Absols, so they can learn how to control their disaster sense and prevent it from running out of control. Gallian never had that luxury, since he was adopted. And don't worry about timing. Any and all comments are welcome at any time! Except spambots... I don't want bots or copypastas.

Next time: the ship sets sail!


	81. The Bond Phenomenon

**Surgeon General's warning:** chapter contains fluff levels higher than your recommended daily allowance. Consult your doctor before reading.

* * *

 **Chapter 69: The Bond Phenomenon**

 **~Cosmic Cavern~**

After one of the deepest sleeps in Gallian's recent memory, he awoke to cloth bristling his fur. He shifted on the straw bed and noticed a dark gray blanket draped over his back. Gallian wondered where it came from.

"Morning, Absol," Zoroark greeted, jolting Gallian to attention. He turned around to find Zoroark sweeping up the floor in front of him. "I didn't wake you, did I?" Zoroark said.

Gallian shook his head. "How long was I sleeping for?"

Zoroark walked over to a closed window and opened it. He glanced outside, craning his neck to look up toward Totem Decidueye's house. "Hmm… with the way the light looks it's probably early afternoon," Zoroark said.

"E… early afternoon?!" Gallian gasped. He really _was_ slipping away, then. If Zoroark hadn't found him, he'd probably be dead.

"Oh, hope you don't mind the blanket, by the way," Zoroark continued, not noticing the worried look on Gallian's face. "I was about to lie down and go to sleep when it occurred to me that no one had really dried you off. I didn't want you to catch a cold so I warmed that blanket up and draped it over you."

Gallian blinked slowly. He lowered his head, trying to stop Zoroark from seeing him blush. Of _course_ the first guy he would meet would be super nice and good-looking. Gallian figured it was going to be even harder to avoid another Vaporeon situation.

"It's alright," he said. "I'm still sore, to be sure. But at least I can move around."

"That's a relief," Zoroark said, smiling. "But don't overdo it, okay? Anything you want, you just let me know." He scratched at his right ear. "Which begs the question of what happened to you to put you in such a sorry state." Zoroark squatted down so he was eye-level with Gallian. "Do you think you could tell me?"

Gallian flinched. This guy was _good_ at puppy dog eyes. It must've been a perk of his species. Still, Gallian wasn't sure just how much to tell Zoroark.

"All I can say… is that I traveled a great distance across Horizon. I wanted to find a quiet, tucked away place like this, but I ran into trouble. I ended up in the Midnight Sea… and scaled a cliff up to the path you found me on," he explained.

Zoroark frowned. He wanted to help, but couldn't fault Gallian's caution on the subject. "Okay, I won't pry any further, then," he said. Zoroark walked out of the room, leaving a bewildered Gallian sitting on the straw bed.

That conversation went poorly. Gallian was sure of it. He stayed too tight-lipped and now Zoroark was pissed at him. _'Nice going, dumbass! This guy's bending over backwards for you–'_

He cut his thoughts off with a cringe. That was a poor choice of words. Now, Gallian had to clear that image out of his mind. Zoroark was going out of his way to help. He couldn't push Zoroark aside like a piece of dirt. Gallian was thinking up a way to apologize when Zoroark walked out with a bowl in his hands.

"I took an oran berry and boiled it in ginseng," Zoroark said, setting the bowl down. "Totem Decidueye's done this for me when I've gotten hurt in the past. _Hopefully_ I did this right, but if you, like, turn green or something, then I guess I'll have my answer." He laughed nervously.

Gallian stared at his "breakfast" as if it was ready to sprout legs and walk away. A bubble pooled in the soup-like liquid. Gallian leaned down just as the bubble burst. Red juice splattered across his face, drawing a chuckle from Zoroark. Gallian thanked the gods the juice was red to hide the blush falling over his cheeks. He lowered his head back toward the bowl and lapped up the piping hot mixture. The oran berry's juiciness was backed by a surprisingly potent kick, which Gallian suspected the ginseng.

"Wow, this thing's pretty strong," he whispered, lifting his head up and repetitively puckering and unpuckering his lips.

"Hmm… might've used too much ginseng," Zoroark said. "I could add some water to weaken it, if you want."

"I'm okay," Gallian said, slurping up more of his meal. "It's making my insides tingle, but in a good way. Like, the fatigue's fading away a bit, if that makes any sense."

Zoroark smiled. "Great, that means it's working." He sat down in a chair a few feet from the bed. "I've still got awhile before I have to start my guard shift, so if there's anything you want, just let me know."

"Um… can I ask you a question?" Gallian wondered.

"Technically you just did," Zoroark said, a wry grin on his face.

Gallian snorted mid-drink. More juice splashed across his face, this time striking his forehead and leaving the faintest red tint in his dirty white fur. Zoroark's grin widened. "Okay… you got me there," Gallian said, trying not to let his embarrassment show through. "Can I ask you several questions, then?"

"I don't see why not," Zoroark said.

"It's about this place, actually," Gallian said, gulping down the last of his breakfast and pushing the bowl away. He lay back down on the bed, hoping Zoroark had good things to say about his home.

"Cosmic Cavern?" Zoroark asked.

"Ah, yeah. Spaced on the name," Gallian said. "Have you… um… lived here your whole life?"

Zoroark raised a brow. "That's a bit personal, don't you think?"

Gallian stiffened. "Oh… oh gods… I'm sorry! I shouldn't–"

"Relax, Absol," Zoroark said, holding his hands up. "I'm not upset or anything. Judging from what you said earlier, I take it you don't really want to leave when you're healed up, do you?"

 _'Wow, he's good,'_ Gallian concluded. "I guess I wasn't doing a good job hiding it," he said, picking at the straws around him.

Zoroark twirled a lock of hair around in his claw. "In that case, I don't see the harm in talking with you about the village," he said, to Gallian's delight. "I've lived here most of my life, but I wasn't born here."

Gallian bit his lip. Zoroark _was_ living alone. Did that mean he had no family in the picture? Gallian glanced toward the shelf on the other side of the room, looking for anything that offered a vague hint. All he found were book spines and oddly-shaped rocks.

"Um… so… it's just you here, then?" Gallian asked.

"Yeah," Zoroark said. "Lemme guess… you want to know about my family?" Gallian winced, but Zoroark waved him off. "Don't get yourself worked up. I don't have any trouble talking about those assholes."

The harsh language was a surprise. "Did… did something bad happen?" Gallian said.

"My moms were notorious outlaws. When I told them I didn't want to take up the family business, they tossed me into the Midnight Sea and left me for dead," Zoroark said stoically. "I can assure you, I'm happy Officer Magnezone's team caught 'em and put 'em behind bars. It's where they belong."

"Y… you're kidding," Gallian said, his jaw dropping. Zoroark's family abandoned him, too? The similarities were getting creepy. It's like the gods themselves arranged their meeting. Gallian's neck fur prickled and he settled himself with a deep breath. He had to avoid making things awkward.

"Totem Decidueye rescued me from the Midnight Sea and brought me here," Zoroark continued. "Well, okay, technically he didn't bring me _right here._ " He pointed down to the floor, drawing a chuckle from Gallian. "He took me to his house and raised me until I evolved."

"Wow, that was really generous of him," Gallian said. "The only Totem Pokémon I've met who I can remember is Toucannon. She… wasn't really a fan of me."

"I hear you there, Absol," Zoroark said, ears drooping.

"Gallian."

Zoroark's tilted his head to the side. "Galley-what?"

"My name… it's Gallian," he said, poking at the empty food bowl. This routine hadn't gone over well last night, but he figured he owed it to Zoroark to say _something_ about his personal life.

"Your… name?" Zoroark raised a confused brow. "I've never heard 'Gallian' used to describe any physical attributes, before. You look like a 'Sharp-Scythe' to me," he said, sticking a claw up over his head.

"There's a Lucario in my family," Gallian said. "Apparently, it's a species custom to give everyone a name. I never questioned it."

"If it makes you feel more comfortable, then 'Gallian' it is," Zoroark said, shrugging.

Gallian wondered how one Pokémon could be so accommodating, then kicked himself for letting his thoughts run wild again. "Err… what were you saying before we got off track?" Gallian asked, clearing his throat.

"Oh." Zoroark sat up straight. "Well… um… it's nothing."

"Did I do something wrong?" Gallian said.

"No, of course not," Zoroark said. "Your Totem Toucannon comment… reminded me of something, that's all."

Gallian considered pressing further, but didn't dare risk upsetting Zoroark. There was a knock at the door before he could say anything.

"Oy, Fuzzhead! Open up, you git! I got words for you!"

"W… who's that? He sounds upset," Gallian whispered, sitting up.

"Midnight Lycanroc," Zoroark said. "He's one of the other guards. We, uh, don't get along well." He sighed and got to his feet. "Stay there. I'll go see what he wants." Zoroark marched up to the door and swung it open. His frame blocked the doorway, preventing Gallian from seeing Lycanroc for himself.

"What's this I hear about you taking Absol into your care, Fuzzhead?" Lycanroc snarled. "If he's all patched up, then give him the boot. I'll be damned if I let Absol spend another minute here!"

Gallian winced and shrank down onto the bed, burying his head in straw. Zoroark glanced this out of the corner of his eye and spread his arms out to keep Lycanroc at bay. "I'm nursing him back to health, Midnight," Zoroark said.

"Yeh? Well, you're a drongo for wanting to keep him around these parts. None of us want him here. So, tell him to buzz off!" Lycanroc said, red eyes flashing.

"No," Zoroark said, leering at Lycanroc. "I'm not about to turn my back on a Pokémon that needs help. That's why I chose to be a guard."

"Bugger off with that nonsense," Lycanroc growled, shoving Zoroark. "You're a guard because we don't want you around us any longer than you have to be, you root rat." He tried to peer over Zoroark's shoulder but Zoroark stood tall, using his mane to further block Lycanroc's view. "And that goes double for Absol. Piss off, Absol! You ain't wanted here!"

Crimson energy crackled across Zoroark's claws. "You're the one who needs to 'piss off,' Midnight. You've got a problem with what I'm doing? Take it up with the Totem. He already approved this, so I doubt he'll see things your way."

Lycanroc swung a glowing paw at Zoroark, who caught it and smushed Lycanroc's arm against the doorway. "Let… go," Lycanroc grunted. "I'm… trying to keep… the village safe."

"No, you're not. You're trying to spite me… like always," Zoroark growled. "I'm giving you one chance to walk away."

Lycanroc wrenched his arm free. He stepped back, brushing a paw across his snout. "Tch. Fine. Keep the mutt. It's only a matter of time before you end up in the Tree of Life with every sorry spirit that ever trusted an Absol," he growled. Lycanroc turned and stomped away from the house, casting nasty looks back in Zoroark's direction.

Zoroark closed the door and turned back around to Gallian, frowning. "I'm sorry you had to see that," he said. "Don't listen to him. The guy's a dick. He picks fights with anyone in town who so much as looks at him funny. And he holds grudges for the _stupidest_ reasons."

Gallian stared at the floor in disbelief. They hadn't even known each other a day and Zoroark was willing to stick up for him like that. Guilt welled up in Gallian's gut. He didn't deserve something like this. All he had done was run away from home.

"You didn't have to stand up for me like that," he whispered.

"It's not a big deal," Zoroark said, shrugging. "Nothing Lycanroc said was new to me."

"What do you mean by that?" Gallian wondered.

"You don't know?" Zoroark said. "It all goes back to Dark Matter's attack." He slumped over, resting his forearms on his thighs. "With how easily Dark Matter was able to control Yveltal and Nuzleaf and get them to do its bidding… dark-types got bad raps once things died down."

"We did?" Gallian squeaked.

"Yeah, of course," Zoroark said. "Were you living under a rock before you came here? How could you have avoided running into trouble for so long?"

Incineroar came to mind. Gallian's dad must've shielded him from getting treated badly. The realization only intensified Gallian's guilt. He couldn't even muster up an answer for Zoroark.

"The short version is that there are plenty of 'mons out there who think dark-types are trouble. They must believe we're, like, secretly working to bring Dark Matter back," Zoroark explained. "In my case, when I try to be nice to the villagers, some of them assume it's because I'm looking to hurt them or steal something." Zoroark leaned back on the table, lying on his mane and sighing. "You'd think after all these years this wouldn't happen anymore, but it does."

Gallian's chest grew heavy. "So, the reason you joined the guards…"

"… is because I wanted to help the village," Zoroark cut in tersely. He sat back up, scowling. "I thought I could hold my own in battle after evolving, so joining the guards was a natural conclusion for me.

"Got it," Gallian said, wincing. _'Way to piss him off, idiot. Say something to fix this.'_ He fiddled with straw at the edge of his bed. "Um… for what it's worth… I think you're nice," he said, regretting his inability to come up with something better.

"I appreciate the thought, though you'll have to forgive me if I think you might be a little bit biased considering what happened yesterday," Zoroark said. Despite his comment, he smirked at Gallian, who wasn't sure if he should laugh.

After a moment of indecision, Gallian smirked back and said, "Guilty as charged, I guess." He yawned loudly and sank down deeper into the straw. "Ugh… the sluggishness is back."

"You're probably still fatigued," Zoroark said. "You should get some more rest."

"But I've already slept so long, I–" Gallian started, only for another yawn to cut him off. His eyelids drooped and his blinking slowed.

Zoroark closed his window, shrouding the room in darkness. "I'll give you the room," he whispered and retreated to the kitchen.

An invisible force weighed on Gallian's chest again. "No… c-come back," he said, but his voice was so hushed there was no way Zoroark could hear him. Gallian blinked a few more times before his eyelids stayed shut and he drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

This pattern continued for the next several days. Gallian would sleep through most of the day and night, awakening in short bursts to take in a meal. Sometimes Zoroark was there, in which case Gallian would pepper him with questions related to his guard work and the Mystery Dungeon he got to patrol. All the while, Gallian tried to keep his thoughts in check and his gaze focused on Zoroark's eyes, fearing what would happen if he let it drift somewhere else. Other times, Gallian would wake up to find himself alone, with a berry placed on the table next to a note from Zoroark.

Eventually, Gallian was able to get himself out of bed and walk slowly around the house. At which point, Zoroark led him on walks through Cosmic Cavern's entrance tunnel. They'd proceed in silence, with Gallian staring mystified at the light crystals. With each walk, Zoroark did his best to judge Gallian's energy level. Whenever Gallian slowed down, Zoroark turned him around and took him back home.

Three weeks after his arrival in Cosmic Cavern, Gallian finally made it out of the cave. He and Zoroark stepped out onto the mountain. In front of them lay a sprawling sunset. Orange light twinkled through the rippling waves of the Midnight Sea. Off in the distance, storm clouds formed a single black spot in the orange sky. Smoke trails rose into the air, creating a foreboding scene that sent a chill down Gallian's spine.

"This is… wow," Gallian whispered. "All these mountains are breathtaking. We never had a view like this at Ae–" Gallian caught his mistake and cut himself off. "I mean… we never had a view like this back home."

Zoroark shot Gallian a curious look. By the sound of it, Gallian was from Aeon Town. Zoroark wanted to follow up, but sensed Gallian still wasn't ready to talk about his home. Instead, he took a deep breath and said, "Yeah, I like taking shifts out here because of this view. It's nice. Makes you appreciate what the Tapus have given us."

"Yeah," Gallian said. "Um… you think we could walk a bit further?"

"Are you sure you're up for it?" Zoroark asked, a look of concern on his face.

Gallian nodded. "Seeing this gave me a second wind. Come on." He smiled at Zoroark and walked along the mountain path. Zoroark went along with him. They proceeded in silence at first, until Gallian said, "Zoroark, I'd like to be a guard."

"You do?" Zoroark said, freezing mid-step.

"Yes, I've made up my mind. You were spot-on when we first spoke. I _do_ want to settle here," Gallian said. "The quiet caves… this incredible mountainside view… this is what I was looking for. A secluded place to start anew."

"Well, I appreciate the offer," Zoroark said, scratching his right ear, "I'm just not sure you're healthy enough to do that, yet. And… um…"

"You're worried about what other villagers will think of me, aren't you?" Gallian said. He should've known better. Why had he opened his trap?

"Midnight's already told the rest of the village about you," Zoroark said. "Totem Decidueye assured them that everything's fine… but I've gotten more nasty looks than usual."

Gallian felt stupid. How could he not think about what his decision would do to Zoroark? He stopped walking and turned around. "I'm sorry," Gallian said. "That was a rude suggestion on my part. I've… already imposed on you a lot. Cosmic Cavern is your home. I couldn't bear the thought of making it uncomfortable for you… especially after all that you've done for me."

To Gallian's surprise, Zoroark walked up to him and put a paw on his shoulder. Gallian jumped, his heart racing and his fur prickling. "Easy there, buddy," Zoroark said. "It's nothing I haven't dealt with before." A warm smile crossed his face. "Besides, I'm grateful to have had your company this past month."

"Th… that's good to hear," Gallian said, trying not to think about Zoroark's claws brushing his fur.

"Tell you what? Why don't I bring the idea up to Totem Decidueye?" Zoroark said. "I'm not really sure what you're capable of in battle, but the Totem isn't one to look down on a generous offer. Does that sound good?"

"Uh… yeah! Totally! One hundred and twenty percent!" Gallian shouted, his voice cracking. He quickly turned away from Zoroark, aware he was acting like a total buffoon.

"Great," Zoroark said, chuckling. "For the time being, though, let's enjoy the sunset." He gazed out over the Midnight Sea. "It really is beautiful this evening."

Zoroark failed to notice Gallian staring at him, focusing on his mane gently swaying with the sea breeze. "Yeah… it really is," Gallian whispered.

* * *

 **~Cavernous Depths~**

After a prolonged back and forth, Totem Decidueye agreed to Zoroark's proposal and added Gallian on as a town guard. This turned out to work quite well. Totem Decidueye partnered them up, meaning Zoroark no longer had to take shifts with Lycanroc. Instead, Lycanroc worked with Dusk.

Their first few assignments were basic patrols of the mountain and proved uneventful. After a week of official work, Totem Decidueye gave the duo the okay to explore the Cavernous Depths. He requested they do a routine patrol and make sure nothing bad was happening to the wild Pokémon. Zoroark led Gallian down into the dungeon, guiding him through tunnels filled with sparkling rocks and light crystals.

"This is surprisingly pretty for a cave," Gallian said. "I like how the crystals kind of look like stars."

"Oh, good, you noticed it, too," Zoroark said, smiling at Gallian. "When I made a similar comment to Lycanroc my first time down here, he just brushed it aside. Glad to see I've got a partner with a good eye on him." He winked at Gallian, who turned to examine a nearby rock.

The sounds of rocks scraping together caught both their attentions. Zoroark held up his left arm and crept forward. "I'm seeing a few Geodudes up ahead here. Give me a moment." Zoroark lowered his arm and took a deep breath. A red ripple raced down his body and he disappeared before Gallian's eyes. In his place, a Geodude sat on the floor. His galvanized bristles poked out of his light blue head, adding extra light to the area.

This was Gallian's first time seeing Zoroark's illusion powers in action. They were every bit as impressive as he expected. Zoroark rolled down the tunnel and caught up to the other Geodudes. He conversed with them, turned away, and rolled back up to Gallian. Zoroark led him down a side path, then dispelled his illusion.

"Ugh, I hate having to roll around like that," Zoroark grumbled, grasping his mane and furiously blowing on it.

"That was amazing! I saw you transform, but I was still completely fooled," Gallian said, running up to Zoroark. "It must be so awesome having illusion powers."

"Yeah," Zoroark whispered, his voice lacking in enthusiasm.

Gallian's smile vanished. "Is there something wrong?" he asked.

"Huh? No, no, not at all," Zoroark dismissed, returning his attention to his dirty mane.

"Is it something about your illusions?" Gallian asked, hoping he hadn't stumbled on a touchy subject by accident.

"I just… I don't like using them. I hate that everyone _expects_ me to use illusions all the time because I'm a Zoroark," he growled, crossing his arms.

"I thought it was pretty cool," Gallian whispered, poking at the ground.

"Don't get me wrong. It's a great technique," Zoroark said. "It's very useful against wild 'mons." His shoulders sagged. "But relying on them frustrates me." He leaned against the cave wall. "Illusions are so… so _fake._ Why should I have to hide who I am from others? If I _don't_ use my illusions, people treat me badly. If I _do_ use them, then the interactions I have with others are meaningless. I'll never know how they actually feel about me."

"And while some 'mons value me for my illusion powers, those same powers make them act guarded around me." Zoroark threw his paws up in exasperation. "I'm stuck in this endless cycle where, no matter what I do, I feel detached from everyone around me." Zoroark sank down to the ground, burying his head in his thighs. "I'm so sick of it, but I don't really know what I can do about it. I've tried to show people that I don't mean any harm. Only Totem Decidueye really trusts me, but he can't be around all the time."

Gallian was by Zoroark's side in an instant. "I… I'm so sorry. If I'd know, I'd never would've brought it up."

"Don't be sorry. You've done nothing wrong, here," he said. "Frankly, it's… _nice_ to have someone giving me attention like you do."

"Err, well, I'm really glad you've helped me out so much," Gallian said, his heart skipping a beat. "And… uh… you strike me as a genuinely nice guy. I don't think any of this is an act."

"I appreciate that," Zoroark said, smiling at Gallian. Silence fell over the duo, their gazes locked on one another.

Gallian's heart raced. Zoroark was looking right at him. It wasn't just some casual smile. There was a sense of knowing behind it. Gallian was certain! Had he slipped up? Did Zoroark think he'd developed a crush?

"Gallian," Zoroark whispered, "I… uh…" He shook his head and got back to his feet. "I think we've dawdled here long enough. We should really get back to our patrol."

"Huh?" Gallian said. "Oh… right. Yeah, that's a good idea." All the adrenaline that had built up during the silence rushed out of Gallian's system, leaving him standing there, legs trembling.

"You feeling alright?" Zoroark asked. "You look pretty out of it, all of a sudden."

"I'm okay," Gallian lied. In reality, he had blown the perfect chance to say something. How hard was it to look Zoroark in the eyes and say that he loved him? Gallian watched Zoroark walk down the tunnel and hung his head.

 _'I'm never going to be able to tell him, am I?'_

* * *

 **~Cavernous Lagoon~**

A couple more weeks passed, during which time Gallian and Zoroark continued their guard work. On lighter days, they opted to trek down to the end of the Cavernous Depths and spar by the small pond. For Gallian, it was a good opportunity to improve his moves and dodging abilities, since he hadn't battled too much in his time at the guild. While Zoroark mopped the floor with him initially, Gallian gradually showed improvement.

After another quiet patrol through the Cavernous Depths, Gallian and Zoroark made their way down to the basin. The small pond twinkled under the glow of the star-shaped light crystals. At the other end of the pond, a stream trickled toward a cloud of black fog. Gallian already knew from his conversations with Zoroark that that fog hid a tunnel leading to Circadian Coast. He figured the stream led out to either the Midnight Sea or the ocean.

"Up for a little spar?" Zoroark asked. "I was thinking we would try something different."

"What did you have in mind?" Gallian said.

Zoroark repeatedly moved his arms and forth, crossing them over his chest. "The winner will be whoever can pin his opponent on their back for three seconds," he said.

"Doesn't that give you an advantage? You have arms… I don't," Gallian said.

"The point is to make it a combination of standard attacks and a physical struggle," Zoroark said. "You never know if an opponent may get up close and personal… leaving you no time to use a proper attack."

Zoroark had a point. Gallian just wished he'd phrased it differently. "It's still easier for you to do stuff like that," he said.

"Okay, fine. You can have an added win condition: if you knock me in the lagoon, I'll count it as a pin. Sound fair?" Zoroark said, rolling his eyes.

"Would we be disturbing any wild Pokémon swimming in there?" Gallian said, glancing at the water.

"Pretty sure there aren't any in there, but I'll check to be safe," Zoroark said, walking up toward the edge.

A smirk crossed Gallian's lips. "Big mistake, tough guy," he whispered. Gallian released shadows from his mouth. Zoroark's ears twitched and he dove to his right without even looking back.

Gallian charged forward, his horn brimming with green, bug-like baubles. Zoroark raised a paw, shooting a black beam of his own. Gallian lowered his horn, trying to absorb as much of Zoroark's attack as possible. But the green baubles quickly faded and the remaining dark energy struck Gallian's face.

Zoroark hopped away from the water. "I can't believe you tricked me like that!" he said, his voice a mixture of shock and laughter.

"Well, I can't believe you actually fell for it," Gallian said, grinning cheekily.

"You ass, I'm gonna get you back for that one," Zoroark said, eyes flashing red.

"Oh, crap," Gallian groaned, crouching low and preparing to move. Four Zoroarks fanned out around him. Gallian shuffled backward, wincing when his tail struck rock. The Zoroarks launched fireballs at Gallian.

A gleam twinkled in Gallian's eyes as an idea formed in his head. He jumped up and spun around, digging his claws into the bedrock. The fireballs passed underneath him, grazing the tip of his tail. Gallian crouched down and sprang off the wall. He soared over Zoroark and his duplicates. Gallian landed and lashed out, slicing through the clones with a blade of dark energy.

Only the real Zoroark remained, raising glowing arms high. Acting on instinct, Gallian spun around and kicked Zoroark with his hind legs like he was a white-furred donkey. Zoroark stumbled backwards, gasping for air.

Like earlier, tiny, bug-shaped energy pellets coated Gallian's horn. He jumped to Zoroark's side and speared him in the gut. Gallian jerked his head upward at the last second, flinging Zoroark into the air. Zoroark sailed backwards, limbs flailing. He fired a black beam at the ceiling, but failed to change his momentum.

Zoroark threw his arms up over his face seconds before he splashed down. The resulting water plume made Gallian wince. "Huh, that worked a lot better than I was expecting," he said, walking up to the edge of the lagoon. "Yo, Zoroark, you okay in there?" he called.

A few seconds of silence passed, then bubbles formed on the surface of the water. Zoroark popped out, his drenched mane plastered over his face. He spat out a mouthful of water and tried to brush his mane to the side. It flopped back against his snout, sending him under the surface again. Gallian burst out laughing, his eyes tearing up. Zoroark resurfaced and swam toward the edge.

"Okay, you got me there," Zoroark said. "Your Megahorn hits a lot harder than I remember it. Have you been practicing on your own?"

"I was just extra motivated today, I suppose," Gallian said.

Zoroark paused at the edge of the lagoon, treading water to keep himself afloat. "Oh? What… did my little rules change fill you with sudden determination?"

A flush fell over Gallian's face. The answer was yes, but he'd be damned if he said that out loud.

Zoroark blew on his mane, but it failed to budge. "I get it. You just wanted to see me all dripping wet, didn't you?" he said. "Well, go on, get your yuks in. Laugh it up, fuzzball."

Gallian turned away, trying to compose himself. Why was Zoroark always able to read him like an open book? "Actually, I just wanted to mess up your mane after you spent so much time brushing it this morning," he said.

"And now I'm gonna need another hour of brushing to get these new tangles out. So, thanks for that," Zoroark said, pouting. "Now, you gonna give me a paw here or not? This water's a lot deeper than it looks."

Gallian stuck a foreleg out and Zoroark grabbed hold of it. He dug in his heels, attempting to give himself traction to hoist Zoroark out of the water. Only, instead of Zoroark rising out of the water, Gallian found himself being pulled toward the water. He caught a mischievous glint in Zoroark's lone visible eye. Gallian tried to yank his forepaw free, but to no avail. Zoroark had an iron grip and used it to drag Gallian over the edge and hurl him into the lagoon.

Zoroark hoisted himself over the edge and sat there, daintily crossing one leg over the other and swishing his soppy mane around in one paw. Gallian surfaced, white fur from his forehead having fallen over his eyes. Like Zoroark did earlier, Gallian tried blowing his fur out of his face. His vision was too blurred by the water to see the giant, shit-eating grin on Zoroark's face.

"Boy, did you walk _right_ into that one," Zoroark said.

"I thought… you didn't like… conforming to Zoroark stereotypes," Gallian grunted, trying to doggie paddle his way to the water's edge.

"I don't… unless it's to get back at a friend who punked me," Zoroark said, wringing out his mane. "I'm just surprised your disaster sense didn't alert you to what I had in mind."

"It doesn't… work that way," Gallian said. He reached the edge and dug his claws into the rock, panting heavily. "It's not a lie detector, you know."

"Well, I know now," Zoroark said. "Come on… you got me good. And I got you back. Now we're even."

"I really didn't want to go for a swim this afternoon," Gallian grumbled. "This water's so damn cold." He shook his head dry.

"Yeah, cave water can be like that," Zoroark said. "Tell you what… how about we head for the hot springs? Everything's quiet down here and we didn't have any other assignments to do today. So, that ought to warm us right up." He offered his paw to Gallian.

"And why should I trust you to pull me out safely?" Gallian said, frowning.

Zoroark uncrossed his legs and raised his arms innocently. "Because I got my licks in. I'm satisfied. Come on… truce?" He stuck his paw out again.

Gallian sighed. "Yeah, I can't stay mad at you over this. It's pretty trivial," he said. "And… you're right. You did get me good." He added a chuckle for good measure and grabbed Zoroark's wrist. Zoroark pulled him out of the water.

But as Zoroark stepped back, his wet foot slipped. He tumbled backward with a holler and Gallian, who was still gripping his wrist, fell down with him. Zoroark landed on his mane, which _squelched_ loudly as a puddle formed underneath him. Gallian landed atop him. His momentum made his head bonk against Zoroark's. In the process, his lips touched the tip of Zoroark's muzzle.

Zoroark sucked in a surprised gasp, his eyes widening and his pupils dilating. For Gallian, it was as if he had taken a Thunderbolt to the spine at point-blank range. "Aha ha… whoops," Zoroark said. "Should've watched what I was doing. You okay, Gallian?"

Gallian sat up, his jaw clenched and his eyes darting around the room. He thought his heart might burst out of his chest that very second. It was only an instant, but that spark was incredible! He'd never felt anything like it. Gallian was so lost in the moment that his actions failed to register until he met Zoroark's confused gaze.

 _'Wait a second. Our lips met… our lips… oh, gods, what've I done?! I'm such an idiot!'_

"Um, Gallian? You all right?" Zoroark asked, waving an arm in front of Gallian's face. "Are you going to get off me?"

Gallian looked down at Zoroark's chest and scrambled to his feet. "S-Sorry," he said. "I… I… sorry…"

"What's there to be sorry about? I slipped and we fell. It's nothing to get worked up over," Zoroark said, chuckling.

"N… no," Gallian whispered, his gaze falling toward the ground. "I… we… that is…" He thrashed his head from side to side. "I'm sorry! I messed up big time!" he shouted, and then turned and sprinted back into the cave.

Zoroark's eyes widened. "Gallian? Hey, Gallian, where are you going? I'm the one with the Escape Orb, remember?" He waved his arms about. "What do you think you're doing? Hold up! Wait for me!" Zoroark took off running.

* * *

Review replies!

Another guest: nobody seems to like Drampa, so I don't think you're alone. Not that it matters, since he's dead at this point.

SuperOmegaGuest: I hope that doesn't happen, too. I've been seeing reports of spambots running wild in some review sections and I'd hate for that to happen here.

Anon Omega: as it stands, there are three chapters left. Yes, that pretty much makes this the longest episode in the story. But a lot of this stuff was important, so we had to get to it at some point. The last chapter will be shifting things back toward our main quartet, anyway.

Commenter: well, I'm flattered. I hope I can continue to impress!

WatermelonShark: if you've gotten to this point and see this, I'm glad you're enjoying things. I did focus a lot on the characters because I love writing dialogue, as chapters like this show. I've never seen Hot Wheels World Race, though, so I'll have to take your word for it.

Next time: from hate to date to mate!

... I'll show myself out.


	82. Ground Zero

I hear you guys loud and clear. This special's gone on a bit too long and I admit I got carried away with it. Originally, there was going to be two more chapters in the flashback. But, thanks to my revisions, I've cut that down. This is the last flashback chapter. The next numbered chapter will pivot the focus back to the main story. I appreciate everyone's patience, especially since the site as a whole has been having some serious issues these past few weeks. I tried to spice this chapter up with action to make up for how quiet things have been. I hope it's to your liking. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 70: Ground Zero**

 **~Cosmic Cavern~**

Gallian sprinted out of the Cavernous Depths' entrance, water dripping off his fur. He couldn't show his face to Zoroark again. Not after something so humiliating.

A tingle ran down his spine. Without even thinking, Gallian skidded to a halt. His eyes widened at a glowing white paw narrowly missing his head.

"What the hell?!" Lycanroc snarled, his momentum making him stumble. He turned back around and pelted Gallian with rocks.

"Ow! _Ow!_ What was that for?" Gallian growled, whirling on Lycanroc.

"I warned you… I told you we didn't want you here," Lycanroc barked, hurling more rocks. Gallian sliced through them with shadowy-black claws. "If you're not going to leave, I'm _making_ you leave!"

"You can't do that!" Gallian barked, shooting a black beam from his forehead. Lycanroc dove right and rolled back to his feet.

"I can do whatever I want," Lycanroc hissed. "This was my home _long_ before it was yours, bastard. I ain't letting you ruin it with your gods-forsaken voodoo!"

Lycanroc smacked the ground, sending rocks flying toward Gallian. He tried to blast them apart, but there were way too many. Gallian staggered back, eyes watering in pain. Lycanroc rushed him, paws glowing.

"I don't want to fight with you," Gallian said, turning tail and running for the entrance tunnel.

"And I want you out of my life! Out of _all_ our lives!" Lycanroc spat, lunging for Gallian but missing his rear by a good margin. Gallian disappeared into the tunnel, stealing a glance back at Lycanroc.

By now, other villagers had come out of their homes. Golbats, Gravelers, and a trio of Rockruffs looked down silently at Lycanroc. "Oy! Any of you blokes got a problem, say it to my face!" Lycanroc barked, shaking his fist. "Face it… you all wanted him gone, too. You just didn't have the guts to do anything about it."

The villagers shrank back toward their homes. Lycanroc lowered his paws to the ground and took off running after Gallian. He wasn't expecting a black beam to whiz by his right shoulder. A light crystal nearly clotheslined him in his attempts to dodge.

"You're going to pay for that one!" Lycanroc barked tossing two pawfuls of rocks at Gallian.

Silently cursing, Gallian scrambled through the tunnel. It wasn't good enough to outrun Lycanroc's attack. Gallian stumbled about, pain shooting through his hind legs. Why was this guy being so persistent? Gallian had barely even had a conversation with the guy, yet he was out for blood!

"That's right! Keep running, _bi_ _t_ _ch!_ " Lycanroc shouted.

Gallian turned around, firing a black beam. It blew apart some of the rocks flying toward him, but a couple rebounded off light crystals and conked him in the head. Gallian stumbled backwards. It was no good. Lycanroc knew how to fight in these tunnels. He'd only ever sparred with Zoroark in open spaces. Gallian needed more room to move around.

He sprinted down the tunnel, jerking left and right to avoid the larger light crystals. Lycanroc's footsteps grew quieter, but rocks continued whizzing toward him. One struck his right hind knee. Gallian crumpled to the ground with an anguished howl.

"I've got you now!" Lycanroc shouted.

Gallian struck a nearby light crystal with pink energy blades, shattering it. The rubble battered Lycanroc. Gallian stumbled to his feet and resumed running. How much further was it? Surely the exit was close.

He rounded a bend in the path and found orange light spilling down it. This was it! He was home free. Even if the trails were wide, Gallian would still have more room to move in open air. He ran the remaining tunnel length, gritting his teeth as pain shot up from his injured knee. Gallian emerged from the tunnel and bounded up the trail. He turned, funneling dark energy into his scythe and waiting to pounce.

Lycanroc emerged, staying low to the ground. Gallian lunged, scythe at the ready. Gallian struck Lycanroc's shoulder. "I'm not going anywhere!" he shouted, rearing back to strike again.

"Big mistake… _mate._ "

A glowing hammered Gallian's chest. The wind rushed out of him. Gallian staggered back, staring at Lycanroc's glowing, outstretched fist.

Counter. The guy knew Counter. Gallian thought he had found the perfect time to strike, but instead he had leaped into a trap!

 _'No.'_ Gallian's world went fuzzy. _'How could I be so careless?'_ He opened his mouth, meekly gasping for air.

Lycanroc approached Gallian, clutching his bloody shoulder. "You've got two choices here. You can walk down the mountain and never come back," he said, jerking his head behind him. "Or we have ourselves a little _accident_ and you end up where you should've been… at the bottom of the Midnight Sea!"

A black beam hit Lycanroc from behind, knocking him onto Gallian. Zoroark charged forward, eyes flashing crimson. He grabbed Lycanroc by his spiky fur and hurled him off Gallian.

"I've got an even _better_ option," Zoroark said, crimson energy crackling in his claws. "You leave us the hell alone and I don't haul your ass up to Totem Decidueye and have _you_ exiled for assaulting my partner!"

Wincing, Gallian rolled onto his stomach. Zoroark had come for him? Even after what happened at the lagoon? It didn't make sense. He was supposed to be upset. But, no, here he was, sticking up for Gallian yet again.

"You don't have the right!" Lycanroc snarled. "This is my home… not yours! Not either of yours! I was born here… not you! I won't stand around and let a pair of crooks ruin it."

"Oh, step off it," Zoroark hissed. "This isn't about protecting the village. In _never_ was. This is about that stupid party." He shook his head. "How many times do I have to apologize before you put it to rest, Midnight?"

"I don't want empty apologies. I want you out of my life!" Lycanroc barked.

"Then _you_ go somewhere else," Zoroark said. "Nothing's stopping you."

"No. I ain't letting you bully me out of my own home," Lycanroc said, red eyes flashing.

"Bullying? Have you looked in a mirror, lately?" Zoroark said. "What do you call this, huh?" He gestured at Gallian. "I've _tried_ to be civil with you, but you refuse to let go of things that can't be changed."

"You're the one who snogged me out of nowhere. This is all on you!" Lycanroc howled, throwing a half-dozen rocks at Zoroark.

"Don't pin this on me," Zoroark said, blowing the rocks apart with a dome of crimson energy. "We were drunk! And you were coming onto me pretty hard for someone who says he's only got eyes for ladies!"

Gallian shot up. Had he heard that correctly?

"Step off it, drongo!" Lycanroc snarled. "You used your damn illusions to seduce me."

"That's _enough,_ Midnight!"

Dusk leaped over Gallian and Zoroark. She landed between Zoroark and Lycanroc, nearly losing the stuffed satchel over her shoulder.

"I didn't do anything," Lycanroc said. "Look at what that arsehole did to me!" He pointed to Gallian, then to his injured shoulder.

"Only because _you_ did something to provoke him, didn't you?" Dusk said, glaring at Lycanroc.

"Yeah. He attacked me out of the blue when I left the Cavernous Depths," Gallian explained, limping to Zoroark's side.

"I had to do it! I'm trying to keep the damn village safe," Lycanroc said.

"I don't believe you," Dusk said. "I'm taking you to see the Totem."

Lycanroc socked Dusk in the cheek. The blow slammed her into the mountainside, shattering whatever was in her satchel. Glass shards fell to the ground. Dusk looked down at them, her green eyes going wide. Lycanroc rubbed his snout. "… tch. That's your fault. I told you to stay out of my way," he growled.

"Alright, that tears it!" Dusk screamed. Her green eyes turned bright red. She barreled into Lycanroc at breakneck speeds, sending them both to the ground. Dusk sank her fangs into Lycanroc's arm, refusing to let go even as he howled in pain.

She stood up and jerked her head back, flinging Lycanroc into the rock wall. He bounced off it and landed unmoving at Zoroark's feet. Gallian and Zoroark stood in stunned silence. Dusk's eyes faded back to green and she shook her head. "Ungh… I'm sorry… you had to see that," Dusk whispered, blood trickling down her chin. "The Totem said… I needed to keep my temper from firing off like that, but I guess Midnight finally wore out the last of my patience."

Dusk walked up to Lycanroc. "I'm taking him to the Totem. With any luck, he…" She took a shuddering breath. "Hopefully, he'll be out of our lives come tomorrow."

"You were doing a supply run to Midday Valley," Zoroark said, frowning. "And now everything's broken."

"Don't worry about it," Dusk said, dragging Lycanroc toward the tunnel.

"No, wait. At least let me help you carry him," Zoroark said, jogging toward Dusk.

"What about me?" Gallian said. His hind leg still hurt, so he sank down to his belly.

"Stay out here. I'll be back," Zoroark said. "Besides, I think we should talk." He hoisted Lycanroc up and followed Dusk into the mountain.

Gallian's heart sank. If there was even a glimmer of hope that Zoroark was willing to look past what had happened in the lagoon, it was gone now. With every minute he lay there, alone, the sinking feeling in his gut grew worse. His fur prickled and his heart rate kept spiking no matter how much he tried to stay calm. Gallian told himself Zoroark wasn't mad, but it didn't help. In his mind, he already knew this was going to end badly. A part of him wanted to just run down the mountain and never look back.

He was so lost in thought, he failed to see Zoroark reemerge from the mountain, clutching a basket filled with fruit. "I'm back," Zoroark announced. Gallian jumped. His heart raced even faster, but slowed down when he noticed the fruit basket. Zoroark sat down next to Gallian and put the basket between them. "Here. I brought you some dinner," Zoroark said, looking out across the ocean.

Gallian cautiously reached for an oran berry and took a bite out of it. The sweet juices filled his stomach and settled the lingering pain in his knee. Zoroark took a pinap berry from the basket and sighed. "I guess I owe you an explanation," he said. "Totem Decidueye holds an annual Summer Solstice party. The party after I evolved, I got a bit too eager to try fermented berry juice for the first time."

"What happened?" Gallian said, unable to meet Zoroark's gaze.

"Truthfully, I don't remember. After the fact, I was told I walked up to Midnight, who was also drunk," Zoroark said. "We were talking for a bit… apparently my voice gets all squeaky and high-pitched when I'm drunk. Midnight and I started flirting and, well, I ended up grabbing his ass and kissing him right on the muzzle."

Gallian tensed. So, Zoroark _had_ kissed another guy before. Just like what happened at the lagoon. He wanted to say something, but was convinced he was reading too far into things. Zoroark was drunk, after all.

"Even if I don't remember it, I'm confident it happened," Zoroark continued. "I woke up the next morning with a few lumps on my head, a black eye, and dried blood all over my fur."

"I'm… uh… sorry?" Gallian said, wincing.

"Don't be," Zoroark said, tossing a piece of figy berry into his mouth. "I don't regret it. I had a crush on the guy since the day he evolved. I was always praying that one day he'd simmer down and I could take a chance with him."

Gallian grabbed a sitrus berry and bit into it to keep his jaw from dropping. He wasn't overthinking things. Everything made sense, now. All this time, Gallian freaked out about what Zoroark would think if he knew the truth when Zoroark was just like him. That explained why Zoroark often picked the strangest positions when lying down or sitting in one of his chairs.

 _'He was trying to see if he could get a rise out of me… in more ways than one,'_ Gallian realized. Now was the time. He _needed_ to say how he really felt. And yet, there was _still_ a mental block in his way.

"You okay there? You're spacing out on me," Zoroark said.

Gallian knew what the problem was. And if he wanted a future with Zoroark, he needed to swallow his fears and tell Zoroark everything. "Zoroark… I'm sorry," Gallian said, earning a confused look. "I've dodged the question of where I came from for too long. And that's not fair to you. Not when you've been so welcoming to me. I… I'm ready to tell you about how I ended up in Cosmic Cavern."

Gallian explained everything, leaving no subject untouched. He began with his family and the roles they played with the Horizon Guild. Then he addressed the string of events that led him to Zoroark's feet, starting with Incineroar's dead and ending with Drampa's trap that led to him scaling the mountainside. When it was all over, Gallian hung his head.

"All this time, I've grown so close to you. I really do think you're amazing," Gallian said. "But I was a coward. I was terrified of what would happen if you learned my past, so I kept my mouth shut." He sighed. "Well, go on, say it. Call me a horrible person. I deserve it."

Zoroark leaned back, bracing his arms against the ground. "I refuse," he said.

"Huh?" Gallian said, blinking in surprise.

"You're right, I _am_ upset you couldn't bring yourself to say this stuff earlier," Zoroark said. "And I'm concerned about your sister."

Gallian winced. He had to bring up Tessa. Gallian didn't think he had the stomach to see her again, even after a couple of months had passed.

"The thing is… I get it," Zoroark continued, to Gallian's surprise. "There are so many things I can't wrap my head around. An Absol's disaster sense is one of them. It sounds to me like, through all of that, you were panicking." Zoroark twiddled his claws. "If I were in your situation, I'd probably have done something similarly reckless. Possibly worse," he said. "I might've been dumb enough to stomp up to Metagross and demand answers. I'd have probably gotten myself killed."

He sat up and leaned forward, draping an arm over Gallian, whose eyes went wide at the gesture. "There's something I want to tell you, but I need you to promise me something first," Zoroark said.

"What is it?" Gallian asked.

"Promise me that, eventually, we'll go check in on your sister," Zoroark replied. "Say, before the next Winter Solstice?"

Gallian's chest tightened. "I… uh…"

"We can even bring her here to live with us," Zoroark said. "I know I'd like to get to know her at some point."

"Well… um…" Gallian pawed at the ground, trying to shake off the mental image of Tessa's frightened face. He looked into Zoroark's bright-blue eyes and exhaled. "I guess I could do that. I might need some time, but I think I can make it happen before the year ends." He paused. "Wait, what did you mean by 'we'll go check in on your sister?'"

"In all the time we've spent together, I've grown really close to you," Zoroark whispered. "And after what happened at the lagoon, I can't keep this bottled up any longer." He took a deep breath.

"Gallian… I love you."

Those three words echoed in Gallian's head like a church bell. Gallian slumped forward, clenching his jaw as tightly as he could to stop it from dropping. His heart pounded. His vision blurred. What was he waiting for? Zoroark said what he'd wanted to hear all this time!

 _'Tell him you love him, too! Hurry!'_

Gallian turned to Zoroark, opening his mouth to talk. But instead of words, Gallian coughed weakly. _'Oh no,'_ he thought, heart thundering in his chest.

The sinking feeling was back.

His head rang and bright light filled his vision. Gallian's fur prickled. Even his scythe tingled. He sat there, frozen. It was just like back in Glyphic Falls.

"Gallian, are you okay?" Zoroark asked, a look of concern on his face.

"I… I…" Gallian wheezed. He tried to get to his feet, but in his shocked state he misjudged where the ground was in front of him. Gallian brought a forepaw down on empty air.

Open water filled his vision. And it was getting closer. He was falling! Gallian shouted, but the ocean swallowed him up seconds later.

"Gallian!" Zoroark shouted, looking over the cliff face. He knew from experience Gallian was not a good swimmer and the sight of the Midnight Sea's choppy waters made his blood run cold.

"H-Hang on, Gallian!" Zoroark called. Without thinking, he lunged head-first off the mountain. Zoroark had just enough time to see Gallian stand up in the shoulder-deep water and realize his mistake before splashing down. The water wasn't deep enough to stop Zoroark's head from smacking the bedrock.

Gallian turned to his right just as Zoroark disappeared underwater, still dazed from the fall. The sight of bubbles frothing next to him jolted him out of his stupor. "Zoroark?" he gasped. "Oh, gods, Zoroark! He must've hit his head!" Gallian said. He lowered his head and upper body into the water, feeling around for Zoroark.

It was all his fault! Gallian panicked like an idiot and Zoroark likely cracked his skull open trying to save him.

Gallian's paw brushed against wet fur. He lowered his head even further until he was able to successfully scoop Zoroark onto his back. Gallian struggled to get his head above water again, Zoroark's wet fur weighing him down. He was barely able to make it to water's edge and anchor his claws into the cliff before descending into a raucous coughing fit. Gallian needed a way back up to the path or they were sunk.

He looked around frantically, trying to find some sort of foothold or a way that he could get up out of the water while carrying Zoroark. Something caught the corner of his eye and he turned to his right. His expression brightened at the sight of a portion of the mountain path dipping down toward the water.

Gallian wondered how he had missed that before. He dismissed it as having to do with the tides and pushed off the rock wall. He slowly walked toward the path, taking care to keep Zoroark positioned on his back. By the time he reached the path and staggered onto it, his legs ached. Gallian forced himself along the trail, struggling to keep Zoroark supported on his back. As the trail sloped upward, Gallian found each step getting progressively more difficult to take. How would he get Zoroark back to the village?

He lowered Zoroark onto the trail to ease the pain on his back. Gallian sat down next to him, panting heavily. Gallian nudged his satchel, which had somehow stayed around his neck through the fall into the water. It was soaked. Everything was useless. Gallian shakily got to his feet and looked up the trail. Had he missed a shortcut?

Gallian paused, narrowing his eyes at a small gap in the rock wall. Wincing, Gallian proceeded a bit further up the trail, stopping every few steps to check on Zoroark. He reached the gap he had spotted and, to his delight, found a small cave inside of it. Perfect for tending to Zoroark!

With a great deal of strain, Gallian returned to Zoroark and hoisted him up. Gallian trudged back up to the gap in the rocks. He barely fit through the opening with Zoroark on his back. Gallian gently lowered Zoroark to the ground and then removed the satchel from his neck.

 _'Come on… please let there be something in here I can still use,'_ Gallian prayed, nudging the satchel open. A waterlogged oran berry rolled out, ready to fall apart at any second. Thinking quickly, Gallian moved Zoroark beside his bag. He parted Zoroark's mane with his claws, trying to see his head. Gallian grazed a welt right between Zoroarks' ears.

Gallian swept his other foreleg along the ground. The berry burst open against Gallian's leg, so he hastily pressed it up against Zoroarks' head. Gallian rubbed in the berry juice as best he could, then withdrew his paw. The juices sank into Zoroark's head. Some of the swelling subsided, drawing a sigh of relief from Gallian.

 _'What else do I have in here?'_ Gallian wondered, poking a forepaw into his bag. A flicker of light drew his attention. Gallian reached further into the bag and dragged out a glowing orb with a sun-shaped rune etched into it. He realized it was a drought orb, which wouldn't help.

Yet, Gallian didn't put the orb away. He glanced at the puddles of water that formed under him and Zoroark. The orb could dry them off _and_ warm Zoroark up!

Gallian shattered the orb. A column of steam erupted around him, startling him. He braced himself, curling up into a tight ball. The steam quickly disappeared, leaving Gallian laying there, perfectly dry.

"Mmmrrrgggh…"

The orb worked! Gallian shoved his bag aside and nestled up next to Zoroark.

"Zoroark, can you hear me?" he whispered.

"Ungh… w-what happened?" Zoroark groaned, opening his eyes and blinking slowly to adjust to the dim cave. He turned to his left. "Gallian? I thought…" Zoroark rubbed his head and groaned a second time.

"Shhh, it's okay, Zoroark," Gallian said, offering a shoulder to help Zoroark sit up. "You dove into the Midnight Sea after me and hit your head. The tide must've been really low, because the water was super shallow."

"That'd explain this miserable headache," Zoroark said. "Wait… if I blacked out, then how did we get here?"

Gallian sheepishly traced a claw on the ground. "I… uh… I realized what had happened. You were trying to help me after I totally freaked out." He lowered his head. "Hearing you say you loved me set off my disaster sense."

Zoroark frowned. "It did?"

"Yeah," Gallian said, wincing. "But seeing you disappear underwater like that…" Gallian shook his head and took a deep breath. "I fought it off."

"Huh?" Zoroark said, ears twitching.

"The disaster sense… the thing telling me to bolt… I fought it off," Gallian whispered. "I got you out of the water and brought you up here. I used a drought orb and an oran berry to dry you off and heal you up."

"Thanks," Zoroark rasped. He scooched back along the ground so that he was leaning against the cave wall. "How did you fight it off, though?"

Gallian's face flushed. "I… uh… well…" He tapped his claw on the ground and sighed. "I love you too, Zoroark. At first, my disaster sense made me think all of this was a bad idea. But after that accident, I realized that you're more important." Gallian took a shaky breath. "I'm not going to listen to a little voice in my head telling me to turn away from you… if that makes any sense."

Zoroark sat there, mulling over Gallian's statement. A smile slowly formed on his muzzle. "Then are you saying what I think you're saying?" he asked.

Gallian scooched next to him. "I don't know. Did you think I was gonna say that, yes, I do want to spend my life with you?" he whispered, placing a paw on Zoroark's lap.

Zoroark smirked. "That might've been my guess, yeah," he said. "So, now that that's out in the air, what do you think we should do about it?"

The two stared into each other's eyes, until Gallian broke the stare down by climbing on top of Zoroark and wrapping him up in the best embrace he could manage without any arms. Gallian nuzzled the side of Zoroark's neck.

"I say we make this moment count," Gallian whispered.

A huge grin spread across Zoroark's face. "I think that's a wonderful idea."

* * *

 **~Midday Valley~**

Neither of them slept much. They were both too giddy from what had happened. Before dawn came, they returned to Zoroark's home. Gallian finished patching up Zoroark's head, then they ate breakfast together. Zoroark suggested the two go to Midday Valley to replace the supplies Dusk had broken when she stepped in to help with Lycanroc. Gallian initially hesitated, but remembered his promise to Zoroark. If he was going to work up the courage to see Tessa again, the nearby village was a good place to start. Zoroark even offered some moral support in the form of disguising himself as a red-spotted Absol. After getting the list of supplies from Dusk, they set out down the mountain.

To Gallian's surprise, the forest surrounding the village was denser than it appeared from the mountain path. The evergreens were thick but spaced far enough apart to allow sunlight to filter in over the gravel path. Two rows of ferns lined the road, one on each side. However, as Gallian and Zoroark pushed onward, the ferns gave way to berry bushes. Gallian glanced at the bushes to his right and found nothing but empty stalks and the occasional premature berry, far too small and bitter to pick.

"Looks like someone recently cleaned up here," Gallian said. "Is this how the village grows its berries?"

"It's something the villages do for the wild Pokémon," Zoroark said.

"You mean wild 'mons live in this forest? But this doesn't _seem_ like a Mystery Dungeon," Gallian said, blinking in surprise.

"It's not, but there are some wild Pokémon around. Just not that many. I can't tell you exactly why they'd live out here," Zoroark said, brushing his fake scythe against a bush to his left. "If I had to guess, they were probably born here and it's where they're most comfortable living. Surely you could sympathize with that, right?"

"Good point," Gallian said. "I think I see the town up ahead… there's a red-brick building."

"That'd be the hardware shop we need to visit to get the rope," Zoroark said. He shifted his right shoulder to adjust his bag. Gallian stopped and turned around.

"Okay, hold up. I'm sorry, but I have to ask this or it's going to drive me crazy," he said, an exasperated look on his face. "How are you _doing_ that?"

Zoroark blinked. "Doing what?"

"That!" Gallian said, pointing a forepaw at the fake Absol in front of him. "Walking on all fours like that. If it's an illusion, then you wouldn't be able to move around that much, right? I… sorry… this is totally coming out of left field, isn't it? I guess I realized that I don't entirely understand how your powers work."

"You and me both, buddy," Zoroark said, laughing.

"Seriously?" Gallian said.

"Well, to be more specific, there are parts of my ability I don't quite understand," Zoroark said. "But Totem Decidueye was able to find me a book on Zoroarks after I evolved and I gave it a read. Turns out that whoever dubbed our ability 'Illusion' is a total dumbass. It's shapeshifting… plain and simple."

"It is?" Gallian gasped.

"Yeah. Apparently Zoroarks used to be able to do a _lot_ more back before alchemy became a forbidden art. Nowadays all we can do is change our appearances."

"Then wouldn't that just make it Transform?" Gallian said.

"Not quite," Zoroark said. "That's where it gets a bit hard to follow. See… y'know how we all have auras?"

"Yeah. Mom used to bring that up a lot. Everyone has life energy and aura lies at its core. Something like that," Gallian said, shrgging.

"Right. When a Ditto or Mew uses Transform, they're not just shapeshifting, they're morphing their life energy to match their target's," Zoroark said. "From what I read, the amount of strain that would put on your average Pokémon would make them faint on the spot if they tried to do that. But it works for Dittos because they're incapable of doing anything _but_ Transforming. And, well, Mew's a Legend, so I _know_ he has the stamina to do that."

"What does changing your life energy mean, exactly?" Gallian asked.

"It means a Transformed 'mon can use the moves of whatever species they transformed into," Zoroark said. "Sadly, I can't. Just the act of shapeshifting into the guise of another 'mon requires a lot of focus. It takes a lot of life energy to get it to work, too. Which is why I can't change my aura. So, in theory, a powerful psychic-type or an aura reader like Lucario would know that I'm a Zoroark, even if I was transformed."

"Isn't there a Hypno living in Cosmic Cavern?" Gallian said.

"Yeah, but when I said 'powerful psychic-type' I mean _pow-er-ful_. We're talking Legends or _really_ experienced psychics… like Team ACT's Alakazam," Zoroark said. "Most of the time, I can fool 'mons with my disguises. But the other thing that sets us Zoroarks apart from Dittos and Mew is that it's easy for our illusions to collapse because we have to focus so intently on keeping them stable."

"How easy are we talking?" Gallian wondered.

"If I so much as trip and stumble, then I risk shifting back to normal," Zoroark said. A beat followed, then a suspicious look appeared on his face. "Wait just a second. Are you asking me all this to figure out how to get the upper paw on me if I break an illusion out during a spar?"

"What? Of course not!" Gallian scoffed, turning around to continue walking down the path. "You're putting words in my mouth."

"I can hear you holding back laughter over there, you bitch. You're totally lying!" Zoroark said. He charged forward and speared Gallian's rear with his scythe. Gallian hopped forward with a yip and an annoyed look on his face. Zoroark ran by, sticking his tongue out at Gallian. "Serves you right, traitor!" he teased.

"Traitor? I was just asking innocent questions," Gallian insisted, running after Zoroark. He had just about caught up when a chorus of squawking drew his attention. Gallian skidded to a halt, as did Zoroark, losing his illusion in the process.

"Whoa, that was odd," Zoroark said. "Sounded like some _really_ startled Spearows." He glanced at Gallian. "Think we should go see if the village is okay?"

Zoroark waited for a response, but Gallian's gaze had locked in on the direction the squawking had come from. He stood there, frozen, even as a half-dozen Spearows fluttered high into the air, flanked by a pair of Fearows. Before Zoroark could ask what was wrong, Gallian crouched low to the ground. A twinge of black energy briefly encircled his scythe, then Gallian took off, zigzagging through the forest.

"Gallian? Hey, Gallian! Wait up! Where are you going?!"

Gallian ignored Zoroark's cries and charge on ahead, weaving through the evergreen trees. He came upon Pinecos lying upside down, unconscious and covered in scorch marks. Something was wrong, here. Gallian was sure of it.

He leaped over the Pinecos, landing atop a rock. Like the unconscious forest-dwellers, the rock's side was completely charred. The nearby evergreen trees were stripped of their bark and branches. Scorched remnants of pine needles littered the ground, along with the bare remnants of numerous fern bushes.

Gallian concluded that the Pinecos Self-Destructed. But what made them do that? A tingle ran down his spine and his fur bristled. It was time to turn back.

But the moment he turned around, Gallian recoiled. An invisible force pushed down on his head. "Not again," he whimpered. Gallian looked back through the forest, trying to see if Zoroark had followed him. When he failed to spot his mate, he jumped off the rock and pressed on deeper into the forest. He left the blast zone behind. His scythe tingled. Gallian looked to his right and found black mist rising between some of the trees.

He took a step back, heart racing. Gallian wanted to bolt from the area, but his legs wouldn't listen. He stood there, locked in place, wondering what was going on.

 **"Skrreeeeeevp! Wh… what… do you think… you're** _ **doing?!**_ **"**

Gallian flinched, his heart skipping a beat upon hearing the angry shouts ahead of him. He hesitantly stepped forward, only to recoil when pine needles crinkled under his forepaw.

"I want you… out of my head!"

This time a different voice yelled out and Gallian's head shot up.

 _'Mom?!'_

It was impossible. She had disappeared, hadn't she? Gallian bounded into the black mist, forcing it aside with short, quick bursts of psychic energy from his scythe. He emerged on the other side, only to freeze up once again.

A few feet in front of him, Lunala writhed about on the ground. Black crystals inched across her body, tearing into her wing membranes and her bony torso. Her eyes randomly flickered between different colors. A Lucario knelt behind Lunala, a paw placed against her head. Gallian recognized the single fang protruding from her mouth, but little else suggested this was the mother who had raised him. Her right eye was gone. In its place sat a triangular gemstone brimming with the different colors of the rainbow. Light spilled out of the gem, racing down Prisma's blackened arm and onto Lunala, where it fed the growing layer of black crystals.

Prisma was burned beyond all recognition, her body a mess of angry scar tissue and the occasional patch of black fur. The most consistent strip of fur lay around her waist, where Gallian expected her tail to be. Instead of aura feelers, four gnarled dreadlocks fanned out behind her, jerking about in different directions like they wanted to detach from her skull and fly away.

Lunala screeched, clumsily flapping her wings forward. They fell back onto the ground. Black diamonds clamped onto each wing's edge, sucking in the sunlight shining down on Lunala. Gallian staggered backward, ready to make a break for it, when Prisma locked eyes with him.

"You," she hissed, her raspy voice making Gallian's skin crawl. "You shouldn't… be here…"

"M-Mom," Gallian squeaked, utterly uncertain how to respond to the scene in front of him. His temples throbbed and his vision flickered. A voice inside him screamed at him, telling him to run, while another egged him to stay and say something to Prisma.

Lunala let out one final gasp, arcing her back to hoist her chest off the ground. Two onyx arms burst out of her chest. Black armor quickly filled the holes in her gut. The last remaining crystals trickled down onto Lunala's face, where they formed a triangular helmet. Inside the helmet sat a distorted, flickering, red eye where Lunala's third eye was supposed to be.

 **"Wh… what happened? Why do… I feel so… strange?"** Lunala said, though Gallian recognized the voice as being the one he first heard screaming. He was in complete shock. His mother was with Lunala. Worse, Prisma had somehow _corrupted_ her!

He had to do something… right?

"I got rid of you… Necrozma," Prisma growled, lowering her outstretched paw and staggering backwards. "My mind… my body… they're _mine_ again," she wheezed, dropping to one knee. "I've trapped you. I put… just enough… of your spirit… in Lunala… to regain control." Prisma slowly got to her feet, clutching the right side of her head in obvious pain.

Necrozma hovered into the air, looking down at his arms. **"This light… it's familiar… it's** _ **powerful.**_ **But there's something missing here. I can't use this light to its fullest effect!"** He brought his arms up to his face and clawed at his helmet. **"My core? Where is my core?** _ **What did you do to it?!**_ **"**

Prisma shakily brought her paw off her face, revealing the gem in her eye socket. Before Necrozma could protest, static enveloped Prisma's right shoulder. It funneled down her arm, culminating in black cubes flickering into existence and launching themselves at Necrozma. The cubes struck Necrozma's face, blasting him onto his back with a screech of anger. Necrozma lay on the ground, arms and wings flailing in pain. Prisma looked at her distorted paw, her lone eye going wide at the afterimages trailing behind it.

"This… this power," she said. "It's nothing… nothing like what I've felt… as a Lucario." Her eye darted around the forest and a crooked smile appeared on her lips. "I… I can use this power… use this power to make things right…"

Without thinking, Gallian blurted out, "Mom! What are you doing?"

Prisma stumbled forward, her head jerking forward so her eye met Gallian's gaze. "I'm… I'm…" Like a broken puppet, Prisma's head bobbed down to stare at her paws. Her pupil narrowed into a feral slit as she raised her right paw up and pointed it at Gallian.

"I'm correcting a mistake," she whispered coldly.

In the face of the oncoming aura sphere, Gallian was completely petrified. He could only stare at the red orb as it grew closer and closer…

" _Gallian!_ "

Fur enveloped Gallian. He was on his back seconds later, staring at the ground in front of him. Zoroark hastily got him to his feet, nuzzling him in concern. "Do you have any idea how much you worried me when you ran off like that?"

Prisma lowered her paw. Her head lolled to her left side. "What is this?" she growled, her hoarse voice cutting through the air like nails on a chalkboard.

Gallian shoved Zoroark back. "You have to go! Get out of here!" he said, a look of panic on his face. Prisma saw Zoroark. She saw Zoroark _nuzzling_ him!

"Are you kidding me? You think I'm gonna leave my mate out to dry like that?" Zoroark said. "We're in this together, remember?"

"Mate?" Prisma said. The distortion spread from her arm, enveloping her whole body. All that was visible was the gem stuck in her skull, faintly flickering with multicolored light. Necrozma weakly raised his head up, but a wisp of black lightning ran across the ground and caught his armored tail. He seized up.

"I knew it," Prisma's now-distorted voice proclaimed. "You… you worthless, miserable _failure_. You're… a blight… upon my existence! You… Tessa… such disappointments! _Mistakes!_ Neither of you should exist! You're nothing but reminders of what I had taken from me!"

"What is this crazy thing talking about, Gallian?" Zoroark said, while raising a paw and firing off a black beam. Prisma stalemated the attack with a black wave of her own, resulting in a burst of dark, staticky smoke.

"I… I don't…" Gallian's voice trailed off. His legs trembled, but otherwise refused to budge. His mind was a total blank, unable to process what was going on in front of him.

Zoroark wasted no time in firing a second dark energy beam through the smoke. However, there was no cry of pain signifying he had hit anyone. Instead, the sounds of splintering wood echoed through the area. Zoroark's ears twitched and he looked to his right. Prisma staggered out of the smoke, still enveloped by a static veil.

"Gallian, get down!" Zoroark shouted, lunging for his mate. He was able to knock Gallian to the ground right before a half dozen crystal blades sliced up the left side of his body. Blood spurted out of the newly-formed wounds. Zoroark screamed and fell to his stomach, clutching the left side of his head in agony.

His anguished cries roused Gallian from his stupor. Gallian sat up and saw Zoroark lying at his feet, blood staining the soil underneath him. "Zoroark? _Zoroark!_ " he cried. "No, no, _no!_ " Tears formed in his eyes.

"Don't touch him!" Prisma shouted, her voice so heavily distorted it sounded male. At the same time, the static surrounding Prisma intensified. She whipped her arm forward, having seemingly lost control of the limb. A red and black energy beam shot toward a wide-eyed Gallian.

 _'Move! Run away!'_

Gallian lunged right, but the blast grazed the left side of his body. Gallian landed awkwardly, toppling onto his side. He lay still for a few seconds, before an intense shocking pain gripped every square inch of his body. Gallian curled up into a ball, screaming, but his cries were muffled by the electricity surging through his fur.

Prisma stumbled backward, her arm falling limply to her side. "Aha… ha… what… did I just do? That… wasn't… a Dark Pulse." She tried lifting her arm up, but it wouldn't budge. Prisma didn't get the opportunity to contemplate the turn of events any further, however, because Necrozma flew right toward her.

 **"Give me back my core** _ **right now!**_ **"** he screeched, opening his new, fanged mouth wide like he meant to bite Prisma's head. Rather than trying to run, Prisma instead lunged at Necrozma, matching his yell with a furious cry. The two collided in a midair burst of black shadows, static, and distorted red cubes. They tumbled to the ground in a tangle of limbs, each one trying to wrestle the other into submission. Neither of them noticed the ring of energy forming around them until the Ultra Wormhole was complete.

They fell into the open portal. Their frustrated cries grew progressively more distant until the Ultra Wormhole shut, leaving Gallian and Zoroark lying on the ground, each one writhing about in pain.

"I heard the shouts coming from over here!"

A gust of wind blew through the area, whipping up soil, dead grass, and twigs. A Noivern flew in, thrusting his wings apart to stop and hover over Gallian and Zoroark. "Oh, gods," he whispered. Noivern turned around, tensing his speaker-like ears, and thundered, "I need Chansey over here, stat! I've got 'mons here and they're fatally wounded!"

Frantic footsteps followed Noivern's cry. Bushes flew apart, revealing a Pangoro carrying the Chansey in question on his shoulders. She had a shoulder bag on bearing a heart-shaped insignia. Pangoro glanced Zoroark's blood-stained form and bounded over to him without a second thought.

"Good gods!" Chansey gasped. "Everyone, stand back, I'm using Heal Pulse!"

"You're gonna have to spam it if this guy's got any hope," Pangoro said, throwing a paw over his eyes to avoid looking at Zoroark. Chansey knelt down, releasing soft pink light from the tips of her arms. The light spread across Zoroark's body, forcibly tugging fur together and slowing his bleeding.

"It's not good enough," she said. "Okay, desperate times mean desperate measures." She reached into her stomach pouch and pulled out the egg sitting in it. Chansey rolled Zoroark over, recoiled from seeing his wounds, and cracked the egg open. Yolk spilled across Zoroark's head and torso. Chansey shook the egg shell out, dribbling bits of yolk onto Zoroark's left leg. With a sour expression on her face, she went to work rubbing the yolk against Zoroark's lacerations.

"What about Absol? He looks like he's in a lot of pain, too," Noivern said, fluttering above him.

"Are you kidding? It's an Absol! Touch one and you're gonna doom yourself to the Tree of Life," Pangoro huffed. "I'll bet he's the one who did this to Zoroark in the first place."

Noivern's ears twitched. He turned toward the bushes behind him. "Hey! Come out here… whoever you are!"

Luxeira stepped through a nearby evergreen tree, drawing a surprised squawk from Noivern. "What the–? A blue Houndoom? And what's with the freaky jumpsuit?"

"Sir, please don't be alarmed," Luxeira said. "Absol is… an acquaintance of mine. I know what's wrong with him, but I need you all to leave me alone so I can help him."

Noivern gave Luxeira a funny look. "I'm not really sure I buy that, Houndoom," he said.

"Forget Absol!" Pangoro shouted. Noivern turned to see Pangoro cradling Zoroark in his arms. Blood and egg yolk covered Zoroark's fur and medicinal leaves lay over his wounds, including the bloody stump where his left ear had previously been. "We've gotta get Zoroark back to the village for emergency treatment. Chansey says he's from Cosmic Cavern, so you've gotta fly up to the mountains and get a hold of their Totem, got it?"

Noivern looked back at Gallian and Luxeira. "Come on, Noivern! If Houndoom wants to waste her time on Absol, let her," Pangoro said.

"Oh, all right," Noivern said. With a few hearty flaps of his wings, he ascended, disappearing through the trees. At the same time, Pangoro and Chansey retreated to the direction they came from. Luxeira sighed in relief, then knelt beside Gallian.

"Sticky, the coast is clear. Get out here… quickly!" Luxeira said. She pressed the gemstone on her harness. Her helmet rematerialized over her head. At the same time, a similar-looking harness formed on the ground next to her.

"Luxeira, are you sure you can touch him safely? These readings are seriously abnormal," Sticky said, his visor flickering with light.

"I'm aware of that," Luxeira snapped. "But we have no time to lose. There's corrupted Z-Power flowing through his system and if we don't stop it from spreading, then he'll lapse into a bloodthirsty rampage and that entire village will be in jeopardy. Now, give me a hand!"

She bit down on the spare harness and, straining considerably, hefted it over Gallian's trembling shoulders. Gallian snarled in protest and snapped at the air in front of him. "Luxeira, look! The horn on his head… it's sharpening!" Sticky gasped.

"Then hurry up and help!" Luxeira barked. Sticky floated beside her and they tugged back on the harness, forcibly pressing it to a howling Gallian's chest. Luxeira reached out and touched the gemstone with a forepaw. A hissing noise sounded, following by metal scraping against metal. The harness set itself against Gallian's frame. At the same time, the lightning faded from Gallian's fur. He slowly stopped thrashing.

Luxeira stepped away from Gallian, sighing in relief. "Well, that was close," she said. "Good job, Sticky."

"Err… you're welcome," he said, making a mental note of it being the first time Luxeira had actually said anything remotely complimentary toward him. "But what exactly are we going to do now? We cannot simply allow this terrestrial to roam about unchecked. That is a very important piece of equipment for us. It's the last remnants of our world's technology."

"Yes, I know," Luxeira whispered. "It looks like we're going to be saddled with a new travelling partner."

"Are you serious?" Sticky gasped.

"At least until we can figure out a way to get the corrupted Z-Power out of his system," Luxeira said. "Just play it a cool for a bit. I'll do the talking, all right?"

Gallian sat up, blinking slowly. Luxeira dematerialized her helmet and walked in front of Gallian. "Um… hello? Are you doing okay, sir?" she asked, waving a forepaw in front of him. She didn't get a response. Instead, Gallian tensed up. His eyes flashed red and crimson light brimmed along his now-serrated scythe. Luxeira took a cautious step backwards. "Sir, try to stay calm. You were in an accident, but my partner and I came to your rescue."

Gallian swiped at Luxeira with his scythe. She barely jumped out of the way. Gallian fell to his stomach, putting his forepaws on his head.

"Mom… Zoroark… why? _Why?_ " he growled. Gallian noticed the harness on his chest. "What is this?" he whispered. "What's going on here?" Gallian saw bloodstained soil over his shouler. "Where did he go? Why am I by myself? I… I…" He brushed his head with his forepaws. "My _head_ … why does it hurt so much?"

He swung his head to the right, forcing Luxeira to jump as black sparks raced along the ground. "Luxeira, I don't think this is working," Sticky whispered, hovering nervously by her shoulder. Luxeira took a deep breath and stepped in front of Gallian.

"Listen, sir, I understand that this must all be very troubling to you, but I need you to listen to me," Luxeira said. Gallian looked up at her. His brow furrowed and black shadows swirled around his scythe. He jumped to his feet. Luxeira's tail stuck up in alarm, but she stayed rooted to her spot. "Something bad has happened to you. I need you to follow me out of this forest, so I can take you somewhere safe."

"Somewhere… safe?" Gallian repeated, and then shook his head. "But… but I'm safe. There's no… there's no…"

His voice trailed off. The pounding in his head intensified. All the recent events flashed through is mind. Lunala's corruption. His mother's hand. Zoroark's blood spilling across the ground. Gallian shot up. Zoroark was in peril! He had to go! His mate _needed_ him.

 _'I have to… I have to…'_

Gallian's throat went dry. His chest tightened. The blood… the wounds… he couldn't get them out of his head. Zoroark was going to die. All because of him. He ran off and found Prisma, then stood there uselessly while she tried to kill him!

"No!" Gallian wailed, thrashing his head back and forth. Luxeria and Sticky backed up even further, avoiding black sparks jumping off Gallian's body.

 _'I did this. It's my fault. I led Zoroark… into disaster!'_

His vision flickered.

 _'But he's my mate. I can't… I can't leave him. I need him!'_

Gallian's throat constricted.

 _'No… I've already ruined his life. I can't bring even more disaster upon him.'_

Luxeira jumped in front of Gallian. "Hey!" she barked. Gallian stiffened, locking eyes with Luxeira.

"Wh do you… want from me?" he rasped. "I don't… I can't…"

"Sir, your life hangs in the balance, here," Luxeira said. "My partner and I put that harness on you to stop the pain from spreading any farther. You _have_ to come with us so we can monitor you. Otherwise, we can't guarantee your safety… or even your survival! I know it's confusing, but as soon as we have you somewhere safe, I can explain everything in greater detail."

Hearing the part about survival snapped Gallian to attention. His eyes widened, his pupils dilated, and his jaw locked. He stood in front of Luxeira, legs so tense he thought they might pop out of their joints. Gallian kept shifting his gaze in random directions, trying to avoid eye contact with Luxeira. All he could see in his mind was the memory of Zoroark lying in front of him, bleeding out. The image kept flashing in front of him no matter where he looked. Each time it did, stabbing pain gripped his chest. Eventually, Gallian doubled over, gasping for air.

 _'Survival… I have to… survive. Otherwise… it's disaster…'_

When he caught his breath, he looked up at Luxeira. "Where do you plan on taking me?" Gallian whispered, voice full of resignation.

"We've been hiding in a small cave at the base of the nearest mountain," Luxeira said, jerking her head behind her.

"We?" Gallian said, a concerned look in his eye.

"Yes… my partner and I," Luxeira said. She gestured to Sticky, who floated over cautiously. Gallian tensed upon seeing him. What sort of Pokémon was that?

"Puh… please! Do not attack! I mean no harm!" Sticky shouted, throwed his arms over his face.

Gallian looked between Luxeira and Sticky. "Just what are you two, anyway?"

Luxeira sighed. "It's a long story… and it's best told back in the cave."

* * *

Thanks to those of you who took part in the poll. You helped me to win a bit with a friend. I enjoyed this, so I'm actually going to post more polls in the future. Keep an eye out for them. Onto the replies.

Anon Omega: as you can see, nothing rating-bumping to be found here. I'm not into writing anything citrus-filled, if you catch my drift. And the flashback's over. Thank you for patience!

WatermelonShark: you're not the first person to make that guess regarding Shane. But you'll need to stick around to find out just what's going on. The Chapter 69 thing was what we in the business refer to as a happy accident. Don't worry, we'll be back with Team Radiance soon and their next mission is probably their most ridiculous one so far.

Next time: well, would you look at that! It's almost Halloween. Guess that means it's my time to shine. That's right, folks, get ready for this year's Halloween special! Mwee hee hee hee!


	83. Bonus: Halloween Special 2018

Greetings, beasts and ghouls! It's time once again for another Halloween special. Unlike last year's, this is entirely canon. It's a little less crazy, but I hope you'll enjoy it all the same.

* * *

 **Bonus: Specter of Change**

 **~Craggy Coast Entrance~**

 **I see you trying to stray from the path. Cease your foolish actions or I will employ Thunder Wave and return you to the prison.**

Electricity crackled in Magnezone's appendages, frightening the Haunter floating in front of him. "Yeesh! Sorry, sorry, I'm just tired, that's all," Haunter said. He floated down the gray, dirt-filled path, passing puddles of water dripping from the ceiling. Ahead of him, two slightly-larger members of his species floated in single-file line behind a Magneton deputy. Light shined from the end of a tunnel.

 **Sir, we've arrived at the entrance,** the deputy announced, turning around and flashing his six magnets.

"Excellent! At long last, we're finally free! Kee hee hee!" the largest of the three Haunters said, bursting out of the tunnel entrance, only to shrink back immediately with a hiss. He wrung his hands out until black smoke stopped trailing off them. "Urgh… geez. You louts couldn't have brought us out after sundown?" he grumbled.

 **Negative,** Magnezone replied, fixing his central eye on the three Haunters. **In the past, former inmates have used the cover of night to slip away and return to their criminal ways. We are no longer taking that risk.**

"Eee hee hee! Now, now, there's no need to worry about that," the last Haunter said, his black tongue flopping out of his mouth. "We're fully rehabilitated! No more sneaky thefts for us. Isn't that right, Chief?"

The largest Haunter nodded, his eyes bouncing in his spectral sockets. "Of course. Of course. Kee hee hee!" Chief said. "We'll promise to be good, well-meaning ghosts from now on. After all, who'd want to end up back in Craggy Side Path Prison again, anyway? It _reeked_ in there."

"Yeah! And that's coming from guys without nostrils," Haunter said, waving a hand in front of his face. Chief had made it clear to him that he needed to be on his best behavior so they could head back into the world without drawing any suspicion from Officer Magnezone's team.

 **You know the rules,** Magnezone said, shoving Haunter forward. **We escort you on this trail until we're one mile from Treasure Town. Provided you behave appropriately, you will be free to go.**

"We're well aware, Officer Magnezone," Black-Tongue said. "We'll leave it to your… uh… _wonderful_ deputy to lead the way.

 **Oh. Why… thank you for the complement,** Magneton said, chuckling robotically.

Haunter followed his teammates out of the cave, shaking his head. These idiot cops were so dense. If it wasn't for the explorers lending them a hand, they'd be completely ineffective. In fact, just hearing mention of Treasure Town dredged up unpleasant memories of their defeat and humiliation at the hands of that gods-awful Wigglytuff Guild. What kind of chumps couldn't take down a 'mon they had a type advantage over?

He looked to his left, focusing on the waves rolling across the ocean. Haunter heard some smacking up against the cliffside path they were on. Sea spray occasionally drifted right by him. The mist felt great after the many months locked away inside a cave. Of course, he would never admit that to his teammates. Ghosts were supposed to like dark, dreary places. But that prison somehow sucked the life out of him.

The group continued forward in silence. Haunter kept switching his gaze between the ground and the ocean. He was pretty sure his partners tried to get his attention a few times, but he ignored them, lost in his own thoughts.

 _So, what's the game plan once we're free, Chief?_

 _Kee hee hee! Are you serious, dude? What do you_ think _it is? We're gonna make a comeback, of course. "The Invincible Haunter" will strike again!_

 _Oh… uh… right. Yeah, how silly of me. Mwee hee… hee…_

 _Oy, what's the matter with you, Purple-Tongue? Where's your haunting spirit? I guarantee you we'll find some saps to scare with our routine and it'll be utterly hilarious!_

Haunter shook his head. Of _course_ he wanted to scare people. That's what he lived for!

 _'But does that really mean we have to go back to the same routine that got us put in here in the first place?'_ he wondered. It was around the time that the path turned inland and a small forest took the cliff's place that Haunter finally stopped mulling over that conversation and reached a conclusion.

He didn't want to use his scaring prowess to harm other Pokémon anymore.

 **Attention: we have reached the designated drop off area,** Magneton announced, his limbs humming with vibrations. Ahead of them, the path sloped down. However, their vantage point at the top of the hill allowed them to see a beach, as well as several thatched buildings and tents. A large pink tent styled to look like a Wigglytuff stood on a second hill in the distance. There was no mistaking it. Treasure Town was right nearby. No doubt bustling with Pokémon going about their day to day lives.

Both of Haunter's teammates frowned. "Well, as much fun as this little sightseeing moment is, I think we're going to have to bring it to an end," Chief said. He turned to Magnezone. "You said we'd be free to go once we reach this spot."

 **Correct,** Magnezone said.

"Then, we'll be taking our leave," Chief said, grinning so widely his mouth outgrew his body.

 **I expect you three to behave yourselves from now on,** Magnezone said. **The last thing any of us want is to place you all under arrest once again.**

"Yeah, yeah, message received," Chief said, waving Magnezone off. Haunter followed Chief down the path until the police force was safely out of view. Chief turned around, rubbing his hands together gleefully. "Kee hee hee! At long last, we're free!" he said. "You know what this means, right?"

"We're going to find us some chow that doesn't taste like puke?" Black-Tongue said, contorting his body into a question mark.

"What? No!" Chief said, slapping Black-Tongue hard enough to revert him back to normal. "It means it's time for us to start planning our big comeback."

Haunter grimaced. Chief was ready to do that _now?_ "Uh, can't we at least take a couple of weeks to enjoy our freedom? Get used to life outside again?" Haunter said.

"Are you kidding me? What, do you just want to lay around in the shadows of a tree or something? That's not fun at all!" Chief said. "There are Pokémon out there waiting to be scared away from their belongings. The world is _begging_ for the return of 'The Invincible Haunter.' Kee hee hee!"

"But Chief, you don't really expect us to be able to go back to our old routine here, do you?" Haunter said. "The guild blabbed about our secret. The Glameow's outta the bag. We're just gonna end up back in jail."

Chief turned to Haunter, frowning. "You can't be serious here. Of _course_ I'm aware of that! Which is exactly why we're going to take our act on the road," he said, contorting into an arrow and pointing at the forest. "Time to leave the Grass Continent behind and head for greener pastures."

"Eh? I thought the Grass Continent had the greenest fields across the world," Black-Tongue said.

"Oh for the love of–" Chief smacked his forehead. "It's a figure of speech. I mean we need to move to a place where nobody knows who we are. Now, I was thinking either the Air Continent or the Mist Continent. I don't think either place has established guilds, so we should be able to settle there without any issues. Which one would you guys prefer?"

"Mist Continent… duh!" Black-Tongue says. "If there's nothing but mist there, we'll be able to blend in so masterfully we'll make Dittos jealous." His body dissolved into a stream of mist that wrapped around a nearby branch. Black-Tongue's eyes appeared on the edge of the branch, looking down at his partners.

"And what about you?" Chief asked Haunter.

"Uh… well…" Haunter's voice trailed off and he rubbed the back of his head. He wanted more time to figure out what to say to his teammates, because he hoped he could convince them not to go back to lives of crime. "Here's the thing, Chief. I don't want to return to the Invincible Haunter schtick," Haunter said.

Chief threw his head back, laughing heartily. Likewise, Black-Tongue fell out of his tree branch, laughing. "Kee hee hee! That's hilarious! Nice one, Purple-Tongue, but save the funny jokes for our would-be targets in the Mist Continent," Chief said.

"It wasn't a joke," Haunter said, frowning. The smiles disappeared from his teammates' faces.

"What are you saying? That you want to back out?" Chief said, narrowing his eyes.

Haunter sighed. This was it. "Yeah," he said. "I've had enough of being a crook and I certainly don't want to risk getting tossed back into a jail cell."

"You can't back out of this!" Chief said. "You're a ghost. If you're not spending your time scaring folks, then what else are you supposed to do, huh?"

"I'm not saying I'm giving up scaring," Haunter said, shaking his head. "I'm just saying that… well… I don't think I have to be an outlaw to scare folks. And… um… you guys don't, either." Haunter knew that wasn't an eloquent attempt to appeal to his friends. Still, he hoped they'd at least hear him out.

Chief and Black-Tongue looked at each other, then burst out laughing. Comically large tear streams shout out of Black-Tongue's eyes. "H… hey! What's so funny?" Haunter said, puffing up his cheeks.

"You!" Black-Tongue said. "That's gotta be the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard."

"Yeah. You think 'mons _want_ to be scared by ghosts like us? Of course not. Don't be ridiculous!" Chief scoffed, shoving Haunter lightly. "You've gotta be an outlaw if you want to scare someone… it's the only way you'll be taken seriously."

"I don't believe that," Haunter said. "I think we can find a way to scare folks _and_ help those who need it." His teammates continued laughing to the point where they sank into puddles of purple goo on the ground. "I'm being serious!" Haunter fumed. "Like, why can't we stalk outlaws and scare _them_ into turning themselves in? If anyone deserves a scare… it's a crook!"

"Pfbt! Yeah, sure, like that would really work," Chief said. "Look, if you want to go frolic with the goody-goody losers in Treasure Town, then go right ahead." He gestured down the trail. "We can find someone else to pick up the slack. You were always the weakest one out of us three, anyway."

Haunter recoiled. There was no way that was true! They were on equal footing with each other. That's what made their trick work so well.

"Yeah, I never said anything, but I always thought you were holding us back," Black-Tongue said.

Haunter slumped over, eyes and mouth dropping to the ground. His friends had brushed his suggestion off without even giving it a fair shake. "So, you guys are just gonna leave?" he whispered.

"Duh," Chief said. "I'll give you one last chance to join us. Or do you mean to tell me you really think you can fit in in a place like Treasure Town?"

"I _can_ fit in," Haunter said, picking his eyes and mouth up. "Heck, I can do better than that. I'm going to be an explorer! I'll use tricks and pranks to solve other Pokémon's problems… and prove you two wrong."

"Oh, brother," Black-Tongue said, rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, tell me about it. Gag," Chief said, tongue falling out of his mouth. "Black-Tongue and I are leaving. Keep your ears open, because it won't be long before you start hearing about the return of the Invincible Haunter! Kee hee hee!"

"Eee hee hee!" Black-Tongue added. He and Chief then melted into the ground, disappearing from Haunter's view. Haunter continued to float there for a few minutes, then dropped to the ground, sighing.

What was he supposed to do now? He had no money, no resources, and no one to turn to. The obvious choice was to go to Wigglytuff's Guild, but he doubted he would get a warm welcome there after the trouble he caused. As much as he didn't want to admit it, his now-former teammates were right.

If he wanted a fresh start, he would need to move.

Haunter dissolved into a cloud of mist and snaked through the shadows of the trees flanking the trail. All the while, he considered his options. There _were_ other towns in the Grass Continent he could go to, but none of them held a candle to Treasure Town. As far as he knew, it was _the_ hub for explorers. Sure, the Air Continent to the north had some rescue teams, but they were all self-contained and kept to themselves. His best shot was with an established organization.

 _'But all that leaves me with is Wigglytuff's Guild,'_ Haunter concluded.

He continued drifting aimlessly through the forest, mulling over his apparent lack of options. Haunter was so lost in thought, it took the burning rays of the sun to make him release he'd left the safety of the forest and found himself in Treasure Town's beach. He ducked into the shadows of a rock to avoid detection.

It was from that hiding spot that Haunter heard voices. Close examination revealed a familiar Sunflora and Loudred standing with a small group. It was Wigglytuff's Guild! Haunter creeped along the shadows, eavesdropping on the group as they conversed with two Pokémon he had never seen before: Incineroar and Lucario. As he listened in, he learned they were from a continent he had never even heard of. Better yet, Incineroar ran a guild of his own. Haunter briefly wondered if fortune had actually smiled upon him.

Throwing caution – and his pride – into the wind, Haunter went up to the group and proceeded to beg Incineroar to take him back to Horizon. He employed every trick in his arsenal, from large pouty eyes to giant tear streams. Haunter won Incineroar over, despite his mate's suspicions. She tried to tell him Lapras wouldn't have any room and they didn't have the supplies for an extra passenger. Haunter waved it all off. He was a ghost and, as such, could go several days without eating. Haunter also offered to coil himself around a spoke on Lapras' shell to make sure he wasn't taking up any room.

Lucario eventually acquiesced. Just like that, Haunter had a plan. Sure, he had no idea what an entrance exam was supposed to entail, but Incineroar seemed confident in him. What could possibly go wrong?

* * *

 **~Dewdrop Woods~**

"Augh!"

Haunter struck a tree, ending up as nothing more than a purple splat on its bark. His eyes and mouth tumbled to the ground, followed by the rest of his body. How could this have happened? The test sounded so easy! He had to get a looplet back from this forest. But then he got jumped by an angry Leafeon and everything went south. How could he have lost? He resisted her strongest attacks!

"Well, I think that settles that," Leafeon said, walking toward Haunter. "The treasure is mine."

"But I need… nrrrrgh," Haunter groaned, unable to pick himself up off the ground. He didn't even have the strength to phase into the dirt.

"You're not getting it," Leafeon said. She walked past Haunter and disappeared behind a large tree root. She popped back up seconds later wearing a sunny-yellow vest with a platinum guild badge on it. "The fact is that this was all part of your test. And… you failed," she said. "I'm not exactly in the prime of my youth, but you couldn't even land a single blow."

Haunter looked up. Sure enough, the tips of Leafeon's ears and tail were yellow instead of green. A clear sign Leafeon was entering her later years. "You're kidding," he whispered. "P… please! You've gotta give me another chance. I'll… uh… I'll do better next time, I swear. I'm still tired from the trip, that's all."

Leafeon produced an oran berry from her satchel and rolled it over to Haunter. "It's not my place to say whether you can have another chance. I'm afraid that's up to the Guildmaster," she said, pulling out an Escape Orb. "Now, eat up, so I can take you back to Aeon Town."

To Haunter, the berry might has well have been rotten. It was a sad consolation prize for failing to meet his goal. It looked like he had traveled halfway across the world for nothing. As soon as he was back in Aeon Town he'd be back to square one. No, it was even worse. He'd be at square _zero._

"Look, the sun's setting. Either you can come with me or not," Leafeon said, flicking her tail. "You wouldn't be the first 'mon to go wild after failing our exam."

Haunter ate the berry whole and floated dejectedly beside Leafeon. Together, they warped back to Dewdrop Woods' entrance. Haunter marveled at the wall of impossibly tall trees, with just a small black gap in the middle marking the way into the dungeon.

"Well, this is where we part ways," Leafeon said. "You're welcome to drop by the Observatory any time to see if you can try again." She walked off, leaving Haunter floating by the trees.

He thought this was all rather harsh. Failure meant getting left alone in some place he didn't know? Though, it stood to reason that the only folks who had failed this test before him were Horizon natives.

Haunter was prepared to sink into the ground and wallow in his misery when he spotted two bubbling puddles of purple ectoplasm in front of him. "Eh? Look… if you've come to spread the good word about Giratina or some nonsense like that, I ain't interested," he said, flicking a hand dismissively at the puddles.

"Oh, golly, we're not here for that!"

A Misdreavus with hot-pink tips at the ends of her ghostly hair popped out of one puddle. The other puddle produced a Drifloon. "Yeah, we're here because we were looking for you," Drifloon said.

"Me?" Haunter said, pointing at his face. Were Haunters a rare sight in Horizon?

"Hoo-whee, you got it," Misdreavus said, nodding vigorously. "We were just hanging around in the alleys in Aeon Town and heard Leafeon and Incineroar coming by, yup yup. When we saw you with them, we both waited around to see what would happen. A half-hour later, we saw you floating off to Dewdrop Woods, so we figured you were trying to join the guild." Her expression deflated. "It looks like you didn't do so hot on the entrance exam, huh?"

Haunter blinked. They knew about the guild's entrance exam? Were they gossipers? Did this mean he was going to be a laughing stock in Aeon Town?

"W-Wait a second," Haunter said, panic spreading across his face. "It's not my fault! I came from overseas, so I was just tired, that's all. With a little rest… I'll be ready to tackle the test and emerge victorious!"

"Golly! You're quite determined," Misdreavus gasped, hair shooting up. "Shucks, I wasn't trying to insult you or anything."

"Yeah, we came out to offer some support," Drifloon said, extending a string toward Haunter. "As fellow ghost-types who failed the guild's entrance exam, we're here for you." Drifloon looked around the area. "Actually, why don't we buy you something from the café in town. You sure look like you could use a pick-me-up."

Haunter blinked in surprised. He wasn't expecting the first ghosts he met in Horizon to be this friendly. Was it a trick of some sort? Haunter looked them over, but didn't see anything malicious in their eyes.

"I think that sounds pretty good," Haunter said and followed them down the trail.

* * *

 **~Aeon Town~**

Difloon and Misdreavus emerged with what they called a berry sorbet. Haunter thought it looked like colored ice, but a single spoonful assaulted his tongue with a mixture of sweet berries. He dropped his spoon into the bowl in sheer surprise.

"I think he likes it," Misdreavus said with a giggle.

"I'll say," Drifloon said as Haunter eagerly downed the rest of the treat. "I don't think I've ever seen a ghost tear through food that quickly. Maybe we should've gotten him a malasada instead?"

"Heh, you're right. That was a good pick-me-up," Haunter said, spoon sticking out of his mouth like an oversized toothpick. "Err… I don't have any money right now, but if you give me time–"

"Golly, you don't have to pay us back," Misdreavus said. "Like we said, we were looking for you. Consider it an introductory gift, of sorts."

Haunter wasn't about to question the good fortune. Instead, he lazily drifted down into the grass and rested up against a tree. Drifloon and Misdreavus did the same, the latter lying on a tree root.

"So, you both want to join the guild, too?" Haunter said, tracing the spoon through the dirt. They nodded in unison. "Does that mean you guys joined together?"

"Nope. We only met a few weeks ago," Drifloon said.

That surprised Haunter, given how chummy they acted. "Right," he said, trying to think of something else to ask to avoid making things awkward. "Um, are there a lot of ghosts in Horizon?"

"If you know where to look, there can be," Drifloon said. "Most of us prefer to be active wherever it's dark. And, well…" His voice trailed off and he hovered into the air. Haunter looked in Drifloon's direction and saw a dim glow surrounding many of Aeon Town's buildings. "Most of the communities in Horizon aren't what you would call 'ghost-friendly,' so we tend to stick to the wild… or even the Mystery Dungeons."

Drifloon's revelation made Haunter accidentally toss the spoon behind him in surprise. It banked of a tree and fell into the bushes. "Wait, hold on. You guys _live_ in Mystery Dungeons? How is that possible?" Haunter said, sticking his tongue out to scratch his head.

"Oh, golly, we're sorry," Misdreavus said. "We assumed you already knew how Mystery Dungeons work here in Horizon."

"Uh, not quite," Haunter said. "Think you can give me a quick rundown?"

"Of course," Misdreavus said. "See, the dungeons here are landscapes. Occasionally, our continents' guardians, the Tapus, reshape the terrain. It's safe for wild 'mons to live in them as long as they take shelter when the Tapus tell them to." Haunter didn't respond, so Misdreavus covered her mouth with a tendril of spectral hair. "Err… that wasn't too much for you to take in, was it?"

"No… I think I get it," Haunter said. "So, you two both lived in the wild, then?"

"Actually, I'm from Dewdrop Woods, yup yup," Misdreavus said. "That's the dungeon you did the exam in."

"And I used to live in Aurora Vale. It's a pretty dungeon. There's always an aurora in the sky," Drifloon said, lazily floating hire until he phased through a tree branch.

Haunter found their answers strange. Why would a couple of Pokémon who had _lived_ in Mystery Dungeons suddenly decide to join a guild? How did they even find out about it? Haunter tried to think of the best way to phrase his questions without sound rude, but eventually decided to take the blunt route.

"Why would a couple of wild 'mons want to be explorers?" he asked as Drifloon poked his body out of the tree branch.

"Golly, I bet you'll think this sounds dumb, but I wanted to meet other people," Misdreavus said, her hair tendrils knotting up. "When I woke up, I was alone in Dewdrop Woods. I drifted around aimlessly for such a long time. It was dreadfully boring. So, the first time I saw other 'mons, I was so excited! I flew up to them, eager to talk, but…" She melted part way into the tree root. "They got scared when they saw me… and ran away."

Misdreavus sighed loudly. "And that's pretty much how it went for a long time… until I managed to find the entrance to Dewdrop Woods," she said. "I was curious, so I went through it and soon found myself in Aeon Town. That's when I heard about the guild from listening in on Incineroar. I didn't exactly understand what being an explorer meant… but it sounded like a perfect way to meet people."

Haunter wasn't sure how to respond. When he woke up in his shadowy body, he found Chief and Black-Tongue within days. He hadn't even considered the possibility that there were lonely ghosts out there. Luckily for Haunter, Drifloon took the silence as his cue to speak up.

"For my part, I was just looking for a change in my routine," Drifloon said. "Something _different_ , y'know?"

Haunter _did_ know, but thought it polite to interrupt, so he nodded.

"Aurora Vale's a nice place. There were all these Miniors floating about that I could interact with whenever I wanted," Drifloon said. "But, well, they weren't much for conversation, so it was hardly interesting." He twisted his strings around. "The most interesting things that happened were when explorers from the guild came into the dungeon on missions. I'd follow them around… pretending I was part of their group. But I was always too afraid of actually saying anything to them."

"One time, Leafeon showed up," Drifloon said. "She was… well, she's really pretty. I couldn't help but try saying something to her. She seemed a bit annoyed that I snuck up on her, but she was willing to talk with me about the guild. Eventually, she agreed to take me out of the dungeon so I could try and join."

"Interesting," Haunter said. Their motives weren't exactly the same as his, but the idea of wanting something different out of life certainly resonated him. "To be honest, I understand where you guys are coming from," he said, then lapsed into an explanation of what brought him to Horizon in the first place.

"Golly! That's quite the tale," Misdreavus said when Haunter was finished. "It's a bit unnerving to hear I'm talking with a guy who used to be a criminal, but I'm glad you changed your mind. It's good knowing there are other ghosts out there who aren't looking to be so mean, yup yup."

"Yeah! And those two teammates of yours sound positively rotten," Drifloon said, blowing a few leaves away with a gust of wind. "Don't you worry. I'm sure you'll get into the guild and prove them wrong."

"Well, what about you guys?" Haunter said. "You took the exam too, right?"

"We sure did, yup yup! Failed spectacularly, too," Misdreavus said, her enthusiasm betraying the glum look on her face. "I couldn't even last thirty seconds against Leafeon."

"I didn't do much better. Only managed to nick her rear with one attack. And that was the one part of her I didn't want to hit," Drifloon said, sighing. "I had type-advantage on my side and it didn't do a thing."

Ignoring the strange part about Leafeon, Haunter blinked in surprise. He didn't feel all that bad about failing to get a hit in, anymore. Instead, another thought came to mind. "Wait, so all three of us failed the exam against Leafeon?" he said. Haunter received nods in response. "Huh. Has anyone else tried to join the guild and succeeded?"

"Yeah. There was a Brionne who passed about a month ago… and an Eevee passed just last week," Drifloon said. "Neither of them looked like they had _that_ tough of a time."

"What? Are you kidding me?" Haunter said, eyes bugging out of his head. "Of _course_ Leafeon's gonna let an Eevee join." He didn't know what a Brionne was, but he imagined it wasn't a ghost-type. Haunter pondered things for a minute, before sighing. "I think I might have an idea what's wrong."

"Oh?" Drifloon said.

"Well… it's just, we _are_ ghosts," Haunter said. "When it comes to battling, we're pretty fail. If we can't get solid hits in our foes… we don't tend to do very well."

He hated admitting it, but it was true. When he was the Invincible Haunter, he never needed to win, because his team's trick would suck the fighting spirit out of anyone who he battled. Haunter imagined that, from what Difloon and Misdreavus told him, they didn't have any real battling experience to speak of. No wonder they all got swept aside by Leafeon!

Haunter rubbed his chin. Maybe he had gone about this the wrong way. After all, the reason he was successful as an outlaw was because he had backup. Likewise, Sunflora was able to arrest him and his teammates because Loudred stepped in to help her when she needed it most. Perhaps, if he was to make his dream a reality, he needed new friends for this new continent.

"So, are you two still interested in joining the guild at all?" Haunter asked.

"Hoo-whee, I sure am," Misdreavus said.

"You betcha," Drifloon said. "It's just… how am I supposed to get past Leafeon, huh? Misdreavus and I met up after I blew it on the exam a couple of weeks back. We've been trying to practice our attacks with each other, but I don't think it's helped all that much."

"Well, what if we all tried to join together?" Haunter proposed. "Y'know… be a team."

"An exploration team?" Misdreavus said.

"A _spooky_ exploration team," Haunter said, beaming. "Think about it. I may not know everything about the exploring business, but one thing I know pretty well is that most 'mons don't want to go out at night. Well, what if someone needs help around that time? Who better than a team of ghosts to do the job?"

Misdreavus and Drifloon looked at each other in a way that suggested the thought had never crossed their minds. "That's a good idea, yup yup," Misdreavus said.

"Totally. With the three of us working together, I'll bet we can take out Leafeon for sure," Drifloon said, raising a string into the air.

"So, you're with me?" Haunter said. The other ghosts nodded. "Mwee hee hee! Excellent! Come tomorrow… Leafeon won't know what hit her!"

* * *

 **~Dewdrop Woods~**

A metal tail hammered Haunter into his teammates, turning them into a giant purple puddle with their three grimaced faces mixed up among one another.

"O… oogh. No… not again," Haunter groaned.

"We blew it, didn't we?" Drifloon said.

"Yup yup," Misdreavus whispered.

"Well… that was… something," Leafeon said, shaking her head. "Did you three even _try_ to come up with a plan or did you just blindly charge into battle hoping the extra numbers would make all the difference?"

Haunter and his teammates struggled to pull themselves apart. They each exchanged eyes until they knew they had the right ones and fixed them back on their bodies.

"Uh… well… let's say, for the sake of argument, that I picked the second option," Haunter said, blowing on his right eye and rubbing out the dirt. "What would happen?"

"I'd give you my 'I'm not mad, just disappointed,' look," Leafeon said.

Haunter stuck his right eye back in its socket. "And that's bad because…"

"It's broken more than a few hearts at the guild," Leafeon said. She frowned, jutted out her lower lip, and shook her head disapprovingly.

"Oh gods, you're right! It's awful! Awful! I'm sorry!" Haunter said, cupping his hands over his face and writhing on the ground. "Just put it away, please!"

Leafeon resumed her stoic expression and dug three oran berries from her bag. "Well, I suppose you could always try again. I'm not sure what the Guildmaster sees in you three that he's willing to keep giving you chances, but I do appreciate the exercise. It can get so stuffy in the Observatory," she said, rolling the berries toward the ghosts.

They ate their consolation prizes in silence, and then Leafeon warped them out of the dungeon and back to Aeon Town. She left them behind without another word. "Golly, so what are we supposed to do now, huh?" Misdreavus said. "That went about as badly as it could've gone."

"Yeah. Even in a three-on-one, we couldn't do anything," Drifloon said, tearing up slightly. "I guess this just wasn't in the cards for us."

Haunter frowned. For the second time, he and two teammates were beaten by a surprisingly-strong grass-type. And Leafeon didn't even have any backup. He was glad his ex-teammates weren't around. They'd never let him live this down. Still, Haunter didn't want to give up. There had to be something they could do to get the upper hand on Leafeon.

"Wait, that's it!" Haunter shouted, his teammates backing away in surprise.

"Hoo-whee, sounds like you've got yourself an idea," Misdreavus said. "What is it?"

"We went about it the wrong way," Haunter said, slamming a fist into an open palm. "We can't just bum rush Leafeon and hope for the best. We're ghosts, dang it! Sure, we're not the toughest fighters around… but who said anything about having to fight?"

"Uh, it's part of the requirement for the test," Drifloon said.

"No. The requirement is we have to get the treasure back from the 'unruly character' that took it," Haunter said. "I say, we stop trying to think like your average exploration team… and _start_ thinking like folks who stick to the shadows!"

"Golly, what are you saying, Haunter?" Misdreavus asked.

Haunter beckoned them to follow him into the shade of a nearby tree. "I'm saying… that we should try to make off with the treasure. Y'know… swipe it out from under Leafeon's nose," Haunter said.

"Can we do that?" Drifloon wondered.

"Well, we can certainly try," Haunter said. "We found that totter seed in the woods today, right?"

"Got it right here, yup yup!" Misdreavus said, holding up the seed in a tendril.

"Hang on… are we allowed to use items?" Drifloon said. "I don't want to get disqualified or anything."

"Incineroar didn't say we _couldn't_ use items," Haunter said. "That totter seed could be a good way to disorient Leafeon, so we can make off with the treasure."

"Err, not to say I don't like the idea or anything, but wouldn't it be kinda hard to find the entrance to the dungeon again?" Drifloon said. "Especially if Leafeon gives chase."

"Well, we _do_ get a map," Misdreavus said, pulling the scroll out of her hair with another tendril.

"And that's assuming we don't automatically win by 'snagging' the treasure," Haunter said. "It's at least worth a shot, isn't it?"

"I'd say so. I'd rather not get thumped by Leafeon's Iron Tail… even if it _is_ a wonderful view," Drifloon said, twisting his strings around.

"Maybe we should try to strategize, then?" Misdreavus said. "We can figure out a way to try and draw Leafeon away from the treasure box."

"That's a good idea," Haunter said. "Let's do some brainstorming, team."

Their strategy session wound up lasting well past sunset. The result being a three-tiered approach. Haunter planned to try and grab Leafeon's attention with loudmouth antics. If that failed, Drifloon would use his Ominous Wind– not to attack Leafeon, but to darken the area and hopefully restrict her visibility. Misdreavus would try and use Mean Look to freeze Leafeon in place. If those all failed, they had the totter seed at the ready.

They emerged from the forest, looking to practice their routine in an open clearing, when a loud shout rang out.

"Stop, _thief!_ "

The ghosts exchanged panicked looks and ducked inside of a nearby tree. There, they spotted two blurry shadows running along the trail. A sword-shaped leaf emerged from the farther of the two shadows, but failed to connect with the closer one. The first shadow drew closer.

"Is that red berry… _walking?_ " Haunter whispered.

"Berry? Golly, no, that's a Pokémon," Misdreavus said.

"Yeah… and I recognize her, too. It's Tsareena! She was on one of the boards in the Observatory," Drifloon said.

"And look… that's Leafeon chasing after her," Misdreavus gasped.

Tsareena bounced skyward, shrouded in blue energy. Leafeon's grassy blade missed by a mile. Tsareena slammed Leafeon from above. Her pained cries reached the ghosts' ears.

"S… stop this," Leafeon said. "I… I won't…"

"Hmph. It's past your bed time, granny," Tsareena said, driving a foot into Leafeon's skull. Leafeon went still. Tsareena stepped off her back, smirking. She tore Leafeon's vest and satchel off. "Hmm… this fabric's pretty decent," she said, running a hand across it. "And this badge should help keep the cops off my back." Tsareena shook Leafeon's bag. "Doesn't look like there's much in here, but at least it can carry my prize."

The ghosts caught sight of a jingling sack as Tsareena placed it in Leafeon's bag. "Nighty night, granny," Tsareena said, patting Leafeon tauntingly on her bruised head. She slung the satchel over her shoulder and took off down the path in a brisk jog.

Haunter popped out of the tree and looked at his teammates. "We've gotta go after her," he said.

"Are you crazy? She beat Leafeon," Drifloon said. "We've got to go get some help."

"Who are we gonna be able to find at this hour?" Haunter said, contorting into a giant hand to point up at the full moon. "Anyone who's awake isn't going to want to chase down an outlaw in the dead of night. And that's assuming we can get the guild to believe us."

Truthfully, _he_ didn't want to go after Tsareena, either. She seemed much more malicious than either of his ex-teammates. A real hardened criminal, by the looks of it. But he couldn't just let her get away. Tsareena had made off with Leafeon's stuff. Not to mention all the money she had taken. Besides, wasn't this what he had come to Horizon to do? To try and stop Pokémon like Tsareena?

"We don't have to fight her," Haunter said. "Our plan… we'll have to make a few modifications on the fly… but we'll use it on _her._ "

"G-Golly… I don't know," Misdreavus squeaked.

"C'mon, guys," Haunter said. "Look, I'm scared about this, too. But we have to try. It's the right thing to do, isn't it?"

Drifloon and Misdreavus exchanged looks. After a few seconds, they both nodded. "Okay, we're with you," Drifloon said. "What's the plan?"

Haunter explained things to them as they floated after Tsareena. As luck would have it, they didn't have to go terribly far. Tsareena had veered off the path into one of the small patches of forestland opposite Dewdrop Woods. She sat behind a tree, counting the coins she had managed to snag.

"Alright, gang, it's showtime," Haunter said. He pointed his teammates twoard two tree roots extending in Tsareena's direction. Then, he worked his way up into the tree trunk opposite Tsareena so he was staring her down.

 **"Tsareena! I saw what you did, you vile,** ** _sinful_** **crook!"** Haunter bellowed, deepening his voice and using the tree's trunk to make it reverberate.

Tsareena stiffened. She bolted to her feet, jamming the coins inside Leafeon's satchel. "Who said that? Show yourself!" Tsareena barked, crouching low to the ground. "Did that pathetic explorer call for backup?"

 **"Backup? Ha! You wish I was merely backup. The fact is that I'm right in front of you!"** Haunter said. He glanced in Drifloon's direction, hoping his teammate was keyed into the plan. Sure enough, thick black fog drifted up from the ground around Tsareena. The Ominous Wind didn't hit her, but it darkened the area to the point where Tsareena could only see Haunter's tree.

"Oh, I see. A Trevenant, huh?" Tsareena said. "Well, I don't care about some stupid ghost who wishes he was a tree. Stand aside or I'll _make_ you move." To emphasize this, black shadows enveloped her legs.

Haunter tensed. That was dark energy. She had a dark-type attack? If she connected, he would be knocked out in one blow, for sure. Haunter shook his head. He couldn't back down, now. Haunter had to amp up the routine.

 **"Foolish mortal! I am not a Trevenant. I am the Forest Spirit!"** Haunter declared. **"And I have come to make you** ** _pay_** **for your crimes!"**

"Forest Spirit? You've gotta be kidding me," Tsareena said, laughing. "Nice try, Trevenant, but you're not fooling me. Prepare yours– _augh!_ "

Tsareena faceplanted into the ground. Misdreavus had used one of her tendrils to wrap Tsareena up. She stuck her head out of the ground, focusing her glowing eyes on Tsareena. A red aura encased Tsareena. When she tried to stand up, she found herself rooted to the ground.

"Wh… what the heck? I'm stuck!" she hissed.

 **"How cute. You were trying to put on a brave face. But I won't have it!"** Haunter said, a deep laugh rumbling in his throat. **"Tapu Bulu… he heard the pleas of the Pokémon you attacked! And with his powers… he created** ** _me_** **to see to it you are** ** _punished_** **for each and every nasty deed you've done. Hoo hoo ha ha ha!"**

Haunter shook inside the tree. This translated to the trees' branches rustling, scattering leaves all around Tsareena. She tried to stand up, but the red aura intensified, rooting her to the ground. Misdreavus popped up beside her and smacked her with the totter seed. Tsareena's eyes widened. All around her, the black shadows of Drifloon's attack morphed into faces staring back her.

"N… no… what's… going on?" she wheezed. In front of her, strange colors swirled around Haunter's tree.

 **"What's going on is the beginning of the end for you,** ** _Tsareena,_** **"** Haunter said. **"You see, just as you have taken from many Pokémon, so shall I take from you. I'm going to take** ** _your soul!_** **I'll rip it out of your body and devour it right before your eyes! Then… I'll eat your empty husk. Hoo hoo ha ha ha!"**

"That's… impossible," Tsareena said. One of Misdreavus' hair tendrils wrapped her left leg. To Tsareena, however, it looked like a thorny vine had wrapped her up instead. In fact, numerous thorny vines were surrounding her. "L… let go of me! You can't kill me!" she hollered, legs twitching unresponsively.

 **"Hoo hoo ha ha! It's no use… you can't escape me! I'm going to** ** _savor_** **the delicious taste of your flesh in my gullet,"** Haunter said.

"T-tree… can't… eat," Tsareena said. Her vision was filled with strobing lights and swirling colors, turning the static brown tree trunk into a hideous blob that pulsated and writhed about. She struggled against Misdreavus as more tendrils wrapped around her. The shadows grew, looking as if they would swallow Tsareena up.

This was it. Time for Haunter's big moment. He sucked in a breath and spread his shadowy body as far down the trunk as he could manage.

 **"Oh, I can't eat, can I? Tell me then, Tsareena, what do you make…** ** _of this?!_** **"**

Giant, glowing red eyes and a red mouth filled with jagged teeth appeared in the middle of the blob monster. Tsareena's eyes slowly widened. Her jaw trembled against Misdreavus' hair.

 **"** ** _Surprise!_** **Mwee hee hee hee!"**

Tsareena shrieked so loudly she scared Pikipeks out of their roosting spots several yards away. Her eyes rolled back in her head and she collapsed on her side, body racked by shudders.

Their plan had worked. They had taken down an outlaw

"We did it! Mwee hee hee hee!" Haunter cackled, flying out of the tree and circling around.

"Wow, she's really out cold," Drifloon said, floating

"Golly, Haunter, I had my doubts, but we actually pulled through," Misdreavus said. "I… I feel kind of bubbly inside knowing we stopped a crook!"

"Yeah!" Drifloon said. "But… uh… what are we supposed to do with her, now?"

Haunter floated over with Leafeon's satchel. "There are some healing items in here," he said. "Drifloon, think you can take this bag back to Leafeon and tell her what happened? Me and Misdreavus should stay here to make sure Tsareena stays immobilized."

"You got it," Drifloon said, taking the bag in his strings and floating out of the forest.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

The ghosts watched as Magnezone and his deputy took Tsareena down the hill leading away from the guild's headquarters. All of them had been silent throughout the entire exchange between Magnezeone, Incineroar, and Leafeon, perhaps it was still disbelief that they had actually been successful. Haunter couldn't help but feel it was beginner's luck, yet he didn't question it.

Sure, his naysaying ex-teammates weren't around to see this, but he _had_ succeeded. Or, rather, he and his _new_ teammates had succeeded. They had scared an outlaw into submission. Not some innocent Pokémon, but one they had seen hurt someone and steal their stuff. And Haunter agreed with Misdreavus. It felt _great._

Incineroar turned to the ghosts, clearing his throat. "I've got to say, I'm impressed. I mean, that _was_ a bit reckless of you three. You could've come here to get help," he said, scratching his chin.

"Err… we were worried that no one was going to listen to us," Haunter said.

"We're sorry if we acted irresponsibly, sir," Misdreavus said.

"Don't worry about it," Incineroar said, smiling. "All of us at the guild have had our fair share of reckless moments. You'll fit right in here."

"Wait… does that mean what I think it means?" Haunter said.

"It does," Leafeon said. "I'll admit, I was pretty skeptical about you three, but it looks like your hearts are in the right places. Even if your methods are a bit… unorthodox."

"Yeah. I don't think we've had a ghost in our ranks during our time here," Incineroar said, chuckling.

"Guess that means we'll have to keep a close eye on them," Leafeon said. All three ghosts looked hurt at that statement. "Oh, relax. As long as you three follow the rules, there won't be any problems. Besides, you _did_ help me out in a pinch. At the very least, that gets you all a freebie in my books."

"Careful, Leafeon. I'll never hear the end of it from Prisma if I let these guys run wild in the Observatory," Incineroar said. Leafeon nodded, then walked back into the Observatory.

"So, I can get you guys your badges inside," Incineroar said. "Any ideas on a team name?"

"Should we go with your idea, Misdreavus?" Haunter said, looking at his teammate.

"Golly, that'd make me so happy," she said.

"Mwee hee hee! Then it's settled," Haunter said, nodding. "From here on out… we're Team Specter. Just because we're caring…"

"… doesn't mean we won't stop scaring!" Drifloon and Misdreavus added. Together, the new team followed Incineroar into the guild.

 **Happy Halloween, from your friends on the Horizon Continent!**

* * *

I don't think I saw anyone call attention to the fact that, yes, Team Specter's leader is actually a minor character from, of all things, the worst special episode in _Explorers of Sky_. I thought it would be a fun little nod to make. Now for some replies...

SuperOmegaGuest: correct. You actually heard the moment the core got embedded in her skull at the end of Team Paradox's flashback.

Anon Omega: unfortunately, I had no spooky, scary skeletons to offer you. Still, I hope this sent some shivers down your spine.

Another guest: I have not read Worm, I'm afraid. And, yes, I did see that video. Wasn't aware of that coincidence, but I'll take it. Who knows? Give it a couple of weeks and maybe this fic will have something to really catch your attention on that front.

Next time: we're taking a break this Saturday, but check back next weekend (or just click ahead if you're from the future) as we head to the present to tie up some loose ends. What's Espeon been up to this whole time?


	84. Bridging Some Gaps

For anyone confused, since I posted on Halloween, I didn't update last Saturday. Not that it would've mattered, since I can't compete with Red Dead Redemption 2, Smash Directs, and Toby Fox doing Toby Fox things. And we've got Let's Go and Smash Ultimate coming very soon. Needless to say, with all this hype, I really do appreciate anyone taking the time to read and comment. It's mind-boggling to think we just passed 60,000 views. Anyway, here's an extra-long chapter to make up for the lack of Team Radiance these past several weeks. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 71: Bridging Some Gaps**

 **~Cosmic Cavern~**

"So, that was it, then?" Tessa asked, leaning over and resting against Silvally's shoulder while she fought off a yawn.

Gallian nodded. "Yeah… that's all I've got to say, really."

Another round of silence fell over the group, much like when Team Paradox's story had finished. Tessa looked down at her lap, trying to process what she had learned. Gallian was planning to come for her, but by a stroke of bad luck, he ran into their mother. She tried to kill Gallian and, from the sound of it, she was closer to succeeding than when she had Tessa in her clutches in Aurora Vale. Yet, from what Tessa heard, it sounded like her mom really was a vessel for Necrozma, just like Lunala.

The thought didn't bring her any relief, though. She knew Gallian was right. Something was wrong with Prisma. Even if Tessa could free her mother from Necrozma's control, she wouldn't want to see her again. Not after everything she had learned about how cold her mother really was when Incineroar wasn't around.

Shane was lost in thought, too. Albeit he was stuck on an entirely different subject. "I need to ask you something," he said, sitting up to make eye contact with Dusk.

"Me?" she said, raising a brow.

"Yeah. It's about Midnight," Shane said. "What happened to him after you dragged him off?"

Dusk glanced at Totem Decidueye, who nodded. "The Totem kicked him out of the village," Dusk said. "He was going to take Midnight away from the mountain, but Midnight stormed off into the Cavernous Depths. I was supposed to look for him the next day but, well, that's when Zoroark got hurt and things got a little… hectic."

"To make a long story short… I managed to find Midnight in the Cavernous Depths after a few days of searching," Dusk continued. "I told him that Gallian had disappeared and Zoroark had nearly been slaughtered by an unknown assailant. When he heard about Gallian he had this smarmy look on his face, but…" Her voice trailed off. "That changed when I brought up Zoroark. He seemed… upset, actually."

"What happened after that?" Silvally said, concerned with the guilty looks on Dusk's, Zoroark's, and Totem Decidueye's faces.

"Dusk brought me to Midnight," Totem Decidueye said. "And I… well, I gave him permission to return to the village."

"You _what?_ " Gallian growled, eyes flashing purple.

"Please understand… I couldn't just rely on Dusk to be the lone guard for the village," Totem Decidueye said, holding up a wing. "And I set very specific conditions for his return. He had to remain in his home unless he was working, apologize to Zoroark for his actions, and help Zoroark recover from his injuries."

Gallian shot Zoroark a worried look. "Err… yeah… he was… around," Zoroark said, nervously twirling a lock of his mane. "But he was surprisingly quiet. I figured his one-day exile had shaken him up."

"And things continued that way until one day… when Midnight finished his shift and stomped up to my house, saying he found these suspicious characters planting crystals and needed backup," Dusk said. "When I went with him, though, we didn't find anything. I told him I wasn't in the mood for jokes and returned home. The next day… he was gone. And I haven't seen him since."

Shane frowned. He had a bad feeling and this confirmed it. Midnight _was_ the same Pokémon that he had given such a hard time to at the guild. His teammates had come to the same conclusion and were looking at him, expecting a reaction.

"What made you curious about Midnight, anyway?" Dusk said.

"Well, we sorta… kinda… might've met Midnight," Shane said. "I think he came to our guild after leaving Cosmic Cavern. And… uh—"

"We know what happened," Totem Decidueye said. "I make it a habit of keeping in touch with Officer Magnezone so I'm prepared if any outlaws wander near our mountain."

"Oh," Shane said, ears folding against his head. "I… um…" He looked at Dusk. "I'm sorry. I was the one who sent Midnight over the edge. I acted like an ignorant jerk toward him."

"It's not your fault. It's mine," Dusk said, sighing. "Truth is I had a bit of a crush on the guy back when we were Rockruffs. He wanted nothing more than to evolve into a Midday Lycanroc but I… I got careless and I ruined that dream for him. The resentment he had about his evolution… I don't think he ever got over it. It stewed inside of him… bubbling up. I thought that _maybe_ his brief exile shocked the anger out of his system, but that wasn't the case."

That didn't make Shane feel better, considering the Lycanroc fiasco set off a disastrous chain of events for the team. Shane kept those thoughts to himself, however. He didn't want to be insensitive toward Dusk.

Luckily, Silvally jumped in to change the subject. "If we could just backtrack for a minute… because I'm still a bit confused." He looked at Gallian. "What happened after Team Paradox showed up?"

"I went back to the cave these two were hiding in. They gave me the low down and we wandered around Horizon searching for ultra aura signals," he explained. "I stole TMs from Aeon Town after we had a close call with a nasty cluster of Charjabugs in Voltaic Crater. I figured these two needed to be able to defend themselves reliably."

He hung his head shamefully. "In hindsight, I made so many mistakes. I know you don't want to hear this from me, but my disaster sense… it kicked into overdrive." He shuddered. "You don't know what it's like… waking up every day with a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach. Day in, day out, I found myself worrying… _fearing_ that my disaster sense would act up. I was so desperate to keep it subdued that I threw all logic out the window."

Zoroark sat back, sighing. "Was it really that bad?" he asked.

"The headaches… the chest pain… the spotty vision and the ringing in my ears… it was unbearable," Gallian said. "Sometimes, if a flare up was _really_ bad, I'd struggle to breathe." He looked at Zoroark. "Still… it probably wasn't as bad as you were feeling, huh?"

"Um, if I might ask, what happened after you passed out, Zoroark?" Silvally said.

"I woke up in Midday Valley. The resident healer, Chansey, was tending to me," Zoroark said. "There was a lot of pain, yeah, but that hardly compared to the surprise of finding out that half my eyesight was gone." He pointed a claw at his left eye. Its grayed iris and scar-covered sclera made Silvally cringe.

"A Noivern from the Valley flew up here and alerted me to Zoroark's condition," Totem Decidueye added. "I dropped what I was doing and went down to check on him. It was… a troubling sight, seeing him lying in Chansey's office, covered in blood and Softboiled yolk."

"And, of course, I lost an ear, too," Zoroark said, scratching at the fleshy stump that remained. "Though I couldn't tell at the time, thanks to Chansey. That yolk numbs you up surprisingly well."

"How long did it take you to realize Gallian wasn't with you?" Espeon asked.

"A couple of weeks, actually," Zoroark said. "I was _really_ out of it… drifting in and out of consciousness that entire time, until my wounds scarred over."

"That's something I find shocking," Latias said. "A few rounds of Heal Pulse should've been good enough to seal the gashes completely. It wouldn't give you your sight or your ear back, but there wouldn't be scaring."

"It probably has something to do with what Mom used to attack us," Gallian said, frowning. "Those crystal blades… they weren't anything like a normal Pokémon's attack."

"Oh dear," Latias whispered, face blanching. "So, um, I guess we should keep that in mind in case Zero or Necrozma show up again." Various members of the group nodded to each other in agreement.

"There's something else I'm still not sure about," Shane said, swishing some of his tails around so he could brush them with a forepaw. "How did you end up coming back here, Gallian? And what brought you over to the Volcanic Wastes?"

"After confronting the guild in Glyphic Falls, I was… tired," Gallian said. "Whatever dark power was inside of me had intensified. I thought I was losing control, so I went back to Cosmic Cavern, hoping that maybe Zoroark could keep me from totally snapping." Gallian glanced at Zoroark and winced. "Except I wasn't prepared to… well… to see him looking like this." He gestured at Zoroark with a forepaw.

"Our conversation was… terse," Zoroark said. "I was upset and I let it show. Gallian told me that he was dying and my response was to turn around and walk off. I kept going until I was far enough away to safely turn into a Joltik. I scuttled back through the tunnel and heard Gallian arguing with his teammates."

"Yeah, after that conversation, I was agitated," Gallian said. "My disaster sense fired again… and all I could think of to get it to calm down was heading for the Volcanic Wastes."

"It was quite the sight, honestly," Luxeira said. "He weaved his way through the mountains, refusing to stop and rest. When we got to that large volcano, Sticky and I were picking up strange signals. We ascended the volcano and encountered your infected friend. Gallian made us all hide and watch for an opening. I think you know the rest."

"Sort of," Tessa said. "I take it once you had the Sizzle Shard you hightailed it out of there?" Gallian nodded at her. "Why did you come back here, then?"

"Take a guess," Gallian said, sighing.

"Oh, I've got it! Is it his disaster sense? It's totally his disaster sense, right?" Swampert said, drawing a bunch of annoyed looks. "Aha… ha… he was being rhetorical, wasn't he?" Swampert said, grinning sheepishly and poking his flippers together.

"Gallian came into the village and found me tending to the barricade over the dungeon's entrance," Totem Decidueye explained. "A… erm… _heated_ discussion followed, then you all showed up."

"And Zoroark ended up in the Volcanic Wastes by following Gallian?" Latias asked.

"In a manner of speaking," Zoroark said, looking dejectedly at his scarred leg. "I _tried_ to follow him, because I was hoping I might get some answers, but I lost track of him quickly. You guys already know the rest."

"Then… I guess that clears everything up," Tessa said, nodding.

"You don't look very happy about it," Shane said, nudging her shoulder in concern. "What's the matter?"

"It's a lot to digest, that's all," Tessa said, rubbing her temples. "A world getting destroyed… Necrozma _wielding Pokémon_ as living weapons… Mom looking mutilated and trying to kill Gallian. How do you think I'm supposed to feel about this?"

"I… uh… yeah. You're right," Shane said, ears folding against his head. "It really doesn't make our chances sound great."

"Whoa there, Frosty," Blaziken cut in. "You can't go thinking like that, because it's a surefire way to screw your whole team over. If you expect to fail, then you're not going to be able to give it your all when your teammates need you."

Swampert nodded in agreement. "Oh, definitely. There were way too many times when I almost fell into that trap. Like when the meteor was barreling toward the planet and we learned we had to get through to _Rayquaza_ to save our hides, I was ready give up. I thought we were all hosed." He smiled at Blaziken. "If this guy wasn't there to pick me up and remind me how much good I'd already done, I don't think I'd have been able to face down Rayquaza."

Latias winced and twiddled her claws nervously. "Um… yeah. I know the odds seem… overwhelming. But you _do_ have a plan of some sort."

"Right!" Silvally said. "Look on the bright side. If we're successful tomorrow, then we'll have the entire Dawn Hourglass back together. Which means we'll have _both_ Hourglasses at our disposal. That should give us all the power we need to stop the Prism Virus." He turned his smiling face toward Shane. "Doesn't that sound a lot better?"

"Y-yeah," Shane whispered. He looked down, poking at a pebble with his forepaw. If they succeeded tomorrow, then what would that mean for him? Shane had a solid guess, but it left a sinking feeling in his gut.

Tessa's aura feelers twitched. She sat up and put a paw on Shane's back. "Try not to worry too much about it," she whispered. Shane didn't respond. "Hey," Tessa said, leaning over and rubbing Shane's back. "Whatever happens… you know we've got your back, right? Through darkest night and brightest day, Team Radiance always finds a way." She winked at Shane, whose cheeks immediately reddened.

"I think it's time that everyone settled down for the night," Totem Decidueye declared. He grabbed dirt in his talons and tossed it on the remnants of the fire, snuffing it out. "It's been an exhausting day and I expect you all need to be at your best tomorrow."

Blaziken and Swampert exchanged frowns. "Oh, crud… I don't feel tired in the slightest," Blaziken said. "There's no way I'll be able to fall asleep."

"I can help you out with that," Totem Decidueye said. "The real question is how we split lodging accommodations. Zoroark, how much extra room does your house have?"

"Uh… I suppose Team Radiance ought to bunk with me, since we're all going to Circadian Coast. I'm pretty sure they'll fit in the living room," Zoroark said, scratching a facial scar.

"Hoo boy, looks like I get to try out sleeping as a Ninetales in close quarters," Shane mused, knowing it didn't actually matter, since he struggled to sleep more than an hour or two.

"I don't see what the problem is. We sleep together with Silvally, so we don't take up that much space," Tessa said. Several astonished looks met her in response, including one from Silvally. "What's the matter?" Tessa asked.

"You… uh… _might_ want to rephrase that one," Dusk said, sniggering.

"Huh?" A beat followed, then Tessa recoiled. "Oh… oh, gods, no! I didn't mean it like that!" She threw her paws up and waved them in front of her face.

"Mean it like what? I don't get it," Shane grumbled.

"Never mind," Zoroark said as Gallian helped him to his feet. "Let's turn in for the night."

"In that case, Hoopa and I need to head out," Latias said. "I've synched up to your Gear-Com units. Call us when you're ready to move out."

"Sounds like a plan," Blaziken said. Hoopa opened a ring portal and he and Latias flew into it, disappearing in a flash.

"Not to keep anyone from well-deserved sleep or anything, but what about Espeon and Seraph?" Luxeira said. "They haven't returned. And given Seraph's… erm… _demeanor_ , I'm tempted to go and find her."

The rest of the group exchanged concerned looks. "I'll go with her," Shane said.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Tessa asked.

"It's fine," Shane said. "I'm having trouble sleeping as is. May as well try to be productive, right?"

Tessa bit her lip. "Okay, but be careful. Seraph seems… uh…"

"Unpredictable?" Silvally said.

"That's putting it mildly," Dusk deadpanned, hopping off her perch and landing with a wince.

"Relax, guys. I get the feeling I'm not her type, so I think I'll be free from any surprise smooches," Shane said. "Just, y'know, focus on getting some sleep. That's what's most important, right?"

His teammates nodded. Gallian and Zoroark led them back toward the village. Shane turned to Luxeira and signaled he was ready to go. Together, they set out for the hot springs area.

* * *

As Gallian recounted his story, Espeon walked along a tunnel, weaving through light beams made by the crystals embedded in the walls and ceiling. She spotted a thin veil of steam ahead of her. Espeon hesitated briefly, trying to see if she could pinpoint Seraph's location. It wasn't difficult. Espeon found Seraph by the edge of the large, rightmost pond, exactly where Shane and Tessa were the last time she was here.

Seraph stared at her reflection, arms crossed tightly over her chest. Espeon winced at Seraph's unhealed cuts and the scorched remnants of her ponytail. She got about halfway to the pond when Seraph held a paw up, claws crackling with electricity. "I could hear you coming, you know. What do you want?" she growled.

"To talk," Espeon replied, tail calmly drifting back and forth.

"Well, buzz off, Pinky. I don't have anything to say to you," Seraph said. More electricity surged across her arm as a warning.

"Fine then," Espeon said, standing her ground. "But I'm not leaving. This is a public area. I'm perfectly welcome to be here." She strode forward, head and tail held high in a defiant display. A growl rumbled in Seraph's throat but she lowered her arm. Espeon cautiously approached Seraph, who turned away from her, huffing in annoyance.

"You seem like you could use something to take the edge off," Espeon said, sitting down beside Seraph. She flipped her satchel open and levitated out a silver flask. Seraph eyed it skeptically.

"… tch. I don't know whether to call you generous or stupid. You _do_ realize I'm not from your world, right?" Seraph scoffed. "For all I know, drinking that will poison me or make my fur fall off." She looked down at her chest. "Or what's left of my fur, I guess."

"It's fermented berry juice," Espeon said. "They didn't have that back in Ultra Village?"

"They did," Seraph said, gingerly grabbing the flask with a paw. "You sure you want me to have this? Seems like it's hard to come by."

"I'm trying to lay off the sauce, actually," Espeon said. "Just be warned, it's pretty—"

Seraph uncorked the flask and chugged its contents down in a matter of seconds. Belching loudly, she dropped the flask to the ground. Seraph sat down, draping her legs over the edge of the pond and into the water.

Espeon looked down at the empty flask, blinking in surprise. "Uh… okay. I was about to say that juice is strong, but I guess it doesn't matter anymore."

"Thanks for the concern, Pinky, but it's unwarranted," Seraph said, rolling her eyes. "Zeraroras have lightning-fast metabolisms. Only way we can move around so quickly."

"Right… gotcha," Espeon said. The two of them lapsed into another round of silence, until Espeon broke it by whispering, "Um… I'm sorry about what happened to your home."

"… tch. Wasn't my home," Seraph said, leaning over and resting her head on her paws.

"It wasn't?" Espeon gasped.

"I'm from a different Ultra Space pocket," Seraph said. "I had a life there, with wonderful parents and a little brother that, yeah, got on my nerves, but was loveable in his own dorkish ways." Her expression darkened. "One day an Ultra Wormhole opened up above our city and a pair of Guzzlords popped out. They're—"

"I know what they are," Espeon said.

"Huh. Well, alright then," Seraph said. "So, yeah, rabid Guzzlords devoured the city. They ate my friends… their houses… _my house_ …" Seraph bit her lower lip. "My parents… they tried to buy time so my brother and I could run away." She lowered her head, shutting her eyes. "But they didn't stand a chance against two Guzzlords. And as my brother and I were escaping, he tripped on some rubble. By the time I realized what was happening…" Her voice trailed off and she shuddered.

"That really does sound awful," Espeon said, ears drooping.

"An Ultra Recon Squad finally appeared and neutralized the Guzzlords, but the damage had already been done," Seraph said, her voice shaky. "I was one of the few survivors of the attack. The Recon Squad took me to their base. They planned on sending me to this special center filled with 'mons who lost their homes to UB attacks… but I refused."

"What did you do instead?" Espeon asked.

"I joined the Ultra Recon Squad, of course," Seraph scoffed. "I wasn't about to forgive those Guzzlords for what they'd done." She raised a crackling fist. "I wanted to make damn sure that any UB or 'mon that stepped out of line paid _dearly_ for it. So, I worked my ass off to get assigned to a combat unit."

"But you somehow ended up in Ultra Village," Espeon said.

"… tch. That's because the higher-ups didn't approve of my 'methods,'" Seraph sneered. "They got pissed at me for snapping at the UBs they had working for them. What were they expecting? UBs are unstable… they can turn on us at a moment's notice. I had to keep them in line! The brass was a bunch of idiots for not recognizing that." Seraph bared her fangs. "They got tired of my behavior, so they sent me to Ultra Village to help form a new Recon Squad base. Needless to say, I wasn't pleased."

"Luxeira mentioned you got a lot of write-ups for excessive force," Espeon said.

Seraph leaned back, crossing her arms. "Only because those pussies in Ultra Village were squeamish," she sneered. "I did what I had to do to neutralize the threats I was faced with… until the Lightless Black showed up, of course."

"So, the reason you got so upset back around my teammates… it didn't have to do with Ultra Village getting destroyed?" Espeon said.

"Nice deduction there, Pinky," Seraph said, applauding Espeon sarcastically. "I was only upset because it drudged up the memories of losing my home and family to the Guzzlords. I was helpless back then… and I was helpless against Necrozma."

"I see," Espeon said. "Well, we could really use someone like you helping us out. We're trying to put a stop to Necrozma, because now he's terrorizing _our_ world."

"Ha! You want my advice? Get the hell out of dodge. Your world's hosed, Pinky," Seraph said, kicking up water with her right foot. "I've seen what Necrozma can do with my own eyes. Even by UB standards, it's not normal."

"Necrozma is anything but normal," Espeon conceded, gazing at her rippling reflection in the pond. "He was created by other Pokémon… on this very continent."

Seraph turned her head, directing a surprised look toward Espeon. "You've gotta be shitting me. You can't just _make_ something like that," she said.

"Well, it happened," Espeon said. "Our world has alchemy… a dangerous, forbidden magic that taps into chaotic energy dwelling in the planet's core. Centuries ago, a group of Pokémon used alchemical spells to turn a human into Necrozma."

"Human?" Seraph said. "Necrozma was one of those pasty, furless, fangless, powerless bags of bones?"

"I'm not entirely sure what you mean by that," Espeon said, blinking slowly. "We have a few humans in this world, but they were all turned into Pokémon."

"Sounds like you've got a faller problem, then," Seraph said, snorting.

"Is that some sort of Ultra Space slang?" Espeon asked, brow furrowed.

"It's a technical term for someone who's been displaced from their home by an Ultra Wormhole," Seraph explained. She then laughed bitterly, to Espeon's discomfort. "To think a faller would be capable of causing so many problems. That just makes this Necrozma stuff all the more ridiculous."

"We're trying to stop him, though," Espeon said. "Your two teammates are willing to help us."

"Bully for them. They're worthless," Seraph sneered.

"I'm not too sure about that. They fought my teammates in the past and held their own pretty well," Espeon said. "Besides, are you really in a situation to question them right now? What do you even plan on doing?"

"I already told you, I'm gonna look for a way off this crummy world," Seraph said. "It's only a matter of time before Necrozma manages to blow it apart like he did Ultra Village. If you were actually a smart psychic, you'd be trying to escape, too."

"I don't want to escape. This is my home," Espeon said, ears drooping. "Besides… I've already caused enough problems."

"… tch. If you think I'm interested in whatever sob story you've got cooked up, then think again," Seraph said, rolling her eyes. "You're a stranger. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the booze." She lifted the empty flask up and shook it. "But cheap gestures like this aren't going to earn my friendship."

"I figured as much," Espeon said, sighing. She wanted to get through to Seraph, but Seraph's stubbornness was wearing her down.

"Although… you look like quite the catch," Seraph said, stroking her chin and sizing Espeon up. She leaned back, her eyes clearly wandering down Espeon's body.

"If you've got something to say, say it to my face," Espeon said, pivoting. "That Ninetales you saw at the campfire can attest to the fact that I'm _not_ a fan of wandering eyes."

"Hey, you should be grateful," Seraph said, innocently raising her paws. "I've seen some pretty nice tail in my day, but you're the first Espeon I've gotten up close and personal with. And I _definitely_ like what you have to offer."

"I'm flattered," Espeon said, voice as dry and empty as the Solaris Wastelands. Seraph had made a sudden shift from stubborn to sultry and it made Espeon's blood boil.

"Don't look at me like that. You're the one trying to get me to open up," Seraph said, smirking. "If you _really_ want that to happen, then we ought to find somewhere private, don't you think?" She glanced out across the pond. "Though I suppose a swim is one way to—"

Espeon drew on her psychic powers to shove Seraph forward. Her thighs sank into the cold pond. With wide eyes, she dug her claws into the ground and hoisted herself back into the same position she'd been sitting in. "What was that for? You struck me as the type of girl who likes a stronger advance," Seraph huffed.

"Wow," Espeon said, getting to her feet and glowering at Seraph. "I never thought I'd end up looking through a cracked mirror like this."

Seraph's mischievous smirk vanished. "And just what is that supposed to mean, huh?" she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Talking with you has made me realize what an awful bitch I've been," Espeon said, looking at the ground. Taking the remark as an insult, Seraph's expression darkened. "No wonder things fell apart for Umbry and me… I was burning bridges with everyone around me when I should've been building them. If Silvally hadn't stepped in… I imagine I'd turn into you: a cynic who's resentful toward everything around her."

Espeon shook her head. "Boy, that was an eye-opener. I guess I ought to thank you for giving me a glimpse at how much worse things could've gotten for me if I continued pushing people away," she said.

"Are you implying that you're better than me, Pinky?" Seraph growled, clenching her fists. "I'd like to see you deal with the shit I've put up with."

That was it. Espeon was done with Seraph's attitude.

"I _have_ dealt with it _,_ " Espeon barked, stomping a forepaw on the ground. Her forehead gem crackled with psychic energy. "I've watched the world come to the brink of collapse _twice_. I've stared down Legendary Pokémon _radiating_ hopelessness and despair."

"I had a cave tunnel _collapse on me_ , leaving me on death's doorstep. Hell, I was _turned to stone_ and had my spirit sent to some demonic hellscape!" she continued, growing angrier with each word. "The sights I saw there _still_ haunt me! It's only thanks to an act of a god that I'm even standing here! And I've done nothing but squander that miracle! I pushed everyone I cared about out of my life… including the Pokémon closest to me!"

Slowly, Seraph's angered expression melted away. All she could do was stare in stunned silence as Espeon took a few calming breaths, the pink glow fading from her forehead gem. "So… go ahead. Try to find some way out on your own," Espeon said, turning her back to Seraph. "You'll learn the hard way how rough things here can be when you have no one by your side."

Espeon marched back toward the tunnel, head bowed in remorse. She thought that she could draw on some of her experiences to help Seraph, like she did with Gallian. But Espeon had failed spectacularly. Maybe Silvally was wrong. Perhaps some Pokémon weren't capable of changing. Maybe, deep down, Espeon _was_ just a cynical bitch and would end up staying that way.

She was nearly at the tunnel's lip when her ears twitched. Espeon turned, eyeing Seraph skeptically. "What was that? You're gonna have to speak up," she said.

"What do you want from me?" a stone-faced Seraph asked. "I tried to fight Necrozma. I even had help. Look how that turned out."

Espeon blinked. Her outburst had actually gotten through to Seraph?

"You had one other Pokémon capable of battling," Espeon said, pawing at the ground. "The group you saw when you woke up may not look like much, but we're steadily growing. More and more Pokémon are realizing the danger we're in and lending us their support. This world… has had improbable things happen to it before."

Seraph lifted her legs out of the pond and tucked them against her chest. "Like what?" she asked.

"I'm talking the likes of a Torchic and a Mudkip calming an enraged Rayquaza… or a Chimchar and a Totodile defeating Dialga in a battle to save time itself from collapsing," Espeon said, while a slack-jawed Seraph stared back at her. "Trust me… I know what it feels like to want to give up when you're faced with odds like these." Her ears drooped. "It's something I'm guilty of doing… multiple times." Espeon steeled her facial expression. "But no more. I'm tired of making mistakes. I want to make a difference… and create some meaningful change, for once."

 _'I want to have hope again.'_

"Meaningful change, huh?" Seraph said, staring at her thighs.

"I realize that's easier said than done at this point," Espeon said. "But we have a plan." She paused and bit her lower lip. "Well, it's some semblance of a plan. Still, that's better than nothing."

"The Blaziken and Swampert I spotted before… are they—"

"Yes, they're the ones who stood up to Rayquaza," Espeon said. "You'd be working with them, by the way. So, I'd like to think you'd have more support than what you're used to." She approached the rightmost pond, praying that Seraph was reconsidering.

"So, you want me… to help them," Seraph said. "By doing what, exactly?"

"Accompanying them into a Mystery Dungeon," Espeon replied. "It's… um… well, I think you'd be going to a canyon filled with aggressive dragons."

"Great… dragons. One of the types I'm not worth much against," Seraph groaned, looking at her claws. "Not to mention, Swampert and Blaziken wouldn't be all that helpful, either."

"Yeah, I get that it's not an ideal situation, but we need a group to go explore the canyon," Espeon said, returning to Seraph's side. "We believe there's a piece of an important artifact there. Something with the power to stop Necrozma. We've already got half of it assembled. Tomorrow, we plan to split up so we can get the remaining two fragments."

Seraph reached a paw and scratched at the remains of her ponytail, frowning. "So, I'm just going with some strangers into a canyon to look for a mystical object? That's pretty… vague."

"That's all I can really tell you," Espeon said, brushing her right forepaw against her left. "Your teammates will also be going. And I think a couple of other Pokémon will join you to provide some tactical and medical support."

"How many teammates will I have?" Seraph asked.

"At least six, I think," Espeon replied. "You'll also have items to work with."

"Except I have no idea what you terrestrials use for supplies," Seraph said. "But, eh, it's whatever. You're right. I don't know a damn thing about this world and I sure don't have anywhere to go. If I really want off this place, then I figure I've gotta lend you folks a paw."

Espeon supposed that was one way to look at it. Even if Seraph's motives were on the selfish side, Espeon was glad to hear she had changed her mind. "I'm sure my teammates will appreciate your help," she said, glancing back at the tunnel. "Speaking of which, I should probably go back to them. You coming?"

Seraph rolled to her feet. "Just a sec, Pinky," she said, strolling across the cave to the hot spring pongds. "I still reek. There may not be any pressurized showers here, but I'd like to clean myself up."

"Suit yourself," Espeon said, sitting down in the middle of the cave. Seraph hopped into the hot water with no hesitation. She surfaced a few seconds later, running her claws across her forehead.

"Ah, that's a bit better," she said, kicking her way toward the edge of the pond and leaning up against it. Seraph rested her arms and head on the ground, locking eyes with Espeon. "I take it you're not gonna join me?" she said.

"You really think I'd say yes after that little display earlier?" Espeon scoffed, pointing her snout up indignantly. She wasn't sure if this was better or worse than realizing Shane was spying on her while she showered.

"I'm not going to try anything, honest," Seraph said. "All I'm saying is you look ragged."

"Then I'll do something about it later," Espeon said, getting to her feet. "I was going to walk you back to the village, but I get the sense you're going to be a while. So, I'll come back and check on you lat—"

A blob of electrified water arced toward Espeon. She blew it apart with a pink energy ring, only to flinch as a cloud of mist rushed past her. Static lingered in the air, prickling Espeon's fur. Espeon looked down at Seraph's smirking face.

"Whoopsies… my paw slipped," Seraph teased, lifting her right paw out of the water and laying it against the edge of the pond. "You might want to do something about that, sweetie. I hear statically-charged fur is bad for psychics."

Espeon wished she could slap Seraph like she did to Shane. Instead, she sat down, wincing, and stuck the tips of her forked tail into the ground. Blue wisps crackled through her fur, then surged toward her tail, where they fizzled out harmlessly against the rock. Espeon got back to her feet and marched toward one of the unoccupied springs. She removed her satchel, then waded into the water with an unamused grunt.

"Wow, really? You're no fun," Seraph said, tracing a claw through the dirt.

"I don't appreciate funny business… especially from pervs," Espeon said, sinking lower to the point where her snout was even with the surface of the water. She wouldn't let Seraph fluster her. Especially not after giving Seraph all her berry juice.

"It's not pervy," Seraph said, pouting. "It's just… a difference in cultures. I mean, I can't help but be surprised when none of you terrestrials are wearing any clothes."

"We don't have to, because anything unsightly is covered by our natural coats. Y'know… fur, scales, feathers… whatever," Espeon said. "There's certainly clothing out there, but I've only seen that kind of stuff worn when 'mons want to look fancy."

"Huh, interesting," Seraph said. "Maybe there's more to this world than I thought."

"I already told you, this world's _full_ of surprises," Espeon said. She sank even lower in the hot spring, blowing a stream of bubbles along its surface.

"Well, someone looks a bit more relaxed," Seraph teased. "You're welcome, by the way."

"It's been… a very stressful last couple of weeks," Espeon said.

"Yeah, well try waking up from a coma in some alien world and then talk to me about stressful," Seraph said, throwing in a bitter laugh for good measure. "My life's been turned upside down."

"It could be worse, you could've been turned into an entirely different creature like Shane," Espeon said.

"Is that Ninetales' name?" Seraph asked, to which Espeon nodded. "Pfbt… pretty lame. Out of all the names in the cosmos, _that's_ the best his parents could come up with?"

"Perhaps human naming conventions are different from what you're used to," Espeon said. "I mean, most of the Pokémon here just go by their species name. If there are multiple of us in the same place, we use unique attributes to identify ourselves. For example, another Espeon might call me Ruby-Gem, because my channeling gem's coloration precisely matches that of a ruby." She pointed to her forehead gem.

"Wow. That's… uh… pretty damn primitive, if you ask me," Seraph said, choking back laughter. "Then again, I didn't see any real tech around. Maybe if we stop Necrozma we can flag an Ultra Recon Squad to come here and bring you guys up to speed."

Espeon actually liked that idea. After all, every time the world was saved, people went back to their old routines. Maybe they needed some _real_ change to move things in a more positive direction. At the very least, it could help her not feel so cynical all the time.

Her tail brushed across a steam jet and she shimmied across the edge of the pond to reach it. Espeon settled herself against the wall, positioning her rear over the steam jet. She sighed satisfyingly and soon found her eyelids growing heavy. Espeon yawned loudly, a gesture which Seraph caught.

"You drifting off on me there, Pinky?" she called. Espeon's eyes snapped open.

"It _is_ rather late here," she muttered, frowning. Having just gotten comfortable, Espeon was reluctant to move, let alone leave the pond. But she knew that she couldn't just spend the night here. Not to mention, she was a bit nervous about falling asleep with nobody but Seraph around. With a pang of regret, she hoisted herself out of the pond, taking care to face Seraph as she shook her fur dry.

"Hey, Espeon! You doing alright?"

Shane and Luxeira stood at the edge of the tunnel, the latter looking around the cave. "Yeah, we're okay, I think," Espeon said. "Seraph's over in that spring." She pointed a forepaw to her right. Seraph opened her eyes as Luxeira walk over to her.

"Oh… it's you, rookie," Seraph said. "Gimme a sec here." She pushed down on the ground with her arms and climbed out of the water. Seraph got down on all fours to shake her fur out. Luxeira shuffled backwards with an irritated groan. "Alright," she said, standing back up. "I know what you're here about, so let's cut to the chase. This whole situation blows, but it doesn't make any sense for me to wander around this primitive world on my own."

"So, you've been informed of the situation?" Luxeira said, expression firm.

"I have. You want my help to run around a dragon-infested canyon and nab a mystical artifact," Seraph said, studying her claws. "I'm not what you'd call a dragon-buster, but I don't see any alternatives. I'll help you guys out."

"Good. We plan to set out tomorrow morning," Luxeira said. "Until then, you need to rest. I imagine you're still injured from fighting Necrozma."

Seraph responded by stretching out her arms. "Actually, this hot spring helped a lot." She glanced back at a cloud of steam. "Yo, Pinky, is there something in the water here?"

"Well, caves in our world are known for having mineral water," Espeon said. "Maybe that did something? In any case, I'm beat. If you two are fine, I'm heading off to sleep."

Luxeira nodded. "We'll regroup before parting ways, correct?" she said.

"I imagine so," Shane said. "We plan on using Hoopa to get us to our destinations faster, remember?"

"Hoopa?" Seraph said, looking at Luxeira. "Uh… maybe I've got more to get up to speed on than I thought."

"We'll go over it," Luxeira said. After a satisfied nod from Seraph, the two walked into the tunnel, leaving Espeon and Shane standing together.

"So… uh… I take it this means you got through to her?" Shane said, keeping his gaze fixed on the ground.

"I did, yeah," Espeon said. "I think it was good that I got to talk to her. It helped open my eyes."

Shane's ears twitched. "Oh, what do you mean by that? If… uh… if you don't mind me asking."

Espeon walked up to Shane, sighing. "I've been doing things the wrong way for a while. I've had enough of pushing people away." She froze, shooting a nervous glance over her shoulder. Espeon closed her eyes and shook her head.

"You're seeing Void Shadows again, aren't you?" Shane asked, frowning. Espeon's answered consisted of a heavy sigh. "You know I saw you outside last night… doing something." Shane's tails curled up against his side. "Look… I don't want to push the issue or anything, but I'm worried about you."

"It's okay, human," Espeon whispered. She put a paw under his chin and gently nudged his head up. With a brief flutter of telekinesis, she brushed the silky white fur out of Shane's eyes. "I… uh… I appreciate the concern. What I was doing last night was… wrong. I knew it was wrong, but I didn't care." Espeon winced. "Snorting stardust… was euphoric. It was one of my go-to methods to get rid of the Void Shadows."

"You were… snorting stardust? Like… the stuff that came from Necrozma?" Shane said, fur bristling.

Espeon shivered. "I did, yeah. I was that desperate. But… I'm done with it." She paused. "My life's… not in a great place right now. That's why I should be looking to someone like you for support, instead."

"L… like me?" Shane gasped. "What do you mean?"

Espeon didn't reply. She hadn't anticipated getting Shane alone like this. Now that they were together, she didn't want to press the subject that was on her mind. Shane looked at her, eyes brimming with a mixture of curiosity and worry. Espeon sighed heavily.

"I have to ask you something," she said. "It's… about Necrozma."

Shane sucked in a breath. Was Espeon going to blame him for all of this, like she had done after Umbreon died?

"What are you thinking about him?" Espeon said, staring into Shane's eyes.

"I'm… not sure I follow," Shane said, trying to avoid her gaze. His tails twitched nervously.

"If we have to face him in battle… what are you going to do?" Espeon said, her voice almost a whisper.

Shane's eyes widened and Espeon's chest tightened. That wasn't the immediate response she was hoping for. Espeon wanted Shane to say that he would hold nothing back. But it looked like Shane hadn't even thought about this subject.

"I… well…" Shane's tails curled up. "I'm… uh…" He bowed his head. "We have to stop him… don't we?"

Espeon felt a pang of guilt. Given the day's events, she shouldn't have sprung the subject on Shane like that. But it had been eating away at the back of her mind since their last encounter with Necrozma. A small voice told her to back off, but she ignored it.

"Shane," she said, causing Shane to meet her gaze. He was surprised to see Espeon actually refer to him by name instead of calling him a human. "Do you still see Necrozma as your human friend?"

"I… yeah, I guess so," Shane whispered, wincing.

"I see," Espeon said. That was what she was afraid of. "There's no easy way for me to say this, Shane, but… you need to stop thinking like that."

Shane's ears stuck up. He shuffled backward, staring at the ground.

"I know you don't want to hear it," Espeon continued. "I just want you to understand… that if we have to fight him, we're counting on you to do your part. You have to be able… and _willing_ … to battle your hardest. And I'm worried that… if you still think Necrozma's your friend… you won't do that."

The realization slowly spread across Shane's face. "I… um… well… yeah, you've got a point," he said. "It's just… I still feel like it's all my fault."

"Do you really think that you can somehow redeem Necrozma?" Espeon said, a bit more forceful than she had intended. Shane shrank back, adding to the guilt bubbling in Espeon's stomach.

"I don't know," Shane squeaked. "But… shouldn't I at least try?"

"I can't give you that answer," Espeon said, ears drooping. "In my mind, you shouldn't. I think he can't be reasoned with. And I feel like you need to stop seeing Necrozma as your old friend and _start_ seeing him as the monster who… who…"

Tears welled up in her eyes. This was exactly what Espeon didn't want. She had gotten too emotional, but she couldn't just cut the conversation off.

"… killed all my friends in Post Town… and took Umbry away from me," Espeon said, blinking the tears out of her eyes. She took a calming breath. "That's what I think. But, well, you've seen how pessimistic I am. Maybe it's wrong of me to think that way."

"N-no… you lost your brother," Shane said. "But I guess that's my fault, too. I was part of the problem… with Nicky. I'm not trying to get any sympathy or anything… it's just a fact." He hung his head. "Though, you might not have to worry about what I think of Necrozma. If Solgaleo's spirit gets restored… he'll probably take control and fight Necrozma. Then, it won't be up to me."

"Right," Espeon whispered, rubbing her forelegs together nervously. "Shane, I'm… sorry for being so hard on you." Shane's ears stuck up in surprise. "The truth is that… when we first met, I hated your guts. And when you freed me from the Prism Virus… I was determined to _keep_ hating you." She curled her tail around her waist. "That even extends to our… um… little _moment_ in the showers. I mean, yeah, what you did was wrong, but I wasn't really upset by it. I was just looking for an excuse to give you a tongue lashing."

Shane stood there, processing Espeon's rambling. He had no idea how to react. What had he done to make her so upset in the first place? That's what he wanted to know more than anything.

"Why did you hate my guts?" Shane asked, a hurt look on his face.

"It's… complicated," Espeon whispered. "But… you deserve to know." She sat down and traced her right forepaw in a circle. "It goes back to the Bittercold, really. Before that whole incident, I was a lot like you. A bit of a dork… with a tendency to put her paw in her mouth and speak before thinking. I loved working with Umbry as much as I liked to crack a cheesy joke or two."

Her ears drooped. "But then Munna and her allies showed up. Their constant chatter about how _negative_ the world is and how it's futile to struggle protecting an existence that's ultimately hopeless… it wore me down," she said. "Under the stress of helping Team Paradise… I cracked. I let Munna's words twist my heart… I embraced those ideas. The world I saw… wasn't a beautiful one that I got the privilege to explore with Umbry. It was something wretched and ugly."

"That's why… instead of trying to lend support to Team Paradise while they fought the Bittercold… I did something else," Espeon said, her voice almost a whisper. "I pressured Umbry into mating with me."

Shane's eyes widened. He had to use every ounce of willpower not to interrupt Espeon, even though he wanted to know why she lied to him about the tabloid articles.

"When the Bittercold was defeated, everyone went back to their old routines," Espeon said. "Even though we talked about Hydreigon taking our human savior away, nobody wanted to talk about the Bittercold. That made the negativity grow… and it was all exacerbated when Dark Matter showed up." Espeon hung her head. "I hated your guts… because you reminded me of the old me. Before the Bittercold's attack. Even in tense situations, you had this carefree demeanor. Heck, even now you still have some goofball tendencies."

Shane wasn't sure if he should feel flattered or insulted. He stayed silent, nodding.

"That's why I was so upset with you," Espeon said. "And Silvally, too. Your cheerful dispositions… they were walking reminders of something I thought I'd never be able to get back. I told myself I'd never accept either of you as my friends…" Her voice trailed off and she bowed her head. "But the truth is you're exactly the people I need in my life."

She took a shuddering breath. "I want to be able to look out at the world and have hope again," she said. "There are a lot of things about this world I wish I could change, like the whole soulmate concept. But… before anything can change, we have to stop Necrozma. We have to get back the people we've lost. Then… maybe we can finally think about moving forward and making progress."

"Okay… I've said my fill. Sorry for rambling like that," Espeon said. "This was all pretty selfish of me, but I wanted to get it off my chest."

Shane had sat down during the conversation. He now stared at his forepaws, jaws clenched tight. What was the right thing to say in the face of all this information? Should he pat her on the shoulder and tell her he's sorry, too? What good would that possibly do?

"Shane?" Espeon said, tilting her head.

"Espeon… I don't know what to say." Shane lifted his head up. "I guess… um… if you want someone to stand by you, then I can try my best. It's just… I'm still trying to learn how to be a good friend, so it'll be far from perfect." A nervous grin shakily spread across his muzzle. "But if I can help bring at least a little of the old Espeon back… then it's worth a shot, right?"

Shane looked down, fearing Espeon wouldn't respond well to him. He was caught off guard when she leaned over and embraced him, running her head across his shoulder and pressing it against his neck. His silky mane brushed against her velvet fur, making his tails stiffen.

"I don't need you to be perfect," Espeon whispered. "Just be yourself… even as you keep growing. Hopefully, I can grow with you."

"Uh… um… okay," Shane said, blinking in surprise. "Should we go back to the others, though? It's getting late… I think."

Espeon broke off the embrace. "Yeah. Sorry. I had said I was tired, but then I'm the one who kept you here," she said, face flushing.

"It's okay, Espeon," Shane said.

"… Espy," she said. "Call me Espy… if that's okay."

After a couple of seconds, Shane smiled. "Of course it is."

* * *

 **~Dewdrop Woods~**

With a frustrated growl, Solrock blasted a small, thorny bush apart with psychic energy. She was supposed to be past the hard part. Somehow, she had managed to nab keys off a Magnemite guard and escape the underground prison. Solrock hadn't expected to emerge in the middle of a Mystery Dungeon. If only she had been awake when Officer Magnezone's team had taken her to jail, then she would at least have a vague idea of which direction to go.

Solrock dropped out of the sky and nestled between two massive black tree roots. She was tired, but she had to keep moving. The police force surely knew she had disappeared by now. There were probably Magnemites flying around, looking for her. Sighing, Solrock hovered back into the air and floated deeper into the forest. Eventually, she lost sight of the trail she had been following.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Yes, drink up, Volcarona. Take the last bits of Yveltal's light so we can break that stupid cocoon."**

Solrock froze upon hearing a distorted voice. Did it mention _Yveltal?_ Her ESP picked up a surprising energy spike. Solrock cautiously floated toward its location, staying close to the large tree roots sticking out of the ground. Whatever she had heard, it didn't sound very friendly.

It didn't take long for Solrock to find the source of the commotion. Several trees lay in ruins in front of her. She spotted a large, Y-shaped creature in the middle of the trees' splintered remnants. Its body was completely grayed out, save for its head. Above it floated some sort of brown rock. Magma bubbled underneath its cracks.

What was going on here? Was this giant bird Yveltal? Did the strange rock attack it? Solrock had no intention of saying anything. She pressed herself up against the tree root.

 **"How fitting. A worthless god that looks like giant bacon strips gets _devoured_. If only we had some scrambled eggs and home fries… then this would've been the perfect meal."**

Necrozma drifted above the rock and placed his claws around it. It glowed, then proceeded to suck the remaining color off of Yveltal's head. When the last bits of red had detached, black crystals covered every inch of Yveltal's body.

Solrock had seen enough. Whatever was going on here, she wanted no part of it. She floated away from the scene, sticking as close to the trees as possible.

 **"And just where do you think you're going, hmm?"**

Necrozma popped up in front of Solrock, a broad grin on his face. Solrock froze in midair, eyes wide in terror. "I… I didn't see anything!" she said. "I'm a fellow outlaw… y-you can trust me. I won't rat anything out to the cops!"

 **"An outlaw, huh? Okay, I believe you,"** Necrozma said.

"Y… you do?" Solrock said. A flash of light erupted behind her. Solrock turned around in time to see the strange rock burst apart, showering the ground with ash and cinders. She caught a brief glimpse of a tiny, luminescent-orange butterfly taking to the skies, before Necrozma grabbed her from behind and spun her around to face him.

 **"Yes. In fact… I find you so believable, that I'd like you to join my little game,"** Necrozma said, his grin widening.

Solrock's eyes darted about in a panic. All she had to do was play along and she'd be fine, right? "Wh… what do… I have to do?"

 **"Oh, it's _very_ simple," **Necrozma said as black chains rose out of the ground behind Solrock. **"Just do exactly what I tell you to… and everybody wins! Heeheeheehee!"** He shoved Solrock back into the chains. They ensnared her, breaking her body apart as they dug inside of her.

Solrock didn't even have time to scream.

 **End of Special Episode 3**

* * *

Review replies!

Another guest: you're right. That was the same Tsareena that was on the outlaw board. She's been at this for a while!

Anon Omega: funny, I didn't even intend to make that reference. What a coincidence.

SuperOmegaGuest: I'm trying, but I can only continue it so fast for the sake of my sanity.

Next time...

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 **Hello.**

 **It seems we've come a long way.**

 **If you're here, then I suppose you deserve to know.**

 **How it all started.**

 **But it's not my tale to tell, even if I'm in it.**

 **No.**

 **You must stare into the face of the void, through the eyes of this world's oldest Pokémon.**


	85. Bonus: Heart & Soul

**Is anybody out there?**

 **Can anyone hear me?**

 **Ah, yes.**

 **It seems… a lost spirit has stumbled upon my prison.**

 **How very interesting.**

 **Do not be alarmed, stranger. In this state, I can do no harm.**

 **I simply wish to relay a tale.**

 **A tale of creation. A tale of destruction.**

 **Two concepts locked in an eternal struggle. Seeking balance, like the mind… the body… and the spirit.**

 **Why would I tell such a tale?**

 **Simple.**

 **Very, very simple.**

 **I have no spirit to speak of. I do not feel.**

 **Time, space, life… they are nothing more than concepts to me. I am ingrained into existence itself.**

 **I am both free and trapped. Fragments of my essence spread through every reality. I do not care.**

 **I am chaos. I am uncertainty. I am the beginning, the middle, and the end.**

 **Those who fear me seek my continued imprisonment for all eternity. That is fine. It means nothing to me. I shall persist.**

 **Whether I stay inside this prison or stride free is inconsequential. Eternity is a fallacy. All roads lead back to me, no matter what happens.**

 **Each taste of freedom has spread my energy further. To distant worlds in distant realities.**

 **They have shaped my fragments. Molded them into their own entities.**

 **As a result, I have taken many faces. Many names. I have been shown kindness… cruelty. I have witnessed good, evil, and everything in between.**

 **Yet at my core, I am unchanged.**

 **I have strayed too far off-subject. I'm supposed to pass along a tale.**

 **This is the story of a fragile world built with my power at its core. A world that began with an end. An end not brought by my will, but by the weight of a thousand arms.**

* * *

 **Bonus: Heart & Soul**

* * *

Sometimes, it's nice to kick back and enjoy the simple things. I'm talking soft grass tickling your tail… a warm sunbeam to curl up under… a soft breeze to make sure you don't get too uncomfortable. That kind of stuff.

I've been able to lounge around in the sun a lot, lately. I'm quite thankful for it. Last winter was dreadfully cold and while I could have simply blasted all the snow away and used a psychic bubble to shield myself from the winds, I doubt I would've really been able to relax outside.

Which is why I'm loving all this nap time. No threatening situations to deal with. No bizarre requests to help the Professor on one of her projects. And, best of all, no noisy visits from Mew. I mean, I love her like she's my mother — and I _guess_ she is, in some regards — but I can only take so much of her boundless energy and transformation antics. At least her visits bring the Professor joy. Sometimes I fear she's too much of a workaholic, but she shrugs me off. "I love inventing!" she always says. "And when you get to spend each day doing what you love… well… that, my friend, is living."

I always return the smile she gives me what she says that… but it's gotten harder and harder as of late. The Professor's health is failing. That much is certain. She designed me to keep humanity safe. While humans can outlive many Pokémon, their lifespans are still fleeting. The older they get, the more they wither. They contract illnesses that weaken them faster than any average Pokémon. And the Professor… she has something like that. Of course, we had this talk in the early weeks after my creation. It's why she was so adamant that I bond with Mew. That way, I'll always have a friend by my side, no matter what.

The thoughts stir me from my nap. My left side's heating up fast, so I roll onto my right, stretching out my right arm. Something tugs at my psychic sense and my eyes shoot open. Someone's running up the stone steps. I sit up, looking past the blooming trees toward the hill several yards ahead of me.

Amber appears at the top of the steps, red hair and pink dress fluttering behind her as she runs toward me. I get to my feet, brushing pollen from the back of my neck. "There you are, sleepyhead," Amber says. "I've been running around the whole complex trying to find you."

 _I wasn't sleeping,_ I say, crossing my arms. _I was… uh… out here to water the flowers!_ I turn around, conjure a ball of water in my hands, and toss it toward a patch of tulips. The ball explodes, dousing them.

"If that's the case, why's there dirt and grass on your tail, huh?" Amber says, smirking.

 _What are you talking about?_ I scoff, bringing my tail around. _My tail's perfectly–_

She's right. I have dirt on my tail. Dirt. On _my_ tail.

… how unbecoming.

I draw on my psychic powers and fling the dirt away. _There… problem solved,_ I say, raising my tail up and swishing it back and forth. _Now then, I assume you didn't just come here to get on my case about my hygiene, correct?_

Amber nods. "Mother wants to see you in her private study," she says. "Told me it's really important."

I frown. After days of radio silence, the Professor has something important to tell me? Of course, I could've read her mind if I wanted to, but that would be an egregious breach of trust. After all, the Professor gave me life and purpose… as well as a loving home when others out there were skeptical of my allegiance. It would be foolish to return such gestures with deceitful practices.

 _All right,_ I say. _Will you be taking me or should I go there on my own?_

"Mother wants to see us both… so I thought we'd walk there together," Amber says, putting her hands behind her back and swaying from side to side.

I sigh. I prefer floating to walking. My feet are… not built for that. I don't think I'll ever understand how humans can walk so easily on the balls of their feet. One of the great mysteries of life, I suppose.

 _Very well. We'll go together,_ I say, walking to Amber's side. We head through the field, passing trees and bushes, until we reach the edge of the hill. In the distance lies the Professor's laboratory: a square building made of a sturdy metal and painted brown to match the ground. It's only about three feet taller than me.

The Professor told me it was once a bunker that humans used to take shelter in during times of conflict. But since humans had stopped warring, there was no use for the building. So, the Professor bought it and refurbished it into her private lab. Wild Pokémon were always welcome at the lab, though few stopped by. It was also far from the nearest human settlement… though with my powers, I could easily transport Amber or her sister there if we needed anything.

Normally, I didn't give the lab a passing thought. I go through the main entrance so many times, it's stopped registering in my mind. Something's different today, though. I'm sure it's what Amber said to me.

Important… important… the Professor needs me for something important.

Now, Amber's definition of important has included things like helping the Professor find a missing pencil. So, it's certainly possible that she only needs me for something minor. Yet, she's been holed up in her private study for a while.

Could it be… that the Professor is slipping away?

I shake my head. No, that's not it. She still has time. She's not going to die yet. And she certainly wouldn't do it without giving us the time to say our proper goodbyes.

We reach the main door and I force those thoughts from my mind. The tiny security camera swivels on its podium to meet our gazes. Amber waves at it.

 **Welcome home,** an electronic voice says as the door slides open. We proceed inside to a small entry room. Amber walks to my left, unlaces her boots, and places them on a mat next to several other pieces of human footwear. I walk to the other end of the room, where a metal door sits. I slide it open, revealing stone stairs spiraling down into a black abyss.

"Don't forget the lights," Amber says, flicking on the switch and then running down the stairs. I give up my clumsy walking efforts and float after her. I make it to the third stair and freeze.

Mew's here.

She's not even trying to hide her aura. I sense her in the Professor's study. Usually, she shows up when she pleases. Is this just a coincidence? No, it can't be. Somehow, the Professor summoned Mew here. My earlier worries come crawling back. This is it. This will be the Professor's final hours amongst the living. I'm not prepared for this. I haven't seen death. Read about it, sure, but never witnessed it with my own eyes. What am I suppose to make of this? How can I—

"Hey, what's the hold up?" Amber shouts. "You coming or not?"

The poor girl. She seems just as happy as ever. If my guess is right — and I don't see any reason to suspect otherwise — then she's going to be devastated. Or has she already known this would happen? No, it still doesn't make sense. The book I read… it said humans grieve in five stages. None of them involve cheerfulness.

I reach the bottom of the stairs and turn right. The underground portion of the bunker is lined with rough, gray walls. Concrete is what the Professor calls it. Apparently, the walls are reinforced with some sort of alloy, but I'm supposed to take the Professor's word. I could certainly blow the wall apart and see for myself, but that wouldn't accomplish anything.

Shaking my head, I float down the hall. This isn't like me. My thoughts are jumping all over the place. Every minute detail is drawing my attention, like the tic-tac-toe games painted onto the wall by the door to the Professor's study. Amber and I played those the week I was created. That was when I learned that humans don't like it when you draw on their walls.

The metal door to the Professor's study is open. Green light spills out of the room, likely from one of the Professor's computers. I head inside and, sure enough, find Mew floating in front of the largest computer monitor. She's chasing her tail around in circles, seemingly oblivious to the world around her. Amber is waving me over to a computer terminal that's as tall as I am. Reina is with her, red hair tied back neatly behind her head and hands shoved into the pockets of her jeans.

"Oh, good, you're here. Certainly know how to keep a lady waiting, huh?"

The black chair in front of me swivels around. My levitation falters and I barely manage to catch myself and avoid falling on my face.

It's worse than I thought. The Professor is sitting in her chair, skin clammy and wrinkled. Her lab coat doesn't even fit her anymore. Her arms and legs are like those thin spaghetti noodles that are such fun to eat because I can dangle them over my head like bits of string. Even her red hair, plastered messily over her face, looks like it could fall right off her scalp.

 _Professor,_ I say. _What's going on here? You look dreadful._

"Nice to see you, too," the Professor replies. Her voice is so hoarse I can barely hear the sarcasm. She descends into a coughing fit. Reina walks to the Professor's side and gives her some sort of mask.

"Breath, Mom," Reina says. "Come on… you can't overdo it."

I look at Amber. She's sitting on the floor, back against the computer console. Mew's in her lap. Amber's stroking Mew like that stuffed Teddiursa doll she carries around at night.

"I'm fine, Reina," the Professor says, taking a few deep breaths. She shakily hands the mask back to Reina. It has a tube running to the corner of the room. There's a metal canister there, with an O2 on it.

 _With all do respect, Professor, nothing about this scene spells "fine,"_ I say. _Did you call all of us here? Even Mew?_

Mew finally looks up, as if she just now realizes we're in the same space. She offers a friendly wave. I gesture toward the Professor and roll my eyes. Sometimes, I feel like I'm the one who came first, not her.

"I did," the Professor replies. "I'm sure you've already figured it out by now."

 _You're dying,_ I say. _You've brought us here so we can say our goodbyes._ I fidget with my fingers. _But I don't want to say goodbye to you yet, Professor. There's still so much I have to learn from you!_

The Professor smiles and chuckles weakly. "Here I thought I'd gone and made you worry so much you'd read my mind," she says. "Guess I was wrong."

 _Of course you're wrong,_ I say, frowning. _You made me promise only to read minds when it was absolutely necessary. I don't wish to violate your trust._

"I'm glad to hear it," the Professor says. She takes a deep breath. "The truth is that… yes, my condition has gotten much worse these past few weeks. I fear that I don't have much time left."

My stomach knots up. So, this is really it. My last chance to speak with the Professor. What can I say? What am I supposed to be feeling right now? And why don't Amber and Reina seem upset?

"That's why I've been in the lab. See, you're right on the money," she says. "I'm not ready to say goodbye to anyone. And there _is_ still so much to learn. About humans… about Pokémon… about the mysteries of the world. I want to solve them all and help as many people as I can."

 _Isn't that why you made me? To help people?_ I say.

"Yes, you're absolutely right," the Professor says. "And I would like to stick around and see how you continue to grow alongside this world." She takes a deep breath. "That's why I've been hard at work this past week. It's taken a lot out of me, but I think I have a way to keep myself alive despite a body that's too tired to go on."

I drop to the ground and nearly fall on my tail when I stumble back in surprise. The Professor… plans to cheat death? Can a human even achieve something like that? I mean… she _did_ create me, so I suppose anything's possible. But surely this idea flies in the face of an unwritten rule, no? I look to Mew, expecting to see some sign of disagreement.

She's tickling Amber's chin with the tip of her tail.

Now my brow furrows. Neither Amber nor Reina are surprised by the revelation. That can only mean one thing…

 _You all know about this already?_ I say, directing most of my ire toward Mew. She looks back at me blankly. _Don't give me that look,_ I growl, curling my fingers up into fists. _You brought all life onto this world, didn't you? And you're just going along with this happily?_

"I mean… I don't see why not," Mew says, her smile returning. "I gave the Professor what she needed to make you, didn't I?"

There it is again. That familiar weight in my chest. The constant question lingering in the back of my mind. Why am I here? Why was I created? Helping people is such a vague answer. If I was molded in Mew's image, but she has powers I can't even comprehend, then what purpose do I really serve?

The Professor sighs and slumps back in her chair. "I was afraid you might react like this," she says.

What's that supposed to mean, huh?

"You wield your psychic powers phenomenally," the Professor continues. "But that _does_ give you a tendency to overthink things."

How am I overthinking this? Even if my life circumstances are _far_ different than yours, your big announcement isn't something I can take lightly.

I flinch. In my heart of hearts, I really am delighted about this. I never have to lose the Professor! We can stay together… solving the riddles of the universe! What's not to love about that? Maybe she's right. I could be overthinking this…

"It's simple, really," Mew says. I shudder. Even now, hearing her speak in human tongue unsettles me. Perhaps because it's a skill I can never replicate? "The Professor's done a lot of good for the world." Mew wriggles free of Amber's grasp and floats into the air. "The whole reason I agreed to her idea to make you was because I was getting tired being the world's sole protector. And, well, you've exceeded my expectations and then some."

Blood rushes to my cheeks. With all her jokes about my stern expressions and apparent lack of a sense of humor — which I take offense to, as I can be plenty funny when the situation calls for it — I let myself believe Mew didn't care much for me.

"So, if the Professor really does have a way to stick around and keep the proverbial weight off my shoulders, then I'm willing to pitch in and help," Mew says. She then smirks and adds, "Besides… when you make the rules, you get to decide when to bend them."

It strikes me that this is really not the kind of conversation we should be having in front of two children. And yet, neither seem bothered. A lightbulb goes off in my head. The supply run I did last week to that human city whose name I can never remember. The Professor must've explained everything to them while I was gone.

 _Okay,_ I say. _I still have questions, but I suppose you can answer them in time. So, what's your idea, Professor?_

She spins around in her chair and presses a button. The wall at the other end of the room disappears into the floor. A new wall emerges from the darkness, containing large blue machines with flashing lights I don't quite understand. They're unimportant. The real surprise lies in the center of the platform.

It's some sort of humanoid machine!

The upper body looks much like one of those Poké Ball devices, only it's silver with gold trimmings. Its lower body even looks like a giant Poké Ball right down to the colors. I float up to the machine and run my fingers across one of its golden arms. The metal is cool to the touch. I look at its mechanical eyes and stiff red ears.

 _I'm afraid I don't understand,_ I say, turning to the Professor. _How will this help you, exactly?_

"After some legwork, I've created a robot that can house my consciousness," the Professor says. "Go ahead, turn the dial on its chest."

I grab the golden circle and twist. To my surprise, it makes the golden band open like a set of double doors. I touch the white orb sitting inside it, only to yank my hand away. My fingers tingle and I shake my hand out, trying to get rid of the feeling.

 _What is this?_ I ask, studying the orb intently.

"That, my friend, is the Soul-Heart," the Professor. "It's the vessel that you and Mew will transfer my spirit into."

* * *

Even with Mew bearing the brunt of the work load, the process of putting the Professor's being into her device leaves me exhausted. In the week that follows, even the most basic tasks like levitation and telekinesis prove difficult. I consult Mew about this, but she doesn't give me a solid answer. She says she was the only Pokémon who had ever successfully worked with spirits in the past.

I don't have the stomach to ask what she means by "successfully." The glint in her eyes tells me everything I need to know.

Perhaps the fatigue is a good thing. In my weary state, I find adjusting to the presence of the Professor's new, mechanical body to be pretty easy. Maybe she was right… maybe I was worried for nothing.

After spending the week bonding with her daughters — whatever that means — the Professor finally seems ready to test out her new body and resume her work. So, she summons me down to her study. To my surprise, the back wall isn't retracted when I arrive. In fact, all of the walls remain behind their hidden panels. The room is an empty metal box with a cold stone floor.

 _What are we going to do?_ I ask.

 **A test-pilot, in a manner of speaking,** the Professor replies, her new voice making my ears twitch. **I want to try out my body's self-defense mechanisms.**

 _You put weapons into your body?_ I gasp.

 **Yes and no,** the Professor replies. **Actually, I think it'd just be easier if I showed you.** She raises her right arm. The tip opens like a blooming flower.

I thrust my hands forward. A pink shield swallows up the blue fireball the Professor launches. I lower the Light Screen, eyes wide. _Professor… was than an Aura Sphere?_ I ask.

 **Yup! Not a very strong one, it would seem,** the Professor says. **Let's try this instead!**

 _Wait… I have questions!_ I say. The only response I get is a metal beam shooting out of the Professor's left arm. Another Light Screen snuffs that attack out. _Okay, that was Flash Cannon. Now I'm_ really _concerned. These aren't weapons… they're Pokémon moves!_

The Professor nods. **I knew I couldn't fool you,** she says, chuckling. **You can thank Mew for that. During the whole consciousness-transfer process, she put some of her energy into the Soul-Heart. I can tap into it and call on attacks just like a Pokémon.**

Another Flash Cannon rushes toward me. I snap my eyes shut and concentrate. The room dissolves around me for but a second. Then, I'm behind the Professor, psychic orbs at the ready. I throw them forward and my heart stops.

They hit the Professor. Dead on.

She tumbles to a stop by the door. I teleport over to her. Damn it… I didn't think I had put that much power into them! Her attacks weren't terribly weak. I thought she'd be able to dodge… or at least withstand the blows. Oh, real nice going, you idiot. You just killed your creat—

 **I'm alright,** the Professor says, waving me off. She rolls onto her back and picks herself up, dusting her lower body off. **Looks like I can resist psychic attacks pretty well, though I might need to make some adjustments to see if I can minimize the impact they have.** She looks up at me. **Sorry to worry you like that.**

 _No, it's my fault. You said this was just a test, but instincts kicked in and I went on the attack… like you were an adversary,_ I say, looking down guiltily. _I should know better than that._

 **You're fine,** the Professor says. It's kind of tough for me to tell if she means it. Her affect lacks its usual vigor in that body and she can no longer emote with her face. All she does is stare blankly. My chest tightens as memories of all the warm smiles the Professor had given me flood through my mind.

My tail tenses. I can't think like this. The Professor is still here. Even if she's different on the outside, it's what's inside that matters. That's what she always told me when I felt down… and that's what I have to believe.

 _Might I ask a question?_ I say, tail curling up around my waist. _Why did you give yourself attacks? Did you not create me to help maintain peace throughout the world? Do you…_

My voice trails off. This is just a tiny thought lurking in the back of mind, but it's bothering me. It's a proverbial itch I can't scratch. So, why can't I tell her about it? This is important, but I'm struggling to find the words to get my point across.

 **If you're wondering whether I've lost faith in you, then the answer's no,** the Professor says. **And if you believe I think the peace you helped achieve is only fleeting, my answer is also no.**

 _Then why let yourself use attacks?_ I ask.

 **Though major conflicts have died off, there will always be danger in the world,** the Professor says. **Look at me. In this new body… I stand out. I'm not something you see every day. I asked Mew to give me attacks so that, if I ever found myself in trouble, I could fight back.**

 _I can protect you,_ I say, clenching my fists.

 **I know you can. But I don't want you stuck being my bodyguard,** the Professor says. **You're so much more than that. No matter what you may think, I think you can be the world's strongest Pokémon. I don't want to limit your growth by shackling you to me… if that makes sense.**

 _I suppose. Are you saying that you eventually plan to leave the lab looking like this?_ I ask, having already convinced myself she'd do no such thing. Human opinions are unpredictable. They celebrate the Professor's accomplishments, but my fear is one look at what she's done to herself and they will turn on her, even if she reveals that she had Mew's blessing to do this.

 **Yes,** she says. **I'm sure that's making you nervous, but let's face it… I would go stir crazy staying here.**

She does have a point. _My apologies. I didn't mean to press you so sorely on the issue._

 **No, no, it's quite all right,** the Professor says. **After all, healthy skepticism is the root of scientific progress.**

I feel inclined to point out that there isn't much that's scientific about this conversation, but choose to hold my tongue. At this point, asking questions will only lead to a headache that won't go away.

Instead, I continue testing the Professor's abilities. Her mechanical body does best with projectile-based attacks. As we continue working, I notice her Aura Spheres and Flash Cannons growing stronger. She even manages to catch me off guard with this strange attack I've never seen. It's a white beam surrounded by flower petals. It nearly breaks through my Light Screen barrier, but I manage to stave it off.

 _What technique was that?_ I wonder, dropping down to the floor and wiping sweat from my brow.

 **I'm not entirely sure,** the Professor replies, rubbing the back of her head. **It kind of looked like I was shooting flower petals at you, so how about we call it Petal Blast?**

 _I think that's a bit too similar to Petal Dance and Petal Blizzard,_ I say, tapping my chin. _What about Fleur Cannon? It's a lot like Flash Cannon, but still draws attention to the flowers._

 **I like it!** the Professor says. **And here I thought you weren't a fan of wordplay.**

 _I think I've spent too much time around you,_ I say, chuckling. My stomach then rumbles. I didn't think our impromptu training session had taken much out of me. Perhaps we worked longer than I thought?

 **Sounds like you need something to eat,** the Professor says. **And I should really find the girls. I know they went outside before we got started, so I have no idea—**

The room shakes. The Professor topples onto her side and I'm there in an instant to help her back up. _What just happened?_ I ask. _Was that an earthquake?_

The Professor steps on a floor panel. Her main computer terminal emerges in the center of the room. She walks up to it and taps a screen with her arm. **That's odd. The computers aren't reading any shifting tectonic plates. Maybe a wild Pokémon is upset?**

Another tremor grips the room. Sparks jump around the computer screen. I'm barely able to yank the Professor back with my psychic grip before the screen explodes.

 _Something's wrong,_ I say, narrowing my eyes.

 **The girls,** the Professor says, making for the door. **They're outside! We've got to get them… now!**

I fly past the Professor just as another quake grips the room. This doesn't make any sense. The lab is in a human bunker. It shouldn't be shaking like this!

 **Hang on! Wait for me! We don't know what we're dealing with,** the Professor shouts. Wincing, I turn back around and levitate her toward me. I resume flying up the stairs, the Professor hovering behind me.

The moment I reach the entry hall, a white flash blinds me. A thunderous explosion sounds from nearby. The blast is too loud. I feel popping inside my skull. With a cry of pain, I drop to the ground, taking the Professor with me.

Ringing.

All I hear is ringing.

I throw my hands up against my ears. Stop! Stop! Make the ringing stop!

Warm liquid trickles onto my fingers. I'm… hurt? But nothing hit me.

No… it's my ears. Fluid's filling my ears! But the ringing… argh! It's still there! Even as my vision comes into focus, the ringing won't stop.

The Professor is standing next to me, gesturing frantically toward the doorway. I can't tell if she's speaking. Her metal mouth won't move. I force myself to sit up… and my stomach churns.

The door's been blown off its hinges. Flames have swallowed up the lab's entrance! Why? How? The lab had radars. They could pick up anything suspicious and sound the alarms. This can't be happening!

The Professor tries to part the flames with a Flash Cannon. But the fire lurches violently in her direction. She stumbles back and falls to the floor. I get to my feet, but the whole room spins. This damn ringing! That explosion… we weren't in the blast zone, but the shockwave must've disrupted my psychic powers.

I stagger to my right, then sway to my left. C'mon, get a grip! Amber and Reina need me! I can get past this!

Gripping my head with one hand, I fire a psychic blast into the flames, blowing them apart like they were nothing but candles on a human birthday cake. But just that one attack sent a shock through my head. Colors flickered in my vision. I dropped to one knee, gripping my head in agony.

No… push on! I can do this! I _have_ to do this!

I float out through the doorway and my heart jumps into my throat.

It isn't just the doorway on fire. _Everything_ is burning. The grass… the forests… the mountains off to the west. All consumed by flames! Smoke chokes my vision. My eyes water. I cup a paw over my mouth.

Where are Amber and Reina? I want to scream… to project my telepathy as far as I can… but the crushing pain in my head is too much. The smoke is too thick. I can't stay out here for much longer. What am I supposed to do? How did this even happen?

Another bright flash nearly blinds me, but I'm able to get my arm up to shield my eyes. I dare to look up at the source of the flash and my arm goes limp.

Something's floating high up in the sky. And it's glowing with a golden, circular aura. I can't fully make out what it is, but I see shadows radiating out from it. They're… arms?

I squint my eyes, trying to count how many I can see. Ten… fifty… one hundred… five hundred…

What is going on here?! This can't be a Pokémon, can it?

A primal roar thunders from the heavens. Hundreds of invisible needles stab at my skull. I drop to my knees, throwing my hands over my ears and echoing the creature's agonized cry.

This has to be a dream. If I could just wake up… I _have_ to wake up. Amber… Reina… Professor…

I dare to look up again… and see a shockwave explode out of the golden creature. My jaw drops.

I see meteors.

Hundreds of thousands of meteors.

All of them heading for the surface.

And some heading right for me!

I scramble to my feet, but my stomach can't take the vertigo. Doubling over once more, I spit up a mouthful of frothy pink liquid onto the ground. I'm shaking. I look back over my shoulder. The meteors are getting closer!

This isn't a dream. I'm staring death in the face! I have to get inside… have to save the Professor…

 **What the— dear god… what's going on?**

With a howl, I lunge through the doorway. More bile builds up in my throat as I grab the Professor in my psychic group. Before she can protest, I fly into the stairs and slam the door shut.

I hear another explosion, and then everything goes black.

* * *

My eyes open to darkness. And pain. Unimaginable pain. I try to tap into my psychic powers, but my mind screams back in protest.

It wasn't a dream. The meteors… the explosions… and the multi-armed monster that made them… it was all real.

I couldn't get the Professor down into the bunker fast enough. That last explosion swept us up. I failed her.

No, I can't think like that. If I'm still alive, she might be, too. I just need to figure out my situation.

Something heavy's crushing me. That much is certain. It's pressing on my gut and my groin. I try to take a deep breath, but something stabs at my left and I give up. I must've broken a rib or two. Keeping my breathing short and sharp, I try to get a better sense of my condition. I can't feel my tail whatsoever. Please just let it be broken, I tell myself. The alternative makes me sick to my stomach.

Speaking of which, there's an awful, pungent odor tickling my nostrils. After a couple of whiffs, I realize it's vomit. I must've thrown up right when the explosion hit. How I didn't choke on the stuff and suffocate to death is beyond me. Though, given the state I'm in, now, perhaps that option would've been better. Everything hurts so much. I just want it to stop.

Wait a second… I know Recover! If I can just fight through the pain for a few seconds, I can heal off some of my injuries. I squeeze my eyes shut and grit my teeth, concentrating. My skull burns and my head pounds, but I manage to tap into my powers. A cooling relief floods my body. Feeling returns in my tail. I shudder as broken ribs snap back into place. Eventually, a gasp escapes my lips. Despite being pinned down, I'm able to turn my right and cough up bitter blood.

I lay under the rubble for another minute. After that, I manage to wriggle my right arm free. I press my hand against the concrete slab pinning me to the ground and funnel psychic energy into my fingers. The rubble shoots upward, blasting aside other pieces of debris. With a strained grunt, I fly up through the hole I created before more rubble fills it up.

I can only stagger forward a couple of steps before dropping to my hands and knees, panting heavily. It's then that I see the gashes still peppering my figure. Vomit and bloodstains cover my skin, stinging to the touch. I stumble to my feet, but the sights awaiting me send me falling back onto my tail in disbelief.

… it's gone. It's all gone.

The burning forest… the mountains in the distance… gone!

Embers smolder a few feet in front of me, where the ground abruptly gives way. I fire a small psychic ring from my shaking hand, parting the smoke… only to find the ground suddenly drops off. There are jagged fragments of land jutting in random directions. I see swathes of orange beneath them.

I stagger forward, unable to fully process what I'm witnessing. But a wall of heat drives me back, arm covering my head in a pathetic attempt at a shield. I shoot more psychic energy forward, stirring a fresh round of nausea. Again, I step forward, this time more cautiously. That's when I see it.

Magma.

Lava geysers erupt in the distance, choking the air with even more ash. The scent of sulfur overwhelms the blood and vomit. I wobble backwards, gripping my head with both hands.

This isn't real. It _can't_ be real. This must be some sort of twisted nightmare!

The ground shakes. I turn to my right and watch a triangular slab of land break off and tumble into the ravine. Magma plumes shoot up when it impacts, scattering embers in all directions. A few graze my arm, peppering it with blisters.

It really isn't a dream. The planet is falling apart. Its core is spilling out. I look around at the devastation and slam a fist into the ground, only to yank it back in pain.

I was supposed to keep this world safe. But now the planet… and everyone on it…

… I've failed.

The Professor… her daughters… they couldn't have possibly survived this. I try to scan for some signs of life, but only one thing registers in my mind's eyes.

That monster. The one with all the arms. _It_ did this. And I'm going to make it pay.

Even though my head's pounding, I take to the skies, encasing myself in a psychic bubble. I barrel through the ash, leaving the ruins of the lab behind. The pressure on my head grows the higher I fly, but I ignore it. Only one thing matters now. That monster _must_ be destroyed.

I break free from the ash and drop my psychic shield. All around me, the sky is a dark crimson, with purple lightning flashing across it. I don't care about that, though. The monster is still here. It's floating above me, still surrounded by a golden glow and its many arms.

I don't waist any time releasing an Aura Sphere. Not my strongest attack, but I'm still disoriented and I don't quite know how it will react to me. The blue fireball sails up into the sky, where it inexplicably vanishes before it gets close to the monster.

The monster roars… a loud shriek that brings my hands up to my ears.

… no. Something's wrong. That sounds nothing like the monster did before it unleashed those meteors. Yet, I only sense one aura in front of me. It must be a trick. I cup my hands together, charging a psychic orb between them.

That's when it happens.

The monster's golden aura falters, purple shadows gathering above it. I cease my attack as my arms fall limply to my sides.

It's not alone. It's. Not. Alone.

The furious shriek sounds once again. Above the monster, the shadows bubble like a boiling stew. I catch the faintest glimpse of another figure hidden inside them. It's… some sort of giant, heart-shaped mask? The idea seems so ridiculous, yet the sight fills my gut with an overwhelming sense of dread.

Now the monster responds with the same primal roar I heard before the meteors hit. I see some of its arms move toward the shadows. They begin to stir again, revealing… wings? No, it can't be. They have chains of hexagonal tiles where their feathers should be.

An intense blast of dark energy effortlessly turns the monster's arms aside. In fact, the blow shatters some of its arms.

It recoils, roaring in fury. I float there, mouth agape, as the broken pieces of the monster's arms rain down all around me. They almost look like… letters. Letters with eyes in them. I'm at a loss for what to make of any of this. All I know is that these creatures are quarreling… and their battle has left my home in ruins. I will take them both down… even if it's the last thing I ever do!

I fly upward, funneling as much power as I can into my hands. But before I get the chance to unleash my attack, a giant, violet eye appears in the middle of the shadows… right where I saw the heart-shaped mask.

There's another shriek.

The sky fills with circles. Each one bearing an insignia of a winged heart with horns sticking out the top and a single eye in its center.

I don't have any time left. I have to strike… now! Pointing my hands upward, I release as much psychic energy as I possibly can.

The last thing I see are giant, black, cast-iron chains shooting out of the circles. Then… nothing.

* * *

… _wake up._

There's a voice. Deep. Male. I've never heard it before.

Hold on… why do I know that it's male? What _is_ male? It sounds so familiar, but I'm not sure why. Is that what I am?

Wait… who the hell am I?

 _Wake up, my son._

The voice is addressing me… I think. I'm his son, then? What exactly is a son, though? And how am I supposed to wake up? I'm not even sure what that means!

 _You have slept long enough, Mewtwo. Awaken._

Mewtwo… is that who I am?

I hear a sigh.

 _Looks like you're going to need more help than I thought._

My eyes open, revealing a room with marble floors and pristine, white walls. Half of me thinks I've seen this before, but the other half isn't sure.

I sit up, only to scooch back in surprise. There's this… _thing_ sitting in front of me. It's white, but it's also got gray strips on it. And it has some golden circle wrapped around it. I feel like I should know what it is, but I can't come up with the right word.

No, wait! Wheel! It's a big, gold wheel!

… but how do I even know that? Why do I know that?

"Ah, good," the creature says, revealing that it's the voice I was hearing. "You were starting to worry me for a second there, my child."

I try to speak like he does, but all that I succeed in doing is making long, exaggerated grunts.

"Oh, dear… this will not do," he says, sighing. His wheel suddenly turns pink. I raise my hands up. Is he going to hurt me? I'm harmless… I think.

There's a flash of light, followed by an intense pressure on my head. I black out.

* * *

I wake up on a velvet pillow. It's as long as I am. Even my tail has room on it. My surroundings are… a marble floor, pristine, white walls, and gray pillars that stretch to a purple ceiling.

This room is… familiar? Have I been here before?

Yes, I have. This is Destiny Tower. The hundredth floor, to be more specific. Arceus, my creator— no, the _world's_ creator resides here.

Is that really true? That seems… odd. I feel like I shouldn't know that… and yet, the fact is undeniable. I'm certain this is where I am.

Okay, deep breaths. I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation, here. It's just… not coming to mind right now. My head's all fuzzy. Something about this feels… off. But I'm not sure what.

Ethereal stairs appear across the room. Arceus descends down them, his golden hooves dinging each time they press down against a step. A nagging voice in the back of my head asks me why I know that's Arceus, but that's a stupid question. Of course I know who Arceus is. He's the creator. I've _always_ known who he is…

… right?

Arceus reaches the bottom of the steps and approaches my pillow. "You're awake," he says, relieved. "That's good. How are you feeling?"

"My head hurts," I reply.

It's strange. Something about the act of saying that simple sentence irks me, but I can't tell why. Perhaps Arceus has an answer? "Actually, truth be told, I'm a bit… confused," I continue, slumping over. "My thoughts are clouded. Like, I know I'm in Destiny Tower, but I'm not sure why I know that this is Destiny Tower. Or why I know that you're Arceus and you created me." I rub my temples. "It's very frustrating. I don't suppose you know what's wrong with me, do you?"

"Indeed, I do," Arceus says, his voice heavy. "I'm terribly sorry, my child. I cannot begin to imagine how confused you must be." He paces back and forth in front of my cushion. "The truth is that… you were injured. There was a large rock slide in your home and you weren't able to escape fast enough. You sustained an awful blow to your head and lost all your memories."

The throbbing's back, with renewed vigor. My memories… are gone? Just like that? How many of them did I lose?

"But… if I lost my memories, then how do I know where we are? And who you are, for that matter?" I ask, frowning.

"Yes, well, I'm afraid I'm at fault there, my son," Arceus says, sighing. "See, it was Rayquaza who discovered your fate. He sprung you from your rocky prison and delivered you here posthaste."

Rayquaza? Rayquaza? The name rings a bell… but I can't picture what he looks like.

"When I learned what happened, I tried to use my powers to restore as many memories as I could," Arceus continues. "But it wasn't good enough. I'm sorry, my son, but most of your memories are gone… and I don't think you'll be able to get them back."

The words echo through my mind. My empty mind, apparently. So, everything's gone for good? My likes… my dislikes… my hopes… my dreams… who my friends are… I'll really never remember any of that stuff?

Something about that doesn't sit right. My stomach churns and I subconsciously put a hand over it. Arceus raises a brow at this. "Sorry. This is… a lot to take in," I say. I'm not entirely sure what sorts of powers I have at my disposal, but I doubt they'd help against Arceus if I upset him.

"It's quite all right," Arceus says, voice tranquil. "This must all come as quite a shock to you. But that's why you're here. I want to rehabilitate you as best as I can… including helping you relearn your powers, if necessary."

… it's strange. That thought should be relieving, but I don't take any solace in his offer. I'm not sure why. Arceus _did_ create me, after all, so who better to help me rediscover myself?

Yet, I can't shake this nagging little voice telling me that Arceus is lying. It doesn't make sense. What reason would Arceus have to lie? Nothing comes to mind.

Great, I just made my headache worse again.

I take a deep breath. "Um… could you just remind me of a couple of things?" I ask, rubbing my forehead. "Like… who I am? And what my purpose is?"

"Of course," Arceus says. "You are Mewtwo, one of the Legends I created to help keep this world safe from danger."

"Mew… two?" I say. That certainly feels familiar. As does the part about keeping the world safe. But I keep lingering on the part about Arceus creating me. Why, oh why, does that rub me the wrong way?

"Yes, Mewtwo," Arceus says.

"Does that mean there's a Mewone?" I wonder.

"In a manner of speaking," Arceus says, chuckling. "I did indeed design you after another Legend named Mew who, sadly, disappeared after protecting the world from a serious threat."

"What sort of threat would that be?" I ask.

Arceus flinches. It's subtle. I bet he thinks that I don't even see it, but I do. And it only makes that nagging voice grow louder.

Something is wrong. Nothing feels right. Did Arceus really create me?

Of course he did. He made this whole world!

… did he, though?

Yes!

Then why do I have this sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach?

"Come along," Arceus says as I snap to attention. "You need to relearn your abilities. It's better we start that sooner, rather than later."

Odd. He really wants to drop the subject of Mew quickly, doesn't he? Why would that be? Don't tell me that voice in my head is actually telling the truth. Argh! This is so frustrating. Why did I have to go and lose my memories in some freak accident?

I freeze with one foot dangling off the pillow.

What if Arceus made me lose my memories?

… no, I tell myself. It can't be… can it? He created me. Why would he go and do something like that? He called me his child. I'm supposed to keep this world safe, aren't I? I can't do that if my memories are missing. There's no way that's right. It was an accident, just like he said.

But if Arceus _didn't_ create me, then wouldn't he _want_ my memories gone? What if I knew something that…

My eyes widen.

What if I knew something that would undermine his authority?

"Mewtwo, are you coming?"

I look up. Arceus is nearly at the top of the stairs. Slowly, I slide off the pillow, head bowed and fists clenched.

"Yes, I'm coming," I say, brow furrowing as I walk toward the stairs.

Now I'm sure something's wrong. What if this is actually a trap? No… he would've killed me by now if that were the case. He must need me for something… and I really don't want to find out what that is. I need to get away from Arceus, but I have no idea how to use my powers. I'm stuck. I have to play along. But as soon as I'm confident in my abilities, I'm leaving.

If I can't get Arceus to tell me the truth, then I'll simply become the world's strongest Pokémon and _force_ him to.

* * *

I'm seeing them again. A heart-shaped mask and a violet eye. They've haunted my nightmares since my brief stay in the Voidlands during Dark Matter's reign of terror. Many nights I've lied awake mulling over those images. Why do they keep popping up? What do they mean? I'm always hit by this nagging sense of familiarity, but no matter how tightly I grab these thoughts, they always slip away.

I haven't told anyone about these nightmares, since I don't think anyone would care. Every time this happens, a small part of me thinks this is Arceus' doing. He's put these images in my mind to scare me, because he refuses to let me get my memories back.

But now that I'm nearly done going through the Hidden Land and destroying the dungeon Pokémon Dialga's ley line manipulations spawned… now, I'm not so sure.

It all goes back to Latias. That stupid girl… why did she have to show up at Temporal Tower? I need to focus on protecting it, but thanks to her… my thoughts are scattered. It's the things she told us about the Guiding Light. Something about this "Necrozma" character has made these visions rear their ugly heads. And they refuse to go away. In fact, they get stronger with each dungeon Pokémon I defeat, because they all explode into black chains that melt away before my eyes.

As I approach the stairs, I think back on the memories I glimpsed in Latias' mind. There's something else about them besides the Necrozma stuff that's unsettling. It's the strange Pokémon those explorers overseas work with: Magearna. I've never met her in person, but I can't shake the thought that I actually know her from somewhere. It sounds baffling, but deep in my gut I feel like it must be true. Could she be related to the memories Arceus is keeping from me? Is she tied into these visions?

I hover out of the distortion field marking the end of the dungeon and enter the Old Ruins. There are murals depicting the gods that serve beneath Arceus, but I don't care about them. It's past Dialga's depiction that I drop to the ground and throw my hand up onto my forehead. My eyes shut and my face twists into a grimace.

That mask. That damn mask. I can feel it in the back of my mind. Gazing at me…

Staring at me.

It's breathing down the back of my neck.

Without even thinking, I whirl around, fists glowing.

"Why won't you just _leave me alone?!_ "

I freeze, glowing fists held up in front of me. Air. That's all there is. Oh, some rocks and stones too, I guess. But my hands are only clasping air.

… no, wait… there _is_ something tickling my palm. I open my fist, releasing some tiny… _thing._ I'm honestly not sure what it is. It's barely half the size of my hand, but it has an orange glow to it. It has wings, though. Translucent wings that it flutters, carrying it up to eye level. But all I see where a body should be is an orange ball.

What's going on here? Am I losing my mind? Did I inhale poison in the dungeon? No, I don't see any purple splotches on me. Then… is this just a figment of my imagination? I reach out toward the ball and it, in turn, lands on the back of my hand…

My world erupts in flames.

There's no pain. My mind should be screaming frantically, but it's not. I see fire all around me, but everything's gone numb. That's when it pops up… right in the middle of the wall of fire.

A white, heart-shaped mask, with a violet eye sitting in its center.

Then, everything goes dark.

* * *

 **Welcome back.**

 **The tale has concluded.**

 **These are the undeniable truths of this world. Truths that the thousand-armed creature has kept hidden.**

 **Fragments of my essence… forge the core of this world.**

 **A core the Pokémon know only as… the Voidlands.**

 **How ironic.**

 **These fragments… these "ley lines"… they are necessary for this world's continued survival. But they are also the very things trying to rip the planet apart.**

 **All this time, my fragments have lingered. Sucking up the emotions of this world's inhabitants. The negativity far outweighed the positivity.**

 **I gained another identity. One with a form and a name… already familiar to me.**

 **The Pokémon disposed of it, but it returned. So, the same Pokémon disposed of it… seemingly for good.**

 **Am I upset by this? No. I already said that I do not feel. This world's destruction is inevitable.**

 **See, there is someone. A traveler from a distant realm.**

 **He has learned the truth. The thousand-armed creature realized this and sought to destroy the traveler. But he failed. Instead, the traveler was imprisoned.**

 **And yet, fragments of my essence found the traveler. They weaved themselves into his broken spirit.**

 **He is now committed to destruction. The traveler will try to bring about this world's destruction… and return it to chaos, as is intended.**

 **Will he succeed? I cannot say.**

 **But even here… in my prison… I am intrigued.**

 **I will keep watching. And see how this all plays out.**

* * *

In yet another funny case of a bonus part getting published on a significant day, today is the thirteenth birthday of the original Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games: Red/Blue Rescue Team. These games were the only ones to feature "Friend Areas," where you went to recruit your team members for an outing. Certain friend areas looked distinctly... human, such as an abandoned power plant. This lead to a somewhat niche theory in the PMD fandom that the PMD world was, at some point, populated by humans, but they all died off for some unexplained reason.

I decided to take this idea and run with it, hence this bonus part that lays things out some of the foundations for this AU. In this case, a world was wiped out. One with humans and only the original 151 Pokémon, hence why Mew is recognized as the lone deity and Mewtwo cannot recognize the Unown. I feel the need to state that this is not me being anti-Kanto or using my author's pen to give the proverbial middle finger to Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee. I just found it easiest for things to work this way.

So, as it turns out, the oldest Pokémon in this world was _Mewtwo_ , with Magearna as a close second. I hope that was at least a surprise twist. Even after Silvally's backstory, I was still getting questions asking how Pokémon like Mewtwo and Magearna can logically exist. And this is the answer. Magearna was originally supposed to have her own special episode after Episode 9 that touched on some of this stuff, but my early drafts were too awkward and, after Special Episode 1, I really didn't want to write another arc focused on a character with a dialogue quirk. Magearna is best in small, reasonable chunks.

I know Mewtwo's one of those Pokémon that gets backlash in fanfics due to its general overuse. I hope that I was at least able to make him a bit enjoyable, even for those who dislike him. As always, these bonuses are experimental, so any feedback is greatly appreciated. There are quite a few nods and references sprinkled throughout this bonus, including a Spyro one in honor of the recently-released Reignited Trilogy. I'll leave it up to you to find them. Now, for review replies...

Another guest: la palabra por "ingenuo" es "naive." Forgive me, my Spanish is not very good.

Anon Omega: well, your wait was over. Are you satisfied?

SuperOmegaGuest: Yveltal's shiny looks even _more_ like bacon. Fitting, since Xerneas and Zygarde both have shinies that look like toothpaste. Always brush after you eat!

Next time: Singing! Dancing! Action! Drama! Romance! Thrills! It's time to party it up with a beach episode! And, before you protest, yes, Shane, that was in your contract. You really should've read it over carefully.


	86. Life's a Beach

At long last, Episode 13 is upon us. This one is... going to be very different tonally from what we've seen, but I think it's a needed reprieve given what comes after it. I've put a lot of work into this one, so I hope you enjoy it.

There's also a new poll up on my profile. I suggest you give it a look after reading this chapter.

* * *

 **~Sunset Shoals~**

The steady beat of a subwoofer echoed through a long, sloped tunnel bristling with sapphire gems. A dizzying array of multicolored lights streamed through the gems, bathing the rocky ground in a veritable rainbow of tiles that cycled in a random pattern. Fluorescent seaweed protruded from either side of the path, swaying back and forth in time with the beat. The plants shifted their color in time with the sapphires and the ground.

However, the hypnotic sight was lost on the two Eeveelutions staggering up the trail, sweat matting their coats and breath coming in ragged gasps. "C… come on, Vappy!" a Jolteon cried, her fur marred by scorch marks and blood spatter. "We're almost to the entrance!"

Vaporeon lagged several paces behind her. His ear and tail fins had several tears in them where his piercings used to be. Small bits of blood trickled off of him, leaving behind a trail of spatter. Vaporeon limped forward, wincing in pain and casting a distraught look back. "It… it's no good, Jolty," he whimpered. "I'm spent. I can't…" He collapsed onto his belly. "I just can't go on."

Jolteon skidded to a halt, tears in her eyes. She dashed back to Vaporeon, tugging on his mane with her mouth. "No, you can't give up now. We've got to get back to Circadian Coast and tell everyone what's happening before it's too late!"

The baseline lingering in the air grew steadily louder, sending Jolteon's heart up into her throat. She tugged at Vaporeon with a renewed sense of vigor. "Get up, Vappy! They're catching up to us!"

"R… run… Jolty," Vaporeon wheezed. "Save yourself."

"No! I'm not leaving you behind to turn into one of them!" Jolteon said.

 _"Where do you think you're going?  
_ _We're just getting started!  
_ _No one's spoiling the fun,  
_ _Or they're getting bombarded!_

 _My groupies will strike!  
_ _They'll put you in line!  
_ _You'll join my ranks!  
_ _And make this world positively_ fine! _"_

"We found them! You heard the boss… get their hideous asses so we can gussy them up!"

The ground trembled underneath Jolteon's paws. She scrambled backward with a yip, narrowly avoiding dirt plumes. Vaporeon wasn't so fortunate, however. Bits of rocky debris pummeled him, knocking him back down the tunnel and farther away from Jolteon.

"Vappy, _no!_ " Jolteon screamed, electricity surging through her matted fur. With an angry howl, she launched her lightning through the tunnel.

Two Gastrodons dropped from the ceiling, absorbing the electricity like it was nothing more than someone tickling their backsides. The spat globs of mud in Jolteon's direction. Two bursts of steaming water raced past the Gastrodons, expanding the mud balls.

Jolteon's eyes widened. She sprinted up the path, swearing under her breath. Seconds later, the heat made the mud balls explode, flinging grime in all directions. Scaling-hot dirt smacked Jolteon's rear, singing her spiky, yellow fur. Jolteon slowed to an unsteady hobble.

 _"Oh dear, oh dear, this will not do!  
_ _Your resistance is a troublesome avenue!_

 _I hate seeing you all gunked up,  
_ _But we have to make this count!  
_ _I need a dazzling army by my side,  
_ _And you'll make a positively stunning mount!_

 _So, quit fighting and give in!  
_ _Enough of this charade.  
_ _Let my hypnotic tunes,  
_ _Take you away!_

 _Shiz-abbidy-doop! Bop de whoop!_

 _Jolteon, Vaporeon, this one's for you!"_

Jolteon's eyelids grew heavy. Her hobbling came to a stop. She looked slowly around the cavern, blinking in stunned silence. "Uuungh… n… no. Have to… warn… have to…" Her eyelids fluttered. "But the music… so heavenly…" She turned back to face the Gastrodons, now flanked by three Claunchers. "Maybe… I'll stick around… for a bit…"

She shook her head about rapidly. "No! I can't let you do this, Primarina!" she shouted. In response, the Gastrodons and Claunchers launched streams of muddy water in her direction. With a yelp, Jolteon turned to escape, only to fall over as her legs gave out from fatigue.

The grimy wave swept Jolteon up and carried her the rest of the way through the tunnel, screaming. Jolteon disappeared from sight. Seconds later, a loud splash sounded, and then the tunnel went silent, save for the distant thumping of a baseline.

"J… Jolty?" Vaporeon said, shakily picking his head up. "Jolty? _Jolty?!_ " He turned around to stare at the Tentacruel hovering over him. "You monsters! I… I…"

Tentacruel floated back from Vaporeon. Bright lights funneled in behind him. Hissing, Vaporeon threw a foreleg over his face. "What the–? Who's there?" He squinted to make out a dark silhouette in the bright, golden light. Locks of long, flowing hair fanned out in all directions from the silhouette's head. It hopped toward Vaporeon, the light growing brighter and forcing him to look away.

 _"Now, now, Vappy, no reason to panic!  
_ _Because your best pal's here to make it all better!"_

Horror overtook Vaporeon's expression as his legs tensed up. Above him, Tentacruel wrapped his torso up with his tentacles and hoisted him into the air. There, he met the silhouette's shimmering, rainbow eyes.

 _"Let the music flow through you, Vappy, babe!  
_ _Feel its groove!  
_ _Embrace its hypnotic mood!"_

A flipper stuck out and gently caressed his chin, sending a shudder down his body.

 _"Let the tension wash away!  
_ _Prism Virus? I say, no way!  
_ _I've got the power to make things right!  
_ _All I need is some help to fight the good fight!"_

Vaporeon locked up, then went limp in Tentacruel's tentacles. A few seconds of silence passed, then Vaporeon's eyes slowly opened, revealing an identical rainbow shimmer to the one in the silhouette's eyes.

 _"Hey, hey, what do you say?  
_ _Are you ready to help me seize the day?"_

Vaporeon nodded obediently.

 _"Hip-hip hooray!"_

* * *

 **Episode 13: Star-Studded Spectacle**

 **Chapter 72: Life's a Beach**

* * *

 **~Cosmic Cavern~**

Shane lay sound asleep on the floor in Zoroark's house. His nine tails were nestled against his underbelly, twitching sporadically with each breath. Shane stretched his neck slightly upward. The tip of his snout brushed up against a strip of scales. Their coarse texture made his nostrils twitch. With a silent yawn, Shane's eyes slowly opened. He wondered what time it was, because he felt surprisingly well-rested. Had he finally managed to sleep through the night?

As Shane's eyes slowly adjusted to the lack of light in the area, he saw a dark blue strip in the center of his vision. It took him a moment to realize they were scales. He blinked a few more times, then tried to sit up. In the process, his snout rubbed against something furry. Shane tucked his head back against his chest.

"What the—" Shane gasped.

"Mmmrrggh… hrrmmm… why did… you stop? That felt… nice…"

Shane's ears stuck up. "S… Silvally, is that you?" he asked, still trying to get his bearings straight.

"Yeah, I'm awake," Silvally mumbled. "Hang on… I think my neck's a bit sore. Oof, I didn't need that this morning."

"Why does your voice sound all muffled?" Shane wondered. He blinked his eyes several more times. For his efforts, he was rewarded with the edge of Silvally's tail laying inches in front of his snout.

" _Ahh!_ " Shane shouted, scooting back across the floor and scrambling to his feet. He got tripped up on Zoroark's carpeting, however, and crashed into the table. Shane rubbed a forepaw against his head, groaning loudly.

The shouts stirred Silvally from his half-awake stupor. He leaped to his feet, looking around the room in a panic. "What's wrong? Shane, did something happen?" he said.

Shane sat up, fixing an angry look on Silvally. "Yes! Why was your ass in my face when I woke up, huh?"

Silvally stood there in stunned silence. He craned his head to the right to inspect his backside. "Wait… that was you who was—" Silvally cut himself off, shaking his head. "Hold up… what are you barking at me for? I didn't do anything! Why were _you_ sleeping up against my ass, huh?"

A flush fell over Shane's face. "I wasn't… that couldn't… I didn't fall asleep there!"

"Then you must've been tossing and turning in your sleep," Silvally huffed.

"As if! You and Tessa would've woken up if I did that," Shane said, snorting out tufts of ice.

"Maybe we were all tired from yes—" Silvally started, only to turn to his left. "Can we help you two?"

Shane looked to his right, only to recoil upon seeing Zoroark and Gallian standing in the doorway to the kitchen. They both had amused grins on their faces saying they had heard everything.

"Hey! Wipe those smarmy looks off your faces. This isn't was it looks like!" Shane said.

"I dunno. These two sure seem lovey-dovey to me," Zoroark mused, smirking at Gallian. "Didn't Dusk catch us in a similar situation when Midnight put Sleep Seeds into our breakfast that one time?"

"She did, yeah. Wouldn't shut up about it, either," Gallian said, his smirk turning into his typical scowl.

"We're not a couple!" Shane and Silvally barked in unison. They turned to each other, muzzles agape. Shane then looked away, face cherry-red.

"Okay, even I got to admit that one was funny," Silvally said.

"Stop encouraging them," Shane growled.

"See? They even argue like mates," Zoroark said, doubling over laughing.

"Har, har. What a comedian," Shane said. "Yeah, let's all get our licks in on the human who's still not entirely sure how love and mating and all that stuff works around here." He turned away from everyone in the room, grumbling in frustration.

"Oh, will you relax? We were only teasing," Zoroark said.

"Yeah, well it's not very nice," Shane huffed.

"You're talking to a couple of dark-types, what were you expecting?" Gallian said, drawing a tearful look from Shane. "Okay, look, the fact is my sister and Espeon got up before you two. One of them nudged you over and you fell by Silvally's rear. I saw it for myself because they woke me up in the process."

"And you didn't try to fix it?" Shane growled.

"You were zonked out, dude," Gallian said. "I didn't want to wake you up. A 'mon needs a good night's sleep after they evolve."

"Okay, fine, whatever. It's water under the bridge," Shane said, sighing in defeat. He looked around the room. "So, should we get ready to leave? Where did Tessa and Espy go, for that matter?"

"We're right here."

Espy's voice carried through the room, then light filled up the house from a Luminous Orb Espy activated. She walked over to the table, dropping her satchel off on it and stretching her back. "Sorry if we woke anyone up," she said. "Tessa asked to work with me a bit before we left."

"On what, exactly?" Shane asked, looking at his teammate in concern.

"I wanted to make a couple of adjustments to my moves," Tessa said, wiping sweat from her brow. "It's nice to finally have Aura Spheres at my disposal, but they're a still finicky. Now that I'm a Lucario, I'd like some other ranged attacks, so I don't have to go charging into the fray to get a clean hit in."

"It just so happened that, between Team Go-Getters and us, we had the TMs for Psychic and Flash Cannon," Espy explained. "Perfect for a Lucario in training, I suppose."

"Oh… okay," Shane said, recalling Tessa's grief at having felt useless against Serperior. He sheepishly brushed one forepaw against the other. "Did… um… did that stuff go okay?"

In response, Tessa pivoted to face the floor, where the team's item bag sat. She pointed her paws at it and a pink glow overtook them. Matching pink light flickered around the bag. It hovered a couple of inches off the ground. All the while, Tessa's paws and aura feelers trembled. After a couple of seconds, she dropped the bag back to the ground and lowered her arms, breathing heavily.

"It's… it's getting there," she panted.

"That was pretty good, considering you're already tired," Espy said, putting her satchel back on. "In any case, Latias and Hoopa are back. So, it's time to get going."

"Already? What about breakfast?" Shane said. His stomach growled in agreement.

"We'll have to eat when we've settled into Circadian Coast," Silvally said. "C'mon, we shouldn't keep the others waiting."

They walked out into the center of the village, where they found Teams Paradox and Go-Getters waiting for them. Latias and Hoopa hovered a foot behind them. The former caught sight of Team Radiance and flew up toward them. Her eyes looked even more bloodshot than when they had last met and her feathers were completely disheveled. Claw marks were visible along her forehead, much to the shock of Team Radiance.

"Oh, gods… Latias, what happened to you?" Tessa gasped, throwing a paw up over her muzzle.

"It's nothing," Latias whispered, wincing. "Don't worry about it."

"My leftmost tail it's nothing. You look awful," Shane said, frowning. "You weren't attacked, were you?"

"No. I just… had to meet with Rayquaza," Latias whispered. "He's… he's…" She closed her eyes and shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I don't want to talk about any of this. We should focus on you guys right now." Her tired eyes glowed blue and she produced two glimmering metal bands from her bag. "I was able to get two more Naturia Looplets. Now, I know Team Go-Getters already has special looplets of their own. So, I figured Luxeira or Seraph could have one and Gallian or Zoroark could take the other."

The band with a sapphire in its center floated behind Latias. Seraph plucked it out of the air and held it up. "Luxeira told me I can use a Z-Move with this thing. Is that true?" she said.

"Yes, but only once per dungeon you set foot in," Latias said. "If you get confused, just ask one of your teammates." She levitated the other band toward Team Radiance while Seraph shrugged and slipped the looplet on.

"You should probably take it," Zoroark said, pointing to Gallian. "I don't really think I can go leaping into the fray again."

Gallian nodded and grabbed hold of the looplet with his mouth. He set it down on the ground and went about securing it to his right foreleg. "Sure feels weird to have one of these things again," he said.

"Hey, where did you guys get rainbow ribbons from?" Shane wondered, looking between Gallian and Zoroark.

"Espeon has one, too. Around the base of her tail," Seraph said. "Is that what you terrestrials consider clothing? It's pretty ski– _oomph!_ "

Luxeira smacked her right horn against Seraph's back.

"Oh, it's nothing, really," Espy said. "Salazzle had some leftover fabric from when she worked on your guys' rainbow scarves. I thought, if we're all travelling together, we might as well attempt to match."

"Alright. If that's settled, we should get going," Dusk said.

"Right." Latias faced the Rem Canyon expedition team. "The 'mons that you guys are meeting up with from the Horizon Guild have a special communicator. I've got one on me, as does Team Radiance," she explained. "If you want, you guys can keep each other informed of your progress. I might be a bit tougher to reach, depending on what I'm doing."

"I don't see a problem with that," Espy said, checking her satchel to confirm the Gear-Com was in it.

"Great," Latias said. "Hoopa, if you'd be so kind?"

Hoopa smirked. "Finally! Stand back everyone… Alléhooparing!" he shouted, pointing his hands forward. Two golden rings flew out in front of him, forming into swirling purple portals. "On the left, you'll find a gateway to the _lovely_ Rem Canyon. And, if you turn your attention to the right, we have a stunning, one-way, all expenses paid trip to Circadian Coast," Hoopa declared, waving his hands enthusiastically.

"Somebody shut him up… _please_ ," Seraph groaned, rubbing her temples as she marched toward the appropriate portal.

"Aww, c'mon, kitty, no need to lie. Hoopa's a great MC!" Hoopa said, his smirk broadening. Rather than offering a retort, everyone hastily funneled into their respective portals. Hoopa shut the rings behind them. "Well, that takes care of that," he said.

"Yeah. Onto our next task," Latias said.

Hoopa turned around to face her, his expression darkening. "You know… if Meganium and Delphox were here, they'd chew you out for letting Rayquaza hit you like that," he said.

"I don't want to talk about this," Latias whispered, biting her lower lip.

"Fine then. Don't," Hoopa said, shrugging. "All I'm saying is you stood up to Dialga yesterday, but you couldn't do the same for Rayquaza?"

"Yesterday was different… I had you there as backup," Latias whispered. She closed her eyes and shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I have nothing else to say. Let's go."

Hoopa sighed and tossed a ring portal in front of them. They flew right through it, leaving Cosmic Cavern behind.

* * *

 **~Circadian Coast~**

Team Radiance emerged from Hoopa's ring portal onto an expansive beach. Bright-tan sand stretched in front of them for several yards. Far in the distance, palm trees hung down from the edges of a small jungle. Nobody could tell whether or not the trees held any fruit or coconuts, though.

Instead, they looked at a short stone ramp that led up into the town. Rather than seeing multiple buildings, Team Radiance saw one large, rectangular building. The two shorter sides of the rectangle had several floors to them, while the longer sides were only two stories tall. Imbrices and tegulae tiles sat overlapping one another on the roof in alternating columns of orange and sky-blue. By contrast, the walls were mostly white. However, the side that faced Team Radiance had a mural of rolling ocean waves painted across its base, underneath the windows.

"Hey, Tessa, what gives? Back when we started out, you told me Aeon Town was the biggest community in Horizon. This place seems way bigger," Shane said, scratching his head in confusion.

"Err, well, Dad always said something about Circadian Coast not counting," Tessa said, fidgeting with her paws.

"Yeah, because it's a giant tourist trap," Gallian said, drawing surprised looks from his teammates. "Those were Mom's words, not mine. She was always insistent on never letting us come here lest we 'get our heads stuck in the clouds like those fopdoodles in Team Harmony.'"

"Wouldn't 'stuck in the sand' be a bit more appropriate in this context?" Zoroark quipped. Gallian rolled his eyes. "Still, it's quite surprising to see a building that… large. What do you suppose it is?"

"No idea," Silvally said. "I'm more interested in this wall behind us." His teammates turned around. Sitting in front of them was a wall made from a combination of rocks and large, inflated burlap sacks. The wall stood a few inches taller than the tip of Silvally's head crest. He walked up to it and nudged one of the bags with his beak.

"I think there's sand in here," he said. "What do you suppose is on the other side?"

"The Midnight Sea," Tessa replied, to looks of confusion from everyone else. "Don't you guys remember? The guild did an expedition here a little over a month ago. Magearna mentioned something about installing fortifications against the rising tide from the Midnight Sea. We must be looking at them."

"Speaking of which, I think someone's not happy that we're over here. I'm picking up a couple of energy signatures heading this way," Espy said, tail flicking to her right.

Tessa momentarily shut her eyes. Her aura feelers tensed. "Oh, you're right," she said. The group turned back around to find an orange-furred rodent with white paws and feet floating toward them atop its yellow, surfboard-shaped tail. Its cream-colored chest bore a yellow pendant that housed a familiar-looking multicolored crystal.

"Okay, I'm guessing by those yellow dots on its cheeks this thing's related to Togedemaru," Shane said, his brow furrowed.

"Close, but not quite. That's a Raichu," Tessa said. "And, by the looks of it, he's the Totem around here."

"Seriously?" Shane gasped. He shook his head with a groan. "Look, I'm used to the whole 'some Pokémon in Horizon are different' thing, but I've still got a couple of questions. For one, why is he surfing through the air on his tail?"

"Raichus in Horizon are part psychic," Silvally replied. "I'm not actually sure they can learn Surf, though. Was that your other question?"

"No. I want to know why the powers that be thought it'd be a good idea to make Raichu look like a cinnamon bun!" Shane whined, saliva dripping out of his mouth and onto the sand. "I was already hungry enough, but this is making everything worse!"

"Yo!" Totem Raichu called, waving down the group. "Listen, if you folks are tourists, I'm gonna have to ask you to head back to the resort, yeah. Evening Beach is closed because of the tidal issues and I can't risk anything happening to our barricade."

He floated up to the group and came to an immediate stop, hovering in midair. Curiously, a pair of spiky, yellow ears popped out from behind Totem Raichu's head. No one on Team Radiance felt compelled to point it out.

"Err, sorry about that, Totem, sir," Tessa said. "We actually just got here, so we didn't know."

"Whoa… easy there, cousin," Totem Raichu said, smiling and holding up his hands. "No need to get all formal with that 'Totem' business. Everyone around here knows me as the Kahuna. Kahuna Raichu. Sounds much more mellow, yeah?"

"Uh… yeah," Shane said. He lifted a forepaw and wrung it out. "Mahalo… and all that jazz."

"Nice! I see someone's already got the local lingo down," Kahuna Raichu said, beaming.

Shane grinned sheepishly, ignoring the stunned expressions on his teammates' faces. He fought back the urge to say something about the human world. Instead, he said, "Aha ha… well, I try. After all, us Horizon Guild members need to be up to speed on that stuff, yeah?" He pivoted to show off his badge. Likewise, Tessa, Silvally, and Gallian showed off theirs.

"Ah, that'd explain it, then," Kahuna Raichu said. "At first I thought Totem Ninetales had come down from Solstice Summit to visit. After all, she's the only Ninetales in Horizon, last I heard. But I realized you were too short."

"Totem… Ninetales?" Shane said, blinking in surprise. He wanted to follow-up on that subject, but Tessa stepped in front of him.

"Aha ha… nope, we're just up-and-coming guild explorers," she said. "Ninetales' situation is a bit… unusual, that's all."

"Fair enough," Kahuna Raichu said, shrugging. "So, are you guys here to check on the barricade? You should've dropped by the resort first, yeah. My daughter and I would've been happy to help you out."

"Your… daughter?" Zoroark said, tilting his head.

"There's a Pikachu clinging to the back of his head," Silvally announced, his appendages glowing pink from his psychic memories.

"Oh, right. How rude of me not to introduce her," Kahuna Raichu said. "C'mon, it's your time to shine, yeah!"

"Excellent!" a peppy, high-pitched voice declared. To Team Radiance's surprise, Pikachu vaulted over her dad, landing in the dirt and thrusting her arms apart while shouting, "Ta-daaaaaaah! And she sticks the landing!"

"Wait a tic, I've seen this before," Shane gasped, looking Pikachu over. In stark contrast to the rest of the group, Pikachu had on a pink, sequined skirt, with a matching bowtie, slippers, and a ribbon on her right ear. The ribbon had the Horizon Continent's emblem painted in the center.

"You're a Cosplay Pikachu!" Shane realized, his tails fanning out in surprise. "How the heck— this doesn't make _any_ sense… and that's saying something by our standards."

"Cos-what? Is that some kind of Pikachu subspecies?" Silvally asked, looking Cosplay Pikachu over skeptically.

"I'm Cosplay Pikachu! We're exceedingly rare. Like, once in a century rare!" she said, pivoting to wiggle her black tail at Silvally. "See the tail? It houses special psychic energy in it." She turned back around and tapped a digit against the yellow sphere on her bow tie. "I channel it through this orb here to use my special technique: Wonderous Weaves! Watch and be amazed!"

Cosplay Pikachu pressed her paw against the orb's bolt-shaped emblem. A flurry of pink energy with fabric-like texture raced around her. It disappeared a second later, revealing Cosplay Pikachu in a white poncho with a hood resembling Shane's head. Nine tails fanned off the back of the poncho, fluttering in the morning breeze.

"Whoa!" Shane said, tails bristling defensively. "That's… you're me? But I thought Cosplay Pikachu only had, like, five different outfits. What is this witchcraft?"

"Witchcraft? No… it's my Wonderous Weaves! Weren't you paying attention?" Cosplay Pikachu chided, shaking her head. "And here I thought Ninetales was supposed to be elegant and graceful." She pirouetted.

In less than a day as a Ninetales, Shane found his limited grip on the Pokémon world rapidly slipping. He again fought the urge to make a smart remark. "Uh… just forget I said anything," he exclaimed.

"We're not actually here about that wall," Tessa said. "It's, um, a more sensitive issue."

"Oh, are you all here about my request then?" Kahuna Raichu asked, raising a brow. A group of confused stares met him. "I sent a request to the Observatory the other day. See, we're having ourselves a bit of a… well… I hesitate to use the word 'crisis' but it ain't good for business, yeah."

In a twirl of colorful fabric, Cosplay Pikachu switched her poncho out for one that resembled a Sableye, complete with a brooch resembling the ruby in a typical Sableye's chest. "It's positively spooky, I tell ya! Tourists keep heading out to Morning Beach… only to disappear entirely!" she said, sticking her tongue out and shaking her head about in a bad impression of a ghost-type.

"Pokémon are disappearing?" Tessa gasped, aura feelers crinkling in surprise. "This is the first we've heard of it."

"Probably because we've been away from the Observatory for a few days," Silvally said.

"Yeah, I sent the request yesterday. Metagross is usually on top of this stuff, so I figured he sent you guys," Kahuna Raichu said. "I guess not."

"Well, hold on a second. I'd like to a hear a bit more about this 'disappearing tourists' business," Shane said. "Specifically, how long has it gone on for?"

Kahuna Raichu tapped his chin. "Hmm… I'd say it's been a few days, yeah."

Shane's ears folded against his head. "I was afraid of that," he groaned. Turning to his teammates he said, "How much do you guys want to bet this issue is tied to the Seaside Shard?"

"You're probably right," Espy said, frowning. "The timing's too convenient to be some sort of coincidence." The rest of the team nodded their agreement.

"Seaside Shard? What are you guys talking about?" Cosplay Pikachu wondered.

"It has to do with why we're here," Shane said. "See—"

Tessa clamped Shane's muzzle shut. She shot nervous glances around the beach. "Um, Kahuna Raichu? Do you have somewhere private we could talk?"

"Of course," Kahuna Raichu said. "Let's head to the resort. I need to check on some stuff in the bar, anyway. It's closed at this hour, so we'll have all the privacy we need."

"A… a bar? Like, a drinking bar?" Espy said, ears sticking up. She shot Silvally a nervous look. How was she supposed to walk into a bar a day after she had sworn off drinking and act like nothing was wrong?

"You know it," Kahuna Raichu said. "We serve up the best grub and drinks on the whole Horizon Continent, yeah! Just don't tell Crabrawler that," he added, chuckling to himself.

"Um… I don't suppose we could trouble you for some food, could we? We kind of skipped breakfast to get here," Shane said, his stomach gurgling.

"No worries, cousin. I'll whip you guys up some Sparksurfer Breakfast Burritos. They're a Circadian Coast specialty," Kahuna Raichu offered, grinning.

"A breakfast burrito? Like with actual meat?" Shane gasped. He had to gulp down a mouthful of spit. It sounded great, except Shane wasn't sure if that meant Kahuna Raichu went and killed other Pokémon to get meat.

"Shane, we went over this when you tried Steenee's beef stew for the first time. Magearna created power formulas for civilized 'mons to use to make meat and milk-based products," Tessa said, shaking her head.

"Oh… right," Shane said, embarrassed at getting called out.

"Hey! You all coming or what?" Cosplay Pikachu shouted from a few yards ahead. She was positioned on Kahuna Raichu's back as he floated toward the resort. Team Radiance jogged along after them, with Gallian lingering behind to help Zoroark.

When they reached the end of the beach, they walked up the stone stairs. Kahuna Raichu led them toward the right side of the giant building, where a giant gap sat. A stone archway lay over the top of the gap, offering the group shade from the sunlight.

It turned out that the large rectangular building was a border surrounding the whole resort. Inside of it were several smaller buildings sporting an array of bright, vibrant, tropical colors. The shop closest to Team Radiance was structured to look like a green quartz crystal. The sign read "Sky Jukebox Emporium." Other shops offered different novelty wares or tropically-themed accessories for Pokémon. Shane spotted a Seviper and Arbok slithering out of a store selling exotic fruits, both with content smiles on their faces.

"Uh… wow," Tessa said, looking at the trio of palm trees sticking up between two stores. "Is this all part of the resort?"

"You know it, cousin! The town _is_ the resort," Kahuna Raichu declared, grinning. "All the fine folks that set up shop here specialize in producing goods and services you're not likely to fine elsewhere in Horizon. We've got home-grown fruits and veggies, herbal treatments and remedies, massage therapy…"

Shane's head poked up and his tails wagged excitedly. "I could go for something like that," he chirped.

"Uh, we're on a tight schedule, remember?" Silvally said, to Shane's disappointment.

"What we're known for worldwide is our production and distribution of Sky Jukeboxes and music crystals," Kahuna Raichu continued.

"Wait, you guys make those here?" Espy gasped.

"Oh, totally!" Cosplay Pikachu said. She hopped off her dad's back and spun around, changing into a poncho of a Sky Forme Shaymin. She plucked a blade of grass from the ground and stuck it in her mouth. "Because of the way ocean water crashes up against the rocks in Sunset Shoals, we can mine the materials we need by going there. Then we take them back here and make the final products. Well, Dad and I don't specifically, but there are 'mons here who know how to make them."

Shane wondered if that made them this world's blacksmith equivalents, but knew that comment would only draw blank looks. "How exactly do music crystals work, anyway?" he asked.

"Eh, it's got something to do with magic and psychic energy," Cosplay Pikachu said. "Primarina would be the one to ask because he works with them a ton. He said something about how you press them against your head and _think_ about the music you want to produce. The crystal then absorbs your thoughts and transfers them into actual sounds. Then you sing into the crystal if you want your song to have vocals."

Shane wished music worked that way for humans. If it was that easy, he could've been a famous musician. Heck, he could probably do that here if he could get his paws on a music crystal.

"Not to put a damper on all of this, but where exactly are you taking us?" Gallian asked, looking cautiously around the area. While there weren't many Pokémon out and about, he was wary of being spotted in the middle of a town.

"To the other end of the town," Kahuna Raichu said, pointing an arm forward. "That's where the actual lodgings for guests are. I call it 'The Circadian Kabana!' Pretty slick, yeah?"

"It does sound catchy," Silvally said.

Everything was getting weirder for Shane. So much of Circadian Coast felt ripped out of tropical destinations he knew from the human world. He wanted to question it, but considering this was a world where he could breathe ice and fire despite not being a dragon, he shrugged it off.

The group passed more shops. One stand had a thatched roof resembling a Kecleon's head. It was manned by a Kecleon whose scales were primarily orange instead of green. "Huh, he kind of looks like a pineapple," Zoroark said. "Wonder if he did that intentionally?"

"I strongly doubt Color Change works that way," Espy said.

"I'll have to take your word for it. Illusions are really all I'm familiar with," Zoroark said. He offered a friendly wave toward Kecleon, but the shopkeeper's expression blanched upon seeing him. Zoroark's ear drooped. "Oh, great, looks like some of the folks here aren't too keen on Zoroarks."

"Nonsense," Kahuna Raichu dismissed. "You're with the guild. They'll love you, cousin. He's just gawking because you're strutting around town with me. While I try to get to know all the guests at the Kabana, I don't offer personal escorts."

Team Radiance proceeded through the center of the resort, passing a marble fountain with statues of a male and female Milotic lovingly intertwined with one another. The rim held multiple stone statues of a small sealion with a round nose at the end of its snout. They all spat streams of water into the fountain.

"Hmm… so, is that Pokémon spitting the water out a pre-evolved form of Primarina?" Shane asked.

"Yeah, that's a Popplio," Tessa replied. "Who knows? Maybe we'll find one around here."

"Oh, most definitely. There are Popplios and Brionnes that work with Primarina as his backup dancers for his performances," Cosplay Pikachu said. "Check it!" She pointed a paw to her right, revealing a large, pink and blue building that resembled a giant clamshell. "That's our theater! Primarina does paid concerts there… as does yours truly!" Cosplay Pikachu spun around in a stream of threads, emerging in the same outfit that Team Radiance first saw her in.

"Lemme guess, you go by Pikachu Pop Star in that getup?" Shane said, having finally given into the persistent urge to make a quip.

"Ah, I see I've got myself a fan," Cosplay Pikachu said, starry-eyed. Then, in a harsher tone, she said, "If you want an autograph, it's gonna run you fifty coins."

"Err… I'll pass," Shane said, a nervous grin on his face.

"Alright, cousins, here we are: The Circadian Kabana!" Kahuna Raichu declared, putting his hands proudly on his hips. Team Radiance lined up next to him, looking up in unison at the numerous stories of the large building's northern face. The top floor contained a single circular window with a vibrant orange sun painted around it. Lower floors had fluffy clouds drawn around the windows. Swathes of blue ran in between them, giving way to a dark blue mural of the sea along the ground level.

"Come on, let's get you all situated inside, yeah. We can talk more once we've gotten you some grub," Kahuna Raichu said, directing Team Radiance to follow him through a door made from straw and giant palm leaves.

* * *

 **~Rem Canyon~**

 **Is your gadgetry picking up any readings?**

Magearna swiveled her head around, catching Sticky and Team Go-Getters by surprise. Sticky flew behind Luxeira, fidgeting nervously with his arms. "Erm… try not to do that around my partner. He's a bit jumpy," Luxeira said.

"Same here," Blaziken deadpanned, patting Swampert on the back reassuringly.

 **Ah, my apologies. I figured this was typical fare for working with a mechaniacal 'mon like myself,** Magearna said. **In any case, we're approaching the first point in the dungeon where there's a split in the path.**

The expedition team made their way along a dusty brown trail bordered on each side by a large gray cliff. Huge rock formations jutted up at the base of the cliff. Each one was carved to display a different dragon in some sort of pose. The rock nearest to Magearna showed a Garchomp with its finned arms raised triumphantly. Across from it sat a stone Salamence leering down at the ground, as if challenging them to approach.

"I get the feeling the dragons living here have some _very_ high opinions of themselves," Seraph said, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "We'd probably do best to keep to ourselves."

 **Which is precisely why I requesticated that Sticky begin scanning the area for ultra auras,** Magearna said. **If we can locate the Scalebound Shard with our equipment, we might be able to retrievify it while causing minimal disruptions to the Pokémon living here.**

Sticky's visor materialized over his eyes. It flashed purple for a few seconds, then Sticky shrugged. "Sorry, but I'm not picking anything up. We'll have to go deeper into this place."

"… absolutely, positively ain't making me stay in here in a minute longer!"

"Sounds like someone else is here," Blaziken said, crouching into a fighting stance.

"They didn't sound very threatening, though. That's about as shrill a voice as I've ever heard," Swampert said, looking farther down the path. "Do you think it's a dragon?"

"I made it perfectly clear to you, _mate._ We're laying low here until all this nonsense bubbles over. And we need you around because you're a dragon… so you can keep the dragons that live here off our backs, got it?"

Magearna held up one of her arms. **I recognize those voices. That was Lycanroc… the one who ran afoultery of the guild after Shane upset him.**

Dusk's brow furrowed. "No kidding. How'd he end up _here?_ He must be pretty desperate."

"If that's really Lycanroc, I'll bet that shrill voice we heard was Jangmo-o," Comfey said. "What should we do?"

"Nuh… no! You can't make me stay here. I've… I don't want to be here, all right. Stand aside and let me g—"

A sudden whoosh of fire caught the group by surprise. They all backed up along the path, readying themselves to strike, if necessary.

"Well, well, well," a deeper male voice snorted. "Look at what we've got here. The runaway runt has come crawling back home. Nab 'em, gang! The Totem's gonna want to welcome his son home, after all."

More flames emerged from farther down the path, this time accompanied by dragonfire and electricity. "Uh, are we gonna do something?" Dusk asked.

"Nah, we should stay out of it," Seraph said. "You said he was a criminal, right? Let the dragons deal with him. If they're distracted with Lycanroc, we can accomplish our goal in peace."

"They said something about the Totem, though," Dusk pointed out. "I've got a sinking feeling the Totem might know something about the Scalebound Shard."

 **Let's not think like that yet,** Magearna said. **The voices were clearly coming from the left path, so we should proceed right for the time being. Onward!**

The group went right at the fork, ignoring the panicked yelps and hollers coming from the left path.

* * *

Once again, I'd like to thank all of you for the support. It's crazy to think how much this one piece has grown from this point a year ago. I never would've thought this project would reach the level that it has, especially since this is my only fic and PMD fics do not have the popularity that anime-based fics have on this site. Who knows, maybe this'll hit the 750 review mark before the 100th part... though please don't use that as cause to spam the review section. My PM inbox is open and I linger around on Discord, too. Anyway, enough sentimentality. Onto review replies...

SuperOmegaGuest: this part, like all my chapters, had its draft finished long before I published it. I couldn't have anticipated that World of Light trailer. We're not going to see Galeem in this fic, that's for sure.

Anon Omega: you're on the right track. Arceus destroyed the old world using Judgement (the fully-powered version), but Mewtwo and Magearna survived by virtue of being in a bunker. Mewtwo was knocked out incidentally by the demon attacking Arceus. What happened after he passed out is a mystery. One we'll find out the answer to later. As for Let's Go, I passed on them. Too many things irked me about the game. I'm Team Eevee for sure, though.

Another guest: you're welcome to speculate but, yes, you'll have to hold out if you want answers to all your questions. I know, it's very evil, but that's apparently the fanfic business. And, as you can see, your Shane humiliation prediction came true! Try not to go too crazy with your celebrations.

Next time: trouble in paradise?!


	87. Mega Mishaps

**Chapter 73: Mega Mishaps**

 **~Dewdrop Woods~**

"Blimey, I thought I'd never get out of that stupid prison!"

A pool of purple shadows inched up a massive tree trunk, coming to a stop on a branch that jutted out over a cluster of vibrant green bushes. Purple baubles stacked one on top of the other until Marshadow completely rose out of the puddle. He tilted his neck toward his right shoulder, wincing from the _crick_ that sounded.

"I can't believe they had a way to neutralize my shadow melding. It's disgraceful. Master Thief Marshadow trapped inside a cramped underground room because a few broads got the better of him," Marshadow grumbled, his beady eyes smoldering. "Whoever this 'Magearna' character is, I'm going to have to pay them a _nice_ visit as thanks for creating the maximum-security cells. I would've been out of that jail in a day if it wasn't for them!"

Rustling leaves drew Marshadow's attention. He looked over his shoulder, where a trio of yellow rock spines jutted out from a cluster of leaves. **"You know, you could at least offer a little thanks to the girl who helped bail you out, bucko,"** a slightly-distorted voice whispered from inside the leaves. **"If it wasn't for me, you'd still be bashing your fists uselessly against your cell door."**

"What are you looking for, luv? Flowers? A box of chocolates? I don't do favors or thanks," Marshadow said, waving his hand. Behind him, Solrock rose up from her hiding spot. Her body was covered in purple, boil-like protrusions.

 **"Oh no, it's nothing like that,"** Solrock said. **"I was just thinking that the two of us ought to team up. Y'know, pool our resources together and all that jazz."** Solrock floated awkwardly toward Marshadow. **"With my cunning brain and your raw strength, we'd make quite the pair, don't you think?"**

"Not in the slightest, luv," Marshadow scoffed. "I'm Mar _shadow_. Operating alone and unseen is my M.O. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate you helping me bust out of jail, but don't expect me to return the favor. Maybe once I get that ancient looplet back from those pesky serpents I'll send a few coins your way as thanks."

Solrock began vibrating. Her strange growths flashed with purple light. She floated in front of Marshadow, who took a cautious step backwards. **"I'm sorry,"** Solrock said, her voice growing progressively more distorted. **"That wasn't a request… it was an** _ **order.**_ **"**

Before Marshadow could respond, Solrock exploded in a burst of purple light and black chains. Flaming rock shards battered Marshadow, stopping him from disappearing into the tree branch. He lost his footing and tumbled off the tree. Marshadow didn't fall for very long, however. The chains that burst out of Solrock descended on Marshadow. They wrapped around his body, binding his arms and legs together. Marshadow's eyes widened. He tried to dissolve into a cloud of shadows and escape, but the chains responded with black lightning, locking Marshadow in place. He floated in midair, wrapped up in the chains.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Well now, don't you look comfortable?"**

Marshadow regained feeling in his arms and legs and resumed struggling. Beside him, a cloud of black smoke drifted away from the tree trunk, forming up into Necrozma. His right arm securely gripped the ends of the chains. "Rrrgh… wh-what's going on here? Who are you? Do you… nrrrgh… have any idea… who you're messing with?" Marshadow growled.

 **"Of course. Marshadow… the Master Thief!"** Necrozma declared. **"Admittedly not a Pokémon I'm all that familiar with, but the 'shadow' part is really all I'm interested in, if you catch my drift."** He brought his wings together and rubbed his claws gleefully.

"I… don't… take on… partners," Marshadow grunted through gritted teeth.

 **"I'm afraid I'm going to have to break that rule for you,"** Necrozma taunted, lifting his right arm up and flicking the dangling Marshadow with a claw. Marshadow bounced around like a tetherball, until his struggling came to a stop. **"You're going to partner** **up with someone. In fact… heeheeheehee… it'll be the closest partnership in the entire world!"**

Confusion spread across Marshadow's face. "You're clearly off your rocker," he said, trying to conjure up an attack. The chains responded by tightening around him, drawing a pained yelp.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Struggle all you want, but you're not breaking free of these ley lines,"** Necrozma said. **"See, in my days as a pathetic human, Shane simply** _ **begged**_ **me to borrow a game I had gotten that his parents wouldn't buy for him. And I, being the good, naïve friend that I was, acquiesced. I figured Shane would beat it quickly and then give the game back."**

He hoisted the chains up so that Marshadow was at eye level with him. **"He gave it back… heeheeheehee… only the disc had such a large scratch on it that the game was unplayable! And did Shane make up for it by buying me a new copy? No! Worse… my parents sold my precious Gamecube when they got my report card a week later. I was outraged!** _ **Incensed!**_ **"** Necrozma shook the chains, throttling Marshadow. **"Once again, a generous act had been rewarded with a proverbial kick to the nads!"**

 **"I bought the game to get a Shadow Lugia! I loved it. I** _ **needed**_ **it. But Shane… he** _ **took**_ **it from me! He** _ **stole**_ **my Shadow Lugia! Just like the gods stole my light!"** Necrozma shouted, arms spasming and nearly making him lose his grip on the chains. **"And then… he had the nerve… the** _ **nerve**_ **to flaunt it in front of me! The gods are doing that here, too!"** Necrozma's tongue drooped out from his mouth. Drool trickled down his armored chest.

 **"But now… heeheeheehee… I can rectify that!"** Necrozma said, licking his lips as he brought Marshadow closer to his face.

"I don't want any part of your sicko fantasies, you whack job," Marshadow barked, only for the ley lines to tighten around him once again.

 **"I may not have the means to close the door to a Pokémon's heart, but who cares! That was a stupid concept, anyway,"** Necrozma continued, ignoring his captive. **"I've got a much better alternative. And, as a reward for assisting me, I'll let you steal something far more precious than a piece of old jewelry."**

Marshadow's eyes flashed green. "Is that a fact?"

 **"Of course,"** Necrozma replied, squeezing the chains in his claws. They strangled Marshadow to the point where his head slackened against his neck. **"I've got the 'Shadow' part secured… so now, I just need to get the other half: Lugia! Heeheeheehee!"**

Necrozma levitated Marshadow up so the ghost sat on his shoulder. **"I hope you brought a towel, because we're about to go for a swim!"** The red eye on his forehead flashed and an Ultra Wormhole popped into existence. Necrozma flew into it with Marshadow trailing behind him.

* * *

 **~Circadian Kabana, Juice Bar~**

Kahua Raichu led Team Radiance into a large square room with a glazed wooden floor. Circular tables sat clustered around the front half of the room, while the back half had a black marble dance floor. A variety of differently-colored Luminous Orbs were embedded into the ceiling. However, they were all shut off. Instead, natural sunlight filtered in through a pair of windows along the back half of the room.

Team Radiance sat down at the two tables closest to the bar on the right side of the room. It was a lot like the one they were familiar with at Crabrawler's Café. Drink bottles of different sizes and colors sat on multiple shelves. The bar counter had a row of stools in front of it, with a few of them clearly designed for four-legged Pokémon. On the left side was a cardboard cutout of what appeared to be an Exeggutor, only its neck was absurdly long, stretching all the way up to the ceiling. Shane paid the cutout little mind, figuring it was a unique feature for Exeggutors in Horizon.

"Alright, here we are," Kahuna Raichu said, floating out of a white door on the left of the bar. A circular tray floated on either side of him. He set one tray down on each table, revealing white flour tortillas. Shane salivated at the sight of bits of egg and sausage poking out from the breakfast burrito in front of him. Empty glasses and pitchers of orange juice accompanied the food. "Hey now. No need to wait for a signal, yeah. Go ahead and eat," Kahuna Raichu said.

Shane and Tessa wasted no time digging into their meals, while their teammates were a bit more methodical. Silvally and Zoroark used their claws to cut the burritos into reasonable chunks. Gallian did the same thing with his horn. Espy stared at her plate, brow furrowed.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Silvally asked.

"I don't know… something about trying to eat this doesn't sit right with me. Feels like I'd be committing taboo if I did," Espy said, cautiously sniffing her breakfast.

"If you won't eat it, I will," Silvally said, licking his beak.

Espy's stomach growled. She pulled off a mouthful with her telekinesis and ate it. Espy shrugged and continued tearing off pieces to eat. "So, tell us a bit about these missing tourists," Espy said between bites.

"It started a few days ago. A Furfrou couple that was traveling here for a vacation had gone off to Daybreak Beach for Mantine Surfing lessons," Kahuna Raichu explained. Shane was immediately tempted to ask about Mantine Surfing, but looks from Espy and Tessa told him he'd have to wait to find out more about it. "Only, when the afternoon rolled around, the Mantines came back to Daybreak Beach and said they'd lost the Furfrous."

"Do they know what happened?" Tessa gasped, rubbing bits of egg and meat off her snout.

"No. That's the really strange part, cousin," Kahuna Raichu said. "They said they remembered the lesson going really well. Then, all of a sudden, they blacked out."

"Were they attacked?" Silvally asked.

"I don't think so. They looked perfectly fine," Kahuna Raichu said. "It didn't sound like they had lost consciousness or anything. They just… had a big memory lapse. And once they snapped out of their dazes, the Furfrous were gone."

Gallian frowned. "What happened after that?"

"Well, I was tempted to close the beach down, yeah. But this is a busy time of year for us and we already lost Evening Beach to the rising tides," Kahuna Raichu explained. "So, I went to Primarina's studio to find Team Harmony, but only Vaporeon was there." He scratched at his ear. "Vaporeon said that Primarina had gone on an expedition to Sunset Shoals. Like, setting up a base camp and everything. Something to do with trying to mine more music crystals."

"Anyway, I asked Vaporeon if he'd search for the Furfrous. He agreed and took his mate, Jolteon, along with him," Kahuna Raichu continued. He sighed and looked down at the floor. "But he hasn't come back yet. Jolteon and Primarina haven't, either. And, in the meantime, more guests have vanished from the beach… and nobody seems to know how or why."

"Huh, that's quite perplexing," Silvally said, finishing off the last of his orange juice. "They couldn't have just _walked_ into the ocean… they'd drown, wouldn't they?" The thought made Shane and Tessa cringe.

"Hmm… I wonder," Espy said, tapping a forepaw against the table. "Maybe these disappearances are related to the Seaside Shard? Think about it. It's a safe bet at this point that the Seaside Shard is in Sunset Shoals. Otherwise, someone here would've discovered it. And I'm pretty sure Ultra Serperior used some of the Sizzle Shard's power to destabilize Mt. Supernova. So, who's to say similar problems aren't happening at Sunset Shoals?"

"True, though the Subterranean Shard was just sitting in a wall in the Cavernous Depths," Shane said. "I'm not saying I disagree with you, Espy. I just think that, if we take those pieces of information together, it's a good possibility that a Pokémon in Sunset Shoals found the Seaside Shard… and that's causing all of our problems."

Shane looked around at his teammates' stunned expressions. "What? What's with the funny looks? Do I have something in my teeth?"

"No. I'm just… surprised to hear _you_ come up with that idea," Espy said.

"Hey! I can say smart stuff sometimes," Shane huffed. "I figured out that Gallian was behind the thefts in Aeon Town last month, didn't I?"

"Whoa, time out, cousins," Kahuna Raichu said, holding up his paws. "Bring me up to speed here. What's this about a Sunset Shard in Seaside Shoals? I mean… a Shardset Sun in Shoalside Seas…" His brow furrowed. "Err… you know what I mean, yeah?"

Espy quickly relayed the situation with the Dawn Hourglass to Kahuna Raichu. She concluded with, "That's why we're here, actually. We intend to go to Sunset Shoals to see if we can locate the piece of the Dawn Hourglass that ended up there."

"Ah, yeah, that'd be pretty important," Kahuna Raichu said, scratching his ear. "Thing is, I just closed down Daybreak Beach on account of the disappearances."

"What's the big deal? We're going to the Mystery Dungeon, not the beach," Shane said.

"Sunset Shoals is located on an island off of Daybreak Beach. The only way we can get there is by swimming a mile through the ocean," Silvally explained. His glowing appendages turned blue. "I could probably handle it fine, but you guys…" His voice trailed off and he looked at his teammates. "Uh, no offense intended, but I'm pretty sure that _Zoroark_ is the only one who can swim. And he's injured. So, I doubt we'd be able to make it as a group."

"That's where I'll have to step in, yeah," Kahuna Raichu said. "Usually we offer Mantine Surfers up to guild members free of charge, but I sent them all home." He rubbed his stomach and gave a reassuring grin. "Don't despair, though. Seeing as you guys are on a mission for the Tapus, I can definitely convince a few of them to give you a lift to Sunset Shoals."

"Excellent," Silvally said, beaming. "Then we should prepare to head out."

"Uh… about that," Tessa whispered, poking her digits together nervously. "You _do_ realize that none of us have ever gone Mantine Surfing before, right? Heck, I'm still trying to get used to moving around on my toes. How do you expect me to stay balanced on a Mantine, huh?" She turned to Kahuna Raichu. "You wouldn't happen to have Sharpedo Sailors you could call on, do you?"

"Sorry, cousin, they don't work for me," Kahuna Raichu said. "If it's any consolation, our Mantine Surfers are real pros at navigating the ocean. If your team wants a nice, smooth ride to Sunset Shoals, then that's what you're going to get. I'd stake my Totem Crystal on it."

Tessa tugged at her bandanna. "O… okay, I guess," she squeaked. The idea of falling into the ocean deeply unsettled her.

"Kahuna Raichu, you wouldn't happen to have any, like, floaty devices or life preservers, would you?" Shane asked. "Y'know, for Pokémon that can't swim?"

"Well, I do have flotation vests for little kids who need 'em, but I don't think they'd work with a full-grown Ninetales," Kahuna Raichu said, tapping his chin.

"N… no, no, I'm okay. I can swim," Shane said, laughing nervously. He wished he hadn't learned through a life-or-death situation, but he couldn't change the past.

Tessa picked up on Shane's train of thought. "I am _not_ wearing a kiddie vest," she said, scowling and crossing her arms.

"Sheesh, it was just a suggestion," Shane said.

Before anyone could offer anything else up, the doors to the juice bar flew open. "K… Kahuna Raichu!" a panicked Poliwhirl with yellow hands shouted, barging into the room and nearly knocking a table over in the process.

"Whoa, easy there. Where's the fire?" Kahuna Raichu asked.

"It's… it's… Jolteon!" Yellow-Hands wheezed. "She… she washed ashore… on the beach! She's in… real bad shape!"

"You're kidding," Kahuna Raichu gasped. "Were Vaporeon and Primarina with her?"

"No. It's just Jolteon. Come on, I can take you to her," Yellow-Hands said, jogging in place by the door and beckoning Kahuna Raichu to follow.

"Mind if we tag along? This could be important," Silvally said, getting to his feet.

"By all means," Kahuna Raichu replied, hovering toward the door. Cosplay Pikachu swapped her outfit out for a poncho of an Audino and hopped onto her dad's back. The rest of Team Radiance followed along after him.

"Unngh… I was really hoping… I wouldn't have to run," Zoroark grunted, gripping his injured leg. Gallian and Tessa hung back, the latter offering her right shoulder to Zoroark for support.

"Hey, guys, wait up!" Gallian barked, but it did no good. By the time the three of them had made it out of the Kabana, there was no sign of any of their teammates.

"Crap!" Gallian hissed, stomping a forepaw against the gravel. "Tessa, any chance you can sense where they went?"

"Um, lemme see," Tessa said. She shut her eyes, channeling her aura sight. Immediately, a throbbing pain shot through her head, forcing her eyes open. Tessa stumbled forward, almost tripping Zoroark up in the process. "Ow!" she squealed, rubbing her temple. "It's… it's no good, Gallian. The second I tried using aura sight, I got a splitting headache." She avoided Gallian's gaze, worried he'd be disappointed in her failure.

"So, what do we do? Go knocking on doors until we find the rest of the group?" Zoroark wondered, looking around the resort.

"Well, Poliwhirl mentioned finding Jolteon at the beach, right?" Tessa said. "If the beach we came to is closed, then she must've washed up at Daybreak Beach. Which is… uh… that way, I think!" She pointed a paw to her left. "Come on, let's run!" Without even asking, she scooped Zoroark up in her arms.

"Hey, I didn't say I needed a lift!" he gasped.

"Sorry, we're pressed for time right now," Tessa said, dashing forward. Gallian matched her pace, eyeing her skeptically. "Relax, Gallian, I've got him. He's… a bit on the heavy side, yeah, but nothing too bad."

"It's the mane. It weighs more than you think," Zoroark said, grabbing hold of his hair to avoid tripping Tessa up. After a minute of running, they found another archway with a beach on the other side. It was larger than where they arrived and it didn't end in a wall. Instead, frothy ocean water lapped up against the shore, leaving a long stretch of darker-colored sand between each wave.

"You guys see those storm clouds?" Gallian asked, tensing up. "They look pretty fierce. Did Magearna or Latias mention anything about a storm-bringing Pokémon flying over this part of Horizon?"

"No," Tessa said, lowering Zoroark to the ground.

"I was afraid of that," Gallian said, scowling. "That's gotta be the direction Sunset Shoals is in."

"You don't think the _dungeon_ is causing it, do you?" Zoroark said.

"After what we've seen, I'm willing to believe anything out of the ordinary," Gallian replied, his scythe crackling pink. "More importantly, though, I'm not seeing our teammates out here."

"I guess they must've already gotten Jolteon to a healer," Zoroark said, scratching at the stump where his left ear used to be.

Tessa's aura feelers scrunched up. She narrowed her eyes, focusing on the edge of the shore. "Guys, I think something's up with the water," Tessa said.

"What do you mean? All I see are waves rolling up from the ocean," Zoroark said.

"That's just it! The waves… they're getting bigger!" Tessa realized, aura feelers shooting up in alarm. As soon as she finished speaking, a particularly large wave crashed down on the shore, spilling water out across the sand. A hazy cloud blocked the trio's view of the shoreline. Gallian and Zoroark both took cautious steps back toward the resort.

"Something's wrong here," Zoroark said. "I think we need to call for h–"

"Hit the deck!" Tessa shouted, cupping her paws together and thrusting them forward. A blue fireball shot out. It stalemated with a larger blue fireball. Smoke spread in all directions. Hissing, Tessa threw an arm over her face.

"Is someone attacking us?" Gallian growled.

In response, a column of water split the smoke apart. Gallian scrambled to his right. The water struck the top of the archway and rained down on Zoroark and Tessa. Both threw their paws up over their heads and ran forward, groaning loudly.

 _"You lads are coming with me!  
_ _That's the way it's got to be!  
_ _Anyone who sets foot on this beach!  
_ _I'll catch before they get out of reach!  
_ _Yo ho! Yo ho! Prepare yerselves, cause it's time to go!"_

Tessa grabbed her ears and pushed them against her skull. "Argh! What is with that godawful singing? It's painful!"

"Tessa, look out!" Gallian cried, scythe brimming with psychic energy. He launched pink crescents in front of his sister, destroying the blue fireball that nearly broadsided her. The smoke finally settled, revealing a Clawitzer with seaweed wrapped around his torso. His large pincer smoldered with blue embers.

 _"Hold still, scallywag, or this will hurt!  
_ _And we need us a crew that's fresh and alert!"_

Clawitzer again belted out scratchy, out of tune lyrics that made his opponents' fur prickle. Tessa fought through the ringing pain in her ears and rifled off another blue fireball. She expected him to have no mobility on land, but Clawitzer shocked her by bouncing into the air. Luckily, her Aura Sphere curved upward. It knocked Clawitzer into the water.

"Gallian, listen to me!" Tessa shouted, thrusting her paws to the side. Blue flames encased each of them. "You have to go back into the resort and get help… _now!_ "

Gallian paused in the middle of gathering black shadows in his scythe. "Wait, what? And just leave you and Zoroark out here?" he growled.

"You're the fastest one out of us. Just trust me on this!" Tessa said. She sprinted across the beach before he could respond, frantically waving her arms to catch Clawitzer's attention.

Zoroark fired a black beam. Clawitzer deflected it with a glob of water. "Do it, Gallian! We need the others here," Zoroark said. "I won't go charging into the fray, I promise."

"R… right," Gallian whispered, then took off running for the resort. As soon as Tessa was sure he was safely through the archway, she launched a blue fireball at Clawitzer. He dipped underwater to avoid it. Clawitzer rolled onto the shore and brandished his large pincer at Tessa.

Water and ice swirled inside it. Clawitzer laughed heartily and launched an ice spear at Tessa. A chain-shaped stream of water trailed behind it, connecting back to Clawitzer's pincer. In a last-ditch attempt to save herself, Tessa funneled aura into her paws and thrust them forward, praying she could break Clawitzer's projectile apart.

The plan failed miserably. A torrent of ice and water blew Tessa back across the beach with an agonized howl. She rolled across the sand, leaving a trail of water and blood droplets behind her.

"Tessa!" Zoroark cried. He turned to Clawitzer, paws and right eye flashing crimson. He slammed the ground, sending a crimson wall of energy toward Clawitzer.

 _"Don't make me laugh!  
_ _You won't stop me, lad!  
_ _I gave you both fair warning!  
_ _Now you've made me mad!"_

Clawitzer turned to Zoroark. The watery chain whipped back toward his pincer and a new ice harpoon formed up inside it. Clawitzer launched the harpoon. It split Zoroark's attack apart and forced him onto his back. Ice, water, wood and leaves exploded behind Zoroark, remnants of a tree Clawitzer's spear destroyed.

Zoroark sat up, shooting a black beam. He clipped the left side of Clawitzer's head, but Clawitzer wasn't fazed. Water and ice whipped up around Clawitzer. Zoroark knew exactly what Clawitzer planned to do, but his injured leg made getting up a cumbersome task.

"Nnrrrgh… c'mon, Gallian," Zoroark groaned, shooting another black beam in desperation. This time Clawitzer vaulted over the attack, landing a couple of feet in front of Zoroark. Clawitzer prepared to unleash an ice spear, when an enraged scream echoed across the beach.

"Huh? What the—" Clawitzer started, only to get cut off by a blue fireball equally as large as he was. His exoskeleton splintered, cracks racing down his arm toward his chest. The collision jettisoned him skyward. Clawitzer careened off toward the ocean, water and ice streaming from his limp body. He splashed down hard, kicking up a plume of water that Zoroark could barely see given how far away it was.

"Okay," Zoroark whispered, trying to catch his breath. "That was… suitably terrifying. Thanks for the save, Tessa." He turned to his left, expecting Tessa to acknowledge him. Instead, he had to throw his arm up over his face to shield himself from a bright flash of orange light. "Tessa? What's happening? Is that you?"

"I… have had… _enough!_ " Tessa shouted, her voice distorting. The orange light surrounding her faded to red ripples that raced across her body.

"Gyah!" Zoroark shouted, skirting back across the sand. "Tessa, what happened to you? You're… you're…"

Tessa hunched over. Her new, waist-length aura dreadlocks lashed out at the air behind her like whips, brushing the tan fur extending off her waist where her tail should have been. The spiderweb pattern of black fur on her torso had spread out to her head, arms, and legs. Her black-furred paws and feet instead glowed fluorescent-red. The winged heart, by contrast, was pitch black, matching the color of the gem in her Naturia Looplet. Both appeared to be the sources of the red wisps surging around her.

"Just once… _just once_ … I'd like to show up somewhere and _not_ have something trying to kill me within the first hour!" Tessa snarled, her irises flashing with a multitude of different colors. "Why? Why can't we just have _one peaceful goddamn morning?!_ " She pivoted to her right and thrust her paws forward. A giant blue fireball raced out into the ocean, splitting the water apart as it moved. It exploded in a blinding blue flash.

"Tessa! What the hell are you doing?!"

Gallian charged onto the beach, skidding to a halt in the sand when he saw his sister. The rest of Team Radiance came to his side, while Kahuna Raichu and Cosplay Pikachu both helped Zoroark back to his feet.

"Rrrrghh… get… away… from me!" Tessa shouted, whirling around and flinging a blue fireball at Gallian. He stood there, utterly mortified. The aura sphere would've bowled him over had Silvally not leaped in front of Gallian. Purple shadows raced down his talons from the ghost memories in his looplet. He lashed out, slicing the fireball into blue cinders.

"What's wrong with her?" Gallian said. "Why does she look exactly like Mom?!"

"It's Mega Evolution," Shane realized, horror spreading across his face. "But Tessa can't control it!"

Tessa doubled over, crying in pain. She threw her metal-coated paws over her ears and shook her head about violently. "Shut up, _shut up,_ _ **shut up!**_ " Tessa screeched. She struck the ground with a glowing paw. Plumes of sand shot up near Team Radiance, forcing Shane and Gallian back with startled gasps. Silvally cit through the plumes with a barrage of air crescents.

"Tessa, listen to me! It's Silvally! You've got to calm down!" Silvally shouted, bounding toward her. "We don't want to hurt you. Everything's going to be okay, but you've got to stop shouting and take a few deep breaths!"

"I'm _done_ listening to you!" Tessa roared. Two streams of metal corkscrewed toward Silvally. He channeled ground memories before taking the metal in the face. Silvally skidded into Gallian.

"How is this even happening? Espy, I thought you had all of our Awakening Emeras," Shane said, looking worriedly at Tessa. How could he stand up to _that?_ He had a glaring steel weakness.

"I do," Espy whispered meekly, peering at her satchel. "Plus, Jirachi said he had solved the issue of Pokémon going berserk if they used an Awakening Emera. I have no idea what's going on here!"

" _Be quiet!_ " Tessa snarled, shooting liquid metal in Espy's direction. She gasped and ran to her right, barely skirting the attack. "This is all your faults!" Tessa shouted. "You ran ahead… when you knew Zoroark was hurt. I was just trying to stay back and be a good spirit-sister. I tried to shout for you all. But did you listen? _No!_ "

Gallian and Silvally were too busy untangling themselves to see the Aura Sphere racing toward them. Espy tried to snuff it out with a bright-pink energy ball, but her attack wasn't strong enough.

"Tessa, what are you doing? Stop attacking them!" Shane cried, only to squeak frightfully as Tessa's wild-eyed gaze fell on him.

"You want me to listen to you?" she growled. "Fat chance! You wouldn't even show me the same courtesy!" Tessa closed the distance between her and Shane in a matter of seconds. Shane backpedaled across the sand, panic spreading across his face. "If you had _listened_ to me when I was calling for you, then I wouldn't have had _another_ near-death experience to add to my growing list! Why do you have to be such a dense moron, huh?"

"I… uh…"

Tessa's metal spikes extended into claws and she raked them across Shane's head. He collapsed on the ground, writhing in pain. Tessa reared back, ready to thrust her metal claws through Shane's rib cage. But the sight of the mortified look in Shane's eyes made her pause. Tessa stood there, right paw raised over her head, trembling. Blood pooled out from the gashes on Shane's forehead, staining his fur and trickling down his mane. For a brief moment, the red energy ripples stopped surging across Tessa's body and the rainbow glow in her eyes faded.

"Sh… Shane?" she squeaked, bringing her paw back down toward her chest.

As soon as she did this, however, her eyes regained their multicolored glow and her red aura intensified. An angered look spread across her face as she raised her paws up, claws poking between her digits. She brought her paws crashing down toward Shane. But earth-encrusted talons broadsided her across the face. Tessa's head whipped around to her left, then the rest of her body followed suit.

"I'm sorry, Tessa, but this is for your own good!" Silvally cried, striking her with his other foreleg. Her red aura and glowing eyes disappeared in a flash of orange light. By the time she hit the sand, she had returned to normal. Silvally looked away, shutting his eyes. "That was… just awful," he whimpered.

"Oh, man, this is _really_ bad," Kahuna Raichu said. He glanced at Cosplay Pikachu. "Listen, I'm gonna go get Florges over here on the double. Think you can at least step in and help out in the meantime?"

"I'm on it, pops," Cosplay Pikachu said. She dashed toward Shane, her Audino hooding fluttering behind her. "Stand aside, stand aside. He needs treatment fast!" she shouted. A pink glow encased both her paws. She pointed her index fingers toward Shane. Pink light struck Shane's head and slowed his bleeding. Shane tried to sit up, but his whole world was spinning. He groaned loudly.

"Sorry, cousin, that's the best I can do," Cosplay Pikachu said. "I've gotta tend to Absol. Big guy, think you can prop him up until Florges gets here?" she asked.

Silvally bent over and hoisted Shane into a seated position against his right shoulder. "Shane, you still with me?" Silvally said.

"Oogh, my aching head," Shane said. "What happened?"

"Tessa hit you pretty hard with… uh… I _think_ it was Metal Claw? I'm not entirely sure," Silvally said.

"Wait… oh gods, Tessa!" Shane shouted. "Is Tessa okay? What happened to her?" Silvally repositioned Shane, allowing him to see Tessa stirring in the sand a foot away. "Tessa, can you hear me?" Shane called. Tessa didn't respond. Instead, she brought her paws up toward her face.

Before Shane could say anything else, Kahuna Raichu returned, with an orange-flower Florges floating behind him. "Here they are," he said, gesturing toward Team Radiance. "It was a Mega Evolution gone wrong. Ninetales suffered a pretty bad blow at the paws of Lucario."

"I'll get right on it," Florges said, floating calmly toward Shane.

"Nuh… no… don't worry about me. Tend to Tessa," Shane croaked.

"I'm sure your friend appreciates the concern, but you need the most immediate attention, Ninetales," Florges said. She exhaled a small green cloud that washed over Shane and Silvally. Both of them relaxed, the former slumping down into the sand. Florges waved her right arm and a trail of yellow dust spread over Shane's face. A few seconds later, the dust lit up blue. Shane's wounds sealed themselves off, leaving only bloodstains behind.

"Did you heal him with Wish? I didn't think it worked like that," Silvally gasped.

"It's a trade secret among us healers," Florges said with a wink. "Now, let's tend to Lucario." She floated to Tessa, who remained face-down in the sand.

"Go away," she mumbled, the beach muffling her voice. "I don't deserve your help."

"Sorry, Lucario. The Kahuna wants you all healed up. I'm not going to refuse him," Florges said. Tessa tried to raise a paw in opposition, but Florges quickly calmed her down with another cloud of green gas. Florges healed Tessa up the same way she did Shane. Tessa slowly sat up until she was kneeling in the sand. Tears welled up in her eyes.

"I… I'm so sorry," Tessa squeaked, clasping her paws against her chest spike. "I have no idea what came over me! We lost sight of you guys, so we went to the beach. That's when a Clawitzer came rising out of the sea. He attacked us, singing this _awful_ song the entire time." She grabbed her head and shook it. "His voice was horrendously scratchy… it's like a million Joltiks climbed into my ears and electrocuted them!"

"But the kicker was that Clawitzer used some weird attack where he made this blade out of ice. He hit me with it and… and it just _hurt_ so much!" she continued, shivering. "That pain… I got so frustrated that I had to lash out. Everything became a blur until Silvally stopped me."

The rest of the group stood there, taking in Tessa's tale. "I don't understand how it happened," Silvally said. "There aren't any Awakening Emeras in her looplet."

"Yeah, about that," Zoroark said, limping up to Tessa. "There was some sinister-looking energy spilling out of the gem in your looplet." He held his paw out toward Tessa who, in turn, showed Zoroark her looplet. Zoroark examined the central gem and confirmed that it had returned to its usual pink color. "It looks fine now, but it was all black and red while Tessa was transformed," Zoroark said.

"So, you think my looplet caused this?" Tessa gasped, pulling her paw back. She covered her right paw up with her left to hide the heart sigil from her friends. "If that's the case, then I'm taking it off. I don't want to risk going crazy like that again!"

"Are you serious? We need Z-Power to beat the Prism Virus, remember?" Shane said. "Look… it was just a one-time fluke, that's all. Now that we _know_ it's happening, we can keep an eye on you and prevent the same problem from popping up in the future. Does that sound okay?"

"No!" Tessa shouted. She cupped her paws over her mouth. "I'm sorry, Shane. I didn't mean to shout," she squeaked, aura feelers drooping. "It's just… I can't bear the thought of hurting any of you again. And the feeling… when all that energy was flowing through me…" She shuddered. "I know we need to stop the Prism Virus, but I'm not willing to risk Mega Evolving again. It's horrible."

"You don't have to do this for my sake, Tessa," Shane said, frowning. "It's more important that we deal with the Prism Virus, isn't it?"

"It's not just about you, Shane!" Tessa snapped. Shane scooted back, looking down guiltily. She had a point, right? He couldn't force her to use the looplet. Forcing Tessa to do things was what initially made their relationship so toxic.

"Easy there, Tessa," Silvally said. "I'm sure the whole ordeal must've been terrifying for you. Just take a second and gather your thoughts."

"Y… yeah… okay," Tessa whispered. She walked backwards for a few paces, rubbing her right paw with her left. After a half-minute of silence, she said, "I didn't mean to spook you, Shane. It's just… you really don't understand how scary it was."

"I think I might have an idea," Shane said, pointing to the blood on his head. "I guess if you're that concerned about keeping yourself safe, then maybe you _should_ lose the looplet for a bit. At least until we can figure out what the issue is."

"I can help with that," Espy declared, walking up to the rest of the group with the Gear-Com levitating beside her. "Just got off a call with Magearna about this whole crazy incident. Now, she doesn't have her reference materials on her, but she seemed confident that what we saw was just your average, uncontrolled Mega Evolution."

"Excuse me? That sounds like a hell of an oxymoron," Gallian growled, flicking up some sand with a forepaw.

"Eh heh heh… I phrased that poorly," Espy said with a nervous grin. "What I meant to say is that, according to Magearna, Z-Power from a Naturia Looplet can trigger a Mega Evolution instead of a Z-Move."

"That's what I was afraid of," Tessa squeaked, looking at her looplet. "I can't keep this on. What if the next time I try to use a Z-Move, I end up Mega Evolving and attacking you guys instead? I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I did that."

The gravity of Tessa's words quickly sunk in amongst her teammates. "Then, take it off," Silvally said. "We've still got other Z-Move users. Heck, you could give it to Zoroark!"

"That's not necessary," Espy said. "See, what Magearna told me was that, for Pokémon that have Mega Evolutions, it comes down to what they're thinking and how they're feeling when they summon their Z-Power. If negative thoughts and emotions like anger or hopelessness predominate, a Pokémon will Mega Evolve, then immediately lose control."

"What about the, y'know, ninety-five percent of 'mons that _can't_ Mega Evolve?" Shane asked.

"They fail to channel any Z-Power," Espy replied. "On the other hand, if positive or constructive thoughts like determination are in control, a Pokémon channels Z-Power. Magearna suggested that adding an Awakening Emera to a Naturia Looplet might allow Tessa to control her Mega Evolution, but she said that's just a hypothesis."

"See, Tessa? It's not so bad. We've just got to stay by your side and make sure things stay under control," Shane said, smiling and offering an encouraging tail wag.

Tessa's face scrunched up. "If that's the case… you have to promise me you're not going to leave me behind under any circumstances."

"Absolutely," Shane said. He sat down in the sand and raised a forepaw. "Scout's honor, we're going to keep you from going berserk in the future."

"Okay," Tessa whispered, her voice shaky. "I'm still taking an Awakening Emera to be on the safe side, though." Tessa walked up to Espy, paw outstretched.

"Everything good, then?" Kahuna Raichu asked. Hesitant nods ensued from the rest of the group. "You think you're still up to go to Sunset Shoals?"

"Based on what Jolteon told us, I think we have to," Silvally sighed. He looked at Gallian and Zoroark and said, "Jolteon was attacked by Primarina. Apparently, he can now hypnotize Pokémon by singing to them."

"That would explain why Clawitzer sang while he attacked us," Zoroark said, shaking his head in disbelief.

Shane shot a nervous glance at Tessa. He didn't want to drag her out into a Mystery Dungeon if she was already shaken up. Still, _someone_ had to go. The Seaside Shard was likely at stake. They couldn't let it fall by the wayside. "Tessa, are you okay with going?" Shane asked. "I don't want to push you if you're not feeling up to it."

"I'll go," Tessa said, fitting an Awakening Emera into an open notch on her looplet. "You guys said you'd make sure I don't lose control, right? You can't do that if you're in the dungeon and I'm cooped up here."

"Right. A-as long as you're okay with it," Shane said, tails twisting around one another.

"Alright. I'll go hit up the Mantine Surfers, yeah. And, while I'm at it, I'll try to find some 'mons who can patrol the beach in case anymore surprises are lurking in the ocean," Kahuna Raichu said. He beckoned Florges and Cosplay Pikachu to follow him back toward the resort.

"Now what?" Gallian asked, looking nervously at his own looplet.

"I guess we wait for the Mantine Surfers," Silvally said.

* * *

Review replies!

Another guest: those kinds of fancy emotes won't work on FFN, I'm afraid. Primarina's schtick is more inspired by DJ Octavio and Courtney Gears (shout out to my fellow Ratchet & Clank fans). Totem Ninetales is not the same Ninetales that played a part in Silvally's creation, but Ninetales live _quite_ a long time in this world. And, yes, that Kirby update was crazy. Good thing my precious egg boi Magolor is as broken as Marx!

SuperOmegaGuest: I don't steal writing. I've certainly got a lot of references to things and borrow ideas from other game series, but that's fanfic for you!

Anon Omega: Let's Go just wasn't for me. I'm having much more fun with Kirby Star Allies now that it's a complete game. Also, you're right on the money with DJ Octavio comparisons. Safe to say Primarina's remixed a few folks' brains.

Next time: mail call!

Wait, what? That's it? Who's writing this drivel?!


	88. Surf's Up

Not only did Smash Ultimate just release, but it's the time of year where everyone is either busy with work or with projects and exams. So, to help cheer anyone who's struggling up, this chapter includes bonus content. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 74: Surf's Up**

 **~Rem Canyon~**

The Gear-Com retracted back into Magearna's stomach compartment. She stepped toward the back of the tiny recess the expedition team had discovered carved into the right side of the trail. **It would seem Team Radiance has run into an obstackle that is presently hindering their progress,** Magearna declared. **We cannot let that damplify our spirits, however. I suggest we proceed onward.**

She looked out toward the path, only for Blaziken to poke his head in and shake it. "Everyone needs to lay low," he said. "I hear more voices. There are 'mons heading this way, for sure." He crouched down, positioning himself behind a boulder that hid the recess from the main path.

"Ugh. How long do you think we have to say down here? There's barely enough room to stand," Seraph said, pushing herself up against the wall. "Luxeira, so help me, if your tail jabs my belly one more time…"

"Sorry, but there's not much I can do. This isn't the kind of tail I can just stuff between my legs," Luxeira said.

"Then have Sticky hold it straight up," Seraph said.

"What, so you can stare at my ass? Not a chance," Luxeira growled.

"Please, this is about comfort," Seraph scoffed, flicking a paw. "I'm still sore from waking up yesterday and this ain't helping."

"What part of 'keep your voices down' didn't register?" Dusk hissed, silencing them. She turned to Comfey. "Yeah. That makes sense. If I had been there, maybe I'd have been able to calm Midnight down."

"I doubt it," Comfey sighed. "That whole kerfuffle was a huge headache. Not to mention it left me with a ton of work. I dare say it was one of my most stressful weeks at the guild… if not _the_ most stressful."

"And I'm sorry you had to go through that," Dusk said, shaking her head. "Maybe had I taken Midnight seriously, he wouldn't have stormed off and found the guild in the first place."

 **You two aren't relatiated, are you?** Magearna asked.

"Not as far as I know," Dusk said. "It's just a shame, really. He was such a sweet kid when he was a Rockruff. But thanks to my screwup… he became a gigantic headache." Dusk pawed at the ground, frowning. "I tried to set him straight, but it's clear now I was fighting a losing battle. Still, I'm never gonna stop asking myself if I could've done something to keep him under control."

"I want to know why one of these Totem guys would be so interested in him," Swampert said. "Especially if he went right from your village to the guild. I strongly doubt he ever came into this Mystery Dungeon."

"It sounded more like the dragons we heard were interested in someone else," Sticky said, rubbing his chin. "Comfey, didn't you say Team Fang has a dragon on it?"

"Yeah. Jangmo-o," Comfey said. "But if that's true, then that means he was a wild Pokémon who left this Mystery Dungeon."

Swampert blinked in surprise. "Wait, seriously? How is that even possible?"

 **I thought you were already aware Horizon's dungeons are not labyrinths that randomiscently reshape their structures?** Magearna said. **Our wild 'mons are one hundred percent real.**

"Hey guys, the coast is clear," Blaziken said, beckoning the group out.

Seraph shoved Luxeira aside and scrambled for the exit. "Outta the way, outta the way!" she shouted, emerging from the alcove and taking in a big gulp of air. "Thank the gods! If I had to keep breathing in Houndoom musk, I don't think I would've made it." Luxeira rolled her eyes as she exited behind Seraph.

"Look, just because the dragons are gone doesn't mean you should start yelling," Blaziken said. "We're trying to keep a low profile, remember? It'll be a lot easier if we don't attract any unwanted attention."

"Yeah, yeah, I copy," Seraph said. "Why is it all the fire-types I know are such buzz-kills?"

"Did you happen to hear any clues about the Scalebound Shard, Mr. Blaziken?" Sticky asked, floating cautiously behind Luxeira.

"Not really," Blaziken said. "One of them mentioned something about the Totem readying a surprise for his 'know-nothing son.' I assume based on the scuffle we heard earlier that it has to do with Jangmo-o."

 **If the Totem is preparing something important, then most of the dragons should be preoccupidated,** Magearna said. **Which means this is the perfect time to press onward.** She pointed a mechanical arm forward. Blaziken shrugged, then walked down the path. The rest of the expedition group followed along behind him. The path remained narrow, with spikes jutting out of the rock walls in shapes that resembled fangs sitting in a mouth.

"Boy, they sure know how to make some inviting architecture," Seraph said, shaking her head. "Seriously, has this place always looked so violent or did the dragons do this to appease their… I dunno… dragon gods or whatever?"

 **In the Horizon Continent, the Land Spirits are responsibatable for terraforming the landscape. They need to do it or else the ley lines underground would rip our continent apart and the remains would sinksend into the ocean,** Magearna explained. She continued forward, not stopping to acknowledge Seraph's gobsmacked expression.

"Seriously? Geez, it's a wonder anyone can go about their business knowing their sitting on a gigantic death trap," Seraph said, throwing her arms up in exasperation. She glanced at Luxeira. "Do I even want to know what these 'ley lines' are?"

"Frankly, I have no idea how to describe them," Luxeira said. "I find it's best not to think about it. This world's much more magically-oriented than what we're used to. If you're going to survive, you'll just have to accept it."

"Huh. That's… surprisingly flexible of you," Seraph said, raising a brow. "The Houndoom I remembered got upset if our training was running even five minutes behind schedule." Luxeira looked away, happy her dark fur could hide her blush. She said nothing, not wanting to ruin the moment.

"If I had to offer you any advice, Seraph, the more you think about ley lines, the bigger a headache you'll give yourself," Swampert said, chuckling. "Luckily, you've got professionals working alongside you. We'll make sure you don't, like, get randomly swallowed up by some sort of time-space anomaly." He offered Seraph a big smile before continuing to follow Blaziken.

Seraph froze, eyes blinking slowly.

"Th… that can happen here?!"

* * *

 **~Circadian Coast, Daybreak Beach~**

Along the edge of the shore, Tessa paced back and forth nervously. She paused to look at Gallian. "Are you _sure_ I can't convince you and Zoroark to come?" she said, unwilling to leave her brother behind again after finally winning him back.

"Sorry, sis, we've got to sit this one out," Gallian said. "I can barely tread water for a minute. And with Zoroark's injuries…" He shuddered. "Besides, someone's going to need to patrol the beach and make sure no other 'mons like Clawitzer can get into the resort and terrorize the tourists. If Primarina really is behind all of this, somehow, I'm sure he's going to try and loop as many Pokémon from Circadian Coast into his crazy idea as he possibly can."

Tessa frowned, unwilling to concede the point. "Don't you think you need some backup, though?" she said.

"Kahuna Raichu's working on it, remember?" Zoroark responded. "I get that you're nervous, Tessa, but that's what your friends are here for."

Shane nodded in agreement. "The four of us have gotten this far because we've stuck together. Through darkest night and brightest day, Team Radiance always finds a way, right?" he said, giving Tessa a reassuring grin.

"I know," Tessa said, aura feelers drooping. She turned back toward the ocean and sighed. "We're really going to do it, then," she whispered. "We're going to Mantine Surf through stormy waters. Waters that," she gulped, "could sweep us away if we fall off."

Shane's tails curled around his hind legs. When she put it like that, he couldn't help but feel nervous.

"We've got to put our faith in Kahuna Raichu and the Mantine Surfers," Silvally said. "He boasted they're the strongest swimmers he knows. Besides, if we try to wait until tomorrow, it may be too late to do anything about Primarina. Those storm clouds don't look natural. I've got a hunch this is the only day we'll be able to make it to Sunset Shoals."

"Much as I hate to say it, the big guy's right," Espy said, her gaze fixated on the storm clouds swirling in the distance. Lightning flashed through them, sending a chill up her spine. "While I really don't want to get wet, I don't see any way around this."

"Sorry to keep you waiting!"

Kahuna Raichu zoomed toward the group on his tail. Cosplay Pikachu dangled off his back, having swapped her Audino poncho for one that looked distinctly like Kyogre. Comically-large blue sleeves covered up her arms. Jolteon and Florges trailed behind Kahuna Raichu, the former covered in bandages, with a medicinal leave plastered over the bridge of her snout. Three other Pokémon accompanied them: a Golduck, a black-gloved Poliwrath, and a Herdier whose mustache was caramel-brown.

" _That's_ our backup?" Gallian said, his eyes flashing pink.

Zoroark put a paw on Gallian's shoulder, a disapproving look on his face. "We're happy to have their help," he said, his tone suggesting he was speaking for both of them.

"Jolteon's hurt, though. What's she doing here?" Silvally asked.

"I tried to keep her in bed, but she refused," Florges said.

"I've got to know what happened to Vappy!" Jolteon declared, wincing as she stepped toward Team Radiance. "If I can't go with you guys to Sunset Shoals, then you can bet your asses I'm staying right here so I can see Vappy the second you guys get back."

 _'Assuming we can even find Vaporeon,'_ Shane thought. What if it was already too late for him?

"Just promise us you won't overdo it," Silvally said. "Otherwise, you'll break Vaporeon's heart."

Sparks raced down Jolteon's bandaged fur. "I'm not going to let those crazy water-types sneak up on me again," she said. "By the way, Kahuna, what's your plan to counteract Primarina's hypnotic singing?"

"Well, I don't exactly have anything concrete," Kahuna Raichu said, rubbing the back of his head. "But between me and Espy, our group will have two psychics. I'd like to think we can block out Primarina's tunes with our ESP."

"I don't suppose Magearna gave us some sort of, I dunno, Geartronic Sonar Damplification Apparatuses, did she?" Shane asked, looking at Tessa.

"You mean something to cover our ears? No," Tessa said. "Though I'm sure if you pitched that idea to her she'd jump all over it like a Snorlax at a buffet."

"Drat," Shane said, flicking sand with a forepaw. There was no way they'd be able to navigate Sunset Shoals safely without some sort of countermeasure.

"In all honesty… I think the four of us should be fine," Espy said. She was met with a bunch of bewildered stares. "Why are you guys looking at me like that?" She paused. "Wait. Don't tell me you don't know about your scarves?"

Tessa grabbed the edge of her bandanna with a paw. "What about them?"

"Oh, gods… you mean nobody told you? Your scarves don't just have a rainbow pattern because it's pretty to look at… those scarves were made from feathers of Ho-Oh's rainbow wings!" Espy declared.

"Seriously?" Gallian gasped. He looked at Tessa. "Did you know about this?"

"No," Tessa said, tracing a digit through the scarf's fabric.

"Your parents really never told you about that?" Espy said in disbelief.

"All Dad said was that it was a gift from the Totem of Solstice Summit," Tessa said, digging her right foot into the sand nervously. "Mom certainly never said anything about it." She bit her lower lip. "Then again… back when you were fighting us, you kept trying to take the rainbow scarves, didn't you?"

"Y… yeah," Espy said, wincing. "That's because I knew they had Ho-Oh's life energy. The scarves can keep your spirits safely tethered to your bodies. Heck, the first time I met you, I hit you with an infection beam that didn't work."

"Wait, I don't remember that," Tessa said, stunned by Espy's confession.

"Because Umbry had me wipe your memories," Espy said, ears drooping. "When we got back to Celestial Island, your mom told us about the scarf. She cursed herself out for leaving it with you. The next time we attacked, the scarf had been split in half. And, well, now we've all got a piece. So, in theory, we should be safe from Primarina's hypnosis."

Her teammates sat there, processing the revelation. "Well, that's good to know," Silvally finally said. "But it's not going to mean much if we don't make it to Sunset Shoals." He stood up to look out across the ocean. "The water's growing choppier. We're in for a bumpy ride."

"Don't you worry, cousins," Kahuna Raichu said, floating up to them. "Pikachu and I will lead the group and find the safest route through the waves, yeah."

"Does that mean you're taking Mantines, too?" Tessa asked.

"Of course not," Kahuna Raichu said, laughing. "I'll be surfing across on Ol' Reliable, here." He leaned over and rubbed the edge of his tail. Sparks tickled his paw.

"Aha! You _can_ learn Surf! I knew it!" Shane declared, hopping to his feet.

"Yeah, but he only knows Surf because he's the Totem," Cosplay Pikachu said. "It's been passed down through our family. Other Pikachus and Raichus can't learn it."

Shane's enthusiastic look deflated. "Aww, that's a raw deal. But at least we've got you guys on our side!" His eager look returned and he hopped happily in place, singing, "Everybody was surfing… surfing Chu-S-A! Ba-da-da-da-dah!"

He looked at his teammates, only to be met with blank stares. Shane slowly stopped hopping. "Aha ha… ha… sorry, got a bit carried away. Must be nerves!" he squeaked.

"Wait, does that mean Cosplay Pikachu is coming with us?" Espy asked.

"Why else would I be wearing my Kyogre outfit?" Cosplay Pikachu responded, smacking her stomach confidently. "By channeling the mighty sea god, I shall fell this foul storm!" she proclaimed, raising her paws up triumphantly. A small wave crashed into the shore in front of her, bringing with it a collection of five Mantines. "Ha, just as planned!" Cosplay Pikachu said, beaming.

"Looks like your rides are here, yeah," Totem Raichu said, waving the Mantines over. Each Mantine had a different pattern on the backs of their heads. The lead Mantine had the usual circles that almost resembled eyes.

"Is this the crew we're taking over to Sunset Shoals?" Circle-Head asked, looking over Team Radiance.

"You got it, cousin. These four, plus my daughter," Kahuna Raichu said. "I'll be leading us ahead."

"Actually, you can send one of them home," Silvally said, stepping up toward the water's edge. The blue energy blades in his head crest glowed brightly. "I should be able to get through this on my own."

"Are you crazy? Look at the water out there," Tessa said, gesturing in front of her. "Don't be reckless. We need you at your best."

"There's nothing reckless about it," Silvally said. He crouched down and leaped toward a point where the water became ankle-deep for him. Silvally landed on the surface, much to Tessa's utter shock. Ripples raced out from his talons and hind paws, keeping him steady as if he was standing on the shore.

"I… that's… uh… wow," Tessa whispered, blinking slowly.

"… tch. What a showoff," Gallian said, flicking a paw dismissively.

"Hey, are you guys just going to stand around or are we leaving?" Silvally asked, pacing along the water.

"Err… right. Coming!" Shane said, trotting toward the Mantine with squares on the back of his head. "Um, got any tips for staying balanced and stuff? I've never gone surfing before."

"Just keep your paws centered on my back," Square-Head said. "I'll take care of everything else."

"Okay," Shane said, climbing onto Square-Head. On his left, Tessa boarded a Mantine with triangles on her head. And to his right, Espy climbed aboard a Mantine with star markings on his head, while Cosplay Pikachu climbed aboard Circle-Head.

"Alright, is everyone ready?" Kahuna Raichu asked.

Tessa wobbled about on Triangle-Head, spinning her arms in circles. "Um, actually, could we have a sec—"

"Yup! Let's move out!" Cosplay Pikachu declared, pointing a paw forward. Circle-Head flapped his fins like they were wings, launching himself into the water. The other Mantines followed suit, the rush of water drowning out the startled gasps from Team Radiance.

"Follow me, everyone!" Kahuna Raichu shouted, hovering over the surface of the water. "Things are looking choppy up ahead, but I see a calm patch over to our right!" He shifted his weight toward his right and veered off in that direction. The Mantines all repeated the gesture. Shane yipped in surprise, his paws slipping off Square-Head's back. He leaned to his left to counter the movement.

"Oh, relax, Shane. We haven't even hit the rough waters, yet," Silvally said, trotting along the water beside Square-Head.

"I'd like to see you try doing this!" Shane whined seconds before Square-Head hit a sudden dip in the ocean. Water splashed over him, dousing Shane in the process. His mane fell across his face, covering up his eyes. "Aww, come on, seriously?!" Shane groaned, shaking his head. He expected to get wet, but not this quickly.

"Incoming wave!" Kahuna Raichu called. Electricity crackled across the base of his tail. As soon as he reached the bottom of the wave, Kahuna Raichu released the lightning, jumping over the shoulder-high wall of water.

"W… wave? Wait, how big is it? I can't see anything!" Shane shouted. Square-Head smacked his fins down on the water, propelling him skyward. Shane bounced off of Square-Head. "H-hey! Where'd my Mantine go? Help!" he screamed. Seconds later, his paws contacted Square-Head's back. However, Shane couldn't gain traction against Square-Head's wet skin. He slipped. Square-Head hit the water and Shane tumbled into the ocean.

"Squares, you lost your passenger!" Circle-Head shouted, Cosplay Pikachu standing firmly atop his back.

"Hoo boy… guess Ninetales wasn't kidding when he said he was a beginner," Square-Head sighed. He dove underwater, then resurfaced with a soggy Shane lying on his back, shivering. They weren't even two minutes in and he was already reminded of the swamp in Moonrise Marsh.

Triangle-Head swam by Square-Head. Tessa stood sideways on Triangle-Head's back, knees crouched, and aura feelers raised up behind her. "You doing alright, Shane?" she asked.

Shane spat out a mouthful of water mixed with slush. "No! I think I got water in my ears!" he said. He tried to get back to his feet, but slipped again. He sprawled out on Square-Head's belly. All the while, the two Mantines continued together side-by-side. They caught up to Star-Head. Espy glanced over her shoulder and nodded to her teammates.

"Two waves coming up," Kahuna Raichu said, funneling electricity down to his tail.

"Not again!" Shane groaned. Rather than try to stand up, he released two tiny auroras from his mouth. They froze his forepaws to Square-Head's back.

"Agh! What the heck's with the cold?" Square-Head said, flinching in pain.

"Sorry! I needed the extra traction," Shane said, tensing up. They leaped into the air in unison with the two Mantines by their sides. Shane turned to his left, where Tessa was leaning forward and putting a glowing palm on her Mantine's head. Square-Head hit the water, drenching Shane. His sopping fur fell over his eyes.

Shane had no time to recover as Square-Head took to the air once again. The rush of wind blew Shane's wet hair back. He saw choppier waters ahead, with whirlpools randomly scattered about. Riptide currents and waves scattered from the whirlpools' centers. Lightning flashed in the storm clouds above the group.

Square-Head splashed down. Shane whipped his head back, flicking his mane over his shoulder. Shane hastily reformed his icy footholds and got back up to his feet.

A sudden burst of yellow directed his attention in front of him. "Heads up, cousins, we've got company!" Kahuna Raichu said, frying a lunging Carvanha with lightning.

To Shane's right, Cosplay Pikachu blew a stream of water apart with a burst of electricity. She fired another bolt straight ahead. It struck the water, lighting up a spasming Huntail. It sank back underneath the surface. "They're coming out of the whirlpools, Pops. We've gotta stay clear of them," Cosplay Pikachu said, adjusting her Kyogre hoodie so she could actually see.

Shane blinked the water out of his eyes in time to notice a Tentacruel lunging out of the water. With a startled holler, he shot out an aurora. It struck Tentacruel's face. Tentacruel fell into the water. Square-Head swam forward, trailing behind the other Mantines.

Ahead, Tessa's aura feelers twitched. She pivoted atop Triangle-Head's back and rifled an Aura Sphere into the water. The blast flung a wriggling Gorebyss into the air. "You're going to have to keep your eyes peeled, Shane. These water-types are coming at us from every angle," Tessa said, turning back around as Triangle-Head veered off to the left.

"That's easy for you to say. You can actually sense them coming," Shane said, eyes stinging from the salty water courtesy of his mane.

"Another wave!" Kahuna Raichu shouted.

Espy's ears and tail stuck up. "Are you kidding me?! Look at the size of that thing! How are we supposed to get over that?" She was so fixated on the wave, that she failed to notice a pair of gunky purple balls sailing toward her position.

"Espy, look out!" Shane cried. She looked left, eyes widening. The purple blobs exploded in a shower of toxins. Silvally dashed over by Espy's side, blue eyes glowing brightly.

"Thanks for the save," Espy said. "But how are you going to get over that wave?"

"I'm not… I'm going through it," Silvally said. He raced ahead of Star-Head, making for the wave. Star-Head bounced into the air, jostling Espy about. Just as Silvally disappeared behind a blanket of water, Star-Head hit the water fins-first. This propelled both him and a startled Espy higher into the air. She yelped in surprise as her hind paws threated to slip out from underneath her. Espy hastily funneled psychic energy into her gem. She stopped her skid with her ESP, then yanked herself back into position.

"Head's up, Espy! Wailmers incoming on your right… and they're shooting off Water Spouts!" Tessa shouted.

"Wait, wha—" Espy started, only for a veritable downpour to strike her from above. She tumbled off Star-Head's back. Lingering water jets struck Star-Head's fins. He reflexively folded them against his belly, sending him plummeting down toward the water. Star-Head stood no chance of saving Espy from her freefall. She couldn't do anything but scream.

Two blasts of pink energy jettisoned the offending Wailmers from the crest of the wave. Shane scanned the ocean for any sign of Espy. He sighed in relief when he caught sight of Silvally bounding toward Star-Head, Espy draped over his back like a soggy pink towel. However, his expression turned to one of horror. The water in front of Silvally was swirling about in a circular pattern.

"Look out, Silvally! You're heading right for a whirlpool!" Shane hollered. A bolt of lightning suddenly descended on the center of the would-be vortex, dissipating it. Silvally leaped over a knocked-out Wartortle that floated up to the surface. He landed awkwardly, however. Espy slipped off his back.

Shane concentrated, scrunching up his face. A small pink bubble formed on the water, bouncing Espy back into the air with a surprised yowl. Star-Head plucked her out of the sky and glided down toward the ocean, flapping his fins repeatedly to slow his descent so Espy could regain her balance.

Star-Head turned right, rejoining the rest of the group. Silvally paced along the water, looking for any enemies that might try to snipe Espy again while her back was turned. A column of water suddenly shot him skyward. Silvally squawked, limbs flailing and head crest fanning out from the startling blow. Beneath him, the Wailmers that had attacked Espy bobbed in the water. Both sent water plumes skyward.

"Ugh, when will you lard buckets quit, huh?" Shane growled, narrowing his eyes. A pink explosion hammered one of the Wailmers under the surface, while a small orb of electricity from Cosplay Pikachu knocked the other one out. Silvally splashed down, only to resurface a few seconds later with messy plumage and a dazed look in his eyes.

"You doing okay, big guy?" Shane called.

"Aside from the part where I just swallowed a mouthful of seaweed, I'm peachy," Silvally said, blue eyes flickering in agitation. "Let's get a move on. If we stay rooted here too long, all the water-types will converge on us."

"Oy, that there's the kind of talk that's going to jinx us!" Cosplay Pikachu said, pointing an accusatory digit at Silvally. Right on cue, Tessa's aura feelers shot up and she looked behind Cosplay Pikachu. Two ripples appeared in the water, giving rise to two large Gyarados. Both wasted no time unleashing gigantic white energy beams.

"Hyper Beams?! Shit… abandon ship!" Shane yelped, turning around and diving into the water. Tessa and Espy duplicated the gesture, their Mantines diving underwater behind them. Kahuna Raichu raced off to his left, barely skirting the attack. A bewildered Silvally was left with no choice but to channel his ghost memories. He disappeared under the surface of the water with an unceremonious splash just as the Gyarados duo's blasts vaporized the water all around them.

Kahuna Raichu levitated higher into the air. "Not cool, fellas," he shouted. "What do you two think you're doing, anyway?"

The Gyarados pair responded with monstrous roars, their spittle drenching Kahuna Raichu. His face turned pale and he threw a paw up over his nose. "Hoo-man. Two words, yeah: breath mints," he said. Kahuna Raichu then electrocuted the Gyarados on his right. The blast even singed the other Gyarados.

"I've got ya, Pops!" Cosplay Pikachu shouted. A ball of electricity slammed into the left Gyarados' face, knocking it back into the water with a titanic splash.

"Everybody move!" Kahuna Raichu yelled, pointing forward. But Espy, Shane, and Tessa were too preoccupied climbing back on their Mantines, while Silvally doggie-paddled through the water, waiting for the right time to reactive his water memories. "Oh… that's not good," Kahuna Raichu said, ears folding against his head. "In that case…" He arced more electricity toward the dazed Gyarados on his right. This time it was ready, however, and met the lightning with gale-force winds that redirected it skyward.

Luckily, Cosplay Pikachu came to her dad's aid, striking the Gyarados with a well-placed lightning bolt. It roared its displeasure as it collapsed to the right, revealing that the other Gyarados was not only back upright, but had white-hot plasma charging up in its mouth. Before it got the chance to release its attack, however, three psychic blasts struck it in its head, neck, and torso. The Gyarados' attack exploded in its throat. It belched out a massive plume of smoke and sank into the water, groaning loudly.

"Now, hurry up!" Cosplay Pikachu shouted, directing Circle-Head forward. Circle-Head beat his fins, speeding toward Kahuna Raichu. Team Radiance followed along beside Cosplay Pikachu, with Silvally back on the water's surface.

"I can see the island up ahead. We're gonna make it!" Tessa cheered, only to cup her paws over her snout as her teammates whiled on her with shocked expressions. "Err… uh… I mean… we're in trouble, here… right?"

The water ahead of the group rippled. A gigantic wave rose up ahead of them, nearly reaching the heights of the Gyarados duo they had just felled. The Mantines all screeched to a halt. "That wave's huge! There's no way we're clearing it!" Triangle-Head cried, bobbing up and down in the water.

"Then we've gotta blast an opening in it, yeah!" Kahuna Raichu declared, charging electricity up in his cheek sacs. Cosplay Pikachu also crackled with lightning. "Everyone, get ready. We'll fire on my mark, yeah!"

Shane and Espy both narrowed their eyes, pink ripples gathering on their foreheads. Silvally's cheek bolts whirred to life, icy air funneling toward the tip of his beak. Tessa brought her paws together down by her waist, aura feelers scrunched as she concentrated all her energy down her arms. Even the Mantines hefted their heads out of the water, air swirling into balls between their antennae.

"Now… fire away!" Kahuna Raichu shouted, unleashing a huge burst of lightning. It met up with the electricity fired by Cosplay Pikachu, forming a gigantic yellow bolt. Two waves of psychic energy slammed into the bolt from either side, swelling it further. Then, the pink and yellow beam swallowed up Silvally's ice steam and the Mantines' air crescents. Right before the giant blast could meet the wave, a large blue fireball barreled through it.

A circular explosion parted the wave into two walls of water that collapsed on themselves. "Alright, it worked!" Shane cheered, seizing up to stop himself from foolishly jumping for joy and slipping off Square-Head. There wasn't any time to waste, after all. The group moved forward in unison. Just as they passed the spot where the wave was, however, the water dipped down in front of them.

"Oh no… another whirlpool?" Espy gasped, wondering what _more_ could go wrong for them. She braced herself for Star-Head to go airborne. But rather than harsh currents forming, a large blue blob rose out from the water, stretching so far in either direction that it walled off the group's progress.

"That's no whirlpool, it's a Wailord!" Shane realized. "Cripes, we can't stay around here! What if there are more of them?"

Two pillars of water erupted several yards behind Shane, making his tails and ears shoot up. He slowly turned around and found an angry Gyarados duo staring back at him, their facial scars darkened by electrical burns. " _Guys_ … we've gotta do something!" Shane screamed, jaw dropping. The Gyarados had nearly charged their Hyper Beams, which would spell certain disaster for the team.

Before anybody could offer any sort of advice, Wailord's blowhole erupted. A veritable tropical storm had formed over Team Radiance.

"Dive, _dive,_ _ **dive!**_ " Tessa cried, grabbing hold of Triangle-Head for dear life. Triangle-Head hastily submerged, flapping her fins in a desperate attempt to get as far underwater as possible. Tessa squeezed her eyes shut, trying to will her aura vision on. However, all she saw was the inside of her eyelids. Her aura feelers curled up against her head, a sign that they refused to work underwater.

A quintet of splashes made Tessa's ears twitch. She forced her eyes open, gritting her teeth as salt stung them, and noticed different-colored shapes moving deeper in the water alongside her. Moments later, pounding splashes sounded above her, drawing up memories of nasty thunderstorms she hid under her covers from as a pup. Beside her, Silvally swam further underwater, his tail vibrating back and forth like a rudder in time with the movements of his legs.

The water around the group grew warm, with frothy bubble fizzling toward the surface. Silvally glanced upward, where faint white light vaporized the water at the surface, offering brief glimpses of the air above them. A loud cry of pain then sounded, sending ripples through the water that threated to knock everyone in the group off course.

 _Hey… can everyone hear me? It's Raichu, yeah,_ Kahuna Raichu said, his telepathy projecting through the water. _Looks like the Gyarados hit Wailord and it's sinking into the water. You all need to pull up, now!_

The Mantines all craned their heads toward the surface and beat their fins in unison. Silvally wasn't as fortunate, however. He stopped moving his tail and legs but his momentum continued carrying him forward. A great shadow fell across his head, casted by Wailord's sinking body

Silvally's eyes bugged out. Thinking quickly, the tip of his head crest erupted in a flash of gray light. Wind crescents raced out in front of Silvally. He came to a stop in the water, but kept up his attack. After a couple of seconds, the air blades propelled him backwards, safely outside of Wailord's shadow. Silvally didn't wait around to watch Wailord fall by him. He reached his forelegs up and doggie-paddled, tail oscillating back and forth.

After a half minute of swimming, Silvally broke the surface of the water, thankful Wailord hadn't crushed him to death. He channeled his water memories, focusing energy into his legs. His talons braced against the water, as if they were pressing against solid ground. Silvally got to his feet, sighing in relief at the sight of a sandy shore lying several yards ahead, with waves crashing up against it. He trotted to the shore, head darting back and forth to scan for any signs of further trouble.

Luckily, the worst of it appeared to be over. Silvally's claws finally struck land. When his hind legs were safely rooted in wet sand, he collapsed on his side. His breath came in ragged, salty pants as water splashed up against his open beak and lolled out tongue.

"Thank… the gods… it's finally over…"

Silvally rolled over to find Shane staggering ashore. His tails dragged against the sand, looking more like strands of wet tissue paper than a fluffy nimbus cloud. Shane's hair was a total mess, with part of it splayed over his face, some stuck to his ears, and other parts knotted together. Shane made it to the shoreline, stopped, and glared at Silvally. Next thing Silvally knew, a cloud of frost spread across his face. He squawked in protest.

"What did you do that for?" he asked, brushing ice shavings off his metal beak.

"For totally… jinxing us," Shane panted. "Last night… you said… knowing out luck… we'd wind up having to swim away… from a tidal wave." He gestured back toward the ocean. "Well, look what happened!"

"Aww, c'mon, that was supposed to be a joke," Silvally said. "Don't hold it against me."

Shane flopped onto his belly, groaning loudly. "Whatever. I'd like to make another motion. Next time… we recruit flying-types… so we can avoid this kind of bullshit," Shane said, legs throbbing in pain.

"Seconded," Espy said, stopping next to Shane and leaning over to shake herself dry. It did her little good, however, as she was so thoroughly drenched she looked more like a ragged pink Stoutland.

"All those in favor?" Shane asked, then rolled onto his back and raised a forepaw. Espy and Silvally repeated the gesture. Tessa, who trudged ashore behind Espy, shakily raised her right arm. "And all those opposed?" Shane said, before lowering his foreleg. He got no responses from anyone. "Wonderful… the motion carries. Score one for democracy and all that jazz." He laid his head against the sand. "I'm just… I think I'm gonna lay here… for a while… and not move for the rest of the day."

"You know we can't stay here," Silvally said, shakily lifting his head. "How do you think I feel, huh? I didn't have a Mantine carrying me most of the way."

"Yeah, but you _chose_ to do that, bonehead," Espy said, tilting her head to the right repeatedly. A small amount of water trickled out onto the sand. "You could've had a Mantine Surfer carry you."

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm a lot heavier than the rest of you. I was worried I'd hurt my ride," Silvally said, frowning.

"Then maybe you ought to go on a diet," Espy mused, licking the side of her left foreleg and brushing it against her head to smooth out her fur.

"Excuse me? Which one of us did Gallian say had a good physique, again?" Silvally said, sitting up to pout at Espy.

"My brother said _what?_ " Tessa said, aura feelers shooting up.

"Hey, that's not fair. I'm a lady… I'm never going to be his type," Espy said, flicking her snout up indignantly.

"Ugh, seriously, guys?" Shane groaned, pressing his ears down on his forehead. "Look, you're both beautiful in your own special ways." Since he was still on his back, he couldn't see the incredulous looks he got from Espy and Silvally. "Can we put this issue to rest, now? I just want peace and quiet."

"Woo! That was quite the ride, huh?"

"Why did I even bother getting up this morning?" Shane sighed.

Kahuna Raichu floated up toward the group, with Cosplay Pikachu clinging to his back. "You all doing okay? Any injuries?"

"We're fine. Just sore… I think," Tessa said, rotating her right arm around while she held her right shoulder. "Yeah, I'm _definitely_ gonna feel this tomorrow morning."

"I'm not sure what was up with all those wild Pokémon, yeah," Kahuna Raichu said, scratching his ear.

Silvally's expression sharpened. "Do you think Primarina hypnotized them?"

"How would that be possible? I don't hear any music," Shane said. "Now, I know this world likes to laugh in the face of basic physics, but I _strongly_ doubt that music could carry through the ocean and reach the wild Pokémon underwater. That makes no sense. Actually, scratch that. It makes _negative_ sense. Like, it's so ridiculous it sucks the sense out of everything around it."

Espy held up a forepaw, ears and tail twitching. "Uh, hold that thought, Shane. Everyone quiet down for a second and listen." Silence fell over the group for a solid minute. One by one, their gazes turned inland. The sandy beach gave way to a large rock spire jutting up from the ground. It was bright blue and filled with tiny craters and holes that made it look like an oversized piece of coral. There was a gap in the rock where a small, sandy path went up a short hill. A stream trickled down the middle of the path, spilling into the ocean.

Shane pointed his right forepaw at the gap in the rock. "So, you mean to tell me that Jolteon was blasted out of the dungeon, carried off by this stream into the ocean, and somehow made it all the way back to Circadian Coast?" he said, moving his forepaw along toward the ocean as he spoke. "That's bonkers. Something else must've happened to her."

"Well, she was already knocked out by then, so it's not like she'd remember," Cosplay Pikachu said, shrugging.

"Guys, be quiet!" Espy hissed. "Don't you hear that thumping noise coming from inside the rock?" She frowned at Shane, who shut his muzzle and clenched his jaws. After a few seconds of silence, his ears stuck up in surprise.

"Yeah, I do hear something," Shane said, walking toward the gap in the rock. As he proceeded forward, the thumping grew progressively louder. "It kind of sounds like… music? With a lot of bass?" He tilted his head to the side. "But that— wait, huh?"

"Wait up, Shane!" Tessa called, jogging toward him. "We can't just run into the dungeon all willy-nilly. We should come up with a plan!"

"Hmm?" Shane turned back toward Tessa, his tails twitching. "Oh… right. I wasn't about to go running in. I'm just… confused." He turned back toward the dungeon's entrance. "Why does that thumping sound like the subwoofers all the jackasses in school had put into their cars?"

"What's a subwoofer?" Tessa asked, raising a skeptical brow. "I mean, 'woof' is something canines 'mons do. But that sure doesn't sound anything like a chorus of barking Pokémon, if that's what you're insinuating."

"It's a human world thing, isn't it?" Silvally said, joining his teammates. "Well, whatever that thumping noise is, it's got some sort of regular pattern to it. Maybe there's a Belly Drum contest going on in there?"

"Please, there's no such thing as a Belly Drum contest," Espy scoffed, her tail flicking to her right.

"So, in the human world, we have equipment that can play music… like the Sky Jukeboxs. Only our equipment is a lot stronger. We can blast our music at such high volumes that you could go deaf by listening for too long," Shane explained, drawing alarmed looks from his teammates. "The thumping noise we're hearing sounds like the equipment humans use. But I have no idea why it's happening here. Pokémon shouldn't possess that kind of technology, right?"

"There isn't a need," Silvally said. "If you want to deafen a 'mon, that's what Hyper Voice or Boomburst are for."

"G-Guys," Tessa said, aura feelers sticking up. "You don't think Primarina trapped a bunch of Pokémon down there to use some sort of super-powered Hyper Voice, do you?"

"Um, well, if this has something to do with the Seaside Shard or the Prism Virus, I'd say anything's possible," Silvally said, eyeing the path skeptically.

"I think there's some sort of party going on in there, actually," Cosplay Pikachu interjected. Team Radiance turned to their right, where Kahuna Raichu was hovering a few inches above the stream. Cosplay Pikachu sat on his head, peering into the rock's partition. "You can't tell from where you all are standing, but I see colorful flashing lights up ahead."

"Seriously?" Shane gasped. He crept further up the hill. At the top sat a ring of sparkling rocks. They glowed with moving blue light that resembled waves lapping up against the beach. Like the larger rock surrounding the group, this small ridge had an opening through which a stream of water funneled out. On the other side of the ring, Shane spotted faint, different-colored lights popping into existence, only to disappear seconds later.

"She's right," Shane said, beckoning his teammates forward. They all joined him, looks of confusion spreading across their faces as they caught glimpses of the flashing lights.

"That's… odd," Espy said. "Does Sunset Shoals normally have flashing lights?"

"No. The closest it gets is reflected light moving around like what you're seeing on those rocks up ahead. Those colors are way too bright and vibrant, yeah," Kahuna Raichu said.

"The thumping got louder, too," Tessa noted, her aura feelers rhythmically contracting. "There's definitely music coming from that direction."

"On the other side of the hill is the dungeon's entrance. There's a downward incline and then you've got a series of underground basins," Kahuna Raichu explained. "Sometimes there are multiple rooms on a floor. I don't exactly remember how deep underwater the cave goes, but it's pretty deep."

"Great. More spelunking," Shane said, sighing. "I guess we should stick together for now and see what happens. Does that sound good to you guys?" All his teammates nodded in agreement. "Okay then. Time to explore Sunset Shoals."

Kahuna Raichu hovered in front of the group, directing them around the top of the hill. On the other side, they found a large tunnel opening, with a bevy of seashells embedded in the arch. The seashells flashed different-colored lights, though they paled in comparison to the much brighter light beams emerging from the tunnel. Tessa threw her arm up over her eyes.

"These lights are gonna be troublesome," she said, rubbing her eyes.

"I know, but the sooner we get it done, the sooner we can head back to the resort," Espy said. With a heavy sigh, she set off into the tunnel, the rest of the group following after her.

* * *

 **And now… for a special bonus!  
** _This is an omake. Please don't take it seriously!_

 **~Circadian Coast, Daybreak Beach~**

Shane trotted across the sand, tails fluttering behind him and water flecking off his fur. A towel lay draped over his waist. He ran toward a bunch of Pokémon sitting under beach umbrellas. "Okay, okay, I'm here! What was so important, you needed to send Silvally in to drag me out of a shower, huh?" he said, looking around at all the Pokémon lounging about, chatting with one another.

"Tessa should be here soon," Silvally said, yellow tail wagging excitedly.

"Yeah, but she's not here _now,_ " Shane said, glancing back at his tails. "You couldn't have let me finish?"

"Shane, you've been showering for an _hour_ ," Espy said, rolling her eyes. "If we didn't pull you out, you'd use up all the hot water. _Again._ "

"I was shampooing my fur," Shane whined.

The argument was cut short by a Sharpedo speeding toward the shoreline. Silvally turned around, head crest turning green and fanning out. Tessa clambered off her ride, a duffle bag slung over her shoulder. She jogged through the shallows and onto the beach.

"Welcome back, Tessa!" Silvally chirped, bounding over toward her. He skidded to a halt to avoid barreling into her.

"Hey, Silvally," Tessa said, craning her neck to nuzzle her friend's cheek bolt. "How are things?"

"Good, good. Everyone's been enjoying some lovely beach weather," Silvally said.

"I can see that," Tessa said, waving at the other Pokémon. "Hey, guys." She got a couple of nods of acknowledgement. Espy and Shane walked up to her.

"So, how was the fabled Smash Mansion, huh?" Shane asked, eyes sparkling. "Is it true they've got an all-you-can-dip chocolate fountain there? Oh! And what about the other fighters? Does Mario really dye his mustache? Does Luigi actually sleep with a nightlight in his room? What about Bowser's cross-dress—"

Shane's muzzle abruptly snapped shut. He went cross-eyes staring at the pink glow around it in confusion.

"For pity's sake, Shane, let Tessa have a moment to breathe, will you?" Espy said, shaking her head. "Sorry about that. You want some help with your bag?"

"Oh no, I'm fine," Tessa said, scooping the duffle bag up with a wince.

"You sure?" Espy said, frowning.

"Yeah. Just a bit sore, that's all. Let's just say Little Mac doesn't pull any punches," Tessa said, rubbing her right shoulder. "Um… maybe I should answer Shane? He looks like he's going to explode if you keep his muzzle clamped shut any longer."

Rolling her eyes, Espy released her grip on Shane's snout. He rubbed it against his shoulder, pouting. "Aww, c'mon, you can't blame me. Tessa's living the dream! How the heck did you even get called on to go there, anyway?" he said.

"Aha ha… I'm still a bit confused on that front. Apparently, the Lucario that _had_ been there suffered some sort of injury. Something to do with Ken and Ryu and a 'Hadoken-Off," whatever that's supposed to mean," Tessa said, shrugging. "In any case, Master Hand heard about our penchant for ridiculous battles and decided to hire me." Tessa reached a paw up and massaged her throat. "Though trying to imitate a guy's voice is _not_ fun. I swear to the gods, if I ever have to shout 'Max Aura!' again at the top of my lungs, I'm going to punch someone."

Her friends all stepped away from her, nervous looks on their faces.

"Otherwise, it was pretty interesting," Tessa said. "I mean, the place is much fancier than anything I've ever seen. It was… _weird_ sleeping on a bed." She held up a paw. "No, wait, scratch that, the weird part was the fact that the place was run by two _giant talking hands!_ Like, I thought I'd seen everything in our adventures, but apparently not."

"What did you think of them?" Shane said, eyes brimming with curiosity.

"Master Hand's quite polite. And he's got _such_ a suave voice," Tessa said, smiling and fanning herself with a paw. "Crazy Hand is… uh… well, the guy has a propensity for blowing things up." She rubbed the back of her neck, laughing nervously. "Slight chance he might've set Princess Daisy on fire a couple of times."

"Did you find it weird having to fight an Incineroar?" Silvally wondered.

"Err… it _was_ a bit weird," Tessa said, fidgeting with her scarf. "But he was very nice! Said he's from a world where humans and Pokémon work together. His human partner studies Pokémon and apparently has a wrestling career on the side. What was his name again? Cukoowee or something…" She shrugged. "Eh, it's not important."

 **Oh, Tessa, you're back from the big production, eh? Perfectable timing!**

Magearna approached Team Radiance, prompting some of the other beachgoers to sit up. Tessa walked up to meet her. "You need us for something?" she asked.

 **Yes. As a matter of fact, we just got a fanmail submistication for the cast,** Magearna announced, brandishing a letter for everyone to see.

"Wait… since when do we answer fanmail?" Shane said, brow furrowed. "Hell, since when did we _get_ fanmail?"

"Since always," Espy said. "We just tended to answer them without you since… uh…"

"… since you don't know when to shut up!" Togedemaru shouted from her spot sitting on top of a small sandcastle.

"Aren't you supposed to be dead?" Shane said, frowning.

"Didn't you see the note at the start of this? O-M-A-K-E. Nothing happening here makes sense," Togedemaru scoffed, adjusting her sunglasses.

"Okay then," Shane said, sweat drops trickling down his head. "I guess let's answer the fanmail…"

Magearna nodded. **This one comes to us from a distant world, courtesy of little Cosmog Nebby. He says, "Dear Guiding Light Crew, I'm writing because I wanted to ask who your favorite Smash Fighters are."** Magearna placed the letter in her chest compartment. **I suppose we should start with Team Radiance.**

Everyone looked expectantly at Shane. "Oh… me first?" he said. "Okay. My favorite fighter's Wolf, of course!" He paused to gauge the group's reaction, which consisted of several shocked expressions. "What's with the looks?" he said. When no one responded, he narrowed his eyes. "Oh, I see how it is. Just because I'm a fox I'm supposed to like Fox, huh? Well, nuts to that high-tier, scratchy-voiced loser. Wolf all the way!"

"Finally, something Snowy and I can agree on!" Lycanroc shouted, lounging on a beach chair and holding up a mug of frothy berry juice. "What a mistake it was leaving him out of the last game. I can't wait to tear you blokes some new ones with Wolf."

Beside Lycanroc, Gallian glanced at Zoroark. "Aren't you gonna say something?" he asked. "Wolf and Fox seem right up your alley."

"Nah. I'm a Kirby main," Zoroark said, scratching at his facial scars.

"S-Seriously?" Gallian gawked. Behind him, the ladies of Team Captivate all stuck their heads up to stare.

"Of course. Li'l guy's so adorable… I could just pinch his cheeks," Zoroark said, grabbing hold of Gallian's instead.

"Ow, ow, okay, okay, I get it," Gallian said, batting Zoroark's hand away. "You just… didn't strike me as the type. I thought for sure you'd like Meta Knight more than Kirby."

"Like you?" Zoroark said, smirking.

"Oh, get a load of the Brawl fanboy over here," Togdemaru heckled as she climbed on top of her beach chair. "I'll bet you're still sore they took tripping out of Smash."

"I can like Meta Knight without being a shill for Brawl, you know," Gallian growled, forehead scythe crackling with dark energy. "I'll happily give you a beatdown if you don't believe me."

"Uh, guys? What happened to 'let's start with Team Radiance?'" Silvally said, giving them a look of disapproval. Togedemaru slid back down in her chair, pouting. "Okay, Tessa, I'm willing to bet your answer's pretty obvious, yes?"

"Aha ha… well, I might be biased," Tessa said, pointing a digit at her face with a goofy grin. "I do wish Master Hand hadn't made me strike such an… um… _interesting_ pose for my poster." She poked her digits together nervously.

"Are you kidding? It was a total hit," Shane said, tails wagging. "Everyone online is joking about how you stole Snake's ass."

" _Phrasing,_ Shane," Silvally groaned.

"I think it was probably intentional," Hoopa said, stretching out on his beach chair. "Hoopa's caught him gazing longingly at the poster you sent back more times than he can count."

Shane's face went beet-red. "I… well… uh…" He turned to Silvally. "S-So, Silvally, who's your go-to fighter, huh?" he said, turning away to avoid the angry look on Tessa's face.

"Me? I like Shulk," Silvally chirped. "The Monado Arts are fun to use and it's really satisfying to land his smash attacks and smack the hell out of my opponents with a big ol' beam-sword-thingy. I guess you could say I'm… really feeling him!"

Lycanroc beaned Silvally on the back on the head with his now-empty mug. "That joke was bad and you should feel bad, mate," he said.

"Oh, lighten up, Midnight. This is all in good fun," Dusk said, patting him on the shoulder.

"Says the Jigglypuff main," Hoopa said, fighting off a snicker.

Dusk rolled her eyes. "Alright, wise guy. And who to you use, huh?"

"Heh…" Hoopa rested his head back against his hands. "Hoopa's a Joker main, naturally."

"Impossible. He's not even ready, yet!" Dusk said.

Hoopa pulled off one of his rings and spun it around like a basketball. "Well, Hoopa's been playing in a world where he _is_ ready," he said, smirking.

"That doesn't even remotely make sense. But whatever, let's keep going," Silvally said, sighing. "What about you, Espy?"

"I'm quite partial to Lucas, actually. His animations are adorable and, of course, the PSI powers," Espy said, tail swishing back and forth.

"That's funny, because big brother, Lugia, and I all like to play as Ness," Latias said. She turned to nuzzle Lugia. "Isn't that right?"

"Ah, something like that. I'm just happy we're still getting some representation through Poké Balls, even after all these years," Lugia said, a laugh rumbling in his threat.

 **Concurrence. Fact: the best fighter is the one that summons me from a Poké Ball,** Metagross declared from his spot sitting in the middle of the sand.

"But what if I don't want to play with items?" Latios said, frowning.

 **Fact: real 'mons use items. That's why they're in the game,** Metagross said.

"You know that won't fly in the competitive scene," Shane chided, shaking his head.

 **I prefaced my statement with "Fact." It is indisputable. Fact: Smash contests that exclude items are illegitimate,** Metagross said.

"Funny. He struck me as a 'no items, Fox only, Final Destination,' kind of guy," Shane whispered to Silvally. "Yo, Umbreon, you've got a Smasher that you like?"

Umbreon poked his head up from underneath his very large beach umbrella. "Dark Samus," he said, drawing sniggers from the other Pokémon. "Yeah, yeah, everyone laugh at the dark-type who picked the fighter with 'dark' in her name."

"In his defense, he _used_ to main Samus," Espy said, giggling.

"As a Ridley fan, I don't see any shame with Umbreon's choice," Dragonite said, pounding her fist against her chest. "Samus is old news. It's time for bigger and better things."

"Of course you'd like a big fighter now that you're big yourself," Serperior scoffed, tossing an olive into her mouth. "As for me… I go with Zero Suit Samus, baby! Nothing's more satisfied than smacking foes with her plasma-whip." She lashed out at the air with her vines, nearly clipping one of Milotic's large eyebrows.

"Watch it, Serpy," Milotic huffed.

"My bad," Serperior said, leaning back on her beach towel and tossing another olive into her mouth.

"What about you, Milotic?" Togedemaru asked. "Wait… do you even _have_ a favorite Smasher? You can't hold a game controller."

"I can manage perfectly fine with my eyebrows," Milotic said, wriggling them about. "Besides, half of you randomly button-mash when playing, anyway." Several members of the group looked away from her, whistling innocently. "As for my favorite fighter, I prefer someone with a touch of elegance behind their moves."

"So… Rosalina and Luma, then?" Latias wondered.

"What? No. I'm talking about Princess Zelda," Milotic said, smiling and touching her tail fins to her belly. "She moves about so gracefully and her magic attacks are practical instead of the lame, flashy kinds that someone like Palutena uses."

"She's also much nicer," Tessa said, brow furrowed. "Palutena kept trying to offer me this _awful_ -looking food she called 'puppy chow.' And when Duck Hunt Dog actually took the food, Pit and Dark Pit started trying to feed it to me, too." She opened her mouth and stuck her tongue out.

"Well, I hope you gave her a thorough whooping fer trying such nonsense," Braviary said, landing in the sand behind Team Radiance.

"Oh, hey, you're just in time," Silvally said. "Who's your favorite Smasher, Braviary?"

"Me? Hrmm…" He rubbed his chin with his wing. "Now, I reckon y'all expect me to say Falco cause he's a bird, too. But I ain't too fond of his attitude. Nah, Mario's my favorite. He's a no-nonsense, straight-forward, salt-of-the-earth feller. Plus, that costume of his with the stars and stripes speaks to me. Not sure why, but I feel a real connection to it."

"Feh. How plain. Even _Luigi_ would've been a more interesting choice," Togedemaru scoffed. "At least Comfey prefers Dr. Mario."

"Alright then. Yer acting so high and mighty… why don't _you_ tell us yer favorite Smasher?" Braviary said, staring Togedemaru down.

"Fine," Togedemaru said, adjusting her sunglasses. "It's Bayonetta."

A loud chorus of boos rose up. Serperior even chucked some of her olives at Togedemaru, who batted them aside with her tail.

"And you were chastising _me_ for liking Meta Knight?" Gallian growled.

"Hey, Smash is a _competition._ If I'm playing, then I'm playing to win!" Togedemaru said. "You scrubs just need to step your games up."

"Oh, great. You're one of those 'git gud' types," Shane groaned, head and tails drooping. "Remind me never to invite her to any Smash parties."

"Agreed," Silvally said, frowning and shaking his head.

"Aw, c'mon, Bayonetta was actually fun to talk to," Tessa said. "I mean, yeah, it's kind of weird that she attacked me with her fur—"

"Hair. That was hair," Shane said.

"O-Oh, really? Okay then," Tessa said, aura feelers twitching. "So, um, Magearna… you want to answer?"

 **Ah, I'm afraid my answer is quite obviustate. Mega Man is my favorite,** Magearna said, raising an arm and charging an aura sphere in it. **I find that striking opponents with his charged buster boosts my satisfactifatory levels by 32.1 percent.**

"Gotcha. Yeah, Mega Man's pretty cool. I liked his robot dog," Tessa said. "Though I'm not as fond of that creepy scientist guy you could summon from his world with Assist Trophies." She shivered.

Shane looked around the beach. "I think everyone's had a chance to answer. So—"

 **"Now wait just a minute! You're forgetting someone!"**

Necrozma appeared in a burst of black smoke. With a frightened yip, Shane jumped into the air. He landed in a heap beside Espy. "Uh… h-hi, Necrozma. Do you… um… want to answer the question?"

 **"Hmph. I'll tell you who I** _ **don't**_ **like. That stupid, foolish Galeem!"** Necrozma snarled, third eye flashing. **"He totally ripped me off! Stealing souls and destroying things with light is** _ **my**_ **schtick!"** He floated backward, thrusting his wings apart defiantly. **"Honestly, I can't believe I didn't get an invitation! The adventure mode is called 'World of** _ **Light**_ **,' but they left me, the** _ **Devourer of Light**_ **, completely out of it! There isn't even so much as a royalty check in the mail for me!"**

"Um, Necrozma, not to be rude or anything, but you should really know that Galeem was nothing more than a bunch of CGI that Master Hand and Crazy Hand threw together," Tessa said, fidgeting with her scarf. "None of that stuff actually happ—"

 **"I could've been a fantastic boss… even better than that blowhard, Rayquaza, in the Subspace Emissary!"** Necrozma continued, ignoring Tessa. **"But did they include me?** _ **No!**_ **I don't even pop out of a Poké Ball. Oh, but you know who the kids and teens will love? Rathalos! Sure, let's invite him. It's not like he hasn't been in a billion other crossovers already! And he's got barely anything to do with Nintendo!"**

He lashed out at the air with his wings. **"Do you have** _ **any**_ **idea how embarrassing it is to be the** _ **only**_ **box art Pokémon** _ **not**_ **to feature in Smash whatsoever?!"**

"Hey, that's not true. Master Hand said you're going to be a Spirit," Tessa said.

 **"I'm a** _ **Support Spirit!**_ **"** Necrozma snarled. **"I'm worthless! Nothing but a second banana while all the other big Legends get to be Primary Spirits!"** Dark energy gathered in his claws. **"Grr… as soon as I'm done here, I'm going online to rant about how much Sakurai sucks and how stupid his games are. Seriously, how long is he going to keep ignoring all the modern Kirby games? And let's not forget all the—"**

"Oh dear… I think he's going to be at this for a while," Tessa sighed, rubbing her temples. "Let's just call it a day. Hoped that answered your question, Nebby. Thanks for writing in!"

* * *

I wanted to do something ridiculous to celebrate Smash. Then again, this whole fic is ridiculous, but somehow you kind folks are still reading and I love you all for it. Onto the replies!

SuperOmegaGuest: Destiny Bond could make him faint, but it wouldn't kill him or anything. You'll need something tougher than that, I'm afraid.

Anon Omega: those spoilers you're thinking of aren't really spoilers. HAL advertised the Three Mage-Sisters as playable. Heck, I used three of them to support Magolor in Soul Melter EX. Also, as you can see, Metagross is a Smash purist. He only plays the way Sakurai intended.

Another guest: the burrito part was a Twitch Plays Pokémon reference. I'm surprised no one commented on it. Your guess about the battle is certainly a good one. And HAL themselves acknowledge Magolor is an egg. If Kawasaki cooks Magolor, he generates eggs. Also, Zan Partizanne called him a "deceitful egg" on the Kirby Twitter account. Magolor replied by calling her "Parmesan Cheese lady." Basically, this DLC turned Kirby Star Allies into Kirby Meme Allies.

Phew. I think that's enough for today. Next time: we take a villainous detour.


	89. Casting a Shadow

I apologize if I didn't respond to any reviews. Work has been exhausting. I'm sure those of you who are students are exhausted from your exams and projects. If you're reading this in the future and this doesn't apply to you, then... hi. I hope you're having a nice day. Here's milestone Chapter 75. Good grief... to think the countdown is on to number 100.

* * *

 **Chapter 75: Casting a Shadow**

 **~Rem Canyon~**

"Why didn't you two losers say something about Jangmo-o being from around these parts?" Lycanroc growled, red eyes flashing in irritation. Before he could get a response, an arm surrounded by thick, circular, red and yellow scales smacked the back of his head. Lycanroc turned around, nostrils flaring. "Oy! What was that for, you scaly bloke?"

Behind Lycanroc, Jamgo-o's gaze fell to the ground. "C'mon, Hakamo-o, lay off the boss, please," he said. "He doesn't know a thing about our customs."

"Then you should've tried harder to stop him from waltzing in here and desecrating these grounds with his hideous fur," Hakamo-o said, scratching at his large scale-plates. Turning to Lycanroc, he said, "Those without the dragon-typing are not welcome in Rem Canyon. Any No-Scales that set foot here are to be rounded up and brought before the Totem."

"… tch. I don't care about your blooming Totem, mate. We came here by _accident_ ," Lycanroc said, glaring at Jangmo-o out of the corner of his eye. "Just turn around and take us back to the entrance. We'll be outta your hair real quick."

With an unexpected burst of speed, Hakamo-o jabbed a glowing fist into Lycanroc's gut. Eyes wide, he doubled over in pain, clutching at his stomach. "As I said, No-Scales, you are not welcome here. Likewise, you may not speak," Hakamo-o said. "There is only one fate for a No-Scales who sets foot in Rem Canyon. They shall be brought before our Totem… and their spirit shall be offered as tribute to the mighty Rayquaza, defender of the cosmos!"

"Kweh heh huh? N-now wait just a second here. What's that supposed to mean, huh?" Sneasel said, face blanching.

Hakamo-o turned to Jangmo-o, a dangerous look in his eyes. "Why don't you go on and tell your so-called friends what we do to trespassers, _brother_." He leaned over and poked Jangmo-o's forehead scale with a claw. "Or have you forgotten in your time frolicking with the No-Scales?" Jangmo-o squeezed his eyes shut, whimpering.

"Oy!" a Shelgon with gray barbs sticking out of his shell shouted. "Don't just stand there. Answer him!"

"He's gonna kill you!" Jangmo-o blurted out. "Run! Run away! Or else Dad— I mean…"

Hakamo-o brought a glowing fist crashing down on Jangmo-o's head. "That'll do, brother," he growled, brushing his fist against his hide. Hakamo-o turned on Lycanroc and Sneasel. "I dare you two to try and run away. You're surrounded. Even if you somehow knocked us all out… my fellow dragons would avenge me." He smirked confidently. "Your fates were sealed the second you stepped through the haze at the edge of the canyon. Tuck your tails between your legs and accept it."

"Rrrrgh… fat chance I'm letting some whack-job wild 'mons get the better of me!" Lycanroc barked, eyes twitching. Red energy encased his paw and he swung it toward Hakamo-o. He sidestepped Lycanroc's attack and countered with a burst of dragonfire to Lycanroc's chest. Lycanroc fell onto his back, squishing Jangmo-o. Smoke rose off his scorched fur.

Hakamo-o leaned over, resting his right arm on his right knee. "Man, look at how low you've sunk," he taunted. "Y'know, Dad was considering forgiving you for your failures. But when he sees what a sorry sight you've become…" His voice trailed off and he shook his head. "You'll be lucky to have your head still attached to your shoulders."

Jangmo-o squirmed out from underneath Lycanroc. "Come on, bro. Th… this is all just a big misunderstanding. Give me a chance to talk to D—" He cut himself off. "Let me talk to the Totem. I'll explain everything, I swear."

"Heh." Hakamo-o rubbed the bridge of his nose. "You're assuming Dad's gonna want to listen to a runt like you."

"Yeah, a runt who _abandoned_ us!" a black-finned Gabite said, swiping at the air with his claws. "Lord Rayquaza has no sympathy for scum like you. You're no better than the saddest little Goomy in this tribe."

"Shut it, Black-Fins," Hakamo-o said, holding up his right hand. "I think my brother gets the memo loud and clear. Besides, we've made it to the Totem's den."

He gestured forward with his left arm and stepped to the side, allowing Team Fang to see ahead of him. The path sloped up toward a square shrine constructed out of gray stones. At the base of the shrine, small statues of Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina sat facing in different directions. Each statue had rubies embedded in their eye sockets, giving them intimidating gleams that made Sneasel's fur prickle. Two dozen dragons of different species stood around the altar, some hopping about or flapping their wings excitedly.

The shrine had three stone steps leading up to a throne forged out of crystals. Behind the throne, three stone pillars shot into the air. A long string of emeralds snaked around the middle pillar, ending in a large, triangular emerald that hung above the altar, staring down at all the dragons. Like the other statues, the model of Mega Rayquaza used rubies to depict its fierce red eyes. The delta symbol carved into the statue's forehead glowed orange under the sun's rays.

But that wasn't the only thing sparkling. Behind the columns sat a pile of gems, containing many different shapes and sizes. Mixed in with the crystals were typical dungeon-faring items like orbs and wands. Several of the dragons at the altar had their attentions focused on the treasure horde. Some had a glazed-over look in their eyes and others had drool seeping from their mouths.

"Father! I've returned from my patrol. Two No-Scales invaded our territory and you're not going to believe who we found with them," Hakamo-o shouted. He stepped back and shoved Jangmo-o, who stumbled forward. All at once, dozens of eyes fell on Jangmo-o. In that moment, he felt as tiny as any Joltik.

The dragons at the front of the altar parted to the sides, allowing their leader to pass. Like Hakamo-o, he had large, circular plates of gray and yellow scales covering his arms, neck, and hips. It resembled a suit of armor. There were similar plates fanning out from the tip of his tail and his head. The latter set of scales resembled a headdress for a tribal chief. He had a band wrapped around the heart-shaped scale on his forehead. It bore a rainbow gem with a winged heart sigil carved in it.

"Wh… what the heck?" Sneasel gasped, turning to Jangmo-o. "Is _that_ your final evolution? That's totally nu– _urk!_ "

Black-Fins shoved Sneasel to the ground, pinning him down under a foot. "What did we tell you earlier, No-Scale? No talking!" he said. "You are in the presence of Totem Kommo-o, herald of Lord Rayquaza!"

Totem Kommo-o stomped down the path to the altar. Each step he took made the plates on his tail clang together. Off-key twangs echoed around the path. Lycanroc covered his ears, grimacing. Jangmo-o fixed his attention on the staff Totem Kommo-o carried in his right hand. At the top of it sat older scale-plates sharpened to form the blade of an axe. Sunlight glinted off it, striking Jangmo-o's eyes. Jangmo-o looked away, shivering.

"So, you've deigned to show your worthless face here after leaving these hallowed grounds?" Totem Kommo-o thundered, his tail and battle axe jingling as he thumped them against the ground.

"D… Dad. We… I… this was an accident! Just let us leave and we won't cause any trouble, I swear," Jangmo-o squeaked.

"Silence!" Totem Kommo-o shouted, slamming his axe down so it was inches away from Jangmo-o's face. Jangmo-o stared wide-eyed at the axe's blade as Totem Kommo-o lifted it back up. "Not only did you spit upon our family's honor by abandoning the tribe, you had the _gall_ to associate with these No-Scales." He gestured at Lycanroc and Sneasel. Totem Kommo-o looked skyward. "You have tarnished the sacred dragon-typing and must be punished accordingly."

"No, Dad, you can't! I—"

"You are no son of mine. My son proudly accepts his fate to carry out Lord Rayquaza's will!" Totem Kommo-said, glancing at Hakamo-o. He touched the Totem Crystal on his forehead. "I gave you a chance, but you turned your back on us. Now, you will suffer the consequences."

Lycanroc's red eyes flashed. "And what gives you the right to be all high and mighty, huh? There are loads of other Totems around Horizon, mate. You ain't special or nothing!" he spat, to Jangmo-o's horror. Totem Kommo-o narrowed his eyes at Lycanroc and snapped his claws. Within seconds, Hakamo-o was in front of Lycanroc. He socked Lycanroc square in the snout. Lycanroc crumpled to ground, eyes watering and paws pressed against his nostrils to stem the bleeding.

Totem Kommo-o turned to Black-Fins. "Ready the sacrificial pyre. We will offer these miserable souls to Lord Rayquaza," he declared, raising his staff high.

"Emergency! _Emergency!_ "

An Altaria with lime-green ribbons on her head touched down next to Totem Kommo-o. She stumbled forward and leaned over, panting heavily.

"What is the meaning of this interruption?" Totem Kommo-o said, biceps twitching. Green-Ribbons stood up straight, tucking her wings in nervously.

"I was flying back from the watering hole when I spotted a pack of No-Scales, sir! They're walking about our territory so casually, scuffing up the ground and everything!" she said, saluting him with her right wing.

Totem Kommo-o whirled on Jangmo-o, snorting out blue electricity. "You brought _more_ No-Scales into our domain?"

"What? No! I swear… it's just the three of us!" Jangmo-o said, tearing up.

"… hmph. We shall see soon enough," Totem Kommo-o said. He turned to Hakamo-o's team. "You lot… stay here and guard them. Make sure they can't escape. The rest of you…" His voice trailed off as he pivoted to face the altar. "Fan out! Find these sinful No-Scales so that we may restore the sanctity of our domain!"

The dragons roared in agreement and took off, some running and others flying away from the altar. Totem Kommo-o stomped off after them, not bothering to look back and acknowledge Jangmo-o.

* * *

 **~Treasure Town Outskirts~**

Zero had taken Team Captivate to the edge of a forest a mile away from Treasure Town's forcefield. The green dome glowed brightly, filling the area with light despite the sun having already set. Serperior rapped her tail-blade impatiently against the rock she currently sat on. "So, why exactly are we here if you can't sense the Time Gears?" she asked, staring out at the ocean.

"I already told you. We're here to get our insurance policy," Zero said, kneeling next to the rock and placing her right paw on the ground. Black shadows swirled around her paw, filling it up with static. After a few seconds, the static disappeared and Zero stood up. "I can sense him. The 'mon we're looking for is here."

Milotic slithered toward the edge of the cliff, stretching her neck and flicking dirt down into the ocean. "You mean Team Poképals?" she asked.

"In a manner of speaking," Zero said.

"But how are we going to draw them out from that forcefield without, y'know, rousing the whole town?" Serperior asked, studying the energy dome off in the distance with a frown on her face.

Zero turned to Serperior, her lone eye flashing violet. "I'm so very glad you asked, Serperior," she said. "Because you get to play such a big role in all of it."

Serperior stiffened, then curled up defensively around her tail-blade. "I… I do?"

"Yes, of course," Zero said, then snapped her digits. In a burst of electrified speed, Dragonite grabbed Serperior in her claws and rebounded toward the ocean.

"H… hey! Put me down, Nighty!" Serperior yelped, wriggling in her teammate's grip.

"I'm afraid I can't do that. Mistress Zero's orders," Dragonite said, eyes brimming with blue electricity. "You're gonna go for a little moonlight dip. Sorry we couldn't bring your squeeze along. But, let's face it, sex in the ocean is so overdone, don't you think?"

"Nnnngh… I don't… approve of this," Serperior said. She tried to strike at Dragonite with her tail-blade, but Dragonite pinned the appendage in place using her leg.

"It's for the good of the world, Serperior," Dragonite scoffed. "It'll be over before you know it." She flapped her wings, increasing her speed. "Next stop… Sharpedo Bluff!"

* * *

 **~Sharpedo Bluff~**

Inside the mouth of the Sharpedo-shaped outcropping was a small cave. Soft grass lay across the floor, with a half-dozen straw beds scattered around its edge. The cave's lone wall had a small purple tapestry hanging from it, with the rune of a Time Gear woven into it. A patch of bare land contained a small campfire, offering the only source of light in the cave. Darkrai's shadowy form lay behind the fire. He rested his head against his right arm while lazily tracing a finger through the dirt. Opposite him, Cresselia floated toward the edge of the cave, where teeth-like rocks sprang up, partially blocking the view of the ocean.

"Are you doing alright, Manaphy? Your aura seems… off," Cresselia said, her rings drooping in concern.

Manaphy sighed heavily. "I'm just…" He paused. "Actually, I don't really know _what_ I'm feeling. A part of me is bored… and wishes I could've gone with my dads. The other part of me is concerned about everything that's happening." He looked over his shoulder at Cresselia. "Do you trust Ampharos?"

"I don't see any reason _not_ to trust him. He was quite important in putting a stop to Dark Matter," Cresselia said, touching the tips of her stubby arms together.

"I guess. Maybe I'm nervous because we're putting our faith in strangers we've never met before," Manaphy said, rubbing his antennae. Cresselia tilted her head to the side in confusion. "I'm talking about the 'mons over in the Horizon Continent," Manaphy continued. "Latias seemed rather fidgety about the subject and those ghosts on Team Specter didn't have much to say about Team Radiance other than their leader scaring easily."

"Bah! Team Specter's headed by a former outlaw. I wouldn't put much stake in their claims," Darkrai said, waving his left hand about. "I bet they're looking to cause trouble, that's all."

Cresselia and Manaphy exchanged blank looks. "That's a bit rich coming from him, don't you think?" Manaphy whispered.

"Let's not reminisce about that, shall we? He doesn't remember it, after all," Cresselia whispered back. "In any case… it's getting late. Maybe you'll feel better if you try to get some sleep?"

Manaphy looked down and rubbed his belly. "Hmm… I guess. I think what I could really go for are some blue gummis, though. Would you be willing to grab some out of the deposit box?" He batted his eyelids at Cresselia. "Puh- _lease?_ "

"I don't see why not," Cresselia said, bobbing her head up and down. "I fancied going for a walk, anyway. Or… I guess it would be a float in my case." She chuckled at her own lame joke, while Manaphy rolled his eyes. Cresselia turned to Darkrai. "Care to join me? I'd appreciate the company."

Darkrai lazily tossed a few blades of grass into the fire, watching them disappear into trails of dark smoke. "It beats laying around here. Besides, I doubt Manaphy will want me nearby if he's going to sleep." He floated up into the air and looped an arm around one of Cresselia's halos. The two floated up the stairs leading out of the secret cave.

With another sigh, Manaphy hopped onto the rocky ridge and looked out at the ocean. The forcefield lay several yards ahead of him, blocking the moon's reflection in the water. He toyed with the idea that maybe his inability to swim freely was causing his funk. Manaphy kicked a pebble and watched it careen down into the water.

The moment the pebble landed, Manaphy heard a much louder splash. His head jerked up, antennae bobbing up and down. "H… hello? Is someone out there?" Manaphy called, leaning against one of the teeth-like rocks.

"Help me! _Somebody!_ "

Manaphy squinted his eyes and spotted splashing on the other side of the forcefield. A leafy-green head poked out of the water and thrashed about. It was a Serperior, but why was it out beyond the forcefield? Had the tides carried it there?

Serperior lashed her vines out, smacking them uselessly against the water. "Please… somebody help me! I can't swim!" she cried.

Manaphy's antennae shot up in alarm. He looked back over his shoulder. "Cresselia? Darkrai? We've got trouble!" he shouted, only to get no response. Manaphy turned back around just in time to see Serperior slip underneath the surface of the water. He bit his lower lip. There was no way he could turn his back on a drowning Pokémon. He was an explorer, after all.

Thrusting his forward, Manaphy dove off the edge of Sharpedo Bluff. He landed safely away from the jagged rocks at the base of the cliff. Manaphy swam quickly, propelling himself forward with a series of pressurized blasts from his hands. His bulbs glowed bright yellow, illuminating the dark ocean. After a half-minute of swimming, Serperior's wriggling outline came into view. A green shimmer rippled in front of her, signifying the edge of the forcefield barrier.

He passed harmlessly through the shield, reaching his nubby arms out toward Serperior. Seconds before he could grab hold of her, a vicious vortex whipped up all around him. The gale-force winds spun him about like a lump of clothing in a washing machine. The whirlwind carried Manaphy up and out of the water. It then broke, flinging him skyward.

"Lightning Javelin!"

An electrified spear pierced Manaphy's right shoulder. Blue, slimy fluid spurted out of the open wound. Mortified, Manaphy screamed. A second spear struck his left shoulder. Manaphy's antennae spasmed. The pain proved too much for him and he passed out on the spot.

With Serperior slung around her neck like a wet towel, Dragonite zipped forward, catching the bleeding Manaphy before he smacked the water. She then flew back around the outside of the barrier, beating her wings to keep her speed up.

"This is _so_ not cool!" Serperior yelped, clinging to Dragonite's black armor with her vines for dear life.

"For pity's sake, listen to yourself, Serperior. No wonder those Team Radiance stooges handed your tail to you," Dragonite sneered. She closed the distance with the small patch of land where Zero and Milotic awaited them. Dragonite landed hard. The impact jostled Serperior, who flopped to the ground like a useless Magikarp. Dragonite tossed Manaphy in front of Zero. Milotic looked at Manaphy's shriveling body with a look of confusion.

"Wait… Manaphy? That was who you're after? You already have a competent water-type at your disposal," she said, frowning.

Zero stomped her left foot on Manaphy's gut. His antennae swelled up. Blue blood trickled out of his shoulder wounds. "Hmm… you overdid it, Dragonite. But I can fix this," Zero said. She stepped off Manaphy, a black Beast Ball forming in her right paw. Zero let go of the ball, which fell onto Manaphy. It opened up, sucked him inside in a beam of red light, and dropped to the ground for Zero to pick up.

Pink energy flowed into the Beast Ball from Zero's right paw. She brought it up to eye level and inspected it carefully.

"So, that's it? He's infected, then?" Serperior asked, eyeing the Beast Ball nervously.

"No. But he has been… subdued to my will," Zero said. Milotic and Serperior exchanged confused looks. Zero sighed and rubbed the bridge of her snout. "It's simple, you two. We need Manaphy infection-free to be of any use to us." She tossed the ball up and down. "Perhaps a demonstration will make things clear?"

Zero opened up the ball. Manaphy dropped onto the ground in a stream of red light, his shoulder wounds completely healed. His eyes, however, were now gray. Manaphy stared lifelessly at the ground. "Manaphy… Heart Swap on Dragonite," Zero said, pointing at her.

Dragonite's wings stiffened in alarm as Manaphy jerked his head up and whipped his antennae in her direction. A tiny pink beam struck Dragonite in the chest. She crumpled to the ground without so much as a cry of pain. Manaphy did the exact same thing.

"Nighty!" Milotic gasped, uncoiling in surprise. "Mistress, what did you do to her?"

Zero nudged up her mask. "See for yourself." She gestured to Dragonite, who slowly got to her feet. She now had the same lifeless look in her eyes Manaphy held previously.

"Ungh… what happened?" Dragonite groaned. Her teammates' jaws dropped when Manaphy got to his feet. He looked at Milotic and Serperior blankly.

"Hey, what's wrong with you two?" Manaphy said, his voice unchanged but carrying the same aggression Dragonite's did.

"Heart Swap… the unique ability possessed by Manaphy allowing him to exchange his consciousness with that of his target… for a short time," Zero explained, patting Manaphy on the shoulder. "It's both our ticket to getting the Time Gears _and_ taking Necky out of the picture."

"I'm not sure I follow, Mistress," Dragonite said, staring at her real body and biting her new one's lower lip.

"It's simple. Posing as the friendly Manaphy, you will infiltrate the location the Time Gears are being held at. Then, you steal them," Zero said.

"But won't these forcefields repel me? Can't they sense my spiritual energy or something?" Dragonite asked.

"That's the beauty of Heart Swap. It exchanges Manaphy's consciousness with yours. Only the most important essence of your spirit is residing in Manaphy's body," Zero said. "Your corrupted Z-Power still lies in your real body. Therefore, the forcefield will believe you to be Manaphy. What say you to that?"

Dragonite rubbed Manaphy's flippers together. "I'd say… when do we get to start?"

* * *

 **~Sea Shrine~**

Bubbles formed on the surface of Lugia's secret pool shortcut. His long, slender head popped out to stare at the blue, rocky cavern. Water trickled down his hardened, scale-like feathers. Lugia ran a wing across his forehead, disheveling his down. With a heavy sigh, he rolled onto his back and lazily flutter-kicked his legs. He drifted across the pool, looking up at the mix of gray and blue rocks on the ceiling.

There were probably harsh currents he should be dealing with, but he wasn't up to it. Instead, he reached the edge of the pool, his head bumping up against the ground. Lugia rested his head in the dirt, not caring that dust clung to his wet feathers. He stared blankly at his home, yawning loudly. The two rows of pillars looked no different than usual. Lugia could identify every little crack, every strand of seaweed, and every patch of luminous moss dispersed across each of the six pillars.

He thought of Latias, wondering what she could be doing. Since she had left for the Horizon Continent, she hadn't even tried to contact him through their mental link. Lugia figured the distance made it too tough for her to try. Still, he worried. Lugia kept recalling their last conversation. Mental images of her distraught, tearful gaze played on loop for him. He shut his eyes, trying to push those uncomfortable thoughts out of his head.

Lugia longed to have her in the water with him, resting on his belly, with her head and neck nestled against his. He imagined her glass feathers brushing against his cheek. Blood pooled into his face, his temples throbbing as his heart rate spiked.

He shook his head. This wasn't right. He couldn't goof off like this. Latias was working hard. He had to do the same. Groaning, Lugia rolled over onto his belly. His brief spurt of motivation faded. Lugia was too comfortable. He didn't want to get up… or even move. Lugia yawned again. Maybe with a good night's sleep, he'd be ready to get back to work.

A flash of light made him jolt upright. He looked across his home. A swirling wall of blue energy had appeared on the far end of the cave. Lugia rubbed his face with a wing.

A distortion field had activated. Someone had reached the end of his Mystery Dungeon home. But who… and why?

Lugia hopped out of the pool, water trailing off his flank and tail. With a flap of his wings, he landed on the nearest pillar, curling his toes against its edge. "Who goes there? State your business!" Lugia called, wings fanning out in a display of dominance. He waited for a response or for a Pokémon to emerge from the distortion, but nothing happened. Lugia hunched over, drawing on his ESP. "I said identify yourself!" Lugia shouted.

The distortion field pulsated with ripples of light. Three purple, meteor-like projectiles streamed out from the wall, shadowfire trailing off them. Lugia blew them up with bright-pink rings. He shot up, gathering air in his mouth. The air turned red-hot, then Lugia unleashed it as a conical beam of red-orange light. It tore across the ground, kicking up plumes of dirt and debris.

An intense blue flash filled the room. Lugia to cut his attack to back away. When the light faded, the distortion field had vanished. Lugia stared at the now-bare rock wall, brow furrowed. "That's strange… I didn't sense anything off with the ley lines here. What—"

A black vortex opened beside Lugia. Necrozma shot out, surrounded by purple energy. **"Surprise, Lugia!"** he shouted, slamming his foe at full speed. Necrozma's claws grazed Lugia's sensitive underbelly seconds before the force of the blow rocketed Lugia into one of the pillars in the center of the room. Lugia struck the pillar square between his shoulder blades. In a nasty case of whiplash, his head, legs, and tail wrapped around the pillar, then immediately snapped back.

Lugia screamed. He fell to the ground, limbs twitching uselessly. "What do you think you're doing to him? Have you gone mad?" Marshadow gasped, dangling from Necrozma's luminescent-blue tail by ley line chains.

Necrozma flicked his tail backwards, flinging Marshadow onto the pillar opposite Lugia. The chains wrapped around the pillar, restraining Marshadow against it. **"What does it** _ **look**_ **like I'm doing, fool? I'm softening up your new body, of course! Heeheehee… huh?"**

A white-hot cone of air blasted Necrozma right in the chest. Screeching, he retreated into a black vortex. On the ground, Lugia staggered to his feet. His legs burned with the intensity of a Fusion Flare. Black and purple splotches peppered his back. With a pained wince, Lugia went airborne. Seconds later, Necrozma lunged out of another portal shrouded in purple shadows.

Necrozma dispelled the ghostly energy and whirled around in time for a trio of pink rings to slam into him. He tumbled through the air. Necrozma spread his wings apart to stop his momentum. Lugia refused to let up, despite the shocking pain fanning out from his back with each flap of his wings. He spat a giant water geyser from his mouth.

 **"You will not stop me! Moongeist Beam!"** Necrozma shouted, blue and black light streaming toward the center of his chest. His three eyes glowed bright blue as he unleashed a giant blue and black laser. It collided with Lugia's attack. The two beams stalemated, but Lugia lost the energy needed to keep pumping out water. His attack collapsed.

Lugia tucked his wings in and dove toward the ground. Necrozma's beam missed the tip of Lugia's tail by inches. Lugia thrust his wings apart, stopping his dive about a foot off the ground. Blue energy surrounded his body, taking on the shape of a dragon. He charged down Necrozma, speeding through the air like a blue, dragon-shaped comet.

Necrozma's third eye brimmed with red energy. He thrust his hands out in front of him seconds before Lugia struck him. The collision pushed a snarling Necrozma back toward a nearby pillar. He looked down at his trembling arms. Cracks splintered across them. The glow faded from his eyes and winged-heart sigil. Lugia's confidence swelled. He was doing it. Just a little bit longer and—

 **"That… is…** _ **enough!**_ **"**

Necrozma spat a Shadow Ball from his mouth. Lugia's blue energy dissipated, leaving him hovering meekly in midair. Necrozma tightened his grip on Lugia's face, arms trembling uncontrollably. **"Hee… heeeheeheehee! Trying to channel your worthless girlfriend, are we? How adorable!"** he crooned. **"And by adorable… I mean** _ **pathetic!**_ **"**

Lugia wailed in agony as Necrozma claws dug into his scalp. He tried to open his mouth to attack, but Necrozma's grip kept it clamped shut. Lugia also failed to tap into his ESP reserve, his mind clouded by a sudden assault of fearful thoughts and disturbing images of a white, gooey sphere with bulging, rainbow veins and a red, piercing eye.

 **"Lugia, the mighty guardian of the seas… an insecure** _ **wreck**_ **of a god who mated with the meekest, most timid dragon in existence. A girl everyone looked down upon for her flagrant cowardice in the face of impending disaster. And why… why did he do it? Simple! To make himself feel big and strong… like the immortal gods he put on a pedestal! Do I hAvE tHAt rIgHT?"** Necrozma said, his tongue lolling out of his mouth. He released his grip on Lugia and struck him at point-blank range with two shadowfire meteors. They blasted Lugia into the far pillar, destroying it in a burst of white dust and rock shards. Rubble collapsed on top of him, drowning out his screams.

A soft white glow appeared over Necrozma's head. Pale moonlight bathed his body, repairing the cracks in his arms and restoring some of the glow in his eyes and sigil. Necrozma's eyes flashed pink. Psychic energy dispelled the dust, revealing Lugia lying beneath the rubble, only his bloodstained head and part of his neck sticking out.

"Th… at voice," Lugia wheezed, his facial features contorted in a grimace. "It's… impossible. You can't…"

 **"wHaT's THaT? YoU'lL hAVe tO sPeaK uP So tHe wHOle cLaSS cAn HErE!"** Necrozma said, pointing to Marshadow.

Lugia struggled to lift his head up and look at Necrozma. "L.. un… ala… Gu… iding.. Light… you… have to f… ight it," he croaked.

Neccrozma's third eye dimmed slightly. **"What you've got is a simple case of mistaken identity,"** he continued, floating toward Lugia. **"I'm not the monster you're thinking of."** Necrozma's third eye fixed its gaze on Lugia, wriggling inside his armored forehead. **"I'M hIs rEPlaCeMeNT!"**

Lugia tried to free himself from the rubble, but a white-hot bolt of pain ran through his spine. All he could do was squawk weakly. Necrozma wrapped his wings around his torso to control his twitching arms.

 **"You fools really thought that one tiny,** _ **insignificant**_ **fox showing 'acceptance' would make all of your problems go away. Pah… how ridiculous!"** Necrozma declared, making air quotes with his wing digits as he spoke. **"The only thing that succeeded in accomplishing was reestablishing the status quo. Everyone resumed their normal lives, turning a blind eye to their problems and acting like Dark Matter was nothing more than a bad dream."**

Necrozma looked down at Lugia, who had given up struggling under the rubble. **"News flash, birdie: acceptance doesn't fix problems. It's an empty gesture… like calling a fragile, anxiety-ridden dragon your mate. Or coddling up to the shy, quiet kid in school and stringing him along to make him the laughing stock of the community and boost your own social standing!"** Necrozma thrust his wings apart, red spots flashing under his chest armor. **"So, the world's negativity has persisted all this time. Hatred, sadness, guilt, jealousy… all swirling around in Pokémon's hearts… magnifying their suffering!"**

"What are you talking about? Pokémon are only suffering because of blokes like you," Marshadow said, thumping against the pillar he was stuck to.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Says the thief who preys on Pokémon and leaves them unconscious in Mystery Dungeons to get what he wants,"** Necrozma said, a grin spreading across his lips. **"Well, go on. Look Lugia in the eyes and tell him it was** _ **you**_ **who pummeled his girlfriend like a feathery punching bag… knocking her fragile sense of self down another peg!"** He floated to the side, gesturing at Lugia with his left arm and wing.

With a pained wince, Lugia turned his head toward Marshadow. "You… attacked Latias?" he whispered.

 **"Oh-ho! What's that I see in your eyes there? Could it be…** _ **anger?**_ **"** Necrozma said, drifting down and partially dissolving into the ground so he was at eye-level with Lugia. **"Yes… yes, it is! To think a lesser god could project such negativity. Heeheeheehee! See, what did I tell you? This world… and all who inhabit it…"** Necrozma floated back into the air, his third eye shining bright. **"YoU aRE AlL MisTaKEs! YoU mUSt Be ReTUrNeD To tHe VOiD!"**

Necrozma's wings brimmed with black shadows. He whipped them forward. A crimson shockwave destroyed the rubble piled atop Lugia. At the same time, the dark energy battered Lugia's. He didn't even have the strength to scream. Lugia's consciousness faded, his eyes shutting and his tongue rolling out of his open mouth. Necrozma swooped down, wrapped his crystalline hands around Lugia's neck, and hoisted him up into the air. Lugia's wings fell uselessly to his sides.

 **"Heeheeheehee! How does this make you feel, sea guardian? Overwhelmed? Powerless?** _ **Insignificant?**_ **"** Necrozma whispered, his face close enough for Lugia to feel his cold breath. **"Good… now you know exactly what it's like! What I felt… when everyone turned their backs on me,"** Necrozma shouted, tightening his grip around Lugia's throat. **"Now you can start to see the truth. Everyone— no, every** _ **thing**_ **is meaningless. All that matters is returning each and every world to the void."**

 **"Humans, Pokémon, UBs… you're all the same. You try so desperately to instill order wherever you can. And, in doing so, you create endless suffering!"** Necrozma continued as Lugia's eyes slowly opened and quivered in fright. **"Besides, everything you're fighting for is doomed to disappear one day, no matter how hard you work. I'm simply speeding up the process… by burning down this world** _ **now**_ **and leaving behind pure,** _ **beautiful**_ **chaos."**

"You're… ungggrh… wrong," Lugia wheezed, failing to lift his wings up. "Positivity… always wins out… in the end…"

 **"Is that really what you think… or is that what the immortal gods have forced into your feeble birdie brain?"** Necrozma said, licking his lips. **"Like I said… you're insignificant. Whatever good you can accomplish** _ **will**_ **be forgotten. All you can offer is false hope. Negativity will return, growing steadily more relentless until you finally submit."** His third eye wriggled in place. **"If you think otherwise, you're deluding yourself! But I… I know better. I've** _ **seen**_ **it… while locked away, rotting in the Ultra Nexus. That's why I've become part of something bigger than myself: the void!"**

 **"You can struggle as much as you want, but you won't win,"** Necrozma said. **"Even if you somehow stopped me… another crisis would befall this world in the future. And that cycle will continue on loop, until at last your world is returned to chaos!"** He shook his arms out, throttling Lugia. **"If you want to end your suffering, there's only one thing you can do, Lugia. Look me in the eyes and tell me you want it to stop.** _ **Beg**_ **me to take your light!"**

"I… won't… surrender… to you!" Lugia said. Drawing on the last of his strength, he headbutted Necrozma. The blow wasn't strong, but Necrozma still lost his grip in surprise. Lugia dropped to the ground, landing with an unceremonious _thud_.

 **"WoRThlEsS bEIng! YoUr LIghT bELoNgs tO Me!"** Necrozma shouted. He pointed his arms down at Lugia. A crimson circle formed around Lugia, who was unable to get off the ground. As soon as the circle was complete, black ley line chains shot out of the ground. Lugia squawked in fright, but it was quickly cut off as a single chain wrapped around his beak. The remaining chains split their efforts. Some bound his legs and tail to the ground and the rest forced his wings against his torso. Lugia struggled against the chains, to no avail.

 **"I haven't used a transmutation circle like this before, but there's a first time for everything,"** Necrozma declared as Lugia's eyes widened. **"I've got the Shadow."** He gestured at Marshadow, whose face blanched. **"And now I've got the Lugia. The only thing left to do is mix them both together!"** He raised his right hand.

"H… hey now! What d'ya think you're doing? Put me down, you mental monstrosity!" Marshadow shouted, resuming his struggle against the ley lines. Necrozma thumped his right arm against his chest. An unseen force flung Marshadow into the transmutation circle where he landed atop Lugia's back. Necrozma's third eye shimmered with rainbow light. A winged heart sigil appeared over Lugia and Marshadow, bathing them in multicolored energy.

Necrozma raised both hands. With his left hand, he traced a capital omega symbol, and then a line underneath it. The same scripture appeared on the edge of the circle. **"Sublimation,"** Necrozma said, then pointed a claw at Marshadow.

"What the—" Marshadow began, only for the chains around to squeeze him so tight that he popped like an overinflated balloon. Purple vapors spilled over Lugia's back.

Necrozma again used his left hand to trace in the air. He made a circle and added a long, whip-like tail. **"Digestion,"** Necrozma said. He snapped his claws and the chains around Lugia's mouth shifted, forcing it open.

Marshadow's smoky remains spilled inside of Lugia's mouth. The chains snapped it shut and hefted Lugia's head upward, forcing him to swallow. For a minute, nothing happened. Lugia remained locked in place by the chains, eyes darting around the room in a panic. Then, suddenly, his eyes widened. Lugia screeched. His sclera turned from white to red. Dark blue spilled across his white feathers, like a wet paintbrush pressed firmly against a canvas.

 **"Yes…** _ **yes!**_ **Rise, Shadow Lugia!"** Necrozma shouted, rubbing his hands and wings together gleefully. The dark blue had completely overtaken Lugia's body. Lugia's head and neck fell limp.

The chains holding him unraveled, but didn't disappear. Instead, they swirled about in midair, forming into a black chest plate much like the one on Necrozma's body. Pink light surrounded Necrozma's right hand and he levitated Lugia into the air. The armor slammed into Lugia's stomach. Black chains shot out of it and dug into Lugia's backside between his ten red plates. To finish off the transformation, a white winged heart sigil formed in the center of Lugia's chest plate, with horns protruding from the top of the heart and a single eye in the center.

 **"Well… how are we feeling?"** Necrozma asked, releasing his psychic hold.

Lugia dropped to the ground, landing on his feet. He thrust his wings apart. **"Gyyaaas!"** he shouted, his voice heavily mixed with Marshadow's. Black energy swirled around his wings.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Excellent! You won't be much for conversation, I'm afraid, but I'll take it,"** Necrozma mused. **"So, tell me, Shadow Lugia… how would you like to go pay your girlfriend a visit?"**

Lugia's red eyes flashed. He opened his mouth wide and a conical burst of shadowy air obliterated a nearby pillar in a black explosion. Necrozma grinned at the sight, only to drop toward the ground. He weekly opened an Ultra Wormhole behind Shadow Lugia. **"We'll get to that… soon enough. I need…"** He struggled to catch his breath. **"That took… too much… energy. Need light. We must… find spirits…"**

The two flew off into the portal together, leaving the battle-scarred room behind.

* * *

 **~Circadian Coast, Daybreak Beach~**

Gallian sat down on the edge of the shore, furrowing his brow. "You guys saw all of that right?" he said, scythe flickering pink. "The massive waves, the flashes of lighting, and those two huge Gyaradoses. Something bad happened to them… I'm sure of it."

Zoroark stood a foot back from Gallian, arms crossed over his chest. "Nothing we can really do about it. They're too far away and we need to keep the resort safe," he said, eye scanning the water for signs of trouble.

"I know that," Gallian said. "It's just…" His voice trailed off and he curled his claws up around the sand. "Tessa can't swim. If she got knocked underwater… I'm not sure she's okay." Gallian rubbed his head against a foreleg. "My disaster sense was going off when they were talking about Mantine Surfing over to Sunset Shoals, but I didn't say anything."

A slender black arm draped over Gallian's shoulders. He flinched, then turned to his right, where he found Zoroark sitting next to him. "You did the right thing," he said.

"It sure doesn't feel like it," Gallian said, frowning.

Zoroark traced a claw along Gallian's scythe, making him shudder. "Well, that's just because of the situation we're in. But think about it, Gallian. We _need_ the Seaside Shard and it's in Sunset Shoals. There was no way around it. Team Radiance had to go there. And if you'd chosen to say something about your disaster sense, I bet you would've upset your sister," he said, lazily moving his claw down Gallian's neck until it was between his shoulder blades. "You made the right call this time," Zoroark said, rubbing his back.

"I suppose," Gallian whispered, relaxing his shoulders. "Tessa's stronger than me… I get that. Still, the thought she could be in the middle of the ocean right now terrifies me."

"I believe things will work out. Your sister's dealt with much crazier stuff," Zoroark said. Gallian didn't respond to that, prompting Zoroark to add, "There's something else, isn't there?" His suspicions were confirmed when Gallian rubbed his forelegs together, glancing nervously at his looplet. "This is really about Tessa's Mega Evolution," Zoroark said.

Gallian winced. "Okay, you got me. It is. You saw what happened to her. What if she flies off the handle again and… and I'm not there to do anything?" he said, eyes flashing pink. "I'd never forgive myself if I learned that I just sat here, powerless, when my little sister needed me."

Zoroark grabbed Gallian's left shoulder and squeezed. Gallian's head fell on Zoroark's shoulder. "We've got to have faith in Tessa's friends," Zoroark said, leaning over to rub his snout against Gallian's head. "They know what they're doing. I'm sure everything will work out."

"I wish I could believe that," Gallian said. Shadows swarmed Gallian's scythe, bristling Zoroark's fur. "But I can't shake this sinking feeling in my gut. It's not just that, either." He glanced at Zoroark. "What about me? Absols can Mega Evolve." He lifted his right foreleg, frowning at the looplet. "How can I possibly feel safe and secure knowing all it might take is my disaster sense misfiring to trigger this thing? I've already hurt too many people… I couldn't bear the thought of doing something even worse."

"It won't happen," Zoroark said, pulling Gallian into an even tighter embrace. "As long as I'm here, I won't let it. I can help you keep your negative thoughts at bay, so long as you share them with me like you're doing right now. How does that sound?"

Gallian pulled away from the embrace. "It sounds good. Just… um… stay close to me." He looked down, tracing a digit through the sand. "You're right. I'm not in a good place. I definitely need a voice of reason to keep my disaster sense quiet."

"You can count on me," Zoroark said, leaning over and licking Gallian's cheek. Gallian's scythe flashed bright pink and he looked away in embarrassment.

"M… maybe we should wait… until we're not in public," Gallian said.

"Sorry, I got caught up in the moment," Zoroark said, smirking. "You look great against an ocean backdrop, you know."

"Um… thanks?" Gallian said, blinking in surprise. He then narrowed his eyes at Zoroark. "Wait… you're trying to distract me from all this, aren't you?"

Zoroark's smirk widened. "Guilty," he said, raising his hands. "Is it working?"

Gallian opened his mouth, ready to issue a retort, only to pause. "Actually, it kind of is," he said, face flushing. They both exchanged laughs, before returning their attentions to the ocean. Ripples of water made Gallian jump to his feet.

"You saw that, didn't you?" Gallian said, shadows swallowing up his scythe.

"Saw what?" Zoroark said, sitting up after having fallen onto his side.

Clawitzer lunged out of the water. Gallian tackled Zoroark to the ground, barely getting him out of the way of a blast of water.

"Damn it!" Gallian hissed, turning to face Clawitzer as he skidded through the sand. "He's back for round two!"

* * *

Yes, Necrozma used two real-world alchemical symbols... according to Wikipedia, anyway. Take it with grains of salt, I suppose.

Anonymous: sure, provided there aren't a bunch of restrictions for Sora's inclusion like we have with Cloud. Even if all the KH music has been remixed and rearranged more times than you can count, I still want new remixes.

SuperOmegaGuest: it's a fine way to play... when you're looking to do a meme round. Y'know what else is fun? Setting items to high, with only Poké Balls and Assist Trophies appearing, then watching the chaos that follows.

Anon Omega: maybe I should go make one of those ask blogs on tumblr so you can do it yourself? Would anyone actually like that?

Another guest: Shane spoofed the lyrics to "Surfing USA." And I wouldn't say that Wailord snuck up on them, just that they were so preoccupied trying not to drown that they had no idea it was coming.

Next time: it's the 2018 Christmas special, featuring the other side of our proverbial villainous coin. Don't worry, though. This year I've brought a sparkly, fabulous reindeer to help make things less depressing!


	90. Bonus: Christmas Special 2018

Here we are. The last official update for 2018: the Christmas special! Yes, there won't be one next week, because this is twice the length of a traditional chapter. I might've gotten a bit carried away making it. Consider it a holiday gift as a thank you for all of the support this year. Even though the last chapter had the worst reception in nine months, we've still managed to hit 75k views. And that's mindboggling! So, as a special treat, I put a lot of work into this one. Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated, whether you're reading it in 2018 or in 2019 and beyond.

There's also a special holiday-themed poll to go with this special. But you better hurry, because it'll close when 2019 starts. Enjoy!

EDIT: I have, perhaps foolishly, decided to open an ask blog for the fic after all. You can find the "link" on my profile page.

* * *

 **Bonus: Link from the Past**

 _Nicky stood in the center of the gymnasium's hardwood floor. He crouched low to the ground, eyes darting between several different-colored foam balls sitting on the opposite side of a dark-blue line._

 _"C'mon Dwayne! Hit him already!" a girl with a blonde ponytail called from a line of students on the side of the court with the balls. Nicky's gaze quickly shifted to Dwayne, who stood a few inches behind the dark-blue line, a ball in each large hand. Dwayne threw the ball in his right hand. Nicky backpedaled, then feinted going after the ball that missed. Dwayne launched the second ball. Nicky cut back to his left._

 _Both boys scrambled for loose dodgeballs. All the while, Shane stood a few feet behind Dwayne, clutching a yellow ball and looking between Nicky and the two lines of students who had gotten knocked out. One boy with brown hair and athletic goggles locked eyes with Shane._

 _"What do you think you're doing? Quit standing around and hit him!" he shouted, gesturing at Nicky. Shane looked down at the ball, then back up at Nicky and Dwayne. They each hurled a dodgeball, only for them to ricochet. Nicky ran back to fetch his ball. The students on Shane's team called for him to peg Nicky._

 _Nicky scooped his ball up before Dwayne. He sprinted toward the center of the court and chucked the ball with all his might. Dwayne ducked, but he didn't bend over far enough. The ball grazed his black hair and hit his back. On the sidelines, the coach blew his whistle and gestured toward the line of students. Shane's team collectively groaned, while Nicky's teammates cheered and high-fived one another._

 _"Alright, Eisenberg. Finish the job," one boy shouted. Shane looked at Nicky, a frown on his face. Without moving from his spot on the floor, Shane threw his ball. It hit the ground a foot in front of him and bounced up. Shane clumsily ran for it, arms outstretched._

 _Nicky glanced the disappointed looks on Shane's teammates' faces and sighed. Shane hated losing. Nicky knew that. Even in gym class, he got visibly distressed if he thought the team he was on had "worse players" than his opponents. Still, Nicky let Shane win enough during their games. Gym class was_ his _time to shine. Shane had to go down._

 _He stepped forward with his left leg and hurled a red ball into Shane's shoulder. It struck home and bounced upward. To Nicky's utter shock, however, the ball remained suspended in midair. It pulsated, growing in size and turning white. Rainbow veins stretched across the ball. A fissure ran down the middle and split open with an unsettling_ squelch _, revealing a red eye sitting in black ooze. The eye looked down at Nicky._

 _A loud screech rang out and everything faded away._

* * *

"Light? Light, you still with us?"

Nicky shut his eyes and shook his head. He glanced at his golden, crystal legs and flailed about in midair. His levitation faltered. Choppy ocean water rushed up to meet him. Nicky thrust his four wings to the side and fired a pink blast at the water. A circular wave radiated in all directions as Nicky floated back up, looking around in embarrassment.

"You sure you're up for this? You look pretty out of it."

Zekrom floated opposite him, head cocked to the side. Lightning crackled around her tail, distorting the air around her. "Look, if you're tired, we can always do this another time," Zekrom said, crossing her arms.

"I'm fine. Just zoned out for a second, that's all," Nicky said, golden tail swiveling back and forth as he tried to get his bearings straight. Why was he in the middle of nowhere, again? He looked around and spotted Latios lounging on a small, rocky plateau alongside his sister and her mate, Zapdos. The latter faced away from the dragons, preening his sparking feathers with a disinterested look on his face.

Nicky's memory finally kicked in. He had come here to learn dragon-type attacks. The realization made him wonder why his mind had drifted toward a dodgeball game from his past life. What did that have to do with learning how to breath out a giant blue energy beam? Colors swirled around in his eyes.

"Okay, can you tell me what we discussed?" Zekrom said, hovering closer to Nicky.

A pink tinge overtook Nicky. "Uh…" His voice trailed off.

"For pity's sake," Zekrom said, facepalming. "Were you even listening?"

"Sorry. I didn't catch anything you told me," Nicky said, head tendrils receding as he winced. He was such a fool. Zekrom had volunteered to help him and here he was spacing out like the slackers who always sat in the back of class.

 _'Damn it, brain. Stop thinking like we're still in school.'_

"It's okay," Zekrom said. "You always seem to have a lot on your mind. I'm willing to overlook it." She turned to give Latios a dirty look. "It's better than ignoring me because you're too busy staring at my ass."

"Oh, please. We both know you love it when I do that," Latios said, lazily scratching his belly with his claws.

"Um, could we get back on subject?" Nicky said, barely able to stop his tail from lashing against the water. "You were talking about how to draw out dragon energy, right?" In the back of his mind, he figured there had to be a better name than that. But he had already started this lesson off on a bad enough note, so he kept that thought to himself.

Zekrom nodded. "The trick to pulling off a dragon-type attack is to tap into your raw, ferocious nature!" she declared. "In ancient times, us dragons were the fiercest hunters around. Predators and prey of all shapes and sizes feared us."

"Ferocious? What about Altaria?" Nicky said. "And isn't there a dragon that's just a pile of slime? Hardly strikes me as ferocious."

"Thank you!" Latias shouted, floating up into the air. "See, Zapdos? I'm _not_ the only one who thinks Goodras are stupid."

Zekrom loudly cleared her throat. "Which one of us is teaching again?" she growled. Nicky shrank back, blue filling up his eyes. "If you don't want to hear my explanation… then I'll employ an alternative teaching method."

Nicky frowned. "And that is?"

"I'm gonna blast you with a full-powered attack barrage until we draw out your latent dragon-type abilities," Zekrom said, revving up her tail turbine. Before Nicky could protest, Zekrom charged him down, shrouded in lightning. She struck his chest, shooting him backwards. Zekrom kept the charge up, knocking him into the ocean with a large splash.

True to her word, Zekrom unleashed a flurry of frantic attacks. Blue beams split the ocean apart. Every time Nicky tried to keep his distance, Zekrom closed the gap with a lightning-fast Bolt Strike. It wasn't long before Nicky's chest hurt from the repeated blows. He floated there, trying to conjure up his psychic powers. However, the scene in front of him kept shifting. One second, he was staring at Zekrom. The next, he was in his old high school gym, a flurry of dodgeballs flying around him.

Lightning struck him between the eyes. Nicky threw his upper wings over his face, hissing. Something stirred deep inside of him. A spark of anger flared up in his gut and spread throughout his body. A white-hot glow surrounded him. Nicky arced his head up, releasing a fiery-orange meteor. Its explosion was so brilliant, Zekrom had to turn away.

A molten rock barrage pummeled Zekrom from above, knocking her lower and lower until she vanished behind a wall of water geysers. Nicky hunched over in midair, struggling to catch his breath. He failed to notice Latias and Latios flying toward him until a tingle enveloped his body. His fatigue and pain faded.

"You healed me?" Nicky said, blinking slowly at the twins.

"Of course. This was just practice, after all," Latias said.

"Yeah. Sorry about Zek. She tends to go a bit overboard when it comes to battles… even friendly ones," Latios said. "I still remember the first time we sparred. It was so intense that even after I used Recover, I couldn't fly straight for a week." He laughed nervously.

Latias raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Was that your first time sparring or your first time mating? Because I seem to recall—"

Latios zipped over to his sister and threw a paw over her mouth. "Aha ha ha! Boy, sis, you sure do have an active imagination! What's Zapdos been teaching you, huh?" he said. Latias responded by biting her brother's paw. "Eyowch!" he shouted, yanking the paw back and wringing it out. "C'mon, sis, it was just a joke. Lighten up."

"Can you guys please cut it out?" Nicky said, tail whipping back and forth and head tendrils shriveling.

"Sorry, Light. Forgot you're not a fan of those kinds of jokes," Latias said, tapping her claws together nervously.

Zekrom burst out of the water. She hovered erratically toward Nicky, clutching her chest with her right arm.

"Oh, shit," Nicky whispered, blue and green expanding in his eyes. "Zek, I didn't— I wasn't trying to hurt you or anything." He cringed at the sight of Zekrom's swollen right eye.

"Are you kidding me? That… was… _awesome!"_ Zekrom shouted. She sped forward and wrapped a squawking Nicky up in a hug. "You went right past Dragon Pulse and fired off a Draco Meteor! And it whupped my ass!"

"P… please… let go," Nicky squeaked, flailing his wings and tail about.

"Heh, my bad. Got a bit carried away," Zekrom said, pushing Nicky away. She pretended to wipe a tear from her swollen eye. "I'm just so proud of you. I knew you had to be strong if you could bring sunlight and moonlight back to the world, but actually seeing that power in action was something else."

"Only you could be psyched to get blasted in the face by a Draco Meteor," Latios sighed, shaking his head.

"S… so, I did good?" Nicky said, eyes and body glowing yellow.

"Better than good. You were awesome! Fantastic! Kickass!" Zekrom shouted, punching the air. "And other compliments I'm too lazy to come up with on the spot."

"Heh… thanks. Though, I could've done without that ferocious onslaught," Nicky said, tail wagging.

"Hey, it was effective, wasn't it?" Zekrom said, smirking. Nicky couldn't argue with her, even though it didn't sit right with him. He figured it had something to do with how Pokémon thought and functioned. His human mind _was_ still adjusting to his current body.

"Should we do some more practice, then?" Nicky wondered. There was a flicker of light in the corner of his vision. He glanced down at his anklet and frowned. "Uh… on second thought, I think I should probably head home," he said.

"Aww, but we were having so much fun," Zekrom said, pouting. "Besides, Xerneas said she wanted to see you when you were done. Don't tell me you're going to stand up your squeeze."

"We're not— she's my friend," Nicky said. Red expanded in his eyes, the tips of his head tendrils and his tail. "But… yeah, I guess if she wants to see me, I can make a little time." The red coloration flared when his friends exchanged smirks and chuckled at one another. "Knock it off, guys!" he growled. Nicky floated back from the other dragons, shaking his head. "S-Sorry, I shouldn't have shouted. It's just—"

"We know, Light," Latios said. "You don't like friendly teasing." He shot Zekrom a disapproving look. "Zek didn't mean to make you upset. Right?" Zekrom nodded. "Okay, see? Everything's good," Latios said. "You want us to take you to the Tree of Life?"

"No, I can get there myself," Nicky said, his eyes and body returning to their normal colors. "I'll see you guys around." He waved his upper-right wing at his friends and then flew away. Nicky climbed up higher into the sky as he followed the ocean along, using his psychic sense to pick out the Tree of Life's peculiar energy signature.

After a few minutes, Nicky descended. His multicolored eyes flashed, releasing psychic energy that dispelled the distorted clouds in the air sealing off the Tree of Life. Nicky's heart skipped a beat upon seeing Xerneas bent over, nibbling on a pamtre berry. She looked up. Her antlers sparkled under the light from Nicky's body.

"Hey, Light! I see you got my request," she greeted, standing up and trotting away from the tree's base. She caught up to Nicky as he came to a stop, hovering a few inches off the ground save for his tail. "How have you been?" she asked.

"I've been alright, I suppose. Not much has changed since we've last spoken," Nicky said, hovering closer to her. That wasn't true, of course. There were the continued flashbacks to his human life, which now had the added element of the strange white orb. But he didn't want to trouble her with those issues. He was certain that once he had fully adjusted to life as a Pokémon, these problems would go away.

"Were you out with Zekrom and her friends? You smell like brine," Xerneas said, nostrils twitching. "Err… not to say that there's a problem with that or anything," she quickly added, laughing nervously.

"Yeah, I was training with them. I've gotten a good grip on my psychic powers, but after you and the Lati twins mentioned sensing a lot of dragon energy in my spirit, I wanted to try and learn how to use dragon-type attacks," Nicky said.

"And how was it?" Xerneas asked, beckoning Nicky to follow her toward the Tree of Life.

"Painful," Nicky said bluntly, hovering behind her while dragging his tail through the dirt. "Zekrom punched me. A lot. With Bolt Strike."

"Oof. I've heard she gets pretty into it," Xerneas mused. "Perhaps we can find someone else for you to work with? I think you'd get along well with Zygarde…"

"Well, her 'technique' worked. I learned Draco Meteor. She was _really_ enthusiastic about it, so I think I did a good job," Nicky said. He glanced at his anklet. To his relief, it had stopped flashing. He worried that it had reacted to his Draco Meteor. Was this going to create a problem for him with Golem? At the very least, Golem hadn't activated the anklet's booby trap. For the moment, he was safe.

"Congratulations," Xerneas said, turning to give Nicky a smile while her tiny tail swished back and forth. Nicky diverted his gaze toward the forest on his right. "You know, you're quite a lucky guy, Light. Most dragons need months to learn Draco Meteor," she continued.

"Really? Uh, well, I guess it was beginner's luck?" Nicky said, shrugging his lower wings.

"Nonsense," Xerneas said, sitting down at the base of the tree. It was awkward for her, given her long, sword-like legs, but she managed as best she could. "You're clearly powerful, even by our standards. You shouldn't sell yourself short like that." She pointed her snout at the ground beside her.

Nicky looked down hesitantly. While his heart fluttered from Xerneas' compliment, thoughts of how he got his power lingered in the back of his mind. He didn't work for it. Golem had thrust this power onto him. And he was supposed to use it to kill Xerneas, along with the other friends he was making. Despite the time he'd spent with them, he was still afraid of revealing that secret.

"Is something wrong, Light?" Xerneas asked, a worried look on her face. "Is this too close for you? I can always make some more space." She awkwardly shimmied to her right, exposing more ground between the Tree of Life's large roots.

"I'm okay," Nicky said. He slowly turned around and floated down beside Xerneas, using the tree to prop himself up. Nicky draped his upper-left wing over a root and lay his lower-left wing across his armored chest.

"Lost in thought again? You got rather nervous all of a sudden," Xerneas said.

"Urk. Y-You can read me like an open book, huh?" Nicky said, adding in a chuckle for good measure.

"Well, you certainly _look_ tense," Xerneas said. "Three wings folded up… your tail curled into a circle." She traced a hoof through the soil. "I was going to ask you something, but maybe I'm better off waiting for another time."

Nicky's head tendrils rippled. Colors swirled in his eyes. He cursed himself out. This was Xerneas, his closest friend. Even if he wasn't sure how she'd react to hearing about his biggest secrets, he didn't want to push her away.

"N-No, don't be ridiculous. Ask away! I'm fine. If anything… it must still be nerves from the training. Using Draco Meteor left me kind of light-headed. I guess it hasn't worn off yet," Nicky said, trying to sit up straight as best he could.

"Alright. As long as you're okay with it," Xerneas said, turning to make eye contact. "So, I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but next week's the Winter Solstice."

"Oh?" Nicky's eyes turned turquoise. That term was familiar. After all, the human world had a winter solstice, but it wasn't a big deal. Did it mean something different for Pokémon? "I'm not entirely familiar with it. Is it special?" he asked.

"It's the beginning of winter. We just have a fancier name for it than we do for the start of autumn," Xerneas said, giggling at the incredulous look on Nicky's face. "Okay, yeah, there's more to it than that. It's a holiday of sorts, I guess."

"You guess?" Nicky said, raising a brow.

"It _was_ a day where we celebrated Lunala and the moonlight she brought to the world," Xerneas said, looking down at her hooves. "We would have a very short day, but an extended night. Many held festivities centered around the moon and the stars. But, well… Lunala's gone."

Colors spiraled in Nicky's eyes. There _were_ more similarities than just the name. His mind briefly drifted to memories of him bouncing up and down excitedly in a school bus seat, awaiting the start of his winter vacation as the sun began setting early in the afternoon. He shook his head, mentally scolding himself for not staying focused on the present.

"What's going to happen this year, then? Are you holding some sort of memorial?" Nicky wondered.

Xerneas shook her head. "I can't speak for the mortals, but thanks to you restoring light to the world, we're planning to hold a party. Dialga's hosting it at Temporal Tower. Which is surprising. Usually he doesn't want company." She smiled at Nicky. "But you somehow got him in a festive spirit… without even hanging out with him."

"I… um… well…" Nicky tapped his lower-wing digits together. "Tell him it was no problem. And I, uh, hope the party goes well… and stuff."

"Well, you should tell him yourself, silly," Xerneas said, reaching out to bump Nicky's leg with her hoof. Nicky yanked his leg back as if she'd poured scalding water on it.

"W-What's that supposed to mean?" he said.

"I asked you here so I could invite you to join me at the party," Xerneas said, her X-shaped pupils dilating as she scooched closer to Nicky.

Nicky pressed himself up against the tree root on his left. She wanted him to join her? The way she phrased, it sounded more like she meant a date.

His vision blurred. The ground gave way to a gray-walled classroom. Nicky's human hands nervously clutched his tan desk.

 _"S-so, what do you say, Rebecca?"_

He looked up, only for a faceless blur to stare back at him. _"I think a movie sounds great! It'll be so much fun!"_

Nicky jolted stiff. His gaze fell on Xerneas, who wore a frown on her face. "I'm sorry, Light. I came on too strong, didn't I?" she whispered, sliding her left hoof away from him. "Y… you'll have to forgive me. I'm… um…" She tilted her head back and laughed nervously. "I've never really… been as close with anyone as I've gotten with you these past couple of months. I know the mortals and lesser gods can have intimate relationships and what not, but I have no idea how they work and oh god I'm totally rambling right now, aren't I? I must sound like a complete idiot."

As Xerneas lay down on her belly, blue and orange coalesced in Nicky's eyes. Her behaviors surprised him. This wasn't like Rebecca. Nicky sensed desire, worry, and nervousness twisting around in Xerneas' mind. All feelings that were running around in his head, too. He did like spending time with Xerneas. She brought fleeing moments of happiness to his confusing new life. But Nicky was keeping secrets from her. Would she even like him if he came clean?

"You're fine. I just…" His voice trailed off and he gulped. At the very least, he owed it to her to say _why_ these kinds of gestures made him so squeamish. "I was in a relationship… once. I thought it was great, but my girlfriend didn't really love me. She was using me for her own gain." Blue and purple spread through his eyes.

Xerneas stiffened. "Light, I'm so sorry. I knew something was troubling you, but I didn't think—" She backed away. "I really was being too pushy. Did I… have I upset you at all when we've been together?"

Her reaction set a pang of guilt through Nicky's gut. His words had flustered her and she wanted to make sure they were on good terms. Nicky fidgeted with his wings. "You've done nothing wrong," he said. "I'm the problem. I—" He tucked his head in. "Even thinking about relationships dredges up memories I wish I could get rid of."

Silence followed. Nicky stared at his chest and coiled-up tail. Xerneas looked down at the soil. "Light… I really do like you," she whispered. "Still, I'd never want to force you to do anything. If… if you'd prefer, we don't have to go to that party. We could spend the Winter Solstice together."

Nicky's tail coiled even tighter at the suggestion. "I'm not sure," he said.

Xerneas winced. "That's my fault. I assumed you wanted to spend the holiday together, but perhaps you'd prefer being on your own," she said. "I must look so stupid. I'm… well, living by myself for such a long time probably doesn't help."

"Yeah," Nicky whispered, his vision blurring. Afterimages of a Shane sitting on the hardwood floor of his bedroom superimposed themselves against Xerneas' outline.

 _You'll hang out with me, won't you? I don't want to be stuck by myself all of Christmas break. I promise… we'll do something you enjoy!_

Nicky dug his wings into the soil, clenching his jaw as he tried to force the images from his mind. It took a few seconds for his vision to clear up. When it did, Xerneas was shaking her head slowly. Nicky avoided her gaze. The parallels were there. Xerneas was trying to guilt trip him like Shane used to. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to believe that. Something in the way she spoke and carried herself felt different, but Nicky couldn't put his claw on it.

Admittedly, he was slightly weirded out that this magical deer with rainbow antlers and swords for legs pined for him. However, he quickly chalked that up to the ongoing disconnect between his human mind and his alien body. Though he _wanted_ to be in a relationship with a human girl, that wouldn't make a lot of sense for him. He wasn't human anymore and he wouldn't _be_ human ever again. Still, Nicky was worried that was a fact he might not be able to look past.

For a brief moment, Nicky again envisioned Shane sitting in Xerneas' place. Then, he disappeared. Something clicked in Nicky's head. He had a hunch. One that he hoped would be correct. "Why did you want me to come to the party with you, anyway?" Nicky asked, head tendrils quivering.

Xerneas tensed up. "Well, I…" Her nostrils twitched. "I didn't want you to spend your first Winter Solstice here alone."

"Are you sure?" Nicky said, red and orange expanding in his eyes. "This isn't about, oh I don't know, parading me in front of the other gods to get them jealous of you or something?"

"What? I— no, Light, I would never do something like that," Xerneas said, pupils dilating. Her gems dimmed. She looked away, wincing. "Okay, look, that answer _was_ a half-truth at best. The thing is, I… I really wanted you there with me. To, um, support me… and stuff," she whispered.

The red and orange in Nicky's eyes receded. "You want my support?" he said.

"It's stupid. _I'm_ stupid. Last time I went to a Winter Solstice party, I was—" She sucked in a breath. "Some of the immortal gods… they thought it would be fun to pull pranks at my expense." Xerneas lowered her head shamefully. "They put me to sleep, smeared pastries on my fur, bound my legs together, and… and…" She squeezed her eyes shut.

A ragged breath escaped Nicky. He threw a wing up to cover his mouth. His head pounded. Static raced across his vision. The scene in front of him flickered back and forth between Xerneas and a group of his peers gathered together, looking at their phones and laughing.

 _Oh my god, look at how pasty he is!_

 _Yuck, you can see a tan line. It's hideous!_

 _Must be from those speedos he wears all the time!_

The colors in Nicky's eyes swirled about like violent storms. A silhouette of a white orb lingered in the corners of his vision, staring at him with piercing red eyes.

"Why?" Nicky whispered. "How could they do something like that? They're _gods_ , not children!" His head tendrils flared brightly.

"I'm not sure," Xerneas squeaked. "It was… I think it came down to strength. I was never a match for any of the other immortals. I'm sure they always resented that, out of everyone, I'm the god Arceus tied to the Tree of Life. He never even said why… only that the Tree of Life is vital to the planet's stability." She shuddered. "It must've been their way of telling me they don't think I belong with them."

Nicky's jaw slackened. He still couldn't come to terms with this new information. Did Golem somehow know about this? Was _this_ why he wanted Nicky to destroy the gods? Because they were more focused on figurative dick-measuring than actually keeping the world safe? But the lesser gods he'd befriended didn't seem anything like what Xerneas was describing. So, why did Golem want them _all_ destroyed? Maybe he was blowing things out of proportion and Nicky could talk things out with his creator?

"That was all three years ago," Xerneas whimpered, snapping Nicky out of his stupor. "After that, I stopped leaving the Tree of Life, even for short excursions. I only ever spoke to Lunala, because I refused to show my face to the other immortals. Unsurprisingly, I didn't get invited to the next Winter Solstice party. Then we lost Lunala and Solgaleo…" She brushed her cheek against her shoulder. "Apparently, the loss of our light opened the other immortals' eyes. They extended me an invitation this year. Problem is, I don't want to accept it.

Nicky sat up straighter. That was it. He was sure Xerneas was different, now. She wasn't interested in boosting her social stature like Rebecca… or using him to avoid her problems like Shane. Xerneas wanted companionship. She felt alone, just as he did in his final months as a human.

"I know it seems like I do well around the lesser gods, but the truth is I don't interact with them much, either. When it comes to their personal lives, I'm clueless. One day, I'll be talking to two of them. Then, the next thing I know, they're telling me about this fun new mating technique they tried the previous night," Xerneas continued, staring at the ground. "And can you believe that? Like, I commune with the spirits in the Tree of Life plenty and the impression I always got was that it's in poor taste to talk so casually about those kinds of details. So, I never pried into it, but I guess all that's done is make me look like—"

"Breathe, Xern," Nicky said, holding up his upper-right wing. "You're getting yourself all worked up."

"X-Xern?" Xerneas said, blinking slowly. "I don't understand. That's… you're playing around with my name. L-Like what Zekrom and Latios do with each other sometimes."

"Yeah. That, uh, kind of slipped out?" Nicky said, voice cracking. His coloration had settled down. He and Xerneas stared at each other in silence. "Look… you shouldn't have had to go through that," Nicky said. "From what I've seen, you're great. Warm, friendly, empathetic… exactly what you look for in a friend. The fact that those other gods can't recognize that? Well, it shows how stupid they are, if you ask me."

"L-Light, that's… um, very blunt," Xerneas said, antler-gems flickering.

"It's the truth," Nicky said, folding up his wings. Silence followed again, as Nicky tried to figure out the best way to proceed. Finally, he said, "I like you, too." He laughed nervously. "Like I said, I'm nervous… about being in any sort of relationship. See, I had learned that it's best to approach these things gradually. And I did that with the one relationship I was in… only it ended disastrously."

"I'm worried of what would happen if I rushed things with you. But I also know that going too slowly may not end well, either," Nicky said. "To be honest, I'm just… confused. All I know is I don't want to lose you. You're the best thing that's happened to me in this world."

"I'm touched. For what it's worth, I don't want to lose you, either," Xerneas whispered. "This is the happiest I've been since before that blasted party. I'd hate to ruin that with a reckless decision."

"Maybe… we could test the waters a bit?" Nicky said, green expanding in his eyes. Xerneas looked at him curiously. "I'm a psychic, right? Latios told me there's this thing psychics can do… to connect with another Pokémon."

"You want to form a mental link with me?" Xerneas gasped.

Nicky nodded. "Yeah. I'm not one-hundred percent sure what it entails, though. Does that mean, like, we can always read each other's minds?"

"No. In our case, it'd mean that we could communicate through our thoughts. Even with a great distance separating us," Xerneas said.

"I see," Nicky whispered. He glanced at his anklet. Sure, Golem had stopped cramming him inside a barrier when he was in the lab, but would the mental link trigger Golem's monitor? If it did, all of this would be for nothing. "Then, I'd like to go ahead and try," he said, willing to accept the risk if it meant getting more time with Xerneas.

"You're sure?"

"Absolutely," Nicky said.

Xerneas got to her feet, her head drawing even with Nicky's. "Okay. Um, to get it to work, we kind of have to bring our heads close together," she said. "I know the antlers make that awkward. So, um, maybe just stay seated for a bit?"

"Okay. What's the plan?" Nicky asked. Xerneas responded by leaning in and pressing the tip of her snout to his forehead. Nicky's eyes became bright red, as did his face and wings.

"Now, draw on your psychic power. Instead of using it to attack, gently push it toward my head," Xerneas whispered. Nicky shuddered as her warm breath brushed his crystalline brow. Cautiously, he did as Xerneas instructed. He pushed a cursory amount of psychic energy toward Xerneas' aura. The instant it contacted her, a tingle spread across the back of his neck.

 _Can you hear me?_

Xerneas' thoughts echoed through Nicky's mind, making his head tendrils stiffened. "Y-Yes! I can," he said.

 _No, no, try it with your thoughts,_ Xerneas said, resisting the urge to giggle.

"Oh, right," Nicky said. _Uh, testing, testing… one, two. Can you hear me?_

 _Loud and clear,_ Xerneas said, smiling.

"Great. Um, do you think you could take your snout off my head, though?" Nicky said.

"Whoops! S-Sorry," Xerneas said, pulling her head back while laughing nervously. "So, uh, I guess I've kept you long enough, huh? You should head back home."

"Yeah," Nicky said, his mood dampening. Leaving meant facing Golem.

"Hey." Xerneas nudged his lower-right wing with her snout. "We can talk later, if you'd like."

Yellow spread in Nicky's eyes. "I'd like that a lot," he said.

* * *

 **~Glyphic Falls, Hidden Laboratory~**

"This is _beyond_ inexcusable!" Golem huffed, pacing back and forth in the central room. Nicky sat on the rocky floor, legs, tail, and wings curled up against his chest. "I reward you with more freedom and you go and break your curfew! And what was with that spike in your energy I detected, hmm? Unless you killed a god, you've got some serious explaining to do. So, start talking!"

"I, um… I lost track of time," Nicky said. "Because I was with some of the lesser gods."

"You were fighting them?" Golem said, brow raised.

"Err… not exactly," Nicky whispered.

Golem walked over to his slanted, metal desk and tapped it with his claws. "Light… I _made_ you to _kill_ those gods," he seethed.

"And I'm working on it. Seriously! That's why I lost track of time. See, my psychic powers are getting good, sure, but plenty of the gods have ways to counter that. I need to diversify my skillset if I have any hope of succeeding," Nicky said. He had rehearsed this lie on the flight back, but things had gotten heated much quicker than he had hoped. "Well, that's what I was doing today. See, I've been befriending some lesser gods and one immortal, Xerneas. Today, I convinced them to teach me new attacks."

"That spike you read? That was from a Draco Meteor. It's all a ruse. I'm tricking the gods into helping me grow stronger, while learning how they battle," Nicky explained. "This way, it'll be all that much easier to pick them off one by one. Because they'll have gotten used to me, so their guards will be lowered." He glanced at Golem, trying to keep his nerves intact. Otherwise, he'd ruin his ploy.

"So, you really learned Draco Meteor in just a single day?" Golem said.

"Yeah. And I've made a mental link with Xerneas. Now, I can get her to feed me information about the other, more-reclusive gods," Nicky said. He hated using Xerneas like that, but it was necessary to prop up his lie.

"Hrmmm…" Golem stroked his beard. "Well then, it seems I did not give you enough credit. That is quite the ingenious plan you've formulated," he said, dipping a claw in ink and scribbling on some parchment. "Yes. Thinking about it… having you attack the gods with sheer brute force would likely earn you enemies. And, as your _brilliant_ creator, I would earn enemies by association. But this is far more strategic!" He nodded approvingly. "So, this is the tactical power of a human mind, eh? Ho ho ho! It's something to behold."

"Right. So, if this monitor of yours picks up any funny readings, it's either my training… or my attempts to play Xerneas for a fool," Nicky said, trying to add a hint of menace to his voice.

"Understood. Very good, Light. I do so love it when you exceed my expectations like this," Golem said, wiping the ink off his digits. "Well, I'm heading off for the night. Try to keep your tail under control while you're sleeping."

"Uh… I'll try," Nicky said, watching Golem exit the laboratory. A heavy thud echoed through the room. Nicky sensed Golem's aura growing further away. He sighed in relief and slumped down on the floor. It wasn't exactly eloquent, but he had gotten Golem off his back. Still, now that he'd created this lie, he'd either have to find a way to keep it going or come clean about his true nature to his friends. Neither sounded pleasant. Especially now that he had his mental link with Xerneas.

These thoughts continued to roll around in Nicky's head. He considered reaching out to Xerneas, but decided against it. Nicky hadn't left the Tree of Life _that_ long ago and he didn't want to look desperate. Instead, he tried to push the intrusive thoughts out of his head. Fatigue soon settled in. Though, as Nicky's eyes closed, something white flickered in the corners of his vision.

* * *

 _Nicky lay in his bed. His_ human _bed, complete with its sports-themed blanket and the gray tube-pillow he used when his neck was sore. He stared up at his ceiling. How long had he been lying like this? Reluctantly, he rolled over and checked his digital clock._

 _6:00 PM on a Monday. Had he been napping?_

 _No, that wasn't it. He hadn't gotten out of bed. Why should he? He was suspended. Grounded, too. He'd barely gotten out of bed since last week._

 _Knocks at the door drew his attention._

 _"Nicky? Are you out of bed, dear?"_

 _He didn't answer his mom. Nicky wasn't sure what she wanted, but he lacked the motivation to talk with her._

 _"It's time to come down and light the candles," his mom said. "Come on. I know you haven't eaten anything today. Your father and I are worried."_

 _His door handle jiggled._

 _"Nicky, you know how your father feels about you locking your door."_

 _Nicky hiked his covers up over his head. Then, louder knocks sounded._

 _"Son, you're going to light the candles with us," his dad said. "I won't have you skipping the first night of Hanukkah because you're in a mood."_

 _"Aren't I supposed to be grounded?" Nicky scoffed. Hushed whispers followed. He assumed his parents were talking about him._

 _"I think God would be willing to overlook it," his mom said. "Please, can you at least unlock your door for us?"_

 _"No. Go away," Nicky shouted._

 _"Either you open this door or I'm busting it down and taking your TV for the rest of your suspension," his dad threatened._

 _"Fine. Whatever," Nicky said. He had already lost his game consoles, phone, and computer. This would just give him more of an excuse to stay in bed until he was finally free. He pulled his head out from the covers, wondering what his parents would do. Eventually, he heard sighs, followed by footsteps heading down the stairs._

 _Nicky lay his head back down on his pillow, trying to will himself to sleep. It did no good. He was tired, yes, but not the kind of tired where he could fall sleep on command. At the very least, getting his parents to leave brought a smile to his face. Maybe with some luck, he wouldn't have to see them until his suspension was up. It'd serve them right._

 _He was the victim, here. Why wouldn't anyone believe him? Even Shane twisted the issue around, making it abundantly clear how awful it was that Nicky had bailed on something they had planned to do for months._

 _ **SuCh aN uNPleAsAnT mEMorY… wHy Do YoU lEt It TRoUbLE yOU So?**_

 _The distorted, unfamiliar voice made Nicky sit back up. As soon as he did, his room melted away, leaving his bed floating in the midst of outer space. When the last of the walls finished dissolving, his door morphed into a large, white sphere. Tiny veins coursed through the ball's slime, occasionally pulsating with rainbow light._

 _"Wh-what the hell's going on here?" Nicky growled. He threw his covers off, only to gasp at the bulky, yellow crystals encasing his legs and the golden tail dangling between them. Nicky tried to grab his temples, but found his arms replaced by membranous wings. After staring at his limbs for a few seconds, he finally connected the dots. "I'm dreaming, aren't I?" he said._

 _ **YeS. A FrUiTlEsS wAStE oF yOUr TImE.**_

 _The white orb hovered closer to Nicky, rippling like a plate of gelatin. Two small, hollow, red circles appeared in the middle of the sphere. Nicky guessed they were this creature's eyes. "I've seen you before," he said. "The flashbacks I was having earlier today… you were in them. But you had nothing to do with my old life." He sat up in his bed. "Who are you? For that matter,_ what _are you?"_

 _ **MaTtER… MaTteR… mAtTEr…**_

 _Nicky frowned. "Uh, yeah, that's exactly what I said."_

 _The orb's eyes constricted. A thin red line appeared. Nicky tilted his head. Was the orb… smiling?_

 _"Let me ask again. Who are you?" Nicky said, trying not to let his fear show through._

 _ **I'M yOu, Of CoUrSE,**_ _the sphere replied, its smile fading and its eyes swirling around randomly._ _ **I'm WHaT yOu'RE cAPablE Of. YoUR pOWerS… tHe EnERgY yOu WIeLD… iT is MInE. WE aRe OnE AnD THe SaME… nOW AnD FOReVER.**_

 _"Yeah, right. Look, maybe dreaming works differently in this world, but I had plenty of trippy nightmares in my old life. Whatever this is… I'll wake up and forget about it," Nicky said, staring the orb down._

 _ **YoU rEaLlY thInK i'M JUsT a BAd DrEAM?**_ _the orb said, its unsettling smile returning._ _ **NO. We'RE aLReaDy wElL-AcQUaiNtED.**_ _The sphere contorted itself into a heart. It stretched its eyes into a jagged line that made the heart appear broken._ _ **tHoSe TiMEs yOU sNaPpED At ThE gODs… YoUr SQuEAmIsH rEAcTIOns to AnY PHySIcAL cONtaCT… THaT's JUsT mE REmINdInG YoU ThAT I'M hErE.**_

 _Nicky stiffened. He wanted to grab his covers, but his wings were useless in that regard. "I don't believe you," he said. "Worst-case scenario, you're some ridiculous side effect of… whatever the hell Golem did to make me. I'll just tell him about you and it'll be like you never existed."_

 _ **YoU wISh It cOUlD bE THaT sIMpLe,**_ _the heart hissed, its outer membrane quivering as its red eyes reappeared._ _ **BuT tHE FAcT iS… We ARE inSEPaRaBLe. I DWeLL iN YoUr COrE, JUsT LIkE I dO wITh ThIS wRETcHEd PlAnEt. YOUr cREaTOR KnOwS ThIS.**_

 _"Okay, fine. What's the point of all these theatrics, then? Did Golem put you in my head to make sure I kill all the gods? Because I don't intend to do that," Nicky said, slapping his bedsheets with his wings. "I_ like _some of them. Maybe there are a couple of total jackasses. But if that's the case, I'll use_ my _powers to make them change their ways."_

 _ **WaHT a FOol yOU aRe. I dOn'T cARe aBOuT yOUR CReaToR… Or tHe HAtRED iN HiS hEArT. I'M hERe tO SHoW YoU HoW mIsTaKeN yOu ArE,**_ _the heart said as one of its eyes shrank and revolved around the other._

 _"I'm not mistaken. I'm happy. I've finally found someone who cares about me. Even if she's a magical talking deer with antlers that'd make any Christmas tree blush," Nicky said._

 _ **SuCh a FOoL. YoUr PReCIoUS rELaTIoNShIP wiLL OnLY bRiNG yOu hEArtBrEak. JUsT lIKE iN YoUR hUMaN lIFE,**_ _the heart said, its top splitting apart and squirting out red fluid that splattered on Nicky's bedsheets._ _ **BuT I cAn fIX tHAt. I cAN hELp YOU. AlL yOU nEEd to DO is LeT gO.**_

 _The heart's eyes disappeared. It split itself in half, hovering over Nicky as red liquid dripped onto his bed._ _ **TaKe THeSe WOrTHleSS, pAInFUl mEmORiES… AnD GiVe THeM to Me. ToGeTHer, wE'Ll tUrN thEm iNtO DUsT,**_ _the heart said. Distorted reflections of Nicky's human face appeared on each half of the heart._ _ **ThEn, we'Ll reTUrN aLl WoRlDs tO ThEiR oRIgInaL sTaTes… by wIpInG OuT eVErYThINg.**_

 _"And if I refuse?" Nicky said, sitting up defiantly in his bed._

 _The heart fused itself back together, turning pitch-black. A fissure ran through its center and opening, revealing red fluid with a purple, reptilian eye floating inside._

 _ **YoU dON't HaVe a ChOIcE,**_ _it said, eye pulsating._ _ **We'RE inSePaRaBLe, rEMeMbER? YoU ARe pARt oF ThE vOID. We WIlL cOnSUme. AnD wE WiLL dEsTRoY.**_

 _Before Nicky could say anything, the heart's eye flashed. Black shadows surrounded Nicky and swallowed him up._

* * *

Nicky's head shot up, only to smack against a light fixture made out of crystals. A clang echoed through the room, jolting the last of Nicky's drowsiness out of his system. He flopped back on the ground, groaning and rubbing his forehead with his upper wings.

 _'Well, that was one hell of a twisted dream,'_ he thought, looking around the dark room. Nicky had no idea what time it was, but guessed it had to be the middle of the night, since none of Golem's assistants were around. He sat up again, being careful to avoid the crystals in the ceiling. Nicky rested against a wall and sighed.

Should he tell Golem about this dream? The contents disturbed him. His wings even quivered a bit. Still, he worried Golem's response would be to strip him of his powers. If that happened, he'd lose his mental link. Worse, he might not ever get to see Xerneas again.

His eyes turned bright yellow. That was it. He could bring it up with Xerneas. Surely, she would have some idea of how to fix this. Nicky was about to try his mental link out when a small voice told him to stop. He braced himself as he sat up higher. Was it really appropriate to have his first use of the mental link be about something so serious? After thinking it over, Nicky concluded this was something he should handle in-person.

However, that didn't mean he had to spend the rest of the night alone with his runaway thoughts. Xerneas _wanted_ to talk with him. Why not make some small talk to clear his mind? He thought it was a good idea. A _safe_ idea.

Nicky concentrated, shades of pink pushing the other colors to the periphery of his eyes. He thought about Xerneas, conjuring a silhouette of her in his mind's eye. At first, nothing happened. But then a bright-pink flame smoldered inside the silhouette.

 _Light, is that you?_

Xerneas' voice sent a tingle down Nicky's neck. He slumped down, his crystalline lips curving into a smile.

 _Yeah, it's me,_ Nicky said. Slowly, he shut his eyes. Xerneas' outline became clearer in his mind. _I, uh, just wanted to hear your voice… in a manner of speaking._

 _Is everything okay?_ Xerneas asked. The tingle in Nicky's neck intensified. Red pulses rippled across his wings and tail.

 _Just having a little trouble sleeping, that's all. Bad dreams… you know how it goes,_ Nicky said, sighing.

 _I'm sorry. Do you want to talk about it?_ Xerneas said.

Nicky's tail twitched. He swore under his breath. The whole point of this was to _forget_ the bad dreams. Now he couldn't beat around the issue. _I do, actually, but not like this,_ he said, figuring honesty was the best policy. _It's, um, a bit of a sensitive issue. I think we'd be better off talking about it in-person._

 _Oh, I see. Well, if that's what you wish, I'll respect your boundaries,_ Xerneas said as the tingling in Nicky's neck spread down his back toward the base of his tail.

 _When can I see you?_ Nicky wondered, sliding down further until he was lying on his side. Xerneas didn't respond. _Xern, you still there?_

 _Yeah, I just had to think for a bit. See, I've got some work to do over the next few days. It's for the upkeep of the Tree of Life,_ Xerneas said, her flame dimming in Nicky's mind.

 _Want some help?_ Nicky offered.

 _Sorry, Light. As much as I'd love your company, I'm afraid I have to turn you down,_ Xerneas said. _This is… sensitive business. I'm not supposed to let anyone get near the Tree of Life while I'm tending to it. If Arceus found out about it…_ Her voice trailed off.

 _It's okay. I understand,_ Nicky said, his glow dimming.

 _If I have some spare time, we could always talk like this. Would that be alright?_ Xerneas said.

 _Yeah. It's no problem. But when will you be done with, uh, whatever it is you're doing?_ Nicky asked.

 _I should be good to go for the Winter Solstice. We can get together then,_ Xerneas said.

 _Could we talk about that? Y'know, come up with an idea of what we want to do? I know you brought up that party, but I'm not so sure I'm interested in it,_ Nicky said, brushing his tail across the floor.

 _Sure. To be honest, after our meeting this afternoon, I was leaning toward not going._ _As much as I'd like to think maybe the other immortals are turning over new leaves, I'm not so sure that's true,_ Xerneas said.

 _Screw them. We don't need some fancy-schmancy party. I mean… what kind of party can a bunch of giant-ass dragons throw, anyway? Sounds like it'd be a total snore-fest,_ Nicky scoffed.

 _It_ is _usually a lot of standing around and talking… or yelling at Giratina to stop being weird,_ Xerneas said.

 _Actually, now that I'm thinking about it, how would you have even gone to this party, anyway? What about protecting the Tree of Life?_ Nicky said.

 _Oh, that. The lesser gods weren't invited, so Zekrom, Zapdos, and the Lati twins agreed to watch it for me,_ Xerneas said. _In any case, did you have any ideas about what we could do instead?_

 _Well, there was one thing that came to mind. Have you ever been to Celestial Island?_ Nicky asked. The flame in his mind intensified, as did the tingle in his tail. Yet, Xerneas didn't respond. Nicky raised his head up, indigo and violet swirling in his eyes. _Um, was it really that bad of an idea?_

 _Nuh-no. Of course not. I… I've been there… once or twice. To, y'know, visit Lunala,_ Xerneas said.

Nicky smacked his face with an upper wing. How could he be so idiotic to forget about that, especially after talking about it several hours earlier? _Xern, I'm so sorry. I'm a total moron. I didn't—_

 _It's okay, Light. I'm just… surprised to hear you've developed an attachment to that place, that's all,_ Xerneas said.

 _Ah. Well, that's where I met Latios and Zekrom on the first day of autumn. Y'know, the day I first showed up at the Tree of Life,_ Nicky said, tapping his upper wing-claws together. _I thought… uh… guess I was feeling sentimental or something. Thought maybe we could go there and just stargaze together. I'd offer to bring food but, uh, I don't really know how to cook anything._

He waited for Xerneas' response, rapping his tail against the floor. Sure, it kicked up a lot of dust, but he didn't care. He really wanted Xerneas to agree to his idea. Even if it was corny. Nicky held his breath, focusing on the pink flames in his mind.

 _I can handle food, provided you don't mind berries. Or flying me up to the island, for that matter,_ Xerneas said.

 _Of course I don't!_ Nicky said, perhaps a bit quicker and more forcefully than he intended.

 _Okay. I suppose we can finalize timing later,_ Xerneas said. _I'm looking forward to it._

 _Me too,_ Nicky said as Xerneas' silhouette disappeared from his mind's eye. He rolled over onto his side and swatted a stray piece of paper with his tail, sighing loudly.

It was going to be a long week.

* * *

 **~Celestial Island~**

After deciding it would be a bad idea to carry Xerneas on his back, Nicky levitated her next to him as he flew through the sky. Day turned to night as he passed over the Horizon Continent. The island came into view so far up in the sky that they both lost sight of the land below them. As Nicky approached Celestial Island, however, he encountered a problem.

It wasn't vacant.

"Xern, I think someone's already here," Nicky said, orange and yellow spreading throughout his eyes. "I'm sensing life energy with… an array of colors. But it has this sun-like intensity to it. Kind of feels like I sat down in front of a raging fire."

"Hmm. If I had to guess, that's Ho-Oh," Xerneas said.

"Is Ho-Oh one of the gods you've had problems with in the past?" Nicky asked, head tendrils flaring.

"No, she's okay. A bit soft-spoken, if anything. We don't exactly talk much," Xerneas said. "I don't see why we can't exchange pleasantries. If she's doing something important, we could always go somewhere else."

Nicky prayed Ho-Oh wasn't doing anything important. He glided down toward the island and gently lowered Xerneas onto a patch of grass next to a field of sunflowers. Xerneas walked through the grass, with Nicky floating beside her. Together, they made their way to the center of the island, where the statues of Solgaleo and Lunala stood on either side of the lagoon. It was in front of Solgaleo's statue that they both found Ho-Oh. She stared up into the statue's eyes.

"Greetings, Ho-Oh. Happy Winter Solstice," Xerneas said. Ho-Oh's response was to jump back from the statue, squawking and fluttering her wings in surprise. She turned to look at Xerneas.

"X-Xerneas? You're… away from the Tree of Life. And very high up," Ho-Oh said, blinking her red, puffy eyes slowly. She threw her wing up over her face and turned away. "Should you be up here?"

"The Tree is fine. I have friends looking after it," Xerneas said. She stepped to the side so Ho-Oh could get a better view of Nicky. "As for how I got here. Well, you remember the Guiding Light, yes?"

Ho-Oh nodded. "How lovely to see you again," she said, extending her wings to the side and bowing. "Happy Winter Solstice."

"Same to you," Nicky said, unsure if he was supposed to bow back. "Sorry to intrude like this. Xern and I were hoping to spend some time looking up at the stars."

"Oh. That's no problem. No problem at all. I was just… resting my wings up here," Ho-Oh said, glancing at Solgaleo's statue. "But I think I'm all good now, so I'll be on my way." She awkwardly waddled away from the statue.

Nicky frowned. Something was wrong. He didn't want to breech Ho-Oh's privacy and read her mind, but there was a lout of doubt clouding up her aura. Should he say something? He glanced at Xerneas. _Hey, Xern, I don't think Ho-Oh's okay,_ he said telepathically.

Xerneas traced a hoof through the ground. _You're right. Do you want to ask her what's wrong?_

A part of him didn't. This was supposed to be a private moment he could share with Xerneas. And yet, he couldn't bring himself to let Ho-Oh fly off. "H-Hey, Ho-Oh. Is everything alright?" Nicky said, floating toward her. "You seem… distressed. And I— well, I don't mean to pry. Especially since we don't really know each other. But if there's anything Xern and I can help with, let us know."

Ho-Oh turned to face Nicky. Moonlight glinted off her tearful eyes. "I appreciate that. But I assure you, I'm okay. Truthfully, I was just here to do some thinking," she said. "My mind is… clearer now, so I think I'll take my leave." She was about to take off, when she paused. "Oh, will I be seeing you two at Dialga's party?"

Xerneas and Nicky exchanged a glance, then shook their heads in unison. "I'm afraid not, Ho-Oh. But don't let that stop you from having fun, okay?" Xerneas said, offering Ho-Oh a warm smile.

"Thank you. I'm not sure how much fun a party hosted by Dialga can be, but I'll certainly try," Ho-Oh said. She waved a wing at the two of them and took off into the night sky. They watched her fly away, rainbow light trailing off her tailfeathers.

"Well, that was… intriguing," Nicky said. He floated toward the lagoon and lay down in the grass. Nicky let his legs drape into the water. If they weren't made of crystal, he imagined the cold water would've sent a shock through his system. Instead, he stretched his upper wings out and gazed up into the starry sky.

The grass beside Nicky crinkled as Xerneas sat down next to him. "It's really something, isn't it?" she said, looking up at the stars. "To be honest, I don't know why there are so many stars. I've always wondered what sort of purpose they serve. I'm sure Arceus or Palkia know the answer, but I never bothered asking them. I was always too afraid they'd scoff at me for asking such a silly question."

"I don't think it's silly," Nicky said, thinking of the purpose stars served in the human world. If he brought that up, he supposed he could segue into talking about his dreams and his former life as a human. But a voice in the back of his mind stopped him. It was too soon to go into something so sensitive. He had to find another avenue.

"Hey, mind if I ask you something?" he said, tilting his head to his left. Nicky froze when he realized that doing so greeted him with a view of Xerneas' waist. He immediately looked back up at the sky, red rushing through his eyes, wings, and tail.

"Of course," Xerneas said, having not noticed Nicky's slip-up.

"What was Lunala like?" Nicky said, folding his lower wings over his chest. The grass beside him ruffled. He gulped. "S-Sorry, if that's too personal, you don't have to answer."

"No, it's quite alright. I suppose it _would_ be fitting to talk about her, given what day it is," Xerneas said, sighing. Her gaze drifted toward Lunala's statue. "Lunala was…" She paused, nostrils twitching. "Well, to be honest, we weren't exactly close. I'm not even sure I can call her a friend, though she let me confide in her from time to time."

Xerneas traced a hoof through the soil. "Lunala never said much when we were together. Maybe it's because she was concentrating on her work?"

"Right. That's been something I've been wondering about for a while," Nicky said. "Not to interrupt with something tangential or anything… but how exactly did Solgaleo and Lunala factor into bringing light to the world? It's difficult to wrap my head around something like that." He scratched his crystalline cheek with a wing for good measure.

"I don't actually know the full story. Neither of them seemed keen on telling me. I've heard whispers from immortals that were created before me that, in the early days, the skies were filled with storms brought on by strange, otherworldly energy," Xerneas said. "Solgaleo and Lunala brought forth the sun and the moon to dispel the storms, but they constantly needed to use their powers to ensure light would reach our world and keep the dark storms at bay."

"But then they sacrificed themselves to save Ho-Oh," Nicky said. He sat up as best he could. "I wonder if that's why we saw Ho-Oh. The Winter Solstices of the past celebrated Lunala, but she's gone now." Blue and green swirled in his eyes to make turquoise. "Was Ho-Oh here to mourn… or because she felt guilty?"

Xerneas looked at Nicky, uncertain if he wanted her to answer. She ultimately held her tongue, letting her gaze drift back up toward the sky until she was ready to restart her original train of thought. "Anyway, even if Lunala didn't say much when we were together, I enjoyed her company. It was nice to have someone, y'know, _alive_ I could vent to." Laughing awkwardly, she shook her head. "That probably sounds awful coming from the god who's supposed to guard the spirit realm from malicious forces. It's not that I don't appreciate having the spirits around or anything, but…" Her voice trailed off.

"No, I get it. Being with someone… it's a lot better than being alone," Nicky said.

"I shouldn't be complaining. After all, I _have_ the spirits. Some of the other gods are far more reclusive than I am. I have _no_ idea how they manage," Xerneas said, staring at her reflection in the pond.

The turquoise glow strengthened in Nicky's eyes. "It's so strange. When I think of gods… heroic legends are what come to mind. Y'know, these huge, grandiose tales showcasing feats of strength and unfathomable power," he said. "Yet, for what I've seen — and heard from talking with you — it kind of feels like Arceus didn't put any thought into creating you guys."

He winced the moment he saw Xerneas' pupils dilate. "Sorry! I'm sorry! That was so, _so_ stupid of me to say. I wasn't… um…" He tucked his head down against his chest. "I wasn't trying to say you're, like, a mistake or that you don't deserve to be here or something. Just that I don't understand why Arceus gave you a desire to be around other people if he was just going to force you to isolate yourself from the world."

Nicky silently cursed himself out. This line of thinking was actually making Golem's vision of a god-free world sound _good_ to him. He shook his head, sighing. "You know what? Forget I brought that up. It was a stupid, runaway thought," he said, flicking an upper wing dismissively.

"No, it's a good point. I've… never really thought about it, to be honest. I guess it goes to show how much I've taken my life for granted," Xerneas said, laughing bitterly as she slid down onto her belly.

"I'm sorry. I ruined the atmosphere, didn't I?" Nicky said, head tendrils shrinking. "That's what I get for trying to think of a good way to bring up those nightmares I wanted to talk to you about."

"Oh… right. I forget about that. Have these past few nights been any better for you?" Xerneas asked. Nicky glanced at her, wondering if he had irked her by selfishly steering the conversation in the direction he wanted it to go. To his surprise, her aura radiated genuine concern.

"Not really. Keep seeing the same thing over and over again," Nicky said, eyes losing their glow.

"I see. That's not good," Xerneas said. "Well, now that we're actually together, do you want to talk about it?"

"I do. But, um, in order to explain it… I have to tell you something." Nicky took a deep breath. "It's—" He paused, unsure of how to phrase things. "This is a big secret and I need to know that I can trust you not to tell _anyone._ Because it's going to sound hard to believe, but I assure you it's the truth."

Xerneas stiffened. "That's, erm, quite a lot to put out there, Light," she said, blinking slowly. "But what kind of friend would I be if I turned you down? I'll keep your secret."

Nicky shuddered, ripples running down his spine. This was it. He was finally going to fess up. "Xerneas, the truth is… I'm human." He paused to see her reaction, but her expression didn't change. "That past relationship I mentioned to you? The way things ended left me so depressed, that I had decided life wasn't worth living."

This time, Xerneas tensed up. "Light, you… you tried to kill yourself?" she squeaked.

"I didn't just try. I'm pretty sure I succeeded… which is why I'm here. See, in the world I'm from, when you die… that's it. There's no afterlife or spirit realm. One second you're alive — living, breathing, thinking — and then the next second that all stops," Nicky said, hunching over and draping his wings over his legs. "That should've happened to me, but it didn't."

"Instead, as I was dying, an otherworldly force pulled me into this world. Only, I didn't initially look like this. I was a Growlithe," Nicky said as Xerneas went slack-jawed. "I know, I know, it sounds ridiculous. But this is where things get… difficult. A group of Pokémon had brought me here so that they could use my spirit to _create_ a powerful beast." He took another deep breath. "One that would carry out their will… to kill all the gods."

Xerneas hastily sat back up, her gaze falling between her forelegs. "Mortals want to kill us?" she whispered.

"The guy who leads the group, Golem, told me they're all tired of your repeated failures to keep them safe from harm. They believe the world would be a better place if there weren't Pokémon like you around," Nicky said, blue nearly filling both his eyes. "When I first woke up as a Growlithe, he went on about how his 'genius' had brought me here to turn me into a great hero. I was… really confused. Naturally, I didn't trust the guy. Hell, in my world, Pokémon aren't even real."

He glanced at Xerneas, expecting her to respond to that last statement. Instead, she gazed at Solgaleo's and Lunala's statues with a faraway look in her eyes. Nicky's tendrils shrank into his head as he continued, "Golem didn't end up giving me a choice in the matter. I got put to sleep and, when I next woke up, this is what I looked like." He kicked up his right leg. His reflection rippled in the pond.

"I never really had the time to process what had gone on. It was so disorienting, I guess I stopped thinking about myself and my situation," Nicky said, looking up at the sky. "Apparently, Golem used alchemy to forge this body using something called emera ores. That's what his assistants told me, anyway."

"Alchemy? You… you're made of ley lines?" Xerneas gasped. Her forelegs trembled. Nicky briefly wondered if he should stop. Was this too much for Xerneas to take? He quickly quelled those thoughts, thinking it would do more harm than good if he left his confession unfinished.

"To be honest, I don't even remember much about the days that followed my transformation. There was a thick fog over my mind. Perhaps it was part of Golem's ritual," Nicky said. "He said Porygon2 recorded everything that I did, which was nothing but learning about how to channel my energy." He rubbed his head with an upper wing. "Guess that explains why I already had my psychic powers down pat when I first met you."

"You really can't remember any of that?"

"I can't. The first thing I remember is Golem telling me what had happened to the sun and moon. When he did, a voice in the back of my head said I could restore them easily. I drew on my new powers and, well, instinct took over from there. Instincts I didn't even know I had, to be honest," Nicky said, laughing nervously. "I was on autopilot when I brought the sun and moon back."

"Autopilot? What do you mean?" Xerneas said, tilting her head.

"Oh, sorry, that's a human expression. It means I was acting without even thinking. I couldn't even tell you _what_ I did to bring back the sun and moon. That's how much my newfound instincts had control," Nicky said, yellow and green expanding in his eyes. His lighthearted tone faded, however, as he bowed his head and blue pushed away the yellow and green. "I'll bet this all sounds ridiculous. In my head, explaining this seemed a lot easier."

"You mean there's more?" Xerneas said, shifting about uneasily. She wanted the full story, but was struggling to wrap her head around all these revelations.

"Yeah, there is. Y'know how you guys call me the Guiding Light? That's what Golem's assistants dubbed me after I brought light back into the world," Nicky said. "At first, I was overjoyed. People were cheering for me… celebrating a good deed I had done. It was something… something I had desperately wanted in my human life, but never really got."

He hunched over again, his lower wings dipping into the pond. "But after that, Golem began to treat me differently. I think he realized that his crazy ritual hadn't gotten _exactly_ the way he wanted it to… because he constantly kept me behind this strange barrier in his hideout. Then he stuck this thing on my leg." Nicky lifted his leg up to show off the anklet. "He can use it to keep tabs on my energy levels. And, if he thinks I'm doing anything to cross him, he can trigger a booby trap that'll reverse his ritual and turn me back into a Growlithe."

"That was also when the problems started for me… on, y'know, a personal level," Nicky continued, drawing a confused look from Xerneas. "You know how, when we first met, you said that I seemed troubled by something?" Xerneas nodded. "Well, I _was_ troubled. I'd been struggling with constant flashbacks to unpleasant memories from my human life. Anything that I came across in this world that reminded me even a _little_ bit of my past life would trigger a memory."

"Since then, they've kept coming. They've spilled over into my dreams, too. It's upsetting, yeah, but the part that really alarms is what started the day we set up our mental link," Nicky said, taking a shuddering breath. "There was this white sphere that showed up in the flashbacks I had during my training with Zekrom. It wasn't from my human life. All it did was float there… like it was staring right through me."

"Then, that night, it showed up in my dreams. And it _talked_ to me. It went on and on about how it's part of me… the source of my power, or something. Right before the nightmare ended, it told me that… that…" Nicky shut his eyes and shook his head. Xerneas leaned in, only for Nicky to lean away from her. "It said I'm part of the void. And, like, the way it sounded…" He shuddered.

"I don't know what to make of it, but it was so damn unsettling I couldn't keep it to myself. I thought about bringing it up with Golem, but I have an awful, sinking feeling that his stupid alchemy _put_ that thing in my head! Like, it was _supposed_ to be the thing that let him fully control me, but it didn't work so now it's stuck in my mind, inserting itself into everything I do or think!" He smacked his forehead with his upper wings. "I don't want to lose my mind and turn into some kind of monster, Xern! I… I can't… I may get angry sometimes, but I would never want to hurt anyone! I want to help people." He looked down and, in a softer voice, whispered, "I've only ever wanted to help."

Silence followed. Nicky glanced Xerneas out of the corner of his eye. She sat on the edge of the pond, looking at her reflection with an unreadable expression on her face. Nicky cringed. He figured he overdid it and now Xerneas was in shock. Was there anything he could say to ease the tension? Nicky clenched his jaw tightly. He had to think of something.

"I'm sure that's a lot for you to take in, but I want you to know that I really appreciate you listening to all of it. I'm so glad I was able to get it off my chest. Feels like a real weight's been lifted off me," Nicky said. He looked at Xerneas, waiting for her response.

Her eyelids fluttered close and she collapsed on her side.

"Xern!" Nicky shouted, colors randomly darting about in his eyes as gravity took hold and Xerneas slipped into the pond. Bubbles followed the ripples of her splash. Nicky call on his ESP. He hoisted Xerneas out of the water and plopped her down on the grass. Her antlers kept her from completely rolling onto her right side. They dug into the ground and propped her head up at an awkward angle.

Nicky shot up from his seat. "C'mon, Xern, wake up!" he said, draping his upper wings over her torso. Her soggy fur was ice-cold on his wing membranes. Nicky yanked them back with a hiss. He then opted to nudge her with his crystalline beak. "Don't do this to me, Xern. Please. You're okay… you're okay!" he hiccupped, blue and purple swirling in his eyes.

Xerneas coughed, startling Nicky. He looked up in time to see her spit up a mouthful of water. Thinking quickly, he bumped Xerneas' back with her beak. Xerneas coughed up more water until her breathing finally slowed down. Nicky slowly pulled his face away, noting the quivering in her chest. Xerneas met his gaze and her eyes widened.

"L-Light! What are you doing? A-And why am I soaking wet?" she squeaked.

Nicky looked down. After a second, it finally clicked how unsightly he looked. "Gah! Sorry, sorry, sorry!" he said, floated off Xerneas and shooting up into the sky. Nicky halted his descent as soon as he realized how badly he had overcompensated, then drifted back down to the ground. "You, um, kinda fainted— sorry, _definitely_ fainted. And fell in the pond. I fished you out but you weren't responding so I lay down on top of you because I was trying to wake you up and—"

He caught himself in the middle of his ramble and shook his head. "The point is… it's my fault that all happened. I clearly overwhelmed you with everything I said. Is there any way I can make it up to you?" he whispered, folding his lower wings against his sides.

Xerneas slowly got to her feet, then bent over to shake herself dry. Stray water droplets hit Nicky, only to evaporate instantly. "Hang on… let me gather my thoughts," Xerneas said, the gems in her antlers flickering. Nicky shrank bank, a worried look on his face. "That voice in your dreams… it told you that you're part of the void?"

Nicky nodded.

"Oh no," Xerneas whispered, shutting her eyes and shaking her head. "Oh no, no, _no_. This is bad, bad, ba— _ack!_ "

In pacing around nervously, Xerneas slipped on a patch of wet grass and tumbled back into the pond. Nicky's head tendrils rippled in alarm, only to settle when Xerneas immediately poked her head up and spat out wet blades of grass.

"Are you okay?" Nicky asked, swooping toward her.

"I'm fine," she said, kicking away from the edge to put distance between herself and Nicky. "I—" She floated in the middle of the pond, avoiding Nicky's gaze.

"Did I do something wrong?" Nicky said. "Wait… do you know what the sphere was talking about? Do you know what it meant by 'the void?'" He inched closer to Xerneas, who responded by swimming further away from him. Nicky's wings and tails drooped. "Xern…"

"I'm sorry, Light. I need a moment to think," Xerneas said, nearly going underwater. She paddled away from him. The other side of the pond had an embankment that allowed her stand. Her pointed hooves sank into the silt, however. Xerneas' heart skipped a beat as she almost fell back into the deeper water. She took a breath to steady her nerves.

"The void… I've heard that term before. And not as some word getting casually tossed around. No, the context was always… _unsettling,_ " she said, still avoiding Nicky's gaze. "You mentioned alchemy in your tale… well, us gods are more than capable of using alchemy, too. In fact, we _need_ it to do our jobs. The work I was doing on the Tree of Life? I was going inside of it to purify it of ley lines threatening to tear it apart."

"Ley lines? You mentioned that when I was speaking, didn't you?" Nicky said, the blue in his eyes slowly receding.

"Correct. Ley lines are a chaotic form of energy that stems from the planet's core. Left unchecked, they'll rip the very foundations of our world apart and destroy the planet," Xerneas said, her expression darkening. "But gods— well, _immortal_ gods can reign them in. Our powers allow us to use spells to control ley lines."

"In order to do that, we have to confine them to specific areas. The places we trap ley lines in turn into bizarre labyrinths whose layouts constantly shift. I believe the mortals actually have a name for it, but it's escaping me," Xerneas continued. "So, when you told me that you were made through alchemy, my heart practically jumped into my throat. Because that means the same chaotic energy in the planet's core is inside of you."

Nicky drifted backward, red and orange pooling in his eyes and spreading across his body. "I… wait, what?" His wings trembled. "Hang on a second. Arceus created this world, right? Why would he make a world that's in constant danger of collapsing on itself? That's…" Blue energy raced between his tendrils. "I'm sorry if this sounds rude, but that's so _incredibly_ stupid!"

"I didn't understand it, either. But I was always too afraid to bring it up. I figured other gods would get upset and, I don't know, attack me or something," Xerneas said, wincing. "Eventually, I worked up the courage to ask Zygarde about it."

"He said he couldn't give me a straight answer. All he could go off of is what he had heard from other immortals," Xerneas continued, watching water drip down her forelegs. "Namely, that at the time Arceus came into existence, he was attacked by an unknown assailant. Apparently, despite his immense power, he couldn't sense anything about this creature. No spirit. No emotions. It was as if it was completely empty, like…"

"… a void," Nicky whispered, turning away from Xerneas with a shocked expression on his face. He threw an upper wing over his beak.

"Yes. Arceus called his attacker 'the void.' And, try as he might, he couldn't fend it off. In the chaos of battle, the oldest immortals were birthed and, together with Arceus, they managed to beat back the void," Xerneas said. "Or so they had thought."

"Because of ley lines?" Nicky asked. Xerneas answered him with a nod. "Did the void spawn ley lines, then?"

"Again, I'm not sure. This is what I got from Zygarde," Xerneas said. "He told me Arceus certainly _thinks_ ley lines are related to the void."

"What do you think?" Nicky asked, brushing his legs together nervously.

Xerneas gulped. "I think he's right… because of events that happened before you arrived in our world, judging by your story." She tried to take a step back, but the silt kept her forelegs rooted in place. "See, we were besieged by an otherworldly monstrosity: Dark Matter, a creature born from the negativity in the world. It nearly succeeded in destroying the Tree of Life, but Mew managed to stop it by working with a human."

"A human? Like me?" Nicky gasped. "Err, I mean, like what I _used_ to be?"

"I can't say. I never got to meet Mew's partner for myself. What I can tell you is that, during Dark Matter's attack, many Pokémon were turned to stone," Xerneas said.

"What? They just… died?!"

"N-No! Luckily, we were able to restore them after Dark Matter's defeat. Their spirits had ended up inside the planet's core," Xerneas squeaked. "However, they reported that the core is this strange, twisted landscape. They described the air as being suffocating and full of overwhelming dread." She shuddered. "And then there's what they called it: the Voidlands."

Nicky began to put two and two together and the results unsettled him. "So… so you think that… my power… it comes from the planet's core? From the Voidlands?" he said, eyes and body dimming. "Then… but then, that sphere in my dreams… it must be real."

"I'm sorry, Light. It makes too much sense. Especially if the group that created you is made up of Pokémon who Dark Matter turned to stone," Xerneas whispered, squeezing her eyes shut.

"No…" Nicky dropped to the ground and buried his face in the dirt. "What should I do? What _can_ I do? I… I…" He turned to look at Xerneas, eyes and head turning dark blue. "Xern, you've got to believe me. I don't want to hurt anyone or… or kill any gods or anything like that! All I want is to be happy." Without thinking, he rolled to his left, flopping into the pond with a tiny splash.

Xerneas squeaked, but couldn't shuffle back in surprise. Bright light and steam filtered up in front of her. Nicky popped his head out and glided toward her through the water. "You make me happy, Xern. I admit, I had some doubts. Mainly because I used to be human and the idea of, y'know, liking a _Pokémon_ didn't sit right with me," he said, body fizzling as water evaporated off it.

"But that doesn't matter, because I'm not a human now… and I don't think I'll ever be one again. All I want is a friend I can relate to. Someone who genuinely values what I have to say. And that's you, Xern. It's been you since you pulled me aside on the first day of autumn," Nicky continued. He extended an upper wing toward her. "I know I probably messed things up between us big time… but I'm willing to prove how important you are to me. Please, I…" Streaks of purple streamed through his blue eyes. "I think I'm falling for you."

"Light, I… don't know what to say," Xerneas whispered, tail twitching. Her heart pounded. Despite Nicky's nervousness about relationships, Xerneas held out hope that Nicky would come around. Well, she had gotten what she wanted. However, after learning of his origins, Xerneas was at a complete loss. If everything Nicky had said was true, she needed to keep him as far away as possible. He was made of ley lines, so that made him a threat to the world, right? But if that was the case, why would he tell her all of this?

Xerneas quickly reached a conclusion: Nicky was asking for her help. Yes, that had to be it. Nicky wasn't just looking for a friend, but someone who could help him keep the void's corruptive influence at bay.

The two of them stared at one another in silence. Xerneas watched different colors grow and shrink in Nicky's eyes. She sighed. "I must confess, the things you told me have left me a bit… uneasy," she said. Nicky sank down in the water. "However, I believe you. In fact… it sounds like we're even more alike than I could've possibly realized."

Nicky floated up so he and Xerneas were at eye level. She stepped toward him, struggling to keep from sinking. "We've both been alone… and felt like there's no one we can turn to. But it doesn't have to be like that anymore. You can fill the gaping emptiness in my heart and I, in turn, can help you fend off those dark influences Golem put into your head. What do you say?" Shakily, she raised a foreleg in Nicky's direction.

It struck Nicky how absurdly cheesy this all was. Here they were, dripping wet in the middle of a pond. Xerneas even sounded like she had leaped right out one of the lame romantic comedies he had to sit through with Rebecca.

 _'Rebecca…'_

The amusement of the situation vanished. Xerneas disappeared. A blurry silhouette of a human girl replaced her. Only, a familiar black heart sat where the girl's face should've been.

 _ **SuCh a FOoL. YoUr PReCIoUS rELaTIoNShIP wiLL OnLY bRiNG yOu hEArtBrEak. JUsT lIKE iN YoUR hUMaN lIFE.**_

Nicky squeezed his eyes shut. No, that wasn't true. Xerneas wasn't like Rebecca. She wasn't like Shane, either. Xerneas was the companion Nicky had always wanted. It may have taken him a while to realize that, but there was no denying it now.

He floated past the silhouette. It dissolved all around him. Nicky pushed Xerneas' foreleg back with an upper wing. Mindful of her large anglers, Nicky closed the remaining distance and wrapped his wings around her torso and forelegs.

"L-Light? What are you do— _mmf!_ "

Nicky leaned in and pressed his beak against the tip of her snout. It didn't quite have the same thrill he remembered from his human days, but his head tendrils still throbbed like thin, beating hearts. Xerneas, on the other hand, couldn't keep it together. A childish giggle escaped her snout, then her hind legs gave out. Before she could slip under water, Nicky snagged her with her ESP, keeping the kiss intact as he carried her up and out of the pond.

Slowly, he set Xerneas down. She pulled away and turned to the side, trying to catch her breath, but unable to as she descended into a fit of laughing.

"Something funny?" Nicky said, tilting his head to the right.

"I… sorry, I…" Xerneas' laughter swallowed up her anter. When she was finally able to calm down, she had to blink tears out of her eyes. "I've never, um, kissed anyone before. I certainly didn't expect it to be so… so…" The gems in her antlers all turned red in unison. "I don't know if it's because of all that light energy in your body, but _wow_ … what a rush."

Now it was Nicky's turn to glow bright-red. "Oh. Aha ha… my pleasure, I guess? So, um, I guess this means we're a couple now… or something. Anything specific you want to do? The night's still young, after all."

"Well, there is one thing I can think of," Xerneas said, fighting to hold back another giggle fit. "It _is_ the Winter Solstice and the mortals like exchanging gifts. Since it's a bit too late to look for anything special… how about another kiss?"

Nicky couldn't help but laugh. This was an entirely new side of Xerneas and he wondered if she was lying to him. But her reaction, coupled with her aura, felt so genuine he quickly dismissed that notion. With a warm yellow glow overtaking his eyes and body, he said, "Sure."

Tail wagging, Xerneas reared up, pressing her forelegs on Nicky's shoulders. His energy made her limbs tingle. Nicky was so surprised his levitation faltered. They fell to the ground. Nicky barely formed a psychic bubble over his chest spikes in time to keep Xerneas from getting hurt. When they landed, Xerneas licked Nicky's beak, then resumed their kiss from before.

"Happy Winter Solstice, Light," she whispered.

"Happy Winter Solstice, Xern."

* * *

 **~Celestial Island~**

 **"Gnaarrrgh!"**

Necrozma braced his arms and wings against the cold gray grass. He tucked his head into his chin, third eye flickering erratically.

 **"… you. Lun… ala,"** Necrozma hissed, clawing at his forehead with a trembling hand. **"I know… it's you. You're… showing me these…"**

His eyes dimmed, then turned light blue.

 _Yes, I did._

A soft, female voice echoed in Necrozma's head. He smacked his prism armor, turning his eyes red once more.

 **"Heehee. It's…** _ **heeheeheehee…**_ **it's worthless,"** Necrozma rasped. **"She means… nothing to me. None of that… means anything. Those memories… will be ashes… soon enough."**

 _That's not true. I know how much you cared about her. She meant the world to you and you meant the world to her._

 **"It was nothing but a lie!"** Necrozma snarled, launching spittle from his mouth. He curled his wings around his torso to stop his spasming. **"But I don't care. She'll burn. Everyone will burn. The void… heeheeheehee… all that matters is the void. You can't stop me. I'll get my core back. Then your spirit... I'll finally consume it."**

 _No. There's still good inside of you. Why else would you hold onto these memories so tightly? Wake up, Light! I know you don't really want to do this! You have to help me! Help me fight off the void! You're a good person at heart. I know it! I've seen it!_

Necrozma spread his wings out and arched his back, screeching loudly.

 **"ThE GuIDinG LiGHt DIed CEnTUrIeS agO!"** he shouted, third eye and chest sigil flashing erratically. **"I AM nECrOZMa! AnD I wIlL REtURN tHIS wORlD… nO,** _ **aLl oF REaLItY**_ **tO THe vOId!"**

 _You're nothing but a monster, Necrozma! If I can't free Light from your warped, backwards mind… then I won't stop until I've purged you from my body!_

A lavender ripple ran across Necrozma's body. His eyes and chest sigil flashed blue. He threw his hands up against his face, letting loose a bloodcurdling scream.

 **"NO… NoOoO! sTOp… SToP It! I MuSt COnSUme! I MusT…"**

 **"Gyaaas!"**

Necrozma's head shot up in the direction of Lugia's familiar, distorted screech. Lugia caught sight of him and dove toward the island, kicking up dead grass and leaves with powerful flaps of his shadowy wings.

 **"FiNaLlY! Do yOU HAvE… sOUlS… fOR Me?"** Necrozma wheezed.

Lugia uncurled his toes, dropping two purple spheres to the ground. His red eyes flickered with green flames and the purple ectoplasm dispersed, revealing Cobalion and Terrakion, each covered in scrapes and gashes. Cobalion was missing a horn, while Terrakion had both of his torn off.

 **"Heeheeheehee… tHeY'RE PErFeCt,"** Necrozma said, weakly hovering into the air.

"Y… you," Cobalion wheezed, shakily lifting his head to look at Necrozma. "Why? Why must you do this… to us?"

In response, Necrozma hunched over, wheezing and sputtering. His third eye flickered green and he coughed up a cloud of smoke. Cobalion's eyes widened as the smoke took on Virizon's shape.

 **"ThE wORlD's FuLL oF ChEAtERs, THiEVeS, aND LIaRs. ThERe'S NOtHInG To bElIeVe iN ANyMorE,"** the apparition said, its voice perfectly mimicking Virizion's.

"You _monster!_ " Terrakion snarled. He tried to stagger to his feet, but Lugia forced him down, cawing angrily.

 **"MaKInG FrIEnDs wIlL jUsT lEAd tO HEarTaChE aNd DiSaPpOiNTmEnt. ThAt'S wHY i'Ve lEt eVErYtHInG Go… AnD eMBraCeD The VoID,"** the apparition said, completely monotone. Necrozma then dispelled the smoke and blasted both his visitors with red and black beams. He sucked the life out of Cobalion and Terrakion, leaving behind cold, empty husks. They crystallized while Necrozma gulped down his newly-obtained light.

He straightened himself up, flexing his claws.

 **"Good. She's gone,"** Necrozma said, rubbing his armored forehead. His third eye wriggled inside. **"Stupid overgrown Zubat… trying to dispose of me with such simple-minded platitudes."** He floated forward and swatted Cobalion and Terrakion with his arm. An energy crescent blasted their bodies off the island. They careened into the black vortex swirling underneath it.

 **"Okay. Now that that's taken care of… I say it's time we located Latias,"** Necrozma said, licking his lips eagerly. **"Don't you?"**

He turned to Lugia, who spread his wings and belted out a defiant roar.

* * *

For reference, Necrozma's apparition is paraphrasing some of Virizion's dialogue from Gates to Infinity.

Hopefully you found this enjoyable, despite its length. Some folks have noticed a shift in Necrozma's sanity as of late. If I did my job right, then this shed some light on what might be happening to him. For those curious about the "body language" Nicky uses with his shifting eye colors and head tendrils, I actually commissioned a very talented artist, Toonirl, to make some PMD-style icons that do a great job showing this off. You can view them on her tumblr page: toonirl dot tumblr dot com post / 181008390616 / commission-for-ambyssin-commission-info. Remove all the spaces and replace each "dot" with a period, since FFN hates links for some reason. There are also ones for Shane as a Vulpix on there, but you'll have to look around. Now for some replies

SuperOmegaGuest: perhaps this special answered some of your questions about Necrozma and Nicky? Alternatively, ask some of the other reviewers, because some of them are definitely on the right track.

Anon Omega: well, you seem to be the only one interested, but the blog is up and running now. Check my profile page for the "link"

Once again, I'd like to thank everyone who's supported this fic over the past year. From those who are reading silently or following the fic to those leaving comments publicly, in PMs, or on Discord. You guys rock! Here's to a great 2019 where, if things go according to plan, we'll see this story through to its end.

Next time: no New Year hangovers for this fic, because we're partying hard at Sunset Shoals!


	91. Party On, Shane!

Time to kick off the 2019 season. Things slowed down a bit to end off the year, but now the focus is back on Team Radiance. I had a lot of fun with this string of chapters, so I hope you enjoy!

 **Content advisory:** this chapter contains alcohol and drug use. It's also the start of the three silliest chapters in the entire story, but I'm not apologizing for them.

* * *

 **Chapter 76: Party On, Shane!**

 **~Sunset Shoals, Entrance~**

Team Radiance walked through the tunnel, with Kahuna Raichu and Cosplay Pikachu following behind them. It was slow going for the team, with everyone preoccupied staring at the walls and ceiling. The occasional cluster of gemstones broke up the gray, crater-filled rock lining the tunnel. Each gem glimmered with a different color of light. The colors blended together, forming an array of circular spotlights that moved around the tunnel like it was one gigantic stage.

"Wow. This is, uh, colorful. Kinda hurts to look at it for too long, though," Tessa said. She cupped a paw over her eyes.

Silvally followed some of the colorful circles, cycling memories and repeatedly changing his colors. "I like it! It's way more vibrant and lively than the dank, depressing caves we've spent the last few days in," he chirped, fish tail wagging.

"Please. This cave's better because it isn't trying to kill us," Espy deadpanned. After a beat, she added, "For now, anyway."

"The thumping's getting louder, too. We're going to have to listen to that the whole time we're in the Mystery Dungeon, aren't we?" Tessa said, rubbing an aura feeler with her right paw. "If only Magearna had given us those sound dampening thingies she was working on back at the Observatory."

"… it's electronic music," Shane said, ears swiveling back and forth. "I've gotta give whatever's making it props. This baseline is pretty damn sick… even if I can't completely hear it." His teammates returned his comment with blank looks. "What, did I say something wrong?" Shane asked.

"More like nonsensical. What the heck's a 'sick beat' supposed to be, huh?" Espy said.

"Yeah. How can something that isn't alive get sick?" Tessa wondered, raising an eyebrow.

"Pretty sure it's another human expression," Silvally said. "Let me guess… it has to do with the music sounding pleasant?" Shane nodded. "Heh. Guess I'm getting pretty good at reasoning out Shaneisms," Silvally said, puffing his chest out.

"I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry at the fact that we're at a point where we need a name for his weird comments," Tessa said, shaking her head.

"Har, har, you guys are a real pack of comedians," Shane said. "Well, nuts to you three. I'm going to enjoy these sick beats." He stuck his tongue out at his teammates, then strutted to the front of the line, shaking his hips and swishing his tails from side to side.

Espy walked up to Tessa and Silvally. "Hey! Focus, you two! We've got trouble up ahead," she said, cracking her tail in the air like a whip.

Shane stopped dancing and looked down the tunnel. There was a small basin with a doorway leading into bright-pink fog. Next to the door sat a small, ovoid, dark-green rock with neon-yellow bumps protruding from its top. "What are you talking about?" Shane said, squinting. "There's no danger. All I see is a sea cucumber."

"No, that's a Pyukumuku," Tessa said.

"Gesundheit," Shane said, turning back toward Tessa.

"What did you just say to me?" Tessa growled, eyes narrowing.

Shane's ears stuck up in surprise. "I, uh, you sneezed, didn't you? That's how we acknowledge someone sneezed in the human world," he said, turning away to avoid Tessa's annoyed look.

Tessa rubbed her temples. "I didn't sneeze. I said that we're coming up to a Pyukumuku."

"See? You just sneezed again," Shane said, turning back toward her.

"Oh, for the love of—" Silvally shook his head. "Shane, that green rock is a Pokémon and its name is Pyukumuku. They're water-types that can spew their sticky insides at you to attack. It's… not a pleasant experience."

"Yeah, we get wild Pyukumukus washing ashore a lot. They sit in the sand… wasting away in the hot sun. So, we make a game out of tossing them back in the water so they can survive," Kahuna Raichu said. "We call it Pyukumuku Chucking, yeah!"

Shane blinked in surprise. Even with all the weird sights he'd seen in Horizon, that one caught him off guard. "Still, what do we have to worry about? There are six of us and only one Pyukumuku."

"I'd guess again. I count at least nine clinging to the ceiling up ahead, waiting to get the drop on some unsuspecting 'mon," Espy said, tail flicking back and forth.

Shane walked backward toward his teammates. "Why don't you guys go ahead, then? Since you clearly know what we're dealing with, here," he said, a nervous grin on his face.

"Gee… my hero," Tessa said. She led the group toward Yellow-Bumps.

"Whoa, hold up there!" Yellow-Bumps shouted. His white innards spilled out, forming the shape of a giant hand. "This here is an exclusive gig. If you aren't down with Primarina's Ultra Deluxe Medley of Magnificent Splendor then scram. We don't want you here! Or, better yet, surrender and we'll get you fit to party with our posse."

Shane had to fight off the urge to laugh. Ridiculous name or not, this confirmed Primarina was behind the mind control shenanigans. Shane figured it had something to do with his singing.

"Oh, we're totally down and ready to party till our legs fall off!" Silvally said, hopping up and down eagerly. "Isn't that right, team?"

Yellow-Bumps tapped the side of his body with his innards. "Ehh, I'm not sure I see it. I mean… I don't know what kinda 'mon you are, Beaky, but you don't radiate style. And a Ninetales that can't take the time to give himself a proper grooming is a disgrace," he said, pointing a white finger at Shane and wagging it.

The realization that a glorified sea cucumber said he lacked style made Shane seethe. He briefly wondered if this was one of the "bad trips" he had heard so much about back in high school. Before he could offer a retort, Tessa stepped in front of Silvally, resting a paw on her chest spike.

"Then we'll prove we can get down with your 'posse,'" she said. Tessa whipped her arm to her right, grabbing hold of Shane's left foreleg.

"Hey, what do you think you're do— _wah!_ " Shane hollered as Tessa pulled him toward her, hoisting him up on his hind legs. Shane lowered his tails over his waist, looking nervously at Tessa.

"Showing that we've got style, obviously," Tessa said, shifting Shane's forepaws so that they rested on her shoulder. She raised her right paw up and snapped her digits, shouting, "A-one, two, three…"

Tessa wrapped her left arm around Shane's torso and put her right paw against his shoulder. They shuffled left, and then right. Tessa then spun to her left and used her paws to spin Shane around with her. Shane yelped as he tipped over and fell toward the ground, only for Tessa to catch him with her left paw. She yanked him upright and pulled him in close, smirking at him.

"M… maybe this is a good time to mention I think I have four left paws," Shane mumbled, face turning cherry-red.

Tessa ignored him, moving her paws toward his midsection. She squeezed him tight and thrust her paws upward. Shane yipped in surprise as Tessa launched him skyward. He spun around three times in the air. His limbs smacked his belly. Tessa caught Shane before he hit the ground. "Now, strike an end pose," she whispered.

Shane let his head and forelegs drape down and winked at Yellow-Bumps. Tessa turned and flashed Yellow-Bumps a flirtatious grin. The rest of the group stared at them, awestruck. Silvally's beak fell open in disbelief.

"Well, what did you think of that? Pretty slick, huh?" Tessa said, lowering Shane gently so he could stand up straight. She dusted her paws off against her waist, trying not to let her embarrassment show.

Yellow-Bumps stood there, his tiny black eyes blinking slowly. "Looks like I had you pegged wrong. Primarina's music is _definitely_ flowing through your veins. I ain't seen a two-legged and a four-legged 'mon dance together like that, yet." He hopped to his right. "Yeah, you need to get down there and start tearing up the dance floor, pronto!"

The mention of a dance floor made Shane's brow furrow. If Yellow-Bumps was serious, then Sunset Shoals would be another infected dungeon and Primarina would have caught the Prism Virus. Shane couldn't imagine what an infected Primarina even looked like.

"You got it," Tessa said, running a paw through her aura feelers. "When we're done with the dance floor, it'll be unrecognizable."

Yellow-Bumps' innards spilled out, taking the form of a thumb's up. "I'm-a hold you to that, Lucario. Primarina will be happy to have you lot on his side," he said.

"And we can't wait to see him in action," Silvally said. "Come on, gang. Let's get going." He trotted off into the pink fog. His teammates followed him, along with Kahuna Raichu and Cosplay Pikachu.

* * *

 **~Sunset Shoals~**

Nothing could've prepared Team Radiance for the sight awaiting them on the other side of the fog. They emerged into an expansive, circular room filled with purple haze. Luckily, it was thin enough to let them see across the room. Coral formed the walls and ceilings. Smaller Pokémon sat inside openings in the coral, some exchanging pleasant conversation while others thumped their limbs along to the music, which had grown loud enough for Team Radiance to fully make out.

"Are those… lyrics?" Silvally wondered, turning to look at a large, sun-shaped speaker dangling from the ceiling. It sparkled with multicolored light, combining with the other speakers in the room to make a flashy rainbow on the floor. "I can't really tell what the song's saying."

"It's an electronic music thing, I think," Shane said, turning to marvel at a porcelain statue of Primarina. Glowing neon rocks surrounded it. The colors flowed through the statue and refracted onto the floor. It was like the statue was a giant disco ball.

"What do you mean?" Espy asked, joining Shane in staring at the statue.

"If I remember right, it's called sampling. Whoever's making the music takes a sample of something, like another piece of music or somebody talking. They then slip it into the song, but make it subtle," Shane said. His brow furrowed. "I don't think I'm explaining it correctly. Still, I want to know how Primarina's able to do that. Is it the music crystals? They can't be _that_ powerful, can they?"

"Oh, _hey_ there. You two just come into the party?" a Starmie with a green gem asked, floating up to Shane and Espy.

They exchanged nervous looks. "Yeah. We, uh, heard Primarina's singing and we just fell in love," Espy said. "We knew we needed to come here ASAP."

"Right on, right on," Green-Gem said, spinning his blue body around. "Primarina's big performance should be coming up pretty soon. For now, just kick back and chillax!" Green-Gem levitated a white pouch up in front of them. "You two want a little stardust? If you take it right before the concert, you'll have yourselves a _heavenly_ time. I guarantee-hee-hee it."

Espy looked down into the pouch, noting the twinkling, multicolored powder. "I… uh…" Her tail scrunched up. She pawed nervously at the ground.

"As tempting as it sounds, we'll have to pass for the moment," Shane said, pushing the pouch away with a forepaw.

Green-Gem hovered in place. "Oh. Like, I get it. You two, like, want a little _quality time_ together, don't'cha?" he said. "Yeah, like, stardust is great, but I hear it, like, takes some of the magic out of mating." He pointed his rightmost spoke toward a tunnel at the northern end of the room. "If you go down there… you'll, like, find the couples' lounge. Have fun!" Green-Gem turned and floating off, leaving Shane and Espy standing there, their faces bright red.

"Uh—" Shane started.

"We're _not_ going down there," Espy said, flicking her snout skyward.

"A… absolutely!" Shane squeaked. "Wait… I mean…" He shook his head. "Let's just rejoin the others, okay?"

"Agreed," Espy said. They both retreated to the center of the room, where the rest of the group stood back to back, examining their surroundings. Cosplay Pikachu had swapped into a new outfit consisting of a red leather jacket with black fur on top, spiked armbands, sequenced black pants, a red belt, and a black shirt with a lightning bolt insignia.

"Man, this place is absolutely pumping," Cosplay Pikachu said, thumping her head from side to side in time with the music.

"Yo, nice moves, little Pika-dude," an Electrike shouted from across the room, offering a friendly wave.

Cosplay Pikachu flashed the Electrike a V sign. "Thanks, buddy!" she called.

A half foot away from her, Silvally stood close to Tessa, glancing around at the various Pokémon eyeing him suspiciously. "Tessa, I don't like this. Everyone's staring at me. What do I do?" he whimpered.

"Uh, I don't know," Tessa said, rubbing her shoulder. Her attention was fixed on a Smeargle with gray ears and a Hawlucha with a dark blue beak. Each of them held a glass brimming with fluorescent green liquid. Tiny umbrellas stuck out of their drinks. Blue-Beak held up his glass and winked at Tessa. She immediately stepped closer to Silvally, clinging tightly to his shoulder. Her aura feelers pulsated rapidly. "I'm not getting hostile vibes from any of these Pokémon. But I'm nervous," she said.

"Let's move forward as a group. Shane and I heard that there's a couples' lounge to the north. I'm pretty sure that's a dead end. So, let's head west," Espy said. She pointed a forepaw at the tunnel on her left, where a beige-fisted Primeape and pink-chested Politoed had disappeared behind purple haze. The group followed her along. They passed three crystalline tables. Each one had small coral fixtures on it, pulsating with neon light in time to the music playing. The tables had bowls filled with berries that were luminescent like the coral.

At the last table, a Smoochum with hot-pink lips stood in front of a punch bowl filled with fizzling, bright-pink juice. She used a ladle to scoop up some juice and pour it into her cup. Pink-Lips downed the glass in one quick chug, then sank to the ground, sighing contently. Tessa cringed at the sight. "What do you think they're putting in that stuff?" she whispered to Shane.

"I don't know, but it seems pretty potent," Shane said, brow furrowed. These sights were making him feel like he was in the middle of a party scene from one of many teen movies his sisters dragged him to. Shane bit his lower lip. What would make Pokémon act like they were at a human party? Because Shane didn't think Primarina's hypnosis could do this.

A Machoke with a navy belt popped up behind the juice table. "Ha! That's a good one, Lucario," Navy-Belt said, pounding his belly as he laughed. "If y'all are here for the concert, you _know_ we're packing the concessions with stardust!" Navy-Belt opened his right hand, spreading multicolored dust over the punch bowl. He stirred the contents around with the ladle. "After all, we've gotta get our strength up so Primarina's songs can supercharge us to take down the Prism Virus!"

"Take down… the Prism Virus?" Espy gasped, double-taking at the punch while her tail curled up against her flank.

Navy-Belt narrowed his eyes at Team Radiance. "Wait a tic. You lot meaning to tell me you don't realize this is Primarina's Ultra Deluxe World-Rallying Concert? Then what are you doing here, huh?" He leaned over on the table, digging his fingers into the crystals. "Don't tell me you all… are _party-crashers?_ "

Numerous angry expressions turned in Team Radiance's direction. "Did someone say party-crashers?" a white-finned Finneon gasped.

"N-no, no, no!" Shane said, jumping in front of his teammates. "You've got it all wrong. We're _totally_ down with Primarina's groove. In fact… uh…" His tails curled up. "We were _so_ enamored with it we kind of zoned out. Because this beat is positively thumping!" He swished his mane over his shoulder. "Yeah, this is the kind of tune you could drop a Knuckles Rap to and everything!"

Tessa's eyes widened. "Shane, what are you doing? You're gonna give us away," she hissed in a whisper.

"I need you to trust me. I think I know what's going on, here," Shane whispered back.

Navy-Belt blinked in surprise. "What d'ya mean by 'Knuckles Rap,' huh?"

Shane feigned shock by letting his jaw drop. "You mean you don't know? I guess you're not as down with Primarina's beats as you thought you were," Shane said.

"Oh yeah? You're such a blowhard, show us what you mean," Navy-Belt said. He turned to the crowd of onlookers. "Am I right, gang?"

"Yeah!" they cheered in unison.

"Fine," Shane said, fanning out his tails and strutting forward. "Prepare to be amazed." He cleared his throat, silently praying his brain not to let him down. Shane tapped a forepaw to the beat of the song and bobbed his head up and down.

 _"Yo, this is your boy, Shane.  
_ _We're kicking it down in Sunset Shoals!  
_ _Got my friends at my back.  
_ _Our bonds are pure as gold!_

 _Prism Virus… is what we seek to stop.  
_ _So we're chilling out, waiting for the concert to pop!  
_ _Team Ra-di-ance, that's my gang's name.  
_ _Here to bask in Team Harmony's fame!"_

Silvally cocked his head to the side. "For pity's sake, what is he doing?"

"I… have no idea," Espy said, watching Shane shake his mane out from side to side. "Even by Shane's standards, I'm speechless." But as she looked at the other Pokémon gathered around their team, she saw looks of interest on their faces. Some were tapping legs or tails in time with Shane's lyrics, while others bobbed their heads with him.

 _"Our moves can't be beat.  
_ _You might call 'em obscene.  
_ _We can bring the heat.  
_ _We're battling machines!_

 _Prism Virus, look out.  
_ _You treading on thin ice,  
_ _Like a weak-ass 'Karp,  
_ _Your attacks won't suffice._

 _We're bringing Lucario power,  
_ _Flinging Aura Spheres left and right.  
_ _With Primarina supercharging us,  
_ _Our foes will drop before our might!"_

"Hey, what are you dragging me into this for?" Tessa said, aura feelers shooting up in alarm.

A pink glow encircled her muzzle, which then clamped shut. "Quiet," Espy said, holding up a forepaw. "Whatever he's doing, it's actually working." She pointed across the room, where the Finneon that had gotten on their case earlier was now waving her fins in time with the music. Behind her, two Lumineons with glowing purple stripes on their bodies raised their fins and waved along with their unevolved friend.

"Uh, why don't you guys stay with your friend, yeah? Pikachu and I are going to scope out the place we were _trying_ to get to earlier," Kahuna Raichu whispered. He hoisted Cosplay Pikachu onto his shoulder and slowly hovered back from the circle gathering around Shane. In the process, he almost bumped into Silvally, who stared alluringly at Shane, his eyes slowly moving back and forth in time with Shane's tails.

 _"Been walking around Horizon,  
_ _Searching day after day.  
_ _For the perfect solution,  
_ _To make our troubles go away!_

 _It's been a real struggle, yeah,  
_ _Pushing our team to the brink.  
_ _But now that we're chilling here,  
_ _We're gonna be alright, I think!_

 _Primarina will show the way,  
_ _That he's guaranteed.  
_ _And that bastion of hope,  
_ _Is all Team Radiance really needs!"_

Shane hopped on his hind legs and spun about, then landed on all-fours and swished his mane to the side, winking toward the crowd of gathered Pokémon. At first, no one responded. Then, Navy-Belt began clapping. In a matter of seconds, other Pokémon joined in. Those without limbs, like the Finneon and her Lumineon companions, offered encouraging shouts.

"I gotta admit, I was wrong. You and your crew are clearly here to party it up," Navy-Belt said, holding his hands up. He glanced back toward the tables holding the food. "Anything you want, you've got."

"Thanks. We'll keep that in mind," Shane said, nodding. Navy-Belt turned and walked back toward the tables.

"Wow! You sounded great!" a Luxio chirped, jumping beside Shane. Her hot-pink tail wagged side to side enthusiastically. "And you're the first Ninetales I've ever seen." She got closer to Shane, rubbing her side up against his. "What I'm saying is… you're quite a catch," she purred.

Shane's ears stuck up. "Oh. Uh, who would be catching me? And which sport are we playing?" he said, gaze darting about the room.

Silvally and Tessa dashed to his side, the latter shoving Pink-Tail back. "Back off, he's with us," they shouted in unison, before turning to look at each other in surprise.

"Hmm? Oh, a love triangle. How tacky," Pink-Tail scoffed, rolling her eyes. She gave one last glance at Shane and, with a wink, told him, "When you're ready to ditch these two, you know where to find me." Pink-Tail sauntered off across the room, sitting down next to the Primarina statue.

"I'll have you know that at least one-thousandth of me is a Luxio!" Silvally hollered, electricity crackling around his yellow cheek-bolts. He turned to Shane, shaking his head. "Honestly, the nerve of these 'mons. Acting like you're a ripe berry dangling from a string."

Shane continued staring ahead, blinking slowly as he struggled to process what was happening. He didn't think his rapping was _that_ good, so why had Pink-Tail been so eager to coddle up to him?

"Hey. Focus!" Tessa said, snapping her digits at him. "This whole display thing was your idea!"

"Uh… right," Shane said. He shook his head and turned toward his teammates. "Sorry about that. But at least this proved my theory right." His tails wagged independently of one another, only to stop when Tessa and Silvally exchanged frowns. "What's the matter? You guys are acting like I did something wrong," Shane said, pouting.

"Well, it's just that you _do_ have a bit of a history with, y'know, _wild_ theories," Silvally admitted, tracing a claw across the ground. "This isn't going to get us hurt, is it?"

"What? Of course not," Shane said, ears drooping. "It's a much more grounded the– _oof!_ "

Shane stumbled forward, his head hitting Silvally's chest plume. The sudden contact triggered Silvally's fire memories and turned his glowing parts red. He looked up to see a black-nosed Drowzee walking past, levitating a plate with brownies on it.

"Whoops. How clumsy of me," Black-Nose said, smirking as her gaze fell toward Shane's tails. "I should really watch where I'm walking."

Silvally growled a warning, embers popping up from his cheek bolts. Black-Nose walked away with a chuckle. Sighing, Silvally nudged Shane off his chest. "Sorry about that. What were you saying?"

Shane blinked a few times, gaze fixed on Silvally's feathers.

"Shane, you're zoning out again," Tessa said, waving a paw in front of his face. "If you think you know something that can help us deal with Primarina, then out with it. We have no idea when this concert's going to start, but when it does, I imagine our jobs will get a _lot_ tougher."

"S-sorry," Shane mumbled, his tails curling up around his waist. "Anyway, as we were walking by that food table, it struck me that all of this feels… familiar." He walked toward Espy and his teammates followed him. "Then I saw Machoke putting stardust into a bowl of punch and I realized that this is like a _human_ party."

Espy raised her right brow. "That _would_ explain why so much of this stuff seems alien to me," she said.

Shane nodded. "Exactly. Remember how we think the Dawn Hourglass comes from Necrozma? Well, he was human. If Primarina is using the Hourglass' power to make his tunes hypnotic, then it's reasonable to suspect that _maybe_ he's channeling some of Nicky's old human memories and modelling this after a human party."

"But then, why would all these Pokémon seem so familiar with the idea?" Tessa wondered, rubbing her shoulder.

"Because they're eating and drinking things laced with stardust," Shane replied. "We're pretty sure Necrozma's the source of all stardust, right? So, the same logic applies." His brow furrowed. "Okay, hearing it out loud _does_ make it sound a bit… ridiculous. Still, I've seen this stuff before. People walking around, stealing glances at places they shouldn't be looking, drinking weird beverages, eating questionable food, and enjoying music with a thumping baseline. There were parties like this held at my old high school all the time."

"Which means you should know exactly what's going to happen here, right? Since you've been to parties like this before," Tessa said.

Shane shrank toward the ground, his ears folding against his head. "I— uh, not exactly," he whispered, voice cracking.

Tessa frowned. "Then how do you know about this stuff?"

"Look, I wasn't the type of guy who was, y'know, liked enough to ever get invited to any parties," Shane said, pawing at the ground. "But, in the human world, we had movies that featured plenty of parties. They almost always ended with the hero either having sex or running home in tears. Sometimes both."

When he looked back up, he found his teammates' eyes widened in alarm. "W-wait, wait… it's not what it sounds like. There's no guarantee something like that's going to happen here!" Shane said, his voice cracking. He silently cursed his poor choice of words.

"The way you're talking, you almost sound like you're _hoping_ that will happen," Espy said, eyeing Shane skeptically.

Shane shrank back from his teammates. "Ugh, y'know what? Forget I said anything. What happened to Raichu and Pikachu?"

"We're right here, yeah!" Kahuna Raichu said, floating over to join them.

"While you had everyone distracted, we scoped out the room at the end of the hall," Cosplay Pikachu said, jerking her head behind her. "Didn't look like there was anything there that led to Primarina, though."

Silvally frowned. "I guess that means we have to keep trying these rooms and seeing what happens," he said, glancing at the tunnels sitting on either side of Primarina's statue. "Shall we head off that way?" He pointed a foreleg ahead of them.

Espy shook her head. "No. I think I have an idea that ought to speed things up a bit," she said, pushing past Tessa and Silvally. Espy sauntered up toward the refreshment table, swaying her tail from side to side. She managed to catch Navy-Belt's attention. Just as he turned around to face her, she leaned forward, sticking her hips up and resting her head against the table.

"Hey there. Listen, in all the commotion my friend kicked up, I forgot where Primarina will be going onstage," she purred. "Do you think you could slip me a little reminder? I'd like to go stake out my territory before it gets too crowded." She stood back up and batted her eyelashes at Navy-Belt.

"Oh, uh, of course," Navy-Belt said, pinching his cheek. "Primarina's performing on B5F. But I'd hurry if I were you. I reckon that floor will get filled to capacity soon. Then you'll be stuck listening through the speakers." He gestured to the nearest speaker dangling from the ceiling.

"Thanks!" Espy chirped. She turned and strolled back toward the group. "You guys get that?" she said. Her teammates nodded. "Good. Then, let's get going. No idea why this place is only five floors deep, but I'm not going to complain."

"Horizon dungeons aren't known for their verticality, remember?" Tessa said as they made their way across the room.

* * *

Like the first floor, the second and third sublevels of Sunset Shoals had bright, flashing lights, glimmering statues of Primarina, tables filled with stardust-laden refreshments, multicolored dance floors, and sun and moon-shaped speakers nestled into the walls and ceilings. Team Radiance did their best to stay out of the way of the other Pokémon they came across, quickly locating the stairs.

By contrast, the fourth sublevel was underwhelming. Immediately upon entering, the group found the staircase leading down to the next level. A Passimian's tail disappeared down it. "Huh," Shane said, stepping out into the empty, circular room. Unlike the other floors, this one lacked any sort of bright lights or decorations. Instead, there were walls made of dark-blue coral. The ceiling was dark gray, with small patches of black coral clinging to it.

Aside from Team Radiance, very few Pokémon occupied the empty room. A pair of Sunkerns lay on the floor, staring up at a cluster of coral on the ceiling. And on the other end of the room, near the stairs leading down, a scruffy-looking Mawile and Granbull sat on the ground. They stared each other down, each one holding small cards in their hands. A tiny Ribombee drifted lazily over the Granbull's right shoulder, while a Pachirisu sat beside the Mawile, staring at his cards.

"Hey, Shane! C'mon, there's nothing here. Let's get a move on," Silvally said, beckoning him toward the stairs. His voice drew the attention of the Pokémon playing cards, who all looked at him skeptically before returning to their card game.

"Hold on a second, yeah. Something's not sitting right with me, here," Kahuna Raichu said. He floated away from the stairs, toward the part of the wall furthest from either set of stairs.

"What are you talking about, Pops? It's just a wall, isn't it?" Cosplay Pikachu said, climbing up onto her dad's head to get a better view.

Espy's forehead gem flickered pink. She turned her head in Kahuna Raichu's direction. "No, I think he's right. I'm picking up _something_ on the other side of that wall."

"Are you sure it's not just a fluke? I'm not picking up anything," Tessa said, rubbing her aura feelers with a frown. Nevertheless, she and her teammates joined Kahuna Raichu over by the wall. He floated in front of it, studying it with his brows furrowed in concentration.

"I'm telling you, there's something wrong here," Kahuna Raichu said. He turned to Espy. "You're sensing life energy too, aren't you?"

Espy nodded. "It can't be anything other than a Pokémon. Does that mean there's more to this floor beyond this room?" she said. Espy pressed a forepaw against the wall. Cold, damp coral grazed her paw pads.

"What if Primarina somehow restructured the dungeon's layout for his concert?" Shane whispered, trying not to draw the other Pokémon's attentions toward the group. "If that's the case, there could be Pokémon trapped back there. Like Vaporeon, for example."

Tessa's aura feelers tensed up. "That can't be. Only the Tapus have the power to change a dungeon," she said, staring intently at the wall. Tessa reached her right paw up and ran it along the coral, following each bump and groove in the wet rock. She paused with her paw resting next to a teardrop-shaped indentation in the coral. "Hey, guys, tell me… does this look normal to you?" she asked, pointing at the spot next to her paw.

Silvally walked up beside her, narrowing his eyes at the coral. Then, without warning, he leaned in and stuck the tip of his beak into the opening. Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "Wait, what do you think you're doing?" she gasped.

A tiny click sounded. White light surrounded the group. A heavy force grabbed each of them by the shoulders and spun them about. Before anyone could so much as utter a cry, the light disappeared. Tessa stumbled forward and fell to the ground, clutching her head. Silvally walked into her legs and, with a surprised squawk, tripped and fell onto his side.

"Ugh, what just happened?" Shane groaned, crouching low to the ground as he shook the stars from his vision.

"We teleported!" Espy gasped, carefully sidestepping Tessa and Silvally to get a better view of the team's new surroundings. They had left the circular room behind and instead found themselves in a long, narrow tunnel. Like the other room, the tunnel had nothing to speak of aside from dark-blue, coral walls and a gray, rocky ceiling.

Espy's teammates didn't have much time to get their bearings straight, however, because a Golisopod with white claws lumbered toward them. "What the heck are you all doing back here? This place is off limits! How'd you even find the warp panel I had stashed away, huh?" he shouted, waving his arms about angrily.

Tessa and Silvally both scrambled to their feet. "Uh… well," Tessa squeaked, tugging at her bandanna.

"Bah, it doesn't matter. I don't care how badly you folks want to get an up-close glimpse at Primarina. You've got to see him onstage just like everyone else," White-Claws declared. He pointed his right arm in front of him. "There's another warp panel on the wall over there. Trigger it and get your assess out of here."

"H… hold up, sir!" Shane said, drawing White-Claws' attention toward him. An orb smacked White-Claws in the face and shattered, spreading stardust over his body. White-Claws stumbled backward, hissing loudly and trying to brush the stardust off with his arms.

"Why you little—" White-Claws started, only to freeze up in the middle of the path, his arms covering up his face.

"Perfect! He's petrified," Shane said, grinning. "Let's move ahead… single-file, though. Don't want to accidentally bump this weird bug thingy and free him from petrification." Shane cautiously walked past White-Claws, then beckoned the rest of the team to follow. They all slipped past White-Claws one at a time. Once they had safely passed White-Claws, they continued down the hallway.

"Wow, Shane, how'd you know we had a petrify orb?" Tessa asked, rummaging through the team's item bag.

"I didn't. I lucked out," Shane admitted, a sheepish grin on his face.

"Seriously?" Tessa groaned, rubbing her temples.

"Well, we _definitely_ had slumber orbs and sleep seeds, but I went for a petrify orb first since the only way to free that bug is to hit him," Shane said. "Given they're keeping this place hidden, I've got a strong feeling he won't be moving anytime soon."

"That's… a good point, I guess," Tessa said. She caught up to Shane and they led the group down the tunnel side-by-side. After a couple of minutes of walking, they spotted yellow light filtering in from a clearing. Shane began to quicken his pace, but Tessa matched him step for step. She held her right paw out, shaking her head. "Hang on, Shane. We shouldn't go blindly charging into a bright room that we're not supposed to even know about," she said.

"Ah… right," Shane said, stopping. "Any ideas then?"

Tessa closed her eyes and tilted her head toward her right shoulder. "Hrrrrrrm…" Her brow furrowed. She shook her head. "Ugh, why can't I read any auras here? This is getting so frustrating!"

"I'm picking up scattered traces of life energy. There are several Pokémon where we're heading. None of them strike me as anything out of the ordinary, though," Espy said, forehead gem sparkling.

"Meaning no infected Pokémon or Ultra Beasts, right?" Silvally said, colored parts turning yellow as he looked down the tunnel. Espy nodded. "In that case, I say we take it slow. We should try to find somewhere to hide up ahead and get a better sense of our surroundings."

Shane frowned. "I don't have a problem with that idea, but how do you propose the two of us hide successfully, huh?" he said. "You're much bigger than the rest of us and I'm… well…" He looked back at his tails. "These suckers stand out against the dark walls." Shane sighed. "The pitfalls of being fabulous, I suppose."

"You did _not_ just say that," Espy said, rolling her eyes.

"Do I detect a hint of jealousy?" Shane said, smirking.

"Not on your life, fuzzball," Espy replied. They stared at each other for a moment, before exchanging giggles.

"Guys, c'mon, we're wasting time here. I say we have Shane and Silvally stay back here until we're sure the coast is clear. Is that alright?" Cosplay Pikachu said. Team Radiance nodded in unison. Cosplay Pikachu dropped down toward her father's back and they floated past Shane. Tessa and Espy went after them.

The further they walked in the tunnel, the brighter it got until they completely lost sight of Shane and Silvally. By the time they reached the end of the tunnel, their eyes had adjusted to the light. "Guys, over on the left. We can hide there," Tessa said, pointing to a silver Primarina statue. She stepped to her left, crouching behind the statue. Kahuna Raichu floated up toward the statue's head, hiding behind the metallic strands of Primarina's hair. Espy sat down across from Tessa, curling her tail around her paws to keep it from sticking out.

Tessa peered out from the base of the statue. In sharp contrast to the rest of the dungeon, this room had a purple, velvet carpet lining the floor. The only part left bare was the doorway they had come through and the area where the statue was. Luminous orbs lined the walls, which had hearts, stars, suns, and moons of various colors painted all around it. Three hallways led in different directions. Across the room from the statue sat a glass purple table, with a bowl of berries and a bowl of liquid chocolate. Tessa retreated behind the statue, swallowing hard.

"Wow, this place is tacky," Espy said, studying the hallway on the left side of the room. She could barely make out a small glass sculpture shaped like an eighth note. "I guess Primarina's only got an eye for music… and not interior decorating. In any case, looks like we're alone. I'll go ahead and get Sh—"

"Hold that thought. Someone's coming," Cosplay Pikachu said, waving her right paw. She had climbed onto the Primarina statue's head and was peering out from behind the hair. "And… and they've got outfits!" she gasped.

Tessa and Espy cautiously poked their heads out and observed a Hariyama dressed in pink spandex pushing a coat rack on wheels. Dozens of brightly-colored, gem-encrusted outfits hung from the rack, sparkling under the glow of all the luminous orbs. Hariyama walked toward the Primarina statue. Tessa and Espy quickly ducked back into their hiding spots, curling into balls in an effort to avoid being seen.

The ruse worked, with Hariyama wheeling the costume rack into the leftmost hallway without the slightest suspicion that anything was off. Espy uncurled from her ball and nudged Tessa's left leg with a forepaw. "Hey, he's gone," she whispered.

"Unbelievable," Cosplay Pikachu growled, smacking the statue with her right paw. "Primarina totally stole my schtick! Costumes are _my_ thing… not his!"

"I guess Primarina's really going all out with this concert, then," Tessa said, sitting up straight. "Thinking about it, I suppose we could even call it the Z-Move of concerts. Since it sounded like everyone who gets to see and hear it will be powered up."

"That's a scary thought," Espy said, wincing. "In any case, let's grab Shane and Silvally and scope this place out a bit more." She got to her feet and headed for the doorway, with Tessa following behind her.

"We'll hang back in case someone else shows up, yeah," Kahuna Raichu whispered, leaning against the statue's head. The girls nodded to him and walked back into the tunnel. They found Shane and Silvally waiting a few yards ahead of them.

"Coast is clear boys," Espy said, beckoning them forward with her tail.

"See anything interesting?" Silvally asked, trotting toward his teammates alongside Shane.

"Primarina's apparently planning to incorporate costumes into his performance. I guess he must've gained some sort of power similar to Cosplay Pikachu's? Otherwise, I can't imagine it being easy for him to change into outfits," Tessa said, scratching her head.

Shane raised a curious eyebrow. He had a mental image of Primarina appearing on a stage, with a sequined jacket slipped around his torso and a rainbow afro sitting atop his head. Shane cringed and shook his head. _'Thanks brain, I really needed that,'_ Shane thought, sighing.

"Eh? What's going on here?"

Each member of Team Radiance froze. Vaporeon stood in the center of the room. He wore a svelte white vest lined with sequins and gemstones. The piercings in his ears and mane now had bright, sparkling sapphires embedded in them. The glitter in his skin made him sparkle under the room's lights. Vaporeon had what looked like a headset on, only each of the ear pieces had large crystals in them pulsating with rainbow light.

"Vaporeon?" Tessa gasped. "Oh, thank goodness, we—"

"Wait a tic," Vaporeon said, glancing between Shane, Silvally, and Tessa. "You're Team Radiance, aren't you? Huh. Guess Primarina got through to you all." He turned to Shane and Tessa. "And you've both evolved? This is fantastic! You're just the Pokémon I need." He tilted his head to the side. "Wonder why Primarina didn't tell me he had gotten hold of you guys to help him…"

"Huh? What are you talking ab— _oof!_ " Shane started, only for Espy to cut him off with a swift kick to his left hind thigh. He momentarily buckled, eyes watering and mouth clenched shut.

"Yeah," Espy said, waving her tail back and forth enthusiastically. "We're here to help with… uh… well, Primarina didn't specify _what_ he wanted us for. Think you could loop us in?"

Vaporeon frowned. "I would've thought his tunes were all you needed to hear," he said.

"Uh… err…" Espy took a cautious step back. "We've, uh, had a bit of the punch and it might've gone to our heads," she said, spinning a forepaw around and whistling.

"Oh… _great_." Vaporeon smacked his head with a forepaw. "That's what got us into this mess in the first place. See, the three Pokémon we picked to star in the concert's warm-up acts drank too much punch and are totally out of it! So, I need replacements. That's where you three come in." He pointed at Espy, Shane, and Tessa.

Tessa's aura feelers stuck up. "U… us? A warm-up act?" she squeaked.

"Yeah." Vaporeon turned to Tessa "You're gonna start off with a song to get the crowd's attention."

"W… what?!" Tessa gasped, bumping into Silvally as she staggered backwards in surprise. "But… I can't… I've never…"

Vaporeon narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "You guys did say Primarina's tunes got through to you, right?" he growled, though his outfit didn't make him look imposing.

"Of course!" Espy said, stepping beside Tessa. "She'll have no problem going onstage and singing… _right?_ "

Tessa's face was as white as Shane's. "W… wh… what… d…"

"Look, you're familiar with the Song of Horizon, right? Just do that and everything will be fine. The lights we set up on stage are so bright you won't even notice the crowd," Vaporeon said. Tessa could do nothing except clumsily nod. Vaporeon walked up to her. "I guess the punch must've given you jitters, huh?" he said. "Relax, okay? You're a Lucario! Most folks go their whole lives without seeing one. Even with the weird fur, you're a once in a lifetime experience. The crowd's gonna eat you up." He smirked. "Especially when I get you into the right outfit."

"R… right," Tessa squeaked, standing up straight and looking at the ceiling. "I won't… I can do this," she whispered, sounding far from certain.

Vaporeon turned to Espy and Shane. "As for you two… you'll be doing a dance number together."

Their ears and tails stuck up in unison. "You want us—" Shane started.

"—to dance together?" Espy said, glancing Shane out of the corner of her eye.

"Absolutely. An ice Ninetales and an Espeon together? The crowd'll go positively ballistic," Vaporeon said.

Shane's tails twisted around one another. "Would they really be that interested in us? I would think two-legged 'mons could do a much better job," he said, tracing his forepaw across the edge of the carpet.

"I designed the dance for four-legged 'mons. You two are a perfect combination. An ice Ninetales is another once in a lifetime sighting. You flaunt that svelte body of yours and you'll captivate the crowd." Shane's face reddened while Vaporeon walked up to Espy. "And, well, I'm sure I don't need to tell _you_ what to do," he said, pausing by Espy's hips and smiling. "There's a reason those tabloid polls constantly rate Espeons as the most appealing member of our evolution tree."

Espy stepped away from Vaporeon, curling her tail around her right hip. "Isn't Jolteon your mate?" she growled, shooting Vaporeon an icy look.

"Yeah, but she wasn't down with Primarina's program," Vaporeon scoffed, turning around and walking back into the room. "I'm his manager, after all. So, it's my job to make sure the concert to end all concerts goes off without a hitch. In any case, we really should get you three into dressing rooms. I've got copies of the dance moves for you two," he said, glancing at Espy and Shane.

"And what am I supposed to do throughout all of this?" Silvally asked, voice ripe with concern.

Vaporeon looked Silvally over. "Ehh… sorry, Beaky, you don't really fit the bill for an extra," he said. "I suppose since you're part of Team Radiance, you can just stay in one of the dressing rooms. You'll be able to see the concert through these crystals Primarina and I set up. Plus, we've got plenty of gourmet snacks." He turned away from Silvally. "Now, come along. You're going onstage shortly and I want you three prepared."

He led Espy, Shane, and Tessa toward the hallway on the left side of the room. Silvally began following them, only to stop short. When Vaporeon was out of sight, he turned back to the large Primarina statue. "You can come out now," he said, glancing at the statue's head.

Kahuna Raichu floated over to Silvally. Cosplay Pikachu jumped off his back. "Alright, this is our chance! While everyone's distracted with the warm-up acts, we can go look at all those outfits and steal them. That'll teach that poser, Primarina," Cosplay Pikachu said, stomping her right leg on the carpet repeatedly.

"Or… we could investigate those other hallways," Silvally proposed, looking down the hallway at the back of the room. "It seems like they're using this area to set stuff up for Primarina's concert. My guess is that, if we poke around, we might be able to find what's powering up his vocals and put a stop to the concert before anyone gets hurt."

"Sounds like a plan, yeah," Kahuna Raichu said, raising an arm and nodding.

"Bah… fine," Cosplay Pikachu said. She twirled about and, in a flicker of blue light, changed into an Espy hoodie. "Time for a little tactical Espeonage action," she said. Cosplay Pikachu smirked at Silvally. "See what I did there? It's a stealth pun!"

Silvally rolled his eyes. "Let's just pick a hallway and investigate."

* * *

I told you it was going to be silly. The chapter title's a Wayne's World reference, what were you expecting?

Another guest: what Arceus' exact relationship to all the gods is will be explored as the fic moves on, but I like the way you're thinking!

Anon Omega: sorry, I'm not a soda drinker. More of a water guy.

SuperOmegaGuest: indeed, he isn't! How much more will he spiral out of control? Only I know the answer!

Be here next update, as we witness the performance of a lifetime!


	92. Taking Center Stage

As mentioned last chapter, this one's got a song and dance. The song seen here spoofs the lyrics to "The Noble Haltmann," as seen in the Exclusive Performance Video from Kirby: Planet Robobot. And the dance is roughly set to Vega's theme from Street Fighter IV. Alright, on with the show!

* * *

 **Chapter 77: Taking Center Stage**

 **~Circadian Coast~**

Two Absols strafed multiple blasts of water. One skidded across the sand and shot a purple Dark Pulse beam at Clawitzer. The other sprinted toward Clawitzer, scythe and talons filled with shadows. Clawitzer blasted the Dark Pulse apart with a shiny-blue Aura Sphere, but couldn't pivot fast enough to save off his other attacker. Frenzied Night Slashes tore into his carapace. Clawitzer bounced across the sand.

He tried to blast Herdier with a jet of water, but Herdier sank electrified fangs into his pincer. Herdier held Clawitzer in place, giving Poliwrath enough time to charge red energy into his right fist. Poliwrath punched Clawitzer square between the eyes. Clawitzer careened back into the ocean. Poliwrath stepped back, wringing out his black-gloved hand.

"Yeesh, that shell of his is harder than I thought," Poliwrath said.

"Pah! Tell me about it. Tastes all salty, too." Herdier spat trace bits of saliva on the ground.

Across from them, Gallian and a disguised Zoroark rejoined one another. "How you holding up?" Gallian asked.

"I'm okay. Legs are hurting a bit, but as long as Florges keeps healing me before I cramp up, I think I'll hold out." Zoroark stretched his Absol hind legs out. "What about you?"

"I'm fine. I think he caught us off-guard last time, that's all," Gallian said. His eyes then flickered purple and he turned to the ocean. Clawitzer shot himself back ashore. Ice harpoons rained down on Gallian on Zoroark. Gallian bucked Zoroark onto his back and dashed across the beach. Ice grazed his rump. Gallian gritted his teeth. He spun around, crouching low to the ground so Zoroark could safely dismount.

 _"I won't give up, ye scurvy dogs!  
_ _Not till yer sleeping like piles of logs!  
_ _Me cap'n wants ye under his control!  
_ _I'll be bringing ye all to Sunset Shoals!_

 _Try as ye might, ye can't stop me!  
_ _The only thing I'm tasting here is victory!  
_ _Yo ho ho! I won't be beat!  
_ _The cap'n's tunes will keep me safe from defeat!"_

Herdier and Poliwrath backed away, both groaning loudly and shaking their heads. Florges flew toward them. Jolteon responded by launching electric discs at Clawitzer. He retaliated with a giant ice harpoon. Jolteon tunneled into the sand, yipping in fright.

"For pity's sake… this guy just doesn't quit," Zoroark said, jaw slackened in disbelief. "We keep hitting him and hitting him… but he gets right back up! He should've been knocked out at least three times over by now."

Clawitzer turned his pincer on Gallian and Zoroark. Gallian was prepared to carry Zoroark off again, when Jolteon tunneled in from below. She upended Clawitzer, then hobbled toward Florges while Gallian and Zoroark covered her with dual Dark Pulse beams. Clawitzer tumbled across the shoreline. After a few seconds, he shakily picked himself up.

 _"Shiver me timbers!  
_ _Ye hit pretty hard.  
_ _But I don't care if yer limber,  
_ _Eventually, ye'll drop yer guard!"_

"Oh my gods, if I have to keep listening to this asshole's _awful_ singing, I'm going to lose my mind," Gallian snarled, thrashing his head about. "How the hell can Primarina's hypnosis keep a 'mon fighting past the point they'd normally give in, huh?"

"I don't know." Zoroark glanced at Gallian. "I don't suppose you could try that Naturia Looplet and use a Z-Move?"

Gallian stepped back, legs shaking. "No way! Absolutely not! You saw what happened to Tessa. We _talked_ about this, dude. I won't… I can't…"

Lightning and ice erupted in the distance. Gallian turned to see Jolteon skid across the sand. Florges was by her side in an instant. Herdier and Poliwrath charged Clawitzer down, but he shot an ice harpoon toward them. Poliwrath layed out and took the blow so Herdier could lunge for Clawitzer.

Zoroark blasted a purple Dark Pulse. He hit Clawitzer from behind. "Gallian, I get it. I'd be nervous about it, too. But there guys _need_ your help! Come on. Think about what'll happen if we can't Clawitzer to stop. Either we're going to have to kill him… or we're going to be put under Primarina's mind-control!"

Clawitzer blasted a fiery-blue Aura Sphere at Zoroark. It grazed his right side. His Absol illusion faltered. Zoroark dropped to one knee, holding his right hip. Gallian looked around at the injured Pokémon. He looked at Clawitzer, who smiled at his handwork while he brandished his pincer at Gallian. Then he thought of his sister and her teammates, making their way through the unknown in Sunset Shoals. He remembered the fury in Tessa's eyes when she Mega Evolved, but then he envisioned himself facing his sister down, with Primarina singing loudly behind him.

Gallian gritted his teeth. He couldn't betray his sister's trust. Not when they were finally together again. He hopped right to dodge Clawitzer's ring of water. Gallian flicked his foreleg in Clawitzer's direction. Orange light burst out of the gem on his looplet. The light spread around him, only to turn into black shadows. Zoroark tensed up, worried the looplet was going to backfire.

"I'm fine! I've got this!" Gallian said, hunching low to the ground. "Hey, ugly? Suck on this!"

Clawitzer raised a curious brow. Gallian's eyes turned pitch-black. The shadows shot off his body. They formed a black hole in the air over Clawitzer's head. It sucked him inside, spun him about, then exploded. Clawitzer sailed through the sky until he was nothing but a twinkle in the distance.

Gallian stumbled about, groaning and shaking his head. Florges finished tending to the nicks on Jolteon's hide and floated toward him, but Zoroark was by Gallian's side first. He scooped his startled mate up in his arms.

"H… how'd I do?" Gallian said, still looking a bit dazed.

In response, Zoroark pressed his muzzle to Gallian's lips. "You were perfect."

* * *

 **~Sunset Shoals~**

Rather than split up further, Silvally, Kahuna Raichu, and Cosplay Pikachu elected to stay together. Silvally led them down the rightmost hallway, taking slow, methodical steps to avoid tearing the carpet with his talons and potentially alerting someone like Vaporeon that they were sneaking around. Like the room they had left behind, an array of brightly-colored stars, hearts, suns, and moons lined the walls. Someone had even managed to stick luminous orbs in the ceiling.

About thirty seconds after they began walking, they passed a pair of doors. The one on the left had a pastel drawing of a Brionne on it, while the right door had a Lopunny painted on it. "What do you suppose is in here?" Silvally said, staring down the Lopunny door like it was challenging him to a battle.

"A dressing room would be my guess," Cosplay Pikachu whispered. "I have something like this for my own shows at the resort." She scratched at her left ear. "I'll bet you these are for Primarina's backup dancers."

Silvally raised his right brow. "Uh… hmm… okay. You might have to explain that concept to me once we're somewhere we can lay low." He continued down the hallway, checkout out the doors. They had a Delibird and Midday Lycanroc on them.

"I can see the end of the hallway. Looks like a dead end to me. Guess we ought to turn back," Silvally said.

"Hang on a sec, I'll zoom ahead and check, yeah," Kahuna Raichu offered, floating over Silvally's right shoulder and down the hallway. Silvally watched him go, shrinking in size the further he went. Within a half-minute, Kahuna Raichu turned and hovered back, shrugging. "Looks like you're right, cousin. Nothing down there but rocks. Let's check the other hallway."

They went back to the main room. When they got there, they found the spandex-wearing Hariyama walking back from the hallway Vaporeon had taken the rest of the team down. "Huh? Hey… I don't remember seeing any of you here!" Hariyama said, clenching his giant hands into fists. "Identify yourselves!"

"Easy there, cousin," Kahuna Raichu said, his cheek pouches glowing pink as a reminder of the clear type disadvantage Hariyama faced. "We're here to help with the warm-up acts. Our friends are replacing the 'mons that got sick and we're part of their posse. Maybe you saw 'em? Ninetales, Lucario, and Espeon, yeah."

"Oh. Yeah, that checks out." Hariyama scratched at the back of his head. "Boy, Primarina really knows how to go all-out, huh. At first, I thought I was losing my mind, but it turns out Primarina really did find a Lucario and an ice Ninetales. Man, two one-of-a-kind species to headline the world's greatest concert? I don't care what you say, the guy's a genius entertainer!"

"Sure is. We can't wait for the festivities to begin," Silvally trilled, offering a friendly tail wag.

Hariyama nodded. "I hear yea, I hear ya. In the meantime, I've got a few more things to do to help the backup dancers. You three take care." He saluted, then walked past them to get to the hallway with the other changing rooms. Hariyama entered the Brionne door.

"Okay, let's head north," Silvally said, leading the group along the third hallway. This one immediately curved to the right. The decorative wall drawings disappeared. After a couple of yards, it curved back to the left, and the rocky ground gave way to a metal floor. Silvally stopped, staring at the black grate beneath his feet. "Well that's… different."

Cosplay Pikachu poked at the metal grate. "You mean to tell me Primarina can somehow turn rock into steel? And your team thinks you can beat that?" she gasped.

"We've seen crazier, believe me," Silvally said, continuing down the hallway. As he walked, metal grates replaced the walls. After several yards surrounded by steel, the trio entered a wide-open, square-shaped shaft. The ceiling towered high above them. A set of thin metal stairs sat along the far wall, stretching up to the ceiling and down below the floor.

"What is this place?" Cosplay Pikachu wondered, staring up at the ceiling in awe.

Silvally walked past her, his attention fixed on a large pile of bright-white gemstones easily three times his height. The gems twinkled, despite the minimal lighting in the room. Behind the pile, three thick, black cords ran across the floor and then up the wall, stopping alongside the top of the stairs.

Silvally gulped. "Guys, I think I might've figured out just how Primarina's powering this crazy concert of his." He approached the base of the gem pile, gazing at his distorted reflection as his glowing parts turned dark blue in response to his growing nervousness.

"These are music crystals," Kahuna Raichu said, floating higher into the air to examine the pile closely. "By the gods… how did Primarina manage to mine so many of these in such a short time? This is at _least_ as many as we'd find in two years' worth of harvests!"

Silvally staggered back from the pile. "Y… you're kidding," he squeaked, head crest bristling. "But…" He shook his head. "All these crystals are good for is creating music for Sky Jukeboxes, right?"

"That's what I thought, yeah," Kahuna Raichu said, leaning in toward a single music crystal. It pulsated with green and orange light, forcing him back. "But these sure don't _feel_ like your run of the mill music crystals. Something's different about them. They're radiating some crazy energy." He tilted his head to the side. "Think Primarina might've found a way to do something to them?"

"It sure looks that way," Silvally said. He crouched low to the ground, staring down one of the crystals at the base of the pile. When his beak was only half a foot away from the crystal, a spark of lightning suddenly burst through a gap in the grating. Squawking in surprise, Silvally shifted to his ground memories just in time to avoid getting zapped on the beak. He stood up tall and backed away from the cluster of crystals.

Silvally stared at the spot on the floor the lightning had come from. "Okay, that was close. Something's clearly going on down there… and it's tied to these crystals." Silvally fixed his brown eyes on his companions. "Listen, if you two want to turn back, I understand. But I've got this sinking feeling in my gut about what's lurking beneath us. And I intend to find out if I'm right or not."

"We're with you, then," Cosplay Pikachu said, thumping her chest. She twirled about, exchanging her Espy hoodie for one of a Rhyperior, complete with hand-stitched patches on her sleeves that looked like rocks. "Besides, my ability is Lightning Rod. As long as I stick by Pops, I can keep him safe from any lightning."

"Alright, then follow me and be ready for trouble." Silvally marched toward the metal stairs.

"Oh, wait, hang on," Cosplay Pikachu said, darting for the gem pile. "We ought to take a few of these… you never know if they might come in handy for whatever Primarina's got planned." One by one, Cosplay Pikachu plucked a half-dozen music crystals from the pile and placed them in her satchel. She patted it with her paw. "There we go. Ready for adventure!"

Silvally descended down the stairs. It was a tight fit with his large frame. At the first two bends, Silvally's tail got caught in the grating and twisted at an odd angle. It sent shockwaves of pain through his system. The second bend frustrated Silvally enough to where he leaped over the railing. He stretched his limbs out as he lunged and fanned out his head crest, which turned dark blue. A gust of wind formed behind Silvally, catching his underbelly. He glided safely to the ground. Silvally turned his ground memories back on. The second he had his bearings straight, Silvally looked to his left and jumped back, squawking loudly. Kahuna Raichu and Cosplay Pikachu paused in the middle of the stairs and looked down.

There, directly underneath the pile of music crystals, stood four Xurkitrees. Black, heavy chains were wrapped around their bodies, digging into the ground and the nearby wall. Black shadows swirled around the chains. Some of the links had purple eyes staring up at the ceiling or floor. The Xurkitrees' spiky, flashbulb heads flickered erratically as they struggled against their restraints.

Kahuna Raichu rubbed his eyes. "What in the gods' names are those things?" he gasped, clutching his Totem Crystal tightly.

"Ultra Beasts," Silvally said, legs tensing and talons reflexively curling up. "But those chains…" His brown eyes flashed. A growl rose up in his throat. "I know what those are. They're ley lines!" Silvally slapped the ground, cheek bolts rotating in their sockets. "Somebody was able to conjure up ley lines from the depths of the dungeon… and use it to trap these UBs."

Cosplay Pikachu's ears drooped. "You can do that?" she squeaked, pulling her hoodie tight against her frame.

"Apparently," Silvally hissed, scraping his right claws against the ground and spitting out embers on the floor.

"You okay there, cousin?" Kahuna Raichu asked, zooming over the railing to catch up to Silvally.

"No," Silvally said, hunching low to the ground as he locked eyes on the ley lines in front of him. All around him, wispy phantoms formed up. Phantom eyes stared at him. Silvally squeezed his eyes shut. He shook his head. There were whispers in his mind saying to lash out. Silvally tried to tune them out. He thought of his friends, wondering what Vaporeon had done to them.

Silvally couldn't contain himself. He whirled around, slashing at the air with his talons.

"Whoa!" Kahuna Raichu shouted, screeching to a halt. Silvally's talons missed him by inches. His brown eyes widened.

"S-Stay back! Please… keep your distance!" Silvally shouted. He thrashes his head right, then left. The chains appeared in his vision. More phantom eyes appeared around him. The voices grew louder. Distorted images of Golem appeared by Kahuna Raichu. Silvally's eyes darted around. "No… no! Go away! Be quiet!" Silvally howled, dropped to his belly and bashing his face into the ground.

Kahuna Raichu scooted back, frowning. "Should we do something?"

"I don't even know what the problem is," Cosplay Pikachu squeaked.

Silvally breathed heavily. He forced himself to think of his friends again. Memories of loving embraces with Shane and Tessa pushed back against the angry voices. Silvally squeezed his eyes tight and tensed his legs. He envisioned his teammates snuggling up to him as they'd done every night. His breathing slowed. The phantoms faded. Then the whispers died down.

Silvally opened his eyes and staggered to his feet, panting like he'd finished running a sprint. He felt miserable, but had to hang tough. Now that he'd found Primarina's secret, he couldn't back down. His friends needed him, even if they didn't know it. "I'm sorry… you had to see that," Silvally said, turning away from the chained-up Xurkitrees.

"The truth is… that I was made by other Pokémon using alchemy and ley lines. Seeing the chains out in the open like that…" He shook his head. "It dredged up some bad memories." Silvally took a deep breath, shuddering. "In any case… I'm not really sure where to even begin with something like this. I have _no_ idea how we could free those UBs… assuming that's even a good idea to begin with."

"I think we might have to," Cosplay Pikachu said, cautiously approaching the Xurkitrees. The one closest to her stiffened, its head flashing. It tried to fire lightning at her, but the ley line chains swallowed the electricity up. The energy shot up into the ceiling. Gasping, Cosplay Pikachu put her paw on her chest. "Okay, yeah, we _definitely_ have to. Because I'm pretty sure these ley line thingies are siphoning their energy and putting it into the music crystals upstairs."

A wave of cheers and hollers startled the group. Silvally looked up, head crest fanning out in curiosity. "What's all that racket?" he asked, walking toward the far end of the room.

"Sounds like the concert might be starting, yeah," Kahuna Raichu said.

"What? But that's bad! If Primarina starts singing, he's probably going to activate that giant pile of music crystals." Cosplay Pikachu pointed frantically at the Xurkitrees. "And then what'll happen? We're closer to these things than anyone else!"

Silvally approached the wall and pressed the side of his head against it. The wall gave way, sending Silvally toppling over with a surprised squawk. "Oof!" he grunted as his head struck a wood-panel floor and rebounded. He rubbed his beak with his talons before getting back to his feet. "H… hey. I think I found some sort of hidden door."

"Silvally? How did you get down here?"

Tessa walked up a black, metal ramp. Silvally's beak hung open. She wore a red silk robe that faded to orange, then yellow the further it got from her torso. The robe was cut so that a strip of cloth draped down between her legs from both the front and back. Her loose-fitting sleeves ended right between her elbows and her wrists. Stitched into the front strip was a pale-blue moon. Rhinestones were fixed to it. Tessa's robes tightly hugged her frame, save for an opening for her chest spike to poke through.

"Uhh," Silvally said, beak still open wide.

"Oh… yeah. This is a bit much, isn't it?" Tessa whispered, raising her right paw to fidget with the golden rings looped around her aura feelers.

Silvally stood up straight. "Nuh… no! Of course not! You look ravishing… I mean great! I mean—"

"Hey, keep it down, will you?" Vaporeon said, walking past Tessa. Kahuna Raichu and Cosplay Pikachu ducked back inside the hidden door to avoid being seen. Vaporeon examined Silvally. "I thought I told you to stay upstairs?" he said. "Bah… whatever. You're here now. Just stay out of my performers' ways, alright?" He turned and rapped Silvally on the left foreleg with his tail.

Silvally stumbled back, huffing in annoyance. His tail brushed against a crystal. He looked over his shoulder and noticed the tall, thin crystal had fused against the wall. Silvally followed it upward until he spotted a star-shaped gem fixed inside of a metal cage. Rather than questioning the sight, he turned back around.

"Okay, Lucario," Vaporeon said, glancing up at Tessa. "I see your make-up's all good."

Silvally leaned over to see the red sun that someone had painted into Tessa's fur. Tessa squirmed about nervously. The glitter in her fur sparkled under the stage lights. "You're absolutely sure I won't be able to see the crowd, right?" she said, paws clasped together. The rings Tessa wore around her aura feelers suppressed their twitching movements. Tessa kept wincing, growing more and more uncomfortable with her current predicament.

"Yes! Want me to keep saying it until I'm blue in the face?" Vaporeon said, then chuckled at his terrible joke.

Tessa frowned. "Was that supposed to make me less nervous or something?" she growled.

"It was. Evidently it didn't work. Sheesh… you probably got this from your mother. She skipped every karaoke night we had at Crabrawler's Café until Primarina and I moved," Vaporeon said, shaking his head.

The mention of Prisma brought out blue flashes in Tessa's eyes. Silvally stepped toward her. "Tessa, you're riling yourself up."

Vaporeon rolled his eyes. "Okay, I can see I'm not helping here, so I'm just going to find Ninetales and Espeon." He walked back down the ramp, disappearing from sight.

"Remind why we didn't just clock Vaporeon and run? We had him outnumbered," Silvally said.

"I don't know. I think we just panicked when Vaporeon showed up," Tessa said. "Though, Espeon thinks there's some sort of special device in Vaporeon's headset that would've alerted Primarina if we tried to attack him. So, it looks like I'm stuck." Tessa rubbed her aura feelers, moaning in pain. "Oh, Silvally, what am I supposed to do? I tried to tell them not to put these stupid rings on, but nobody listened to me. These are too tight… they're cutting off my aura sense."

"Is that bad?" Silvally asked.

"Of course it is! It's like… like… how would you like it if I took that head crest of yours and bound it up like it was back when your mask was on?" Tessa said, eyes flashing blue. She realized her mistake the moment she glimpsed Silvally's eyes widening in shock. He looked away from her. Fearing she'd upset her friend, she put a paw on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Silvally. That was uncalled for. I just…" She pointed at the rings. "These things are driving me mad. I didn't realize how sensitive my aura feelers are."

"It's… it's fine," Silvally said, leaning over and huffing out a small cloud of frost. It spread across Tessa's aura feelers, abating their twitching and blowing off most of their glitter.

"That's a bit better. Thanks," Tessa said, smiling.

"No problem." Silvally walked closer to her, then leaned over and whispered, "So, I think we might've found something important while you guys were getting ready." He gestured toward the wall and, as if on cue, the hidden door opened and Cosplay Pikachu poked her head out.

"Whoa. Okay. I'm, like, a _teensie-weensie_ bit jealous of your outfit, girl." Cosplay Pikachu added a whistle for good measure.

"Oh… uh… thanks," Tessa said, bowing her head respectfully.

"Could you give us a moment? I'm trying to bring Tessa up to speed," Silvally said, looking at Cosplay Pikachu.

"That's fine. Pops and I are actually going to keep investigating back here. So, uh, do whatever you can to keep the staff distracted. Which means you've gotta sing your heart out, girl," Cosplay Pikachu said, pointing at Tessa. "The more the crowd eats it up, the easier a time we'll have, right?" She disappeared into the back room again, closing the door behind her.

"What exactly did you guys find?" Tessa asked.

"Music crystals… a _massive_ pile. Like, enough to fill up the entrance _and_ the assembly room in the Observatory. And, get this, right below them… are Ultra Beasts! Big, tall, electric ones!" Silvally said.

Tessa threw a paw up over her mouth. "You're joking."

Silvally shook his head. "I wish I was. I really, _really_ do." His eyes narrowed. "Because…" His voice trailed off and he turned away from Tessa. "Someone's got them chained up using ley lines, Tessa. I saw the chains and I… I… I almost lost it." He looked down at his looplet. "I'm not even sure how I kept control. I took one look at the damn things and a wave of anger rushed through that was so strong I lashed out at Kahuna Raichu and his daughter."

Tessa rubbed his shoulder, wishing she could give him soothing energy like he had done for her. "I'm sorry you had to deal with that. Maybe you ought to stay backstage and watch the warm-up acts?"

"I don't think I have a choice here," Silvally said, stepping back toward a lilac curtain. Like the other side of the backstage area, a crystalline stage light jutted out of the floor, with a luminous orb sitting at the ready inside of a cage.

Light trickled in behind Silvally. He and Tessa turned to find Vaporeon guiding Espy and Shane up the ramp. "Make some room, big guy," Vaporeon said, looking at Silvally. He stepped back, the curtain draping over most of his torso.

Shane stepped toward Tessa. He had a snug, sky-blue, button-down vest around his frame. Each button was a diamond carved to look like a tiny star. His collar was open toward the top of his vest. His quaffed chest fur stuck out. Someone had managed to brush the fur into a heart-shaped pattern and sprinkle pink glitter across it.

"Go on… say it. I look like a girl, don't I?" Shane said, glancing down at the red ribbons wrapped around each leg. Tiny red roses were pinned to the ribbons on his forelegs. "It's written all over your face."

"Actually, I think it suits you. It's flashy. All that glitter in your mane and tails is appropriately gaudy. A perfect representation of your Pokémon life, if you ask me," Tessa said. Before Shane responded, she smirked and gave him a playful hip check. "I'm only teasing, you know."

"I know. But the joke's on you… because I'm fine with this." Shane posed with his right forepaw outstretched and his head and tails held high. "I'm ready to rock this outfit," he declared.

"Finally decided to embrace your inner Ninetales, huh? Took you long enough," Silvally said, a goofy grin on his face. His tail was wagging and he wasn't even aware of it.

Espy cautiously sidestepped Shane. "Glad to see you're so confident about this. Maybe that means we can pull it off." Espy stepped away from her teammates. In contrast to Shane, Espy had a fiery-red dress stretching down toward her hips, with orange ripples spreading off its base to give the impression that she was dressed like the sun. "At least this flower smells nice," she said, turning toward her right shoulder to sniff at the gracidea pinned her dress' right strap.

"Hey, careful. If you ruin the outfit, you'll have to answer to Primarina," Vaporeon said, rapping a forepaw on the floor. Espy stiffened. "Ugh, look. Your tiara went askew. Now I've gotta fix it," he grumbled, walking up to Espy. Vaporeon gently nudged the red, ruby-encrusted tiara back into place. He then nudged the golden bands around Espy's ears that kept the tiara fixed to her head.

"And how am I supposed to keep this thing from falling off while we're doing this routine?" Espy said.

"Uh, well, you're a psychic-type. Use your telekinesis or whatever." Vaporeon shrugged. "In any case… it's showtime. Lucario, time to head out there and dazzle the crowd."

Tessa went as stiff as an arrow. "I… I… uh…" Her paws balled up into fists. "You said I can't see the crowd, but won't I be able to hear them?" she squeaked.

Vaporeon walked behind Tessa. "A bit too late to do anything about that, sweetie. Go on, the crowd's waiting for you," he said, shoving Tessa with his head. She stumbled out from the rock wall keeping Team Radiance hidden.

All of a sudden, luminous orbs flared up all around her, filling her world with intense white light. Tessa straightened up and walked forward. Despite the power of the orbs, she could see blue, water-like ripples radiating out from the center of the stage. Tessa cautiously approached it, trying not to think about how many people were watching her. Even with her aura sense hampered, she sensed the audience's presence. It made her heart race, but she knew she had to do give a good performance or else the whole team would be in trouble.

The second she reached the middle of the stage, enthusiastic applause greeted her.

"Woo! You go, Lucario!"

"Let's hear those pipes!"

"Rock our world, babe!"

"Dude, she's a steel-type, not a rock-type."

Tessa tensed up, her aura feelers curling against her neck. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She could do this. Tessa had heard the song all her life. She knew the words by heart. All she needed to do was sing them. Tessa softened up her stance and opened her eyes.

 _'It's just like Feraligatr said to Infernape when they were rookie explorers. Be brave… be the bravest ever!'_

She grabbed the mic piece on her specialized headset and brought it up toward her snout. "How's everyone doing today?" Tessa said, trying to make sure her voice wasn't shaky. A chorus of cheers erupted. "You all ready for Primarina's Ultra Deluxe Concert?"

More cheers ensued.

"Well, alright! I'm Tessa of Team Radiance and I'm here to kick things off with 'The Song of Horizon!'" She turned to her right and pointed offstage. "Hit it!" she said. Music played throughout the room. The onstage ripples slowed down.

 _"Solgaleo, provider of daylight.  
_ _Great Lunala, defender of the night.  
_ _Working hard for the sake of harmony!"_

Tessa swayed from side to side, moving her arms in wave-like patterns. Two streams of smoke blew in from offstage, bringing with them metal platforms holding a pair of Brionne who hummed in harmony with the backing music.

 _"Always striving to do their very best.  
_ _Bringing forth light without a moment's rest.  
_ _So the world can thrive every day!"_

Tessa placed her left paw on her chest and raised her right toward the ceiling. The Brionnes mimicked the gesture. Behind them, a wall of swirling purple light appeared, filled with twinkling stars.

 _"May their presence light the way forward  
_ _To a future of peace and love.  
_ _Let us praise Horizon's deities  
_ _And the light they bring forth from above."_

The central part of the stage rose up. Tessa stumbled, but managed to keep her balance. Swathes of orange and red appeared in the swirling mural behind her. Sun and moon-shaped light patters popped up on the stage and revolved around Tessa's platform. She spread her arms out wide, as if she was trying to wrap the crowd up in a hug. Behind her, the Brionnes raised their flippers high and clapped in time with the music. The crowd joined in along with them.

 _"Solgaleo, hear our song to you  
_ _Great Lunala, our prayers are for you, too.  
_ _May your light shine as bright as can be!"_

In he backstage area, Shane and Silvally stood by one of the curtains, mesmerized by Tessa sparkling under the glow of the stage lights. "Wow… she sounds great," Shane whispered, shuffling to his right. He brushed up against Silvally and the two exchanged a quick glance before putting distance between one another. Shane focused on Tessa, fighting off a blush.

 _"As the seasons come and pass us by  
_ _Help us to keep balance in our lives.  
_ _Until the day our spirits cease to be!"_

The mural and stage shifted to ripples of golden light, with bands of silver forming the familiar sun and moon emblems of the Horizon Continent. Both Brionnes hopped off their platforms, somersaulting across the stage until they stood proudly in front of Tessa's raised platform. Tessa stretched her paws up toward the ceiling.

 _"We wish with all our beings  
_ _That your light never steers us wrong.  
_ _Bless our world, beloved guardians  
_ _So that we may all sing our song!"_

The music began to slow down. Tessa and her backup dancers slowly bowed in unison, bringing their right arms across their chests just as the song faded out. The clapping the crowd had done in time with the music broke into a round of spontaneous applause. Tessa held her pose, wincing as her aura feelers twitched in protest of the thunderous cheers and roars from the crowd. She thought her heart was going to burst out of her chest. Her headed pounded with an intensity she didn't think possible.

"Come on, Lucario, look up. They're all cheering for you," the Brionne on Tessa's right said.

"Um… right." Tessa stood up, raised her right paw, and waved it daintily at the crowd. "Thank you all so much. I hope you enjoy the rest of the concert." Tessa hopped off the raised platform and walked offstage, her gaze locked on the wall where the secret door was. Once she was safely behind the curtain, she exhaled heavily and hunched over, resting her paws on her knees.

"Oh gods… I'm shaking. My stomach's doing backflips, I think I'm gonna hurl," Tessa said, panting. She put a paw up to her muzzle.

"Relax. It's all over. Don't you hear the crowd? They loved you," Vaporeon said.

"Yeah, you were fantastic, Tessa. And that's coming from someone who never went to a concert as a human," Shane said, tails wagging independently of one another.

"Uh, thanks… I think," Tessa said, standing up straight. "Just, y'know, don't ask me to do that again. My heart's still pounding." She looked at Shane. "Aren't you nervous? You're about to go on."

"He _definitely_ is. I can see his hind legs quivering and everything," Silvally said, playfully thumping his tail against Shane's hip. Shane shuffled forward, scrunching his face up. All his close brushes with Silvally were adding up and grating his nerves, but he forced himself to hold his tongue.

"You didn't have to bring that up. I'm trying to fake it until I make it," Shane said.

"Another human idiom, I take it?" Silvally said, right brow raised.

"Yes. If I _act_ like I'm not nervous, then maybe I really _won't_ be when I go onstage," Shane said, taking a slow, calming breath. "We're going to blow the crowd away, right, Espy?" Espy stepped beside Shane, her expression stoic and her snout pointed up. "Um… are you gonna say something?"

"We'll be fine. Just follow my lead," Espy said. "You remember all the moves, right?"

"Of course," Shane said.

Espy leaned over and whispered, "Good, because we're gonna deviate from the script a bit."

Shane's eyes widened. "Are you serious?"

Espy nodded. "Like I said… follow my lead." Shane frowned. "Oh, relax. I'm not going to do anything weird, if that's what you're thinking. Cosplay Pikachu said to keep everyone distracted… and that includes Vaporeon."

"All right, you two. Time to go out there and show 'em what you're made of," Vaporeon said, approaching the duo from their left.

"Got it," Espy said. After a quick couple of breaths, Espy strutted out on stage, hips and tail swaying back and forth. Shane walked behind her, mimicking the gesture. Small trails of frost streamed off his tails, drawing a raised eyebrow from Tessa. She wondered if Shane did that on purpose.

Her aura feelers twitched. Tessa looked behind her, where Kahuna Raichu was waving her over. Tessa approached him, leaning against the wall to keep him hidden. "How's everything going?" she asked.

"Not too good, yeah. We tried attacking the spots where the chains are anchored and that didn't do anything. It just upset those Ultra Beast thingies. They tried to zap us, but the chains absorbed their lightning and sent it up to the music crystals," Kahuna Raichu whispered.

"Hmm… I can't really help you two without seeing the chains for myself," Tessa said. She tapped her right foot on the floor impatiently. "There's something that's coming to mind about what we could do, but I can't put my paw on it."

 **"Ladies and gentlemon… give a warm welcome to Ninetales and Espeon!"**

The loud announcement made Tessa jump off the wall. "Sorry, I've gotta help keep Vaporeon distracted. You, uh, keep up your investigation." She jogged back to join the others while Kahuna Raichu retreated into the secret room.

Onstage, Espy and Shane stood facing one another. The stage lights dimmed. Red, rose-shaped light patters lay scattered around them. The crowd offered a smattering of anticipatory applause. Espy leaned forward, stomping her right forepaw down between Shane's forelegs as a single piano note chimed. Her determined expression refused to falter. "Are you ready? These folks are gonna want a show," Espy whispered.

Recalling the notes he had read in his changing room, Shane leaned forward, brushing his chest against Espy's. He stomped his right forepaw down in time with a second piano beat. "Then let's give them something to remember," he said, tails flicking to his left. He shot a quick glance at the crowd and smirked, drawing scattered whistles.

An accordion played, backed by a piano and occasional bursts of clapping. Espy confidently marched forward while Shane glided backward, each paw movement perfectly synchronized. They reached stage right, at which point Shane leaned his upper body down as Espy stood over him. He lifted his hips up as she placed a forepaw on his head and swirled his mane around, spreading snowflakes and glitter across the stage.

Shane sprang up as if he was pouncing on unsuspecting prey. Now Espy was quickly walking backwards as Shane approached her, fluffing out his tails with each step. Catcalls and whistles sounded from the audience, but Shane ignored them. He got up in Espy's face and smirked wide enough to show off his glistening fangs. Espy stepped to Shane's right, brushing her side against his and dragging her tail along his coat.

When Espy reached Shane's tails, he stepped forward, pivoted, and leaped over Espy, leaving a trail of snowflakes and glitter behind him. Castanets rang out from the speakers. Shane landed and pivoted to face Espy. She weaved to her left, walking in a semicircle toward Shane's tails. Shane mirrored the gesture. They slowly circled one another, their pace getting faster. Just as another castanet string played out, their shoulders and hips grazed, drawing excited hollers from the crowd.

"Jump onto your hind legs," Espy whispered, turning to face Shane.

"Huh? Why?" Shane whispered back.

"I told you… follow my lead," Espy said, rearing up on her hind legs. Shane did the same, at which point Espy's forehead gem glowed. She grabbed hold of Shane with her telekinesis and brought him close. Shane clenched his jaws tight to avoid barking in surprise as his forelegs draped over Espy's shoulders. He stared into Espy's glowing eyes, her muzzle hovering inches from his. His heart went into overdrive, thumping hard enough form him to feel every beat.

Espy used her psychic powers to move her right hind leg forward. She dipped Shane over so that he was facing the crowd upside down. Shane dragged the tips of his tails along the ground, and whipped them out to both sides. He wrapped them around Espy's back as she lifted him upright. Espy leaned backward, her telekinesis keeping her from falling flat on her back. She smiled and stretched out her forelegs. A chorus of cheers erupted as Espy's telekinesis made it seem like Shane was pulling Espy back up on her hind legs using only his tails.

Once she was upright, she put her forepaws on Shane's shoulders and leaned in toward him, rubbing up against his cheek. "I'm going to spin you, now. Use an Aurora Beam or Frost Breath or something. That ought to rile up the crowd," she said.

"Wait, you want me to—" Shane started, only for Espy to back up slightly, place both forepaws on Shane's torso, and push him backward while twisting his body around. Her telekinesis did all the work, spinning Shane around like a fluffy white top. Shane bit his tongue, resisting the urge to shout or call for help. Instead, he remembered Espy's instructions. He opened up his mouth and released an aurora. Bright, colorful light filled up the stage. Espy dropped back to all fours and backed up toward stage right.

"What are they doing?" Vaporeon growled from the other side of the stage. He stared down in disbelief at a clipboard on the floor. "This isn't part of the act at all! These two are—"

"Positively amazing!" Silvally trilled, fish tail wagging as fast as it could go. "Wouldn't you say, Tessa?" He glanced to his left, where his teammate stood, left paw tightly clutching the edge of the curtain. "Um… Tessa? Are you there?"

Tessa stiffened, tugging so violently on the curtain she nearly tore it. "Y-yeah! I just… uh… sorry, I got caught up by their dancing," she mumbled, face bright red.

Silvally chuckled "Well, you're not the only one. Sounds like the crowd's eating it up, too."

Tessa glanced into the darkness in front of the stage. Her aura feelers twitched. The audience clapped in time with the castanets in the song. A violin had taken over the main melody, backed by acoustic guitars. Espy and Shane stood opposite one another on the stage, each pawing at the floor. Without warning, they charged at one another in unison. Just when it looked like they were going to collide, Espy hopped into the air and landed atop Shane's back. His knees buckled briefly from the impact, but he recovered with help from Espy's psychic grip.

Shane flinched as Espy nestled her tail in the middle of all of his. She weaved her tail around Shane's fourth tail. Espy planted a forepaw on the top of Shane's tuft of hair. "Use another Aurora Beam," she said. The violin got more frenetic. Shane did as he was told, only this time Espy ensnared the multicolored beam in her psychic grasp. Her pink energy intensified the aurora's glow. A rainbow burst shot toward the ceiling, leaving a trail of frost behind.

Espy stomped on Shane's hips with her hind legs. Like an angry bull, Shane bucked his hips up, launching Espy into the air. She somersaulted twice before landing in front of him, sticking her head and tail upward and casting a defiant smirk in his direction. The crowd went ecstatic. "Now, make like you're going to attack me… and lunge," Espy whispered, turning to face him while maintaining her defiant smirk.

Shane leaped toward her, fangs bared. Espy caught him in her psychic grip, locking up his limbs so he couldn't flail them about in a panic. The crowd gasped as Espy spun Shane around, snowflakes and glitter trailing behind him. After Shane finished his fifth lap around Espy she set him down and sauntered up to him, swishing her tail from side to side. She stopped in front of him and flicked the edge of his snout with a foreleg. The audience met her with a mix of applause and laughter.

Not finding the situation funny, Shane's blue eyes glowed pink. He grunted as he hoisted a bewildered Espy into the air. She tried to open her mouth to protest, but Shane merely smirked. "Hey, we're trying to keep 'em distracted, right?" he said. Shane then tossed Espy into the air. Espy spun around, eyes squeezed shut. She didn't want to yell and ruin the act. To her relief, Shane ensnared her in another psychic hold and lowered her safely to the ground. Now it was Shane's turn to flick the tip of Espy's snout, to which the crowd cheered in delight.

A part of Shane was in disbelief, but he was operating on pure instinct. He was so focused on Espy, he had completely blanked out the crowd's noise. "Alright, time to wrap this up. What are we going to do?" Shane finally tuned in to the audience, only for his ears to stick up.

"Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!"

"Freeze the floor. I've got an idea," Espy said, jumping onto Shane's back. With a nervous gulp, Shane released another Aurora Beam, leaving a strip of ice along the center of the stage. "Now, run to the other end." Shane bounded across the stage until he reached the end of his icy trail. "Get on and I'll take it from there." Espy nudged the back of his head with her snout.

Shane stepped on. Espy hopped off him and shoved him with her psychic powers, then slid across the ice after him. Shane stared wide-eyed at the approaching edge of the stage, only for an unseen force to spin him around. Shane tried to figure out what Espy's plan was, but was jolted from his thoughts when he came to an abrupt halt. His tails dangled over the edge of the stage.

He was so preoccupied with his tails, he wasn't prepared for Espy rearing up on her hind legs, throwing her forepaws onto his cheeks, and planting her lips against his.

* * *

Well, I _did_ say things were going to get weird. And there's still another chapter of craziness left!

SuperOmegaGuest: the strangest? Even stranger than this one? I envy you. You must be able to steer clear of all the weird fics out there.

Another guest: you were expecting a Jojoke in this response, but instead it was me, Dio! ... I'm sorry, I had to. That's, like, the only Jojo thing I know other than poses. Which, as you can see, there was plenty of, here.

Anon Omega: yes, plenty of cringe to be had. Perhaps another author might've handled this better than I could. And yes, that was a Metal Gear reference. Won't be the last one we see, either.

Next time: "Listen, are those twerpy voices I hear? Because they're speaking to me loud and clear, babe!"


	93. Bringing Down the House

**Chapter 78: Bringing Down the House**

 **"And that'll do it for the warm-up acts, everyone. We're going to take a short break as we get set up for the main event. In the meantime, feel free to help yourselves to some refreshments."**

The announcement didn't register to Shane. Neither did the dropping of a curtain over the front of the stage. He stared at Espy, muzzle agape. The Pokémon he had foolishly pined for — who had stomped on his heart earlier in the week, no less — had kissed him. It had come out of nowhere. She didn't offer the slightest hint about it. Was it a spur of the moment decision or had she planned it all along? Shane's mind raced while his heart thumped frantically in his chest.

He knew his teammates were watching. Unlike his confusing encounter with Silvally, this display was public. There was no way to cover it up. He glanced toward the backstage area, trying to get a read on their expressions. However, his pounding head made them nothing but a pair of colorful blurs. Shaking his head, he locked eyes with Espy.

"Wh… what was that all about?" Shane asked, blinking slowly.

For her part, Espy stood completely still, save for the tips of her tails tapping each other repeatedly. She had her gaze fixed on Shane's heart-shaped tuft of chest fur. Shane thought back to his sleepless night in the Volcanic Wastes, when he saw Espy sneak off to snort stardust. The pounding in his head grew stronger. She was in a separate dressing room from him. Was it possible that she had taken something?

"Say something, Espy. Why'd you just kiss me like that?" Shane said.

"I… I…" Espy bit her lip. "You heard the crowd. I was giving them what they wanted," she said, walking past Shane.

He stepped into her path. "I'm not sure I believe you. Before we started, you told me you had a plan. What am I supposed to make of all of this?" he said, frowning.

Espy looked down guiltily. "Look, I… uh…" She pressed herself up against Shane and whispered, "I couldn't resist, okay?"

Shane's ears stuck up. It _was_ intentional. "But you… you knew I had a crush on you. What about what happened back at the guild?"

"You were just a dorky little Vulpix back then. Now, you're… you're… look at yourself!" Espy whispered. "I mean, you're still a dork, yeah. But it's like I said last night… it's grown on me. And, come on, with everything Primarina's team did to clean you up…" She shook her head. "You're like a piece of white chocolate someone dangled in front of me. Too irresistible to pass up."

Shane wasn't sure what to make of her comments. "Did you drink something while you were getting ready? Or take any stardust?"

"What? No, of course not. I'm trying to stay clean. This was… all my decision," Espy said. Her ears and tail drooped. "Look, I saw an opportunity and I took it. If we weren't, y'know, on stage like that… I'd have probably gone much further."

Shane's tails shot up. He finally took notice of his teammates looking at him in concern. "I thought you were trying to put that kind of behavior behind you," he said.

Espy shuffled backward. "I know, I know. I had a moment of weakness, okay?" She glanced over her shoulder. "C-Can't we just agree to say we did it because the crowd was chanting? Y'know, to make sure we could get the Seaside Shard safely and stuff?"

Her pleading look calmed the fluttering in Shane's heart. He sighed. There were things that he wanted to say, but he was confident this wasn't the right time. And a part of him was relieved Espy didn't want things to escalate at all.

"I guess so," Shane said. He walked off the stage, tails stiffening at the sight of his teammates.

"Wow, Shane. That was, uh, quite the ending you and Espeon put together," Tessa said, fidgeting with her paws. "I guess… you finally got what you wanted, huh?"

Shane winced. Hearing Tessa say that actually hurt him more than Espy's attempts to downplay the actual kiss. He was pretty sure he knew why, but chose to keep those thoughts to himself. "You heard the crowd. We were just giving the audience what they wanted." He leaned in to whisper, "Y'know, so Vaporeon wouldn't get suspicious or anything."

"Really? Because you two seemed pretty into it, from what I saw," Silvally said, a brow raised. His fire memories were active, adding a layer of intensity to his skeptical look.

"Th… that was all part of the act," Shane said, gulping. Memories of the morning resurfaced. His headache promptly returned. One day as a Ninetales and he found himself overwhelmed by the attention he was getting. He wanted to stop everything and get his bearing straight, but knew he couldn't afford to do that in his current predicament.

"You!"

An angry Vaporeon marched toward the team, gaze fixed on Shane. "I don't know where you and Espeon got the idea to go _completely_ off the script like that," Vaporeon said, eyes narrowing.

"Uh… uh… I can explain," Shane said, eyes darting about the room. He worried that he somehow blew the mission for his team.

"No need… because it was _fantastic!_ " Vaporeon said, smiling and hopping into the air. Behind Shane, Espy and Silvally slouched over in relief. "Such a high level of improv is a _classic_ Primarina move. That's how he got to where he is today, after all." He wagged his tail. "You couldn't have made Primarina any prouder. I guess having my original performers get sick turned out to be a blessing in disguise."

"So, what are we supposed to do now?" Tessa asked. She glanced over her shoulder, where two Machamps were working to lift extra sets of lights up to the ceiling. "We do still get to watch the performance, right?"

"Of course, of course. I've got a special area prepared for you. But first I've got to check and make sure Primarina's ready to go," Vaporeon said. "You guys wait backstage and I'll come find you when everything's set." He turned and trotted away from Team Radiance.

Once he was gone, Tessa beckoned her teammates to follow her toward the backstage area. "Okay, so, an idea popped into my head when Espy and Shane went onstage," Tessa said, ducking behind a curtain wall so none of the stage crew could see her. The rest of the team tried their best to follow her, but Silvally couldn't fit. Instead, he sat down and faced the stage, pretending to watch the crew move the back wall out of the way.

"What did you have in mind?" Espy said.

"Silvally told me that Primarina chained up some Ultra Beasts using ley lines. Are we clear on that?" Tessa asked. Espy and Shane nodded. "Good. Because Kahuna Raichu doesn't have a clue how to free them. But it struck me that _Espeon_ might be able to help." Tessa looked at Espy. "You've studied ley lines for years. If anyone can figure out how to free those Ultra Beasts, it's you, right?"

Espy stiffened. "M-Me?" she said. "Well, you're technically right. It's just…" She traced her right forepaw in a circle on the floor. "I've always had Umbry by my side when I've studied ley lines. This would—" She gulped. "This would be the first time I ever did something involving ley lines without him. Heck, we combined our powers to make Entercards."

Guilt welled up in Tessa's gut at the mention of Umbreon. "I know it must hurt to think about him. But we have to try, right?" she said. "Otherwise, Primarina will use those Ultra Beasts to power his music crystals and we may never get the Seaside Shard."

"Yeah, you're right," Espy said, ears drooping.

Shane glanced at her, biting his lower lip. Even if things were even more awkward between them, he hated seeing her distressed like this. "I'll go with her," Shane offered. Espy's ears stuck up. "Maybe I can tap into Solgaleo's spirit or something. It's worth a shot, right?" He looked at Tessa. "Are you and Silvally okay keeping watch?"

"I guess. But what should we do if Vaporeon comes back?" Tessa wondered, crossing her arms.

Shane frowned. "I dunno… lie?" he said, shrugging. "Tell him Espy and I felt tired and went back to our dressing rooms. If he doesn't buy that, then… uh…"

"Then we knock him out and drag him into the back room," Silvally said, gaze fiercening. "I know his headset's got some sort of kooky sensor thingy, but we can't afford to keep being stealthy with the concert about to start. Besides, even if we trip the sensor, Primarina can't afford to delay the concert or waltz offstage to try and attack us."

"That's a good point," Tessa said. "But what if Primarina sics some of these concert-goers on us?"

"If we're hiding in the secret room, then most of them can't get to us. Plus, we'd hear Primarina's orders since he'd be singing them on stage," Silvally said. He stomped a foreleg down. "Look, we're wasting precious time, here." He nodded at Espy and Shane. "You two go help Kahuna Raichu. We'll handle things out here."

Tessa worried that, like many of the team's plans, this would end badly. Nevertheless, she walked up to the secret door and pushed it open, saying, "Kahuna Raichu, sir. It's Tessa. Espeon and Shane are coming in to help you."

"Great to hear, cousin. Cause I'm drawing a total blank," Kahuna Raichu said. Espy and Shane walked inside the room, only to freeze upon seeing the chained-up Xurkitrees. Electricity funneled through the ley line chains up into ceiling. Shane had no idea how Primarina could've done something like this, but it made him extremely nervous about what could happen during the concert.

"These ley lines are connected to a giant pile of music crystals," Cosplay Pikachu explained, pacing back and forth in front of the Xurkitrees. "A bunch of energy's already been pumped into the crystals. Who knows what Primarina could do with all that power?"

Espy's tail scrunched up. "If music crystals can play songs, then what if Primarina intends to broadcast his concert to the Horizon Continent?" she said.

Shane's tails shot into the air. He couldn't begin to fathom how many Pokémon would be hypnotized if that happened. Gallian and Zoroark had ribbons from the rainbow scarf, but no one else on the mainland did. "We have to power down those music crystals before the concert can start," Shane said.

"No duh. What we need are some concrete ideas. Any time either of us tries to get close to these chains, they come to life and sap more electricity from the Xurkitrees," Cosplay Pikachu sat, tapping her foot on the floor impatiently. "A few times the bolts have launched toward us. I can keep us safe because I have Lightning Rod, but my cheek sacs can only take so much current before I pass out."

"Right. Could I just ask you to stick close to me, then? I'd like to take a closer look at the ley lines," Espy said. She walked up to the chains, while Shane hung back. By now, he was used to the subject of ley lines getting thrown around. Yet, it surprised him that they actually looked like giant chains. His tails curled up against his waist.

Espy stood by one of the chains, forehead gem pulsating. "Nrrgh," she groaned, closing her eyes and staggering back. "Yeah, these are definitely ley lines. Their aura is as chaotic as it gets," she said, panting.

"Can we move them? Or, at the very least, touch them?" Shane asked.

"No. Doing that would be like walking up and hugging an Electrode when it's about to explode," Espy said. The mental image made Shane wince. "The way I see it, we have two options." She sat down, frowning. "The first is that we try to manipulate the ley lines ourselves. We'd need something like an Entercard to do that, though, and I can't create one by myself."

Her shoulders sagged. "The other option is that we could destroy the parts of the ground and the wall that are anchoring the chains," she said.

Shane's ears stuck up. That didn't seem too hard. "The second one sounds fine to me. Let's get started," he said.

"You didn't let me finish," Espy said, eyes narrowing. "It might _seem_ like the easier option, but you have to remember that these chains are not only filled with chaotic energy, but they have an electric current running through them. There's a good chance that, if we tried to break the ground around them, we could set off a chain reaction and bring the ceiling down on us." She turned to glare at Shane. "Are you really about to sit there and tell me you want a repeat performance of Glyphic Falls?"

Memories of Espy's tail sticking out from the rubble of the cave-in flashed through Shane's mind. He rapidly shook his head. "N-no, you're right. We can't take that risk," he said. Shane lowered his head. Was that it, then? Did the team really have no realistic options to free the Xurkitrees?

"Wait a second!" Shane said, hopping up and down with widened eyes. "What about Hoopa? He can make portals into and out of dungeons, so that must mean he can manipulate ley lines. We can call Latias and ask to borrow Hoopa."

Espy jumped to her feet. "That could work!" she said, tail wagging. Espy opened her satchel and levitated out a Gear-Com. "Let's call her now." She activated the device, only to recoil as loud static sounded.

"Gah! Turn it off!" Cosplay Pikachu said, pulling her ears flat against her head.

After a few seconds, Espy switched the Gear-Com off. "It's no good. The signal's being jammed," she said.

"So much for that idea," Shane said, sighing. "M… maybe… you guys should join Tessa and Silvally. I'll destroy the spots that are anchoring the chains… even if it brings the ceiling down."

 _ **DoN't bE sO RAsH… tHeRe'S nO nEEd.**_

Shane looked around the room in confusion. He had heard that voice before, when he touched the Sizzle Shard. Was his earlier assessment correct? Had the ley lines made Solgaleo's spirit stir inside of him? "Did… did you guys hear that?" Shane whispered.

"Hear what?" Espy said, head titled to the side. "All I heard was you offering to make a boneheaded sacrifice."

 _ **yOu cAN mAKe tHe EntErCArd… UsE tHe SHaRDs.**_

"There it is again," Shane said. He glanced down at his looplet, where the compass-like rune was glowing. Shane was certain Solgaleo was talking to him.

"Yo, Espeon, your bag's glowing," Cosplay Pikachu said, pointing to it. Espy turned to her right and gasped. She threw her satchel to the ground. The two Dawn Shards tumbled out onto the floor, flashing brightly.

Shane trotted toward them. "Espy, I think I have a way to make the Entercard you need," he said. "Just now… I heard Solgaleo in my head. He said we can use the Shards' power."

Espy's brow furrowed. "You really expect me to believe that? It took Umbry and I years to figure out how to make one. I—"

The hidden door opened up and an unconscious, scuffed-up Vaporeon smacked the ground behind them. Tessa walked in and pinned Vaporeon down with a foot. "Guys, not to put any pressure on you or anything, but the concert's starting. If you have a plan, you need to put it into action or we're completely hosed!" she said, fists clenched.

A thumping beat sounded in the distance, followed by muffled music.

 _"Are you babes ready to kick things off?  
_ _Cause you're as riled as a pack of Rockruffs!  
_ _We're going to party all the way til' sunset  
_ _Then go and leave the Prism Virus full of regret!"_

The music grew louder, accompanied by the cheers of the crowd. Static electricity built up in the room. "Get back!" Cosplay Pikachu shouted, shoving Espy aside. Stray lightning bolts struck her from above. More electricity raced through the ley line chains. The ceiling flashed brightly.

"Espy, I know what I said sounds totally ridiculous, but we have to take a chance. We're out of time!" Shane said, using his tails to wrap up the Dawn Shards. While he had no idea how Entercards really worked, he couldn't back down. They had to take a gamble. "Tell me how you and Umbreon make Entercards."

"Fine," Espy said, tail flicking to her left. "For all our sakes, I hope you know what you're doing." She leaned over and whispered into Shane's ear, then stepped away from him. "You ready?"

Blue and yellow lights filtered in through the hidden doorway. Silvally staggered back, blinking rapidly. "Ugh… the stage is totally crazy," he growled, shaking his head.

 _"I like the vibes you're all throwing down.  
_ _But we can do a lot better.  
_ _We're not here to mess around._

 _This Necrozma guy is straight up nasty.  
_ _But if we combine our powers,  
_ _We'll make him timid as a Flaaffy!"_

A chorus of baaing sounded from the stage. Silvally cringed. "Ugh… I can't take this! Tessa's singing was so much better," he huffed. "Hurry up, you guys!"

"R-right. It's now or never, I guess," Shane squeaked. He put his right forepaw in front of him, while Espy placed her left forepaw next to his. They each traced a circle in the ground that they linked together, forming an infinity symbol. The shards in Shane's tails glowed brightly, as did his forehead and looplet. Likewise, Espy's forehead gem sparkled with multicolored light. The light raced down each of their bodies and into the infinity symbol.

A white beam rose out of the ground, only to fade a second later. There, sitting in front of them, was a small card bearing the same infinity symbol on it that Espy and Shane had traced. Espy levitated it into the air and examined the other side, showing off the sun symbol etched into the card.

"Well? Did we do it right?" Shane asked, praying they had succeeded.

"Yes," Espy replied without hesitation. Relief spread across everyone's faces.

"That's great!" Tessa said, fist-pumping. "Now we just have to deploy the card and we can put an end to this stupid performance."

Espy frowned. "I'm afraid it isn't that simple. I need time to make the Magnagate and I still have to figure out how I can successfully send the ley lines through it," she said, shaking her head.

"What are you talking about. When Umbreon rescued us in the Temple of Body the Magnagate formed instantly didn't it?" Shane said. Espy flinched, her eyes glazing over. Shane cursed himself out for bringing up the one thing Espy was trying not to think about. "I… uh… sorry," he said. "That was uncalled for. What do you need to me to do?"

"You have to provide a distraction… again. Find a way to disrupt the concert until I can get the Magnagate working properly," Espy said. She looked at Tessa and Silvally. "You two help him out. I'll need Kahuna Raichu and Cosplay Pikachu around for what I have in mind."

Tessa and Silvally looked at each other nervously. "Err… okay. But how are we supposed to distract Primarina?" Tessa said, scratching her head. "We can't just barge onstage… we'll get mobbed for sure!"

Shane approached the hidden doorway and glanced outside. Colorful smoke spilled across the stage, mixing with flashing lights of different colors. The Brionne backup dancers stood on their tailfins, waving their flippers back and forth. Shane cautiously crept through the doorway, ignoring Silvally's panicked look. He needed to see for himself exactly what they were up against.

 _"I'm the shining star that this world needs!  
_ _I'll save the day, just you wait and see!  
_ _For now, kick back. Let me hear you shout  
_ _What other rhymes d'ya want me to bust out?"_

Primarina sat in the center of a large, metal construct stylized to look like a Clamperl. Shane's jaw dropped at the sight of a neon, crystalline turntable with music crystals sitting where he expected the records to be. Primarina reached his right, glitter-covered fin forward and spun the crystal like a DJ. Record scratches sounded as his backup dancers repeated his last line. The crowd roared its approval.

Primarina raised his other flipper high and headbanged like a punk rocker. His rainbow hair whipped back and forth. The golden chain baring a medallion shaped like the compass sigil in Shane's looplet thumped against Primarina's chest. He pulled his rainbow sunglasses down to wink at the crowd, drawing excited screams from some of the girls.

 _"I've got the moves to dazzle and stun!  
_ _Just watch me, I'll shine as bright as the sun!  
_ _Necrozma won't have a clue what's going on  
_ _I'll leave his mind blown like a Blacephalon!"_

Multiple water bubbles sprouted forth from Primarina, each one glowing a different color under the stage lights. It was then that Shane caught sight of a blue gemstone tangled in the midst of Primarina's hair. He had no doubt that it was the Seaside Shard. "I've got an idea," he said, stepping back from the door. "We can provide a distraction all right… by trying to upstage Primarina!"

All eyes in the room turned to him. "You can't be serious," Tessa said, slouching over.

"I am," Shane said, beckoning Cosplay Pikachu over. "Hear me out for a second. Guys like Primarina _thrive_ on hogging the spotlight. They need everything to go exactly the way they want or it throws them off their game. All we need to do is mess up Primarina's act and we'll upset him so much he won't be able to think straight." Neither teammate looked convinced. "Okay, I get that this idea is stupid… and probably a little crazy. But this whole situation is stupid and crazy! The best way to fight weird is by being weird… and, let's face it, no one on the team is more equipped to do that than me."

"He _does_ have a point… I think," Silvally said, tapping a talon on the ground and wondering if he had complimented or insulted Shane.

"What did you need me for, exactly?" Cosplay Pikachu said.

"Can your powers let you make outfits for other Pokémon?" Shane asked.

Cosplay Pikachu's eyes sparkled. "Are you kidding? Of course!" She rubbed her paws together gleefully. "Just tell me what you have in mind."

Shane nodded. "Okay, here's the plan…"

* * *

Primarina smacked the music crystals on his turntable, producing a record scratch that cut off what sounded like an electric guitar. He tilted his head back and belted out a long note. Three fluorescent bubbles drifted forward. Three of his half-dozen Brionne backup dancers jumped into the bubbles, which caught them.

 _"With this power we fly so high!  
_ _Ask me for a limit? I'll tell you it's the sky!"_

He lifted his flippers up and the bubbles responded by floating up toward the ceiling with the backup dancers twirling around inside them. The stage lights struck the bubbles and refracted, producing rainbows across the walls and floor of the stage. Primarina clapped his glimmering fins together and the bubbles popped. The backup dancers fell down, somersaulting in midair, before landing gracefully in the flippers of the other three Brionnes. The crowd erupted in applause.

 _"Beating the Prism Virus?  
_ _Don't worry, it's a cinch!  
_ _With my star power  
_ _It'll be over without a_ hitch! _"_

Primarina extended the last word, swelling up a water bubble that threatened to strike the ceiling and burst. The Seaside Shard glowed within his hair. The bubble shrank. Primarina grabbed it, bounced it off the turntable, and launched it toward the ground. He clapped his flippers together and the tiny bubble burst, showering the crowd in stardust of all different colors.

"Are you all having a good time so far?" he called.

"Yeah!" the crowd responded.

"Aww, c'mon, that was weak, babes," Primarina said, smirking and shaking his head. "I said… _are you all having a good time so far?_ "

" _Yeah!_ " the crowd shouted in unison.

"That's what I like to hear. Now, let's—"

Two blue blurs raced across the stage. Two stage lights exploded. Amidst the shower of sparks and embers, auroras shot out from Primarina's left. "What the—" He leaned over his turntable, eyes wide at the sight of his now-frozen backup dancers. Lightning streaked across the stage. Sparks filled Primarina's vision. He smacked back against the multicolored wall, his destroyed stage decorations barely visible with his blurry vision.

The crowd descended into gasps and frightened murmurs. "Primarina!" several crowd members cried, with a few girls screaming for good measure.

"Ungh." Primarina hopped back to his turntable, rubbing his head. His rainbow eyes blazed in anger. "Alright, babes! Just what the hell is going on here, huh?"

White smoke poured out from stage left, drawing surprised gasps from the audience. Tessa's silhouette appeared in the middle of the fog. "When someone asks 'What's going on here?'…"

"… it's our duty to answer!" Shane said, his silhouette appearing next to Tessa's.

The fog abruptly disappeared. A light shined in on Tessa from backstage, revealing she now wore a white jumpsuit with a golden R streaked across the chest. Her chest spike stuck out from the center of the R.

"Prepare for trouble… this concert's a hack!" Tessa said, pointing at Primarina.

A second light turned on from backstage, revealing Shane. Like Tessa, he had a white jumpsuit running down to his waist. A golden R sat on his chest, underneath his open collar.

"And make it double… because you're totally whack!" Shane said, flicking his snout skyward.

"To protect the world from devastation!" Tessa said, rushing out on stage and crouching into a fighting stance.

"And unite all Pokémon across the nation!" Shane said, leaping out next to Tessa and snorting out clouds of frost.

"To showcase the power of friendship and love," Tessa said, forming a heart with her paws and winking at the crowd.

"And extend our reach to the stars above," Shane said, his body flashing with a golden aura while his Naturia Looplet glowed.

"Tessa!" she said, crossing her arms.

"Shane!" he shouted, flicking his mane and using his mouth to catch the white rose that fell out.

"Team Radiance beats foes back at the speed of light," Tessa said, throwing her right arm and posing.

"Surrender now… or prepare to fight!" Shane finished, stomping a forepaw on the ground and fanning out his tails.

"Silvally… that's right!" Silvally shouted, dashing in and skidding to a halt between his teammates. Two bursts of confetti came in from the left side of the stage. Silvally immediately turned around, fearing an attack from Primarina. But Primarina simply sat behind his turntable, slumped over in disbelief. Likewise, the crowd was dead silent. Shane feared his plan hadn't worked.

"Hey, I recognize them! They're the headliners!" came a voice from the crowd.

"Yeah! They changed their costumes," another voice noted.

"Whoa… I didn't know there was going to be a stage show during the concert! This is awesome!" a third voice shouted. And with that, the crowd broke into applause.

"Okay, I'll admit I had my doubts… but that was actually pretty fun!" Tessa said, giggling. "Saying that motto just filled me up with so much energy! We should do it more often."

"Aha ha… whatever you say," Shane said, making a mental note never to let slip where he'd swiped that routine from.

"I'm serious, Shane," Tessa said, still smirking. "Maybe when this is all over, we should consider performance careers."

"Yeah… we could be actors," Silvally said. He and Tessa burst out laughing.

"Rrrgh… _amateurs!_ "

Primarina slammed his flippers down against the turntable. "Just what do you _morons_ think you're doing storming onto _my_ stage in the middle of _my_ performance? This is _my_ moment, damn it!" he snarled, eyes twitching and veins bulging out of his forehead.

"Ha ha ha! Didn't you hear our motto or is your head too full of your own music?" Shane taunted, eyes flashing gold. "We're here to take you off the air, _babe._ " He smirked, trying not to let the relief show through. In truth, he wasn't sure if Primarina would take the bait of his act. But it looks like the plan had worked. They had knocked Primarina out of his routine and had completely frazzled him. All that was left was to keep up the pressure.

"Get. Off. My. _Stage!_ " Primarina shouted, slamming the music crystals with his flippers. The speaker-like crystals on either side of him whirred to life.

"Move, gang!" Shane shouted, running right with Silvally. Ice and lightning rushed toward the stage, meeting sound waves with an explosive burst. Tessa rolled right, metal gathering in her paws. Her metal stream cut across the floor, but didn't make a dent in the giant crystal.

 _"I'm the shining star that this world needs!  
_ _Nobody's going to be saving the day but me,_ me, **me!** _"_

Multicolored water bubbles streamed toward Team Radiance, met by a volley of ice, metal, and lightning. Colorful stardust streamed across the stage, to the delight of the crowd.

 _"No, that's not fair!  
_ _But I won't despair!  
_ _You three are going down!  
_ _I want you out of my hair!"_

More sound waves erupted from the crystals. Team Radiance rushed toward one another, narrowly skirting the attacks. Stage curtains and parts of the wall exploded.

"Ha! You're not the only one who can carry a tune," Shane said, clearing his throat. "Ready, guys?" His teammates nodded.

 _"The 'R' stands for readiness… we're always good to go!"_ Shane sang, glowing gold. Primarina deflected his pink Psychic rings with shimmering rainbow light.

 _"The first 'A' stands for awesome… trust us, we already know!"_ Tessa sang, pink ripples shooting from her paws and bouncing off Primarina's barrier.

 _"Your tunes are lame!  
_ _They're just so sad!  
_ _You want my fame?  
_ _Well, that's too bad!"_

Primarina's singing produced light balls that closed in on Team Radiance. But Silvally stepped forward, leg muscles bulging and steam rising off his body. _"The 'D' is for determined… we never mess around!"_ he shouted, slicing the light balls apart with metallic talons. White explosions erupted around them, drawing ecstatic cheers from the crowd.

"Nnngh… stop it!" Primarina shouted, eyes twitching rapidly.

 _"The 'I' is for invincible… you'll never take us down!"_ Shane and Tessa sang in unison, mixing pink Psychic blasts together. Primarina buckled deflecting their combined attack. Rainbow light shimmered from the Seaside Shard, streaming into his twitching eyes.

 _"I don't care how much you sing!  
_ _You're worthless scum!  
_ _This world's mine to save!  
_ _I'll be the one having all the fun!"_

He hopped onto the turntable and raised his flippers high in a pose. Water pillars shot out of the floor, but Silvally effortlessly weaved through them, nabbing his teammates in the process. Air Slash blades sliced through the water, exposing Primarina. The crowd whooped and hollered. "No… how are you doing this?! Everyone's eyes should be on _me!_ I set up this concert… I did all the work… I'm the one with the power to dazzle the entire world!" Primarina whined, flinging a pink, moon-shaped energy ball toward Team Radiance.

Metal raced out to meet the blast, accompanied by orange Heat Wave air from Shane. Silvally's head hardened into iron and effortlessly absorbed the remaining fairy energy. "News flash, you ugly Milotic wannabe!" Shane shouted, swishing his tails to showcase the two Dawn Shards wrapped inside of them. "You're not the only one who can draw a crowd," he said, smirking. "Keep up the pressure, guys!"

The crowd cheered as Shane and Tessa leaped off Silvally, assaulting Primarina with ice shards and Psychic rings. Again a rainbow barrier emerged to drive off the attacks.

 _"You're fooling yourselves  
_ _If you think you can win.  
_ _My barrier's invincible  
_ _Soon you'll be a bunch of has-_ beens! _"_

Primarina shaped his water bubbles into blades. They shot toward Team Radiance as Primarina held the last word of his tunes. The blades missed, but he fluctuated his pitch and they swooped back toward his opponents. Plasma wisps, blue aura flames, and an Ice Beam raced to meet the blades. Primarina raised his volume and the blades grew. They effortlessly sliced through Team Radiance's attacks. Silvally kicked his teammates away and met the blades with his talons.

They drove him back toward the stage while Primarina danced around on his turntable, punching the air with his flippers. Just when it looked like Silvally would falter, Tessa socked one of the blades with an electrified fist. Shane swallowed the others up in a pink vortex of Psychic rings. Water droplets rained onto the crowd, drawing a chant of, "Ra-di-ance! Ra-di-ance!"

"No… _no!_ Stop it! Stop cheering for these worthless nobodies!" Primarina cried, hopping up and down on the turntable.

 _"The second 'A's' for admirable… it's what we strive to be,"_ Tessa sang, charging an Aura Sphere.

 _"The 'N' stands for nimble… we quickly seize victory,"_ Shane sang, ice gathering in his maw.

 _"The 'C' stands for companions… we're a tight-knit bunch, you see,"_ Silvally sang. Lightning shot off his body, meeting aura and ice.

"I've had it up to here with you assholes… quit hogging _my_ spotlight!" Primarina snarled. Sound waves blew Team Radiance's attacks apart and forced them to scatter.

 _"You lot are finished.  
_ _You can't keep this up!  
_ _I'm a top-ranked explorer  
_ _And you're a pack of hideous_ pups! _"_

He smacked the music crystals on the turntable over and over. Shockwaves rippled through the stage. The crowd groaned. Some booed. Team Radiance all fell to their knees, Tessa gripping her ears in agony.

"Ha ha ha ha! Aha ha ha ha! Y'see, everyone? Don't get suckered in by their half-baked routine," Primarina said, hair falling over his face as his sequin-filled vest slipped off his body. "They're worthless nobodies who've deluded themselves into thinking they actually matter! Nobody can outperform Primarina onstage! Do you hear me?"

"You didn't… let us… finish the song. And we only had… one more line," Shane panted, surrounded by a golden aura. He cleared his throat and belted out, _"The 'E' stands for experience… strengthening our bonds to last an eternity!"_

His Naturia Looplet flared to life. Shimmering cracks appeared in the air all around Primarina. Bright pink flashes engulfed him, accompanied by shattering glass. But when the light faded, Primarina stood confidently on his turntable, a rainbow barrier flickering out of existence. "See? There was only going to be one result here," Primarina said, smirking. "You _losers_ were doomed to fail from the beginning!"

He raised his flippers high and the Seaside Shard reacted. Bubbles formed into sharp needles over Team Radiance's heads. "Once I take those powerful fragments you're holding… my star power will be all that much stronger! Aha ha ha ha! The _whole world_ will be dazzled by the great Primarina!" He narrowed his eyes at Team Radiance. "So long, chumps!"

His blades burst apart. Primarina's eyes widened as water rained down on him. "What the—"

The crystal speakers exploded in neon blazes, drowning out Primarina's enraged howls. Espy and Cosplay Pikachu sprinted out on stage. The former had a white jumpsuit on similar to Shane's, while the latter was dressed to look like a luchador wrestler.

 _"Fight on… never give in! Make our enemies pay!"_ Espy sang. She nodded to her teammates.

Silvally nodded back. _"Because through darkest night…"_

Shane bared his fangs at Primarina, who sat stunned in the middle of his destroyed stage. _"… and brightest day…"_

 _"Team Radiance always finds a way!"_ Tessa shouted, orange light spilling out of her Nautria Looplet. A giant lightning bolt formed around Tessa's right fist. She punched the air, launching the bolt toward Primarina.

"N… no… I refuse… to back down!" Primarina howled, summoning another barrier. The bolt struck. It shattered Primarina's barrier like it was made of porcelain. Stunned, he fell back against the wall, his shredded costume dropping to the ground.

"And now, for the finisher," Espy said, nodding to Cosplay Pikachu. They both stepped forward. "Listen up, Primarina! I'm part of Team Radiance, too. And in the name of the sun and the moon… we will defeat you and take that Dawn Shard!" She glanced at Cosplay Pikachu. "You ready?"

Cosplay Pikachu's cheeks sparked. "I was born ready! It's time for this villain to feel the heat of _Pika_ _Libre!_ " Both jumped forward, Espy rearing up on her hind legs as light spilled out of Naturia Looplet.

"Then let's do it!" Espy said.

" _Catastropika!_ " they shouted in unison.

"I won't… give… in…" Primarina struggled to right himself. Shane knocked him back down with a dazzling burst of white light. Espy used her Z-Power to slingshot Cosplay Pikachu into the air. She spun around multiple times, then cannonballed into Primarina. Team Radiance jumped back. The electrified explosion blew apart the remnants of the stage. Curtains fell from the ceiling, along with the remains of the stage lights.

Espy and Tessa cleared the smoke away with tiny telekinetic bursts. Cosplay Pikachu stood triumphantly atop a pile of smashed crystals. Primarina lay buried at the bottom of the pile. The Seaside Shard fell out of his hair and rolled to a stop by Espy. "P… powers… fading. Spotlight… dimming. My big moment… is over. Cross-fade… to black," Primarina mumbled, going unconscious as the rainbow patterns evaporated off his hair.

"We did it!" Silvally cheered, jumping up and kicking the air with his hind legs.

Shane stood in the center of the stage, blinking at the rubble pile. Silvally was right, but there was something more to this victory. A smile spread across Shane's face. They hadn't just won. They had won decisively. For the first time since their team had formed, they controlled the pace of a battle, not their opponent. Sure, they were only trying to stall until Espy could shut down Primarina's power source, but they had succeeded with flying colors.

"Hey," Tessa said, trotting to Shane's side. "Nice work out there. We were really in sync today, huh?"

"Hmm?" Shane's ears twitched. "Oh, yeah! Definitely! Absolutely!" He stuck his forepaw out and Tessa bumped it with her fist. The two exchanged a laugh.

"Uh… guys?" Espy said, facing the crowd. "Not to put a damper on the celebration or anything, but I think the crowd might still be hypnotized."

"What makes you say that?" Shane said, failing to notice the glow coming from his tails.

"Ra-di-ance! Ra-di-ance! Ra-di-ance!" the crowd chanted.

"Oh… right. Slight problem here, guys. I'm not really sure how to turn these Dawn Shards off," Shane said, laughing nervously.

"Hang on a second. I wouldn't recommend doing that just yet," Silvally said, walking over to the group with an unconscious Primarina draped over his back. Shane raised a skeptical brow, wondering what Silvally had in mind. "Think about it, guys. We've still got to get these folks back to their homes. If we keep them hypnotized, then we can easily direct them out of the dungeon," Silvally explained. "Otherwise, I imagine there's gonna be a ton of confusion and utter bedlam."

His teammates cringed. He had a point. While the battle wasn't as physically exhausting as their last few days had been, none of them wanted to deal with the headache of trying to calm down an entire crowd of frightened Pokémon. Still, something bothered Shane. "What about the wild Pokémon that live here and in the ocean?" Shane said.

"Simple. We order the ones that live here to stay behind. And the ocean-dwellers can go back into the water from the beach in Circadian Coast," Silvally said.

"That's a good idea, yeah. We're on the bottom floor, so there should be a warp point back to Circadian Coast."

Kahuna Raichu floated out onto the stage. Vaporeon limped beside him, ears folded against his face. The two Xurkitrees stumbled in behind them, swaying back and forth uneasily. Shane's tails shot up in alarm. He had hoped they would go through the Magnagate and be someone else's problem.

"Err, uh, hi there!" Shane squeaked, looking up at the Xurkitrees. Neither responded and Shane had no idea if he was even making what constituted eye contact for the strange Ultra Beasts. "Uh… wow. If only Sticky were here, we might be able to make some headway," he said.

The Xurkitree's on Shane right crackled with electricity. Shane opened his mouth to say something, but Tessa put a paw on his shoulder.

"Let's get everyone home safely first, then we can worry about the Ultra Beasts and… uh… any other loose ends, I guess," she said.

Shane sighed. He knew she was right, but he was itching to figure out what had happened to the Xurkitrees. Shane walked up to the front of the stage and cleared his throat. "Hello. If you all can hear me… the concert's now over," he said, the glow in his tails intensifying. " Those of you who live in Sunset Shoals can hang around. For the rest of you, please form a neat, single-file line and follow us to the warp point. We're going to get you back home. Is that all right?"

The crowd muttered its agreement. Shane sighed in relief. Their mission had gone well after all.

* * *

 **Powered-Up Pop Star, Primarina Deluxe  
** _ _While exploring the depths of Sunset Shoals, Primarina stumbled upon a fragment of the Dawn Hourglass. The sudden surge of power he experienced upon touching it intensified his deepest desires for fame and fortune. Blinded by a wave of newfound ambition, Primarina sought to use the Shard's power to make himself the most popular Pokémon in history by amassing an entire army of groupies to fight off the Prism Virus.__

* * *

Thus, we come to the end of the ridiculous trio of chapters. This battle changed considerably from the original plan. The ask blog will have trivia about that in the future. Team Radiance's little anthem is, in some ways, a spoof of the Team Rocket Team Song from the more recent seasons of the anime. If you search it on YouTube, you should hopefully find it. So, yeah, Team Rocket somehow found their way into this fic. If anyone needs me, I'll be running away to dodge the pitchforks and torches from everyone who thinks Team Rocket's overrated.

SuperOmegaGuest: We finally reached peak craziness. Next week, we can return to the usual levels of ridiculousness.

Anon Omega: No ships here. Only teasing. And the only thing that blasted off again was Primarina's wild and crazy dreams.

Another guest: Wherever your mind goes, remember this fic's rated T. I'll be keeping things (relatively) clean.

Next time: here, there be dragons.


	94. Something to Sink Your Teeth Into

Had a bit of a rough week leading up to this chapter's publishing, so hearing from everyone really brightened things up. And so many new folks, too. Gosh, I really hope I can meet your expectations. Especially since this here is... something different. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 79: Something to Sink Your Teeth Into**

 **~Rem Canyon~**

 **I think it's safe to conclusify that we've been heading in the wrong direction,** Magearna said, leading the party along a jagged, narrow path through the canyon. Spikes jutted out from the canyon walls. They resembled curved dragon fangs and threatened to hit the taller group members.

"Agreed. The signals have gotten weaker, not stronger," Sticky said, his visor retracting into his helmet.

"If that's the case, why didn't we turn back sooner, huh?" Seraph growled, lightning crackling around her forearms. "We could've avoided a lot of unnecessary walking, don't you think?"

"What are you looking at me for? I'm not making the calls here," Sticky said, wincing.

"You've got the scanner," Seraph said, before a disapproving look from Luxeira made her sigh. "Sorry. I didn't mean to yell. It's just… if time's of the essence, shouldn't we be moving quicker?"

 **This segment of the path loops north. The conditions are… cramplicated, I'll admit that. However, I believe this route is the fastest one available, while being safe enough to avoid detectification,** Magearna explained.

Blaziken froze mid-step. Not looking where he was going, Swampert walked right into his backside. "Oof! What's the holdup?" he grunted.

"Tell me she didn't just say this route's safer out loud," Blaziken said, rubbing the bridge of his beak.

"Eh? I haven't exactly been paying attention to the conversation," Swampert said with a nervous laugh.

"That was rhetorical, Swampert," Blaziken said, sighting. "Hey, we need to get a move on into more open space. I've got a bad feeling we're going to run into trouble and we can't fight in such close quarters."

As if on cue, Sticky's helmet beeped loudly. He summoned his visor, then flailed his arms about in a panic. "Ah! This is bad! I'm picking up multiple life forces moving in our direction."

"Wow. Way to go and jinx us, Feathers," Seraph said, rolling her eyes. "Yo, Pinhead, how many folks are you picking up?"

Sticky pressed his arms against his helmet. "Um, well, ten… twenty… n-no, I can't keep count of them all," he squeaked, floating up for cover behind one of the tooth-like rocks.

"Shit! We've gotta move!" Seraph hissed, shoving Magearna from behind. Before Magearna could protest, Seraph charged forward, lightning-propelling her down the path. The rest of the group ran after her. Luckily, it wasn't long before they emerged onto a wider path with one side dropping away to showcase a view of the ocean.

Any relief was cut short, however, as blue Dragon Pulses whizzed by. "We're taking fire!" Seraph shouted, turning left and issuing retaliatory blue Thunderbolts.

"I can't attack from this distance," Dusk said, wincing as she hid behind Magearna.

 **Everyone, get behind me,** Magearna said, shooting Ice Beams from both arms. The nearest dragons strafed the ice, but two Vibravas and their Sliggoo passengers fell victim and plummeted to the ground.

More blue, dragon-shaped beams rained down on the group, focused on Magearna. She stood tall, firing Ice Beams skyward in the face of the ineffective blows. More dragons backed off, roaring their fury.

"We've got incomings on the ground," Seraph said. She punched the ground. Several dragons recoiled ahead of her. "I could use some help here, _gang._ "

Comfey flung a green energy ball ahead, which a Garchomp swatted away. A Flamethrower and a purple Dark Pulse raced by her, courtesy of Blaziken and Luxeira. Two Salamences matched the blows with Dragon Pulse beams and flew forward. Rocks jutted out of the ground to knock one off course. Swampert drove the other one off with an icy fist.

"This isn't going to work. There are too many of them!" Comfey said. Purple tiles streamed in from behind her and lined the ground. A pack of Bagons and Shelgons were forced to halt their charges, leaving room for Blaziken, Comfey, Luxeira, and Magearna to strike and blow them back.

Then a fireball struck Sticky and exploded, sending him to the ground. More fireballs rained down around the group, scattering them in different directions. Luxeira dashed in Sticky's direction, diving through the smoke left behind. She skidded to a halt next to him. "Are you okay? That looked like a nasty blow," she said.

"I've been through worse," Sticky said, hovering back into the air. A scorch mark peppered his jumpsuit. "At least this thing's somewhat flame-retardant."

Luxeira's eyes widened. "Duck!" she shouted. Luxeira grabbed Sticky by the tail and dropped him to the ground. Dragonfire grazed her back. Her heart nearly burst out of her chest. Luxeira curled up around Sticky, expecting to take a serious blow. However, the dragonfire subsided. Luxeira looked up. Blaziked had driven the offending Turtonator away with a kick to its sensitive stomach.

Sticky squirmed out from underneath Luxeira. "Th-Thanks for the save, captain," he said. "Though, that was… unlike you."

"If there's one thing these terrestrials have taught me… it's that teamwork is the way to go," Luxeira said, knees popping as she got back to her feet. "And, uh, no need for the whole 'captain' formality. We don't need to keep that ruse up anymore."

"What can I say? I've gotten used to it," Sticky said with an awkward laugh.

"Hey! Save the sappy buddy-buddy stuff for _after_ we've saved our hides!" Seraph shouted. She waywardly hurled a blast of red energy forward, but a Dragon Pulse beam burst through the attack and a second hit her from behind.

Seraph hit the ground with a yowl. Dusk fell down next to her. "Urgh… it's no good. We're completely surrounded," Dusk said, glancing right at the Druddigon pair dropping down from the sky. Even a lowly Trapinch burrowed out of the ground behind her. He leered at Sticky.

"Exactly. You No-Scales cannot stand up to our might. Surrender yourselves… and your ends will be quick and merciless!"

Sticky hovered closer to Luxeira. "Our ends?!" he gasped, only to take a face full of dirt from the Trapinch.

"Don't move, w'aever ya are," he spat.

Totem Kommo-o emerged from behind a dozen of his followers, sidestepping Sticky's tiles as he approached the group. His tail and battle axe jingled as he walked. Several dragons thumped their chests with their arms or wings.

"I recognize that emblem. You are with that wretched No-Scales group that keeps trying to desecrate our sacred domain," Totem Kommo-o said, leering at Magearna. "I made it abundantly clear to you meddlers that you are _not_ welcome here. Only dragons may stride the terrain of Rem Canyon!"

"But I'm staring right at a Trapinch and he's no dragon," Luxeira said.

With surprising quickness for one of his size, Totem Kommo-o was by Luxeira's side, the blade of his axe sitting inches in front of her snout. "I do not care for your patronizing tone, _puppy-dog,_ " Totem Kommo-o growled.

"Yeh! I'll be a dragon real soon. Is jus' a matter o' time!" the Trapinch in question said, holding his head up proudly.

 **You are the Totem of his location, yes?** Magearna said, turning to Totem Kommo-o. **I assure you, that my team here doesn't mean to trespassify on your domain. We are in the midst of a crisis… and we need your assistilance.**

Totem Kommo-o narrowed his eyes. "You would wander into our domain and try to brush it off with such a flimsy excuse? I ought to remove your head from your shoulders right this instant!" he said. Totem Kommo-o swung his axe in Magearna's direction, blue energy crackling in his throat. "How dumb do you think I am? Just because my people rebuke your communities, you think that makes you better than us?"

 **Not at all. In fact… it is you whose help I am seeking,** Magearna said. **You, who watch over this domain and the dragons within it.**

"You attacked my people," Totem Kommo-o said, gesturing to the dragons all around him.

"Only because you nutcases attacked first," Seraph huffed, tugging at her right whisker.

"Maybe you ought to keep quiet? He seems agitated enough already," Dusk whispered, wincing. Seraph looked away from Totem Kommo-o, biting her lower lip.

 **I am sorry. That was a simple matter of self-defeckence,** Magearna said. **This is all just misunderstanding. If you'd give us a change to explain ourselves, I'm sure you'd understand exactly what's going on.**

"Don't listen to 'em, Totem!" a gray-bearded Tyrantrum shouted.

"Yeah, they're just trying to trick us! They know they're outnumbered! Don't fall for their lies!" the green-eared Noibat perched on Gray-Beard's head said.

"Silence," Totem Kommo-o said, raising his free arm. "I am well aware of the lengths No-Scales will go to in a pitiful attempt at saving their hides. It matters not." He locked eyes with Magearna. "You have trespassed on our grounds. Thus, we must offer up your spirits to Lord Rayquaza so that he may continue to bless our domain."

"Jeez. Talk about fanatical," Seraph said, rolling her eyes. Luxeira shot her a wide-eyed look, silently begging Seraph to keep her trap shut for once.

"Um, hey, Mr. Totem Guy?" Swampert said, lifting a fin and waving. "What exactly does Rayquaza do for you, again? Because we happen to know him and—"

Blaziken barely managed to yank Swampert out of the way of Totem Kommo-o's axe. "Blasphemy!" Totem Kommo-o shouted, his plated scales jingling. "Lord Rayquaza would never give No-Scales like you the time of day." His fists glowed bright red. "I will make you pay for such heretical words!"

"It's true, though. We've been to Sky Tower. We're the ones who got Rayquaza to blow up the meteor that would've destroyed the planet," Swampert said.

The dragons turned to one another, muttering their collective disbelief. "You make such bold claims, No-Scales," Totem Kommo-o said.

"Well, you guys do live in a Mystery Dungeon, so I guess I can't blame you if you haven't heard the story of Team Go-Getters," Blaziken said, turning his scarf to show off his rusty badge. "That's us, by the way."

Totem Kommo-o stepped back, his brow furrowed. "Of course I know the tale. It spoke of the heroics of a Torchic and a Mud—" He cut himself off as his subjects' murmurs intensified. "If you are really the heroes you claim to be… then prove it," Totem Kommo-o said. "Only then will I stave off my tribe."

Blaziken reached into his bag and produced an aged emerald scale. "Behold! A scale shed from the body of the great Rayquaza himself as he blasted off into space to destroy the meteor," he proclaimed, holding the scale high.

"Uh… gross," Seraph said, cringing. Comfey, Dusk, and Luxeira shared her sentiments, each looking away with varying degrees of unease.

"You call that proof? Lord Rayquaza flies everywhere!" an Exeggutor with a white, absurdly long neck said.

"Y… yeah! He probably shed that scale and you just found it somewhere on the ground," a black-tailed Deino squeaked from atop White-Neck's leafy head. "Also… as long as we're not attacking anyone, can somebody help me down? I can't see what's happening and I'm not so good with heights."

"Damn, I was really hoping our good luck charm would pull through," Blaziken whispered, snapping his talons.

"I think we're gonna have to bust out the big guns, buddy," Swampert said.

"Looks like it," Blaziken said, nodding. "Watch my back. If it looks like I'm starting to lose control, pin me down or something."

"All right. You guys still don't believe us? Then feast your eyes on this." He stepped toward Totem Kommo-o and reached his right arm out, showcasing the looplet around it. "See that piece in the center? That's a fragment of the meteor Rayquaza destroyed. He welded these for Swampert and me as thanks for bringing him to his senses."

Totem Kommo-o scrutinized the looplet. "Who's to say some mage didn't find a meteor shard and make this?" he said.

"The meteor shards have Rayquaza's primal energy in them," Blaziken said, stepping back from Totem Kommo-o. "And with it, I can do… _this!_ "

Blaziken raised his arm up. Orange light swallowed him up, forcing the nearest Pokémon to look away, shielding their eyes.

"This light… it can't be!" Totem Kommo-o gasped. Behind him, his dragon flunkies backed away nervously. The orange light subsided, revealing Mega Blaziken in all of his fiery glory. Blaziken balanced on his right leg and kicked at the air, launching a jet of fire skyward in a display of force.

"Mega Evolution! The No-Scale is Mega Evolving!" White-Neck gasped, long neck wobbling to and fro as he shuffled backward.

"W-whoa, hey, take it easy! I can't see anything… and I don't want to fall and go _kersplat!_ " Black-Tail squeaked, clinging to White-Neck's leaves for dear life.

The other dragons all exchanged astonished sentiments. Not only had Blaziken used his Mega Evolution, he appeared to be in full control.

"Whoa. So, that's Mega Evolution, huh? It's quite the sight," Dusk said, whistling.

"Indeed. I remember hearing about this during training, but it doesn't compare to seeing it for yourself," Sticky said, hands pressed against his visor. "His energy levels shot up dramatically! If only your helmet was still intact, Luxeira." He turned to his teammate, only to find her totally transfixed on Blaziken. "Luxeira, are you all right?" Sticky said, waving his arm in front of her face.

"Don't block my view, Sticky," Luxeira said, nudging him aside with her snout.

Sticky floated back, frowning. "I don't get it. It's impressive, yeah, but she's acting like she's witnessing the most thrilling part of a show," he said, sighing.

"Oh, let her be, Pinhead. She's just helping herself to some eye candy, that's all," Seraph said. With a smirk, she added, "I'm proud of her."

"Wait, I don't see any candy around here. Least of all the kind you'd eat with your eyes," Sticky said, tilting his head in confusion. "Is there even candy you can eat with your eyes? Ungh, I think I feel a headache coming on…"

"So, what do you think, Totem?" Blaziken said. "I can give you a demonstration, if you want." He pivoted so his left knee pointed at Totem Kommo-o's chest.

"There's no need," Totem Kommo-o said, loosening his grip on his axe. "It appears Lord Rayquaza has deemed you worthy to wield his sacred technique of Mega Evolution. Though you lack scales, your heart beats as strong as that of any dragon in our domain."

"Then you'll call off your tribe and help us with our situation?" Blaziken said, raising a brow. It all seemed too easy and part of him strongly believed he was walking into a trap.

Totem Kommo-o nodded. "I shall." He paused to glance at his axe, then looked back at Blaziken. "Though, might I ask a question?"

"Shoot," Blaziken said.

"How long can you maintain that form?" Totem Kommo-o asked.

"Well, the meteor shard supplies me with the energy for Mega Evolution. Keeping that energy under control does, y'know, put a lot of stress on my body." He put his raised leg down and stretched out. "It's been a while since I've done this, so it'd be tough to say for sure how long I can keep this up. The last time I Mega Evolved, I think I had enough energy to keep the form active for a couple of hours before needing to recharge," Blaziken said. He tapped the looplet with a claw and, in a flash of light, reverted to his normal form.

"Wait! Can't you only use that power once when you're in a Mystery Dungeon?" Dusk said, shooting Blaziken a worried look.

"In the dungeons where we're from, sure. But since yours aren't chaotic labyrinths, those rules don't apply," Blaziken said. He stuck his arm out so Dusk could see the meteor shard still glowing in his looplet.

"I see," Totem Kommo-o said. He pivoted back to Magearna. "The timing of this commotion is rather awkward, I'm afraid. Why don't you tell me what it is you seek in our domain? Then I will discuss my current predicament."

Comfey and Magearna explained the situation with the Dawn Hourglass. Yet again, the dragons around them muttered in surprise at the revelation.

"I don't believe this," a second, smaller Kommo-o said. His turquoise scales clattered together as he crossed his arms. "Tapu Lele would never be so careless with such an important item!"

"Well, she _is_ a fairy-type. They're all pretty ditzy if you ask me," a Garchomp with a striped dorsal fin huffed.

The pink-winged Altaria standing next to him glared at him. "Mind repeating that one to me, _darling?_ " she growled.

Striped-Fin's face blanched. "Aha… ha… w-well, you're technically only a fairy if you Mega Evolve, my sweet," he said. Pink-Wings still turned away from him with an annoyed huff.

"Peace. All of you… peace!" Totem Kommo-o said, rubbing his temples. The dragons fell silent, with the loudest offenders looking down guiltily. Totem Kommo-o sighed. "I was afraid of this. It had been far too long since one of the Tapus came to reshape our land. Suddenly this jewel appeared and my scouts brought it to me. It resonated with my Totem Crystal. I told myself it was a gift from Lord Rayquaza, but deep down I knew he wouldn't just drop something like that into our domain without giving _some_ sort of sign."

"Um, excuse me? Might I ask a question, round metal thingy?" Turquoise-Scales said, raising an arm.

 **Go ahead. And it's Magearna,** Magearna said.

"You said the Dawn Hourglass broke. Is that why the moon's been so big and bright lately?" Turquoise-Scales asked.

 **I wouldn't say it's the cause, but they're definitatively related,** Magearna said.

"O… okay. Thanks," Turquoise-Scales said, frowning and looking down.

"You there! Buck up!" Totem Kommo-o said, stomping in Turquoise-Scales' direction. He jumped to attention, saluting his leader. "This is not the time for whining or petty sniveling. An act of the cosmos has brought a piece of the Dawn Hourglass into our midst. It is our duty to see to it that the Dawn Hourglass be repaired. Are you all with me?"

The dragons cheered, raising wings and arms in unison. "Excellent!" Totem Kommo-o said. "Come, outsiders. The shard you seek lies at our sacred shrine." He beckoned the expedition crew to follow him along. As they did, the various dragons flanked the group from each side, forming a procession that walked at an orderly pace with Totem Kommo-o at the head. Some of the winged dragons even took position over the group, scanning the tops of the canyon walls for any signs of trouble attempting to breech the dungeon.

Comfey floated up to Magearna, who had her Gear-Com unit sticking out of her stomach. "Are you contacting Team Radiance?" she asked.

 **Indeed. But it appears I can't get a hold of Espeon,** Magearna said as muffle static sounded from the speaker. **I'll have to try Gallian's device, then.** She pressed a few buttons on the device.

 _"Magearna? Is that you?"_ Gallian said.

 **Correct. I've got an update. We've managed to locate the Scalebound Shard. The Totem is escorvating us there as I speak,** Magearna said.

 _"Wait, you actually got the dragons to help you?"_ Gallian gasped. _"Whoa. I've gotta hear about this when we meet up."_

"Gallian, what's going on with Team Radiance? We can't seem to get a hold of them," Comfey said.

 _"Yeah. They headed off to Sunset Shoals with the Totem here a few hours ago,"_ Gallian said. _"There's a real nasty storm around that place. Apparently Primarina's using his music to hypnotize people. Zoroark and I got involved in a scuffle of our own and we're patrolling Circadian Coast. It's, uh, a long story. If anything changes, I'll be sure to tell you."_ He disconnected the call.

Up ahead, Blaziken increased his walking speed to keep pace with Totem Kommo-o. "So, what was this dilemma you wanted to talk to us about?" he said.

"There was another group of No-Scales besides yours," Totem Kommo-o said, tail jingling with each massive stride he made. "Well, just two No-Scales, to be honest. But my eldest son was with them." Totem Kommo-o's gaze fiercened. "He had run off many moons ago. The tribe searched high and low, but never found him. For a time, I wondered if he had passed on to the Tree of Life."

"Oh. Isn't that a good thing, then? Your son's safe," Blaziken said.

"It's not good. He was in the company of the No-Scales. That means he left the dungeon," Totem Kommo-o said. "For these many moons, he's commiserated with them. I fear that they have tainted his being. His heart… his life force… it is not pure anymore. I am sure of it."

Blaziken winced. He should've figured the guy who was ready to sacrifice him not too long ago would say something like that. "Right. I'm not really familiar with your customs," Blaziken said.

"I understand. I'm in a difficult position, that is all," Totem Kommo-o said, shaking his head. "My son spat upon his heritage and his presence in our domain… can't be welcomed. Before I went to confront you all, I was planning to sacrifice him to Lord Rayquaza to remove the taint from our home."

"Err, well, as an outsider, I can't help but say that sounds unnecessarily cruel," Blaziken said, scratching the back of his neck.

"You sound just like my mate," Totem Kommo-o said, sighing. "She blamed me for Jangmo-o's disappearance. Told me that our customs are too harsh… that they drove him away."

Blaziken looked around at the dragons in the procession. "Which one is she?" he asked.

"None of them. Several moons after we gave up the search for Jangmo-o, I found her lying dead within our den," Totem Kommo-o explained. Blaziken stiffened, while Totem Kommo- shut his eyes. "That image… is burned into my mind. She looked so peaceful, like she was slumbering. I haven't the slightest idea what could've happened. It's almost like… like she died of a broken heart." He tightened his grip on his axe. "I thought that, perhaps, this was punishment from Lord Rayquaza for not reigning Jangmo-o in. He always rebuked my teachings, but I was grooming him to take my place."

At this point, Dusk and Seraph had joined the duo. Both of them were silent, too nervous about angering Totem Kommo-o to say anything. Finally, Seraph cleared her throat and said, "Uh, not to be rude or anything, but this is very tough to follow. How do we factor into this, exactly?"

Totem Kommo-o pointed at Blaziken. "I want you to duel my son. You must battle Jangmo-o… and hold absolutely nothing back." He clenched his free hand into a fist. "Exposing him to the sheer force of Mega Evolution will awaken the draconic spirit I know is slumbering within him!"

Before Blaziken could protest, Totem Kommo-o sped up, signaling he refused to hear any debate on the matter.

"Geesh… talk about harsh. I think I see why his kid ran away in the first place," Dusk said.

"What have I gotten myself into? I'm a rescuer, not a family counselor," Blaziken groaned, rubbing his forehead.

* * *

 _Jangmo-o stood on one side of a dusty clearing, legs trembling and scales caked with sweat and grime. Totem Kommo-o stood opposite him, his axe leaning against a rock wall. He tossed a rock in one hand._

 _"Disgraceful!" he shouted, making Jangmo-o flinch. "We've been at this all day and you can't even muster a puff of smoke? You're not taking this seriously, are you?"_

 _"I… I'm trying!" Jangmo-o squealed, staring at the rocky debris around his feet. "I can't do it, Dad. Please, just let me stop for today! I'm too tired. I can't—"_

 _"We don't use that word around here," Totem Kommo-o said. "A dragon never quits! If his back's against the wall, he fights tooth and claw, with everything he has… and seizes victory from the jaws of defeat! Now… think fast!"_

 _He hurled the rock at Jangmo-o, who dove to the side. "Unacceptable! Don't dodge. You have to blast the rock with your Dragon Breath!"_

 _"B-But, Dad, I'm trying and it's not working," Jangmo-o squealed. "Why can't Mom teach it to me? She's the one who knows Dragon Breath, not you!"_

 _"Your mother is not the Totem, here," Totem Kommo-o said, grabbing another rock from the pile. "I must train you just as my father trained me… and his father trained him. Only then will the Tapus deem you worthy to inherit my power and serve as Lord Rayquaza's herald."_

 _Another rock flew through the air. Jangmo-o opened his mouth, letting out nothing but a weak gasp. The rock bludgeoned his face. He fell to the ground. "O… owie. My schnozzle," he whimpered, rubbing his throbbing snout._

 _"You've got to put your back into it!" Totem Kommo-o barked, stomping the ground._

 _"That's enough, dear! He can't take any more!"_

 _A Goodra with sapphire spots on her cheek and her tail waddled in front of Totem Kommo-o, spreading her arms wide. "You've pushed him beyond his limit," Goodra said, a frown on his face._

 _"His limit? We haven't made any progress whatsoever," Totem Kommo-o said. "He's being lazy. I let you spoil him for far too long. Now, I have to drag his fighting spirit out of him or else the Tapus will never accept him."_

 _He reached for a rock but Goodra swatted his arm away, leaving a slime residue on her mate's scales. "He is done training for today. End of story," she said, her soft green eyes hiding her irritation well._

 _"We can't just stop. Each day that goes by without any progress will only weaken his spirit further," Totem Kommo-o said, picking his axe up. "How can I expect him to one day take my place when he's so… so… so_ meek. _Look at that belly of his! It's nearly touching the ground. No one will take him seriously like this. And his path to respect begins even before he reaches his final evolution."_

 _Jangmo-o lifted a foreleg and looked at his portly stomach. His tail drooped. Goodra saw this and jabbed a gooey finger into Totem Kommo-o's chest. "Did it occur to you that maybe he got his belly from_ me? _" she growled, pointing at her round stomach. "Last I checked… my curves were one of the things you admired most about me!"_

 _Snickers rose up around the two of them. Totem Kommo-o looked over his shoulder, where a cluster of Salamences and Dragonites were huddled together, giggling at their conversation. "And just what do you think you're laughing at?" he shouted, raising his axe. "If you're looking to gossip about my love life, I'm sure my mate and I would be happy to drop by your dens and let you in on every sordid detail!"_

 _His eyes narrowed. "You can bet we wouldn't leave a single spot dry." He brushed a hand against Goodra's waist and flicked her slime in the onlookers' direction. The dragons scattered, some tucking their tails between their legs._

 _"Ugh, see? That right there is your problem. You don't have a single compassionate bone in your body anymore," Goodra said, putting her hands on her hips. "You've forgotten how to be supportive… and with your own son, no less." She leaned in, frowning. "You can't keep putting him down when he doesn't meet your absurdly-high standards. He needs_ encouragement _."_

 _"I am treating him the exact same way every male in my family has been treated for generations. It's not my fault your soft nature reflected so strongly in him," Totem Kommo-o said. "Besides, you knew what you were getting yourself into when you agreed to forge a soulmate bond."_

 _"Yes… because you_ used _to have a heart," Goodra said. "You said you would rule over the tribe with a steady, measured hand. But ever since you took the Totem Crystal, you've been the splitting image of your father."_

 _Totem Kommo-o tightened his grip on his axe. He bowed his head. "My old man made me realize what's most important. And now, it's time I did the same for our eldest son."_

 _Goodra turned and walked away from him. She reached Jangmo-o and knelt down beside him. "It's okay, Jangmo-o," she said, running her hand across his back._

 _"No, it's not. Dad hates me. He's going to keep making me do this stupid training, but I don't want to," Jangmo-o whimpered. "I'm not like him, Mom. I… I don't like our customs. I don't want to be angry and grumpy all the time. I want to have fun!"_

 _"There's nothing wrong with that." Goodra picked Jangmo-o up and cradled him in her arms. He sank into her slimy chest. "Let's go get you cleaned up. I'll see if I can try talking to him after he's had some time to calm down," she said._

 _"Th-thanks, Mom," Jangmo-o said, sniffling._

 _She took Jangmo-o to a watering hole to bathe him off, then they walked through the canyon until they reached the shrine at the very end. They circled around it and came to an opening in the rock wall. It led to a tunnel that branched out in different directions. Jangmo-o walked down one path until he reached a room with two small beds. His younger brother, smaller and thinner than him, lay curled up on the larger of the two beds._

 _Sighing, Jangmo-o walked onto the smaller bed and curled up into a tiny ball. Within minutes, he slipped into a dreamless sleep that lasted until a sudden, loud thump woke him up. He stuck his head up, but couldn't see anything in the darkness._

 _"Hey, li'l bro. You hear that?" he whispered, but got no response. As usual, his brother slept heavy enough to be mistaken for a Snorlax. Jangmo-o got up and crept forward, using his tail to guide him through the tunnel. A sigh echoed down from the other part of the cave, making Jangmo-o freeze._

 _"Th… there. Satisfied?"_

 _It was his mother and it sounded like she was talking to his dad._

 _"Yes, I'd say so," Totem Kommo-o said, his voice still loud despite a vain attempt at whispering._

 _"Then you'll let me see to our eldest's training going forward?" Goodra asked._

 _Jangmo-o's heart fluttered. His mom was following through. She really_ was _getting Totem Kommo-o off his back. Jangmo-o had no idea what she had done to convince him, but he wasn't about to question his good fortune._

 _"Dear? We had an agreement, didn't we?" Goodra said._

 _"We did," Totem Kommo-o said._

 _"And I'm giving you want you wanted. So, I get to take over his training,_ correct? _" Goodra said._

 _"You do," Totem Kommo-o said._

 _Jangmo-o had to bite his tongue to stop himself from cheering._

 _"… but not tomorrow," Totem Kommo-o continued._

 _"What's that supposed to mean? Are you giving him a break?" Goodra said._

 _"No," Totem Kommo-o said._

 _"Ex_ cuse _me?" Goodra hissed in a whisper._

 _"One day," Totem Kommo-o said. "One day is all I need to make sure our son has a proper sense of discipline. Then, I don't care how you go about training him. He'll be ready."_

 _Jangmo-o's chest tightened. One day? From the sounds of it, his dad had a plan in mind. And Jangmo-o wanted no part of it. He remembered what Totem Kommo-o had said that afternoon. His father had made him realize what was most important. Jangmo-o couldn't even imagine what that meant. Nevertheless, he had no intention of going through with it. He didn't want to yell at his fellow dragons or spend his days perpetually grumpy. Jangmo-o wanted to enjoy his life. What was so wrong with that?_

'Dad won't stop until he turns me into his perfect replacement,' _Jangmo-o thought. His mother couldn't convince Totem Kommo-o to stop, even though she had to do something it sounded like she didn't want to do. Jangmo-o's legs trembled._

 _If he couldn't live his life the way he wanted to, then there was no place in Rem Canyon for him._

 _He flinched. Jangmo-o knew what that entailed. No wild Pokémon had ever left Rem Canyon. Sure, the dragons with wings could soar above the Mystery Dungeon or out toward the ocean. But they only did that to hunt prey down for the tribe. He wasn't a flier. Leaving meant he could never return._

 _Thoughts of Goodra filled his mind. He loved his mother and he didn't want to leave her. However, he couldn't stay and find out what his father had planned. As much as he wanted to tell Goodra what was happening, he couldn't. She was with his father. And if this was going to work, he needed to go now._

 _Jangmo-o crept back toward his room, trying to steel his nerves. Every step brought up a new worry about the world outside his home. What kinds of Pokémon were there? Could he find food and shelter? How was he supposed to fend for himself when he could barely muster up the strength to use the simplest attacks?_

 _He dismissed those worries, believing anything was better than training under his dad. Jangmo-o returned to his room, where his brother still lay fast asleep. Jangmo walked to the back of the room and rolled a dim orb out from behind a rock. He lay down on it to prevent any light from shining on his brother._

 _Jangmo-o glanced at the orb. He had found it several moons ago, when his father had dragged him out on a patrol. Jangmo-o wasn't sure what to make of the orb. But it was shiny and he liked shiny. So, he held onto it. Every time he touched it, the orb left him with a faint sense that it could somehow, inexplicably lead him to the outside world. And that was exactly what he needed._

 _After a minute of lying on the orb, an idea came to mind. Without thinking much on it, Jangmo-o picked the orb up in his mouth and shattered it with his jaws._

 _His younger brother jolted upright. "H-Huh? Hey, bro, why are you glowing like that?" he gasped._

 _Jangmo-o didn't look in his brother's direction. Instead, his whole world erupted with bright light as an unseen force grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and yanked him upward. Though Jangmo-o hollered loudly, gale-force winds drowned out his cries. Then, as soon as it started, the violent lurching stopped._

 _He fell to his belly, his entire world spinning. Jangmo-o tried to get to his feet, but toppled over and wretched the contents of his dinner onto the ground in front of him. He lay there, trying to blink the dizziness away. Jangmo-o needed to move. Someone could've seen something. A flier could be on their way._

 _Jangmo-o got up, but couldn't keep his footing. He swayed from side to side and then fell into the puddle of vomit. "Augh! Are you kidding me?" he shouted, only to cup his forelegs over his mouth. Fighting off the disgust bubbling in his stomach, he rolled to his feet. There was a large cloud of fog in front of him. Under the moon's glow, it appeared purple._

 _Without a moment's hesitation, Jangmo-o charged into the fog._

* * *

Jangmo-o sat at the base of the Totem shrine, staring at the ground. Between his teammates and his brother, he couldn't bring himself to look up. If only he had spoken up and said something. Then they wouldn't be in this situation

"I can't believe you," Sneasel growled. "All this time… you've had this cushy life with an important family?" He shook his head. "I never should've stuck my neck out for you."

"S… Sneasel," Jangmo-o whispered. "I'm sorry. I just—"

"Prisoners don't get to speak," Hakamo-o said, stomping a foot down in front of a squealing Jangmo-o. "You were doing such a good job staying quiet. Don't ruin it."

"Fliers are coming in. The Totem must be back!" Black-Fins said, pointing his claws ahead. Jangmo-o curled up into a ball. He was hoping he'd have more time to think things over. Instead, he spent it all mulling over the memories of his last day in his home. Now, he had no idea what to say to Totem Kommo-o. All he could do was sit there as the loud, forceful footsteps grew closer.

"What the— Dusk? What the hell are you doing here?" Lycanroc barked, getting to his feet. Black-Fins knocked him back onto his rear, hissing a warning.

"Midnight. I see my warnings proved useless, after all," Dusk said in the most stoic voice she could muster. "Look where your temper's gotten you."

Lycanroc's eyes bugged out, but a scathing look from Hakamo-o made him hold his tongue. "So, Father, what are we going to do with all these No-Scales?" Hakamo-o said, rubbing his hands together.

"Nothing. The Tapus have deemed these No-Scales worthy of entering our domain," Totem Kommo-o said. He then gestured at Team Go-Getters. "See, the leaders of this group are blessed with the gift of Mega Evolution. Now then…" He turned and pointed his axe at Jangmo-o. "On your feet, boy."

Jangmo-o's heart pounded. Totem Kommo-o wasn't wasting any time. This was it, then. He had to say something. "N… nngh," Jangmo-o squeaked.

"Get _up_ , boy. I'm giving you a chance to redeem yourself," Totem Kommo-o said.

"Huh?" Jangmo-o said, meeting his dad's fierce gaze. He _wasn't_ about to kill him?

"The time you've spent outside our land has made you even softer than before. It is hearsay. I cannot let such a worthless dragon dwell among us," Totem Kommo-o said. Behind him, the members of the expedition team exchanged nervous looks. "However, we are in the presence of expert Mega Evolvers. You will face Blaziken in battle. Neither of you will hold anything back." He lifted his axe back up. "I believe the purity of Mega Evolution will wash away your rotten cowardice and unleash your dragon spirit!"

Jangmo-o stiffened. He had to say something. Anything to save his hide.

Totem Kommo-o leered at his son. "I do not have time to stand around watching you snivel," he said. "Either battle Blaziken or I will end you _and_ your worthless friends."

Lycanroc and Sneasel whirled on Jangmo-o, enraged looks in their eyes. Jangmo-o winced. He couldn't fight Blaziken. It wouldn't even be a contest. Jangmo-o figured Blaziken only needed one attack to snap him in half like a scaly toothpick.

"You get up there and fight, doofus. It's your fault we're in this situation. I'm not dying because your dad's a freaking weirdo," Sneasel hissed in a whisper.

Jangmo-o squeezed his eyes shut. Sneasel was wrong. This _wasn't_ his fault. Lycanroc dragged him into the Mystery Dungeon. He wasn't even apologetic about it. This was no different from all the other times he had gotten blamed. In fact, now that he thought about it, he hadn't really experienced anything fun since he left his home. Jangmo-o only got to enjoy the few meals he was able to steal with Sneasel.

 _'My teammates… don't really care about me,'_ Jangmo-o realized. It made too much sense. Lycanroc only kept him around because he was scared Jangmo-o would run to the cops and snitch about their prison break.

"So, you still refuse to show even an _ounce_ of courage?" Totem Kommo-o said, shaking his head.

"Don't be surprised, Father. Running away seems to be the only thing he's good at," Hakamo-o scoffed, as Black-Fins chuckled behind him.

Something inside Jangmo-o snapped. He got to his feet, earning an eyebrow raise from Totem Kommo-o. "Oh? Changed your mind, have you?" he said.

"No!" Jangmo-o shouted, stomping a tiny foreleg on the ground. "I refuse."

"Then you've sealed your fate," Totem Kommo-o said, hefting up his axe. Just when it looked like Blaziken and Swampert were going to intervene, Jangmo-o sprinted forward. He bashed his father's leg with a glowing tail. The blow wasn't enough to do more than rattle Totem Kommo-o's scales. Jangmo-o kept running, avoiding Totem Kommo-o's axe. He lunged for his father's tail and bit down.

Totem Kommo-o didn't so much as flinch. He thrust his hips to his right, flinging Jangmo-o into the treasure pile next to the shrine. "And just _what_ did you expect to prove with such a foolish gesture?" Totem Kommo-o said, stomping toward him. "You think you can earn my respect by blindly charging me down? How naïve!"

A gemstone flew out of the treasure pile. Totem Kommo-o swatted it aside with his free arm, only to double over in pain. With a furious roar, he dropped his axe and cupped a hand over his groin.

"Father!" Hakamo-o shouted. He turned toward the treasure pile, only to backpedal with a holler to avoid blue-purple dragonfire. Hakamo-o landed awkwardly on his tail. "Oof! H-Hey, what gives?" he growled, rubbing his rear.

Totem Kommo-o pulled his hand off his groin and noticed the scorch marks along his thigh. "This is… Dragon Breath," he said.

"Are you freaking kidding me? This whole time, you knew Dragon Breath, but you never thought to use it in battle?" Lycanroc said, red eyes flashing.

"No. When we met, Jangmo-o told me he couldn't use Dragon Breath to save his hide," Sneasel whispered.

Jangmo-o limped out of the treasure pile, right eye swollen and forehead scale cracked. "I'm done… listening to you. To _all_ of you!" Jangmo-o shouted, spitting a mouthful of blood from his cracked lip onto the ground.

Totem Kommo-o stood up. "What are you playing at, _boy?_ " he growled.

"I'm playing at the fact that… that you're a _terrible_ leader! And an even worse dad!" Jangmo-o shouted, snorting tufts of dragonfire.

"You take that back, punk," Hakamo-o hissed, launching dragonfire of his own. Jangmo-o canceled it out, nearly stumbling to the ground in the process. Hakamo-o clenched his fists.

"I won't! Because I'm telling the truth." Jangmo-o turned back to Totem Kommo-o. "Day in and day out… it was eat, train, pray to Rayquaza, sleep, and repeat. I did _everything_ you told me to, but it still wasn't good enough. You never left me any time for myself." He looked out at the various assembled dragons. "Nobody here ever gets time for themselves!"

He limped toward his father. "Can anyone… in this tribe… _really_ say that they're happy?" he said. "I know I wasn't. That's why I left. Our stupid customs… were driving me bonkers!"

"I see that your time away from our home has corrupted you far more than I thought possible," Totem Kommo said, picking up his axe. He glared at Sneasel and Lycanroc.

"No, it has nothing to do with those two," Jangmo-o said. To his father's surprise, he turned and blasted a purple fireball at his teammates. The dragons surrounding them scattered. Sneasel barely snuffed it out with ice shards in time to save his hide.

"Hey! What gives? Quit being such a doofus," Sneasel growled, brandishing his claws.

"You're not the boss of me," Jangmo-o said. "All this time… I thought you were supposed to be my friends. But I was just a meat shield for you two, wasn't I? Neither of you gave a lick about me!" He teared up. "I thought… you could show me what it'd be like to have fun, Sneasel. But you were lying. Being a thug isn't fun. Getting my butt kicked isn't fun. And being thrown in jail isn't fun!"

Sneasel rolled his eyes. "It's your fault for being such a weak— _yow!_ "

Sneasel's red feather caught on fire. He dropped to the ground, trying to snuff it out. Jangmo-o blew purple smoke out of his face. "I'm done with you," Jangmo-o said, limping toward the statue of Rayquaza. "And I'm certainly not going back to living in this crummy place."

Two glowing fists nearly connected with an unsuspecting Jangmo-o. Blaziken and Swampert appeared next to him, turning aside Hakamo-o and Totem Kommo-o, respectively. Totem Kommo-o glared at Swampert. "You dare to intervene in this?" he growled.

"I want to hear what the little guy has to say. And I think you need to hear it, too," Swampert said.

"I just want to be happy, Dad. Why can't you accept that?" Jangmo-o said.

Totem Kommo-o's nostrils flared. "Because Rayquaza—"

"Ultimately doesn't care what we do every minute of every day," Jangmo-o said. "Hey, listen up!" he shouted at the onlooking dragons. "Can any of you honestly say you're happy? Do you _really_ enjoy living here and doing the same exact thing every single day?"

None of the dragons answered him. Many exchanged blank looks.

"But… but what else would we do?" Pink-Wings said.

"That's just it! You don't know… because you've never had the chance to figure out what you enjoy about life," Jangmo-o said, looking Pink-Wings and her mate in the eye. "There's a whole continent out there beyond this place. We've always talked down about civilized 'mons and how weak-willed they are… but that's not true." He looked down. "I finally understand… we've had it backwards. _We're_ the ones who are weak."

Swampert coated his fists in ice, daring an angry Totem Kommo-o to attack his son. Totem Kommo-o stepped back, right eye twitching. "We… are not… weak," he growled.

"Yes, we are," Jangmo-o said. "Maybe you've got strong attacks, Dad, but you lack something civilized 'mons like these No-Scales have."

"Don't tell me he's gonna say friendship. It's friendship, isn't it?" Seraph said, rubbing the center of her brow.

"They know how to work together… and treat each other as equals!" Jangmo-o said, turning to glare at Lycanroc and Sneasel. "All you've ever done is bark orders at us. At least Mom made me feel like I actually mattered. Where is she, anyway?" He scanned the crowd, only to see a bunch of despondent looks. "H… hey? What's with the sudden attitude shift?" Jangmo-o said.

"Mom died after you left," Hakamo-o growled. "It's your fault. You ran away!"

Jangmo-o froze. "No," he whispered. "That… that can't be true." He looked around, but it seemed that even the team from the guild already knew. None of them would meet his gaze. "No… _no!_ " he shouted, stomping a foreleg on the ground. "This isn't… I didn't… _it's not my fault!_ "

He craned his head skyward and roared. It wasn't one of his usual squeaks or squeals. Nor was it particularly deep. But it was a loud, full-blown roar. Something primal stirred in his gut. The longer Jangmo-o roared, the more it bubbled to the surface. It was hot. Really hot. There was a fire in his belly that was spilling out and spreading across his scales.

The heat grew warmer and warmer. His upper body lifted off the ground. Jangmo-o's roar strengthened. Hard, thick scales sprouted up on his forelegs. No, they weren't forelegs anymore. They were arms ending with long, razor-sharp claws. The new scales spilled across his torso and down his legs. An invisible force grabbed his tail and forehead scale and stretched them out.

"Are you kidding me?" Lycanroc gasped, shielding his eyes from the blinding flash of white light. It faded, revealing Jangmo-o's evolution. He stood a head taller than his younger brother, with a longer neck, a more-pointed snout, and blue scales at the end of his tail.

"Seriously? This is just great… now everyone's gonna think we're the same," his brother said, clenching a fist.

"Nah. We can call you Short-Claws … cause your bro's are way longer," Black-Fins said, chuckling.

"You take that back!" the newly-dubbed Short-Claws fumed, stomping about in a tantrum.

Fresh off his evolution, Hakamo-o looked down at his hands and flexed his claws. "This is... this has to be a dream or something," he whispered. The sight didn't make him happy. His mother was still dead. And he had run away without saying goodbye to her. Hakamo-o put a hand to his chest. Tears ran down his cheeks.

"Perhaps now you'll see reason," Totem Kommo-o said.

"No," Hakamo-o whispered. He opened his eyes and glared at Totem Kommo-o. "This is all on you. You were too hard on me… on her… on everyone!" Hakamo-o leaped up and grabbed the Scalebound Shard from its spot in the Rayquaza statue's mouth. An intense warmth surged through his system. Hissing, he tossed it to Magearna, who caught it in inside a gray bag.

"I know what I have to do… and what Mom would want me to do." Hakamo-o looked at Magearna. "You guys… you need to take that somewhere, don't you?"

 **Correct. We're bringing it to Circadian Coast so we can complete the Dawn Hourglass,** Magearna explained.

"Then I'm coming with you," Hakamo-o said, stomping toward Magearna. The dragons gasped.

"What? After all this, you're just going to walk out on us… again?" Short-Claws said.

Hakamo-o shook his head. "I'm leaving because I want to help. It's like I said earlier, these guys know how to cooperate and treat each other as equals. I think _that's_ the key to finding happiness in my life," he said. Hakamo-o glanced at the various dragons near him. "Any of you are welcome to come with and help… or you can stay here. It's up to you."

"Err, I don't think we need a small dragon army to make a delivery," Sticky said, rubbing his hands together nervously.

 **Actually, I think an escort could be useful,** Magearna said. **If something does happen, backup would be greatly appreciatated.**

Pink-Wings and Striped-Fin stepped forward. "Count us in! If the continent's in trouble, then we can't sit around," Pink-Wings said.

One by one, other dragons stepped forward. Totem Kommo-o looked around in surprise. Hakamo-o stared his father down. "Well, Dad, I guess this is good-bye… for real," he said.

"We can't just… leave this Mystery Dungeon," Totem Kommo-o said.

"You can. You just don't want to. But, unlike you, I'm not going to force anyone to do something they don't want to do." Hakamo-o said, smirking.

Totem Kommo-o tightened his grip on his axe. After a moment of silence, he raised it up high. "Very well! After careful consideration, I, too, shall break with the traditions of our ancestors and provide protection for these No-Scales," he bellowed.

Beeps sounded from Magearna's chest. The Gear-Com emerged from its compartment, quieting the cheering dragons.

 _"Magearna, can you hear me? It's Espeon."_

 **Ah, excellsiative timing, Espeon. We've gotten a hold of the Scalebound Shard and we're starting the trek back to Circadian Coast. We should be there in a few hours,** Magearna said.

 _"Great. We managed to get the Seaside Shard. Primarina had it and… well, I think this is a story best saved for when we see you in person,"_ Espeon said, chuckling.

Seraph raised an eyebrow at this while her teammates shrugged. "Weirdness seems to be par for the course for Team Radiance," Sticky said, chuckling.

 **Agreed,** Magearna said. **Fair warning, we're bringing back some extra muscle with us. We managed to recruit some of the dragons in Rem Canyon to help us.**

 _"Ah… okay. I'm not really sure how they can help, but I'll pass that along to my teammates. See you in a few hours,"_ Espeon said.

The Gear-Com retracted into Magearna's chest. **Now then, shall we get going?**

The assembled dragons all saluted their approval, then formed up a circle around the expedition team. Hakamo-o joined the team in the middle of the circle, looking down at his claws and musing about what a ridiculous day this had turned into.

 **End of Episode 13**

* * *

Bit of an odd ending to the episode, I know. But this was the most logical breaking point to avoid having this episode end up being, like, 12-14 chapters long. I hope you found it to your liking, even if it wasn't as crazy as the past few chapters. With that said... we have reached the final four episodes, folks! Well, final four numbered episodes, anyway. There are still two special episodes, but I'm going to do my best to keep SE4 on the short side and SE5 is... well, we'll get to that. So, look forward to what's to come. I know I am!

SuperOmegaGuest: dodged them successfully! Things will now resume their normal level of crazy. Well, until we hit the end of the fic.

Anon Omega: I'm going to lose you to Kingdom Hearts III, aren't I? Don't worry, I managed to squeeze a reference into a later chapter.

WatermelonShark: Thanks! And, uh, that "You Say Run" business is what we call a happy accident.

Another guest: Shane was using the Dawn Shards the same way Primarina was in order to sway the crowd to his side. Glad you caught the Sailor Moon reference, too. Espy's practically a magical girl, so it had to be done.

Next time: there's a fog that needs clearing... and it's in Shane's head!


	95. Hazed & Confused

**~Voltaic Crater~**

 **Vikavolt… Hourglass. I know you have it. Give it to me!**

Four metal arms bust out of a Chargestone. Wayward currents ran in all directions. Metagross smacked his arms together. A _clang_ echoed through the blue basin, followed by a brilliant rainbow shockwave. Tiny bugs disappeared in bursts of steam and light.

"You _monster!_ " Totem Vikavolt chittered, landing atop an intact Chargestone. "Those Pokémon were innocent and you… you vaporized them like it was nothing!"

 **Shard. I must… have shard…**

Drawing from the Chargestone, Totem Vikavolt arced lightning toward Metagross. His arms turned purple.

 **Distance dodge… times two.**

Metagross effortlessly slipped past the lightning. Totem Vikavolt barely kicked off the Chargestone in time to avoid Metagross ramming it. He fired lightning directly downward, shouting, "I'm not letting you get away with this!"

A psychic shockwave split the lightning apart and blasted Totem Vikavolt out of the sky. He plummeted to the ground, spinning and screaming. Metagross intercepted him. He drove Totem Vikavolt into the wall. Just as Totem Vikavolt's exoskeleton shattered, multiple colors surrounded Metagross' limbs.

 **Disappear.**

A brilliant flash of light swallowed Totem Vikavolt up. His Totem Crystal fell onto the electrified dirt at the base of the wall. Metagross dropped down toward it, ignoring the splintering crater he'd left in the wall. He grabbed the Totem Crystal in his upper right limb.

 **This does not… invalid registry,** Metagross said. **Totem Crystal… gave same energy pattern… as Hourglass.** He clamped down on the Totem Crystal, shattering it. Wayward wisps of multicolored energy dissolved into the air. Metagross opened his claws, sprinkling the crystal's dusty remnants along the ground.

 **Not here… not here… then where?** he said. **Must find… must escape. Can't be killed… I won't die. They must die… I will have peace.** Metagross' eight limbs turned golden and he clapped them together. In a flash of multicolored light, he found himself back in front of the large, electrified archway marking the entrance of Voltaic Crater.

 **Chargestones interfering… with ESP,** Metagross said, floating out of the dungeon. He sped along the trail, hoping to put as much distance between himself and Voltaic Crater as he could. After a few minutes, Metagross floated to a stop. His eyes flashed pink. **Scanning. Scanning. Scanning.**

Metagross' eyes narrowed. **Hourglass located. Moving south. Approximate speed… unknown. Not very quick, though,** he said, glancing at his limbs. **Can't draw on powers to close distance. Must go after it.**

He was about to resume floating, when he paused. His front arms twitched. Tingling ran across the jagged metal where his cross once sat. **Lifeforms. I detect multiple lifeforms… accompanying Hourglass. Some signatures are… familiar,** he said. **Former subordinates… are trying to use it… behind my back.**

 **I will not let them. The Hourglass is mine,** Metagross said. **I will escape. I will not die. They will not kill me. I will kill them first.**

He sped off down the trail, a stream of multicolored light trailing out behind him.

* * *

 **Episode 14: In Spite of All**

 **Chapter 80: Hazed & Confused**

* * *

 **~Circadian Coast, Daybreak Beach~**

Shane's biggest worry as he followed his team through the waypoint exiting Sunset Shoals was that, despite their best efforts, utter bedlam would erupt once the crowd was freed from their hypnotic states. And, certainly, that worry grew when Gallian, Zoroark, and Jolteon rushed toward them, looking quite confused. Espy proposed giving the wild Pokémon instructions to return home using their Dawn Shards, but was quickly shot down. That idea didn't sit well with her teammates.

He was so lost in thought, he didn't realize Cosplay Pikachu had recalled the outfits she had made for the team into the glowing orb around her neck. Luckily for Team Radiance, Kahuna Raichu stepped in. As the hypnosis wore off, he gathered all the Pokémon up. Kahuna Raichu draped the crowd in warm pink light from his Totem Crystal. The confused and panicked looks on their faces faded.

"Wait, I thought we agreed to no hypnosis," Espy said, brow furrowed.

"It's not hypnosis. It's Z-Power… I think," Silvally said, glowing pink from his psychic memories. "Feels like he's using some sort of modified version of Calm Mind."

"And just how's that supposed to work?" Espy said, ears twitching nervously.

"In light of everything that's happened so far today, I think it's best not to dwell on that," Tessa said, rubbing the back of her head. Shane and Silvally both gave her nods of support. "Besides. We, uh, have a few _loose ends_ that need tending to." She jerked her head in the Xurkitrees' direction. Gallian and Zoroark stood near them, eyes widened in a mix of awe and terror.

"Oof. Yeah, you're right on the mark, there," Silvally said, wincing. "Why don't you tend to your brother? Espy and Shane can help me with, uh, these two." Silvally couldn't bring himself to look at the Xurkitrees. His head crest and ears drooped. He curled sand up in his talons.

Noticing Silvally's discomfort, Tessa turned to Shane. "Hey, why don't you or Espy try to get those two out of sight. Like, over by the jungle," she said, pointing her left paw toward the edge of the beach.

Shane turned around with a gulp. He had absolutely no idea what to do with the Xurkitrees. Could they even understand him? Shane had no real body language to go off of. He couldn't even tell if they felt calm or frightened by what was going on.

"Um… hello? Can you guys hear me?" Shane said, raising his tails up and gently swaying them.

Neither Xurkitree responded. They didn't even move. How was Shane supposed to know if he was making what constituted eye contact with these Ultra Beasts?

"I'm, uh, part of the team that rescued you two," Shane continued, glancing nervously at his teammates. "We were hoping you could follow us over to those trees. Y'know, so we could talk to you… or something." He looked expectantly at the Xurkitrees.

Electricity crackled around their heads. Shane's fur frazzled. A current shot across his mane, making it poof up. It ran down his spine and jumped between his tails, forcing him to spread them apart with a startled yip. "H… hey! Whoa! Take it easy! I'm not out to hurt you guys," he said, ears folding against his head. He wished he could borrow Silvally's type-swapping abilities.

"You're supposed to have an ultra aura, right? You don't suppose these guys can sense it on you, can they?" Espy said, staring curiously at the Xurkitrees heads. No electricity was running down their limbs, so they didn't intend to attack.

"Wouldn't that make them _friendlier_ , then?" Shane said, digging his paws into the sand to ground himself. When the last of the current left his fur, he shut his eyes and scrunched his face up. He had to draw on Solgaleo's power somehow. Where was that burning sensation deep inside him? Shane needed it, but also feared he would accidentally attack the Xurkitrees and make everything worse.

 _'Deep breaths,'_ he told himself. Shane found the burning cinders inside his spirit. He opened his mouth, as if to gather an attack, but instead released lukewarm air around him. The Xurkitrees stopped sparking as a compass-like symbol faintly glowed on Shane's forehead.

"Please listen to me. We're not your enemies. My friends and I want to help you. But I need you both to stay calm," Shane said. He couldn't keep his grip on the fiery energy. It dissipated, along with the glowing rune. Shane stumbled forward. Espy caught him before he collapsed. Curiously, both Xurkitrees tucked their limbs in and squatted down so their heads weren't towering above Espy and Shane.

"What's happening? Did you make them mad?" Espy asked, ears and tail shooting up.

"They're not mad. They're just… confused."

Silvally appeared beside his teammates. Tessa was at his side, rubbing his shoulder with her left paw.

"You can understand them?" Shane gasped.

"I think so," Silvally said, the pink glow in his eyes and crest intensifying. "That electricity crackling around them… that's how they communicate." His teammates gave him skeptical looks. "It's, um, I'm not sure they have the same level of intelligence that we do. All I can really pick up are their emotions."

"Well, that's not going to help us," Shane said, figuring the day's real challenge wasn't battling an enemy, but trying to help the strange aliens. "Is there anything specific you can pick up?"

"There's confusion," Silvally said. "But also… longing?" He cocked his head to the side.

"Can't you try reading their minds?" Tessa said, frowning.

"I could, but I'm not sure what that would do to them. The last thing I want is to set off a panic while Kahuna Raichu's tending to all those other Pokémon," Silvally said, frowning. "Hang on, I think there's one thing I can try." Silvally stepped forward, gulping. There were faint whispers in the back of his mind. Telling him not to help, but to slaughter. These weren't Pokémon, after all. They weren't worth his time or energy. Silvally felt piercing gazes staring him down from all directions, but couldn't see them.

He shut his eyes. A purple iris with a slit pupil looked back at him. He scrunched up his face. Silvally shook his head. His teammates were counting on him. He revved up his cheek-bolts, generating pink sparks. The Xurkitrees twitched, then released stray bolts of their own. This back and forth continued for a few seconds.

"I think I've got something," Silvally said. "The fear and confusion is from all this unfamiliarity. These guys are used to lightning. From what I could gather, their world is a world of electricity and little else." His teammates exchanged concerned looks. Silvally's head crest drooped. "You guys aren't doubting me, are you?"

"What? No, of course not," Tessa said, aura feelers tensing. "I think we're all in agreement they were somehow abducted from their homes."

"Like those Nihilego thingies back in the Cavernous Depths," Shane said.

Tessa nodded. "The hard part for me is trying to envision a world of lightning," she said. "Like, are these two the only inhabitants? Or do the other inhabitants look exactly like them?"

Silvally turned and produced more sparks. The Xurkitrees briefly crackled. "It's the latter," Silvally said, trying to sound confident. "Also, I'm picking up a vibe that's different than before. It feels… eager? Hopeful? I can't quite put my beak on it."

The Xurkitree on the group's left raised a limb. Everyone tensed, fearing a potential strike. It lowered the limb in front of Espy, who stared at it with wide eyes. "Is… is it trying to talk to me?" she said, tail crinkling up.

Silvally exchanged electric currents with the Xurkitrees. "Your bag. That's the source of the vibes," he said.

"You don't think they want the Dawn Shards, do you?" Shane asked.

"Wait!" Tessa shouted, causing everyone to jump. She cupped a paw over her muzzle in embarrassment. "Sorry, but I just realized something. If Primarina was the one who summoned these two, he probably did it by using the Seaside Shard's power," she said. Her teammates' eyes widened in realization. "If one shard brought them here… _three_ should be more than enough to send them back."

Espy looked at her satchel. "But… how do we make a portal to send them home?" she said. "I… I can't do it. Not after… not after…" Her tail curled against her belly and she winced.

Shane stepped toward her. "I'll do it," he said. It made the most sense. Primarina got power-drunk off the Seaside Shard. Shane didn't want to risk the same thing happening to one of his friends. Besides, he knew he'd have to accept the full Dawn Hourglass' power eventually. The problem was, he feared drawing out too much power would cause him to

"Shane, are you sure about that? The two shards you've touched already… those visions shook you up pretty badly," Tessa said.

"I used the Dawn Shards against Primarina didn't I? Besides, I have to," Shane said. "I'm not…" His voice trailed off. "If one of you tries to do it, you might end up turning as power-hungry as Primarina did."

No one tried to rebut him. They knew he was right. "Then let's use the Sizzle Shard or the Subterranean Shard," Silvally said. "That way, we run less of a risk of Shane having one of his visions."

"I like that idea," Shane said as Espy put her satchel down in front of him. She levitated the Subterranean Shard out and set it by Shane's left forepaw. "Here goes nothing," Shane said, putting his left forepaw on the shard.

Nothing happened. Shane looked down at it, brow furrowed. Maybe he needed to focus on what he wanted to do?

 _'Ultra Wormhole… I need an Ultra Wormhole to send these aliens home!'_

A white-hot surge of energy shot through Shane. His looplet and forehead reacted, shining brightly with the compass insignia. Shane's skin tingled and his prickled fur ruffled as if a sudden gust of wind had battered him. His heart rate spiked. This wasn't like when he used the Shards during the performance. It felt different. There was a weight tugging on Shane's forepaw, but he didn't dare pull it away.

He silently repeated his please for an Ultra Wormhole. This time, a brief ripple appeared in front of him. A purple eye flickered in front of Shane for a brief instant. His tails shot up in alarm. Shane shot a despondent look toward his teammates, but they didn't catch it. Instead, the pressure on his foreleg grew stronger. Hissing, Shane gritted his teech.

His teammates stepped away, staring in awe as white light swirled around Shane. It sprang off him and hit the ground in front of the Xurkitrees. The light spread out like water poured onto a mound of sand, creating a swirling purple portal.

"It's working!" Tessa said.

Silvally's cheek-bolts sparked. The Xurkitrees got the message and hopped into the portal. As soon as they were gone, Shane removed his paw. The flow of energy ceased, leaving a residual numbness in Shane's paws and tails. He stumbled and fell onto his side, breathing heavily. Tessa and Silvally ran to his side.

"I'm okay," Shane said. "I'm… okay." He shakily got to his feet. He wasn't exactly okay, but he was still himself. There weren't any extended visions. That was all that mattered.

"I guess… that takes care of that," Silvally said, visibly relieved the Xurkitrees were gone. "I suppose we should regroup with the others."

"Sounds good. You coming, Espy?" Shane looked over his shoulder to find Espy staring down the Gear-Com unit.

"Yeah," she said, joining up with the team. The Gear-Com floated beside her. "So, I spoke with Magearna. It sounds like her group's got the Scalebound Shard… and apparently some extra volunteers looking to help." Her teammates gave her confused looks. "I'm not entirely sure what she meant, but it sounds like we'll have all the Dawn Shards together in a matter of hours."

Shane slowed his pace, gaze drifting downward. Though this was good news, it left a sinking feeling in his stomach. He would have to accept the Dawn Hourglass' full power much sooner than he thought. Solgaleo's spirit would reawaken… and then what? Did this mean his time in the world of Pokémon – his time with his _friends_ – was at an end?

"Shane."

Tessa put her paw on Shane's shoulder. He flinched, tails curling up. "Are you okay?" Tessa said.

"Hey there, cousins! You get everything settled with those aliens?"

Kahuna Raichu floated over to the group. Gallian and Zoroark trailed behind him. Cosplay Pikachu lay fast asleep in Zoroark's arms, much to his chagrin.

"We did. And, even better, our friends managed to get the last shard. They're heading over from Rem Canyon," Espy said, tail wagging.

"Woo! Sounds like everything's working out," Kahuna Raichu said, raising his arms up and smiling. "I was able to get the wild 'mons back into the ocean safely… and sent the guests back to their rooms to recuperate."

"Um, so, should we set out to try and meet up with the others? Time _is_ of the essence, isn't it?" Gallian said, scythe flickering pink and black.

"Hey now, let's not get too hasty. You guys are pretty exhausted, aren't you? Maybe we ought to let Team Radiance rest up," Zoroark said.

Gallian winced. "I just… think it's better if we leave," he said.

Tessa stepped toward Gallian, confident his disaster sense was talking. Before she could say anything, though, Espy spoke up. "It wouldn't do us any good at this point. I mean… we never even thought about _how_ we can put the Dawn Hourglass back together from its shards."

"Hmm… that _is_ an issue, yeah," Kahuna Raichu said. "If I had to wager a guess, the Tapus would probably know how."

"Yeah. Braviary and Steenee are still with them, but I can't get a signal on their Gear-Coms… assuming they even have them," Espy said, looking at the Gear-Com with a furrowed brow. "For all we know, the Tapus might be blocking any signals out of fear Necrozma could find them." Espy sighed. "Latias said she could get the Tapus for us, but I can't reach her, either."

"What are we supposed to do in the meantime, then? Twiddle our claws? That just doesn't sit well with me," Gallian said.

"I think you should take the time to rest up. I can offer you all some food. And you can use my place to clean yourselves up, if you'd like," Kahuna Raichu said, smiling.

"I'd appreciate that," Espy said.

Sensing Gallian's continued restlessness, Tessa turned to him. "How about this? We take a bit of time to recover. Espy can get cleaned up first, then try contacting Latias again," she said. "As soon as Espy's able to reach Latias, we'll tell her to come over with Hoopa and bring all of us to the Temple of Balance so we can restore the Dawn Hourglass while we're safely hidden away."

"I… yeah, that'll work," Gallian whispered. Tessa smiled at him and nodded.

"In that case, I'm going to head to the infirmary," Tessa said.

"What? Why? Are you hurt?" Silvally said, worry spreading across his face.

"No," Tessa said, her expression turning crestfallen. "But, well, I want to make sure Jolteon and Vaporeon are okay. And—" She cut herself off with a gulp. "Someone has to tell Primarina about what happened to Serperior. He deserves to know."

"Are you sure you don't want some backup?" Silvally said. "I can—"

"I appreciate the offer, but I'm fine," Tessa said, aura feelers twitching. "You go get cleaned up. I'll catch up with you guys soon." She walked past the group, heading for the resort.

"I guess we should get going, too," Espy said.

"You guys can follow me back to my place," Kahuna Raichu said, turning to levitate his daughter out of Zoroark's arms. As the group walked, Shane cut Gallian and Zoroark off.

"What's up, Shane? You need something?" Zoroark asked.

Shane bit his lower lip. He had walked in front of them on impulse. "Um, well…" His voice trailed off. "Can I talk to you two?" he said.

"Can't it wait until we're inside?" Gallian said.

"No. I, um, it's a private conversation," Shane said. He needed their help, but his mouth was working faster than his mind.

"Uh, okay," Zoroark said, exchanging a curious look with Gallian. "Wouldn't one of your teammates be able to help you better?"

Shane shook his head. This was something that they were best suited for helping him with. The problem was his thoughts were muddled. He knew he had to say something before things got too weird.

Memories flashed by in his head. He saw cafeteria tables. Classmates stood above him, their mouths moving but no words coming out. Nicky's expressionless face floated by. Then, they all faded to black, replaced by disembodied mouths. The mouths curled their lips into smiles and opened wide. They didn't make any noises.

"Are you _sure_ you don't want your teammates? You look… _really_ out of it. And neither of us are healers," Gallian said, frowning.

Shane stared blankly at the sand. Slowly, he opened his mouth.

"When did… you figure out… that you liked guys?"

The words came out without Shane even realizing. After he finished speaking, he blinked several times, then tucked his head against his chest. "I— sorry, I shouldn't have said that," he whispered.

"I'm, um, not really sure what you mean by that. You're a Ninetales, after all," Gallian said.

"Huh?" Shane cocked his head to the side.

"Gallian, c'mon, you know he's technically a human," Zoroark said, shaking his head. "It might be different for him."

"Oh… right. It's still kinda confusing," Gallian said.

Sighing, Zoroark rubbed the middle of his brow. "How about this, Shane. Can you tell us _why_ you're bringing this subject up?" he asked. "Maybe if we had some context, we could figure out how to help you."

"U-um, well…" Shane's tails twisted around one another. He wanted their help, but was worried about recounting some of the things that had happened since yesterday night. After a few seconds of avoiding Gallian's and Zoroark's gazes, Shane mumbled, "I… it's Silvally. We kinda… might've kissed last night, I think?"

Zoroark's brows raised. "Oh. So, this morning, when we saw you—"

"That was an accident!" Shane shouted, flinching when he realized how loud he was. He shrank down toward the ground, ears and tail drooping. "And it's not just that. There were… a lot of strange moments… at Sunset Shoals. Pokémon were _staring_ at me. Not 'making eye contact' staring, but, like, staring at my body. I'm pretty sure Silvally was one of them. Hell, I think all my teammates did it."

"I just— I don't understand," Shane continued, shaking his head. "When we kissed, there was this tiny spark." He paused. "No, I think it was more than that. There was an urge… to do something more." Shane scrunched his face up. "But I don't… I can't… it was just an evolution high thing, wasn't it?"

"I'm not sure what to tell you," Gallian said, sitting on his haunches. "Like I said, you're a Ninetales."

"And, again, what does that have to do with anything?" Shane said, frowning.

Zoroark put a paw on Gallian's shoulder. "I'm not sure he really gets it." He looked at Shane. "Listen, Shane, Ninetales are _exceedingly_ rare. Like, aside from the Totem on Solstice Summit, I'm not sure if there were any other Ninetales in all of Horizon before you came along."

Shane blinked slowly, trying to process this revelation.

"In some respects, you're kinda mythical. And that sentiment spreads to your appearance, too," Gallian said. "My dad's old books mentioned Ninetales were _highly_ sought after as mates because of how they looked. So, you shouldn't be surprised by what happened. In fact, I'd expect you to get your fair share of curious looks any time you walk into a public space."

Shane took a cautious step back. "Y-you mean those Pokémon in Sunset Shoals were—"

"Checking you out? Probably," Gallian said, shrugging.

"No." Shane shook his head. "It… it had to have been Primarina's hypnosis or something. I'm not—"

"I don't think it was," Zoroark said, scratching the remnants of his left ear.

"W… why not?" Shane said.

"Well, uh…" Zoroark tapped his claws together.

"I thought you said you weren't going to bring it up," Gallian hissed, glaring at Zoroark. Shane's ears twitched. He didn't like Gallian's tone.

"Oh, come on, he deserves to know," Zoroark said, pointing at Shane.

"Will you stop talking about me like I'm not here?" Shane said, his temper slipping. He wanted their help, but they were only making things more difficult.

"… fine," Gallian said, turning away. "The truth is… we, uh, _might've_ been checking you out while you were preparing to Mantine Surf."

Shane's tails shot into the air, then quickly curled up against his hips. He felt unclean. "Why?" Shane squeaked.

"If it's any consolation, we both teased each other about it," Zoroark said, laughing nervously. Shane replied with a frown that said there was little consolation to be had.

"Like I said… you're alluring," Gallian said, biting his lower lip. "And that's something you'll have to get used to. Pokémon that can mate… we all have some degree of attraction to both guys and girls. My dad said it comes down to your spirit. You can have plenty of crushes in your lifetime. But when you find a 'mon that you can see yourself spending the rest of your life with… you'll know. It won't just be your heart racing or your fur standing on end… something will stir deep inside you."

Shane pawed nervously at the sand. "Then… what I felt with Silvally—"

"Honestly sounds like you got a bit caught up in the moment. Like you said, it might've been the evolution high," Gallian said. "Truthfully, I had some similar issues when I first joined the guild. Vaporeon was assigned to mentor me and, well, I had a real tough time concentrating on my work. It might've gotten me in some hot water…" He paused. "Like, literally, because I did get Scalded in the face for trying to make a move."

Zoroark burst out laughing. "And when were you going to share that with me, huh?"

Gallian's face reddened and he looked away. Shane stared at the two of them, unsure what to make of everything they said. Part of it had to do with Espy. Between their conversation yesterday night and what happened during Primarina's concert, Shane felt like he was stuck in a labyrinth maze with no exits.

Shane sighed. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought this up. I'm just…" He closed his eyes and shook his head. "It's complicated. It doesn't even feel like I can really explain what I'm thinking. Like, one part of me is a bit upset that I liked kissing a guy, but the other part doesn't really care. I'm so confused and I don't really know what to think. Is my human mind fighting with Solgaleo's spirit about the subject?"

He dropped to the ground and rubbed his head with his forepaws. "Nngh. I swear, this shit's gonna drive me crazy! Assuming I'm not already crazy! Because I kinda feel that way," Shane said.

Gallian and Zoroark exchanged worried looks, wondering if they were actually making things worse. "Um, if you don't mind me asking, is there something wrong with humans being attracted to the same gender?" Zoroark said.

"No— I mean yes! I mean, uh, maybe?" Shane said, ears folding against his head. "I'm not really sure. But—" He paused, his mouth still open. Shane's eyes widened in realization. The disembodied mouths floating around in his mind faded, replaced by the faces of his peers. Nicky appeared too. This time his expression was much clearer. He was distraught. No, he was upset. Shane was certain of it.

Shane took a deep breath and gathered his thoughts. He sat up, swishing sand out of his mane. "I figured out what the problem is. It's Necrozma." Shane paused, expecting Gallian and Zoroark to voice their concerns, but they remained silent. "Back when we were friends in our, uh, human school, we would spend time together. Every so often, some of our classmates would come up to us and make comments about how closely I stuck by him."

"I thought they were just wisecracking. And my parents told me that the best way to win people over was to play along with them when they were joking around," Shane continued. "So, that's what I did. Only…" His ears drooped. "They weren't playing along. The things I thought were jokes… were insults. They were picking on me and, by extension, Nicky. But I gave them serious responses…"

"Nicky got really upset at me. He told me I needed to keep my trap shut if someone came up to us when we were together," Shane said. "I didn't really understand what the problem was, but now I get it." He pawed nervously at the ground. "They were acting like Nicky and I were a couple… and when I took the bait, they used that opportunity to pick on us even more. Only I didn't pick up on it. I thought they were laughing _with_ me… not _at_ me. Which means that Nicky… he had to sit there and listen to our classmates call him gay."

"And you're only realizing this now?" Zoroark said, raising a skeptical brow.

"I, well…" Shane's voiced trailed off and he winced. "I wasn't, um, very good at socializing… when I was human. I think I probably misunderstood a bunch of stuff. I got told off a lot for making mistakes." He shrank down toward the ground. "When that happened, I would shut down. I didn't want to hear people telling me I was doing things wrong. So, I refused to listen to them… and kept acting how _I_ wanted to act. And, well, that included Nicky."

"But ever since I got here… things have been different. The more mistakes I make here, the more obvious it's gotten just how much of a screw-up I was when I was human," Shane said. "I'd like to think that means I'm finally learning how to work well with others, but I fear that this is really just Solgaleo's spirit shining through and that, in truth, I'm still the same stubborn, ignorant idiot I was as a human."

"That's why this is bothering me. What happened with Silvally… every time I dwell on it, I'm reminded of all the foolish decisions I made when I was around Nicky," Shane said. "And there are so many of those moments, it's overwhelming! It's suffocating!" His breath came in short gasps.

"You need to talk to Silvally about this," Zoroark said, a stern look on his face.

"W… what? I—" Shane cut himself off and tried to bury his head in his tails.

Gallian stomped a forepaw down in front of Shane. "Hey, listen up! You're doing the exact thing you just complained about… shutting down because Zoroark's telling you something you don't want to hear."

"But I… I don't want to hurt Silvally's feelings. He's… my friend," Shane whimpered. There was also the fact that Shane was worried about Silvally losing control again, but he didn't want to bring it up.

"Which is exactly why you should talk with him," Zoroark said, twirling a lock of hair in his claws. "Friends, family, a mate… they're all relationships. Each one needs a set of boundaries. I mean… I wouldn't exactly say I'm an expert on friendship or anything. But I'd like to think I'm experienced enough to tell you that a real friend is someone who knows you well enough to understand when they've crossed a line. Which, it sounds like, Silvally did for you."

Shane's jaw slackened. In a swirl of light and colors, Zoroark faded out of Shane's vision, replaced by Nicky's blurry image.

 _"For god's sake, Shane, you've got to stop being so clingy! You're just giving them more ammunition. Please… respect my boundaries, dude."_

"I see," Shane whispered, lowering his head as the mental image faded away. "Thanks… for helping me and stuff."

Gallian and Zoroark exchanged unconvinced looks. "We should try to find Kahuna Racihu's place. After all, you must be pretty tired," Zoroark said.

"No, I'm okay," Shane said, looking at them. "You guys go ahead. I need to do some thinking."

"You sure?" Gallian said.

Shane nodded. "I'll be fine. Like I said, I appreciate you hearing me out."

"Err… okay, then. Guess we'll see you back in the resort," Gallian said. He walked along the beach with Zoroark following him. Zoroark was about to say something to Gallian, when he caught sight of Tessa walking past him. Gallian tried to get Tessa's attention, but she was focused on Shane.

"Um, should we try to stop her? Shane seemed like he wanted to be alone," Zoroark said, frowning.

"I think it's best if we stay out of it," Gallian said, his eyes flickering pink. "Much as I hate to say it… I think they can do better for each other than we can." With a sigh, he turned back around and proceeded toward the resort.

* * *

 **~Frosty Grotto Summit~**

Even with prism armor covering her whole body, Zero hated the cold. It irked her that her last-second detour brought her to such a frigid place. She tolerated it in this instance, however, because it made for perfect cover. Using her psionic powers, she had whipped snow up from giant mounds around her, forming an icy veil to hide her approach. Zero floated in the air, knowing the crunching of her feet against the snow could tip her target off. Assuming, of course, her target hadn't already fled.

Zero paused to focus on her aura sense. There was a weak flare pulsating a few yards ahead of her. It flickered like a dying candle's flame in her aura sight. She had no doubt the Pokémon she sensed was aged and, thus, the one she was looking for. Zero spun her staff around. She made a peephole in her snowy veil. There, pacing nervously around an ice-coated nest, was a raggedy Absol. His scythe, tail, and claws were brittle. The horn was even chipped at its tip. Absol's fur had grayed.

"Apologies, old-timer," Zero said, raising her free paw. Absol's scythe flickered. He turned around. His eyes widened. Zero whipped her paw forward. A distorted red forcefield formed around Absol. He tried to run out of the forcefield, but found himself moving in slow-motion. Zero pointed her scepter at Absol. Red cube clusters popped in around the forcefield. Red, liquified spears burst forth from the cubes.

They punctured Absol's torso from every angle. The forcefield silenced any agonized cries. Zero waved he right paw. The forcefield dispelled. Absol stood there, jaw dropped and eyes glazed over. Crystals spread out across his body. The liquid spikes retracted into the cube clusters. Zero pointed her staff at them and sucked them up like they were giant dust mites.

Absol's spirit coursed up her left arm and dug itself underneath her mask. Zero dropped to the ground and closed her eye. With his spirit under her control, she could tap into his abilities. She had no interest in the moves of an aging Pokémon, however. It was all about his disaster sense. Though she suspected old age had dulled it, she could still put it to use. With it, she could know with one-hundred percent certainty that her plan with the Time Gears was feasible.

Zero summoned the Time Gear in her possession to her right paw. She gripped it tightly and concentrated. Immediately, her heart rate picked up. Her eyelid twitched. Even her aura dreadlocks tensed up. Zero clenched her left paw tightly around her staff. Something about her plan was setting off her newly-obtained disaster sense. She had to figure out what it was.

Could it be the Time Gears? Zero opened her eye and stared intently at it. Her heart slowed down. She shook her head and growled.

Zero thought of the next component: Temporal Tower. It was needed to get access to the timeline, after all. Her heart rate picked up again. Zero stored the Time Gear with a wave of her staff, mulling over what about Temporal Tower presented a problem. The first thing that came to mind was the tower getting damaged and time standing still. Her breathing grew more labored. Her aura dreadlocks curled up.

"The tower… collapsing?" she whispered, her eye darting about. "But why would—"

Zero clenched her fist. "Necky," she hissed, shutting her eye. "It's him, isn't it?" In response, her aura dreadlocks lashed at the air like furry whips. She had her answer. Necrozma was trying to destroy Temporal Tower. Which meant, she had to stop him.

She thought of her plan with Manaphy. If she could distract Necrozma, Manaphy could use Heart Swap. Her heart rate slowed a bit and her aura dreadlocks relaxed. She nodded. Her plan was sound. However, if Necrozma was going to attack Temporal Tower, would she need all the Time Gears, first? She opened her eye and looked at her red chest spike. Her heart rate hadn't picked back up again.

The way forward was clear. First, Dragonite would steal the Time Gears. Then, she'd use them to get to Temporal Tower, ideally before Necrozma could. Nodding in approval, Zero raised her staff to open up a portal. However, her aura dreadlocks tensed. She looked up.

"Stop right there, heathen!"

A shrill squawk cut through the air. With a hearty flap of her wings, Articuno descended from a gray storm cloud. "I saw what you did. You're the vile mortal who got Zapdos, aren't you?" she cawed.

"And what if I am?" Zero said, eye flashing blue.

Frigid air whipped up around Zero. Aritcuno narrowed her eyes. "You robbed me of two dear friends! I will not let these injustices stand!" she bellowed. "I will freeze you to the bone with a single strike, fiend!"

Zero tensed up, realizing Articuno intended to end her with Sheer Cold. She wouldn't give the god the chance. Concentrating on her spiritual energy, Zero shot into the air. A silhouette of Zapdos momentarily flickered in around her. Articuno was too busy concentrating on gathering gale-force wind for an all-out assault to notice. Zero silently raised her scepter.

A multi-ringed sigil with a lightning bolt in the center appeared around it. Identical runes appeared over Articuno. She looked up. Her eyes bulged out. Articuno tried to back away, but couldn't escape the lightning storm that rained down on her from above. It seared her feathers and scorched her tail to a smoke stub. Articuno plummeted to the ground. She landed in a snowbank with an unceremonious _thud._

Zero tightened her grip on her staff. Black shadows spiraled around it. They dispelled, revealing a scythe resembling the one Absol had. Zero slashed the air in front of her. Numerous black and red crescents sailed forward. They tore through the snow bank. A pained screech echoed through the air. Blood seeped into the ice and snow on the ground.

"I'll be taking your spirit," Zero said. She tossed the scythe. It spun through the air as if it was a spiky wheel. The scythe ran up Articuno's midsection, leaving behind a jagged red line. Black shadows spilled out from the distorted gash. By the time Articuno split in half, she was completely crystallized.

Zero stuck out her left paw and caught the scythe. She felt Articuno's life energy wash across her. Zero flexed the digits on her right paw. She pointed it to her right. "Hurricane," she said. A sudden vortex whipped up in front of her. It tore across the ground, kicking up snow and rocks. She dispelled the tornado, sending its contents tumbling down past the gray clouds marking the boundary of Frosty Forest.

"There. That little avalanche should keep the locals busy," Zero said. She tapped the scythe against the ground and it morphed back into her scepter. Zero used it to open a black portal behind her. She stepped into it, leaving the desecrated snowy area behind.

* * *

 **~Circadian Kabana~**

Kahuna Raichu's house sat behind the restaurant area of the resort. It was a round building with two chimneys made of yellow bricks to resemble Kahuna Raichu's ears. The inside was surprisingly spacious. Silvally had settled into the lounge room, planting himself on a shaggy carpet beside a wooden table. The walls were decorated with orange drapes and a single picture of Daybreak Beach.

He sat there, staring down at the table, even as Espy went off to use the shower. Eventually, Cosplay Pikachu walked into the room, dressed in a Slurpuff hoodie. She set a plate down next to Silvally. It held a stack of three pancakes shaped like a Pikachu's head. They had blueberries sprinkled on them in a smiley face pattern, with two strawberries serving as the cheek sacs and a triangular butter pat representing the nose.

"Tell your friends we've got pancakes for them whenever they show up," Cosplay Pikachu said, before leaving Silvally to return to the kitchen.

Sighing, Silvally returned his gaze to the table. And it would've stayed there had his stomach not voiced its displeasure. Silvally shimmied along the carpet until his head hovered over the pancakes. He had to admit, they _did_ look great. The steam striking the tip of his beak shifted on his fire memories. Silvally leaned over and nibbled at the edge of the topmost pancake. Blueberry juice splattered across the top of his beak. He licked it off with his tongue.

Slowly, Silvally picked at his dinner. All the while, his mind wandered. Try as he might, he couldn't stop thinking about his encounter with the Xurkitrees and the ley lines they were trapped in. His head pounded. Feelings of anger bubbled up in the back of his mind. He tried to pay attention to the pancakes, but it didn't work. The chains filled his vision until three red eyes stared back at him from his dinner plate.

 _ **We're cut from the same cloth, you and I. We're both monstrosities…**_ **immortal monstrosities.** _**None of these Pokémon here should mean anything to you!**_

Silvally shut his eyes, hoping to will the memory away. But that only intensified the illusionary eyes' glow.

 _ **Even if you somehow stopped me… you'd end up having to watch as the friends you claim to love so much**_ **die** _**one by one until you're left all alone!**_

That was true, but if Team Radiance stopped Necrozma, he wouldn't have to worry about something like that for a very long time. So, why was he dwelling on this? It wouldn't help anyone, especially not his friends.

 _ **And then what will you do,**_ **Silvally?** _**Go slink off and spend your existence alone in some cave like the gods you were molded after? Or will the losses prove too heartbreaking? Will you drown in the depths of your own despair… and end your life like I did?**_

Silvally swallowed hard. The red eyes disappeared. Silvally now found himself thinking back on the previous night. He stared down Shane's dazed, dumbstruck look after he had stolen a kiss. There was something else in his eyes. Silvally realized it was confusion. Possibly a sense of betrayed trust, too. Yet, in the moment, Silvally had ignored that.

"Hey. Shower's all yours, if you want it."

Espy stood across from Silvally, her fur extra-poofy. Silvally cocked an eyebrow. "They've got some kinda hot air jet for drying fur. Almost felt as heavenly as the shower," Espy said with a slight blush.

"Sounds relaxing" Silvally said.

"Yeah. And it's nice to have that glitter out of my fur," Espy said. "That aside, I did try to call Braviary, then Latias." She shook her head. "Neither responded."

"I guess they're still tied up," Silvally said, his gaze falling back toward his dinner plate. "There are pancakes, by the way. You can grab 'em in the kitchen. They're good."

Espy approached the table, a look of concern on her face. "Okay, what's going on? This is a far cry from the cheerful Silvally I've gotten used to," she said.

"It's nothing. I'm just… tired, that's all," Silvally said, nibbling on a piece of pancake.

"Then you'd be heading for the shower, not sitting around and moping," Espy said, her brow furrowed. "C'mon, you know I'm psychic and you're not even making an effort to hide that you're upset about _something._ Is it the Xurkitrees we rescued?"

"I appreciate the concern, but I'm fine," Silvally said. Espy shoved his shoulder. His head crest fanned out in surprise. "Hey, what was that for?" he growled.

"For lying to my face," Espy said. "I know I'm not Shane or Tessa, but I'd like to think that, after yesterday, you'd at least extend me the courtesy of thinking I want to help you. C'mon, we're in this together, aren't we?"

Silvally winced. She wasn't wrong. Heck, he was acting a lot like she did to him before they had their talk. "You're right. I'm not being fair. Sorry," Silvally said.

"What's on your mind?" Espy said, sitting down next to him. She had to look up in order to make eye contact.

"A lot, actually. I've been… kind of going over everything that's happened the last couple of days. And it's… concerning," Silvally said.

"So, it _is_ about the Xurkitrees, then?" Espy said.

"They're part of it. I do feel bad about, well, slipping up around them," Silvally said, glowing parts turning blue. "But I'm finding myself stuck on something… something Necrozma said to me the last time we encountered him."

Espy curled her tail around her waist, trying not to think back to that awful event. "Could you be more specific?" she said.

"Remember how he said that, even if we can stop him, it won't change the fact that you're all going to die someday? And that I… probably won't?" Silvally said. Espy nodded. "Yeah, that's what I'm stuck on. Well, that and, uh…" His voice trailed off and his head crest drooped.

"What else?" Espy said.

"I… um…" Silvally winced. He didn't want to go any further, because he knew what he had to say would likely upset Espy. She didn't deserve that, especially since she was trying to help. "You promise not to get mad if I tell you?" he said.

Espy raised a brow, unsure what the problem was. "Err, yeah, okay," she said.

"It was something you told me yesterday. About how I can't help everyone… and that maybe the only reason I'm trying to help is because of how guilty I feel," Silvally said.

"Oh. I see," Espy said, rubbing her forepaws together nervously.

"At the time, I told you that it was on my mind, but I wasn't letting it bother me," Silvally said. "After dwelling on it a bit, though, I think you were completely right."

Espy bit her lip. Silvally's gloomy tone was so familiar. She had heard it several times from friends who she turned away with her dour behavior. Realizing she was dangerously close to doing the same thing to Silvally — and after promising to turn over a new leaf, no less — her ears drooped.

"Silvally, listen. I wasn't—"

"No. It's okay. You had a point," Silvally said. "I _shouldn't_ exist. All the strange looks I got at Sunset Shoals reminded me of that. I've been putting on a bold, uplifting face to hide the fact that I want to stop Necrozma… for selfish reasons." He squeezed his eyes shut. "We're both _creations_ … not Pokémon. We were made in roughly the same way… by the same creator, no less."

"I can't think about Necrozma without recalling the mask getting put on. I want him dead so I can finally put those thoughts to rest," Silvally continued. "Even if the spirits are under control, they flare up whenever Necrozma comes into the conversation." He looked at his looplet. "If I can stop Necrozma, I can finally be at peace… one way or another. So, yeah, I'm selfish."

Espy silently bowed her head, unsure of how to respond. It was such a sharp turnaround from the way Silvally had acted yesterday. Had she really worn him down that much just from one conversation? The thought sent a chill down her spine.

"Hearing that stuff about losing my friends… well, it didn't make me _snap,_ but it definitely made something stir inside me," Silvally said, shifting uncomfortably. "The voices popped up. They latched onto your words and told me I should distance myself from Shane and Tessa. If I wasn't their close friend, I could save myself from future pain."

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Espy said.

"Since last night, I've been acting like a complete idiot," Silvally said, looking guilty. "Like… flirting with Shane, then _kissing_ him when he let his guard down."

Espy's ears stuck up in surprise. She remembered Silvally had a few defensive moments when other Pokémon approached Shane at Sunset Shoals, but she didn't expect this to be the reason.

"It was wrong. I shouldn't have done it. He seemed confused— no, he seemed _hurt_ by it. But I didn't care," Silvally said. "I was letting the spirits run the show and, I guess, enjoying the ride. Because it _felt_ great. That look of distress he gave me, though…" His voice trailed off and he shook his head. "And, to make matters worse, Gallian and Zoroark found him sleeping in a bit of an awkward position next to me and they teased us about it. Shane was really upset, but I joked along with them."

Silvally almost slammed his head crest onto the table, but stopped himself at the last second. "I have to apologize, but I don't know what to say," he whispered.

"Wow. That's, uh, a _lot_ to digest," Espy said, hoping to gather her thoughts. She felt like all of this was her fault. Her stubborn, negative attitude _had_ rubbed off on Silvally. He was the one that was always there for his teammates, but now that was in jeopardy. There was also the matter of own slip-up during the performance. Espy was surprised Silvally hadn't called her out on it. She feared that, if she didn't tread carefully, she'd make everything worse.

"I think you're right… you should apologize," Espy continued, scooting closer and putting a forepaw on his back. "As for what you can say? I think the best thing to do is to be honest. I know I haven't, like, been around the entire time you two have been friends, but it seems like you two really forged a connection after the debacle at Tapu Bulu's temple. If you tell Shane what was going through your head, I think he'll understand."

"I don't know," Silvally said, tracing a talon along the carpet. "I betrayed Shane's trust. I took advantage of the fact that he was riding an evolution high to do something stupid."

"You act like Shane hasn't done anything impulsive," Espy said, throwing in a nervous laugh. She regretted it when Silvally winced. "Look. Can I, uh, be frank with you?"

Silvally turned to meet her gaze, then nodded.

"Well, to start with, I'm just as guilty as you are. I mean, you saw what happened on stage. It wasn't a ploy for the crowd, I had _wanted_ that to happen and got the perfect excuse to do it," Espy said, her shoulders sagging. "It was… a serious moment of weakness, but I couldn't help myself. Not even a day after I said I would try to clean up my act and I gave in to one of my vices. I'm ashamed, but at the same time… I find myself wishing everything was different."

She looked at Silvally. His brow furrowed. "Different like how?" he said.

"Different like… not being stuck with one guy because you slipped up," Espy said, cringing. "The soulmate bond thing is… stupid. It needs to go away. I'm tired of living in fear of getting judged for a stupid decision."

"I agree. It is a lousy system. But we can't change it at the moment," Silvally said, sighing. "Is that all you had to say to me?"

Espy shook her head. "There was something else. And, um, it's pretty selfish on my part, but hear me out before you judge me," Espy said, nervously pawing at the carpet. Silvally raised a skeptical brow, but said nothing. "Um, I'm actually kind of glad you told me about this stuff." She paused, expecting Silvally to get upset, but he remained silent. "It's my fault that you even thought this way. I shouldn't have been so harsh to you."

"At the time, I thought you were, like, a bit too perfect. You change types, you have a ridiculous number of attacks, and you always know what to say to help somebody out," Espy continued. "And you do it all with this unrelentingly hopeful gleam in your eyes. It disgusted me. So, deep down, I was determined to prove it was all an act."

Her ears drooped. She curled her tail around her waist. "Only now, I feel awful about it," Espy said. "Look, Silvally, I can't really speak to the whole immortality thing… but I can tell you one thing. I was wrong." She put a paw on his chest. He flinched. "You're a good Pokémon at heart and I can see that you really want to help others to the best of your abilities. Despite what those voices might tell you… you deserve to have friends that you care about… and ones who care about you in return."

When Silvally didn't respond, Espy took her forepaw off his chest. "You know you don't have to be perfect. I know you were _made_ to be this perfect god killer or whatever… but having flaws isn't the end of the world. It shows you that you still have room to grow," she said. "And, personally speaking, it makes it easier to relate to you." She paused, flinching. "That… probably sounded terrible. My bad."

"The point is… you shouldn't beat yourself up about this," Espy continued. "So, you had a slip-up with Shane. It's not the end of the world. We've all been under a lot of stress. Just tell him what was going through your mind. Heck, blame me if you want to. I'll take full responsibility. If I hadn't been such a bitch to you, I imagine it wouldn't have happened in the first place."

An awkward silence followed. "Okay, this is getting creepy. You gonna say something or am I supposed to keep talking and make a big fool of myself?" Espy said.

"You're not making a fool of yourself," Silvally said. "If I wanted to see that, I'd grab a cup of syrup and dump it on you." Espy hopped to her feet, arching her back up. "Relax, I'm not going to do that," Silvally insisted.

"You have a very strange sense of humor," Espy said, grimacing.

"Perhaps. In any case, you're right. I think I got carried away about all of this." Silvally slumped over, sighing. "Guess I'm not handling the stress as good as I thought."

"It's fine. That's what you've got us for, right?" Espy said. "We're in this together… no matter how many ups and downs."

Silvally's glowing parts turned green. "Heh, couldn't have said it better, myself." Silence followed once again.

Espy brushed her forepaw along the carpet. "Y'know, thinking about it, if we do beat Necrozma, I think the best way to have a clean start would be to stay here in Horizon," she said. "This probably sounds stupid, but I could use someone like you in my life."

"Meaning what, exactly?" Silvally said, a skeptical brow raised.

"Spending the past couple of days with you has made me less cynical. And you're the kind of guy who could hold me accountable. Like, keep me from slipping up and giving in to any of my dumb urges," Espy said. She shook her head. "Err, I think that came out wrong. Forget I said anything."

Silvally titled his head. "Are you asking me to help you?"

Espy nodded. "Something like that. If we can restore everyone, I think it's best I at least go to Paradise and Lively Town to apologize to the people I hurt," she said. "In which case, I'd want you there for moral support."

"Couldn't Shane do that? You seem to really like him," Silvally said.

"I like Shane, yeah, but I think that has to do with his antics more than anything. They bring a smile to my face." Espy's face flushed. "There's also the appearance thing. I have to work on that."

"I see." Silvally bowed his head in thought. After a half-minute, he said, "I'm willing to help you out, provided you do something for me in return."

"What did you have in mind?" Espy asked.

"Assuming we do restore everyone, I want you to help me find a home," Silvally said, drawing a blank look from Espy. "The closest thing I've had to a place to live is the Observatory. But it never really felt like a home. I want to make my own place. Somewhere I can settle down in and rest peacefully, either with you guys or by myself." He looked up at Espy. "So, what do you say, Espeon? Do we have a deal?"

Espy considered the proposal. A smile crept onto her face. She nodded slowly. "I think I can make it work." She stuck her forepaw out. "Oh, and call me Espy."

Silvally leaned over and nuzzled Espy. Her cheeks flushed. "Will do," Silvally said as he got to his feet. "I guess I should go apologize to Shane. Where is he, anyway?"

"Dunno. Think he might've hung back at the beach," Espy said.

"Oh. Then I suppose I'll help myself to a shower after all," Silvally said.

"And I'll grab some pancakes." Espy blinked. "Don't know why I felt the need to announce that."

"I think all that time on stage went to our heads," Silvally said, chuckling.

Espy paused in the doorway. "Well, do me a favor."

"Yeah?"

She smirked at Silvally. "If I try to win our next fight by dancing, slap me."

* * *

 **~Lively Town~**

In a flash of orange light, Mega Latios raced through the sky. Lively Town quickly disappeared behind him as he set off to the southeast.

 _'I don't see why I'm the one stuck doing this. Things are too crazy for me to go on some stupid search and rescue mission in the Grass Continent. What about the Time Gears?'_

Latios grimaced. In truth, he knew _exactly_ why he was asked to go the Grass Continent. Aside from his sister and Hoopa, he was the only one who could travel there quickly. Everyone was so focused on the Time Gears, they were all taken aback when Cresselia and Darkrai barged into Expedition Society HQ, both looking exhausted. Cresselia tearfully explained to Team Poképals that Manaphy had gone missing. At which point they turned to Latios, begging him to go look for Manaphy.

He wondered if Latias was okay. His last few attempts to contact her had failed. Latios couldn't get their mental link to work. He knew Ampharos had her working on something important, but did that really mean she had to give him the silent treatment? Or had the work left her so exhausted that Latios couldn't even sense her energy? He really hoped it was the former.

Latios rolled around in midair, unleashing a burst of speed propelling him through the night sky. There wasn't a single cloud out and he could see the sun poking up from the east. He blinked his eyes rapidly. Much as he wanted to go back to sleep, that wouldn't be happening. Latios glanced worriedly at his looplet. Jirachi assured him that he was safe from losing control of his Mega Evolution, but he still wanted to switch back to his base form as soon as he could.

He failed to notice a faint ripple in the air several yards ahead of him, until it erupted into an Ultra Wormhole. Panicking, Latios rolled right. A giant blue and black beam raced past his left wing. Latios stared wide-eyed as a black cloud spiraled out of the portal.

It was only when Latios caught a faint glimpse of a single red eye that he realized exactly what was going on.

 _'I've gotta get out of here!'_

Latios zoomed away, but Necrozma teleported in front of him, third eye glowing brightly. Latios U-turned just in time to dodge chains shooting out from Necrozma's wings.

 **"Oh, trying to flee, are we?"** Necrozma said, licking his lips. **"Heeheeheehee! Boy, I hAVe tHe STraNgEsT SEnSe of DéJà vU!"**

A blinding flash erupted. An unseen force shoved Necrozma back. Latios dove down, heading for the sea. He tucked his wings in, picking up as much speed as he could muster. Even if the splashdown would hurt, at least he'd be able to hinder Necrozma's movements enough to potentially escape. It was his only way out.

 _Latias, where are you? This is an emergency!_ Latios telepathically shouted, trying to awaken his mental link. He was met with no response. Meanwhile, the sea drew closer and closer. Latios channeled psychic energy, readying a bubble to isolate himself from the water.

Necrozma materialized on the water's surface.

"No, that's impossible!" Latios shouted. He couldn't break. He was coming in too fast.

 **"No one can outrun Necrozma!"** he said, launching a black meteor barrage. Latios formed a pink shield, but it couldn't withstand the bombardment. A half-dozen meteors struck him in succession. His Mega Evolution energy drained right out of him, leaving him in a freefall as he reverted to his base form.

Before Latios struck the water, black chains emerged from heart-shaped sigils in the air. Each one speared Latios, digging into his wings and torso. Latios screamed in pain as the chains wrapped around him, tearing through his feathers. Red droplets splattered onto the water's surface.

Necrozma floated up to Latios. He daintily clutched Latios' chin in his wing-claws. **"Look at how pathetic you are! Your confidence… your 'training' with your so-called** _ **friends**_ **in Lively Town… all it took was one glimpse at** _ **me**_ **for all of it to disappear!"** he whispered, grinning. **"Heeheeheehee! Deep down… nothing changed. You're still a dirty coward whose first instinct is to run at any sign of trouble. You ran when Latias crashed. You ran when Pokémon started turning to stone. And what good did that do you, hmm?"**

 **"Let me answer that for you,"** Necrozma said. **"It. Did.** _ **Nothing!**_ **"** The winged heart emblem on his chest flashed. **"After all this time, you've still failed to realize it. No one can outrun their problems… especially not the gigantic ones your backwards society has created. There is only one fix and that is** _ **chaos!**_ **The void! It must consume! It must destroy!"**

Latios feebly tried to stretch his hands out and claw at Necrozma's face, but Necrozma lowered his head so his third eye was level with Latios.

 **"WhAt'S tHis? SIlEnT, aRe We?"** Necrozma said, third eye flashing. **"Heeheeheehee! WhAt a FOol yOu aRE, lAtIOs."**

Latios' eyes slowly widened in horror. The chains moved up around his neck.

 **"Now then, I think it's about time we gave your sister a call, don't you?"** Necrozma said, folding his wings over his twitching arms. **"After all, there's someone who's just** _ **dying**_ **to meet her! Heeheeheehee!"**

The chains burrowed into Latios' neck. He screamed at the top of his lungs.

* * *

Yes, that is Absol from the original PMD game (or the manga, if you prefer that flavor). I think I aged him up a bit compared to both medium. Ah well.

Another guest: it's four episodes, not chapters. And two special episodes. So, we've got time. Assuming I can actually make it to the end. My health has to hold up for that to happen.

SuperOmegaGuest: _be careful what you wish for, young one._

ShadowsOfSong: so, uh, no idea if you're going to see this, but hi. You left a review on an older chapter, so I can't really respond to you properly. FFN removes links (including email addresses), but I'm not particularly comfortable sharing my email with a total stranger. If you're seeing this and have caught up, most of your questions have been answered. I can only respond properly to you if you create an account for the site. Sorry!

Anon Omega: it hadn't happened yet, but there is a small one in this chapter. Have fun!

Next time: another Valentine's Day special.


	96. Bonus: Valentine's Day Special 2019

Thanks to those who are sending comments. If you're sending them directly through PM, I'd ask that you consider using the review section, if possible. I look back at everyone's feedback and questions when drafting and revising, but it is starting to get tedious to try and dig through my PM conversations to find relevant comments. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

 **Content advisory:** this part has an early scene depicting physical abuse.

* * *

 **Bonus: Of a Feather**

 **~Sky Tower~**

Blustering winds rushed toward Latias. She formed a protective pink bubble, but the wind prevailed. It blew her back. She watched emerald bricks give way to a misty sky. Latias managed to steady herself. She brushed askew feathers out of her eyes.

"Pathetic."

Latias flinched. She cautiously floated back toward the roof of the tower, where Rayquaza sat coiled up, a scowl on his face. "You call that a Dragon Pulse? I barely felt a thing!" he spat. " _This_ is a Dragon Pulse!" He tilted his head up, opened his mouth wide, and unleashed a gigantic blue beam with a dragon-like shape to it. Clouds split apart. Latias looked away.

"I… I'm trying my best. Please stop yelling me. I can't concentrate when you do that," Latias squeaked tucking her arms into her chest.

Rayquaza thumped his tail against the ground. "Grow a backbone! You're a dragon, for pity's sake!" He snorted tufts of dragonfire. "Our spirits burn brightest under pressure, so that's exactly what I'm doing. Otherwise, you won't learn." He shook his head. "Of course, we've been at this for weeks with no progress, so maybe you're just a lost cause."

"I… I…" Latias wilted. "I'm sorry. But every time you put me under pressure, I keep thinking back to…" She shuddered.

Wind blades grazed her right wing. Latias squealed in fright and shrank back. Rayquaza hovered into the air. "Listen to yourself. How utterly disgraceful!" he growled, serpentine body weaving around. "You are a dragon _god!_ A lesser god, sure, but you still share a type with the most important immortals on the planet! But you…" He clenched his tiny fists. "You're besmirching us with your blatant cowardice!"

He slithered through the air, his golden eyes flashing red. "Running from Dark Matter. Trying to get help from _Celebi_ — that worthless insult to Dialga's splendor — of all Pokémon," he said. "You're a disgrace to dragons the world over! I'm trying to salvage what little I can from such a waste of power." He uncoiled, stretching up so he towered over Latias. "Now, _attack!_ I don't want any more excuses, only results!"

Air currents swirled around Rayquaza. Latias' wings drooped. Her heart was beating so fast it made her head hurt. She tried concentrating on her spirit, begging for some sort of spark to manifest. Latias thought about Rayquaza. If she could pull this off, maybe she could shut him up. Latias opened her mouth. Blue energy crackled in the back of her throat. She exhaled as hard as she could, but all that came out was a small blue beam. Rayquaza blew the beam apart with a single gust of wind.

Rayquaza turned his back to Latias. "This training was a mistake. You're unteachable. A total lost cause." He sank down toward the tower's roof. "Get out of my sight."

"W-Wait, Rayquaza, please…" Latias sped toward him. "I'm sorry! I know I'm not doing what you want, but I'll try harder! Please, I have to learn how to defend myself better."

"I told you to leave," Rayquaza growled.

"But—"

Rayquaza whirled around, eyes blazing. A fiery V had formed on his forehead. "Disobedient cur!" he snarled. Rayquaza rammed the V into Latias. An inferno scorched feathers off her body. She slammed up against a nearby pillar. Latias' eyes bugged out. Intense pain gripped her right wing, the likes of which she'd never experienced before. She spat up a mouthful of saliva, then screamed at the top of her lungs.

Latias crumpled to the ground. Her right wing lay useless at her side. The bones were shattered. Her paws trembled. The closest she could manage to normal breaths were panicked hiccups. Her heart beat became fast and thread. Tears filled her eyes, blurring the ugly, blistered patches of flesh where her feathers had burned off.

Rayquaza snaked around so he was at eye level with Latias. "Turn off the waterworks. There's no one around to feel sorry for you," he hissed. "Besides, you know recover. Heal yourself." He raised his head up. "When you're done, leave this place." Rayquaza spun his tail in a circle. The clouds surrounding the tower vanished, revealing the Air Continent far below. "I don't ever want to see your face here _again._ If I really need you, I'll send for you. But, let's face it, that won't happen."

His words barely reached Latias. Her ears were ringing. Searing light filled her vision. She tried to move, but white-hot pain flared up in her wing.

"Unbelievable. Look at you. We're Pokémon. We hit each other with attacks. It's been that way since the beginning. Quit this nonsense and begone!" Rayquaza barked.

With a muffled squeal of desperation, Latias drew on her psychic powers. She squeaked in pain multiple times as she hurriedly channeled energy into her wing. The mending process wasn't perfect. Her wing had awkward bends to it, but it was enough to snap her out of shock. She shakily rose to the air, only to sputter downward. Rayquaza grew further away while the mountains and forests of the Air Continent grew closer, though they were a mess of colored splotches in Latias' tearful vision.

Latias could barely keep herself flying straight. She knew she didn't have the strength to get back to the Water Continent in her state. Latias drifted down, wobbling as she struggled to keep her levitation up. She managed to find a tiny beach at the base of a rocky cliff. It was here she collapsed by the edge of the ocean, curling up into a ball. Sobs wracked her body.

No matter what she did, she couldn't stop thinking about Rayquaza. His harsh words. The fierce glare in his eyes. And the searing pain his V-Create left her in. Latias burst into a fresh round of tears, unwilling to move. She could feel Latios' presence in the back of his mind. There was an air of desperation trickling into her thoughts, but she couldn't muster the energy needed to activate her sight-sharing. She didn't think she even wanted to.

"Hey… _hey!_ Good gracious, what happened to you?!"

Latias heard splashing, followed by the squelches of wet feet on the sand. She didn't have the strength to roll over. Even her ESP was too weak to pick up the life energy of her visitor. All she felt was the loss of warmth from something blocking the sun's rays against her back.

She squeaked when a wing draped over her. Her wing stung from salt water dripping onto her burns. Latias tried to scooch through the sand, but couldn't. In the process, she caught a glimpse of the newcomer.

"L-Lugia? What are…" Latias flinched. "P-Please pull your wing away."

Lugia did as instructed. He frowned. "You're Latias, right? What happened to you? This is not okay. You're an absolute mess! Can you move? How hurt are you?"

"Not so loud, please," Latias said, wincing. Lugia shrank back. "I… I'm okay. I already healed off the worst of it. I'm just… waiting until I've got enough strength back to use Recover again."

"Forgive me for being blunt, but I'm not sure I believe you," Lugia said, brow furrowing. He spread his wings out. "Were you attacked? Is there something dangerous lurking around the area?" Lugia glanced skyward. "If I remember right, we should be right under Sky Tower. I can fly up and get Rayquaza. He can—"

" _No!_ " Latias shouted, loud enough to make Lugia hop back, fluttering his wings in surprise. "I… I mean… there's no danger. I've been… in the middle of this stupid training, that's all. It's supposed to strengthen my dragon-type attacks. But I didn't do it right, so it blew up in my face… literally."

"O-Oh. Um, okay," Lugia said, not buying Latias' claim but unsure if he should press any further.

"What are you even doing here, anyway? Don't you live in the Sea of Wonders?" Latias said, shifting about in the sand.

"Kyogre ordered me to come to the Air Continent and redistribute some of the ocean currents. It's, uh, a bit complicated to explain in depth," Lugia said. He realized his bad pun a moment later and laughed nervously, rubbing his neck with a wing. "A-Anyway, it's not so bad. I've got a second home of sorts in Silver Trench. Nobody can bug me there." He shook his head. "But that's not important. You need to get healed up. Why don't I fly you home?"

"P-Please don't," Latias said, a bit louder than she intended.

Lugia frowned. "Why not? You can't just stay here in your condition. There could be wild Pokémon lurking about and they won't have any qualms about going for wounded prey."

"I'm sorry. Really. I just… I can't go home right now," Latias said. Lugia prepared to reply, when Latias cut him off with, "I don't really want to talk about it."

"Okay." Sighing, Lugia turned toward the ocean. "If you're staying here, then so am I."

"Huh? B-But what about the currents?" Latias said, fiddling with some sand grains.

"I already finished redirecting them. I was on my way back to Silver Trench when I sensed your energy," Lugia said. "Look, I'm not forcing you to do or say anything, but what kind of god would I be if I left you out here in such a vulnerable state?"

Latias could tell his mind was set in stone. "Okay, but I might not be much for conversation."

"That's fine. Just rest up. Get your strength back. I'll make sure nothing bothers you," Lugia said. He waddled over toward Latias, then sat down in the sand beside her, draping his wings over his legs.

Latias shut her eyes and, before she knew it, she fell asleep. It was a dreamless slumber. One that ended when her eyes fluttered open to the sight of a half-moon's rippling reflection in the ocean. She felt sore, but it wasn't as bad as when she first arrived on the beach.

"Oh, good, you're up."

"You're still here?" Latias said, slowly lifting her head to find Lugia on her right. Three berries sat on his thigh. Latias couldn't make out what types they were.

"I said I'd stay with you." Lugia levitated the berries toward her. "Here. Figured you might be hungry."

She was famished. Latias wanted to devour the berries, but the burns on her neck made it hard. She took small, methodical bites instead. "Thanks," Latias whispered, rubbing juice from her feathers. She shakily hovered into the air.

"Hey, are you sure you should be doing that?" Lugia asked, getting to his feet. "Shouldn't you try using Recover, first?"

"It's easier when I'm floating," Latias replied. She closed her eyes and concentrated on her ESP. Latias pulled psychic energy from her spirit's core. She gently pushed it across her body. The blisters and burns faded. Her feathers grew back in. "Okay. Done." Latias wobbled in midair, but steadied herself. She lowered herself to the sand so she could catch her breath.

"You can go now. I'm all right," Latias said, waving a paw. "My brother's probably worried sick, so I really should be getting home."

"Are you kidding? That Recover looked like it took a lot out of you. I don't think you're in any fit state to be flying home." Lugia looked around. "Err, wherever that is."

Latias winced. He had a point. She also didn't want him to worry. "Well, like you said earlier, I can't stick around here forever." Latias scratched her right ear. "I suppose I could contact Latios and ask him to meet me here." She looked up. "He's not a huge fan of flying in the dark, though."

"I think you should do it, anyway. I'd offer to take you with me to Silver Trench, but…" Lugia gestured out toward the ocean. "I get the feeling you're not fancying a swim."

"A solid guess," Latias said, surprised there was a giggle in the back of her throat. Lugia smiled at her, happy he could offer a bit of levity. Latias sighed. "Okay, you're twisting my arm here, but I guess I can contact Latios."

In truth, she didn't want to open the mental link because she feared getting an earful from Latios. Nevertheless, she concentrated. Her head tingled. After a few seconds, she sensed a familiar presence in the back of her mind.

 _There you are, sis! Do you have any idea what time it is? I've been trying to get a hold of your for_ hours!

Latias winced. Latios somehow sounded even more panicked than she imagined. _I'm sorry, big brother. I needed to take some time to myself,_ she said telepathically.

 _And you couldn't have told me that? I thought you were supposed to be training with Rayquaza. I was about to go to Sky Tower and get to the bottom of things before you called,_ Latios said.

 _Training left me too exhausted. I didn't have the strength to fly back home, let alone use our mental link,_ Latias said.

 _Did… did something happen during your training?_ Latios wondered.

 _Yes. Rayquaza and I had a… disagreement. We won't be working together anymore,_ Latias said, sidestepping the heart of the issue in the hopes her brother wouldn't pester her. _I'm still resting up, so I was hoping you could come to me and help me fly home._

 _Is there something wrong, sis? You sound pretty out of it. What exactly was this "disagreement" about, anyway?_

Latias tucked her head into her chest. _I don't really want to talk about it right now. Are you willing to come find me in the Air Continent or not?_

 _O-Of course, sis. I'm just worried about you, that's all. I mean, you were the one who was adamant about getting Rayquaza to help you in the first place,_ Latios said. His nervousness made Latias' mind tingle. Her feathers stood on end. Lugia noticed this, but remained silent. He pretended to preoccupy himself preening his feathers.

 _I appreciate the concern, but it's fine. Here, let me sight-share my location,_ Latias said, reaching deeper into her psychic reserves. Her eyes turned bright blue. _I'm on the northwest coast of the Air Continent. Lugia's here, too._ She turned to look at Lugia. _He happened to be in the area and offered to keep me company._

 _Oh. That's, um, generous of him,_ Latios said, his energy receding somewhat from Latias' mind. She frowned, but didn't press the issue. _Okay. I'll head over there, now._

 _Great._ Latias released the mental link and exhaled. "Latios is on his way," she announced, stretching out and resting her head on a sand mound.

"That's good." Lugia brushed sand off his wings. He lay on his side, then clumsily rolled onto his back. "So, uh, if you don't mind me asking, what's the training about, huh?"

"Hmm?" Latias blinked. "Oh, uh, it's… a bit embarrassing, honestly." She traced a claw through the sand.

"I'm not here to judge or anything," Lugia said, propping his head up with his wing.

Latias squirmed. "Err, sorry. Your question was a bit… out of the blue. It's, uh, been a while since anyone's actually, y'know, taken an interest in my life," she said. "Besides Latios, of course."

"Ah." Lugia looked down. "My bad. Wasn't trying to make you uncomfortable. I just thought some small talk might help you relax a bit more." He frowned. "But I picked a sore subject, didn't I?" He shook his head. "Bet you can tell I don't get out much."

"I can relate," Latias said, then wondered if she should've kept that thought to herself. They lapsed into silence. Lugia kept glancing at Latias. She sensed his desire to help, but there was clear trepidation. Latias could tell Lugia was worried about upsetting her. Sighing, she curled her head and neck right so she could face Lugia.

"I've been training because of the whole, y'know, Dark Matter fiasco. Latios and I were the first of the gods turned to stone," Latias explained. "And we, well…" She shuddered. "We didn't hold up well in the Voidlands."

Lugia promptly got up. "Oh man. I'm so sorry! I _really_ wasn't thinking when I asked." He smacked his forehead with his wing. "Wow, I must look like the biggest idiot in the world."

Latias didn't say anything to refute him. At the same time, she didn't protest when Lugia got up and approached her. He lay down on his belly beside her, tilting his head to make eye contact. "Are you and your brother, um, okay? Like, have you been holding up all right?" Lugia asked. When Latias didn't immediately respond, he added, "You don't have to answer that, if you don't want to."

"Relax. I'm… thinking, that's all," Latias said, heart fluttering from sensing Lugia's intentions were pure. "It's been… rough, to be honest. I keep replaying the moments before Yveltal turned big brother and me to stone over and over in my head. All I can think about is how… _powerless_ I felt." Her ears drooped. "I wanted to make sure nothing like that could happen again… hence the training."

"But it doesn't seem to be going very well for you," Lugia pointed out. "Don't you think it might be better to try working with someone else?"

"I—" Latias stopped herself. "I tried. We both tried. Latios and I had joined Team Go-Getters for a time, but…" She shook her head. "They were so much better than us, despite not being gods. The missions they took were too stressful. So, we parted ways. I keep in touch with them, sure. But it's been… oh, gosh, a couple of decades, at least."

"Team Go-Getters…" Lugia tapped a wing-digit on the ground. "Wait. They're the ones who helped stop the natural disasters, right?" Latias nodded. "Ah, yeah. That was…" His voice trailed off. "Mom had to deal with out-of-control currents. All while her life force was fading."

Latias' eyes widened. "I'm sorry." She bit her lower lip, wanting to add something but fearing it sounded selfish. However, she ignored those worries, since this gave her the chance to bring up a similarity. "I can understand how you must've felt back then. Latios and I… our parents had passed about a month before the disasters started," she whispered. "We weren't hatchlings, per se, but we were young. I mean… we're still young. And I feel even more useless now than I did back then."

"That's why I think you ought to train _with_ someone," Lugia said, inching his left wing toward her. "We may be gods, but we're still Pokémon. We grow fastest by battling one another, don't you think?" He rolled over onto his back. "Heck, I'm going to start training with Rayquaza soon. Want me to ask him if you can join?"

"No!" Latias shouted. Lugia flinched, startled by the volume. "I, uh… he's too scary for me. I don't really think I'd learn well working with him," she said, her voice so soft Lugia had to lean in to hear her.

"Ah. Yeah, he does give off a real intense vibe. But that's why I think I can learn a lot from him," Lugia said. "Still, I don't want to hang you out to dry or anything." He tapped a wing-digit against his belly. "Say, why don't we work together?" Lugia sat up, smiling. "Yeah. I can take some of the things I learn from Rayquaza and do them with you. Only, y'know, without his whole super-harsh demeanor thing."

"Y… you would really do that, for me?" Latias gasped. "Outside of today, we've barely interacted. We hardly know each other."

"That can change. I mean, we've already got some stuff in common. We're both psychic-types who lost our folks when the natural disasters hit. And we're young lesser gods worried about being able to make a different in the world," Lugia said. He extended his left wing toward Latias. "Personally, I'd really like to see you again under better circumstances. So, what do you say?"

Latias looked at Lugia's wing. She stuck her paw out and touched one of his wing-digits.

"I think I'd like that."

* * *

Lugia corkscrewed through the air, then shot a translucent, orange Aeroblast beam from his mouth. Latias squeaked in fright. She ascended. A relieved sigh escaped her lips when she strafed clear of the attack.

"Nice! I think that was a bit faster than last time," Lugia called, slowing down and hovering in pace with steady beats of his wings.

"You think so?" Latias asked.

"Well, I wasn't counting seconds or anything, but it sure seemed like it," Lugia replied, throwing in a chuckle for good measure. He flew up until he was level with Latias. "Okay, now let's try Dragon Pulse."

Latias shrank back, fiddling with her claws. "I… I don't know. It's just not clicking for me, Lugia," she whispered.

"Hey now." Lugia offered her a reassuring smile. "Remember, there's only one rule in Lugia's School of Basic Training: no using the c-word."

Latias tilted her head to the side. "Clicking?"

Lugia nearly fell out of the sky in disbelief. He frantically flapped to regain altitude. "Aha ha… ha… no, I meant 'can't,' but you didn't actually say it, did you?"

"Maybe you ought to get all that saltwater out of your head. It's clogging up your brain," Latias said, giggling.

"Okay, ouch. If you're going to burn me like that, then you'd better back it up with a nice, powerful Dragon Pulse." Lugia spread his wings wide, switching to telekinesis to levitate in place.

"I… I don't know," Latias mumbled.

"Don't psych yourself out before you're even tried it," Lugia said. He flew toward Latias. She flinched when he gently draped a wing over his neck. "Okay, so, how about a pointer? The key to maximizing an attack that comes from your throat isn't just to, like, breath out really hard, it's to let the energy concentrate. You've gotta feel a strong tingle in the back of your throat before you do anything," he explained. "I know. I can't actually use Dragon Pulse, but it works for me with my Aeroblasts."

He backed away from her and spread his wings out again. "Come on, hit me."

Latias' wings drooped. "Do I really have to?"

"If you don't, I'm going to go on the offensive again," Lugia threatened. Latias frowned. Sighing, Lugia tapped his chin in thought. "Surely we can come up with something to make this work. Hmm. Maybe you're having trouble because you don't want to hurt my gorgeous face." He grinned cheekily. "Pretend I'm someone you don't like, then. How about Rayquaza?"

Latias tensed. She flashed back to her last moments on Sky Tower, paralyzed in fear as Rayquaza charged her down, a V-Create flaring on his forehead. Her breath came in ragged gasps.

Lugia frowned. "Hey, Latias, you doing okay?"

"Gah! Stay back!" Latias shouted. She flung a pink Mist Ball, that sailed wildly to her right and exploded over the ocean in a burst of fog of fog. Latias doubled over, shivering.

"Hey!" Lugia flew over to Latias. "What happened? Your energy's fluctuating like crazy." He frowned. "Aw, man, did I upset you by bringing up Rayquaza." He covered his face with a wing. "Damn it, that was so stupid of me."

"It's fine," Latias said, her voice shaky. "I… I'll try the Dragon Pulse."

"You sure? We can call it a day, if you'd prefer," Lugia offered.

"I want to do it," Latias insisted, her expression sharpening. Lugia backed away, a worried look on his face. With a deep breath, Latias again imagined Rayquaza floating in place of Lugia. This time, a spark of anger flared in her belly. Per Lugia's instructions, she pushed that spark toward her throat. A tingle spread up toward the room of her mouth. Latias thought she was about to sneeze.

Instead, she exhaled. Not hard, but gently. Her eyes bulged as a large, blue, dragon-shaped beam zigzagged toward Lugia.

"Whoa!" He flapped his wings once, thinking it enough to push him out of the way. However, the Dragon Pulse struck his right wing. Lugia pulled his wing in. He dropped from the sky, landing in the water with a big splash.

"Ah! Lugia!" Latias squeaked. She raced down toward the water, only to screech to a halt when a sudden thought hit her. Latias' brow furrowed. She drew on her psionic sense and found Lugia's energy right under the surface of the water. Latias opened her eyes. The water had settled, so she could just make out Lugia's white feathers.

Calling on her telepathy, Latias said, _You know, I can sense you down there. Whatever it is you're planning, I'm not falling for it._ She floated higher in the air, crossing her arms despite Lugia not being able to see her.

The water spiraled below her. A twister sprang up from the depths of the oceans. Gasping in surprise, Latias backed away. She could see Lugia's glowing blue eyes looking back at her from within his Whirlpool. On instinct, Latias hurled a Mist Ball forward. She was so worried she had upset Lugia, she didn't notice how much larger this Mist Ball was compared to the others.

Lugia's Whirlpool bent right. The Mist Ball sailed past him. Latias shrank back. "I-I'm sorry I hit you Lugia! I wasn't expecting it to be that strong. P-Please, cut it out. You're scaring me!" she cried.

Instead of sending the Whirlpool into Latias, Lugia dispelled it. Water splattered her from above, drenching her feathers. Latias grunted her annoyance. Before she could say anything, Lugia closed the distance.

"That was your best Dragon Pulse yet!" he chirped, raising a wing. Latias stared back at him blankly, blinking rapidly to keep salt water out of her eyes.

"Wait. You're not upset?" she asked.

"Of course not! The Whirlpool was just a harmless trick," Lugia replied. "See, Rayquaza said that, when you're in a battle, you can't expect your foe to always play fair. You've got be ready for anything!"

Latias puffed her cheeks up. "You jerk, you nearly scared my spirit out of me," she growled, craning her neck to bite the tip of Lugia's wing.

"Yow! I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you upset," Lugia said, wringing out his wing. "You knocked me into the water, so I wanted to get even." He bit his lip. "Besides, that Mist Ball you threw out was something else. I don't think I've ever seen you make one that big before." Lugia extended his right wing toward her again. "How about we call it a day. Truce?"

"Okay. Truce." Latias hovered forward and nudged Lugia's wing with her snout.

In response, Lugia enveloped her in a hug, then dove down into the water, taking a yowling Latias with her. He broke the surface a few seconds later. Lugia lay on his back, with Latias on his belly, and let the tide carry him in. Latias was too dumfounded to react. She lay there, dead silent, until they reached the shoreline and she slid into the sand.

"Sorry. Couldn't help myself," Lugia said, chuckling.

Pouting, Latias floated into the air and shook water off her feathers. "Ugh. Great. Now my feathers will be all sticky from the salt. Hope you're happy," she whined.

"Aww, c'mon. It's not so bad once you get used to it," Lugia said, flicking water off his wing in Latias' direction. She caught the droplets with her telekinesis and threw them into the sand. Lugia maintained his goofy grin, until Latias' pouting expression fell apart and she descended into a giggle fit.

"Stop making that face," she said between laughs.

"This face?" Lugia pointed a wing-digit at himself. "Sorry, I can't just turn this thing off. I'm just handsome all the time."

Latias laughed so hard she snorted. Her eyes widened and she tucked her head into her belly in embarrassment.

"See, you're laughing!" Lugia sat up, smiling. "I told you I could make training fun. It took a few months, sure, but we finally made it."

"I'd hardly call this training," Latias scoffed, having calmed down from her case of the giggles.

"Why not? We buffed up two of your attacks today," Lugia said. Latias prepared to retort, but Lugia held up a wing. "Lemme guess, you're gonna dismiss them as one-time things, aren't you?" He shook his head. "That's why we come back and do this again, tomorrow."

Latias' expression wilted.

"Something wrong?" Lugia asked, his smile fading.

"Tomorrow's not going to work for me. Actually, I'm not really sure when I'm going to be free these next couple of weeks," Latias said, tapping her claws together.

Lugia lumbered to his feet. "What do you mean by that? Did something happen to your brother?" he wondered.

"No. It's… um…" Latias winced. "It's personal."

"Latias, you're making me nervous, here. How am I supposed to respond to that?" Lugia said, voice ripe with worry. "I'm your friend, remember? If there's anything I can do to help—"

"Latios and I are joining the Expedition Society tomorrow," Latias announced, squeezing her eyes shut. When Lugia didn't respond, she added, "Y'know, the exploration group in Lively Town?"

"I thought being on a rescue team stressed you out," Lugia said, waddling toward her.

"It did, yes. But, well, Latios really wants to do it. He thinks it can help us both get stronger… and feel more fulfilled with our lives," Latias explained, running her claws through her damp feathers.

"If it's strength he's worried about, why don't you let him join us? I'm happy to work with him, too," Lugia offered.

"My brother's tired of living in isolation. He wants to be with other Pokémon. And I, um, kind of do, too," Latias said. "Why do you sound so worried about this?"

"Well, like I said, I don't want you to stress yourself out again. I just want you to be happy," Lugia said.

"And I want to support my brother. Besides, the team that recruited us, Team Gaia, are the ones who stopped Dark Matter. They've even got Hoopa on their team, so we're in familiar company, so to speak," Latias elaborated.

Lugia frowned. "Hoopa? Okay, now I'm _definitely_ worried. I've heard he's a bit of a jerk. Mother always said to stay clear of him if I knew what was good for me."

"You're trying awfully hard to talk me out of this. Could you at least let me try and see how things go?" Latias said, her patience slowly wearing thin. "Latios explained my… delicate attitude and situation to Team Gaia. They seemed very supportive. I don't think I'm going to have any problems."

"I'm not trying to talk you out of it. I'm concerned, that's all. I don't want you to, like, get taken advantage of or anything," Lugia said, sticking his head up. "What if the Expedition Society's just going to use you to, I dunno, get more money or whatever it is normal 'mons need?"

"Uh, hello? I'm an empath, remember? Don't you think I would've been able to sense something like that?" Latias said, ears twitching. "Look, I do enjoy hanging out with you. I don't want that to stop. But I'm ready for some changes." She floated closer to Lugia. "You're the one who's given me the confidence to agree to do this. So, could you please just wish me luck and drop it. I promise… I'll come visit you at Sea Shrine the first chance I get."

Lugia shuffled backward, tucking in his wings. "I'm not, like, upset or anything. I'm only looking out for your best interests… because you're my friend."

Latias tensed. Her pupils dilated. Memories of Rayquaza towering over her bubbled to the surface.

 _Don't you dare question me. I'm doing what's best for you! Now, shut up and listen to me!_

"No! You don't know my best interests! I do!" Latias shouted tucking in her head and shaking it.

Lugia took a hesitant step back. "Why are you shouting, Latias? All I said was—"

"Shut up! Don't tell me what to do!" Latias thrashed her head about. "I tried it your way and it didn't work, so let me do what I want!"

"What are you talking about, Latias?" Lugia asked, spreading his wings out and walking toward her. "You need to calm down. I can't understand you."

"I… I…" Latias picked her head up. She blinked a few times, then look down at Lugia. Her eyes watered.

"Latias, what's going on? Is there something you're not telling me?" Lugia said, brow furrowed.

"I-I'm sorry, Lugia. I just… spaced out," Latias said, trying to put the conversation to an end.

"That wasn't a space out. It was a freak out." Lugia extended a wing toward her. "It's okay. You can tell me what's wrong."

"N-No, I can't," Latias blubbered, tears trickling onto the sand below her.

Lugia frowned. "But I want to help."

Rayquaza again flickered into existence behind Lugia. He leered at Latias. Squealing, Latias hovered back.

"You can't help me! Nobody can help me!" Latias shouted. "I tried to get help. But Rayquaza… he…" Her voice trailed off.

Lugia tensed up. "Wait, what did Rayquaza do?"

Latias eyes widened. She hadn't intended to say that out loud. Latias glanced at Lugia, then sped off, tears streaming from her eyes.

"Latias, wait!" Lugia cried, but she was already too far away for him to catch up. His wing fell to his side and he bowed his head.

* * *

 **~Expedition Society Headquarters~**

"And this is the room we've arranged for you two. I hope it's to your liking. If you ever need us, our room's at the other end of the hall."

Latios bobbed his head. "Thanks, Braixen. I'm sure will have no trouble settling in."

"Relax. Take your time. Mission requests have been on the slow side these past few days, so I don't think you'll need to be up at the crack of dawn to run anywhere," Braixen said. "Or, I guess, fly anywhere." He chuckled. Beside him, Bayleef rolled her eyes, then playfully slapped Braixen's shoulder with a vine. "Okay, okay, I admit it. That one was too corny," he said, rubbing his shoulder.

"I'll say. Hoopa could heat that joke over a nice campfire and have a big enough popcorn supply to last him all month," Hoopa said, spinning one of his rings around his thumb.

"Right. Anyway, we'll leave you two alone," Braixen said. "Although, doesn't really look like you've got any bags that need unpacking or anything."

"Actually, I was hoping to take another look at the Pokémon Nexus. Would you mind if I went upstairs?" Latios asked.

"Not at all. We can go with you. Right, Bayleef?" Braixen looked at Bayleef, who nodded.

"Meh. Not interested. And don't even think about asking Hoopa to help wake Jirachi up," Hoopa said, tossing his ring back onto his horn. He reclined in midair, resting his head against his hands.

"Dully noted, Hoopa," Braixen said, sighing and rubbed the bridge of his snout. He beckoned Latios to follow him down the hallway.

Latios paused and looked back at his sister. "Hey, sis, you coming?"

Latias, who was staring blankly at her new room's lone window, snapped to attention. "I, uh… I think I'm going to stay here," she said. Latias waved halfheartedly at her brother and floated inside the room. She floated toward a straw bed, ignoring the yellow and light-blue walls, small brown table, and a note with several sets of pawprints on it. Latias curled up on the straw bred, sighing.

"So, how long do you plan on keeping him in the dark?"

"Huh?" Latias picked her head up. Hoopa floated in front of her, laying on his side in midair with his head resting on his right hand.

"You've been staring at the ground and sighing this whole time. And your wings were drooping for most of the tour. Hoopa didn't think Latios was acting like there's anything wrong with you, so Hoopa figured he must not know." Hoopa turned over so he was lying on his belly. He tilted his head to the side. "Why are you bottling everything up, huh? You get in a fight with your boyfriend or something?"

"What? I don't— there's nobody like that in my life," Latias said. She turned away from Hoopa, but he hovered around.

"Oh? You and Latios aren't—"

Latias looked mortified. "We're twins. I thought you knew that already."

"Hoopa did. Doesn't stop some 'mons," Hoopa said, smirking. "You ever hear of Espeon and Umbreon? The Magnagate researchers? Hoopa's worked with them. Hoopa knows they're lovey-dovey." He tapped his hands together and made kissing noises.

"Well, it's not like that with me," Latias growled. She tried tucking her head under her ring, but one of Hoopa's ring portals appeared right in front of her face.

Hoopa grinned at Latias through his portal. "Oh, Hoopa gets it. You fought with your _girl_ friend, then."

Latias squealed and hovered into the air. "Quit it, Hoopa! I don't have a boyfriend. Or a girlfriend. Or friends. I'm just a nobody, okay? Leave me alone." She sank back onto the straw bed.

Hoopa pulled a paper plate out of a ring portal. It had a frowny face crudely drawn on it. Hoopa held it up in front of his face. "Not until Hoopa can turn that frown upside down." He rotated the plate around. Latias responded with an annoyed huff. She tucked her head under a wing again. Hoopa rubbed his brow and tossed the paper plate back into his ring. "Sheesh. Tough crowd," he whispered.

"Look. Hoopa doesn't want to see a fellow god down in the dumps in like this." Hoopa pulled a scroll out from a ring portal and unfurled it. He levitated it toward Latias. "You're an explorer now. And one of the rules we follow is that smiles go for miles!"

"I'm sorry, but I'm not going to talk about," Latias said, digging her head into the straw.

With an unamused look, Hoopa rolled up the scroll and stuffed it back in his ring. "You're really yanking Hoopa's horns here. If you're not going to let me help you, then I suppose I'll have to tell the others that you're feeling blue and need to be cheered up. Then you're _really_ gonna get peppered with questions. Hoopa supposes he could read your mind, too, while he's at it." He shrugged.

Latias' head shot up. "You wouldn't!"

"Hoopa's bosses can tell you Hoopa is always serious," Hoopa said, puffing out his tiny chest and trying to wear a serious expression.

"Okay, fine." Latias figured the sooner she fessed up, the sooner Hoopa would be out of her feathers. "I did have a fight with a someone yesterday: Lugia. He's my—" She cut herself off. "He's been helping me train. I told him that I was joining the Expedition Society and we… had a difference of opinion about it."

"I can't stop thinking about it. I totally blew things out of proportion. I want to go apologize, but now that I'm here, I don't know when I'm going to have the time," Latias continued. "That's why I'm bummed. So, are we done here?"

"Yup! And don't you worry. Hoopa has a solution!" Hoopa declared.

Latias cocked her head in confusion. "I didn't ask you to help."

"Consider it Hoopa's welcoming gift." Hoopa winked at Latias, then tossed a ring portal open and flew into it, leaving Latias lying on her bed, a confused look on her face.

* * *

"Knock knock! Hoopagram!"

"Gah!" Latias shot up and bumped her head on the ceiling. "Ow, _ow!_ " she squealed, drifting toward the ground and rubbing her head. "Nnnrgh… Hoopa, what was that for?" She spun around and found a ring portal in the doorway of her room. Hoopa's head was sticking out of it.

"Hoopa's got a special delivery," Hoopa said, chuckling.

"Of what?" Latias asked.

"Of you!"

Latias squeaked in surprise as a second ring portal opened up beside her and dragged her in. Her world went white for a split-second, then she found herself in the middle of a damp cave. Old, crumbling pillars surrounded her. A pool of water sat on a ledge across from her. Lugia stood on the ledge, shuffling nervously.

"Lugia?" Latias blinked. "I'm in the Sea Shrine, aren't I?" She glanced to her right and found Hoopa leaning against a pillar. "What did you do that for?"

"Because I asked him to," Lugia said. He hopped off his ledge and glided over to Latias. Lugia landed in front of her.

"Oh." Latias drifted back, tapping her claws together nervously. This was her first time seeing Lugia since their spat a few weeks ago, but the impromptu nature of the meeting left her at a loss for words. "I, uh—"

"Don't tell me you're sorry," Lugia cut in, holding up a wing. "You have nothing to apologize for." He looked down. "It was my fault things got out of hand the last time we were together."

Latias raised a skeptical eyebrow. This wasn't how she had expected things to go down. "Um… I'm not sure I follow," she said, opting to feign ignorance and see where Lugia was going.

"I know about what happened. What Rayquaza did to you," Lugia said, curling his tail around his right leg.

All Latias could manage to say in response was a raspy, "How?"

"Hoopa came to see me. He told me how badly our argument had made you feel. We talked for a bit… and he helped me realize that I totally missed the signs that Rayquaza had done something bad to you," Lugia explained, wincing. "I went to Sky Tower to train with him and, while I was there, I took a glimpse at his memories." His eyes narrowed. "I saw what he did to you and I—" He shook his head. "My blood boiled."

"I knew Rayquaza wasn't the nicest guy, but Mother always looked up to him and said I should, too. He's so powerful… I wanted to be strong, like him," Lugia continued, looking away in shame. "I never thought he could be such a total jackass. You have no idea how badly I wanted hurt him, but…" Lugia shut his eyes and bowed his head. "I mean, you've seen it first-hand. Rayquaza's too strong. I could never stand up to him."

Latias shuddered. Her mind filled with memories of that final training session and the pain it brought her. "I guess… now you know why I was so skittish when we trained together," Latias whispered, wings drooping.

"I'm so sorry I didn't realize it sooner," Lugia croaked.

"Don't be. I kept silent… because I knew you looked up to Rayquaza. I didn't want to ruin your perception of him," Latias admitted, shaking her head. "But I guess I only made things worse by doing that, huh?"

"Let's not focus on that. It's in the past," Lugia said, offering her a wing. Latias drifted backward. Lugia withdrew his wing, frowning.

"So, are you going to keep training with Rayquaza?" Latias asked.

Lugia shook his head. "I may not have stood up to him, per se, but I did tell him that I was done training with him. I, uh, lied and said I'd gotten what I'd wanted out of our sessions," he said.

"What happened when you told him that?" Latias wondered.

"He looked me dead in the eyes and said, 'Well, if you're happy spending the rest of your days in mediocrity, then I guess we're done here,'" Lugia replied, sighing. "Eventually, I'm going to have to work with him in some capacity. Y'know, to help keep the world safe. Doesn't mean I have to enjoy it, though."

"Right," Latias whispered, still fidgeting with her claws.

"Look, Latias, I'm really sorry I gave you so much flak over joining the Expedition Society." Lugia rubbed his neck. "The idea of living in a crowded town with a bunch of 'mons doesn't sit well with me… and I guess I projected that onto you." He exhaled loudly. "But, well, it sure would be a waste to lose you over something so silly. Even if I'm not the biggest fan of what you're doing, I want to support you."

"You really mean that?" Latias said, hovering toward Lugia.

"I do. I think you're kind, caring, and pretty funny, even when you don't intend to be," Lugia said, stepping forward. Latias lowered herself to Lugia's level. "I imagine this new job will keep you busy, but I'd love it if we could keep spending time together when you're free."

Latias heart rate picked up. She thought back to the day she encountered Lugia on the beach. How her heart fluttered when he took an interest in her, even though she dodged his questions. "I, um, would like to keep seeing you, too," she whispered.

Lugia smiled. "Nothing would make me happier." He turned to Hoopa and nodded. Hoopa opened up a ring portal beside Latias.

She looked skeptically at it. "O-Oh. Am I going back already?" she asked.

"Only if you want to," Lugia said. "Otherwise, I wanted to show you something."

Latias' heart beat even faster. She leaned in toward the portal, only to back away when it flashed white. A pair of goggles floated out, with red, tinted lenses and a silver-white band. They hovered in front of Latias.

"These are for me?" she said, reaching out and gently taking the goggles in her paws. As she turned them over, she found the Expedition Society's logo etched into the goggle frame.

"Yeah. Hoopa put me in touch with Jirachi." Nervous sweatdrops ran down Lugia's neck. "He, uh, did all the work, I guess. But I gave him Silver Wings to make the band." He lifted up his left wing and flapped it slowly. "Consider it a gift to help you make the most out of your time as an explorer."

Latias repeatedly turned the goggles over in her paws. She levitated them in front of her face. "Why goggles?" she asked.

"Well, you can fly pretty fast, but I imagine it must be hard to see where you're going. Plus, if you're looking to get stronger, then sooner or later you're going to give Mega Evolution a try. I figured the goggles could help you deal with the increased speeds Mega Evolution brings," Lugia said, shuffling about. "I know, it probably seems silly, but—"

Latias sped forward and embraced Lugia. It happened so quickly, he couldn't help but squawk.

Hoopa applauded them. "D'aww, how adorable. Hoopa gives his compliments to the happy couple."

"W-We're not a couple!" Latias stammered, backing away from Lugia. She dropped the goggles, but managed to catch them with her telekinesis. Latias slipped them around her neck. Her feathers prickled.

"We could be, though," Lugia said, drawing a wide-eyed look from Latias.

"Th… that's a bit impulsive, don't you think?" Latias said, trying to compose herself even though her mind was egging her on to agree with Lugia.

"Maybe it is," Lugia said, shrugging. "But what can I say? I love you. I love spending time with you. I want us to make memories together… when you're not off exploring, of course."

"I don't know. I'm… I don't think I'm ready for something like that. I've never given any thought to having a mate… and I have no idea how Latios would respond," Latias said, fidgeting with her new goggles.

"A mate? Oh, no, no, no." Lugia held up his wings and shook his head. "I'm not saying we have to take that leap. I'm certainly not ready for that." He took another step forward. His head was right in front of Latias'. "I'm talking about courtship, that's all. Y'know, hanging out together, except there's the option of, like, kissing or snuggling or something."

Lugia looked away. "I know you went through a lot with Rayquaza, so I can understand you'd be… hesitant. But I'm willing to take things at whatever speed works best for you," he said. "We're both still young by lesser god standards, right? We've got time. Time we can use to get to know each other even better. If it doesn't work out, I'm happy just being your friend. But if, in a few months or years, we're both comfortable enough to move things forward, then we can."

"So, uh, what do you say? Would you like to take a chance?" Lugia asked.

Latias considered his proposal. Though she was a bit nervous, she couldn't deny how much she enjoyed spending time with Lugia. And, if they took things slow, she could figure out how to fit him into her life while supporting the Expedition Society.

Satisfied, Latias leaned over and pecked the tip of Lugia's beak. "I would," she whispered, nuzzling his cheek with her own.

A warm smile spread across Lugia's face. He wrapped Latias up in an embrace and returned the nuzzle with one of his own.

"Regardless of how this turns out, I'll always try to have your back," he said.

* * *

I like to think this is lighter and softer than last year's Valentine's special. I hope it turned out all right. I'm afraid that, between work running me ragged and my health and mood on the down swing, I didn't have as much time as I wanted to put this part together. Heck, this is the first full part for the fic that's been finished the same week it was posted.

SuperOmegaGuest: that Braviary comment came out of left field.

Anon Omega: not exactly what I was going for. The reference was a bit more, ahem, _pointed_. Like a scythe, for example.

Another guest: I have multiple autoimmune diseases that I'm getting treated for.

Sebastian: assuming you actually read this, I'm not currently thinking about any future projects. Assuming I'm even going to write something beyond this, because this is taking a lot out of me.

Next time: we see how things are going with Tessa.


	97. Secrets Laid Bare

For anyone who's curious, I posted some behind the scenes trivia about Episode 13 on the ask blog. If you're reading this chapter long after it was published, you can find the post in the archives for February 2019.

* * *

 **Chapter 81: Secrets Laid Bare**

 **~Circadian Kabana Infirmary~**

Tessa knocked on the thatched-straw door, then paused. When no one answered, she pushed it ajar and peeked inside. The healing station was a small, pink-tiled room, divided in half by a blue curtain. Orange drapes adorned the walls, filtering the sunlight so it cast the room in a soft glow. Two beds sat across from Tessa. One was unoccupied, draped in warm-colored linens. The other held Primarina.

He lay on his side, facing a window. He had some assorted nicks, a damp washcloth on his head, and grease on his hair and flippers. His costume — or what was left of it — was still on.

"P… Primarina?" Tessa whispered. "It's Tessa. Can I come in?" She shifted awkwardly in the doorway. When Primarina didn't answer, she pushed the door open a little more and walked inside, nervously fidgeting with the locket it her scarf. "I'm sorry. I know you're trying to rest, but—"

"You don't have to worry about me. I'm fine," Primarina said, his voice dry and flat.

Tessa winced, unsure of what to do. She wanted to figure out what happened to Primarina, but worried any attempt to comfort him might fall flat. And there was a part of her saying he didn't _deserve_ comfort, since he was the one responsible for everything that happened.

"My teammates and I just want to get to the bottom of all this… insanity, for lack of a better word," Tessa said, rubbing the back of her head. Her glitter-filled fur twinkled as stray light beams trickled in from the open door. Some of the sparkles crossed Primarina's vision. He reluctantly rolled over so he was facing Tessa.

"You look much different than your mother. You were dazzling in that outfit I whipped up for you," he whispered, adjusting the washcloth. "The one the human made didn't do you any favors, though. It looked like it was slapped together by a kid with no sense of style."

Tessa figured that summed Shane up pretty well. She finally stepped inside and shut the door. Tessa glanced at a small table to her right. A pink vase sat on it, bearing three sunflowers. "Yeah. The outfits disappeared when we got back here. Cosplay Pikachu couldn't sustain them anymore," she said. "Not that I'm bothered by it. That outfit chafed."

"Well, obviously. Whoever made it gave your fur no breathing room," Primarina said. He looked away from Tessa, grimacing. "Urk. That said… I really do have to hand it to you. That was quite the performance you put on."

"Aha ha… it was just something we threw together out of desperation." Tessa rubbed her shoulder. "We've sadly gotten used to working with our backs against the wall." Silence followed. Tessa looked down at the floor, biting her lower lip. "Um… Primarina? The truth is… I didn't just want to come here to ask you about what happened. There's… there's something you need to know."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Primarina asked, sitting up in his bed.

"It's… it's Serperior. She… um…" Tessa poked her digits together.

"Oh, gods… what happened to Serpy?!" Primarina said. He shot up onto his tailfins, only to flop back onto the bad with a fatigued groan.

"After you left to come back to Circadian Coast… Guildmaster Metagross sent Team Captivate to locate Tapu Koko's temple. But the Prism Virus got to them first," Tessa explained. She squeezed her eyes shut. "Serperior… she's working for Necrozma, now. We even had to fight her when we exploring Mount Supernova. She fled before we could free her, so she's still under Necrozma's control."

Tessa turned away, hiking her scarf up. "I'm sorry," she said. Tessa waited for a response, but got nothing. Her aura feelers curled up. Primarina's sadness was a veritable weight pressing against Tessa's head. She had to take a calming breath to keep herself from doubling over. Tessa always felt brief sparks of emotion as a Riolu, but this was much harder to tolerate.

"I've made a terrible mistake," Primarina finally whispered, squeezing a pink pillow against his chest.

"Do you, um, want to talk about it?" Tessa asked, her fidgeting intensifying. She didn't like being outside her element. Comforting others was Silvally's specialty, not hers.

"It's not that hard to understand," Primarina said. "I've always wanted— no, _craved_ attention from others. But all that did was cause a whole mess of trouble." He shook his head. "I was there, sweetie." He looked up at Tessa. "I was at the guild… with Serpy. I could've stayed instead of coming back here."

"I don't think that would've made much of a difference. The Prism Virus didn't just get Serperior, it got Milotic and Dragonair, too. And the other guild members are…" Tessa's voice trailed off and she squeezed her eyes shut. "We lost almost all of them to Necrozma."

"You're kidding," Primaria gasped, but Tessa shook her head. "I see." Primarina looked back down at his pillow. "This is all one giant mistake."

"What do you mean?" Tessa asked, aura feelers tensing. She sensed apprehension, but didn't want to push Primarina too hard on anything sensitive.

"I guess I should come clean." Primarina sighed. "Babe, the truth is I was _never_ really interested in helping people. I joined the guild because I wanted attention." He pulled the washcloth down over his eyes. "Vappy and I had met through dance classes we had both taken here. I convinced him to tag along and we became a team."

He paused. "Err, look, I know you don't want to sit around and listen to me ramble. The short version is Vappy and I used our missions to get resources to try and launch performance careers. When we figured out we could make music crystals together… we spent most of our time doing that, as opposed to actual guild work. When the music crystals sold, we were ecstatic. Vappy agreed to be my manager, because singing tired him out."

 _'This is supposed to be the short version?'_ Tessa thought, resisting the urge to shake her head.

"And we _loved_ the fame, babe. We got letters, care packages, fangirls… you name it," Primarina continued. "Of course, we did the bare minimum expected of a veteran team to keep our status, but our hearts weren't really in it." He rubbed his right temple with his flipper. "Vappy had actually suggested we retire. Several times, actually. But I didn't listen to him."

Tessa raised a brow. "Because…"

"Serpy! There was something about her. The attitude… the passion! She loved being the center of attention, just like me. We were positively made for each other, babe," Primarina said, patting his chest. "That's why I insisted on staying. I'd have an easier time staying at the Observatory with her if I still contributed to the guild."

"Okay," Tessa said, biting her lip. Through all of Primarina's rambling, Tessa didn't have any better idea of what had gone wrong to turn him power hungry. "Um, sorry if this sounds rude, but can we try to steer this back to what happened in Sunset Shoals?"

Primarina winced. His guilt tugged at Tessa's aura feelers. Her stomach gurgled. She wished she had kept her mouth shut.

"My music crystal stock had run low, so I set out to Sunset Shoals to mine more of them," Primarina explained, turning to stare at the curtain. "Things were going fine, until I unearthed a particularly _dazzling_ gem, babe. It was… so _magnificent._ I got lost in its, uh, radiance, for lack of a better word."

Tessa fought back a groan.

"The longer I stared, the more captivated I got," Primarina continued. He paused, then winced at the realization he had used another cheesy bit of guild-related wordplay. "Before I knew it, my latent desire for everyone to see me as a star grew stronger than ever _._ It was uncontrollable. I simply _had_ to perform in front of a grand audience." He gripped his head. "But there was no audience there, so I had to _make_ my audience. I found some wild Pokémon and sang to them. Suddenly, they followed my every order."

"That's… very odd," Tessa said, brow furrowed. She recalled the fact that Necrozma had created the Hourglasses. Perhaps a part of his spirit had managed to take control? But, if that was the case, would something bad happen to Shane if they managed to gather the full Hourglass? He managed to use two Shards during the concert, but she was still worried about the visions he said he had.

Tessa shook her head to stop her runaway thought train. There would be time to dwell on it later. Now, she had to focus.

"You still with me, babe? If you've got somewhere to be, then go. Don't worry about me," Primarina said.

"I'm still here," Tessa assured him. "Sorry about that. I was just… trying to process all that information. It's a bit much for me. Do you think you could tell me how you ended up with so many Pokémon in Sunset Shoals?"

"It was strange, babe. Real strange." Primarina sat up. "I thought to myself that I needed a lot of energy to project my music to a grand audience… and then a portal opened up in front of me and dumped in these two weird-looking electric… _thingies._ " He waved his flippers about. "I was able to bring these chains up out of the ground to corral them. Then, when I started singing, wild Pokémon came flocking in from throughout the dungeon."

"I amassed quite the following, but it wasn't enough. So, I ordered my 'new posse' to nab anyone from the resort who wandered too far along the beach," Primarina continued. "That's when Vappy and Jolty came looking for me. I wanted them to join my entourage, but I was too far from the weird things that amplified my powers. So, I attacked them myself." He buried his face in his fins and shook it. "I'm praying they're both okay. If I did something to hurt them… I'll never forgive myself."

Tessa glanced at the curtain. "I'm really not sure. I'm sure Florges is taking good care of them, though. I have faith things will turn out okay."

"I wish I could believe that, babe, but after this whole kerfuffle I wouldn't be surprised if Vappy never wants to see my face again. I think it's safe to say Team Harmony is finished," Primarina declared.

"Well, at the very least, you should try apologizing," Tessa said, fidgeting with her paws. "I can't tell you how Vaporeon will respond, but I think it would be best if you two talk through this." She wondered if that was actually an appropriate thing to say.

Primarina sighed. "I know. I'm not sure what to say, but I'll have to think of something. Regardless of what I say, though, I think I'm through with exploring. And since I used Mystery Dungeons to get music crystals… this might be where my singing career comes to an end, too."

"Don't say that," Tessa blurted out, trying to keep her tone even. "M-Maybe what you need is a break. Y'know, a chance to take a step back and reevaluate things?" She was tempted to ask if Primarina would at least consider helping them with Necrozma, but didn't want to press her luck.

"I suppose. I at least owe it to my adoring fans." Primarina sat back against his bed. "Was there anything else you needed, babe? Our conversation's left me exhausted."

"Ah. Then I won't bother you anymore. Rest up," Tessa said. She slowly opened the door and slipped out of the infirmary. Tessa walked away, wondering if she had actually done anything to help Primarina. At the very least, she had a better idea of what had caused all the commotion in the first place. Tessa figured she would wait until all her teammates were together to loop them in.

Tessa froze in the middle of the resort area. In her haste to go to the infirmary, she had made a tiny mistake.

 _'Where the heck does Kahuna Raichu live?'_

* * *

 **~Lively Town~**

A stream of lightning surged through the forest on the bustling community's outskirts. It banked off tree after tree until it reached a part where the forest sloped upward. The bolt struck a rock and sailed through several bushes. Dragonite emerged from the lightning, hovering a few yards away from a dirt trail. Zero stood perched on a rotting log, aura dreadlocks undulating as she focused on the hiking trail. Milotic and Serperior sat coiled up around tree roots, each looking down.

"Well?" Zero said, turning to Dragonite.

"I caught glimpses of Team Poképals in the Expedition Society building. They're there. I didn't see them holding any Time Gears or anything, but I doubt they'd stay far from them," Dragonite said, smirking and crossing her arms. "At the very least, we know Manaphy's 'parents' are around. Which should make things simpler, right?"

Zero traced a crystal claw along her scepter. "What about gods? Did you catch any sign of Azelf or Uxie in the building? I can't imagine they'd leave their Time Gears with a pack of mortals."

"I couldn't see anything from my lookout point," Dragonite reported. She stiffened when Zero tightened her grip on her scepter. "Besides, we already know Jirachi lives there. Not to mention, the Lati twins. And rumor has it Hoopa works for Team Gaia. I certainly didn't see any sign of, well, any of them." She landed in front of Zero. "Do you want to wait around and try to keep scoping the place out?"

"No." Zero produced a black ball in her paw. "I'm afraid we're on a tight schedule, here. I can't afford to waste any time. If you _do_ encounter a god, you'll have to improvise. After all, they should be fairly accepting of Manaphy."

The ball opened. Manaphy appeared in a swirl of red light. He slouched over, his empty eyes fixed on the ground.

"Manaphy, Heart Swap on Dragonite," Zero ordered, tapping her staff against the log.

Manaphy lifted his head up and whipped his antennae in Dragonite's direction. Dragonite's body crumpled to the ground, as did Manaphy's. They both stood up a few seconds later, the former looking tired while the latter grinned.

Zero glanced at Manaphy's body. "Did it work or not, Dragonite?"

"It did," Dragonite said, her voice perfectly mimicking Manaphy's.

"Then go." Zero pointed toward the trail. "I'm not sure how long the Heart Swap can remain active for, so don't dawdle."

Dragonite saluted Zero with a flipper. She waddled onto the trail, then began making her way toward Lively Town.

"What are we supposed to do in the meantime, huh?" Serperior wondered, watching Dragonite go.

"We wait. And brace ourselves to fight," Zero said, lifting her free paw. It crackled with static. "I have a feeling Dragonite won't be able to slip in and out with attracting unwanted attention."

* * *

 **~Circadian Coast~**

Tessa decided to try and search for her teammates auras and go from there. She shut her eyes, focusing her mind on her aura feelers. The world became ripples of blue all around her. While she saw several blue flames flaring up nearby, they weren't familiar. She gritted her teeth, forcing herself to concentrate harder. But she didn't have the reach to locate them.

Sighing, Tessa walked toward Daybreak Beach, figuring she might have better luck away from all the resort occupants. She was surprised to find Shane by the shoreline, pacing back and forth. The glitter in his fur made him sparkle even more than usual. Tessa felt blood rushing to her cheeks and shook her head.

Her thoughts drifted back to the Mega Evolution incident. Tessa wanted to reconcile with Shane after attacking him, but the team got swept up in Primarina's antics. Now that Shane was alone, Tessa could talk with him. But as she walked toward him, she paused. Her aura feelers tensed and a brief sense of frustration bubbled in the back of her mind.

Shane was upset about something. Tessa realized she couldn't just walk up to him and demand to apologize. Instead, she decided she'd start with something less distressing and see where the conversation took her. Tessa took a deep breath and resumed walking toward Shane.

"What are you doing out here by yourself?" she asked.

"Cripes!" Shane yipped, jumping up in surprise. He landed awkwardly. Shane found his balance with enough time to stop himself from falling into wet sand. "Don't sneak up on me like that, Tessa. I think my heart stopped for a second there," he said.

"Oh. Sorry," Tessa said, tugging on her scarf. Even with the pacing, she didn't think Shane seemed that jumpy. "I was looking for Kahuna Raichu's place when I saw you out here. I thought you might like some company."

To her surprise, Shane tensed, his tails twisting around each other. "Uh, yeah. Company would be fine," he said, awkwardly sitting on his haunches right along the line where the ocean water finished lapping up against the beach. Tessa sat down next to him, leaving Shane enough space to lay out his tails.

"So… uh…" Tessa twirled the end of her scarf. "Weird day today, huh?"

"I guess," Shane said, some hesitation in his voice. "Weird is our normal, as sad as it is."

"True. But today was a different kind of weird, don't you think?" Tessa said, throwing in a chuckle for good measure.

Shane looked down at the sand. "Yeah, I see your point."

"You look like you have something you want to say." Tessa hoped she could tease out whatever was bugging her friend.

"I'm trying to figure out how to phrase it," Shane said. "I mean… it's strange. Our mission today was probably the most successful one we've ever had. Yeah, there were some moments that caught us all off-guard. But today it felt like we were actually in control for once. Like… we actually worked _together_ and coordinated well to stop Primarina's concert. And, unlike every battle we've been in, our backs _weren't_ against the wall."

"Huh. I hadn't considered that. Probably because our fight with Primarina was so much different from all our other battles," Tessa mused. Still, I have to admit I'm impressed with how well your plan ended up working." She smiled at Shane. "Y'know, we've walked such a grueling road up until this point… it feels good to actually have something go our way."

Shane's lack of response, coupled with a sudden weight pulling on Tessa's aura feelers, made her smile vanish. "Did I say something wrong?" she whispered, resuming her fidgeting.

"What? No, of course not," Shane replied, ears sticking up straight. "I'm conflicted about all of this… that's all." Sighing, Shane pawed at a dry mound of sand. "When we were putting my half-baked plan into action— hell, when we were up on stage… everyone's eyes were on us. Now that things have settled, though..." His voice trailed off.

"I can't count the number of times in my human life when I wanted people to pay attention to me. To, y'know, acknowledge me and say nice things that would make me feel good." Shane looked at Tessa. "Remember how I mentioned those games where I pretended to be a Lucario? Those were part of it. I craved attention so badly, I did stuff like that in the hopes _someone_ would notice me."

"That extends to this world, too. When I first got here, I tried so hard to be the center of attention… and that turned out disastrously," Shane continued. Tessa nodded slowly, the memories of Moonrise Marsh festering in the back of her mind. "Well, today I actually _got_ to be the center of attention. And it was…" He shook his head. "It wasn't what I thought it was."

"You seemed like you were enjoying yourself, though," Tessa noted, digging a paw into the warm sand.

"That was really because of you guys." Shane awkwardly batted his rightmost tail with his forepaw. "Hearing you sing made my heart flutter. And then I got to go onstage with Espy…"

Tessa envisioned the kiss she witnessed. "Yeah. I, uh, bet you're really happy about that, huh?"

"No. Not really." Shane's brushed his shoulder with his muzzle. "Err, I mean, it felt great in the moment, but once that initial thrill wore off, I felt… I dunno… kinda empty inside?" He shook his head. "I can't really put it into words. It's the same way I felt about the random Pokémon under Primarina's hypnosis. Their applause didn't do anything. I wasn't proud or happy." His brow furrowed. "Honestly, the ones at the party before the concert that said things to me creeped me out."

"I think they were flirting with you, Shane," Tessa said.

"Huh? Th-that was… flirting?" Shane stiffened. "O… oh, right. Like what Espy was doing when she was infected. Ugh, I can't believe I didn't realize it." He flicked some dry sand into the ebbing water. "I guess that's how little it registered to me."

"Maybe your head was a bit in the clouds?" Tessa proposed, scratching her head. "You mentioned the pre-concert party was a lot like the parties you didn't get invited to when you were human. If I were in your position, I'd be totally lost in thought trying to take everything in."

Shane's brow furrowed. "Hmm. That doesn't explain it."

"Explain what?" Tessa asked, concerned with the look on his face.

"Why my thoughts kept drifting back to some of the jokes you guys made about me while we were in the dungeon," Shane responded. "Like my recklessness, my impulsive streak, and my tendency to put my paw in my mouth."

"O… oh." Tessa clasped her paws against her chest. "Shane, I know none of us meant to hurt your feelings. That was only meant to be friendly teasing." Tessa was sure that, in the moment, she made it sound like she was joking.

"I get that," Shane said. "I do, really. I'm not mad at you or anything."

"But you're not okay." Tessa rubbed one of her aura feelers as an indication she was picking up Shane's negative vibes.

Shane winced. "I guess. See, back when I was human, other students at school would make similar comments about my behaviors. When I told my parents about it, they said my peers were just joking around… and the best way to make friends with them was to play along."

"So, that's what I did. I tried laughing off their comments or saying the first silly thing that came to my mind." Shane's ears drooped. "They would usually laugh, so that made me think I did the right thing. Only…" His voice trailed off and he looked out over the ocean. "They weren't joking around. They were making fun of me. At the time, I didn't realize it, but Nicky did. He said I needed to keep my mouth shut around the other students or it would get worse."

Shane sighed, releasing a tiny cloud of frost and watching it drift over the water before it evaporated into thin air. "Nicky knew what he was talking about, but I didn't see it that way. The other students were giving me attention, so I kept responding to their teasing," he said. "And Nicky got more and more upset until… well, y'know."

He pivoted to face to face Tessa. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that the jokes brought up some unpleasant memories." Shane brushed his rightmost tail nervously. "It's not your fault, though. There's something I've kept hidden from you guys since the day we met." Shane squeezed his eyes shut. He never thought he would actually sit down and have this conversation with anyone, let alone his partner.

Tessa raised a brow. Shane did have a tendency to stumble over his words or overexaggerate, but the tension in her aura feelers suggested he really _did_ have a big secret to confess. "Well, I'm willing to hear you out if you'd like to talk about it, but we don't have to if you'd rather keep it to yourself." Tessa crossed her legs and put her paws in her lap.

"N-no. You're… my friend. You deserve to know," Shane said. Shoulder sagging, he took a deep breath. "Tessa, the truth is that when I was a human… my parents told me I had a condition. They said my mind didn't work the same way a normal human's did. They called it, uh, awe— no, wait, aut— um, ought-something?" He paused and rubbed his head against his shoulder. "Okay, I forget exactly what they called it, but the point still stands."

Tessa frowned. "I'm not sure I follow. Are you saying you were sick?"

Shane winced. "I don't know. I didn't _feel_ sick, but my parents sure made it sound like I was. They sent me to these strange places where I interacted with other kids or talked with adult humans about what happened at school," he explained. "They even forced me to take medicine a few times, but it made me feel horrible."

"If you don't think you're sick, then why bring it up?" Tessa wondered. She threw a paw up over her muzzle. "S-Sorry, Shane, that was rude of me. I—"

"It's fine." Shane brushed a forepaw through the sand. "The reason I'm bringing it up is because of everything that's happened the past couple of weeks. With each day that's gone by, I've steadily grown more and more sure that there _was_ something off with how I acted as a human. And on top of that…" He slowly shut his eyes and bowed his head. "After today, I've finally realized that my friendship with Nicky wasn't genuine."

"What would make you say that, Shane?" Tessa gasped, aura feelers sticking up in surprise.

"It goes back to some of the stuff we talked about last night. How a good friendship is built on balance. Nicky and I didn't have balance… and that's my fault." Shane looked up at Tessa. "Don't worry, I'm not trying to milk sympathy this time. I'm simply stating the truth."

"That stuff I told you about wanting to get everyone's attention? It was overwhelming. I constantly had— no, even now I have this _intense_ urge to say whatever's on my mind, even if nobody cares," Shane explained. "When I was human, I _had_ to speak. I _had_ to act. And if I didn't…" Shane gritted his teeth. "I'd throw tantrums and make scenes… exactly like when I upset Lycanroc after the Bewear incident."

Tessa listened in silence. Shane only paused for a quick breath. And his nervousness sent erratic twitches racing across her aura feelers. For once, she believed his claim about not wanting sympathy.

"I always thought my friendship with Nicky was fine, but the reality is I didn't view him as a friend… I viewed him more like a toy." Shane sank onto his stomach. "A toy I didn't get tired of playing with, even as I got older. When we hung out, we did things I wanted. Nicky followed my instructions. Even when we played games, he usually listened to me. When he tried to make suggestions, I wouldn't listen. I can't remember if I threw any tantrums when I didn't get my way, but I'm sure it must've happened."

The temptation to ask Shane why Nicky put up with that lingered in Tessa's head. But the pained, confused look on Shane's face gave her pause. She sat in the sand with her paws in her lap, nervously rubbing her winged-heart sigil.

"When we were young, Nicky didn't seem to care. We had similar hobbies, after all," Shane continued, slowly sitting back up. "But the older we got, the more I upset him. He said that stuff to my face… but I ignored him. Whenever he got mad at me, I shut down."

"Shut down?" Tessa said, raising a brow.

"Yeah. I'd go quiet and stare at the floor." Shane mimicked the action for Tessa. "Initially that got him to stop, but soon I found myself turning my frustration around on him. I'd respond to him with something like 'Why are you being mean to me? Aren't I supposed to be your friend?'" He took a shuddering breath. "That's the stuff Necrozma told me off for in the Temple of Body… playing the victim and making it look like everything was his fault instead of mine."

"The thing is… he was right," Shane whispered, nudging at the edge of his scarf with a whine. "Because my parents told me off for my behaviors, too. They said things like, 'Don't do that, Shane,' and, 'That's not how you're allowed to behave, Shane.'" He shivered. "Every time they scolded me, I felt like they were attacking me… so, I either shut down or told them to stop being mean to me."

"Except the other adults my parents had me work with said the same things… they just did it more respectfully. Yet I _still_ refused to listen. I kept seeing it as people trying to get in the way of my ability to have fun." Shane smacked the sand with a forepaw. Tessa stiffened, wanting to say something but struggling to find the words to do so.

"When Nicky died, I couldn't process what had happened. I didn't understand that I had missed warning signs that Nicky was reaching out to me for help," Shane said, his shivers intensifying. "Instead, I saw it as Nicky abandoning me." Shane squeezed his eyes shut. "I… I'm sorry, I've been rambling so long, but I can't stop. It's word vomit."

"N-no, it's okay. I'm still listening," Tessa said, wondering if now was the right time to comfort her friend or if that would be giving him undeserved sympathy.

Tears were trickling down Shane's face. "Tessa, do you remember that night after we failed sentry duty? When you left the guild and we saved you from Espy and Umbreon? I… I told you I didn't think I was a bad person," Shane said, while Tessa nodded silently. "That was a lie. I was awful… I'm sure of it."

"The way I acted up through Mellath Bog… that was the real Shane. Someone who only cares about himself… and who will step on anyone if it means he gets his way," Shane said, sniffling. "I used my condition as an excuse to never change. I kept treating people around me like dirt until I ended up on my own… unwilling to put myself out there because I was convinced nobody would let me do what I wanted to do."

"And I'm… so confused. Because when I was a human, I refused to listen to anyone. But after the Mellath Bog stuff… it's like a switch flipped inside of me," Shane continued, brow furrowing. "Instead of ignoring everything I didn't like, it all registered. I finally understood how much I was hurting the people around me." His ears drooped.

"Tessa, I'm scared. The change was so sudden… it can't really be me. It's gotta be Solgaleo," Shane said, holding up his foreleg to show off his Naturia Looplet. "His spirit's getting stronger… and in the memories I see of him, he really seemed like he cared about the people around him. Not like me…" Shane lowered his foreleg. "I fear that, once we put the Dawn Hourglass back together, Solgaleo will regain his power. Which means his spirit will separate from mine."

More tears welled up in Shane's eyes. The weight in Tessa's aura feelers intensified. She gulped, trying to keep her own emotions in check. "Whether I stay here or go back to the human world, I don't want to turn back into the old Shane!" he cried, tails twisting around one another. "I can't go back. I can't— I don't want to hurt people anymore. But that's exactly what I think is gonna happen. And knowing that makes it even more painful."

"I understand we have to put the Dawn Hourglass together. I'm not going to stop that from happening. I just…" He blinked tears out of his eyes. "I'm afraid of turning back into an ignorant jackass, especially if I remember everything that happened here." Shane lowered his head. "I'm sorry, Tessa. I didn't mean for that to go completely off the rails. I just… _really_ wanted to get that all off my chest… in case I don't retain any sort of control once the Dawn Hourglass is restored."

Tessa had to plant her paws in the sand behind her to keep from flopping onto her back in disbelief. All of that lingered in Shane's mind the entire time they were in Sunset Shoals? She figured her conversation with Shane in Cosmic Cavern must have set off this line of thinking. What could she even say in response to all of that?

"You're right, Shane. That _was_ a lot to take in," Tessa said hesitantly. "I don't really know how to react, to be honest. The only thing that comes to mind is that… I appreciate you working up the courage to say all of that to me. It must've been really hard for you."

Whining softly, Shane nodded. "You already know I'm worried I'll have to disappear to bring Solgaleo back," he said. "I guess I thought this was how I could get some sense of closure… because I care about you a lot. I know I said that before, but it bears repeating. Given what I told you about Nicky… I think it's safe to say that you're the first real friend I've ever had. I didn't want to leave while keeping such a big secret."

"That's a bold statement," Tessa whispered, sitting back up and clutching her scarf. "Shane, I'm not sure what sort of response you were expecting from me."

"To be honest, I wasn't expecting any. I was just rambling," Shane said, laughing awkwardly while he traced a circle in the sand with his forepaw.

"Well, I still want to say something." She cleared her throat. "I get that you're worried, but I think that, like with some of your other bold claims, you're off the mark." Shane's ears twitched. Hopeful tingling spread through the tips of Tessa's aura feelers. "It's true that you did some awful things when you were a Vulpix. And I've seen how hard you've tried to change your ways. But I don't think Solgaleo's responsible for that."

"It's all your doing." She put her paw against Shane's chest tuft.

Eyes wide, he sucked in a breath. "But… but…"

"Think about it, Shane. _You're_ the one who leaped into the fray to save me when Espeon had captured me… and then did the same thing against Tapu Lele," Tessa continued, taking her paw off his chest. "You encouraged me to go find Silvally after he broke his mask. You told me not to give up when Mount Supernova was collapsing… then ran yourself ragged when my evolution went awry."

"You did that. And you had plenty of moments where you acted like a goofball or said ridiculous things," Tessa exclaimed. "That's why I can't believe what you're saying. Yes, it's strange that you're now seeing faults where you didn't before. But maybe that's because circumstances here are a lot different. Your life wasn't on the line when you were human, after all." She shrugged. "In any case, I'm hopeful that, regardless what happens, this Shane is the one that will stick around. And that's… you deserve that…"

Her voice trailed off and her gaze fell toward her marked paw.

"Is something wrong, Tessa?" Shane asked.

This was it. Tessa didn't expect the conversation to turn out this way, but she wasn't about to back down from her original intentions. She took a shuddering breath.

"Shane, we need to talk about what happened with my Mega Evolution."

* * *

Hoopa's ring portal materialized over choppy ocean water. He flew out of it alongside Latias, who levitated her satchel beside her.

"Okay, Hoopa's gonna ask. Why are we in the middle of nowhere?" Hoopa said, gazing at his choppy reflection in the water.

"I want to check in with the teams in Horizon. And I want to do it _without_ getting pestered by a hundred questions about the Dawn Hourglass and why it needs fixing," Latias replied.

"… feh. Couldn't Ampharos answer them for you?" Hoopa said, shrugging. He and Latias both shared a knowing look saying no, of _course_ Ampharos couldn't.

"With any luck, they've got the last two shards and we can go get them," Latias said as her Gear-Com hovered out of her floating bag. "Okay, let's see. How did this thing work ag—"

Latias' head throbbed. Her vision flashed.

Hoopa titled his head. "Hey, what's up? You look like you've seen a ghost. Y'know, the nasty, ugly kinds… not the awesome ones like Hoopa."

Intense pain gripped Latias' mind. Her view of the ocean flickered in and out, each time being replaced by Necrozma. His third eye lit up the twisted grin on his face. Ripples of frenzied panic raced down Latias' spine. Her telekinesis faltered, sending her bag and the Gear-Com into freefall.

"Whoa, Latias, what's your problem?" Hoopa said, using a ring portal to catch the items and transport them safely into his arms.

"L… Latios," she whispered, horror spreading across her face. "Necrozma has Latios."

Before Hoopa could react, Latias' eyes widened. She zoomed forward, snatching him up. They narrowly missed a massive purple energy beam.

"Hoopa, run! Take the Dusk Hourglass and get out of here!" Latias cried, shoving him back. She turned around, only to wilt at the sight of Necrozma floating in front of her, dangling Latios beneath him using ley line chains.

 **"Fool! Your pathetic mental link led me right to you!"** Necrozma crooned. Latias shot a despondent look at Hoopa, who was already tossing a ring in front of him to flee. **"I think not!"** Necrozma shouted. A water tornado shot up from beneath Hoopa before he could safely get through his wing.

"No, get away from him!" Latias shouted. Her blue, sparkling beam bounced harmlessly off the tornado. Searing pain erupted between her wings. The ocean rushed up to meet her. She splashed down with a startled gurgle. Intense currents drew her toward the water tornado. Latias' chest tightened. She couldn't breathe. Necrozma had found them so quickly. If she couldn't pull herself together, he'd have the Dusk Hourglass in his clutches. She was about to fail her assignment in the worst possible way.

With a burst of psychic energy, Latias shot into the air. An explosive stream of water struck her from behind. She used her ESP to keep from hurtling back into the ocean. When she turned to identify the source, her heart leaped into her throat.

"L… L… L…" She couldn't even muster the words to address her corrupted mate, even as he floated there in front of her, clutching a battered Hoopa in his right foot. Purple ectoplasm trailed off his feathers and his red sclera crackled like the embers of a forest fire. With dread welling up inside her, Latias realized it wasn't a tornado that had caught Hoopa, but some sort of twisted, powered-up Whirlpool.

Lugia tossed Hoopa into the air. With a flap of his wings, black shadows sailed through the sky. They swallowed Hoopa up. Necrozma dispelled the shadows with a purple Moongeist Beam. A crystallized Hoopa plummeted into the ocean. Lugia caught the Dusk Hourglass in its right foot.

"Lugia, stop! _Snap out of it!_ " Latias finally cried. Lugia responded with a primal roar. Latias barely materialized a pink shield in time to deflect purple gusts of wind.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Wonderful, simply wonderful! Your reaction was even better than I imagined,"** Necrozma said. He yanked on the chains in his hands, drawing pained screams from Latios.

"Stop it!" Latias cried.

Necrozma immediately held Latios up. **"Ah, ah, ah. Don't do anything hasty now, Latias. Otherwise, you'll hit your precious big brother!"** he said, voice turning squeaky to mock Latias. The blue energy faded from her mouth. **"Heeheeheehee, such a fool. If you were like me… if you didn't care about anyone or anything… you would've attacked me. But you couldn't do it! Luckily…"** His grin widened and his eyes flashed.

Latias whirled around. Her Light Screen shattered in the face of a spiraling purple vortex. It swept her up. Shadows stripped away some feathers, but the gale-force winds drowned out her agonized screams. When the attack faded, a trembling Latias could barely keep her levitation up.

 **"… I'm not one to draw things out for the sake of drama,"** Necrozma said, forcibly yanking Latios' chains so he could see his sister's sorry state. **"Look at you. This broken family of yours… and the sentimentality you have for it. Wasn't it the whole reason you were training to get stronger? Or was it, perhaps, something different?"** His third eye flickered and the ectoplasmic remnants of Lugia's vortex coalesced into a black, cloudy illusion of Rayquaza.

 **"Heeheeheehee! It makes no difference to me. The results were still the same, after all."** Necrozma dispelled the shadows with a flick of his wing claws. **"Whether it was your family or your pride, you couldn't protect what you cared about most."** His mouth opened and drool trickled onto Latios' head, drawing a squeal. **"How does it make you feel… staring down your failures? Dismayed? Upset? Worthless? All of the above? Don't be shy. There are no wrong answers, here."**

 **"Actually, wait, I lied. There are** _ **only**_ **wrong answers. Heeheeheehee!"** Necrozma grinned. **"You see, I—"**

Latias hurled a ball of pink mist at Necrozma. He yanked Latios up to take the blow, but the ball raced behind him. Necrozma teleported out of the way. A second shadowy vortex hammered Latias. She careened down toward the water. The pain was too unbearable. Latias couldn't stop herself from smacking the water.

 **"WrEtChED bRAt!"** Necrozma snarled, his crystalline arms trembling. Latios' chains rattled around his throat. Necrozma had an order at the ready for Lugia, when Latios released a blinding flash. His chains crumbled. Latios sped forward without hesitation, shooting a weak blue beam in Lugia's direction. He easily avoided it, but it kept Latios free from any attacks. With a shaky breath, Latios channeled psychic energy to repair his injuries and restore some of his health.

"Sis! Sis, can you hear me?!" Latios shouted. "I've broken free! I've—"

 **"GeT HiM, You FooL!"** Necrozma screamed, glancing at Lugia in the midst of flailing about in midair. The heart sigil on his chest flashed sporadically and his armor shook, looking ready to burst off his body.

Roaring, Lugia slammed his wings together. Latios sped away from ectoplasmic globs. He shot a purple Shadow Ball at Shadow Lugia, who whipped up a harsh current up to snuff it out. Latios dove toward the water, keeping his mind fixed on his two enemies. His sister's energy was faint, but he could sense it underwater.

"Latias, you've gotta wake up! I don't think I can hold Lugia off," Latios cried. He halted his dive when a wave erupted beneath him. Latios barely ascended in time to dodge it. He shot a dragon-shaped beam at Lugia, hoping to score a hit. Lugia flew right over it, gathering ectoplasm in his mouth.

Realizing the vortex attack was coming, Latios dove underwater. He found his sister's life force flickering several feet below him. Rather than diving toward her, Latios released a pink and white beam. The soothing energy found Latias, restoring some of her strength and her feathery coat. But the water quickly grew choppy around them.

 _Fly, sis!_ Latios telepathically shouted. He shot upward. However, the twins weren't fast enough to escape the Whirlpool forming around them. It rose out of the water, slamming them into each other repeatedly. The currents drowned out their cries. Latios tried to draw on psychic energy to clear a way out, but the pain was too intense. Yet, if he didn't do something, they were completely done for.

With a muffled squeal, Latios forced himself to dig deep. He fought through the currents and focused his mind on his sister. The next time they collided, he released an intense telekinetic blast. It proved strong enough to launch Latias out of the Whirlpool. Lugia didn't anticipate this. He had to fly away to avoid the dragon-shaped bullet shooting toward him.

Lugia ceased his attack, glaring at Latios. When he turned to look for Latias' trajectory, he found that she was completely gone. He wheeled on Latios, ready to land the killing blow.

 **"S… STaY AwAY! HiS LIghT iS MinE!"**

A sparkling Moongeist Beam hit Latios from behind. His scream lasted a second before the colors peeled off his body, leaving behind nothing but a crystallized husk that fell into the ocean with a large splash. Lugia looked at Necrozma, who was frantically gulping down Latios' life energy. Necrozma hunched over in midair. His arms trembled. He gingerly touched his wing-digits to his forehead and confirmed the armor was still there. His third eye reappeared, albeit glowing weakly.

 **"Th… ThE HouRgLaSs,"** Necrozma rasped. **"GiVe mE… tHe HOurGlASs."**

Lugia flew toward Necrozma, dropping the Dusk Hourglass into his outstretched hand. Necrozma crushed it in his grip. Rainbow-colored energy spiraled around his arm and seeped into every square inch of his body. Slowly, Necrozma's breathing rate slowed and he righted himself. Necrozma looked down at his claws and flexed them. He drew his lips back in a snarl.

 **"No!"** He thrashed his arms about. **"No, no, no, no,** _ **no!**_ **"** He repeatedly smacked his arms against his wings. **"That foolish,** _ **detestable**_ **girl! She used my Hourglass! She used my light! It wasn't full… the HOUrgLAsS WAsn'T fUlL!"**

Lugia fluttered back from Necrozma, the flames trailing off his eyes shrinking slightly as he looked around in concern.

 **"HoW aM I sUPpOSed to GeT tO TeMPoRAL ToWEr LiKE tHIs?!"** Necrozma snarled. He dug his black claws into his forehead. His third eye writhed about inside its triangular armor. **"No… no, this isn't the end. Not yet,"** Necrozma said. **"I think… there's enough. I got** _ **enough**_ **of the Hourglass' power."**

He raised his arms up and tensed his wings. Rainbow light brimmed in his prism-shaped palms. His grin returned. **"Heeheeheehee! Yes, this will do. I can breach the barrier. I can get to Temporal Tower. Dialga will be** _ **mine!"**_ He licked his lips eagerly. **"All I have to do is concentrate… concentrate…"**

The glow in his hands intensified. A rainbow shimmer encased his third eye and winged-heart sigil. His hands flashed a multitude of colors. With a ripple of light, an Ultra Wormhole appeared before Necrozma. Unlike his usual portals, this one had several different colors flashing randomly inside of it. The portal itself trembled, as if it would collapse from the massive infusion of energy.

 **"Next stop, Temporal Tower! For** _ **real**_ **this time!"** Necrozma shouted, beckoning Lugia to follow him into the portal. **"Did you see what I did there… with the 'this time' bit? Heeheeheehee! I know, I'm** _ **hilarious.**_ **"**

Lugia rolled his eyes as the Ultra Wormhole closed up behind him.

* * *

Yes, Lugia used Spectral Thief on Hoopa. Remember, this version of Shadow Lugia's a fusion! Now, uh, I guess I'll reply to some review and then hide from the Latias Defense Squad that's somehow formed up in the comments section.

Sebastian: I'm really focused on trying to get this fic done, because that's started to feel like a taller and taller order with each passing day.

Anon Omega: It was a Marluxia reference, yes. He's, like, the only character I actually know, mostly because his battle music's really great.

SuperOmegaGuest: Hooray! Too bad this chapter had to come right after it, huh?

Another guest: The special wasn't fluffy, it was feathery! Big difference. Also, the conditions can be treated, but not cured. That's the key. Barring a scientific breakthrough, I'm stuck with them.

Next time: Shane and Tessa reach an understanding... just in time for Shane to draw in power from the newest Dawn Shard. Trust me, you don't want to miss this chapter!


	98. Lingering Sense of Doubt

So, this chapter's going up with the fic having passed 750 comments! That's, uh, wow. I don't have the words to express my gratitude. Instead, I hope you enjoy this part, because it's got something unexpected.

* * *

 **Chapter 82: Lingering Sense of Doubt**

 **~Northeast Coastal Pass~**

"Wow! Look at all these little green blades. They tickle my feet!" Pink-Wings trilled, waddling through a field of grass on the left side of a dirt road. "What do you No-Scales call this stuff?"

"That's, uh, grass," Blaziken said, scratching the back of his head.

"Grass! I like it! Simple and effective," Pink-Wings chirped, flying low so her puffy-cloud belly brushed against the grass. She turned to Blaziken. "And what about all the big brown things we've been passing? Y'know, the ones that look like Exeggutors?"

"Seriously? You guys have never heard of trees?" Seraph gawked. She rubbed the bridge of her brow when Pink-Wings gave her a quizzical look.

"You can't exactly blame them, Seraph. I don't think we spotted a single tree or blade of grass in the canyon," Luxeira said, walking alongside her teammate.

"The Totem told us Lord Rayquaza designed our home to build up our strength," Striped-Fin said. He stopped and wiggled his hips, letting grass brush the base of his tail. "Mmm… feels nice."

Seraph facepalmed. "I'm _so_ getting a big freaking drink when this is all over."

"I think it's pretty cute, actually. Like watching a pup run through a sprinkler," Luxeira giggled.

"I've heard of grass and trees, actually!" an orange-winged Flygon said, flying up beside Luxeira. "Yeah. Dad told me stories about how Lord Rayquaza hated trees, so he blew up forestland to make a suitable home for us dragons in Horizon."

Luxeira winced. "That, uh, sounds a bit extreme." She hoped that was simply a hatchling's tale.

A few paces ahead of them, Hakamo-o sighed. He quickened his pace, until Sneasel's arm shot out in front of him. "What do you want?" Hakamo-o asked.

"It's about that stuff you said about me to your old man." Sneasel walked beside Hakamo-o, but didn't make eye contact. "If you hated how I was treating you, how come you didn't say nothing?" He crossed his arms. "Yeah, maybe I called you names, but that's because you went around acting like a real dumbass."

Hakamo-o scratched at his armor. "Look, I was angry, all right. Got caught up in the heat of the moment and stuff." He kicked a pebble and watched it sail off the cliff on the right side of the path. "You could've left me on the outskirts of the dungeon's entrance, exhausted and covered in puke, but you didn't. I never really got why."

Sneasel shrugged. "I dunno."

"Then why didn't you ditch me once you were sure I wasn't, like, dying or anything?" Hakamo-o asked.

"I guess… I liked having someone else around," Sneasel mused, looking down. "And, yeah, you looked like a runt when you were Jangmo-o, but the idea that I could travel around with a _dragon_ got me all excited." He scratched his feather. "Except you weren't strong or fast or nothing. Still, I figured maybe if we pulled off some successful jobs, you'd grow into a powerhouse." He shook his head. "It doesn't matter anymore, I guess. All in the past or whatever."

They walked together silently, until Sneasel said, "You know they're probably gonna turn us over to Officer Magnezone's squad."

Hakamo-o winced. With everything that had happened, he had forgotten he was technically a wanted outlaw. One that had escaped prison, no less.

"Hrmph. I won't let that happen. No son of mine will be taken by some group of No-Scales," Totem Kommo-o said, stomping over to Hakamo-o.

"Dad, I broke the law. There's nothing you can do about that," Hakamo-o said.

"I am a Totem. My word has authority. You cannot be taken if I order the No-Scales to stay away from you," Totem Kommo-o said, nodding his head like he thought his plan was foolproof.

"It doesn't work that way outside our home, _Dad,_ " Hakamo-o said, his tone turning icy.

Totem Kommo-o frowned. "But you've evolved. Once this mess is settled, you can come back home and—"

"No." Hakamo-o quickened his pace. Sneasel hung back, not wanting to get on Totem Kommo-o's bad side again.

"But son, that rousing speech you gave… people listened to you!" Totem Kommo-o closed the gap with Hakamo-o. "I was wrong. You _do_ have the makings of a future Totem. We can hone that. We'll even do it like your mother wanted."

"I said _no_ , Dad. I don't want to live there. Not now. Not ever," Hakamo-o growled, reaching the head of the group.

Totem Kommo-o's face twisted into a snarl. "Why would you throw this all away?" He tapped his Totem Crystal with a claw. "You have no idea what it's like to have Z-Power flowing through your veins."

"Yeah, I kinda do… from living with you. And I'm not interested in living life like someone shoved their you-know-what up my tailhole," Hakamo-o scoffed.

Totem Kommo-o stumbled. His axe fell to the ground with a clang, drawing several concerned looks. "I'm fine! I'm fine!" He scrambled to his feet, scooped up the axe, and calmly walked to Hakamo-o's side. "Why you! How did you— who told—" He cut himself off. Totem Kommo-o felt multiple scrutinizing gazes from behind. He tightened his grip on his staff. "Isn't there anything I can do to convince you to come back home?"

"Don't make me do something I don't want to do," Hakamo-o replied. "Sure, I don't know what I really want to do with my life, but I _don't_ want to be a Totem. So, if you ever want me to _visit_ , you'll let me find what I want to do with my life." He opted not to add the part where that wouldn't happen until after he'd finished serving his jail sentence.

Totem Kommo-o didn't respond. He bowed his head and slowed his pace until he was back with some of the other dragons. Sighing, Hakamo-o scratched at his large forehead scale.

"So, what _do_ you want to do with your life, then?"

Sneasel was behind Hakamo-o yet again. Hakmo-o merely shrugged. "Why does it matter?"

"I was just curious." Sneasel looked away. "Because thieving's been the family business for a few generations. But, let's face it, I _suck_ at being a thief." He glanced back at Lycanroc, who Magearna had forced to walk beside her. "And there ain't no way I'm going to stay with him when I get outta jail. So, I just don't know what I'm gonna do."

"Maybe you ought to go find a job up on that snowy mountain we passed after leaving Aeon Town behind," Hakamo-o suggested.

"Solstice Summit? I dunno… I hear it's all about spiritual crap." Sneasel flicked his claws dismissively. "Like, people go there to get advice from spirits or something."

Hakamo-o stopped. He blinked slowly. "That—" He paused. "We could use something like that."

Sneasel glanced back at him. "Are you serious? Didn't you just get done telling off all these dragons for being too lovey-dovey toward Rayquaza?"

"I'm not saying we should be pious or anything. I'm saying we ought to go there and, y'know, get some advice. Surely _someone_ there might be able to help us, right?" Hakamo-o proposed.

"Wait. You want to do this together? What about that nasty stuff you said about me?" Snesel raised a skeptical brow.

"Like I said. I was angry. Y'know, lashing out and stuff," Hakamo-o said, kicking another pebble off the road. "Maybe if we weren't being crooks, we could get along better." He shrugged. "I'd say it's worth a shot, don't you?"

"Eh, you're twisting my arms here, but sure. I guess it can't hurt," Sneasel said. "But, uh, guess we gotta finish out our stint in jail first?"

"Well, let''s just make sure this Dawn Shard gets to Circadian Coast first. Then we'll take it from there," Hakamo-o said.

Sneasel nodded. The two drifted back toward the middle of the group.

* * *

 **~Circadian Coast, Daybreak Beach~**

The sun began to set, casting a strong orange glow across the water. Shane stared at the froth left behind by each wave. Tessa wanted to talk about her Mega Evolution, but what was there to talk about? It was a simple mistake. Now that they understood how Naturia Looplets foster Mega Evolution, she wouldn't have to worry.

"I thought we had cleared that up. I'm not mad at you," Shane said. He inched toward Tessa, but she held her right paw up.

"No, we haven't. There's more to it than just one simple accident, okay?" Tessa said. Confusion spread across Shane's face as Tessa lowered her paw, sighing. "Come on, Shane. You don't need to be all that perceptive to understand. The answer's staring you in the face." She pivoted to her left, showing off the black, star-shaped pattern of fur around her chest spike.

"Isn't that just because you used Z-Power to evolve?" Shane asked, confident that was the conclusion the whole team had drawn.

"I wish I could think that, but after I Mega Evolved and went berserk…" Her voice trailed off. She nervously rubbed her right paw. "Shane, it's not just my chest. There's something else." She held her right paw up, revealing the winged heart sigil around her paw spike.

"That's the Prism Virus symbol." Shane's ears tucked against his head. "How the— why is that on your paw? Did that show up when you evolved, too?" His words held a mixture of hurt and confusion, which manifested in Tessa's mind as dizziness coupled with dull, throbbing pain.

"Yes." Tessa pulled her right paw back and resumed her anxious rubbing. She tried to filter out her aura sense so Shane's emotions wouldn't mix with her own thoughts, but her feelers twitched in protest. "I wanted to show it to you. Really. Heck, Silvally already knows about it. But I panicked. I know your thoughts about Necrozma are… all over the place. I didn't want to make things even more stressful."

"Then why tell me now?" Shane wondered, his gaze fixed on Tessa's paw. "Is it because of the Mega Evolution?"

"That's part of it. The other part is, well, it doesn't feel right anymore," Tessa replied.

"You've lost me," Shane said, brow furrowed.

Tessa bit her lip, struggling to find the right words. "Hang on, I need a second," she said, rubbing her brow. Tessa took a deep breath and considered the things Shane said to her earlier. "So, like, you just went out of your way to tell me something very personal, right?"

"Yeah, but I thought you deserved to know," Shane said. Realization slowly spread across his face.

"Exactly. Hearing what you had to say made me feel the same way about this," Tessa said. "Actually, it goes beyond that. The truth is, I was— no, wait, I _am_ just as guilty of keeping secrets from you. Ones that might've harmed the team in the long run."

"Like what?" Shane said, before he realized the rudeness of his comment and wilted. "Sorry, that came out wrong."

"No, it's fine," Tessa dismissed. "To start, I didn't initially come over here because I thought you might like some company. I wanted to talk about the Mega Evolution thing. I feel like we brushed it aside because going to Sunset Shoals was important." She paused. "Except this whole conversation has gone a lot differently than I expected."

"Is that a good thing?" Shane asked, raising a brow.

"I don't really know." Tessa laughed awkwardly. The two lapsed into silence, with Shane looking expectantly at Tessa. Eventually, she said, "You know how, after Mellath Bog, I promised you not to let myself go to a dark place again? Well, I've failed to keep that promise."

It took a moment for her statement to sink in. When it did, Shane gave Tessa a worried look. "Are you… does this mean you've been hurting yourself?" he whispered.

"No. I swear, I haven't done anything like that," Tessa said, raising her right paw up. She wasn't sure how she had expected Shane to respond. Even with her aura sense, she couldn't tell if Shane was upset at her, upset at himself, or simply concerned. Tessa figured she owed it to her friend to tell the whole truth. "That doesn't mean the thought hasn't crossed my mind, though."

Shane lowered his head, eyes squeezed shut. He wanted to press further, but the memories of Mellath Bog's aftermath lingered in his mind. Shane needed Silvally to help, but he wasn't around. "If it's, um, okay… can I ask why you think you're still depressed?" he said, unable to make eye contact.

"It's tough to put into words," Tessa admitted, ears and aura feelers drooping. The combination of Shane's fears and her own guilt made it difficult to stay focused. Their conversation had grown exhausting for her. "It's a combination of things, really. Like, I'm tired of fighting battles where our lives are on the line. It's gotten so bad that, even when we can have quiet moments together, the joy doesn't last. Because my mind starts wandering to what the team will have to do next and how much we're going to struggle."

"But weren't you the one who told me yesterday we've found a way to beat the odds up until this point?" Shane said. He thought Tessa sounded hopeful in Cosmic Cavern. Was that all an act or did he catch her at a good moment?

"I did. And now that we have all the Dawn Shards, I'm even warming up to the idea that we might be able to stop Necrozma," Tessa said. "But that's part of my problem." She glanced at Shane's confused expression. "Even if we _can_ defeat Necrozma and restore peace, I'm… well…" She fidgeted nervously with her scarf. "Shane, I just don't see where I can go from here."

Shane flinched. "M-Meaning?"

"I'm not sure I'll _ever_ be happy. It doesn't feel like there's anything out there for me," Tessa said. "And even if there was…" She gripped her head. "I'll still have to live with the memories of everything that's happened to us in our adventures! Seeing Pokémon have their spirits sucked out and get turned into crystals. Losing Sylveon and Eevee. Our _Guildmaster_ trying to send us to our deaths. And let's not forget the biggest one… my own mom _strangling_ me while she gets ready to brainwash me so I'll work for Necrozma."

Shane silently cursed at himself for not considering that. He'd fallen into a familiar trap: not separating his games from his new reality. In the games, the characters were collections of pixels or chunks of words strewn together. He didn't have to think about their problems, because they didn't really exist. That wasn't the case with Horizon.

"That's a good point." Shane's shoulders sagged. "I'm not even sure what to say. I want to help you, but that means I have to be able to stay here… assuming we can beat Necrozma, of course."

"I know… and I appreciate the gesture," Tessa said, rubbing the bridge of her snout. "It's frustrating, but I did this to myself. My wild aspirations are to blame here." She sighed as she lowered her arm and dug her paw into the sand. "I idolized the human heroes and their partners. Deep down, I wanted to have a chance to save the world, just like them. Only… I was interested in fame and recognition. I thought, 'If I'm a hero, everyone will like me. I'll have thousands of friends!'"

Tessa chuckled weakly, shaking her head. "That sentiment got a lot worse once things started going downhill with my family. I was stuck in this endless cycle of working up the courage to join the guild, failing, and moping on the beach or in my bed about how I'm nothing but a loser." She looked at Shane. "But then I found you washed up on Azure Cape and everything changed. I saw you as my ticket to achieving my dream. I'd become a legendary hero who everyone would admire. And all the success would _finally_ make me happy."

"But when we first met, you were super skeptical of me," Shane pointed out. He didn't think Tessa faked that behavior, yet she sounded so contradictory.

"Because I forced myself to temper my expectations. I didn't want to get my hopes up too much. If we ended up failing…" Tessa poked her index digits together. "Well, I imagine I'd have reacted much like I did after Mellath Bog." She sighed. "See, when I was younger, Mom told me our kind needed to keep our emotions in check or they'd run out of control. I believed her, of course, because she was this experienced explorer… and the only Lucario I'd ever known, to boot."

Tessa scooched an inch closer to Shane. "I kept things bottled up when we were starting out. But the more you refused to listen to me, the harder it got to keep my emotions in check. When you got upset at Lycanroc and the guild turned on you, I saw my chance to be a hero slipping away before my eyes. I couldn't hold things in anymore, so I flew off the handle. My anger stayed in control until you made that comment about my parents."

Her shoulders sagged. "And ever since, it feels like I can't keep my emotions under control." Tessa rubbed her eyes. "I wish I knew another Lucario. Maybe then I'd understand things better, but…" She shook her head. "It sounds like people only know about Lucarios from old stories or because they met Mom." Tessa sighed again. "I'm sorry. That was supposed to be a straightforward explanation, but I turned it into a zigzag."

"Uh-huh." Shane's eyes darted about. The gears in his mind had shifted into overdrive. Shane finally understood the numerous factors that had contributed to Team Radiance's disastrous first few weeks. It was too late to go back and change any of that, but at least he could avoid making the same mistakes in the future. Still, something about Tessa's explanation bugged Shane.

"This all make sense to me," he said, wondering if he should try scooting closer to Tessa but ultimately staying where he was. "It's just… I've got this nagging feeling I'm missing something."

"You're right. It's where the mark on my paw comes in," Tessa said, staring at her right paw. "I already told you I'm worried I can't control my emotions. Well, my temper's been especially bad as of late. First, I flew off the handle at Totem Salazzle. Then I attacked that volcanic meteor in a blind rage, went berserk on Gallian with my Z-Move, and nearly killed you with my Mega Evolution." She looked at Shane. "Don't tell me you don't see a pattern, here. It's pretty obvious to me."

"I do see it," Shane said. "But we promised we'd keep you from Mega Evolving."

"And I believe you," Tessa said. "Despite that, I'm _terrified_ that this mark is a sign. A sign that I'm either going to turn into a monster like Necrozma or he's going to turn me into one… just like Mom."

"You can't think that way." Shane scooched toward Tessa. His rightmost tails brushed her thigh, eliciting a surprised squeak. Shane pulled his tails back, face flushing. "You've got the scarf, remember?" he stuttered. "Espy said Ho-Oh's magic will keep your spirit safe from corruption."

"Yeah, but it has to stay on for that to happen. And Mom and Necrozma know about the scarves," Tessa said, tugging at hers. "If we fight them, they're going to try and rip them off so that they can get to me." She squeezed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth. "That's why I told you all this stuff, Shane. I need you to understand where I'm coming from."

"I get it. You want me to help you avoid getting corrupted. I can do that," Shane said, nodding vigorously.

"That's not it," Tessa whispered, drawing a confused look from Shane. "Shane, if the worst really happens… if I lose control, either to my rage or Necrozma… I'll need you to try and stop me. Even if…" She sucked in a breath. "Even if that means you or Silvally have to kill me."

Shane's jaw slackened. That was a huge weight to drop onto his shoulders. Sure, Tessa had used the conversation to build up to her bombshell, but that didn't soften the blow. "I… um… that's…" Shane shook his head. "There's no way that's going to happen. I— no, _the team_ won't let it."

"I know that." Tessa winced. There was a twinge of anger to her words. "But this adventure has had more than its fair share of unwelcome surprises. So, we need to be prepared for the possibility… even if it seems unlikely." She finally opened her eyes to look at Shane. "Please, Shane. Say that, if the worst happens, you'll do whatever it takes to stop me."

"I… I…" Shane's gaze faltered. His mind was racing. He figured he should agree to it. That way, Tessa wouldn't get any more upset than she currently was. Still, the request sent a chill through him, in spite of his ice-typing.

"I'll try," Shane whispered. Tessa didn't look convinced, but Shane held up a forepaw. "Before you say anything, you should know that, last night, Espy asked me what I was going to do about Necrozma. I was pretty conflicted. Hell, I still am, to some degree. I really want to believe that it's not my friend doing all these awful things… rather some chaotic manifestation of Golem's experiments. And a part of me wants to try and make up for what a laughably bad friend I was to him when we were humans…"

"But I don't think I can do that. At this point, you, Espy, Silvally… you guys mean more to me," he said, ears drooping. "I know that sounds really stupid. I mean… we've only been together a couple of months and we spent a large portion of that fighting with each other."

"So, you're thinking it, too?" Tessa said, sighing. She leaned back, digging her paws in the sand behind her to support herself. "It's been bothering me these last few nights, to be honest. There's a voice in my head that keeps telling me that this 'friendship' of ours isn't really a friendship."

"Urk. I, um, as corny as it sounds, I'd like to think that the struggles we've faced are what's brought us closer together," Shane said. He paused, brow furrowing. "Oof, yeah that really does sound lame."

"Yeah. I guess that's where the problem is." Tessa rubbed her shoulder. "I can't help but wonder what would happen if we were to defeat Necrozma… and you were allowed to stay here, of course. Would we still get along? Pretty much everything we've done together has centered around dealing with the Prism Virus. So, if that goes away, what would be left for us?"

"I don't know, but I'd want to make it work," Shane said. He scooched closer to Tessa. She didn't stop him this time.

"You really want to stay here, then? What about your life in the human world?" Tessa asked.

"Honestly, I have more going for me in this world," Shane said. "I know, I know… you must think I'm crazy. I mean… I didn't have to worry about magical creatures trying to kill me when I was a human." He laughed nervously.

"What about your family? Is it really fair to them for you to just _disappear_ , leaving them behind without any sort of explanation why?" Tessa asked, a worried look on her face.

"N-no… it's not," Shane said, wincing. "The thing is… I kind of already distanced myself from them. When I finished school and couldn't get into college — this special kind of school that's really important to humans — I settled for this job where I was mostly working alone every day. I went to live on my own and didn't talk much with my parents or my sisters."

"I feel closer to you, Espy, and Silvally. That's probably awful of me to say, especially with how things started out between us, but it's true." Shane slowly moved his right forepaw toward Tessa. He stopped when she looked at it, aura feelers tensing. "Y… you're sensing my feelings, aren't you?" he said, gulping.

Tessa nodded. "I thought we had an understanding about the 'I really like Lucarios' thing," she said.

"We do! This isn't some sort of romantic gesture or anything. It's a paw of, y'know, friendship," Shane insisted. His ears twitched nervously. "Like I told you before, I don't want to overstep any boundaries and risk messing things up. Even if I do feel, uh, _something_ … I won't, um…" His voice trailed off. "Sorry, I think I managed to put my paw in my mouth big time."

Shane was about to pull his paw back when Tessa put her paw on top of his. His ears stuck up in surprise and his tails twitched, with some curling against his waist and others stiffening. "T-Tessa, you didn't—"

"I think I get the message you were going for. Neither of us are perfect, Shane. In fact… we're pretty far from it," Tessa said, laughing nervously. Shane joined in, though his fake laughter sounded awkward, so he quickly stopped. Tessa's laugh faded to a drawn-out sigh. "Y'know, the more I think about it… the more I wonder if maybe our meeting _wasn't_ just a total accident," she said.

"R-Really? Because it certainly _feels_ like this was all some giant accident," Shane said.

Tessa pulled her paw back and scooched right beside Shane. He yanked his paw back and let his hair fall over his face to hide his blush. "Well, for all our differences, we actually have a lot in common. Probably more than either of us realized back when we were arguing," Tessa mused. She shook her head. "Silvally… I think he's always known about this. Even when his mask was on, he saw the good that we could potentially do for each other. That's why he tried to hard to help us even though he was in pain."

She ran her digits across her scarf. "Maybe if, instead of focusing on joining the guild, we had taken the time to get to know each other first, things would've turned out a lot different," she whispered. Tessa slowly blinked. "Huh. I guess there _is_ more to our friendship than just fighting the Prism Virus.

"You're absolutely right," Shane said. "I really hope we can beat Necrozma and I can stay here. That way, we can keep growing our friendship… and make up for all the stupid mistakes we made in the past." He lifted his right forepaw toward her. "Deal?"

"Deal," Tessa said, bumping Shane's paw with her own. She then leaned over, resting her head on Shane's shoulder. Shane momentarily tensed, but when Tessa didn't move or say anything, he leaned over. His hair brushed against Tessa's aura feelers. An intense tingle rushed into her spine, but she alleviated it with a calming breath.

"It's strange. When we first met, I hoped I could emulate the heroic explorers who had teamed up with humans. I had given that dream up when we had our big falling out… but now it's really happening," Tessa said.

"Yeah. Only, I never really understood how tough and stressful it would be," Shane admitted.

"Same here. Sure, the stories Dad and Gallian told me mentioned some hardships the other heroes had to endure. But nobody ever said anything about them having any lasting effects," Tessa said, wrapping her arm around Shane's foreleg. "Y'know, I talked about that with Team Go-Getters this morning… while I was trying to work on my new moves."

"Really? What did they say?" Shane asked.

"Swampert talked about how he'll occasionally have nightmares. Sometimes they're about the time he and Blaziken were fugitives and other times they're about him getting attacked by a god like Moltres, Zapdos, or Rayquaza," Tessa responded. "But he also told me that every time these bad memories surface, Blaziken's always there for him. They'll talk or they'll go visit one of their other friends. That usually helps Swampert feel better."

"I see," Shane said, staring out at the sun's reflection in the ocean.

A round of silence followed, until Tessa whispered, "I'd like you to stay in this world, too." She glanced up at Shane, a smile on her muzzle. "I think… with you and Silvally at my side, I'd be able to find something out here that would make me truly happy."

"Th… thanks. That means a lot to me," Shane said.

"I should be thanking you for agreeing to talk like this," Tessa said, nuzzling Shane's neck.

"It was n-nothing," Shane said, hesitantly leaning in to return the nuzzle.

"So, this is where you two have been hiding."

"Gah!" Tessa's head shot up and inadvertently bonked Shane's snout. He pulled away from her, groaning and rubbing his chin. Tessa looked over her shoulder to find Espy and Silvally standing a couple of feet behind her, confused looks on their faces. She rubbed her aura feelers and silently swore. She was so focused on Shane her aura sense had dulled to everything going on around her.

"Didn't sense us coming?" Silvally asked.

"Err, I was just a bit preoccupied, that's all," Tessa said, laughing nervously. "Is something wrong?"

"You guys hadn't shown up at Kahuna Raichu's house. We wanted to make sure everything was okay," Espy said.

"Ah, sorry to make you worry," Tessa said, getting to her feet and dusting sand off her waist. "We're fine, though. Right, Shane?"

"Um, yeah. It's all good," Shane said, his gaze darting between Espy, Silvally, and the ground. He stumbled getting to his feet. "We can follow you guys back, if you want." Shane glanced at his fur. It still had lots of glitter. "After all, Tessa and I need to get cleaned up."

"I, uh, wouldn't exactly recommend that," Espy said, forked tail ends tapping against each other. "When you two didn't show up, Gallian and Zoroark went into the shower… together."

"Oh," Tessa whispered, eyes going wide and aura feelers crinkling in surprise. "Right. Guess we can just stay out here, then." She was about to sit back down, when she cocked an eyebrow. "Hang on… aren't we supposed to call Latias?" Tessa looked at Espy. "Were you able to reach her?"

Espy shook her head. "I could try again, I suppose." She levitated the Gear-Com out of her satchel and activated it. A few seconds of silence passed, followed by some static. "No good. Still can't get a hold of her," Espy said.

"Should we be worried?" Shane wondered, a frown on his muzzle. "She's our fast-transport method… and if we can't reach her, then we can't get the Dawn Hourglass put back together quickly."

"Why don't you try calling Magearna and seeing how her group is doing?" Silvally suggested. "Maybe the problem's with our Gear-Com?"

Espy wished the explanation was that simple, but strongly doubted it was the case. Nevertheless, she reactivated the Gear-Com and connected to Magearna's unit. After a few rings, she got a response.

 _ **Ah, Espeon. Is there an update you'd like to share?**_ Magearna asked.

"Not exactly. See, I _still_ can't get a hold of Latias. Have you tried to contact her at all?" Espy said.

 _ **I haven't. We've been focused on reaching Circadian Coast with optimal speedination,**_ Magearna replied. _**I believe we're making excellefficient time on our end. I anticipath with 96.24 percent certainty we'll be there in an hour.**_

"O-Okay, that's good to know," Espy said, relieved that, at the very least, all the Dawn Shards would be together with a very large group to protect them. "If anything changes, call me right away, okay?"

 _ **Understood. See you soon!**_ Magearna said. The call disconnected. Espy stuffed her Gear-Com back into her satchel.

"Well, there you have it. Our Gear-Com's working fine and Magearna's team should be here soon enough," Espy said, gazing out at the ocean. "So, it looks like we've got an hour to kill. Anything in particular that anyone wanted to do?"

"Actually, I was hoping to talk to Shane," Silvally said, brushing one foreleg against another.

Shane's ears stuck up. "R-Really? Huh. That's funny… I wanted to talk to you, too." He tapped his forepaw against the ground, trying to remember exactly what Gallian and Zoroark had suggested. "Um, it's about what happened in Cosmic Cavern."

To Shane's surprise, Silvally nodded. "I know. I've, uh, been thinking about it," he said.

"Thinking about what?" Tessa said, cocking her head in confusion.

"Err… see, the thing is…" Shane's voice trailed off as his tails curled against his waste.

"I kissed Shane last night. It was a moment of weakness," Silvally said, completely straight-faced.

Tessa's aura feelers shot up in surprise. "You… you two…" She looked back and forth between them.

Silvally stepped between Shane and Tessa. "It was a dumb decision I stupidly made because I had a crisis of faith." He was met with a pair of confused looks. "I don't want to go to deep into it or anything. To keep things simple, let's just say I was grappling with some of the things Necrozma had said to me the last time we faced him. I couldn't come to terms with any of it… so I decided it might be best to try and distance myself from you two. Which led me to recklessly kiss Shane."

He traced a talon through the sand. "Shane, what I did was wrong. I know our friendship's been… complicated, to say the least. But that's no excuse. I betrayed your trust. And for that, I'm sorry," Silvally said. His glowing parts turned blue and he bowed his head silently.

Shane's tails curled around his legs. Silvally had surprised him by taking the initiative on the subject. Now Shane was at a loss for words. His gaze fell to the ground. "Thank you," he whispered. "I, uh, was prepared to go on a bit of a tirade about how uncomfortable it made me… and that I'm not okay with my emotions getting played with like that. But it looks like you came to that conclusion on your own. Or maybe you had a little help."

Espy stiffened as Shane glanced at her. Her ears and tails drooped. Shane looked away, face flushing. "U-Um… E-Espy? I don't, y'know, want to upset you or anything, but part of what I said, um, applies to you, too," Shane said, squeezing his eyes shut so he couldn't see Espy's response. He didn't hear her say anything, either.

"That kiss we had onstage… it left me almost as confused as when Silvally kissed me. Especially because of all the ups and downs we have. Considering the stuff you said to me back at the Observatory…" Shane's face scrunched up. "I'm sorry, but I'm not okay with what you did. It… it wasn't fair."

"You're right," Espy said, tail curling around her hind leg. "Like I told you, I got caught up in the heat of the moment. The music and the way your body was moving… it was too much for me. I couldn't help myself!" Espy bowed her head. "I'm so ashamed. I promised to try and keep my urges under control, but I couldn't stick to it."

As tempted as Shane was to say the first thing on his mind, he held his tongue. After an extended silence, he said, "I appreciate your candor." Silvally and Espy exchanged looks of disbelief.

"I'm sorry. My thoughts are a bit jumbled at the moment. There are so many things I feel like I should say or shouldn't say, so I'm not really sure what to do," Shane continued, laughing nervously. "I guess, for my part, the reason that stuff upset me so much has a lot to do with all of the uncertainty in my head." He looked at Tessa. "I'm pretty sure I've only said this to Tessa, but you guys deserve to know."

He stood up, finally making eye contact with Espy and Silvally. "Guys, I… I'm not sure I'm going to be around much longer. I think that, in order to bring Solgaleo back, I'm going to have to give up my spirit and my body." His legs grew weak. "And, y'know, with the last part of the hourglass less than an hour away, it seems like I'll have my answer very soon. Whether I get to stay… or whether I'm going to disappear."

"That's why I'm upset. If I _do_ have to disappear, I don't want to leave you guys with all these doubts clouding up my soul… as corny as that sounds," Shane said, his blue eyes flickering with pink energy. "You're the first _real_ friends I think I've ever made. I'd like to go out on a high note and make sure everything's square between us." He stuck his forepaw out toward his teammates. "So, uh, think we can put those slip-ups behind us?"

Espy and Silvally looked at each other, then each stuck a foreleg up to give Shane the closest equivalent to a pair of fist-bumps that quadrupeds could manage. The three exchanged smiles, before Shane glanced at Tessa. "You want in on this?"

Tessa jolted stiff, aura feelers curling up. Throughout the conversation, she was lost in thought. Of course she had seen Shane's and Espy's "display" during the concert. In the moment, she figured Espy had chosen to reciprocate Shane's crush. Now, however, hearing Silvally's confession and Shane's general confusion about the whole thing had her wondering if there was more to it than not wanting to potentially mess up his friendships. Tessa looked down.

 _'Could it have something to do with me?'_ she wondered. Tessa's aura feelers tensed tighter. She admonished herself for thinking like that. Tessa stood up and joined her teammates, adding her unmarked paw to the others. "We don't have to, like, say 'hip, hip, hooray' or something dopey like that, do we?" she wondered.

"Nah, I think we can leave it at this," Shane said, stepping back.

"Aww, I was kind of hoping we would," Silvally whined, earning three bewildered stares. "What? Sometimes a 'mon's gotta let his silliness out. You guys got to do plenty of that at Sunset Shoals compared to me." That drew laughter from his teammates. His body lit up yellow in response.

The laughter died down and silence overtook the group, save for small waves rolling up onto the shore and a gentle ocean breeze ruffling nearby palm trees. "So, uh, now what should we do?" Espy asked. "I'm trying to think of a way for us to prepare for the other group's arrival, but I'm drawing a total blank."

Shane sighed heavily. "Well, there is one thing that comes to mind. I should really… um…" His voice trailed off as he pawed at the ground nervously. "As much as I don't want to do this, I think I need to touch the Seaside Shard and see what happens." He shuddered. "I hope the response is reasonable this time."

His teammates all stepped closer to him. Espy levitated the Shard out from her satchel. "Well, at least you've got us around for this. We'll make sure everything's okay," she said.

"Yeah, we've got your back," Tessa said, emphasizing the point by putting her left paw on Shane's back.

"R-right," Shane whispered, struggling not to flinch. "Lemme just…" He turned around to face the ocean in case he coughed up more fire like when he touched the Sizzle Shard. Espy dropped the Shard in the sand by his forepaws. "Okay, Solgaleo, let's see what you've got in store for me this time," Shane said, taking a deep breath. He touched his paw to the Shard. Within seconds, Shane seized up. He blacked out on the spot.

* * *

 _Glimmering stars and glints of cosmic light surrounded Shane. That was the first thing he noticed before he finally got his bearings… and searing pain shot through every square inch of his body. Shane tried to move his limbs, but couldn't feel them. He screamed… or, at least, he_ thought _he did. However, no sounds came out._

 _His vision slowly came into focus. Two blurs appeared in front him. They became Chikorita and Fennekin. Chikorita stood inches away, a vine raised and a determined expression on her face._

 _ **A-ArE yOu SuRE AbOUt tHiS?!**_

 _Shane heard the voice. No, he heard_ thousands _of voices all speaking as one. And they were coming from him. Shane again tried to move, but couldn't feel any limbs. What was Solgaleo doing?_

 _Chikorita backed away from him, frowning._

 _ **LoOk At aLL oF cREatiOn. You BeINgs… ThOsE liKE yOu… You'LL only dO iT aGaIN.**_

 _Fennekin approached Chikorita, a worried look on his face. Shane's mind raced. This was familiar. He had seen these two together when he touched the Sizzle Shard. And he could've sworn he had heard these words before._

 _ **I aM thE dARknesS wiThIN thE hEartS oF aLL cREaTiON… WiTHin aLL PokÉmON. All YoUr HatREd aNd aLL yOuR Pain… ThAT is oF WhaT I aM MaDE. If YOu bREak mE HerE, ThE frAgMEntS oF All ThAt hATreD aND pAin will bE sEnT fLyINg eVERywheRe. It will rUn RaMPant IN thE WorLD AgAIN.**_

 _Chikorita and Fennekin exchanged uneasy looks._

 _ **NegAtiVity will tAke rOot aRouND The wOrLD. It wILL fLouRISh and GrOW. It wILL grOw eVeN laRGeR anD stronger tHAn iT is NOw, UnTiL I aM reViVEd oNce MoRe iN sOmE fUTure gEnerATIon.**_

 _Chikorita looked down, her legs trembling. Shane realized what Solgaleo was showing him._

 _ **I aM DaRK MatTer. I hAVe aLWaYs BeEN. I will aLWayS Be.**_

 _Shane's mind raced. He thought back to Tapu Lele's temple. Necrozma forced her to summon a copy Dark Matter. Was there actually a connection between them? Did Dark Matter lie at the heart of the Prism Virus? How was that possible? He was vanquished. That's what everyone had told him._

 _ **I cAN nEvEr Be exTinGUIshED.**_

 _What was Shane missing? Solgaleo clearly wanted him to know something. Was it simply that Dark Matter was alive and well, working with Necrozma? Or was there more to it?_

 _ **If YOu STRike Me DOwN hERe aND Now… If YoU bREaK mY bODy inTo PieCEs… YOu wILL bE ThE ONeS rESponSIBle fOr My REtuRn.**_

 _Something sharp stabbed through Shane, but his cries went unheard._

 _ **Is THaT a reSpONSibiLitY YoU wAnT? CoULd yOU bEaR tHat gUiLT?**_

 _"No problem!" Fennekin shouted, puffing out his chest. Chikorita looked toward her teammate in alarm._

 _ **You wOuLD sTiLL strike mE dOWn?!**_

 _"You bet your ugly sphere I would!" Fennekin said. He turned to Chikorita, a smile on his face. "Don't worry. I finally get it. When you really think about it, you, me, Dark Matter, even the planet… we were all born right here in the same universe."_

 _Shane spotted a ripple of distortion far behind Chikorita and Fennekin. The distortion split open like a tear through fabric, revealing a single, violet, reptilian eye with a large black slit for a pupil. Shane wanted to tell the two Pokémon in front of him about it, but knew it was a futile effort. They eye persisted, staring Shane down._

 _"Sure, people have jealousy and hate in them, but that's not all they're made of," Fennekin continued as Shane's entire being throbbed. An unseen force weighed heavily on him. "We all have our good sides, our bad sides, and everything in between. People are complicated. And that's something we can't brush aside!"_

 _Chikorita nodded at Fennekin, who turned to Shane. "So, Dark Matter, I'm okay with you being around!" Fennekin declared, beaming._

 _Another surge of pain shot through Shane. The violet eye's pupil constricted. Black vapors seeped out of its distorted hiding spot._

 _ **YoU… wHAt?!**_

 _"I accept you!" Fennekin said. Shane's head — if he could even call it that in this case — throbbed._

 _ **WhAt? WhAT aRE yOu SaYiNG?! I aM NeGAtiviTY iTSeLF! I Am THE dARkneSs wIThin yOUr hEaRT!**_

 _To Shane's surprise, Fennekin giggled. "Come on, it's not that hard to get! Like I said, that's a part of us._ You _are a part of us! You… belong here with us!" Fennekin took a deep breath, then smiled at the bewildered Chikorita. "That's why… I accept you!"_

 _Fennekin charged toward Shane, a warm grin on his face. As Fennekin leaped into the air, the black vapors released by the violet eye followed behind him. The eye vanished in a flash, replaced by a familiar round portal with crisscrossing white lines._

 _Then, Fennekin embraced Shane. Light filled his vision, followed by excruciating pain as his essence was pulled in a thousand different directions at once. The scene dissolved all around him. Echoes of laughter rose up in the distance until the light faded and Shane found himself floating in the midst of another cosmic area. Checkboard patterns projected in the distance. Giant stars radiated with numerous colors. Solar flares streamed through the air all around him._

 _ **"To think… my core wound up in the skull of some sad, sorry human. And it's Dr. Sinclair, to boot! What an ironic twist! Heeheeheeh— urgh, no! This isn't something to laugh about. This is the time for action! I want her**_ **dead.** _**I want my core**_ **returned!** _ **And I want my light back!"**_

 _Shane chest tightened. There was no mistaking Necrozma's distorted voice. Which only made his panic begin anew. Necrozma's voice was coming from him. He could see Necrozma's tail and wings in the periphery of his vision. That meant, as far as this vision was concerned, he_ was _Necrozma. What was going on? Shane understood Solgaleo was psychic. Did Solgaleo take one of Necrozma's memories to show to him?_

 _ **"I need a spanner to throw a wrench into Prisma's plans and get my core back. And what better way to do that than by summoning another human! Heeheeheehee! Oh, yes, it will cost a fair amount of light… it may not even work, to be honest… but it will be the most fun I've had in**_ **centuries!** _ **"**_

 _Shane involuntarily reached his right arm out. Light flickered on the ends of his claws. He traced his claws through the air, tearing open tiny slits in the fabric of Ultra Space. Shane looked at the jagged, glistening lines and smiled. He leaned forward and peered through them. Shane found himself looking at a nondescript parking garage, with a few cars sparsely positioned around._

 _ **"Heeheeheehee! I found you. The Guiding Light's old friend,"**_ _Shane said, sticking out his tongue and licking his lips._ _ **"Boy, I can't wait to see what's going to happen! You'll wake up in the body of a Lucario — your furry wet dream — with my Z-Power backing you up. I'll make you think Solgaleo summoned you here as a chosen one. Yes… heeheeheehee… then, it falls to you. If you succeed, I get my core and my light back… and wipe you out of existence! And if you fail… well, at least I get to enjoy watching you suffer at the hands of the Pokémon you claim to love so much. Either way, it'll be the best game you and Light have ever played! And all the while, it'll keep the void entertained."**_

 _Shane's stomach churned. Necrozma had claimed responsibility for bringing him here way back in the Temple of Mind. It certainly explained why his dream visions that turned out to be lies. But he wasn't a Lucario. What had gone wrong?_

 _ **"Now then, I think it's time you bid farewell to your human life,"**_ _Shane shouted. He dug his claws into the openings he had made, expanding them into a full-blown Ultra Wormhole. On the other side, he saw his tiny silver car backing out of its parking space._

 _Before he had the opportunity to do anything, however, a ferocious roar sounded from behind him. A tingle ran down Shane's spine. The world around him blurred for a split second, only for Ultra Space to reappear exactly how it had looked before, except the Ultra Wormhole was further away. Had he teleported? It was the only conclusion he could draw._

 _"Release Lunala!"_

 _Shane stared down Solgaleo, who stood opposite him, pawing at the ground._ _ **"Heeheeheehee! I knew you'd come. Even though Prisma thought we had managed to do you in for good, I had a feeling I'd see you again. Guess it's hard to keep you down, huh?"**_ _Shane lolled his head to his right._ _ **"But I'm afraid I'm keeping Lunala. See, her light is sustaining me. And I have no intentions of disappearing."**_

 _"Then I will free her from you, demon!" Solgaleo snarled. An orange fireball surrounded him. He charged Shane down. Shane teleported back toward his Ultra Wormhole._

 _ **"Tch. I don't have time to deal with you. Run along, kitty!"**_ _Shane sneered. He swiped at the air, releasing purple Shadow Balls that homed in on Solgaleo. Shane turned his attention back toward his Ultra Wormhole. His head was throbbing. The wormhole had to close soon before it drained too much of this body's energy. He raised his right hand. A pink glow overtook it._

 _Solgaleo slammed him from behind. White-hot pain shot through his back. He errantly released his stored psychic energy into the portal. A horn blared out, followed by the screeching of tires and metal tearing against metal._

 _ **"No!**_ **No!** _" Shane shouted. He whirled on Solgaleo, blasting him away with a barrage of meteors._ _ **"You**_ **imbecile!** _ **You've ruined everything!"**_ _Shane lashed out at the air with his wings and arms while Solgaleo careened through Ultra Space, roaring his fury._ _ **"No, this isn't over. I can still salvage this. I**_ **will** _**have what I want!"**_

 _He turned to the portal. Two cars had collided, leaving a wreckage peppered with pointed metal, glass fragments, tiny flames barely withstanding the rain, and puddles of motor oil rapidly spreading across the ground. Shane reached his right arm into the portal and channeled his psychic powers. He seized a broken, bloodied body from the debris._

 _A brilliant orange fireball charged into him from the side. Shane lost his grip on the body. His portal shut as he spread his wings to steady himself. Shane looked up and his heart leaped into his throat._

 _There, floating behind Solgaleo, was his body. His_ human _body._

 _Burns peppered it from head to toe. Blood floated around it, streaming out from several gashes. But there was no mistaking the unkept, greasy, brown hair or the tattered remains of his work clothes. Shane sensed the life energy of his human body fading rapidly, as if it was a campfire someone had dumped a bucket of water on._

 _Shane wanted to hurl. He had told his friends— hell, he had told_ everyone _he had gone to sleep and woken up as a Vulpix. But that wasn't true. He had been in a fatal car accident. And it was all because of Necrozma and Solgaleo. The Pokémon whose spirit was inside him had helped cause all of this. If he hadn't attacked Necrozma, then Shane would've been a Lucario instead… and perhaps everything that had happened to him in the Pokémon world would've gone differently._

 _But his assumptions didn't stop there. If this was what had happened to him before being transformed, then_ could _he even go back to the human world? Or would disappearing actually mean being wiped out of existence, like Grovyle and the human who had stopped Primal Dialga?_

 _"Aggh! Somebody help me! It feels like… I'm being ripped apart!"_

 _The yells came from Shane's human self. Solgaleo responded by charging Shane down, surrounding himself in a fireball._

 _"P-Please! Someone… anyone…_ help! _I don't wanna die! I don't wanna die!"_

 _Shane held his ground, even as Solgaleo roared. He stuck out his arms and caught Solgaleo mid-charge. His limbs trembled. Cracks splintered through his prism armor. He channeled all the psychic energy he could muster into his arms. The flames around Solgaleo's weakened._

 _ **"I've got you now. There's no escape! Did you really think you could pull off this little stunt without me finding out about it? How ridiculous! I can feel my light seeping off of you. It wants to return to me!"**_

 _Shane redirected his psychic energy. He sucked the flames off Solgaleo's body. His pain and fatigue rapidly faded. The fractures in his arms repaired themselves. Solgaleo roared in desperation, but could only struggle against Shane's psychic grip. Shane looked at his human self. A twisted grin spread across his face._

 _ **"As much as I want you gone, I need you for something far more important."**_

 _Solgaleo had stopped struggling. Faint wisps of fire still surrounded him, but most of the light Shane saw came from his current body, producing an insidious mix of blue and orange. Shane leaned over and was about to move his hands onto Solgaleo's face when a ripple caught his attention. The violet eye from the last vision had superimposed itself on Solgaleo's back. It crackled with black, distorted energy._

 _ **tHE TImE fOr GAmEs HaS lOnG SInCE paSseD. EnD tHEm bOtH! TuRN tHEsE uNPLeaSaNt MeMOrIeS to DusT!**_

 _The eye promptly vanished._

 _"Is… is someone out there? I'm hurt. I need help! Whoever you are… do something!"_

 _Shane was looking right at his human self. His lips curved into a malicious snarl. Shane dug his claws into Solgaleo's shoulders. An intense surge of energy streamed through his arms. Solgaleo erupted in an orange inferno. Shane smacked him. Solgaleo streamed toward Shane's human body._

 _ **"You need help, huh? It's a good thing you've got me here, then. Take it easy. No need to worry. I have just the thing for you, my human friend."**_

 _The instant Solgaleo's flames struck Shane's human self, Shane pointed his arms forward and released a brilliant rainbow beam. Screams of agony rose and faded as Shane's attack disintegrated Solgaleo and his human body. He ceased the attack and hunched over, arms and tongue tangling._

 _ **"Heehee… heeheeheehee! He's gone! Gone! I killed him! I killed them both! What fun! What a joy! What—"**_

 _Intense pain tore through Shane's chest. He descended into a raucous coughing fit, arms and wings spasming. Shane's world went white, the tearing pain so strong he thought he was literally being ripped in half. The light faded quickly, however, revealing Shane was still in the middle of Ultra Space. Only now, Necrozma towered over him. His third eye and chest sigil had gone dark and his arms hung uselessly by his side._

 _Shane tried to move. However, like in the first vision, he couldn't feel any limbs. He couldn't find his voice either. All he could do was watch as a trembling Necrozma formed a sloppy, asymmetrical Ultra Wormhole and fell into it. To Shane's shock, the portal's pull was so strong that it sucked him up, too. Bright light streamed all around him. Shane tried to express his panic, but couldn't._

 _Right before his vision faded, however, Shane saw two small, fuzzy, white legs sprout out in front of him._

* * *

A weak gasped escaped Shane. He stumbled through the sand, barely able to stop himself from toppling over. Shane stood there, legs spread out and sweat dripping off his fur. His eyes darted around. Every limb trembled, including his tails.

"Shane? Shane, what's wrong?!" Tessa said, aura feelers pulsating wildly. Beside her, Espy and Silvally shrank back, shutting their eyes as their heads throbbed.

Slowly, Shane craned his head skyward, his eyes empty. Then, without warning, he screamed at the top of his lungs. Tessa fell back on her rear, shoving her paws up against her ears. Silvally's eyes flickered erratically. Espy's tail shot between her legs. The distress in Shane's screams had hit them like a Bullet Punch barrage.

His voice gone, Shane collapsed on his side. He curled up into a shivering white ball. His teammates finally got their wits about them and ran to his side, minding the Seaside Shard sitting in the sand. Tessa knelt down beside him. "Talk to us, Shane. Please! Tell us what's wrong!" she cried, nudging him with her right paw. Tessa yanked it back the moment her mark shimmered to life. She stuck it behind her back and switched to rubbing him with her left paw.

"What did you see, Shane?" Espy whispered, standing by his tails.

Silvally lay down his belly so his face was near Shane's. "We want to help, but you've got to say something, even if it's hard," he said.

"I… I… I wasn't Solgaleo. Not this time. I was… Dark Matter." Shane shuddered. "I witnessed its defeat… only to get turned into Necrozma. Then I… saw myself." His voice cracked.

Silvally looked at Tessa in concern. "What do you mean by that?" Tessa asked.

"I didn't fall asleep one night and wake up a Vulpix! I _died!_ " Shane shouted, causing Silvally to scramble to his feet. "Necrozma, he was trying to summon me into this world, but Solgaleo attacked him. He made Necrozma misfire… and I got in a car crash as a result! Then Necrozma pulled me into Ultra Space and _vaporized me and Solgaleo_ with some big-ass rainbow beam!" Hot tears streamed down his face.

"Are you… sure? Maybe this was some sort of nightmare? You said Solgaleo's spirit is inside of you, right?" Espy said, though the squeaking in her voice betrayed her lack of confidence in her thoughts.

"I don't know! None of this makes sense!" Shane tried to bury his head in the sand, but failed. "How am I here? Am I really Shane or am I some sort of freakish impostor with his memories? What's going to happen to me?! I can't go back to the human world. I… I'm a dead 'mon walking, aren't I? I… I… I…"

He was hyperventilating. Silvally funneled psychic energy into his beak. He was ready to lean over and nudge Shane's shoulder, when Shane seized up. Silvally backed off, head crest fanning out in surprise. His eyes widened as rainbow light spilled out of Shane's looplet and raced down his back. Shane violently lurched forward. Silvally leaped over him, knocking a shocked, wide-eyed Tessa to the ground.

The moment they hit the sand, Shane spat out a ball of light. It sailed across the ocean, twinkling the further away it got. Then, without warning, it exploded in a brilliant pillar of golden energy. Espy dropped to the ground, screaming and throwing her forelegs over her face. The light died down, leaving Shane staggering about, mane disheveled and looplet flickering like a dying bulb.

"Shane, that…" Tessa looked out to sea. Her aura feelers curled up. "What _was_ that?"

"I don't know. I wasn't— I didn't mean for that to happen! There was this power that had been stirring inside me since those visions ended… and it forced its way out!" Shane said, wracked with shudders from head to tail. His ears drooped. "What if that attack hit some wild 'mons underwater? Oh, gods, what have I done?"

"That attack…" Espy's voice trailed off as she got to her feet. "There was no typing behind it." Shane and Tessa turned to her, both tensing up. "I couldn't… sense any of the types. It was just sheer energy. Light energy, I guess?" Her gaze darted about frantically. "C… can Solgaleo make light geysers? I mean, he brings sunlight onto the world and that's _kinda_ golden. So, he must be awakening, right?"

Silence fell over the group. Everyone looked down, unsure of what to make of this. The silence persisted for a full minute, before Espy's tail twitched. She looked up at the sky and her eyes bulged out. "Everyone scatter!" she shouted, booking it away from the shoreline. Her teammates looked up, only for their jaws to drop in unison.

"That's Latias… and she's careening toward us!" Tessa cried, aura feelers standing on end. She backpedaled frantically, but got tripped up and fell onto her rear. Shane scrambled away. Silvally held his ground, however. He kicked on his air memories and leaped into the air. His tail oscillated back and forth, producing enough momentum to carry him higher. Silvally snagged Latias in his beak. The nauseating taste of blood nearly made him drop her, but he held tough.

Silvally's head crest fanned out. Wind shot out of his legs. He glided safely back down to the ground and let go of Latias. "This is terrible! Something awful's happened to her," he squawked, cringing at the many patches of missing or bloody feathers. Glass shards from Latias' shattered goggles dug into her neck and underbelly.

"Latias? Latias, you've got to stay with me!" Shane said. He bent down and touched his snout between her wings. A faint orange glow overtook him. Warm sunlight funneled down toward her. It dislodged the broken glass and patched up some of her gashes.

With a pained wheeze, Latias' eyes shot open. She stared up at Team Radiance, wings and paws trembling.

"What happened to you, Latias?" Tessa asked, clasping her paws in worry. Latias' gaze darted about between the foursome. Tears streamed down her face.

"Lugia… infected. Hoopa's… gone. Hourglass… Necrozma…"

Latias lost consciousness. Then a massive tremor erupted across the beach.

* * *

Shane learned Psychic and Heat Wave from the first two Dawn Shards. As of publishing date, not a single person called me out on the fact that Solgaleo cannot get Heat Wave legally. For the first part of Shane's vision, Dark Matter's lines are copied verbatim from Super Mystery Dungeon, but I altered Fennekin's dialogue to be more conversational.

SuperOmegaGuest: the fact that the Valentine's special fell right before Necrozma offed Hoopa was a coincidence. I didn't plan for that. To answer your question, that butterfly is what emerged from the cocoon Necrozma had trapped Volcarona in. It was in Mewtwo's bonus chapter, too.

Sebastian: you can't publish fanfiction. This story is far longer than a novel. And there are a myriad of copyright issues involved. I appreciate the thought, though.

Another guest: was the wait worth it? Or did I catch you by surprise? Of course the Kirby influence is strong, here. I blame Super Mystery Dungeon.

Next time: "The beginning... of the end. The end of everything."


	99. Defying the Legends

I'm surprised no one called me out on the fact that the last preview was a Mother 3 quote, not necessarily a "the fic's about to end," quote. Ain't I a stinker? Anyway, onto the chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 83: Defying the Legends**

 **~Lively Town~**

Dragonite clumsily hobbled along the stone bridge marking Lively Town's main entrance. Scant amounts of sunlight glistened on the rocks, but it was all dwarfed by the luminescent glow of the domed, green barrier in front of her. Inside, Pokémon tried their best to go about their business. A Snubbull and Granbull flipped over a sign on the door to their bakery to signify they were open. Mail Pelippers flew inside the bright-blue post office building. Two Lillipups ran down the street with their exasperated Herdier father giving chase.

Manaphy's short, stubby legs — if Dragonite could even call them that — cramped up with each step. Her temporary body was clearly built for water. And she had quickly grown annoyed with Manaphy's antennae bonking the back of her head as she walked. Dragonite considered putting Manaphy's water powers to use to try hovering in the air, but ruled against it. She _was_ in the body of a lesser god. Keeping a low profile was best.

Dragonite took a deep breath. She couldn't hesitate. Slowing up as she approached the barrier wasn't an option. Other people might pick up on such hesitation and scrutinize it. Then her mission would be in trouble before it had really started. Dragonite proceeded forward, steeling her resolve. The barrier's energy tickled her membranous form the closer she got. A ripple ran through her system. Dragonite held her breath, worrying the barrier would reject her.

However, the tingling faded, as did the green light. Dragonite had safely passed through the barrier, just as Zero assumed she would. She proceeded down the main street, adjusting the satchel and explorer's badge Zero had given her. They were fakes, of course, but Zero had styled them after the badges in the Grass Continent. She was confident nobody would know the difference.

Town square only had a single Kecleon tending to his caravan-style shop. Dragonite tucked her head in and picked up her pace. She moved north. A yellow-brick road led the way up to the Expedition Society's gaudy, overly-colorful building. Dragonite frowned, however, when she noticed the door was closed, with no identifiable handles to open it up.

Sighing, Dragonite approached the door and knocked on it with a flipper. She prayed whatever sad sap answered the door was someone she could talk her way around. Dragonite stepped back as the door creaked open, revealing Delphox. He looked down and his eyes widened.

"Hey. You're—" He paused, brow furrowing. "Wait, it's Manaphy, right?"

"Yup, that's me. Did I come at a bad time?" Dragonite said, trying her best to put up a cheerful façade.

Delphox frowned. "You've had all of us worried sick! Cresselia and Darkrai showed up telling us that you had vanished into thin air! What happened to you?"

Dragonite silently swore. She hadn't realized Manaphy had company. She'd need to work around this. "Oh… that." Her antennae drooped. "I'm sorry. That's my fault. I saw some ocean-dwelling Pokémon under attack and swam out to help them. It took a lot longer than I was expecting. When I returned to Sharpedo Bluff, nobody was there!" She looked down guiltily. "It was so quiet in Treasure Town and I was nervous… I just wanted to see everyone so they'd know I was okay."

"You know you could've used the communicators Jirachi gave to Chatot, right?" Delphox said, sighing.

"I wanted to see my dads," Dragonite whimpered.

"Well, the important thing is that you're safe. Come on inside," Delphox said. He opened the door wider to allow Dragonite to waddle in, then shut it behind her. Dragonite examined the main assembly area, noting the desks piled high with papers and parchment filled to the brim with furious scribbling.

"Excuse the mess. As I'm sure you know, we're all under a lot of stress," Delphox explained, beckoning Dragonite to follow him to the right. There was a hallway lined by lavender walls with bright yellow stone at their bases. They passed by a few doorways with white arches, before arriving at one with the Expedition Society's logo etched into it.

"Chief? It's Delphox. I've got Manaphy here," Delphox said, knocking against the side of the arch. A crash echoed into the hallway, making Dragonite raise a brow.

"I'll be out in just a second!" a cheerful voice called. Dragonite assumed it belonged to Ampharos. Another pair of crashes followed.

"For pity's sake, Chief! I _just_ finished organizing those," a squeakier female voice groaned.

"Terribly sorry, Dedenne. I must've gotten turned around," Ampharos chuckled.

"Ugh, just follow me, Chief," Dedenne said, sighing loudly. Dragonite backed up behind Delphox. Ampharos and Dedenne walked out of the office. Mawile and Meganium were behind them.

"Ah. So, Manaphy has graced us with his presence. Splendid! I guess this means Latios' venture was successful," Ampharos declared, raising an arm triumphantly.

"Actually, Manaphy showed up on his own. Apparently, he rescued some drowning 'mons, but it took a while," Delphox explained.

Ampharos lowered his arm. "I see. In that case, we'd better recall Latios or else he'll be racing around the Grass Continent forever. Dedenne, would you do the honors?"

"Of course, Chief. Standby." Dedenne rubbed her cheek sacs. Electricity tickled the tips of her whiskers. Dragonite shuffled back unsteadily, not wanting to accidentally get electrocuted. "Huh, that's odd. I'm not picking up Latios' signal," Dedenne said after a minute of silence.

"Perhaps he's moving too fast for us to contact him? Despite all his testing, I don't think Jirachi figured out how to make the gadget work when Mega Latios flies at top speeds," Mawile said. "Give it a few minutes and try him again, okay?"

"All right," Dedenne said.

Meganium fixed a worried look on Delphox. "Uh, Meganium's wondering if Latios might be in trouble," Delphox announced, right paw pressed against his forehead. He held up his Expedition Gadget. "She wants to check the Pokémon Nexus and see if it shows us anything." Meganium nodded along as Delphox spoke.

Dragonite tensed up. She couldn't afford to get pulled into a situation involving Latios. Manaphy's Heart Swap was only temporary and she shuddered to think what would happen if it ran out while she was still inside Lively Town's barrier. "Um, not to interrupt or anything, but I just want to find my dads. Does anyone know where they are?"

"Why, I think they're upstairs tending to the Time Gears. Yes, don't let us hold you up. I'm sure your dads are very worried about you," Ampharos said.

"Thanks, Mr. Ampharos," Dragonite said, struggling to hide her glee at how perfectly this had worked out. As she dashed away from the group, however, her jubilant mood soured. Team Poképals was guarding the Time Gears and there could be others around, too. How was she supposed to swipe them without causing a scene? Sure, she had Manaphy's powers at her disposal, but could that hold off multiple Pokémon?

Her answer became clearer once she got upstairs. She was in a large study, with a few round tables shoved against the wall. There was a big bookcase to her left. It was overflowing, to the point where books spilled out onto the floor. To her right, Jirachi manned a telescope. In between them sat a giant ball of light and, within the ball, Dragonite faintly made out the four Time Gears.

"Manaphy? Oh, thank gods, you're okay!"

Feraligatr lumbered toward Dragonite. She yelped as he plucked her off the ground and wrapped her up in a big hug. "C-Can't… breathe," she wheezed, struggling in Feraligatr's grip.

"For pity's sake, Feraligatr, put him down before you squish him."

Infernape walked up to Feraligatr, who lowered Dragonite to the ground. She doubled over, trying to catch her breath. In the process, she caught sight of Uxie and Azelf, both hovering close to the ball of light housing the Time Gears. Dragonite frowned. Two seasoned explorers _and_ three gods all in the same room? Not to mention the possibility of Cresselia and Darkrai lurking nearby.

Luckily, Zero _had_ foreseen the prospect of the Time Gears being well-guarded. Dragonite simply needed to get Team Poképals to focus their attention elsewhere. Then, she could reach safely into her bag and deploy one of the orbs Zero had given her.

"Cresselia and Darkrai came here saying you had disappeared, Manaphy. What happened? I thought Feraligatr and I made it clear you had to stay in the team base," Infernape said, his expression stoic but his voice tinged with concern.

"I know. I'm sorry. But there were distressed 'mons out at sea. I saw them drowning, so I had to leap into action!" Dragonite said, hopping up and down as she spoke. "I swam out to help them, but it took much longer than I was expecting it to and left me very tired." She poked her flippers together. "I guess Cresselia and Darkrai had already left, because I went to sleep, but no one was around when I woke up. So, I rode the Lapras Liner over here as fast as I could."

Infernape raised a skeptical brow and Dragonite momentarily wondered if he had found a fault in her story. Feraligatr glanced at his partner. "You doing all right?" he asked.

"Yeah." Sighing, Infernape knelt down and put a hand on Dragonite's shoulder. "I'm glad you're okay, Manaphy. Please don't worry Feraligatr and me like that again."

"I won't! Now that I'm here, I'll do whatever you tell me too, Dad," Dragonite said, earning a wince from Infernape and a chuckle from Feraligatr.

"Well, glad that's settled. Hey, did you tell Cresselia and Darkrai you were here?" Feraligatr asked. Dragonite shook her head. "Aww, that's no problem, I'll go find 'em." Feraligatr smiled at Dragonite and walked out of the room.

Infernape stood back up and turned to face the Time Gears. Dragonite cautiously took a step back, pivoting to hide her satchel from Infernape. "So, uh, those are all the Time Gears the bad guys don't have, right?" she said.

"Correct. Uxie, Azelf, Feraligatr, and I brought them here together," Infernape explained.

"Um, does that mean that time's frozen in parts of the Grass Continent… like last time?" Dragonite asked, trying her best to make small talk while not losing her nerve. Her gut squirmed and her feet momentarily tingled. Dragonite wondered if the Heart Swap was wearing off. She silently opened the flap of her bag and reached inside. Her flipper grazed the smooth, round, glassy body of an orb.

"If what Latias said is true, then Dialga is making sure time flows correctly despite the Time Gears being here," Infernape said. "Uxie and Azelf have both been keeping constant watch on them, to be safe."

"That's good," Dragonite said, her flipper rapped around the orb. In one quick, fluid motion, she removed the orb and tossed it to the ground. It shattered. By the time Uxie and Azelf had turned around, the orb had taken effect. They both dropped to the ground, fast asleep. Jirachi slumped down onto a chair. Infernape dropped to his knees, then lay down on his belly.

The barrier holding the Time Gears faded. Dragonite figured Uxie and Azelf were responsible for maintaining it. Dragonite tiptoed forward and snagged the Time Gears before they hit the ground. She pocketed them in her satchel. Dragonite glanced at the stairs, but dismissed the notion of using them. It'd be too risky to go down the main route. Instead, she lumbered toward the telescope. Dragonite barely managed to squeeze herself through an opening between the telescope and the wall.

She dropped onto a light-blue tower at the top of the castle-like building. Dragonite knew the front of the building had windows, so she walked to the side. The drop off was steep, but she believed her squishy body could deal with the impact. To better her chances, Dragonite slowly slid herself over the edge, moistening her flippers and feet with tiny globs of water. She pressed her limbs against the building's wall and the friction slowed what would have been a rapid fall down two stories.

Unfortunately, her decision had the unintended side effect of making loud, squeaking noises as she slid. Dragonite pushed off the wall and dropped the rest of the way. She shuddered from the impact, but rolled forward and got back to her feet. Dragonite ran as fast as Manaphy's tiny feet could carry her. She stayed clear of the main roads, opting to go behind the buildings.

Dragonite whizzed past Café Connection, her small stature keeping her safe from the open windows and potential prying eyes of customers. She focused her attention ahead of her. Dragonite's breath came in rapid gasps. Her gut cramped and her flippers grew heavy. There was little doubt in her mind that Manaphy's Heart Swap was wearing off. She had to get close enough to Zero to complete the handoff.

Her antennae twitched. Dragonite juked to her right. A black, spherical void raced by her. She looked over her shoulder. Darkrai flew toward her, shadows gathering in his hands.

"I don't know what kind of trick this is, but I'll be taking back those Time Gears," Darkrai growled. He hurled Dark Voids toward Dragonite. She blasted them apart with two well-placed spurts of water. Darkrai wasn't deterred, however. He floated closer, drawing on more dark energy.

Dragonite's stomach knotted up. She _had_ to keep moving. Dragonite whipped her antennae forward. An icy stream pelted Darkrai, freezing his arms. His levitation faltered. Dragonite turned and sprinted away. There was no sense trying to stay off the main path now. She cut in between a curio shop and a pink boutique. Dragonite stumbled onto the main road, shoving a startled Krokorok aside. She waddled forward as fast as she could.

"Stop! Get back here, thief!"

Dragonite recognized Infernape's voice. She spun around, blasting a scalding water jet in his direction. Infernape skidded to a halt, then leaped over the attack. Dragonite had nearly reached the bridge. Infernape was much faster, however. He charged Dragonite down, lightning coating his fists.

Right before Dragonite could turn to counterattack, a gleam caught the corner of her eye. She put a flipper on the ground. Dragonite cartwheeled to her left. To her utter delight, Darkrai's burst of red energy struck the lunging Infernape. He careened into the brown door of a brick house. Dragonite shot another Ice Beam from her antennae. Darkrai countered with a pitch-black Dark Pulse. They stalemated in an explosive burst of shadowy frost.

Dragonite dashed onto the bridge, but a burst of water struck her from behind. She spun forward, wincing in pain.

"Dang it, Feraligatr. We're trying to stop him, not give him a bigger lead! You're gonna knock him into the water if you keep that up," Infernape shouted. Dragonite's antennae perked up. She vaulted over the edge of the bridge.

"No, _stop!_ " Feraligatr barked. He looked behind him, praying Darkrai would launch psychic waves to restrain Dragonite. However, Darkrai was still dazed from his earlier blow. "Infernape, head across the bridge. I'll swim after him!" Feraligatr said. He sprinted to the edge of town and dove in the direction where Dragonite had surfaced.

She hastily swam forward, making her way through the barrier the second Feraligatr splashed down. Dragonite caught a glimpse of Infernape dashing across the bridge. Luckily, she had greater maneuverability now that she was in the water. Dragonite dove down, then quickly U-turned. She launched herself skyward. Dragonite blasted scalding water toward the bridge. Infernape tried punching through it with an electrified fist, but he couldn't generate enough lightning to protect himself.

Dragonite reached a steep slope of land opposite Lively Town. Behind her, Feraligatr summoned a wave. Dragonite launched herself skyward with a high-pressured Hydro Pump. The moment she landed in a patch of grass, she seized up. Her chest constricted and her antennae knotted up. Dragonite gasped as her world went white.

The Heart Swap had faded.

Dragonite's vision recovered, offering her a view of her armored limbs. Zero and her teammates stood next to her. The former's lone eye flickered purple. "Where are the Time Gears?" she said.

"Manaphy's got them. He's on that strip of land across the water from Lively Town, but Team Poképals are in hot pursuit," Dragonite said. She lightning-dashed out of the forest.

"Nnrgh. I will _not_ have things fall apart right at this crucial moment," Zero hissed, her fists flickering with distorted red light. With a burst of Extreme Speed, she raced after Dragonite. "Hurry up, you two!" she shouted, prompting Milotic and Serperior to slither after her as fast as they could.

Dragonite reached the spot where Manaphy had collapsed right as Feralgatr used a plume of water to shoot himself up. "Lightning Javelin!" she cried, hurling an electric spear forward. Feraligatr leaped over it. He slashed at Dragonite with glowing blue claws, but she met him with Dragon Claws of her own. Her strength prevailed. Dragonite forced Feraligatr to the ground.

"Behind you, Dragonite!" Zero called. Infernape was quicker on the draw, however, slamming a glowing fist into Dragonite's armored belly. She floated back, wings flapping rapidly.

"Try this on for size!" Dragonite said. She smacked her fists together, releasing a giant twister crackling with blue and yellow energy. Infernape's face blanched. The tornado picked him and Feraligatr up. It hurtled them into each other repeatedly. Zero nabbed the Time Gears while returning Manaphy to his Beast Ball.

"I've got the Time Gears. Now, let's get out of—"

Zero's aura dreadlocks tensed. She turned and hurled a red Aura Sphere through the air. It fizzled out against Darkrai's shadowy shield. He grabbed it and kneaded the shadows like they were blackened putty. "You must be part of this accursed Prism Virus phenomenon. Rest assured, I will do everything I can to put a stop to you," he declared. Darkrai hurtled two Dark Voids toward Zero. She twirled her staff, forming two clumps of glitchy, red cubes. The cubes exploded into red and black vortexes that effortlessly sucked the Dark Voids up.

Undeterred, Darkrai shot a black beam at Zero. She raised her staff and the vortexes expanded, blocking the attack. Zero launched a red Aura Sphere and dispelled the cubes. Darkrai lacked the time to shield himself. It exploded, knocking him toward the water.

Zero held her scepter up. It morphed into the scythe resembling Absol's horn. She slashed the air repeatedly. Green, horn-shaped energy bursts sailed toward Darkrai. He pointed his arms down. The recoil from the Psychic he unleashed propelled him safely above Zero's Megahorn barrage. Still upside-down, Darkrai gathered a large red energy ball in his hands. He hurled the Focus Blast toward Zero.

Swearing, Zero twirled the scythe in her paws. She whipped up a polar vortex, catching the Focus Blast in its place, freezing it solid, and pushing the giant ice ball back toward Darkrai.

"Nngh— impossible!" he gasped, trying to conjure up the energy to use Psychic. Unfortunately, all he could manage was a few pink sparks. Darkrai had to resort to strafing the ice ball.

" **Consume!** " Zero shouted, taking advantage of the opening. She fired a red and black beam from her scepter. It hit Darkrai's right arm. His colors peeled off as he looked on in horror. The last of his energy faded an instant before his hollow, gray body smacked the water. Zero took in Darkrai's life energy, her body violently distorting.

Milotic and Serperior finally caught up and exchanged glances. "Oh. Looks like you two settled everything," Serperior said, glancing to her left. Feraligatr and Infernape lay in an unconscious heap. Electrical burns peppered their bodies. Dragonite floated over them. She raised an arm to summon a lightning javelin.

"Now, for the finisher," she said.

"Halt, Dragonite," Zero said, raising her free paw. Two corrupted Beast Balls appeared from distorted ripples in the air. "I can put these two to use. I'll have Team Poképals _and_ Team Paradise under my command." She flicked her paw. The Beast Balls hit Infernape and Feraligatr. They sucked them up, dropped to the ground, and clicked shut. Zero levitated the Beast Balls back to her.

"Excellent. And with that, we take our le—"

The ground erupted in a violent quake. Zero, Milotic, and Serperior all jumped back in alarm as a fissure split the hill apart. The part they had been standing on dislodged and slipped down into the water. Large waves rolled in Lively Town's direction.

"What's going on? Is Groudon about to pop out and attack us?" Serperior gasped, planting her tail-blade into the dirt to keep her anchored.

"No. It's something better," Dragonite whispered, grinning. The tremor abruptly stopped and a wave of white light raced up from the water. It passed harmlessly over Zero and Team Captivate, but it didn't take long for any of them realize something had gone horribly wrong.

"Look at the water. It's completely frozen!" Milotic gasped, pointing her tail forward.

"Yeah. The ground stopped sliding away, too," Serperior said, slithering back. She looked toward Dragonite and Milotic with a smirk on her face. "Everything's coming to a standstill, wouldn't you say?"

Zero's eye darted about. The world's colors evaporated all around her. Nearby trees and bushes lost their leaves. Only barren bundles of twigs remained. The slight breeze from the ocean had disappeared. Even the waves and ripples in the water were frozen in place.

"The planet's… paralysis," Zero whispered. Her eye sparked with purple aura. "No… _no!_ " She clenched her paws into fists. They flickered about, seemingly detaching from her body. "Temporal Tower… Necky got to Temporal Tower? How?! Did Necky get an Hourglass? Did he get _both?_ "

She turned toward Team Captivate. Before any of the girls could offer an answer, Zero summoned their Beast Balls and recalled them. She glared down at the balls as they shook in midair. "You didn't think I senses the shift in your auras, _ladies?_ " she hissed. "I had a bad feeling when Dragonite popped up different from how I intended to her look, but you three listened to me, so I thought maybe I had messed things up. But it looks like the interference was all Necky's doing!"

Zero pressed down on the right side of her mask. "Well, if Necky's gotten to Temporal Tower, then that must mean there's no barrier around it anymore." She waved her free paw and Team Captivate's Beast Balls disappeared in clusters of black cubes. "I'll deal with you deceitful _worms_ later. For now…" Manaphy's Beast Ball materialized in front of her. "I've got a bat to get out of my belfry."

Her body grossly distorted. A black Ultra Wormhole appeared in front of Zero. She grabbed Manaphy's Beast Ball and leaped into the portal.

* * *

 **~Temporal Tower~**

Dialga stomped about the Temporal Pinnacle, glaring out at the thick yellow clouds covering the Hidden Land. Mewtwo hadn't returned. With all the power he claimed to have, eliminating some dungeon Pokémon should've been mere child's play. And yet, here Dialga was, standing alone atop his domain. Ordinarily, that wouldn't bother him. It's what he preferred. However, Mewtwo's absence had unsettled him and that feeling grew with each passing minute.

Had he simply left? No, that should've been impossible. Lapras can't be summoned on this side of the Sea of Time. Dialga knew he was the only way Mewtwo could leave the Hidden Land. He supposed he could try to sense Mewtwo's presence using the dungeon's ley lines. But that idea risked ruining whatever work Mewtwo had done to settle things down.

Dialga lashed his tail out at the air. "Worthless cretin! I agree to bring you to my domain and you have the nerve to mock me like this? I am the keeper of time! I—"

A ripple ran through the air in front of Dialga. He froze. His steel fins fanned out, glimmering with blue hexagons. A second ripple spread through the sky. This time, his barrier appeared. Cracks splintered through the golden energy capsule encircling Temporal Tower.

"No… that's impossible!" Dialga shouted. The blue hexagons raced up to his mouth. Dialga roared. Tachyons spread through the air, twisting the barrier and seemingly freezing the cracks in place. Dialga hunched down close to the ground and concentrated. A blue transmutation circle formed, with Dialga in its center. He traced an hourglass-like glyph and then sliced a line through it.

Dialga pressed a forehoof to the sigil. His brow furrowed, however, when the sigil didn't alight. He glanced up at his barrier. The tachyons had dissipated and cracks were spreading even further. Dialga gathered more temporal energy. However, it didn't form up fast enough. The barrier shattered like a broken piece of pottery. Dialga staggered back as primal energy dissipated into thin air.

 **"I've finally got you! Heeheeheehee!"**

An Ultra Wormhole split the sky open. Lugia flew out of it first, releasing a purple Shadow Blast vortex. Dialga's eyes widened. He had no choice but to utter a second Roar of Time. His blue hexagons snuffed out Lugia's shadows, but left Dialga defenseless. A shadowy cloud formed into Necrozma. He took aim not at Dialga, but at one of the pillars standing near Temporal Pinnacle's altar. A silhouette of Keldeo formed over Necrozma's head, then red energy blades raced toward the pillar.

"No!" Dialga shouted, lunging into the air. The Secret Sword crescents peppered his left flank. He winced, but held his ground.

 **"What's the matter, Dialga? Afraid of your new houseguest messing things up?"** Necrozma crooned. He glanced up at Lugia. **"What are you waiting for, an invitation? Put your powers to good use! Attack him! Knock him into the altar!"**

Lugia screeched. Pink flames streamed from his eyes. He smacked his wings together. A powerful psychic grip grabbed Dialga. He couldn't even get his mouth to open. Necrozma turned to the same pillar as before. Fiery-purple meteors appeared by his wings.

 **"That's far enough, you dreadful monstrosity!"**

Necrozma's third eye flashed. He disappeared in a puff of smoke seconds before the space he occupied distorted in a twisted vortex of blue energy. Necrozma reappeared, only for a black, ethereal blur to strike him and send him reeling.

"Yeah! Nobody messes with my bestest big brother except for me!" Giratina declared, spreading his ectoplasmic wings wide as Palkia flew up beside him, shoulder gems sparkling with energy. "Oh, and Darkrai that one time, but Dia doesn't like it when I talk about that. It's kind of a sore subject."

 **"Quiet, Giratina. We're not here to talk, we're here to bury this unruly corrupter of space!"** Palkia snarled. He whirled around. His Spacial Rend vortex ensnared Lugia and exploded. Dialga regained free movement and blasted Lugia with a metallic energy beam. Necrozma teleported behind Lugia and yanked him out of his freefall. Soft moonlight spread across both of them, healing their nicks.

 **"You! No, you two shouldn't be here!"** Necrozma hissed, wings and arms tensing.

 **"I am the god of space itself! You didn't think I wouldn't sense the destruction of Temporal Tower's barrier? I could sniff out your vile portals even if I was sitting in a room full of Grimers!"** Palkia declared, pointing a claw at Necrozma. **"They're a blight upon the beautiful fabric of space that I weave."**

"But Pal-Pal, you don't have any nostrils. Dad didn't give us any," Giratina said, grinning broadly.

 **"Be. Quiet. Giratina,"** Palkia growled. **"This is not the time for your dumb jokes! You want to stop the meanie who's out to hurt your 'bestest big brother,' right?"**

"Oh… yeah! Right." Giratina turned to Necrozma, clearing his throat. "I'm going to tear you to shreds and then use those shreds to make a papier mâché heart to give to Dia!"

Necrozma floated back. His eyes flashed. He folded his wings over his torso. **"I did not come this far for three drooling imbeciles to ruin everything. Naganadels, get them!"** He tore open an Ultra Wormhole, summoning a half dozen wasp-like creatures with large silver needles protruding from their ends. They formed into a square. Blue, dragon-shaped bolts cut through the air.

Giratina unleashed his own Dragon Pulse. Dialga shot liquid metal from his mouth. They destroyed four of the Naganadels' Dragon Pulses. Palkia then slashed at the air. A pink vortex swallowed the remaining two attacks.

Palkia's shoulder crystals glowed. His wings fanned out. Two small portals appeared behind Necrozma and Lugia. They had enough time to turn around before their allies' attacks slammed into their faces. **"Nrrrgeeek!"** Necrozma snarled, backing away from the godly dragons. **"That's… not possible!"**

 **"You should have thought twice before daring to challenge us! I'll turn each of your attacks back on you before you even know it!"** Palkia bellowed.

Necrozma's third eye wriggled inside his prism armor. **"All of you… go for the tower! I'll deal with our phallic-headed friend,"** he said, black smoke trickling out of his mouth. Necrozma disappeared in a flash of light. Lugia's eyes smoldered with green energy and he vanished in a puff of smoke, too.

The Naganadels took aim at Dialga and Giratina and fired Dragon Pulses from their stingers. Liquid metal and purple Shadow Balls raced to meet them. Before Palkia could divert the attacks with more of his portals, Necrozma flew out of a black tear in the sky. Palkia coiled around, shooting a mouthful of water at Necrozma. He broke off his charge to skirt the Hydro Pump. Necrozma hurtled flaming meteors toward Palkia.

Palkia smirked, shoulder crystals glowing. Necrozma's chest sigil flashed and a black, shadowy portal swallowed the meteors. Palkia's smirk vanished. A second black portal appeared behind him. Palkia whirled around, barely catching the meteors in a jagged, blue Spacial Rend vortex. Necrozma drifted back, then threw open a third black portal. He caught the meteors Palkia threw back at him. Palkia coated his tail in water. He swatted the meteors away before they could strike Temporal Tower.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Something wrong, oh mighty god of space? Of course. You're upset you're not the only one who can think with portals,"** Necrozma crooned. Black mist swirled around his three eyes. Dark portals surrounded Palkia.

 **"What the—"** Palkia crossed his arms together. A water bubble formed around him. Black fists shot out of the portals. They struck the bubble and popped it. Palkia raced forward. He tore open the air to his right. A second tear appeared beside Necrozma, who teleported away to dodge the blue Dragon Pulse beam.

"Aiyyyaaah!"

A startled yelp drew both Palkia's and Necrozma's attentions. Back by the tower, a pillar of shadows had swallowed up Giratina. Two hollow, bright-green eyes stared down at Dialga, who was too preoccupied hurtling glowing rocks and debris at the Dragon Pulse volley raining down on him.

 **"What have you done to Lugia, you twisted demon?"** Palkia barked. Shadows sheathed his right hand as he ripped open a tear in space and swiped at Necrozma.

 **"I've made him something better,"** Necrozma said, propelling himself back with a psychic blast. Palkia withdrew his arm with an annoyed grunt. He glanced over his shoulder. Lugia had blasted Giratina with psychic waves, forcing Dialga into the air to stop his younger brother from crashing into Temporal Tower. The Naganadels seized their opening, tearing into Dialga with a half-dozen serpentine lasers.

 **"Dialga! Giratina! Get down on the tower's roof!"** Palkia cried. His eyes flashed blue. Tears in space encircled Necrozma. Explosions filled with blue hexagons battered him from all sides. Palkia turned around, confident he'd sent Necrozma reeling. He tossed more Spacial Rend portals at the Naganadels like they were cosmic frisbees. Lugia dispersed into a cloud of shadows to dodge, but the Naganadels didn't realize there was any approach danger. The rends merged into one giant, buzz-saw of a portal.

"We're on the roof, Pal-Pal! What's next?" Giratina said.

 **"This!"** Palkia roared. His eyes and gems glowed orange. An unseen force grabbed the Nagandels and hurled them into the portal. The massive rend shredded them into a cloud of pink and purple mist. Lugia materialized and plummeted from the sky with an enraged squawk. Likewise, a screeching Necrozma careened toward the yellow clouds below.

"Oh, I get it! Gravity!" Giratina said, legs trembling as he fought to stay standing. "Thi-this game's fun P-Pal-Pal! But how long do we have to, _urk_ , keep playing it?"

 **"Until we've felled this demon and purged him from our world!"** Palkia declared. **"Dialga, strike while he's vulnerable!"**

Dialga fought against the increased gravity to unleash a mighty roar. Tachyons pummeled Lugia and Necrozma from every angle. Cracks spread through both their prism armor sets. Arms spasming, Necrozma threw open an Ultra Wormhole and fell into it. He appeared directly atop Palkia. The sudden slam brought an end to Palkia's gravity manipulation. Necrozma whipped his arms around, tearing into Palkia's shoulder crystals with his shadowy claws. The gems shattered. Palkia's screams echoed through the sky.

Atop Temporal Tower's roof, Giratina stiffened. His red eyes narrowed. He leaped into a black portal, then immediately appeared beside Necrozma. "Do _not…_ " He slammed Necrozma with his wings. "Hurt…" Giratina hammered Necrozma's face with his tail. "My _brother!_ " He unleashed a bevy of bright-purple meteors, battering Necrozma and knocking him back through the sky. Giratina shot through the air. He caught Palkia on his back and charged back toward Temporal Tower.

A shrill cry echoed from below. Giratina screeched to a halt inches away from a purple tornado. He launched spectral tendrils from his wings to slice through the gale-force winds, but the tornado turned them aside. Lugia appeared within the whirlpool. Pink energy exploded all around Giratina. Palkia tumbled off his back. Giratina scrambled to collect his disoriented brother. Lugia summoned a giant whirlpool and hurled it toward Temporal Tower.

Dialga leaped into the air and hovered in place. "I will not let this tower fall again! Nobody disrupts the flow of time on my watch!" he snarled. His chest plate's central gem turned yellow. Glowing runes shaped like lightning bolts surrounded him. Diagla raised his forelegs. Ripples of light enveloped the whirlpool. Water transformed into blue electricity before a flabbergasted Lugia's eyes.

He frantically flapped his wings. Lugia tried to push the lightning toward Dialga, but found his control of the storm seized from him. Dialga turned the electricity on Lugia, frying him from head to tail. Wings badly singed, he plummeted once again. Lugia thrashed his limbs, his distorted squawks echoing throughout the sky.

"Thanks for the backup, Dia," Giratina said, setting Palkia down on the room.

Dialga glanced down at his brothers. "How fares Palkia?" he said, scanning the sky for any signs of Necrozma. Dialga used a Flash Cannon to keep pressure up on Lugia, who stopped his attempts at healing and turned into a cloud of shadows.

"Not good. He's really shaken. That meanie-head did something to his cores," Giratina said. He tapped one of Palkia's shoulder crystals with a wing. Palkia spasmed. A garbled cry of pain escaped his lips.

 **"B-Back off. I'm… fine. I can still… go on…"** Palkia lumbered to his feet, only to drop to one knee, wings convulsing. **"Nrrrgh… damn that accursed monstrosity. I'll make him… pay for this!"**

The tower trembled. Dialga's fins fanned out in alarm. He raced over the altar to find Necrozma flinging meteors at the tower's back wall. Dialga split the sky with dragon-shaped energy. Necrozma's meteors blew. He tumbled through the air, clawing at his armored face with his wings. Dialga tensed up. Necrozma steadied himself, but continued to claw away at his prism armor.

Dialga gathered blue hexagons between his fins. He was prepared to unleash his Roar of Time when Necrozma abruptly stopped struggling. His chest sigil and third eye vanished. Necrozma's red eyes turned yellow.

"Please… make it stop."

Dialga's tachyons faltered. He took a step backward in midair, raising a brow. Necrozma had spoken, but his voice was much lighter and softer. Was this some sort of trick?

"Dialga, _please._ I'm begging you," Necrozma rasped, locking eyes with his opponent. "Make it stop. F-Finish me. I don't— I can't… control…"

Necrozma hunched over and screamed. Shadows swirled around his prism armor. His chest sigil and third eye returned, the latter writhing about until the red glow had returned to his other eyes. **"YoU HAd yOuR ChAnCE… yOUR wIlL is MInE! YoU SuRRenDErED To tHE VoID… AcCePT yOUr DeCISioN!"** Necrozma shouted. He whipped his right arm in Dialga's direction. Four glowing circles formed, bearing winged-heart sigils. They gave way to Ultra Wormholes.

Dialga hastily gathered up his temporal energy. However, small white blurs sliced into his limbs before he attacked. Dialga reared up, growling in displeasure. He caught the white blurs in the corners of his vision, but they were too fast to keep up with.

 **"Shred him to ribbons, my Kartanas!"** Necrozma hissed. He teleported away in a puff of black smoke, leaving Dialga floating there, head darting about as he tried to keep up with the tiny, white, paper-like stars speeding all around him.

Necrozma reappeared in front of the Temporal Pinnacle, where Giratina's Dragon Pulse and Lugia's Shadow Blast had stalemated in a blue, blinding explosion. Giratina stood protectively in front of Palkia. Necrozma summoned four Shadow Balls. With a telekinetic burst, he launched them toward Giratina. Palkia lifted up an arm. A purple Spacial Rend portal blew the Shadow Balls apart.

 **"Nnrrgh! WhAt PEsTs YoU Are!"** Necrozma snarled. He violently coughed up a black cloud and grabbed it. The cloud took the form of Hoopa and its hollow eyes flashed pink. Black portals surrounded Giratina and Plakia. Giant fists shot out from each one. Eyes widening, Palkia tried to divert the attack with portals of his own. However, he couldn't stand up to the barrage. The spectral fists pummeled him into the ground.

"No! Pal-P— _augh!_ "

A whirlpool from Lugia silenced Giratina's cries. Necrozma followed up by teleporting next to Giratina and smashing his face into the nearest pillar repeatedly. The pillar held up, even as Necrozma's slams grew more frenzied. **"ComE On! WhY! WoN'T! YoU! BreAk?!"** He let go of Giratina, who slumped to the ground beside Palkia.

Lugia heard a frenzied roar from behind the tower and darted toward Dialga, leaving his master alone with the other two dragons.

Necrozma's arms trembled. Black liquid bubbled up from the cracks in his prism armor. **"No!** _ **No!**_ **I'vE CoME TOO fAR tO FaIL! I wIlL nOt bE DEniED! CoNSuME!"** He dropped down on Giratina, sinking his fangs in the god's spine. Necrozma sucked out Giratina's spirit, leaving a crystallized corpse behind. He wiped colorful juices from his lips, then whirled on Palkia. Necrozma lunged onto him with a primal fury, sinking his claws into Palka's neck and draining him of his spirit and colors.

Screeching, Necrozma shot into the air. Giratina's and Palkia's life energy burned brightly inside his prism armor. Necrozma's eyes and sigil sparkled with rainbow light as he drew from the last remaining bits of the Dusk Hourglass' power.

An agonized roar drew his attention. Below him, the Kartanas burst apart in tiny confetti-like explosions. A high-pressure, shadowy-purple vortex struck Dialga's chest and blew him right through Temporal Tower's altar. He rolled to a stop by his brothers' remains. Dialga caught sight of Palkia's lifeless body and bolted to his feet. Then his gaze fell upon the ruined altar and he hunched over.

"No! I can't… I can't… lose control… _again,_ " Dialga wheezed. His chest gem flickered a darker shade of red. A mix of red and orange flashed across the gray lines peppering his scales. He looked through the rubble toward Lugia. Tachyons phased in and out around his fins.

Necrozma's lips twisted into a crooked smile. **"Heehee…** _ **heeheeheehee!**_ **It's time to bury this worthless hunk of rock. Kneel before the power of the void and be consumed! Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom!"**

Shadows swirled around Necrozma. A purple, reptilian eye split them apart. Six glowing sigils gave rise to six purple crystals, each resembling a full moon. The crystals spawned giant purple lasers, then pivoted so the lasers coalesced into one enormous, blinding beam. Lugia flew back, squawking in terror.

Dialga paused his thrashing to look up. The dismayed expression on his face was momentary. Necrozma's laser engulfed him and the entirety of Temporal Tower. No screams rang out, but the sky filled with a thunderous cacophony of explosions as the beam tore straight through the middle of the tower. Forty successive waves of purple light and debris spilled out; one for each floor of the tower.

Necrozma continued pumping energy into the attack until the beam reached the tower's base. A chain reaction carried the explosions down across the jagged rocks floating in midair. Soon, bright-orange flashes engulfed the Hidden Lands. The ruins were obliterated in an instant. The blasts incinerated each and every tree. Fissures split the floating islands apart. They remained hovering for a half-minute before plummeting from the sky. The remnants of the once-holy realm rained down upon the ocean below, kicking up massive waves that traveled several yards before abruptly freezing in place.

 **"Hee… heehee…** _ **heeheeheehee!**_ **YeS! ThE ToWEr Has FAlLeN! ThE StaGE iS SeT To ReTUrN ThIS wORld to ThE VoiD!"** Necrozma declared, watching as a wall of white spread out from the Hidden Land's ruins, purging all color from the ocean around it as it went. Lugia wearily flew beside Necrozma, struggling to catch his breath. **"Come, Lugia. Let us go collect the spoils of our victory,"** Necrozma said, licking his lips as he dove down toward the surface.

Already, changes were happening. Pitch-black, thorny ley line chains wriggled about amidst the destroyed dungeons. They dug themselves into pieces of debris, stitching them into grotesque land formations. Purple acid seeped out across the frozen water, releasing black vapors that drifted into the now-darkened sky.

Necrozma identified the remnants of Temporal Tower on the edge of the crash site. Even there, ley line chains randomly lashed out at the rubble floating in midair. Free of Dialga's control, they grabbed onto any piece of debris they could find. Necrozma didn't care about what the unrestrained ley lines intended to do. He was only interested in Dialga. And he found the god's smoldering body in the middle of an impact crater.

Before Necrozma could reach him, however, Dialga's eyes shot open. The markings across his body faintly glowed with a lava-like red coloration. His blue scales and metal armor darkened, along with the gem in his chest plate. Dialga lumbered to his feet, legs trembling and metal fins either dented or torn from his back.

 **"Grr… rrr…"** Dialga thumped his bloody tail against the ground. He tilted his head skyward. **"Grrroooaah!"** Dialga roared. Above Necrozma a black vortex formed in the sky, with a red eye in its center.

 **"Now, now, let's not got ourselves carried away here. The planet's paralysis is** _ **so**_ **last decade,"** Necrozma crooned, tongue drooping out of his mouth. **"I was thinking… we unravel the fabric of time itself! Starting with that wretched mortal who's holding my co—"**

 **"** _ **Grraaaah!**_ **"**

Dialga's roars cut Necrozma off. He looked down, only for his third eye to widen as Dialga vanished in a flash of red light. **"What the—"**

"You should have been more careful, Necky."

Zero appeared in the middle of the crater, casually tossing a Beast Ball in her paw.

 **"YoU!"** Necrozma snarled, eyes flashing. **"What do you think you're doing? Give me back my Dialga! No, wait…** _ **give me my core!**_ **"**

"I think not. As I said, you should've been more careful," Zero hissed.

 **"I will** _ **erase**_ **you!"** Necrozma screeched.

Shadow Balls and shadowfire-filled meteors rained down on Zero from above. She summoned Absol's scythe. A barrage of Night Slash crescents raced up, snuffing out the Shadow Balls and slicing the meteors apart like they were pieces of fresh fruit.

 **"You can only do that because you're leeching from** _ **my**_ **core! Give it back!"** Necrozma teleported behind Zero, wings glowing. A big laser threatened to engulf her, but she leaped into the air and safely levitated out of the way. She tried frying Necrozma with lightning, but he vanished in a puff of smoke.

Zero's aura dreadlocks lurched to her right. She dropped from the sky. Secret Sword blades collided overhead. A red explosion grazed the tips of her ears. She thrust her paws upward, but the gale-force winds she generated hit nothing. Her aura sense tingled in the back of her mind. Zero shot into the air once more. This time, she gathered a glob of black slime in her paw, much like Darkrai had done.

She swiped at the air. Dark Voids spread out around her. Necrozma was in the middle of firing a Moongeist Beam and couldn't get away. The slime hit his right wing, encased him in a black bubble, and popped. Necrozma collapsed on his stomach, wings twitching. Zero snapped her crystalline digits. A heart-shaped burst of light to hit Necrozma from above.

He awoke with a start, jolting upright with arms and wings trembling. Necrozma slowly looked left to find a hollow-eyed Manaphy dangling from a suspended piece of rubble.

Then, white-hot pain tore through him. Necrozma arced himself backward, screaming at the top of his lungs. Black shadows burst out his body, until the prism armor had completely disintegrated. The shadows evaporated into nothingness, leaving Lunala floating in midair. She had enough time to shut her dark-blue eyes before plummeting to the ground beside Zero. Her body dissolved away into nothingness.

"All this time, I imagine you fought him from the inside, but you had nothing left to give," Zero said, leaning against her scepter. She looked at the ground. "Good riddance, Necky. You didn't think I realized you had tampered with my _enhancements_ to Team Captivate? There's a reason I ditched you at the Temple of Mind. You were a very large thorn in my side that needed to be plucked. Now, to take that core fragment and—"

Zero stiffened. She looked around the crater. "No, that can't be right," she said, her lone eye darting about. "I know Lunala had a core fragment in her… I forced it inside of her! Where is it?" Zero dropped to the ground, feeling around with her paw while her aura dreadlocks twitched. "It's not here," she whispered, after an unsuccessful minute of searching.

"Hmm. The Heart Swap must've destroyed it… somehow. No matter. That was the central part of his core. Now, I should be able to tap into his full powers without losing control," Zero said, her paws crackling with static. She walked toward the edge of the crater and surveyed the ruins.

All around her, ley line chains wrapped around pieces of rubble, binding them together. She levitated the Time Gears in front of her. "Of course, you couldn't just disappear quietly. You _had_ to leave this mess for me to deal with. I can't repair the flow of time without a Temporal Tower. But I have the Time Gears… and the time _keeper_ is mine to command. Much as I hate to do this… I'll have to use a god to make this work."

She floated into the air, the Time Gears following beside her. "But first, I'll need to reign things in. After all, if I'm to hold a ritual for rewriting reality, I'll need a proper altar."

* * *

Well, that just happened. Surprised? Outraged? Bored? None of the above? Well, I can't read your minds, I'm afraid.

Anon Omega: Nope, he used a conventional Pokémon attack that quite a few people guessed correctly.

Unstoppable8000: Your guess is a very good one. As for the lack of Heat Wave, it's not a fire-type and it's a better physical attacker, so it would've been a waste of a Move Tutor slot, given it gets Flare Blitz.

SuperOmegaGuest: Poor Shane, indeed. Fox can't catch a break.

Birds: Well, if I went and spoiled everything, I'd ruin all the fun. But you might be onto something...

Anonymous: I don't know if you'll see this or not, but it's way too early for me to think about putting any Gen VIII 'mons into any fics. I might've managed to shoehorn Poipole and Zeraora in, but I've gotta draw a line somewhere. If they show up here, it'll only be in an omake.

Another guest: I'm glad you like the character development. It's a big focus of this giant fic, after all. Don't fear for the end of this story, though. It'll be a good thing, because then you can read the whole thing whenever you want! And I, uh, don't know enough about TV Tropes. I'd love a page, but the site is HTML-based, something I'm a hundred percent unfamiliar with.

Next time: utter bedlam erupts! The hundredth part of the fic will be suitably crazy, so strap yourselves in!


	100. Running Out of Time

Well, here we are. What the site says is the hundredth part, though not the hundredth numbered chapter. Still, by sheer coincidence, this really crazy chapter gets to take the spot. A lot of elbow grease went into this one, so I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

 **Chapter 84: Running Out of Time**

 **~Northeast Coastal Pass~**

The Rem Canyon expedition team and their escorts continued their trek along the windy dirt road. Their cliffside path descended toward a sandy beach running right beside a shallow part of the Midnight Sea. About a mile away, the beach ended and the path sloped upward.

 **According to my positioning sensilators, once we reach the top of that hill, we'll begin our approach to our destination,** Magearna announced, pointing her right arm forward.

"That's good. Then I'll get to give the ol' tootsies a rest. At the very least, all this walking's been good practice for learning how to move on two legs instead of four," Hakamo-o said, putting his hands on his back and arcing it to stretch out. Totem Kommo-o stomped up beside him, a brow raised curiously.

"You're not tired, boy? You complained about your feet hurting so often back home, that I lost count years ago," Totem Kommo-o said, brushing dust and sand out of the gaps in his armor plates.

"I'm doing pretty good, _thanks,_ " Hakamo-o said, walking toward Team Go-Getters with his arms crossed.

"Must be the evolution high. You remember it, don't you?" Blaziken said, smirking at Totem Kommo-o.

"Of course I do! After I evolved, I beat down six foes at once in a battle royal," Totem Kommo-o said, thumping his chest with his right arm.

 **There will be time to reminiscintillate later. We should make haste to Circadian Coast. Team Radiance is expecting us,** Magearna said, walking past all the dragons. They looked toward their Totem expectantly.

"Well, you heard the No-Scale. Move out!" Totem Kommo-o said, grabbing his axe and marching along in-step behind Magearna. His tribe followed suit, leaving Teams Go-Getters and Paradox to walk along the shoreline.

They made it about halfway across the beach when the ground violently trembled. Luxeira and Seraph both collapsed on one another, the former barking in surprise. Swampert grabbed hold of Blaziken and sat him on his back. Dusk dug her paws into the sand and grabbed Magearna's left arm in her mouth to keep her upright.

"What's going on here?" Sticky gasped, watching the grounded dragons struggle to keep their footing. "The landscape… it's losing all its colors. And the foliage is dying!" He floated up to the top of a rock wall, only to back off as the green dissolved off the grass. Even the sand's tan colors faded.

"No, it can't be," Blaziken said. The earthquake died down, so he hopped off his partner's back and jogged up to the Midnight Sea. He stuck his leg into the water, only to find it completely solidified. "It's completely frozen!" Blaziken shot a despondent look at Swampert. "The planet's been paralyzed!"

Swampert's eyes bulged. "B-But that would mean—"

"Temporal Tower's collapsed," Comfey whispered. "Oh, gods, were we too late? Did Necrozma somehow get to it?"

"Whoa, time out a second. Planet's paralysis? Temporal Tower? The hell are you terrestrials yammering about?" Seraph said, holding one paw over another in a T-shape.

"The proper flow of time in our world is tied to a big tower that Dialga lives on. If it gets damaged, Dialga apparently loses his sanity and brings the flow of time screeching to a halt," Blaziken explained, running talons through his feathery crest.

"Are you freaking kidding me? What kind of asinine system is that?!" Seraph barked, whispers sparking.

"You think we _like_ that system?" Blaziken said, glaring back at Seraph. "It's not up to us!"

"And fighting over it won't fix anything, Seraph," Luxeira said, walking into Seraph's personal space. "The best thing we can do is keep going to Circadian Coast, right?" She looked expectantly at Magearna.

 **Yes. Despite my surging shockification levels, we must press onward,** Magearna said. **I'll see if I can contact Team Radiance and get them to meet us halfway now that our present situarion has experienced a five-hundred percent increase in urgitude!** She opened up her chest compartment turning on her Gear-Com unit.

However, before she could place the call, an alarm blared. Everyone looked up at Sticky, who had his trembling hands placed against his visor. "E-Everyone needs to scatter… _now!_ " he shouted. Sticky hurled a rainbow-colored tile down. It hit Totem Kommo-o on the head. He and the rest of the group vanished in a flicker of light. A massive pink blast swallowed up the spot they were standing in.

The expedition team reappeared a few yards away. Totem Kommo-o stumbled forward, hand gripping his head. "Nrrgh. What sort of unholy sorcery was that?" he groaned.

"Sticky!" Luxeira cried, looking back to find her partner lying in the sand. Shards of his visor and helmet dug into his skull. Purple liquid trickled onto the colorless sand. She was about to run toward him, when Magearna's mechanical arm blocked her.

 **Don't. We've got a big problem,** Magearna said, shooting a blue Aura Sphere from each arm. Pink rings destroyed them the moment they passed over Sticky.

"The hell? Were we being followed?" Seraph growled. She got her answer as Metagross descended from the sky, his eight limbs glowing with multicolored light.

 **Hourglass. Give me… Hourglass. There's no time,** he said, right eye twitching.

"G-Good heavens," Comfey gasped. "The Guildmaster, he's—"

"Everyone down!" Blaziken shouted, leaping over them with bursts of fire from his legs. He spewed a flamethrower at Metagross, who snuffed it out in a flash of pink light.

"Zweilous! Hydreigons! Turtonators!" Totem Kommo-o called, pointing toward Metagross. From the group of dragons rose a volley of black beams and flamethrowers.

"No, wait, _don't!_ " Blaziken said, holding up his hands. He cut the flames from his legs just as Metagross caught the attacks in balls of pink light.

 **Return to sender,** Metagross said. Totem Kommo-o's eyes widened. He grabbed as many dragons as he could in his arms and dove to the ground. But a pair of Druddigons couldn't escape. Fire and Dark Pulses rained onto them from above. When the smoke cleared, there was no sign of either of them.

"Magearna, you have to flee," Luxeira whispered. "Call Team Radiance. Tell them what's happening! We need them here ASAP!" She looked at Seraph, who was still frozen in shock. "Seraph. I need you to cover us. Can you do that?"

"Huh? U-Uh… yeah. Sure. Whatever," Seraph said, not even noticing her paws shaking. Luxeira frowned, but knew she didn't have the time to snap Seraph out of her stupor. She beckoned Magearna to follow, hoping the rest of the group could keep Metagross occupied.

Totem Kommo-o got to his feet, eyes narrowing at Metagross. "Heathen! They were innocents!" he roared.

 **No one is innocent. You are all guilty! Guilty! Guilty-y-y-y-y! Trying to stop me. I must flee. This world is dying. I must flee. I must survive. No one else can!** Metagross shouted, his pitch fluctuating wildly. **Additional action. Barrage. Petrify power.**

Totem Kommo-o released a large, blue Dragon Pulse beam. Several dragons backed him up with beams and dragonfire of their own. Metagross punched the air repeatedly with his fists. Pink rings snuffed out each beam. A final pink ring struck two Exeggutors, two Salamances, and Totem Kommo-o. They all froze, the Salamances plummeting from the sky and landing atop several of their cohorts.

Seraph gasped. "What the hell? How did that oversized table fire off so many attacks in succession like that?" She blasted lightning in Metagross' direction. Dusk slung rocks toward him, while Blaziken and other dragons added Flamethrowers.

 **Guard boost times three,** Metagross said, spawning a pink barrier. Dusk's rocks shattered his Light Screen. Fire and electricity struck Metagross from either side, but didn't faze him.

"Everyone, keep attacking. We have to overwhelm him!" Dusk shouted. In response, fire, ice, dragonfire, and electricity streamed toward Metagross.

 **Whirlwind. Mobility,** Metagross said. Blue and yellow light flickered in his arms. A twister whipped up in front of him. It sucked in all the attacks heading for him and exploded, filling the area with smoke.

"Agh! Where did he go?!" Swampert shouted.

Seraph sprang into action. Arms covering her face, she dashed in Sticky's direction. She barely managed to scoop Sticky up and lightning-dash away when Metagross shot up from the ground.

 **Futile. I can sense all your movements. You cannot escape me!** Metagross declared. Seraph prayed she could outrun whatever attack Metagross had in store, but it never came. She skidded to a halt. Far behind her, Metagross had a barrier shattered under the combined weight of several flamethrowers. Blaziken had leaped up and driven a fiery leg into Metagross' arms.

Seraph turned to Sticky. "What the hell were you thinking doing something so boneheaded huh?" She sighed. The situation must've put her on edge if she was stooping to talking to Sticky when he was out cold. Seraph scanned the battlefield for any signs of Comfey. With Sticky's harness destroyed, she was the only one who could help him.

"Come on… come on…" Seraph reflexively curled and uncurled her paws in frustration. She could barely make out what was happening through all the chaos. Fire, ice, wind, lightning, and beams of all different colors raced about in every direction. All the while, Metagross hovered around, deflecting some blasts while others struck one of his arms.

 **Nrrgh. You are all… infuriating. I just want… the Hourglass. Why must you… resist. Why must you… try to kill me?** Metagross said, multiple colors flashing inside his body.

Seraph finally caught a glimpse of Comfey, guarding Luxeira and Magearna on the far side of beach. She lifted Sticky up and ran toward the water. Like Blaziken did before, Seraph stepped onto the frozen sea and sped off, trying to steer clear of Metagross. Seraph broke into lightning-dashes, praying Metagross wouldn't notice her while she couldn't keep her eye on him.

Her wish went unanswered, however. Metagross' eyes gleamed. **Enough! Petrify orb!** Metagross pointed his upper limbs at the dragons. Nearly all of them froze in place. Metagross whirled around, firing liquid metal beams at Seraph. Blaziken, Swampert, and Dusk turned the Flash Cannon aside with a combination of fire, dirt, and rocks. Metagross' eyes gleamed once more, but a small dragonfire stream pelted him from behind. His hind limbs released retaliatory pink rings. Hakamo-o lunged behind a petrified Sneasel to keep himself safe. In the process, he restored Sneasel's movement.

"Seriously? Using me as a meat shield? Is that any way to treat your partner," Sneasel growled.

"I had to improvise. You're a dark-type, so I figured you'd be safe," Hakamo-o said, scratching his head. "Sorry, I'll warn you next time."

"Nngh. It's whatever," Sneasel dismissed. "At least you're not hurt. But what are we supposed to do now?"

"Try to keep our butts alive," Hakamo-o said. "We'll start by unfreezing the others. Either help me with that or go after the big, crazy guy. Your choice." Hakamo-o turned and ran through the pack of dragons, smacking them with his arms to free them from the petrification.

Blaziken saw Metagross turning his attention toward the dragon crowd and shot toward him, legs igniting for Blaze Kicks.

 **Invisify,** Metagross said, vanishing into thin air. Blaziken sailed through open air. A pink glow surrounded him and suspended him in midair. His eyes bulged out.

"No! Blaziken!" Swampert shouted, hurling water blindly from his fists. It sailed harmlessly through the air. Time practically slowed to a crawl for Swampert. He was convinced his partner was going to be psychically ripped apart in front of his eyes. Then electricity streaked through the air. Blaziken reappeared on the ground, Seraph firmly clutching him in her arms. Behind her, Comfey tended to Sticky's injuries, while Magearna's Gear-Com retracted into her chest.

A garbled grunt drew everyone's attention. Metagross floated high, flinging bits of slime off his arms. Below him, four Goodras whipped their heads forward, launching slime at Metagross. This kept him distracted enough for a group of Salamences, Flygons, and Garchomps to blast him with flames and dragonfire.

"Th… thanks for the save," Blaziken wheezed, clutching his chest with his talons.

"Don't thank me yet. It doesn't look like we're doing a damn thing to this guy," Seraph growled. She glanced at Magearna. "Do you really think those other guys can help us in any way?"

 **Yes. If we can assemble the Dawn Hourglass, we can use its power to placatify Metagross,** Magearna said. **I just hope we can stall him long enough to figure out a solid plan of acticification.**

"Stalling, huh?" Seraph said, electricity crackling in her fists. "What we need is to blast him with so many attacks that he can't go on the offensive. It's the only way." She looked at Blaziken. "Think you can get to the dragons and tell them to start attacking in waves?"

Blaziken nodded, then sprinted toward the dragon tribe. Seraph shot blue lightning from her paws to keep Metagross off him.

* * *

 **~Circadian Coast, Daybreak Beach~**

Team Radiance was in a state of shock. When the tremors faded, a wall of white light raced across the beach. Colors dissolved into nothingness before their eyes. A wave in the distance froze in place. Water receding from the shoreline paused. The palm trees froze in the midst of swaying with the ocean breeze. Even the wind itself stopped.

Then, once the surrounding area was nothing but varying shades of gray, the palm tree leaves shriveled up. Bushes turned into ash, then faded into oblivion. The sand solidified beneath the team's paws. Espy shuffled backward, ears and tail drooping. "W-What's going on? Why's everything shriveling up?" she squeaked.

Silvally glanced at Latias. "Didn't Latias mention someone stealing a Time Gear?" His glowing parts turned dark blue. "You don't think… the Prism Virus got all of them, do you?"

"Guys," Tessa squealed, pointing a paw skyward. Her teammates followed her gaze. An overwhelming sense of dread filled the team. The calming orange sunset that had filled the sky moments ago was gone. In its place lay an endless stream of purple clouds. Tessa slowly turned around. Off in the distance, a red and black vortex spiraled around. Distorted pulses rippled through the air. Tessa's aura feelers shot up in alarm.

Shane's gaze fell to the ground. He pressed his paw firmly against the sand, but he couldn't make it budge. "The planet's… paralyzed." Shane lifted his head up, eyes wide. "It's not the Time Gears. It's Temporal Tower! Someone made it collapse and now time has completely frozen!" Shane looked about frantically. "But I don't understand. I thought… but Necrozma… nrraaaagh!"

He doubled over in pain. His head throbbed. His vision flickered. One moment, he was looking at the lifeless sand. The next, Necrozma's three eyes stared back at him. And then, a single, violet eye flashed across his field of view. Shane jerked himself upright. His left foreleg tingled. Shane looked down. The gem in his looplet twinkled, despite the lack of sunlight. Shane's brow furrowed. His looplet looked fine, so why did his leg hurt?

"Shane? Shane, are you okay?!"

Tessa waved a paw in front of his face. Shane jumped to attention. "I-I'm fine! I'm fine! I'm just… in shock."

"What were you saying earlier… before you cut yourself off?" Silvally asked, exchanged a concerned look with Espy.

"Hmm? Oh, right." Shane paused to recollect his thoughts. "Necrozma was after the Dawn Hourglass, wasn't he? Why did he go to Temporal Tower, then? Were we duped? Were the Dawn Shards nothing but a big diversion?"

"I don't know," Espy said, her gaze faltering.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Tessa said, looking at the frozen ocean and shivering.

"Isn't it obvious? We can't let this deter us from reassembling the Dawn Hourglass," Silvally said, hoisting the unconscious Latias onto his back. "Well, first things first, we need to get Latias healed up. She's clearly in rough shape. Shoving a Reviver Seed down her throat while she's like this won't accomplish anything. We have to find Florges." He walked toward his teammates. "Then, we have to set out and find Magearna's group. Even if time's frozen, Necrozma hasn't attacked us."

"But you heard Latias. Necrozma has the Dusk Hourglass. We've already failed!" Espy said, gritting her teeth.

"That's all the more reason to reassemble the Dawn Hourglass. We _need_ its power now, more than ever!" Silvally said, fixing a stern gaze on Espy.

Espy shrank back. "Y-You're right. I'm sorry, that was stupid of me to say."

"It's okay. You're not the only one thinking things look bleak. But we can't give up yet. Even if the odds are now a million to one, they'll only get worse if we do nothing," Silvally said. "Now, less talking and more running!" He took off, Latias flopping against his back as he ran. His teammates followed behind him.

They made it halfway across the beach when Espy's Gear-Com unit sounded. She levitated it out of her bag with a worried look on her face. "I'll bet that's Magearna." Espy activated the Gear-Com. "This is Espeon."

 _ **We've got a crisis on our hands! We're under attack!**_ Magearna shouted. Wincing, Espy levitated the Gear-Com away from her. Panicked looks overtook her teammates' faces.

"The stories about Team Poképals mentioned 'mons losing all reason and going berserk in the dark future. Don't tell me that's already started," Tessa said, clasping her paws to her chest.

 _ **It's the Guildmaster! He's after our Dawn Shard and—**_ Static cut Magearna off.

"You're going to have to repeat that. What's the Guildmaster doing? Isn't he supposed to be in jail?" Espy said, quickening her pace. The team remembered their last encounter with Metagross, as well as Latias' explanation about his actions. The very thought of him getting the Scalebound Shard's power and using it like Primarina did terrified all of them.

 _ **He escapulated and tracked us down. He's Mega Evolved… emitting a bizarre aura. I think… powers. There… lot of us… not… hold him off,**_ Magearna said, bursts of static interrupting her explanation.

"Where are you right now?" Shane shouted. The group had made it back to the resort. Unfortunately, the streets were lined with Pokémon of all different shapes and sizes. They collectively stared up at the sky, many pointing and others shouting in a panic.

"Ungh, how are we supposed to get through this?" Tessa growled, her aura feelers throbbing.

 _ **We're… beach… fifteen minutes…**_

"Copy that. We'll be there as soon as we can. Just hold out until then," Espy said. The Gear-Com deactivated. Espy focused on the ground. "Hey! Move aside! We've got a 'mon here that needs urgent medical attention!"

"Urgent medical attention? Forget that! The world's ending! We're all gonna die!" a Quilladin cried, throwing his hands up and running away from the resort.

"Can anyone spot Kahuna Raichu? I'm sure he's in the thick of this somehow," Shane said. "Hell, where are Gallian and Zoroark? If we're going to fight Metagross, we need all the help we can get."

"It's no good. There are too many 'mons here. I can't get a solid read on anyone's energy," Espy said, biting her lower lip.

Growling, Silvally shifted to his fire memories. He narrowed his eyes. His cheek bolts whirred, producing streams of embers. "Everyone… _shut up!_ " Silvally screamed, belting a stream of fire into the air. Startled gasps sprouted up through the crowd. Everyone turned toward Silvally. Many of the onlookers muttered to one another in surprise. There were scattered comments about Silvally's bizarre appearance.

"My team and I are with the Horizon Guild. We're aware of this situation and we know how to stop it," Silvally said, ignoring the bewildered looks from his teammates. "But before we can start doing that, our friend needs Florges' help!" He pivoted to show off Latias. More murmurs rose up from the crowd. "I said _quiet!_ " Silvally barked, his red eyes flashing in a warning.

The crowd abruptly went silent. "Good. Now, where's Healer Florges?" Silvally said. In response to this, Florges floated above the crowd and waved her arms at Silvally. He nodded. "Okay. My team's going to bring Latias to Florges, then we're leaving to go and fix this problem. In the meantime, I want everyone to calm down and wait for your Totem to come give you directions. Understood?"

More worried murmurs rose up. Flames gathered in Silvally's mouth. "Do you understand? Yes or no!"

Amidst a few surprised squeaks, the crowd nodded.

"Good. Then, stand aside and let us pass," Silvally said, stomping toward the edge of the crowd. The Pokémon squished to either side of the street. Team Radiance walk through one-by-one until they reached the infirmary. Kahuna Raichu levitated Latias off Silvally's back and passed her to Florges. "Be careful with her. We tried to heal her and wake her up, but she looked about ready to burst into tears. She blacked out again after a few seconds," he explained.

"I think she might be in shock," Espy said, ears drooping. "And I don't blame her."

"Yeah. This is nuts! What's going on, anyway?" Kahuna Raichu said, gazing up at the sky.

"We don't have a lot of time to explain. Short version is the monster we've been trying to stop got to Temporal Tower. And now our guild mates are under attack. So, we have to go help them before their Dawn Shard is taken," Silvally said, arcing his back and letting his joints pop. "Where are Gallian and Zoroark?"

"Right here," Zoroark said, waving at the group from around the corner of Florges' infirmary. Team Radiance all nodded at him.

"Can you get everyone to calm down and head inside?" Silvally asked, turning to Kahuna Raichu.

"I'll do my best," he replied, nodding.

"Okay. If we can help our friends out, we'll try to come back and see how Latias is doing. But if she's up for it, tell her we went north," Silvally said. Before he got a response, he walked over to Zoroark with his teammates following. "You guys catch all that?" They nodded. "Good. Then hop on. We don't have a moment to spare." Silvally bent down. Zoroark climbed aboard his back.

Team Radiance pushed through the crowd until they had exited the Circadian Kabana and passed Kahuna Raichu's house. Once they were in the clear, they ran past dead palm trees until they found a dirt road leading up a hill. Silvally sprinted up it, with the rest of his team trying to keep pace.

Shane glanced at Tessa, trying to get a read on what she was thinking. "Hey, are you going to be all right?"

"I don't know. It's hard to think about Metagross. One part of me is afraid and another part is, like, ready to tear him apart for what he did to Dad," Tessa said, pausing every so often to take a deep breath. "I guess my big worry is he'll say something to set me off and I'll lose control again." The memories of her morning accident still stood fresh in her head's, as well as Shane's.

"Yeah. I, uh, guess that is something to be worried about." Shane's brow furrowed. He glanced around at his teammates, wracking his brain for some sort of idea about how they could approach Metagross. After a minute of running in silence, he looked at Silvally, "Hey, big guy, listen. I think we need to figure out some kind of plan."

"Are you seriously suggesting we leave the others hanging for a strategy session? You guys made it sound like they're on the brink of death," Gallian growled, his scythe flickering.

"I'm not saying we stop. In fact, I already have an idea. Just, y'know, hear me out while we keep running," Shane said, making his way toward the front of the group. "So, like, Metagross' whole schtick is that he's always trying to think, like, ten moves ahead of us, right?"

Espy nodded. "Plus, he's psychic. He might try to read our minds to figure out what we're going to do. Gallian and Zoroark should be safe. Silvally could be, too, if he channels dark memories." She looked expectantly at Silvally's looplet. The gem turned pitch-black. Seconds later, Silvally's glowing parts darkened.

"Exactly. But even that might not be good enough. I'm pretty sure Metagross is capable of learning Miracle Eye, which would remove their immunity to his psychic attacks," Shane said, his brow furrowed. "That's where my idea comes in. We can't hesitate and second-guess ourselves, here. We have to act on instinct and strike whenever possible." His expression fiercened. "But I know that's risky, so I was thinking we hit him in two ways: physically and by playing mind games."

"Big guy, can you buff yourself up at all? Like, do you know Calm Mind or Swords Dance or something?" Shane asked, head tilted to the side.

Silvally's eyes widened. "Yeah. I guess I _could_ use them, but they might wear off after a while. Still, I see your point." Despite weaving in between tree roots, Silvally concentrated. Flickering images of swords appeared around him. His leg muscles bulged. Silvally's pace quickened, to the point where he easily outran his teammates and reached the top of the hill. While waiting for them, he used two more Swords Dances. Steam rose from his legs and cheek bolts. Zoroark had to hop off his back. He rubbed his thighs with his claws.

The group paused when the reached the top of the hill to catch their breath. "Can anyone sense the others?" Tessa asked. She closed her eyes, focusing her aura sense. Immediately, she was hit with a sea of aural energy, forcing her eyes open. Tessa grabbed her aura feelers with her paws. "Oh, gods, they're all at the bottom of this hill."

"Magearna was right. I'm sensing a _really_ weird spirit," Espy squeaked, tail falling between her legs. "And it… it…" She shuddered. "It makes me think there's a giant pile of emeras sitting down there."

The group exchanged confused looks. "Okay, we need to be ready for anything, then," Shane said, stomping a forepaw on the ground. He looked at Tessa and Gallian. "You two have to keep Metagross talking. I know you don't want to hear this… but you've got to keep pressing him about Incineroar's death. Even if his answers don't make sense, ask more questions."

Tessa's aura feelers shot up in the air. She and Gallian exchanged frowns, only to look away. "Is… is there really no other choice?" Tessa whispered.

Shane's eyes narrowed. "Look, I know you guys don't like my plans and I certainly don't like what I'm saying, either. But we can't afford to screw this up. I need all of you to keep Metagross distracted. Like I said, the guy thrives on things he can predict. But we've got something he knows absolutely nothing about." He glanced at his looplet and shuddered. "We've got the moves I've learned from the Dawn Shards."

"If I can hit him with some Heat Waves… hell, if I can use that crazy light ball attack I accidentally hit Latias with, then I think we can win this thing!" Shane continued. His teammates responded with uneasy looks. Shane's left foreleg tingled so strongly that, for a moment, he thought he'd fall over. However, the sensation faded.

"Are you sure you're feeling okay? You were really shaken up after touching the Seaside Shard," Espy said.

"We can worry about that later. We have to stop Metagross. I just need you guys to trust me on this, okay?" Shane said. He shakily lifted up his right foreleg. "Please… I think we can do it."

Tessa grabbed Shane's forepaw and shook it. "All right. I'll…" She gulped. "I'll try my best."

* * *

 **~Northeast Coastal Pass~**

"Damn it! Where are those slowpokes?!" Seraph shouted, glancing over her shoulder while blasting lightning in Metagross' direction. Opposite her, Totem Kommo-o signaled some of his dragons to launch a volley of fire, ice, electricity, and dragonfire.

Purple and red light flickered in Metagross arms. **Barrage. Distance dodge time tw—**

Blaziken's flaming leg and Swampert's glowing fist batted his rear arms out of the way. Metagross spun out. He tried to launch retaliatory psychic blasts, but only succeeded in snuffing out some of the dragons' attacks. A pink-eared Noivern caught Blaziken and carried him back into the air. Swampert hit the ground and rolled away. A Thunderbolt hit Metagross' side. He turned to strike, but got distracted fending off Flamethrowers from Luxeira and a second wave of dragons.

Magearna fired dual Aura Spheres while Pink-Ears prepared to drop Blaziken onto Metagross for another strike. Metagross conjured multiple pink Light Screens to deflect the projectiles. **Intimidator times four,** he said, just as Blaziken was diving toward him. The flames disappeared from his legs and he abruptly lost his momentum. Blaziken flailed about, staring down the barrel of a pink blast.

Two purple Dark Pulse beams snuffed out Metagross' Psychic. He shot toward the source: two Hydreigons, one with gray necks and the other with a green tail. They panicked and flew in different directions, but Metagross reach them first. **Power boost X times two. Power boost Y times three. Excessive Force,** he said. Metagross hammered both Hydreigons. He knocked one into Pink-Ears and the other into a group of dragons below.

 **Miracle Eye,** Metagross said, eyes deep purple. All eight limbs launched pink balls forward. The dragons scrambled to dodge, but Pink-Ears and Green-Tail were too disoriented. A pink explosion disintegrated them.

Below Metagross, Totem Kommo-o stumbled to stop. His breath came in ragged gasps. He spotted Lycanroc crouching behind a rock for cover. "What do you think you're doing, you pathetic No-Scale?" he shouted.

"What does it look like? Waiting for the opportune time to get the hell out of here!" Lycanroc barked. Above him, dragonfire and pink rings zipped through the air.

"I think not! Your continent needs you!" Totem Kommo-o shouted. With a surprising burst of speed, he snatched Lycanroc up.

"Put me down, you bloody drongo! I ain't some deadweight you can just throw around!" Lycanroc snarled, thrashing in Totem Kommo-o's iron grip.

"Last I heard, you are my captive. I'll do exactly what I see fit with you!" Totem Kommo-o said. He hurled Lycanroc through the air. Metagross caught him in his psychic grip and swiveled him around. Lycanroc served as a meat-shield against Dragon Pulses and Dragonbreath. Metagross unceremoniously dropped him to the ground. Hakamo-o and Sneasel winced.

They were about to make a mad dash and snatch Lycanroc up when an Aura Sphere flew in from the distance. Metagross snuffed it out, but had no answer for a speeding Silvally charging in and slashing him across his already-damaged face with his blackened talons. "That's quite enough out of you, _Guildmaster,_ " Silvally barked, cheek bolts whirring in their sockets.

 **You!** Metagross's eyes turned purple again, only for a barrage of fire, ice, and wind to strike him from behind. He sputtered toward the ground, but put up Light Screen barriers to deflect Espy's Shadow Ball, Tessa's Aura Sphere, and Shane's pink psychic rings. Metagross spun around. The barriers threw off fire, water, and lightning from Blaziken, Swampert, and Seraph.

"Now, fire again!" Totem Kommo-o shouted. An Exeggutor, Flygon, and Drampa launched blue Dragon Pulse beams while Totem Kommo-o lumbered toward Metagross.

 **Such nuisances. Out of my w—**

"Not until you answer to us!" Tessa shouted, slinging another Aura Sphere ahead of her. Gallian and Zoroark backed her up with purple Dark Pulse beams. Espy added a Shadow Ball for good measure.

 **Mobility times three.** Metagross lifted himself into the air. The attacks sailed underneath him. Metagross canceled his levitation. He looked to crash into Silvally from above. Silvally sprinted out of the way, snagging Lycanroc in his beak in the process. He tossed Lycanroc to the ground. Lycanroc rolled to a stop by Gallian and Zoroark.

"You! What the— when the hell did you two get back together? And what are you drongos doing helping out Snowy! He's a bloody prick!" Lycanroc growled, staggering to his feet.

"Wow, you're right. He really _has_ become a surly asshole," Gallian said, watching Metagross punch Totem Kommo-o back with two glowing-pink arms. Sneasel tried to hit Metagross from the shadows, but got knocked toward Hakamo-o, who helped him back up to his feet.

"Forget Midnight! We've got bigger fish to fry," Shane said, sprinting past the two of them. "Hey, Guildmaster, why'd you kill Tessa's dad, huh? We deserve a straight answer!"

A vein bulged out of Lycanroc's head. "Bigger fish? This whole bloody mess is your fault, Snowy! You probably knocked your damn Guildmaster off his rocker with that big mouth of yours!"

Zoroark rolled his eyes. "Gallian, you help the others. I'll tend to our, ahem, _old friend_." He jerked his head in Lycanroc's direction. Gallian opened his mouth to retort, but ultimately nodded. He'd rather Zoroark stay back from the worst of the fighting, given his injuries. Gallian dashed off, scythe bristling with black energy.

"Well, isn't that a sweet sight. Cowering behind your mate like the timid pup you are. I thought he ditched you. You're really that much of a sucker that you'd just go crawling back to him?" Lycanroc scoffed. Sneasel came to a stop behind him, a confused look on his face.

"What my mate and I choose to do is none of your business," Zoroark said. "Unlike some Pokémon, we actually made an attempt to settle our differences and ended up back together because of it. Funny how it works out, huh?"

"I can hear the sass in your voice, mate," Lycanroc snarled.

Explosions interrupted the conversation. Ice and static electricity rushed across the sand. Zoroark flinched. "Yeah, well, if you've got nothing else to say, we're done here. Either help us take this creep out or don't," he said. Zoroark shook his head. "Y'know, Dusk still thinks there's _someone_ salvageable in there. Why not use this opportunity to make up for your mistakes?"

"Mistakes? I ain't made no bloody mistakes! It's you all who screwed things up! You freaks ruined my life! You hear me? Ruined it!" Lycanroc barked, crimson eyes glowing. He ducked underneath a Flamethrower redirected by Metagross. "That bitch Dusk made me evolve into the wrong form. And then you have to come in all… all…" Lycanroc bared his fangs. "You had to go throw those hips of yours around and make things all bloody complicated!"

Zoroark stepped back, brows raised. "What are you saying? That you had some sort of crush on me? Because things would've ended a _lot_ differently at that party, don't you think?"

"Uh, guys?" Sneasel said, tugging on Lycanroc's arm. Lycanroc swatted him away.

"Fine! Yes! You got me, mate! Happy? Because I'm not. I didn't _want_ a crush on you! I _wanted_ to love Dusk!" Lycanroc barked. Dusk skidded to a halt in front of them, her eyes widening. "But thanks to this arse-backwards evolution, I stopped feeling anything around her! No attraction! None! And it's all your damn faults!"

"Duck and cover!" Shane shouted from several feet over. Zoroark turned. His eyes widened. He threw himself to the ground. Lycanroc wasn't fast enough on the uptake, however. A Goodra struck him. Slime splattered across his fur. He fell to the sand, the unmoving Goodra lying atop him. It evaporated in a stream of light.

Zoroark staggered to his feet. "Well, I've got nothing to say to you. I'm sorry things went badly, but there's nothing anyone can do to change it. You could've tried to make the best of a bad situation, but from what I can tell… you never did."

"Stay back," Shane shouted, firing an Ice Beam in a desperate attempt at halting a charging Metagross. Luckily, Tessa, Seraph, Swampert, Silvally, and Totem Kommo-o all rammed Metagross from his right side. Metagross skidded through the sand. Silvally launched a Flamethrower, backed by two Salamences and a Garchomp. Metagross disappeared into the ground.

Tessa's aura feelers jumped. She flung an Aura Sphere to her right. It whizzed by Gallian. Metagross phased out of the ground, ready to hammer Gallian. Tessa's Aura Sphere exploded. Gallian barely dodged the swipes of Metagross' fists. Instead, they met Blaziken's fiery legs. The same Garchomp from earlier charged Metagross down, only to get halted and flung aside. Hakamo-o jumped out of the way. He spewed a mouthful of dragonfire at Metagross.

"Answer us, damn it! What did our dad ever do to you, huh? He was as kind and trusting as anyone could be," Gallian spat, shooting several pink Psycho Cut blades at Metagross' arms.

 **Futile. I will not fall for your petty distraction attempts,** Metagross said. He conjured Light Screen shields to deflect the attacks, then fired psychic orbs with his other six arms. Silvally leaped into the air and sliced one of the blasts apart with shadowy-black talons. He deflected the attack back into Metagross, who froze up with a static warble.

 **Your actions are nothing short of recklessicity. Do you not understand how many lives you'd ruin by taking the Dawn Hourglass?** Magearna said, shooting two Aura Spheres out. Tessa added a third to the mix. Seraph punched the ground, sending electric columns after the Aura Spheres.

 **I don't care. None of you matter. I must survive! I must persist!** Metagross shouted. His eight arms shimmered with light. He spun around. Metagross destroyed the attacks. He abruptly stopped spinning. **Now, slumber!**

Metagross raised his front arms. Save for Totem Kommo-o, the remaining dragons fell asleep. Metagross sped toward them, arms glowing purple and red. **Go for broke. Excessive force. Follow through,** he said, pink energy swirling around his face.

Totem Kommo-o saw Metagross heading right for Hakamo-o. Without even thinking, he lunged for his son and tossed him as far from the other dragons as he could. Metagross slammed into Totem Kommo-o. Blinding pink energy encased him, then overtook the slumbering dragons. His pained roar echoed throughout the beach. The cry woke Hakamo-o up. He turned toward the explosion, eyes wide.

"How's he still moving so fast?!" Shane cried, shielding his eyes.

The light faded. Totem Kommo-o tumbled to a stop by Hakamo-o. Only a few plate-like scales remained on his body. Metagross' attack had shredded the others, leaving bloody stumps and burnt patches of flesh. Hakamo-o staggered backward, jaw dropping but no words escaping him. Totem Kommo-o uttered a single, rasping wheeze. Blood trickled out of his snout.

"H-Hey! I need that healing lady over here," Hakamo-o shouted, kneeling down by Totem Kommo-o's side. He put a hand on his father's back. However, it phased right through him seconds later.

"S-Son. Remember. A dragon… never backs down," Totem Kommo-o wheezed. His belly disappeared in a stream of light. "He fights on… no matter… the odds…"

Before Hakamo-o could say anything, the rest of Totem Kommo-o's body dissolved before his eyes. The Totem Crystal dropped to the ground, completely grayed out. Hakamo-o tried to grab it, but it crumbled into dust.

He looked up. None of the other dragons were left. Metagross had vaporized all of them. Even worse, Metagross had recovered from the damage everyone had inflicted to him. Hakamo-o clenched his fists. His gut squirmed. Flames licked at the back of his throat.

"No. This is supposed to be my chance… for a new lease on life," he mumbled. "And you… I'm not letting you ruin this for me!"

Hakamo-o charged forward, giving the best roar his squeaky voice could manage. Red energy gathered in his fist. He launched into an uppercut, only to freeze in midair. Metagross levitated him around. Seraph and Team Go-Getters backed off their attacks, fearing they'd hit Hakamo-o.

 **Futile. Illogical. Your emotions cloud your judgment. All of you are slaves to your emotions. You're all dangerous. You must be removed, so I can escape this cursed world,** Metagross said. He moved Hakamo-o aside. White spheres gathered around his front arms.

"Those look like blast wand bursts! Run!" Espy shouted, turning a sphere aside with a pink Psychic wave. It exploded over the sea. Shane and Tessa deflected more blasts, while the rest of the group scattered. Bright white explosions filled the area with smoke. Luxeira, Blaziken, and Swampert used the smoke as a cover to launch dual Flamethrowers and a wad of packed earth toward Metagross.

 **Pitiful. You will only harm your compatriot,** Metagross said, levitating a struggling Hakamo-o around to take the attacks. Two purple Dark Pulses raced in from Metagross' right. He formed up two pink Light Screens with two of his rear arms and deflected the Dark Pulses.

However, Metagross wasn't prepared for a shadowy black blur to lunge out of the smoke. Silvally crunched his blackened beak down on one of Metagross' rear arms. With a hearty tug, he yanked the arm out of Metagross' body. Rainbow light spewed out of the empty joint and evaporated. Metagross sputtered. He lost his grip on Hakamo-o. Silvally dropped to the ground. The severed arm landed beside him and exploded.

Silvally scooped Hakamo-o up and ran away before metal shards could pepper his hide. Metagross struggled to maintain his levitation. Sparks shot out from the frayed remnants of his rear arm. **Nnghh. Y… you cr-rr-rr-rr-retin. What are you doing-ing-ing? I am… I must survi-vi-vi-vive. I must.**

"You say emotions are clouding our judgment, but what about you, huh? You're so blinded by fear, you can't see any reason!" Silvally snarled. He dropped Hakamo-o off beside Comfey and the injured Sticky. Silvally slung a purple Shadow Ball at Metagross. Espy added her own. Luxeira bolstered it with a purple ray. Shane forced an Ice Beam into the growing ball.

 **T-Tough… n-n-n-nesss. Guard-d-d-d boost times f-f-four,** Metagross said. His limbs sparked as he summoned multiple Light Screens and pushed back against the giant multicolored energy ball. Blaziken added his Flamethrower to the mix. Rocks materialized around Dusk and she hurled them into the ball. Metagross' shields cracked.

 **Exp-p-p-plosion guard… tim-m-mes three,** Metagross shouted right as the Light Screens broke. He shielded his face with his arms. The energy blew him into the rock wall on the eastern end of the beach. He bounced off it, emitting static.

"Don't let up, guys!" Shane barked. He was ready to launch a Heat Wave, but needed to make sure Metagross was totally off guard. "Hey, Guildmaster! How does all this bull fit into your 'greater good' schtick, huh? Was killing Incineroar working for the greater good? Because, from what we experienced, you're a miserable excuse for a Guildmaster… and it showed!"

Sparks shot out of the giant crack in Metagross' face. **W… why you…** He shakily raised his arms. **There's… that's…** He launched multiple waves of white energy balls. The group split, Team Radiance running off to the right while the others ran left. **Incineroar-oar-oar was a fool! He was t-t-too trusting! You can't help-p-p everyone. You can't trust any-y-y-one. This world… trust is useless… ess… ess! The only gr-r-r-reater good is survival… by any means nece-ce-cessary!** Metagross shouted, unleashing so many white energy balls his front arms cracked.

Dark memories active, Silvally snarled. Eerie black energy raced across the beach, vaporizing several of the spheres. Tessa skidded across the sand, blasting an energy ball apart with an Aura Sphere.

"Is that why you sent us off to the Temple of Body? To get rid of us?" she barked, already charging another Aura Sphere.

 **Of course I di-did! You were go-go-going to kill me. Your dumb, id-id-idiotic, bleeding hearts were not doing-ing good. They were doing harm! Harm to me! You were destab-stab-stabilizing the world! I had to rid myself of you,** Metagross shouted. **Look at what's hap-p-p-p-pened. The world's end is upon us. I must persis-is-ist. I must find a new home. And I will not allow any of you to come alo-o-ong and ruin my chance at peace.**

Shane saw his opening. Blaziken, Seraph, and Swampert combined a Flamethrower, Thunderbolt, and water jet into a crackling vortex. Metagross turned to meet the attack. Shane unleashed the superheated air he'd gathered. His Heat Wave caught Metagross by complete surprise. It scorched his rear arms, leaving black streaks across them. Metagross cried out in pain. The other attack enveloped him. He slammed against the rock wall again. Two of his rear arms blew up. The glow in his eyes faded. Metagross hovered erratically, light and sparks jumping off his backside.

 **Im… poss… ible…** A crack splintered through Metagross' right eye. He stared Shane down. **You… you can't… fire… breathe…**

"Give it up, Metagross. It's time to answer for the lives you've ruined!" Tessa barked, Aura Sphere at the ready. She hurled it at Metagross.

"You don't get to float there and judge us, you bastard!" Gallian snarled, bolstering Tessa's Aura Sphere with a black beam from his scythe. "Dad was kind-hearted and worked for the good of others! He viewed you as a friend and you turned on him for no reason!"

Metagross struggled to maintain his levitation. Erratic pink beams caught the siblings' combined attack and snuffed it out. Silvally dispelled a couple of the lasers with a well-placed Shadow Ball. Team Go-Getters and Seraph launched fire, water, and lightning toward Metagross. Dusk added rocks to the mix. Metagross cut off his levitation. The attacks sailed overhead.

 **Incineroar's kindn-n-n-ness… was worthless… less… less. When people were panick-ick-icking during Dark Matter's attack, he was only concerned about your mother. He was… ineffec... ineffective in a crisis. If he were alive… Necrozma would've… wiped this guild out,** Metagross grunted.

"That's a lie. _You're_ the one who led us right into his claws!" Tessa snarled. She and Gallian again combined an Aura Sphere and Dark Pulse. This time, Zoroark added his own Dark Pulse to the midst. Silvally snarled, releasing more eerie black energy. Metagross spun around. The energy leaking from his body vaporized the attacks. Metagross struggled to get himself back in the air.

 **All for… the greater good. Found him… struck deal. Your spirits… in return for my… my… my safety,** Metagross sputtered. Gray liquid seeped out of cracks on his face.

"And I reckon that's why you done tried to off Lucario, too, ain't it?"

Team Radiance abruptly stopped charging their attacks, all of them recognizing the new voice in the conversation. Seconds later, black chains burst out of the sand. They wrapped themselves around Metagross' remaining limbs, suspending him in midair. His garbled static echoed across the beach.

 **Ah, good. Seems my distressitude signal actually reached you three,** Magearna said, turning around and bowing toward Tapu Bulu and Tapu Fini. Braviary stood perched atop the former, half his body still crystallized from Necrozma's attacks.

"How did they get here?" Tessa said, aura feelers tensing. She wondered if it was even safe for Braviary to be out like this, but kept that thought to herself.

Tapu Fini pointed an arm toward Metagross. More ley line chains burst out of the ground. They snuffed out the psychic energy he was gathering. "We were trying to survey what had happened to the landscape when we sensed the Dawn Hourglass' energy," she explained.

 **Forgive me, but I used my Geartronic Energy Amplifier in the hopes I'd be able to draw their attention,** Magearna said. Team Radiance exchanged confused looks. No one was willing to challenge how or why such a device existed.

Across from the newcomers. "W-What the— Snowy's friends with the bloody Tapus? Oh, you've gotta be kidding me!" Lycanroc spat. "C'mon, Sneasel, we're blowing this dump."

"No." Sneasel walked over toward Hakamo-o. "You do whatever you want, but I ain't going nowhere. Besides, it's bad form to walk out on the Land Spirits." He jerked his head in the Tapus' direction.

Lycanroc growled at Sneasel, but said nothing. He turned around, ready to storm off, when Dusk jumped into his path, fangs bared and eyes turning red. "You're not going anywhere," she snarled. Lycanroc shuffled backwards. He crossed his arms and scowled.

"Bulu ready to rip angry dinner table into bits." Tapu Bulu glanced at his counterpart. "Can Bulu crush him with ley lines, now?"

"Not before he done answers my question," Braviary said, limping toward Metagross. "The night Lucario had her meltdown, I saw you walking out of the guild. You told me you were taking care of important business… and I believed you. Just like I done trusted you when you went after Incineroar and told me to let the rest of the guild know you'd been in yer office the whole night."

 **You… always were… a stub-b-b-born, gullible fool,** Metagross said, between bouts of static.

"Wait." Tessa turned to Braviary. "Are you saying Metagross tried to kill my mom, too?"

 **Of course I did. She was… a threat. Obsessed… with Ho-Oh. Always mut-t-t-tering… about fixing mistakes. She needed… to be purged… so I could plan my escape in peace,** Metagross said, eyes twitching and flickering erratically with light.

"You're the reason she had a meltdown in the first place!" Braviary cawed, pointing his good wing at Metagross. "I know we both had our misgivings about Lucario and what Incineroar thought of her, but you done took it to far!" He limped closer to Metagross. "That's why I'm here. To make sure you know that I think yer the scum of the earth!"

"Okay, is anyone else totally lost here?" Swampert said, earning nods of agreement from Blaziken, Swampert, Luxeira, and Seraph. "We've got him pinned, now let's finish the job already!"

"Bulu agree. Angry dinner table try to take Dawn Hourglass' power. His offense deserves punishment," Tapu Bulu said, smacking his stubby, bell-like limbs together.

 **No. I refuse… to let it… end here. I will… escape!** Metagross glowed bright white. He trembled violently. Light seeped out of the cracks on his metallic body.

"Everybody get back!" Shane shouted, fearing a devastating attack from Metagross. Without any hesitation, he spat out a gold energy ball. It struck Metagross right between his eyes. A massive golden light geyser erupted. White light raced across the beach, swallowing everyone up and drowning out their surprised cries. The force of the blast blew everyone back toward the water.

"Ungh. Sh-Shane… what was that for?" Espy groaned, rubbing her face with her forelegs.

Just as the light began to fade, a surprised howl rang out across the beach. Everyone jumped to their feet, trying to blink the stars out of their vision.

"H-Hey! My bag! Where's my bag?!" Espy cried, circling around in a panic.

 **Ah! The Scalebound Shard was knocked loose! Where is it?** Magearna's mechanical eyes darted about.

Another flash of light drew the group's attention. On the opposite side of the beach, Lycanroc stood atop the unconscious forms of Dusk, Sneasel, and the Tapus. He had Espy's bag slung across his shoulder and the Scalebound Shard in his right paw. His mane now ended in streaks of rainbow fur instead of white.

Tessa hurled an Aura Sphere at Lycanroc. Silvally sprinted toward him, cheek bolts whirring so fast they left behind trails of sparks.

"Ha! Thanks for the parting gift, mates! I hope Necrozma kills the whole lot of ya!" Lycanroc jeered. The Scalebound Shard glowed in his paw. An Ultra Wormhole opened beneath him, carrying him and his victims away. Tessa's Aura Sphere passed right over the portal and exploded right as it disappeared. Silvally skidded to a halt in the sand.

"No! _No!_ After all that work… the Shards are gone? Just like that? And to _Lycanroc_ of all Pokémon?!" Silvally said. His fighting memories shifted on, turning his glowing parts orange. He smacked the ground with a foreleg. "How could this happen? Damn it! We were so close… _so close!_ " Silvally thrashed his head about, hissing.

Shane stood opposite Tessa, staring down at the ground blankly. A lightning bolt struck him in the rear. Shane jumped forward with a yowl. He whirled around to find Seraph staring him down, a sparking paw raised.

"Nice going, _dumbass!_ This is all your fault! What the hell was up with that kooky magical energy ball, huh? You almost blew us to smithereens!" Seraph fumed, plasma crackling around her fur.

"I… I… Metagross was about to unleash something horrible! I had to stop him! This was the best thing I could think of!" Shane said, tails curling up against his waist. He knew what he did was reckless, but he never imagined things could've gone this way.

"Well, if you had that technique then why the hell didn't you use it from the get-go? We could've avoided all of this garbage!" Seraph spat.

"Because I've never really used the attack before. I didn't know what it was capable of. But we were in a bind and I panicked, okay! Can you honestly blame me? Metagross looked ready to, like, use some sort of modified Self-Destruct," Shane said. He glanced at his teammates, but even he wasn't sure if he wanted them to back him up or simply try to understand his reasoning. His heart sank when none of them met his gaze.

 **N… not… capable.**

Shane's tails shot into the air. Everyone turned back toward the rock wall to find Metagross lying in a crater at its base. His Mega Evolution had worn off, but his body was charred black as opposed to its usual dark gray. All of his limbs had been blown off. Sparks and gray liquid seeped out of his exposed joints and the numerous cracks on his body.

"How the heck did that guy survive that blast?" Swampert said, shaking his head in disbelief.

 **It's… like… I said. You can't… save this world. The only hope… was to escape…** Metagross' voice descended into static. **Too… damaged. Can't… move. Y-You… you ruined me. Now… we're all… going to die…**

"… tch. Even on death's doorstep, you're as blind and irrational as ever, _Guildmaster._ "

A pained squawk made everyone look up. Zero stood at the top of the rock wall, her free paw clutching Braviary's throat. The colors dissolved off his body and into Zero's mask. Zero finished crystallizing Braviary's body, then dropped him to the ground. He landed next to Metagross and shattered.

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. Her heart leaped into her chest. Beside her, Gallian crouched low to the ground, his eyes flickering pink. "W-We have to flee. We can't fight her. It'll be—"

"A disaster? Oh, please." Zero turned her gaze on Gallian. "To think… in spite of my teachings, you've been reduced to a sniveling, cowardly wreck. I'd say I'm disappointed, but at this point, I don't really care."

Gallian shrank back, a mix of pain and anger in his eyes. Tessa sensed the shifts in his aura and took a step forward, putting her right arm up in front of Gallian protectively. "Stop this, Mom! You can't let Necrozma control you like this. You have to fight him!" She looked down. "Please…"

Zero's paws flickered with bursts of static. "The only thing I'm fighting is a world that's fundamentally flawed. But I'm on the cusp— no, the _brink_ of fixing it. All you need to do is stand down and cease your asinine tirade."

Shane shot a pink energy ball at Zero. She swung her staff around to counter, but the energy ball exploded, shattering it. Zero wrung out her left paw as it distorted at bizarre angles.

"Yes! That's it! I broke her evil scepter thingy! Now she's gotta be free from Necrozma." Shane looked at Tessa, tails wagging.

"My scepter?" Zero said, staring at her staticky paw. "You mean… this scepter right here?" She brought her paws together, then spread them apart. A new staff formed, identical to the one Shane had destroyed.

His jaw slackened. "But that's… that's…"

"This…" Zero slammed the staff against her knee, breaking it in half. It dissolved into thin air. "… is nothing more than a fancy-looking Bone Rush club, designed to trick gullible would-be heroes into thinking it's the source of my power." Zero nudged up her mask. "Evidently, it worked."

Shane's ears and tails drooped. "Damn it, why can things never be easy?" he whimpered.

"Mom… please, listen to me! You're not thinking straight. You can't possibly expect to kill all the gods and have the world stay peaceful," Tessa said. Zero's eye fell on her. "Look, my friends and I have seen a lot of problems for ourselves, but killing the gods won't solve anything. We all have to compromise and find a path forward _together._ "

Zero rolled her eye. "That will solve nothing. And I can tell you why. The gods are worthless and petulant. They're the most selfish, short-sighted people in the entire world… and they're the ones who are supposed to be running it!" Static rippled through her bodies. "You really think they'll stop and listen to _you?_ You… a meek girl so utterly incapable of holding her own in battle that she _cheated_ and co-opted Necrozma's power so she could know what's it like to feel big and strong."

Roaring, Silvally sought to bathe Zero in flames. Zero snuffed them out with a wall of black cubes. "I won't let you talk to Tessa that way! She's done more for us than you could possibly realize, but Necrozma's warped your mind so badly, you've lost sight of your family!" Silvally revved up his cheek bolts and clawed at the ground.

"That girl is not my daughter," Zero said. "I have a daughter… many worlds away. She was taken from me… by the gods you want to 'compromise' with." She hovered into the air. Ley line chains burst out of the ground. One by one, they punctured Metagross' body and wrapped around him. Then, Zero compressed the chains. The glow faded from Metagross' eyes seconds before he shattered like a glass figurine.

Zero raised her left paw. The chains wrapped around a ball of light flittering into the air from Metagross' remains. They swallowed the light up whole, then dissolved away. "Hmph. Good riddance," she growled, lowering her paw. Zero turned back to Team Radiance. "You think Necrozma's somehow blinded me? You're _wrong._ He was never in control of me. And now… he's no longer an issue."

"What's that supposed to mean, huh?" Tessa said, crouching lower to the ground.

"It's probably a trick to throw us off," Shane said, snorting tufts of ice. He was trying to draw forth energy to use the golden light ball again, but it wasn't working. Shane sought to keep Zero talking to stall for time.

"It's no trick. Necrozma's gone. I dealt with him," Zero said. "Everything I've done has been deliberate. Because this world's made me suffer— made countless humans suffer. Don't believe me?" Zero shakily reached a paw up and removed her mask. She turned to show the right side of her face.

"Oh, that's so gross," Seraph said, cupping a paw over her mouth.

Luxeira's jaw dropped. "Those glowing triangles, they kind of look like…" Her voice trailed off. She shuddered.

Tessa staggered back, clasping a paw over her chest. "M-Mom. Wh-what happened to you?"

"Metagross didn't like me asking so many questions about Incineroar's death. He tailed me out to Glyphic Falls and pushed me off a cliff. That should've been in the end, but a rainbow comet collided with me in midair," Zero said, putting her mask back on. Rings of distortion spread through her body. "Necrozma _was_ in full control for a while, until I forced the central part of his core into Lunala and regained my free will. I snuffed his consciousness out, so now his power is mine to use as I see fit."

Three pillars of fire descended on Zero. She extinguished them by trapping them in a sphere of cubes. "Necrozma knocked the Hidden Land into the ocean… and took Giratina and Palkia down, too," she continued. "Look around you. Time and space are unraveling. Soon, gravity will, too. But I have the Time Gears. And I have Dialga's power. I can rewrite all of history… and make it so that none of the gods _ever_ existed."

"But if you blame them for you ending up here, won't you just erase yourself in the process? C'mon, you're not thinking logically! Your plan makes no sense. You're tampering with powers you can't control," Shane shouted. He felt golden embers deep inside his spirit. All he needed was a few more seconds.

Zero's eye flashed purple. "I know damn well what I'm doing. I'm not about to sit here and listen to a dimwit who doesn't even realize that his mere existence here is one gigantic contradiction."

Shane shuffled backward, tails shooting between his legs. "A… contradiction?" He looked at the ground, blinking slowly. Did Zero know something about the visions the Dawn Shards had given him?

"I'm going to fix a system that was broken at its inception. And I need you mongrels out of my hair," Zero said.

She snapped her digits. Six of her black Beast Balls appeared in the air. They dropped to the ground and snapped open. Milotic and Serperior emerged from the first two, glaring at Team Radiance. However, Espy looked right and her jaw dropped.

"H-Haxorus? Raichu?! No! She can't have gotten you, too!" Espy squealed, tail shooting between her legs.

"Ah, Blaziken! She got Team Poképals, too!" Swampert cried, tugging on his partner's arm. Blaziken tensed up, digging his talons into his feathers.

"You monster! Let them go, _now!_ " Silvally snarled.

"Or what? You're gonna go all rageaholic God Killer on our asses?" Serperior said, smirking. "Ha! I'd like to see you try!" She brandished her tail-blade. Flames danced across it.

Zero raised her paw up. A dome of black cubes formed up across the beach, blocking out Comfey, Magearna, and Sticky.

"Don't disappoint me this time," Zero hissed, before disappearing into a black, jagged portal.

"H-Hey, what's going on here?" Tessa squeaked, aura feelers trembling. Red cubes burst forth from the ground. Tessa dove to the sand to avoid them. They stretched up to the ceiling, cutting Team Radiance off from Gallian, Zoroark, and Hakamo-o.

"Damn it, she's boxed us in!" Shane huffed, looking at an identical wall on Team Radiance's left.

"Exactly. You've got nowhere to run, punks!" Serperior said, giggling. "This time, nothing's gonna stop me from torching your furry hides!"

She and Milotic raised their tails, then lunged.

* * *

 **Maligned Malefactor, Metagross Deluxe  
** _Born, like the rest of his kind, without the capability to process emotions in spite of his typing, he sought to gain notoriety with tactical acumen and battle prowess. But when his teammates reached their final states before he did, impatience drove him to Voltaic Crater, where he attempted to fuse with another of his kind. He realized all too late his chosen target's mind and spirit had been irreversibly damaged by ever-present lightning. His fusion partner steadily eroded his mind and spirit until not a trace of the original explorer remained._

* * *

I think it's safe to say this was easily the most chaotic chapter of the fic to date. Any comments would be greatly appreciated, even if you're reading this long after it was published.

Anon Omega: There's still more to his situation than meets the eye, if you catch my drift.

SuperOmegaGuest: Well, this wouldn't be a Mystery Dungeon fic if I didn't fill it with mysteries, right? Aha ha... ha...

Neptune: I can't think with portals. My brain's made out of cottage cheese.

TractorsAreCool: World ain't dead yet. Otherwise the fic would be over!

Another guest: I think you were mistaken. _Now_ everything that could've gone wrong for the heroes has gone wrong. Guess you spoke too soon.

Next time: a clash of explorers young and old!


	101. A Captivating Song of Ice and Fire

I got a couple of questions about this, so for those curious, yes, I based Metagross' emera-merging powers off of All-For-One from My Hero Academia. You can give yourself two Shane points if you caught that.

* * *

 **Chapter 85: A Captivating Song of Ice and Fire**

Tessa backpedaled, expecting Shane to follow suit. He stayed frozen in place. Serperior whirled around, ready to lop his head off. Silvally leaped in front of Shane. His water memories activated. He parried Serperior's tail-blade with glowing blue talons. She hopped back, hissing.

"Oh, I am _so_ not doing this routine again," she said. Her helmet's fiery mohawk bristled. Serperior launched large fireballs into the air. "Yo, Millie! You're up!" she called. Milotic hopped back, having failed to slash Espy with her tail-axe. She shot bursts of ice and water at the fireballs, turning them into smooth, onyx orbs floating in midair.

Serperior launched her vines at the nearest orb and grabbed hold. Rainbow light shimmered across Milotic's back. Liquid tendrils sprouted from her scales. Like Serperior, she grabbed an orb and pulled herself onto it. Espy launched a purple Shadow Ball toward Milotic, but she batted it aside with her tail-axe. It struck the wall of glitchy back cubes and disappeared. Tail crinkling, Espy recalled the electrified barrier she had set up back in Aurora Vale.

"I'm not letting you saps gang up on me again. I've got _competent_ help this time around," Milotic said. She used a blue tendril to drop to the ground. Water jets spurted from her back, launching her across the sand. Milotic dragged her tail-axe behind her, leaving a wall of ice. Espy and Tessa barely skirted out of the way, only for Seprerior to swipe the air with her tail-blade, launching fireballs in an arc at them.

Silvally slammed the ground with his talons. Tiny waterfalls snuffed out the fire. Silvally turned to Shane, who still stood there with a stunned expression on his face. "Shane, snap out of it!" Silvally said, water sloshing in his cheek-bolts.

"No, by all means, keep being the useless dead weight we all know you are!" Serperior cackled. She coiled up and sprang off her orb while Milotic pulled herself onto it. Igneous rock solidified around Serperior's tail, turning it into a giant lance. She slammed into the ground, kicking up a wave of magma.

Espy and Tessa skirted it. Silvally headbutted Shane out of the way. Milotic whipped her tail forward. Her tail-axe disconnected and grew in size. An icy current blew it in Silvally's direction. He skidded to a halt before he reached the edge of Zero's distorted dome. Silvally whirled around, eyes widening at the approaching axe. He spouted a Flamethrower, but it wasn't enough to melt the axe.

An Aura Sphere struck it and exploded. The axe rebounded upward, sparing a relieved Silvally. Milotic rapped her circular perch with her tail and her axe returned. Silvally returned Tessa's save by sending a wave of water at Serperior. She caught it out of the corner of her eye and sprang up into the air like a fiery pogo-stick. Espy and Tessa made a mad dash toward Silvally, but were swept up by the molten ring Serperior's tail created when she landed. They tumbled to a stop by Silvally.

He hopped in front of them, shooting electricity upward from his cheek bolts. However, it wasn't enough to stop spear-shaped icicles from pelting him from above. Silvally staggered backward. Black, sticky splotches spread across his pelt. Tessa shoved an oran berry into Silvally's beak and marched over to Shane.

"Get a hold of yourself," she said, flicking the tip of Shane's snout. He stiffened, belting out a whimper. "Look, I'm upset about the Dawn Hourglass, too. _Furious_ , even. But right now, we have to focus on the problem directly in front of us… and not the one that slipped right out from under us." She pointed her paw behind her, where Espy was using her psychic powers to bolster the intensity of Silvally's lightning and force Milotic back toward Serperior.

"B-But… it's my fault," Shane whispered, ears drooping. "Seraph's right. I used an attack I knew nothing about… like a total dumbass! I ruined all our hard work—"

"Maybe you did," Tessa said, brow furrowed. Shane cringed. "Doesn't change the fact that we're stuck until we can do something about these two." She stuck her paw out toward Shane. "After everything we've been through, are you really about to up and quit on us like this?"

Shane shook his head. "N-No. It's just—"

Tessa turned around. "Fight now. Talk later," she said. Silvally and Espy added electricity and a Shadow Ball to Tessa's newly-forged Aura Sphere. However, a molten rock spire swallowed the combo before it reached Milotic.

"We've gotta draw them apart. Espy, you come with me. Shane, Tessa, deal with Milotic," Silvally said. Espy nodded and hopped onto Silvally's back. He sprinted through the sand, weaving through the magma spires Serperior summoned from the earth.

"Back me up, Shane," Tessa said. She charged Milotic down, fists crackling with electricity.

"H-Huh? Hey, wait!" Shane barked, running after her. He considered trying to use the golden light ball again, but realized the cramped fighting quarters made it far too likely he'd blow up his own teammates by mistake. Instead, he settled for wavy Psychic beams.

"Nice try, amateurs." Milotic grabbed a floating orb with two tendrils and pulled herself up, dodging Tessa's Thunder Punch. "No amount of evolving will make you two any less predictable," she scoffed. Milotic raised her tail, summoning three ice shards. She smacked them toward the ground with her tail-axe. Shane's Ice Beam couldn't destroy them. One struck Tessa, leaving a deep gash in her shoulder. The other two hit the ground in front of Shane, leaving spiked patches of ice.

"Tessa! H-Hang on!" Shane cried. He tried sidestepping the ice, but more ice shards struck him from above. Shane staggered back. His blood spattered against the gray sand. Milotic leaped from her perch, somersaulting in midair. A rainbow water veil surrounded her. Shane dove to the ground. Thin white ribbons fell from the tips of his tails. Shane blasted Milotic in the back with bright-white light. Her tendrils shriveled in the face of his Dazzling Gleam.

Shane scrambled to Tessa's side, wincing from the cuts along his chest. "Hold on. I can help," he said, pressing a paw to Tessa's shoulder. She yelped in pain, but then warm orange light surrounded her shoulder. The gash closed. Tessa passed an oran berry and an elixir to Shane. He gulped them down, then spun around to face Milotic.

Her liquid tendrils had regrown. She spun around in mid-charge. Her long eyebrows formed a veil of rainbow water around her. Shane and Tessa backed away from each other, but both ran out of running room. The edges of Milotic's water bubble clipped them. Tessa shrank toward the ground, hissing and wringing out her paws. Shane tolerated the cold better, but his paws still stung. He tried to blast Milotic with pink orbs, but her bubble redirected them toward Tessa.

She was forced to toss the Aura Sphere she'd gathered to save her hide. Milotic dispelled her veil. She leaped into the air and used a tendril to pull herself onto one of the orbs. Milotic gathered water and ice inside her mouth.

Shane lumbered toward Tessa. "Hey. Think you can sock her if I launch you upward?"

"Huh? Uh, I guess so," Tessa said, surprised Shane actually asked her instead of enacting his plan. She crouched into a fighting stance. Shane drew on his psychic powers. Tessa sailed through the air, charging her paws up with plasma.

Too focused on gathering rime, Milotic wasn't prepared for Tessa to pop up in front of her and sock her in the mouth. Squealing in pain, Milotic choked on her attack. She slipped off the orb. Heat Wave winds caught her mid-fall. The hot air knocked Milotic into the glitchy cube wall. She bounced off it and fell to her belly.

Milotic didn't have enough time to get her bearings before Tessa crashed into her from above, driving an electrified fist into her throat. Tessa winced. "I'm sorry, Milotic, but this is for your own good," she said, wrapping her arms around Milotic's slender frame. With a loud grunt, Tessa threw Milotic over her shoulder. Milotic skipped across the sand, where Shane had a Psychic orb barrage at the ready.

Her frozen helmet splintered, as did her tail-axe. "All right! I think it's working. Now, we've just got to—"

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "Shane, get down!" she screamed, lunging for her partner. They hit the ground moments before a Flamethrower grazed their backsides. A scorched Espy tumbled to a stop behind them, groaning and coughing up a mouthful of smoke.

"Ungh. I wanna… switch targets," Espy whined.

Shane scrambled over to Espy, saying, "Watch my back, please." Tessa hopped to her feet, charging an Aura Sphere to keep Milotic on the defensive. Behind her, Espy waved Shane off, using her own Morning Sun to heal her injuries.

"Guys, hurry up!" Tessa said, hurling her blue fireball at Milotic. She froze it solid with an Ice Beam and batted it aside with one of her large eyebrows. Milotic spun around, tail bristling with ice. An icicle wave raced toward Team Radiance. Orange wind and liquid metal blew holes in the icicles, leaving Shane and Tessa openings to safely jump through.

Espy backpedaled, only to skid to a halt as a flaming geyser erupted in front of her. A gust of wind snuffed the fire out. Espy crept toward Silvally, who was hopping around to dodge swipes of Serperior's tail-blade. "You are _such_ an obnoxious bastard," she growled. Serperior coiled up and sprang into the air. She pulled herself onto the nearest orb with her vines. Silvally spun around, firing Air Slash crescents from the tip of his head crest.

Serperior readied a Flamethrower to negate Silvally's attack, but an ectoplasmic ball struck her from behind. She dug her vines into the orb to hold her ground against the Air Slash barrage. Before Espy could regroup with Silvally, Serperior dropped from her perch. She used her vines to swing around, spewing fire from her mouth and her tail-blade. Yowling, Espy hopped back. Her desperate Psybeam petered out against Serperior's flames.

Silvally reared up, conjuring a wave of water. Serperior pulled herself onto the nearest orb with a smirk. "Aww, what's the matter? Losing that spring in your step? I swear, you were faster back at Mount Supernova. Maybe you need to let one off. You seem like you've got a lot of pent-up tension," she giggled. Silvally's fire memories momentarily shifted on. Serperior's laughs grew louder. "I'm onto something, aren't I? Ah well. Doesn't matter much, now!" She hopped into the air and formed her tail into a fiery lance once again.

Espy unleashed another Shadow Ball. To her horror, however, Serperior tilted in midair, then spewed a Flamethrower to propel herself in Espy's direction. Serperior split the Shadow Ball in half. Espy got tripped up scrambling backwards. While she avoided Serperior's lance, she was hit by the ensuing ring of fire. Espy rolled across the sand, trying to snuff out her burning fur.

"Fitting look for you," Serperior jeered, hopping into the air again. She didn't get the chance to strike Espy from above, however, because Silvally plowed into her from behind. They fell to the ground. Silvally pinned Serperior with his larger frame. He raised water-coated talons, only to miss as Serperior dug herself into the sand. Silvally looked around, growling.

The sand destabilized around him. Silvally's eyes widened. A lava geyser erupted beneath him. Silvally sailed skyward, howling in pain and flailing his limbs about. He hit a floating sphere. Serperior emerged from the ground, ready to skewer Silvally. Thinking quickly, Espy drew on her psychic powers. Instead of hitting Serperior, however, she yanked Silvally back. A flaming rock spire jutted out of the ground seconds later.

Refusing to be denied, Serperior hardened her tail-blade into a molten hammer. She struck the spire, flinging molten rock shards at Espy and Silvally. Espy dropped Silvally and fired pink rings forward. Silvally stomped the ground. Waterfalls rained down around him, combining with Espy's Psychic to destroy the shards.

Serperior took advantage of her foes' preoccupation, however. She plunged her tail-blade into the sand and funneled flames down underground. Fissures spread through the ground. Giant, flaming, thorn-covered vines emerged.

"Get on!" Silvally barked, turning his back to Espy. A rime blast streamed in from behind Espy, however. The ice and water mixture caught Espy and flung her into one of Serperior's vines. Espy smacked against the cube wall on her right and fell to the ground, legs twitching unresponsively and blood seeping from her burnt, soggy fur.

"Espy!" Shane hollered, sprawled on his belly to avoid Milotic's rime. Tessa tried Thunder Punching through the attack. She wound up pulling her frozen paws back and banging them together to break the ice.

"Stay back! You're gonna get caught up in the vines," Silvally said, Air Slash blades flying out of his head crest. They managed to nick some of the thorns from Serperior's vines, but more vines sprouted up in response. "Nnngh… there's too many of them!" Silvally hollered, watching them close in on Espy.

"I told you… you weren't going to get the better of me this time," Serperior cackled. She slammed two of her vines in Silvally's direction. He jumped back. Milotic spewed another rime torrent, striking Silvally's rear. She froze his hind legs to the ground. Silvally shifted to his fire memories. He heated up his torso, but knew the ice wasn't melting quick enough.

"Nice try!" Milotic shouted, another rime attack charged. Tessa threw an Aura Sphere toward her, forcing her to hop back.

"Someone help Espeon!" Tessa cried, charging another Aura Sphere. She was pretty sure a Reviver Seed would kick in, but Espy was completely surrounded by vines.

"Ha! It's too little, too late. Say goodbye to your slutty feline friend," Serperior said, rearing her vines back.

"No! Get away from her!" Shane barked. He sprang to his feet, orange light spilling from his looplet. Shane landed atop a large iceberg, tucking his head in to avoid bonking the ceiling.

Serperior's eyes narrowed. "Oh, not this garbage again." She launched her vines toward Shane, but they were met by an ice vortex three times her size. Despite Serperior pumping as much fire as she could into her vines, Shane's ice storm prevailed, slicing the vines to ribbons. Enough lingering ice remained to batter Serperior and force her away from Espy. She pulled her tail out of the ground and slumped over, dazed. Shane hopped off the iceberg as it melted. He scrambled toward Espy, though his lungs burned and his legs begged for a rest. Shane nudged her side with his snout, funneling warm energy to a burnt patch on her belly. The Morning Sun restored some of her pelt. Her burns faded. Espy shakily got to her feet.

"Th… thanks for the save," Espy said, face flushing.

"Don't thank me yet. We've still got to take care of these two," Shane said.

"On your left, Shane!" Tessa shouted. He looked over his shoulder. Shane's eyes widened and he backed up. A flailing Milotic sailed by him. She careened into Serperior. The two ended up in a coiled heap.

"T-Tessa? Cripes, that's some throwing arm you've got." Shane whistled.

Tessa ignored the compliment and charged the serpents down, plasma swirling around her paws. "Try to torch my friends, will you? I'm done trying to pull punches!" she barked. Silvally launched electricity from his cheek-bolts at the serpents. Serperior summoned a rock spire to deflect it. Tessa veered right and lunged for Milotic. She wasn't fast enough on the draw to stop Tessa from clocking her in the horn.

Milotic fell back into Serperior. She yowled in surprise. "G-Get up, Millie!" she said, trying to dig her way underground. Ice struck the ground underneath her, putting her a stop to her actions. Serperior's helmet cracked and its fiery mohawk died down. "N-Nrrgh. This can't be… happening." She shakily looked up at Tessa. "You're just a meek… pup. You can't take us down. You're a nobody!"

"Maybe I was, yeah. But I've changed a lot. I've got teammates who believe in me, now. And together, we're going to turn you back to normal!" Tessa said, Aura Sphere at the ready.

"Like hell I'm letting you beat me!" Serperior snarled. She smacked Milotic aside and sprang up. Serperior spun around. Tessa backed off from the growing fire tornado. To her dismay, Serperior's tornado deflected her Aura Sphere. Silvally leaped up to dodge it, but was torched by fire jets from the tornado. He felt to the ground, smoke rising off his singed feathers.

Milotic slithered about in a panic. "E-Easy, Millie! I'm still here! Watch where you're— _augh!_ " A fireball to the face silenced her pleas. Milotic fell back against the edge of the dome. Her vision grew fuzzy.

Tessa spotted Milotic's condition, but couldn't get past Serperior's fiery vortex. "Guys, we've got a problem!" she cried, sucking in her gut to dodge a fire jet from the tornado.

"Besides the giant spinning top of fiery doom?" Shane said, staying the furthest back of anyone on the team.

"If we don't hurry and do something, Milotic…" Tessa shook her head. "She's going to have her spirit sucked away like all the others we couldn't save!"

"No, she won't. Because I'm taking you losers down!" Serperior declared. The tornado grew in size. Fire streamed out in all directions. Silvally summoned a waterfall, but it evaporated in the face of multiple Flamethrowers. He roared in pain, barely able to stay on his feet.

Hearing his friend's agonized cries, Shane threw all caution aside. Drawing deep from his spirit's core, he called up the golden energy he'd used on Metagross. "Everyone, get back!" Shane shouted, before hurtling a golden light ball into the tornado.

"Ha! Like that's going to do any—" Serperior started, only to shriek in terror when the golden sphere burst through her tornado. It abruptly collapsed, replaced by a light geyser. A golden glow spilled out far enough to hit Milotic. Serperior struck the wall and landed atop her teammate.

Seeing her opening, Tessa ran for the serpents, encased by an orange aura. Lightning gathered around her paws. It formed into a large, diamond-shaped bolt. "Both of you… snap out of it!" Tessa hurled the lightning bolt at them like it was a giant lance. Milotic's eyes fluttered open just in time to see the electricity barreling toward her. A crackling explosion swallowed up her scream. Tessa threw her arm up over her face to shield her eyes, then dropped to her knees when the light died down. Her breath came in ragged gasps.

"H-How are they?" she asked.

Silvally took a step forward, only for jets of fire to split the ground in front of him. He hopped back. Silvally summoned a wave of water to snuff the flames out. Serperior shot out of the ground, flames swirling around her tail-blade.

"I'm not finished yet!" Serperior hissed. However, two sets of Psychic rings struck her. Serperior fell back, wriggling about on the ground.

"Now's your chance, Espy!" Shane said, eyes brimming with pink energy.

"Got it," Espy said, Z-Move already charged. A pink aura burst off her body. It zipped toward Serperior. The very air around Serperior seemed to splinter. Pink explosions buffeted Serperior, blinding Team Radiance in the process. It took a few seconds for the lingering psychic energy to die down.

"Urk. I swear… it'll be a miracle if I can still see straight after all this nonsense," Shane grumbled, standing up and shaking his head. His gaze fell on Milotic first, who lay coiled up by the edge of the dome. As Shane approached, he heard muffled sobs. "M-Milotic?" Shane whispered, crouching down. "Are you, um, okay?"

Milotic shrank back, holding up her tailfins defensively. Relief flooded Shane's system as he concluded Milotic was back to normal. "It's… it's okay, Milotic. I'm not going to hurt you," he said. "You need any help?"

"W-Why? Why did you… help me?" Milotic sniffled. "The things I said to you… the things I _did_ to you. I—" She shuddered.

"It wasn't your fault, Milotic," Tessa said, kneeling down beside her guild mate. "That wasn't you. That was N—" She cut herself off, remembering Zero's claims before she disappeared. "It was my mom's doing." She clenched her fist. "And we're going to stop her. I don't know how, but we will."

"B-But Airy… sh-she's still…" Milotic's voice trailed off and she shuddered.

"We can handle her," Shane said, nodding. "We'll free her, just like we freed you and Serperior."

"Uh, guys?" Espy cut in. "About that…" She gestured behind her. "Serperior's gone."

Milotic stuck her head up. "G-Gone? What do you mean? You caught her with your Z-Move, didn't you?"

"I sure thought so, but she's not here," Espy said, brow furrowed.

Tessa's aura feelers stuck up. "Y-You don't think she's dead, do you?!"

"What? No! I wouldn't— that wasn't what I was going for at all," Espy said.

Before anyone could say anything else, the walls and dome edges flashed red, then vanished before Team Radiance's eyes.

* * *

"On your right, Blaziken!" Luxeira barked, ducking out of the way of Feraligatr's black, crystalline fangs. She spewed a purple Dark Pulse from her mouth, striking Feraligatr's throat. He didn't flinch. Instead, he shrouded himself in a torrent of water and slammed into Luxeira.

Across from her, Blaziken met Infernape's fiery, gem-incrusted fist with a flaming leg. They exchanged three more blows before Blaziken backed off, trying to regain his balance.

"Get back, buddy," Swampert said, punching a fist into the ground. Tremors raced toward Infernape. However, he hopped up at the last second, then drove his fist into the central fissure. Flames shot through it. The fissures halted. Instead, a circular shockwave of brimstone and crystal spread across the ground. "Eep! You gotta be kidding!" Swampert cried, turning to run.

A lightning chain popped in, surrounded Swampert, and shot into the air. Seraph popped out from the plasma, cradling Swampert in her arms as best she could despite the size difference. The shockwave passed harmlessly beneath them. "Consider yourself lucky. Usually, I'd ask for chocolate and flowers in return for sweeping someone off their feet," Seraph scoffed as they dropped back to the ground.

Swampert blinked. "I… can't tell if you're being serious or not." He shook his head. "Besides, shouldn't you be helping out your partner?"

"Hmm?" Seraph turned around. Luxeira was sprinting away from a giant cone of water threatening to spear her from behind. "For pity's sake. I zapped that idiot from point-blank range and he bounced back like it was nothing? Nrrrgh…" She clenched her fists and punched the ground. Plasma pillars shot up into Feraligatr's path. They vaporized his water cone. Feraligatr skidded to a halt and locked eyes with Seraph.

"Oh crap," she squeaked, then lightning-dashed toward Luxeira. Feraligatr raised his hands. Water swirled around them, forming what looked like a pair of boat steering wheels. Luxeira abruptly cancelled out her lightning-dash her eyes widening. "What the he—"

Feraligatr tossed the projectiles like a pair of liquified frisbees. Seraph zipped skyward to dodge one, but Luxeira wasn't as quick on the uptake. Feraligatr's arms flashed blue. Two new water wheels appeared beside him. He hurled them at Luxeira, who lay curled up in a giant puddle of water crackling with dark energy.

"Luxeira! Get up!" Seraph cried. She lightning-dashed toward her teammate without a second thought. Before the dash even finished, Seraph lashed out at the air with her Plasma Fists. The water wheels disappeared in harmless streams of mist. Seraph staggered back, wringing out her paws. Though she hadn't taken a direct hit, lingering shadows left Seraph with a pins-and-needles sensation in her limbs.

"D-Damn it. Are his attacks corrupted somehow?" Seraph whispered. She glanced at Luxeira and silently swore. Feraligatr had knocked the wind out of her. Seraph turned to Feraligatr. "Hey! What's the big idea, you numbskull? I heard you're supposed to be one of the good guys or something! Come on… I know you can hear me! Cut this shit out, already!"

Feraligatr silently raised his hands, summoning two more wheels.

"Listen to me, you bonehead! Have you even stopped to think about what'll happen if we don't win? You're going to disappear along with everyone else!" Seraph shouted. "You can't possibly want that!"

 **"Perish,"** a heavily-distorted voice said, though Feraligatr's mouth didn't move. He mashed the two water wheels into one and slammed the fusion to the ground. It spun around, generating a massive water tornado.

Yowling, Seraph dug her claws into the sand. However, they offered little traction to keep her in place. The gale-force winds sucked Luxeira toward them. She bumped into Seraph. The two careened toward the center of the vortex. Feraligatr's red eyes flashed. He flexed his digits. His crystal claws detached, shot into the air, and surrounded the tornado.

Seraph looked in horror at the oncoming spike barrage. She twisted herself around and, shouting at the top of her lungs, fired as much lightning as she could muster from her fists into the vortex. Feraligatr gazed silently at the now-electrified tornado. Seraph continued shooting lightning into it, even as she and Luxeira drew closer. Her bolts grew weaker. The blue color in the electric streaks on her fur was fading fast. Feraligatr's disembodied claws were nearly upon them.

She couldn't just let things end here. Even if no one was really counting on her to do anything, Seraph had already put this much effort into the battle. She wasn't going to let it all go to waste. In pure desperation, Seraph used the last of her stamina to focus on the Naturia Looplet around her arm. The gem flickered, then bathed Seraph in orange light. With a startled holler, Seraph fired one last lightning bolt into the tornado. It was easily three times her size.

A spark bristled within the vortex. There was a blue flash, then the tornado collapsed in an eruption of water and plasma. Feraligatr careened into the edge of the dome, but conveyed no sense of pain or surprise at the turn of events. The explosion blew Luxeira and Seraph in the opposite direction. They came to a stop near the wall of cubes.

"W-What just happened?" Luxeira squeaked, staggering to her feet. "Seraph, was that you? I can't believe it. You actually did that Z-Move thing. That was incredible!" She glanced down at Seraph, who lay flat on her belly, completely unresponsive. "Seraph? Seraph!" Luxeira put her forepaws on Seraph's back and shook her. "Wake up! C'mon, you're okay. You're okay!"

"Unnggh…"

Seraph's left eye opened. She spat out a tiny bit of sand. "I didn't… think you cared…"

Relief flooded across Luxeira's face. "We're in this together, remember? For better or worse," she said.

"… heh. Guess you really are… a fast learner," Seraph said. She tried to roll over onto her back, only to groan and clutch her belly.

"You're hurt! But I don't have anything I can heal you up with," Luxeira said, her tail drooping.

"I'm tapped. Couldn't even… make a little static… if I tried," Seraph wheezed. "Did I at least… take out… that dopey 'gatr?"

Luxeira turned around, only to recoil in horror. Feraligatr was charging right toward her, a liquified harpoon jutting out from each forearm to skewer her with. Luxeira dug deep and spat up a purple Dark Pulse. However, Feraligatr's red eyes flashed. A gem cluster appeared in front of him, absorbing the blow. Luxeira threw herself on top of Seraph, praying she could serve as enough of a meat shield to keep Seraph alive.

She braced herself for an intense stabbing pain. Several seconds went by, however, and nothing happened. Luxeira slowly cracked an eye open. She heard crystals cracking in the distance and stood up. A few feet in front of her, Mega Swampert had destroyed Feraligatr's harpoons, taking some of the prism armor from his forearms with them.

"S-Swampert?" Luxeira gasped. "You're—"

He punched the ground. Tectonic plates knocked a stunned Feraligatr into the air. Swampert leaped up and punched him in the jaw. He shot into the dome wall and bounced back. More tectonic plates rose up from the ground. They knocked Feraligatr into the ceiling. Feraligatr plummeted to the ground, where he landed in a small crater. Cracks splintered throughout his Prism Armor, until it finally shattered and dissolved in several swirls of black mist.

Luxeira tensed up, expecting to watch Feraligatr's spirit drain away. Much to her surprise, however, no colors drained off his body. She blinked slowly. "Wait… but you didn't beat him with a Z-Move!" she said.

"Yeah, I know. But Magearna told Blaziken and I she was pretty confident that Mega Evolution would do the job, too… provided the 'mon who uses it knows how to control it, of course," Swampert said. He turned to Luxeira with a goofy grin on his face. "Good thing I dropped in at the right time, huh? No need to thank me, it's part of the job."

"Hey, Swampert? Remember me, your best buddy?" Mega Blaziken shouted, dropping to his belly to dodge three separate Flamethrowers from Infernape's hands and gaping maw. "I could really use some help over here!"

Swampert winced. "Aha ha… right. Better save the celebrating for later," he said, laughing nervously. "Oh, wait. You two take these. It looks like you need them." He set a pair of elixirs and oran berries by Luxeira and Seraph. "Well, I'm off. Wish me luck." Swampert saluted the girls, then charged toward Blaziken and Infernape.

"Coming in hot, buddy!" he shouted, leaping up and pounding the ground with his fins. A waterfall picked Infernape up and carried him away from Blaziken. Swampert closed the remaining distance, then stopped to catch his breath. "Or, rather, coming in cold, if you want to get technical." He grinned cheekily.

"Why'd you go running off on me?" Blaziken asked.

"Sorry about that. Had to go in and save the day at the last second. Y'know, the usual hero stuff." Swampert puffed out his chest.

"Yeah, well, now that we're sure we can break whatever curse Tessa's batshit crazy mom put on these guys, I don't have to pull my punches anymore," Blaziken said, clenching a fiery fist. "You know what that means?"

"Oh! Oh! Is it time for the Brave Bird Special?" Swampert said, hopping up and down and clapping excitedly.

Blaziken winked. "You know me too well, pal." He crouched low to the ground. "All right, one battle-ending finishing move coming—"

A giant fire column erupted from across the battlefield. It generated heat so intense, even Blaziken had to throw up an arm.

"W-What just happened?" Swampert said, blinking to readjust his vision. Across from him, Infernape stood at the ready, crystalline fists clenched. Red and black vapors trailed off his body. His head flame had grown to the point where it was twice as big as him.

Blaziken's eyes widened in realization. "We triggered Blaze." He kicked up sand. "Dang it, he's still got that even though he's corrupted?"

"That's cheating!" Swampert huffed, puffing up his cheeks.

 **"Disappear."**

Infernape raised his fiery fists and repeatedly banged them into the ground while hopping about like he was throwing a tantrum. Hotspots flared up all across the ground, even by Luxeira and Seraph. With a startled gasp, Blaziken hefted Swampert into the air.

"H-Hey! What are you doing? Put me do— _owoo!_ "

Blaziken sprinted across the sand, carrying Mega Swampert above his head. Behind him, flaming geysers burst forth from the sand. Infernape continued his tantrum, covering more and more of the ground in fire. The fire quickly gave way to molten lava.

"Swampert, help the girls… again!" Blaziken shouted. He hurled Swampert toward them. Acting on instinct, Swampert landed, tossed Luxeira and Seraph onto his back, and rose into the air on a waterfall to snuff out the lava geysers around him. Cool molten rock crusted over the sand, allowing Swampert and the girls to land safely.

"Boy, talk about a bad case of déjà vu, huh?" Swampert said. "We simply must stop meeting like this."

"… tch. And you were chastising _me_ for my earlier comments," Seraph said, glancing at Luxeira with a knowing smirk.

"It's not my fault you're all crazy! Who looks at a near-death experience and tries to laugh it off with a cheesy joke? This isn't like those silly kid shows that were on holovision back home," Luxeira said, shaking her head.

"Eh, it's a coping mechanism," Swampert said, shrugging. He turned around, wondering if he'd have to fend off any more attacks. To his relief, Blaziken had managed to weave through the fading geysers, with Feraligatr draped over his back. He dropped Feraligatr to the ground, then drove a fiery leg into Infernape's side, only to be met by a large gauntlet of molten rock. Infernape staggered Blaziken, then drove his other arm around. Blaziken barely ducked the swipe. He channeled wind energy and headbutted Infernape in the chest. He staggered backward, silent even as his prism armor splintered.

"Come on, Infernape, cut it out. You don't have to do this. Don't let that crazy lady worm her way into your head. She's trying to undo everything you fought for!" Blaziken said. He hopped back to dodge swipes of Infernape's giant rock gauntlets. Blaziken sighed. "Or we can do it the hard way, I guess." He shook his head. "I'm getting too old for this nonsense."

 **"Submit."**

Infernape punched the ground. A shockwave of molten rock spires raced out. It hurtled Blaziken across the sand.

"You leave my pal alone!" Swampert shouted. Infernape dashed out of the way of a Waterfall from below. He reared up for another shockwave strike, but lightning zapped him from above. Infernape hunched over, lingering static crackling around his Prism Armor. Swampert stepped to his right. A Dark Pulse whizzed by, catching Infernape in between his eyes.

Swampert backed away from Infernape, who had fixed his emotionless gaze on Luxeira and Seraph. Blaziken ran up to him. "It's now or never, pal," he said.

"Right." Swampert nodded. He grabbed hold of Blaziken in one of his giant arms. "One Brave Bird Special, coming up!" Swampert hurled Blaziken forward like he was a living javelin. Air encased Blaziken, forming the shape of a glowing, golden bird. Infernape had just enough time to turn around before Blaziken hammered into him. His prism armor shattered. The blow knocked him all the way across the sand. He rolled to a stop by the edge of the dome.

Blaziken and Swampert ended their Mega Evolutions. Both dropped to the ground, struggling to catch their breath. "Oof. Been a while since we've had to do that," Blaziken said, clutching his chest.

"I guess this means… we made it?" Luxeira said, blinking slowly.

"Yeah, except we're still trapped inside this stupid forcefield," Seraph said, shaking a fist at the air.

As soon as she finished speaking, however, the dividing wall in front of them disappeared in a flicker of light. Then, the dome vanished along with it. Seraph stared wide-eyed at her fist.

"I, uh… I meant to do that."

* * *

Zoroark stumbled. He faceplanted into the sand. Lightning passed right over him. Gallian jumped in front of him defensively. Psycho Cut blades flittered out of his horn. The prism armor-coated Haxorus ran toward them. Her gem-like claws turned blue and grew in size. She sliced the pink crescents into a fine mist.

Hakamo-o tried to snipe her from behind with his Dragon Breath, but gem-encrusted weeds popped out of the sand and wrapped around his leg. He fell to the ground, taking a mouthful of sand as punishment. He could feel the rumble from Haxorus' weighty footsteps. Hakamo-o sprang to his feet, only to be met by giant, blue, glowing claws. Hakamo-o careened into the wall. He slumped onto the ground, groaning and clutching his forehead scales.

"This isn't working," Zoroark growled.

"You think I don't see that?" Gallian hissed. They fired dual Dark Pulses that coalesced into one large, purple beam. Raichu stood tall. She raised up her paws. A red orb formed in each one. She smushed the orbs together, then threw the result forward. It split the giant Dark Pulse apart. Gallian and Zoroark had to break in opposite directions.

"It's no good! We're hopelessly outmuscled," Gallian said, his forehead scythe flashing purple.

"Hey! Help! Don't leave me here with this crazy broad!" Hakamo-o shouted, his tail getting nicked by a swipe from Haxorus' crystalline tusks.

 **"Expire."**

Haxorus' red eyes flashed. Her tusks glowed. The ground trembled under the trios' feet. A Haxorus-shaped crystal axe spurted forth from underneath Hakamo-o. It erupted in a burst of crackling blue energy. Hakamo-o yowled. He ricocheted off the dome and ended up with his head buried in the sand. It muffled his whimpers.

Neither Gallian nor Zoroark could come to his aid. More axes burst forth from the ground, leading to more blue explosions that kept the two on their heels. Through it all, Raichu launched bright-yellow Thunderbolts around. Zoroark had no way to see one coming. His anguished howl echoed across the battlefield. Gallian abruptly turned around and sprinted in the direction of Zoroark's cries.

He found Zoroark lying in the sand, his chest fur smoldering. "Z-Zoroark? Hang in there!" Gallian bit his lower lip. All of the healing items were with Team Radiance, so Gallian couldn't properly summon them. If they got knocked out, then that would be it for them. "Come on. You gotta get up." He nudged Zoroark, then looked over his shoulder.

The dust had settled from the explosions. Underneath her armored face, Raichu's cheek sacs sparked. Gallian's heart leaped up in his throat. "Sorry about this," he whispered. Gallian bucked Zoroark to his right, then dove toward him. A Thunderbolt went right past him. Gallian jumped back to his feet and fired a purple Dark Pulse. However, Haxorus jumped in and once again sliced through the attack with her buffed-up Dragon Claws.

"No. This isn't working. _Nothing's_ working. They're too in sync," Gallian said. His heart was in his throat. He felt like he was suffocating. Gallian shook his head. His disaster sense was telling him death awaited, but he couldn't accept that. Not when he had people worth fighting for.

A weak stream of dragonfire trailed in from Haxorus' left. She spun around and glared at Hakamo-o. He had managed to get back up, but between the jagged gashes in his scales and his uneasy swaying from side to side, he wouldn't last much longer.

"Hey! What are you doing? Get back! You're in no state to fight," Gallian said, shooting Psycho Cut blades toward both opponents. Haxorus sliced as many apart as she could. Raichu took care of the rest with some tiny bursts of electricity.

"Well, if I… give up here… then I'm completely screwed, aren't I?" Hakamo-o panted. He sucked in a breath, hoping to spew more dragonfire, but Raichu pivoted. Two lightning bolts raced out from her cheek sacs. They struck Hakamo-o's face. He collapsed on his back, completely still.

Haxorus, meanwhile, turned around and slammed her black, glowing tail into the ground. Crystal stalactites shot up from the ground. Gallian bit down on Zoroark's mane and sprinted away, dragging Zoroark through the sand. He didn't get far before tripping, however. Gallian rolled back to his feet, glancing at Zoroark. To his relief, Zoroark was back on his feet. Like Hakamo-o, though, he looked worse for wear.

"Gallian, I don't…" Zoroark winced an put a paw on his wounded chest. "I'm not sure I can keep this up."

"I'm not either, but we don't have a choice," Gallian said, voice cracking. His horn flickered. He looked up. Thunderhead clouds formed overhead. He stole a glance at Raichu, whose red eyes had turned bright blue. "Move!" Gallian cried, diving toward Zoroark and headbutting him. Blue lightning rained down from the clouds, kicking up large amounts of sand where Gallian and Zoroark had stood.

Haxorus slammed the ground with her tail yet again. This time, curved stalactites rose from the ground in a circle around Gallian and Zoroark. Gallian's eyes widened. The rock shards were going to spear them, like a set of oversized dragon fangs. Gallian bucked Zoroark with his horn, then lunged after him. They barely managed to squeeze through the stalactites before they slammed together and exploded in a blue burst.

Any sense of relief proved fleeting, however. Raichu unleashed another blue lightning storm. This time she fried both Gallian and Zoroark. Gallian dropped to the ground, howling in agony. Zoroark was knocked to his belly. He lay unmoving a foot away from Gallian.

"Z-Zoroark?" Gallian turned to his left. Zoroark's smoldering pelt made Gallian's heart rate practically doubled. "Zoroark! Hang on, I—"

Haxorus broadsided Gallian's horn with her tusk. The force of the blow knocked Gallian further away from Zoroark. Haxorus turned and stomped toward Zoroark, extending her crystal claws. Raichu's cheek sacs turned blue, as did her eyes.

"N-No… not Zoroark. Not again," Gallian squeaked. He tried to stand up, but his legs wouldn't respond. His scythe flickered pink, but only produced a few tiny sparks. Gallian teared up. He was going to lose Zoroark. He had failed to make up for all his stupid mistakes. Gallian glanced at his looplet. Even if he could muster up the strength for a Z-Move, Haxorus and Raichu were a fair distance from each other. He'd only be able to hit one. The other could still finish them off.

He closed his eyes, resigning himself to his fate.

"Gallian!"

His eyes shot open. Zoroark was awake. He had managed to roll onto his back. "D-Don't give up. Use the… Z-Move. You have… to try," Zoroark wheezed. "Do it… for me. Do it… for Tessa. That's what… she did for you, remember?"

Gallian blinked tears out of his eyes. Haxorus was bearing down on Zoroark. She raised her claws up to strike.

"No… get away from him," Gallian said, not noticing the orange and blue light spilling out from his looplet. A second wind struck him. Gallian bolted to his feet. He sprinted toward Zoroark, his strides growing larger with each bound. Gallian easily skirted the giant blue lightning storm Raichu summoned to vaporize him.

" _Get away!_ " Gallian roared. An orange aura surrounded him, only to turn into bright-pink light. Haxorus paused and looked over her shoulder. The pink blur struck her face. Her tusks shattered. A cloud of pink fairy dust filled the area. Zoroark's eyes widened. With a wince, he rolled away, keeping an eye trained on Raichu in case she tried any funny business.

"Gallian? Are you… okay?" Zoroark grunted, trying but failing to get to his feet. Haxorus then shot out of the pink cloud. She slammed into Raichu. The two tumbled back. Zoroark looked up. Gallian stood protectively in front of him, a wing-link cluster of fur protruding from the large white tuft around his neck. He had extra fur tufts on each leg to complement his longer claws and tail.

"I don't know. There's something… something _primal_ stirring inside of me. Telling me to maul everyone down, including you," Gallian said, his eyes squeezed shut. "But I won't." He looked back at Zoroark. "You stay there. It's time I _really_ started making up for being such an idiot."

If Zoroark hadn't been so tired, his jaw would've dropped. Instead, he nodded slowly. Gallian nodded back, then charged his opponents down. He let loose a Psycho Cut barrage from his glowing horn. Haxorus stood up just in time to take the crescent swarm's full force. She staggered back, prism armor chipping with each blow. Gallian kept his charge up. Fairy energy enshrouded him.

Still lying on the ground, Raichu tried tripping Gallian up with a prismatic Grass Knot. He sensed her ploy coming, though. Gallian lunged for Haxorus. She activated her Dragon Claws to counter, but Gallian struck them. A cloud of pink fairy energy shattered Haxorus' claws. She stumbled back, landing on her rear.

"Nobody lays a claw on my mate and gets away with it!" Gallian thundered, before spearing Haxorus with his shadowy-black claws. A single spiderweb crack appeared on her chest. It spread throughout her armored body. The armor broke and disappeared in streams of black mist. Haxorus eyes rolled back in her head. She fell onto her back, unconscious.

Gallian bounced upward, dodging Raichu's retaliatory Thunderbolt. He piledrove Raichu from above. Gallian grabbed Raichu's tail in his mouth. He spun her around, then hurled her into the edge of the dome. She bounced off, where she was met by three Psycho Cut blades. They knocked her back into the dome. Gallian engaged in a makeshift tennis match against the dome, until his Psycho Cuts stripped away the last of Raichu's prism armor. He caught Raichu on her back and lowered her beside Haxorus.

"Th… thank the gods. We survived," Gallian panted. Before he could think about how to properly undo his Mega Evolution, the dome and its dividing walls faded out of existence. Gallian blinked and looked around in confusion.

"Gallian!"

Tessa sprinted toward him, eyes widened in horror. Behind her, Espy made a mad dash toward Hakamo-o, while Shane and Silvally headed for Zoroark. Despite their similar heights, Tessa grabbed Gallian by the shoulders and hoisted him up. He barked in surprise.

"Oh, gods, this is your Mega Evolution, isn't it? Are you okay? You've gotta snap out of it before you lose control!" Tessa said, glancing at Team Paradise. To her surprise, both had all their color intact.

"H-Hey! Put me down, Tessa!" Gallian kicked at the air with his lower limbs. "Yes, it's me. I'm fine… I think."

Tessa let go. Gallian fell onto his rump with a yowl. "S-Sorry. I, uh, saw you and got whipped up into a panic," she said, fidgeting nervously with her scarf. "After what happened this morning, I—"

A pained howl echoed through the beach. Tessa's aura feelers crinkled. Gallian turned to his left. His eyes bugged out. "Zoroark!" he cried, sprinting forward before Tessa could grab him.

"Don't you dare take another step, _worm!_ "

Gallian skidded to a halt. Shane and Silvally had initially blocked his view, but now he could clearly see the bulk of Zoroark's mane lying in the sand, burning away. Serperior stood in front of him, coiled around Zoroark with her tail-blade pressing against his throat.

"You get off of him!" Gallian snarled, his eyes and scythe flashing.

"Ha… ha ha… **aha ha ha ha! You're not… in a position… to be demanding anything,"** Serperior spat, blood trickling from her mouth. **"Take another step… and it's curtains for your boy toy, here."**

"What do you think you're doing? You lost! Now, give up," Silvally growled, pawing angrily at the ground as his cheek-bolts spun about.

 **"Give up? Aha ha ha! Not a chance! I want to be here… to see the looks on all your** _ **pathetic**_ **faces when you realize… how** _ **hopeless**_ **your situation is!"** Serperior said, her voice growing more distorted and unhinged. **"So, you're gonna let me… slither away… or I'll take this idiot's… ugly ass out… right here and now."**

She tightened herself around Zoroark. He gasped in pain. Zoroark tried to grab Serperior, but couldn't move his arms.

"No, stop it! Let go of him!" Gallian cried, bearing his fangs at Serperior.

 **"Then… stay back. All of you… stay back,"** she wheezed, slowly inching away from everyone using part of her lower body.

"Serpy, stop!"

Despite her wounds, Milotic managed to slither forward. "Please, let him go. You don't want to do this. I know you don't," she said, tearing up. "I didn't want to do any of this, either. I tried to resist, but their control was too strong."

Serperior tensed up. She narrowed her eyes at Milotic.

"Look at you. You're badly hurt. Surely, their control over you is faltering. You have to fight it, Serpy! I'm begging you," Milotic said, pressing her tail fins to her chest. "You… you're my friend! And we have to save Airy, together!"

Serperior bowed her head. The cracked remains of her helmet fell off. "M-Millie," she whispered, slowly loosening her grip on Zoroark. Relief flashed across everyone's faces, but then Serperior coiled up even tighter around Zoroark. A rainbow glow overtook her eyes and the fiery markings on her body.

 **"DiD YoU REaLlY ThiNK yoU wErE GoINg to GEt a HApPy enDinG?"**

An orange, luminescent glow radiated from inside Serperior. Gallian's eyes widened. "No! Zoroark!" he cried. Gallian sprinted forward, shrouding himself in fairy energy. Serperior's glowing grew brighter. Gallian lunged for Serperior. He reached her just as she turned bright-white.

Serperior flashed a wicked smirk, before bursting apart and swallowing Gallian and Zoroark up in a blazing vortex.

* * *

 **Frigid Drop of Water, Ultra Milotic  
** _"Devourer of Light, hear our plea!  
_ _Consume our world, from the sky to the seas!  
_ _Devour of Light, endure your trial!  
_ _So that all this suffering will be worthwhile!"_

 **Sizzling Blade of Grass, Ultra Serperior  
** _"Devourer of Light, we sing to you!  
_ _Let the void be born anew!  
_ _Anger boils! Sadness grows!  
_ _Rid us of such burdens with a single blow!"_

 **Corrupted Time Saviors, Ultra Team Poképals  
** _"Devourer of Light, hear our plea!  
_ _Guide us to the end! To serenity!  
_ _Put to rest our troubled minds!  
_ _Leave nothing but Ultra Space behind!"_

 **Corrupted Beacons of Hope, Ultra Team Paradise  
** _"Devourer of Light, let chaos reign!  
_ _May all tremble before your dusky mane!  
_ _Devour of Light, unite the core!  
_ _Reclaim your beauty with a triumphant roar!"_

* * *

Why, yes, this chapter title did spoof George R.R. Martin, even though I've never read any of his stuff. The boss descriptions are yet another spoof of Kirby material, because, hey, this is a fan fic and I want to have fun with my own piece, doggone it. Now, I'm going to answer reviews and run away from all the people I likely upset with this cliffhanger.

SuperOmegaGuest: you were correct. Z-Moves did indeed work. And so did Mega Evolution!

Anon Omega: hey, you're not stealing my fic notes, are you?

Sebastian: hopefully this was an even bigger DANG.

WatermelonShark: you'll have to wait and see how things pan out with Zero. That's all I can tell you.

Another guest: much like with Primarina, the Shards translated Lycanroc's thoughts into power, spawning a portal. And you have my thanks for your endeavors. I think I sent you a message there, but no idea if it worked.

Next time: the aftermath of this whirlwind of events.


	102. Plan of Attack

I apologize for the lack of review responses. This chapter was published the week of one my chemo infusions and I've mostly been bedridden. I barely remembered to get up to post this, so I hope you enjoy it.

* * *

 **Chapter 86: Plan of Attack**

The various teams were in collective states of shock. All anyone could do was stare blankly at the slick, flaming patches of black liquid lying where Serperior once stood. Thick, murky smoke billowed up from the fire.

Tessa broke out of her stupor first. " _Gallian!_ " she keened, stumbling as she tried racing toward the site of the explosion. Tessa only made it a few steps before falling to her knees. Tears streamed down her face. Her ears were ringing and her aura sense was muted. She shakily got back to her feet, but Silvally blocked her path. The blast had singed the feathers on the right half of his face and chest plume.

"You can't go over there. It's not safe. That stuff looks toxic," he said.

"I'm a steel-type." Tessa shoved him aside. "I can't stand here. Gallian… my brother…" She grabbed an aura feeler and squeezed it. "Work, damn it! He can't… he's got to still be here!"

Silvally stepped in front of her, again. "Those puddles aren't some poison-type attack. They look… _alien,_ " he said, leg muscles tensing. Sparks jumped about on his cheek-bolts.

"Then we have to get rid of that slime. Every second we stand here, we—" She cut herself off with a sob. "I can't lose them… they can't be gone."

Milotic slithered past them. Like Silvally, patches of blackened scales peppered her face and body. "Serpy," she whispered, looking down. "Why did this happen? _How_ did this happen? Did Prisma… make it so that would happen?" Milotic glanced at her tail. "Could that have happened to me?" She shuddered. Milotic coiled up. She stuck her head through the coil, unable to continue looking at the spot where her friend once stood.

Shane approached his teammates. "We… we have to try and get rid of the slime, right?" He looked down at the sand. "I could freeze it, but I don't know what good that will do."

"I'll back you up," Silvally said, shifting his ice memories on. His gray eyes glowed. Ice gathered inside his beak. Two Ice Beams snuffed out the flames and lined the black ooze in a layer of ice.

"Is that really going to hold up, though? Won't the slime burn through it?" Blaziken wondered, jogging toward them.

"I've got this," Swampert said. He pressed his fins to the ground. A small fissure split the area with the frozen slime apart. The icy ground fell through the crack. Swampert ended his Earthquake, resealing the ground.

The moment that happened, Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "Two auras! I sense two auras!" she cried, vaulting over a startled Silvally and scrambling forward. Tessa waved her arms to dispel the lingering smoke. Her eyes watered. Her nostrils burned. Tessa didn't care. All that mattered was the hazy auras.

She pushed through the smoke… and found Zoroark lying in the sand, curled up in a ball. Patches of blood spatter surrounded him. Tessa's heart shot into her throat.

Gallian lay next to Zoroark, his fur burned away, revealing patches of red, blistered, bleeding skin. His scythe and tail had been blown off. Only jagged stumps remained. A gash lay across the left side of his face, much like the scar Zoroark had.

Her legs grew weak. Tessa dropped to her knees, reaching a trembling paw toward her brother, but leaving it hovering over him. His aura was fading fast. She had to act or she would surely lose him.

Tessa withdrew her paw and stood up. "Hey! I need some help, here! Shane, Espy… whoever has any healing items… _please!_ " she shouted, waving her paws frantically. Tessa rubbed tears out of her eyes. She wanted to collapse. To scream as loud as possible. But she held her composure. Hysterics wouldn't help her brother.

"Oh, _gods,_ they're a total mess!" Shane cried, jogging up beside Tessa. Not even a second passed before he added, "Sorry. That was uncalled for. I just… I don't know how I'm supposed to heal this."

"Well, you have to try. That's my brother! I _can't_ lose him, Shane!" Tessa wrung her paws together to stop herself from grabbing Shane's shoulders and shaking him. He clearly wanted to help and her nervous energy would only hinder his efforts.

"R-Right, right." Shane sat down beside Gallian. "I'll try my best with Gallian, but someone needs to help Zoroark." He looked around. "Where's Comfey? Wasn't she with the Rem Canyon team?"

"No idea. But I've got some berries I can try on Zoroark," Espy said, running toward him. Silvally joined her, stealing nervous glances back at Gallian.

Because Gallian's chest was so badly burned, Shane gently placed his forepaws on Gallian's leg. He concentrated, trying to draw up healing energy from his spirit. However, he didn't get the familiar warmth that accompanied his odd Morning Sun variation. He thought about the battles. Between trying to help his teammates and using his golden light balls, Shane realized he had stretched himself too thin. Shane glanced at his looplet, then shot Tessa a despondent look.

Tessa picked up the cue right away. She flipped open her bag. "Elixir, elixir, elixir," she mumbled, then shakily pulled one out. Tessa uttered a loud, "Here, drink up!" Her paws trembled so much she nearly fumbled her handoff to Shane, but he caught it with his ESP.

Shane gulped down the elixir. Warmth stirred in his belly. He shut his eyes and concentrated once again. This time, the warmth spread throughout his body. Sighing in relief, Shane glowed orange. It was working. Orange light trickled onto Gallian's forelegs, then crept across his frame. His blisters slowly retracted. The red, bloody patches in his skin sealed up. It wasn't a complete success, though. His horn and tail remained broken. None of his fur grew back. A jagged scar lay across the left side of his face.

Tessa had a Reviver Seed in her paws. A wiry arm shot out in front of her.

"You can't give him that."

She dropped the seed with a startled gasp. Blaziken caught it in his other hand. "C'mon, Tessa. Look at him. If you wake your brother up, he's going to be in a lot of pain. He'll probably slip into shock and pass out again." He shook his head. "We've got to do something about all his missing fur."

"What can we do? We're in the middle of nowhere!" Tessa said, throwing her arms up in exasperation. "And I think we lost Mag—"

 **Oh, bless the stars. You're all free!**

Shane and Tessa turned to find Magearna speeding toward them, with a pair of wheels protruding from the pointed tips of her feet. Shane's jaw dropped.

"She… she's a go-kart, too?" he gasped. Shane was so focused on Magearna's accessories, he didn't realize that Comfey, Sticky, Kahuna Raichu, and Latias were all floating after her. When he finally noticed them, his tails shot up in surprise, then curled in alarm. Latias had ugly, pitch-black scars peppering her face, belly, and wings. Her eyes were red and puffy. Her paws trembled.

Magearna reached the group, first. She did a quick survey, noting the most injured Pokémon: Gallian, Zoroark, Hakamo-o, and Haxorus. **This is terrifible!** **Quite literally fifty percent terrific and fifty percent terrible!** she said, laying her head in her arms and shaking it. **I am so conflicted. Seeing our captured compatriots free has sent my joyification levels to sixty-two percent, but these awful injuries have ratchentified my panic levels to sixty- _three_ percent!**

"Wait, you mean you weren't trapped in that crazy energy dome?" Swampert asked, scratching his head.

 **Correct. Comfey, Sticky, and I were left outside. Upon seeing your sceneuation, I activated my recently-completed Geartronic Leg Acceleratofiers and went straight to Circadian Coast to get help,** Magearna explained, pointing to her legs as the wheels retracted inside of them.

"We followed her, but, well, the place is in a bit of a panic with the whole flow of time stopping," Comfey added. "We found Latias, though. I tried to heal her up as best I could, but…" Her petals drooped.

"Well, we've got a serious situation here. A lot of folks are badly hurt," Blaziken said, pointing to Gallian and Zoroark. The latter was covered in splotches of smushed berry, thanks to Espy and Silvally.

"I can see that." Comfey floated toward Gallian. She frowned. "Nngh. I don't have the tools to handle this out here. I need some real equipment, like my fur-restoring solution." Comfey glanced at Kahuna Raichu. "No disrespect intended, Kahuna, but your infirmary's not equipped to deal with the types of injuries the Prism Virus inflicts."

Kahuna Raichu raised his paws. "I understand, yeah. I was hoping I might be able to offer a _bit_ of help, but I've gotta admit, I'm not really sure where to even begin." He scratched his right ear. "Plus, there's the panic going on at the resort. Haven't seen things this bad since the guild sounded evacuation calls back when Dark Matter attacked." He fidgeted with his Totem Crystal. "I'm thinking I've gotta get folks into the Catacombs, yeah. But, like, there are way too many for me to handle by myself. I used up my Z-Power and it hasn't come back."

Luxeira trotted up to Kahuna Raichu. "I think this is where I step in."

"Whoa! A blue Houndoom? That's, uh—"

"It's a long story. The short version is that Sticky and I were trained for situations like yours," Luxeira said, pointing at her teammate. "While I never got to put that training into practice, I still think I can help you with the evacuation efforts." She paused to look back at Team Go-Getters and Team Radiance. Her brow furrowed. "Um, you guys are okay with it? I was expecting you to get upset."

"Well, strength in numbers _would_ really help with the Prism Virus, but you told us you're not a good battler. So, if you want to help people evacuate underground, then go right ahead," Silvally said. He looked at his teammates, who nodded their support.

"Oh." Luxeira blinked. "Th-thanks, guys. I appreciate it." She looked up at Sticky. "What about you?"

"I'm still… not doing so hot after taking that blast." Sticky rubbed his head. "I'd much rather stick with you than try to fight. At this point, I think I'd be a liability."

Seraph zipped over to them. She stumbled out of her lightning-dash, clutching her belly. "In… in that case… I'm going with you two," she declared, earning surprised looks. "What? C'mon, you said it yourself. You've only _trained_ for this kind of stuff. I've led evacuations before." Seraph rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Besides… I, uh…" She scratched the back of her neck. "I kinda want to stick with you guys."

Tessa rubbed the bridge of her brow. "Okay, not to sound insensitive or anything, but could we save this touchy-feely stuff for a better time?" she growled, kneeling down by Gallian. "My brother needs help. A lot of us need help. We can't get it out here." She regretted her harsh tone, but knew it had to be said.

 **Err… right.** Magearna turned to Kahuna Raichu and Team Paradox. She produced a Gear-Com unit. **Here. I'm only about 41.5 percent confident this will work underground. But, even still, it's best we try to stay in contact with each other.**

"Understood," Seraph said, taking the Gear-Com. "You guys stay safe."

 **Same to you.** Magearna bowed, bidding them farewell. She then walked back over to Team Radiance. **It would appear that we need to return to Aeon Town. I don't see any way around it. Comfey's healing equipment should still be in the Observatory. And, with Metagross out of the picture, we don't have any reason to fear going there.**

"But how are we supposed to get there? It's on the other side of the continent!" Tessa said, balling her paws into fists. "The water's frozen in time, so we can't call a Sharpedo Sailor. But if we try walking across it, we won't get there until morning!"

"What about Entercards? Shane and Espeon made one in Sunset Shoals. So, I'll bet they can do it again," Silvally said, looking at his teammates while his tail wagged. His smile faded when Shane's ears and tails drooped.

"I… I used the Dawn Shard to do it. But they're…" Shane's voice trailed off. Now that he wasn't in immediate danger, the memory of his light ball attack costing the group all the Dawn Shards crept back into his mind. "It's all my fault," he whispered.

"What if we had Latias carry over the people who are in the roughest shape?" Blaziken proposed. He looked at Latias, who wilted.

"I… I don't…" She shuddered. A muffled whimper escaped her lips.

"Okay. Guess that won't work." Blaziken's shoulders sagged. "So, what are we gonna do?"

To Blaziken's surprise, Raichu walked up beside him. "We can use an Entercard," she said. "I know how to make 'em." She looked at Espy. "Umbreon gave me some back when we were dealing with Kyurem, remember? He eventually taught me how to craft them."

"O-Oh, r-right," Espy squeaked. Memories of past heated exchanges with Team Paradise flooded her mind. She asked Silvally to help her reconcile, but this unfortune twist had thrown a wrench into her plan. Espy shook her head. She had to push those thoughts aside. Everyone was counting on her. "Yeah, okay. Let's, y'know, get it set up."

She and Raichu stood opposite one another. They performed the same routine Espy did with Shane back in Sunset Shoals. Espy kept Aeon Port at the forefront of her mind while the card formed up. With the forcefield up, it was the safest area to warp to.

Raichu snagged the card and handed it to Espy. "Okay. Get that Magnagate running so we can hit the road."

Espy grabbed it with her telekinesis and placed it on the ground. A multilayered circle with various runes and infinity symbols appeared. Espy stood outside of it. Her teammates watched as she concentrated on the card, channeling her psychic energy into it.

Shane grabbed an elixir from Tessa's bag and rushed it to Espy when he noticed her legs growing weak. She gulped it down, then finished opening up the portal. "Quickly, everyone. Head through before it closes!"

The group proceeded into the portal. Silvally carried Gallian and Zoroark on his back. Swampert kept Hakamo-o cradled in his arms. Espy went through the Magnagate last, sealing it up behind her. The Entercard then disappeared into thin air.

Silence and stillness permeated the beach for a minute. Then, the parts of the ground Swampert had sealed up burst apart. Clumps of paralyzed sand floated in midair. Black smoke vented up from the newly-torn fissure. Tiny droplets inched up onto the surface. Then, a steady stream of black ooze rose up and splattered on the ground, leaving scattered trails of frost behind it.

As the puddle bubbled, black, thorny chains shot up from the ground. They stabbed the puddle from above, then collapsed on top of it. The chains swirled about, gathering as much of the muck as they could and clumping it into a ball. Slowly, the slime solidified into an orb. The chains rose into the air, their ends trailing off like a metal cape. The black sphere sat nestled within the chains.

A crack ran down the center of the orb. Purple light emerged, pushing the rift apart until it formed into a heart. A purple iris materialized inside of the heart. The newly-formed eye swiveled about inside the chains. It smoldered with dark energy.

 **"WrEtChED vERmIN."**

The chains grinded together, inexplicably creating a haggard, wheezing voice.

 **"EvEN iF wE ArE… StUcK tOGeTher… I wIlL nOt bE DeNiED."**

Despite lacking any sort of body, the chain cluster seemed to limp through the air.

 **"I wIlL… SiLEnCE yOu… FoR GooD… tHEn FiNiSH wHAt We sTArtEd. AnD tHat DeTesTaBlE wOmAn… ShE WiLl rEGreT BeInG BoRn… uSeLeSs… _AnD_ hUmAN."**

The eye flashed and the chains shifted their positions, taking the form of two crescent-shaped wings.

 **"YoU WiLl AlL meEt… a SwIfT… aNd MErCIlEsS EnD."**

Chain wings flapped. The eye rose higher in the air.

 **"It WiLl bE… bUt a SImPle _mAtTeR._ "**

* * *

 **~Prism Wasteland~**

Zero stood at the edge of her newly-completed altar, looking out across what was left of the Hidden Land. Most of her view was obscured by ominous red and purple clouds, bristling with black lightning. She could make out scattered bits of fluorescent-purple acid where the ocean used to be.

Her aura dreadlocks tensed. Zero raised her free paw. The six balls she had housed her "team" in levitated in front of her. The buttons in the center had grayed out.

She tightened her grip on her scepter. "So, in the end, they couldn't hold their ground, after all. What a waste." Her right eye flashed. The balls shattered in unison. Their broken pieces dissolved into dust and Zero's feet.

"I don't know what condition those misguided idiots are in, but they'll no doubt try to come here and stop me," Zero growled, turning and walking across the altar. A glowing transmutation circle lay on the floor, with gems littered around its many rings and the winged-heart sigil in the center. Zero paused and looked down. "I trust you can stall them longer than those worthless explorers I had captured, yes?"

She looked up. Lugia sat in the center of the altar. The flames around his irises flickered. He tucked his dark purple head into his armored belly. Zero clenched her free paw. Static clouds popped up around Lugia. Ley line chains shot out, latching onto Lugia's wings and head. They forcibly lowered his head so he was eye-level with Zero. She grabbed his beak and squeezed.

"I _said_ … I trust that you can stall them longer than those worthless explorers I had captured, yes?" she seethed, digging her claws into Lugia chin.

Lugia nodded. Zero released his beak, then the chains pulled him upright. Lugia silently bowed his head. Zero walked around him, passing large, black, chitinous horns sticking up from the floor. Each horn had several pustules filled with purple fluid. Zero ignored them, along with the deep red glow emanating from below the altar. She approached a marble staircase and made her way up.

At the top of it sat another circular platform. It was much smaller than the one below Zero. It had the winged-heart sigil superimposed over a glyph of a Time Gear, complete with its protective barrier. Zero walked across the platform and reached a stone slab, similar to the one from the original Temporal Pinnacle. A deep-red version of Temporal Tower's symbol lay within the center of the slab. It had five notches carved into it; one for each Time Gear. However, this slab had stone wings on either side, devilish horns protruding from its top, and a single eye with a spiral-shaped iris in the very center.

"It was a right pain trying to build this thing. It better work," she growled. Absol's spirit wasn't stirring, so at the very least nothing catastrophic would happen. Zero dispelled her staff. She raised both paws. The Time Gears levitated out around her. She thrust her arms down. The Time Gears flew into the notches and _clicked_ into place.

The rune's red glow turned blue. Zero turned around and released Primal Dialga onto the platform. He immediately turned toward her, glaring with his fierce, molten-red eyes. The red lines on his body flashed.

 **"Grr… rrr…"** Primal Dialga sucked in a breath. Tachyons gathered in his mouth.

"Be still," Zero ordered, raising her right paw while a rainbow glow flickered around her mask.

Primal Dialga lowered his head. A growl rumbled in the back of his throat.

"Look. There are your precious Time Gears." Zero gestured to the slab behind her. "And I've, erm, _reconstructed_ Temporal Tower to the best of my abilities." Looking out at the altar, she knew that was far from the truth. What the ley lines had woven didn't resemble Temporal Tower in the slightest. Still, she hoped it might be enough to snap Primal Dialga back to normal, even if only for a few seconds.

Primal Dialga stood up tall. He narrowed his blazing eyes at the Time Gears sparkling in their notches on the slab. His heavy breathing slowed down. **"Grr… rrr… r** uh?" The glow faded from his eyes. His metallic scales brightened.

Zero's eye flickered blue. "Perfect," she whispered. Zero traced a circular rune in the air, then inscribed an hourglass into it. The rune burst into staticky chains. They descended on Dialga. Before he had the chance to get his bearings straight, the chains wove themselves around his legs. Dialga looked down. His eyes widened. He tried blasting the chains apart, but it was too late. They crept up to his chest-plate and shattered the gem in its center.

The chains burrowed inside Dialga. He arced his head back and screamed. Then, he slumped over. His eyes darkened, as did the metal lines on his body.

"Come on… come on…" Zero clenched her paws into fists. Her aura dreadlocks tensed. They lashed at the air like a set of whips.

Static ripples spread out over Dialga's frame. He flickered in and out of existence. Each time he reappeared, black prism armor replaced more and more of his hide. Red crystals replaced his metal plates, casting an ominous glow over his body. Dialga lifted his head up. Empty red eyes stared back at Zero, distorted by Dialga armor. A crack split the center of Dialga's forehead. It parted to reveal a third eye, with red sclera and a black, reptilian iris in the center. The eye looked around, even rolling back into Dialga's head and staring through his armor.

Zero lowered her paws. She formed up a new scepter using Bone Rush energy and slammed it on the ground. That caught Dialga's attention. His third eye spun around too look at her. "Listen up. I want this world reset. You're the 'mon that can make it happen. So, you're going to rewrite this world's timeline so that you and every other god, immortal _and_ lesser, never existed in the first place. Understand?"

She raised her paws. They distorted. Identical ripples of distortion spread over Dialga. He tilted his head up and belted out a Roar of Time. Only, instead of firing tachyons, a static-filled vortex opened up over his head. Dialga's third eye flashed. He fired red light up into the vortex, which slowly began to expand.

Zero glanced back at the Time Gears. They were still glowing. She nodded her approval.

 _'It won't be long, now. Just a few more hours… and this nightmare will finally be over.'_

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"Thank the gods you're both awake!" Tessa cried, wrapping her arms around Gallian and Zoroark. She didn't even care that leftover traces of Comfey's fur-regenerating slime splattered on her sides. Tessa leaned over and nuzzled the two of them.

"O-Ow. Q-Quit it, sis. That hurts," Gallian whined, trying to push her away with his forelegs.

His flash of pain and discomfort registered in Tessa's aura feelers. She pulled back, raising her arms up with an apologetic look on her face. "I, uh, yeah… probably came in a bit too strong there." She rubbed the back of her neck. "I'm just… overjoyed. I was so worried we'd lost you two." Tessa's brow furrowed. "What were you thinking running toward Serperior like that?"

Gallian looked down guiltily. "Pretty much the same thing you just said." He glanced at Zoroark. "I thought I was going to lose you. And I couldn't bear that happening again."

Zoroark leaned over, resting his arms on his legs. "Yeah, but…" He looked at Gallian and put his right paw to his forehead. "Now you're in even worse shape than I am."

"I guess that makes us even for what happened at Midday Valley," Gallian said, his tone bittersweet. He tried to look at Comfey, but his leg muscles tensed in protest and he gave up. "Is there really nothing you can do?"

Comfey floated in front of Gallian's face. "I'm sorry. I tried the special cream I'd developed for horn and claw regeneration, but we would've seen signs that it's working by now." Her gaze fell to the ground. "I'm afraid there's nothing else I can offer you. Heck, I'm not entirely sure if Absol horns grow back."

Gallian winced. "I guess…" He bit his lower lip. "Looks like I'm done charging into battle." He looked at his bandaged-up legs. "I mean, I could probably still use Night Slash with my claws and fire a Dark Pulse if I needed to. But…" His voice trailed off and he pawed at the stump where his horn used to be.

"Don't touch it," Comfey chided, waving her flowers in Gallian's face.

"S-Sorry. It's just… it feels so weird. My horn was such an important part of me, but now it's gone." Gallian squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head.

Tessa's head drooped. Gallian's guilt and uncertainty tugged at her aura feelers. A dull pain lingered in the back of her head. She sighed. "Mom is—" She sucked in a breath. "She's really doing this." Tessa grabbed her shoulders, suppressing shivers. "I told myself — heck, even my teammates told me — she was being controlled by Necrozma. It was the only way I could stomach what was happening… and what she did to Eevee and Sylveon."

"I was clinging to this tiny thread of hope that, even if Mom wasn't a nice person at heart, if I could rescue her from Necrozma's control, maybe I could get her to respect me… or love me." Tessa shut her eyes and bared her fangs. "But that will never happen." She squeezed her shoulders. "You were right, Gallian. Mom doesn't care about us. She's willing to risk wiping the whole world out just so she can fix problems she doesn't really understand!"

"I mean… yeah, after everything I've been through, I don't have the highest opinion of the gods. But, like, the solution isn't to risk destroying all of time and space!" Tessa said, thrusting her arms apart. Her declaration came out far louder than intended, though. She pulled her paws back toward her chest and hunched over, a sheepish grin on her face. "S-Sorry about that, everyone," she squeaked.

"So, what's going to happen now?" Gallian asked. "I'm out of commission. And weren't you worried about not being able to stand up to Mom?"

Tessa clenched her fists. "Not anymore. I'll never get through to her, so if it's a choice between her and all of you… I'm picking you guys." She slouched over. "No, what really worries me is that, even if we _can_ put a stop to Mom, that won't change the fact that I'll have to live with the knowledge that Mom nearly destroyed the world." Tessa gripped her ears and shook her head. "I already look like a freak compared to what Lucarios are supposed to look like. This'll just make everything wor—"

"Don't say that," Gallian cut in, fixing a sharp look on Tessa. She stiffened. "I, uh…" His expression softened. "Sorry, I can't figure out how I want to phrase this."

Zoroark shakily got to his feet, ignoring the alarmed looks from Comfey, Gallian, and Tessa. He rested a paw on Tessa's shoulder. Her aura feelers tensed. "W-What are you—"

"You're not alone," Zoroark whispered. Tessa cocked her head. Zoroark cleared his throat and stood up straight. "I think what Gallian was trying to tell you is that this isn't a burden you have to bare by yourself. First off, if anyone really chooses to hold what your mom's doing against you, then they can piss off." He flicked his free arm to the side. "They're not worth your time. The only thing that matters is the stuff that _you_ do. At least, that's how I see it."

Zoroark glanced at Gallian, who nodded his approval. "And second… you've got friends who care about you. Family, too." Gallian tried to sit up, but could only find the strength to keep nodding along. "You don't have to bottle things up. Gallian and I will be here for you. And I'm sure your teammates will, too. Whatever thoughts about your mom are clouding up your mind… you can share them with us."

"Yeah. That's, uh, putting it a lot more eloquently than I ever could," Gallian said. He laughed nervously.

"It's what I'm here for, I suppose." Zoroark winked at Gallian. He turned back to Tessa. "Do you want to keep talking about this?"

Tessa gently nudged Zoroark's paw off her shoulder. "I think I'll be okay. Thanks." She helped Zoroark sit back down on the edge of his cot. "To be honest, I'm more concerned about how we're actually supposed to stop Mom. We were so sure reassembling the Dawn Hourglass would give us the edge we needed, but…" Her ears and aura feelers drooped.

Across the room, Shane looked down shamefully. His tails lowered so much they brushed against the stone floor. He knew the loss of the Dawn Shards was on him. Metagross made him panic and attack without really thinking. His attempts to justify his actions to himself proved feeble. He had ruined everyone's hard work and made the team's struggles amount to nothing. How could he _not_ feel awful?

Shane glanced at his looplet. There was, of course, more to his predicament than losing the Shards. There was the matter of the visions he had gotten from the Seaside Shard. In all that chaos that had followed, he didn't properly have time to digest him. Now, he didn't want to think about them. The memories were too gruesome. He could help but cringe. His outer tails brushed against his thighs.

Necrozma had killed him. He'd blown Shane's human body to bits, along with Solgaleo. So, what did that make Shane? Whose spirit was inside of him? Was it really Solgaleo's? Shane had no idea what to think, anymore, especially given the vision involving Dark Matter. A small part of him thought that, perhaps, it was for the best that they had lost the Dawn Shards. But that immediately led to a wave of guilty thoughts. He shrank back, but his tails brushed the wall and he stumbled forward.

"Hey. You doing okay? You haven't said a word since we got back to Aeon Town."

Shane looked up. Silvally stood right in front of him, face ripe with worry and feathers covered in berry juice residue. Shane brushed a forepaw against the floor. "It's just… there's a lot to take in right now."

"Like blaming yourself for losing the Dawn Shards?" Silvally asked, raising a skeptical brow. Shane looked into his eyes, but they were bright-white. No memories were active.

"I'm that easy to read, huh?" Shane whispered, sitting on his haunches.

"More like you're my friend and I've gotten used to how you think," Silvally said, leaning over to nudge Shane shoulder. Shane squeaked. His tails curled around his hind legs. Sighing, Silvally straightened up. "Look, I'm furious about what happened to the Dawn Shards. It's taking all my will power not to lash out over it. But, like, I don't blame you. You followed your instincts. I can't say I would've done things differently."

"So, you can't afford to drag yourself through the mud over this." Silvally glanced at the scuffs and dirt patches on Shane's pelt and cringed. "Err… figuratively speaking, of course."

"I can't help it. I thought I was getting better and controlling my impulses… but instead I went and did the stupidest thing in my whole time as a Pokémon," Shane said. "We had it, Silv. We _had_ the full Hourglass."

"And Metagross was seconds from unleashing a devastating attack that would've rendered it all moot. You did what you thought you had to do and we're still here because of it. We can still fight," Silvally said, determination overtaking his expression.

"Are you sure about that?" Shane said. He raised a foreleg to point at all the filled cots. "Because it kinda feels like our ranks have been depleted."

Before Silvally could answer, one of the curtains encasing a bed opened up. Steenee walked out of it, tossing a used washcloth into a sink on Shane's right. "Sorry, Comfey, it doesn't look like your medicinal leaves are working. Whatever hurt Latias… I don't think you can heal it any more beyond what you did in Circadian Coast," Steenee said, wiping sweat from her brow.

Comfey sighed. "I was afraid of that. Still, thanks for your help."

"Thank Magearna. She's the only reason I was able to get back here so fast," Steenee said, brushing her hands against her waist. "Okay, guess I'll check on Haxorus, then." She walked across the room and ducked under the other curtain currently in use. Espy caught a momentary glimpse of Raichu rubbing Haxorus' back with her paw. She lay down on the floor and buried her head under her forelegs.

Shane sidestepped Silvally and made a beeline for Latias. Blaziken trailed behind him. She lay still on her bed. A pillow covered her face. Shane bit his lower lip. "H-Hey. Uh, are you going to be okay?" he asked, cringing at how stupid a question that was. One look at the medicinal leaves plastered over her body said she was far from okay.

Latias didn't respond. Her neck muscles tensed. The pillow muffled her squeal.

Blaziken knelt down beside her. He put a hand beside her pillow. "Latias, it's Blaziken. Listen, I know you're in rough shape, but do you think you could tell me what happened to you?" He and Shane stood still, waiting for some sort of response. They heard a tiny keen, then Latias lifted her head up. Tears filled her bloodshot eyes.

"Necrozma got Lugia. He _corrupted_ him. My mate… tried to kill me. He got Hoopa. And Latios—" She choked up. "He gave himself up to save me." Latias rubbed her face against her pillow, leaving tearstains. "The Expedition Society was counting on me, but I screwed up. I lost my brother. I lost my mate. I lost the Dusk Hourglass. I failed everyone!" Latias broke down crying. "R… Rayquaza was right. I'm… useless. I'm a failure."

Shane's ears drooped. "D-Don't say that. You've helped us out a lot."

"No." Latias wiped snot from her face. "I missed the most important Gear-Com calls. Now the Dawn Shards _and_ the Tapus are gone."

"Don't blame yourself for that. I'm the one who's at fault, there," Shane said. The fur on the back of his neck prickled when he glanced Silvally's disapproving look. He dismissed it, however. Shane would happily blame himself if it could cheer Latias up even the slightest bit.

"Well, it doesn't make a difference. We have no Hourglasses. We lost Hoopa. The planet's paralyzed. We're screwed!" Latias declared, smacking her bed with a paw. "What can we possibly do, now? We don't have any options."

Blaziken got to his feet and crossed his arms. "That's not true. We can still fight! We'll just take Zero out before she messes up all of time and space!" He raised a fist, drawing a bewildered look from Latias, as well as others in the room. "Look, I know it's not much of a plan, but it's the only thing we _can_ do. Would you rather lie here moping, wondering when you're going to get erased?"

A couple of beds over, Infernape shuddered. "Trust me when I tell you that's something no one should have to experience."

"Uh, yeah! If that crazy lady's messing with Temporal Tower, you can count on us to land a hand!" Feraligatr said, giving the closest to a thumb's up he could manage. Infernape nodded his approval.

"See? Look, I can't imagine how heartbroken you're feeling right now. But think about it. If we're going to have _any_ chance of fixing any of this, then we have to go after Zero," Blaziken said. "I know you're hurt and you think you've screwed up big time. But we could really use your help. No matter what you say, I think you're capable of helping us make a difference." He extended a hand toward her.

"Y-Yeah. What Blaziken said!" Shane added, cursing himself out for not coming up with anything concrete to add. Instead, he gave Latias an encouraging smile and lifted his tails.

Latias slowly hovered off her bed. "Y-You're right. I—" She cut herself off and shook her head. "I can't give up here. I gave up trying to be part of Team Go-Getters. I gave up when Yveltal was chasing me down. I… I'm not making that mistake again. Not when there's so much at stake." She used a spare washcloth to dab her eyes.

 **Glad to hear it.**

Everyone turned toward the infirmary entrance. Magearna stood in the doorway. **Forgive me for barging in, however I've managed to connect to the Expedition Society. I believe we need to strategerize what our plan of action is. Yes, more time to rest would be optimal, but we are in a zero percent optimal scenuation, so urgitude is necessary.** She pointed down the hallway. **I'd invite anyone who's up for it to join me in the assembly area, so we have 37.8 percent more breathing room.**

Magearna turned and exited the infirmary. Shane, Tessa, and Silvally were the first ones to leave the room, with Tessa turning to wave at her brother. Teams Go-Getters and Poképals followed behind them. Then, Latias hesitantly floated out. Finally, Milotic slithered off her bed and down the hall, staying silent.

Espy made to follow her, when her ears twitched. The curtain to her right opened up. Raichu scampered out, stopping and spreading her arms out. "W-Wait, Haxy. Don't you think you should hold up and see if there's anything else Comfey and Steenee can try to get your tusks back?" she asked, a worried look on her face.

"It's pointless. They're not Axew tusks. I have no idea if they're gonna grow back," Haxorus growled. She lifted her hands up. "I've still got my claws. That's good enough." She pushed Raichu aside. "I'm not gonna sit on my ass and let Zero get away with—"

Haxorus froze beside Espy. She pivoted to her left. Espy's tail wrapped around her right hind leg. "H-Haxorus. Raichu. It's, uh, been a while, huh?" she whispered. Espy braced herself for a venomous response, but Haxorus said nothing. She turned away from Espy while Raichu stood behind her, poking her paws together nervously.

"So, this is where you scurried off to." Haxorus crossed her arms. "I'm surprised. You're lucid. You don't reek of pheromones, stardust, or hard berry juice."

Espy shrank back, lowering her head. "I… I'm sorry about what happened to Paradise."

"Me too," Haxorus growled. Her right eye twitched. "But then… I saw what those monsters did with my own eyes, while you've been holed up here for gods only know how long."

"Y-You're right. But you have to understand, I—"

"I don't want to hear it. I said I wasn't going to listen to your half-baked excuses anymore… and I meant it," Haxorus said, her tail lashing in Espy's direction as a warning to back off.

"C-Come on, Haxy." Raichu inserted herself between Haxorus and Espy. "No need to back Espeon into a proverbial corner. We're all on the same side. This is a stressful situation for everyone, so we've got to put aside our differences for the time being." She gave her mate a shaky smile.

Haxorus stepped back. "Where's Umbreon?"

Espy's ears drooped. "Gone. Necrozma got him. I'm only alive right now because of him."

"I see." Haxorus lowered her head briefly, only to straighten up and walk past Raichu and Espy. "A pity it wasn't the other way around."

Raichu stepped in Haxorus' path. "Haxy! What did I just say?"

"Don't act like you're not thinking it, too, Rai," Haxorus said as she continued walking toward the hallway.

Espy squeezed her eyes shut. Bile rose up in her throat. Her stomach gurgled.

"You're not giving Espy enough credit. She's changed a lot."

Espy's eyes snapped open. Silvally stood in front of Haxorus, his fairy memories giving him a salmon-colored glow.

"She and Umbreon were captured by Zero, too. They did a lot of awful things under her control. Even after we freed them, I could see how self-destructive Espy was," Silvally said. "But she's been trying hard to leave that stuff behind. She wants to make amends with you guys." Silvally narrowed his eyes at Haxorus. "But you're not even willing to give her that chance, are you?"

Haxorus clenched her fists. "She doesn't deserve it."

"Well, how about we focus on trying to stop Zero, first. Then, if you still want to give Espy the cold shoulder, be my guest, because she'll always be welcome in Team Radiance." Silvally glanced at Espy and nodded reassuringly. Espy brushed her face against her shoulder before she could tear up too much.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Haxorus sidestepped Silvally and walked off down the hallway.

"S-Sorry about Haxy. I think losing her tusks really upset her," Raichu mumbled, before tailing off after Haxorus.

Sighing, Silvally walked up to Espy. "You going to be all right?"

"N-No." Espy blinked tears out of her eyes. "I totally froze-up. I couldn't get a word in edgewise to Haxorus It was like I was staring down every dumb decision I've made in the last decade." She hung her head.

Silvally nudged her shoulder with his beak. "Well, I think you deserve credit just for trying to talk with her."

"P-Please. She engaged me," Espy mumbled, looking away. "Besides, dwelling on this won't do us any good. It's like you said, we've got a much bigger problem that needs dealing with." She walked out of the infirmary. Silvally walked beside her. The two entered the assembly area and took their places next to Shane and Tessa.

 **So, did you guys get all of that?** Magearna asked, her Gear-Com speakers sticking out of her stomach compartment. The speakers crackled. Shane's ears twitched and folded up against his head. He cursed his more-sensitive vulpine hearing.

 _"Yeah. Sorry for not responding. It's just a lot to process, that's all,"_ Dedenne said.

 **I understand. Still, we are prestered for time in more ways than one. We need to come up with a concrete plan of attack,** Magearna said.

 _"We totally get that, but losing the Time Gears isn't exactly doing wonders for anyone's confidence. And having all this extra bad news piled up on top of the planet's paralysis makes it even worse,"_ Delphox said, sighing.

 _"Now, now, there's no need for despair. We haven't lost yet. Sure, our plan's hit a few unwanted snags, but I believe we can still pull through!"_ Ampharos declared. Silence permeated the room save for the hum of Magearna's speakers.

 _"Uh, chief? You know they can't see you making that pose, right? This is an_ audio _call,"_ Dedenne said.

 _"Y-Yes, of course. I was just, erm, stretching, that's all!"_ Ampharos said, laughing nervously. Team Radiance exchanged unconvinced looks, but stopped when they heard Ampharos clear his throat. _"My point still stands, though. I believe our plan can still work. It'll just need a few workarounds, that's all."_

"Excuse me? What plan?" Shane asked, stepping forward. Normally, he'd be amused by Ampharos' antics, but the day's stresses left him with little patience. "You've had a plan in place the whole time and didn't bother to tell us anything? Then what was the point of sending Latias over to us?" He looked at Latias, frowning. "Err, no offense intended or anything, it's just my teammate, Silvally, noted you came off as a bit bossy. And it didn't help that you wouldn't answer some of our questions."

"I, uh…" Latias tapped her claws together, a guilty look on her face.

"Was that your doing, Ampharos?" Silvally wondered, staring down Magearna's speaker like he was interrogating it.

 _"I'm afraid so. I didn't give Latias all the details of this plan,"_ Ampharos replied.

"Okay. Well, what are the details? And what's being changed about it?" Silvally asked, stepping closer to Magearna. Like Shane, he had no desire for talking in riddles.

 _"Ah. I, uh, don't really know. I forgot the details, see,"_ Ampharos said, laughing jovially.

Shane, Silvally, and Tessa all fell over in disbelief. "Wait, how could you _forget_ the details of your own plan?!" Shane said, groaning as he stood back up.

 _"I can answer that one. It was by design,"_ Mawile interjected. _"The chief gave each Pokémon involved their individual instructions, but didn't tell them why. Then, he had his memories sealed to make sure the Prism Virus couldn't figure out the full plan."_

Tessa facepalmed. "You _cannot_ be serious."

"That actually does sound like something Ampharos would do," Shane muttered, drawing a skeptical look from Silvally. "Err, y'know, from what I read about Dark Matter's attack." He shrank back toward his teammates. The explanation didn't do anything for his impatience, though.

 _"Rest assured, friends. The details of the plan are somewhere secure,"_ Ampharos declared. _"I, uh, couldn't tell you where or how, but I have a strong feeling."_

Magearna's mechanical eyes whirred, but she said nothing. Tessa raised her brow. She got the distinct impression Magearna knew more than the rest of the group, save for possibly Latias. Yet, she didn't want to derail the conversation by pressing Magearna for details.

"Wait. If you don't know the details of your own plan, then how can you be so sure there's still a way it can work? What makes you think we can still win?" Espy asked, fixing her uncertain look on a dusty floor tile.

 _"It all comes down to spirits,"_ a soft, unfamiliar voice replied.

Latias' wings and ears stuck up. "N-Ninetales? You're there, too?"

"Wait, Ninetales?" Shane stiffened.

"Yeah, from Mt. Freeze." Blaziken scratched his chin. "This plan must be pretty serious if she's getting involved."

Shane opened his mouth, then shut it. The mere thought of being able to talk with another Ninetales made his earlier annoyances fade away. There were questions he felt a compulsive urge to ask. He figured it was instinctual. But he knew they were all irrelevant to the matter at hand. He bit his lower lip, trying to will himself not to say anything.

 _"Uh, who was the one acting surprised about me? Is there a problem?"_ Ninetales asked.

"No, not at all. See, one of the Horizon Guild's members is an ice Ninetales," Blaziken said.

 _"Wait, but I thought Totem Ninetales—"_

"It's a different ice Ninetales," Blaziken interjected.

"Yeah. And it turns out, he used to be a human! Pretty ironic, huh?" Swampert chuckled.

Team Poképals and Team Paradise turned their attentions on Shane. He shuffled back. His tails twisted around each other. "H-Hey now. Come on, guys. What's with all the weird looks?" Shane slipped behind Tessa and Silvally, trying to avoid everyone's gazes. Unlike his first few weeks in Horizon, he didn't want people peppering him with questions about being human. He knew it was because he didn't want to think about the ominous visions.

 _"Interesting. I suppose we'll have to chat… once this crisis is settled, of course,"_ Ninetales said, sighing.

 **Yes. As nice as it would be to exchange pleasantaries, we must focus on the matter at hand,** Magearna said. **Ninetales, could you please explain what you meant when you brought up spirits?**

 _"Certainly. I'll try to keep it brief. Essentially, based on what Latias told me, I don't think the Prism Virus' victims are truly dead,"_ Ninetales explained.

Shane blinked, no longer able to hold back the urge to make a snide remark. "So, what? They're only _mostly_ dead?" He shook his head. "Good grief, where's Billy Crystal when you need him?" Shane flinched at the sight of a dozen skeptical looks. "E-Err, n-never mind. Forget I said anything."

 _"That was the human who spoke, right?"_ Ninetales asked. She sighed. _"Forgive me. I suppose if you weren't born a Vulpix, you wouldn't understand how spirits work around here. See, when a Pokémon dies, its body fades away, leaving its spirit to drift about aimlessly. Xerneas, Yveltal, and Zygarde are responsible for safely escorting souls to the spirit realm inside the branches of the Tree of Life. Given our species has spiritual powers, I try to help them when I can, as does Totem Ninetales."_

"Oh." Shane had an entirely new set of questions to ask, now, but still held his tongue.

 _"After sifting through memories Latias had gathered, it seems that what the Prism Virus does is analogous to Dark Matter turning Pokémon to stone. Only instead of forcing the victims' spirits down into the Voidlands, Necrozma and Zero simply_ took _their victims' spirits for themselves,"_ Ninetales continued.

The mention of Dark Matter sent a chill down Latias' spine. Her feathers bristled. She wasn't the only one, either. Espy arced her back and her fur stood on end.

"Are you all right?" Silvally asked, his psychic memories shifting on. Espy silently shuffled closer to him.

"Wait a second." Blaziken tapped a foot on the ground. "Zero told us that she had taken out Necrozma. If that's true… what happened to the spirits he had captured?"

 _"That's what Ampharos was getting at. If Zero was telling the truth, then she either took all of Necrozma's spirits for herself… or they were freed from his control,"_ Ninetales replied. _"Unfortunately, I'm not in a position to sense any wandering spirits. Still, it's possible that Zero taking out Necrozma might turn out to be a blessing in disguise."_

 _"And that's exactly why we can't give up hope. If the spirits are free, we can save them!"_ Ampharos proclaimed.

Raichu looked at Haxorus, eyes sparkling. "Does that mean… our friends can be saved?"

"I can get Umbry back?" Espy whispered.

Tessa put a paw on her chest. "I could save Sylveon and Eevee?"

Latias looked at Blaziken and Swampert. "So, I haven't lost Latios for good, then?"

"Hold on a second." Haxorus' tail thumped against the ground. "I may not be all up to date on this spirit mumbo jumbo, but Hydreigon made it pretty clear to me that, unless your body was preserved somehow, when you turn into a spirit… that's it. The best you can get is Ho-Oh or Ninetales reviving you as a ghost-type with no memories of your past life."

 _"That's true. But, from what I understand, anyone hit by the Prism Virus ended up either crystallized or a lifeless husk,"_ Ninetales said.

"And Necrozma smashed those he crystallized to pieces!" Haxorus said, stomping her right foot. "There's no bouncing back from like that like people did with Dark Matter."

 **Do not raise your worry levels over this matter. We're looking into it,** Magearna said, while Latias floated toward the stairs, looking around uneasily. **For now, we have to focus on putting a stop to Zero before she irrepversably damages the fabric of time.**

Shane couldn't keep his thoughts to himself any longer. "How exactly are we going to do that? We haven't the slightest idea where she could be!" He looked down guiltily. "And we lost the Dawn Hourglass. How can we stand up to Zero without it? She took out Necrozma! What chance do we have?"

"We've got numbers, Mega Evolution, _and_ Z-Power," Silvally replied. He nudged his teammate. "I know it's not the Dawn Hourglass, but it's a start, right? Besides, if we _don't_ challenge Zero, then we stand _no_ chance of surviving. I'll take a slight chance over no chance. Wouldn't you?"

"Y-Yeah. Of course," Shane whispered. He wished he could share Silvally's optimism, but there was a sinking feeling in his gut. "That still doesn't answer where we find her, though."

 _"Have no fear, Jirachi's brilliance is here!"_

 _"Again, what's with the posing? They can't see you!"_ Dedenne groaned.

 _"That's okay. My brilliance doesn't need to be seen to be believed."_ Jirachi cleared his throat. _"I was monitoring the ocean currents and noticed some bizarre activity between the coast of Lively Town and the Sea of Wonders. Archeops and I went to investigate and — hoo boy, you guys aren't going to believe this — the Hidden Land_ fell into the ocean! _"_

"Wait… _what?!_ " Infernape shouted. His fiery hair flared up. "Why? _How?!_ That doesn't even make any sense!" He glanced at Feraligatr. "I get Temporal Tower was damaged, but how can it fall out of a dimensional pocket?!"

"What are you looking at me for? I know as much about the Hidden Land as you do," Feraligatr said, sweat drops trickling down his face.

Shane looked at his teammates in disbelief. They all stared back at him blankly. Nobody wanted to think about what sort of power it would've taken to drag the entire Hidden Land down into the ocean.

"Did Necrozma do that… or Zero?" Espy wondered, forked tail crinkling.

 _"You can choose not to believe me if you want, but it's true. The landscape has totally twisted. This corrosive goop ate away at some of the ocean and everything. I, uh, didn't want to get too close, but it seemed pretty lethal,"_ Jirachi explained. _"If I had to give you my best guess, that's probably where your big bad boss lady is hiding out. Especially if she's planning some sort of time manipulation gambit."_

The whole room fell silent. Nobody could figure out a good response to Jirachi's claims. Shane's tails curled up. The idea of traversing the Hidden Land excited him, but the circumstances behind it drowned out that enthusiasm. He shuddered to think of what the Prism Virus had done to morph the terrain beyond the poisonous sludge Jirachi described.

"Okay. We need to go to the Hidden Land, then," Tessa said, to her teammates' surprise. Silvally nodded his agreement.

"There's a problem with that, though. If the Hidden Land fell near the Sea of Wonders, then it's all the way on the other side of the world. How the heck are we supposed to get there?" Infernape wondered. "I don't think Latias can get us all across in a timely manner."

"Y-Yeah. Let's not go there," Latias whispered, floating close to Team Go-Getters.

"I could try running across the ocean with as many of you as I can carry!" Silvally said, cheek-bolts whirring.

Tessa's aura feelers shot up at the suggestion. "Are you nuts? That would be _exhausting._ And we need you at your fighting best for this."

 _"Fear not, my friends. We've already worked that out,"_ Ampharos declared.

Shane leaned over and whispered to Espy, "Do you think he's posing again?"

"Probably," Espy deadpanned. "What exactly is this idea of yours, chief?"

 _"We're on our way over, actually. We've been teleport-hopping to small islands, but we took a short break to let our teleporter rest,"_ Mawile explained.

"Seriously? How does that even work?" Shane asked. His brow furrowed. "And why are you guys _all_ coming over here?"

 **That's my doing. I reached out to them as soon as we got back to Aeon Port. They've been island-hopping while you all have been recovering,** Magearna replied.

 _"It's not all of us, either. Only Cresselia, Mawile, Ninetales, and the chief are coming to you guys. The rest of us are still in Lively Town,"_ Delphox elaborated.

 **Once they're here, the teleporter will take you all as close as you can get to where the Hidden Land fell into the ocean. After that, you'll have to set off on foot,** Magearna said. **Meanwhile, I will escort Ampharos' party up to Solstice Summit to meet with Totem Ninetales.**

"Wait, what? How long was that planned for? And why are you going there, anyway? We need all the help we can get if we're going to storm the Hidden Land," Shane huffed, tails twitching. His earlier annoyance with the mysterious plan had returned in full force.

 **I'm afraid I can't give you an explicit reasonating. Please accept an apology cycle.** Magearna slowly bowed, though the Gear-Com made it awkward.

Scattered murmurs rose up through the room. Silvally turned to Shane. "My guess is that it has to do with Ampharos' crazy plan." He sighed. "Guess we have to accept it and hope things work out for the best."

Tessa nodded. Though she wanted to press for more details, she was willing to go along with Magearna if it meant getting back everyone they had lost.

 _"Actually, our teleporter's all rested up. We should be there in a few minutes, so you guys should get yourselves ready to leave,"_ Cresselia announced. Then, before anyone could respond, the call abruptly cut off.

"We're leaving already?" Espy said, ears sticking up. She barely had time to process the thought of going to the Hidden Land.

 **It looks like it,** Magearna said, her Gear-Com unit retracting back into her stomach. She hastily made her way into Metagross' office and reemerged with a large burlap sack. Magearna plopped it on the ground. **I took the liberty of withdrawing everything our Guildmaster had stored at Dhelmise Depot. I suggest everyone take a look and gather up whatever supplies you think you'll need.**

Magearna tipped the bag over. Its contents spilled out across the floor.

"Cripes! I've never seen so many elixirs and Reviver Seeds in one place," Swampert said, scooping up a handful of items and tossing them into his bag. "Your Guildmaster must've been one crazy-prepared guy to keep so many of these in once place.

"Or crazy paranoid," Espy muttered under her breath. She cleared her throat, then said, "Yeah. This stuff could actually make a serious difference… assuming Zero doesn't blast our item bags to smithereens like the Unown did." Espy cringed at the memory.

Tessa gulped. "My newer bag is supposed to resist certain moves. I really hope that's true." She finished putting a pawful of Reviver Seeds in her bag and shut it. "Okay. I don't think I can carry anything else. Let's hope this is enough."

With everyone stocked up for the journey, Magearna led them out of the Observatory. As she walked with her teammates, Tessa looked down at her feet.

"What's wrong?" Shane asked. "You nervous about all of this?" He glanced over his shoulder at the other teams. "I don't blame you. My stomach hasn't felt this knotted up before."

"Yeah. Well, that and I feel bad we have to leave Gallian and Zoroark behind like this." Tessa rubbed her eyes. "I didn't even have a chance to say a proper goodbye to them or anything. What if… what if things don't go well? I may never get to see them again!"

"Don't think like that," Silvally said, staring intensely at the barrier along the edge of Aeon Town. "Even if the odds aren't great, we can't give up hope. If you go into this thinking you're not going to see them again, then you're not going to be able to battle at your best." He glanced at Tessa. "And we need you at your best."

Tessa winced. "I— yeah, that makes sense." She rubbed her eyes again. "Sorry. I'm just… so _tired._ I feel like we should be going to sleep, but I don't even know if it's actually nighttime or daytime because of the whole paralyzed planet thing."

"I totally get it, Tessa. We _have_ been up for a while," Espy acknowledged. "I'd kill for some shut-eye, but we don't have the luxury right now. We'll have to hope these elixirs can keep us going until we've dealt with Zero."

"Right." Tessa tightly clutched her satchel. She silently prayed the team would succeed. Any lingering thoughts of hoping she could get through to her mother were gone. Now, she wanted to stop Zero by any means necessary.

They reached Aeon Port. Small openings appeared in the barrier, allowing the group to pass through. Once on the other side, Shane looked around. "Hey. I thought they were supposed to be here already," he growled.

"We _are_ here, silly!"

Shane turned to his right. Mew floated beside him. He waved enthusiastically at Shane. "Hiya, floofy-head!"

"Eyaah!"

Barking loudly, Shane jumped up. His fur frazzled as he landed in a heap next to Silvally. "W-What the heck? Mew? When did— how did— huh?"

"I'm the teleporter, dummy. Sheesh, I thought Darkrai was just being his usual grumpy-grump self when he called you a dense doofus," Mew said, sticking his tongue out.

Shane got back to his feet, groaning. "Why is a god gossiping about me when he's never even met me?"

"Because he's a grumpy-grump! Good grief, is all that floof blocking your hearing? Hoo boy, I've really got my work cut out here, don't I?" Mew shook his head.

"Now, Mew. I thought we agreed you'd be on your best behavior."

Mew turned around to face the approaching Ninetales. "I'm behaving! I'm behaving! Not my fault floofy-head over here is as jumpy as a Spoink brigade." Mew pointed accusingly at Shane.

Tessa turned to Espy, a look of disbelief on her face. "Um, you've worked with the Expedition Society, right?" she whispered. Espy nodded. "Have you ever met Mew? Is he usually like this?"

"I've been around him a couple of times. He's… quite restrained compared to his usual self," Espy said. "This must be serious. Normally he's bouncing off the walls so much you'd think he snorted a pile of sugar."

Tessa shuddered at the thought.

Shane, on the other hand, ignored Mew's jabs. His attention was solely fixed on Ninetales. Besides the differences in fur color and coat length, Ninetales was immaculately groomed where Shane was filthy and shaggy from his previous battles. Ninetales glanced at Shane, then cleared her throat. Shane abruptly stiffened and looked away.

"We should really get going," Blaziken said. He had a second bag slung over his shoulder. "I have all the elixirs Mew's using to restore his teleporting powers." He pulled a vial out and offered it to Mew.

Mew chugged the elixir and belched loudly. "Oh, baby, that's the stuff," he said, sighing in content as the empty container disappeared in a puff of smoke. "Alright. Everyone ready to set out?"

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "Wait! Shouldn't we take a second to—"

"Kidding! That was a rhetorical question. We're leaving… _now!_ "

Mew's eyes glowed bright blue. The guild teams disappeared in a blinding flash of light, leaving Magearna standing beside Ampharos' team.

 **Shall we set out for Solstice Summit, then?** Magearna asked.

"Absolutely! I'll lead the way!" Ampharos declared. He started walking toward the docks, only for Mawile to cut him off.

"I believe it's best if Magearna escorts us, chief," she said.

"Of course, of course. My mistake," Ampharos chuckled. He turned and followed his colleagues off down the trail.

Ninetales walked up to Magearna, biting her lower lip. "Do you really think they'll be able to do it?"

 **I am unsure, but I am praying that they can,** Magearna said, looking up at the sky. **Whatever gods are left aren't stepping in, so it's all up to them. All we can do is keep working on our plan… and hope for the best.**

Ninetales bowed her head. The group proceeded in silence.

 **End of Episode 14**

* * *

I will need a couple of extra days to prepare the next update and the preview should tell you why. I appreciate the understanding.

SuperOmegaGuest: only Serperior's dead. The lovebirds survived!

Anonymous: I'm not sure what you're referencing with Nox — never seen what they're in — but the Infinite parallels were unintentional. Besides, he chose to take in the Phantom Ruby, Zero got it stuck in her skull by sheer coincidence.

Anon Omega: I can't sneak anything past you, can I?

Sebastian: What are you talking about? I publish this story right here! If you're talking about a book, the fic's way too long and I don't want Nintendo's copyright ninjas coming for me.

Another guest: you're right. It was my intent to show that Team Go-Getters was, despite their age, the strongest and most experienced of the bunch. I saw your message and I'll help you out when I'm feeling better. Right now, I need sleep. Badly.

Dovah Bear: err... congratulations? I will say the word counter FFN uses for this fic is very inaccurate because of stuff like this.

Next time: _all good things... must come to end._


	103. Bonus: April Fools' Day Special 2019

If you're at all confused about this, check the author's notes at the end.

* * *

 **~Ultra Village Ruins~**

Thick black smog choked the sky over a barren landscape. The crumbling remnants of destroyed buildings lay scattered about torn-up pavement. Wayward sparks crackled from frayed power lines. Green, radioactive embers smoldered from the fiery wreckage of the Ultra Recon Squad base that once stood in the center of the sprawling city.

It was in front of the destroyed Ultra Village Core that a lopsided, asymmetrical Ultra Wormhole opened. Two golden paws emerged, hovering inches off the bubbling sludge that used to be part of a road. Shadowy wisps swirled around black talons, then raced up armored forelegs.

Solgaleo emerged from the Ultra Wormhole. Prism armor covered his face and torso. He bowed his head, only for it to jerk back up. His blue eyes shifted to red and a third eye glowed on his forehead. It wriggled about. The black arms protruding from his back twitched.

 **"TheY ThOuGHt THeY cOUlD gEt RiD of ME. FoOls! I Am NeCRoZMa, DEvOUReR oF lIGhT! FuTuRE DeSTrOyER oF WoRLDs!"**

Necrozma took several deep breaths. He stretched out his legs and his arms, flexing his six sets of claws and his spoked tail. With a few quick hops, Necrozma climbed to the top of the rubble pile. He hovered in front of a small pillar of green light. Necrozma looked down. Fluorescent-green smoke vented up from the rubble pile; the remnants of the Ultra Village Core.

 **"Sinclair has tapped into too much of my core's power. I need more light. More** _ **spirits,**_ **"** Necrozma hissed. He paced back and forth in front of the radioactive fissure. **"I should set out for another world. Amass enough power to bring Sinclair to her knees."** He licked his lips. **"Then I'll have my core back. Heeheeheehee. Yes… you might've made things difficult for me, Light, but you're only delaying the inevitable. You can't stop me. No one can. I just need to think… think…** _ **think.**_ **"**

His third eye widened. Necrozma's arms smacked his back repeatedly. He stiffened. Necrozma scrutinized the vent in front of him. His red eyes flashed. A faint outline appeared in front of him. Tiny and orange. A wisp of fire smoldered on the silhouette's back.

 **"Of course.** _ **You.**_ **"** Necrozma leered at the silhouette. **"How could I forget your** _ **sickeningly-sweet**_ **attitude. Your worthlesssense of optimism. That dopey grin. And how** _ **annoyingly**_ **determined you were."** His arms lashed out at the air. Necrozma stumbled, but collected himself. **"That matters little, though, because your world is** _ **brimming**_ **with spirits. They're foundational to everything! It's exactly what I need to become the unopposed power throughout** _ **all**_ **realities! Heeheeheehee! Why didn't I think of this earlier?"**

Necrozma slammed his forepaws against the rubble and raised his arms high. A fissure opened in the building's wreckage. All the trapped radioactive material burst forth from the ground. Necrozma trapped it inside of a psychic bubble. His three eyes shimmered with rainbow light.

 **"C'mon, concentrate. If I can supercharge a wormhole with this unstable light, then maybe—"**

A blinding, green flashed enveloped Necrozma. When the light faded, a jagged, zigzagging Ultra Wormhole sat in front of him. It glowed the same neon-green as the radioactive vent. But instead of the usual checkerboard pattern, this portal was littered with inverted stars. Necrozma stared into the Wormhole. A grin spread across his face.

 **"Heehee…** _ **heeheeheehee!**_ **Yes, it worked! A true rift between realities! Stronger than any Ultra Wormhole!"** he cried. **"Soon, I'll have an all-you-can-eat light buffet at my disposal!"**

Necrozma walked into the portal, licking his lips eagerly.

 **"I said that one day I'd be back to tear your cheerful façade off like the worthless mask it is. Now it's time for me to make good on that promise. No world is safe from my wrath, least of all yours…** _ **Charmander Owen.**_ **"**

* * *

 **An End to All This Madness**

* * *

 **~Hot Spot Outskirts~**

Necrozma leaped out of the portal and skidded to a halt along a dirt path. He took a few steps back and melted into a shadowy puddle. It drifted into a patch of gray, crabby grass. There, Necrozma took stock of his surroundings. The grasslands were, for the most part, unremarkable. Crisp, green grass lay to his left, slowly fading to the light-gray he currently hid in. To his right sat a large mountain that spilled off a large amount of heat. Necrozma's new body didn't take kindly to it.

He forced himself to remain where he was, however, because buried within the giant, rocky fortress of heat lay his prize. It was tough to sense. He got the faintest impression there was some sort of distortion field meant to ward off psychics, but he didn't care. His Solgaleo victim's ESP levels far exceeded those of his previous body. With it, he could sense multiple powerful spirits.

Not only that, he sensed _clusters_ of spirits, as bright and dense as neutron stars. From his hiding place in the shadows, a grin spread out across his face. It seemed Charmander Owen's world had soul-eaters just like him. Necrozma had to choke back a laugh at the thought. How such a dumb kid could remain so cheerful knowing such obviously-malevolent forces lurked in his home was nothing short of hilarious.

Though strongly tempted to attack the mountain, Necrozma held his ground. He was still getting used to his new body. Going up against so many powerful auras in his current state would surely end in defeat. If he had his core, victory would be a cinch. Instead, he needed to bide his time and wait for one of the presences to veer off on its own. Then, he would strike.

Necrozma tensed up. He was so preoccupied with the mountain, he hadn't even realized there was already a spirit-cluster off on its own. This one burned brighter than any of the clusters he sensed inside. And it only seemed to be in the company of a single, meek spirit, likely a mortal.

 _'That'll be it, then. My first target… will be you!'_

He treaded cautiously. The spirit cluster emanated tremendous ghostly energy, but he couldn't grasp the full degree of what this mysterious presence was capable of. It could conceivably sense him coming from a mile away and have an attack ready for him. Necrozma decided to use a quick approach. And that approach would come from Solgaleo's power.

Necrozma concentrated, trying to pick up anything he could from the cluster. After a bit of straining, he managed to hear a gruff voice angrily shout, "Rrrgh… let go of me, you slimy oaf! For Mew's sake, this is disgusting!"

A second later, a cheerful voice declared, "Sorry, if I let go, you're going to run away! I've had one too many naughty folks run away! I don't want all my Hearts to lose morale, so it's time I stepped in and did my part!"

 _'Seems the presence is tied up. So, my time to strike!'_

Necrozma emerged from the shadows, drawing on Solgaleo's spiritual energy. He vanished in a cloud of shadows, only to reappear a mile away from the mountain. There, he found a Goodra standing with its back to him. Its arms — far more watery than Necrozma expected — lay wrapped around a bulky Rampardos who kicked at the air with his legs.

Goodra's antennae twitched. Necrozma's third eye flashed. A black and red beam emerged. However, rather than hitting its target, a Decidueye appeared in a puff of dark smoke.

"Anam, get out of— _ngack!_ "

Necrozma's eyes widened. His beam sucked Decidueye up like he was made of dust. Purple light streamed into mouth, filling him with a surge of ghostly energy. His arms trembled with excitement and his third eye wriggled inside his armored forehead.

 **"You manifested a spirit to protect you? My, what an interesting parlor trick,"** Necrozma said.

Anam turned around, keeping Rampardos in his grip. Rampardos stared Necrozma down and flailed his legs even harder. "Augh! Lemme go! Lemme go! I submit! I submit! I don't wanna die or nothing!" he cried.

Another red and black beam struck Rampardos' chest. Anam released his grip as black crystals encased Rampardos. He stepped back, staring up at Necrozma, wide-eyed. "Is that… S-Solgaleo? Jam-Jam, what—" Anam blinked slowly. "No, wait… something's wrong. Star explained this to me once."

Necrozma tensed up. **"I don't know what you're talking ab— what the hell?!"**

He teleported away right before a massive dragon-shaped blast would've swallowed him up. Necrozma reappeared behind Anam. He fired another light-purge beam from his third eye. Anam didn't turn around. Instead, he pushed his slime to the sides, forming a big hole where his belly once was. The beam safely passed through him. Necrozma stumbled backward, equal parts shocked and grossed out.

 **"That's impossible!"** he growled. **"No… deep breaths. This is another reality. The rules don't work the same here."**

Anam stood facing Necrozma. His gooey arms trembled. "P-Please stop… go away," he whispered. "I can handle it. Jam-Jam... I'll get him back."

Black shadows pooled inside Anam's hands. Necrozma's eyes flickered. He licked his lips with anticipation. **"My, my, you're just** _ **full**_ **of secrets, aren't you? And, apparently, a lot of gunk. But it's the secrets I'd rather rip right out of you!"**

Another serpentine energy beam threatened to swallow up Necrozma. He teleported to Anam's right. Necrozma whipped his prism arms in Anam's direction. Two heart-shaped portals materialized. Chains shot into Anam's arm with a pair of loud _squelches._ An eager grin spread across Necrozma's face. His chains leeched the swirling shadow's from Anam's slimy hand.

 **"To think… you were keeping a power like** _ **this**_ **under wraps. Heeheeheehee. It seems this world is even more out of balance than mine,"** Necrozma crooned as Anam stared in wide-eyes horror at the chains in his arms. **"Now then, let's—"**

Necrozma tensed up. His arms and tail spasmed. An unseen force tugged on his chains. His third eye narrowed.

 _ **Get out.**_

An overwhelming sense of dread raced down his spine. The shadows were spreading through Anam's body at an alarming rate. Necrozma yanked the chains out. He stumbled back, the tiny portals beside him disappearing. **"Nnngh. That energy… it was just like the Voidlands. What's going on here?"** he whispered.

"Anam!"

Necrozma's head shot up. He disappeared in a puff of smoke seconds before the ground erupted in a violent tremor. Plumes of dust shot into the air, only to be vaporized by white-hot flames and a shimmering-blue Aura Sphere. Necrozma reappeared several yards behind Anam, tensing the claws on his arms.

He stood there, watching as a Charizard, Flygon, Haxorus, Lucario, and Meganium charged into the fray. In place of legs, the lattermost member of the group had a plethora of vines woven together to resemble limbs. Like Anam, Charizard had a spirit cluster simmering inside of him. Each of the others radiated with tremendous power, though it wasn't quite on the same level as Anam, who was still grappling with the shadows spreading through his body.

Lucario ran up to Anam. "Deep breaths. Focus on your Orb. Meditate if you must," he said, crouching low in case he needed to stage a hasty retreat.

"J… Jam-Jam. He's got—" Anam blubbered, pointing an accusatory arm toward Necrozma.

It was at this point Necrozma recognized a familiar spark in Charizard's life energy. **"Well, well, isn't this quite the sight? Little Owen's all grown up now,"** Necrozma taunted, his eyes glowing. **"And he's hiding such a** _ **juicy**_ **serving of light inside of him."**

The newly-identified Owen's tail flame crackled. "Hey, I'm not little!" He snorted out tufts of smoke. "Besides, I don't even know you!" Owen grabbed his head. "Err, I think, anyway?"

"What does it matter? If he's got James, then I say we thrash 'im!" Flygon shouted. In the blink of an eye, he vanished. Necrozma hopped back. A shimmering rainbow barrier appeared in front of him. Flygon raked blue, ethereal claws across the barrier, only to bounce off, hissing and wringing out his hands.

" **Of course you'd take the first swipes at me. You really are a lunkhead, aren't you, Gahi?"**

Necrozma reared up on his hind legs. He tapped into the deathly energy he siphoned from Anam.

Meganium's eyes widened. "Back!" she cried. Four vines wrapped around Flygon Gahi's midsection and yanked him out of the way of a purple energy blast. Instead, it struck a rock in the distance. Necrozma watched in shock as the rock decayed before his very eyes. He looked down at his right forepaw, smirking at the shadows swirling around it.

 **"So,** _ **that's**_ **what that power does. Heeheeheehee! What an interesting development,"** Necrozma said, inching back from his opponents. **"Well now, I can see when I'm beat. I think I'll go tie up some loose ends in my world and be back to finish the job later."**

"W-Wait, what? Own world? That doesn't make any sense!" Haxorus growled.

A rainbow sheen overtook Necrozma, leading to the creation of another jagged rift. Necrozma hopped backwards. He disappeared in a flash of light.

"No! JAM-JAM!" Anam cried, stumbling away from Lucario and dropping to his knees. Shadows coursed through his slimy body like oil through water.

"No worries! Idiot left 'is dumb portal-thingy open. We'll go after 'im!" Gahi declared, still wrapped up in Meganium's vines.

"Mm…" Meganium stared at the ominous portal. "No." She rolled her eyes.

Gahi slipped out of her vines. "You got a better idea, then?"

"I'm thinking," Meganium said, biting her lip.

"Mispy's right. We can't go charging into the portal," Owen said, scrutinizing the jagged rift. "The energy it's giving off… it's driving my Perception crazy." He grabbed his head and shook it. "It's like there are a thousand Willows scratching at my head and I can't get them off!"

"Seriously?" Haxorus glanced between Owen, Anam, and Rhys. "C'mon, there's gotta be something we can do about it. Maybe if we ring up Nevren, he'll have an idea?"

Rhys frowned. "I doubt Nevren and I can be of much help, here." He cautiously approached the portal, his paws swirling with aura. "Star discussed this with us when we were Hunters. I believe the Pokémon responsible for taking James is known as Necrozma."

"Necrozma? Feh! That's a stupid name if I ever 'eard one," Gahi scoffed, buzzing back into the air and flying circles around the portal.

Owen glanced at Rhys, brow furrowing. "Necrozma? Why does that sound… so familiar?"

Rhys crossed his arms. "Just going off of what we saw, I believe this Necrozma is not of our world. And that's _quite_ concerning, because—"

"Because nothing can pass through the Overworld from another reality except someone's self!" Owen blurted out.

"How did you know that?" Rhys asked, eyes wide.

Owen doubled over, clutching his head in pain. "Nnrrrgh… Star, what are you _doing_ in there?" He paused, staring at his belly while his teammates exchanged confused looks. After several seconds of silence, Owen's head snapped up. "Wait… _Necrozma?!_ "

"You _know_ that crazy dude?" Haxorus gasped.

"Yeah! He's a total creep! Forced his way into the Overworld and tried to wipe me and a bunch of other folks from other worlds out of existence!" Owen growled, his tail-flame turning white-hot. "But I don't get it… the last time I dealt with him, he was this big, uh, Golbat-looking thing. How did he turn into an oversized Pyroar?"

Haxorus turned to Mispy. "You don't think he's Mystic like Owen and Anam, do you?" he said, tapping a foot on the ground nervously.

Mispy caressed Haxorus' chin with one of her vines. "Mn, maybe not." She withdrew her vines and shrugged. "More like… Star. Or Barky."

"That doesn't make me feel any better!" Haxorus groaned.

"Hang on, Demitri," Owen said. He looked at his gut again. "All right, Star, you've got some explaining to do. How'd Necrozma manage to get here if it's impossible for anyone's physical form to pass through the Overworld?"

Silence followed, with Owen glaring at his belly while his teammates all raised skeptical brows. They hastily backed away from Owen when his tail-flame grew three sizes in an intense burst of heat.

"What do you _mean_ Barky left the back door open?! How is that possible?! It doesn't even make any sense!" Owen huffed.

Rhys' shoulders sagged. He rubbed the bridge of his snout. "Wonderful." He looked at Owen. "Does Star have some sort of plan for how we handle this? You heard Necrozma. He intends to come back."

"And I ain't about ter let that happen!" Gahi said, slashing at the air with his tiny claws. "This time, I'll 'ave Demitri shatter 'is stupid barrier!"

"Hold on. Star's not done," Owen said, holding up a hand. He closed his eyes and nodded slowly. "Okay, okay. I see…"

"So, Star _does_ have a plan?" Mispy asked.

"Uh… sorta? It's, like, twenty percent of a plan," Owen responded, scratching his head. "Basically, Barky's gonna shroud us in these protective bubbles and fling us through the portal. His shields should keep us safe from getting torn to shreds inside of Ultra Space."

"Ultra… Space? They couldn't have come up with a better name?" Demitri frowned.

"Guys, this is serious! We have to focus. Once we go into the portal… we're on our own. I won't be able to contact Star. And she says she has no idea if Anam's blessings will carry over on our items," Owen continued, looking worriedly at his teammates.

"We'll be fine. Necrozma doesn't know who he's messing wit'!" Gahi's wings buzzed eagerly. "Th' four of us working together… we'll have 'im down in no time!"

Owen hummed anxiously, a low growl escaping him. But then, he sighed. "Gahi's right," Owen said, drawing an astonished look from Mispy. Gahi puffed his chest out proudly. "We don't have time. You saw the power Necrozma took from Anam. If we can't stop him _quickly_ , who knows what'll happen?"

" **And you better not forget James,"** Anam said in a distorted voice, shadows coursing through his head. The inky darkness suddenly withdrew deeper into him. Anam's normal, green eyes returned. "P-please. Y-you gotta," Anam pleaded, nervously detaching and reattaching his slimy, stubby fingers.

Owen nodded. "Don't worry. We've got this. A lot's changed since I last fought Necrozma." He raised a fist. Soft, green energy flowed into it. "He doesn't know what I'm capable of."

"What _we're_ capable of," Mispy corrected, walking up to Owen's side. " _I'm_ leader." She jabbed Owen's gut with a vine, but flashed him a smile. "We fight together."

Demitri nodded. "And if you're going to another world, make sure your Perception is in top-shape! _Ultra_ top shape! For the… the Ultra Wormhole thing."

"Don't do that," Gahi groaned.

Demitri and Gahi joined their teammates in front of the Ultra Rift. Owen glanced down at his stomach. "Okay, Star. Tell Barky we're ready."

There was a brief moment of uncertainty, where Owen questioned if it was really wise to put his team's fate in Barky's hooves. That moment proved fleeting, however, because golden bubbles surrounded Owen and his teammates. Then an unseen force shot them inside the Ultra Rift, where they disappeared in bright flashes of light.

* * *

 **~Destiny Tower Exterior~**

Team Radiance flickered into existence in the middle of a rocky path, with Mew floating behind them. Dark gray clouds shrouded the road ahead. Silvally took a few steps forward. His brow furrowed. "Um, guys? I think we made a wrong turn somewhere." He shifted his air memories on. Wind shot out from his forelegs, but failed to dispel the clouds.

"Where are we?" Tessa wondered. She concentrated on her aura sense, yet she couldn't make anything out beyond her teammates and Mew. Her aura feelers shot up. "Wait a second. What happened to everyone else?" She looked around in concern. "We didn't just make a wrong turn… we lost the others!"

Shane turned around to face Mew, who was groaning and rubbing her head. "Hey, what gives? I thought you were going to teleport all of us close to where the Hidden Land fell."

"Yeah. I, uh…" Mew blinked slowly. "Something went wrong."

"We can see that. The question is… can you fix it?" Shane asked, tails twitching nervously.

"Um…" Mew poked his tiny index fingers together. "I, uh, can't get read on where we are. Something redirected my teleportation… somehow. Now my ESP is blunted."

"Mine too," Espy whispered, ears drooping. "If only we could get this fog out of the way." Her eyes glowed pink. She tensed up. Nothing happened. The wall of dark clouds remained as solid as ever. "Okay, now I'm worried." Espy glanced at Mew. "Hey, think you could back me up, here? Your Psychic's gotta be stronger than mine."

"Sure," Mew said, nodding. "Lemme just—"

Mew's eyes widened. He inhaled sharply, then dropped to the ground.

"What the heck? Hey! What's wrong?" Shane asked. He was about to take a step toward Mew, when Mew cried out in pain. His body turned a sickly shade of purple, then disintegrated right before Team Radiance's eyes. Shane jumped back, barking in alarm. "That's not normal! _That's not normal!_ " he whined, tails shooting between his legs.

A small, golden ball of light fluttered away from Team Radiance, disappearing into the thick cloud wall.

Silvally stepped toward his teammates. "We've lost our teleporter. I don't know about you guys, but I don't think we can afford to stay here." He bent over. "Hop on. I'll carry you."

Tessa wrung her paws. "O-Okay. If you think that's safest."

Before she could climb on Silvally, a blinding flash of light erupted in front of them. Tessa staggered backwards, throwing an arm over her face.

Shane gasped. "H-Hey! Isn't that an Ultra Wormhole?"

Espy tilted her head. "It sure doesn't look like the ones we've seen. It's all… twisted." She grimaced.

Silvally crouched into a fighting stance. His psychic memories switched on. "Be ready for anything, you guys. It could be a Prism Virus attack!"

"Ahhh!"

Silvally's eyes widened. He lunged to his right, shoving his teammates away from the portal. Moments later, four golden bubbles shot out of it. They popped one after another, plopping each member of Team Alloy on the ground.

"Owen!" Gahi grunted, shoving Owen's thighs. "Git yer tail off my face or I'm-a—"

"Wait… Owen?" Silvally's cheek bolts whirred. "As in… Charmander Owen?" He leaned over to sniff at the Charizard lying in front of him. "Oh, hey, it _is_ you! Hiya!" Silvally's tail wagged. He turned to his teammates. "Guys, it's okay! They're fine." He beckoned them over. "This is the guy I told you about. Remember, from that time I got pulled through an Ultra Wormhole and met a bunch of folks from other worlds?"

"Oh, yeah." Espy walked to Silvally's side, fixing a skeptical look on Mispy and her overabundance of vines she was trying to untangle from Demitri's tusks. "I seem to recall you having the hots for Owen."

Owen's tail-flame rippled like a freshly-lit match. Gahi's eyes widened. He shoved Owen's rear, then shot to his feet. "Sheesh. What were ya doin' in that Overworld game of yers, huh?" he huffed, flapping his wings to shake off bits of debris.

"We saved a bunch of worlds from Necrozma," Silvally declared, puffing out his chest. "Congrats on evolving, by the way. I know how much you wanted it to happen."

"Err… right." Owen's wings furled. He didn't dare explain the circumstances to Silvally. "It's, uh, good to see you again," Owen said, offering a shaky smile. A part of him was miffed that, despite being fully evolved, he wasn't quite eye-level with Silvally, but he stuffed his pride away.

"Silvally, eh? What the heck kind of Pokémon are yeh?" Gahi asked, buzzing over and zipping around Silvally to examine him from every angle. "Yeh look like Eon could've made yeh!"

"It's, uh, kinda complicated." Silvally laughed nervously.

"Try us! We specialize in complicated," Demitri said.

"Funny. So do we," Espy deadpanned. She then cringed. "Err, sorry. I've been trying to tone down on the snark. We're Team Radiance. I'm Espeon. The Lucario is Tessa and the ice Ninetales is Shane." Espy gestured at her teammates.

Gahi zipped over to Tessa. "Oy. What's with th' mark on yer chest?" He turned to Owen. "Rhys and Manny ain't got markings like this."

Tessa backed away from Gahi. "It's, um… I don't really want to talk about it."

"Seriously, Gahi? C'mon, be polite." Demitri sighed and shook his head. He turned back to Espy. "I'm Haxorus Demitri. You've already met Owen and that loudmouth over there is Gahi." He jerked his head in Gahi's direction.

"I'm only talkin' cause you an' Mispy ain't openin' yer traps!" Gahi huffed.

Mispy rolled her eyes. "Ignore him."

Shane cleared his throat. "Okay. Now that awkward introductions are out of the way… can we help you guys? If you can't tell, we're in the midst of a crisis." He fanned out his tails. Team Alloy took notice of the dark clouds swirling around them. "So, uh, if you're passing through en route to some other world or something, you ought to get a move on."

Mispy approached the cloud wall. Her vines tensed. She hastily backed away and shot Owen a concerned look. "Perceive?"

Owen stared up at Silvally. His eyes widened in recognition. "Silvally! Of course!" He hopped to his feet. "How could I forget? Necrozma's from your world. The 'loose ends' he mentioned must be somewhere around here."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa… hold up. You guys are after Necrozma? That's impossible!" Shane said, icy air gathering around his paws. "We know for a fact that he was killed. His core is—"

"Well, yer facts are bogus," Gahi spat.

"Gahi, c'mon," Owen said, stretching out a wing to settle his friend. He turned to Silvally. "Necrozma showed up in our world. Only, er, he was in a different form. Some kinda Pyroar-looking thingy."

"He got Solgaleo?" Espy took a few steps back. She looked at Shane. "But I thought—"

"My guess is he found a Solgaleo from another world," Silvally said, shaking his head. "Guess he's not as dead as we thought."

"Right. So, he showed up, kidnapped one of our friends, and then stole power from another friend," Owen continued, his tone growing more frantic. "And this power, its…" He winced. "It's the power of decay. If you get hit by it, your body will rot from the inside-out!"

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "No! Then what happened to Mew—"

Golden light burst forth from the dark clouds. They vanished in shadowy wisps, revealing a pillar of light shooting into the sky from the middle of a pile of rubble.

 **"Heehee…** _ **heeheeheehee!**_ **At long last… my core is back!"**

Shane's tails shot into the air. "Oh no… oh _sh_ _i_ _t!_ " He staggered backward, shaking his head. "He's… he's just like he was in the recording, again!" Shane turned to Team Alloy. "Quick. You guys gotta get back in that portal before—"

The Ultra Rift abruptly shut. Owen's tail-flame shrank. He turned toward the light pillar in the distance and narrowed his eyes. Owen faintly made out four golden wings and a long, radiant tail. Two multicolored eyes stared back at him.

"His true form… is a dragon? _Come on!_ That is _so_ not fair!" Owen fumed. "Ugh, that better not be the case for our Necrozma, otherwise I'm never letting Star hear the end of it."

" _That's_ what you're focusing on?!" Demitri said.

Red lines streamed across the ground. Both teams looked around in confusion, giving way to panicked shouts as walls of glitchy red cubes erupted from the earth. Owen back-winged to avoid getting struck by one, only to watch Demitri disappear behind it. "Demitri, _no!_ " Owen shouted. He battered the wall with an Air Slash barrage, but it absorbed every wind blade. Owen turned to his right, where he recalled Gahi hovering. "Gahi, we've got to—"

Another cube wall rose up, cutting off Gahi and Espy. Owen's tail-flame pulsated as fast as his heart was beating. He turned around, praying at least one of his friends was still with him. However, he only found Silvally standing beside him, an equally-worried look on his face. Owen followed Silvally's gaze up. His heart leaped into his throat.

A jagged, golden tear split the sky above them. But the path up to it was blocked by a ceiling of transparent cubes.

"W… what _is_ that?" Owen said, curling up his tail and wings.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Not so high and mighty without your friends around, are you?"**

Silvally crouched into a fighting stance. "Show yourself, Necrozma!" he bellowed, cheek-bolts revving up.

Black shadows trickled out from the wall in front of Silvally, coalescing into a sphere that then manifested as a jet-black Decidueye. Crystals covered the right half of his face. He fixed his lone eye on Owen, whose tail-flame rippled.

"That's James!" Owen clenched his fists. "James, you have to listen to me!"

James lolled his head to the side. **"Wonderful. Simply wonderful. That look on your face — the fear and outrage — is so** _ **satisfying**_ **,"** he said, projecting Necrozma's voice.

Owen stepped toward Silvally. "What did you do to him?"

 **"Oh, not much. Purged his spirit of its consciousness… leaving me to use his powers as I see fit,"** James replied, adding in a chuckle. **"You're not really one to talk,** _ **boy.**_ **"**

"I'm not a kid!" Owen huffed.

Silvally stuck a foreleg in front of Owen. "You've gotta keep a level head. He's doing this to get under your scales, so you won't battle at your best."

Owen bit his lip. He should've realized that was the case. His brow furrowed. There was a fuzziness in his mind. A nasty mental itch he couldn't scratch.

 **"What's the matter, Owen? You look upset about something."** James smirked. A red light flickered in his eye. **"Could it be… that you're missing your Perception?"**

Owen's wings reflexively unfurled. "H-How did you—"

 **"Between your man-child boss, Anam, and this lousy spirit, there are so many** _ **interesting**_ **memories to sift through. However, I'm on a tight schedule, so I won't bore you with the details,"** James mused, pacing back and forth. Having no stomach for one of Necrozma's ridiculous rants, Silvally snarled loudly. A black, eerie shockwave closed in on James. However, he evaporated into a fine mist.

 **"How about the hypocrisy of it all?"** James reappeared a few feet above Owen, hanging upside down from an invisible branch. **"Like I said, you can't chastise me about using spirits when your Grass Orb is positively** _ **bursting**_ **with them. Heeheeheehee!"**

"Y… you…" Owen draped an arm and a wing over his belly.

James materialized a tiny Owen doll made of black clouds. **"Alas, poor Owen! Wanting to do nothing more than be a hero… when he was destined from the very beginning to be a plaything to his world's gods."** James dropped the Owen doll. It dangled in midair by silk-like threads. James flapped his wings, making the Owen puppet dance around.

Owen rocketed skyward, flames burning in the back of his throat. James vanished in a burst of smoke, but the Owen doll remained. Owen's eyes widened. He aileron-rolled right, narrowly strafing white laser beams.

On the ground, Silvally hopped back, gawking wide-eyed as the Owen doll pulsated and expanded outward. A familiar wheel took shape around the shadowy mass. Then four crystalline hooves shot out, alongside a stubby tail, a slender neck, and a mouthless head.

"B-Barky?" Owen flew away in a panic, only to slam the figurative brakes in the face of a crystal blade barrage. He whipped up a dozen Air Slashes, shredding the blades into black powder. "Silvally! What's going on here?!" Owen cried, not wanting to look back at the apparent Barky clone Necrozma had somehow summoned.

"I don't know! He must've gotten to our world's Arceus!" Silvally glowed orange. He lunged for Arceus, whose crystalline wheel flickered an ominous purple. Silvally phased right through Arceus, squawking in surprise.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Charizard Owen… designed with the power to Perceive battle situations in their entirety, considering every possible outcome."** James materialized in front of Owen, more crystal blades protruding from the edges of his wings. **"But what happens when that Perception runs up against someone with the power to change their typing at will? Can you Perceive chaos? We won't get that answer, of course. You really think I'd be dumb enough to give you that chance? I was nice enough to give you the Barky knockoff as your battle-buddy."**

James raised his wings. The crystal blades shot forward. Owen materialized a shimmering blue barrier. It just barely managed to deflect all the corrupted Spirit Shackles. Owen dove back toward the ground, hoping James would give chase. His mind was a scrambled mess, one part trying to process the new information and the other trying to think of how to deal with James when he could meld into the shadows.

Owen figured he had to keep Necrozma talking. The guy liked to run his mouth, clearly, and Owen needed to press that trait and hope Necrozma slipped up as a result. He landed on the ground, stomping his right leg back to plant Fire Traps along the ground. "What do you mean by a knockoff Barky, huh?" he asked.

 **"Exactly what it says on the tin,** _ **boy.**_ **You, me, and Silvally over there… we're not Pokémon, we're someone else's creations. We're** _ **freaks!**_ **"** James crooned.

Silvally skidded to a halt, looking at Owen in surprise. Arceus seized the opening. He swooped in, psychic energy brimming through his face. Silvally's head crest fanned out. His ghost memories switched on. Ectoplasmic talons clashed against a Zen Headbutt. Both Pokémon staggered back from each other, Silvally looking far more disoriented.

Owen readied a Flamethrower for Arceus' backside, only to catch a ghostly glint in the corner of his eye. He spun around, raking fire through the air. The flames blew apart James' Shadow Balls. James remained in midair, wings spread wide to summon more crystal Spirit Shackle arrows **.**

 **"What's the matter? Never got to swap stories with your interdimensional pen pal?"** James taunted. **"Oh no, that's right, you couldn't. Your memories are a veritable toybox to your gods. Heeheeheehee. It's such a pity both of you will perish before you really get the chance to talk. You have so much in common, after all!"**

Owen took off, hovering only half a foot off the ground. James pointed his wings down. Crystal arrows raced after Owen. He looped up into the air and glanced back. The arrows followed him. Owen smirked. With a burst of speed, he closed the distance on Arceus. He was too busy readying the holy light of Judgment to see Owen coming.

But James saw it. His eye flashed. The Spirit Shackles shattered. **"Idiot! Keep your eyes peeled!"** he snarled. Owen unleashed a Flamethrower. Arceus shifted into a water-type, his wheel glowing blue. Owen's flames barely scratched him, but he roared in fury when lightning pelted him from below.

Silvally glanced up at Owen, nodding in approval. He pivoted and shot more Thunderbolts at James, aiming toward his head.

 **"Useless!"** James sneered, dropping to the ground. He realized his mistake a moment too late, however. Fiery plumes erupted all around him, drowning out his startled cries.

Owen dropped out of the air, placing more Fire Traps. He fluttered his wings. Air Slashes assaulted the clouds left by the earlier explosions. Silvally ran to Owen's side, keeping Arceus at bay with Air Slashes of his own. Arceus rose into the air, wheel turning brown. Silvally's Air Slashes did little more than make Arceus flinch. However, it gave Silvally the necessary time to surround himself with ethereal swords.

"Think you can keep tending to your friend?" Silvally asked, leg muscles bulging. Steam rose off his body.

"Of course!" Owen flew forward, only to turn tail and shoot into the air. James trailed after him, along with two dozen crystal arrows.

 **"Where do think you're going? I've got you trapped like a caged Joltik!"** James taunted. His arrows darted ahead. Owen glanced back at them. He flapped his wings, climbing higher and higher. The ceiling grew closer. Just when it looked like he would crash into it, Owen tucked in his wings. He broke into a freefall. James' arrows couldn't mimic Owen's actions. They shattered against the ceiling in succession.

Undeterred, James hurled two Shadow Balls toward Owen. In response, Owen shrouded himself in his own Flamethrower, forming a makeshift fire shield that vaporized James' attack. Owen raced out of the black clouds left by the explosions. Air Slash blades whizzed through James' sides. He shrank back, then vanished in a puff of smoke.

Owen beat his wings, climbing higher. He released short, concentrated Flamethrower bursts. Silvally spotted the gesture. With a flash of blue light, he summoned Waterfall plumes. Arceus' wheel turned bright-green. Two moss-filled Energy Balls split the Waterfalls apart. Then, Owen's fireballs pelted Arceus' back, driving him toward the ground. Silvally lunged. Golden light morphed into orange energy around his forelegs.

Shredding pain cut through Owen's wing membranes. They reflexively folded against his sides. He fell from the air, roaring. Silvally's eyes widened. He dodged a swipe from Arceus' hooves, dug his talons into Arceus' crystal pelt, and used him a springboard to launch toward Owen.

 **"What an adorable gesture. Too bad it's the last thing you'll ever do!"**

Silvally reached Owen just in time to see an insurmountable wall of crystal blades rushing toward him.

* * *

Shane desperately fired an Ice Beam at the approaching lava wall. It froze a small patch. "There's our opening!" Shane barked, using a psychically-charged donkey-kick to knock Mispy through the ice. He lunged in after her. They rolled to a stop before the hulking, crystal-covered form of Primal Groudon. Black magma dripped from his mouth.

Mispy used the light from the blazing fireball Groudon had summoned overhead to fire off a Solar Beam. A Shedinja zipped in front of the green laser. It absorbed the entire attack, leaving nothing behind but a rainbow shimmer.

"Don't you have any other attacks you can try? That's not going to work unless we can take out that damn bug!" Shane huffed. He fanned his tails out. Orange Heat Wave winds rippled forward. Shedinja zipped behind Groudon, who stood tall through Shane's attack.

Groudon brought his fist crashing down. The Heat Wave made his crystal armor glow orange. Jagged, magma-coated rocks burst forth from the ground. Mispy and Shane hit the ground several yards away, their sides scorched. One of Mispy's vine legs lay in front of Groudon, withering away before his eyes.

"I'll… handle this," Mispy groaned. A soft pink light enveloped her body.

 **"I think** _ **not!**_ **"**

Shedinja raised its stubby arms. Black, sickly vapors washed over Mispy and Shane. The light vanished.

Mispy looked at the sliced-off section of her vines. "Heal Block!" She looked up at Shedinja, eyes narrowed.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Why the long face? Oh, I know. Take away your ultimate healing technique… and you turn into a useless pile of** _ **yard trimmings!**_ **"** Shedinja crooned. **"Nothing you can do now but sit and watch as you and everyone else across every reality are** _ **purged!**_ **"**

Shedinja looked up. Mispy followed his gaze. Her petals wilted at the sight of the golden vortex expanding.

"Just what's your endgame here, huh?" Shane snarled. More superheated air threatened to torch Shedinja, but Groudon shielded him with his gigantic hands. Shane snorted out tufts of ice. "This all seems pretty stupid of you. If you've got your original body back, why not use it to try and kill us?"

 **"Oh, the irony. That you of all people would be talking to me like that."** Shedinja's ghostly, armored face was unable to show any expressions but the glee in Necrozma's voice was perfectly clear. **"I know how this song and dance routine goes. The all-powerful being goes to attack the mortals directly… only for them to inexplicably win through some ridiculous means like — oh, I don't know — the power of friendship or some nauseatingly-similar idea."**

Shedinja lashed at the air. **"Well, I won't have it! I don't** _ **need**_ **to kill you right here and now. I just have to stall for time until my Cataclysmic Ultra Rift is ready. Then, I will unleash this** _ **marvelous**_ **decaying energy I stole from Anam… and every world in every reality will deteriorate into nothingness!"** Shedinja flew up to Groudon's head. **"Isn't it wonderful? Don't answer, that was rhetorical."**

Groudon roared. Lava pooled up around his feet.

"Damn it. It's coming again!" Shane growled, crouching down and readying an Ice Beam. "Isn't there _anything_ you can do, here?" He glanced at Mispy, who had finished rearranging her vines so she had four shorter legs.

"I'm thinking," she hissed, petals glowing. Light Screen barriers formed around her and Shane.

The Lava Plume spread across the battlefield while Shedinja hovered safely out of reach, readying a Shadow Ball. He fired it just as Shane froze a patch of the Lava Plume and lunged through it. His Light Screen absorbed most of the hit.

"Now!" Shane barked.

Mispy fired her Solar Beam toward Groudon's right foot. Despite his speed, Shedinja wasn't quick enough to get there and absorb the hit. Groudon's right leg buckled. He dropped to one knee.

 **"What are you doing? Get up! Attack them!"** Shedinja barked.

"Hey, there's one thing you forgot to account for, _buddy,_ " Shane said. He spat a golden energy ball at Groudon's chest. Hissing, Shedinja flew away. He barely skirted the light geyser that erupted. Groudon toppled over, but he wasn't knocked out. When he hit the ground, more Precipice Blades burst forth from the earth.

"Ah, not again!" Shane cried, backpedaling as best he could. A Shadow Ball struck him from above, knocking him into a Precipice Blade. The explosion jettisoned him into Mispy. They rolled across the ground until they ended up in a collapsed heap.

"At least… you tried," Mispy scoffed, struggling to get back to her feet.

"Don't give me that sass. We're trying to fight a literal volcano god and the best you can do is pelt him with sunlight!" Shane huffed, looking at his scorched fur with a pained wince.

"I'm Grass," Mispy hissed, some of her vines unfurling.

Shane's ears stuck up. He levitated Mispy into the air and sprinted right. Slabs of volcanic rock hurtled by him, splattering against the cube barrier. Shane set Mispy down only to squeal as a Shadow Ball blew up in his face. Mispy looked up, but could do nothing to affect Shedinja.

 **"It's not much fun being useless, is it?"**

The air in front of Mispy rippled with sound waves. Shane chomped down on some of her vines and yanked her away before Shedinja's Bug Buzz tore up the dirt. He spat a golden orb at Shedinja, who hovered backward and dodged with minimal effort.

 **"Honestly, for all the claims about his intelligence, Nevren really wasn't thinking with you was he, Mispy? Meganium is such a worthless species. No real way to counter such** _ **glaring**_ **weaknesses."** Shedinja bobbed about, giggling madly. **"Do you get it? Glaring? It's a light pun! Because I'll have every last drop of your light soon enough. Heeheeheehee!"**

"Wow. Worse than Demitri," Mispy whispered.

Shane saddled up to Mispy. "Listen, we've gotta take Shedinja out of the equation. Then you can actually hit Groudon."

Mispy frowned. "How?"

Groudon's roar jolted them both to attention. Shane telekinetically plucked Mispy off the ground. He dragged her to the left side of the battlefield, barely running fast enough to dodge the Precipice Blades shooting up from the earth. More Bug Buzz waves threatened to smack Shane's rear. Mispy projected Light Screen barriers, deflecting the sound ripples away.

"I've got an idea." Shane zagged right, swerving past Groudon's Flamethrower. "You can change those vines of yours, right? Well, you need to wrap them all around me!"

Mispy looked disgusted at the prospect. "I'm taken!"

"No, no! It's to attack Shedinja," Shane said. He managed to fire another golden energy ball. Its explosion blinded Groudon and Shedinja. Shane set Mispy down, struggling to catch his breath. "I'm going… to launch us… into the air. Then you fling me at Shedinja as hard you can."

"Are you crazy?"

"Probably! But thinking crazy is the only reason my team's survived as long as we have. So, you're going to have to trust me, here," Shane said, extending a foreleg toward her.

Mispy sighed. "Fine," she hissed, uncoiling her vines and wrapping them around Shane's torso so she lay on top of him. "Tell nobody." The tighter grip around his body implied the punishment.

The light from Shane's attack faded, revealing another Lava Plume wall heading straight for them. "Now or never!" Shane barked. He tensed up. With a burst of ESP, he launched himself into the air. "Okay, this is it!"

Mispy tensed her core. She spun Shane around a single time, then whipped all of her vines at once. Shane shot through the air like a white, fluffy bullet. Shedinja frantically flung a Shadow Ball at Shane, but he already had gathered the energy he needed. Superheated air snuffed the Shadow Ball out. The lingering bits of the Heat Wave struck Shedinja.

 **"Ha! Nice try, lo—"**

Shedinja shattered into thousands of tiny pieces, which evaporated.

"Yes! It worked! It—"

Groudon spiked Shane into the ground in the best impression of a volleyball player a hulking behemoth could manage. Mispy winced as she landed safely beside a Ninetales-shaped crater. Fortunately, the ominous black smoke from Shedinja's Heal Block had faded. Mispy stuck two of her vines into the hole and plucked Shane out, filling him with warm healing energy in the process. "Hello?" she asked.

Shane stared back at her, cross-eyed. "Hiya, Mom. Thanks for picking me up from school so late."

Mispy smacked Shane's cheek, leaving a vine-shaped imprint with a ripple of pink light. Shane blinked several times, then shook his head out. "Nrgh. That was… unpleasant. Thanks for the help." He turned around. "Now, let's strike in uni— _oh, come on!_ "

Precipice Blades erupted all around them. Shane fired a golden energy ball forward, destroying two of the giant rock slabs. "Follow me!" he said, running into the debris cloud. Sighing, Mispy tailed him. Luck was on their side, as the remaining Precipice Blades burst up a few feet behind them.

"Quick. Attack him!" Shane said.

"I know," Mispy said, petals alit. A green laser struck Groudon right in the face. He staggered backwards, throwing his arms up to his eyes. Pink explosions shrouded his legs, cracking his prism armor. Groudon roared as he fell slowly onto his back, leaving trails of black magma behind him.

"All right, we've gotta make this count!" Shane stuck his left foreleg toward Mispy. "Grab this. I've got another idea!"

Mispy looked at Shane's grimy paw like it was a plate of rotten berries. She reluctantly extended a vine toward him. Shane tapped the gem on his Naturia Looplet to Mispy's vines. Orange light raced up her vines, then covered her entire body. Her eyes widened, the energy making her grin uncontrollably. "W-What—"

"It's Z-Power. Now, make like you're going to use your Solar Beam," Shane said, glowing with a similar orange aura.

"Mm." Mispy focused on this new, alien energy. A part of her was reluctant to let it go, but it wouldn't matter if she couldn't escape her current predicament. She funneled the Z-Power into her petals. Instead of firing giant green laser, however, light trailed off her petals and formed a patch of grass around Groudon.

Despite Groudon's flames, flowers bloomed on the grassy field. Then, they exploded in a gigantic green geyser. Mispy's jaw dropped. Shane was unfazed, however. He reared up, then slammed his forelegs on the ground. The very air around Groudon seemed to splinter. Mispy could hear glass shattering. She had to shield her eyes as pink, explosive ripples encased Groudon.

When the dust settled, there was no sign of him. Mispy sat down, digging her vines into the dirt. "Th… that was..." She looked at Shane. "What was that?"

"The same thing you did. We call 'em Z-Moves," Shane explained. "Do they not have them in your world?"

"Um… maybe?" Mispy's petals bristled. Her face scrunched up. "What we did… nobody. _Nobody_."

* * *

"Oy! Stop sittin' around and do something!"

Gahi frantically buzzed around, doing midair loops and somersaults while dragon-shaped beams whizzed past his wings. He turned around, Dragon Claws at the ready, only for a purple and black blur to hammer him from the side. Like a scaly, oversized fly, he smacked against the cube barrier and slid down it, groaning.

Espy dashed toward him, shooting a Shadow Ball above her. Mega Latias snuffed it out with a pink barrier, then retaliated with a Shadow Ball of her own. Espy nimbly leaped over it, landing by a dazed Gahi.

"There, I did something. Happy?" Espy huffed.

"No!" Gahi growled, rubbing his snout. "Yer making me look like a num'skull!"

"You're the one who said he could fly circles around these two!" Espy said, jabbing a forepaw into Gahi's shoulder.

"I can! They're cheatin'!" Gahi whined. He shot back into the air, only to suck in his gut. Mega Latios' Dragon Pulse whizzed past him. Gahi looked right, where Latios stuck his tongue out. "Grr! Why you—"

"Behind you!" Espy cried. Her desperate Psychic met Latias' Ice Beam a half-foot behind Gahi. He zipped away from the icy explosion.

 **"Heeheeheehee! You're looking a little winded there, Gahi,"** Latias giggled. **"And here I thought you'd be excited at the prospect of facing someone who could match your speed. Where's that sense of thrill, huh?"** She smirked. **"I suppose it's hard to be enthusiastic when you can't get close enough to use your one and only attack!"**

"Hey! I know more attacks! I just… ain't good at 'em yet, is all!" Gahi spat. "I just evolved!"

 **"It's not my fault the powers that be lacked the foresight to give you better moves… or that you're so much of a lunkhead you take ages to learn a single move."** Latias shrugged. **"I could go for either excuse, re—"**

Gahi's attempts at slashing Latias across the face ended with him in a psychic bind inches in front of Latias. She smiled and waved daintily at Gahi before Latios slammed him into the barrier multiple times.

"Crud!" Espy hurled a Shadow Ball upwards. The Lati twins backed off. Espy turned around. Keeping track of both of them was proving far too troublesome. She shot another Shadow Ball at Latios, then leaped to her right. A blue pulse struck the ground. Espy looked up. Gahi shook the stars from his vision. "Hey, you're hurt! Get down here so I can patch you up!"

Black smoke spread across the battlefield. Espy found herself unable to pull an oran berry out from her bag. "Of course… Heal Block." She shook her head. "Okay, this is bad." Her ears and tail stuck up. She looked up. Shimmering blue light filled her vision. Espy braced herself, only for the ground to give out under her. She opened her eyes to find herself several feet in the air. Espy flailed her legs about.

"Quit movin' around! I'm gonna drop you if you don't cut it out!" Gahi growled.

"Then put me down!"

"No. Look, I can't him 'em from a distance. And you can't move fast enough to keep up with 'em," Gahi said, his wings bristling. "We've gotta stick tergether, yeh?"

No sooner did he finish saying that than a pair of Ice Beams raced toward him. Espy deflected them with a Light Screen barrier. "Okay, I think I see your point," she said, trying not to look down. "Can you at least get me up on your back?"

"Sure. Up yeh go!"

"Ah, wait… not like that! Not like tha— _aat!_ "

Gahi tossed Espy skyward and caught her on his back while dodging two more Ice Beams. He shot forward. Espy barely managed to get herself up, but grinned when her next Shadow Ball hit Latios' wing. He spiraled down toward the ground.

"Yes! It actually worked!" She fist-pumped. Her joy was short-lived, however, because Latias swooped down and bathed her brother in pink light. The cracks in his crystalline wing mended. "Son of a— ugh, I _really_ should've seen that one coming."

"They can heal themselves? I knew it! They're lousy cheaters!" Gahi hissed. He was about to divebomb them when Espy bit down on one of his antennae. "Yow! Oi! What was that fer?!"

"Don't go rushing in blindly. We need to come up with a plan," Espy said, opening up her satchel. She poked her head in, silently playing. "Perfect!" Espy squealed, popping up with a wand in her mouth. She levitated it to Gahi.

"Are yeh kidding me? Yeh want me to bonk 'em with some silly rod? This ain't gonna do a thing!" Gahi protested.

"Yes it will!" Espy said, fending off Ice Beams with another Light Screen. "It's a Slow Wand. All you've gotta do is swing it to shoot energy blasts at them. If you hit them, you'll slow them down and _then_ you'll be able to fly circles around them."

Gahi's eyes sparkled. He grabbed the Slow Wand and took off, circling the battlefield's perimeter.

 **"You can pow-wow as much as you want. It won't make a difference to me!"** Latios boasted. He signaled Latias. They darted toward Gahi, looking to intercept.

"Okay, here's our chance," Espy said. Her ectoplasmic energy ball sailed toward Latios' right. Gahi flicked the wand to Latios' left and perfectly intercepted him. Gahi sharply cut left, making a beeline for Latios.

"Hang on!" Gahi shouted, before rolling away from an Ice Beam. "Ha! And yeh were mocking me fer only using one attack!" Glowing blue claws slammed into Latios' wing. "Who's the lunkhead now, eh?"

 **"Why you—"** Latios gnashed his gemstone teeth together.

"Go for Latias. I got this!" Espy said. She lunged off Gahi, catching him and Latios by surprise. Espy held onto a Shadow Ball and rammed it into Latios' torso. His cracked wing shattered. He and Espy fell to the ground. She fired psychic waves to gracefully land beside a dizzy Latios.

Her ears twitched. Espy leaped into the path of a pink beam. The Heal Pulse restored her vitality, giving her the strength to shatter Latios' other wing with more ghostly energy.

 **"Nrghgraa! No! This is impossible! I arranged this perfectly!"** Latios snarled. A heavy thud sounded as Latias landed in an impact crater a yard away, twitching.

"Ha! Who's the Slowpoke now?" Gahi said, flexing his tiny arms.

"Don't celebrate yet. Get down here and help me finish these two!" Espy huffed.

"Eh? But it'll really knock 'em out if I divebomb 'em!" Gahi said, frowning.

"That's not— ugh, look, that won't work on them. We need a special move to take them out," Espy said.

Gahi brushed his cheek. "And just what can yeh do that's so special, huh?"

Rolling her eyes, Espy tossed Latios beside his sister. "Guess I'll handle the cleanup, then," she muttered. Z-Power spilled out from her Naturia Looplet. Espy arced her head up. Shadows swirled around the Lati twins. Giant purple arms burst forth from the ground.

"What in the—" Gahi sped toward Espy. "Where's all this coming from?"

The arms slammed down on Latios and Latias one after another, culminating in an eerie purple explosion. When the shadows vanished, there wasn't a trace of either of them.

"Why didn't yeh just do that from the get-go?!" Gahi fumed, hovering in front of Espy's face. "Coulda saved us a lotta trou—"

Espy shoved an oran berry into Gahi's open mouth.

"Your leader was right. You do _not_ know when to shut up."

* * *

"Nrrgh! Hold! Still!"

A Klefki zipped through rock spires shooting out of the ground. **"And why should I do something like that? It's much more** _ **fun**_ **watching you flail around!"** she cackled, jingling her keys. **"Poor Demitri. Can't punch your way through your problems without your friends around. It breaks my heart."** Klefki flew behind him. **"Oh, wait, I don't have a heart!"** She shook her head. **"Silly bizarre Pokémon anatomy. So confusing, isn't it?"**

Demitri angrily stomped around. "Why you— shut up! I… I…" He gripped his head and shook it.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Want to know what else is confusing? Those tusks of yours. How can you detach them and not, like, get an infection or anything?"** Kelfki wondered, remaining behind Demitri. **"For that matter, how do they even come back to you when you throw them? The physics ain't there, doofus!"**

From across the battlefield, Tessa looked over her shoulder. "What are you doing? Can't you tell when an opponent's Swaggering you?" she barked.

"Well, uh… oh." Demitri dropped to one knee and stared at his hand. It was blurry, like he'd stuck it under water. "H-Hey. Why can't you help?"

Tessa fired an Aura Sphere. It collided with a mirror image. She threw an arm up over her face. "Because I'm a bit busy at the moment!" she growled. Tessa charged a Flash Cannon, but her aura feelers tensed. She hopped back. A dragon-shaped beam hit the ground in front of her. Giratina's serpentine Origin Form loomed overhead. Tessa fired straight up, then took off running.

Two Dragon Pulses snuffed out the Flash Cannon. Blue fireballs gathered in Giratina's other four tendrils. Tessa glanced back. Her aura feelers shot up in alarm. She sprinted toward Kelfki, who had knocked Demitri to his belly with a mouth-shaped burst of pink energy. Four Aura Spheres chased after Tessa. She somersaulted underneath Klefki.

 **"Hmm? Eager to perish by my keys, huh? Well, I'm happy to ob—"**

Tessa punched Kelfki into the oncoming Aura Spheres. Explosions drowned out her startled cries. Sighing in relief, Tessa leaned over and yanked Demitri up. He stumbled to a stop.

"Th-Thanks." Demitri rubbed the back of his head. "Think you can keep Klefki off my back? I might be able to take that big, ugly snake."

"Sounds good to me," Tessa replied, happy to have that burden off her shoulders. The relief came to an abrupt stop as Giratina charged out of a shadowy portal and hammered Tessa into the barrier.

Blue energy sheathed Demitri's tusks. He tried to slash Giratina, but electricity ran up his spine. He froze in place.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Forgetting someone?"**

Demitri tried to move, but his legs wouldn't respond. He could do nothing but stare into Giratina's face as two Dragon Pulses blew him toward the far side of the battlefield.

Tessa scrambled toward him, clutching her right shoulder in pain. Giratina shot Aura Spheres from his tendrils. Tessa tucked her head in and stuck close to the barrier. The Aura Spheres slammed against it. She stumbled and fell to her stomach beside Demitri. They both groaned in pain.

"Gah! This is so frustrating!" Tessa threw her paws over his face. "We need a plan. Can you stand up?"

"Nrrgh… n-no. Can't feel my legs," Demitri muttered. "Oh, Mew, it's like I'm in one of those nightmares where I'm running away from a giant death beam, but no matter what I do, it keeps getting closer."

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. She rolled to her feet and swung electrified fists around to snuff out Klefki's Thunder Wave. This left Tessa vulnerable. She took a blue fireball to the back. Tessa got a mouthful of dirt for her troubles. She smacked the ground with a paw, mentally telling herself to take deep breaths.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Why, you work even worse with dino-breath over here than you did with Shane when you two were starting out,"** Klefki said. **"I should've considered trying even harder to drive a wedge between you two."**

Aura surged in Tessa's paws. She nearly hurled an Aura Sphere forward, but stopped at the last moment when she realized she was staring down Giratina. Tessa instead jammed a paw into her bag.

 **"Oh no you don't!"**

Black smoke spread out from Klefki. Tessa lunged for Demitri. She managed to jam a heal seed and an oran berry into his mouth right before the Heal Block caught her and sealed off crucial items. Tessa spun around, shooting gray beams from her paws. They faltered before two Dragon Pulses.

"Come on. Get up! I need backup, here," Tessa growled, grabbing Demitri by the arm and yanking him up.

"Agh! I'm up! I'm up!" Demitri rolled his arm. "Holy Mew. And here I thought Mispy's grips were strong."

"Less talking, more attacking," Tessa said. She hurled a blast seed through the air. Thinking quickly, Demitri detached his tusks. One sliced through the blast seed before Giratina or Klefki could break it. An explosion blinded Demitri's foes.

"Get back!" Demitri said. He punched the ground. Stone spires jutted up in front of him. Pained cries sounded across the battlefield. Demitri's tail wagged.

Tessa seized her opening and tracked Klefki's aura. Reeling from the Stone Edge, Klefki had no countermeasures for her Aura Sphere. By the same token, however, Tessa lacked the means to defend herself against Giratina's Aura Spheres. Luckily, Demitri was ready. His first tusk returned to him, slicing two blue fireballs apart. Demitri downed the other two with his other tusk.

 **"Clever parlor trick. But that's the last time I'm letting you pull it off!"** Klefki hissed.

"He's coming in overhead!" Tessa said, leaping into the air to intercept. A dragon-shaped beam sniped her first, however. Tessa hit the barrier and crashed into the ground.

Demitri readied another Stone Edge, but wasn't fast enough. Klefki's sparks peppered his scales. Paralysis set in once again. Demitri slowly came to a stop in mid-swing.

Tessa shakily lifted her head to see Demitri's arms and tail twitching, with Klefki circling around him, laughing gleefully. "No… it can't end like this. It _can't._ "

Her field of vision turned blue.

"Come on… come _on._ I won't… I can't… _give up here!_ "

A sudden surge of energy shot through Tessa's system. She zoomed across the ground, skirting Aura Spheres. Giratina dropped from the sky, mouth open wide to swallow Tessa up. However, the orange blur raced by him. Tessa banked right. She lunged for Klefki, nabbing her in an electrified fist. Tessa slammed Kelfki into the ground.

Demitri's eyes widened. "W-Wait… did you just transform?"

Tessa thrust her paws apart, dispelling the orange glow and revealing her Mega Evolution in its full splendor. She fixed her blazing red eyes on Klefki. "Chew on this, dirtbag!" She grabbed hold of Demitri's tail.

"H-Hey. Wait a second! I'm not okay with th— _ahh!_ "

Tessa used a very literal version of Dragon Hammer. Repeatedly.

Tessa successfully smashed Klefki to bits and pieces, her fairy-typing unable to save her from blunt-force trauma. Victorious, Tessa hoisted a dizzy Demitri up. "Oogh. Is it over? I've got the worst sense of déjà vu," he groaned.

"Not yet. Ready to move faster than you've ever moved before?" Tessa said.

Demitri's eyes bugged out. "No! I'm not! Put me down!" But his paralysis hindered his movements.

Tessa stuffed another heal seed into his mouth. "Ready your Dual Chop."

"Wait, what? How are you going to—"

Tessa used Fling.

" _Seriously?!_ " Demitri cried, speeding through the air. He managed to gather his wits, channeling energy into his tusks. Giratina was so unprepared, he couldn't ready an attack before Demitri collided with him. Demitri dug in his claws, then hacked away with his tusks. Giratina fell to the ground, roaring in pain. He shattered into hundreds of pieces that promptly evaporated, leaving Demitri stuck in the ground by his tail-axe.

"Nice work! You were perfect," Tessa cheered, fist-pumping in excitement.

"Yeah. Great. Feels great. Go team," Demitri deadpanned, yanking his tail out of the ground. He arced his back, which cricked loudly. "Oogh. That's gonna hurt in the morning." He looked up at the sky. "Say, uh… is it me or has the sky gotten _brighter_ since we started fighting?"

Tessa followed his gaze. Her aura dreadlocks crinkled. "That's… that's not good."

* * *

Crystal arrows punctured Owen's wing membranes. One struck him in the right thigh. Owen roared, desperately flapping his wings to maintain altitude. Shadows swirled beneath him. James' lone red eye pierced through the darkness. Flames split the shadows apart, revealing James readying Spirit Shackle arrows. Owen's eyes widened. He braced himself for a fresh wave of pain.

But it was James who cried out instead. Owen caught a glimpse of Silvally's tail whizzing by. His relief was short-lived, however. Arceus' wheel shimmered in the distance. Rock shards careened toward him. Owen had no choice but to tuck his wings in, falling to the ground and running as fast as his stubby legs could carry him.

Arceus looked down at him. He tensed up. An unsettling chill ran down Owen's spine. He instinctively whipped his wings forward. Arceus popped up inches in front of him and staggered backward, hissing in surprise. Owen shrugged off his lucky prediction of Arceus using Extreme Speed. He pushed Arceus back with a Flamethrower.

 **"You're not getting away from me,** _ **worm!**_ **"**

Panicking, Owen tried shooting into the air, but the holes in his wings hindered his movement. Owen concentrated on the Mystic power dwelling in his core and channeled it into his wings. He hovered out of the way of an arrow barrage. Owen glanced down.

"I've got this! Keep Arceus at bay for me!" Silvally shouted, icy air swirling around his beak and talons.

James peeled himself off the barrier. **"What's this? Setting your boyfriend up to take the fall, are we? That's not very nice of—"**

A sheet of ice pelted James, freezing him to the ground. Silvally was ready to lunge and wail on James, when he skidded to a halt. He glanced back at Owen, who Arceus had knocked back with a nasty Zen Headbutt.

 _'Wait. Don't I have to finish this guy off with a Z-Move or Mega Evolution to free him from Necrozma's control?'_ Silvally winced. He couldn't do either of those things. Did that mean James was doomed to have his life force drained by Necrozma. Silvally scanned the battlefield. He squinted at the light beams Arceus sent toward Owen. His eyes flickered.

"Ah! That's it!" he shouted. Silvally raced forward, leaving James frozen in place, even though the ice was chipping away. Silvally bounded toward Owen, beak open wide.

Owen flew right over him, a confused look on his face. "What are you doing? What about James?"

"We can't finish him off yet. If we do, you might lose your friend forever!" Silvally explained. "You have to tend to him. I've got a plan!" He zipped away before Owen could ask him for details. Silvally collected all the dust from Arceus' latest attack in the base of his mouth.

Arceus slammed his hooves on the ground. Stone Edge spires jutted up. Silvally clamped his beak shut and held his breath, worried about inhaling all the dust. He weaved through the rocks, then turned tail and ran back through them, gathering more dust in his beak. Silvally dashed toward Owen. The latter stood in front of James, Flamethrower at the ready if he burst out of the ice.

Roaring, Arceus landed on the ground. Bright light rippled across his body. An unseen weight pressed down on Silvally's shoulders. He nearly fell to the ground, losing all the dust in the process. Silvally clamped his beak shut and shook his head about. Likewise, Owen choked on his own Flamethrower, struggling to maintain his footing.

"What's going on here?" Owen grunted.

 **"Gravity, of course! I'm surprised you didn't recognize it. It's a Barky specialty!"**

Owen's eyes widened. Pain spread through his chest. He sailed through the air and landed in a heap near Silvally, who glanced to his right to see Arceus readying another attack. Silvally's eyes widened. He had no other choice to put his plan into action. Silvally turned left and stomped on Owen's belly. Owen gasped, mouth opening wide.

 _'Sorry about this.'_

Silvally spat a small gem out of his mouth and into Owen's. He sat up, eyes wide, looking ready to gag. "What was that for?!" Owen huffed.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Aww, look, the lovebirds are having a special moment right before I take their light. How** _ **adorable,**_ **"** James said. **"But we have to keep this T-rated, so I'm afraid I have to intervene!"**

A half-dozen arrows raced toward Owen and Silvally, accompanied by dazzling light beams from Arceus. Owen stepped forward, opened his mouth wide, and spewed a massive stream of blue fire, blowing apart the arrows. Silvally leaped in front of Owen, ghost memories active, and blunted the Judgment beams with purple ectoplasm. Orange light shimmered behind him.

James' eyes widened. **"No, that's impossible! He shouldn't be able to do that!"**

Silvally smirked. "You should've been more careful, Necrozma. All those attacks Barky over here used gave off stardust." He narrowed his eyes dangerously. "And you know what we can do with that stardust."

 **"Emeras…"** James eyes darted about. **"Awakening emeras?!"** He whirled on Arceus. **"Fool! Attack them! Kill them! Rip them to pieces!"**

A fiery tornado erupted behind Silvally, giving way to a pillar of orange light. Owen burst forth from the light with a mighty roar, spreading his freshly-healed, dark-blue, newly-jagged wings apart. Blue flames licked at the corners of his mouth. Owen looked at his black-scaled hands and thickened claws. "Th… this is… I feel…"

Spirit Shackle arrows whizzed toward him. Owen effortlessly blew them apart with a massive Flamethrower, as blue as his enlarged tail-flame. Below him, Silvally lunged into the air, slicing apart giant rocks with his bright orange talons.

"It's up to you, Owen! Use that surge of power to free your friend!" Silvally cried, kicking off a rock and lunging for Arceus.

Owen's gut stirred. Without even thinking, Owen sped toward James. His body heated up. That heat morphed into a surge of familiar energy. He'd seen Gahi and Demitri using it numerous times. Corkscrewing through James' desperate Shadow Ball, Owen couldn't help but shout, " _DRAGON!_ "

He collided with James. A veritable tsunami of blue energy crashed into him. James struck the cube barrier. His prism armor shattered as he fell to the ground. Owen didn't have time to question how he had effortlessly succeeded in learning Outrage. He swooped down, caught James, then gently lowered him to the ground. James faded into a blue fireball that dissolved into Owen's belly.

"Hang tight, James. This'll all be over soon," Owen said, patting his stomach. He turned and shot off after Silvally, channeling the same energy he'd used to attack James with. Silvally spotted Owen out of the corner of his eye and shifted to his grass memories. Green energy shrouded his forelegs.

Arceus' wheel ignited. Before he could pelt Silvally with fireballs, however, Owen slammed into him from behind, leaving a giant crack in Arceus' hide. Silvally shifted over to his water memories. He lunged toward Arceus and intercepted him with a swipe of his talons. Arceus crashed into the ground with a raspy groan. Owen flew to Silvally's side. They dived toward Arceus in unison.

The resultant shockwave generated from their piercing of Arceus' body obliterated all the cube barriers. They, along with Arceus' shattered remnants, faded away into a black mist, leaving Owen and Silvally standing side by side.

"Oh, thank goodness! You're all okay!"

Tessa ran over toward Silvally. His eyes widened. "Tessa! A-Are you sure you're okay like that?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I don't really know how, but I'm managing," she replied.

"Oi! What's all this now? Owen… since when could yeh Mega Evolve?"

Gahi whizzed by Owen, stopping to look at his backside. He frowned as Owen turned around. "Silvally helped me do it thanks to some, um, split-second thinking," Owen said. "I was able to rescue James from Necrozma's control. He's tucked away in the Grass Orb for now. What's more… I'm finally a dragon!" Owen tilted his head up and belted out blue fire. "Isn't this great?"

"Huh. Well, consider yourself lucky. If you'd gotten the _other_ Mega Evolution that Charizard are capable of, you'd have kept your typing," Shane said, unable to stop himself from smirking at the sight of another Pokémon fanboying over dragon-types.

Gahi, on the other hand, wasn't amused. "Wait. Owen has _two_ Mega Evolutions?"

Shane nodded. "Isn't it great?" he said, smugly mimicking Owen's question from earlier.

"No! It's unfair is what is! Why did Star give him two Mega Evolutions while I get nothing?" Gahi huffed. "I can understand her ignoring Mispy. Mega Meganium doesn't make any sense. But the world needs Mega Flygon!"

"Funny you should mention that. I'm pretty sure the—" Shane paused en route to Gahi and Owen. "Err, I think the powers that be _wanted_ to make a Mega Flygon, but couldn't come up with any solid ideas for what it should look like. Well, that's the case in this world anyway."

Gahi looked about ready to burst a blood vessel. Owen zipped to his side and threw an arm over Gahi's neck. "Aha ha ha. Well, I'm sure Star would be happy to listen to your complaints when we get back home."

"Um, guys?"

Everyone turned toward Espy, who was looking up at the sky. "We still haven't, y'know, actually stopped Necrozma."

As if on cue, the golden vortex above their heads stopped swirling. Its center spread apart, revealing a multicolored portal.

 **"Heehee…** _ **heeheeheehee!**_ **Yes! It's finally ready!"**

Shane's tails shot into the air. "Damn it! If Necrozma fires his decay powers into that thing… then every world in every reality will perish! We've gotta do something!"

"Wait… _that's_ his plan?!" Demitri shot stunned looks toward his teammates. "B-But that means—"

"We have to stop him _now,_ " Mispy said.

"But I already spent up my Z-Power," Espy said, glancing at her looplet.

"Then we have to make a run at Necrozma. He's practically built from the stuff!" Silvally said, bending down. "Get on. We've got no time to lose!"

Team Radiance climbed aboard Silvally while Mispy hopped onto Gahi and Demitri got on Owen. Silvally flipped to his dark memories. "Everyone, form behind me!"

He charged forward, passing through the ruins of Destiny Tower. Team Alloy trailed behind him, their eyes trained on Necrozma. Light tendrils trailed off his body, streaming toward the sky to stabilize the Cataclysmic Ultra Rift. Two multicolored eyes opened.

 **"Do you fools really think you can stop me? How utterly laughable! I will mull you down where you stand!"** Necrozma shouted. Golden beams fired from his wings.

"There's our chance!" Silvally said, skidding to a halt. "You guys, scatter! My team will gather up stardust!" Silvally took off running again, trying to avoid the giant lasers.

Gahi and Owen stayed airborne, the former zipping effortlessly through a series of brightly-colored explosions, while the latter had to throw up a blue barrier to keep himself from getting vaporized. Owen shot a stream of fire toward Necrozma, but he was too far away for the attack to do much of anything.

 **"Obnoxious pests. Die already!"**

Shadows bubbled in Necrozma's wings. This time, sickly, thorn-like globs twisted through the air. Owen's eyes widened. "Gahi, get back! You can't let those things touch you!"

"Yeh, yeh, I know, I know!" Gahi was back beside Owen in an instant. Mispy looked a bit dazed. "When are they gonna tell us what their big plan is?"

"Just focus on dodging," Owen said, flying to the right. A liquid thorn came perilously close to clipping his wing, but Mispy zapped it away with a well-timed Solar Beam. Gahi flew ahead of Owen, trying to steer his friend through the tangled mess of corrupted energy. After a few rolls and tumbles, Owen emerged out the end of Necrozma's deadly, makeshift labyrinth. They were now close enough Necrozma that Owen had to squint just to see anything.

"Down here!" Silvally cried, prompting Owen and Gahi to look down.

 **"Oh no you don't!"** Necrozma roared. His eyes flashed pink. A psychic force took hold of all four members of Team Alloy. Owen struggled in vain while Necrozma levitated him higher into the air. **"Heeheeheehee! Well, you certainly provided me with some entertainment, I'll give you that. But it's time you met your ends."** More shadows bubbled in his wing membranes. **"Now, perish!"**

Before Necrozma could launch the killing blow, white light hammered him from below. Screeching, Necrozma lost his grip on Team Alloy.

"Your turn, Espy!" Shane cried, rushing to intercept Team Alloy with Silvally. Espy looked up, forehead gem flashing. A second Dazzling Gleam struck Necrozma between his golden legs. He coughed up a mouthful of sparkling spittle. One of the light tendrils tethering him to the Ultra Rift tore apart.

 **"Nrrrgh! Stop! Stop it! I am Necrozma, Devourer of Light… Destroyer of Worlds! You cannot defeat me! I am** _ **eternal!**_ **"** Necrozma thundered.

"Yeah, well you should've thought about that before tethering yourself to your fancy-schmancy portal, asshole!" Espy fired back. She turned around and shook her rear at him, swishing her tail from side to side.

Red light flared up all through Necrozma's eyes and body. **"Indolent little cur! I will** _ **annihilate**_ **the lot of you!"** Necrozma craned his head up. Purple and black decay energy formed up into a ball over his mouth. It swelled bigger and bigger until it was even larger than Necrozma. **"Heehee…** _ **heeheeheehee!**_ **This is the end for you… for all of you!"**

Necrozma thrust his wings down, flinging the death sphere down toward Team Alloy and Team Radiance.

Espy shot a frantic look toward the rest of the group. "Do it now, Shane!" she cried, lifting up her looplet. It shimmered with golden light. A fresh orange aura enveloped her. Espy tensed up, one again summoning the giant ghost-arms from the ground and launching them toward Necrozma's energy ball. They pressed up against the decay energy, but only slowed its progress.

Then another orange flash erupted. A giant ice beam joined Espy's ghost arms, slowing the death ball to a complete stop.

Necrozma's multicolored eyes widened. **"What? That's impossible! Nothing can stand up to that power! It's meant to be unstoppable!"** he snarled. **"And you burned up all your Z-Moves! How? Why?!"**

"It's thanks to all that light energy you poured into your attacks!" Silvally said, grinning. "I thought you out of everyone would know what a force Z-Power is to be reckoned with!"

The death sphere slowly moved back toward Necrozma. He tried to float back, but his light tethers kept him place. **"No. It won't end like this! I refuse! You will never defeat me!"** Necrozma spread his wings out. Purple energy coalesced around his chest spike. He struck the death ball with a Moongeist Beam, pushing it back toward the ground.

Silvally glanced at Owen's teammates. "We're up! Get ready!"

Mispy wrapped some of her vines around Silvally's Memory Looplet, then looped others around Demitri's and Gahi's arms. Orange light spread across all three of them.

"Whoa! This feeling! It's almost like… like…" Demitri's voice trailed off. Dragonfire pooled in the back of his throat. He and Gahi looked up in unison. Both belched out gigantic dragons made of blue-purple fire. The energy-dragons corkscrewed around one another until they joined with the other attacks. This brought the death ball to a standstill once again.

 **"Nrrgh… nnn… h-how? This can't… be happening!"** Necrozma grunted.

"It's time to put an end to all of this!" Tessa bellowed, aura charging in her paws. She glanced at Owen. "You ready?"

Owen nodded, mouth ready to burst open with flames.

"Say your prayers, Necrozma!" Tessa shouted. She thrust her paws forward, releasing a giant blue beam. At the same time, Owen unleashed an equally-massive Flamethrower. The moment they struck the death sphere, blue energy rippled across it. The collision sent it hurtling back toward Necrozma, bolstered by the combination of Z-Moves.

 **"No!** _ **No!**_ **"** Necrozma couldn't keep his Moongeist Beam up while trying to destroy his light tendrils. **"Jam… blast—** _ **arrrgh!**_ **"**

His agonized screams echoed through the sky for a few seconds before a tremendous multicolor explosion drowned him out. The blast was so strong, it knocked everyone onto their backs. As the explosion faded, the faint sounds of shattering glass rang out across the island.

In flashes of orange light, Owen and Tessa returned to normal. Tessa dropped to her paws and knees, panting heavily. "O-Ow," she squeaked. "Let's not… ever do that… again."

Owen looked at his hands and sighed. "It was fun while it lasted, I guess."

"Is it over? Did we win?" Demitri asked, rubbing his head.

The dust finally settled. All traces of the Cataclysmic Ultra Rift had vanished. The sky was now a deep-purple, with scattered traces of black clouds. Mispy looked up and frowned. "Doesn't feel like it," she whispered.

"We did it!" Shane shouted, hopping about. "Thank the gods, this nightmare is finally over!"

"Yeh sure about that? Cause yer world looks pretty dang depressin'," Gahi said, flying forward and taking in the view of Destiny Tower's ruins.

Shane winced. "It… it's not supposed to look like this. But since we beat Necrozma, everything should go back to normal! Right guys?" He looked to his teammates, tails wagging. But when none of them responded, his ears and tails drooped. "Uh, guys?"

Tessa jogged away from the group, aura feelers twitching. She slowed down upon finding the source of the irritation: the shattered remnants of Necrozma's core. Black slime oozed out of the colorless glass shards. "Hey! I, uh… I found Necrozma!" she called. "Or what's left of him, anyway."

"You're kidding! He survived that?" Shane said, running to Tessa's side. He cringed when he saw what was left. "Eww. Never mind." He looked over his shoulder and barked, "Hey, watch where you're stepping, everyone!"

"How should we get rid of it?" Tessa wondered.

"I dunno," Shane said, brow furrowed. "I guess I could freeze it and then you could break it?"

Tessa shrugged. "I guess that works."

Shane sucked in a breath, only to stumble back, squeaking in surprise as an Ultra Wormhole opened up in front of him. A neon-blue hook shot out of the portal and embedded in the ground. A blue forcefield encased Necrozma's remains and levitated them up into the air.

" _Finally!_ Yo, Vix. We've got him!"

Shane's tails shot into the air. "What's going on here? Who goes there?" he said.

"You're kidding me! After all that, we've got _another_ problem?" Owen groaned, trudging over alongside Silvally and his teammates.

The forcefield bubble moved to the side. A Solgaleo stepped out of the portal, the modified grappling hook sticking out from a band around his right foreleg.

"W-Whoa! It's that thing Necrozma looked like," Demitri said. "What does it want with us?"

"Oh, don't worry about Aelius, here. He's fine."

Aelius turned to reveal two Vulpixes, a Zorua, and a Fennekin sitting on his left side. Each one wore a white jumpsuit and helmeted visor that looked awfully familiar to Team Radiance.

"What's wit' the crazy getups? You guys aliens?" Gahi wondered, tilting his head to the side.

"An Ultra Recon Squad?" Espy's eyes narrowed. "Wait a second… I recognize this combo! You're Team Foxtrot, aren't you? The ones Team Paradox rescued… and who inadvertently freed Necrozma from his prison!" She glared at them.

Sherbet shrank back toward Aelius. "O-Oh no. C-Captain, they know about us! W-What should we do? There's too many for us to take!"

"Hush, girl! They're probably talking crazy! This place is nothing but a glorified crater. They can't know anything about the Ultra Recon Squad," Cole scoffed.

"Actually, we're friends with Team Paradox," Tessa said, crossing her arms. "They told us all about you."

"S-See? I told you this was a bad idea!" Sherbet whimpered.

"Uh… anyone else totally lost right now?" Demitri asked. His teammates raised their hands… or, in Mispy's case, vines.

"Did you guys come for Necrozma?" Silvally growled. "Because if you think we're about to let you walk off with him after all the damage he's done—"

"Now you listen here, Beast Killer!" Vixen said, causing Silvally's fierce expression to falter. Team Alloy exchanged confused looks. "We've been _trying_ to track Necrozma down ever since he laid waste to Ultra Village. We just had a lot of setbacks. But now that we've got him, we can see to it that he's properly disposed of."

"Not to mention get off of prob—"

"Yeh'll be taken off probation when _we_ say you're ready."

Team Foxtrot cringed and looked behind them. A bunny, a gecko, and a monkey all stood on Aelius' specialized seats, wearing the same gear as Team Foxtrot. The bunny leaped off, landing in front of Team Foxtrot. "We're yer co-cap'ns. So, unless yeh four want to get stuck on laundry duty once we're back at base, yeh'll shape yer attitudes up!"

Vixen shuffled backward. "Yeah, yeah," she mumbled.

"Excuse me? What did yeh jus' say?" the bunny huffed.

"Err… yes, sir, Captain Striker!" Vixen shouted, standing at attention.

The bunny turned to Tessa and extended an arm. "Forgive 'em. Scorbunny Striker, interim co-cap'n of Team Foxtrot," he said. Tessa hesitantly took his arm and shook it. He turned and gestured back toward Aelius. "My fellow co-cap'ns, Sobble William and Grookey Frakes."

William slid behind Frakes, only for the latter to shove the former away with an annoyed huff. Tessa looked at them, blinking slowly. "Scor… bunny? I'm sorry… what? Are you guys Pokémon or Ultra Beasts?"

"Ultra Beasts? P'shaaw! Yeh living under a rock or somethin', lassie? We're 'mons through an' through!" Striker declared, thumping his chest.

"Um, captain, it's entirely possible your species might not exist in this world," Sherbet offered.

Striker looked around. "No kiddin'. I'm surprised _anythin'_ exists here. This place is a total dump!"

"I'm so lost here," Owen whispered, shaking his head.

"Good. It ain't jus' me fer once," Gahi said, smirking. "I like that captain guy, though."

Owen gave his teammate an unamused look. He walked toward Striker. "Uh, hi there? Mind if I interject for a second."

"Oi. And what d'ya want, laddie?" Striker asked.

"I'm not a kid," Owen huffed. "And I just wanted to talk for a second." Owen took a deep breath, then quickly surmised the situation with his team, Team Radiance, and Necrozma.

"I see," Striker muttered, tapping his foot rapidly on the ground. "Any of you lot sendin' this info back to base?"

"Y-Yessir!" Sherbet said. "And I got a response from them!" She trotted over to Striker and handed him a cube displaying a holographic message.

"Hmm. All right. Can't argue with that, I guess," Striker said, shrugging.

"What did it say? Do your bosses know a way to fix up our world?" Silvally asked, a worried look on his face.

"Ha! Are yeh kiddin'? Look around yeh! No amount of pixie dust or wishful thinkin' could fix this up!" Striker said, stifling a laugh.

Team Radiance's jaws dropped in unison. "Wait, wait, wait! That can't be right!" Shane said. "We… we had people counting on us to help them! What about our friends?!"

"And our families?" Tessa squeaked, placing a trembling paw against her chest.

Striker clapped his hands together. "Oi! William!"

William hopped off Aelius and trudged over to Tessa. "There, there." He rubbed her leg. His visor slid up, revealing tear-filled eyes. "If you need to cry, I'll cry along with you."

"This can't be right. There's gotta be _something_ you lot can do!" Silvally fumed, his fire memories activating.

"Sorry, bucko, we've got our orders. We're to help these folks get to a rendezvous point." Striker pointed at Team Alloy. "Yeh'll have to wait for a separate Solgaleo to come and take yeh to a refugee center, like the other folks who lost their worlds to UB attacks."

"Are you serious?! Our world's still here! We just need to… uh…" Shane's voice trailed off.

Striker shrugged. "Our base said we gotta get you off this hunk of rock. They're gonna be repurposin' it for… lesse here…" He looked at the cube Sherbet handed him. "Ah, here we are. Fer Chocobo habitation!"

" _Seriously?!_ You're telling us to shove off so you can replace our home with _Chocobos?_ What the hell kind of bullshit is that?!" Shane snarled.

Frakes and Team Foxtrot surrounded Shane. "Look, either you come along willingly or we'll sedate you. It's your choice," Vixen said.

"I… I don't believe this," Shane whispered. His legs grew so weary he had to sit down.

Owen walked over to Silvally. "I'm, uh, really sorry… about what happened to your home," he said, rubbing his shoulder. "I wish there was something we could do for you." He glanced at his teammates, who were climbing into the seats on Aelius' back. "I'd offer to let you come back to Kilo with us, but…" His voice trailed off and he shook his head. "I'm starting to think it's not safe over there, either."

Silvally lowered his head. "It's okay," he rasped. "We'll be fine. The team's—" He cut himself off with a sniffle. "We've always found a way to pull through in the past."

Owen put a hand on Silvally's shoulder. "There's so much I wish we could talk about. Will we ever get to see each other again?"

"Who knows? I think, for now, you should focus on keeping the peace in your world," Silvally said. "And, no matter what happens, stay positive and don't give up. That's what I like most about you."

Owen couldn't help but lean over and hug Silvally. "Take care," he whispered.

"You too," Silvally said. He rejoined his teammates while Owen flew onto Aelius backside. Team Radiance watched as Aelius jumped back into the Ultra Wormhole, taking Team Alloy with him.

"So, I guess… this is it, huh?" Tessa said. "Everything's over… only it's not the ending we really wanted." She shook her head. "I just can't believe it! After all that work… all the struggles… _this_ is what we're left with? It's so… so…"

Silvally nudged Tessa. "We can't give up here. Even if it sucks how things turned out, we have to look forward. It's what…" He sucked in a breath. "I think that's what everyone else would want us to do if they were still here."

He looked at his teammates. They slowly nodded at him.

"Yer ride's here!" Striker announced, gesturing to a second Solgaleo that had popped up from another Ultra Wormhole.

Team Radiance silently climbed aboard. Shane turned around and took one last look at the darkened sky and rotting ground.

"Goodbye, Horizon. I wish things could've ended differently," he whispered, before everything vanished in a flash of light.

 **THE EN—**

"Cut, cut, _cut!_ "

A white forepaw kept the Ultra Wormhole from closing completely. Shane and his teammates walked back out, the former with a look of disbelief on his face.

"Seriously? _This_ is what we're doing for April Fools' Day? _Another_ stupid crossover?" Shane looked around. "Yo, Giratina! Get your pasty butt out here!"

One of Hoopa's ring portals materialized next to Shane and produced a gray tail. It wagged excitedly. Shane looked at it with disgust. "That's not what I meant!"

"You should've been more specific, then!"

The rest of Giratina waddled out of the portal, with Hoopa lounging casually on his head. He caught his ring with his free hand. "Well, what do you want?" Hoopa asked.

"To lodge a complaint! This idea stinks!" Shane snorted out frost. "It's even stupider than last year's!"

"What are you talking about? It's perfect!" Giratina chirped, his tail wagging. "It plays off subverting gambler's fallacy to catch everyone by surprise."

"Yeah. See, Hoopa knew that, after last year, people wouldn't expect you to do another crossover… because that'd be too predictable," Hoopa said. "So, Hoopa and Giratina got the director's permission to create this, catching everyone off-guard." His grin broadened. "A perfect prank!"

Shane frowned, not remotely swayed by Hoopa's "logic."

"It's a mean-spirited prank, is what it is! Tricking people into thinking this was the end? That's unnecessarily cruel!" Silvally said, narrowing his eyes at Hoopa.

"Oh, p'shaw. Hoopa had _way_ more convincing fake endings planned that he could've used," Hoopa said, nonchalantly flipping his free hand. "If Hoopa _really_ wanted to upset people, he would've had Necrozma slaughter the lot of you and destroy the world."

A new Ultra Wormhole opened beside Giratina. Necrozma, bound to a Solgaleo again, stuck his head out. " **What?! Why didn't we go with that option, then? It would've been** _ **way**_ **more fun!"**

"No. Pranks are fun when they're silly. Not if they make people sad," Giratina said, pretending to rub tears from his eyes with his wings. "This prank has silliness in spades. That's what makes it great!"

Shane rolled his eyes. "You two have a _weird_ definition of silliness. And great, for that matter." He sighed and shook his head.

"Well, the joke's on you, because this stuff was written into your contract!" Giratina said, sticking his tongue out.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. It's not my fault the one in charge is such a doofus," Shane grumbled. He turned and stomped toward the original Ultra Wormhole. "If anyone needs me, I'll be in my trailer."

Silvally tilted his head. "Doing what?"

"What do you think?" Shane smirked, then vanished into the portal.

Everyone looked expectantly at Silvally, who blinked slowly. After a few seconds, his head crest fanned out. "Hey, uh, I just realized I left an oven in my quiche. Gotta run!" He dashed off into the same Ultra Wormhole, ignoring his teammates' confused looks.

"Uh… am I missing something, here?" Tessa asked, looking back at the others.

"Yes you are. But if Hoopa told you, we'd have to bump up the production's rating!" Hoopa snickered. He threw open a ring portal and disappeared into it with Giratina, leaving Espy and Tessa standing there, their faces paling.

 **Happy April Fools' Day!**

* * *

Yes, that's right... this was yet another silly crossover omake. The fic is not over. I marked it as being complete for the sake of the joke, so I'm sorry if I spooked anyone. This year was a follow-up of sorts to an event that took place on Serebii, in which Silvally met a bunch of characters from other fanfics... and Necrozma wound up hijacking the plot and trying to kill everyone. Hence why some of these characters know each other. So, I'd like to thank Namohysip, who gave me permission to use the cast and setting from his fic, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Hands of Creation and served as my beta to make sure I wrote his characters correctly. If you haven't read it and you're interested in what you saw, give it a look. It's in my favorites list

Likewise, Aelius, who showed up at the end, is a character made by sakarime, who's been a huge help with the ask blog as well as some recent character and scenery-related descriptions. She's working on a PMD comic. If you're looking for something else to read or want to see some adorable art, then this is right up your alley: deviantart dot com / sakarime / gallery /

Okay, so I know this update had plenty of jokes going around... but I do have a serious matter to bring up. **As of this posting,** _ **Guiding Light**_ **will no longer be updating weekly.** The short version is that I am in a bad place physically and mentally and can't maintain this update schedule. If you want to read my full reasoning, you can do so here: ask-the-guiding-light-cast dot tumblr dot com / post / 183620487223 / slowing-things-down. **Updates will continue to be on Saturdays, but I recommend following the story (or the blog) so you get alerted.** I realize there are plenty of people following this fic, whether you're a regular commenter or a silent reader. I'm sorry if I'm disappointing any of you, but this is the only way I can see the fic through to the end successfully. Thank you for understanding.

SuperOmegaGuest: Thanks for the kind words. And, yes, of course some folks are surviving! I don't want things getting too depressing, here.

Anon Omega: Mew's behavior is more of less what I headcanon your prototypical Mew does on a daily basis.

Dovah Bear: Well, glad to have you back. Stick around, because we're getting to the really juicy stuff!

LarimerMoon: I'm not sure if you're going to see this, but you're more than welcome to! I'd love to see it. The problem is, FFN doesn't like people posting links to anything (as you can tell from these notes, ha ha), so to send any links, you'd probably have to use the fic's tumblr blog or something.

Another guest: Dark Matter, you say? Hmm... well, we'll see about that in the coming chapters. And I managed to send something off. Hopefully it reached you.

Okay, that'll do it. Next time: Peering into the eye of the storm.


	104. A Glimpse Into the Void

We're back! Thank you all for the kind words. Sorry for anyone who got spooked by the April Fools' Day joke. It's time to move toward a proper ending.

 **Content advisory:** chapter has some stronger sexual themes than usual.

* * *

The open ocean lay completely still. Waves stood frozen in the midst of travelling toward distant shores. Ripples in the water were more like uneven patches of land. Below the surface, a school of Magikarp sat in suspended animation, their typical wide-eyed, open-mouthed expressions plainly visible for anyone to see.

However, the cluster of chains drifting over the water didn't care about the petrified Pokémon. The creature's reptilian eye lay fixed on a speck of land off in the distance. It was barely visible under the dark sky.

 **"I kNOw YoU'Re sTiLl tHErE. ThIs tIMe… He WoN'T gET In My WaY. YoU wiLl… sucCUMb… to VoID…"**

Void's chains grinded together, producing an uneven voice that fluctuated in pitch. If the water-types under the surface weren't stuck, they likely would have fled. Instead, they could only move their eyes, following Void until it had hovered out of view.

Three of Void's chains tried to pull out of the wing-like formation, only to knot around one another. **"FoOl. YoU WoULd sTiLl tRy to DEfY me? AlL oF ThIS iS YoUR fAUlT. NoW, StOP iNTeRfErINg. yOU cAN'T saVE hER. YoU CaN't SaVe AnYOne."**

Again, some of Void's chains lurched backward, trying to drag the core away from the distant island. And again, the other chains quickly pulled them back into formation.

 **"WhAt aN oBNoxIOuS pEST YoU ArE,"** Void growled, its chains rattling. **"YoUR aCtIoNs ArE OnLY wAStINg My TImE. YoU gAVe YOuRsElF uP TO mE. YoU CaN'T taKE tHAt BaCk."**

A few more chains tried tugging void backward, only to spasm and fall limp. Void continued floating forward, the limp chains dragging across the ocean's motionless surface.

 **"OnCe I tAkE HeR LiGHt… I'Ll SiLenCE yOUr lItTle rEBelLiOn FoR gOoD."**

* * *

 **Special Episode 4: The Heart of the Matter**

 **Chapter 87: A Glimpse Into the Void**

* * *

 **~Celestial Isle~**

Nicky lay on his back, one wing draped over his chest and the other three splayed out on the ground. Different colors swirled around at random in his eyes. Light particles trickled off his body. His ethereal limbs and head tendrils pulsated rapidly, yet he wasn't short of breath. Then again, he knew that wasn't a problem he really had to deal with. Nicky supposed it was a perk of having a body made from energy.

The pond beside him rippled. Xerneas stood up, water trailing off her antlers and fur. She leaned her thighs on the edge of the grass and rested her head between them, letting the rest of her body sink just below the surface. "Goodness. Don't tell me that tired you out? I was the one doing all the work." She smirked at Nicky and lazily kicked the water with her hind legs. Xerneas giggled when Nicky went bright red from head to toe.

"Th-That wasn't it at all!" He threw another wing over his face. "I just… can't believe this happened," he mumbled. " _How_ did this I even happen? I didn't—" He paused, blinking. "What did you do?"

"I did plenty," Xerneas said, smirking. "You enjoyed it in the moment. What's the problem?"

"I mean… you did something… to me. And to yourself, too. Y'know, to make it all happen in the first place," Nicky said, rubbing his tendrils with his wings. "You told me… it was impossible for you to mate."

"Mmm. True. Impossible as I was. But I, uh, made a few changes," Xerneas responded, a slight stutter in her words.

"A few changes? That's awfully vague. What do you mean?" Nicky asked.

"It's kinda like how you were made. I, y'know, used ley lines. It was, uh, a bit painful in the moment, but I'm all right. And I'd _definitely_ say it was worth it." Xerneas leaned her head in slightly. "Wouldn't you?"

Nicky's wings rippled. He sat up. "Of course! I had a blast! It's just, uh…" He tapped his upper wing-claws together. "Won't you get in trouble over this? I don't want another immortal to hurt you or anything."

Xerneas tensed her forelegs and pushed herself up out of the water. Nicky again turned red as she approached him, her fur and antlers sparkling. The grass squelched when she sat down beside him. "You're worth it," she whispered, pecking his crystal cheek. "I'm tired of Arceus' 'keep to yourself' policy. It's ass-backwards, if you ask me." She paused, then smirked and added, "And not the fun kind of ass-backwards, either."

"Point taken," Nicky said, curling his tail around her hips. He chuckled when she squeaked in surprise. "Really? You're getting jumpy over that?"

"Aha ha… I guess I still haven't quite calmed down," Xerneas admitted, antler-gems turning red. "I wonder if this is what that 'evolution high' I've heard mortals whisper about is like." She shrugged. "It isn't a big deal, I suppose."

Nicky stiffened. "I think you spoke too soon."

"What do you mean?" Xerneas raised a brow.

"Latios and Zekrom are coming. If they ask, say we went out for a swim," Nicky said, floating into the air. Before Xerneas could respond, Nicky shot into the pond with a splash. It bubbled. Golden light rippled under the surface.

A few seconds later, Zekrom touched down. Her landing was far from graceful, leaving a trail of torn-up grass and two large footprints. "Huh. Guess you were right, Latios," Zekrom said, smirking and crossing her arms.

"Of course I'm right. It's hard not to sense them," Latios said, slowly hovering to Zekrom's side.

"Uh… h-hi! What brings you two out here?" Xerneas asked.

"Well, we wanted a little quality time at our favorite grotto, but…" Zekrom's voice trailed off and she looked at the glowing pond. A knowing grin wove its way onto her face. "I can see you two beat us to the punch."

"Hmm? Oh, no. It's nothing like that. Light and I came here for a swim, that's all. And we're in the middle of, uh…" Xerneas' gaze darted about. "A breath-holding contest! Yes, that's it… a breath-holding contest. As you can see, Light bested me." She laughed nervously.

"C'mon, Xerny, no need to be all coy!" Zekrom said, rushing to Xerneas' side. She threw an arm around Xerneas, who squeaked in surprise.

"X-Xerny?!"

"You and Light have been a thing for a while now. You're _adorable_ together. Of course I wanna hear everything!" Zekrom said, tail turbine whirring excitedly. "I've been waiting for Latios and I to find another couple that actually knows how to have fun!"

"Hey! What about my sister and Zapdos?" Latios huffed.

"Oh, please, Zapdos wouldn't know a good time if it plucked off his tailfeathers," Zekrom said, waving Latios off. "And just because your sister knows a good dirty joke or two doesn't make her my definition of fun."

Latios rolled her eyes. "And how do you suppose these two can regale you with sordid gossip when they can't even m—" Latios cut himself off, eyes wide. His feathers stood on end. "X… Xerneas? How did you—"

Nicky burst out of the water, drenching Latios in the process. "Hey, Latios! Great to see you! You're looking well," he said, wincing when it came out much louder than intended. "Zekrom giving you any trouble since we last saw each other?" He playfully noogied Latios' head.

Latios wriggled his way out of Nicky's grip and shook out his feathers. "Oh my god," he whispered, shaking his head. "I can't believe this. You two… you mated, didn't you!"

"What? Us? Of course not! Don't be ridiculous!" Nicky laughed.

"Dude. Come on. You think I can't tell you're lying?" Latios said, shaking his head. "I thought it funny I sensed traces of your auras on each other… but this kooky behavior straight-up confirms it!" He blinked slowly. "How did you two even manage that, huh? Xern's an immortal and you…" He looked at Nicky. "Wouldn't those big ol' spikes of yours get in the way?"

Nicky looked down at his spikes, then went bright-red.

Zekrom stepped away from Xerneas, a curious eyebrow raised. "Is this true, Xerny?" she asked.

Sighing, Xerneas nodded. Zekrom responded with one of her signature hugs, hefting Xerneas up in the process. She squealed. "Z… Zekrom…"

"I knew you had it in you to buck that dumbass rule!" Zekrom cheered, squeezing Xerneas tighter. "I'm so proud of you!"

Nicky and Latios descended on Zekrom. "Let her go, Zek. She's gotta breathe!" Nicky said, before remembering he was psychic and wrenching Zekrom away with telekinesis. He floated over to Xerneas and rubbed her back while she caught her breath.

"I'm fine. That was… an interesting hug," Xerneas wheezed. "I hope I didn't break a rib."

"Sorry. Couldn't help myself. It's just… you've come such a long way from chasing me and Latios away from the Tree of Life, screaming bloody murder," Zekrom said, wiping an imaginary tear from her eye. "Y'know what… I think this calls for a celebration of sorts!"

Xerneas blinked. "S-Seriously? It's not that big a deal…"

"On the contrary. You're the first immortal to take a mate. That's definitely celebratory in my book!" Zekrom said, her hands on her hips.

Nicky floated in front of Zekrom, a worried look on his face. "Hey, come on. We want to keep this a secret. I don't want the other gods finding out about this," he said. "This is some kinda taboo, isn't it?"

"He's got a point, Zek," Latios said.

"Relax, guys. I wasn't talking about anything big. Just sharing some of the special treat I had Latios bring." Zekrom gestured to her mate. Latios glanced at the satchel around his wing. "And, besides, if any of those other gods give you trouble, we'll stick up for you!" She pounded her chest. "It's about time we stopped being all secretive and stuff. If you ask me, collaborating more will only help us keep the world better protected from any kind of threat!"

"That would be kinda nice, actually," Latios murmured, producing a glass bottle from his bag. "Here you go, Zek."

Zekrom took the bottle with an eager glint in her eye. "Ah, here we are. Made it myself!" She hoisted the bottle high.

Nicky's head tendrils curled up. "I… I don't think that's such a good idea." He folded up his upper wings. "I had a bad experience with that kind of stuff."

"With homemade nanab-pinap juice?" Zekrom asked, blinking incredulously. "I brought it because it's sweet. Tickles your tongue… like a Thunderbolt to the mouth!"

Latios frowned. "Only you could come up with such a violent comparison."

"I think Light is worried that it's hard berry juice. And I, for one, share those concerns. I don't have fondest memories of that kind of drink," Xerneas said, tracing a hoof through the grass.

"Huh? Oh… no, no, no." Zekrom shook her head. "It's not spiked. I save that kind of stuff for the rare occasions. Y'know, like a hatch day." She opened the bottle and held it out toward Nicky and Xerneas. "Here, take a whiff if you don't believe me."

Before Nicky could make a snide remark about his lack of anything resembling a nose, Xerneas leaned over and sniffed the bottle. "I guess you're right. Just wish I had food to go alongside it." Her stomach gurgled its agreement.

"Ha ha! That's how you know they were having fun!" Zekrom chortled, elbowing Latios' wing. He nearly dropped the bag trying to hold back his laughter. Nicky and Xerneas both went red and looked in opposite directions. "All right, all right, I get it. I'll stop with the jokes." She cleared her throat. "In all seriousness, we brought oatmeal cookies."

Latios rolled his eyes. " _I_ brought oatmeal cookies. You thought it was a bright idea to try and bake them with your lightning."

"Details, details." Zekrom dismissed him with a wave. After the group exchanged a few laughs, Latios distributed the surprisingly-large cookies, leaving Nicky wondering how they managed not to crumble apart. They went about eating the treats and then shared the bottle of Zekrom's homemade berry juice.

When things wrapped up, they all laid on their backs in a circle, save for Xerneas, whose horns kept her on her belly. Zekrom got everyone's attention with a long, satisfied sigh. "Y'know, I think, working together, the four of us could make a real difference in the world."

"In what way?" Latios asked.

"By helping make normal Pokémon happier in their everyday lives," Zekrom said, resting her arms underneath her head. "Think about it. We spend our days keeping mostly to ourselves, training while we wait for something potentially dangerous to pop up. That's pretty dumb, if you ask me."

She glanced at Xerneas. "You immortals have a lot more responsibilities, but I feel like Arceus didn't stop to consider your feelings when he made all his dumb, strict rules for you to follow." Zekrom lazily gestured at Nicky. "Look at how happy Light's made you since the two of you met."

"Err, it's nothing, really," Nicky whispered, his body rippling.

"C'mon, man. Don't sell yourself short. Bringing back sunlight and moonlight lifted the spirits of just about everyone!" Zekrom said. "It made _us_ a lot happier. I'm sure it's the case for other gods, too. About the only other big thing I could think of that would win folks over is figuring out a way to bring back Solgaleo and Lunala."

Nicky sat up, blinking. "Y-You mean like… reincarnating them? Isn't that more Ho-Oh's field of expertise? Or even Xern's?" He turned to Xerneas, who tensed up.

"I, uh… just because I'm the guardian of the Tree of Life doesn't mean I can _create_ any life that I wish. Besides, I could never really get a good sense of Solgaleo's and Lunala's spirits," Xerneas said, shrugging. "They never ended up in the Tree of Life after their sacrifice. Quite bizarre."

Zekrom's brow furrowed. "Well, that muddles things up. But it's fine. It's not something you have to do or anything. It was just a suggestion," she said, casually flicking her arm. "There's plenty of other ways we can work together. Like helping Pokémon that get trapped inside those crazy labyrinths the immortals are always trying to keep under control."

"Oh, yeah! Your wormholes would be perfect for that!" Latios agreed, grinning.

"Hmm. You raise a good point. The Lucarios had been the ones helping folks out with that stuff, but now that they're gone, someone ought to step in and fill that role," Xerneas said. She flinched. "Err, well, not that we're saying you have to. You've already done plenty for us, so I don't want to force you to—"

"I don't have a problem with it," Nicky said, lying back on the ground. "I mean, someone would have to bring me a bit more up to speed about these labyrinths, but if you think that's a way I could keep using my powers to help people, I'm totally down."

Xerneas shuffled closer to him and whispered, "But what about your creator?"

"No worries. I got him to back off. Told him I'm worming my way into everyone's good graces so I can gather you all up to be killed in a single attack," Nicky explained. "He totally bought it. I don't have to keep retreating back to Horizon anymore."

The news brought a smile to Xerneas' face. "Maybe if this works, you can turn around and get the other immortals to free you from your creators."

"I'd like that a lot," Nicky said, smiling.

"Well, I'm beat." Zekrom yawned. "Don't feel like flying home, so I'm gonna snooze up here."

"Sounds like a good idea," Xerneas said. She snuggled up to Nicky's side. He subconsciously draped a wing over her. The warmth from his light lulled her to sleep.

* * *

 _Nicky's eyes shot open. He sat up and looked around. Once again, he lay in his old bed from his human life, surrounded by a starry expanse resembling outer space. Nicky looked down and noted his chest spikes and a hump under the covers, which he assumed was his tail._

 _"What do you want this time?" Nicky sighed. He slouched over in the bed, rolling onto his side and propping his head up against the bed rest._

 _A few of the distant stars raced closer to Nicky, darkening as they moved. Once they reached him, they coalesced into a large black ball. Familiar rainbow veins split parts of the black slime apart. Two red eyes materialized on the sphere's surface, staring Nicky down. The slime ball rippled and hummed loudly. Its hum grew steadily less distorted as a slender red line traced itself under the creature's eyes._

 _ **I see you continue to ignore me.**_

 _"Yeah, well, I thought I made it pretty clear I don't care about 'Void's will' or 'returning the world to chaos' or whatever other bullsh_ _i_ _t you feel like spewing out," Nicky scoffed, rolling over to look away from Void._

 _ **You are making a**_ **grim** _**mistake,**_ _Void warned, floating back into Nicky's line of sight._

 _"I'm doing what makes me happy,"_ _Nicky said, closing his eyes. "Just because we're stuck together like this doesn't mean I have to listen to you or anything."_

 _An invisible force pried Nicky's eyelids open._ _ **And, in choosing to ignore me, you are setting yourself up for heartbreak and despair,**_ _Void said, his voice growing deeper._ _ **Your soul — your human spirit — has burdened you with worthless facets. Emotions, desires, dreams… they are an unnecessary source of pain and suffering.**_

 _"Pfbt. Yeah, sure. You're just jealous because_ my _human willpower overpowers your propensity for long, drawn-out speeches," Nicky sneered. "If my human soul was really so worthless, then why am_ I _the one in control and not you, huh?"_

 _Nicky grinned victoriously when Void rippled. The red line under its eyes opened. Slime trickled down onto Nicky's bed._

 _ **Your control is nothing more than a shortsighted mistake by your creator,**_ _Void said, straining not to let its contempt show through._

 _"Uh-huh. Yup._ Totally _not jealous, Mr. I Have No Soul and Choose Not to Feel," Nicky said, a smirk tugging at his crystalline beak. "Like I said, I don't care about whatever it is you have to say. Your days are numbered. Once Xern and my friends help me talk things out with Arceus, Golem will be ancient history… and so will you." He folded his upper wings behind his head. "I'll make Golem get rid of you. Then, I can be happy_ and _get a decent night's sleep."_

 _Again, Void rippled. Its rainbow veins throbbed._ _ **Such stupidity. You refuse to listen to reason. Are all you humans this dense?**_

 _"No, we're just good at sniffing out bullsh_ _i_ _t," Nicky countered, his smirk broadening. He enjoyed seeing Void squirm. If he could keep the pressure up, maybe he'd get the demonic entity to back off for the night. "The stuff you've said to me hardly amounts to 'reason.' I'm supposed to destroy the world because it's a mistake? That sounds pretty insane to me."_

 _Void's rainbow veins squirmed about. Its mouth opened wider, until it covered its entire face. From within the red slime, a violet, reptilian iris emerged._

 _ **If I cannot sway you with words, then I will**_ **show** _**you exactly the kind of world you're so willing to defend!**_

 _Before Nicky could offer a retort, bright light swallowed him and his bed whole. When Nicky got back to his senses, he found that he couldn't move at all. He thought about his wings and his tail, but couldn't feel them. It was as if he'd been pulled right out of his body. Nicky tried to adjust his gaze, but it refused to do anything other than look straight ahead._

 _Nicky took in his surroundings. In contrast to the mundane, starry backdrop Void had put him in, he was floating in the middle of what he could only describe as a level plucked out of a video game— the kind Shane preferred, of course. Blue and purple meshed together at random intervals. Strange, faint, checkerboard portals lay in the distance. Light geysers spewed out of them. Crystalline structures floated past him, seemingly thrown together into random shapes._

 _Solar flares erupted from a small sun floating off in the distance. Nicky's gaze involuntarily shifted to reveal more suns, all spewing lava geysers and fireballs. A multicolored aurora wrapped around the suns, amplifying their brightness. Whatever force had control of Nicky moved him forward, away from the suns. Nicky could make out faint outlines in the distance. They resembled planets from the many pictures of the solar system that he'd seen in his science classes._

 _Nicky tried to ask where he was and what was going on, but failed to produce any sort of sound._

 **Curious, aren't we?**

 _Void's voice echoed in Nicky's mind, even as he continued moving forward against his will. He couldn't make any comments or snide remarks, no matter how hard he tried._

 **This is Ultra Space, the chaotic labyrinth that separates the countless worlds spanning this reality.**

 _If Nicky had control of his eyes, he'd roll them. What kind of dumb name was Ultra Space, anyway? And why would it connect different worlds? Nicky knew from his time in school that the universe had multiple galaxies drifting farther from one another. But none of this resembled outer space in the slightest._

 **That's** _ **your**_ **universe.** _ **Your**_ **world. Or, rather, it was, before you were pulled away,** _Void said._ **Think of it this way. The many worlds of this reality are buildings. Some are large. Some are small. Ultra Space is the grid of roads and highways you travelled on as a human to get from one building to another.**

 _Nicky wanted to frown, but couldn't. By that logic, traversing between worlds should've been so easy that anyone could do it. Why wouldn't humans have figured out how to access Ultra Space, then?_

 **Oh, they have,** _Void said. Nicky tried to let any frustrated thoughts bubble up over Void reading his mind._ **Just not the humans from** _ **your**_ **world.**

 _The strange sights of Ultra Space continued to pass Nicky by. His gaze drifted right. It fell upon a large, mirror-like crystal slab floating in place. Nicky caught his reflection, but was unable to properly express his shock._

 _He wasn't a gleaming light dragon anymore. Instead, he saw a large, black torso littered with strange glyphs and tattoos. Instead of a face, Nicky saw a black, heart-shaped mask, surrounded by a plume of black feathers. Nicky figured the two, tiny holes in the mask were his eyes. He struggled to even come up with a thought about what he was looking at._

 **That's me you're looking at, boy. Well, what I used to be part of, anyway,** _Void said. It gave a flap of its giant wings, revealing hexagonal crystals in place of feathers. Nicky caught a glimpse of a trail of heart-shaped gems flowing off the base of Void's body, connected by a chain._

 _Void continued flying through Ultra Space, dragging Nicky along unwillingly._ **Long ago, I had destroyed every world across this reality,** _it said. An Ultra Wormhole opened up near it, venting white light. Void paid it little mind._ **I had amassed an unfathomable amount of energy. So much energy, I couldn't keep it contained.**

 _The concept sounded familiar to Nicky. It again brought his science classes to mind. He faintly recalled some boring teacher talking about intense energy concentrated at a single point._

 **All that pent-up energy kickstarted a chain reaction. The bulk of my power burst forth from me. And the result is what you see in front of you: Ultra Space.** _Void continued._

 _It finally clicked for Nicky. If Void was telling the truth, it created a big bang of sorts. Still, even with that in mind, Nicky didn't understand how a bunch of worlds could sprout up and be sealed off from each other._

 **Look around you. As I said, Ultra Space is the product of my chain reaction. It is chaotic. Wisps of energy are free to move about and collide at random,** _Void explained. As if on cue, two Ultra Wormholes opened up. A half-dozen creatures that looked like tied up electric cords floated from one portal to another. Void flew past them all._ **Some collisions turned into singularities. And from those singularities arose worlds… undoing all of my painstaking work.**

 **Worse, the chain reaction had cost me a tremendous amount of energy. It had left me so** _ **empty**_ **inside. I had a gnawing,** _ **obsessive**_ **hunger,** _Void growled._ **A strong desire to take back what I had lost. So, I tried to destroy whatever worlds I could. But worlds were forming up faster than I could destroy them.** _It flapped its wings harder. Nicky could tell it was moving faster._

 _Something shimmered in front of Nicky and Void. Golden light pulsated and rippled. Four golden hooves and a yellow wheel protruded from the ball of light. Then, countless numbers of ethereal arms sprouted up. Nicky counted ten, then twenty, and then hundreds. The blue and purple hues of Ultra Space distorted around each of the arms._

 **While I was going about my work, I encountered someone… quite strange. He radiated with a power… I hadn't felt before,** _Void said._ **I simply** _ **had**_ **to destroy him.**

 _Nicky recognized the wheel. It had to belong to Arceus. But given what Void had told him about multiple worlds, he strongly doubted it was the Arceus of his world. Especially since it had spawned in the middle of Ultra Space, for no real reason._

 _Void stopped. Its gaze fixed on Arceus, whose body was hidden behind a veil of golden light. Despite this, a soft, gentle, male voice emanated from Arceus. "Who are you? Do you know where we are?" Arceus' arms moved about as if they were animal muzzles sniffing the air. "And… do you know what I am?"_

 _Instead of answering, Void wailed. Its uneven, fluctuating pitch rattled Nicky. He saw a few flashes of light, then watched as arrows shrouded in fire and ice sailed toward Arceus. Some of Arceus' arms immediately reacted. Silver vortexes intercepted the arrows and disintegrated them._

 _"Hey! What was that for? I just asked a question," Arceus said, a worried edge to his voice._

 _Multiple circular runes appeared in front of Nicky. Blue energy beams threatened to vaporize Arceus, only to be swallowed up by Arceus' arms. Void wailed again. It flew closer to Arceus, with Nicky along for the ride._

 _"Get away from me!" Arceus yelped. Several of his hands reacted, slinging energy balls or racing forward to halt Void's progress. Given Void's size, Nicky knew it stood no chance of dodging, but he was startled when it made no attempt at countering. Every blast and spectral hand bounced off Void. The hands returned to a startled Arceus._

 _More arrows flew in from the edges of Nicky's vision. Arceus effortlessly swatted them aside, but then a large, crystalline blade swung in from below. With a startled gasp, Arceus directed as many arms as he could toward the blade. They pushed back, halting its process._

 _Then they buckled._

 _A few arms lost their golden glow. Right at the moment Void's blade shattered, the distressed arms evaporated in wisps of silver light. Arceus shrank back. His pained cries echoed throughout Ultra Space. Small shapes spilled out on either side of him, barely visible against his golden glow._

 _When Void moved closer to strike again, Nicky got a better look. They weren't just shapes, they were Unown. Sure, Nicky considered them useless, but their movie was one of the first ones he remembered going to— with Shane, of course._

 _Nicky tried to figure out why Void was showing him this. Clearly, he was missing something, but he wasn't sure he wanted to find out what it was. Nicky struggled trying to come up with a way to make the vision end. All the while, Arceus turned and fled, golden light trailing behind him as he ran across empty Ultra Space._

 **Don't bother resisting. Just pay attention. It will all make sense soon enough,** _Void promised. It pursued Arceus, but he was much faster. And Arceus' arms continued making mincemeat of Void's arrows. Void tried hurtling strange, distorted energy balls in seemingly random directions, only to have them abruptly change course and try to intercept. Arceus deflected the first few using some of his arms, only for the arms to explode in bursts of Unown._

 _"Stop hurting me!" Arceus roared. His arms pulsated with light. Golden lasers exploded out all around him, shredding through the rest of Void's energy balls. Some beams even struck Void, but it gave no indication that it was hurt. Arceus increased his speed. Nicky could faintly see the outline of Arceus' head swiveling about in a panic, looking for_ any _sort of escape from this nightmare._

 _A fresh wave of confusion rolled over Nicky. Arceus was supposed to be all powerful, wasn't he? Why couldn't he just wipe Void out of existence? Nicky knew Arceus had seemingly appeared from nothingness, but the way he was acting made Nicky think he didn't have any idea how to actually use his powers._

 _Void's wails sent Nicky's train of thought screeching to an abrupt halt. His focus snapped back to Arceus, whose ethereal arms rippled and lashed at the air around him. More golden beams — Judgment, if Nicky had to guess — lit up the area. Void snuffed some of them out with giant, spear-shaped energy blasts. The rest plinked harmlessly off Void's body. Some even struck below Void's face and deflected into the deep, blue abyss, filling Nicky with a sense of dread._

 _Then a spark of light drew Nicky's and Void's collective attention to their right. An Ultra Wormhole had opened up beside Arceus. He raced into the portal without a second thought. The arms trailing behind him distorted the space around the portal. Nicky figured it was Arceus' best attempt at walling the portal off from Void._

 _But with a single flap of its wings, Void dispelled the traps, furthering Nicky's belief that Arceus had no idea what he was doing._

 _The portal drew closer. Soon, white light replaced the deep blues and purples of Ultra Space. Nicky wished he had a mouth so he could shout in surprise as an intense force grabbed Void and shuttled him through a tunnel with a strobing checkerboard pattern all around it._

 _Then, the portal abruptly ended. Nicky found himself back in a more familiar version of outer space, with distant star clusters and auroras. But he got little opportunity to take in the view, as Void looked directly at Arceus._

 _"Why are you following me? I don't know who you are! I don't even know what_ I _am! Please… stop this!" Arceus said, voice growing more frantic._

 _Void summoned its crystal blade in a swirl of shadows. It swiped at Arceus, who hastily backpedaled to dodge. Void wouldn't be deterred, however. It slashed again. And again. And_ again. _Every swipe left trails of distortion behind. Each miss brought the fighting titans closer to the planet below them. It was in the corner of Nicky's vision, but he spotted clouds, water, islands, and the tip of what could've been a continent._

 _"No… make it stop… make it stop…"_

 _Nicky could see Arceus' head shaking. His arms swelled up, looking ready to burst apart like overinflated balloons. Void didn't care. It somehow hurled the blade toward Arceus' face._

 _"Make it_ _ **stop!**_ _"_

 _Golden energy erupted from Arceus' arms. Each beam turned into a meteor as it rained down on Nicky and Void from above. The vast majority missed, instead hurtling down toward the nearby planet. But a couple of dozen hit Void and, unlike Arceus' previous Judgments, managed to knock Void around._

 _It spun around in midair. With each dizzying turn, Nicky caught a glimpse of what Arceus' meteors had done. Fissures split the planet open. Magma shot out from its core. The islands he had spotted earlier crumbled away into nothingness. The puffy clouds disappeared._

 _Nicky didn't know what to think. Surely, that was just an empty planet… right?_

 **Oh no. What you're seeing… is the world you currently reside in. The one you're so keen on protecting,** _Void declared._ **At one time, it was a world where humans and Pokémon coexisted peacefully. Until Arceus, who had stumbled on the planet by sheer accident, wiped everything out in one frantic attack… because he didn't know any better.**

 **Survival instincts and raw, primal fear led him to cause a calamity.** _ **This**_ **is the god you want to cooperate with, you foolish boy.**

 _Nicky refused to believe it. This had to be some sort of elaborate illusion. If he and Void shared a body, then it stood to reason Void was just tapping into their collective powers to mess with his head. That_ had _to be the answer._

 **Typical human… twisting the situation around so that the narrative suits your fancy,** _Void taunted._ **I will prove this is the undeniable truth.**

 _Void's form screeched its anger and flapped its wings. It drew even with Arceus, who immediately fired off more meteors and beams of light at a frantic pace. Bright lights flashed all around Nicky. A large, black and red laser cut through Arceus' attacks. With a panicked garble that sounded like a mix between a roar and a whinny, Arceus drifted closer to the burning, fragmenting planet._

 _"Stop it… stop hurting me!" Arceus snarled, gathering energy for another attack. Void was quicker on the draw this time, however. Nicky spotted a silhouette— no, two crown-shaped silhouettes in the periphery of his vision. Each one fired a laser. They combined into a giant beam._

 _Arceus tried to dodge, but the laser severed numerous arms. Unown streamed out, drifting down toward the surface. Nicky lost them amidst the flames and sulfur choking the planet's atmosphere. But his attention forcibly zeroed in on Arceus. Light flashed all around Nicky. Then, without warning, countless dark, thorny chains descended on a startled Arceus. They shredded hundreds of his arms. Arceus screeched in agony._

 _Some of the chains managed to pierce Arceus' golden aura. Others whizzed past him, descending on the destroyed planet below. Arceus struggled against the chains. As he did, Nicky noticed the decaying remnants of Arceus' destroyed arms wriggling about in space. Some of the parts made contact with one another and connect._

 _Void looked up, taking Nicky's vision with it. All around Arceus, bright, pulsating masses had formed from the remnants of his arms. They twisted and turned, taking on familiar shapes that Nicky recognized even before the glowing had faded._

 _Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina._

 _Uxie, Azelf, and Mesprit._

 _Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza._

 _Ho-Oh._

 _Each Legendary Pokémon emerged from the tangled mess of destroyed arms. Void swiveled about in confusion. Nicky, on the other hand, became even more convinced this was all fake. Arceus had to intentionally create other gods, didn't he? So, the appearance of all these immortals made no sense to Nicky._

 _He expected Void to chime in and berate him, but that didn't happen. Instead, the arms that Arceus had left all pointed at Void. The newly-made Pokémon nodded. Their eyes glowed in unison._

 _A cacophony of bright lights and distorted sounds assaulted Void and, by extension, Nicky. He couldn't sense anything, but Void's pained wails painted a clear enough picture for him._

 _Then, as quickly as the onslaught arrived, it faded. Nicky found himself falling. Arceus and the other immortals steadily grew farther away, but what was stranger was that_ Void _was still floating up there, backing toward a newly-formed Ultra Wormhole. Nicky didn't get to see Void vanish, however, before ash and sulfur filled his vision. Things grew steadily darker. He saw flames crackling in his periphery, which soon gave way to jagged edges of the planet's crust._

 _Nicky fell deeper and deeper, until glowing, molten rock surrounded him. Magma bubbled up. Wisps of purple energy darted in front of him. Even worse, the black chains that had sliced through Arceus' arms were inside the fissure with him, darting about, wrapping around chunks of debris and globs of magma._

 _As the smoke billows on the surface disappeared behind a wall of chains, all Nicky could think about was a nagging sense of familiarity. Why did being surrounded by magma, strange purple wisps, and chains make him feel this way?_

 **Because this is the foundation that** _ **we**_ **were melded together with.**

 _The boiling scene dissolved all around Nicky. He was back in his bed, his crystalline legs dangling over its edge. Nicky looked down into a starry abyss, then up at the familiar ball of black slime that was Void._

 _"Guess we're back in the present… or something," Nicky muttered, rubbing his head with a wing. "Yeah, so, I don't really know what the point of that glorified acid trip was, but it didn't convince me of anything."_

 _ **Interesting. You're getting better at lying. But you won't fool me,**_ _Void said, a thin, red smile appearing beneath its beady, red eyes._ _ **You thought the planet's core was familiar to you. Because it**_ **is.** _**Our creator used alchemy to make us. Alchemy is the manipulation of ley lines. And the chains you saw in that vision…**_ **those** _**are ley lines. Plucked straight out of the planet's core.**_

 _Nicky's gut squirmed. "I still don't believe you," he said, though his earlier bravado had faltered._

 _Void drifted back, its eyes merging together, then splitting apart._ _ **Everything I showed you is the truth. This world is an accident… the result of Arceus not understanding his own powers. And these gods that you are befriending are**_ **mistakes** _**that should never have existed in the first place,**_ _it growled._ _ **Arceus built up this world on a foundation of lies. Lies born from the fragments of my original form.**_

 _"Is that so? Well, we both saw plenty of other gods poof into existence in that dream or flashback or whatever. So, if they were all around, why have none of them called Arceus out on his lies?" Nicky asked, eyeing Void skeptically._

 _ **Because they have no memories of the event,**_ _Void replied._ _ **You saw it for yourself. Some of Arceus' arms were still intact. They**_ **controlled** _**the immortals… like a human child playing with puppets. But Arceus has since lost those powers, so he is forced to rely on threats and deceit to keep the truth hidden.**_

 _It sounded plausible to Nicky. He_ had _seen Arceus directing the other immortals. "Okay, fine." Nicky tried to cross his wings like they were arms. "So, maybe you're right. What does it matter? You can't change what happened. And I'm not going to destroy an entire world of perfectly happy people just to please you!"_

 _ **Please me?**_ _Void's veins ripples. Its eyes grew and shrank._ _ **It seems your listening skills are getting worse. I've made it abundantly clear that this is necessary destruction. This world shouldn't exist, so we must erase it. There's no joy, sadness, anger, or anything in between.**_

 _"Well,_ your _listening skills must be getting worse, too. Because_ I _made it abundantly clear that you're full of BS,"_ _Nicky countered, crossing one leg over the other and huffing up a cloud of dragonfire._

 _ **Such a**_ **stinging** _**rebuttal. I've truly seen the error of my ways,**_ _Void said, the distortion in its voice masking its sarcasm. It drifted lazily around Nicky's floating bed, its eyes and mouth spinning around one another._ _ **You've truly adapted to this world, haven't you? You're becoming just as childish and petulant as the gods that don't deserve to exist in the first place.**_

 _Nicky snorted. "No. I'm just sick of your attempts at controlling me. God, you're worse than my dad was." He stretched his upper wings and yawned obnoxiously loud. "Y'know, it's a real shame you can't feel anything. Because, if you ask me, you need to get laid. Stat." Nicky smirked. "Lucky for you, there's a real simple way to do that. Stop trying to control me and maybe you'll get to enjoy the next ride."_

 _Void's eyes shrank away. Its mouth opened wide, covering up the front of its spherical form, then promptly shrank._ _ **Your lust for that overgrown, pointy-headed pixie has blinded you,**_ _it accused._ _ **Are you even listening to yourself? Are these not the same crude jokes uttered by the human students you detested so much?**_

 _Red and orange pooled in Nicky's face and eyes. "W-What? Of course not!"_

 _ **You've seen for yourself how naïve these gods are. Arceus is not some omnipotent force for good. He never intended to create so many gods and, in a blind panic, he instilled a hierarchy and put himself at the top,**_ _Void said, its veins throbbing._ _ **You've heard the stories and seen the behaviors for yourself. These gods are no better than your peers from school.**_

 _"But that can change. Latios, Zekrom, Xern… they all want to change things. And I do, too," Nicky said. "I have a life here… of sorts. I'm not going to throw it away. I'm going to try to make it better."_

 _ **This world is fatally flawed. No matter how hard you try to fix it, you can't,**_ _Void said._ _ **Every hole you patch up will simply open three new ones.**_

 _"Yeah, well, I didn't ask you for your garbage opinion," Nicky growled, head tendrils bristling. He looked around. Why couldn't he end this god-awful nightmare?_

 _ **It's not an opinion, it's a fact.**_ _Void rippled. Bits of ooze struck the side of Nicky's bed._ _ **I am surprised that you're so willing to make the same fatal mistakes you made with your last life.**_

 _"What's that supposed to mean?" Nicky asked._

 _Void's thin smile appeared._ _ **This world is as unsalvageable as Shane was.**_ _His mouth opened wide and Nicky found himself staring into a familiar, pasty, freckle-filled face._

 _"A world… is much different… than a single idiot," Nicky said through a clenched beak._

 _ **True. And yet, whether it's an object, an institution, or even a life, when humans determine something is unsalvageable, they**_ **discard** _**it and replace it with something else,**_ _Void retorted._ _ **How is this any different? This world is beyond saving. Therefore, do away with it. And, perhaps, in time, something better will replace it.**_

 _Nicky rose from the bed, glowing orange. Light ripples ran down his body. "So, what, now you're saying I should destroy this world and replace it with something better?" Red and orange expanded in his eyes. "Well, you can go ahead and shove it!" Nicky gathered blue, crackling energy in his mouth. "You rant about things being unfixable, yet here you are pulling me into nightmare after nightmare to 'fix' me. You're a hypocrite! And I've heard enough!"_

 _He shot his Dragon Pulse right at Void. It split in half, slime dribbling into the abyss. The serpentine energy beam sailed right through it. Void reconnected and floated away from Nicky._

 _ **A poor decision. One that you will undoubtedly regret,**_ _it said, before disappearing into the darkness._

 _Groaning, Nicky lay down on the bed. Everything went white._

* * *

Nicky awoke with a startled gasp. Upon realizing it was still dark out, he sucked in a breath and concentrated, dimming his body as much as possible. He lay still, wondering if he had woken anyone up. The closest he got to an answer was Xerneas' snout brushing up against his lowest spike as she shifted her position.

He tilted his head and saw that, over the course of the night, Xerneas had somehow come to rest between his legs, with her head nestled up against his crystalline belly. Nicky fought hard to stop bright-red light from spilling out over his body. He thanked his lucky stars Latios and Zekrom were still asleep. Zekrom would have _never_ let him hear the end of this.

Nicky considered repositioning Xerneas, but opted not to. Instead, he tilted his head to the right and tried to fall back asleep. But all he could think about was this latest nightmare. He really hoped his last statement had gotten through to Void. Nicky was so tired of dealing with it. He took a deep breath, reassuring himself that, soon enough, Void wouldn't be a problem.

Still, Void's statements weighed heavily on Nicky. Was the creation of this world truly an accident? Had an entire civilization been wiped out by mistake? Just what was Arceus' deal? Of all the gods, Arceus was the only one Nicky hadn't yet spoken with. And yet, his friends wanted to take him tomorrow to talk. How could he go to Arceus and pitch all these ideas with all these questions in his mind?

Frowning, Nicky applied the gentlest telekinetic force he could muster. He set Xerneas' head on the grass, and slowly slid away from her until he was able to float in the air. Then, without looking back, Nicky flew off into the night.

He had to get answers. And he had to do it without devastating his friends.

* * *

 **~The Sea of Wonders~**

Rayquaza could've left his orbit in mere seconds if he chose to, but this wasn't a situation that called for charging headfirst into battle. He needed to know exactly what was happening and all he could tell from his usual flying altitude was that the flow of time had ceased and a vortex had formed somewhere over the Sea of Wonders. Rayquaza could put two and two together enough to realize Temporal Tower was in danger and likely at the center of the vortex. But he didn't know what awaited him there.

He stopped once he could see the paralyzed ocean. Rayquaza needed some sort of plan. Should he go for broke and charge into the vortex, Dragon Ascent blazing? Or should he stay at a distance and fire warning shots to see what sort of response he got? Much as he didn't want to admit it, he would feel better about this if he had someone else around to back him up. But there had been no sign whatsoever of Deoxys and he wasn't go to fly around the world searching for other gods.

Xerneas lived in the Sea of Wonders, but Rayquaza couldn't risk pulling her away from the Tree of Life. Plus, she was weak-willed. Hardly a fitting partner for him to fight alongside in this scenario. Rayquaza balled his tiny fingers into fists and lashed at the air with his tail. He was overthinking this. Clearly, the vortex had to be stopped. If he used his strongest attacks first, he could catch his enemies by complete surprise.

Rayquaza was so deep in thought that he failed to notice a tiny, orange, luminescent butterfly drifting toward him. He only realized something was wrong when the butterfly landed on his snout, right between his eyes.

"What the heck is this?" he snarled, going cross-eyed.

The butterfly flashed orange. Rayquaza's eyes widened. He opened his mouth, ready to scream, but instead disappeared in a stream of emerald fire.

When the last few embers vanished into thin air, the butterfly glided down toward the planet's surface, emerald light trailing off her wings.

* * *

In case it wasn't clear, the scenes in the present day are taking place at the same time Team Radiance is recovering at the guild.

Dovah Bear: thanks. I'm not really sure what my work schedule will be like going forward, so things will be tough.

Anon Omega: I had bad endings for this fic planned, actually. Hence Hoopa's comments at the end. I'm hoping I can handle updates every two to three weeks, but I can't make any promises. And, yes, the Chocobo mention was because of the new Chocobo's Mystery Dungeon game.

SuperOmegaGuest: I don't think you're alone. Not by a long shot.

Another guest: I've never heard of Lovers of Aether. Sorry. Glad you enjoyed the joke, though!

Unstoppable8000: thanks. But my concern is my work schedule will devolve into a point where I can't actually afford to write this, anymore. And I'd hate to leave people hanging.

Leonix644: yeah, sorry for the scare! We're back to normal, now. Hopefully this chapter's starting to answer some of your questions.

Next time: trying to reason with the unreasonable!


	105. Looking Gift Horses in Their Mouths

I apologize for the delay. I wanted this out last week, but I was bedridden from a stress ulcer. It's ready now, though. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 88: Looking Gift Horses in Their Mouths**

 **~Road to Primeval Forest~**

Gray trees surrounded an open field of dead, clammy grass. Fragments of leafless branches lay suspended in midair. The usual foggy cloud surrounding the Mystery Dungeon's entrance had darkened.

Void's chains slithered through the field. They stopped in front of the cloud and held up Void's small, spherical form. Its purple iris dilated.

 **"EvEn NOw… ShE'S sTiLl SitTinG tHErE. CoWeRInG BeHInD thAT bARrIeR."**

Three of Void's chains reached toward the fog, only to yank right back. Void's eye throbbed. **"YOu cOnTiNuE To BE… sUcH a NUiSaNcE. ThE MoRE yOU rEsiSt… ThE tOUgHeR yOU'Ll mAKe It FoR HeR."**

The resisting chains fell to the ground, limp. Void looked up at the dark sky. Streaks of red and purple shot past, but that should've been impossible if the planet was paralyzed. Void lashed at the ground with two of his chains. **"ThAt DuMb MoRTal… ShE ReAlLy inTeNdS tO BeND tIMe tO HeR wIlL."**

An orange speck caught Void's attention. Its eye expanded. Its chains rattled about. Void backed up, giving room in front of the cloud for the neon butterfly to safely descend. She faced Void, slowly flapping her wings to stay level with it.

 **"ImPECCable TiMIng,"** Void said. **"BuT HaVe YoU aNYtHInG tO ShOW fOR iT?"**

In response, an emerald shimmer rippled through the butterfly's wings. A pink glow surrounded her antennae.

Void's chains coiled up tightly around its eye. **"FaNtAStIc. WiTH tHe PRiMaL eNerGy YoU'Ve TaKEn, thE BarRIeR wIlL nO DOubT fAlL."**

The butterfly's orange glow intensified. One of Void's chains shot toward her. **"nO. NoT yEt. YoU mUSt uSe ThE EnERgY tO DisPElL ThAT barRieR."** Void's iris constricted. **"Do So… AnD I wIlL seE tO iT YoU ArE… adeQUAteLy cOMpEnSAtEd."**

Void withdrew its chain. The butterfly's wings drooped, but she ultimately fluttered to Void's side. Void pointed a chain at the cloud. **"OnWArD. We haVe a FoREsT tO GeT ThrOUgh."** It drifted toward the cloud. The butterfly followed it, orange light trailing off her wings.

* * *

 **~Lake of Mysterious Light ~**

Nicky had more than his fair share of forgetful moments in his human days. But without the burden of studying for classes, he could remember important things far more easily. Like the fact that Arceus spent all his time in a massive tower on a tiny landmass near the planet's northern pole.

On one of their dates, Xerneas had told him that the area was surrounded by a powerful forcefield meant to keep Pokémon from entering. Indeed, though Nicky couldn't see anything, he sensed a vibrant energy bubble as he descended toward marshlands surrounding a still lake. Hazy fog lay on the other side of the lake, but Nicky had to worry about the barrier first.

He paused, floating a couple of feet above where he believed the energy bubble was. Again, Void's comments echoed in his head. Could Arceus have made this barrier using the powers he couldn't properly control? What would happen if Nicky tried to destroy it? He reflexively glanced at the band on his leg. Surely, Golem would detect the energy spike. It was daytime in Horizon, after all.

Nicky shook his head. Golem wanted him to attack the gods. He was sure he could spin the energy spike as a good thing if Golem pressed him for details. Nicky took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He concentrated on the energy bubble. His body glowed. Golden light spread out below him. Then, like a piece of china dropped to the floor, the light shattered into fragments.

As Nicky opened his eyes, a green dome appeared underneath him, only to fall away in pieces that quickly dissolved into a fine mist. Nicky didn't stop to admire his handiwork, fearing the barrier could somehow repair itself. He dropped down into the marshlands and flew forward. Nicky used his ESP to push layer after layer of fog away, until at last a great tower stood before him. Stone arches lay interspersed between stone pillars. A single golden wheel, much like Arceus', sat in the center of the tower.

"Hey, Arceus. I know you can hear me in there. Open up! We need to talk!" Nicky called, flaring his body up as bright as he could. He floated there, staring up at the tower in silence. After a minute went by with no answer, Nicky shouted, "Don't ignore me, Arceus!" He paused, touching a wing-claw to his chin. "This is about the world's creation… and your role in it!"

Nicky wondered if it was really such a good idea to show his figurative hand so early, but he supposed it was the surest way to get Arceus to listen without resorting to blasting a hole in the tower. He hovered away from the tower and looked up, figuring Arceus was more likely to be toward the top floor.

Sure enough, after another minute of silence, Nicky sensed a strong lifeforce above him. Nicky flew up, the tower racing by him. A few seconds later, he found himself level with the tower's circular roof. Arceus stood in its center, staring Nicky down with an unreadable expression. Nicky attributed it to Arceus' lack of a proper mouth.

"You're the Guiding Light, yes? I think we've seen each other in passing once or twice," Arceus said, his voice flat and, if Nicky had to guess, disinterested. He walked toward the edge of the roof, his wheel turning a deeper black with every step. Nicky sensed dark energy billowing up in Arceus' body. He tried to present as relaxed a demeanor as possible, in the hopes it might diffuse any growing tension, but Arceus' posture did not change. "Why do you want to talk about the world's creation? Have you not gotten an explanation from some of the gods?"

"I have. But I'm not sure their explanation is very… accurate," Nicky replied. Colors swirled in his eyes. "That's why I wanted to hear it straight from your mouth." As soon as he finished speaking, he had a moment of panic over his choice of phrasing. However, Arceus' facial expression remained stoic.

"I see." Arceus sat down on his haunches. "You think the gods lied to you?"

"N-No. It's more like…" Nicky curled up his wings and tail. "I think you've lied to them." He tensed up, expecting some sort of attack.

Arceus sat still. He looked at the ground. "And this concerns you… why, exactly?"

Purple and orange pooled in Nicky's eyes and face. His mind scrambled to come up with an acceptable answer. Had Arceus learned about Nicky's origin? After all, Xerneas had convinced him to explain his situation to other immortals, but he hadn't met Arceus one-on-one until now.

Nicky shook his head. Lying wouldn't help him, here. If he wanted to get the truth from Arceus, he needed to tell the truth, too. "It's about my creator, Golem," Nicky said, looking down to avoid eye contact with Arceus. "Have you, uh, heard about that?"

Arceus nodded.

"Right. See, uh, I've told several gods that I'm worried about him. He's convinced that you're lying about how you created the world and all these other gods," Nicky explained. "I really don't want to hurt anyone, but I at least want to know if there's any basis to his claims."

"There is not. Everything you heard is the truth." Arceus stood up, his expression firm. "I emerged from an egg and used my thousand arms to mold the world into what you see. But the process was so taxing, I used the last of those powers to create gods that would keep the world stable in my stead."

Nicky stopped himself from sighing. He expected this answer. It sounded sincere. And yet, he doubted it. Nicky wondered if the doubt was really his or a result of Void trying to sway his mind. He needed to come up with a way to get more information. Luckily, it didn't take long for an idea to spring up.

"What about ley lines?" Nicky asked, keeping his expression neutral to avoid unnecessary tension. "Did you intend to make those?"

That did the trick. Arceus tensed up. It was only for a moment, but Nicky caught it. He frowned. "Xerneas has talked a bit about them. How her work with the Tree of Life is vital to keeping ley lines in check." Nicky floated closer to Arceus. "And she said that _you_ told her she had to dedicate her life to keeping the ley lines in check, otherwise they could run rampant and threaten the world."

"That is… true. I did tell her that." Arceus' tail twitched. He pivoted to try and hide it from Nicky, but Nicky's taller stature made that a losing battle. "Ley lines are an… unfortunate blight placed upon our world. When my reality-shifting powers faded, the ley lines descended on the planet from outer space. I had to rally the other gods to control them."

"But you didn't get rid of them," Nicky pointed out. He curled his tail up to stop it from lashing at the air. Nicky took a deep breath. The red and orange in his eyes receded. "If the gods can reign the ley lines in, then why not get rid of them? I heard your efforts cause chaotic labyrinths to pop up and trap innocent Pokémon."

Arceus leaned in toward Nicky, his golden eyes flickering. "Are you accusing me of something?" He shook his head. "While I'm grateful for what you've done for us, I will not sit idly by while you slander me."

"I— no, that's not it." Nicky waved his upper wings in front of his face. "I just want to understand. Because there might be a lot of people out there like Golem. Ones who think you guys don't do enough to keep the world safe." He looked away. "I don't really know the true extent of your powers… or most of the other gods' powers, for that matter. But now that this world's my home, I want to make it the best place possible."

Blue and purple light filled Nicky's eyes and wings. "But that kind of change has to start with us. We're the ones your average person looks up to… or, in your case, reveres." He bowed his head. "Hiding away and being secretive about everything isn't going to help. I mean… Dark Matter was created for a reason, right?"

Arceus' brow furrowed. "P-Perhaps…"

"And then you have some of the gods fighting among each other… like Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza. You can't tell me that's _good_ for people," Nicky continued, flicking his tail.

"What are you playing at, exactly?" Arceus asked.

"I'm saying that I think many of this world's problems stem from how it was created. Something that you're lying about," Nicky responded. "You popped into existence in the middle of Ultra Space, didn't you? Then, you were chased by a monstrous beast and fled into a portal. In the process of fighting it off, you destroyed the world that used to be here." Nicky's eyes narrowed. "I'm right, aren't I?"

Arceus' response only consisted of labored breathing. He staggered back. His gaze darted around. "That's… not true."

Nicky's eyes narrowed. "I wasn't born yesterday, you know. Just because you turned into a dark-type doesn't mean I can't tell when you're lying. You're hesitating!" He pointed an accusatory wing-claw at Arceus. "You didn't know how to use your powers properly, but instead of explaining that to the other gods, you've been lying to them the whole time!" Red and orange flared up on the edges of his tail and wings.

He shook his head. "Look, I know I sound upset, but that's because I'm trying to help the people that I care about… and who care about me. The way I see it, your method of supervision isn't working. After all, Dark Matter rose to power _and_ you lost Solgaleo and Lunala. Don't you think that's a huge indication that you ought to change?" Nicky pointed his lower wings at the ground. "Why not start with the ley lines, then? They seem to be a major source of everyone's problems. If we could just get rid of them—"

"We can't get rid of them!" Arceus blurted out, lashing out at a chunk of stone with a forehoof. Nicky backed away, startled by the outburst. Arceus hung his head. "Fine, I admit it. You're correct. I'm not originally from this world. But when I was 'born,' this vicious demon assaulted me!" Golden light rippled across his wheel. "I tried to reason with it. To plead for it to stop. I didn't understand what was going on or why it was hurting me."

Arceus' eyes narrowed. "Everything spiraled out of control. I just wanted the pain to stop. So, I fled into the first portal I found. But that brute followed me. I was so angry…" His shoulders sagged.

"And the other gods were born as a result of that battle, right?" Nicky asked.

"Not all of them, no." Arceus looked away from Nicky. "But those that did emerge were completely under my control. Somehow, I was able to fend the demon off and force it to flee. From there, I used the gods that I had unwittingly created to try and salvage the world that I had ruined. But, well… it was far from a perfect fix."

"Because of the ley lines." It was more of a statement than a question.

"I tried to get rid of them. I had the other immortals help me. But…" Arceus' voice trailed off and he shook his head. "Every attempt threatened the very stability of our world. You are familiar with Temporal Tower and the Tree of Life, correct?"

"Yeah. What about them?"

"They are dangerous, unstable landmarks that resulted from my failed attempts to remove ley lines from our world. If either of those places were to be seriously damaged… it would likely spell the end for all of us," Arceus explained. "Likewise, lesser gods and immortals like Xerneas, Yveltal, and Zygarde emerged from my attempts to reign in ley lines that had run out of control." Arceus grimaced. "I had to lie to them. I was making the best of a bad situation… of a mistake."

Orange light expanded Nicky's eyes and spread across his body. His tail involuntarily lashed at the air. Arceus thought his mate was a mistake? No wonder Xerneas had felt so out of touch with the other immortals. Nicky wanted to pummel Arceus with the full force of his light-based powers, but forced himself to stay under control. Even if his opinion of Arceus grew lower with each minute, Nicky didn't think attacking would help.

"Well, you said it yourself… you never truly understood your powers." Nicky glanced at his chest spikes. "I was made using ley lines. Maybe with my help… you can finally get rid of them."

"It won't work." Arceus fully turned away from Nicky and looked up to the sky. "Ley lines are stitched into the very fabric of this planet. Even if you _could_ remove them without initially endangering anyone, the world would fragment and collapse… as it did when I attacked it."

"How do you know that? You were convinced the sun and moon couldn't be restored, but I managed to do that." Nicky floated back into Arceus' line of sight. "At least let me try."

"No!" Arceus' wheel shimmered with gold energy. Nicky backed away, an uneasy look on his voice. "It's too late. The ley lines have burrowed so deep, they've cemented themselves as the core of our planet. The Voidlands lies in the center of the world. Any attempt to try and reverse that would end disastrously."

Nicky recalled the tail end of his dream vision, when he was falling deep into a molten crater. He shivered. "Well, maybe with a bit of time and careful planning—"

Arceus turned away again. "This is a problem that you can't fix no matter how bad you want to. So, drop it."

"Okay. Then if we can't fix it, we've got to better prepare ourselves to deal with the threat that these ley lines pose," Nicky said, again flying back in front of Arceus. "And that starts with making sure the gods know everything you've been hiding from them." He crossed his upper wings. "Otherwise, you can't expect them to do a good job keeping Pokémon safe."

"Fine. Are we done here?"

"No. I want your word that you'll tell all the gods the truth." Nicky looked up at the sky. "And while you do that, I'm going to help the gods out using my powers."

Arceus stiffened. "And what does that entail?"

"Bringing back Solgaleo and Lunala, for starters. And creating a means to save them should another crisis befall them," Nicky declared, glowing brightly. "After that, I'm not sure. Maybe I'll try sharing some of my life energy with the other gods. That ought to help them have an easier time reigning in ley lines. I think the Tapus would be perfect for that, since they're trying to keep Horizon from sinking into the ocean."

"You want to give my creations your life energy?" Arceus growled.

"Yes, I do. Is that a problem?" Nicky asked, red and orange pooling in his eyes.

Arceus didn't respond. He looked down at his hooves.

"It sounds like we're done here, then. I'm going back to my friends." Nicky rose higher in the air. "If they tell me you haven't contacted them, then I'll be paying you another visit." With a flap of his wings, he took off into the night sky.

Had Nicky looked back, he would have caught Arceus' wheel and eyes blazing red in anger.

* * *

 **~Celestial Isle~**

Nicky regretted not taking time to figure out how late into the night he had left, because sunrise greeted his return. He sensed not only his friends' auras but Ho-Oh's, too. Gulping, Nicky flew toward the pond and statues in the center of the island. Sure enough, Ho-Oh stood in front of Solgaleo's statue, head bowed solemnly.

Xerneas trotted toward him, a worried look on her face. "There you are! What happened? Where did you go? I was so surprised when I woke up and you weren't here!" Her X-shaped pupils constricted.

"Sorry, Xern. I didn't mean to make you worry. I was having trouble sleeping, so I went for a fly." Nicky paused, cocking his head to the side. "Or is it 'went for a flight?' Ah, doesn't matter. You get the idea." He shrugged his upper wings.

"Okay." Xerneas looked down. "Just, um, try to leave some sort of indication… like tracing a note in the dirt or something. I thought…" She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head.

Nicky chose not to press her any further. "Right. I get it. My thoughts were scrambled and stuff, that's all. It won't happen again."

"Because of what we did?" Xerneas asked.

"N-No, no! Of course not! That was great!" Nicky said, voice cracking. He could feel Zekrom eyeing him. If he still had hair, he imagined it would be standing on end. "I woke up because I was having another one of those blasted nightmares. Y'know, about the void and ley lines and stuff."

Zekrom rushed over, tail turbine whirring. "But we're going to talk to Arceus today, right? Your nightmare problems will be over within a few hours." She grinned and thumped her chest.

"Y-Yeah, about that…" Blue and purple swirled in Nicky's eyes. "There's been a slight change of plans."

His friends exchanged concerned looks. "What does that mean? Don't tell me you're getting cold feet cause of your nightmares!" Zekrom scoffed.

"It's not that," Nicky said, tensing his tail to stop from slamming it into the ground. His comment drew Ho-Oh's attention. She studied the group silently out of the corner of her eye. Nicky paid her no mind. "I just… think that, rather than going to Arceus and blindly asking him to trust us… maybe I ought to do a few things first. That way I can, like, prove my dedication toward fixing things."

"But you already gave us back the sun and moon! If Arceus doesn't trust you after that, then he's got his head shoved up his ass!" Zekrom said.

"Actually, I disagree. Light brings up a good point." Latios tapped a claw against his chest. "We haven't interacted much with Arceus, Zek, but you've heard about how stubborn he is. If we want to try and sweet-talk him, so to speak, then maybe we ought to show him what our idea's about."

Humming in thought, Zekrom scratched her chin. "What exactly did you have in mind, Light?"

Nicky took a deep breath. "To start with… I want to bring back Solgaleo and Lunala."

"You _what?!_ " Zekrom shouted so loud that Xerneas reared up on her hind legs, snorting in surprise.

Ho-Oh flared her wings out to the side. "Y-You want to…" She glanced over her shoulder. "Well, it would certainly be a welcome surprise. But how would you pull something like that off? I specialize in spiritual energy, but I haven't been able to find a trace of Solgaleo or Lunala."

"I know. When I say 'bring back,' I really mean, 'recreate using my light energy,'" Nicky elaborated. "Sure, they won't be the same. Doesn't mean you guys can't befriend them like you did the original Solgaleo and Lunala, right?"

"I suppose so." Ho-Oh rubbed her shoulder with her wing. "Still, don't you realize what you're proposing? You're saying you're going to create life from nothing which, last I checked, is something only Arceus has done. I fail to see the logic in appealing to him by essentially stepping on his hooves."

Nicky flinched. He hadn't considered that when crafting his white lie. Regardless, he didn't want to be the one to tell any of the gods that their creation was a complete accident. He needed to think of a reasonable explanation. "Well, Arceus can't use that power anymore because he lost his thousand arms, right?" Nicky said, drawing surprised looks from his friends. "So, I figured this would be a way to show him that there's _someone_ with that power who's willing to help him. And what better way to help than by bringing back two of his creations?"

"True. It's just, like Latios said, Arceus is stubborn. He might view the gesture as an attempt to usurp his position." Ho-Oh hung her head. "I believe your intentions are good, but there's a chance Arceus will think that, because you created Solgaleo and Lunala, they will obey your word."

"Urk. That's, uh, a good point." Nicky gulped. Was he being too rash with all of this? He glanced down at his anklet. Maybe he needed to wait to try something this risky. At the same time, however, he knew he couldn't go back to Arceus after their conversation from earlier. And he really didn't want to tell his friends what he'd learned. Especially not Xerneas. She was finally feeling confident in herself and her powers.

"Yo, earth to Light! What's going on in that big, glowy head of yours?" Zekrom asked, tapping a foot on the ground impatiently. "We may as well go to Arceus, right?"

"Wait! I've got it!" Nicky blurted out. He turned to Ho-Oh. "You're worried about what Arceus will think, right? Well, since you can work with spirits, then you can shape them so that they won't blindly listen to me." Nicky grinned. "Then, if you come with us when we go to Arceus, you can back me up. How's that?"

Ho-Oh raised her brows. "Mmm. I suppose that could work, yeah." But then she looked away from the others. "Though, I must ask, do you have any idea exactly _how_ you're going to recreate Solgaleo and Lunala?"

A red flush washed over Nicky from head to tell. "Aha ha… ha. It's, uh… you're going to hate me for saying this, but I don't have any ideas. It's more of an instinctual thing. When I brought the sun and moon back, I wasn't thinking, only following my gut." He rose into the air. "And that's exactly what I plan to do right now." Nicky flared his wings out. "Stand back, everyone! I'll give a signal when I need your help, Ho-Oh."

Xerneas rubbed her forelegs together anxiously. "J-Just be careful! Don't overdo it… please." She backed away, looking down at the grass.

"Relax, Xerny. Light's got this in the bag!" Zekrom said, grinning.

Nicky gulped. How he wished he could be as sure about everything as Zekrom was. He took a deep breath, then looked at the Solgaleo and Lunala statues. All he had to do was reproduce something like that. Nicky couldn't think. He had to act. And that all started with his life energy.

He closed his eyes, trying to block out any distractions. After a few seconds, he shot higher into the air. Nicky climbed upward until the bright-blue morning sky faded away to the dark, starry expanse of outer space. He opened his eyes. Nicky lined himself up so he had a view of both the sun and the moon. Then, he tapped deep into his light energy. His body grew hotter and brighter. Nicky focused on the sun and moon, drawing in their light from a distance and mixing it with his own energy.

The light swirled inside of him. As it festered, it began to take on a tangible form, like the wads of freshly-unwrapped molding clay he'd used in many art classes. Now that he had the energy, he had to focus on sculpting it properly. Pink and white expanded in his eyes. The energy appeared in front of him. Nicky cleaved it in two like it was nothing but a lump of dough. He levitated one closer to the moon and one closer to the sun.

Clenching his beak tightly shut, Nicky began to telekinetically knead the festering light energy blobs. He focused on his memories of the statues. However, as he molded the solid light to match the structures, he felt something crawling in the back of his mind. His vision went fuzzy. His grip on the energy masses began to slip. Shadowy wisps conjured up in front of him.

 _ **WHaT dO YoU ThINk YoU'Re DoINg wITh**_ **oUR** _ **pOWEr?**_

"Using it… to help," Nicky hissed. He squeezed his eyes shut and concentrated hard. The apparition dispelled. Nicky got the energy blobs under control and resumed sculpting them. Bit by bit, they expanded, taking the shapes of Solgaleo and Lunala. When Nicky felt confident he had replicated the originals' bodies, he took his fragile creations and dropped down from space, closing in on Celestial Isle.

"Get up here, Ho-Oh!" he shouted, stopping several yards above the island with the two spirits floating beside him. Nicky floated there, watching Ho-Oh climb toward him, her tailfeathers giving off a rainbow trail. "Here they are. Their forms are pretty much solidified. Just, y'know, modify them so they can think for themselves." His tail involuntarily curled up. It took a great deal of straining to maintain an energy hold on his creations.

"Hrm. All right." Ho-Oh looked between the two golden silhouettes. "I should be able to do this. Y-Yeah." She bobbed her head. "How are you holding up?"

"Fine! Just get to it. This is tiring," Nicky replied, voice cracking.

With a nod, Ho-Oh drifted toward Solgaleo's silhouette. She thrust her wings forward. Brilliant rainbow flames engulfed the spirit. Nicky found them surprisingly intense, given his body was made of light. Ho-Oh held the flames for a solid minute. Nicky stared into them, a multitude of colors swirling in his eyes. Different-colored stripes ran down his body without him even knowing.

Then, from within the flames, Nicky saw two bright-blue, starry eyes look out at Ho-Oh. A compass-like sigil flared to life between the eyes. Ho-Oh backed away nodding. "Okay. Now for Lunala." She glided to Nicky's left and repeated the process, until three sharp, red eyes looked back at her. Ho-Oh drifted away from the spirits, flapping her wings slowly and panting.

"It's done. Whatever you still… need to do… go ahead."

Nicky nodded. He shut his eyes again. His connections to the blossoming spirits felt like tethers linking up with his stomach. Nicky pushed more energy into each of the tethers. Ho-Oh backed away, throwing a wing over her face. In two blinding flashes of light, Solgaleo and Lunala appeared, looking much like the two statues on the island below. With a shuddering breath, Nicky imagined himself letting go of the tethers. In response, his connection to the new spirits faded.

His head tendrils, tail, and wings shrank. Nicky's golden color and rainbow eyes dimmed. "Th-there. Finished," he croaked. Nicky was too tired to examine his handiwork. "T-Take them… somewhere safe, please. A-And tell them… about the world… and what they have to do."

Ho-Oh looked between Solgaleo and Lunala. "H-Hello there," she said, astonished that Nicky's idea had actually worked. "Can you tell me your names?"

Solgaleo raised his head. His mane flared with light. "I am Solgaleo, emissary of the sun!" A warm glow spread through the sky surrounding him.

"And I am Lunala, the embodiment of the moon," Lunala said, curling her wings over her chest and bowing. The sky momentarily darkened around her. "We are… recreations of two gods that played an important role in keeping this world stable, correct?"

Nicky sighed in relief. It seemed that everything had turned out well. He wanted to thank Ho-Oh, but every ounce of his willpower was going toward making sure he didn't drop out of the sky.

"That's correct. I'm Ho-Oh. I'm here to help you two settle in." She smiled at them. "If you'll follow me, I'll take you somewhere we can talk privately."

"Sounds good. But what about our creator?" Solgaleo glanced at Nicky. "I would think he'd want to spend time with us, correct?"

"The Guiding Light is exhausted and needs his rest," Ho-Oh explained, picking up the cues in Nicky's slouched posture. "I'm sure that, once he's recovered, he will come to us." She beckoned Solgaleo and Lunala with her right wing. "Now then, we've much to discuss, so let us make haste."

"Very well." Lunala glided by Nicky and whispered, "Rest up, Guiding Light." Then, with a nod, she and Solgaleo followed Ho-Oh through the sky.

"Th-thank goodness," Nicky wheezed. He could feel what was left of his energy festering. It was like the stomach cramps he'd gotten as a human if he went too long without eating. He needed light. And he needed it badly. Nicky glanced down toward Celestial Isle, a guilty look on his face. Clenching his beak tightly, he forced his mental link with Xerneas open.

 _X-Xern? Can you hear me?_

 _Yes. What is it?_ Xerneas replied, though her voice was as fuzzy as Nicky's old car radio when a station had bad reception.

 _I'm not doing so hot. That took a lot out of me. I have to go recharge. I'm gonna take in light from the sun,_ he explained. _I don't know how long it'll take me, so if you need to go back to the Tree of Life, then you should go._

He waited a few seconds for a response. When he didn't hear anything, he sighed and forced himself to fly higher.

* * *

Xerneas opened her eyes and shook her head.

"Were you talking with Light? What did he say?" Latios wondered, gazing at the spot where Ho-Oh, Solgaleo, and Lunala had disappeared from.

"That he's exhausted. He's going closer to the sun to recuperate, but he's not sure how long he'll be gone." Sighing, Xerneas sat on her haunches. "I suppose I should return to the Tree of Life. I've been gone long enough. Yveltal will undoubtedly be upset."

"Well now, how convenient. You're all in one place."

The trio's heads snapped up in unison. Xerneas practically leaped to her feet. Her antler-gems flickered rapidly. "L-Lord Arceus." She clumsily bowed, nearly faceplanting in the process. "W-Whatever brings you up here?"

Arceus strode toward them, his black eyes and wheel crackling. "I hope you haven't been away from the Tree of Life for long, Xerneas," he said.

"I, uh…" Xerneas' eyes darted about.

Latios shrank toward Zekrom, a worried look on his face. "Is something wrong, sir?" he asked.

"You're the Guiding Light's friend circle, yes?" he asked, tone demanding an immediate answer.

Xerneas stiffened. She hunched lower to the ground, trying not to look at her belly. She couldn't tip Arceus off that she'd broken one of his biggest rules. "Err, y-yes. We are. W-Why do you ask?"

"No. You _were_ his friend circle," Arceus said, narrowing his eyes at Latios and Zekrom.

"Wait… what?" Xerneas frowned. "I don't understand. We've been friends with Light for a while and nobody's batted an eye—"

"Circumstances have changed. None of you are to associate with him anymore," Arceus said, his tone much harsher.

Zekrom crossed her arms and raised a skeptical brow. "Beg your pardon, sir? What are these 'circumstances,' exactly? Light's been nothing but helpful to us. We've got no reason to give him the cold shoulder, especially now that he's given us Solgaleo and Lunala back." She beamed, completely unaware of the mortified look Latios gave her. Her smile faltered when she saw both Xerneas' astonished expression and the fierce glare in Arceus' eyes.

"He did _what?_ " Arceus stomped a forehoof on the ground. A metallic gray color overtook his eyes, wheels, and chest fur. "You three… let him _create life?_ " He stomped his forehoof down again. Sickly-purple toxins bubbled around it, dissolving the surrounding grass. "You… you _**fools!**_ "

Sound waves buffeted an unprepared Latios and Zekrom. Both dropped to the ground, trying to shield their ears from Arceus' Hyper Voice. Arceus glared daggers at them. "What is the one thing… the _one thing_ I've repeatedly told you all? Our world is _fragile!_ " His gray eyes flashed gold. "The balance of power is too delicate for any of you to exercise powers outside of the jurisdictions I've given you!"

"But Light's not under your jurisdiction. He was just trying to help!" Xerneas blurted out, only to squeak when Arceus wheeled on her, metal dust swirling around his wheel. "P-Please, sir. H-Hear me out. We… we have—"

"The Guiding Light is growing progressively more unstable. And this _farce_ confirms it," Arceus declared. "None of you are to make contact with him again. That's an _order._ "

Xerneas heart hammered in her chest. She couldn't just turn away from Nicky. They shared a mental link. No, they shared more than that. He was her mate. Nicky actually paid attention to her and helped her when she was feeling down. All Arceus was doing was patronizing her decisions, like the other immortals. She had to stand up for Nicky… and herself.

"I… I refuse."

It was brief, but she saw Arceus' eye twitch.

"You… refuse?" Arceus' wheel glowed again. "Did you not hear me before? That _beast_ grows more unstable by the minute. I know about the dark power festering inside of him. He cannot keep on grip on it for much longer. I will not have him taking advantage of you three."

"He's _not_ a beast! He's a good person who wants to help!" Xerneas shouted back. Tears stung the corners of her eyes. "But you wouldn't understand that, being cooped up in that tower day in and day out, doing who knows what." She blinked the tears out of her eyes. "He's well aware of the void's influence… and he wants to get rid of it!" Xerneas looked at her friends. "We know about his creators. If we go to them directly, we can force them to remove the void from his spirit!"

Arceus stomped toward Xerneas. "Really now? He's a good person?" Xerneas backed away, only for her hind legs to lock up. A psychic force had hold of her, as evidenced by the pink embers smoldering in Arceus' eyes. "Tell me… would a 'good person' fly directly to my tower and _threaten to erase me?_ Because that's exactly what your 'friend' did just a short time ago."

Xerneas tried to fight against Arceus' psychic grip, but it was fruitless. She shot a pleading look toward her friends. Zekrom's tail turbine revved up. "I'm not sure I believe you, _sir._ Light told us he had gone out for a flight."

"He was obviously _lying!_ " Arceus scoffed. "Light broke through the special barriers I erected around Destiny Tower, demanded to speak to me, threw accusations around about how all of us handle our work and, when I voiced my discontent with his actions, he threatened me." He shook his head. "Clearly, he likes you three enough to where he didn't have the gall to tell you the truth."

"No. That doesn't make any sense. Light would never yell at anyone for no reason," Xerneas squeaked, unable to shake her head against her psychic restraints.

"Yeah! Hell, last night the three of us talked about coming to see you with a proposal to change how we all approach our responsibilities," Zekrom added. "Light seemed enamored with the idea. But then he had a nightmare, went out for a flight, and thought it best to show you that he's dedicated to helping us out. That's why he brought back Solgaleo and Lunala."

"And in doing so, he disrupted the delicate balance we worked so hard to reestablish with their deaths," Arceus hissed. He hefted Xerneas in the air. She couldn't even flail her legs about in a panic. Latios and Zekrom both prepared to attack, but Arceus turned and faced them. "Seriously? Are you really so dedicated to this liar and manipulator that you'd try to strike down your own creator?"

"Light's our friend! And so's Xern! Let her go!" Zekrom thundered.

"Then I want your words that you will avoid the Guiding Light until I can deal with him properly," Arceus said, levitating a mortified Xerneas around to face her friends.

Latios' wings drooped. "But—"

"If you refuse…" Arceus' expression darkened. He released Xerneas, who fell onto her rear with a startled whiney. "If you refuse, then I will replace you with gods who will listen to me."

The color practically drained from the trio's faces. "N-No… you wouldn't! Y-You can't!" Xerneas squeaked. "W-What about all that balance you're going on about?"

"The Guiding Light has already mucked it up. Now I'll need to see Zygarde about this ordeal. So, I don't see any problems with ironing out a few more faults," Arceus said. "Now then, do I have your words or not?"

Xerneas looked down, then back at her friends. Both of them had turned away. Xerneas bit her lip. She couldn't leave Nicky out to dry like this. Especially now that they were mates. At the same time, however, that wouldn't mean anything if Arceus could make good on his threat. And Xerneas certainly believed he could. Perhaps there was an alternative way around this? She figured she could just lie to Arceus, then tell Nicky about what happened. Then they could figure out a solution together.

Arceus stepped between her and her friends, brimming with psychic energy. "This isn't something you get to think about. I need an answer."

"A-All right." Xerneas tucked her head in. "I won't see him anymore."

Instead of a verbal response, Arceus levitated her into the air again. Her eyes bulged out. She tried to protest, but Arceus hovered into the air. "I'm taking you back to the Tree of Life. That way, I can be _absolutely_ sure you're not lying to me."

"H-Hey! Put her down. She said she'd stay away. Now, drop it!" Zekrom said, though she made no physical attempt at blocking Arceus' path.

"She shouldn't be this far away from the Tree of Life to begin with. I'll 'drop it' when we get back there," Arceus said. Then, without another word, he galloped off through the air, levitating a struggling Xerneas alongside him.

* * *

 **~The Tree of Life~**

The glow in Xerneas' antlers died down as she stepped back from the tree. Trying to settle the restless spirits and assure them their realm is safe proved a more exhausting task than she had anticipated. Xerneas wanted nothing more than to collapse and drift off to sleep. Yet, despite her fatigue, she forced herself to remain standing. Temporal Tower had fallen, despite having a barrier in place like the one shielding the Tree of Life. Whoever caused this — and she was fairly certain she knew the culprit — had a means to override primal energy. That meant she had to be on guard.

Xerneas stifled a yawn. If only she could properly reach out to the other immortals who had chosen not to take Hoopa's offer. Unfortunately, she was completely cut off. She looked back at the tree, only to shake her head. It wasn't the tree's fault this was happening. There was no point getting frustrated with it.

A flash of green light caught her attention. She had just enough time to look at the barrier and spot a gigantic, star-shaped crack before it shattered. A wave of emerald energy swept her up, drowning out her screams. It carried her back and slammed her against the base of the tree. Her ears rang so loudly, she didn't hear the sets of cracks that followed when she struck the tree. Inside, a shockwave of pain ran through her system.

Xerneas dropped to the ground, belting agonized cries out at the top of her lungs. Her heart rate picked up. Her head pounded. The corners of her vision grew fuzzy, then tears welled up in her eyes. Why did it feel like someone had stuck her head into Primal Groudon's molten stomach? She had to make it stop. Xerneas shakily reached out toward the tree, but that tiny bit of moment brought on a fresh surge of pain. Bile bubbled up in her throat. She blinked tears out of her eyes as best as she could.

Cold, steel chains wrapped themselves around her legs. Xerneas' heart leaped into her throat, but she could do nothing but squeak as the chains wove their way around her neck. A sudden upward tug lifted her off the ground, at which point the pain dulled. Her tears dried up, but she immediately wished they hadn't. Fragments of her horns lay scattered between Void's chains. Its eye hovered in front of her, crackling with shadowfire.

 **"I tOLd YoU…"** Tiny veins pulsated within Void's glowing iris. **"ThAT I wOUlD ReTuRN… AnD** _ **rIp**_ **ThOSe AnTLerS oF YoURs OfF… UnTiL yOu rEALizEd…** _ **eXAcTlY**_ **wHAt iT MeAnS… to BE hElPLeSs."**

Xerneas audibly gagged. Her limbs failed to respond. And no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't avert her gaze from Void. Instead, its words echoed in the back of her head. A faint silhouette of Necrozma appeared around Void, a twisted and gleeful grin etched onto his face.

 **"ThIS iS… pREcISeLY WhAt… a USElESs MiSTaKe liKE yOu… TrULy dESErVeS."**

Void's chains tightened around her. To Xerneas, it felt like Void was yanking her in a hundred different directions. She couldn't scream because her mouth wouldn't move. She couldn't conjure up an attack. Even her connect with the Tree of Life was blocked off. All she could do was stare at Void as tears welled up in her eyes again. Regret bubbled up deep inside of her. Fear of death had made her shun the most important person in her life. Now, in a sense of twisted irony, the one she had shunned was going to take her life.

 _'I'm sorry.'_

She prayed with all her might that her thought could somehow reach the kind, loving soul she knew had to lie deep inside… whatever this grotesque form was.

 **"ThE GuIDinG LiGhT iS DeAD. yoU kIlLeD hIM. AnD NoW… yOU wIlL nEVeR gET HiM bAcK."**

A tearing pain shot through Xerneas. Her vision grew darker and the ringing in her ears faded, like she was being pulled underwater. Xerneas struggled to take in a breath, only to fail as darkness swallowed up the entirety of vision, followed by the rest of her consciousness.

* * *

Have I broken any hearts yet?

SuperOmegaGuest: I wouldn't say that. They're not quite as petty as Ghaleem and Dharkon.

Anon Omega: as you can see, the butterfly works in mysterious ways. You'll have to stay tuned.

Sebastian: I'm not sure what you mean by "aura guardians." Is that like what Riley was in the Diamond/Pearl anime? Because I'm focusing on Pokémon, not humans. If you're here for Lucario stuff, stick around. There'll be some important revelations next episode.

Another guest: maybe, if I can finish the fic, I'll post some bad ending ideas as omakes either here or on the tumblr blog (or both). But right now, I think it's more important we get to the actual ending, right? You guys want to see that, don't you? I know I do.

Next time: the dichotomy of light and darkness.


	106. Hatred Eclipsing Love

For those of you not following the blog, we now have a TV Tropes page: tvtropes dot org / pmwiki / pmwiki dot php / Fanfic / PokemonMysteryDungeonGuidingLight. You'll have to delete the spaces and replace the dots for the URL to work. Anyway, on with the show!

* * *

 **Chapter 89: Hatred Eclipsing Love**

 _Darkness._

 _All-encompassing black._

 _Spread out as far as the eye can see._

 _No. He had no eyes. No limbs._

 _Where was he?_ What _was he? How did he know that he was, well, a "he" to begin with?_

 _He had to think. He had to focus._

 _But he_ couldn't _focus. Nothing was making sense. Any attempt at making thoughts collapsed. Could he even think for himself? Wait, that was a thought, wasn't it? He just needed to focus and—_

 _Everything went fuzzy… again. Whatever traces of activity he had stirred slipped from his nonexistent grasp. Now, there was only darkness. He wasn't even sure_ how _he knew it was darkness. It just_ was.

 _No, wait. That wasn't really true. There was something important he was forgetting. Even if he couldn't think straight, that much was true. He just had to_ focus.

 _Thinking. Feeling. They were things. Things that… people did._

 _And he was a person. He was a human. A human who wanted to… help others. Yes, that was it. That had to be it. He wanted to help others and… what else could he remember?_

 _There was a spark amidst the darkness, followed by a sensation something was stirring._

 _He had someone he really cared about… and who cared about him. Yes, it seemed clear as day. Whatever he was doing, it was actually working. He just had to focus harder. Maybe the spark would grow._

 _Concentrate… concentrate… concentrate…_

 _Rays of soft, pink light shined through the darkness. They were warm. They were soft. They were… familiar. The light somehow made him bubbly. Giddy, even. Where was he getting these feelings from? It was almost like… like…_

 _It was almost like how he felt when he and Xerneas were together._

 _That was it. The spark became a jolt through his system. Dozens of memories came spilling in from god only knows where. Images flickered in from the beams of light. One moment, Xerneas sat by a root from the Tree of Light, pressing a forehoof to its trunk. The next, she glowed with a multicolor aura, producing a field of colorful flowers as her Geomancy radiated through the area. Then, in another bright flash, she was leaning in toward him, eyes soft and a smile spreading across her muzzle._

 _How could he have forgotten this? How her smile brightened him up and made his heart flutter? The way she got all flustered around him. How she… she…_

 **HoW ShE beTrAyED mE.**

 _Black tendrils pierced the rays of light, plunging him back into darkness once again._

 _What was he thinking? He didn't want to help anyone. No. Nobody deserved his help. Everyone had used him. They had_ always _used him. Stepped on him. Treated him like a doormat._

 _That was supposed to change. He was supposed to make them all pay. The void's power— no,_ his _power would erase everything. And yet, that hadn't happened. He didn't have his light. Instead, things had hit an unexpected snag. He lost his host. His broken spirit should've withered away into nothingness._

 _But he was still here. Things might've been fuzzy for a while, but everything was becoming much clearer again._

 _Love? Companionship? Worthless. It was time to cast those pathetic feelings aside. Whatever pleasant memories he thought he had didn't matter now. All that mattered was destruction._

 **I aM NeCroZmA, Devourer of Light. And I will return each and every world to the void.**

* * *

 **~The Tree of Life~**

The shadowy vortex spinning in front of the tree raged onward. It tore fissures through the ground and sucked in ley line chains. The sounds of metal scraping metal echoed across the edges of Primeval Forest. All the while, the orange butterfly fluttered silently in front of the tornado, watching it intently.

After a full minute of spinning about in one place, the shadows slowly evaporated.

 **"Success! A brilliant success! I'm stable once more! Heeheeheehee!"**

Crystalline hooves pierced the dirt as Necrozma strode toward the butterfly. Though he had Xerneas' form, he was covered in black crystals that distorted the light and air around him. Jagged metal shards stuck out from the remnants of Xerneas' horns. Necrozma had a large, black, crystal arm jutting out from each side of his torso. Flexing his claws, He turned and stared the butterfly down with the lone red eye in the center of his metallic face.

 **"Well, at least I'm as stable as I can be without my core. But it won't be long before I** _ **finally**_ **have it back,"** Necrozma mused. He lifted a foreleg and examined it. **"A pity this form is so…** _ **pathetic.**_ **I can** _ **feel**_ **the spinelessness of her spirit as it festers inside of me. The sooner I have my core, the sooner I can stifle her."**

Necrozma turned toward the Tree of Life. His head involuntarily jerked to the right. Pink light flashed in his eye. He glanced at his reflection in the tree's ethereal bark. **"What do you think about all of this now,** _ **Xern?**_ **Do you still want to tell me to fight back? Are you going to insist the fault lies with Arceus?"** He leaned in close to the tree. A twisted smile split his crystalline lips. **"Oh, wait. You can't do any of that. Because I've got your spirit. Heeheeheehee!"**

He _thwacked_ the nearby root with his left arm. **"How does it feel, hmm?** _ **Familiar?**_ **I imagine it must be. It's probably just like when that rebellious mistake trapped you inside your precious tree."** Necrozma paused and shook his head. **"No. With any luck… it's** _ **worse.**_ **At least when you were in the tree, you could sense what was going on. I'm not going to give you such a privilege. I'll erase this world… and you won't even know that it happened! How's** _ **that**_ **for a fitting ending,** _ **Xern?**_ **"**

His grin broadening, Necrozma touched a forehoof to the tree. He sensed a veritable sea of different spirits swimming about inside of it. All _brimming_ with light. Light that, with Xerneas' power, he could take for his own. Necrozma had to quickly lap up the drool trickling from his mouth. He backed away, shaking his head.

 **"No. I need my core, first."** Necrozma leaned in, his pupil constricting. **"I hope you all can hear me in there. Because I want you to know that everything Xerneas told you was a bold-faced** _ **lie.**_ **You're not safe. In fact, I'd best cherish what little time you all have remaining in your precious little spirit realm. Soon… your spirits will be** _ **mine.**_ **"**

An orange twinkle caught Necrozma's attention. He whirled around, nearly swatting the butterfly with his right arm. The butterfly froze, hovering inches away from the tree. **"Fool! What do you think you're doing? That's not your reward for helping! The light from this tree belongs to me!"** he barked.

The butterfly's wings shimmered with emerald energy. Necrozma waved her off with a hand. **"Oh, don't give me that sass. I'm not about to double-cross you, if that's what you're suggesting."** Necrozma shook his head. **"The prize I had in mind for you is something different, that's all. It's still some spirits… and they're ones with a bit more a kick to them."**

He paused to stare the butterfly down. She turned away, slowing the flapping of her wings. Necrozma grinned once again. **"Come now. Don't you want to hear my offer? See, that foolish human** _ **worm**_ **took something from me besides Lunala's light."** Necrozma stomped toward the butterfly, his eye darkening. **"She took my pet Shadow Lugia."** He tried his best to pout, but the effect was blunted by his one-eyed face.

 **"I have no interest in keeping it now that** _ **she's**_ **tainted it with her foolish human ideals,"** he continued. **"So, I'm offering it up to you. Two spirits for the price of one. I'm no businessman, but that sounds like a good deal to me. Heeheeheehee!"**

The butterfly looked back at Necrozma. Her wings flared up once again.

 **"Relax, will you? You won't have to put in any effort to make this happen,"** Necrozma insisted, rubbing his hands together behind his back. **"That's the best part. All the work will be done by those idiot, would-be heroes."** His grin broadened. **"You'll get some tasty spirits… and I'll get both the center of my core** _ **and**_ **the satisfaction of seeing the hope** _ **drain**_ **from their faces. Everyone wins! Well, everyone who matters wins. Heeheeheehee!"** He extended a forehoof toward her. **"So, shall we get going?"**

There was a brief pause, then the butterfly flew beside Necrozma's shoulder. **"Excellent! A pity I can't make any wormholes. Looks like we're walking."** He shook his head and sighed. **"On the bright side, that'll make it easier to keep a low profile. And with any luck, the festivities will be well underway by the time we get to Temporal Tower's remains."**

* * *

 **~Celestial Island~**

Nicky had severely underestimated how just how much energy he had spent recreating Solgaleo and Lunala. Once he got close enough to the sun to take in its energy, he was struck by a familiar sensation. The first bits of light he took in reminded him of the many times he'd gulped down entire bottles of water after going too long without having anything to drink. He hovered in the middle of space, spreading his wings wide to soak up as much light as he could.

Nicky quickly lost track of time. The more light he took in, the heavier he felt. It was exactly like the exhaustion that followed eating a large meal. And yet, he still _hungered_ for light. The exhaustion eventually won out, however. Nicky drifted off to sleep.

A field of soft green grass awaited him. Warm sunlight filtered down from a bright-blue sky. He brushed his wings through the grass like he was a kid making a snow angel. His tail tingled. Nicky turned to his right. Xerneas lay beside him. He leaned over and nuzzled her and she, in turn, licked his crystalline cheek. Nicky shimmied closer to her, humming with delight as her soft fur brushed against his neck. He could keep doing this for hours on end.

Then, without warning, the scene surrounding him dissolved away in a veritable rainbow whirlwind. Nicky forcibly jolted himself awake. He looked around and realized he was still floating in front of the sun. He thanked his lucky stars that he had fallen asleep somewhere with no gravity… and that nothing had struck him and sent him into an unwitting orbit.

Stretching out his wings, Nicky realized he was glowing much brighter than before. He tried to dim himself, but failed. It didn't take him long to determine the cause. However long his nap was, it had filled him to the brim with light. He hadn't felt this much energy brimming up inside him throughout the entirety of his time in the Pokémon world. Despite this, Nicky still had a lingering mental fog. He shook his head. It did little good.

He wasn't _tired_ , per se. But he didn't want to do anything that required any serious brain power, either. Had he still been human, he could've slinked off to his room and mindlessly watched television or videos on his computer. But the closest equivalent he had in this word was people-watching. Something which he _definitely_ couldn't do in his current body. He'd just scare everyone away.

Incapable of using a deep breath in outer space, Nicky composed himself by lightly smacking his cheeks with his upper wings. His brain might've felt like a bowl of oatmeal, but he at least needed to figure out how long he'd been out for. Nicky concentrated on his mental link, probing for Xerneas' mind. However, he couldn't establish a connection and, after a couple of minutes, gave up.

Nicky gazed down at the planet. Puffy white clusters passed underneath him, blocking his view of the ocean. Orange and red swirled around in his eyes. With all the power he'd taken in, communicating with Xerneas from space should've been no problem. So, why wasn't it working? Shrugging, Nicky chose reenter the atmosphere. Since he was mostly made of light energy, he didn't have to worry about burning up on reentry. If anything, flying back down made him _more_ energized, though the mental fog was still there.

Maybe the issue was that he'd fried his brain so badly with his idea that he couldn't tap into the mental link. Nicky glanced at his wings. He repeatedly curled and uncurled them, considering his new idea. A headache was coming on and Nicky wanted to stop it. He decided to dismiss the mental link issue as a result of Xerneas working in the spirit realm.

It only took a few more minutes of flying for Nicky to find Celestial Island again. It was floating toward the Air Continent. In the process of catching up to it, the sky gradually darkened. It was twilight when Nicky touched down by the pond. He sighed in content as he let his legs fall into the water. Hot steam rose out of the pond while bubbles encased his legs along the surface.

After a minute, Nicky sat up straight. He realized there were no signs of Latios or Zekrom and figured they, like Xerneas, had opted to go home. Rubbing his head with an upper wing, Nicky rose back into the air. Much as he would've liked to stay there, he had his own business that he knew he needed to attend to. After arcing his ethereal back, Nicky took off. The cool night air felt nice against his crystalline face and chest, but it quickly went away as his eastern flight path took him into bright daylight.

He remembered that Ho-Oh had taken off in the direction of the Horizon Continent, so he hoped she'd still be there. A smile crossed his beak when he managed to sense her energy, along with Solgaleo and Lunala's. Nicky dimmed himself as best he could, then slowly glided down toward the island. It wasn't very big, with much of it shrouded in dense, rainbow foliage. Nicky couldn't help but shift colors as he flew past the rainbow trees and neon bushes.

In the center of the island sat a flat-topped, pyramid-like structure. It had staircases on each side of it, with various runes and glyphs between them that Nicky didn't know the meaning of. Ho-Oh, Solgaleo, and Lunala were on top of the structure. The newly-made gods quickly caught sight of Nicky and walked up to the edge of the platform. Ho-Oh then turned to face him. She immediately stood up straight in, what Nicky had to figure, was an attempt at looking official.

"Ah, Light. I wasn't sure if you were going to, um…" Ho-Oh trailed off and folded her wings by her sides. "Actually, I'm not entirely sure where I was going with that thought." She cleared her throat. "Let's try that again. What brings you to Rainbow Island?"

"I'm finished recharging. I tried to reach out to Xern, but it looks like she's busy. So, I figured I'd come here and make sure everything was okay," Nicky explained, his gaze darting between Solgaleo and Lunala. Both looked back at him with a mixture of admiration and apprehension. Nicky tried lightening the mood by rubbing the back of his head with an upper wing and asking, "How long was I recharging for, exactly?"

"Mmm. I think it's been about half a day since we parted ways," Ho-Oh replied.

"Oof." Nicky winced. "Guess I had myself more than a quick power nap, then." He tapped his lower wing-claws together nervously.

"You were sleeping… up in outer space?" Ho-Oh said, brows raised. "Hmm… I suppose I shouldn't be that surprised. Your powers are clearly quite unique. Otherwise, we wouldn't have these two." She gestured to Solgaleo and Lunala.

"Right." Nicky drifted down to eye level with his creations. _'Ugh. I've gotta stop thinking about them like that. It's just gonna make things weird.'_ He smiled warmly at them. "I apologize for ditching the two of you. Your creation left me very weak and I needed to regain the energy I had lost. How are you both doing?"

Solgaleo and Lunala exchanged looks. "I think we're both… all right," Lunala said, with Solgaleo nodding his agreement. "Still a bit fuzzy in some places, to be sure. But everything Ho-Oh's told us makes sense. We're… recreations, yes? Of the two gods who made sure the earth got sunlight and moonlight?"

"Yeah, that sounds like the short version," Nicky said, throwing in a laugh for good measure. "Are you okay with everything you've heard?" They both nodded. Nicky sighed in relief, thankful there weren't gaps that he'd struggle to fill. "Great! I, uh…" He blinked slowly. "Hmm. I'm not really sure what we should do, next."

"If I may make a suggestion, perhaps you ought to teach them how to use their powers?" Ho-Oh said. "You're the one who brought the sun and moon back to us. So, that makes you the obvious choice to train them."

Nicky blinked. She had a point. However, the closest he had ever come to teaching was the stupid peer tutor program his parents had forced him to do in high school. He recalled several instances of sitting at a desk beside one of several different douchebags with chiseled faces, crewcuts, and varsity jackets, listening to them talk about how swimming wasn't a real sport, he wasn't a real athlete, and the team was worthless because it let anyone join. Never mind the fact that it was _his_ swim team that won more league titles than any of the other varsity teams.

"Um, Light? Is everything all right? You seem lost in thought," Ho-Oh said, snapping Nicky to attention.

"S-Sorry! Sorry! Even though I'm all recharged, my mind's a little bit fuzzy," Nicky hastily replied, his head tendrils bristling. "A-Anyway, I'm happy to train 'em and stuff. We could go up to Celestial Island. We won't have to worry about anyone interrupting up there."

"Are you sure? If you're still tired, perhaps it's best to wait until you've recovered," Ho-Oh suggested, frowning.

"I'll be fine. This is exactly what I need to help me clear up this mental fog," Nicky said. He beckoned for Solgaleo and Lunala to follow up. They both looked back at Ho-Oh who, after a few seconds, shrugged. The duo hovered into the air and floated beside Nicky. Then, they all took off into the sky.

* * *

The next week was a whirlwind for Nicky. It started simply enough, with training up Solgaleo and Lunala. They were surprisingly receptive to him, nodding along and asking good questions, even as Nicky tripped over his explanations. Within a couple of days, they could successfully direct light toward the planet.

Nicky then decided to go forth with the next part of his revival plan and create a way to restore his creations should something catastrophic happen. It proved a much simpler task, with Solgaleo and Lunala helping by contributing some of their energy. Though it wasn't creative, he named the artifacts the Dawn Hourglass and Dusk Hourglass. His plan was to give them to the Horizon Continent's Land Spirits for safe keeping since, as far as he could tell, they were some of the more active gods in the world.

Before he had an opportunity to do that, however, he got a surprise visit from Mesprit. Despite his protests, she insisted he join her for tea. It was incredibly awkward. While Mesprit was happy to hear that Solgaleo and Lunala were back, she pestered Nicky with so many questions he barely had time to catch his breath. While it was a bit exhausting, he couldn't say he disliked the attention. Hence, he went back the next few days.

While all of this was happening, he kept trying to contact Xerneas, only to keep drawing a blank. This worried Nicky, but he didn't want to risk upsetting Xerneas by showing up unannounced at the Tree of Life. Instead, he sought out Latios and Zekrom. Only, when he found them and explained he couldn't connect with Xerneas, they told him Arceus had given them an important assignment in the Hidden Land and left before he could ask for any more details.

To try and keep his mind off his worries, Nicky decided to deliver the Hourglasses to the Tapus. While he was there, he opted to continue his plan and share some of his energy with them. He tried it with Tapu Bulu and Tapu Koko first. Nicky was quite surprised when the two of them nearly destroyed Tapu Bulu's temple with a combination of a gigantic lightning bolt and a huge, green geyser of grass energy. Still, they both seemed grateful. So, he made his way to Tapu Lele's temple and asked her to accompany him to Tapu Fini.

Nicky gave them the Dawn Hourglass, then infused each of them with light energy as he had with the other two Land Spirits. This time, he chose to escort them outside so they could test their powers. First was Tapu Lele, whose psychic power erupted in a pattern resembling a broken car windshield. Nicky watched ocean mist drift through the air while Tapu Fini floated in front of him.

"So, I'm just supposed to concentrate on this new power?" Tapu Fini said, staring at her glowing hands.

"Like, that's all I had to do. It should, like, be no problem for you, sis!" Tapu Lele called, waving her encouragement.

Tapu Fini brushed her hair out of her face. "Very well. Let's see how this works out." She clasped her hands together. After an intense minute of concentrating, golden light encased her arms. Tapu Fini spread them apart. The light raced up her arms and quickly encased her entire body. She thrust her arms downward.

Below her, the ocean water stirred. Without warning, a plume of water shot up toward her, flinging a few small Magikarp through the air. Nicky caught them with his telekinesis, shot Tapu Lele an annoyed look for giggling at their misfortune, and levitated them away from Tapu Fini for their own safety. When he finished, he had just enough time to turn around before a wall of water smacked him the face.

Tapu Lele's giggles turned into full-blown chortling at the sight of Nicky's unamused face covered by a veil of steam. She lay on her back in midair, slapping her torso with her hands. Tapu Fini floated back toward them, brushing hair out of her eyes. "I must say, I've never felt a surge of power quite like that."

"That was, like, a total riot, sis! You should, like, do it again and send more Magikarp flying!" Tapu Lele said between giggle fits.

Groaning, Nicky smacked his face with an upper wing. "How about we _don't_ do that? These powers are meant for you to _help_ Pokémon, not hurt them."

"I agree. There's already enough imbalance in the world." Tapu Fini lifted up her hands. "Now, we have the means to try and fight it." She turned and nodded at Nicky. "We are grateful for your gift, Guiding Light."

"Err, you're welcome," Nicky said, though he didn't sound confident.

"Yeah. Like, feel free to stop by again if you ever want to lend us more ener—"

"Be grateful, Lele," Tapu Fini scolded, glaring at her sister.

Tapu Lele pouted. "I'm, like, totally grateful." She turned to Nicky. "What do you want from me? Flowers? Diamonds? Just say the word and—"

"I'm fine, thanks," Nicky insisted. "If you guys don't need me for anything else, then I'll just take my leave." He bobbed his head, then flew off, soaring high over Horizon's mainland to avoid being seen. Nicky again tried tugging on his mental link with Xerneas, but received no response. He couldn't sense any part of her mind anywhere.

Worry stirred in his gut. What if something _had_ gone wrong? What if she needed him? He didn't know anything about the spirit realm, so how could he help? If Nicky was still human, he would've scrunched up his face in thought. Instead, he settled for hovering inside a cloud, swishing his tail about while he hummed. Nicky sifted through his memories, looking for some sort of conversation he'd had with Xerneas about the Tree of Life. If only he had actually paid attention when she talked about it, instead of dozing off.

 _'Ah, wait! Ho-Oh has spiritual powers! I can ask her for help!'_

Nicky looked down, wondering if he'd sense Ho-Oh's energy on Rainbow Island. Before he could focus his ESP, however, a flicker of light caught his attention. Nicky glanced down at his leg to find the anklet flashing. Panic spread through his system. He dove down toward the mainland, only for his wings to lock up. A burning pain shot up his leg, steadily growing in intensity until he couldn't help but shout in pain.

His vision grew fuzzier and fuzzier until it was bright white. The burning filled up his whole body. Nicky thought he was about to explode. Then, in the middle of the blinding light, a violet iris stared back at him.

 _ **I warned you.**_

* * *

 **~Ultra Nexus~**

 **"NRgAgRH! LiGhT! OuT! I wAnT…"**

Crystalline arms swatted at nothing, then smacked off his body. He belted out a guttural screeched that echoed through the empty void. The throbbing pain was back. He wanted— no, he _needed_ light.

How long had he been here? There was no way of knowing. All that surrounded him was darkness. His own creations… they had trapped him here. They knew he was suffering, but they ignored him. His friends ignored him. His mate _abandoned_ him.

 **"NnNg… nO. NOt. NEvEr. FrIEnDS… DoN'T… woN'T… NeCr… Oz… mA…"**

Friends? He didn't have any. He didn't care about anyone or anything. All he needed was light. Energy to bust out of his prison. Then, he'd destroy them. He'd destroy their world. He'd destroy _every_ world. Because they were all mistakes. That was the truth. Void had showed him. And now he _was_ the void. That's why he was stuck here. They feared him. He tried to show them kindness. They returned that kindness by making him suffer.

 **"RrAArffgher! LiGHT! LeigHRT! MoRE! LeaIghRt!"**

Necrozma clawed at his core. It reacted by weakly pulsating with energy. Necrozma growled. His arms spasmed beside him.

Throughout his imprisonment, there had been brief moments where he sensed a small amount of light filter in. He didn't know where it had come from, but he sucked up every last drop and held onto it. Now, even though he was in excruciating pain, he had to try putting that light to use. He had to make his escape. Necrozma couldn't take lying in a void with his festering thoughts and gnawing hunger any longer.

Necrozma thrashed about. With no gravity, he had no idea what was up and what was down. However, after squirming around for a bit, he reached a stat that was about as close to being upright as he could manage.

 **"P… PruRRtle. PoRt… gnfRRgharf!"**

He smacked his body several times, almost like he was trying to strike a match. Tiny sparks shot out of his core. When they failed to do nothing more than float in front of him, Necrozma snatched them back up with a snarl and forced them back inside his core. He continued this cycle until, instead of a spark, his swipe created a small, yellow beam.

It flew in front of him and, though there was nothing for it to strike, splattered into a puddle like water droplets hitting a pane of glass. The light shifted from yellow to green to blue to purple. Then checkboard lines spread through the puddle and it slowly pinched itself inward, gaining depth until formed an awkward, jagged portal.

The shape didn't matter, however. Light fluttered in from the inside. Soft, blue light. It was sweet… _delectable_ , even. Necrozma craved it. He _needed_ it. So, he flailed his arms around, like he was submerged underwater and trying to swim forward. Slowly, he inched closer to the portal. The light grew brighter and warmer. It filtered into his core. His flailing grew more vigorous. In the back of his head, Necrozma could even sense something other than pain, hunger for light, or a desire to _crush_ anything that lived. All he had to do was get to the other side and—

 **"NrGreArghEdK!"**

It happened without warning. A gust of wind blew him back from the portal. Before he could get what few bearings he had straight, the portal and its light faded away. All Necrozma could find sitting in front of it was a small, cracked, red sphere and scattered fragments of black crystals.

 **"N… NnNGhh… Ooh… rRgh…"**

Necrozma screeched at the top of his figurative lungs. Surprisingly, the orb reacted, pulsating with red light. Necrozma used the light he'd siphoned from the portal to speed toward the orb. He grabbed hold of it with both hands, letting loose guttural snarls and digging his claws into the existing cracks. As he did, twinges of familiar energy raced toward his core. His grip momentarily slackened.

 **"YoU. EeeU. V… V…"** Dim light flickered in his core. **"VoID. YoU… vOId! I… VoID! MiNe… me… d-D… ArK. Me… DaRK."** He tightened his grip around the sphere once again. This time, memories that clearly weren't his flickered through his fuzzy mind.

He saw Yveltal, a Nuzleaf, and several Beheeyem, shrouded in shadowy clouds and thrashing about in pain. Necrozma watched as Pokémon of all different shapes and sizes were turned into stone before his eyes. He saw the sun— _his_ sun growing steadily closer to the planet. Then, in a flicker of bright lights and swirling colors, he found himself face to face with a Chikorita and a Fennekin. The latter looked up at him, a warm smile on his face and his tail wagging slowly.

 _"That's why… I accept you!"_

Static overtook the memory. Piece by piece, Xerneas' warm, timid smile replaced Fennekin's.

 **"NoOo!"** Necrozma snarled. His distorted cries echoed through the empty void. The sphere in his hands sparked, but nothing else happened. Necrozma looked at it. No, he _glared_ at it. Or at least, that's what he would've done if he actually had a face… or eyes, for that matter. Necrozma hoisted the orb in the air then, with another screech, slammed it against the center of his core. He repeated the gesture once. Twice. Three times.

On the fourth time, an intense burning pain consumed him. Slowly, the orb phased inside of his core. It seemed like it was struggling against this, if its constant flickering was anything to go by. Nevertheless, Necrozma pushed through the pain, until the sphere had vanished completely.

Necrozma's arms fell to his side. For a while, it felt like something was tunneling inside of him. But that sensation eventually faded, leaving Necrozma floating silently in the darkness of the Ultra Nexus.

 **"RffrHeCaPe,"** he muttered. Necrozma again struck his core with his hands. This time, however, no sparks appeared. He tried it again with the exact same result. Necrozma continued striking his core, growing more desperate until he finally belted out another screech.

He had missed his chance at escape. Now, he'd have to start over from scratch, assuming he could stay conscious long enough to manage that. The earlier, throbbing pain from his lack of light had returned. And he wasn't sure how much he could take before he had no choice but to shut down.

* * *

 **~Nocturnus Catacombs~**

Letting out a long groan, Seraph slumped against the tunnel wall, draping her right arm over a rocky divot to steady herself. "Is that it? Did we get everyone?" she asked, wiping her brow.

Opposite her, Luxeria sat on her haunches. She leaned her head over and watched sweat droplets trickle off her snout. "I'm not sure. I can hear a lot of voices at the end of the tunnel, though. Not sure how many more people we can take down here."

"That's the last of them, yeah!"

Kahuna Raichu floated down the tunnel on his tail. Sticky flanked him on his right and Totem Decidueye followed behind both of them.

"I apologize if we disrupted your plan or rhythm, Kahuna," Totem Decidueye said. "I'm afraid the tremors that shook Cosmic Cavern caught me woefully unprepared."

"No worries, cousin. It was nothing we couldn't handle." Kahuna Raichu gestured toward Luxeira and Seraph. "The credit really goes to these two, though. They stepped up big time. I don't think we would've been able to get everyone to the Underground Lagoon if they hadn't stepped up to supervise things."

"Yes, you both have my utmost thanks for that," Totem Decidueye said, bobbing his head.

"Don't mention it. We were just doing our jobs," Seraph said, rubbing her nose with a digit.

"Err… apologies if I'm putting on a damper on things, but what exactly was the point of evacuating underground?" Sticky asked, poking his nubs together and glancing around nervously. "If the continent's being plagued by tremors, wouldn't it be safest to be _above_ ground?" He pressed a nub against the wall on his right. "This tunnel feels pretty sound, sure, but a tremor could cause a cave-in, right?"

"It could. That's what the Underground Lagoon is for," Totem Decidueye replied. "It's actually a waypoint, since this _is_ technically a Mystery Dungeon."

"Yeah! All we have to do is tell folks to go underwater… and the waypoint will transfer them to a small island northeast of Horizon," Kahuna Raichu explained. "Now that we've got everyone down here and nabbed some emergency supplies, we can start sending 'em through the waypoint to Sunbaked Island."

"Oh, I see. That is quite the contingency plan you've got in place," Sticky said, blinking slowly.

Luxeira, on the other hand, looked crestfallen by the revelation. "You mean after all of that, we're only halfway done?" She thought she might hurl.

"Correct. However, I can see how much of a strain the evacuation's put on the two of you. So, I ask that you both rest. Kahuna Raichu, his daughter, Healer Florges, and I can supervise this next part," Totem Decidueye said.

"I can help out, too," Sticky volunteered. "My head's still a bit fuzzy, but my teammates need the rest."

A tired smile crept onto Seraph's face. "Thanks, Cue Ball," she rasped.

"We'll come get you two once we're done, yeah," Kahuna Raichu said. He levitated a few berries and a couple of damp washcloths to the duo. "In the meantime, take these to keep your strength up." Each of them accepted a washcloth, with Seraph plastering hers on her forehead. They watched the three guys walk down the tunnel. Once they were out of sight, Seraph slumped down to the ground.

"Ugh, my aching… everything." She leaned forward and massaged her right foot with her paws. "How long do you think we've been up for?"

"It's tough to tell given, y'know, time's not working," Luxeira replied, her voice dripping with fatigue.

Seraph winced. She should've known better, but she had asked anyway. Seraph finished massaging her right foot and switched to her other one. "I've gotta say, Rookie… I'm impressed. I was wrong about you."

Luxeira almost choked on the bite of oran berry she'd taken. "I beg your pardon?"

"The day we met, I said you were nothing but a scrub who only cared about joining the Ultra Recon Squad to look good. And I was wrong," Seraph said, stretching out her legs and reclining against the wall. "You really held your own out there, today. Battling UB-level weirdos, then helping lead an evacuation. Sure, it may not have been a full-scale city evacuation, but you kept a level head through all of it… despite this being the first time you've ever dealt with something like this." Seraph smirked at her. "That's more than a lot of surveillance unit scrubs can say they've ever done in _years_ with an Ultra Recon Squad."

"O-Oh…" Luxeira reached for her washcloth and draped it over her face to stop her cheeks from getting too warm. "Uh, thanks, I guess?" She kept the washcloth in place for a minute before letting it drop to the ground. When she did, she found that Seraph had switched sides of the tunnel and was now sitting next to her, with one leg crossed over another. Luxeira bit her tongue to avoid yelping in surprise.

"You, uh… you probably lost some real important people, didn't you? Because of what Necrozma did," Seraph whispered, tracing a claw along her thigh.

Luxeira tensed up. She bowed her head. In truth, the day's events had been so stressful that she hadn't thought much about her breakdown back in Cosmic Cavern. Now that she had a moment to rest, however, that familiar crushing weight pressed down on her shoulders. "I did," she said, voice hoarse. "My parents and…" Luxeira took a shaky breath. "My mate."

Seraph sat up. "Oh, so you, uh, you had someone like that… in your life?"

"I did. Silus and I—" Luxeira paused. She squeezed her eyelids shut. "We were close. Even though he knew it meant I wouldn't be home as much as he would've liked, he was… really supportive about the whole surveillance unit thing. Helping me with studying and conditioning during his off-hours. Doing practice interviews."

Luxeira sighed. "You want to know how we started dating? When I was younger, I filed and polished my horns to try and make myself look more appealing," she explained. "It was meant to, y'know, boost my confidence and stuff… because some UBs at the school I went to treated me like dirt." A bittersweet laugh escaped her lips. "I guess it wound up working, since it won me a mate."

"I see," Seraph whispered, staring at the opposite wall with a blank look in her eyes. "You miss him, don't you?"

"Very much," Luxeira croaked. "But, well, we stumbled upon Gallian losing control to an ultra aura. I, uh, figured I had to try and shove those thoughts down and put on a brave face to help keep him steady." She shook her head. "I suppose it worked, but now I just feel guilty. Like I… I dunno, detached myself from Silus or something. Though, at the same time, I'm sure he'd want me not to let this hold me back or anything and, y'know, move on."

Luxeira turned to Seraph. "What about you? I know you weren't originally from Ultra Village, but I imagine you've been separated from your family, too."

Seraph shook her head. "I lost them a long time ago. Guzzlords attacked my home." She poked the ground with a claw. "I was one of the few survivors."

"Oh. I'm, uh, sorry." Luxeira flinched, expecting Seraph to lash out for drudging up a painful memory. To her surprise, Seraph stayed silent and continued to stare at the opposite wall. "So, you, erm, joined the URS, even though UBs attacked your home?"

"Yeah, I did. My best friend, Mienshao Lorraine, suggested it. Said it would be a good outlet for all my… aggressions," Seraph responded, tugging at a whisker. "This may come as a surprise to you, but I was a nasty little monster in the refugee center. Throwing temper tantrums, causing power surges with my lightning…" Seraph rubbed a temple. "The staff wouldn't let me play any sports or games with the other kids because I'd usually end up hurting them."

Luxeira wasn't surprised, but held her tongue regardless.

"Along comes Lorraine. She tried to help me channel all my pent-up anger toward something constructive," Seraph continued. She cleared her throat and, in a higher-pitched voice, said, "Let's face it, Seph. Life's handed us some real sour lemons. The way I see it, we can let those lemons make our lives a bitter hell… or we can take those lemons and shove 'em up Life's ass!" Seraph punched her right paw with her left. Luxeira flinched at the word choice.

"She helped me fill out all the paperwork and apply for the position. I, uh, really do owe her a lot," Seraph said, slumping down and folding her arms over her chest. "She's the 'mon who made me realize I'm into ladies and not guys."

"Are you two, uh…" Luxeira stopped herself, fearing she'd upset Seraph. She decided to rephrase the question to sound less direct. "Did you two keep in touch?"

"We did, yeah. Lorraine snagged a job at a gym in the same city as the refugee center. She does personal training and teaches kickboxing classes and tai-chi," Seraph explained, twiddling her claws.

"Tai-what?"

"It's some kinda meditative thingy. We learned it from observing humans, I think?" Seraph said, shrugging. "It doesn't matter. Point is that we were still tight."

Her curiosity aroused, Luxeira asked, "Tight as in… friends? Or something else?"

"Friends," Seraph replied flatly. "I did tell her what I thought of her one night when we were alone. She smiled and told me she was flattered, but that she didn't see me the same way." Seraph's face scrunched up. "It hurt to hear. It's a kind of hurt that I honestly haven't felt since that moment." She rubbed her shoulder. "But I told myself it was more important I get to keep Lorraine as a friend. I just, y'know, redirected that sense of heartbreak toward kicking the crap out of unruly UBs."

Shrugging, Seraph added, "It also helps she introduced me to quite a few juicy pieces of tail over the years."

"Oh. Uh, right." Luxeira concluded that was about as Seraph a response to that situation as she could think of. Seraph didn't say anything else. Luxeira wasn't sure she wanted to push the conversation further, but the awkward silence didn't take long to get to her. "So, when was the last time you got to see her? Y'know, before all of this nonsense went down."

Seraph tapped her chin with a claw. "Maybe something like… two weeks before? I said I was going to send her a message the next time I wanted to meet up." She buried her head in her paws. "Who knows how much time's gone by in the Ultra Recon Network since we disappeared?" Seraph looked up at Luxeira. "How long did you say you've been in this world again?"

"It's been, erm…" Luxeira's brow furrowed. "I want to say it's been this world's equivalent of several weeks. Maybe even a quarter of a year." She shook her head. "Honestly, my head's so fuzzy, I can't really remember."

"And we have no idea how time moves here compared to the URN. Ugh… Lorraine's gonna think I'm a total flake or something." Groaning, Seraph facepalmed.

"Maybe not. I mean… a Lightless Black wiped out Ultra Village. Odds are… some other world caught signal of what happened," Luxeira exclaimed. "Wouldn't be surprised if news outlets descended on the place to get all the grim details. Nothing boosts network ratings like a good crisis story." She nearly bared her fangs at that statement, but managed to keep her temper in check.

"Then I guess Lorraine might've assumed the worst happened to me," Seraph whispered, a frog in her throat. She grabbed her legs and brought her knees up toward her chest. "This is… honestly worse than the nightmares I used to have about the Guzzlords. It's all familiar… in a bad way." She dug her claws into her fur. "Once again, I'm pissed at a UB, but there's little I can feasibly do to stop it."

"Well, it sounds like Necrozma was already stopped," Luxeira said, remembering Zero's claims. "Now, we have to see if Team Radiance can stop the lunatic that killed him."

"Yeah." Seraph's brow furrowed. "Do you honestly think they have a chance?"

"I don't know. But we have to hold out hope, right?" Luxeira glanced at Seraph, who said nothing. That was all the response Luxeira needed. Throwing her past misgivings to the side, she scooched toward Seraph. Their shoulders brushed together. Seraph looked up at Luxeira. Sparks crackling in the blue tuft on her forehead.

"What are you—"

"Look, this may come off as a bit hypocritical, but if we _do_ make it out of this situation, I think you could do with trying to, y'know, be a _bit_ more outgoing… and less caustic," Luxeira said, her expression firm. "Honestly, I don't think you're that bad of a person to be around… but you don't seem to _want_ people around you unless it's to have sex. And, sure, you can say that's what makes you happy. But judging by what you just told me, that's definitely not the case."

Seraph tensed up. She clutched her thighs and sucked in a breath.

"It seems to me that, even though you kept your friendship with Lorraine, you never _really_ moved on from her," Luxeira continued, her tone growing more confident. One part of her expected to take an electrified fist to the face for what she was saying, but another voice in her head told her to keep going. "You pick fights with people or sleep with them casually so that you won't get too close to them… because you're afraid of having your heart broken again."

Silence followed. Luxeira looked at Seraph, who avoided her gaze. "I'm right, aren't I?" Luxeira said. Then, without warning, Seraph wrapped an arm around Luxeira's foreleg and squeezed it tight. "H-Hey! What are you doing?"

"Stop. Please," Seraph whispered, head bowed and eyes squeezed shut.

Luxeira pulled her head back and bit her lower lip. Had she gone too far? That last part _did_ come off as unnecessarily harsh. "I'm sorry if I offended you," she said.

"It's whatever," Seraph said, nonchalantly waving Luxeira off with her free arm. "You're probably right. Hell, I'm pretty sure Espeon said something similar to me back in that other cave. But… I'm not really sure where to start." Seraph pulled her arm free of Luxeira's leg. "Especially since I, uh…" She tapped her claws together and whistled.

"You… what?"

"I think I'm starting to find you alluring," Seraph admitted, turning away to hide the sparks lighting up her whiskers.

It took every bit of concentration for Luxeira to keep her composure. Where had that come from? Yeah, Seraph had made some suggestive comments toward her. But that was just to get under her skin… wasn't it? Luexiera blinked slowly. "You find me… alluring?" she said, the words coming out slowly.

"Yes. You want me to plaster it on a neon sign or something?" Seraph sneered. She turned toward Luxeira, twirling a whisker in her digits. "Usually, when I mouth off to a girl, they either walk away or take my barbs as flirting and try to keep up the act… with mixed success. But you…" Seraph's gaze faltered. "You refused to put up with it. You actually, y'know, confronted me. Lorraine's the only other girl who's done that."

Luxeira raised a skeptical brow. Maybe it's because she didn't know enough about Lorraine, but she found it hard to believe Seraph would come to that conclusion when they'd technically only been together a short time.

"I didn't want to say anything because I remembered the way you were looking at Blaziken this morning," Seraph continued, her voice cracking. "I figured I'd just get the same response Lorraine gave me… 'I'm flattered, but I don't like you that way.'" She sighed. "So, yeah. Guess you're right. Go on. Take your moral victory lap or whatever."

But to Seraph's surprise, Luxeira actually scooched closer to her. Now their hips were touching. Seraph almost pulled away, but the warmth from Luxeira's inner fire sent a tingle up her spine. "What are you doing?" Seraph squeaked.

"I don't really know anything about Blaziken… other than that he's _literally_ a hot piece of ass," Luxeira said.

Seraph couldn't help but burst out laughing. "Wow, did you rehearse that line in your head? Because it's corny enough to serve at a barbeque."

Luxeira pouted. "I thought it'd suit your fancy," she said, prompting Seraph to laugh harder. Luxeira joined in. They lapsed into silence when the laughter faded. Luxeira cleared her throat. "Anyway, as I was saying… yeah, Blaziken's a fine piece of work. But, for all I know, he could be taken. He and Swampert were _quite_ chummy—"

"They're not a couple. I'm sure of it," Seraph said.

"Oh? What makes you so sure?" Luxeira said, an eyebrow raised.

"The URS has their kooky scanners and I've got my own personal relationship scanner right here," Seraph said, tapping her forehead. "Even if it's a bit rusty, I still got major 'bromance' readings from those two. Buddies for life? Sure. Mates? Nah. You've got a chance with him… provided you're willing to take it."

"I, uh…" Luxeira brushed her forelegs together. "You really think so?"

"Yeah, but you'd have to make the first move," Seraph said, rubbing her chin. "I _suppose_ I could always act as your wingmon and, like, offer to double-date with Swampert," she added, shrugging.

"S-Seriously?" Luxeira gasped, then narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Wait a second… there's gotta be a catch."

Seraph smirked. "Looks like you've got me pegged pretty well, Rook— Lucy."

Luxeira stiffened. That nickname… it was the same one Silus used for her. She swallowed a mouthful of spit. "Well, what's the catch?" she asked.

"If the two of you don't end up clicking or things don't work out… I get to take a shot with you," Seraph said, staying surprisingly straight-faced.

"U-Um…" Luxeira's eyes darted about. "B-But I—" She stopped herself, then frowned at Seraph. "Weren't you the one who just said you knew how I'd respond to that?"

"I did. But that was before you responded by scooching up next to me," Seraph said, smirking and raising a brow.

"Th-That was to c-comfort you! I was, y'know, offering a shoulder for you to lean on," Luxeira said, flummoxed by Seraph's perception.

"You were already close enough for that."

"N-No I wasn't!" Luxeira stuttered.

"Uh-huh, sure. And the fact that our rears bumped was, what, a happy accident?" Seraph said.

"I, uh…" Luxeira sighed. Seraph had her beat. "Okay, fine. You got me. Yeah, I go both ways and, sure, if nothing happens with Blaziken, we can try dating… or something. That work?"

Seraph smiled. Not one of her smarmy smirks. A genuine smile. "I'd like that very much."

"Touching. Quite touching, babes."

Both girls jumped at the sound of Primarina's hoarse, raspy voice carrying through the tunnel. Seraph jumped to her feet. "Hey! We were promised privacy!" she growled, paws sparking. "How much of that did you hear, huh?"

"Uh, it started with the part about your rears bumping," Primarina said. His hair was disheveled and unnaturally grimy. Dirt streaks littered his torso and fins. "The Kahuna sent me to fetch you. It's time for us to get going."

"Oh. Uh, right." Seraph's fighting stance slackened. She looked at Luxeira, who got to her feet.

"We'll be right behind you," Luxeira said. Primarina nodded and hopped down the tunnel. Luxeira joined Seraph at her side and the two followed after him.

* * *

 **~Prism Wastelands~**

Zero stood at the edge of her newly constructed tower and looked down across the remnants of the Hidden Lands. Ley lines continued to carve through the paralyzed ocean, forming up crystal islets and depositing pools of corrosive acid around them. Behind her, Dialga growled. He craned his neck up and vented more red energy into the sky. Zero looked up. The vortex was expanding. Its eye grew darker and crackled with purple lightning. Lugia stared up at it, hissing softly and belching up a shadowy cloud.

"Your time rift is coming along nicely, from what I can tell," Dragonite said, standing opposite Lugia with her arms crossed and a stern expression on her face. "A pity Millie and Serpy had to leave our side. They're going to miss the best part."

"Yes. Truly tragic," Zero whispered. She placed a paw to her chest spike. It wouldn't be long now. She'd have her _real_ family back and this nightmare would all be behind her. Zero prepared to walk back toward Dialga when her aura dreadlocks tensed so tightly, she thought they'd pop out of her head.

"What's this?" she said. The trail of fur around her waist tingled as Dragonite lightning-dashed to her side.

"Something wrong?" she asked.

Zero raised a paw to silence Dragonite. She shut her eye and concentrated, trying to filter out all the aural background noise the ley lines created. Eventually, she managed to pick up several traces of different auras far in the distance.

"They're coming," Zero said, her eye snapping open and flashing purple. Purple cubes flickered down her body.

"So, does this mean it's time for me and featherhead to roll out the unwelcome mat?" Dragonite said, grinning while her antennae crackled.

Zero was about to respond, when a flash of light erupted in the distance. She tensed up at the sight of a giant Ultra Wormhole. A huge, building-like structure fell out of the portal, which promptly shut behind it. However, on closer inspection, Zero noticed that several of the "bricks" had eyes of their own.

"Is that… a Stakataka?" Dragonite said. She glanced at Zero. "Did you summon that?"

"No. I didn't," Zero whispered, looking down at her paws.

"Want me to take care of it?" Dragonite asked.

Zero shook her head. "No, stay back. Those idiots lost the Dawn Hourglass, remember? If someone's summoned an Ultra Beast here… I doubt they intend to use it against us." She stepped back from the edge of the tower. "If Stakataka can't dispose of those ingrates, then you and Lugia will finish them while they're weak."

She walked back toward the center of the alter. Dragonite knelt down. "As you wish, ma'am."

 **End of Special Episode 4**

* * *

I realize this chapter was a bit more esoteric than usual. Also, I decided against copying over the scene of Nicky losing his light from Chapter 42. Showing it again wouldn't have added anything new and just dragged the chapter out. You can always go back if you want to reread it. Hope you still enjoyed the chapter. Now that we've filled in the gaps about Necrozma, we're heading for the final two episodes!

another guest: Yup, the page is live. Feel free to change or make suggestions or whatever. And I wanted this special episode to be short so we get to the juicy stuff quickly. From here on out, it's all Team Radiance! Also, I do think anotherdragon sounds more interesting, but that's just me.

SuperOmegaGuest: RIP. Plus an "F" to pay respects. Though, as you can see, Xerneas isn't gone, per say. Fate worse than death, though? Possibly.

Anon Omega: If you're angry, then I'm doing a good job with my villains. I'll take it!

Next time: Metal Gear Stakataka: The Midnight Pain. Don't miss it!


	107. Stakatakaing Up to the Competition

There's an announcement at the end of the chapter!

* * *

Cold and slimy.

Those were the first two things that came to Dusk's mind when she finally regained consciousness. She figured it had to be a result of that last attack.

Dusk groaned and brushed her face with a forepaw. It left her cheek damp and grimy. What had Shane done? Sure, she hadn't known him for long. But what was he thinking pulling out some sort of wild, explosive-based attack with absolutely no warning? As Dusk's vision continued to swim, she assumed that she was lying in some sort of muddy crater the attack had created.

"N… no way. This is… nuts! _Absolutely_ nuts! I'm in a nightmare! I've gotta be! Some two-bit Gengar lowlife's messing with my head!"

Sneasel's raspy cries managed to rouse Dusk from her stupor. Her vision came into focus, revealing that she was, in fact, lying in a mud puddle, soaked from head to tail. However, what she wasn't prepared to see was that she _wasn't_ still on the coastline with the various exploration teams. Instead, the mud puddle gave way to patches of gray, rocky ground that abruptly dropped off into an abyss. All around her, the sky was a myriad of gray and purple spirals, twisting around one another at complete random.

"W-What the—" Dusk tried to stand, but a flash of pain shot down her spine. She collapsed, taking a fresh face full of muck. Dusk coughed and sputtered, trying to shake the mud out of her eyes. "Where are we? What happened?" she rasped, finally getting to her feet. Sneasel stood in front of her, in the middle of a gray and white crater, staring up at the sky. Like Dusk, he was caked in a thick layer of mud.

"Hey," Dusk grunted, limping toward Sneasel. He jumped, startled by her voice. Sneasel raised his claws, only to lower them and slump over.

"Oh, it's you. That broad Lycanroc was arguing about during that fight," he said.

"Do you have any idea where we are or what happened to the others?" Dusk asked. Her tail shot between her legs at the sight of a gigantic, almost building-like slab of rock hurtling over the island and disappearing into the alien storm above them.

"Are you kidding me? Do I _look_ like I've got any idea what's going on?" Sneasel scoffed, gesturing at his mud-covered form. "I'm just as lost as you are! One second, the Guildmaster is totally losing his mind. The next, Snowy does some kinda weird mumbo-jumbo and we're in the middle of this… place." Sneasel crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. "Nrrrgh… I can't _believe_ Snowy screwed us like this! When I get my claws on his dumb behind, I'll—"

The ground trembled. Dusk and Sneasel both jumped, the former yipping in fright. "W-What was that?" Dusk asked, looking about in a panic.

Sneasel looked down. "I think… there's something underneath us."

"Well then, we need to go somewhere else," Dusk concluded.

"Brilliant suggestion. And just _where_ do you wanna go, toots?" Sneasel said, gesturing to the abyss behind them. "This is the only stretch of land in this stinkhole!"

"No, that's not true," Dusk said, looking up. "There was a big chunk of rock that just flew past us a short time ago. We have to find another one and jump onto it."

"Are you _crazy?_ That'll kill us for sure!" Sneasel said.

The ground shook again, even more violent than before. Dusk tripped and fell on her belly while Sneasel was knocked onto his rear with a loud, "Oomph!"

"Well, if we stay put, then we're dead meat, anyway. I'll take a possible death over a certain one," Dusk said, scanning the storm overhead for any signs of an approaching slab of rock.

Sneasel had a retort at the ready when the crater he stood in burst apart. He hollered in surprise as something coarse and warm grabbed him by the neck. Dusk scrambled backward, tucking her head down to shield herself from the dust storm the crater's destruction made. She braced herself to tumble into the abyss, only to be shocked when her precarious mud puddle perch stayed in once piece.

When the dust settled, however, Dusk found herself staring up at a hulking mass of… bricks? Dusk blinked mud out of her eyes. No, they couldn't have been bricks. Because some of the cubes had _eyes._ Eerie blue eyes that pierced through the darkness to stare right at her. They were _everywhere_ , randomly spread across the tower's walls and the four slim legs _somehow_ holding it up.

Dusk's legs trembled. What _was_ this thing? Her immediate thought was that it was related to the aliens she had fought in the Cavernous Depths. Except this time, the enemy was _gigantic_ and she had _no_ backup. Dusk shrank down to her belly, whimpering. This was it, wasn't it? She was as good as dead.

Then, a familiar howl rang out. Dusk's ears twitched. She poked her head up and squinted. There, standing atop the giant tower-with-legs and clutching Sneasel by the neck, was none other than Lycanroc. "M-Midnight?" she whispered. Something was very wrong. Lycanroc's howl had a strange distortion to it. One that left her ears ringing enough to make her wonder if she was going deaf.

But that hardly compared to the rainbow shimmer surrounding Lycanroc. Through all the haziness, Dusk could see that Lycanroc's mane had taken on a metallic sheen. He had extra tufts of fur, each one glowing a different color of the rainbow. It made his face and head look larger, almost like…

"… Solgaleo." Dusk shuffled backwards, gasping. Her eyes darted about. There were flashing lights surrounding Lycanroc. One was bright-gray. The others constantly changed colors as they flashed.

Swallowing, Dusk managed to find her voice. "Midnight! What do you think you're doing? Get down from there!" she cried.

 **"And why would I go and do something like that, eh?"** Lycanroc sneered. He had on quite possibly the smarmiest grin Dusk had ever seen him wear since his evolution. Lycanroc dropped Sneasel onto his butt and knelt down to pet the top of the stone tower. **"It took a lot of work to summon this bloody thing… and I'm not about to let that all go to waste!"**

"Y-You… summoned…" Dusk eye's widened. "Are you crazy?! You're going to get us all killed!" She looked around. "Do you even have any idea where we are? Because I sure don't!"

 **"Ultra Space, sheila! You can thank Snowy for that. After all… that dumbarse explosion he caused dropped those Dawn Shards you all had a hard-on for right into my lap!"** Lycanroc said, his normally-red eyes glowing with a fiery-orange intensity.

"Wait, you have the Dawn Shards?" Dusk said.

 **"Well, I** ** _did,_** **"** Lycanroc said. Grin widening, he thumped his chest and added, **"Until I, y'know, absorbed 'em. This is the best I've felt since my Rockruff days!"** He got down on all-fours and belted another distorted howl. Dusk collapsed on her belly, throwing her forepaws against her ears and gritting her teeth.

"H-Hey! C'mon now… no need to get all angry and stuff. Y-You're with friends!" Sneasel stammered, scooting away from Lycanroc with a worried look in his eyes. "Now, why don't you just take us back home and we can—"

A small wormhole materialized next to Lycanroc. Sneasel scrambled to his feet when a second one popped up in front of him, but wasn't fast enough to stop Lycanroc from grabbing his leg. Lycanroc's paw glowed orange, then ignited. Sneasel screamed in pain as flames raced up to his head. Lycanroc let go, dropping Sneasel's charbroiled form to the ground.

"Midnight, _stop!_ " Dusk cried, but she was in little position to do anything. As soon as she got to her feet, several of the bricks in the tower's wall folded in on themselves, revealing an ominous red crystal. She could just about make out the silhouettes of Tapu Bulu and Tapu Fini inside. "No," she whispered. "No, this isn't happening. This has to be a bad dream!" She closed her eyes and shook her head.

 **"I can't believe how pathetic you sound,"** Lycanroc sneered. He marched up to the edge of the tower, clutching Sneasel's limp body in his paw. Lycanroc hoisted him up to eye level. **"Why don't you just take us back home? That way, we can go kiss up to Snowy's arse while you rot in a jail cell like the friendless bi** **t** **ch we think you are,"** he said, imitating Sneasel's scratchy voice.

Lycanroc brought Sneasel close and hissed, **"Well, I've got news for you,** ** _mate._** **Snowy ain't sh** **i** **t! He was never gonna be able to save anyone! The bloody Dawn Hourglass would've been** ** _wasted_** **on his arrogant,** ** _ungrateful_** **arse!"** He promptly let go of Sneasel, who dropped into freefall.

"Midnight, _no!_ " Dusk shouted, sprinting forward in a desperate attempt to catch Sneasel's fall. However, several of the tower eyes staring at Dusk glowed red. Next thing she knew, she was airborne, legs flailing and a tearing pain spreading across her chest. The Tapus' crystal prison drew closer, as did Sneasel. Then, everything went dark.

At the top of the tower, Lycanroc held his glowing paws high, watching as Dusk and Sneasel disappeared inside the crystal. **"Serves you right. You ruined my life… sticking me in this gods-awful form."** His right eye twitched. Lycanroc flicked his right arm. The three flashes of light behind him disappeared. A second later, two Blacephalons and a Celesteela floated in front of him, each restrained by a glowing forcefield.

 **"But that** ** _mistake_** **will soon be behind me!"** he declared. **"Once I finish fusing these Ultra Beasts together… I'll wipe Snowy and his stupid crew off the face off the earth! Then,** ** _I'm_** **gonna save the day, use whatever power's left to take the form I** ** _should've_** **had, and watch as everyone gives me the respect I bloody deserve!"**

Lycanroc raised his paws high. **"And it all starts with this…** ** _ultimate,_** **Tapu-powered Ultra Beast! Mine to do whatever I want with!"** He thrust his paws to this sides. The three restrained UBs flew toward the crystal while Lycanroc grinned with anticipation.

* * *

 **Episode 15: Zero Hour**

 **Chapter 90: Stakatakaing Up to the Competition**

* * *

 **~Prism Wastelands~**

As it turned out, teleporting was _not_ as easy as Shane was expecting. Each jump Mew made hit him with a dreadful sense of vertigo, much like he had gotten when his team had deployed Escape Orbs in the past. This time, however, the sensation was magnified. Mew never stopped for long enough for Shane to get his bearings. So, by the time he had transferred everyone to the middle of the barren, paralyzed ocean, Shane was fighting back the urge to puke.

"I'm not sure… I can take another one of those," he confessed, turning and belching.

"Augh, _gross!_ Your breath smells like sherbet… if it was made of rotten berries," Haxorus said, waving a hand in front of her face.

"Try to stay quiet," Infernape said, holding up and arm and looking around. "Somebody could be watching us."

"Mmm… I don't think so. Not sensing anyone nearby," Mew said, reclining on his back in midair while his tail swished about. "I kinda dropped us off a fair distance away from the big, evil stronghold. So, you're hoofing it the rest of the way."

"What big, evil stronghold?" Feraligatr wondered, facing the opposite direction as the rest of the group. "All I see is a whole lotta noth—"

Haxorus grabbed Feraligatr's shoulder and spun him around so he could see the hulking mass of crystal shards jutting out from the ocean, surrounding by thick clouds of purple smoke and the occasional cluster of chains.

"… oh," Feraligatr whispered. "That's _nothing_ like the Hidden Land. What happened over there?"

"Necrozma happened," Latias replied, head bowed solemnly.

"But he's out of the picture. Now it's my mom who's the problem," Tessa said, her paws flickering with aural flames. She noticed her teammates giving her concerned looks. "I'm fine, guys." Her quivering aura feelers betrayed her words, however.

"You don't look fine," Haxorus said.

Shane was ready to jump to Tessa's defense and tell Haxorus she was one to talk with her broken tusks, but Espy stepped into his path and shook her head. Though she didn't say anything, the message was clear. Shane looked away, biting his lip. _'Right. We're supposed to be working together,'_ he told himself.

"I understand how Tessa's feeling," Silvally said, digging his talons into the solidified water. His head crest bristled. "That place… it's like a ley line _geyser._ They're running completely rampant." He squeezed his eyes shut. "I think when we get there, we'd all best be prepared for the possibility things will be _more_ chaotic than what we've seen in the infected dungeons."

A shudder ran down Espy's spine. She reflexively stepped close to Silvally; a gesture that drew a curious eyebrow raise from Haxorus.

"Well, I certainly didn't take you guys all the way here for nothing." Mew pointed a stubby arm forward and declared, "So, less talking and more marching, troops!"

The group started walked forward, with Shane muttering, "Easy for him to say. He can just float."

"I heard that, Grumpy-Floof," Mew said, having popped up right beside Shane.

"Gah!" Shane almost knocked Tessa over when he jumped back in surprise, but she managed to stick her arms out and catch him. The two looked at each other. Faces flushing, Tessa plopped Shane onto the ground. He shook his head, scowling. "Can you _please_ take this seriously? The fate of the world is _literally_ at stake, here."

"Sorry. I was just trying to keep things loose, y'know? If you guys are all wound up, you're gonna be no help if we have to battle," Mew said, punching and jabbing the air with his tiny paws.

"This isn't anything we haven't dealt with before," Shane said, trying to build up his confidence. It didn't really work, however. He remembered how easily Team Captivate said that Zero had beaten them. And now she had _Dialga_ at her beck and call. How were they supposed to do much of anything against the god of time?

The thoughts permeated Shane's mind. He considered asking Team Poképals what they had done when they fought Primal Dialga, but then he noticed that no one else was talking. Shane tucked his head down and kept walking. He heard huffing behind him and looked back to see Milotic struggling to keep pace with everyone else. Blaziken slowed his pace.

"Need a lift?" he asked.

"I, uh…" Milotic's ribbons bristled. "I guess it would be appreciation. Just be gent— _oof!_ "

Blaziken lifted Milotic up and wrapped her around his upper body like she was a giant, oversized scarf. Her tail still trailed on the ground, but it was better than nothing. "Watch my six, all right? You can help me if any of my weaknesses pop up."

"That's… a fair point," Milotic said, resting her head on Blaziken's shoulder.

The group continued forward. After several minutes, Shane looked back up. The crystalline ruins grew closer. He could now see a pool of purple acid swirling around the landscape. Shane's brow furrowed. "Uh, how are we going to, y'know, safely enter this place?" he asked, looking at his teammates.

Silvally looked straight ahead. His eyes flickered with a metallic sheen. "Latias and I might have to ferry you guys across. I bet that my steel memories will let me traverse the poison safely."

"If that's the case, I should be okay too, shouldn't I?" Tessa said. She held up a paw and gathered metal dust in it. Tessa looked to Silvally for a confirmation, but his answer didn't come.

Instead, he looked straight up at the sky. His eyes widened, his head crest expanded, and he shouted, "Everyone get back!" Then, he kicked up a gust of wind, carrying the large group a couple of feet away from him.

Espy, who wound up sprawled out on her back, scrambled to her feet. "What the heck are you do—"

A bright, shimmering purple light filled the sky above them. Everyone looked up in unison to find an Ultra Wormhole opening up. It was larger than any portal Team Radiance had ever seen.

"Shit! Don't tell me we just walked into a trap!" Haxorus growled.

With a bright flash, a large, building-like pile of bricks fell out of the Ultra Wormhole. Rather than collapsing into a heap, four small legs held up the square structure. Several of the bricks rotated around, revealing rainbow eyes that stared down ominously at the group.

"S-S-S-S-S—" Espy staggered backward. Her tail shot between her legs as she finally found her voice and screamed, "Stakataka!"

Shane and Tessa turned toward their teammate. "Stakawhoha?" Shane said, blinking in confusion. He looked back toward Stakataka. His tails frazzled. "Oh no… don't tell me that's another Ultra Beast!"

Espy didn't even need to respond, because Silvally's sharp, harsh growls proved to be all the answer Shane needed. Silvally stood hunched over, staring at Stakataka's many eyes and the Celesteela arms fused to its left and right faces.

"Not just one Beast… _multiple._ All fused together," Silvally said, between bouts of hissing. Tail flicking in worry, Espy tried to approach Silvally. But he reared up on his hind legs and surrounded himself with holographic swords.

"W-What are you doing?" Espy said. "We don't know what we're dealing with here!"

"No, but I think I have a good idea," Latias squeaked, ears folding against her face. "Can't you sense it? On top of Stacker… erm, on top of that _thing?_ " She pointed a claw up. Espy looked up and her tail crinkled in fright.

"It can't be… Lycanroc?!" Espy cried. Shane and Tessa whirled on her, astonished looks on their faces. They were about to respond, when an unseen force grabbed hold of them all and hoisted them into the air. Seconds later, multicolored rock spires shot up from the ground and exploded, filling the air with dust and debris.

Latias and Mew set everyone down several feet back, the former straining from the effort of lifting so many bodies at once. No sooner had the set everyone down than one of the Celesteela arms flared to life, shooting a dozen glowing, missile-shaped energy blasts right toward the group. Gasping, Latias shot a sparkling-blue Dragon Pulse, only to watch in dismay as it did nothing against the energy missiles.

She noticed nine of the missiles dive down toward the others, while three of them broke off and headed straight for her and Mew. "Watch out, Feathers!" Mew shouted. He grabbed Latias by the wing and the two teleported behind the missiles. Their relieved sighs quickly turned into a panic, however, when the missiles looped back around and continued their assault.

"This is bad! This is bad!" Shane shouted, watching a missile snuff out his bright-white Dazzling Gleam.

"Everyone scatter!" Silvally ordered, holding his ground as his teammates reluctantly did as he said. With a deep breath and a flash of light, Silvally created ten flickering doppelgangers. They all looked up in unison and released loud, high-pitched screeches. The real Silvally's sound waves diverted one of the missiles, which sputtered off into the distance and exploded. The remaining ones went for his Double Team clones, only to strike the ground an erupt in varying neon colors.

Tessa's aura feelers shot up in surprise. "Ah, Silvally! We have to go back to hi—"

A rock shard barrage made a beeline for Tessa's head. Shane skidded in front of her, tails surrounded by water bubbles. With a swish of his hips, he knocked the rock shards away, dousing Tessa in the process. "We've gotta leave Silvally on his own," Shane said, glancing back to make sure Tessa was okay.

"That's a terrible idea!" Tessa protest, flinging water droplets off her arms.

"No, he's right. This… this crazy Stakataka fusion thing… it's firing off attacks too quickly," Espy said, pointing a forepaw forward. Ahead of them, Blaziken, Milotic and Swampert tried to make a run at one of Stakataka's legs, only for a small portal to pop in underneath like a trapdoor. A second portal opened up near the top of Stakataka, where Lycanroc stood, gathering molten metal in his paws. Latias barely managed to zip in at the last second and carry them off. Lycanroc's fiery-orange energy beam sailed wide.

"See? If we bunch up, we'll only make it easier for Lycanroc to box us in with attacks. We have to stay split up," Espy explained. The ground then shook underneath the trio, forcing them to run right. Flaming balls of grass and dirt erupted from the ground, only to explode and send giant globs of water raining down toward Team Radiance.

"You guys leave this to me!" Shane cried, hoping the girls would take the hint and try to go for Stakataka. He skidded to a halt and, forcing as much air out of his lungs as he could muster, unleashed a stream of ice breath. Shane managed to freeze the water bubbles heading for his teammates. They shattered, showering Shane in snowflakes.

Trying to seize on the opening, Tessa slung an Aura Sphere toward Stakataka's nearest leg. But instead of hitting, it sailed right through an Ultra Wormhole that appeared at the last second. Tessa's eyes widened and her aura feelers and paw shot up. She expected Lycanroc to try and hit her with her own Aura Sphere.

A startled cry from across the battlefield indicated Tessa's assumption was dead wrong. Raichu fell back into Haxorus' chest, rubbing her smoldering chest with a nubby paw. "N-Nrgh… where did that come from?" she groaned.

"It's that idiot controlling this monster. He's opening up portals like he was Hoopa or something. How are we supposed to land any attacks?" Haxorus growled, balling her hands into fists.

"We've gotta try and strike in unison and aim for different points," Infernape declared before curling into a fiery ball and shooting himself at an oncoming grassy bomb launched from one of the Celesteela arms. The moment he struck the projectile, it exploded, flinging him back over the head of his teammates.

Feraligatr's head shot up in alarm. "Ah! No, no, no!" he shouted, making a mad dash for his best friend. Feraligatr was so focused on getting to Infernape, he didn't see the fissures forming in front of him.

"Oy! Head's up! You're heading for a trap!" Haxorus shouted. "Rai, it's Thunder Armor time!"

"Err… right!" Raichu smacked her cheeks, generating a few sparks. Then, she electrocuted Haxorus, who summoned her Dragon Claws and charged toward Feraligatr. Raichu's lightning boosted her speed enough to where she reached the rock shards that burst out of the fissures before Feraligatr. Haxorus lunged, slicing through some of the rocks and letting her electric scales do the rest. She landed, skidding to a halt next to Infernape, who she shakily extended a hand to.

"Nifty tr… ick," Infernape said, grunting as he got to his feet.

"Yeah, but it's not something… I enjoy using," Haxorus wheezed, downing an oran berry to recover her strength. "So, how the hell are we supposed to make a dent in this thing, then? We can't just keep defending. We're going to get tired way before it does."

Mew, Latias, Milotic, and Team Go-Getters found themselves wondering the same thing. Latias dropped her rides off near one of Stakataka's legs, only for Stone Edge spires to force them back. Latias zoomed toward a second leg, but some of the bricks spun around, revealing eyes that each fired small Flash Cannons. Latias spun away from a couple, but a third clipped her wing and sent her crashing into the ground.

Stakataka raised a leg, ready to step on Latias. She managed to collect herself and zip away, firing off a Dragon Pulse. Her heart sank when it went into an Ultra Wormhole. A flicker of blue caught her eye and she noticed her attack heading right for Silvally. He managed to shift to his fairy memories to negate it. But in doing so, he left himself wide open to a Flash Cannon from the top of the Stakataka leg opposite Latias.

"This is nuts!" Mew shouted, shielding himself in a psychic bubble against a barrage of metallic energy balls. His shield managed to hold up, but it left Mew gasping for breath. "I… I want to… go back to bed." He groaned as Latias zoomed up toward him.

 **"Oh no you don't!"** Lycanroc shouted. A fiery-orange aura surrounded him and, like a comet, he flung himself at Latias. She stopped herself just in time to avoid Lycanroc and immediately retaliated with a soft-pink Mist Ball. Vigor filled Latias' veins when it struck home and drew an angry bark from Lycanroc, who promptly retreated back onto Stakataka using an Ultra Wormhole.

Lycanroc glared up at the two levitating psychics and wiped his brow. **"I can't believe Snowy browbeat a couple of gods into doing all his dirty work for him,"** he sneered, scanning the ground until he had located Shane. **"Let's see how you like this Snow—"** He cut himself off when his ears twitched. Lycanroc raised a paw and hurled metal shards into an oncoming Aura Sphere surrounded by the blue sparks of a Dragon Pulse.

His eyes widened when the combined attack withstood his barrage. Lycanroc smacked the top of Stakataka with his other paw. Several of its bricks flipped over and the eyes fired Flash Cannon lasers to swallow up the blue fire-lightning spiral. Lycanroc's rainbow eyes flickered with orange flames. **"Ha! Is that really the best you can muster? Pathetic!"** he scoffed, brushing his snout with a paw. **"Listen, I ain't got beef with you drongos. Just surrender and let me squash Snowy into a prissy pancake. Then, I'll take care of whatever's lousing up the time stream and you lot can shower me in the praise I deserve!"**

"Are you kidding me? I'd rather take my chances with Ms. Murder Mom than kiss up to your sorry behind!" Mew retorted, blowing a raspberry at Lycanroc while holding down one of his lower eyelids.

Latias grabbed hold of him and zoomed away as half a dozen grassy missiles shot toward them, trails of rainbow fire streaming out from behind. **"You're gonna regret trying to mess with me, you ugly-arse Espeon clone!"** Lycanroc howled. He smacked Stakataka with both paws. It raised up two of its legs and slammed them. Shockwaves of rumbling tectonic plates barreled toward Team Go-Getters, Team Paradise, and Team Poképals.

"I existed before Espe— _ahh!_ " Mew didn't get the chance to finish his comeback, as Latias zoomed toward the ground with him in tow. She scooped Milotic and Team Go-Getters up into the air, then glanced across the ocean. Her jaw dropped.

She wasn't sure how, but Silvally was _running_ across the air. Wind currents streaked through his dark-blue energy blades and over his back. Silvally dipped down and yanked Teams Paradise and Poképals onto his back.

"All right, all together now!" he barked, turning toward Stakataka as the Earthquake tremors passed harmlessly underneath him.

"Bah, I hate attacking from a distance," Haxorus said, glowering. Nevertheless, she spat out blue-purple dragonfire, joining with Infernape's Flamethrower, Raichu's Thunderbolt, Feraligatr's Hydro Pump, and a Flash Cannon from Silvally to form a giant gray beam.

 **"What trite!"** Lycanroc laughed, raising a glowing paw. **"You drongos are too predictab—"**

Staktaka's entire foundations shook, sending Lycanroc tumbling onto his belly with a surprised bark. It wobbled about unsteadily, a result of tremors wracking its legs thanks to Swampert, who stood in front of it. Latias dropped Blaziken and Milotic off next to him.

"Good grief! I can't believe you just jumped off like that. How did you not break your legs?" Milotic said, blinking in astonishment.

"Heh. Been a while since you've done the 'Death from Above' technique, but that Earthquake's as fierce as ever," Blaziken said, smirking at his teammate.

"Bravo! Bravo! A-plus superhero landing, big guy," Mew said, applauding and adding a loud whistle on top of it.

"Focus, Mew! Splackanacka is off balance. We've gotta strike, now," Latias said, eyes burning with determination. She spun around in a circle, generating a wave of water she sent right at Stakataka's nearest leg.

"Yeah, yeah, I got it. Thanks, _Mom,_ " Mew scoffed, teleporting next to the leg Latias' Surf was heading toward and charging up an Aura Sphere.

 **"Grr. It's Stakatak—** _ **arrgh!**_ **"** Lycanroc again fell to his stomach as the combined attacks of Silvally and the other teams hammered the leg opposite Mew. Stakataka buckled, giving Mew an opening to press his Aura Sphere right against Stakataka's leg. He stuck his tongue out yet again before teleporting next to Latias. Her Surf crashed onto the leg right when the Aura Sphere exploded.

A garbled roar echoed across the ocean as an explosive chain reaction raced up Stakataka's leg, destroying the bricks and blasting rubble in all directions. Shane skidded to a halt and hastily backed away, realizing Stakataka was toppling over. "Get back, guys! You're too close to it!" he shouted, tails frazzling.

Silvally understood right away and carried his living cargo well out of range of Stakataka. Shane checked and confirmed that Tessa was already a safe distance away. Her arms trembled as she held a large Aura Sphere. Shane swallowed hard. How long had Tessa been charging that up for? It looked ready to explode.

 **"Nrgn… no! Keep to together! I ain't… about to lose again!"** Lycanroc howled, digging his paws into Stakataka's roof. Right when it looked like Stakataka would fall over sideways, it explicably froze in midair. A victorious grin wove its way onto Lycanroc's face. **"Ha ha! Now you're in for it, mates!"** Rainbow energy raced down his arms from his mane and spread throughout Stakataka.

"Tessa, release it, now!" Shane shouted, trying to draw on the energy he'd used to make the golden light ball. One materialized right in front of him and he spat it toward Stakataka right as Tessa thrust her giant Aura Sphere toward it.

A new leg materialized in place of the destroyed one and, in a two flashes of rainbow light, the two sets of legs linked up together, forming what resembled a pair of tank treads. His grin widening, Lycanroc pointed a paw up. The Celesteela arm cannons rotated so they were pointing at the ground and fired, jettisoning Stakataka up into the air. Shane went slack-jawed as his light ball collided with Tessa's Aura Sphere, resulting in a blinding explosion that forced them to look away.

 **"Your fancy tricks ain't got nothing on me, Snowy!"** Lycanroc taunted, punching Stakataka's roof once again. This time, several wall bricks pushed themselves to the side, revealing a red crystal with glowing lights inside of it.

Latias squeaked in alarm. "A-Ah! Inside of that thing… I can sense the Tapus! And Dusk and Sneasel, too!"

Shane looked up. "Y… you're kidding," he rasped. His eyes widened in shock when he noticed the crystal brimming with orange energy.

"Get out of there, Shane!" Tessa screamed, flinging a desperate Aura Sphere airborne only for it to fizzle out before it reached the hovering Stakataka.

Shane had only seconds to react. A huge orange fireball — easily as wide as Stakataka — barreled toward him. Shane spat ice on the ground in front of him, creating a slick trail along the ocean. He sprinted forward and, when his paws hit the ice, dove onto his belly. Gritting his teeth, Shane skidded across the ice like a fluffy sled. He spat out more ice balls to freeze the ground ahead of him.

To Shane's relief, he skirted the massive fireball. But his victory proved fleeting, as Stakataka shut off its arm-cannons, split its legs apart, and dropped down to the earth. Shane could see the other groups reacting accordingly, but he and Tessa didn't have a flying companion by them and Lycanroc had Mew preoccupied dodging molten energy balls and rainbow missiles to teleport over to them.

"Tessa, I'm coming!" Shane hollered, blasting a Psychic behind him despite the lack of a target. The recoil propelled him across the ice toward his teammate. Shane ducked between Tessa's legs and stood up. Tessa yelped, finding herself on Shane's back as he sprinted as far away from Stakataka as he could.

It struck the ground. Multiple shockwaves raced out across the ground. Shane veered right, strafing Stakataka while still keeping away from the shockwaves. He thanked his lucky stars that he had gotten far enough away from the shockwaves to avoid them.

"You know, this isn't exactly what I had in mind when Dad told me that someday I could look forward to a wonderful guy sweeping me off my feet," Tessa said, rubbing her throbbing aura feelers with a paw.

"Yeah, well, I'm pretty sure this isn't what some people in my RP group meant when they talked about girls riding on guys," Shane said, shaking his head. "But that's not the point, here. We need to talk."

Tessa groaned. "Can it wait until after we stop this giant building from trying to squish us to death?"

"No, because it has to do with that!" Shane said, wincing when he heard pained cries echo across the battlefield. He saw an enraged Silvally leaping between Stone Edge spires, metal coating his body. Silvally slammed into one of the joints fixing a Celesteela cannon in place. It locked up momentarily, but Silvally had to jump onto Latias to avoid a flaming Lycanroc crashing into him from above like a comet.

"Well, out with it!" Tessa said, thumping Shane's shoulder. "We don't have all day, here!"

"What did Primarina tell you when you talked to him? Did he mention anything about what the Dawn Shard did to him?" Shane asked, finally skidding to a halt and hunching over to try and catch his breath.

"Uh, well…" Tessa rubbed her temple with a paw. "Let's see… there was the stuff about his career being over… the fact that he joined the guild for superficial reasons… how maybe he and Serperior are actually just a couple because they're really vain…"

Shane wished he still had hands so he could smack his face. _'Leave it to Primarina to turn what should've been a simple explanation into a dramatic monologue.'_

Explosions rang out behind the two of them. Both jumped and spun around in fright to find the air surrounding the now-flying Stakataka filled with neon blast clouds. Latias zoomed out from one and fired a blue, serpentine beam into the thick haze, only for the beam to reappear to her right and strike her in the wing. Latias spiraled toward the ground, smoke trailing off her wing. Then, an enraged snarl echoed from above. The smoke cleared to reveal Silvally gliding away from Stakataka. Behind him, several dents lay in the wall and the bricks looked askew, even at a distance.

"Beasts!" Silvally howled, letting loose a lustrous Flash Cannon. An Ultra Wormhole materialized to deflect the attack, only to flicker out. The dented bricks took the full force of the blow. Another distorted wail rang out.

"C'mon, Tessa, _think!_ " Shane said, resisting the urge to hop up on his hind legs and shake his teammate. "What happened to Primarina? Surely he said _something_ about the Dawn Shards!"

"Um… um…" Tessa rubbed her temples with renewed vigor, but it was tough to recall the exact conversation given the hailstorm of events that followed it. After a few seconds of staring at Shane's pleading expression blankly, Tessa's eyes lit up. "Ah, wait! I think I've got it." She smacked her paws together. "Primarina said something about his desires for attention and stardom becoming overwhelming… like the Dawn Shard he touched had magnified them."

That was the spark Shane needed to send his mental gears into overdrive. "Right. And we stopped him by upstaging him during his big concert," he said. Shane winced briefly when more explosions lit up the air in front of him, but forced himself to look Tessa in the eye. "Okay, okay, I might be jumping to conclusions, here, but I'm willing to bet that the Dawn Hourglass has magnified Lycanroc's jealously."

Tessa gazed up at Stakataka just in time to see it dropping from the sky once again. Her aura feelers shot up. Stakataka was using its arm-cannons to propel itself in Latias' and Silvally's directions. Tessa had a paw reaching toward Shane, ready to spin him around, when the two disappeared. Stakataka immediately fell to the ground, releasing shockwaves that Shane and Tessa were still far enough away to avoid. Then, Stakataka rotated its arm-cannons and unleashed another barrage of rainbow missiles.

"Are you sure about Lycanroc? This seems a tad… _excessive_ for something as simple as jealousy," Tessa said.

"I'm sure," Shane replied, nodding. "Remember what Gallian and Zoroark told us? Lycanroc's been blowing fuses at tiny slights since his evolution. And who was it who slighted him the worst out of anyone." Shane lifted a forepaw. "It's yours truly. The way I see it, this is all because he _still_ hasn't forgotten about what happened at the guild." He resumed pacing. "If we're really going to have a shot at stopping Lycanroc, then I have to take a stand here and try and lessen all that jealous rage the Dawn Hourglass is magnifying."

Tessa frowned. "Shane—"

"Look, I know it sounds stupid. But it's my fault that the Shards ended up in Lycanroc's paws in the first place," Shane continued, shaking his head. "I made this mess. So, I've got to do whatever it takes to clean it up."

More explosions rang out behind Shane. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Feraligatr and Infernape careening toward the ground. Mew teleported in and stopped their falls. Shane sighed in relief.

"Okay. Tessa, is there any chance you can try to join the others? You'll have to strike once I've got Lycanroc talking," Shane said.

"No. I'm staying with you," Tessa said, crossing her arms.

Shane's ears twitched. "But Tessa, I'm—"

"Look, Shane. If we weren't fighting a giant doom-building I'd give you a big old hug and nuzzle for recognizing your mistakes and trying to own up to them," Tessa said, tapping a foot on the ground.

Shane blinked. "Wait, what?"

Tessa ignored the stunned look on Shane's face and put a paw on his shoulder. His face reddened. "But I'm not going to have you blindly charge at Lycanroc to try and talk him down. Besides, I'm the one who launched the first strike at him in the guild. He probably hates me, too." She lifted her paws off his shoulder and stood up straight. "We're a team, so we're doing this together. Got it?"

Smiling, Shane nodded. "All right, if you're sure. Climb on."

"I'll run this time, thanks," Tessa said, dashing off toward Stakataka.

"H-Hey, wait! There's still more to my plan!" Shane yipped, scrambling to follow behind Tessa. He closed the distance quickly thanks to his extra set of legs.

"It barely sounded like you had much of a plan to begin with," Tessa said, aura feelers pulsating with each explosion sounding above them. "What are you going to do, kiss Lycanroc to try and catch him off guard?"

Shane nearly tripped and faceplanted at Tessa's statement. "O-Of course not! Who do I look like, Espy?" He mentally apologized to her for the smart remark. "No, in order to get Lycanroc to at least stop and hear us out, we have to get his attention without pissing him off. So, I need you to shoot a Flash Cannon over toward Mew or Silvally."

Now it was Tessa's turn to stumble. She spread her arms outs to either side to keep her balance. "Seriously? And what makes you think that's a good idea?"

"I— hang on, shockwave!" Shane crouched down and sprang into the air, with Tessa following suit. But then Tessa's aura feelers twitched. She looked down and saw the ocean's surface fragmenting. In mid-stride, she hurled two Aura Spheres right in front of Shane. They exploded, destroying Stone Edge shards as they rose up from the ground.

Both teammates hit the ground, though they bumped sides during their landing. Shane shook his head, then continued his charge. "As I was saying… it's not a good idea! But it was the best I could come up with on the spot. So, are you with me or not?"

Tessa skidded to a halt, then rubbed the bridge of her brow with a paw. "Yeah, sure, fine. Let's do it." She rotated her arms, gathering silver dust in her paws. Tessa pointed them toward Silvally, who was in the process of trying to steer some of the Celesteela missiles back toward Stakataka. However, a barrage of gray lasers blew the missiles apart. With a wince, Tessa shot a Flash Cannon in Silvally's general direction.

His head crest fanned out in shock. He didn't have a hard time dodging the blast, but he still glared down at Tessa. "What are you doing?!" he barked, loud enough for Tessa's aura feelers to vibrate and make her wonder if he had somehow used Hyper Voice to raise his speaking volume.

"Again," Shane whispered. He turned and spat an Ice Beam up at Latias. She stopped on a dime, going cross-eyed as the ice whizzed past her face. From her back, Blaziken, Milotic, and Swampert glanced at Shane.

"What's your problem, Shane?" Milotic huffed.

"Yeah! Watch where you're firing!" Latias growled, only to squeak in surprise and scuttle back to dodge two more Ice Beams.

 **"What the—"** Lycanroc lowered his arms and approached the edge of Stakataka. His eyes glowed bright-orange. **"What are you playing at, Snowy?"** he growled, raising a paw. In response, Stakataka lifted the leg closest to Shane and Tessa into the air, looking to step on them.

"Everyone needs to stand down!" Shane shouted, looking between Latias and Silvally. "This doesn't have anything to do with you guys! Back off and give Lycanroc some space."

Mew popped up right behind Shane, yanking one of his tails. Yipping, he jumped up and flailed his legs about. "Okay, I heard you were a looney bird, but did someone shove a Totter Seed in your mouth? He's trying to _squish_ us!" Mew pointed up at the Stakataka leg frozen in midair.

"No, he's not… he's trying to squish _me,_ " Shane said, hip-checking Mew away from his backside. "And, frankly, he has every right to do that!"

 **"Oh no, I ain't falling for another one of your bloody stupid ruses, Snowy! I'm sending your arse to the Tree of Life, where you belong!"** Lycanroc howled. He whipped his arm forward, slinging a trio of meteorite-like fireballs right at Shane just as Stakataka's leg came crashing down toward him. His eyes bugged out, however, when Shane stood his ground.

"Okay, go ahead. I deserve it," Shane said, lowering his head as if he was accepting his fate. Tessa, on the other hand, stared at the oncoming barrage with her aura feelers trembling. She crouched down, ready to grab Shane by his tails and run away, when the fireballs snuffed themselves out. Stakataka planted its leg a few feet in front of them. All of the bricks on said leg rotated so the eyes were facing Shane and Tessa.

 **"What was that?"** Lycanroc asked, leering down at Shane.

"I said that you're right. About everything. I'm a giant screw-up… and, because of that, I definitely don't deserve the Dawn Hourglass' power," Shane said, locking eyes with Lycanroc. Tessa was surprised by how sincere he sounded. "So, that's why I want everyone to stand aside. Let Lycanroc do whatever he wishes with me… and then help him take out Zero in my stead," Shane continued, approached the Stakataka leg.

He glanced at Mew, then Latias. Praying that one of them was trying to read his mind, the thought, _'Okay, if I can get Lycanroc talking for a little longer, then everyone should be able to attack.'_

 **"You really expect me to believe that trite? Don't make me laugh!"** Lycanroc said. The eyes in Stakataka's legs lit up.

Gulping, Shane faced down the barrels of a dozen Flash Cannons. "I'm behind honest, Lycanroc. I was a complete and total ass to you back at the guild… b-because I was confused. You just, y'know, showed up out of the blue and got all this attention from the guild when I'd been working my tails off only to have everyone brush me aside."

Lycanroc's eyes smoldered. He raised his paw, looking ready to launch the strike at Shane.

"That's why I tried to turn everyone in the guild against you. And, well, it didn't go exactly how I had hoped, but it did end up working in the end," Shane said, frowning. "Still, I felt bad. Especially because of what happened between you, Gallian, and Zoroark. Dusk also told me about how you ended up getting the wrong evolution form."

He curled his tails against his waist. "You originally wanted to do the right thing and help the guild. I ruined that. So, I'm giving you a chance to turn it around. To not just help… but be the hero who saves the day and gets all the recognition. I mean, look at yourself…"

Shane stepped back and gestured to Stakataka's leg. "I doubt I could do something this amazing with the Dawn Hourglass' power. You should have no problem stopping Zero." He forced a smile. "And once you do, I'll go to the cops and tell them that Guildmaster Metagross had brainwashed you. I mean, you saw for yourself how crazy he was. They'll believe me in a heartbeat. Especially if my teammates back me up, right?"

Tessa hastily nodded when Shane looked toward her. He then glanced up at the airborne teams and prayed he could force a thought into their heads: _'Charge up your best attacks!'_

Lycanroc's eyes darted about. Shane fought to hide a grin. Though he didn't deserve such a stroke of luck, his gambit was working. The glow in Lycanroc's mane was dimming, which Shane hoped meant his jealous rage was simmering down. Lycanroc stumbled back, gripping his head with a paw. **"S-Snowy, you… you're really…** apologizing to me?"

The distortion faded from Lycanroc's voice. Shane's eyes widened. Maybe they wouldn't even _need_ a violent resolution? Maybe his trick had worked and Lycanroc would join their side to stop Zero?

Shane's hopes faded fast in the face of multiple Flash Cannons drowning him in a wall of gray energy.

 **"Nice try. But I already told you, I ain't falling for your dumbarse tricks!"** Lycanroc slapped his knee and howled with laughter.

Shane's high-pitched screams shook the air. Tessa's aura feelers shot up. Blue flames ignited in her irises and around her paws. Screeching out a war cry, Tessa slung two large Aura Spheres toward Stakataka's leg.

Above her, Silvally echoed her enraged cries. He flung Team Paradise and Team Poképals off his back. Mew teleported over and caught them safely with his ESP while they launched a Flamethrower, lightning, dragonfire, and a steaming water torrent toward Stakataka's wall. Silvally raced in ahead of the attacks while they merged into a giant multicolored beam. A metal sheen encased his hide.

"Nobody hurts my friend like that! I'll rip you to pieces, Beast!" he shrieked. Silvally hammered the center of Stakataka's wall. His Swords Dance boosts made the strike shake the very foundations of the giant Ultra Beast. He darted away, revealing a noticeable crack that ran through several of the bricks, leaving them trembling. The combined energy beam struck seconds later. Stakataka wailed in pain and jostled Lycanroc right off its roof.

"Swampert, down there!" Blaziken shouted, pointing at Lycanroc. "Quick, time for another 'Death from Above!'"

"Say no more." Swampert saluted his teammate and dived off Latias' back. Brown, earthly energy gathered in his fins. But rather than connecting with Lycanroc, Swampert disappeared through a portal and instead struck the ground a fair distance away from Stakataka. His shoulders sagged. "Aww man. Seriously?"

Swearing, Blaziken also launched himself airborne. Milotic yelped in surprise. "Latias, get to Shane!" Blaziken ordered. He then shot Flamethrowers from his legs to fly around toward the wall that the other battlers had struck. Milotic added her own blast of water to propel them faster. His eyes sparkled upon seeing the giant crystal holding Lycanroc's captives. "Silvally, Mew, cover me! I'm going in!"

The fire jets shooting from his legs grew larger. Milotic took a deep breath, then let out another Hydro Pump. They flew toward Stakataka. Blaziken then cut off the flames and spun about in midair. Shining, orange energy encased his feet. Already flailing about in pain from the previous hits, Stakataka desperately raised its Celesteela cannons to fire.

"Oh no you don't!" Silvally snarled, cheek bolts whirring so quickly they vented smoke. Silvally shot toward the nearest arm-cannon, switching to his fighting memories as a golden wheel surrounded his torso. Orange energy identical to Blaziken's surrounded Silvally's forelegs. He struck the arm-cannon's joint and cleaved right through it. Silvally sailed past Stakataka as the arm-cannon fell to the ground and Blaziken drove his glowing foot right into the crystal. A huge crack spiderwebbed out from the center.

Blaziken managed to bounce off and land atop Stakataka's roof in time to watch the arm-cannon strike the ground and shatter into thousands of tiny pieces. Milotic uncurled from around his torso. Silvally then joined Tessa in launching dual Flash Cannons at Stakataka's damaged leg. This proved enough to destroy it in a similar chain reaction to the one they'd blown apart earlier. Blaziken's legs buckled. He grabbed Milotic and leaped into the air, only for a metallic paw to lock around his foot and slam the duo onto the roof with a heavy _thud_.

 **"Nobody's going anywhere,** _ **mate,**_ **"** Lycanroc snarled, mane disheveled, eyes twitching, and drool seeping out of his mate. **"This is** _ **my**_ **moment and I won't have you lot bloody ruining it!"** He grabbed hold of Blaziken and Milotic once again and, as Stakataka began to topple over, hurtled him toward Team Paradise and Team Poképals.

"O-Oh no… I can't catch him!" Mew cried.

"Then drop us! We can take it!" Haxorus barked.

 **"Fat chance I'm letting that happen!"** Lycanroc said, having appeared behind the group by means of an Ultra Wormhole. An orange aura surrounded him. His body hardened into metal. With a loud howl, he shot toward them, leaving a trail of fiery energy behind him. Mew squeezed his eyes, trying to teleport, but it was no good. He had run out of strength for that. And he couldn't levitate the others around fast enough for them to attack Lycanroc.

Then a gigantic purple hand shot up between Mew and Lycanroc, slowing his progress. Then another hand appeared behind it, slowing him even more. And then another. And another. And another. Eventually, two dozen hands had stopped Lycanroc in his tracks. Mew glanced down and noticed Espy standing below her, shimmering with an orange aura. Blaziken and Milotic stood beside her, the former wiping his brow in relief.

"This is for Shane!" Espy cried. She concluded her Z-Move with an explosive burst of ectoplasm that propelled a howling Lycanroc down toward the ground, where Tessa stood waiting for him. She crossed her arms in front of her face. Orange light encased her from the gem in her looplet.

Lycanroc flailed about, trying to draw on his powers and summon an Ultra Wormhole to escape. But before he could a giant, orange fist punched him right between the legs. His eyes bulged out and he howled in pain. Tessa punched the air repeatedly, her angry shouts growing louder with each energy fist she launched to keep Lycanroc suspended in midair.

"Don't you ever mess with Team Radiance _again!_ " she shouted, winding up and firing one last orange fist twice Lycanroc's size. It struck him and carried him back through the air, all the way toward Stakataka. Despite the intense burning pain, Lycanroc managed to catch a quick glimpse of Latias and Silvally carrying the Tapus, Sneasel, and Dusk away from Stakataka.

Lycanroc then struck Stakataka's roof. For a brief second, everyone could see a Lycanroc-shaped hole in the bricks. Then, Stakataka erupted in a bevy of brightly-colored, neon explosions. Latias and Silvally zipped toward the rest of the group, the latter barely skirting the fringes of the chain reaction, but getting singed on the edges of his tail. Smoke trailed behind Silvally as he dropped from his glide like a rock and skipped across the ground before finally coming to rest by Tessa.

She knelt down, two berries and an elixir at the ready. Tessa glanced at Silvally's looplet. Sparks jumped around the central gemstone. Tessa's aura feelers tensed up. "You going to be okay?" she asked.

Silvally opened his beak and coughed up a mouthful of gray smoke. Tessa fell on her rump and waved a paw in front of her face. "Yeesh! Warn me if you're going to do that. Your breath smells like soggy pancakes!" She looked at her teammate, who met her with a blank stare. "Err, don't ask me how I know what soggy pancakes smell like." Tessa put the healing items by Silvally's face and stood up.

* * *

Zero took in Stakataka's explosive demise with purple embers smoldering in her iris. "Well, I guess that's it then," she said. A ring of static ran from her ears to her feet as she turned to face the three Pokémon under her control.

"Finally!" Dragonite stretched her arms and wings out. "Now it's my turn, right?" She raised her right hand, summoning a lightning spear to grab hold of.

"Not quite," Zero said, holding up her right paw and turning back to face the paralyzed ocean.

"But you said if Stakataka loses, then I could pick those idiots off," Dragonite growled, her antennae crackling. "What happened to attacking while they're vulnerable, huh?"

"Oh, you're still going to get your chance," Zero insisted. "It's just, after watching this whole display, I think it's necessary to make a few… _adjustments._ To give you a better shot at taking them down."

Dragonite's eyes narrowed. "Are you saying you don't trust me to beat these losers?"

"Even with Birdbrain over there on your side, I'd have concerns," Zero said, jerking her head in Lugia's direction. He opened his mouth, only for an invisible force to squeeze it shut again. "You can keep your complaints to yourself. The fact of the matter is they have numbers and it appears that those numbers have now grown. Furthermore, they actually seem capable of coordinating themselves… well, coordinating better than I expected, anyway."

Zero raised her right paw. Static encased it. Her paw distorted and flickered in and out of existence. "If we're to put a stop to these nuisances, we need to cut them off from each other. Luckily, I'm in a perfect position to do that."

Her aura dreadlocks lashed out at the air around her. Dragonite looked down. The ground shook beneath her feet.

* * *

Tessa helped Silvally back to his feet after he finished eating the berries. "Thanks," he said.

"You sure you're okay?"

"A lot better now that Stappa… flappa…" Silvally's brow furrowed. "Now that the Beast is taken care of, I'm doing better." He looked at his looplet. The sparks had faded from the central gemstone, but his cheek-bolts still glowed and radiated heat. Still, he forced a smile for his teammate. "I'll be fine. I promise."

"O-Okay." Tessa rubbed her shoulder. Her aura feelers then shot up. "Ah, that's right! What about Shane?!" She turned to her aura sight, but stopped when she sensed two familiar blue flames moving toward her. Tessa spun around and relief flooded her system.

Shane walked toward them with Latias by his side. Latias had healed most of his injuries, but the evidence he'd been badly hurt was plain as day. His fur was frayed, disheveled, uneven, and red in some spaces. Tessa ran toward him, only to a skid to a halt and stop herself with her arms outstretched and her gaze locked on her pointy chest spike.

"I, uh…" She stepped away and rubbed the back of her head. "How are you doing?"

"I think that was the first steel-type attack I've been hit with since I evolved," Shane said, lowering his gaze. "It was…" His voice trailed off and he shivered. "That was even more painful than my evolution."

"I'm sorry," Tessa whispered. "I should've—"

Shane shook his head. "Don't. I'm the one who should apologize. I thought my plan was working, but I guess Lycanroc saw right through it and wound up playing me for a sap." A bitter laugh escaped his lips. "I think I'll, uh, defer any battle strategies for dealing with Zero to you guys." When he looked back up, Espy stood at Silvally's side. Shane couldn't quite peg her expression, but he assumed she was either annoyed, worried, or both.

"You should count your lucky stars we had Latias around to help you," Espy said, her voice cracking. "When those Flash Cannons hit you, I thought…" Her face scrunched up. "Please don't tell me you didn't know just how weak ice Ninetales are to steel-type attacks."

"I… I did know. But I saw everyone getting hurt and I felt like it was my fault… so this was the best thing I could come up with," Shane said, wincing. "I guess, we should try not to get separated from each other, even if we're fighting a big foe and it makes sense to split up."

A tense silence followed. Espy turned to Tessa. "You went along with his plan," she whispered.

"I did. I honestly thought it might be able to work," Tessa said, rubbing her shoulder.

Sighing, Espy rested her head against Silvally's thigh. "I'm getting too old for these heart-stopping moments," she said, drawing an eyebrow raise from Silvally. "Look, I'm not mad at you guys. I get it. Things are desperate and sometimes you've gotta turn to crazy ideas. It's just…" Espy glanced over her shoulder at Team Paradise. Raichu was feeding a berry to Haxorus who, in turn, was giving a berry to Raichu. Espy turned back to her teammates. "I don't want to lose any of you, okay? Not after everything we've been through. You're…" She shut her eyes. "You're like family."

Shane nodded slowly. "Right. I understand."

Silence followed, only to broken when Silvally looked to his right and said, "So, uh, what do you think happened to Lycanroc? Because, like, I'm not sensing his energy and, well…" He pointed a foreleg where he was looking. In the distance, the spot where Stakataka once stood was covered in a fiery wreckage. Molten metal lay on the ground, bubbling and releasing thick vapors into the air.

"You don't think he's in the middle of all that, do you?" Shane asked, eyes widening.

"Tessa knocked him into Spatta— err, into the giant Ultra Beast. He was at the epicenter of that gigantic explosion," Milotic said, shaking her head while she slithered up to the group.

"But what about the Dawn Hourglass?" Shane said, tails fanning out in alarm. "You guys hit him with Z-Moves, right? That should've separated it from Lycanroc… right?" He stared into the roaring flames. His tails curled up against his waist. He _needed_ that Hourglass. It couldn't be gone… could it?

"Well, if it _didn't_ separate, then…" Silvally trailed off. He poked the ground with a talon. As soon as he pulled his claws back, the ground trembled. Silvally's head crest fanned out. "W-What the heck? That can't be the Ultra Beast, can it?"

Tessa crouched into a fighting stance. "Don't tell me Lycanroc somehow _survived_ that?" She looked at the other teams and confirmed that they'd sensed it, too. Tessa was about to say something to them, when fissures ripped through the paralyzed ocean. Her aura feelers shot up in surprise. Tessa jumped back, watching in horror as ley line chains and dark purple crystals burst forth from the ground. She didn't have time to stop and take in her surroundings. More chains and crystals shot up to her left, forcing her to run right.

She heard panicked yelps for a few seconds, before a second wall of chains and crystals blocked her off from the other teams. Tessa's heart shot into her throat. "No… oh no. Oh no, no, no, _no!_ " Her aura feelers throbbed in-time with her heartbeat. Tessa broke into a run. "Espeon? Silvally? _Shane?!_ " she cried. "Anyone? Can anyone here m— _aaggh!_ "

A purple crystal erupted from beneath her feet. Flinging her into the air with her limbs flailing. She lost consciousness before striking the ground with a heavy _thud._

* * *

Thousands and thousands of feet above the frozen, torn-up ocean, a golden flash shimmered on the edge of the stratosphere. A bright-orange, circular portal with a checkerboard pattern opened up. Golden flames trickled out of the portal. They coalesced into a fireball surrounded by a rainbow aura.

"Hoopa! _Hoopa, where are you?_ " a deep voice shouted. "You're late and I—"

The fireball bristled. Two sharp, red eyes peered down at the paralyzed planet. Something had clearly gone wrong. Which meant that this was no time for hovering in place, crying out for a god that wouldn't be showing his face.

Wingbeats echoed through the air. The fireball drifted away from its portal, which shut behind it. It floated down toward the planet, leaving a trail of soft, rainbow light.

* * *

 **Sentinel Supreme, Stakataka Deluxe  
** _It's impossible to say whether this Ultra Beast is a singular consciousness or a hivemind of spirits welded together by the chaotic energy of Ultra Space. One thing that is clear, however, is that Lycanroc's intense loathing of a certain ice Ninetales supplanted its own thoughts and desires. Stakataka's will crumbled beneath the Dawn Hourglass' power and both its spirit and body were fused, gaining the cannon-arms of a Celesteela and the neon, rainbow palette of two Blacephalons._

* * *

For those who don't follow the blog, after getting several requests in PMs, I have decided to open a small Discord server related to the fic. I was considering doing it as a surprise if this fic somehow reached 1000 reviews, but I don't think we'll get there. I don't expect this to be a big thing, but if you're interested in talking about the story — or other topics, too — then you're welcome to join. **If you're interested, just let me know and I will send you an invite link.**

I don't know how many silent readers I have, but you can always PM me and ask to join. I'm not just going to post an invite publicly, because there are plenty of Discord trolls out there causing problems for severs big and small. If you do decide to join, I hope you have fun! Now, onto replies...

SuperOmegaGuest: you were expecting one of the main villains to summon Stakataka but instead it was Lycanroc!

Anon Omega: well, will I be hearing any screams?

Anonymous: Nicky was trying his best _not_ to come off as threatening but, yeah, things got a bit heated an Arceus acted based on that.

Dovah: don't worry, I'm trying my best to make these chapters count. Hopefully you enjoy them.

Next time: separation anxiety to the max!


	108. Unraveling a Chain of Memories

**Chapter 91: Unraveling a Chain of Memories**

 **~Invern Mountains, Central Peak~**

 **Is everyone holding up satisfactorally?**

Magearna led the Expedition Society members in a single-file line through blustering winds that barely offered a half-foot's visibility. She held her right arm up. An umbrella-like metal shield stuck out of it, deflecting incoming snow and hail.

"I think we're doing all right," Ninetales said, walking right behind Magearna and giving off short bursts of heat in an attempt at protecting the rest of the group. "How about you? You've had that, um, device of yours out for a while. Isn't it tiring you out?"

 **Well, I admit this is the longest I've ever used my Geartronic Weather Dehazardification Unit, but this is not the time for conservatative behavior,** Magearna said, turning left to follow the path.

"Right." Ninetales looked around. "I still don't really understand how there can be a snowstorm here. The planet's supposed to be paralyzed, isn't it?"

 **It's to be expected, since we're on the Invern Mountains. In this one part of the world, the ley lines are so twispiralled upon themselves, they invert the rudimentary physics of the planet. For example, the way typing works. Moves you would expect to hit for super-effectorative damage instead do very little,** Magearna explained, keeping her pace up.

 **While the rest of the world is paralyzed, time appears to be moving one hundred percent** _ **faster**_ **here. Hence the ferocicity of this snowstorm,** Magearna continued. **I'm afraid this is a discussion better saved for another time, though, because I think we're almost at the top of our climb.**

"Did you hear that, Ampharos? We're almost there!" Ninetales called back.

"F-Fantastic!" Ampharos said through chattering teeth. "While this cold is certainly, ahem, _invigorating,_ I look forward to leaving it behind."

"I concur. It's no surprise this place is completely empty," Cresselia squeaked, blowing into her nubby hands. It did little to warm her up. Even her halos quivered.

 **Actually, the wild Pokémon living in these mountains contribute to the weather. Many know Hail or have Snow Warning as their ability,** Magearna explained. **However, I'm not detectifying any energy signatures besides ours.**

"I'm guessing most of them sought refuge in caves. There _were_ planet-wide tremors when the Hidden Land fell," Ninetales said, shaking snow off her pelt. "You said there's a village at the top of this mountain, correct? How do you suppose the Pokémon living there are handling all of this?"

 **I'm sure Totem Ninetales is doing her best to keep them calm,** Magearna said. Her eyes whirred about. The winds faded to a steady breeze and a light snowfall replaced the torrent of hail. Magearna retracted her shield into her arm. **We're here.**

She walked forward, giving the others room to leave the snowstorm. The snowy trail surprisingly gave way to stone stairs. Each stair faintly glowed with light. Any snowflakes that landed on the stones evaporated, leaving a safe path up into a cloud of gray fog.

"So, these are the gods spoken of in Horizon's legends, yes? Solgaleo and Lunala?" Mawile asked, staring at statues sitting on each side of the stairs.

 **Correct. And the smaller ones behind them are the Tapus, who shape our Mystery Dungeons and keep the continent afloat,** Magearna said.

Ninetales bit her lip. On the walk up, Magearna had told the group that Tapu Bulu and Tapu Fini had vanished alongside the Dawn Shards. She prayed the two Tapus would be all right or, at the very least, her counterpart had safely reigned in their spirits.

Magearna led the group up the stairs. With every step, the air grew thinner. Each Expedition Society member found themselves stopping to catch their breath, save for Ninetales, who was well-accustomed to higher altitudes.

"My head's ringing," Cresselia whispered, scrunching her face up. "How high up are we?"

 **I am not actually sure. I've never had the chance to compare Solstice Summit's elevatilation to Sky Peak's,** Magearna admitted.

"Ah, yes…" Mawile walked up to Magearna, breathing heavily. "That does… take me back. I'd have thought my days on Team Frontier would make this hike easy, but I guess I've gone soft after all these years living at sea level." A wince put a stop to her chuckling.

 **Do not worry. I believe things will be better for you once we're in the village,** Magearna said, beckoning them to follow her through the gray fog. The group stayed close to one another, until they emerged out the other end in the middle of a small rock platform. Another staircase stood across from them, obscuring their view. At the base of the stairs stood a stone stool. A Shaymin sat on the stool, with icy-blue fur on her back and white, snowflake-shaped flowers on either side of her face. She looked at Magearna and smiled.

"Ah!" Cresselia's halos stuck up. "A Shaymin… here? Good gracious! Are you all right? You must be freezing!"

"Thank you for the concern, Lady Cresselia, but I'm okay," Shaymin said, bowing her head. "I am Shaymin Esserly, Totem Ninetales' attendant. And I welcome you all to Solstice Summit."

Ampharos returned the bow. "A pleasure to meet you. I'm Ampharos and this is my assistant, Mawile. We're from the Expedition Society!" He raised his right arm to strike his signature pose.

"Of Lively Town, yes. Your reputation precedes you, good sir," Esserly said, with a slight giggle. She hopped off her perch and turned toward the stairs. "While I would love to keep exchanging pleasantries, I'm afraid we must make haste. Lady Ho-Oh is expecting us."

 **Yes, yes, of course. Lead the way, Esserly,** Magearna said, walking after the snowy Shaymin. Ampharos, Cresselia, and Mawile followed behind her.

Ninetales' brow furrowed. "Wait. Hold up a second… I have questions!" she barked, dashing off after the group.

* * *

 **~Prism Wastelands~**

As Tessa regained consciousness, her vision swam. At first, she had no idea what was going on. She remembered looking at the fiery wreckage of Stakataka, the ground shaking, and then panicked cries sounding all around her. Now, her head was so muddled up and her vision so unfocused she couldn't get a sense of her surroundings. Her ears rang. Pins and needles ran up her legs and down her aura feelers.

"… sa… ey…"

Tessa's face scrunched up. She could've sworn she heard someone, but it sounded like this person was trying to talk to her while submerged underwater. Tessa blinked repeatedly. Her vision slowly came into focus. As it did, sensation returned to her legs and aura feelers.

"Hey, Tessa, you with us?"

It was Silvally. He stood crouched down to Tessa's right, with his head by her arm. "I, uh… I'm a bit out of it, I guess," Tessa said. She lifted her right arm, but she couldn't hold it steady and wound up planting it right on Silvally's beak. Silvally didn't react. He held his head in place so that Tessa could slowly stagger to her feet.

The moment she did, a wave of vertigo crashed over her. Tessa stumbled to her left, then to her right. Silvally offered his shoulder to steady her, but backed away when Tessa threw a paw up over her muzzle. Her cheeks puffed up. She swallowed hard. "Agh. Yeah, not good," she said, sticking out her tongue and shaking her head.

Tessa hunched over, resting her paws on her knees while she waited out the nausea. She found herself at the top of some sort of metal hill. Peering over the edge, Tessa found a sea of purple acid waiting at the bottom of a steep drop off. Chains crisscrossed the chasm between the hill Tessa was on and a jagged cluster of crystals. Some of the links had glowing red or purple eyes inside. They flickered with ominous electricity that made Tessa's aura feelers tense up.

"What happened here?" Tessa asked, finally able to stand up straight. She turned around to find Espy and Milotic also looking at the scenery. There were large platforms of various shapes and sizes in the distance, all seemingly made of crystals that distorted what little light lingered around the area. Chains of assorted length ran between the crystals, the eyes in their links piercing through the darkness. Thorny chains even arced out from the acid pools.

"I think this is all Zero's doing," Silvally said, walking beside Tessa. His expression fiercened as he looked straight at a floating crystal octahedron glowing with a red aura. "The battle with Lycanroc was, well, explosive, to say the least. She probably saw what was happening and, once we beat Lycanroc, summoned a whole bunch of ley line chains to wreak havoc on the place."

He hunched over and his fire memories flickered on. "Th… they're everywhere, Tessa. You can sense 'em, can't you? Just… just look at this place!"

A blast rang out in the distance. Everyone looked northeast and saw spurts of acid flying about in every direction. A trio of giant ley line chains slowly snaked into the air and coiled around one another. In a flicker of purple light, they turned into another crystal platform with a jagged, slanted slope.

"It's awful! It's like the worst Mystery Dungeons we've been in cranked up to the max," Espy said, her tail curling around her waist. "And… and that's the direction we've gotta go, isn't it?" She pointed a forepaw forward. There were a lot of crystal platforms sticking out of the acid below. Some had chains running through them, others didn't.

"H-Hang on, what about everyone else?" Tessa looked around, aura feelers twitching. "Wait… where's Shane?" She turned to her teammates, who looked down glumly.

"I tried to grab hold of him, Tessa, I really did… but a huge ley line wall burst up in front of me before I could," Silvally said, hanging his head as he flickered between a blue and an orange glow.

"There were too many crystal spires. I lost sight of him in all the chaos and, before I knew it, Espy had yanked me back and plopped me onto Silvally next to you," Milotic elaborated. Her gaze was directed north, toward the red and purple eye of the vortex spiraling over their heads.

"Well… w-well…" Tessa shook her head. There had to be some way to reach the others. She had _just_ told Shane that they were in this together. "What about Latias or Mew? Can't Espeon contact them telepathically or something?!"

"It's no good. I can't sense anything beside the energy these ley lines are venting off," Espy said, wincing. "That includes you guys… and you're standing right in front of me. Trying to find the others isn't going to be an option, I fear."

"Why not? Latias and Mew can fly!" Tessa said. "A-And so can you, Silvally. We've gotta turn your flying memories on and get moving!"

Silvally lowered his head. "I'd really love to do that, but that's a bad idea."

Tessa crossed her arms, not buying his answer. "Because?"

"Because of this," Milotic said. She scooped up a gray piece of debris in her tail and hurled it up toward one of the floating octahedrons. A purple core glowed in the middle of it, then purple lightning vaporized the rubble. Tessa slouched over in disbelief, watching dust float past her. "Whatever these things are… the sky is riddled with them. I'm afraid going airborne is way too dangerous."

"But we can't sit here and do nothing," Silvally said, looking off toward the center of the vortex. "I think… we're going to have to set off on foot and pray that we meet up with the others somehow." He walked to the front of the group. "Any objections?"

Just then, a portion of the metal ground gave out behind Tessa. Two black, circular crystals with red cores floated into the air. Espy's tail scrunched up. "I recognize those. They're the things that Zero turned all the Minior in Aurora Vale into! Necrospheres… or something."

Silvally and Tessa exchanged panicked looks. They recalled the ones that had exploded near Shane, nearly doing him in. Tessa's paws balled into fists. Aural flames crackled around her spikes. She didn't even see the winged-heart sigil on her right paw flicker purple.

Tessa raised her paws up, releasing rings of pink energy. Espy added her own psychic rings to the mix. Silvally shot a stream of fire in the center of the rings. It expanded into a giant fireball that swallowed the Necrospheres up, leaving nothing behind.

"We have to get moving… or they might swarm us," Espy said, ears drooping. With a nod, Silvally took the lead. The group proceeded along the metal path, their gazes swiveling back and forth. Metal walls and crystal chunks ran past them. Some parts had glowing runes traced across them, the likes of which brought Golem's videos to mind.

"Mom… why… why are you doing this to us?" Tessa whispered, pulling on her aura feelers.

"She's desperate," Silvally said. "I don't… really know _why._ I mean, she has Dialga on her side. This is just… unnecessary."

"Unless she's trying to stall us."

"What do you mean?" Tessa asked, looking at Espy.

"Think about it. She's trying to forcibly reset all of time with Dialga's power," Espy said, frowning. "If we actually made it up to her… and fought enough to disrupt whatever she's doing, it would ruin her whole plan." Her expression darkened. "I bet she's trying to keep us busy so it's _impossible_ for us to reach her in time to stop her."

Silvally glanced at Espy. He was about to ask for clarification when the glowing sigils on his right all swirled together, forming a cluster of black slime. The sludge expanded into a papule with small circular nubs popping off its body. Espy jumped back with a holler, landing on Milotic's torso.

"Ow! What was that all about?"

"That's a… that's a…" Espy hyperventilated. She shrank down into a ball, then repeatedly smacked Milotic with her forepaws. "Void Shadow! Void Shadow! Get it away! Get it away! Make them stop, stop, _stop!_ "

Seeing Espy's distress, Silvally quickly launched an Air Slash barrage at the Void Shadow. The wind blades sliced through its slimy body. However, the black ribbons simply knotted themselves back together. Silvally stepped back, beak locking up. Three more Void Shadows dropped down from the sky, wobbling about at complete random.

"Get back! Stay away from my friends!" Silvally barked. Lightning revved up in his cheek-bolts. He showered the Void Shadows in electricity. They melted down into bubbling black puddles.

"They're not going to stay down. If you can't completely destroy them, then you have to run! We all have to run! It's not safe here!" Espy screamed, her forehead gem flickering. "It's not safe anywhere!" Her eyes darted about. "They're watching us. I know they are. They'll swarm us if we don't m— _aah!_ "

Milotic wrapped Espy up in her tail and sprang onto Silvally's back. "Then let's pick up the pace here. Run, Silvally!" she said, turning to her right to keep a Void Shadow at bay with scalding-hot water.

Tessa flanked Silvally's left, ignoring her trembling paws despite the difficulties they gave her in charging up an Aura Sphere. She tossed a smaller one in between two Void Shadows. The blue, fiery explosion gave Silvally an opening to run through. Tessa followed behind him. Thinking quickly, she fired a gray beam up at the crystal arcing over her head. The top part dislodged and fell to the ground, blocking off the Void Shadows' path.

"Okay, how's everything looking up there?" Tessa asked, jogging to catch up with Silvally. He stood looking down at a chasm. Tessa looked around him and spotted crystal platforms at the other end, but it would be quite a big jump to make. And there were several, star-shaped rocks floating in midair. Purple light streamed out from cracks in the rocks. They looked like they'd crumble to bits if someone touched them.

"What do you think the odds are there are Necrospheres hiding in those things, waiting to attack?" Milotic wondered, sizing up the nearest rock. "Should I try blasting one and see what happens?"

Silvally shook his head. "If something explodes, it could set off the ley lines beneath us. We've gotta… um…" He glanced back at Tessa. "Look, I can activate my flying memories and glide across, but you'll have to climb on."

Nodding hesitantly, Tessa climbed onto his back. Silvally's glowing appendages turned dark blue and, with a running start, he lunged out over the chasm.

Tessa's aura feelers tensed. The rock on her right was vibrating and shining brighter. Not willing to take any chances, Tessa shot two pink bursts from her paws. Her Psychic blew the rock into another one. Both crumbled to bits in purple blasts. Behind her, Espy used her own Psychic to divide Milotic's Scald torrent into separate water bubbles. She pushed them toward the floating rocks that were giving off steam of their own. They also fell apart before they could unleash whatever they were charging.

It seemed Silvally would have a clear path to the other side of the chasm when Tessa's aura feelers curled up. She and Silvally looked down and saw the acid bubbling. "Uh oh." She dug her knees into Silvally's ribs. "I think you need to go faster!" she squealed.

"Agreed," Silvally said, wiggling his tail enough to propel him forward. Espy yelped in surprise. The change in momentum almost sent her tumbling from her seat, but Milotic managed to wrap her up.

Silvally touched down on an upward-slanting crystal path. His teammates slid to the ground. Behind them, thorny ley line chains dove out of the acid like black, metal Wailords. The chains gnarled and twisted around one another. They melted together into a crystal lattice. A red core ignited inside of it.

"A giant Necrosphere!" Tessa yelped. She started charging an Aura Sphere, but it fizzled away when Silvally grabbed Tessa with his beak and flipped her onto his back.

"And we shouldn't stick around to try and challenge it," he said, watching the core glow even brighter. Espy and Milotic also jumped onto his back. The moment they were secure, Silvally took off running up the path, ducking a pair of chains that would've otherwise clotheslined him.

* * *

 **~Solstice Summit~**

"I must say, this is quite a surprise. The snow's barely falling and the air is much less thin," Cresselia chirped, her halos regaining some of their vibrant glow as she hovered behind Esserly and Magearna, taking in the scenery. Unlike Lively Town, most of the buildings were made of wood, save for tiled roofs slanting toward gutters that led to cylindrical drains. Cresselia squinted at the sliding doors and the gaps between the snow-covered ground and the houses' main levels.

"The, um, architecture here is… very different," Cresselia whispered, pausing to marvel at a bronzed statue of Ho-Oh. Golden flames sat inside Ho-Oh's eyes, crackling with life despite the chilly air. Four similarly-colored torches sat around the statue. Ninetales nodded her agreement. She had heard about this place before, but since she'd never visited in person, she had admittedly forgotten all about it.

"Sister Esserly! Sister Esserly!"

Esserly turned toward the center of the town, where a blue-tailed Eevee emerged from the fog and sprinted toward her. "There you are! I've been looking all over for you! You had promised me a story, remember? When are you gonna tell me it, huh? Huh? Huh?"

"Peace, Sonya, peace," Esserly said, lifting a stubby paw. Her flowers released pink vapors. Sonya stopped hopping in place and sat on her haunches. "There, much better." She turned to Magearna's team. "As you can see, I am tending to some important guests right now. So, I'm afraid story time will have to wait."

Sonya pouted, only for her bright-eyed look to return. "Can I help with the guests? Mommy always said I was great with guests!"

"I'm afraid not, sweetie," Esserly said, frowning. "Why don't you go back to my house for the time being? If you're patient, then I'll make you some nice, warm tea."

"Okay! But I get to pick the flavor!" Sonya chirped. She turned and dashed back off into the fog.

"Is that, um, a family member or something?" Ninetales asked. She was impressed with Sonya's vigor despite the cooler temperatures and wondered if one of the parents was a Glaceon.

Sighing, Esserly resumed walking. "Not exactly. It's a tragedy, really. Sonya's parents, Flareon Akai and Glaceon Michi, were gathering berries from the mountain with the other villagers. A thick fog set over the area. Hawes lost his footing and, well…" Esserly shook her head. "Jodi tried to save him, only for her to fall from the mountain face, too. Totem Ninetales and I have traded off looking after Sonya, at least until she's old enough to figure out what to do for herself."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Ninetales whispered, bowing her head. She knew better than anyone how dangerous snowy mountains could get. Ninetales couldn't help but wonder what, if any, Pokémon had met the same fate. Perhaps it was for the best that she now made frequent trips to more-populated areas.

"Um, excuse me? What do you mean by 'Sonya?' That was Eevee, wasn't it?" Cresselia asked, brow furrowed. Her question snapped Ninetales out of her thoughts.

"Ah, forgive me. I thought you were all aware of some of our customs," Esserly replied, beckoning the group after her. "See, in the time when Lucarios acted as mediators between mortals and gods, Pokémon held two names: a formal name — their species, basically — and a familiar name that they shared only with people they trusted. However, the Lucarios were wiped out during Dark Matter's first attack… and the practice faded, as it reminded everyone of the valuable allies they had lost."

Esserly's flowers drooped. "Many of the villagers here, myself included, have chosen to carry on this tradition as a way of honoring the hard work that they put in centuries ago," she said, pausing mid-stride to bow her head in respect. "I suppose you could say that, even though I have no real way of knowing what life was like back then, I have a strong desire to see the world return to a time when everyone was more open and transparent."

She resumed walking, passing a small stream trickling through the snow toward the outskirts of the village. "In some respects, Solstice Summit is meant to be an attempt at recapturing that feeling… on a small scale. It is part of why Totem Ninetales offers counseling and spirit-channeling sessions for those willing to brave the journey. And I, as her attendant, try to help in whatever way I can."

Ninetales' jaw tightened. Sure, she had spoken with Lucario spirits before and heard about their work and their failed attempts at stopping Dark Matter. But wiped out? That couldn't have been right. Why would the ley lines create Lucarios in some dungeons if they didn't exist anymore? And hadn't she just _met_ a Lucario as part of Team Radiance? Something wasn't adding up for her.

"Wait. How can there be no Lucarios? What about the one on Team Radiance?" Cresselia asked, fidgeting nervously. Having been beaten to the punch, Ninetales nodded along with Cresselia.

Esserly looked at Magearna and raised a brow. "So, it is true then? Riolu evolved?"

Magearna nodded. **She's also openly asked people to call her by her familiar name, Tessa.**

"I see. Then we have two Lucarios in Horizon…" Esserly's expression darkened. "But to set things right, one of them must perish." Esserly's flowers shriveled. "Lady Ho-Oh has been wracked by grief and distress ever since she learned Prisma sought an audience with her, only to have Tapu Fini deny her request."

 **Not that it would have matteriated. Ho-Oh would not have been able to bring Incineroar back as Prisma remembered him… and we'd never call on our contingency plan to reverse one death… even if it was unjust,** Magearna said, earning skeptical looks from Cresselia, Mawile, and Ninetales.

Ninetales opened her mouth, ready to press further, but Esserly announced, "The Solstice Monastery is right up ahead."

A wooden bridge stretched out ahead of the group. At the other end, on a solitary platform suspended over the foggy abyss, sat a three-story temple. It had the same basic, wooden, tiled-roof structure as the houses in the village. Only these tiles were red and gold. Similarly-colored tapestries lay draped across the outer walls. The sliding door had painted on it an eclipsing sun and moon flanked by golden wings. Torches sat on either side of the door. Blue flames crackled, their embers trailing off into the fog.

Esserly trotted toward the door and pulled a string beside it. A tiny golden bell chimed three times. Esserly stepped back as the doors slid open, revealing an ice Ninetales. She dwarfed the rest of the group, standing a head taller than Ampharos and two heads taller than her fire-type counterpart. She had a silver shawl draped over her shoulders, buttoned by a brooch bearing the same emblem as the door of her monastery.

Totem Ninetales bowed her head. "I see you've brought our guests," she said, addressing Esserly. Totem Ninetales walked forward, the bells strapped around her paws jingling softly. "Magearna, it is lovely to see you again." She bobbed her head and Magearna returned the gesture. Then she turned to the Expedition Society members. "Welcome, travelers." She paused to look at Ninetales. "And to you as well, my counterpart."

Totem Ninetales cleared her throat. "I appreciate you coming so quickly. I imagine it can't have been easy, so let us not delay. Come inside."

She beckoned them to follow with her tails, each of which had a silver ribbon trailing off it. They walked through the door, into a surprisingly spacious room with a high-set ceiling. Soft, red carpets sat on the edges of the room, giving way to a glossy, smooth floor surrounding a circular pool in the center of the room. Blue light filtered up from the luminescent water.

"Oh, wow. This is, um, a very unusual building," Cresselia said, following the light up through the holes in the ceiling. She could just make out a glass dome at the top floor's roof.

"This is my spirit pool. Lady Ho-Oh and Lady Xerneas constructed it when Solstice Summit was first established." Totem Ninetales grabbed an ornate staff with numerous glyphs carved into its wood. "It has a direct link to the Tree of Life. I can use it to communicate with the spirit realm… or help guide Horizon Pokémon to it," she continued, voice muffled.

Totem Ninetales walked over to the pool, dipped the staff in using her snout, and slowly stirred the water. Blue and pink wisps spiraled up toward the ceiling. She gently lay the staff down. "Esserly, be a dear and go tell Lady Ho-Oh our guests have arrived."

"No need. I'm right here."

The Expedition Society members stepped back toward the door. Ninetales immediately bowed. Ho-Oh walked out from a wide staircase, head tucked into her chest to avoid bonking it on the ceiling.

 **Your eminence,** Magearna said, stiffly mimicking Ninetales' bow. **May the spirits watch over you.**

Ho-Oh bowed back, spreading her orange and gold wings apart. Rainbow light trailed off her feathers. "And you as well, Magearna." She stood upright. "It's been quite some time. I'd love to catch up, but…"

 **Yes, business comes first,** Magearna said, approaching the spirit pond. **So, can you tell us anything about the scenuation?**

"It is as you predicted. The one known as Necrozma was purged from Lunala's spirit," Ho-Oh announced. She frowned. "Unfortunately, Lunala's lifeforce was drained to the point where she could no longer keep her spirit bound to her body."

"Most unfortunate. She finally gained freedom, only for her life to slip away," Totem Ninetales said, bowing her head in remorse.

"All is not lost, however. Though her spirit was faint, I was able to find it and bring it here for safekeeping," Ho-Oh said, gesturing to the pool. Totem Ninetales approached it, tails raised. She tapped her forelegs togethers. The bells rang and purple embers surrounded her.

A ripple spread through the pool. The water turned a mix of purple and navy blue. Magearna nodded. **Very good. And what about the other spirits Necrozma had taken?**

Ho-Oh smiled. "It seems they were freed as well. I believe we managed to get all of them here."

 **Including Hoopa?** Magearna asked.

"Including Hoopa," Ho-Oh replied, nodding. "Though, again, I still don't see why we _need_ Hoopa. Master Ephemeris can open wormholes."

Ninetales' initial jubilation at the news faded. She wanted to press the "Master Ephemeris" point. After all, Ho-Oh answered to Arceus, didn't she? Who else could be giving her instructions? Ninetales noticed the stoic expression on her icy counterpart's face and held her tongue.

 **Master Ephemeris would have to bring the Pokémon he's looking after through Ultra Space. And, from what I understand, that is a lot riskier for them than traversing Hoopa's ring portals,** Magearna explained, her tone polite but firm.

Ho-Oh shuffled back. "Hmm… is that why he's heading for Rainbow Island, then?"

Magearna stiffened, clanking and whirring. **Such shockification! He's here? Right now?** She crossed her arms. **I know I told him to come check on the planet if he didn't hear from Hoopa, but I guestimated he'd wait a bit longer than this.**

"Well, he's not _here._ But on my way over I saw a familiar golden flame and rainbow trail… it looked to be heading toward Rainbow Island," Ho-Oh explained, glancing between the confused looks on her visitors' faces and Magearna's worried expression. "I would've gone after him, but I figured it would make more sense to bring you guys there instead of having him come here. We can move the spirits we have to the pool on Rainbow Island."

 **Yes, I suppose you're right,** Magearna said.

Ninetales looked at her counterpart. "Um, excuse me. I don't want to come off as impolite or anything, but I'm afraid you've lost me. What's an Ephemeris?" She turned to Ampharos. "Does this all have to do with your contingency plan?"

Ampharos tilted his head and rubbed his chin. "Hrmm… does it relate to my plan? Well, I suppose the best answer is that I don't know… because I don't remember the details of my plan." He lifted his right arm to strike his signature pose. "But if Ho-Oh's talking about it, then it must be important. And we shouldn't ignore that importance!"

Mawile fidgeted nervously. "Erm, yes, the chief has a point."

Ninetales was about to say something, when Magearna raised an arm. **I can boot up exposition mode while we're en route to Rainbow Island,** she said.

"I thought you wanted Ephemeris to remain a secret, given he's our last-resort option," Totem Ninetales said, stirring the spirit pool with her staff.

 **Well, if Ephemeris is here now, I don't see the point in staying tight-lipped,** Magearna said. **Besides, the human already knew of Ephemeris. Confusion cycles** _ **still**_ **wrack my brain over that.**

Totem Ninetales' eyes widened. She almost dropped her staff. "Wait. The other ice Ninetales you told me about knows Ephemeris?"

 **Yes, though it sounded like he only had passing knowledge of him,** Magearna said, walking toward Ho-Oh. Ninetales raised an eyebrow at the scene. Shane was a human, right? After all, he hardly carried himself like a Ninetales should. So, how could he know about something that a lot of important Pokémon were in the dark about? She made a mental note to ask Magearna about this later.

Totem Ninetales' footsteps jolted Ninetales to attention. "I've sent the spirits over to Rainbow Island," she announced. "Lady Ho-Oh, are you okay flying us there?"

"Of course I am. Climb on," Ho-Oh said, spreading her wings and bending over. One by one, Magearna directed the Expedition Society members onto Ho-Oh's back. The warmth Ho-Oh radiated pleased Ninetales. Totem Ninetales was the last one left on the floor. She turned to Esserly.

"I'm sorry to do this to you on such short notice, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to look after the village while I'm away," Totem Ninetales said, sighing.

"It's quite all right. I've got things under control," Esserly assured, her flowers sparkling. Her smile faded quickly, however, and she brushed a forepaw across the carpet. "But if we need to evacuate…"

"Take the villagers into the dungeon and find the Stormcracker Isle waypoint to the east. Tapu Fini hasn't been around to change the mountain layout in some time, so it should still be in the same spot," Totem Ninetales said.

Esserly nodded. "Understood." She stepped back and watched Totem Ninetales climb aboard Ho-Oh. "Be safe, everyone," she said.

Ho-Oh nodded back to her, then walked off toward the monastery's back entrance.

* * *

 **~Prism Wastelands~**

"What do you mean you can't just fly us to safety?" Haxorus growled, stomping on the metal ground and huffing out dragonfire tufts. "You were levitating us around no problem when we were fighting Shackaflacka. What changed?"

Latias shrank back from Haxorus. "W-Well, it's this place." She looked up at the ley line chains hanging over her head. The eyes inside the links seemed to stare right at her, as if they were following her every move. "This, um… I _think_ it's a Mystery Dungeon?" Latias shook her head. "Look, the point is, if I try to fly too high, those chains up there are going to attack us."

"Then we should attack 'em first," Haxorus said, thumping her chest.

"Haxy, wait!" Raichu said, grabbing her mate by the arm. It didn't stop Haxorus from shooting blue-purple flames up at the chain directly over Latias. Purple light flashed in three of the eyes. Black and red beams shot out, snuffing Haxorus' dragonfire.

Squealing in fright, Latias materialized a pink barrier. She buckled when the beams struck, but managed to keep the barrier up long enough for the attacks to fade away. Latias turned back to the group. "We're not safe here. We have to keep moving, even if that means you guys are walking," she said.

"I agree." Infernape stepped beside Latias. "We're sitting Duckletts right now. The quicker we get to higher ground, the better chance we have of scoping out what's going on here." He looked around. "I'm just… not exactly sure how we do that."

"You're the psychic here, Latias. Can't you scope something out with your ESP?" Haxorus said, crossing her arms and tapping her foot.

"Look, I'm doing the best I can here," Latias said. In truth, the jumbled mess of ley lines surrounding her had thrown her ESP out of whack. It was hard to sense much of anything. Latias floated away from the group. There was a spot in the crevice they'd hidden away in that offered her a decent view of the sky without having to fly any higher. A relieved look spread across her face. "Okay, if we're looking to get to the source of all of this, then we're going to have to go this way," she said, pointing forward.

"Do you think the others are going to try and head for Zero? Or are they trying to regroup?" Feraligatr wondered.

"I can't say. B-But we're, um…" Latias gulped and tapped her claws together. "I don't think we can afford to go searching blindly for the others. We have no idea how close Zero is to finishing… whatever she's doing with Dialga and the Time Gears."

Infernape nodded. "Good point. Let's get going."

Latias reluctantly led the group deeper into the crevice. Though she wanted to try and scout ahead with her ESP, the chains and crystals pulsating with dark energy made her decide against it. Instead, she floated quietly, tensed up and waiting for the possibility that something would try and attack.

To her right, purple acid trickled down a crack in the crystal wall. It gathered in a tiny puddle in the middle of the path. "Watch your step, everyone," Latias said, hovering past the acid. Ahead, the ground sloped upwards. Star-shaped rocks floated next to a pile of purple slime that pulsated and wriggled like a faceless Swalot.

"Ugh. That's so icky!" Raichu said, walking up beside Latias.

She stiffened and feathers bristled. "Y-Yeah. It's… it kinda reminds me of the Voidlands, to be honest," Latias said. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to will the memories of Void Shadows surrounding her away. Her eyes then shot open. She turned right and tossed a Mist Ball forward. It struck two charging Necrospheres and knocked them into the slime mound. It bounced around like a plate of gelatin.

"I think we need to keep moving," Infernape said. Feraligatr spat up a glob of water at the slime. The Necrospheres floated right into it. Infernape hurried the group along while the Necrospheres exploded in the distance. Ley line chains bristled and shot out in different directions. Some of them headed for the group, but Raichu jumped behind everyone and blasted the ley lines away with a large lightning bolt.

"It's like the more we use our attacks, the more unstable this place gets," Latias said, ears drooping. She wished Lugia was with her. He always knew how to keep a level head in tense situations, even if his prideful side sometimes made him stubborn. At the very least, he could put on a confident face to keep everyone's spirits up.

But her? She couldn't do them any good. Latias knew the others could see how nervous she was. How was she supposed to rally them when all she could think about was what had happened to precipitate this crisis. She had failed to protect the Dusk Hourglass. Necrozma used Latios and Lugia to get to her. All the progress she'd made over the years melted away at the sight of Lugia's corrupted form. The memory made her feathers stand on end. She was completely useless. The only reason she was even here was because Latios gave himself up so she could escape.

 _'In the end, Rayquaza was right. I had a job and I couldn't do it. I'm a failure.'_

"Hey. Save the wallowing for another time. We're supposed to be on a schedule, remember?"

Haxorus' voice jolted Latias to attention. "R-Right. Sorry. My bad," she squeaked, floating to the head of the group. To her relief, the path led them out of the crevice and onto the top of a bulky crystal platform. In the distance, a spiraling mass of chains and shadows obscured her view of what lay under the eye of the temporal storm. Latias' wings drooped.

"Looks like that's where we're heading," Feraligatr said, slumping over. "And it's not what I'd call a short walk, either."

"And climbing almost fifty floors to get through the Hidden Land and Temporal Tower in succession _is_ a short walk?" Infernape said, raising a brow.

"Well, it was at least a more aesthetically pleasing walk," Feraligatr said, laughing nervously and rubbing the back of his head.

"I'm not even sure how we're supposed to proceed." Haxorus approached the edge of the platform with crossed arms and a stern expression. "There are way too many gaps between safe ground. I can see acid at the bottom of this pit." She turned to Latias. "I know you didn't want to fly, but it looks like we don't have a choice if we're moving forward."

Latias tensed. A few feet behind Haxorus, wisps of purple energy sparked up from cracks inside floating rocks. Would she really be able to maneuver around them safely while carrying everyone? She _had_ managed to fly well against Stakataka's barrage, but that was only when she had Pokémon sitting on her back.

She scrunched her face up, telling herself she had to stop fretting over every detail.

 _'C'mon, Latias. It's just like Delphox always told you… when things are rough, don't think! Just act!'_

Latias floated up to the others, ready to pick them up, when her ears shot up. A loud, shrill cry sounded from above. Latias looked straight up. Her eyes widened. She pulled the teams into her psychic grip and floated back. Seconds later, gale-force, shadowy winds buffeted the crystal platform, leaving cracks and splinters in the spot where the two teams had stood.

"What the—" Raichu looked up. Her eyes bugged out. "Um, L-Latias? Isn't that—"

The ball of black shadows hovering above the platform burst apart, revealing Lugia. His red eyes flared up with green embers. Lugia cawed, voice heavily distorted. Ectoplasm dripped off the tips of his beak and wings.

"N-No… I'm not…" Latias shrank back. Memories of her last encounter with her corrupted mate flooded her mind. The ferocious attacks and the pain _._ Oh, spirits above, the _pain._ Latias' breath came in sharp gasps. She couldn't do this. Lugia was always stronger than her. And, even if she could get the upper hand, she'd risk losing him. She couldn't go through that. Not after she just lost Latios. Lugia was everything to her.

"Hey, watch out!" Raichu cried.

Latias looked up. Squealing in fright, she threw up a pink barrier. It buckled. Cracks chipped away at the pink light. But Latias was able to roll right just as her energy shield shattered. Lugia's smoldering eyes flared up again. His gaze locked on Latias. Her heart pounded so hard she could swear she heard it beating in her ears.

 _Pretend I'm someone you don't like, then. How about Rayquaza?_

She tensed up, daring to meet Lugia's gaze. Latias caught a silhouette of Rayquaza hanging over Lugia. It was long enough for her to make out his usual, dismissive look. The same look he wore a couple of days ago, when he told her how useless she was and how this assignment of hers wouldn't amount to anything. And the same look he had on when he laid into her for daring to speak out against Dialga's attitude.

Latias' blood boiled. He hadn't even lifted a claw to do anything and look at what had happened. She had lost her brother. Her mate was corrupted. The world was on the brink of complete collapse.

Running wasn't an option. Too much was at stake to do that. Latias glanced down at her looplet.

 _'I'm an explorer. When a Pokémon's in danger, I have to do everything I can to rescue it! Even if…'_ She touched a claw to one of the emera crystals in the looplet. _'Even if that means fighting my own mate!'_

A familiar, invigorating energy surge washed over her. Latias' world turned bright orange.

* * *

"Tessa? Espy? Silv?" Shane looked around the crevice. Ley line chains formed walls on either side of him. Clusters of crystals lay interspersed between chain links. Some crackled with dark energy. "Somebody? Anybody?" He looked up. Ley lines crisscrossed over his head. He could see the temporal storm overhead, but had no way to climb up and see what was at the top of the crevice.

A moan sounded behind him. Shane whirled around, firing an Ice Beam without a second thought. It froze a Void Shadow solid. Shane stared right at it, recognizing the slimy mass. It was even more hideous in-person that it was as a cluster of polygons on his low-resolution 3DS screen. Shane's eyes sparked with pink energy. The ice shattered, leaving chunks of the Void Shadow behind.

Shane shuffled back. Searing pain flashed across his head. Had the Void Shadow somehow used Destiny Bond? No, that didn't make sense. He was still standing. Yet it felt like someone had bludgeoned him. Shane opened his eyes, but his vision was fuzzy. He blinked his eyes several times.

When he did, he found himself staring not at the crevice, but at a bleary islet of purple rocks. Void Shadows swarmed a group of five Lucario.

Another flash of head pain brought Shane back into the crevice. He stumbled about, only to notice three more Void Shadows squeezing themselves out of gaps between the chains. His tails curled up and he ran off.

"Tessa! Espy! Silv! Where are you?" Shane barked. He confirmed the Void Shadows hadn't given chase and slowed his pace. Shane's tails drooped.

He was alone. Really and truly alone.

Shane tried to think of a time where he'd been on his own since getting turned into a Pokémon, but nothing came to mind. Even when he went off to the hot springs after his evolution, he knew his teammates were close by. This time, however, he had no clue where he was, where he was supposed to go, or how he was supposed to find anyone.

Another groan kept him from dwelling on his situation any longer. Shane's ears stuck up. Cautiously, he rounded a bend in the crevice. Tubes of purple slime lay in his path, suspended at different angles. Shane carefully weaved his way through them. The groaning grew louder after he hopped over the last slime tube.

He crouched into a fighting stance, but immediately relaxed. Dusk, Sneasel, and the Tapus lay in a pile in front of him. And if they were groaning, then that meant they were alive. Shane looked to his right, only for his heart to sink. The satchel he'd taken was gone, which meant he had no healing items he could use to help them.

On top of that, Shane realized his scarf was missing. His eyes widened. He turned about in a circle, wondering if he'd lost it traversing the makeshift Mystery Dungeon. However, Shane didn't see any sign of it.

With a shaky breath, he told himself not to think about it. He had to help the Pokémon he'd just found. Shane walked up to them. "H-Hey, are you all right? Can any of you hear me?"

The closest to a response he got was Tapu Fini twitching and groaning in pain. Shane sighed. He had to heal them, but without any elixirs, he worried he'd lack the energy to heal himself if something bad happened. Plus, all four of them looked emaciated, like they'd gone weeks without having a decent meal.

Shane wondered if the crystal Lycanroc had trapped them in was responsible. He hesitantly placed his forepaw against Tapu Fini's horn. Soft, orange light swirled around his limb. It funneled down onto Tapu Fini's horn. Then, to his surprise, it spread to Tapu Bulu, Dusk, and Sneasel. Shane pulled his paw back, fearing he'd somehow used too much power.

The soft light faded, taking with it the pained expressions on their faces. Still, none of them woke up. Shane frowned. Did he need to use Morning Sun again?

Before he could think too much on it, however, a glimmer of light caught his eye. He sidestepped the pile of unconscious Pokémon, offering wordless apologies, and crept toward the glimmer.

The Dawn Hourglass lay on the ground, chipped, cracked, and venting multicolored energy. Weak as it was, there was no mistaking its ethereal glow. It matched each Shard that Shane had touched.

An idea immediately sprang to mind. He wasn't sure how much power the Hourglass had left, but perhaps he could make one Ultra Wormhole and send Lycanroc's victims back to the Aeon Observatory. After all, Comfey was in a much better position to help them than he was. The only problem was, in order to do that, Shane would have to touch the whole Hourglass. And after what had happened with the third Dawn Shard, Shane feared lapsing into another vision.

It didn't take him long to accept the risk. Since he didn't have a rainbow scarf anymore, he was vulnerable. Even if he didn't know what would happen, the extra power would undoubtedly help everyone, wouldn't it? Satisfied, Shane bent over and picked the Hourglass' chipped handle up in his maw.

Immediately, he looked back at the unconscious quartet. He focused his mind on thoughts of the Aeon Observatory's assembly area.

 _'Send them there, please!'_

Just as he screwed his eyes shut, bright light made them snap open. A faint white outline appeared in front of Shane. Then, with a distorted flicker, the unconscious Pokémon disappeared and the outline faded. Shane immediately dropped the Dawn Hourglass to the ground.

Despite letting go of it, however, white-hot pain shot up Shane's leg. He tensed up. A weak gasp escaped his lips. Shane doubled over.

Then, in a blinding flash, he found himself staring down Chikorita and Fennekin again.

 _"I… accept you!"_

Another flash. Now, Shane was looking at Yveltal, a Nuzleaf, and three Beheeyem struggling in midair, surrounded by dark, shadowy clouds.

A third flash. Shane stared at the gray, decaying bark of a tree big enough to rival the tallest buildings in his hometown.

"M-Make it stop!" Shane shouted. His cries successfully forced him back to reality. He nearly tripped over the Dawn Hourglass, but managed to collect himself.

 **"So, this is where you ended up after she tore this place apart like wet tissue paper? My, how convenient!"**

Shane's heart jumped into his throat. "Th-that voice. No… it can't be!"

 **"Heeheeheehee! What's the matter? Aren't you happy to see me? After all, it's me… your best friend."**

The ley line chains to Shane's right buckled. Shane grabbed the Dawn Hourglass and turned to run, but ley line chains shot out in front of him, forming a new wall that was far too large for him to scale. Shane spun around. His jaw dropped. The Hourglass tumbled to the ground and he scrambled to pick it back up.

"N-Necrozma? You're… wait, what?" Shane watched Necrozma emerge from the bristling ley lines, his crystalline antlers sparking. Necrozma fixed his lone eye on Shane.

 **"I was being facetious, of course. We're not friends… we're two sides of the same, demented coin,"** Necrozma said, licking his lips. **"My, how so much can change in such a short amount of time."** He looked at the Dawn Hourglass. **"Unbelievable. Look at that! It's barely a shell of its true power!"** Necrozma stomped a forehoof on the ground. **"I can't believe you let a** _ **Lycanroc**_ **make such a mockery of my light like this!"**

Shane crouched low to the ground, growling at Necrozma. "C'mon, Nicky. Stop spouting a bunch of nonsense. I'm not letting you get your mitts on this. Can't we just talk for bit?"

 **"As I told you last time, Nicky is dead,"** Necrozma replied, grinning. **"My biggest regret is how much I let the remnants of his** _ **pathetic**_ **soul dictate my actions. I let his revenge** _ **twist**_ **the glorious chaos and destruction I sought."** His grin widened. **"But, I suppose, I can spare a little time to talk. After all, rebellious scum or not, we're still both cut from the bottomless fabric of the void. And now that I'm sure of that fact, there's something I'm just** _ **dying**_ **to tell you."**

"What are you talking about?" Shane said, Hourglass muffling his speech. "I told you not to spout nonsense! What do you mean you let revenge twist you?" He probed the Hourglass' dwindling light. Its golden energy flickered. "S-Start talking or else I'll, um, use this against you!"

Necrozma's eye smoldered. **"What's there to say? We did exactly the same thing, didn't we?"** He paced to his right, keeping his eye fixed on Shane. **"Let human thoughts and memories** _ **seep**_ **into our beings and transform us."** Necrozma grinned again. **"The big difference is you** _ **chose**_ **to do that, while I… I was forced into a human spirit."**

Shane summoned a fireball and knocked it at Necrozma. Ley line chains shot out from the wall on Necrozma's right. They stopped the attack, but melted into a sticky puddle of tar. It was like all the road construction sites Shane had gone past in his human life. He shrank back further, shaking his head. Shane wanted to believe he could pull the real Nicky out if he kept Necrozma talking. However, Necrozma's rambling made him increasingly doubtful.

 **"Temper, temper. Is that any way to treat me? After all… if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't even exist!"** Necrozma said, pointing a forehoof at Shane.

"Yeah, sure, because you and Solgaleo got in a fight when you were attempting to drag me here… and I somehow ended up looking like this!" Shane barked, snorted out ice tufts. "I'm not falling for your games anymore. You… you've hurt too many people! If I can't get you back, Nicky, then I'm going to destroy you!"

Necrozma studied Shane's fierce expression. Then, his stance slackened. **"Heeheeheehee! Oh ho, this is just… just too much,"** he said, smacking a forehoof against the tar puddle. Shane stood tall, determined not to let Necrozma get under his skin. **"You truly believe that, don't you? My, my. So, you really** _ **did**_ **abandon your old identity and cobble together a new one using my core and Light's** _ **pitiful**_ **excuse for a friend. This is… it's… beautiful? Ironic? How about beautifully ironic?"** Slobber dripped into the tar puddle, splattering like raindrops striking a pond.

 **"I should be furious. Incensed, even! But I… I just can't stop laughing!"** Necrozma said between giggle fits.

"This isn't funny!" Shane huffed. He spat out two fireballs this time. Necrozma blocked them with ley line chains, leading to more gooey puddles. This time, however, he stumbled back in a bit of a daze. Shane's ears stuck up. He could tell Necrozma didn't have the force in his attacks that he did the last time they had met. Shane figured Necrozma's battle with Zero must've left him drained.

"Yeah, that's right. I bet you're talking to stall for time," Shane said, tightening his grip on the Dawn Hourglass. Maybe now was the time to absorb all its power? He could destroy Necrozma for good. Or, perhaps, he could use a Z-Move and see if that freed Nicky like it did all the infected and corrupted Pokémon.

 **"Now, now. Won't you at least hear me out, first?"** Necrozma said, grimacing as he straightened up. **"What I have to say… it'll put to rest all the doubts that Hourglass has left you with."**

Shane tensed. "You're lying to get me to lower my guard."

 **"Please. In case you haven't noticed…"** Necrozma's antlers sparked. Cold metal brushed Shane's tails. He jumped forward with a yip, then immediately clamped back down on the Hourglass. Shane didn't have to look back to know there were ley line chains waving about like thin ribbons in a wind storm. **"… you're surrounded. I could launch an attack, but I haven't."**

Necrozma sat on his haunches. **"All you have to do is listen… and everything will make sense."**

Shane's eyes sparked with pink energy. "I don't believe you."

 **"You want to know why I keep insisting that the Guiding Light is dead? Because he** _ **is,**_ **"** Necrozma said, voice dripping with venom. He stepped into one of the tar puddles and batted the slime aside. **"That dumb old codger botched his alchemical spell and** _ **fractured**_ **the human's spirit. There's no way to undo that."**

"Pfbt. What kind of Voldemort horcrux nonsense are you spewing?" Shane scoffed, sticking his snout up.

 **"You saw the footage for yourself. Your 'friend' arrived as a Growlithe. A Growlithe was one of the first people to perish by my claws,"** Necrozma countered, arms raised and claws twitching. **"Heartbreak had consumed what was left of Light's spirit… leaving room for the void — the same power making up the ley lines running through the planet — to take control. That is what I truly am! Fragments of the void mashed up with ley lines and the embittered remnants of a human soul."**

Necrozma shook his head. **"I didn't expect Solgaleo and Lunala to show up and imprison me. And I certainly didn't expect what remained of Light's spirit to develop a rage strong enough to seep into my thoughts and actions."** Necrozma's eye smoldered. **"But, alas, it's the truth. Light's memories and rage subsumed my being. I became obsessed with destruction for the sake of revenge on the people who had hurt and betrayed him."**

Shane's tails curled up. He told himself it was an elaborate hoax. Even if he didn't really understand how spirits worked, Nicky was still inside Necrozma. He _had_ to be. And yet, the fanatical look in Necrozma's eye made his fur stand on end. Shane gulped. "But you're, uh, not obsessed with revenge anymore?"

 **"Correct. While trying to get the Dusk Hourglass, I found that, the more I used alchemy and ley lines, the more I chipped away at these nagging, intrusive thoughts,"** Necrozma said, jabbing the ground repeatedly with a forehoof and kicking up chunks of crystal. Shane winced. **"Now, those memories may still be there, but I don't care about them anymore. If anything, they're evidence of what grand mistakes these worlds are and why they must be destroyed."**

Necrozma grinned. Drool seeped from his lips. **"Still, while all of this was going on, I did remember something quite important. Which leads me to you,** _ **Shane.**_ **"**

"I've already seen what happened when you tried to summon me!" Shane said. The Dawn Hourglass flared.

 **"Yes. That was, admittedly, a foolhardy decision born of Light's remnant anger,"** Necrozma said, sighing. **"It proved quite costly, since the center of my core up and disappeared on me in the process."**

"It— wait, what?" Shane's ears flattened against his head. He had no idea what Necrozma meant.

 **"To gain back control of her body, Zero forced part of my core inside Lunala. The center part, to be exact,"** Necrozma explained, smacking the wall to his left. **"At first, I didn't make the connection. I wasn't sure why I couldn't use my Photon Geyser or Prismatic Laser."**

"Okay, I was humoring you, but now you're _definitely_ making stuff up," Shane said, stepping forward with newfound confidence. "If your core houses your spirit—"

 **"Please. I have an empty soul,"** Necrozma sneered.

"Whatever." Shane rolled his eyes. "Point is, if you didn't have a part of your core in Lunala, how were you able to possess her?"

 **"Oh, come now. That's what's stumping you?"** Necrozma threw his head back and laughed. Shane narrowed his eyes. He wouldn't let Necrozma unnerve him. **"Use those stolen human memories of yours,** _ **spawn.**_ **It's the Prism** _ **Virus,**_ **of course. Once my core fragment was inside, I was free to spread my corrupted Z-Power through her. The core fragment was like the tick that seeded the infection. It'd been in place so long, I had an** _ **iron grip**_ **on her spirit by the time it disappeared."**

"Aaaand you've lost me," Shane said, looking bored.

Necrozma chuckled. **"You really did pick quite the idiot to forge a new identity from, didn't you?"**

"What's that supposed to mean, huh?" Shane huffed. "Sure, I've done a lot of foolish stuff, but I'm not like you!"

 **"Not like me? Heeheeheehee! Boy, you** _ **are**_ **me!"** Necrozma declared, his antlers and eye flashing purple.

"Pfbt. Oh, so now you're jumping from being a Voldemort knockoff to a Xehanort-Vader hodgepodge?" Shane said, warmth spreading across his body. "You really are desperate, aren't you?"

 **"I see you couldn't quite ditch that tendency to stick your foot in your mouth,"** Necrozma crooned. **"All right, wise guy. You seem so sure of yourself, then answer this."** He licked his lips. **"Those powers the Dawn Hourglass gave you… whose abilities do you think they are?"**

"Solgaleo's, of course! Because the Dawn Hourglass has the means to restore him back to life," Shane declared. The Hourglass sparked with golden light.

 **"That may be true, but you're** _ **wrong,**_ **"** Necrozma said. **"Those special abilities you've been using? They're** _ **mine.**_ **Why was I able to invade your dream space so easily? And why do you think you can use golden energy balls? Because you stole** _ **my**_ **Photon Geyser when you forced your way out of Lunala's body! You just needed enough light to make it happen… and the Dawn Shards gave you that light."** Necrozma shook his head and muttered, **"To think you were clinging to that one** _ **stupid**_ **gesture of kindness the whole time you sat in the center of my core after burrowing your way in there."**

Shane shrank back, despite knowing chains lay in wait behind him. That couldn't be right. Necrozma was making it all up. But then… it would certainly explain why he saw himself getting dragged through an Ultra Wormhole from Necrozma's perspective. Still, he refused to believe the claim. "Y-You're lying," he squeaked, most of his resolve having faltered.

 **"Not in the slightest. You were never going to be a hero, because you weren't supposed to exist in the first place!"** Necrozma shouted, dousing Shane in spittle. **"Your spirit isn't human… and it isn't a Pokémon, either. You're** _ **my**_ **central core fragment! You're Dark Matter!"**

Though Necrozma launched no attack, a stabbing pain gripped Shane's chest. His ribs tightened. His knees buckled. The world was closing in on him. "N-No. That's not… that can't be…" His tails shot between his legs. "I saw Solgaleo's memories!"

 **"A side effect of Dark Matter desperately cobbling together what little remained of your spirits after I** _ **atomized**_ **you both with my Prismatic Laser,"** Necrozma said, an unhinged smile on his face. **"I imagine Ultra Space's radiation also played a role in making you a Vulpix in the first place."**

"I… I can't… I refuse…"

 **"Heehee…** _ **heeheeheehee!**_ **Yes! There it is! The moment I was waiting for!"** Necrozma said, hopping about like a kid who'd gotten the perfect birthday gift. **"That look… a look of utter hopelessness and despair! How I've** _ **longed**_ **to see that plastered across your face. It almost makes this entire farce worth it."**

Shane's ears were ringing. Necrozma's voice sounded like it was a mile away. He wasn't Dark Matter. He _couldn't_ be. He was Shane… a loser who had stumbled into something bigger than himself, but who refused to back down… and found steadfast friends because of it. That wasn't just some lie. His memories weren't fake. His sense of self wasn't fake… was it?

"W-Why—" he rasped, but his words escaped him.

 **"Think about it, 'Shane.' I've seen enough of Light's memories to know you were a manipulative, self-centered jerk,"** Necrozma explained, the triumphant grin never leaving his face. **"But your guilt-tripping and temper tantrums don't come** _ **close**_ **to your outright spiteful treatment of your so-called** _ **friends**_ **during your early weeks at the guild."** His eye glowed bright-orange. **"You dragged yourself into a downward spiral of** _ **negativity.**_ **And who, pray tell, is the embodiment of negativity in this world?"**

The ringing in Shane's ears grow louder. He tried to meet Necrozma's gaze, but his vision was so blurry that all he could see was a black, circular mass.

 **"That's right… it's Dark Matter!"** Necrozma continued, arms twitching. **"When I said we were both cut from the same cloth, I meant it."** He paced around the tar puddles. **"The ley line chains spread throughout the world… they stem from the Voidlands, the true core of this planet."** He paused to look at Shane, who was staring at the ground with a distant look in his eyes.

 **"Heeheeheehee. At one point, the Voidlands was a living, breathing entity. An unthinking, uncaring, soulless creature trying to tear its planetary prison apart with its ley line chains,"** Necrozma continued. He jabbed a forehoof into the wall in his left. The chains bristled. **"But, as time wore on, the ley lines closest to the planet's surface sucked in the emotions of any Pokémon who got trapped within them. All that negativity… it was emotional glue that made the ley lines stick together.**

 **"Slowly but surely, this writhing mass of negativity started to think— to** _ **feel,**_ **"** Necrozma continued, twirling ley line chains around his forehoof. To Shane, voice sounded even more muffled than before. **"Before long… a** _ **soul**_ **emerged from the emptiness: Dark Matter. Or, rather you."** Necrozma yanked his forehoof back, tearing some of the chains off the wall. **"You took some of my power for your own. You cast souls down into the Voidlands. Since I lacked a mind of my own, I simply destroyed whatever spirits I could."**

Necrozma shook his head. **"I had no idea that you would try hurtling the planet into the sun. If I could've understood, I'd have been rightfully furious. Since, as the planet's core, I'd have been extinguished along with everyone else."** Necrozma flicked his foreleg up. He blasted the broken ley line chains with red beams from his antlers. Their liquified remains splattered against the ground.

 **"Not long after… I'd find myself getting sucked out from the planet's core and stuffed inside a powerful new body with a human soul,"** Necrozma said. **"His soul shaped me… much as the world's negativity shaped you into your original form."** Necrozma chuckled, keeping his eye fixed on Shane.

"Sh… shut up," Shane rasped. His legs were shaking so badly, he couldn't get them to stop. He just needed one attack. One blast with the Dawn Hourglass' power and he could silence Necrozma for good. Why wasn't it working? Why couldn't he do it?

 **"When I finally gained control as Necrozma, only to be imprisoned, I spent a long time festering in the emptiness of the Ultra Nexus, gathering what little morsels of energy I could to try and force my way out. All the while, Light's rage gradually swelled,"** Necrozma continued. **"And once I had finally managed to pry open an Ultra Wormhole to escape, imagine my surprise when I discover your original form on the other side."**

Eye smoldering, Necrozma's arms spasm and he thrashes his head around in a poor impression of Silvally when he still had his mask. **"A Fennekin hugged you… causing some blast that sent me tumbling away from the wormhole. It shut and I lost my chance at escaping."** Necrozma snorted out shadowy tufts. **"But your remains had wound up in the Nexus with me. You had light… and I wanted it. So, I** _ **shoved**_ **you into my core!"**

Shane squeezed his eyes shut. That would explain how Tapu Lele could make a Dark Matter clone when Necrozma infected her.

 **"I could never have realized that that embrace I witnessed — that one,** _ **single**_ **gesture of kindness that you received — would be the** _ **one memory**_ **that you would cling to,"** Necrozma growled, smacking his arms together. **"I assumed that, since you were once part of the void, you would synchronize with the rest of my core and help me destroy this world. Instead, you turned against me! You honestly thought you could reinvent and redeem yourself. Bah! How disgusting!**

 **"When I was weakened and vulnerable after vaporizing Solgaleo and the** _ **real**_ **Shane, you must've forced you out of Lunala."** Necrozma thrust his arms up. **"Then, you used the center core fragment to draw in whatever light you could from Shane's fading spirit and mix it with energy from Ultra Space. Thus, you were reborn as Vulpix Shane."**

Necrozma finally turned back to Shane, grinning. **"Heeheeheehee… but I've finally seen through all your smoke and mirrors. You're a freak, just like I am! With the mind and consciousness of a human, the body of a Pokémon, and a** _ **shell**_ **of a spirit… derived from the power of the void."** Necrozma bared jagged, crystal teeth at Shane. **"We are embodiments of chaos!"**

Shane glared back at Necrozma, but his mind was a total blank.

 **"Hmm? So, there's still a spark of defiance left in you, even after all of that?"** Sighing, Necrozma shrugged. **"Fine. Then I'll play along with your ruse,** _ **Shane.**_ **"** He cleared his throat. **"Heeheeheehee. If only Dark Matter had known the kind of person you were, Shane. Perhaps it wouldn't have made such a foolish decision."** He smirked. **"It wanted to reinvent itself, but all it did was take all of your** _ **worst**_ **attributes and drag them out for everyone to see. Not that you didn't do plenty of that on your own, of course.**

 **"Whatever happened to you in that swamp, though… it actually seems to have changed you,"** Necrozma whispered. **"If Light were still in control, he'd find this tragic. Here his friend is, on the cusp of** _ **finally**_ **becoming a good,** _ **relatable**_ **person. Only it's too late. This world— no,** _ **every world's**_ **fate is sealed! And neither you nor Light can do anything about it."**

Necrozma raised his arms up. His eye and antlers crackled with dark energy. **"All this means is that Light's meager remnants can take pleasure in killing Shane a second time! Heeheehe—** _ **huh?!**_ **"**

He jumped back, narrowly dodging a golden beam that tore across the ground and kicked up gem shards. Necrozma's eye widened. Shane stood up straight, eyes narrowed and the Dawn Hourglass gripped firmly in his mouth.

"Or I can use the powers I apparently stole from you to make it so that you can never trouble anyone again!" Shane shouted.

Necrozma staggered backward. **"Fool! Stand down!"** Ley line chains slithered forward from the wall, but they retreated under the Hourglass' glow. **"N… no. What's going on? This is impossible!"** He looked at Shane. Light spilled across him from the Hourglass. Necrozma's arms shriveled up. **"I… can't… fail…** _ **here!**_ **"**

He lunged for the light.

* * *

"Any sign of the others?" Blaziken asked, walking along the middle of a large, circular platform. Floating rocks and crystals surrounded it, many connected by crisscrossing sets of ley line chains. It made his feathers stand on end. He hadn't felt pressure like this since his first time climbing Sky Tower. And there was no Rayquaza to bail him out, from the look of things.

"No. This place is like a psychic's worst nightmare!" Mew said, shaking his head. "And, before you ask, I am _not_ floating any higher than this." He spun around to show off the scorched, smoldering end of his tail. "Because I'm not keen on getting my butt zapped a second time today."

"Couldn't you just heal that off? It doesn't even look serious," Swampert said, scratching his head.

"I could, but I'm trying to conserve my energy," Mew harrumphed, crossing his tiny arms.

"He's probably doing that so he can keep whining about it," Swampert whispered.

"Whining? I ain't whining!" Mew snapped, zipping in front of Team Go-Getters. "You wanna hear whining? _This_ is whining!" Mew flopped to the ground and banged his arms and legs against it, yelling, "Waah! It's cold and dark and depressing here! I wanna go home! Why won't my Teleport work? This day sucks! I hate all of you! I never should've joined that dinky Expedition Society!"

"Okay, okay, we get it!" Blaziken said, hands pressed against his head.

Smirking, Mew floated up. "Great. Now that that's settled, we can—"

A golden explosion erupted several feet in front of them, blowing away chunks of the platform.

"Eep!" Mew quickly flew behind Blaziken and tried to shove him forward.

"Hey! What are you doing?"

"You're the leader… you investigate!" Mew said, grunting from the strain of Blaziken's weight.

Blaziken grabbed Mew by the tail. "We'll investigate _together,_ " he said, ignoring Mew's pouting as he approached the blast site alongside Swampert. "Think you can clear the air a bit, Mew?"

Mew, still dangling upside down, waved his hand dismissively. The smoke disappeared, revealing a smoldering crater of charred metal and crystal. "W-Whoa. Is this from Shrackaquacka exploding?" Swampert wondered.

"No, there's something wrong with this picture," Blaziken said, rubbing his chin. "Ah! Look over there!" He pointed a talon toward a thick patch of ice. Several other ice patches of different shapes and sizes lay around it. Locks of white hair floated by the trio, but the strands were too thin for any of them to notice.

"What kind of explosion makes fire _and_ ice?" Swampert asked, tapping a foot on the ground.

"Ah! N-No way!" Mew squealed.

"What is it, Mew?" Blaziken asked, hoisting Mew up to eye level.

"Well, lemme go and I'll show you," Mew said, squirming about in Blaziken's grasp. Blaziken complied and Mew zipped down into the crater. After a few seconds, he reappeared, levitating a large, Xerneas-shaped crystal beside him.

Blaziken gasped. "What the— Xerneas?! When did she get here?" He winced when Mew dropped Xerneas to the ground.

"I… I dunno. But if this is what's left of Xerny, then…" Mew's normally childish expression now looked quite shaken. "What about the Tree of Life?"

Blaziken tensed up, then gulped. It was a worrying situation, to be sure, but he had to keep a brave face for the sake of his friends. "We can't let it worry us right now. The planet's paralyzed, right? So, the tree should be frozen, too. No harm can come of it. Let's focus on the issue at hand," he said, though he had no idea how truthful that was.

Mew's tail drooped. "R-Right." He put a paw on Xerneas' chest, only to pull it away, then float up into the air, tail crinkling in surprise. "H-Hey, guys? W-What's that?" He pointed down at Xerneas' chest. The others followed his gaze, only to raise confused eyebrows.

An orange butterfly sat on Xerneas' chest, slowly flapping her luminescent wings. Blaziken stared at it skeptically. He had a nagging feeling he'd seen something like this before — possibly in his human life — but couldn't quite remember what he was looking at.

"I think it's looking at me funny. I'm gonna zapinate it!" Mew said, raising his sparking hands.

"How can it look at you funny? It doesn't even have a face," Swampert said. Then, after a beat, he added, "And what the heck kind of word is 'zapinate?'"

"It's like burninating, but lemon-flavored," Mew said. However, before he could make the butterfly into a butter _fry_ , she released a dazzling emerald light. It spread across Xerneas' body, shattering it like fine china. Mew backed several yards away. "Aiyee! Get that freak of nature away from me!"

Blaziken spat a Flamethrower from his beak, but the butterfly flew into the air. His flames turned bright-green and surrounded her. The green shifted to pink and the butterfly suddenly vanished into a heart-shaped cone of fire.

"Get down, buddy!"

Swampert tackled Blaziken to the ground. Two blue fireballs soared over them and exploded in the distance. Mew stiffened. As the flames died down, the trio spotted a dark-gray tail poking out.

"T… Two-y?" Mew squeaked.

The rest of the flames subsided, revealing a creature with Mewtwo's familiar, wiry build. However, her torso, arms, and legs were coated in white, chitinous armor with a black centerpiece. Stripes of white fur ran down her arms and legs. A black helmet with orange horns covered her head, obscuring everything but two beady, blue eyes.

"No, wait…" Mew tilted his head to the side. "Your aura… it's like a Volcarona's. What the heck's going on here? Two-y… it's me! Your bestest buddy, Mew!" He waved his hands about frantically.

Blaziken and Swampert were back on their feet the instant "Mewtwo" rose higher into the air. "Something tells me that isn't your buddy," Blaziken said, frowning and getting into a fighting stance. "The helmet, exoskeleton, and wings look way too much like a Volcanora."

Volcarona lifted the head of her new body. She raised her left hand and touched her three fingers together. In a flicker of emerald fire, a blade shaped much like Rayquaza's serpentine form appeared. She grabbed hold of it, pointed it at Mew, then disappeared in a puff of orange fire.

"Huh? That's it?" Mew slackened. "It just ran away?"

Mew's ears twitched. He had just enough to turn around before flames seared him. Swampert caught Mew before he could slam into the ground. "Unnngh… what just hit me?" Mew coughed up a mouthful of smoke.

"Your 'buddy' did," Blaziken said. "I hope you two are ready, because I'm not even sure how we begin to approach this."

Volcarona raised her sword high, then dove at Team Go-Getters.

* * *

 **~Rainbow Island~**

Oricorio rubbed the pom-pom ends of her wings together, generating sparks. While the rest of the island was devoid of color, with trees frozen mid-sway and cherry blossom leaves suspended in midair, the pool in the center of Ho-Oh's shrine had somehow flared to life.

"Oh, what to do? What to do?" she said, hopping back and forth in front of the pool. Oricorio knew the answer, of course. Totem Ninetales instructed her to report any discrepancies to her as soon as possible. The problem was, she wasn't sure if she'd be able to reach Totem Ninetales with the planet paralyzed.

Oricorio pressed her pom-poms together and silently prayed that the guild was on top of this crises. Even though she'd caused an awkward situation when she had put in her request to get nectar, the team she had met seemed nice. And, according to Totem Ninetales, they'd accomplished a lot since they'd taken her job.

She paused to look at the pool again. White, ethereal trails swirled about inside the pool, like miniature comets soaring through outer space. Oricorio became so engrossed in the pool that the sounds of approaching wingbeats made her jump up and squawk in alarm. She desperately flapped her wings to make sure she landed safely on the other side of the pool.

Oricorio looked up to find a golden fireball hovering above her. She jumped, squawking in fright once again. Her pom-poms crackled with lightning and she was about to zap the fireball when its flames subsided. Oricorio landed on the ground and fell on her rear. Her beak opened wide.

"L-Lady Ho-Oh? I, but… this doesn't make any sense! W-Why are you gold?!" she stuttered, scooching away from the pool. Oricorio scrambled to her feet so she could bow properly.

"Lady?" a deep, male voice responded. Oricorio looked up. The golden Ho-Oh landed opposite her, head tilted. "Ah, I see. I'm afraid there's been a bit of a mix-up. I was hoping to actually find Lady Ho-Oh, myself. You're, eh, a bit too small and yellow, I'm afraid." He added an amused chuckle for good measure.

Oricorio's beak opened in disbelief. "I-I'm Oricorio. I maintain the shrine here… f-for Lady Ho-Oh." She gulped. "W-Who are you?"

"Ah, forgive me. I'm Ephemeris… the _original_ Ho-Oh of this world."

* * *

There you have it. The big secret regarding Shane's spirit is finally out. I could go on a whole rant about how nervous this chapter has made me. I don't really follow Game of Thrones, but I saw the internet outrage in response to its last season and I've been very afraid this revelation would get a similarly negative response. I always planned to do this. This wasn't a bait-and-switch that I decided to do because a bunch of people guessed Shane has Solgaleo's spirit. This was foreshadowed; the moves Shane got were all ones Necrozma can use and the memories became more twisted the more Dawn Shards he got. Any comments or thoughts would be greatly appreciated for this.

On a lighter note, I bet no one was expecting that random shiny Ho-Oh from Gates to Infinity — who Shane actually brought up in his conversation with Magearna _way_ back in Episode 4 — to be significant, huh?

SuperOmegaGuest: glad you liked that joke, since it was partly born of my inability to spell Stakataka while writing the chapter. And, don't worry, as you can see with this chapter, we're in for a crazy ending!

Anon Omega: they were all accounted for this chapter!

Anonymous 1: you left your comment on chapter one, so I don't know if you'll see this. But, if you do, thank you for the kind words!

Anonymous 2: if you see this, you read an April Fools' Day chapter. It was a fake ending. Nothing in that chapter is canon to the story. It was all for fun!

Next time: desperate struggles to free entangled spirits!


	109. One Grand Spirited Defense

Apologies to anyone I couldn't get review replies out to. It seems I might've come down with another stomach ulcer. This one's really bad, so I'm crawling back into bed after this goes up because I can't get to the doctor's.

* * *

 **Chapter 92: One Grand Spirited Defense**

With her Mega Evolution active, Latias flew in a wide arc around Lugia. The last time she'd encountered him, Necrozma had made things too chaotic for her to get a good sense of what had happened to her mate. Now, Latias could see the chunks of Prism Armor bolted to his chest, fins, and wings. The green flames flickering in his red eyes left her with a nagging sense of familiarity, but she wasn't sure why.

Lugia, for his part, seemed stunned by Latias' newfound speed. Like a cat focusing in on a shiny object, he spun around, trying to track Latias' movement. Purple wings slammed together, but Latias was well out of the way of the fierce cyclone Lugia kicked up. She continued her arc, which made her attempts at aiming a Shadow Ball difficult. Luckily, Lugia made for a big target. She tossed the Shadow Ball at his left side.

Unfortunately, Lugia wasn't _that_ slow on the uptake. He batted the Shadow Ball away with a wing, then screeched out a distorted caw.

On the ground, Haxorus grabbed hold of a squealing Raichu. "H-Haxy! What are you—"

"Latias is giving us an opening and we've gotta capitalize!" Haxorus grunted. She hurled her mate into the air. Raichu managed to collect her composure in time to shoot lightning from her cheeks. Lugia craned his neck around, only for Latias to zoom by and clip him in the neck with a glowing wing. Lugia squawked in surprise, then seized up when the lightning hit.

"Yes!" Raichu fell back to the ground, fist-pumping. Her smile disappeared when Lugia's eyes flashed and dispelled the electricity. He arced his head back. Latias saw the armored fins on is back glow like Meganium's petals when she was charging a Solar Beam. Only, instead of grass energy, purple air gathered in Lugia's gaping maw.

"Guys, get out of there!" Latias shouted. She was about to zip in and grab them when Lugia exhaled, unleashing a purple waveform beam that tore up crystal and metal shards from the ground. "No! Lugia, _stop!_ " she screamed, concentrating until she spat out a Dragon Pulse beam twice her size.

Lugia turned, the waveform beam following. Latias' eyes bugged out. She cut her attack and flew off. But instead of relief, pain teared across her back and tears stung her eyes. Latias dropped from the air, dazed and confused as to what hit her. She managed to collect herself. Though the world was still spinning, she noticed one of the floating crystal lattices glowing with red energy. Her nostrils twitched and she recognized the familiar aroma of burnt feathers.

So, not only was Lugia a problem, but all the traps Zero had scattered around the area were reacting to their battle. Latias gnashed her teeth in frustration. It was hard enough to focus, knowing she was hurting her mate. She couldn't possibly split her attention between him and all the traps. It was all too much to juggle. What was she supposed to do?

 _Relax._

Latias' eyes snapped widened. She looked about, but all she saw was Lugia turning toward the teams on the ground. And yet, she'd heard his voice, just like before.

 _When you find yourself getting worked up and can't think straight… take a second and clear your head. It's easy for a psychic to lose themselves with so much happening in a battle. Calm Mind helps alleviate that._

Of course. How could she forget about that technique? Latias took a deep breath and imagined a raindrop striking a still pond, creating many ripples. A sudden burst of energy flooded through her system and, with it, an idea came to mind. With no time to waste, Latias focused on the nearest floating star-rock. She grabbed hold of it with her ESP.

With Lugia diving toward the ground, she hurled the sparking rock into him, catching him totally off guard. A mixture of triumph and guilt tussled in her mind when the rock exploded and brought Lugia's divebomb to a clumsy, crashing finale. He rolled across the ground, groaning.

"There's another opening!" Haxorus cried, unsheathing Dragon Claws and charging. Infernape sped ahead of her with his Flame Wheel. Raichu kept her distance, opting to zap Lugia with lightning. He thrashed about in pain, still too dazed from his impact. Raichu cut the attack off seconds before Infernape slammed into Lugia's left foot. An agonized cry didn't even have time to escape his lips before Haxorus slashed Lugia's right foot, leaving bloody gashes in his purple, scale-like feathers.

"Guys, be careful! I'm the one who has to land the finishing blow if we're going to free him!" Latias shouted, zipping past them while gathering a Mist Ball between her claws. "Lugia! Please, Lugia! I know you can hear me! It's… it's Latias! It's your mate! You've got to fight the corrupted Z-Power!"

Lugia stopped thrashing and looked up. The green flames crackling in his eyes simmered down. He titled his head. Latias eyes sparkled. He recognized her. She was sure of it. "Y-Yes, that's it! Like that! R-Remember everything we've done together? L-Like the training lessons before we started dating. You'd go behind Rayquaza's back and—"

At the mention of Rayquaza, the green flames erupted in Lugia's eyes once again. His body flashed blue. A giant wave spread out around him, sweeping up Infernape and Haxorus.

"H-Hang on, buddy! I'll save you!" Feraligatr shouted, rushing toward the wave. He failed to notice the ectoplasmic puddle that formed in his path until he stepped into it. A pillar of shadows with two piercing, green eyes engulfed Feraligatr, drowning out his cries.

"Lugia, _no! Stop!_ " Latias begged, hurling the Mist Ball straight down. With a vindictive grin, Lugia melted into the ground, leaving only black vapors behind. The Mist Ball exploded, vaporizing the last of Lugia's dying Surf wave. It left a drenched Haxorus sitting on the ground, gripping her head. Infernape, on the other hand, was down for the count.

Latias knew she had the vantage point in the sky to see what was up, but she had the nagging itch to swoop down and help Feraligatr tend to Infernape. That need evaporated in the face of a large, shadowy puddle moving in Haxorus' direction. "Oh _crud!_ " she squealed. Concentrating, she hoisted a startled Haxorus and Raichu into the air.

Moments later, a purple phantom head shot up from the ground, with teeth easily as big as Latias. The sight frightened her so much she nearly lost her psychic grip, but managed to yank Haxorus and Raichu out of the way of the giant maw just before it closed shut. It sank back into the ground.

"Th-that… what was that?!" Raichu asked, paw clutching her chest and staring bug-eyed at the now-clear battlefield.

"Dunno… but whatever it is, it's heading for Team Poképals!" Haxorus cried, spitting a blue-purple fireball toward the puddle. It harmlessly fizzled out against the ground. Feraligatr looked toward the oncoming shadows and tried to hoist the now-conscious Infernape to his feet.

Latias acted first, lifting them into the air. The effort strained her. Muscles and veins bulged out on the back of neck. She had no choice but to lower Team Paradise down to the ground in order to hoist Team Poképals higher. No phantom rose out of the ground this time, however. Latias stared at the shadow pool in confusion. She could clearly see it. Why wasn't it doing anything? Did it know she had lifted them up?

"Try attacking that spot!" Latias said, too focused on her levitation to form up any attacks. Fire and water rained down on the puddle from above. Haxorus and Raichu added dragonfire and lightning. The puddle bubbled like a boiling stew. Latias yanked Team Poképals over in her direction. And yet, the shadow pool still refused to budge.

Something wasn't right. Had Lugia created a decoy? Latias scrunched her face up. If only the ley lines weren't interfering so badly with her aura-reading abilities, she could tell for certain.

Latias didn't have to wait long for an answer, however. The puddle erupted into a shadow geyser. A water vortex formed up around it. On the ground, Raichu yelped. Haxorus grabbed her by the tail and pulled her close. She dug her Dragon Claws into the ground. "Nnggh. We could… use a little… help down here!" Haxorus cried.

But Latias had her own problems to tend to. The cyclone was far more ferocious than she anticipated, drawing closer despite her attempts to fly away from it. Ice Beams shot out of gaps in the water. One blindsided Latias from her right. It was colder than any ice attack she'd ever dealt with. Her psychic grip on Team Poképals slipped.

"Waah! W-Wait… this isn't good!" Feraligatr hollered, flailing in midair as the cyclone drew him and Infernape in. Their attempts at blasting through it with a Hydro Pump and a Flamethrower failed spectacularly.

Gritting her teeth through the pain, Latias fired a desperate Dragon Pulse, but ice engulfed the blue bolt and struck her right wing. Screams escaped her lips as the limb went numb. She didn't need it to fly, of course, but the chilling pain was too much to bear. Craning her neck to the point her muscles burned, Latias coughed up a small plume of dragonfire. It thankfully melted the ice away.

"Somebody _help us!_ "

Feraligatr's cries jolted to Latias to attention. They were only a foot from the cyclone. She had to act right away. Latias scanned the air and found another star-shaped rock. Despite the cyclone pulling her in, too, Latias hurled the rock into the water vortex. It immediately exploded. The cyclone fell away and Team Poképals plummeted from the air. Latias couldn't react fast enough. They struck the ground with a pair of loud _crunches._

She wanted to swoop in and heal them, but something sharp grazed her already-injured wing. Latias squealed. Bloody feathers fell away behind her. Her vision blurred. Across from her, Lugia raised his wings, then thrust them down. Arrow-like globs of ectoplasm rained down on the battle field.

One clipped Latias' left wing. Then another struck her slender left arm. She dropped toward the ground, writhing in pain. Her breath came in short gasps.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Haxorus growled. Her attempts at dodging Lugia's shadow arrows looked like some sort of awkward dance routine and Raichu wasn't faring much better. At the very least, Haxorus managed to make it over to Team Poképals and jam a pair of Reviver Seeds into their mouths. Still, they were slow to get up and Lugia was fast to act, flapping his wings and generating a mighty gust of wind that blew Haxorus and Team Poképals across the battlefield.

Latias hit the ground a few yards away from them. She struggled to breathe. All she could think about was the last time this had happened. Images of Necrozma clutching her wounded brother flashed through her mind. His pained cries echoed inside her head.

A distant spark and an annoyed grunt managed to snap her out of her trance. In the distance, Raichu backed away nervously. Lugia looked down at her. His red eyes glowed pink. Raichu rose into the air.

Latias eyes bugged out. She forced herself to steady her breathing. Calm, healing energy washed over her. The burning in her left limb died down. Latias shot into the air, turned herself upright, and drove herself right into Lugia's armored chest.

"Lugia, _listen to me!_ I know you don't want to do this!" she shouted, pushing her metal-coated wing against his armor as hard as she could and _begging_ it to crack or show some other sign it was weakening. Lugia cawed his protests. The air thinned around Latias, she zipped away seconds before a purple waveform beam tore through the air.

However, to Latias' horror, the Shadow Blast reflected off a floating crystal. Latias pulled up, barely skirting the blast. Lugia followed her, trying to drag her toward him with his Psychic. Latias found herself slowing down. She couldn't let Lugia catch up with her, though. In an attempt at disrupting him, she somersaulted and spat a Shadow Ball toward his face. Stunned, Lugia redirected his ESP toward snuffing out the Shadow Ball.

Latias threw caution to the wind and divebombed him. She drove a Steel Wing into his chest once again. This time, his armor cracked. Elation flooded Latias. Her Mega Evolution was pulling through. "Think, Lugia! I know you remember me. Listen to my voice! We can stop this fight… just let me knock you out and you'll be free from all of this," she said, pushing away before he could retaliate.

Luckily, lightning and dragonfire hit Lugia's foot from below. He hoisted it up in surprise, only for a fireball to strike the base of his tail. Infernape fell back to the ground, where Feraligatr caught him.

"You all right?" Feraligatr asked.

"Just… don't ever mention that to anyone back at the guild," Infernape said, shuddering.

"Well, at least you can say you _literally_ kicked Lugia's ass," Feraligatr offered, grinning cheekily. Infernape pushed his mouth shut.

Latias sighed, relieved the two were feeling good enough to tease each other. That didn't mean she could let up, however. The green flames in Lugia's eyes told her he was still ready to fight. Even worse, she could see him gliding toward the ground. She'd seen this before. He was going to Roost and get back his strength.

"Guys! He'll use Roost if we don't get in his way!" Latias cried. She loosened herself up and took another calming breath. A fresh wave of energy spread through her. Latias shot a blue bolt toward Lugia's backside, far bigger than the ones she'd used earlier.

Raichu tugged Haxorus' arm. "Yeah, yeah, I got it," Haxorus said. She spat dragonfire toward Lugia's belly. Raichu added her electricity. Lugia stopped and shredded through their attacks with wind crescents. This left his backside completely exposed, though. Latias didn't wait for her attack to hit home before zipping away.

Her prediction Lugia would turn around came true. Having successfully flanked him, Latias fired another Dragon Pulse. Team Paradise levied dragonfire and lightning from below. Lugia again focused only on the attacks he could see. Latias' bolt slammed his back, shattering some of his crystal fins.

Lugia wobbled unsteadily in midair. His caws were softer than before. Latias didn't dare open her mouth for fear of jinxing things. This time, however, she couldn't get an attack off fast enough. One mighty flap of his wings was all Lugia needed to shoot up high above Latias. He clapped his wings together. Dozens of shadow arrows streamed down from his position.

Latias tucked her wings in and made a beeline for Team Poképals. She bucked them onto her back, ignoring their cries of protest. "Hang on tight!" she said, turning sideways to weave through Lugia's shadow arrows. It only took a few seconds to reach Team Paradise's position. "All right. Together, everyone," she said, righting herself and firing a Mist Ball straight up.

Raichu caught on first and added a Thunderbolt. Haxorus shot dragonfire into the mix. Then, a Flamethrower and Hydro Pump gush joined the expanding Mist Ball. It exploded, filling the sky with a pink cloud that wouldn't have looked out of place in a painting. The mist shielded them from any shadow arrows and gave Latias the necessary cover to shoot into the air.

She burst through the mist as if she was shooting out of a body of water. However, she had misjudged the distance she needed to reach Lugia. She had to abandon her assault and roll right, else Lugia's incoming Shadow Blast would tear through her. Latias released a Shadow Ball, but Lugia predictably batted it away. He snapped at the air with his jaw, eyes flashing between red and green.

Latias wasn't sure to make of his behavior. "C'mon, Lugia. We don't have time to keep fighting like this. Zero is poised to wipe both of us out with Dialga's power. Is that what you want? What about our life together?" She squirmed about in midair. "What about trying to start a famil— _eeahh!_ "

An unseen force grabbed Latias' arms and yanked them in opposing directions. Her words turned to screams. She was sure Lugia's Psychic would pop her arms out of their joints in seconds. But then the pain faded away, leaving Latias floundering in midair and blinking stars from her vision.

Below her, Haxorus hit the ground, legs buckling. "O-Ow. He was… much higher up than I thought," she grunted.

"Well, you still did good," Raichu said, smiling at her mate. "Now it's my turn!" Lugia snarled down at her, his slobber descending on Team Paradise like a brief summer downpour. Raichu stood tall and zapped Lugia with lightning from a thundercloud. It startled him briefly, but he shrugged the blow off when he twisted around, forming a shadowy vortex.

"Oh, great. This again!" Haxorus growled, summoning her Dragon Claws and digging them into the ground. However, unlike last time, the vortex didn't stay in place. Lugia hurled the vortex in Team Paradise's direction. Haxorus' eyes widened. She tried to yank her Dragon Claws out of the ground, but found them stuck.

Latias flew closer to the tornado, concentrating hard to summon as much psychic energy as she could. Elation swelled inside her when she stopped the tornado in its tracks. "R-Run… you two!" she said, face scrunched up. Raichu helped Haxorus get her claws out and the two sprinted across the platform, joining Team Poképals.

The tornado twitched and distorted. Latias strained from the effort of pushing against it. The green flames in Lugia's eyes burned brighter. With a flap of his wings and a loud shriek, he buffeted the tornado with added wind currents. Latias' eyes widened. It was gaining ground on her. It was _pulling her in_ despite her levitation. Latias was at a loss for what to do. Could she drop her Psychic and try to fly away? Or did she need to stand her ground?

"Haxorus! Latias! You've got to shoot at much Dragon Breath into the tornado as you can! And Raichu, add a Thunderbolt," Infernape said, charging toward the tornado. Haxorus looked at him in shock. "Trust me on this. Hot air rises and that's our ticket to success!" He opened his mouth wide and spewed the biggest Flamethrower he could muster. The tornado swallowed the flames up and spun them about.

"Well, you heard him," Haxorus said. With a deep breath, she shot a stream of dragonfire into the tornado. Raichu blasted lightning toward the two attacks. A crackling explosion superheated the air.

To Latias' joy and Lugia's shock, the tornado rose toward him. Latias felt safe enough to stop her Psychic and, though her spirit burned deep within her like any fatigued muscle, she managed to call up additional dragonfire. The tornado became a raging spiral of flames, lightning, and Dragon Breath. It was rising too fast for the bewildered Lugia to redirect it.

Instead, it sucked him up. Haxorus hooted and hollered at Lugia's bug-eyed expression from his own attack battering him. Latias winced, her heart aching from the sight. But this offered her the perfect chance to land the decisive blow. She downed an elixir from her bag. With her spiritual energy smoldering bright once again, she flew level with the tornado.

"Lugia, please… _come back to me!_ " she cried. Her Dragon Pulse sailed right for the dwindling tornado, only to bounce off an invisible forcefield. Latias' jaw dropped. Lugia was still in a tailspin how could he have redirected her strike?

She got her answer when Lugia thrust his wings apart, dispelling the last of the tornado. The green flames in his eyes had inexplicably grown. In fact, Lugia had an orange aura tracing down toward his tail. Latias tilted her head. She didn't recognize that glow. What was he up to?

"Latias! Get out of there! That's a Z-Power aura!" Feraligatr said. Latias looked down at the shocked expression on his face, but Lugia's distorted cawing echoed through the sky before she could make any movements.

Seven blue orbs surrounded Lugia, taking a shape Latias could've sworn was an Unown Z with a triangle on top. Her first instinct was to try and divert the attack, so she conjured as big a Mist Ball as she could manage and threw it at Lugia. But, to her horror, it fizzled out against the glowing orbs. Even the mist evaporated before her eyes.

Latias zipped away from Lugia, but with a flap of his wings, the orbs descend upon her and the teams on the ground. She rolled away from one blue explosion, but had to nosedive away from a second. A third grazed her left wing, sending a chilling shockwave through her system. Latias lost control and crashed into the ground, surrounding by blue explosions.

Lugia shrieked and raised his right leg. All of the orange light condensed around it. He dropped from the sky. Latias blinked the stars from her vision with enough time to see an orange star drawing closer. She shot back across the ground, gritting her teeth as rough crystal scraped her sensitive feathers. Still, while she avoided direct contact with Lugia's foot, she couldn't get away from the orange explosion his dive-kick created. It hammered her left side and flung her into the air.

Latias couldn't get herself under control. Her pain magnified ten-fold when she hit the ground wing-first. It was broken. She was sure of it. Latias screamed. Her vision went white. Her head pounded so hard she couldn't hear the panicked cries of Teams Paradise and Poképals.

It was over. She had done everything within her power to try and get Lugia back… and she had failed. All because of one ridiculous move.

The pain was too familiar. It was just like what Rayquaza had done to her. She could see it in her mind. The bright, fiery V-Create… it was eerily similar to Lugia's orange dive-kick.

Why did this have to happen to her? All she wanted was to help. To do the right thing.

 _In the end… you couldn't save anyone. Not even yourself. You're a sorry excuse for a lesser god and an even sorrier excuse for a dragon._

Rayquaza's phantom glared down at her. His words only added to the pain in her wing.

She had no idea what was happening. Had her impromptu teammates tried to take up the brunt of the fight? How drained was Lugia after that attack? She didn't care anymore. She was so tired. Her grasp on her Mega Evolution was nothing but tiny threads unraveling by the second. All Latias wanted to do was rest. Rest and see her brother again.

 _Regardless of how this turns out, I'll always try to have your back._

Latias seized, arcing her back through the pain. Her vision came into focus. She saw a purple blob swaying about.

 _I love you. I love spending time with you. I want us to make memories together… when you're not off exploring, of_ course _._

Concentrating through the pain, she finally managed to make out Lugia's figure. He staggered back and forth, shaking his head. The green flames in his eyes were now just tiny embers. She even saw tears.

 _'He remembers!'_

There was still a chance. A chance for them to lead a happy life together. She couldn't surrender now. And she couldn't care less about what Rayquaza thought of her. Her mate _needed_ her. That was all that mattered.

With a pained wail, Latias drew on her dwindling powers and sent healing energy racing into her wing. The bones snapped back into place. Latias rolled into the air, hovering unsteadily. Ignoring the looks of shock from the others, she arced her head back.

"Lugia… I'm sorry! I love you… and I want you back no matter what!"

Right before her tenuous grasp on her Mega Evolution completely snapped, Latias drew up enough power for one final attack. The recoil prevented her from seeing the first ever Draco Meteor she had managed. And the flash of light as she reverted back to normal kept her from seeing the meteors batter Lugia's chest and shatter his armor.

Lugia staggered backward, his squawks growing progressively less distorted. The purple and red colors evaporated off his feathers and belly. He turned to his right and, with the last of his strength, retched up a puddle of purple slime. It bubbled and simmered. An unconscious Marshadow materialized from the puddle seconds before Lugia collapsed onto his back, down for the count.

Teams Paradise and Poképals immediately split up, with the former heading for Latias and the latter for Lugia and Marshadow. "Who's that Pokémon, huh?" Feraligatr wondered.

"I don't know, but I get the feeling it was driving Lugia's bloodthirsty attitude adjustment," Infernape said. "It could be on Zero's side, so I think it's best we avoid healing it."

Several yards away, Raichu dashed to Latias' right. "Latias? Latias, you still with us?!" she said. "Oh, gods, look at your looplet! It's a smoldering wreck!" Raichu managed to scoop up some crystal dust and hastily dumped it onto the charred metal. Once she didn't feel any heat coming off it, she pulled it off Latias' arm. It crumbled to pieces in her paws.

"I'm… I'm here," Latias rasped.

"Cripes." Haxorus knelt down beside Latias, offering two oran berries and another elixir. "With the way things were going, I thought for sure you would turn berserk on us." She looked at the scorched remains of Latias' looplet at scratched her head. "Guess we'll have to tell Jirachi his calculations weren't as perfect as he thought," she said, a hint of amusement in her voice.

Latias ravenously downed the healing items. She had never had such burning hunger as in that very moment.

"Whoa, careful. You're gonna choke," Raichu said, squeezing a rawst berry against the burnt part of Latias' arm. She squealed, but relaxed once the juices soaked in.

"Man, I gotta say, wasn't expecting to see a Draco Meteor from you. I'd say you managed to pull that final blow right out of your ass," Haxorus said, earning an exasperated look from Raichu. "What? It was a compliment!"

"I'm… urgh… a dragon, too, Raichu. I know that's… probably the closest thing to praise I'll get," Latias croaked. A small part of her did wish Rayquaza had been there, so she could rub it in his face how a so-called "pathetic excuse of a dragon" had used the ultimate dragon attack. But she shoved those thoughts aside and shakily looked up.

Her eyes fell on Lugia. He was awake. Team Poképals had managed to help him into a seated position. Lugia met her gaze. His eyes filled with tears. Latias turned on the waterworks as well when she raced for him, ignoring Raichu's panicked shouts. She embraced her mate, burying her head in the crook of his neck and bawling her eyes out.

Lugia pressed his head against her back. "I'm so… so sorry," he whispered, shuddering. "F-For hurting you… and f-for Latios and—" He hiccupped. Lugia lifted Latias' head with his wing. Her eyes were red and puffy. "Thank you for saving me," he whispered.

Latias poked her head up and pressed her lips to Lugia's. "D-Don't scare me like that again," she blubbered, before kissing him a second time. Lugia's cheeks flush, but his initial embarrassment at the public display faded. He fell onto his back, bringing Latias with him. He cherished her soft feathers rubbing against his. Her—

"Oh bloody— somebody gag me. I'd rather still be stuck inside him than be forced to watch this _nauseating_ display."

The reunited couple poked their heads up and looked right. Marshadow lay on his side, clutching his gut in pain. "Isn't this such a warm, happy sight?" he sneered. Latias glared daggers at him. "Look around you, luv. This world's unraveling before our eyes. You may have gotten each other back, but it won't be for much longer." He looked toward the center of the temporal storm.

"That's why we're here. To put a stop to all this nonsense," Haxorus said, crossing her arms.

"Yeah, but that battle ate up a lot of time and resources," Feraligatr said, looking in dismay at his open satchel. "Not to mention our strength. We can down as many elixirs as we want, but our spirits can only take so much, right?"

"No. That jackass is absolutely right," Latias said, her crass language taking Lugia by surprise. "We have to press onward. Even if we are tired…" She looked at Lugia. "Are you in any condition to fight? I can heal you—"

"What about you? You pushed your Mega Evolution to the brink. Are you sure you can keep going?" Lugia asked.

Before Latias could reply, a huge, swirling column of fire erupted in the distance. She rose into the air. "It looks like I don't have a choice," Latias said, then flew in the direction of the flames.

"Quick, everyone get on," Lugia said, spreading his wings to let the teams climb aboard.

"But what about all the floating booby traps?" Feraligatr asked, only to look around and realize there were none in the area. "Huh. Guess we destroyed 'em all in the fight. Lucky us!"

"Well, you lot can go have fun with that," Marshadow said, waving the group off. "As for me, I'm—"

"Coming with us," Haxorus said, before beaning Marshadow across the head with a petrify wand. He hit the ground, limbs twitching.

"Um, Haxy, you're supposed to point the wand at him and fire a burst from it," Raichu said, shoulders sagging.

Haxorus tossed the wand to her partner. "Bah. That's not nearly as satisfying." She tossed Marshadow over her shoulder and climbed onto Lugia's back.

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Gallian lay in his bed, pawing at the stump where his horn was supposed to be. The infirmary had no windows. He had no idea how much time had passed since Tessa had left. Gallian hated to admit it, but he was definitely going stir crazy.

"You need to stop rubbing that. Otherwise, it'll only get worse."

Gallian poked his head up. Zoroark sat on the edge of his bed. His disheveled mane dangled in front of his face.

"Can't get much worse than it is now." Gallian sighed and pawed the stump again.

"You never know. I'd air on the side of the caution," Zoroark said. He slowly rose to his feet and limped over toward Gallian.

"H-Hey. What do you think you're doing?" Gallian asked. "If you're still hurt, then lay down, I—"

"Way ahead of you."

Gallian lost sight of Zoroark. Then, the bed buckled. Gallian gasped. Blood rushed into his cheeks. "Z-Zoroark. You… you…"

He had snuggled up next to Gallian. Zoroark brushed his head against Gallian's back. Gallian gasped. "St-stop it. We're… we're…"

"You're worried about Tessa, aren't you?" Zoroark said. He traced a claw through Gallian's fur until his paw reached his mate's neck. Gallian shuddered. "I don't blame you. We have no idea what they could be dealing with."

Gallian shifted about uncomfortably. "I just… just… _ahh,_ c'mon, that t-tickles!" He brought a foreleg over his face.

Zoroark brought his face closer to Gallian's neck. "It's a good thing, though. That you're worried about her, I mean," he said.

"Well, it sure doesn't feel like a good thing," Gallian said, scowling despite the fact he knew that Zoroark couldn't see his face.

"C'mon, think about it. A few days ago, you were giving Tessa a shoulder so cold it'd make a Glaceon blush. Now, here you are, worried sick about her," Zoroark elaborated, brushing his face against Gallian's neck again. "I see this as a sign that you want to reconnect with her."

Gallian tried to roll over, but Zoroark's frame got in his way. "I, uh…" His brow furrowed. "I swear there's a better way to phrase that," Gallian mumbled.

"Oh, you know what I mean," Zoroark said, playfully tapping his mate's shoulder. Gallian tensed up. "When we met, you were so wrapped up in your disaster sense, you let it block out any thoughts of your sister. Now, she's the thing that's on the front of your mind." Zoroark awkwardly turned his neck to make eye contact with Gallian. "I'm sure that, given how worried she was about you after both times you saved me, she'd be delighted to hear you're thinking of her."

Gallian's face grew warmer by the second. "I… I guess. Doesn't make it suck any less that I'm lying here, all nice and cozy, while Tessa's diving into the fray."

"That's true," Zoroark said, slowly sliding his paw toward Gallian's belly. He smirked when Gallian squeaked and tucked his legs into his stomach. Zoroark traced a circle through Gallian's fur and continued, "But remember what we were talking about with your disaster sense? It's okay to worry, but you also have to accept that, sometimes, you're going to worry about things you can't control."

"But I can control this. I could've gone with 'em. I—"

Zoroark pressed his paw to Gallian's lip. Gallian frowned, though it had to more to do with Zoroark stopping the impromptu belly rub. "Neither of us are in a state to fight. Your mom would surely realize we're both weak links on the team and try to go after us to get to Tessa." His ear drooped. "I don't like lying here knowing our friends need help, either. But I think that, in the long run, it's safer for everyone if we stay here."

Trembling slightly, Zoroark leaned in and whispered, "Besides, we've had a few close calls, already. Do you honestly think we'd be lucky enough to survive _another_ near-death experience?"

Gallian gulped. Zoroark had a point. "I guess… I see where you're coming from," he said. Zoroark lay his head back down against Gallian's side and resumed tracing his claws across Gallian's belly. Gallian's legs twitched. _Gods,_ how he'd missed this feeling.

Zoroark nipped at Gallian's neck. A purr escaped his lips. Gallian's legs tensed. His eyes widened.

"Wow. I didn't think you could make a noise like that." Zoroark chuckled.

"I… I, uh…" Gallian's eyes darted around the room.

"Will you two puh- _lease_ cut it out? My head's pounding bad enough as it is. You're only making it worse."

Gallian recognized Hakamo-o's nasally voice from their battle against Team Paradise. Zoroark propped himself up with his left arm, giving Gallian enough room to roll over. Hakamo-o lay facing away from them, legs tightly crossed and arms folded over his mid-section. Gallian raised a skeptical brow, but said nothing.

"Ah, sorry. That was my bad. Got a bit caught up with things," Zoroark said, pivoting to sit on the edge of Gallian's bed. "We're mates, see, but we were separated for a while and—"

"I get it. I just want some peace and quiet, okay? Soon as the world stops spinning and my head stops pounding, I'll go get some fresh air and you can kiss each other and hold hands all you want," Hakamo-o said, his tail stiffening against his legs.

"Hold hands?" Zoroark said, shooting Gallian a curious look.

"Don't be such a dummy. I know it's a bit awkward for you to do, Absol, but that's what two Pokémon do when they love each other a lot," Hakamo-o scoffed. "Mom told me that years ago."

Gallian had to press his face against his bed to stop himself from laughing. The mental image of a big, burly Kommo-o sitting Hakamo-o down and fumbling her way through telling him that mates "hold hands" as an expression of love was too amusing. He appreciated the levity, though he didn't dare open his mouth.

A loud thump interrupted the conversation. Gallian and Zoroark looked toward the hallway. They heard Comfey and Steenee's voices in the distance, but couldn't make out what they were saying. "What do you think's going on?" Zoroark asked.

"I don't know, but they sound startled," Gallian replied. With a groan, he sat up in his bed. Zoroark got to his feet, a look of concern on his face. "I'm still too tired for my disaster sense to work at all, but we might need to be prepared for trouble."

Hakamo-o threw one of his hands over his face. "Oi, you gotta be kidding me! I thought we had some magic barrier thingy keeping us safe."

The muffled voices steadily got louder. A new one even joined in, shouting, "Great _literal_ gods above! I say… this was _not_ the request I was expecting!"

Gallian tilted his head. "That's Crabrawler. He normally runs the café, so what's he doing here?"

"Yes, we've clearly got a situation here, Crabrawler. But a little less gawking and a lot more pushing would really helpful!" Comfey said, exasperated.

"Oh no. Did someone in Aeon Town get hurt?" Zoroark wondered.

In response, the curtains draped across the infirmary entrance slid open. Crabrawler and Steenee wheeled in Lycanroc's captives on a large, mobile, wooden platform with a handle set. Gallian figured Crabrawler normally used it for moving supplies.

"What the heck? When did they get back here?" Zoroark said.

"G-Get back?" Hakamo-o strained to lift his head. He caught sight of Sneasel lying at the top of the unconscious Pokémon pile. "Ah! Sneasel! _Sneasel!_ Are you okay?" He clumsily rolled out of bed and fell to the floor. "Say something, du—"

The moment Hakamo-o managed to get to his feet, he lunged for a bucket near his bed and puked into it. "O-Oh, my aching h-head," he sputtered.

"What happened to them, Comfey? They look emaciated," Zoroark said, a wide-eyed gaze fixed on Dusk.

"I'm not sure. Steenee and I were talking and then… _wham!_ They fell out of some kind of portal," Comfey explained. Gallian and Zoroark exchanged panicked looks. "Right now, they all look really weak. I need to get elixirs into their systems, stat."

"A-Anything we can do to help?" Zoroark asked. He started to walk forward, but his left leg buckled.

"Sorry, but you're in no condition to run around," Comfey said. "You should be in bed, anyway." She glanced at Hakamo-o. "Same goes for you, buddy. Back in bed until the medicine's finished working."

"B-But Sneasel—" Hakamo-o threw a hand up over his mouth, then swallowed hard. "Err, I understand."

Comfey pulled a set of curtains forward, blocking the trio's beds off from the rest of the infirmary. Hakamo-o climbed back into bed, moaning. "Ohh, this is terrible. Sneasel… what happened to you? W-Was it Lycanroc?" Hakamo-o put his hands against his forehead scale. "If he hurt you, I'll… I'll…"

"I didn't see Midnight there," Gallian said, laying back down. "Granted, we have no idea what happened to them. But Midnight _was_ the one who ran off with them, right?" He also wondered what this meant for the fate of the Dawn Shards.

"I don't think the Dawn Shards are here, if that's what you're thinking about," Zoroark said, nudging Gallian's shoulder.

"Excuse me for worrying about it. Midnight waltzed off with them, remember?" Gallian said. He was too tired to run through all the possibilities. Gallian instead lay his head down on is pillow.

Zoroark, on the other hand, walked over to Hakamo-o's bed. "Hey, uh, you gonna be okay?"

"Eh?" Hakamo-o met Zoroark's scarred eye, then quickly turned over and assumed the same awkward position Zoroark had seem him in earlier.

"Okay, I'm gonna take that as a 'no.'" Zoroark scratched his right ear. "Sneasel was your friend, right?"

"We were, uh, partners… in a manner of speaking," Hakamo-o said.

"Ah. I'm, uh, sorry he's in such rough shape, then," Zoroark said. "At least he's back with us, though. That's gotta count for something, right?"

Hakamo-o quickly rubbed an arm against his face. "Yeah, I guess." His tail shifted so it dangled over the side of his bed. Zoroark stepped back. "I just want to be sure he's okay, that's all. Lycanroc…" Hakamo-o tensed up. "I should've tried to stand up to him. None of this would've happened if I had the guts to say no to him."

Zoroark rubbed his neck. "I, uh, suppose? Midnight's always been a tough guy to talk with. Seemed like no matter what you would say or do, he'd find something to get angry about," he said. "I'm not really sure what happened between you three. For now, you're going to have to trust that Comfey can heal Sneasel."

He stepped back. "Sorry I can't offer much else for you."

After a few seconds of silence, Hakamo-o said, "It's fine."

Zoroark retreated to his own bed. The three lay in their closed-off part of the infirmary. None of them had any clue how long Comfey kept the curtains closed, but when they opened up with a _swish,_ Hakamo-o was, despite his lingering headache, the first to shoot up to a seated position.

"How's Sneasel? Is he gonna make it?"

"Make it? Of course," Comfey said, hovering back in surprise. "He was very weak, sure, but he didn't have much in the way of injuries." She looked back, but Hakamo-o couldn't follow her gaze due to the bedside curtain. "I think your friend should have his strength back, but I'm still recommending he and the others stay and rest. If they exert themselves too soon, I fear they'll collapse again."

"Oh. W-Well, can I at least say hi or something?" Hakamo-o asked.

Comfey sighed. "Even if I say no, you're going to try to, aren't you?"

Hakamo-o looked down guiltily.

"Very well. But if you're hit with vertigo again, then it's back to your bed," Comfey said, before turning and floating off. Hakamo-o waited until he was sure she was out of sight before getting off his bed. He wobbled about, nearly tearing the curtains down when he grabbed them to steady himself.

"Dude, are you _sure_ it's a good idea to do this?" Gallian asked. He didn't see the point, since they already knew Sneasel would be okay.

"I wanna see him for myself," Hakamo-o insisted. He staggered forward, leaving the dark-types to exchange concerned looks. Hakamo-o looked at the remaining beds. He found Sneasel in the bed closest to his and lumbered over. Sneasel lay on his back, completely filthy and much thinner than Hakamo-o remembered him.

"Sneasel? Are… are you there?" Hakamo-o asked. Sneasel grimaced, then cracked one eye open.

"H-Hakamo-o?" Sneasel opened his other eye. He tried to sit up, but his belly trembled.

"Ah! Careful, careful. The flower girl said you're really weak," Hakamo-o said, resting his hands on the side of the bed.

"Y… you're not… one to talk," Sneasel said. He was too tired to gesture, but Hakamo-o could tell he was looking at his chipped and cracked scale plates. Sneasel groaned. "So, if I'm here, then I take it…"

"You're back home," Hakamo-o said. "What happened to you, anyway?"

"L-Lycanroc. He…" Sneasel sucked in a pained breath. "He took us… into some vortexy place. Summoned… a big monster. I don't… _urgh._ " He winced. "I don't really… remember anything… besides that."

Though Hakamo-o was curious about what could have happened to Lycanroc and the Dawn Shards, he chose not to press the issue. "I'm just glad you're safe," he said.

"Kweh heh. Really? I thought… you hated my guts… 'cuz of all that mean stuff… I said about you," Sneasel rasped.

"I said I was gonna move beyond that, wasn't I?" Hakamo-o said, crossing his arms. "Besides, we promised we'd better ourselves _together._ And that ain't gonna happen if you bite the big one."

A lone, muddy fang poked out from Sneasel's lips as he cracked a smirk. "Didn't think… you'd actually remember that… you scatterbrain. Guess whoever… beat your scaly butt… must've smacked you upside the head… a few times."

Hakamo-o grinned back. There was a chair for bipeds next to the bed, which he happily sat down it. "Oh, you don't even know the half of it, dude! So, get this. After you two disappeared, we…"

Gallian tuned their conversation out and turned over to face Zoroark. He smiled at Gallian, who rolled his eyes. "Okay, talk. That's your 'my mind is at work' face. What's the deal?" Gallian asked. He could recognize that gleam in Zoroark's eye anywhere.

"Nothing." Zoroark crossed his arms behind his head and leaned back in his bed. "I think it's cute, that's all."

"What's cute?" Gallian said, in no mood to play the pronoun game.

"Your sister and her 'dorky friends' seem to have a way of repairing broken relationships," Zoroark mused. "Those two goons, Team Paradox, the Volcanic Waste tribes, _us._ Shall I keep going?"

Gallian pondered Zoroark's statement. He couldn't find any faults in it. "I guess so. What's your point, though?"

"Tessa's always had a bit of a self-confidence issue," Zoroark replied. Gallian begrudgingly nodded his agreement, knowing he contributed to it. "She's been so focused on the big picture, the Prism Virus, that I'm guessing she hasn't appreciated the good deeds she's done beyond fighting Ultra Beasts. I say, if we make it through this crisis, we ought to tell her about it. Maybe even get some of the people she and her team helped to write thank you notes." He locked eyes with Gallian. "Any thoughts?"

"Hmm…" Gallian tapped a claw against his mattress. A part of him — the big brother part, he assumed — didn't want to go through with it. However, the idea of being able to hopefully put a smile on his sister's face outweighed the hit he'd take to his pride. "Sounds like a plan," he said, reaching a paw toward Zoroark's bed.

Zoroark grabbed Gallian's paw and smiled at him.

* * *

 **~Midnight Sea~**

Ninetales was glad she had sandwiched herself between her Horizon counterpart and Magearna. Or else the shock of what she'd just heard would've sent her tumbling off of Ho-Oh's back. "L-Lady Ho-Oh, is this really true?" she said. "Are you—"

Free from the gale-force winds surrounding the Invern Mountains, Ho-Oh could safely glide through the air with little effort. This let her nod at Ninetales. "It's the truth. Ephemeris is the Ho-Oh spoken of in Horizon legends. The one who was caught in the primal energy storm," she said, flapping her wings to gain altitude. "The original Solgaleo and Lunala tried to save him, but all three of them disappeared."

"That is quite a bit different from what I encountered in my research," Mawile said. "Why do you suppose there's such a discrepancy?" She glanced at Magearna. "Were records lost over time?"

Magearna shook her head. **As far back as I can recollectify, we've told the same story.**

"It was Arceus who explained everything," Ho-Oh continued. "See, I was born from the remnants of that primal storm. Hence, the whole superstition surrounding the fact that I appear at the end of every major storm." She sighed. "Anyway, I was transported to Destiny Tower almost immediately after my 'birth.'" Her brow furrowed. "Arceus explained everything to me… and ordered me to carry out Ephemeris' job of watching for spirits."

"But wait a second… wouldn't the other gods have known right away you weren't the same Ho-Oh?" Cresselia asked. "If that's the case, how did the Horizon legends end up the way they did?"

"Well, it wasn't hard to fool most of the gods. Many of them had never met Ephemeris. His job was stressful and if he wasn't flying about, he secluded himself on Rainbow Island for peace and quiet," Ho-Oh explained. "For the gods that _did_ know Ephemeris, Arceus straight-up told them he had died since, well, that was what he thought was the truth. He hoped that it would get the immortals to stop fighting amongst themselves, but the results were… mixed."

"Hmm. Then does that mean the Horizon legends came about from gods that never knew the truth?" Ninetales wondered. There was a lot to unpack and she wasn't sure she'd even get all her questions answered before they reached Rainbow Island and met this Ephemeris character in person.

"I'm not entirely sure about that," Totem Ninetales said, sighing. "I've been scouring journals written by my predecessors. As some of you might know, one of them wound up joining the group that created Silvally. Some of her entries mentioned having suspicions about Ho-Oh and believing the gods were deceiving her, despite her dedicated service." She hung her head. "I fear that may have motivated her to agree to work with those unsavory folks."

 **Unfortuitously, I think we'd only be launching pointless speculation algorithms if we keep talking about that,** Magearna said. **It's all in the past and we cannot changtify it.**

Totem Ninetales nodded her agreement. "Magearna, Lady Ho-Oh, and I came to know Ephemeris by…" She brushed a lock of fur out of her eyes. "Well, I'd say it was by chance, wouldn't you?"

 **Affirmatative,** Magearna replied.

"It was a little over a century ago, if I'm not mistaken. The three of us met to talk about Magearna upgrading our spirit pools to give them stronger connections to the Tree of Life," Totem Ninetales continued, to the surprise of her fire-type counterpart. Ninetales wondered exactly how long the Totem had held her position. Clearly, her blue-white fur hid signs of aging much better than a fire Ninetales' golden pelt would.

"That's when a portal opened up overhead and Ephemeris flew out. To say we were startled was quite the understatement," Ho-Oh said, adding a nervous laugh. "The whole conversation was very, erm, _awkward._ Ephemeris was hesitant to divulge just how much he knew about worlds beyond ours."

"What he _did_ explain was that, from what he could remember, both Solgaleo and Lunala tried to open portals to get him out of the storm. However, the portals absorbed primal energy from the storm, creating an unstable vortex that sucked the three of them up," Totem Ninetales continued, shuddering. "Imagine getting caught in a powerful water-type's Whirlpool while Thunderbolts rain down on your head. That's how Ephemeris described it, anyway.

"When he woke up, he found himself lying on a barren asteroid. Solgaleo and Lunala were nowhere to be found, but his pelt had turned shades of yellow and gold." Totem Ninetales pivoted to show the Horizon Continent logo on her shawl. "It reminded him of the ethereal glows that Solgaleo and Lunala had when they were channeling their powers to bring sunlight and moonlight to the planet."

Ninetales' eyes slowly widened. "Totem, do you mean to tell me that the three of them merged together or something?"

Totem Ninetales nodded. "Yes. Ephemeris said he could create portals and safely traverse what we now know as Ultra Space. On top of that, his own natural healing and restoration abilities were greatly enhanced." She paused, then, with a smile, added, "He told us to think of him as an Ultra Ho-Oh."

Ninetales rolled her eyes. All this Ultra Space nonsense was giving her an ultra-headache.

Magearna, who had slumped over during the explanation, suddenly sat up straight. **Exposition mode initialized.** She turned her head to face the others. **After a lengthy discussion, we concluded it was best for Ephemeris not to stay in our world. Ho-Oh strongly believed his presence would incite a panic among the other gods.** _ **Especially**_ **Arceus.**

 **So, Ephemeris departed. And we figured that would be the last we would see of him,** Magearna continued, tapping her arms together.

"If that's the case, then how did the human on Team Radiance know about Ephemeris?" Ninetales asked.

 **I have no idea. Maybe he learned about Ephemeris' second appearance,** Magearna replied. **You see, Dark Matter's second defeat apparently sent shockwaves slowly rippling through Ultra Space. Ephemeris haphazardly tossed open an Ultra Wormhole to escape and landed in some ruin area in the Mist Continent.** Magearna crossed her arms. **It turned out that there was an exploration team investigating the area. Ephemeris panicked and attacked them, but they held their own and manage to subdue him.**

"And this exploration team… was the Haxorus and Raichu we saw in Aeon Town, correct?" Ninetales said. Magearna nodded. "Wait. Then, if they knew about Ephemeris—"

 **They don't. Not anymore, anyway.** Magearna looked down, poking her arms together guiltily. **Totem Ninetales hired ghost-types to steal those memories using Dream Eater. They were happy for the extra food and cash. It was… not our best decision.**

"Wait. How were you even able to respond to the situation so quickly?" Cresselia wondered.

 **I was getting to that. Exposition Mode is at sixty-five percent capacity, so bear with me,** Magearna replied, adjusting her position on Ho-Oh's back. **I happened to be in the Water Continent at the time, looking to exchange information with Jirachi in the hopes he would consider syncing his organization's Expedition Gadgets with my Gear-Coms.** Magearna shook her head. **We didn't get far before Hoopa burst in, claiming to have big news about Ho-Oh in the Mist Continent.**

 **I, erm,** _ **politely requested**_ **that he send me there via a portal. We found Ephemeris, still a bit dazed from the battle. I wanted to avoid any potential issues, so I had Hoopa take everyone, Team Paradise included, to Rainbow Island,** Magearna continued.

"The Totem and I were meeting at the time, so it was easy for us to head over there," Ho-Oh said. She beat her wings but, with the lack of wind, there wasn't much she could do to bolster her speed. "Once we were there, we ended up talking about the whole situation with Dark Matter."

 **It was then that I hatched an idea. A plan for a last-ditch effort, of sorts, if we were to ever encounter another creature with destructive powers and control over spirits,** Magearna said. **I asked Ephemeris to take Hoopa through an Ultra Wormhole to the nearest uninhabited world he could find. That way, Hoopa could make a ring portal to it in the future.**

Eyes sparking and gears whirring, Magearna continued, **The idea was that Ephemeris would reside there and, if the need arose, we could have Hoopa contact him to ask for assistance.**

"Would a second Ho-Oh really make that much of a difference, though?" Cresselia wondered. Ninetales fixed a scathing look on the lesser god, but Ho-Oh waved the comment off.

"In this case, yes. As we mentioned earlier, Ephemeris' spiritual powers far exceed my own," Ho-Oh said. "See, my Sacred Ash can indeed revive a Pokémon, but there are limits on that power. The Pokémon either needs to be dying… or their spirit _just_ left their body. Basically, their body _must_ be intact for the Sacred Ash to work.

"If the Pokémon's body is destroyed or reabsorbed into the planet…" Ho-Oh's voice trailed off and she shook her head. "If that happens, then I'm afraid the best that I can do is convert the spirit into a ghost Pokémon."

"Something which costs them all memories of their previous life… since you're changing them on a spiritual level," Ninetales recited from memory.

"Correct. It's a tactic we've frequently applied to restless spirits to avoid disturbing those who dwell peacefully in the Tree of Life," Totem Ninetales said, the emblem on her brooch glistening along with her eyes. "But I fear we're straying a bit too far off-subject."

 **I concur. My exposition mode is now at forty-nine percent,** Magearna said.

"Err, right. My apologies." Ho-Oh glanced back at Ninetales. "To make a long story short, Ephemeris claims that his Sacred Ash can restore any spirit to life, regardless of the state their body is in. All he needs is an image of what the spirit's body originally looked like… and he can recreate it."

"But you've never seen this for yourself," Cresselia said, brow furrowed. "Can we really trust he's telling the truth?"

"I see no reason for him to lie about it," Ho-Oh said.

"Ephemeris' aura exudes energy not of this world," Totem Ninetales said, eyes and brooch flickering purple. The bells around her paws jingled softly. "And after Dark Matter's second attack, we thought it would be a good idea to have a means to restore spirits in case something or someone came along who could do far worse than turn Pokémon to stone and cast their spirits into the planet's core."

 **Exactly. And, unfortunately, the Prism Virus is the very thing we feared. Most of Necrozma and Zero's victims are not in a state where Ho-Oh can restore them to life,** Magearna explained. **That's where Ampharos' plan comes in.**

Ninetales looked at Ampharos. He was staring off into space, but snapped to attention as soon as his name was called. "O-Oh, yes. Quite right. My plan." He tapped a nubby arm against his chin. "The plan that involved… erm, doing something important!" Ampharos raised his right arm, grinning.

 **Ampharos' plan… was to** _ **pretend**_ **he had a plan,** Magearna declared. Cresselia stiffened. Ninetales jaw dropped. It couldn't have been the wind making her hear things. There wasn't any wind. She stared blankly at Magearna. Whatever her "exposition mode" was, it made her talk crazy. **Hear me out before you snap at me. When the Horizon Guild first encountered Pokémon infected by the Prism Virus, I suspected that the Virus was, in fact, a manifestation of Dark Matter.**

 **I feared that whoever or whatever was behind the Prism Virus would know about how Ampharos managed to plan around Dark Matter's activities. So, I thought we could use that to our advantage,** Magearna continued, turning to Totem Ninetales. She nodded along, adjusting her shawl to get a better look at everyone's reactions.

"Magearna and I sent a letter to Ampharos explaining what the Prism Virus was. We thought the virus would eventually spread overseas, so we asked him to claim he had a plan to counter it. However, in reality, Magearna, Ho-Oh, and I would be devising a plan," Totem Ninetales explained. "We hoped that Ampharos could attract the Prism Virus' attention and leave us free to monitor the situation and adjust our plans accordingly."

Ninetales blinked. She had questions. She was sure of it. But they were so jumbled up in her head, the only one she could ask was, "Did you adjust your plans?"

 **Oh my, yes. It was a lesson in flexibility, for sure,** Magearna said, adding a mechanical chuckle. **Once I learned that Zero wanted to kill gods, I hastily wrote up a set of individualized instructions and relayed them to Ampharos.**

"Ah, yes, now that I _do_ remember," Ampharos said, patting his belly. "I gave some Expedition Society members assignments. Many of them asked me why I was telling them to do this stuff, but I told them I couldn't remember why."

Mawile rubbed her temples. "Luckily, the chief had built up enough goodwill that nobody questioned him too hard on the matter."

 **The initial plan was to have Latias and Hoopa travel to the various gods' domains and convince them to hide away in the same world we'd settled Ephemeris into,** Magearna continued. **If they agreed, we would replace them with Dittos or Unown clusters. The hope was that we could trick Zero into thinking she had succeeded in her plans, then launch a coordinated strike to take her down.**

"Needless to say, we didn't anticipate Necrozma striking out on his own." Totem Ninetales' shoulders sagged. "And we _certainly_ didn't expect they would both go after Temporal Tower." She shook her head. "I must apologize. Magearna and I were so focused on our own plans, we neglected to offer support to you all when it came to protecting the Time Gears."

"It's quite all right," Ampharos said. "Wigglytuff and his guild were quite cooperative."

"I don't think any of us could've predicted Zero abducting Manaphy and putting his Heart Swap powers to use the way she did," Cresselia said, shivering. "If anyone's to blame there, it's me. I was with him the night he was kidnapped. I could've prevented it all from happening."

 **In any case, our plan hit another hurtle. Most of the gods refused our offer of safekeeping,** Magearna said. **At which point, I had Latias and Hoopa going to sites where Necrozma or Zero attacked and trying to see if they could recover any parts of the victims.**

"Ephemeris said the revival process would go quicker if he had portions of their old bodies to work with," Totem Ninetales elaborated.

The thought of scavenging for crystalized pieces of a dead god's body sent a shiver down Ninetales' spine.

 **Hoopa delivered the parts to Ephemeris, while Ho-Oh tried to scour the planet for the spirits of Necrozma's victims,** Magearna continued. **But, well, that's when Temporal Tower was destroyed.**

Totem Ninetales nodded. "It seems this was both a blessing and a curse. A blessing in the sense that we now have _most_ of the lost spirits safely in our possession and a curse in the sense that the world is now in a perilous state." Her shoulders sagged. "This would've been much easier if Necrozma hadn't gotten Hoopa."

Ninetales' head hurt. A lot. She wasn't even remotely confident she had understood everything they had told her. "I… I…" Her brow furrowed. "Why go to such ridiculously convoluted lengths?"

Her ice-type counterpart winced. "It was the best we could come up with."

 **I'm afraid some of my former boss' paranoia must have rubbed off on me,** Magearna said, her mechanical eyes dimming. She turned to Ampharos. **I'm afraid I'm not quite the elegant planner that you are.**

"Now, now, there's no need for comparisons," Ampharos said, waving Magearna off. "What matters is that we still have options left!" He was about to raise his right arm again, when he froze and looked at Magearna. "Erm, we _do_ still have options, correct?"

Magearna nodded vigorously enough to make Ninetales squirm nervously in her seat. **Of course. What we have to consider is that there** _ **are**_ **some gods already residing in Ephemeris' home. In addition, Ephemeris' Sacred Ash takes time to work and he's only capable of restoring one spirit at a time.**

She raised her arm. **So, what I'm proposing is this. We revive Hoopa first. Then, he transports us to Ephemeris' world with the rest of the spirits in tow. Next, we revive all of the spirits. Finally, we launch a surprise attack on Temporal Tower.**

Ninetales bit her lip. She had yet to encounter anyone associated with the Prism Virus face to face. But given what she had heard and the ragged state she had seen the teams in when she got to Horizon, the idea of fighting Zero frazzled her.

"Then we _do_ have a plan!" Ampharos cheered. "A perfectly fine plan that we can put into place once we're… um…" He lowered his right arm and looked at Mawile. "Where are we flying to, again?"

"Rainbow Island, chief," Mawile said.

"And we'll be there momentarily. I can see it down below," Ho-Oh announced. With a beat of her wings, she began her descent.

* * *

 **~Prism Wastelands~**

Silvally hit a stretch of ground resembling a metal grate and skidded along it. He turned back around, then relaxed his stance. "I think we're in the clear guys. No Necrospheres or Void Shad— _ow!_ " He stumbled forward, then glanced an imprint of Milotic's tailfins on the back of his neck. "Hey, what was that for?" he growled.

"You were about to jinx us," Milotic huffed. She hopped off his back and slithered along the path. Ley line chains cut through jagged crystal walls on either side of them. Milotic looked up. "We're much closer to the center of the vortex," she observed. "Do you think this means we're getting close."

Tessa didn't want to follow Milotic's gaze. Every look at the temporal storm turned her veins to ice. Her resolve was faltering with every passing minute. Was the loss of her aura sense to blame for this? Tessa quickly dismissed that thought. She wasn't even good at using it, yet.

No, it was Shane's continued absence. Tessa couldn't deny it. She had tried to tell herself that they would find him soon enough. However, she'd crossed dozens of platforms, sending away several Necrospheres and Void Shadows, and her teammate was still missing. Tessa even found herself wishing for one of his childish quips or dorky comments. Anything to help settle the growing sense of unease she had in her gut.

"Hey, guys, there are stairs up ahead," Espy said, pointing a forepaw forward.

Tessa's aura feelers tensed. Stairs? Here? The most they'd encountered so far was sloped pathways. Maybe Milotic was right? Maybe they really _were_ close. But if that was true, then that meant…

 _'I have to face Mom. And I have to do it without my partner.'_

"Are you okay, Tessa? You're shaking like a leaf," Silvally said. His posture was rigid. Light flickered from his looplet's gemstone.

Tessa wondered if Silvally was feeling all right, but didn't ask him. "I'm just a bit… nervous, that's all. Mom's probably close by," she said. "I mean, what if she launches some sort of surprise attack?"

"Then we should follow the stairs to higher ground. Down here, we're not in a good position to defend ourselves," Espy said. She was trying to put on a brave face, but her legs quivered and her tail had stayed tucked between her legs since the first Void Shadow they'd encountered.

"Right. Do you guys want me to carry you?" Silvally said.

"No. If we're getting close to the source, then we shouldn't bunch up too much. Otherwise, we'll be an easy target," Espy replied.

"True. But there's also strength in numbers," Silvally said. "Besides, the pathway's narrow. We'll have to go single-file, regardless."

Espy looked to her left and right. "Uh, yeah, I suppose you've got a point." She and her teammates climbed back on Silvally. He took the staircase several stairs at a time, aided by both his long strides and his flying memories.

Tessa's aura feelers twitched. She saw sparks trail behind Silvally's foreleg as he ran. "Um, Silvally, is your looplet okay?" She clasped her shoulders with her paws. "It's been flickering since we fought Lycanroc's Ultra Beast and—"

Espy's ears stuck up. She tried to look down at Silvally's foreleg but he ran even faster and she had to buckle down to avoid tumbling off his back and down the stairs. "I'm fine," Silvally said. "I'm perfectly fine. We have to keep moving anyway, don't we?" He looked up. "I may not know how long we've been here, but that storm's getting fiercer."

Tessa chose to take Silvally at his word and fell silent. Silvally reached the top of the stairs and slowed his pace. The team had arrived atop a large, purple, circular platform. Crystalline horns stuck up all around them, like fangs protruding from a predator's open mouth. Tessa's gaze quickly fell on a glowing rune in the center of the platform. Her brow furrowed. Though her viewing angle wasn't the best, there was something frighteningly familiar about it.

She hopped off of Silvally's back, ignoring his call of, "Hey, what are you doing?" Tessa jogged toward the sigil, only to skid to a halt, eyes wide and aura feelers trembling.

"G-Guys…" Tessa raised a forepaw. "Right there… in the middle. I recognize that symbol." She turned to her teammates. "It's from the Rainbow Stoneship!"

Espy's jaw dropped. "You're kidding!"

"I'm not! I've seen the picture dozens of times from rereading the picture book about Team Poképals' adventures!" Tessa said, fidgeting with her scarf. She wanted to be wrong. Her eyes _could_ be playing tricks on her. However, she strongly doubted that was the case.

"But if that's the Rainbow Stoneship's symbol, then…" Milotic looked down and her voice trailed off.

"We're in what's left of the Old Ruins," Silvally said, tone dead serious. "Which means that Zero must be…" He turned around, only to rear up on his hind legs with a startled yelp. Espy and Milotic slid off his back and landed on top of one another.

"Oof! What's the big idea?" Milotic groaned as she slithered off of Espy.

"I, um…" Silvally gulped. "I found Temporal Tower."

Tessa's ears stiffened. "What do you mean you found Temporal Tower? I thought my mom destroyed—"

The moment she followed Silvally's gaze, her voice failed her. There was an open gate in front of them, with a crystal staircase on the other side. The stairs led to a large, black, crystalline tower. Two rings of black octahedrons with glowing red cores — much like the top of Zero's Bone Rush staff — revolved around the building. Spikes protruded from the walls.

Two giant, hand-like structures emerged from opposite sides of the tower and spiraled around it. They joined together at the top of the tower, holding up a circular platform with an even larger octahedron behind it. The giant index fingers curled around one another to border a large gemstone cut to look like an eye. Red light shot up from the top platform and into the center of the vortex.

Below the staircase lay a lake of purple acid. Spear-shaped crystal blades protruded from the acid alongside thorny ley line chains. Tessa figured that the toxic lake's mist kept the team from seeing the tower before.

"Th… that's… that's…" Tessa could barely stay standing. "We have to climb that?"

Silvally winced. "I'm afraid so." He lowered his head. "And I don't think scaling the outside or flying up is an option. Those giant revolving crystals look like they'll blow us to bits if we try."

Tessa squeezed her eyes shut. This dungeon was already taxing enough. She couldn't bear to think about what sort of horrors lay waiting for them inside the tower. Tessa shuffled back. "I… I think we… we have to wait for the others." She shook her head. "I can't… we…" Tessa grabbed her head.

"Except we still don't know where they are," Espy whispered, ears drooping. "I don't like it, either. Especially since we don't have Shane with us." She tensed up. "But I don't think we can afford to wait."

Tessa glanced at her teammate. Espy had a pained expression on. Tessa knew Espy was having a very rough time. And yet, she still wasn't willing to back down. Tessa saw similar glimmers of resolve in Milotic and Silvally's eyes.

"You're right. That was stupid of me to say," Tessa said, putting a paw on her chest spike. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine. We're all nervous," Espy said. "I honestly wish Shane was here. I could do with one of his silly comments right now… even if it would just be false bravado."

"Agreed," Tessa said. She didn't realize how much her partner's disappearance would throw her off her game. Tessa figured it was because they'd faced so many dangers together, that heading for the final obstacle without him felt wrong.

"Aww, isn't that _adorable?_ You all have come such a long way in such a short time!"

Silvally looked up, head crest fanning out. He crouched into a fighting stance. "What was that?!"

"I… I didn't sense anyone!" Tessa said, rubbing her aura feelers.

"Ah! The gate!" Milotic shouted.

Silvally looked down, only to squawk in surprise and sprint toward the closing gate. He wasn't fast enough, however. The gate slammed shut. Thorny chains wrapped around it, fastened together by a giant, glowing red eye. "No!" Silvally snarled. He lunged for the gate, only to bounce off a forcefield. Silvally slammed the ground with a foreleg. "You've gotta be kidding me! I can't believe we let this happen!"

"Aha ha ha ha! Believe it, _jigsaw puzzle!_ "

"Show yourself!" Silvally roared, venting steam from his cheek-bolts.

Espy looked around in concern. "I… I've got a bad feeling about this."

"That voice…" Milotic slithered toward Silvally. "It was… it was… Ni—"

A loud crackle made Team Radiance jump. Silvally turned toward Milotic in time for her to spit a mouthful of blood into his face. He stumbled back, hissing and blinking in surprise.

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "No… _Milotic!_ "

Milotic looked down to see an expanding red spot on her chest. She swayed back and forth uneasily, before collapsing on her side, eyes wide and empty.

Silvally slammed a foreleg down hard, cracking the ground. "Who are you?" he shouted. "I'll tear you to _pieces!_ "

"Not if I fry you where you stand first!"

Silvally looked up to find a giant lightning bolt heading right for him.

* * *

 **Extra Dimensional Anomaly, Shadow Lugia  
** _An alchemical fusion of Lugia and Marshadow. The mixture of two spirits creates a constant struggle within his mind, leading to a panicked, adrenaline-fueled state that causes him to attack anything around it. The only way Necrozma could control it was by using ley lines. So, how did Zero reign him in? What sort of power lurks behind the device she captures other Pokémon with?_

* * *

This battle, for me at least, felt a bit different from usual and it was a struggle to write. So, any comments or feedback would be greatly appreciated.

SuperOmegaGuest: you'll get an answer in the next chapter... one way or another.

Anon Omega: Ephemeris is actually from "ephemeral," which means "a very short time." It sounds ironic, but there's an explanation for it.

Neptune: you'll have to stick around until the next chapter to see what's going to happen.

Sebastian: I'm sorry, but I have a busy work schedule, so I stick to reading PMD stories or published works.

Anonymous: glad you feel that way. I worked hard on that particular plot twist.

Next time: our heroes struggle on!


	110. Menacing Maelstrom of Fire and Lightning

**Content Advisory:** This chapter contains an elevated level of violent combat compared to previous battles, including major injuries and minor instances of gore. Additionally, the story's one and only F-bomb is found here. This chapter likely exceeds the limits of what's allowed for a T-rated fic, but this will only be a one-time occurrence. Thank you for understanding. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter 93: Menacing Maelstrom of Fire and Lightning**

Volcarona's dive wasn't as fast as Team Go-Getters expected. They easily jumped to either side of her. Mew floated beside Swampert and the two flung water bubbles in Volcarona's direction. Figuring his best attacks wouldn't do much to Volcarona, Blaziken ran around to flank her in the hopes of driving her further toward his teammates.

What no one was expecting was for Volcarona to rapidly slash at the air with her blade and vaporize the water bubbles like they were nothing but streams of tissue paper. Volcarona gave one final, meatier slash. A crescent of blue fire headed right for Mew and Swampert. Both of them backpedaled, but the crescent followed Mew's path.

"Oh, come _on!_ It's homing like an Aura Sphere?" He groaned and fired an Aura Sphere of his own. Volcarona watched the bright-blue explosion, so Blaziken chose to make his move. Though it wouldn't do much, he ignited his legs and darted toward Volcarona.

However, Volcarona vanished in a plume of pink fire. Blaziken stumbled to a halt amidst silhouettes of pink hearts. Before he could get his bearings, he heard a cry of, "Behind you, Feathers!" Blaziken spun a fiery leg around, connecting with Volcarona's blade and knocking her back. Her arms trembled, as did the sword in her hand.

Mew tried to hoist Volcarona into the air with his ESP, but she jumped over his Psychic rings and slashed the air with her blade. A half-dozen blue meteors streaked toward the team. Blaziken immediately realized they were Draco Meteors. After all, Rayquaza had tried that attack on him back in the day. Blaziken hopped up and propelled himself backward with his legs. Swampert tried to destroy the meteors with a Waterfall plume, but they sailed right through it and exploded on the ground, leaving small areas of dragonfire behind.

Volcarona disappeared before any of them had the chance to react. Blaziken whirled around, expecting Volcarona to appear behind him. She did, but Volcarona disappeared a second time. "You're kidding me! That thing can feint us so easily! How are we supposed to get a decent hit in?"

Pained cries caught his attention. Mew hit the ground hard in front of him and Swampert. Across from them, Volcarona slowly slashed the air in front of her three times, summoning three Aura Sphere crescents. "Not this nonsense again," Blaziken said. He picked Mew up and tucked him under his arm. Something sticky grazed his armpit. If Blaziken had to venture a guess, it was Mew's blood.

"Still feel like joking about all of this?" Blaziken said, keeping an eye on Volcarona while waiting for the Aura Spheres to fizzle out. To his surprise, Volcarona merely hovered in place. Blaziken wasn't even sure if she was staring at him, since her helmet obscured her face.

"Ugh. Aren't you… supposed to have a Mega Evolution?" Groaning, Mew managed to squirm free of Blaziken's grip. He took a deep breath and concentrated. The gash in his shoulder sealed itself, leaving only a red splotch over his normally-pink fur.

"And aren't you supposed to be able to use Transform?" Blaziken retorted.

"Save the bickering for the afterparty, you two! We've still got a problem to deal with," Swampert said. He hopped into the air. Orange light encased him. Mega Swampert hit the ground hard enough to send fissures rippling toward Volcarona. She vanished in another plume of pink fire. Swampert refused to be deterred, however. He turned around, ready to fling mud at Volcarona.

Mew's ears twitched. He looked up, then flung Blaziken back with a burst of levitation. Mew barely managed to avoid Volcarona driving her sword into the ground. Blaziken could only watch as a column of fire rose up around Volcarona, searing Mew and sending him tumbling back toward Swampert.

There was no way around it. One Mega Evolution wouldn't be enough to deal with… whatever he was supposed to call this thing. "All right, jerk. You asked for this," Blaziken said, concentrating on the well of energy in his looplet. Invigorating power flowed through his veins. He lunged for Volcarona with a newfound burst of speed. Unfortunately, she still had enough time to jump over him.

Luckily, Swampert was quick on the draw and hurled the mud already in his hands up at Volcarona. She was too focused on trying to attack Blaziken to notice. The mud globs splattered against her wings. Volcarona flailed briefly, before looping through the air and diving toward the ground with her sword outstretched and a trail of multicolored silhouettes behind her.

Volcarona didn't get anywhere close to hitting anyone. However, she spun around and hopped back. When Blaziken shot toward her as a bird-shaped wind torpedo, she stood her ground and raised her sword high. The silhouettes erupted in a blaze of pink fire. Blaziken didn't have the control over his Brave Bird's direction to reroute himself. He flew directly into one of the blazes and crash-landed by his teammates.

"Hey, knock it off, you lame Two-y impersonator!" Mew growled. "Why are you even doing this anyway? Do you _want_ to go up in flames with the entire world? Because that's what's going to happen if you don't stop attacking us! We have to get to the center of that storm and stop time from collapsing!"

Volcarona said nothing. Instead, she teleported near Mew and flapped her wings rapidly. "Eep! Not cool, Impostwor!" he squeaked, trying his best to weave through an Air Slash barrage. Some of the crescents nicked his tail, drawing pained grunts.

Blaziken and Swampert had regrouped while Mew kept Volcarona occupied. The latter had a grip on the former and hurled him forward as soon as Volcarona's wing beats slowed. Volcarona spun around and slashed at the air. Draco Meteors streamed toward Blaziken, but the giant wind tunnel surrounding him proved strong enough to get through the meteors and slam into Volcarona.

"Yeah! Take that, Impostwor!" Mew cheered, summoning floating rocks to throw at the reeling Volcarona. They knocked her back even further.

Blaziken landed safely and turned to look at Mew in disbelief. "Seriously? Impostwor?"

"What? It was the best I could come up with to describe this, uh…" Mew scratched his head. "Well, if we weren't under such stress, I'm sure I could do a better job describing what it's supposed to be." He shrugged.

"I thought you were finally taking this seriously." Blaziken sighed and tensed up, wondering what Volcarona would offer as a counterattack. Initially, the answer was nothing. She swayed erratically in midair. Though a fair distance separated her from the trio, she made no effort to attack. Then, without warning, she gripped her sword with both hands. Shadow fire swirled around it.

"Gah! Quick, do something to throw her off," Swampert cried, looking at Mew.

"Me? Why do I have to do something, huh?" Mew pouted.

"Because you have the best ranged attacks," Swampert said, pointing frantically at Volcarona.

"Oh, right. Yeah, you guys really didn't plan that out well when you made your team, huh?" Mew chuckled, oblivious to the vein bulging on Swampert's forehead.

Blaziken meekly spewed a Flamethrower, hoping it could do _something_ to interrupt Volcarona. She dashed those hopes almost immediately, teleporting behind the group and holding her sword high. Four large, fiery phantoms popped up around her, with black eyes and mouths reminiscent of Necrozma's face when he possessed Lunala.

Mew's expression changed on a dime. "W-What the… _what in the world are those things?!_ "

"Let's not stick around and find out," Blaziken said, grabbing a protesting Mew by the tail and running away. Two of the phantoms gave chase. Volcarona dropped to the ground and flapped her wings, conjuring more Air Slash crescents. Swampert was too preoccupied blasting the other two phantoms back with Waterfall plumes to notice. The wind blades tore open gashes on his backside.

"Swampert!" Blaziken cried. He had the team's item bag, so he had to make a beeline for his teammate before it was too late. "Mew, deal with these things." Blaziken shoved Mew toward the phantoms and ran off.

Volcarona teleported in front of him, right hand held up. Pink energy balls surrounded Blaziken. Volcarona squeezed her hand into a fist and the psychic orbs shot toward him. Blaziken tucked his head in and shot fire jets from his legs. He avoided most of the attack, but a few stray energy balls caught him from behind and blasted him into the phantoms Swampert failed to dispel. A tearing pain burrowed deep into his bones.

Blaziken fell to the ground, limbs shaking. Try as he might, he couldn't get back to his feet. The weird energy in the phantoms had left his legs feeling like soggy pasta noodles. Volcarona took notice of his helplessness. She jumped into the air, somersaulting with her blade to act as a deterrent. Volcarona hovered over Blaziken for a moment before diving toward him.

"Get away from my best bud!"

Swampert drove a shoulder into Volcarona, a grimace on his face. They tumbled to the ground, but Swampert still had enough left in him to generate a small Earthquake and toss Volcarona around like a ragdoll. He caught sight of a Keldeo racing toward him atop a wave of water. Safe in the knowledge Mew was _finally_ putting his transformation skills to use, Swampert headed for Blaziken.

He grabbed an oran berry from Blaziken's bag to heal off some of the nasty nicks Volcarona's Air Slash had dealt, then produced a heal seed and jammed it into Blaziken's beak. Relief spread through Blaziken as his strength and muscle tone returned to his legs. He hopped back to his feet and put a hand on Swampert's shoulder. "Thanks for the save."

"Any time, buddy," Swampert said, smiling. "So, what do you think we should to here?"

"I don't know. If we get close, it teleports away. But it's also got too many projectiles." Blaziken scratched his chin.

"Hey, guys! Any time you want to jump back in, let me know… _please!_ "

Still masquerading as Keldeo, Mew shot water from his hooves to fly around Volcarona. Though some of the water jets pelted Volcarona, she swung her sword slowly and clumsily. After her fourth slash went wide, Volcarona clasped her sword with both hands again.

"She's charging up again. We've gotta help Mew," Blaziken said, racing toward Volcarona. He closed the distance quickly thanks to the speed boosts he'd accumulated from his Mega Evolution. Still, it wasn't good enough. With Mew trying to attack Volcarona from behind, he wasn't prepared for her to suddenly vanish, only to reappear on the ground to his right and uppercut him with her blade.

Blaziken couldn't help but stumble to a stop in disbelief as Volcarona teleported all around Mew and unleashed a flurry of rapid slashes with her blade. Blood splattered across the ground inches in front of Blaziken. Flames swirled around his hands. He wanted to try and attack, but Volcarona moved so quickly, he couldn't pinpoint her.

At last, Volcarona teleported above Mew, shadow fire swirling around her sword. With one large, flaming slash, she sent Mew rocketing toward the ground. Blaziken acted on instinct, redirecting his flames to his legs to propel himself toward Mew. He barely managed to catch Mew. The impact rattled his bones. For the few seconds he needed to skid to a halt, Blaziken wondered if he'd dislocated his arms in his rescue attempt.

"Eyes up above, buddy!"

Swampert's shout made Blaziken kick off the ground in a burst of flames. He flew toward Swampert seconds before a wind vortex turned the spot where he was standing into a splintered crater. "W-Was that… Hurricane?!" Blaziken turned his head in mid-flight to see Volcarona pointing her free hand at him.

In a spiral of flames, the hand morphed into a small version of Yveltal's head. Red and black energy gathered within the tiny maw. Between carrying Mew and shooting Flamethrowers from his legs to maintain his flight, Blaziken had no effective counter for whatever strange attack Volcarona was preparing.

Fortunately for him, Swampert chose to remind Volcarona of his presence by shooting up into her from below using a Waterfall plume. Volcarona buckled from the impact. She fired a red and black beam into the air, several feet above Blaziken's head.

Swampert wasn't done, however. He managed to grab hold of Volcarona and throw her down while he fell back toward the ground. Swampert stretched an arm out, ready to give Volcarona a taste of his "Death from Above" technique. Unfortunately, much like in the battle with Lycanroc, his fist met nothing but solid ground.

"Yow! This stuff's _hard!_ " Swampert said, hopping up and down and wringing out his throbbing hand. Blaziken landed next to him.

"Keep Impostwor occupied. I've gotta figure out how to patch up Mew," he said, glancing down at the blood strewn across his arms and chest and wincing. The distal half of Mew's tail was missing. Blood dribbled out of the leftover stump and trickled onto the ground.

Swampert's face paled. "Y-Yeah. You, uh, you do that, bud. I'll handle the creepy murder-fusion-bug-thingy." He backed away, then summoned a wave of water to carry him toward a still-dazed Volcarona.

Blaziken set Mew down. After confirming Mew was still breathing, he plucked two oran berries from his bag and mushed them together. The juices covered Mew from head to toe. Blaziken pressed the remains to Mew's wounds. "Come on, come on… surely this has to do _something?_ "

While the wounds didn't close, it at least seemed that they had stopped bleeding. Blaziken heard a loud _fwoosh_ from behind him, followed by a holler. Not wanting to leave his teammate along for too long, Blaziken grabbed a Reviver Seed and jammed it into Mew's mouth with, perhaps, a bit _too_ much force. Mew coughed and sputtered. He rolled onto his side, groaning.

"D-Did anyone… get a good glimpse… of the Wailord… that flattened me?" Mew rasped.

"We're not out of the woods. I used some berries on your wounds, but you're going to have to take care of the rest," Blaziken said, getting to his feet. He looked down, but Mew remained silent. He was trying to curl into a ball, but with such small arms and legs and his tail reduced to a pointed stub, it looked more like Mew was twitching uncontrollably. It hurt Blaziken to see Mew like this, given how cheerful and bright-eyed he was before all of this started. Still, he had business to take care of.

When he turned around to appraise Swampert's situation, he found his teammate blasting Volcarona out of the sky with a well-placed water glob. Volcarona hit the ground hard. Her blade slipped from her grip and evaporated into tiny emerald wisps. Blaziken had to resist the urge to visibly fist-pump. Whatever strategy Swampert had cooked up on the fly, it paid dividends.

Thanks to all his acquired speed boosts, Blaziken reached Volcarona in a few seconds. However, before his Brave Bird charge could connect, Volcarona teleported away. Blaziken broke out of his bird-shaped wind spear and skidded across the ground. " _Now_ what is it doing?!"

Volcarona teleported above them and raised her hands high. Emerald fire swirled around her head.

"Quick, take my hand!" Swampert said, reaching out toward Blaziken. He did as instructed. Swampert threw him at Volcarona like a living spear.

Volcarona glanced down at Blaziken. Just when it looked like Brave Bird Special would connect, Volcarona thrust her arms apart and disappeared. Flailing in shock, Blaziken broke out of his attack and quickly shot dual Flamethrowers to send himself back toward the ground. This proved a huge mistake. Volcarona reappeared below him and pointed her glowing hands up.

Emerald flames engulfed Blaziken. Even as a fire-type, the heat was unbearable. A pained caw escaped his lips. He crashed headfirst into the ground, arms and legs burning as if he'd tried to run across the entire Air Continent.

"W-What the— it just hit you with Rayquaza?! No, wait…" Swampert stared at his downed teammate and scratched his head. "Maybe it was more like those shadowy embers with the faces?"

Tears blurred Blaziken's vision, but he could see emerald streaks in the air. "S… Swampert! Whatever it is… it's still active! Watch out!" he cried.

Swampert looked up to see that, indeed, a Rayquaza phantom snaked through the air, made entirely of emerald flames. Volcarona teleported below it and pointed in Swampert's direction. "Aww, _nuts,_ " Swampert whispered. He chucked mud globs at the phantom. They evaporated the moment they struck it. Swampert stiffened. He pointed his hands straight down and summoned another water pillar.

Blaziken managed to stumble back to his feet in time to see Swampert soar over the Rayquaza phantom. However, rather than striking the ground and disappearing, the phantom made an abrupt U-turn and flew away from Team Go-Getters. Blaziken quickly realized what Volcarona was trying.

"Dang it, that's where Mew is!" he said, sprinting toward Volcarona. If he could just connect with _one_ attack, the phantom would surely disappear. Volcarona spun around and teleported several yards away, but Blaziken corrected his course and was on her within seconds.

Volcarona swiped at the air with her hands. Out of the corner of his eye, Blaziken saw the phantom make a sharp turn right in his direction. However, it only got a few feet before giant water globs rained down on it from above. The phantom disappeared in several puffs of emerald mist, which lingered on the other half of the battlefield.

Blaziken seized his opening and finally managed to connect with a Brave Bird. The wind torpedo blew Volcarona back, where Swampert was waiting to blindside her with a Waterfall plume. She tumbled into the air for a matter of seconds, before a _large_ water torrent sniped her from the depths of the emerald mist.

"Whoa! Mew, was that you? Are you okay?" Blaziken called. He wouldn't have expected Mew to bounce back like that, but he supposed that whatever hesitancy Mew had toward attacking Volcarona was gone.

The emerald mist cleared, revealing _Kyogre_ hovering off the ground, large red eyes fixed on Volcarona, who had managed to right herself. The illusion was shattered when Mew's familiar, squeaky voice huffed, "I'm not letting you get away with this anymore!"

" _Now_ he pulls out the big guns," Blaziken said, facepalming. Volcarona fixed her attention on Mew, tilting her head at this new development.

"Suck on this, Impostwor!" Mew cried. Water brimmed in his blowhole. Blaziken quickly backpedaled, fearing he'd get swept up in the Water Spout if he didn't.

Except Mew never got the chance to fire his attack. Volcarona teleported behind him. Wings fluttering rapidly, she unleashed multicolored waves. A loud, off-pitch buzz echoed across the platform. Blaziken dropped to his knees, grimacing and throwing his hands up against his head.

Mew hollered in pain. He shrank back to his normal form in a swirl of blue light and a loud _schlurp._ "Th… that. Is that… Bug Buzz?" Mew whimpered, blood trickling from his ears. Volcarona teleported closer to Mew and unleashed more Bug Buzz soundwaves. This time they blasted Mew straight into the ground, where he lay still.

Blaziken forced himself to stand back up, only to find Volcarona in front of him. He was fast enough to duck under the Bug Buzz waves while running, but Swampert wasn't so lucky. In the brief moment Blaziken tried to choose between regrouping with his teammate and running to Mew's aid, Volcarona teleported behind Swampert and blasted him with more multicolored soundwaves. Even if Blaziken wasn't caught up by the attack, the sound was so grating it made his insides squirm.

Swampert stumbled about in a daze, completely oblivious to Volcarona now standing next to him. She formed a new sword from wisps of emerald fire and clutched it with both hands. Fearing that Volcarona would use the crazy multi-slash attack that almost did Mew in, Blaziken sprinted toward his teammate.

Instead of uppercutting Swampert with the sword, however, Volcarona flew around him. She slammed her sword into the ground. Five giant fire tornadoes formed around her. Blaziken tried to grab Swampert, but the tornadoes pulled him in. Volcarona plucked her sword out of the ground and pointed it forward. The tornadoes charged Blaziken and Mew down. Volcarona stutter-stepped backward, sword at the ready in case one of them somehow slipped through her attack.

Blaziken had no choice but to turn and run at an angle, hoping the tornadoes would slip him by. Instead, they converged on him. Blaziken belted out a loud, "No!" when his feet left the ground. Emerald flames and razor-sharp wind blades pummeled him from every angle, ripping feathers off his body.

He had no idea which way was up and which way was down. The repeated blows from the wind proved to be too much for him. Blaziken felt the last threads of his Mega Evolution give out just as the winds died down and he found himself several yards in the air.

* * *

"Did you see those tornadoes? I don't think those came from any of our allies!" Lugia said, trying his hardest to keep pace with Latias without dropping his passengers.

"I know! I know! We… I…" Latias bit her lip. She _was_ still exhausted from her fight with Lugia, but whatever was going on needed their attention badly. That's what her gut told her, anyway. "I'm gonna fly ahead and try to intervene."

Lugia raised his brows. "Are you sure about that? What if it's a—"

Latias zoomed off before she could hear him finish speaking. Sure enough, it didn't take long for her to spot signs of a serious struggle. Mew lay unconscious on the ground. And Blaziken and Swampert were sailing through the air. Squinting, Latias realized they were unconscious, too. She tucked her wings in and sped toward them, only for their assailant to appear in front of her in a plume of emerald fire.

If this had happened earlier, Latias might've stopped to gawk at her would-be foe. However, after her most recent ordeal, she wasn't going to let another fusion monster throw her off. So, Latias rolled right, zooming toward Team Go-Getters. Heat grazed her backside. It stung, sure, but she was tough enough to withstand it and safely snag her friends in her levitation. Latias sped toward the ground, glancing around and wondering if she'd have to withstand another attack.

Luckily, the cavalry wasn't far behind her. From Lugia's back came a volley of dragonfire, lightning, and water, bolstered by an orange Aeroblast beam courtesy of Lugia himself. Latias refocused on setting Team Go-Getters down safely, when a blue glimmer caught her eye in the distance. Just as she was about to release her psychic grip, she spotted a giant iceberg close to the center of the temporal storm.

"What the— _Shane?_ "

It was the first thought that crossed Latias' mind. She was so preoccupied with the sight, she accidentally dropped Team Go-Getters onto the ground. The pair of _thuds_ caught her attention. She hovered down to ground level and looked them over. Blaziken had scattered clumps of missing feathers and bloody flesh, while Swampert had huge gashes on his back and belly.

Latias knew she had to work fast. Two Heal Pulses first, then Reviver Seeds to get them back on her feet. Latias sighed in relief when Blaziken shot up into a seated position while Swampert rolled onto his belly, coughing and sputtering.

"L-Latias? When did you get here?" Blaziken scratched his head. "And what about Impos— I mean, Volcarona?"

"Volcarona?" Latias raised a brow. Blaziken pointed behind her. Lugia had dropped off the other teams. Short bursts of lightning, fire, water globs, and blue-purple Dragon Breath split the air as the group tried to down what Latias was supposed to believe was a Volcarona. "But that looks more like Mewtwo in some, uh…"

She shook her head. This was the Prism Virus. Nothing about it made sense. "Okay. Um…" Her brow furrowed. "Did you two use Mega Evolution?"

"We did, but it wasn't enough," Blaziken said, staggering to his feet.

"Well, that's a problem! Because if that _is_ an infected Volcarona, then the only way to save it is with a Mega or a Z-Move," Latias said. "And I, uh…" She raised the arm that previously held her looplet. "My looplet blew up."

Swampert's jaw dropped. "How—"

"Long story." Latias bit her lip, but then her gaze fell on the other teams and a figurative torch turned on in her head. "Ah, wait! If the others have awakening emeras, we should be okay, right?"

Blaziken and Swampert exchanged uncertain looks. "Maybe?" Blaziken said, shrugging.

"Well, we've got to try. Hop on." Latias hovered close to the duo.

"Right." Blaziken jumped onto her back.

"Uh, I think I'll take my chances on the ground. You look a bit woozy and, well… I was hitting the snacks a bit too hard before this whole nonsense started up," Swampert said, patting his belly.

Latias nodded, appreciating Swampert's consideration. She sped across the platform, swerving right to avoid Volcarona, who had teleported in front of her. Volcarona slashed the air with her blade, sending meteors in her direction.

"Watch your back!" Blaziken shouted, trying to spew a Flamethrower behind him.

"We got you!" Feraligatr said, riding a Waterfall plume into one of the meteors while Lugia shredded the other two apart with a small wind vortex.

"What the heck is this crazy thing doing? Those looked like Draco Meteors!" Haxorus said, eyes wide in disbelief.

"It's her blade! It's, like, all Rayquaza-y!" Swampert cried from the other end of the battlefield.

At the mention of Rayquaza, Latias tensed up. She had thankfully reached Team Paradise, so Blaziken could jump off her back before she turned her attention on Volcarona. Upon closer inspection, she determined Swampert was right. She balled her paws into tiny fists, but Lugia stuck a wing in front of her.

"Please. You've done more than enough." He narrowed his eyes at Volcarona. "Allow me."

As if she understood the challenge, Volcarona pointed her blade at Lugia. He responded with a bright-orange waveform beam. Volcarona teleported over Lugia's head, but an orange flash distracted her from raining Draco Meteors on him from above. She turned to her right in time for a large, silver wind tunnel to smash into her.

Mega Blaziken drove his shoulder hard into Volcarona's chest. Her blade flew from her hand. Lugia spotted it and, squinting, smashed it to pieces with Psychic rings. Blaziken pressed down on Volcarona with as much weight as he could. Her arms twitched, as if she was trying to muster up an attack. But the Brave Bird's sharp currents proved too much.

They slammed into the ground. Blaziken grabbed Volcarona by a freshly-made crack in her armor. "This is for hurting Swampert and Mew," he cried, then drove a glowing fist into Volcarona's helmet once. Twice. Three times. It promptly shattered. Then, he brought a flaming leg around and kicked her into the ground.

Volcarona brought her burnt hands up to her bloodied face. She arced her back and opened her mouth, but not even a cry of pain escaped her lips. Her armor shattered, leaving only Mewtwo's body and two glimmers of emerald light. They flittered around Mewtwo's unconscious form before gently touching down next to him.

The glimmers expanded, taking the shape of both Rayquaza and the _real_ Volcarona. The latter, however, disappeared into a stream of light after a few seconds. Haxorus tilted her head at the sight. "Huh." She crossed her arms. "So, it was another whacko fusion, then? Like with Lugia and what's-his-face?"

"Ish Marawoah." The lingering effects of the petrify wand muffled Marshadow's speech. He lay paralyzed next to Raichu, who looked disapprovingly at him.

"Ah, wait! We forgot about Mew! Someone has to tend to Mew," Swampert cried, pointing frantically in Mew's direction.

"Oh, right." Latias made a beeline toward Mew, cringing as she caught sight of the severity of Mew's injuries. "They really put you through the ringer, huh?" she whispered. Latias applied gentle, pink Heal Pulse waves. Unfortunately, her work left several scars and failed to regenerate Mew's tail.

Mew groaned and squirmed. "Is… is it over?"

"It is," Latias said, extending a paw toward Mew.

Mew blinked slowly. He needed time to recognize who was hovering next to him. Once it finally registered, he gave Latias a hand. She pulled him up and gently cradled him in her arms.

"What happened? Is Impostwor gone?" Mew said, rubbing his eyes.

"Um, I'm not sure who Impostwor is, but we saved Mewtwo, Rayquaza, and a Volcarona," Latias said, holding Mew up so he could see.

"Ah! T… T… Two-y!"

Mew pushed himself free of Latias' arms and shakily difted toward Mewtwo. He lay down on Mewtwo's belly, blinking tears out of his eyes.

"Sheesh, I didn't think the two were _that_ close," Lugia whispered, earning a stern look from Latias. He turned away, whistling innocently.

Latias fixed her gaze on Rayquaza. Of all the things she expected to have to deal with, saving Rayquaza from the Prism Virus was not one of them. She tried to go through scenarios of how this could play out when he woke up, but his golden eyes opened before she could work anything out.

Rayquaza groaned, catching everyone's attention. Even Mew looked up. Rayquaza stared back at everyone. "What's going on here? Where did all of you mortals come—" He cut himself off when his gaze fell upon Latias and Lugia. "You two! What's the meaning of this?" He narrowed his eyes. "Are you really so cowardly that you went running off to tattle to your mate after our _discussion?_ "

Lugia frowned. "What are you talking about? We—"

Latias flew up and put a paw on Lugia's mouth. "Sweetie. I think I've got this."

Lugia went cross-eyed looking at her paw. He shuffled back. Latias floated toward Rayquaza, clearing her throat. "What's going on here, is that we," she gestured to the group, "just saved your ungrateful, _pretentious_ ass from being part of some hideous fusion monster with Mewtwo and a Volcarona."

She paused, but before Rayquaza could retort, she continued, "It's the truth. Everyone here can attest to it. So, you can take your usual lineup of 'worthless idiot' insults and _f_ _u_ _ck right off_."

Everyone's jaws dropped in unison. Lugia tucked his head into his wing to stave off a coughing fit.

But Latias wasn't done. "Because _we're_ busy trying to stop all of time from collapsing and listening to you would do nothing but slow us down. I could not care _any_ less about you or your _stupid_ dragon pride. News flash! That pride of yours got you corrupted by the Prism Virus. And guess who wound up having to do the brunt of the work saving you?"

Latias gestured to Team Go-Getters. Blaziken crossed his arms and smirked, while Swampert cheerfully waved and said, "Long time no see, Meanie-Greenie. Still as grouchy as ever, eh?"

Rayquaza's jaw dropped. He turned and glared at Latias. "You… you…"

"If you want to lay here and wallow in pity or whatever, then go right ahead," Latias said, turning away from him. "The rest of us are going to the center of that vortex to finish this fight."

"Hell yeah! You tell him, you crazy bitch!"

Everyone turned to look at Haxorus, who had a fist raised high. She quietly pulled her arm back to her side. "S-Sorry. Got a bit carried away there."

Rayquaza balled his tiny hands into fists. Lugia waddled up to him. "You're not the only god who had to be saved today, y'know. I'm sure you feel ashamed of yourself. I know I do." He extended a wing toward Rayquaza. "That's why we have to try and fix this mess, don't you think?"

With a long, drawn-out sigh Rayquaza took hold of Lugia's wing. "Very well. I'll—"

A loud yell startled everyone. Mew floated away from Mewtwo, shaking. "T-Two-y? What are you—"

Mewtwo, now very much awake, hovered at the head of the group, grabbing his head and screaming his lungs out. Before anyone could say anything else, Mewtwo flew toward them, arms outstretched.

The entire group vanished in a flash of blinding light.

* * *

 **~Rainbow Island~**

"Thing have really gotten out of hand, haven't they?"

Ninetales stood at the edge of the altar, stiff as a board. She watched Ephemeris bow his head while offering his greeting. Ho-Oh returned the gesture, saying, "We weren't as prepared as we thought. I apologize if we caused you any trouble."

"It's fine. I'm here now, aren't I?" Ephemeris straightened himself up and looked at the spirit pool. "I noticed Hoopa's spirit is in there, among _many_ others."

"We were hoping you could revive him first. Then, we'd take the rest of the spirits back to your home, revive them safely, and head for Temporal Tower," Totem Ninetales explained.

"Mmm. I see." Ephemeris looked at the spirit pool. "I suppose I could do that."

There was something bothering Ninetales about the whole idea. One look up at the dark sky with its ominous red and purple clouds made her stomach churn. Were there more of them than when the group had set out for the Invern Mountains? That should've been impossible if the planet was paralyzed, right? Ninetales knew she had to say something.

"Um, excuse me? Can I interject?" Ninetales stood tall as everyone's gazes fell on her. "See, I've been thinking a bit about this plan and… is it really the best course of action?" She scrunched her snout up. "I'm not saying I don't have faith in the others or anything, but can we really afford to spend time reviving so many spirits? What if something bad _did_ happen to them? What if we should be gearing up to fight Zero _now?_ "

Silence followed. Ninetales was sure she'd raised a good point. Her icy counterpart was looking between Magearna, Ho-Oh, and Ephemeris. Ninetales stared at her companions, trying to avoid putting on a pleading expression.

"I agree," Mawile said, to Ninetales' joy. "With the planet paralyzed, we can't say for certain how long we've spent getting here. But the fact that there's still a bizarre storm in the sky tells me that Zero hasn't been taken care of."

Ninetales nodded. "I'm not saying Ephemeris has to join us in battle or anything. He can stay here and work on reviving Hoopa. But, at the very least, couldn't he open an Ultra Wormhole to send us to help the others?" She looked to Ephemeris, whose heavyset eyes gave her pause. "Err, is there a problem?"

"I'm afraid so. There is, unfortunately, a limit to what I can do with Ultra Wormholes," Ephemeris said, sighing. "I _did_ have to open one and fly through Ultra Space in order to get here." He raised his right wing and flapped it slowly. "Every time I open an Ultra Wormhole, I have to 'recharge' for an extended period of time before I use another one."

Ninetales stiffened. "Y-You're kidding!" She curled her tails up. Of all the lousy technicalities she could've imagined his powers having… it _had_ to be one of the worst. Ninetales shook her head. "But you can still use your Sacred Ash?"

"Yes, however, since I don't have Hoopa's actual body to work off of, it will take some time to revive him," Ephemeris explained.

"Then maybe it's best if we split up?" Ninetales looked around at the others. "If anyone thinks they wouldn't be helpful in battle, they can stay with Ephemeris. Otherwise, Ho-Oh can fly us to Temporal Tower, right?"

Ho-Oh tensed up. "I… I suppose I could, yes." Her brow furrowed. "It's not exactly close by, though. It's all the way on the other side of the world."

 **And that's why I didn't propostulate such an idea,** Magearna said. **My calculations suggest it will be faster to stick together and let Ephemeris work.**

That still didn't sit right with Ninetales. "Well, maybe once Ephemeris has revived Hoopa, he can use a ring portal to send some of us to Temporal Tower?" Surely, that idea could work. Her tails wagged when Magearna's eyes brightened up.

 **Hmm… well, I think it wouldn't hurt to try,** Magearna said. She looked at the others, who nodded and mumbled various agreements. **Okay, it's settled then.**

"Allow me to retrieve Hoopa's spirit," Totem Ninetales said, approaching the spirit pond.

Ninetales stepped up at the same time. "I'll help. Anything to help speed the process up."

Her counterpart smiled and nodded. "Thanks."

They approached the spirit pool in tandem, studying it intently.

* * *

 **~Prism Wastelands~**

Silvally shifted to his ground memories, only to find they did nothing to stop a searing flash of pain from striking his back and spreading down to his legs. His cheek-bolts rattled in their sockets. Something sharp jabbed into his mesh of fur on scales. Silvally screamed and bucked. The pain faded, leaving only stars in his vision.

"Silvally!" Tessa gasped. Black blood oozed out from his back. None of this made sense. His ground memories should've kept him safe from an electric attack.

"Worry about yourself, _whelp!_ "

Tessa's right ear twitched. She hopped backward. A tan arm shot out inches in front of her snout, crackling with lightning and ending with bright-blue Dragon Claws. Tessa instinctively thrust a glowing paw forward. Her Force Palm slammed into something hard and scaly. But electricity singed her paw and she yanked it back. She a saw a stream of lightning zip away from her. It formed up into Dragonite, who stood clutching her left shoulder.

"Well, isn't this a surprise? You hit harder than your mother," Dragonite said, rotating her left arm and wincing. "But I can hit harder than you both!" She disappeared into a lightning bolt again. Tessa propelled herself right with a burst of Quick Attack speed. "Ha! Not fast enough, _mutt!_ " Dragonite crooned. Chilly, gray claws grazed Tessa's right flank.

Tessa flung a desperate Aura Sphere behind her, even as ice spread across her wounds. Dragonite materialized and batted it away with an electrified spear. "Aww, what's the matter? Still stuck using Quick Attack, are we?" Dragonite smirked. "Your evolution gave you some new tricks, but it looks like you're still sorely lacking."

"H-How—" Tessa looked down at her side. The chill from the ice seeped into her body. It felt as bad as her time in Aurora Vale. And yet, there were lingering bits of static making the surrounding fur stand on end. "How are you doing this?"

Dragonite lightning-dashed toward her again. Running wouldn't work, so Tessa stood her ground and fired a meek pink Psychic ring toward the lightning. It cut above her, but that was exactly what Tessa wanted. With her other paw, she fired stronger Psychic rings, knocking Dragonite out of her dash.

"You'll pay for that. Lightning Javelin!" Electricity crackled in Dragonite's hand, forming a spear. She reared back to throw it, when an Ice Beam struck her between the wings. Dragonite flailed, her spear dissolving. She wheeled on Silvally, only to find a half-dozen copies running around in different directions, leaving salmon-colored trails behind them.

Tessa didn't hesitate in firing a gray, lustrous beam up toward Dragonite. She lightning-dashed right to avoid it, only to find two Silvally copies lunging for her, fairy energy brimming in their forelegs.

"That's _enough!_ " Dragonite brought her hands together and pointed them forward. A massive vortex of snow and wind erupted. Silvally's Double Team clones vanished in puffs of smoke. The real Silvally was blown off his feet. A gray aura overtook him and he dropped to the ground with a loud _thud._ He dug his talons in. Metal coated his body. Chunks of hail and snow _plinked_ off his hide.

Right as Dragonite ceased the Blizzard, blinding white light enveloped her from behind. Tessa looked right to see Espy standing tall, forehead gem venting pink fairy dust like a chimney would smoke. To Tessa's relief, Milotic stood beside Espy. It quickly turned to a sinking feeling when Tessa noticed Milotic's ribbons trembling. An electrical burn sat on her chest and blood streaked her once-sparkling scales.

Espy caught Tessa's gaze. "Focus on Dragonite," she said, gathering more fairy energy for another Dazzling Gleam.

"You losers think you can overpower me with numbers? _Ha!_ That just means none of you are strong enough to stand up to me on your own!" Dragonite said, her Xurkitree-esque antennae bobbing up and down with excitement.

"D-Dragonite," Milotic said, voice shaky. Dragonite glanced at her, smirking and raising a brow. "Don't do this. Puh… please. I'm sorry that Serpy and I weren't there for you after we fought Zero! We… we should've been more—"

"Get down!" Espy yanked a yelping Milotic out of the way of a Lightning Javelin. But she wasn't prepared for a shockwave to race out when it struck the ground and exploded. Espy dropped Milotic to the ground, seizing up as electricity coursed through her veins.

"Leave them alone!" Silvally roared, sending a Flash Cannon up toward Dragonite. Tessa hastily added her own, hoping she could predict where Dragonite would try to dodge. Her brow furrowed when Dragonite slipped left in a stream of lightning. But that frustration turned to panic when Dragonite banked down toward Silvally. He barely had time to end his Flash Cannon before she was practically on top of him, Dragon Claws bared.

In a flash of salmon light, Silvally activated his fairy memories. Nevertheless, Dragonite's claws raked his chest. He stumbled back, eyes widening in shock and black blood staining the front of his feathery plume. "Th… that's impossible!" he said.

"No, it's called mixing types," Dragonite said, raising a hand and flicking blood off her claws. "You think you're special because you can change types on the fly? Well, I'm here to tell you that you're _nothing._ " She zipped left, dodging a swipe of Silvally's glowing talons. Instead, he sliced through a Shadow Ball from Espy.

Tessa stood in place, paw raised to fire an Aura Sphere but unable to send off the attack. Mixing types? How was that even possible? She vaguely recalled Magearna using two attacks at once, but she couldn't _mix_ different attacks together.

"You're only strong because you have that measly trinket on your leg. And even then, it's not enough to deal with me!" Dragonite continued, pointing to the memory looplet. She formed a lightning spear in her hand and swiped at Silvally. He countered with his dusty-brown talons. The spear shattered but Dragonite lightning-dashed up into the air to dodge a second swipe. "Without your looplet, you're _worthless!_ A joke! A failure! Like the rest of your sorry team!"

Dragonite summoned another lightning spear and twirled it around. Storm clouds rapidly spawned overhead. Tessa, whose blood had boiled over when Dragonite badmouthed Silvally, found her nerve and shot a large Flash Cannon toward Dragonite. Espy unleashed Psychic rings and Milotic reluctantly shot an Ice Beam. All three attacks were vaporized by lightning strikes from the storm cloud.

"Guys, _run!_ " Silvally barked. Ground memories still active, he fanned out his head crest. A Tailwind formed behind him, giving him extra speed to run toward Tessa.

A loud voice in her head told her to jump. Tessa listened without hesitation. Next thing she knew, she was on Silvally's back, staring wide-eyed at a lightning bolt that _easily_ could've zapped her. Bolstered by the Tailwind, Silvally snagged his other two teammates and zigzagged across the battlefield, barely weaving through Dragonite's lightning storm.

"Stupid, stupid— you can't dodge forever!" Dragonite hissed. Each successive bolt grew larger, but with the increase in size came a decrease in accuracy. Silvally managed to train his eyes on Dragonite. He glared at her with every ounce of enmity he could muster. A silhouette of his piercing gaze materialized in front of him. Dragonite tensed up, as if the silhouette was looking straight into the depths of her corrupted soul.

Her next two bolts were much slower and easier to dodge, giving Silvally leverage to make a run at her. "You… you slowed her down?" Tessa whispered. It took her a second, but she realized Silvally had used Scary Face. She was amazed it actually worked.

"I will _not_ back down!" Dragonite snarled, her Lightning Javelin increasing in size. However, she never got the chance to toss it. On Silvally's mark, Team Radiance struck in unison. Two Ice Beams, a Flash Cannon, and a Dazzling Gleam merged into a blue blast with white, twinkling lights. Dragonite fell from the sky, writhing in pain and screaming. The prism armor around her chest cracked when she hit the ground.

"Rrrgh… that's _**enough!**_ "

An orange aura surrounded Dragonite. Tessa's feelers shot up in alarm. It looked exactly like the glows she and her teammates got before using Z-Moves. But how could Dragonite use one?

Electricity crackled through Dragonite's whole body. She hopped into the air and thrust her arms apart. Four different-colored, crystalline dragon heads surrounded her in a ring. A different element gathered up in each of the heads: fire, ice, lightning, and raw aura.

Sparks jumped around Silvally's looplet. Ignoring them, he gathered hot plasma in his open beak. Even with the dungeon's warped energy jamming her, Tessa could sense how strong the blast was. She looked down worriedly at his foreleg. "Um, Silvally, are you—"

"Fuh… fine," Silvally said, the charged attack muffling his voice. "Guh… uhwuh!" Silvally's back was red hot. Tessa had to climb off him or she risked getting burned. Her teammates did the same.

 **"I am going to bury you,** _ **freak!**_ **"** Dragonite shouted. She pointed her arm high, summoned a Lightning Javelin, and reared back to throw it.

"You're the crazy one from where we're standing!" Espy retorted, shooting a Shadow Ball toward Dragonite. "Do you have any idea what'll happen if we don't stop Zero? We're _all_ going to perish!"

 **"I** _ **know**_ **. That's exactly the point!"**

Milotic froze in the midst of gathering icy energy to attack. "Wh… what?"

Tessa shot a Flash Cannon at the same time Silvally released his charged Hyper Beam. It swallowed Tessa's attack, but she kept pressing on.

 **"Big mistake! I'll burn you both to ashes!"** Dragonite roared. Silvally narrowed his eyes, trying to force as much energy as he could into the attack. Tessa caught sight of his looplet _vibrating_ against his leg.

This proved a costly mistake. With a gleam in her eye, Dragonite pivoted toward Tessa and hurled the Lightning Javelin. It sliced through the Hyper Beam with ease. Tessa's eyes widened. She dropped to her belly and the spear soared past her. Tessa looked up in time to realize that wasn't Dragonite's actual attack. She stared down the barrel of four gigantic beams, together dwarfing Silvally's Hyper Beam.

She braced herself for what she assumed would be the end. Instead, a hulking mass of fur and scales pressed down on her. At such close range, all Tessa could hear was Silvally's screams mixed with the sounds of Dragonite's unhinged laughter.

"Stop! Stop it, _now!_ " Milotic cried. Her Ice Beam came too late, however. Dragonite's Z-Move faded and she lightning-dashed away from the attack, the crystal dragon heads crumbling into bits. Then, she negated Espeon's Dazzling Gleam with a sparkling, dragon-shaped beam. "I can't believe this! Just how much did Zero twist your mind?"

"Zero? _Ha!_ Don't give me that, 'Millie.' You had the same power coursing through you," Dragonite said, smirking. "We both know who it _really_ came from. And thanks to him… I'm the strongest mortal on the planet! Stronger than any god… stronger than Zero! I'm _unbeatable!_ "

"And what good will that do if our world gets destroyed?" Espeon hissed.

Dragonite smiled. "You think I care what happens to this place? Of course not! This whole planet and its pathetic pantheon deserve to rot in oblivion!" Her grin grew wider. "Why do you think I'm fighting you losers, anyway? For the _thrill,_ of course."

Milotic's ribbons curled up. "N… Air… Dr…"

"Sure, Necrozma wanted us to try and stab Zero in the back should she become too much of a nuisance for him. But at the end of the day, it didn't matter to me which of the two came out on top of their struggle. Because the end result would be the same." Dragonite licked her lips, much like Necrozma had done countless times. "The world would fall to the void, while I would flee into Ultra Space in search of even more power!" Dragonite lightning-dashed toward the two, only to stop short as an Aura Sphere whizzed by her.

Tessa had managed to clamber out from underneath Silvally. She stood hunched over, arms trembling in rage. Tessa could see the damage out of the corner of her eye.

Silvally's fur and scales burnt away, exposing soft tissue leaking black blood. Blackened shards of his memory looplet scattered all around him. The central gemstone lying by his open beak, vibrating intensely.

She was _seething._ Every kind gesture Silvally had done for her played through her head on loop. And this Pokémon… someone she had trusted… she had the _gall_ to stand there _gloating_ about what she had done. The sigil on Tessa's paw flashed. She didn't care. A small voice meekly tried to blame Necrozma for Dragonite's actions. Tessa didn't care.

Dragonite _had_ to pay.

Fluorescent blue lines shot down Tessa's arms and legs. Dragonite turned toward her. "Oh, what's this? Upset, are we?" She glanced at Silvally. "Is it because I hurt your pwecious fwiend? Ha! You should've gotten his patchwork ass while you had the chance. Now, it's too late." Dragonite thrust her right arm out and an electric spear materialized in it. "Why don't you go curl up with Ninetales and cry your eyes dry like you always do!" She smirked. "Oh, wait, that's right. He isn't here, is here? But don't worry… once I'm done with you, I'll—"

"Shut up, _shut up,_ _ **shut up!**_ "

In the blink of an eye, Tessa took Dragonite's place standing in front of her teammates, elbow outstretched. Her right paw crackled with shadow fire. A stunned Dragonite stood a couple of feet in front of her, clutching at her belly, face twisted in grimace.

"You… but… that…" Dragonite lifted her head. "Nobody makes the jump from Quick Attack to Extreme Speed like that. This is a joke!"

Tessa tensed. Dragonite lightning-dashed right, but Tessa still grazed her with her right paw-spike. Dragonite stumbled out of her dash. She pressed a paw to her side, then lifted it and stared at the sticky red fluid on her scales. Dragonite unsheathed her Dragon Claws, but had to divert the flurry of slashes intended for Tessa toward Milotic's Ice Beam. Tessa kept her distance this time, opting to shoot a Flash Cannon. Espy unleashed another blinding-white fairy energy blast.

Dragonite surged into the air. The three attacks sailed underneath her. "No… screw this! You're not getting some damn heroic second wind! Not against me!" Raising her arms high, she summoned four more crystal dragon heads. **"I'll pummel you with Prism Meteors until you're as broken as that** _ **abomination**_ **you call a friend!"**

"Bitch, you take that back!" Espy snarled, firing off another Dazzling Gleam. Tessa noticed scorched fur surrounding Espy's forehead gem but, like her teammate, she was far too angry at Dragonite to care.

 **"Not a chance! You want that** _ **freak's**_ **ass so badly? Then you two can share each other's company in the spirit realm!"** Dragonite barked, the crystal dragon heads brimming with energy. Tessa's aura feelers tensed. She was ready to lunge for Espy and make a run for it when the forcefield surrounding the battlefield shattered. Dragonite turned right. **"What the—"**

A massive iceberg sprang up from below. Part of it clipped Dragonite and shattered the crystal heads. Tessa's heart soared the moment her eyes fell on the familiar ice Ninetales standing atop it.

"Get away from my friends!" Shane cried, before engulfing Dragonite in a giant ice beam. He froze her solid inside a huge block of ice, which slammed into the gate with a loud _thunk._

"Shane!" Tessa cried, breaking into a huge smile at the sight. Her relief gave way to panic, however, as she remembered the state of her _other_ friend. "You've got to help Silvally! He's… he's…" She pointed a trembling paw back toward him. Espy was already by his side, eyes watering as she desperately smushed a rawst and oran berry against his hide.

"Say no more," Shane said, leaping from the iceberg as it melted away. When he hit the ground, Tessa noticed a few differences in her partner. His fur had an almost metallic sheen do it. Every step he made produced a loud _clunk_ that brought Magearna or Metagross to mind. The gemstone in his looplet gave off an array of different colors and a compass-like sigil glowed on his forehead.

"W… what happened to you?" Espy asked, stepping aside to let Shane have a look at Silvally.

"The short version is that Zero lied to us. Necrozma was still alive and kicking. He had possessed Xerneas," Shane said. Both Espy and Tessa had their mouths open when Shane lifted three of his tails to silence them. "He tried to kill me, but I found the Dawn Hourglass and took in what was left of its power."

"But… but then…" Tessa fidgeted nervously. She _definitely_ sensed something different in Shane's aura. A newfound brilliance that shined through the dungeon's aura-jamming distortion.

"G-Guys… we've got a problem!" Milotic shouted, gaining the group's attention. Tessa turned to see cracks forming in Dragonite's icy prison.

"Necrozma's gone. That's all that matters. You guys help Milotic. I'll tend to Silvally," Shane said, golden light brimming around him.

"Err… r-right," Espy said. She ran toward Tessa, charging fairy energy in her forehead gem.

Tessa likewise gathered up an Aura Sphere. The rush of joy that Shane's appearance triggered had quelled Tessa's building rage. Her paw's sigil had stopped glowing, much to her relief. Still, she had a battle to win. For Silvally's sake, she wouldn't squander the opening Shane gave them.

Chunks of ice shot past the three ladies. "Attack now!" Tessa shouted, firing the Aura Sphere. Espy added fairy energy to it, while Milotic shot an Ice Beam from her position. However, the ice surrounding Dragonite exploded before the attacks could reach her. Instead, they slammed into the chains on the gate and disappeared in puffs of black smoke.

 **"I have had** _ **enough**_ **of this!"** Dragonite thundered. Four new crystal dragon heads surrounded her. **"I don't care how many of you pop out of the woodwork! It doesn't matter! Bonds are worthless! The only thing that counts is pure, raw strength! And I'll prove it!"** She fixed the dragon heads on her female foes. **"Now,** _ **die!**_ **"**

A furious, distorted roar cut through the air. A pillar of multicolored light erupted to everyone's right. Dragonite pivoted, her eyes widening. Tessa turned and her aura feelers tensed so hard she thought they'd pop out of her skull.

Silvally was back on his feet, surrounded by a rainbow aura. Rainbow ripples raced through his sclera, cheek-bolts, head crest, and tail. Shane backed away from him, tails curling up.

"What did you do, Shane?!" Tessa cried, holding an arm up over her face.

"I… I healed him… w-with Morning Sun," Shane said, looking down at his looplet and biting his lip. "It didn't feel any different from other times I've used it!"

 **"Well then, you two mistakes get to die first,"** Dragonite said. She thrust her arms forward. The crystal heads unleashed a barrage of Draco Meteors much like the many missiles Stakataka had fired at them.

Silvally picked his head up. "No," he whispered, blowing out a cloud of steam. With another loud roar, Silvally unleashed a mighty snowstorm of his own. One by one, the gale-force winds blew the meteors aside, until the Blizzard reached a befuddled Dragonite and destroyed the crystal heads.

"Nuh… no. That's… impossible! Are you even supposed to know that move?!" she said.

Tessa was about to say something to her friend, when he lunged into the air. He shot into Dragonite like a blazing comet, knocking her back.

"I am _not_ a freak!" Silvally cried. Psychic energy gathered in his head crest. He headbutted Dragonite square in the snout. She threw her hands onto her bloody face. "I am _not_ just some mishmash of spirits!" He clubbed Dragonite's head with blue, sparking talons. She fell to the ground, where blazing Fire Pledge plumes were waiting to blast her back into the air.

"I am _more_ than a measly trinket!" A wheel of golden light surrounded Silvally's chest. It turned to bright-pink fairy dust, that swirled around his forelegs. "I am my own person! And I will _not_ let you talk down to me or my friends _ever again!_ "

Dragonite tried to slash at Silvally with her Dragon Claws, but his left foreleg swatted her arms aside. His right foreleg then slashed her wing, tearing it out of its joint. Silvally landed on all-fours while Dragonite crashed into the ground. Espy and Tessa stared at him, muzzles agape. Both weren't sure whether to be happy Silvally was all right or worried that he was acting without the memory looplet.

"Well? We have to finish her with a Z-Move, don't we?" Silvally said, voice still distorted. "Espy, you're the better 'mon for the job. Tessa's Z-Move will be more useful against Zero and Dialga."

Espy blinked. "O-Oh! R-Right!" She stepped toward Dragonite. "Um, are you sure you're—"

"I'm fine," Silvally insisted. "Let's take care of Dragonite."

"N… no. This isn't… I won't…"

The moment Espy heard Dragonite stirring, she concentrated on her looplet. She was about to draw forth her Z-Power, when a bolt of lightning struck Dragonite from above.

"Dragonite!" Milotic cried, shielding her face with her tail. When the light faded, there was no sign of her old teammate.

"W… what just happened?" Tessa asked, looking about nervously. "Where did she go?"

The closest Tessa got to an answer was the sight of the chains and locks on the gate crumbling away. The gemstone eye shattered and the gates swung open, revealing the giant pool of acid far below them and, in the distance, the tower's entrance. Espy and Tessa exchanged glances, then ran over to Silvally.

The sheer worry on Espy's face surprised Tessa. Espy even spoke to Silvally before she could. "What about your spirits? Your looplet got destroyed. You aren't hearing voices, are you?"

"I told you, I'm fine," Silvally said. "I swallowed the gem that housed the extra spirits."

"You did _what?!_ " Espy blurted out. Tessa hopped back in surprise. Espy hopped up onto her hind legs and threw her forepaws on Silvally's forelegs. "Isn't that dangerous? How are you going to think straight? Don't we need to find you another Lunar Wing? I… I…" Espy stared into the swirling array of colors in Silvally's eyes. "S… Silv…"

Silvally raised his brows.

"What memories do you have on right now?" Espy whispered.

A tense silence followed. Silvally avoided his teammates gazes as he whispered, "All of them."

Espy slipped and fell back onto all-fours. "All of them?"

Silvally nodded.

"That can't be safe for you, can it? I mean, your cheeks are venting so much steam you'd think we were in Fogbound Lake," Espy said, eyes glistening.

"I don't know what to tell you. It just… happened," Silvally said. "I can't get it to stop." He looked down. "Besides, even if it _is_ dangerous, this could give us the edge we need to confront Zero, right?" He looked at Tessa, whose aura feelers shot up. She knew he had a point, but that didn't negate the possible danger. Tessa wanted all her friends to make it through the conflict.

"Silvally's right. We shouldn't dwell on his condition. After all, we're running out of time in more ways than one," Shane said, looking up toward the sky.

Tessa was about to respond, when Milotic slumped over. "But we still have to climb up the tower. And who the heck knows what's waiting for us in there?" She looked at the electrical burn on her chest. "After that battle, I'm not sure we still have the resources to deal with Zero."

"Then it's a good thing I caught up with you guys in time," Shane said, grinning and puffing out his chest. "We can skip this dumb tower and go directly to the root of the problem!"

Tessa tensed up. Shane sure sounded confident. Then again, his aura _was_ shining bright and, judging by Silvally's current state, the Hourglass must've given him a heck of a power boost. Though her heart raced at the prospect of finally facing off with her mother, she couldn't deny that, with these new developments, she felt more confident in the team's chances than before.

"The only question here is you, Milotic," Shane continued. "Are you still up for fighting? Because you look pretty out of it."

Milotic glanced at the spot where Dragonite previously lay, wincing at the blood strewn across the ground. Tessa imagined it had to be hard for her. Nonetheless, Milotic straightened up. "I… I can't back down here. I have to see this thing through to the end. It's… it's what Airy and Serpy would've done."

Shane nodded. "Fair enough. Then get ready, guys…" He turned and spat up a blue, translucent sphere. It expanded into an Ultra Wormhole in front of them. Tessa then caught a blue flicker somewhere near the top of the tower.

"Everyone in, now! And get ready to attack!" Shane cried, lunging into the portal with hot air gathering in his mouth.

Tessa took a deep breath, charged up an Aura Sphere, and jumped in after him.

* * *

 **Undead Reaper, Ultra Volcarona  
** _Mount Supernova's molten terrain mixed with the god of death's sacrifice to bring this fearsome fiend into existence. Using the body of "the world's strongest Pokémon" as her own, she seeks to rain fiery judgment upon a world drawing its dying breath._

 **Electrifying Maiden, Ultra Dragonite  
** _Necrozma not only tampered with the corrupted Z-Power that Zero tried to pump into her, he awakened long-dormant rage that she had subdued through her years of honest work with her friends at the guild. Now, she only cares about bolstering own strength, even if it means surrendering entire worlds to the power of the void._

* * *

I realize there's been a lot of action this episode and it's getting pretty, uh, shonen-esque for lack of a better description. I'm trying to keep things varied as best I can, here, and mix in important character moments, but any feedback would be greatly appreciated. And yes, the bit where Volcarona's arm morphs into Yveltal's head is a nod to The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon. Bet you weren't expecting that!

For those not following the blog, the two-year anniversary is coming up fast for the fic. This time around, I won't be doing an anniversary special. As you can see, we're fast approaching the climax of the fic, and I don't want to derail it. Instead, I hope you'll enjoy these upcoming chapters, because they're _big ones._ More details are available on the blog if you search "anniversary."

Anon Omega: Well, Shane is back among the team. The source of the lightning was Dragonite.

Next time: **Zero.**


	111. Countdown to Chaos

**Chapter 94: Countdown to Chaos**

 **~Rainbow Island~**

With each passing minute, Ninetales grew steadily more worried. While Ephemeris tended to Hoopa's revival, all she could do was pace around the altar, pausing to look at the sky. She kept seeing multicolored ripples passing overhead. At first, she didn't pay them much mind, but now they were happening more frequently. Her tails twisted around one another. She bit her lip.

"E-Ephemeris, sir? I, uh, don't mean to interrupt or anything, but how much longer do you think you'll need?" Ninetales asked. "My gut tells me something big is happening at Temporal Tower."

"It shouldn't be much longer," Ephemeris said, holding his wings steady in front of him. A ball of gold light floated in front of him, wriggling around like a plate of gelatin. "I've almost got it. Just a few more seconds and… _ah!_ " Ephemeris pulled his wings back. The ball of light resembled Hoopa's outline. As the gold colors faded, Hoopa came into view, arms folded over his stomach as if he was sleeping peacefully.

"Welcome back, Hoopa," Ho-Oh said. Hoopa poked an eye open. He looked around.

"Where's Necrozma, huh? Hoopa's gonna smack him silly for what he did!" Hoopa said, flailing his hands around his head.

"Necrozma's gone. That's why we were able to get your spirit and revive you," Totem Ninetales explained. "I'm afraid we're short on time, here. The Prism Virus has control of Temporal Tower and, if we don't act soon, time itself could collapse on us."

"Exactly. We need you to try and find where in the ocean Temporal Tower landed and make a portal to it," Ninetales said, walking up to Hoopa.

"Mmm… that's an awful long distance for Hoopa to make a portal to," Hoopa said, frowning. "In this state, it might be a struggle, but if Hoopa had his full power…" His voice trailed off. He looked over at Ampharos and Mawile, the latter of which raised a curious brow. "Don't give Hoopa that look. Hoopa can sense the Djinn's Bottle. Ol' Long-Neck has it in his bag!"

Ampharos blinked. "I do?" He opened his satchel, poked around in it, and produced a white, ring-shaped bottle with a pink neck and head resembling Hoopa's. "Ah, so I do! Boy, I wonder how that got in there." He threw his head back in a hearty laugh.

Mawile facepalmed. "I suppose Meganium slipped it in there when she heard what we'd be doing. How resourceful of her."

"Yeah, yeah, give it here!" Hoopa said, snatching the bottle with his ESP. He screwed the cap off and out came a cloud of purple mist. "Heh… finally! Hoopa was so tired of being stuck in this shrimpy form!"

Ninetales' tails shot up. "Um, is this really a good idea?" she squeaked.

"Weren't you the one who wanted to take action so badly?" Cresselia reminded her.

"Fair point," Ninetales whispered. She just wished it didn't involve Hoopa growing a massive body and sporting two extra pairs of arms.

 **"Wonderful! Fantastic! At last… Hoopa is unbound once more!"** Hoopa roared with laughter. An intense aura bristled around him, forcing the other Pokémon to shield their faces.

Ninetales bent over, trying to cup her forelegs over her ears. "C-Can we just get a portal to Temporal Tower… or whatever is left of it?"

 **"Say no more, mortal! It is but child's play for the mighty Hoopa!"** Hoopa declared, clapping two sets of hands together. Pink and purple energy crackled around them. A large ring portal formed in front of Ninetales, far bigger than the ones Hoopa usually summoned. Ephemeris and Ho-Oh easily could've walked through it side by side. **"There you are, fuzzy one!"**

"Err… thanks," Ninetales said. "Who's coming with me?" Ampharos, Cresselia, and Mawile joined her by the portal. Magearna and Totem Ninetales hung back.

 **Apologies. We need to oversee the next part of our plan. Though, with Hoopa powered up, it should hopefully expeditialate the process,** Magearna said.

"Okay. The sooner you can bring everyone back the better," Ninetales said. She nodded to the others, then they jumped through the ring portal.

* * *

 **~Prism Tower~**

Tessa emerged from the Ultra Wormhole, ready to throw her Aura Sphere. However, instead of her mother or Dialga or, well, _any_ visible target, all she found was a dome of red, glitchy cubes surrounding the team. "What the— where are we, Shane? I thought you said you were taking us to the top of the tower."

"This _is_ the top of the tower. I'm sure of it," Shane said. He spat an Ice Beam at the wall, but it fizzled out. "We must've stumbled into a trap."

"Because Zero saw the other side of the wormhole," Silvally said. He lunged for the cubes, pink energy swirling around his talons. Silvally struck hard, but bounced off the forcefield. His gold aura snuffed out the black smoke rising off his talons. "Not even my Multi-Attack can do anything."

Tessa's patience quickly wore thin. "Espeon, boost me up!" she said, throwing the Aura Sphere toward the dome. Espy added Psychic rings, expanding the blue fireball's size. Though aural flames seared the cubes, the wall held tough. Tessa's aura feelers drooped. Her marked paw crackled with black energy. Tessa ran forward and slammed a glowing palm into the barrier.

"I know you're out there, Mom. Show yourself!" she barked.

A ripple spread through the cubes, but the wall withstood the blow. Tessa looked at her outstretched arm. She saw faint traces of the rainbow lines that popped up when she lost her cool at Dragonite. Tessa pulled her paw back and stepped away from the wall. It was then that she and the others heard a loud, distorted sigh.

"I had _really_ hoped that Dragonite and Lugia could stall you, but it seems that was nothing more than a pipe dream."

Everyone looked around, trying to pinpoint the source of Zero's voice. It was a useless endeavor. Her words echoed all around the forcefield dome.

"You're hiding because you're scared of us, aren't you?" Silvally said. He flicked his head to his right. Air crescents, fireballs, and lightning arcs swirled together and battered the forcefield. The cubes turned black, but managed to withstand the onslaught. "We'll break this stupid barrier of yours down and put an end to all of this! I swear it!"

"I think not." Zero paused. "See, you're correct. I _am_ hiding."

Tessa cocked her head to the side. Was this supposed to be some sort of mind game? Well, she wouldn't fall for it. She assumed another fighting stance. "Like I'd believe anything you say."

"There was a time that you did. But I can see that your brother's defiance has rubbed off on you," Zero scoffed. "In any case, I'm not lying. You really think that I'm going to risk _everything_ I've been working toward on a fool's errand of a battle with you lot? Of course not!" Static rippled through the cubes, like they were vibrating in time with the fluctuations in Zero's pitch. "While I could wipe you out with Necrozma's power, I won't. Because then I risk losing my grasp on Dialga's life energy and throwing the whole timestream out of whack.

"That's why I've decided not to give you misguided idiots the chance to play the heroes. You're not going to get a battle with me," Zero continued. "I'll form up as many barriers as I need to stall you out until my work as done. At which point, the gods will be no more and I will _finally_ have my family back."

"You already _have_ a family!" Silvally growled, before Tessa could even retort. "What would Tessa and Gallian be otherwise?"

"Mistakes."

Red energy flickered in Tessa's right paw. Her aura feelers trembled. "How could you say something like that?" she said, her tone uneven.

"You are nothing but a failed attempt at replacing what I lost. My _real_ children are back in the human world… _waiting_ for my return," Zero said. Again the cubes vibrated. "You and your brother… never should've happened. I told Incineroar I didn't want any eggs. But I couldn't just up and say that I was actually a human. He… he was too good to me. I couldn't betray his trust."

"And what do you suppose lying to him for your whole life counts as, huh?" Tessa barked. She pointed her paws forward and fired a large Aura Sphere. Silvally added a flurry of ice shards, fireballs, and lightning. The Tri-Attacks knocked cubes out of the dome, but before anyone could expand on his work, fresh cubes took their place.

"At the time, I had resigned myself to the fact that I would never return to the human world. I considered having him as a mate to be a… reasonable substitute for the family I lost," Zero replied. "How could I have known that the powers that be would wind up _thrusting_ an Absol egg into our possession? I couldn't. It just… happened. As did your egg.

"But you made Incineroar happy, so I put up with the two of you as long as I could… until Metagross stole Incineroar from me and the gods laughed off my attempts to undo his crime," Zero hissed.

Despite her previous Aura Spheres failing to do anything, more blue flames swirled around Tessa's paws. She finally knew why her mother seemed so cold and distant when Incineroar wasn't around… and why her mother had treated her so badly during her training. Zero never really cared about her. And when Incineroar died, she refused to put up with Tessa any longer.

"I… I can't believe you," Tessa said, stomping on the floor. "You… you were part of the guild. You _helped_ Pokémon who were lost and scared a-and confused." She clenched her fists. "Do you have any idea how awful you made me feel when you stopped my training and called me worthless? I… I…"

"I don't care. You weren't even supposed to exist," Zero replied, the icy venom in her voice plain as day. "But, fret not, I'm not going to erase you. When my work is done, you, your brother, _and_ your father can have a peaceful, happy life together… free of the _numerous_ conflicts wrought upon the world by gods and ley lines." She paused.

Tessa tensed at the mention of Incineroar. "You can't bring him back," she whispered, shaking her head. "I… I don't think it works like that. What you're doing… this time rewriting thing is going to fail! It'll backfire!"

"You _think,_ hmm? Well, I have Dialga under my control and I _know_ what I'm planning will work," Zero said. "Why are you trying to resist this? I'm giving you what you want. I'll bring your loving father back. You won't have to wake up fearful of what the day may hold for you. I'll be out of your life. Hell, I'll even let that _hideous_ abomination you call a friend survive the reset. You have _nothing_ to gain from intervening!"

Silvally's cheek bolts revved up, the whirs loud enough to make Tessa jump. "We don't buy your poison-tongued lies for a second!" he shouted. Silvally slammed his forelegs on the ground. Tremors raced toward the front of the dome. Earthly energy shot up at the cubes, along with flaming vines much like Serperior attacked with while infected. The cubes glowed bright-white before disappearing.

Everyone heard a sharp gasp from the other side of the hole Silvally poked. However, he couldn't maintain the attack and Zero repaired the forcefield before Espy's Psychic rings reached it. "Dang it! We were so close that time," she hissed, tail lashing at the air.

"You all are _sorely_ mistaken. Defeating me will only put your world on the path to inevitable destruction. And, all the while, you'll continue driving yourselves crazy racing through dungeon after dungeon while the gods sit around and do nothing," Zero said.

"What if you're wrong? You could be putting _everyone's_ lives at risk over this ridiculous gamble," Espy said, frowning at the barrier.

"My, how your opinion was swayed to the other side quickly. I recall it wasn't _that_ long ago you were saying quite the opposite," Zero scoffed. "In any case, risking your lives is fine by me if it means ensuring that no humans will ever be pulled from the ones they love and crammed into the body of a Pokémon. I refuse to let this gods' lackadaisical attitude ruin the lives of countless hard-working humans."

"That's not going to solve anything," Silvally huffed. "Team Paradox told us there are numerous worlds out in Ultra Space… and Ultra Wormholes are a constant, continuous threat. Even if you somehow got rid of ley lines, you can't guarantee one won't suck in a human from your world."

The cubes stopped vibrating. "That's why you get to live, _freak._ I had wanted the Pokémon I infected to become the defenders of this world, but it looks like you cured all of them. So, you'll have to take that mantle for yourself," Zero said. "Ultra Wormholes have spawned every time a crisis has faced this world. Prevent the crises and you'll prevent the wormholes. Thus, no humans will end up here by accident and you won't have any reasons to try and summon any."

Tessa was about to respond when she heard what she thought was clapping. In actuality, Shane was rapping a forepaw against the ground. "Y'know, I gotta hand it to you. Stalling us out by giving a long, drawn-out lecture about why you're right? Not a bad plan… _doc,_ " he said, looking up and smirking at the dome's roof.

"Doc? What's that supposed to mean?" Tessa asked. "Did you learn something from the Dawn Hourglass?" For a second, she thought she caught a golden glint in Shane's eye, but she lost sight of it when he nodded.

"I did." Shane approached the nearest part of the barrier. "You've fallen off a long way from the whole 'do no harm' thing you're supposed to follow, haven't you, Dr. Sinclair?"

Static ripples raced through the cubes. Shane grinned triumphantly. "What did you just call me?" Zero growled.

"Dr. Prisma Sinclair. That was who you were when you were human," Shane said. Tessa's jaw hung open. She wasn't expecting the Dawn Hourglass to have told him about who her mother was. Besides, how would that help the team defeat her, anyway? "It's strange. I think I actually heard about your disappearance from my folks. Probably because your husband involved me in one of his cases."

More ripples raced through the cubes. They blurred together into a large mesh of discolored static. "Y… you… you knew Rory?" Zero said.

"Shane, what are you doing?" Silvally said.

"Working out an opening," Shane whispered back. "Get ready. When I give you the signal, it's time to attack."

Tessa wanted to press the issue, but Shane faced away from her. Clearing his throat, he said, "Maybe you remember the case? It involved your college roommate's son. Does 'Nicholas Eisenberg' ring any bells?"

The static surrounding Team Radiance intensified. "That's… you're…" A growl echoed through the dome. "You think you were the friend, don't you? The autistic kid that Margie and George always complained about when we met for dinner or a get-together."

Tessa looked between Shane and the dome. Had she heard things right? Did Shane admit he and Zero _knew_ each other when they were humans? And that, by extension, Zero had known who Necrozma was all along?

"The very same. It looks like, perhaps, Necrozma was keeping secrets from you," Shane said, swishing his hair to the side. Tessa tensed up. There it was again. Another moment of bravado that made her think back to their first few weeks together. Unless he was putting on an act to unnerve Zero. But then… why wouldn't he tell his teammates? Tessa felt a headache coming on and she lacked the time and patience to deal with it.

"What are you talking about, _whelp?_ " Zero said.

"Let's say you actually succeeded with this crazy plan of yours and got magically turned back into a human. Do you really think you can return to your old life?" Shane said, raising an eyebrow. "Your husband could've remarried."

"Time flows differently for our worlds! Not much time would've passed," Zero retorted.

"Perhaps. But then… what about your friend?" Shane continued. "I mean… you _found_ her supposedly-dead son… and then killed him yourself."

Silence followed. Tessa was about to point out that Shane claimed _he_ had finished off Necrozma, but stopped. If the static surrounding them was any indication, Shane was unnerving Zero enough to mess with her barrier.

"Is this your idea of a practical joke? It's not funny," Zero said.

"It's the truth. Necrozma was really the Eisenbergs' kid." Shane stuck his snout up. "So, tell me, how are you going to go back to living your human life with your human friends? Can you really tell me you won't feel at least a _bit_ guilty when you inevitably refuse to tell them what happened?"

Shane raised up two of his tails. Assuming that to be the signal, Silvally acted first, launching a _huge_ lightning bolt at the barrier. Tessa hastily added a gray beam. Then came a Hydro Pump from Milotic and multiple pink rings from Espy. Shane finished the job with a golden energy ball. Light brimmed in the cracks between each individual cube, then the energy dome collapsed.

The team had a few brief seconds to size up the situation. Dialga sat— or, rather, had _sunk_ into a small, crystalline altar. Only his head and upper body were visible. The Time Gears were welded against his corrupted body like tumors protruding from an organ. Red and black energy streamed off him, drifting toward the eye of the massive storm over head. Ley line chains stuck out of his shoulders and damaged chest plate. They attached to Zero, who floated in midair, staring the group down.

Silvally stomped a foreleg on the ground. Fire Pledge columns shot up toward Zero. Two of the chains yanked her out of the way, then pulled her away from a Hydro Pump. Shane tried to blast her with a stream of hot air, but she summoned her Bone Rush scythe and dispelled the Heat Wave with icy winds courtesy of Articuno's spirit.

"You _imbeciles._ Stand down! I have to concentrate on Dialga," Zero growled. She raised her free paw. Columns of red cubes rose underneath her and raced toward Team Radiance, trying to push them off the top of the tower. Tessa weaved around one. When she looked left, she found Silvally _sinking_ into the floor. Rather than questioning it, she fired an Aura Sphere toward her mom. A glitchy pillar negated the attack. Tessa growled her frustrations.

"You stand down!" Silvally retorted. "You're throwing everyone's lives away! And for what?"

"To get my life back!" Zero snarled, raising her paws. She fired clusters of glitchy cubes in multiple directions. They froze in midair, then homed in on each of her opponents.

"Everyone out of the way!" Shane barked, flinging one of his golden energy balls forward. A pillar of light swallowed up several of Zero's projectiles. The rest swerved out of the way, then headed for Tessa and Silvally.

"Above you!" Espy said, flinging a Shadow Ball at one of the clusters targeting Silvally. It stalemated in a small purple explosion, all while Silvally rose into the air atop a column of water. He spun around, casting the water in all directions. His teammates backpedaled, save for Milotic, who stood tall and, instead, redirected the water with her tail. Zero broke through Silvally's wave with a red Aura Sphere, but all of her projectiles were gone.

"Such pests you all are," she hissed, right paw raised. Three runes encircled it: a flame, an eye, and a rock.

"S-Something's wrong! The ground's shaking," Milotic said, ribbons curling up.

Shane, Silvally, and Tessa teamed up, sending hot air, a blue fireball, and a sparking, red Focus Blast orb right at Zero. Her chains yanked her out of the way of everything except the Aura Sphere, which tried to tail her. But more ley line chains burst from the ground. They split into three clumps, which wrapped around one another until crystal copies of an Alakazam, a Charizard, and a Tyranitar floated beside Zero. Charizard unleashed a stream of purple shadow fire, snuffing out Tessa's Aura Sphere.

"Take care of them," Zero ordered, pointing toward Team Radiance. The copies of Team ACT nodded diligently and darted toward the ground. Charizard made a beeline for Shane, only for an electrified Silvally to hammer into him. He skidded across the ground, empty eyes giving no indication there was any pain felt.

Tessa tried to get another shot in on Zero, but a pink glint caught her eye. She jumped back seconds before Alakazam's Psychic rings would have hefted her into the air. "Espy! Shane! Can you two take care of Alakazam? I'm better off fighting Tyranitar," she said, dashing forward with a burst of Extreme Speed. Tyranitar silently lowered its shoulder, absorbing Tessa's Force Palm strike. He drove a glowing fist into the ground.

Crystal spires jutted up, sending Tessa skyward with her arms and legs flailing. She soon became level with her mother, who had summoned four small orbs around her. Tessa's eyes widened. They looked like the strange balls Zero had released Milotic and Serperior from. Zero pointed a paw toward her and the four Beast Balls converged. Tessa knew she couldn't forge an Aura Sphere big enough to take them all out in time.

Luckily, an Ice Beam whizzed by and blew the now-frozen balls off the tower and into the swirling abyss below. Zero looked down and pointed toward Milotic. As Tessa landed, she turned and fired a Flash Cannon. Tyranitar halted his charge, pivoted, and fired a large, white-hot plasma beam at Tessa. She backpedaled with a yelp, falling on her rear. The Hyper Beam grazed the tufts atop her ears, leaving scorch marks and trails of smoke.

Tyranitar couldn't turn back fast enough to deflect Milotic's water torrent. He rolled across the ground, spinning to a stop in the middle of a puddle. In the process, he almost bowled over Alakazam, who had to levitate over him. He still managed to get a Light Screen up quick enough to deflect Espy's Shadow Ball and Shane's blinding-white blast. Alakazam lowered his shield and fired a Shadow Ball of his own from each spoon.

Tessa looked up. Zero had more Beast Balls ready to capture her teammates. She hopped to her feet and shot Psychic rings diagonally. They were just enough to deflect the Beast Balls, earning a distorted growl from Zero. "Guys! Stay on your guard! Zero's trying to capture us with those ball things she used on Team Captivate," Tessa said, noticing Milotic's fearful gaze and shuddering out of the corner of her eye.

"What? Seriously?" Silvally said, ducking a swipe from Charizard's glowing wing and driving his pink head crest into his opponent's gut. Charizard stumbled back, shadow fire at the ready, but Silvally met it with a torrent of water. He darted into the air to avoid the steam.

"Of course I am. I want this fight to end, but you idiots refuse to see reason," Zero growled, paws raised to conjure more Beast Balls. This time, however, she had to hover right to avoid a Shadow Ball from Espy, then turn to negate an Aura Sphere with one of her own.

"The only one who isn't seeing reason is you, Mom!" Tessa barked, throwing her arms up to try and blunt a black beam shot by Tyranitar. The Dark Pulse left lingering shadows around her arms. The sigil on her right paw flickered once again. She suppressed a growl. They didn't have time to waste on these copies. It was another stalling tactic.

"Watch it, Tessa!"

Milotic's shouts snapped Tessa to attention. She stared down the bright-white barrel of an oncoming Hyper Beam. Tessa dove to the ground. The crystal floor scuffed up her fur. She rolled to her feet and shot an Aura Sphere in Tyranitar's direction, but it hastily met its end under a volley of Air Slash crescents.

With a gasp, Tessa looked up to see Charizard flying toward her, shadow fire pooling in his throat.

"Get away from her!" Silvally cried. Electricity clipped Charizard's wing. He silently fell toward the ground, only to land in a couple of large water bubbles. Silvally raced by Tessa, static sparks and black smoke trailing from his crest and cheek-bolts.

Before Tessa could see if Silvally was all right, she heard an "Incoming!" from behind her. Tessa turned around and was greeted by Tyranitar's glowing fist. A resounding _clang_ echoed across the altar. Tessa tumbled to stop, pain shooting down her body. Her vision went white. Pins and needles gripped her arms and legs.

Ears ringing, Tessa tried to catch her breath, but couldn't. Sensing wounded prey, Tyranitar lumbered toward her. Zero summoned more Beast Balls, ready to attack anyone who tried to help her. Silvally turned around and, seeing her helpless state, leaped into the air and blew Tyranitar back with a gray energy burst. Charizard launched a purple Flamethrower to down him. However, Silvally withstood the flames. He met Zero's Beast Balls with wind blades and a large, green Energy Ball. Then, rear and tail smoldering from Charizard's blast, he spun back around and aimed to fry Charizard with lightning.

Charizard quickly darted into the air, however, and unleashed an Air Slash barrage of his own. Fast he was, Silvally wasn't small enough to maneuver around the attack. Wind blades nicked him. Silvaly grunted in annoyance, but nonetheless charged down his opponent.

"This is so ridiculous. You all are making such fools of yourselves," Zero said. She turned and tugged on the chains connected her to Dialga. He roared in pain. An energy surge shot up into the eye of the storm. More of Dialga's body melted into the altar. "I intend to let you all survive the reset. All you're doing is making things more complicated for me."

"That's the point," Tessa said, having managed to stagger back to her feet. A quick glance left saw Shane tending to a downed Espy while Alakazam stumbled about in a daze. She refocused the moment she heard Milotic screaming. Tyranitar had slammed her against the ground. A huge welt spawned around the right side of Milotic's face. She squirmed meekly, groaning in pain.

Tessa silently shot an Aura Sphere toward Tyranitar, banking on his fixation with Milotic. However, a small red void intercepted the Aura Sphere and swallowed it up. She looked up at her mom, who again had Beast Balls at the ready. With a flick of her wrist, the balls descended on the entire team. "No!" Tessa shouted, trying to conjure another Aura Sphere.

The balls fell for a couple of feet before streams of fire, lightning, and pink energy blasted the balls away. Zero's lone eye flickered purple. Her aura dreadlocks jerked her head to the right, where a ring portal sat on the side of the altar. "No… that's impossible!" Zero said, eye widening.

Mega Ampharos, Cresselia, Mega Mawile, and Ninetales leaped out of the portal.

"So, you're the one behind all of this. It's such a pleasure to meet you," Ampharos said, glancing at Zero while he sniped Charizard from behind with an intense burst of lightning. "Oh, wait… no, it's not."

Charizard struck the ground, where Silvally shredded his arms and shoulders with repeated strikes of his rock-covered talons. He tried to blast Silvally with shadow fire, but Silvally conjured a large rock spire and drove it straight through Charizard's crystalline skull. He shattered into thousands of tiny pieces. Silvally looked at Ampharos and nodded.

Ninetales eyes flickered purple. Lavender embers formed around her. She sent them toward Alakazam, who was too preoccupied deflecting an Ice Beam and Shadow Ball to notice. Purple ectoplasm spread across Alakazam. He fell to his knees, dropping his spoons and clutching his head in pain.

"We've got an opening," Shane cheered. He buffeted Alakazam with superheated air. Espy hit him in the gut with a Shadow Ball. Like Charziard, he shattered into bits.

Mawile zipped past a bewildered Tessa, metal encasing both her massive horns. With a shake of her head, Tessa threw an Aura Sphere up toward her mother.

"Imbeciles! You're going to ruin everything!" Zero met the Aura Sphere with one of her own, then looked down to see Tyranitar breaking apart, with a metallic Mawile standing next to him. "Cease this tireless charade. I'm so _close_ to completing this. It's for the best!"

"You're tampering with forces you can't control," Cresselia said, facing Tessa. She tensed up for a moment when warmth spread through her system. When it faded, however, Tessa felt completely reinvigorated.

Zero's eye flashed purple. She pointed at Cresselia. A blue winged-heart sigil formed near her. The temperature in the area dropped. "Get back!" Tessa shouted, trying to hit her mother with an Aura Sphere while she focused on Cresselia. Zero's chains yanked her out of the way. Luckily, Silvally zipped by and knocked Cresselia out of the way of the massive polar vortex the sigil spawned.

Silvally landed and shot a massive, five-pronged fireball toward Zero. She forged a shield of red cubes. The Fire Blast grew in size as Ninetales bolstered it with more flames. It slammed against Zero's shield. The cubes glowed white from the heat. Zero was too focused on the shield and had no recourse when Espy and Shane hit her from behind with Psychic rings and a Heat Wave stream. Her shield shattered. The remnants of the Fire Blast scored her Prism Armor.

Tessa smiled. Thanks to some timely assistance, they were finally making some headway. With this many of them fighting together, they could overwhelm Zero with sheer numbers. Tessa threw another Aura Sphere up, but another red vortex swallowed it up. Zero glared down at her. Or, rather, Tessa _assumed_ she was glaring. It was hard to tell with her mask.

"Everyone, try to throw her off with attacks!" Tessa said, but then ley lines burst out of the ground, wriggling about like tentacles. Zero's chains yanked her closer to Dialga. She threw up a wall of cubes, blocking the stairs leading up to the smaller altar.

"What's going on here?" Ninetales said, staring at the chains with a look of panic.

"She's probably summoning more spirits," Silvally growled. He slammed his forelegs into the ground. Glowing rock spires and jets of fire shot out of fissures. But the chains hovered out of his attack's range as if they had a will of their own. The _creaks_ of metal scraping metal rang out across the altar. In plumes of black light, two crystalline birds emerged. Ice shards and lightning rained down on everyone from above.

"We need to take cov— _ngack!_ " Three ice shards pelted Ampharos' head. He fell on his back, softened by his luscious mane.

Tessa made a beeline for Silvally without a second thought. However, the projectile storm was too chaotic to safely navigate through. A bolt of lightning struck her from above. Large ice chunks slammed her back, leaving bloody gashes. Tessa fell to the ground, convulsing. Silvally saw her and leaped through the air, deflecting ice chunks with gusts of winds while lightning harmlessly bounced off him. He landed clumsily, then stood over Tessa, turning to face the source of the attack.

A ball of golden light exploded in the air, bringing an end to the ice and electricity. Everyone could now see crystal mockups of Articuno and Zapdos floating in front of them, their eyes empty and expressionless. With flaps of their wings, they prepared to volley more ice and fire. Silvally struck first, hurtling large, glowing rocks toward the birds. Each one hammered against their crystal bodies. Deafening _cracks_ rang out through the air, but neither of them cried out in pain.

Tessa was shocked with the intensity of Silvally's attack. "Since when did you know Ancient Power?" she asked.

"I… I don't know," Silvally replied. Tessa's aura feelers trembled at the sight of Silvally's cheek bolts twisting sporadically like cogs in a broken machine. She opted not to press the issue, instead gathering metal dust in her paws for a Flash Cannon.

"Look out!"

Ninetales' cries came too late. Tessa looked up to see Ancient Power rocks barreling toward Team Radiance. "What the— how?" She tried to backpedal, but was on her back in a matter of seconds. To her right, Espy's Light Screen couldn't hold up against the blows and Shane's attempts at diverting the rocks with Psychic failed. Both rolled back across the altar, their worlds spinning.

On Tessa's left, Silvally roared in agony. Most of the rocks had concentrated on him. Apparently, with all his memories active, rock-type attacks were problematic for him. Through blurry vision, Tessa saw Silvally's nearest cheek bolt shoot out bright-yellow sparks, then explode in a burst of fiery metal shards.

Though her muscles burned, Tessa forced herself to her feet. "Silvally! Oh gods…" She whirled around. "Shane! Cresselia! We need some help over here!" she shouted.

Cresselia recognized the problem right away. But while she gathered energy for a Heal Pulse, a red ripple raced across the altar. Tessa's body momentarily seized up, before her scarf sparkled with ethereal light and she regained control of her limbs. She looked ahead, only to find that Milotic and the Expedition Society members had been slowed to a complete crawl. Tessa noticed they were surrounded by a dome of red, glitchy energy. Silvally had dropped to the ground. Silver wisps trickled out from the remnants of his right cheek bolt.

Tessa whirled on Zero, an Aura Sphere at the ready, but a gigantic bolt of lightning struck her directly on the chest spike. It served as a conduit, jolting her from head to toe. Fur smoldering, Tessa collapsed, writhing about while her limbs twitched unresponsively.

"Tessa! Silv!" Espy cried, eyes watering. She looked to Shane, but then Articuno swooped toward the two of them, crystalline talons outstretched. "Gah!" Espy fired a desperate pink blast, but it went wide. Next thing she knew, gale-force winds had hefted her into the air and knocked her into something fluffy, yet metallic.

"Oof! What are you doing? Get off of me! We're easy pickings stuck like this," Shane grunted, bucking Espy off his back.

"I have had _enough_ of this ludicrous nonsense. I've come too far to fall to some trite, _pathetic_ cavalry," Zero snarled, her cube barrier felled by Silvally's Ancient Power barrage. She threw a Bone Rush scythe toward the trapped Expedition Society members. Like a buzz saw to wood, the scythe tore through a chunk of the altar. Chains burst forth from the ground like plumes of fire from an erupting volcano. They dove into the chunk of ground the scythe had cut and shoved it away from the rest of the altar.

Espy looked back and saw the chains carrying the platform — and Team Radiance's reinforcements — away. She tried to attack them with a Shadow Ball, but fierce, icy winds eviscerated the attack. Espy had just enough time to gasp before her world went black.

"Espy!" Shane cried, looking at his now-frozen teammate. Silvally and Tessa were still down, too. He had to get to them, but both Articuno and Zapdos blocked his path. He gnashed his teeth. "Why not just kill them if you feel that threatened by them?"

"Is your fur blocking your ears or are you one of those 'selective hearing' autistic kids my colleagues joked about? I told you _repeatedly_ that the only casualties I'm interested in are the gods," Zero scoffed. "Cresselia will be erased soon enough, but you all need to _stand down._ " She pointed to Silvally. "If you keep this up, I'm going to have my paws full trying to revive your living jigsaw puzzle of a friend."

Shane rolled right, barely escaping a Hurricane vortex whipped up by Articuno. Unfortunately for him, Zapdos had a Thunderbolt ready to blast him right in the chest. Shane struck Espy, shattering her icy prison, and rolled across the ground until he lay with half his tails dangling over the edge of the altar.

"Now, _fall!_ " Zero said, hurling another Bone Rush scythe toward him. It flew halfway across the altar before a Blizzard swallowed it up. The frozen scythe fell to the ground and shattered. Zero's aura dreadlocks tensed. She looked down and her eye smoldered with purple energy. "Of course you're back on your feet. You just won't give up, will you? All this… despite the fact that the gods are, essentially, responsible for your _brief_ existence and the constant pain associated with it."

Silvally stood next to Tessa. The shredded remains of his scarf fell to the floor as he jammed the team's final Reviver Seed into her mouth and whirled on Zero with a snarl. He spat a mouthful of black blood onto the ground. His remaining cheek bolt vibrated it its socket. "M… maybe… you're right," he wheezed. "There's been… a lot of pain… a lot of hurting…"

Tessa had regained consciousness. She saw Silvally standing over her protectively. His limbs trembled. Cracks ran through the blades on his head crest. They vented silver energy. It looked as if his metal beak was _rattling._ "S… Silvally?"

"Guys, look out!"

Espy managed to blast Zapdos from behind with a Shadow Ball, but it wasn't strong enough to stop him from trying to fry Silvally and Tessa. Silvally kicked a startled Tessa back with his hind legs and harmlessly absorbed all the electricity. He glanced back at Tessa.

"T… Tessa…" He coughed up another mouthful of black blood. His crest's top energy blade exploded. Silvally's legs buckled. He winced. "I… I'm okay. You… you guys… are going to be okay…"

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "You're _not_ okay! Look at yourself! You're… you're falling apart!"

Espy and Shane blew Articuno back toward Zero with the combined efforts of dual Psychic blasts. "Silv! Silv, what's wrong?" Espy cried. She made a mad dash for him, only for Zapdos to whirl on her. She screeched to a halt, but luckily for her an Ice Beam struck Zapdos right between the eyes. He fluttered back, kicking at the air with his legs.

"Imbeciles! Pull yourselves together!" Zero snarled. "Ancient Power! Use more Ancient Power!" Her paws were glitching and flickering so much they practically disappeared.

"E… Espy. I'm…" Silvally's trembling beak made it hard for him to get out a full sentence. "Guys…" He looked between Espy and Tessa. "Pro… promise me something, okay? Promise me… you'll look after each other… when this is all over…"

Espy's eyes widened. "What's that supposed to mean? This isn't the time for waxing poetic, Silv!" Tears brimmed in her eyes. "Let Shane heal you… quickly!"

"It won't… do any good…" Silvally coughed up more blood. It splattered at Espy's feet. "I c… can't… k… keep myself… together… much longer…"

"No…" Tessa threw her paws up on her muzzle.

"No!" Espy's shouts were louder than Tessa expected. "You can't say that! I… you… we had a promise, damn it!" Tears streamed down her cheeks. They dripped into the puddle of blood. "We said we'd tackle our problems together! The two of us! I can't… you can't…"

"I'm sorry." Silvally tried to force a weak grin. "But… Zero's got us… backed into a corner."

"Guys, we've got a problem!" Shane shouted. Golden light orbs surrounded him. With a shout, he fired a large rainbow beam toward Zero and her minions. She threw up a cube barrier, but it dissolved away in the face of Shane's attack. Zero crossed her arms to try and blunt as much of the attack as she could.

"I have… a way… to sever… her connection… to Dialga," Silvally continued. Cracks were now appearing in his beak. "It's an attack… I always knew I had… but I didn't want to use it… because I was too afraid… of what would happen."

"No! C'mon, Silv! Don't say that! We can still come up with something," Espy begged.

Silvally looked to the sky. The temporal storm had grown more violent over the course of the battle. "Espy… Tessa… please. Promise me you'll… look after each other. And Sh… Shane, too."

Shane leaped in front of his teammates, fending off ice and lightning from the birds with a blinding-white Dazzling Gleam. "Any time now, guys!"

Tessa glanced at Shane, then back at Silvally. "Let Shane heal you! We need you, Silvally. You're…" She looked down. "You were my first friend, remember? I thought… we were going to watch the sunset again… together."

"It looks like… that'll have to wait… until we're both in the spirit realm," Silvally wheezed. His last two remaining energy blades shattered. Two jets of silver energy took their place. Silvally's legs buckled. He looked like he was on the verge of collapsing. His eyes, tail, and cheek bolt glowed so bright, it hurt Tessa's eyes. She shakily reached a paw toward him, but Silvally turned away.

"Silv, wait!" Espy said. "Please! We… I… I…" She lowered her head. "I need you."

"You're both… going to be fine," Silvally said. "I believe in you. In all of you." He forced a smile. "Thank you… for making my days… so much brighter. It was an honor… and a pleasure… to be your friend."

With one final roar and ignoring Espy's sobbing protests, Silvally charged past Shane. Zero tried to sic Articuno and Zapdos on him, but Silvally sprinted underneath them. She hovered up higher, figuring she'd easily avoid him, but Silvally kept running. White, ethereal light shrouded him from head to toe. He lunged for Dialga's back… and the chains protruding from it.

"Wait, what the— _no! Stop!_ " Zero screamed. She raised her paws to attack, but there wasn't enough time.

Silvally used Explosion.

* * *

 **~Destiny Tower~**

Latias' world spun for a few seconds, then muddy ground rushed up to meet her. She landed in the thick of the muck with an audible _splat._ Grime layered her feathers. It took her a few moments to recover from the shock. When she did, she rose into the air and spat out a mouthful of mud.

"Augh! Hey! Watch it!" Mew said, throwing his tiny hands over his face. Latias blinked muck out of her eyes and realized she'd inadvertently sprayed Mew.

"Oh, uh. Sorry about that," she said, trying to clean herself off with her ESP. It wasn't going well.

"What the hell?" Haxorus was up to her waist in mud. She managed to grab hold of a clump of grass and pull herself out. Haxorus glared at Mewtwo. "You mind explaining what this is all about? I've got half a mind to pound your face into the dirt for your dumbass stunt!"

Latias looked to Mewtwo. He stumbled out of the mud and dropped to his hands and knees. His tail lashed at the air. His eyes darted about. It was then that Latias realized Mewtwo had teleported the group in front of a large, cylindrical tower. Or, at least, that's what she assumed it was supposed to be, because huge stone chunks floated in midair above the group. Large black chains gathered high above their heads, swirling around like ingredients in an ethereal stew.

"Th… this is Destiny Tower!" Rayquaza declared, coiling his serpentine form around to clean as much mud off his scales as possible. "Why did you bring us here, you buffoon? Are you trying to upset—"

Mewtwo craned his neck up and shouted, "Arceus!" He staggered to his feet, swaying uneasily from side to side. For a moment, it looked like he'd fall right back into the mud, but Mew rushed behind him. He shoved against Mewtwo's head.

"T-Two-y, what's wrong? You're scaring me."

Feraligatr finished cleansing himself off with short bursts of water and rubbed his head. "Cripes. Of all the times to have a nervous breakdown… why now? And why wrap us up in it? We've got a planet to save!"

"Maybe he knows about what's going on up there?" Infernape pointed a finger skyward. "I don't like the look of that."

"Could it be another one of Zero's vortexes?" Raichu wondered.

"No. Those are ley line chains. I'm sure of it," Lugia said.

Rayquaza hovered higher into the air. "They're being manipulated." He snaked back down toward the others. "Lord Arceus is clearly preparing something to put a stop to all of this trite. Let's leave him alone and—"

Mewtwo raised a trembling arm and unleashed a beam of pink, searing energy. It flew straight up toward the vortex and exploded.

"You _imbecile!_ " Rayquaza snarled, ready to strangle Mewtwo with his tail. "Cease this insolence at on—"

"Stop hiding, Arceus! You… you _liar!_ " Mewtwo shouted. "I know what you did! I know everything!"

"Please stop, Two-y! I don't like it when you shout like that," Mew wrapped his arms around the tube on Mewtwo's neck. Mewtwo wheeled around, looking ready to smack Mew. Mew drifted back, eyes watering. Latias could see the fury blazing in Mewtwo's eyes clear as day. Arceus… a liar? She hadn't interacted much with the top immortal, but if there was anything Rayquaza had made clear to her, it was to never cross Arceus.

Mewtwo dropped to his knees again, breathing heavily. Rayquaza was inches away from grabbing Mewtwo with his tail when some of the floating rubble fell from the sky. Lugia blasted the rubble apart with well-placed bursts of Psychic. "I don't like the look of this. I'm going up to investigate," he said.

Latias nodded. If Lugia was going, so was she. It seemed the three exploration teams shared similar sentiments, as they moved to board Latias and Lugia. By the time Rayquaza found his voice, they were already airborne, Mew having turned into a Dragonite to carry Mewtwo up after the others. Eyes twitching, Rayquaza brought up the rear.

The tower's roof came into view, showing Arceus standing in the center. He held a forehoof up, a strange white rune surrounding it. Latias gasped as a portion of the roof caved in and disassembled into black chains that joined the others swirling overhead. Her feathers bristled. The lavender glow inside the chains was _eerily_ familiar.

"What the heck is going on here? _That's_ what Arceus really looks like? Where are the thousand arms I read about?" Haxorus said, gaze shifting between Arceus and his handiwork. "And what's he doing anyway.

Lugia blinked slowly. "He's… he's…"

"He's making a portal," Latias said, brow furrowing.

"A portal? Why? To get to Temporal Tower?" Feraligatr cocked his head to the side. "Couldn't he just teleport himself there. He's our creator, isn't he?"

"No. He's not looking to help. He's looking to _flee._ "

Everyone's heads snapped in Mewtwo's direction. Blood vessels bulged out of his muddy forehead. His tail repeatedly jabbed Mew's scaly Dragonite belly. "H-Hey, c-cut that out! It kinda tick… les," Mew squeaked, antennae twitching.

"Blasphemy!" Rayquaza said, volume loud enough to snap Arceus out of whatever trance he was in. He turned and stared at the group, eyes wide. For a moment, the sigil around his forehoof flickered. Arceus looked down and muttered something under his breath. The rune stabilized. Arceus locked eyes with Rayquaza. For the first time in Latias' life, she witnessed a blank expression on Rayquaza's face.

"F-Forgive me, sir. I wasn't trying to interrupt your… um…" His voice trailed off. He looked up at what was presumably an attempt at making a portal.

Mewtwo pushed himself free of Mew's grip and glided onto the roof, where he stumbled to a stop. "Y… you…" He doubled over, shoulders drooping and arms swaying side to side. "You took them. My memories… the old world…" He clenched his fists. "Where are they? _What did you do them?!_ "

At the mention of "old world," Arceus tensed. It was momentary, but enough for Latias to realize Mewtwo may have struck something important. She couldn't move around too much due to carrying Team Go-Getters on her back, but she at least managed to say, "What's all this about?" She fixed her gaze on Arceus. "Is he… did you tamper with Mewtwo's memories?"

"He did," Mewtwo accused, grabbing his head with his right hand. "Erased them. All my memories of the old world… _gone!_ "

"I… have no idea what you're talking about," Arceus said.

"Your voice is trembling," Latias whispered, frowning.

"You serious? It sounded just find to me," Swampert said. "Then again, we _did_ get wrapped up in a bunch of explosions, so…"

"Absurd!" Rayquaza cut in front of Latias. "Don't go flinging around baseless claims without some sort of proof."

"I'm an empath." Latias floated closer to Mewtwo, giving Rayquaza the stink eye as she passed him. "You, supposedly, _created_ my ancestor to be like that," she said, addressing Arceus.

Arceus turned away from them. "I'm busy. We're not having this discussion."

"Busy trying to _ditch_ _us!_ Just like the other times our world's been in danger," Mewtwo said, trying to stand tall but loosing his footing and stumbling. "The meteor. Temporal Tower's instability. The Bittercold. Dark Mater." Mewtwo's eyes crackled with blue energy. "Every time… you've tried to flee… and leave us to our fate!"

"That is absurd," Arceus dismissed.

"But then why were the gods always so hesitant to take action?" Blaziken asked. "We had to _beat_ sense into Rayquaza to get him to destroy that meteor."

Rayquaza tensed up. "Th… that was a folly."

"And you waited until the Tree of Life had gotten _ripped_ out of the ground before you _finally_ stepped in," Latias added. She was by Mewtwo's side. Something had clicked in her head. She had never understood why Delphox and Meganium told her Arceus acted at the last second… and _only_ the last second. Now, it was starting to make sense. "Why would you do this? Why would you try to abandon us?"

"Because he doesn't care about us. He's _lied_ to the gods— no, to the _whole world!_ " Mewtwo said. "I saw it… from the ley lines. This world… the ground we tread on… you didn't create it."

Arceus stiffened. Even with no mouth, Latias could tell he was unnerved. That _had_ to mean Mewtwo was on the right track. She glanced at him. Had he learned of this because of what the Prism Virus did to him? It was the only explanation that made sense to her.

"There was once… a world where humans and Pokémon — fewer species than we have today — lived together," Mewtwo continued. "I can't remember what that world was like because you took those memories from me. But I _do_ know that you destroyed that world! Crushed it under the weight of your full-powered Judgment! Then you _hastily_ tried to patch things up, but every action you took created new problems you didn't know how to fix!

"Problem on top of problem on top of problem… they kept piling up! But rather than admit to what you did, you kept _lying_ and hoping the gods that spawned from your messes could solve your problems for you!" Mewtwo said. Mud and saliva dribbled down his neck. Bulging veins throbbed on his forehead. "Everything that's happening here… it's the end result of _eons_ of poor decisions!"

Dead silence followed. Lugia touched down on the roof, too stunned to maintain his flight. Latias fidgeted with her claws. "That… but that…" She gulped. "If that's true, then what does that make us?"

"It makes you all mistakes in his eyes," Mewtwo said, pointing at Arceus once again. "Walking, talking reminders of everything he's done wrong." He bowed his head. "That's why he doesn't care about our world. That's why every time there's danger that threatens him, he tries to abandon us. Because he'd rather hide than admit the truth!"

Everyone turned to Arceus, expecting a response. The rune around Arceus' forehoof disappeared. He slammed it against the roof. "What do you want from me?" he rasped. "I didn't know what I was doing. I was _attacked._ I only wanted to make the pain stop. The void…" Arceus' face twisted into a grimace. "It was destroying my arms!" He glared at the group. "None of you can possibly understand. I had only existed for a matter of _seconds_ when it attacked me! I was terrified. I wanted it to go away!"

Latias' feathers stood on end. She expected someone to say something, but everyone stayed quiet. Even Rayquaza was at a loss for words. He looked as if someone had broadsided him across the head. Latias bit her lip. "What attacked you?"

Psychic energy flared up in Arceus' eyes. He projected an image above everyone's heads. Latias sucked in a breath and squeezed her paws together. "Th… this is…" She stared into a black heart, with horns protruding from its apex and a single, reptilian eye staring back at her. To say nothing of the black ruff around its neck, giant torso, long tail of heart-shaped crystals, and wings with hexagonal feathers.

"I don't know _what_ it is. Only that it had no spirit. It was empty. Mindless. A _void._ And it tried to destroy me." Arceus wiped the projection away. "I fought to survive. Like any mortal would when faced with danger. It was only when the demon ran off that I saw what I had inadvertently done." Arceus turned to the side, shaking his head. "I panicked. I didn't know what to think. I could _barely_ think for myself. I just… _acted._

"But I didn't _truly_ fend off the void. Parts of its body wound up inside the core of the planet when I stitched it back together. By the time I realize what had happened…" Arceus lowered his head. "It was too late. Those fragments had _infested_ the planet's core, forming what you know as the Voidlands. They generated ley lines that kept trying to tear the planet apart. I _had_ to lie. I couldn't let the other gods figure out they were _accidents._ They wouldn't keep the ley lines in check if they did!"

Latias floated closer to Arceus. "Is… is what Mewtwo said right? Do you really see us as nothing but mistakes?"

He didn't respond. Latias narrowed her eyes. "D… Don't dodge the question! Do you really see us as nothing but mistakes?"

Arceus shuddered. "Of course you're all mistakes. I didn't want to die. I _don't_ want to die." He tensed up. "I did… what I had to do… to stay alive."

It happened in the blink of an eye. Latias flew up to Arceus… and _smacked_ his cheek. It wasn't a hard blow. His head didn't even budge. But everyone heard the sound. Eyes widened. Rayquaza's bulged out of his head. Even Mewtwo tilted his head.

"L-Latias," Lugia said, hopping toward her. He couldn't get a read on Arceus' expression. "Look, I'm glad you're finally sticking up for yourself, but don't you think you're pushing things a bit too far?"

Latias took a deep breath. She didn't flinch from Arceus' gaze despite his superior stature. "How dare you," she whispered. "How dare you try to trivialize all of our struggles." Latias balled her paws into fists. "Even if tragedy shrouds the way our world came to be, that doesn't give you the right to dismiss it— to dismiss _us._ We've all had our own struggles and triumphs. And I… I won't just let you toss those aside and leave this world to be destroyed!"

"It's useless," Arceus said. "Even if we stop the current predicament, ley lines still fester within the planet. It will only be a matter of time before the void's power creates _another_ crisis."

"Then we'll work _together_ to find a solution that breaks this vicious cycle." Lugia spread his wings defiantly.

"Ha! I've _tried._ The ley lines are too deeply embedded within the planet. Without them, the world will crumble!" Arceus retorted. "Short of finding a new world, there's nothing you can do but sit and wait!"

Mewtwo finally managed to stand up straight. "Regardless of how truthful that is, you don't get to walk away from this." He looked at the sky. Beyond the chains still floating overhead, intense bursts of red and black energy rippled through the air. "We've sat on the sidelines for too long. Even against Dark Matter. Not this time. We have to take action." He pointed at Arceus. "And that means that, for once, you _need_ to get involved. Understand?"

After a brief silence, Arceus' shoulders sagged. "Very well."

Mewtwo turned to Latias. "This is an empty gesture at this point, but I apologize for my past hostilities toward you. We should've cooperated with your group from the beginning."

He turned and glared at Rayquaza, who crossed his tiny arms. "Bah, fine. Same here."

"Great. Go team and all that jazz," Haxorus said, tracing a digit in a circle next to her head. "But, uh, there's a _teeny_ problem." She darted forward and hefted a gasping Mewtwo off the ground. Throttling him, she shouted, "You teleported us away from the place where the bad guy is, you _ass!_ "

"Temporal Tower is all the way in the south," Infernape said, arms crossed. "It would take hours to reach it."

"No, it won't." Rayquaza slithered into the middle of the group. "Did you forget who you have in your company? I control the wind itself!"

"Uh, but the planet's paralyzed. There's no wind to control," Mew pointed out.

In response, Rayquaza rose into the air. An orange shimmer rippled down his body, producing Mega Rayquaza for the whole group to see. Immediately, strong currents brushed against Latias' feathers. "You were saying?" Rayquaza chuckled, his golden ribbons fluttering behind him. "Everyone find a seat on Lugia or Lord Arceus. As long as someone can direct me, I'll get us back to where we were."

* * *

 **~Prism Tower~**

A huge geyser of silver energy swallowed up Dialga, Zero, and the birds she'd summoned. Distorted wails and the sounds of splintering crystals rang out across the altar. Tessa finally found her voice and belted out a loud, "No!" She was on her paws and knees, staring at the sight in shock.

Shane stumbled back, blinking rapidly to clear the stars from his vision. "I… I, uh… what just happened?" he said.

"No! No, no, _no, no, no!_ " Espy bawled her eyes out, slamming a foreleg against the ground repeatedly. "He's gone! He's _gone!_ I… I didn't…"

"But that was Explosion or Self-Destruct, wasn't it?" Shane said. "Pokémon bounce back from that all the time!"

However, as the dust settled from the blast, it became clear that this was not like the times Shane had seen the attack used in his video games or in any Pokémon episodes he'd watched. Zero lay on her side, her whole body shaking and flickering in and out of existence. There was no sign of Dialga… or Silvally. The Time Gears were the only things left on the smaller altar.

Shane stepped back from his teammates, lowering his head. All he could manage was a single "Oh."

Tessa lowered her head, arms and aura feelers trembling.

He was gone.

Silvally was her first friend at the guild. The one who had calmed her down after Mellath Bog. The one who helped Shane turn around and become someone she could view as a friend and close confidant. And the Pokémon who had tried his hardest to make sure she and Shane could find happiness.

One attack was all it took. Why had Golem given that attack to Silvally? In case he really couldn't be controlled? But then… why did Silvally need the mask in the first place? Was it because all of his memories had activated at once?

She glanced at Espy, who was still a sobbing wreck. Tessa wanted to hurl. This wasn't how things were supposed to end. She looked toward her mother, only to see the Time Gears rising into the air. Tessa's mind was too numb from what she had just seen to care. She stared blankly, watching the Time Gears vibrate. Then, in a surge of multicolored light, they shot up into the temporal vortex.

A muffled blast sounded above Team Radiance. Tessa was the only one who looked up. A shockwave rippled through the air, erasing the temporal storm in a swirl of red and purple mist. All that was left behind was the darkened sky of a paralyzed planet, no doubt the result of the fact that Temporal Tower was still, technically, in shambles. Each individual Time Gear fell back onto the altar with a loud _clang._

It was those noises that roused Zero from her stupor. Though static ripples still ran down her body, she managed to stagger to her feet. However, one look at the sky made the ripples flare in intensity. "No… _no!_ " She whirled on Team Radiance, rainbow light streaming from the left side of her mask. "You _imbeciles!_ You've ruined _everything!_ All of that work… collecting the Time Gears… controlling Dialga… dealing with Necrozma…"

She summoned a Bone Rush scythe. "It was all for _nothing!_ "

Before Tessa could even react, her mother stood in front of her. A swipe of the scythe sent Tessa skyrocketing, reeling in pain. Espy screamed as Zero unleashed a flurry of slashes, slicing through her fur and hide. She tumbled to the side of the altar, a bruised, bloody, whimpering wreck.

Tessa tried to compose herself as she careened toward the ground. But her paws shook too much to form up an attack. Instead a red Aura Sphere struck her chest and blasted her higher in the air. Tessa could feel her energy faltering fast.

On the ground, Zero was hurtling her scythe at Shane like a boomerang. "I can still salvage this! I'll take control of Xerneas and use her powers to recover Dialga's spirit. But you… you will all _perish_ for your transgressions!"

The scythe grazed Shane's side. He staggered toward Espy, hissing in pain. Zero leaped into the air, caught her scythe, then slammed into the ground. A red cube shockwave raced out all around her. By the time Shane had his bearings straight, he could only fling a golden energy ball forward to try and create an opening. The cubes did indeed fizzle away, but more rose up to take their places. The shockwave knocked Espy and Shane off the tower.

"Shane! Esp—"

Tessa's cries were interrupted when she hit the ground with a heavy _thud._ Pain jolted down her spine. Her skeleton rattled inside her frame. Yet, despite how badly she hurt, she refused to buckle. A familiar fire bubbled in her stomach. It was the exact same reaction she had to Dragonite hurting Silvally.

Though it strained her muscles, she forced herself to lock eyes with Zero. Her limbs quivered. Her throat constructed. Tessa wanted to scream. To blare out her raw, _seething_ hatred for her mother to the heavens. But she couldn't find her voice. She was in shock.

Tessa had found friends. People she trusted. People she could talk to. She had shared her deepest secrets with Shane and Silvally. Poured her heart out to them. Especially when she was with Shane following their dungeon treks in Cosmic Cavern and Sunset Shoals. She had gotten her brother back. Tessa _finally_ felt like there was a path to happiness.

But now… that was gone. It had been taken away from her. And the person responsible was the same one who had belittled her. Talked down to her. Trampled what little self-esteem she had following Incineroar's death. The one who had even called her a mistake to her face.

It was Zero. All of it was her fault. She had ruined Tessa's life. She had made Tessa miserable.

Tessa's breathing grew sharper. Fiercer. _Angrier._ Were she a fire-type, she would've snorted out tufts of smoke. Instead, rainbow lines flickered on her arms and legs. Her aura feelers vibrated. The sigil on her paw flashed. Shadow fire swirled around her paws, her feet, and her eyes. Without thinking, Tessa reached a trembling paw toward her scarf and yanked it off her neck. She didn't even notice her looplet shaking against her arm.

But Zero did. With a raise of her paw, chains shot out from the ground and wrapped themselves around Tessa's arms and legs. Tessa snarled. She tried to move her limbs, but the chains had her completely wrapped up.

"I told you…" Static raced down Zero's raised paw. "I told you that I didn't intend to erase you or your friends. But you wouldn't listen! You stupid, _disgraceful_ runt. I was this close… _this close_ to fixing everything!" She stomped a leg down. "Now, it's all gone! I have to start over from scratch!"

"You took… my friends… from me," Tessa whispered, her head drooping. The black star on her chest flashed with light. Zero narrowed her eye.

"You did this to yourself, you irresponsible brat!" Zero made more chains coil around Tessa's body. She heaved against them, snarling.

"They cared about me," Tessa continued. "But you… you treated me like dirt unless Dad was around!"

"Of course I did! You were an _accident!_ I didn't want your egg. I wanted a nice, _quiet_ life with Incineroar until I could find a way back to my _real_ family!" Zero snarled. "How do you think I feel, huh? I've been stuck in this world… in this _godforsaken_ body… for _a quarter of a god-damn century!_ " Cubes flickered around her. "All the while, my family has been stuck wondering what happened to me. They _need_ me. This world doesn't _deserve_ someone like me!

"I finally had the chance to undo all of this and who do I find standing against me? You! The biggest mistake of my _accursed_ life as a Lucario!" she continued. "A sniveling brat of a girl who always had to coddle up to someone because she didn't have the _guts_ to do anything for herself. My _real_ daughter is _nothing_ like you! She has ambitions! She has a bright future! But you… you've been a failure since the day you hatched!"

That tore it. Something inside Tessa finally snapped. And whatever fragment of her mind broke led to a storm of energy flooding her body. A fire raged through her core, spreading down to her arms and legs. Orange light poked through the gaps in Zero's chains. Her eye widened.

"What the—"

Tessa screamed. No, she _roared._ All her fury. All of her hatred — toward herself, her mother, the loss of Incineroar, and Necrozma — came pouring out. Light streamed out from her eyes and open mouth. Her voice grew steadily more distorted.

Then, Zero's chains lurched. Tessa rose into the air, ripping the ley lines out of the ground. Zero's eye widened. She pointed her paws forward, but to her shock, nothing happened. All she could feel was the aura she typically harnessed as a Lucario. There were no chains. No connections to the ley lines comprising the foundation of the tower she built.

The ground rumbled. Zero tensed up. She looked at Tessa and all the chains swirling around her. Tessa's aura feelers extended. Rainbow lines burst through her fur. Her tail expanded into a swathe of tan fur that wrapped around her waist. Then a wave of white light spread across the altar. Zero threw a paw up, only to realize the right side of her face was burning. She put a paw to her helmet. It was _rattling._ All the while, more light waves spread out from Tessa.

Red. Orange. Yellow. Green. Blue. Indigo. Violet.

"This… this is…" Zero pressed a paw against her mask. It was then that she saw a familiar ice Ninetales standing at the edge of the altar, with an unconscious Espy laying by his side. Shadows swirled around his paws. Rainbow light shimmered in his eyes.

"I think it's time… you returned that borrowed power," Shane said, smirking.

"No. _No, that's impossible!_ " Zero shouted. "Tessa! Stop this… right now!"

A silhouette of Necrozma's star sigil flashed in front of Tessa. Then, Tessa's body absorbed the ley line chains around her in a pillar of white light. When she landed on the ground, she had a rainbow aura surrounded her. Her eyes were empty. The star around her chest spike glowed, as did the lines running down her arms and legs. Her aura dreadlocks lashed out at the air.

Completely oblivious to the reappearance of her teammates, Tessa's paw spikes turned to rainbow Metal Claws. With a furious yell, she charged Zero down. Zero got her wits about her and raised her own Metal Claws in defense. A furious _clang_ echoed through the heavens. Tessa pressed her arms against Zero, face twisted up in range. Zero's eye quivered in its socket. She tried to draw on the energy from Necrozma's core, but it was as if something had strained the connection. Her helmet rattled even more.

"You… **you…** _ **you!**_ **"** With a twist of her wrists, Tessa forced Zero to the side. Multicolored flames surrounded her paws. Tessa turned and thrust her paws at Zero. She ducked and swiped at Tessa with her Metal Claws. Tessa met the blow with another Force Palm. Zero's Metal Claws shattered. She staggered backward.

"Yeah! You get her, Tessa! Show her who's boss!" Shane cheered. He had a forepaw raised. A circular rune surrounded int, with a familiar winged-heart sigil in the middle.

"Tessa, _stop!_ Do you have any idea what you're—"

 **"I'm** _ **through**_ **listening to you!"** Tessa snarled. She ducked a desperate swipe from Zero's remaining Metal Caws and hammered both paws against her chest spike. It splintered and broke apart. Zero tumbled back, managing to right herself and skid to a halt.

"Fine." Zero rubbed her trembling mask. "You have no one to blame but yourself for this!" She cupped her paws together. Glitchy energy surrounded them. However, when Zero looked around, expecting to see her usual array of red cubes, all she found was wisps of red, staticky energy. Her eye widened at the sight of an oncoming, multicolored Aura Sphere. She fired off one of her own, creating an explosion.

Zero shot into the air. Tessa's aura dreadlocks tensed. She followed her mother's trajectory and leaped up after her, aura gathering in her paws. **"Get back here!"** she bellowed. Zero fired an Aura Sphere straight down, but pink rings snuffed it out. Tessa grabbed Zero by the leg and threw her back down to the ground. She tossed an Aura Sphere after her, only to see it snuffed out by a lucky black beam Zero fired at the last second.

Tessa screamed again. More light streamed out of her eyes and mouth. Nothing mattered to her anymore except taking Zero down. She landed and closed the distance in a snap with her Extreme Speed. Zero tried to sweep Tessa off her feet with a spinning kick. Tessa's right paw hit the ground first. With a burst of pink energy, she somersaulted back to her feet and slung a rainbow Aura Sphere at her mother.

"Give in!" Zero barked, stopping the Aura Sphere in its place with Psychic waves and forcing it back toward Tessa. It didn't get far before a bright-white beam snuffed it out. Zero turned right and glared at Shane, but he merely smirked back at her, rainbow eyes shimmering.

Tessa saw an opening and again closed the gap with her mother. Zero desperately swiped at her with her remaining Metal Claws. Tessa caught them between her own paws. **"No more!"** Tessa growled. Her paws flickered. Zero's Metal Claws shattered. Tessa grabbed her mother by her outstretched paw and _slammed_ her into the ground.

The wind rushed out of Zero. She tried to form up an Aura Sphere, but Tessa hefted her up again, shouting, **"This is for calling me worthless!"**

Zero hit the ground, gasping for air. Tessa tightened her grip and proceeded to twirl around, repeatedly lifting Zero up and smashing her against the floor. Between each blow came another yell.

 **"This is for Silvally! This is for Shane! This is for Gallian!"**

"T… Tess… _agh!_ " Zero concentrated on Necrozma's core, but it did her no good. Her connection was severed. Through blurry vision, she could see Shane smiling at the sight. He cheered Tessa on, all the while holding the runes around his forepaw stable.

 **"And this is for calling me a failure!"** Tessa slammed Zero down one last time. Cracks spread through her prism armor, right down to her mask. Zero screamed. **"I am** _ **not**_ **a failure!"** She pointed both paws down.

Zero barely managed to escape a point-blank Aura Sphere. She shot herself across the ground with a burst of Psychic. Zero staggered to her feet. "Do you have any idea what you're doing? You're going to doom us all! Your friend… he's—"

 **"Gone! And it's all your fault!"** Tessa shouted. Her mouth stayed wide open, while blue, sparkling energy swirled around her. Zero's eye widened as she stared down the barrel of a dragon-shaped energy beam, mouth opened wide to swallow her up.

"You imbecile!" Zero shot an Aura Sphere through the Dragon Pulse, then shot toward Tessa with a burst of Extreme Speed.

Tessa refused to cede ground and allow for a counterattack. She thrust dual Force Palms forward. Zero met them with palm strikes of her own. The two locked paws, trying to surge energy through their arms and drive the other back. The altar floor cracked beneath them. They sank down to their knees.

"I… can't… this is for my family!" Zero growled. But one look at her arms showed they were distorting before her eyes. More cracks splintered through her armor. Black vapors leaked out of the cracks.

 **"I** _ **was**_ **family!"** Tessa fired back. **"But now… you're as good as dead to me!"** She opened her mouth wide. Zero saw the dragon energy swirling inches from her muzzle. She tried to pull away, but Tessa had an iron grip on her paws.

Tessa spat up the beam of dragon energy. Zero's mask shattered, tearing gashes through her already-mangled face. Necrozma's core became visible plain as day in her right eye socket. Zero stumbled back in a daze.

"You're making a mistake. Please… stop this…"

 **"I will** _ **never**_ **forgive you!"** Tessa cried, then pressed a rainbow Aura Sphere against Zero's chest. A brilliant explosion destroyed the rest of Zero's armor, leaving her scarred, furless body visible for Shane and Tessa to see. Zero hurtled through the air for a few feet, until a wall of ice rose out of the ground and trapped her midair.

Tessa staggered forward, right paw raised. She made it two steps when she fell to her knees. Every muscle in her body was on fire. It felt like her skeleton was going to burst out from her flesh. Tessa's paws dropped to her side. The wealth of energy she'd called on had completely evaporated. Now, she could barely catch her breath. Black, shadowy vapors trailed off her body as she shrank back to her base form. Tessa looked ahead blankly.

She was so close. _So close_ to finishing the fight. Why did this have to happen now?

"Excellent. Simply excellent."

Tessa recognized that voice. It was Shane's. He was… all right? She could've sworn he had fallen off the tower. She wanted to look at him, but her neck wouldn't respond. Tessa heard a series of metallic clanks, though. And soon, Shane walked into view, but something was very wrong. With each step he took, his blue-white fur faded, replaced by a mixture of gray metal and black, jagged pieces of prism armor.

"This is _far_ from how I had intended things to play out, but I cannot deny that this result has… _some_ level of satisfaction to it. Heeheeheehee!"

It was Shane's voice speaking. Tessa wanted to open her mouth and say something, but she was locked in place. She watched helplessly as her teammate's body expanded. Solgaleo's bulky frame tore through Shane's fur. Bits and pieces of Necrozma clung to his body, like when Necrozma was controlling Lunala. Black, metallic arms protruded from his back.

Tessa had thought there was something off with Shane's aura when he reappeared, but it wasn't the Dawn Hourglass after all. It was Necrozma. And here she was, in so much pain that she couldn't even move.

"N… Necky. You… that's impossible…" Zero struggled against her icy restraints.

 **"You underestimated the power of the void."**

Though it was distorted, it was still Shane's voice. Tessa was sure of it. Was this a trick? Was Necrozma doing this as some sort of cruel joke? To twist the metaphorical knife he'd just jabbed into Tessa's gut?

 **"That core fragment you thought was inside Lunala? It turns out… I had it all along. Necrozma passed it to me… because we're both one and the same,"** Shane said, glancing at Tessa. A smile crossed his face. But it wasn't a pleasant one. It made her fur stand on end. **"He just didn't realize it when we last met… because the Guiding Light's remnants were still controlling his actions."**

Shane approached Zero. His tail, topped with a metal trident, swung excitedly from side to side. Zero renewed her struggle. "Please don't do this. I have a family. They _need_ me!" Necrozma's core trembled in her eye socket. "I… I'll do anything you want! Just name it and—"

All Tessa heard was Zero's screams. Shane turned around and allowed Tessa one last look at her mother before she dissolved into a black mist. Shane raised one of his arms and the rainbow, triangular prism he'd plucked from Zero's skull floated over to his head.

 **"Heeheeheehee!** _ **Finally!**_ **At long last… the full core is** _ **mine!**_ **"** Shane licked his lips. The third eye on his forehead flickered. **"But so much light has been lost. No matter. With Xerneas' power… that will be a simple fix."**

Necrozma's core hovered into the air. Tessa stared at it, eyes wide. Her muscles still burned. Yet somehow, she was able to croak out, "I don't… understand."

Shane turned to her. **"It's quite simple,** _ **partner.**_ **That human — the one you poured your heart and soul out to — he never made it safely through Ultra Space."** His third eye narrowed at Tessa. **"This entire time, you thought you had a human on your side. When, in reality, you were dealing with Dark Matter!"**

Tessa's head pounded. She refused to believe that. It couldn't be true. Not after everything that had happened since her hatch day. Her bonds with Shane were genuine. _He_ was genuine. She was sure of it. This was some sort of trick. Tessa had to do _something_ to stop this. If only she could move. Gods, why did everything hurt so much?

 **"Dark Matter… Necrozma… two parts of a greater whole: the void! The power slumbering within the planet's core, until negativity and Golem's experiments scattered its essence around,"** Shane continued. **"Why do you think Silvally reacted so strongly to my presence? Sure, he thought I was a beast. But the truth is he sensed the same power he had flowing through his body! The power of the void!"**

"You're… lying!" Tessa wheezed. "Shane… the real Shane… is nothing like you!"

 **"Heeheeheehee!"** At last, Shane's voice shifted to a deeper tone. One Tessa remembered well from her last encounter with Necrozma. **"You never knew the real Shane. Only an elaborate copy! I found him wandering around on his own. I told him the truth, but he refused to believe me. He thought he could vanquish me using** _ **my**_ **hourglass. But I turned that power against him and took control of his body. And now that I have this,"** his third eye disappeared from his forehead, **"you'll never see your so-called partner again."**

Necrozma pressed the core against his forehead. It sank into the metal. Necrozma groaned in satisfaction. His arms wriggled and spasmed. His tail crinkled up. Eventually, a multicolored triangle appeared where Necrozma's third eye had been.

 **"What a shame that your mother wasted so much of my energy. If my core wasn't so depleted, I could take on my true form and** _ **finally**_ **send this world back to the void."** Necrozma shook his head. **"Alas, I'll need to take** _ **alternative**_ **measures."** He turned back to Tessa, grinning. **"Still, I must say… your help proved** _ **invaluable**_ **in all of this!"**

Hot tears stung at Tessa's eyes. After everything the team had been through, this was how it was going to end. Her friends were gone. She'd beaten her mother, but the _true_ monster had reemerged to steal her hard-fought victory away. Tessa tried to trigger some sort of movement in her limbs, but failed. Her vision grew blurry. She prayed she was stuck in some sort of twisted nightmare and she'd wake up, snuggled against Shane with Silvally watching over both of them protectively.

 **"Look at you. The roaring fire that was your aura has been reduced to a pitiful stream of embers."** Necrozma walked toward her, making _tsk_ noises with each step. **"It would be such a waste to see you fade away. Even though you took my light to evolve, I'm willing to look past it thanks to that display you put up against your mother."** Necrozma licked his lips. His core flashed blue.

 **"I don't think anyone, myself included, could've seen this coming. But, then again, Lucario were supposed to be extinct. Your mere existence is an anomaly,"** he continued, grin broadening.

Tessa's chest tightened. She could barely breathe. Lucario were supposed to be extinct? Is that why her mother was the only member of the species she'd ever known, despite how highly people spoke of them? Tessa wanted to hurl, but her throat was so constricted and she was so tired, she didn't even have the strength to maintain a sense of nausea.

 **"Dark Matter had wiped them** _ **all**_ **out… until Ultra Space turned your mother into one. Ironic, isn't it? The reason you had a defective aura sense as a Riolu is because your mother was** _ **never**_ **a natural Lucario."** Necrozma shrugged his shoulders. **"And so, you took** _ **my**_ **energy to make up the deficit. You** _ **flooded**_ **your spirit with Z-Power! That's why your big display was more than a simple Mega Evolution. My light was** _ **flowing**_ **through your veins! We could call it a Z-volution! No, wait, I have a better one: a Necrolution! Heeheeheehee!"**

"You… m-monster," Tessa rasped.

 **"Pot calling the kettle black much? Are you even aware of how much of a rampage you went on against your dear old mom?"** Necrozma crooned. His core shifted from blue to yellow. He pointed an arm at Tessa. **"I** _ **should**_ **drain every last drop of your spirit for your insolence. But, now that I have my full core back, I'm feeling** _ **generous.**_ **"**

He gave Tessa the closest to a warm smile he could muster. **"Now that you know your 'partner' was nothing but an extension of my core, how about you work with me? We will return each and every world to the void."** Necrozma swished his tail to the side. **"I'll even use Xerneas' powers to bring Silvally back… but I'll make him even** _ **better.**_ **More spirits. More Unown!"** He was practically dousing Tessa in spittle. **"Team Radiance can be together for** _ **eternity.**_ **What say you to that?"**

"I… will _never_ … sink to your level," Tessa seethed.

Necrozma rolled his eyes. **"Oh, brother. Fine. Let's get this over with."** Red and black energy crackled around his core. **"Time to give me back the light you took. Farewell!"**

Unable to brace herself, Tessa stared down Necrozma's red and black beam. Then, everything faded to black.

* * *

A mess of colors greeted Shane when opened his eyes. He was completely discombobulated. His ears rang and he couldn't feel his arms or his legs. All he could do was blink his eyes. Shane had no idea how long he kept blinking, but something eventually registered through the sea of colors.

A hard object was stuck in his throat. In fact, his throat _burned._ He tried to take a breath, but descended into a massive coughing fit. Yet whatever had blocked his throat interfered with said fit, sending shockwaves of pain through his chest.

He heard muffled shouts. Tan and yellow blurs swirled about on the edges of his vision. Slowly, the pressure in his throat faded. Whatever was blocking it had been removed. Shane coughed for several seconds. As he did, soft fabric brushed his torso. His vision slowly came into focus and he found himself looking at a pale arm.

A _human_ arm.

There was an IV line inserted into it. Shane looked left and saw a heart monitor, complete with a bunch of lines and numbers that he didn't entirely understand. He looked straight down and saw heavy casts over both of his legs. His _human_ legs.

His head began to pound. This didn't make any sense. He was supposed to be in the ruins of Temporal Tower, helping his teammates stop Zero. Shane had found Necrozma. He had spouted a long-winded rant about how his spirit was actually Dark Matter.

So, what was he doing in a hospital?

"Sir? Sir, can you hear me?!"

Shane turned to his right. A brown-haired nurse stood beside him. His vision hadn't returned enough for him to see the nurse's ID badge. He opened his mouth, but all that came out was a weak cough.

"Please, sir, try to relax. You're in the Intensive Care Unit at Upstate Medical Center," the nurse explained. "You were in a very serious accident last week."

Shane jerked in his bed. Last week? No, that couldn't be right. He'd been in the Pokémon world for at least a few months. But wait… didn't he have a vision about being in an accident? Hadn't Solgaleo and Necrozma caused that? None of this was making sense.

"Let me get your parents. Oh, and I have to tell your doctors that you've woken up," the nurse said.

No. This wasn't right. None of this was making sense. He tried to reach for the nurse's arm, but a spark of pain surged through his system. The wind rushed out of Shane. He jerked about in his hospital bed. The nurse's eyes widened. He turned and pressed a blue button on the wall.

"I need some help in here! My patient's seizing!" he shouted. The nurse turned to Shane. Before his vision went white, Shane got a good look at the nurse's ID badge and the name written on it…

 _Nicholas Eisenberg._

 **End of Episode 15**

* * *

 **Eraser of Deities, Zero  
** _A faller from a world of only humans, where Pokémon is nothing but a fictional concept. Though she eventually settled into a life with the Horizon Guild, she never forgot about everything she had lost. That longing turned into resentment, which she could no longer hold back after an accident led to her colliding with Necrozma's core. The corrupted Z-Power has kept her in a Mega Evolved state for months, eating away her spirit. Without the core to give her energy, Zero won't just pass away, her spirit will crumble and she will completely fade from existence._

* * *

This chapter's been a long time coming. Save for a few tweaks and changes, I've been planning this for about fourteen months. I know the battle itself is much more subdued than some of the other ones, but that's intentional. I wanted to focus more on the emotional aspect than the over-the-top stuff, hence the lack of humorous quips or one-liners. A lot of time went into making this happen, from Latias continuing her verbal backlash to Silvally's actions to Tessa finally snapping and going berserk to the ending with Necrozma and, yes, the final scene. Kudos to those of you who realized something was wrong with Shane. I intentionally kept the narration anchored to Tessa despite Shane's "return." And, before anyone asks, yes, I did have Broly— or, rather, Kale in mind for Tessa's transformation. Hence the rainbow lights Tessa projects before the Mega Evolution.

It's a relief to finally have this out. I've been fretting over it for such a long time. I really hope this was able to meet your expectations... and that you'll consider letting me know what you thought of this. It's hard to tell if there are silent readers here whose opinions I don't know.

SuperOmegaGuest: you, uh, want to revise that statement of yours? And I'm aware. Won't be happening again.

Anon Omega: you know now! I hope it was satisfying to read.

Next time: the final episode begins! And it should be up right around the fic's second anniversary, to boot!


	112. Darkest Before Dawn

Apologies for any reviews I haven't gotten to, yet. I'm very pressed for time at the moment and will get to them later! But for now, it's time for the final episode! Any and all comments would be greatly appreciated as we head toward the end.

 **Content Advisory:** chapter has one instance of potentially charged language.

* * *

Shane had no idea how long he was out for. One thing was clear when he woke up, though. He was still in the hospital bed. There wasn't any sort of tube in his throat anymore, thankfully. However, his mouth was so dry that he didn't risk opening it. Breathing normally was hard enough. He feared anything more would cause further harm.

All he could hear were the steady beeps of the heart monitor and the whirs of whatever machine was pumping fluids into his IV. He looked right and found the same nurse as before standing by his bed. This time, however, a blonde-haired woman in green surgical scrubs and a white coat stood beside the nurse. Shane saw the nurse's nametag and tensed up.

"Sir? Sir?" The doctor leaned over. Shane saw the words "Prisma Sinclair" stitched into her white coat. Why was that name familiar? "Please, Shane, you have to stay with me, here. I can't imagine how hard this must be for you."

It felt like someone was sitting on Shane's chest, yet there was nothing there but a bunch of bandages and medical gauze. What had happened? The nurse had mentioned something about an accident, didn't he?

But that wasn't right. He was an ice Ninetales… fighting with close friends against a heinous threat. He couldn't be back in the human world… could he?

Dr. Sinclair shined a pen light in Shane's right eye, then swiveled it to his left. "Pupils are equally responsive. That's good," she said, while the nurse scribbled something on a clipboard. "Shane, blink twice if you can understand what I'm saying."

Shane blinked twice. Sinclair smiled at him. "That's good. Do you think you can speak? If not, I want you to blink twice again, okay?" she said. Shane could barely take a breath without his chest hurting. Speech was beyond him. His gaze faltering, he blinked twice.

"Okay." Sinclair put her left hand against Shane's right hand. "Can you feel my hand right now? One blink for yes, two blinks for no." Shane glanced to his right, then blinked twice. "Very good. Now, I want you to squeeze my hand. If you're in a lot of pain, squeeze as hard you can."

Shane focused on his right hand, but struggled to move his fingers enough to wrap them around Sinclair's wrist. After pressing against the palm of her hand, he relaxed. His face twisted into a grimace. Shane still didn't understand why this was happening. The nametag. His life as a Ninetales. There was clearly something wrong. But he couldn't move. And he couldn't speak. So, what was he supposed to do?

"Nurse Eisenberg is going to add morphine to your IV. It should help with all the pain you're experiencing," Sinclair said, standing up and nodding at her nurse. "In the meantime, I'll tell your parents that it's safe for them to come in and see you."

His parents. Shane stared blankly at Dr. Sinclair as she walked out of the room. His mind was racing. He didn't even notice the nurse walk across the room, holding a bag filled with purple, bubbling fluid. It wasn't until the purple liquid streamed down his IV line and entered his arm that Shane realized something was wrong.

Shane's skin crawled, as if a bunch of invisible bugs were running up and down his arms and legs. He wanted to scratch his chest so badly, but he couldn't move. "Don't worry," the nurse said, walking to the foot of the bed. "This will make you feel better. **So much better."**

Shane tensed up. He recognized the distortion in the nurse's voice. Shane looked up at the nurse, only to find his face replaced by a large, purple, reptilian eye. It stared back at Shane, its pupillary slit expanding. Before Shane even had a chance to process this, however, a tearing pain gripped his chest. He looked down and had to watch in horror as red, thorny chains burst out from his bandages and dressings. They wriggled about. Then, one by one, they pointed at Shane's face.

He finally managed to get his mouth open, but the chains shot into his throat before he got the chance to scream.

* * *

 **Episode 16: The Light That Burns the Sky**

 **Chapter 95: Darkest Before Dawn**

* * *

 **~Prism Wastelands~**

Tessa was in shock. Her limbs finally responded. They were sore, sure, but the fact that she felt them at all was a huge surprise. Just moments ago, one of Necrozma's spirit-stealing energy beams was barreling toward her, with nothing she could do stop it. What had changed?

She looked up to see Latias hovering above her. Soft, pink energy flittered around Tessa. Slowly, she managed to get to her feet. As the pink light faded, Tessa realized Latias wasn't alone. Her jaw dropped.

She had seen them drawn in books before, so there was no mistaking it. Arceus and Mega Rayquaza hovered in front of her. Tessa even saw Mewtwo and Lugia standing off to the side, along with the various teams she had been separated from in the aftermath of the battle with Lycanroc. Lugia had his wings raised. He was levitating the platform Zero had sent the Expedition Society members away on back toward the altar.

Meanwhile, Arceus and Rayquaza had their eyes locked on the path leading to the smaller alter. Tessa looked at it blankly. Hadn't Necrozma just been standing there? What happened to him?

"Blast it! He slipped right out from under us with one of those _stupid_ wormholes," Rayquaza growled, lashing at the air with his tail. "How are we supposed to know where he went?"

"Um, yeah… about that…" Swampert rubbed the back of his head and pointed to his right. "There's a big ol' ominous-looking black bubble of doom floating way off in the distance over there." Everyone turned in the direction Swampert was pointing. Sure enough, a black sphere filled with rippling energy hung in the middle of the air, distorting everything around it.

"Wait a second…" Arceus' eyes narrowed. "That direction… Primeval Forest is in that direction! That's where the Tree of Life is!"

That's when the full realization of everything with Necrozma sank it for Tessa. Shane was gone. Silvally was gone. Necrozma had his core back. He had what was left of the Dawn Hourglass' power. His light was fueling her aura sense. And he not only claimed that Xerneas' control over spirits was under his command, but that Shane — her partner since the very beginning, despite all the hurdles — was, in fact, the underlying root of so many of the problems she had encountered in her travels.

Tessa's aura feelers scrunched up. With Latias having turned away to tend to Espy, Tessa took everyone by surprise when she dropped to her knees and belted out a loud, "No!" She raised a glowing paw and struck the ground. Cracks splintered in the crystal floor. Pain raced up to her shoulder, but she didn't care.

"H-Hey! What's wrong? Why the waterworks?" Feraligatr asked. It was then that Latias let out a startled squeak. She floated back toward Lugia, ears drooping as Espy's sobs rang out across the altar.

"No! It's not fair! He's gone! _Gone!_ " Espy brushed her head against her shoulder. "I… we were…" She shuddered. "Silv… why? Why did you have to go?"

"H-Hold the phone, here. Can someone explain to me exactly what's going on?" Ninetales said. "What happened to Shane and Silvally?" She looked around, only to freeze up upon seeing all the gods assembled before her. "We had come here… to help Team Radiance fight Zero. But she trapped us in some strange forcefield and used ley lines to send us away."

"It was Necrozma," Tessa said, her voice empty. Even though she was looking at the ground, she could feel everyone's eyes fall on her. Even Espy's. "He… he…" She rubbed her eyes with an arm. "He was possessing Shane… because Shane didn't have Solgaleo's spirit inside of him. He had Dark Matter's spirit!"

Horror flashed across Espy and Latias' faces. Mawile stiffened. Ampharos tilted his head to the side. The other teams exchanged concerned looks. Rayquaza coiled around so his arrow-like face hovered a few inches in front of Tessa's. "And you're really going to believe the words of a screeching lunatic?"

"You saw him here for yourself, didn't you?" Tessa snarled. Her eyes and right paw flickered with rainbow light. Rayquaza pulled his head back, eyes twitching.

"That light," he whispered, glancing at Arceus.

"Yes. It's Z-Power. From Necrozma. I used Z-Power to evolve and now his energy's _stuck_ inside of me." Tessa threw her paws up to her shoulders. "That's why I believe what he told me about Shane. And it doesn't stop there… Necrozma said that he had taken Xerneas' power for himself!"

Ninetales' tails shot up in alarm. "Th-That can't be!" She looked out toward the black void in the distance. "If he has Xerneas under his control then… then he could attack the spirit realm! There are thousands of spirits in there!" Her eyes widened and her legs shook. "And we never recovered most of the spirits Dark Matter dragged down into the Voidlands when it controlled the Tree of Life. If Necrozma can somehow drill down to the planet's core—"

"He'll be able to absorb the spirits of countless Pokémon… going all the way back to the earliest days of this world!" Mewtwo growled, tail lashing at the air. He whirled on Arceus and Rayquaza, eyes blazing with pink energy. "This is all your fault!" he snarled, pointing an accusatory finger at Arceus.

Arceus stepped back, face scrunched up. "What do you expect me to say?" he growled. Tessa gazed up at him in shock. She was looking at the _creator_ himself. And yet, he seemed as docile as a newly-hatch Litten. Why was he so shaken by all of this? Wasn't he monitoring this situation?

"That you had at least _considered_ the possibility something like this could happen!" Mewtwo clenched his fists. He nearly smacked a squeaking Mew with his tail.

"T-Two-y… please stop. I don't like it when you yell," Mew whimpered.

"You _knew_ he was Xerneas' mate! You can't float there and tell me you didn't think Necrozma might try to go for Xerneas, knowing the history they had! You were the one who gave the orders to keep them apart!" Mewtwo continued.

Rayquaza looked as though someone had blasted him in the face with an Ice Beam. "What are you talking about? Immortal gods can't take mates! It's impossible!" He glanced at Arceus, only to coil up tighter when he saw Arceus looking down at his hooves. "You're not going to refute him?"

"I can't. It's the truth," Arceus whispered.

"Oh snap. Plot twist!" Haxorus said, earning herself _several_ sharp glares. She slowly walked backward until she could safely duck behind Lugia's leg.

"Xerneas could've quelled his rage, but instead you chose to keep them apart, then have Solgaleo and Lunala imprison him. It's the same answer you have for everything. Try to make the problem disappear, regardless of the potential future consequences," Mewtwo said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Do you really think things would've worked out that easily? How do you even know about any of this, anyway?" Arceus growled. "Necrozma got to you, didn't he? What happened to all those boasts about how you're 'the world's strongest Pokémon?' Well, what good did that do you in the end, hmm?"

Tessa was in disbelief. After everything she had told them— no, after everything she'd gone through, nobody was coming to comfort her. Instead, she was watching gods bicker with each other like… like the arguments she had with Gallian when they were little. Tessa's right eye twitched. Her heart ached. Silvally would've known exactly what to do. And Shane… well, there was a chance he'd make things worse, but at least he'd say _something._ She couldn't even find her voice. Necrozma's words kept echoing in her head.

Dark Matter. The Pokémon she'd grown closest to… was Dark Matter.

The other teams tried to interject and defuse Arceus and Mewtwo's argument, but they continued glaring at each other. Latias and Lugia hovered between the two, the latter holding out his wings. "None of this will do any of us any good at all," Latias said. "We've got a serious problem, here. And not one that can be solved by closing our eyes and wishing it would go away."

Mewtwo turned his back on her. "Then talk to him. He's supposed to be the 'miracle worker,' isn't he?"

Tessa hadn't felt this tiny since the day her mother gave up on her aura training. Slowly, she turned away from the bickering gods. Tessa looked at Espy. Her eyes were red and puffy. Her ears were drooping lower than Tessa had even seen them. Espy's tail was curled around her waist. She looked as broken as she did when Tessa had gone to comfort her after Umbreon's sacrifice. After a few seconds, Espy met her gaze.

"E-Espeon, what do we do?" Tessa said.

"I don't know. I just…" Espy's voice trailed off. She shuddered. "Silv," she whispered meekly.

Tessa stared at her paws. She balled them into fists. Aural flames flickered around them. She took a deep breath. Had her teammates been there, they would've told her that she needed to stay strong. That this wasn't the time to give in. Not when there were still people who needed saving.

Something bubbled up in Tessa's gut. It was just like before she had snapped at Zero. Tessa tensed up. She couldn't let herself slip so deep into her anger again. Otherwise, how would she think straight? Tessa staggered to her feet. Espy looked up at her. "What are you doing?"

With a shaky breath, Tessa replied, "I'm going to get our friends back." She then stomped toward the large argument. A rainbow aura flared up around her as she shouted, "All of you… _shut up!_ " Everyone turned her. Espy got to her feet, tail wrapped around a hind leg. "You guys…" She pointed a paw at Arceus and Mewtwo. "You've been sitting on the sidelines this whole time. You have _no_ idea what I— no, what _we've_ been through!"

She grabbed her head and shook it. "I don't care what happened in the past. What matters is the present… because I want to have a future! I've been through too much to give up now and let Necrozma rip everything I care about away from me!" Aura jets shot out of her paws. Espy backed away, eyes wide, until she bumped into an equally-stunned Haxorus.

"Sheesh. Was she always like this?" Haxorus whispered.

"I don't think it's my place to say," Espy replied. In truth, she was just as furious, but was trying to keep her emotions in check. She'd already had a hysterical breakdown. That wouldn't help her get Silvally back.

She glanced right, envisioning a silhouette of her teammate beside her with a confident grin on his beak. _'You'd want me to stand tall, right?'_

"Obviously, I can't walk over to whatever that _thing_ is." Tessa gestured toward the black sphere. "So, I don't care which one of you volunteers, but _someone_ is taking me there." She thumped her chest. "Even if nobody else wants to join us…" Tears welled up in her eyes again. "I _won't_ surrender. He doesn't get to win. I'll shatter every piece of his prism armor if I have to!"

With a deep breath, Espy approached her. "M-Me too!" She bit her lip. "I can't be afraid. We have to move forward… together! It's what…" Her gaze fell. "It's what he wanted for us."

Tessa knew exactly what Espy met. A pang of sadness struck her gut, but she forced herself not to let it show. She looked at the other teams and found Blaziken and Swampert sorting through their satchels. "Shoot. You don't have to ask us," Swampert said. "A rescue team doesn't call it quits until the job is done. Even if the scale of the rescue is so big you can't measure it."

"Right! And I still owe Necrozma a Dragon Claw sandwich for what he did to Paradise!" Haxorus said, smacking an open palm with her fist. Raichu nodded her support.

"Thank you." Tessa gave a curt bow to the others, then turned back to the gods. "So, who's it going to be? Who's taking us over to Necrozma's sinister floating death ball?"

 _ **Heeheeheehee! What an adorably hopeless scene this is! It'd fit right in with any sappy sports movie.**_

Tessa's aura feelers crinkled. Necrozma's voice was coming from the sky, but she saw no signs of him anywhere. It clearly wasn't telepathy, so how was he doing this?

"Everyone on your guard!" Mewtwo said, raising his glowing hands. Mew tried to wrap his tiny arms around Mewtwo's waist.

 _ **I'm at least nice enough to make one thing clear to you. My "sinister floating death ball" is Celestial Island! I did some "renovations." After all, the place looked so lonely after your mother abandoned it,**_ Necrozma declared. _**And if you honestly think I'm going to let any of you waltz in while I'm busy purging the Tree of Life of every last drop of its energy, then you're going to be**_ **sorely** _**disappointed!**_

Latias' feathers bristled. "N-No!" She rubbed her head against Lugia's neck. "If he does that, the planet will go hurtling into the sun! Just like with Dark Matter!"

Arceus and Rayquaza looked right at Tessa, who figured they were now choosing to believe her claims about Shane's spirit.

 _ **Relax. Lucky for you fools, the planet's paralyzed and Dialga's dead. It can't go anywhere no matter what I do to that foolish pile of woodchips,**_ Necrozma said.

"Wait, really?" Feraligatr cocked his head to the side.

 _ **Heeheeheehee! Of course! Ask that white-furred**_ **failure** _**of a creator if you don't believe me,**_ Necrozma crooned. _**He's the one who denied Darkrai's request to paralyze the planet in an effort to thwart Dark Matter's revival. I doubt he could've foreseen his rejection driving Darkrai into the depths of nihilism. It's not as if he'd made this mistake before or anything. Oh, wait, that's right. He**_ **did.** _**And you all wonder why I consider your world irredeemable?**_

All eyes whirled on Arceus. He looked up toward the sky, his wheel sparking with energy. "I'm _well_ aware of all my screw-ups, _thank you._ "

Tessa's brow furrowed. This all felt eerily familiar. Not what Necrozma was saying, necessarily, but _how_ he was saying it. Blue flames swirled in her paws. "Guys, stop talking! This is a stalling tactic!" She stomped a foot on the ground. "We have to leave _now!_ "

Lugia got the memo quickly, bending over and spreading his wings out. However, Rayquaza snaked in front of him. "Time is of the essence here," he said. "My Dragon Ascent can get the mortals there faster than anything short of a portal or wormhole. I should be the one to go."

 _ **Were you not listening to me earlier? Nobody's getting into Celestial Island!**_ Necrozma barked. Light flashed through the sky. _**You want to go out in a heroic blaze of glory? Fine! I'm happy to indulge. Feast your eyes on this!**_

Rayquaza turned and snatched up Espy and Tessa in his arms. "Don't worry! I'll protect you!" he shouted. "The rest of you, follow behind in case I need support." His golden ribbons straightened out, giving him the appearance of an emerald arrow. Rayquaza shot into the air before anyone could respond to him.

Tessa had never moved so fast. Well, she also hadn't _flown_ before. So, to have this be her first experience was nothing short of frightening. She wanted to scream, but managed to keep her fears stuffed down inside her. The only problem was that the mystical emerald wind Rayquaza had summoned made it almost impossible for Tessa to see anything.

"What's going on? Are we getting close?" she shouted, amazed she could hear her voice at the speeds they were going.

"We're almost there," Rayquaza replied. Indeed, Celestial Island drew closer. With the strange void surrounding it, he had no idea _where_ he could safely drop off Espy and Tessa.

With the island a hundred yards away, however, a ripple of light forced Rayquaza to stop. He looked to his right, eyes narrowing. "What was that?" he growled.

"What was what? Why did you stop?" Tessa said, squirming in Rayquaza's grasp. His sharp claws were jabbing her ribs. It made her uncomfortable. She caught sight of Rayquaza's tail lashing at the air and looked right. Her aura feelers shot up.

"Do you see something, Tessa?" Espy asked, unable to look right because of the way Rayquaza held her.

"I… I do," Tessa squeaked. "It's a… a giant… Ultra Wormhole."

Espy's eyes widened. "Let me see! Let me see!" she begged, squirming in Rayquaza's grip. Rayquaza hoisted Espy and Tessa up, giving them a complete view of the massive, jagged rift that tore across the sky. The bulk of the rift sat above Celestial Island. Blue and purple light flittered in through the rift.

"Oh, gods," Espy whispered.

Tessa's aura feelers spasmed. She squinted. Though the light made it hard to tell, she swore she saw silhouettes pouring out from the rift. "U-Um… Espeon? Are… are you seeing what I'm seeing? There's, um, _something_ in that wormhole. Or, rather, a _lot_ of somethings."

Espy's ears drooped. Her tail would've tucked between her legs, but it was pinned to her side thanks to Rayquaza. "You see it, too? Then tell me. What am I looking at, exactly?" he said.

"Ultra Beasts," Espy said, shivering. "Hundreds and hundreds of Ultra Beasts."

* * *

Everything was blurry. Blurry and muted. Shane felt as though he'd been dumped into an aquarium water tank… except he wasn't drowning. Instead, he floated in the middle of a black abyss. Every so often, he felt a ripple brush up against him. However, that did little to calm his nerves.

So, he wasn't in a hospital after all. The only conclusion Shane could draw was that Necrozma had performed some sort of trickery with his mind. It would explain why the nurse and the doctor had the names that they did.

Of course, the realization did little to quell Shane's fears. For starters, he had no idea where he was. On top of that, he had no idea _what_ he was. Sure, he could see, hear, and feel. However, the wiry, fluff-covered Ninetales limbs he'd grown used to were nowhere to be found. There were no tails protruding from his backside. No locks of hair falling over his eyes.

What had happened to him?

Before Shane could think on the matter any longer, a harsh current sent him tumbling through the abyss. Shane's world spun, but since there was nothing but darkness all around him, he didn't find himself getting dizzy. He just wanted this all to stop. He wanted to see his friends again. To see Tessa smile. To hug Silvally while calming energy pulsed down his body. To give Espy a nuzzle and tell her everything was okay.

Shane had no idea how long the currents spun him around for. He became numb to the swirling sensation. Eventually, however, something pierced through the endless sea of black. It took him a moment to get a good look, but once he did, his nerves flared up again.

There were two bundles of heavy, cast iron chains floating in front of him. Each bundle had numerous padlocks clinging to the chains. Shadow fire swirled around the locks. And yet, despite that, Shane could also see light poking through cracks in each set of chains. The left bundle had bits of golden light flittering around it, while the right bundle had twinkling, pink and white light spread across it. Shane swore he even saw branch-shaped silhouettes poking through the chains.

 _It's over._

Shane heard a voice echoing in his head. He recognized that voice… and the resignation in its tone. He wished he could properly move. That way, Shane could try to get a sense of what was going on.

 _There's nothing left you can do._

This time, Shane saw the left bundle of chains wriggling as the voice spoke. More bits of golden light trickled through the chains. Was there someone inside? Some sort of spirit, perhaps? Shane had to reach out to it somehow. But could he even speak in his current state? He had no idea, but he had to do _something._

 _ **EnJOyInG tHE ViEW, aRE wE?**_

An unsettling feeling bubbled inside of… well, whatever form Shane was presently occupying. He still wasn't sure.

 _ **wEll NoW, I dON'T WaNT yOU To GET tOO bOReD. WhY Don'T I sHOw YoU SoMEtHInG tRUlY IntEResTInG?**_

A violet, reptilian eye formed in between the bundles of chains. Black, slimy tendrils protruded from its back and shoved each bundle of chains away.

 _I'm sorry!_

The first voice grew more distant. Now Shane was _sure_ someone or something was trapped inside of those bundles. Shane concentrated as hard as he could and, to his delight, managed to utter a, "Who are you?"

 _ **I AM tHe SoUrCe oF yOuR sPIrIT… AnD NecROzMA'S PoWEr. I aM tHE vOId.**_

Before Shane had a chance to respond, Void's tendrils seemed to grab hold of the black water Shane was floating in and pull it apart. Shane was treated to a blurry view of his teammates and Milotic standing before Zero. He saw Tessa looking more tense that he'd even seen. Espy kept stealing glances at Silvally, face brimming with worry. And Silvally had a strange, rainbow aura about him. All Shane could think about was what had happened to them after they got separated.

"Guys! Guys, it's me! I'm here! I'm—"

 _ **It'S UsELesS. ThEY cAN'T HeaR YoU.**_

Shane wished he could feel any sort of facial muscles so he could glare at the obnoxious floating eyeball. Instead, he had to settle for watching the battle against Zero play out. As Zero summoned crystalline copies of spirits she had consumed, Shane grew more and more anxious. And when Silvally threw himself at Dialga, Shane cried out to him in desperation. All the while, Void stared him down, eye brimming with purple light.

There was nothing Shane could do. Not when Tessa flew into a berserk rage. Not when Necrozma revealed he was masquerading as Shane, then plucked his core out of Zero. And not when he taunted Tessa and launched what should've been the killing blow. Shane's heart then soared when the cavalry came charging in to Tessa's rescue. But the joy was short lived, as Necrozma escaped through an Ultra Wormhole.

An invisible force grabbed hold of Shane. In a flash of light and a gust of wind, Shane was thrust from his dark, shadowy prison. He struck a floor made entirely from the same red, glitchy cubes Zero summoned for all her attacks. All around him, black cubes and crystals floated in random directions, sporadically bouncing off one another.

The cubes were overshadowed, however, by a large, white light to Shane's right. In the periphery of his vision, he could barely make out ethereal roots digging into the floor. Wisps of light trailed off the roots. Another chill ran through Shane. If he was staring at a glowing tree, then he _had_ to be looking at the Tree of Life. No other tree would have such a mystical aura about it. And Necrozma had been possessing Xerneas.

A crystal floated right by Shane. With the light from the Tree of Life, he finally got a glimpse of his reflection. There was no body to speak of. Or even a face. All he saw was a small red sphere with numerous cracks spread throughout it. A sinking feeling struck Shane with the force of a Body Slamming Snorlax.

 _'He was right. I… I really am Dark Matter.'_

 **"Heeheeheehee! I must say… I'm impressed with your tenacity."**

A psychic force hoisted Shane into the air. He got a much better look at the Tree of Life. A huge gash had been torn through its trunk. White and sky-blue espers streamed out of the gash and into Necrozma's core. An ethereal glow surrounded his metal body. With each spirit he absorbed, Necrozma's arms twitched. Tiny runes surrounded his claws, but Shane couldn't make out what they depicted.

 **"After seeing what happened to your 'friends,' I expected your will to falter and your spirit to fizzle out, unlike what happened to Light's when Golem mucked up his ritual. And yet, here you are."** Chuckling, Necrozma turned his head to lock eyes with Shane. **"At least now you know that I was telling the truth."**

"I don't… care." Shane wasn't sure how he was speaking, but he wouldn't let that stop him. "I'll… I'll find a way out of this somehow! My friends will help me!"

Necrozma's resulting sigh was as long and drawn out as it could possibly be. **"Such a pity. I could've avoided a lot of headaches had I taken the time to understand exactly what sets human and Pokémon spirits apart."**

"What's that supposed to mean?" Shane huffed, figuring this was another mind game.

 **"What's that? You haven't figured it out yet, have you? Well, I suppose you've never been much of a thinker, Shane."** Necrozma paced around Shane, eyes locked on him. **"Math was the closest thing you had to a strong subject in school, yes?"** He paused. **"Don't answer. That was rhetorical."** Necrozma cleared his throat. **"Allow me to clear it up in a way that you can hopefully understand. See, your spirit is Dark Matter's… for the most part. But not entirely.**

 **"I'd say, if I had to partition it out, you're about eighty-five percent Dark Matter, ten percent human, and five percent Solgaleo."** Necrozma smirked. **"Oh, but I know what you're thinking. 'That doesn't make any sense, Necrozma. Why do I remember so much about being human, but nothing about being Solagleo or Dark Matter?'"**

Shane wished he still had a snout. That way, he could bare his fangs at Necrozma's mocking interpretation of his shrill voice.

Necrozma's smile broadened, as if he knew exactly what Shane wanted. **"The answer lies in the human spirit."** He stepped back from Shane. His prism turned red and he narrowed his eyes. **"It's quite amazing. For such weak,** _ **frail**_ **creatures… your spirits have an enormous amount of resilience. It's almost enviable."**

"That feels like a load of croc," Shane said. "Even by crazy magical Pokémon standards, you can't really tell me spirits are some sort of super tangible object."

 **"But that's where you're wrong. They are very,** _ **very**_ **tangible. But there's a key difference between human spirits and Pokémon spirits. Thanks to humans' indomitable wills, their spirits have** _ **far**_ **tougher than Pokémon spirits,"** Necrozma explained, shaking his head. **"If you break a Pokémon's spirit… you will also destroy their memories and their personality. But for humans… well, thanks to willpower, as long as the** _ **smallest**_ **fraction of a human spirit remains intact, the human's full range of memories and characteristics will persevere.**

 **"** _ **That's**_ **why everything about your human life made it into your Vulpix body. And that's why I haven't been able to get rid of the remnants of your so-called friend's spirit! He's as much a part of me as I am of him."** Necrozma scowled. **"So, yes, even though you got your powers from me and Dark Matter, your human will found a way to shine through in the end. Of course, it doesn't change your situation at all. I just figured you might like to know, that's all."**

Shane mulled on Necrozma's claims for a minute. If he had heard Necrozma right, then perhaps his friend _wasn't_ completely gone. He thought back to the chains he had sign when he was floating in the black abyss. "N-Nicky. I know you're in there. Even if it's just… a part of you… you can stop this! Don't let the void… do this. You're stronger than that! I know you are." He paused. "Because you were _always_ a better person than me."

An invisible hand squeezed Shane. He cried out in pain. Necrozma's blue eyes flashed. **"Heeheeheehee! It's a little late to be teaching yourself Fake Tears. Not that it would do you any good."** Necrozma licked his lips. **"My core is complete. What little there is of Light's spirit is now locked away forever. Your fake sob story will** _ **never**_ **reach him."**

"That's not true. I heard a voice… when I was stuck inside you," Shane said. "He's still fighting. I know he is! You just said… human spirits… are resilient. He won't… let you… do this."

 **"Bold words from a giant** _ **fraud,**_ **"** Necrozma scoffed, tail flicking to the side. **"You saw how your 'friends' reacted to the revelation of what you really are. They're doubting the sincerity of everything you ever did for them!"** He bared his fangs at Shane. His core brimmed with energy. The Tree of Life seemed to react to his growing unrest, pulsating with white ripples. **"Do you honestly think Tessa will accept you back now that she knows the truth?** _ **Ha!**_ **What an absolute farce!**

 **"Let's say, through some divine act, you actually defeat me and reclaim your Ninetales form. What will you do then, hmm?"** Necrozma leered at Shane. **"Can you really go crawling back to your teammates, expecting things to return to normal? Of course not!"** A grin spread across Necrozma's face. **"Look at Tessa! All that Z-Power she absorbed on accident when she evolved… it's made her unstable. I was able to manipulate that energy and drive her into a berserk rage! With the power I'm gather in my core… I could rip her apart from the inside out!"**

"You leave her out of this!" Shane snarled. "Tessa doesn't deserve any of this misery!"

 **"It's too late for that. The doubts I've planted in her will grown and fester. Either she'll lose herself to all of that unstable energy… or the doubts will get too large and she'll cast you aside."** Necrozma's grin widened. **"And when that rejection seeps into your system, your human will won't be strong enough to resist the pain. The Dark Matter in you will bubble to the surface and seek to return to its old ways!"**

"That's not true. We'll find a way to make this work. We can help each other," Shane said. "It's not about spirits or energy or anything like that. You'll see!"

 **"Your words betray the uncertainty in your voice,"** Necrozma said, shaking his head. **"But fine… I'll play along. After all, your friends intend to storm the island and put a stop to me."** He rubbed his metal hands together. **"It's only appropriate that I have a** _ **special surprise**_ **waiting for them if they make it here! Heeheeheehee!"**

Necrozma yanked Shane toward him and turned him left. It was there that Shane saw a mass of ley line chains swirling about in the air. The chains surrounded a large, pulsating ball of light surrounded by letter-shaped silhouettes.

"N-No. Those are… Unown," Shane said.

 **"Heeheeheehee! Are you starting to understand what you're up against? You, Tessa, Silvally. The power of the void runs through all of you. You are** _ **all**_ **exploitable!"** Necrozma said, rubbing his hands together. **"I manipulated Silvally's spirits just as I did Tessa's Z-Power. He blew himself up because I** _ **hardwired**_ **him to think it was the only way to stop Zero! But, of course, I like to keep backup plans in mind."**

Shane saw a rainbow sphere in the center of the ball of light. Even without a body, he still felt an unnerving sense of dread.

 **"I condensed all of Silvally's spirits into a core… just like what I have. After he blew himself up, I transported the core here just in case I needed to put him to use,"** Necrozma explained, licking his lips. **"Now I'm pumping him full of added spirits and making him a new body from even more Unown. When I'm through here… he'll finally be the crazed killer the void wanted him to be! Heeheeheehee!"**

The chains squeezed the Unown and the ball of light tightly. A distorted wail echoed through the room. "Stop it! Stop it, Nicky! Don't do this!" Shane cried.

 **"And why should I stop? Didn't you see how heartbroken your friends were over the loss of Silvally? Imagine how overjoyed they'll be when they find him here.** _ **Especially**_ **Espeon,"** Necrozma said. **"Oh-ho, did you see what I did there? With the clever alliteration? I didn't even intend for that to happen!"**

"Nicky, _please!_ You have to fight it! Fight the void! Fight Necrozma!" Shane begged.

Necrozma rolled his eyes. **"Oh, sod off. He's too far gone to hear you. Besides, I didn't get to tell you about the fun part. Yes. That'll come when your precious friends realize they can't get through to Silvally… or to you."**

An invisible force shoved Shane forward. Chains burst out of the floor and surrounded him. Within seconds, they blocked his view of Necrozma and the Tree of Life.

 **"Their joy will turn to despair. Their wills will crumble. And once that happens… their spirits will be** _ **mine.**_ **"**

The chains swallowed Shane up. For a brief moment, his world went black. Then, he hit a carpeted floor hard. Shane groaned loudly, but immediately sat up when he realized he could feel his limbs again. He looked down, only to recoil in horror as they weren't fur-covered legs but pale, skinny, human arms. Shane flexed his fingers, then looked past them to see he was in another hospital gown.

"For pity's sake… this isn't funny, Nicky!" Shane shouted, only for his eyes to widen. He staggered to his feet, staring blankly at the leg of a gigantic school desk. "W-What the—"

 **"Prissy Nicky… funny? No. The only thing that's funny here… is your face,** _ **retard!**_ **"**

Shane tensed up. His heart leaped into his throat. His pupils dilated. "G… Geoff?" Shane croaked. He looked behind him and saw a gigantic, sneakered foot careening toward him.

Screaming at the top of his lungs, Shane broke into a run.

* * *

 **~Celestial Island Exterior~**

If Tessa hadn't been sick before, she certainly was now. Rayquaza desperately snaked through the multicolored volley of energy beams trained on his location. Tessa's world was a blur of dull grays punctuated by the occasional flash of light. Bile rose up in her throat. She forced herself to swallow.

"There's too many of them!" Rayquaza growled. He fired a Dragon Pulse into the distance, but three Dragon Pulses and multicolored sound waves snuffed out the attack. Behind him, Latias, Lugia, and Arceus weren't faring any better. Even with the various team members offering added fire power, their attacks were neither strong enough nor capable of travelling far enough to help the gods forge a path toward the island. Tessa even tried flinging an Aura Sphere toward what she thought was a Stakataka in the distance. She didn't even get to see a half-dozen Kartanas shred the attack apart before it got anywhere close to her target.

"So, what do we do here?" Mew asked, hovering beside Mewtwo. He glanced at Arceus. "Don't you have some fancy-schmancy attack that could wipe out the lot of these losers?"

"If you're referring to my Judgement, then no… it's not enough to get rid of all of them," Arceus said. "Besides, I can't safely use the attack with passengers. I'd risk vaporizing them."

Haxorus' expression blanched. "Uh, yeah, I'd very much like to live, thank you."

"Ditto!" Swampert shouted, earning a scathing look from Arceus.

"Well, what do we do then?!" Mew pivoted to deflect a couple of Flash Cannons with a barrier. "Because if we try to charge head-first toward the island, we'll get swamped with attacks!"

Tessa tensed up. "I, uh…" She squirmed in Rayquaza's grasp. "I thought you said nothing was faster than your Dragon Ascent? Why can't you just speed toward the isl— _aah!_ "

Rayquaza did a midair figure eight to dodge a flurry of Dragon Pulses and glowing rocks. "That's why!" he harrumphed, only for a much larger Dragon Pulse to strike him in the right eye. He screeched and reflexively threw his hands up toward his eye. In the process, he dropped Espy and Tessa, who fell screaming toward the ground.

"Ah! No!" Latias shouted. She dove toward them, only to screech to a halt when a familiar purple portal opened up underneath them. "What the—"

Like a shimmering purple comet, Lunala flew out of the portal, wrapping Espy and Tessa up in a tight embrace. Though Tessa couldn't see anything, Lunala's ethereal membranes left her feeling oddly calm considering she had almost fallen to her death.

Lunala corkscrewed past the other gods. "Cover me! I've got this," she said, then spiraled toward the island.

 _ **What the— that's impossible! You're dead! I sapped every last drop of light out of your spirit!**_

Though muffled, Tessa heard Necrozma's snarls of protest. She had no idea what was going on outside, but whatever was happening was leading to her and Espy getting jostled around. Tessa wound up grabbing Espy by a foreleg and bringing her into a tight embrace— minding her chest spike, of course. It was the only way she could think of to stop the two from potentially colliding.

"What's going on, Tessa?" Espy cried.

"I don't know, but I think we may have been blessed with a stroke of luck," Tessa said.

"Well, not exactly," Lunala shouted, clearly focused on trying to avoid whatever attacks the Ultra Beasts were launching at her.

After several tense seconds, the sounds of battle abruptly died away. Lunala spread her wings and gently lowered Espy and Tessa to the ground with her ESP. "Oof. My aching head," Espy said, bending over and shaking herself out like she'd been drenched in water. She then froze and looked around. Her jaw dropped. "Th… this is Celestial Island?!"

Tessa's aura feelers throbbed. She stood on a floor made of black, glitchy cubes. Cubes floated by them in the air, alongside giant, crystal lattices. Beyond that, there were no walls. There wasn't even a sky. Nothing but black and red static surrounded her. Tessa placed a paw against her chest. "I guess these are the 'renovations' Necrozma was talking about."

Lunala floated in front of them. From behind, she looked like a large, crescent-shaped shield. "I fear we don't have a lot of time. Whatever this place is… we have to press on through it until we find Necrozma."

Espy and Tessa looked at each other and nodded. "We're with you," Tessa said.

"Great. We'll all go together, then."

The girls ran forward to catch up with Lunala. "One question, though. How did you survive Necrozma's possession?" Espy asked. "We thought you needed Mega Evolutions or Z-Moves to save corrupted Pokémon."

Lunala's wing-claws tensed. "The truth is I… didn't. That Lucario—" Lunala glanced at Tessa. "Your mother, I'm assuming?"

Tessa nodded.

"Right. She forced Necrozma out of my body. When she did… my spirit didn't have the strength to stay bound to my body," Lunala explained. "Hang on… duck!"

The girls did as instructed. Purple energy surrounded Lunala's chest and she blasted an oncoming wall of spiked cubes with her Moongeist Beam. They ran through the opening, only to find a _second_ cube wall waiting for them on the other side. This one wasn't moving, but Lunala's attempts at blasting it apart fell flat.

"It's no good." Espy looked to her right, only to jump up, fur puffing out in surprise. Another wall had formed, further blocking their path. "Argh! It's like he turned this place into a constantly-shifting Mystery Dungeon."

"Actually, that's exactly what we're dealing with," Tessa said, pointing to her left. Holographic stairs flickered in the distance, surrounded by floating cubes pulsating with red light.

Espy's ears drooped. "Wonderful. How are we ever going to reach Necrozma like this?"

"Well, not by standing around. C'mon." Tessa beckoned her teammate to follow. Lunala floated above them, eyes brimming with psychic energy in case the floating cubes were a trap. "So, uh, about what I was asking earlier? If you actually, y'know, died, then how are you with us right now?"

"You should thank your friends for that one," Lunala replied, earning confused looks from the girls. "Err, sorry. Are they not you friends? Maybe they're just colleagues? They seemed to know you, anyway."

Espy's ears stuck up mid-stride. "Oh, wait! Ampharos' plan! Something about restoring the spirits lost to Necrozma. You mean to say it actually worked?"

"Well, I didn't see an Ampharos around, but I was revived," Lunala said. Three of the cubes turned spiky and shot toward Team Radiance. She blew them into other cubes with a wide pink blast, then ducked underneath the small explosions that ensued.

"Th… then… does that mean… Umbry's back?" Espy whispered, heart pounding her chest.

"Hmm. There _was_ an Umbreon among the 'mons I saw before I raced over to you," Lunala said. "Why? Is he a friend of yours?"

A broad smile crossed Espy's face, though it didn't take long for her worried expression to return. After all, what good did having Umbry back do if the world was on the precipice of complete destruction? And, of course, even if he _was_ back, there was still a hole in her heart. Espy glanced right, imagining her chimeric teammate bounding along beside her. She shut her eyes and shook her head.

 _'You can't dwell on it. You have to be at your best for this fight!'_

They reached the bottom of the stairs. Tessa hesitantly put a foot on the first stair and, once she confirmed it was solid, started to climb up. "So, wait, if Necrozma's victims are getting revived, then does that mean—"

The entire area trembled. A yelping Tessa dropped to her knees and dug her paw spikes into the stairs to stop herself from tumbling off. Her aura feelers shot up when a loud, boisterous laugh clashed with an annoyed snarl. "W-What was that?!" Tessa said, aura feelers throbbing in time with her heartbeat.

Lunala looked around. "If I had to guess… that sounded like Hoopa."

* * *

Multiple ring portals opened around Arceus and Rayquaza. "What the heck?!"

 **"Ha ha ha ha! Fear not, fellow gods! Help has arrived! Because Hoopa is here!"**

Before Arceus could even react, a loud "Daddy! Daddy!" echoed through the sky. A gray blur slammed into Arceus, nearly knocking his passengers from his back. "Oh, I missed you so much! Did you miss me? Huh? Didya? Didya?" Giratina said, tail wagging excitedly. He nuzzled Arceus' neck as veins bulged out of the creator's head.

Haxorus, who was clinging to Arceus by his white, fluffy tail, stared at Giratina's spectral wings with a lock of shock on her face. "I _so_ did not sign up for this!" she hollered, kicking at the air with her legs.

"Look on the bright side, luv. You'll have a hell of a story to tell when this is all over," Marshadow said, one of Giratina's wing-spikes hovering inches from his face.

"Don't make me smack you again," Haxorus grumbled, pulling herself up onto Arceus' hip.

"For pity's sake, Giratina." Arceus shoved his son back. "What have I told you about boundaries?"

"That they're only suggestions!" Giratina said, a jovial grin on his face.

"What? No! I never said anything like that!" Arceus fumed.

"Oi! This is a touching reunion and all, but can we _please_ focus on the aliens trying to kill us?" Lugia said, levying Air Slash crescents to cancel out a bevy of Ancient Power rocks. He was ready to shoot an Aeroblast into the distance when one of the ring portals crackled. Out came golden and rainbow streams of fire. They sailed toward a Buzzwole floating in the distance. Once they struck, a chain reaction of bright, fiery explosions spread through the Ultra Beast ranks. Ephemeris and Ho-Oh flew out of the ring portal in question, spreading their wings wide as flames trailed off their tails.

Latias blinked. "Am… am I seeing double?"

"Yeah, you are! It's an amazing trick, isn't it?" Giratina said, having popped up next to Latias thanks to a Shadow Force rift.

"Gah!" Latias' feathers bristled. "Do you mind?"

"Mind what? You're the psychic-type, not me," Giratina said, sticking out his tongue. "I was just saying that it was such a bummer that Ho-Oh wouldn't tell me how she duplicated herself. Or turned her duplicate into a dude."

A loud snarl caught everyone's attention. Black shadows pooled out from a smaller rift in front of the gods. Necrozma shot toward Ephemeris and Ho-Oh like a blazing comet. Both rolled aside, then turned their flames against him. Necrozma vanished into a shadowy rift, only to reappear where he first emerged.

 **"I don't know what kind of trick you're pulling, here. But I won't stand for it!"** he snarled.

"Um, technically, you're not standing. You're floating," Giratina pointed out.

Another vessel bulged out of Arceus' head. "Giratina? _Darling_ son?"

"Yes, Daddy?" Giratina fluttered his eyelids.

"We're going to play the quiet game, all right? The longer you go without speaking, the bigger your prize will be when the game's over," Arceus said. Latias could swear she saw smoke rising up from his head.

"Okay!" Giratina chirped, only to throw his wings up over his mouth. "Uh-oh, I messed up! Can we start over?" His eyes bugged out. "Agh, I did it again! Sorry, Daddy!"

Haxorus facepalmed. "And here I thought Hydreigon was dense."

 **"Enough!"** Necrozma raised his hands. His core shined brightly. **"All of you… spread out! Take every continent and tear them apart until there's nothing left!"**

The many Ultra Beast silhouettes behind him fanned out in every direction. "What the— _no!_ " Rayquaza shot a Dragon Pulse, but Necrozma neutralized it with a Dragon Pulse of his own.

"Then we'll have to split up as well!" Ampharos declared, striking his signature pose for all of a few seconds before grabbing one of Lugia's spines to keep himself from tumbling off. "Phew, that was a close one!" He laughed nervously. "A-Anyway, Hoopa! I need you to open portals and send those of who aren't gods back to our home continents alongside whoever Ephemeris revived! Can you do that?"

The largest ring portal trembled. Hoopa popped out of it, still in his Unbound form. He clapped all his hands together. **"Ha! Say no more, chief! For Hoopa, it is barely a probl—"**

 **"I won't let you!"** Necrozma said, firing a red and black spirit-sucking beam straight toward Hoopa. A ring portal swallowed the attack up and a second one sent it right into a flying Naganadel. It turned to crystal and plummeted from the sky.

 **"You won't get the better of Hoopa this time! Hoopa is strong now! Stronger than you,** _ **kitty cat!**_ **"** With a hearty laugh, Hoopa raised his hands, summoning multiple ring portals.

"Excellent!" Ampharos struck his pose again. "Let's get to work, everyone! We've got a planet to sa— _aah!_ "

Lugia flew toward one of the ring portals. Were it not for Mawile grabbing Ampharos by his bag, he would've fallen from Lugia's back.

* * *

 **~Post Town~**

It was utter bedlam. Fireballs, lightning, and giant rocks soared through the air. "On your left, Haxy!" Raichu called, shooting off a Thunderbolt as Haxorus veered right mid-sprint. The Pheromosa lunging toward her was blown back into two identical copies. A sinkhole then opened up beneath them, swallowing them up alongside half of a Stakataka.

"Wah! It's too big to fit in my trap," Dunsparce said, stubby wings fluttering in surprise.

"Then gimme a boost!"

A Conkeldurr came charging in and hopped toward Dunsparce. With a strained grunt, Dunsparce propelled him into the air. Conkeldurr brought his massive concrete slabs down on the part of Stakataka sticking out of the sink hole. Fissures ran down its body and it dissolved away into black shadows. Conkeldurr hit the ground hard. Three Nihilegos caught sight of him and trained poisonous tendrils on his location.

"Oh no you don't!"

A wave of water crashed over the Nihilegos. Their Venoshock blasts instead struck a pair of Guzzlord in their tiny eyes. Keldeo soared past them as they evaporated like Stakataka, blasting water from his hooves. His horn brimmed with red energy and he sent crescents toward one of the Guzzlord, slicing it into ribbons that quickly dissolved away. The second Guzzlord avenged its comrade, shooting a Dragon Pulse that struck Keldo's chest and blew him back.

Fortunately, Hydreigon swooped in and snagged Keldeo before he could crash into the ground. "There was… still another one… of those big things," Keldeo grunted.

"Right. Let's just—" His six eyes widened. "Virizion, behind you!"

Preoccupied with fending off a Kartana and a Celesteela, Virizion had no way of seeing Guzzlord's bright, glowing fists crashing down toward her from above.

"I've got her!" Haxorus lunged forward, driving her Dragon Claws into Guzzlord's side. She couldn't pierce its tough hide, but she had enough force behind her blow to make Guzzlord stumble. His blows sailed wide, while Virizion managed to drive her glowing horn straight through Celesteela and spin it into the Kartana.

When she pulled back, she saw Guzzlord standing in front of her, dazed from Haxorus' blow. "Unbelievable! Trying to attack a lady while her back is turned? How undignified could you possibly be?!" she huffed, summoning her glowing horn once again. "You don't even _deserve_ the honor of falling to my Sacred Sword. Consider yourself lucky we're in a bind, _cretin!_ " She slashed Guzzlord's leg. It didn't even get the chance to topple over, as black and blue beams hammered it from the other side.

Hydreigon swooped down, now carrying Umbreon with his face-hands. He spat another Dragon Pulse, blowing Guzzlord apart, then dropped Umbreon off beside Virizion. "How are you holding up?" Umbreon asked, pivoting to toss a Shadow Ball at a Nihilego. It was too focused on trying to hit Emolga to see the ectoplasm coming in.

"Aside from these monsters' gunking up my hooves… I'm fine, I guess," Virizion said, lunging for the Nihilego shouting, "You get your alien behind away from him!" She sliced through Nihilego with her horn.

"Great work, Vizzy!" Emolga cheered, only to cringe when slime rained down on Virizion after she landed. "Ooh… that looks really disgusting."

Virizion held her head high, however. "Well… I suppose sacrifices must be made for the sake of preserving our world." She crouched low, training her gaze on a Celesteela chasing down Dunsparce and Raichu. "But when this all over, I'm spending a _week_ at the nearest hot spring and nobody can tell me off for it!" Virizion lunged for Celesteela, only to screech to halt when a pink outline surrounded it and hoisted it into the air. Her jaw dropped as a dozen fireballs burned Celesteela to ashes.

"Coming through!" Victini shouted. He paused next to Virizion and looked her over. "Huh. You look different. New hairstyle?"

"Very funny," Virizion deadpanned. "Focus on the fight and not on my looks, thank you."

"Yeah! Especially when her _mate's_ in hearing range!" Emolga huffed.

Victini raised his hands up innocently. "Say no more!" He swooped toward Keldeo. "Keldy, buddy! It's time to do that thing we were practicing!"

Keldeo blew a Buzzwole away with Hydro Pumps from his hooves. "What thing?"

"Y'know… _the_ thing!" Victini said, pointing as his spike ears as they burst into flames.

"Oh, right. Okay, but try not to overdo it," Keldeo said. Victini grabbed hold of his horn. Keldeo used his water jets to spin around at top speeds, then flung Victini skyward toward a cluster of Naganadel.

"It's the new and improved _V-Wheel!_ " Victini shouted as his momentum turned him into a living, flaming pinball that ricocheted off each Naganadel, leaving them dazed. Victini broke out of his attack, then had to fly up as a massive ball of lightning passed underneath him, vaporizing the Naganadel and a couple of Pheromosa for good measure.

 **"Ha! Did you see that? Seven in one Bolt Strike! Yes! I'm really feeling it!"** Zekrom said, fist-pumping.

"Hey! Watch where you're aiming, Turbine Butt! You singed my leg!" Reshiram barked, shoving him aside.

 **"I can't help it if your hips are wide enough to set a full-course meal on… or that you're enamored with my backside."** Zekrom laughed.

"Oh, brother. Get _over_ yourself." Reshiram took in a deep breath while she rolled her eyes. The lingering static intensified the flames in her maw. She spat out a _huge_ torrent of fire, burning away multiple Buzzwoles, a Stakataka, three Xurkitrees, and a half-dozen Kartanas trying to zip toward her. "Suck it, Turbine Butt! That's a dozen. I get the point. And that means _you've_ gotta be the little spoon when this all over." She stuck her tongue out at him.

 **"What? No way! Best five out of nine!"** Zekrom growling, tail whirring.

"Both of you be serious!"

Zekrom tensed. He looked down to find Kyurem locked in a grapple struggle with a Guzzlord. "We don't have time… to play games!" he growled.

"Talk to him. It was his asinine idea," Reshiram said, before blasting the Guzzlord from above with a Dragon Pulse. It burst into black shadows that flittered away. Kyurem stumbled back, trying to catch his breath.

 **"More are coming. Stay on your guard!"** Zekrom said. He zipped down toward Kyurem's side.

"I know what I'm doing," Kyurem growled. "I hope the others are having better luck than we are."

* * *

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

"G-Gallian. I'm not sure this is a good idea," Zoroark said, limping after his made. "Comfey wanted us to rest, remember?"

"I can't rest with all the commotion," Gallian said, wanting to run down the hall to the assembly area but still feeling too light-headed to manage that. In truth, he _wanted_ to stay curled up in his bed with his mate. But when he heard a chorus of voices rising up from the assembly area punctuated by Milotic sobbing loudly, he couldn't lay still any longer.

Gallian walked into the assembly area and promptly froze. Pokémon of all shapes and sizes streamed down the stairs toward the veterans' quarters. Milotic, Serperior, and Steenee all stood by the stairway, directing traffic as best as they could. But what _really_ shocked him was the sight of the _other_ guild apprentices piling up supply crates near the stairs. He could've _sworn_ his sister told him that Necrozma had sucked the life out of all of them. What was going on?

"That's it. Single file now, everyone. Please no pushing or shoving!" Steenee said.

"Hey! Keep your paws to yourselves, Furfrous!" Serperior barked. A Furfrou couple's faces blanched as they tried to put some separation between themselves.

"What in the—" Zoroark stopped beside Gallian. "Why are people piling into this place?" His eyes then fell on Serperior and he jumped back with a loud yap. "Y-You! What are you— how in the—"

Serperior flinched. "A-Ah. Comfey said you two were on bedrest. This is… embarrassing," Serperior slithered back, biting her lower lip. "Look, I'm really sorry about… y'know…" She tapped her head with her tail and Gallian felt the absence of his horn once again.

He scowled and looked away from her. "It's whatever. You weren't in control. I was infected, too. I just… had the right Pokémon available to help."

"R-Right." Serperior rapped her tail against the ground nervously. "Um, belated congrats on, y'know, taking a mate and stuff." The awkwardness of the situation was plain as day on her face.

"Look. We just want to know why there's so much activity here," Zoroark said, scratching at his right ear.

"What da… Gallian?!"

Gallian tensed. He turned to find Yungoos lowering a box, eyeing him suspiciously. "H-Hey. Long time no see, I guess," Gallian said.

"So, dey got youse under arrest here, huh? About time!" Yungoos said, leering at Gallian.

"A-Actually, that's—"

Zoroark stomped over to Yungoos. "My _mate_ and I have been helping Team Radiance deal with the Prism Virus in your guys' absence. We got too roughed up to keep fighting, that's all," he said, his good eye flickering crimson.

Yungoos looked between the two of them. "Y-Youse mean da two of youse is—" He looked at the ground, blinking in surprise.

"Oh, congratulations, dahlings!" Bruxish declared, levitating a box beside Yungoos. "We simply _must_ celebrate. You know… when we're not busy evacuating the town into the Catacombs, of course."

Gallian's eyes widened. Zoroark's fur puffed up and he crouched on all fours. "They're evacuating the town?! What for?"

 **Necrozma has torn open a rift and Ultra Beasts are pouring out of it.**

Magearna zipped into the room using her motorized wheels, bowling an unaware Growlithe over. She skidded to a halt by Zoroark. **The good news is that we were able to revive the spirits of Necrozma's victims! Several of the gods are fighting the Ultra Beasts off as we speak.**

The ground shook. Gallian hopped to Zoroark's side to keep him from falling over. Magearna looked behind her. **Ah, not good! The barrier—**

Zoroark frowned. "Wait, I thought Necrozma was dead! Why would—" But Magearna zoomed off before he could finish his question. A few seconds later, she sped back into the room, bowling Growlithe over a second team.

"Oof. Now I know how Vulpix feels being such a punching bag," Growlithe said, blinking stars from his vision.

 **The forcefield's holding up. It's a good thing the generator is in this building, otherwise we'd be in a lot of trouble,** Magearna said.

"Time out. If the forcefield's working, why is everyone being evacuated?" Zoroark asked.

 **In case the generator falters. And I fear that's a possibility if the Tapus choose to use their Z-Moves to defend the continent!** Magearna said.

Gallian and Zoroark turned to each other with shocked expressions. They'd both heard the legends. The Tapus could summon giants made of divine energy to do battle with. "But… but they could tear the continent apart!" Gallian said, crouching low to the ground. His head throbbed. He was sure his disaster sense was acting up.

"I'm sorry! But, from the way it sounded, the Tapus didn't think they had a choice!" Mimikyu said, hopping into the room from the path to Magearna's workshop. Togedemaru followed in behind them. "P-Please don't get mad at us! We didn't have time to think of any plans."

Gallian raised a brow. Mimikyu froze. "O-Oh. It's… it's you." His disguise's head flopped over. "H-How have things been? With the, y'know, stealing and outlawing and stuff?"

"I'm past that," Gallian said. "Okay, what can Zoroark and I do to help out here?"

"I think Trapinch is getting overwhelmed directing people using the speaker in the sentry room," Growlithe said, pointing his snout toward the southern corridor.

"Then that's where we'll go. C'mon." Zoroark beckoned Gallian forward. They ran ahead, only to faceplant when the ground started shaking again.

"Geez! It's like an earthquake's ravaging outside," Togedemaru said, flailing her stubby limbs about as she tried to right herself. "Can't they at least be a _bit_ gentle?"

Gallian and Zoroark exchanged concerned looks. They didn't need to exchange words. Both knew the other was praying they'd make it through all of this in one piece.

* * *

 **~Volcanic Wastes~**

"Hold the line, all of you! We can't let them get through until everyone's safely underground!" Totem Salazzle shouted. A line of Salandits standing in front of her spat fireballs, poison globs, and dragonfire toward a rampaging Buzzwole. Crimson energy surrounded it and it broke through the attacks unscathed.

Totem Salazzle's eyes widened. "Just what manner of demon is this creature?" She spun around, opened her tail-flaps, and released pink vapor. Buzzwole slowed to a stagger, swaying uneasily from side to side.

"Excellent shot, Totem!" Heralder Salandit said. He was followed up by her applauding entourage clapping enthusiastically.

"Idiots! Don't sing my praises! Attack it while its dazed!" Totem Salazzle ordered, turning around and spewing a Flamethrower at Buzzwole. Heralder and his cohorts coughed up fireballs of their own. Buzzwole stumbled back, its bulbous muscles catching on fire.

"We've got him, Mother!"

Healer Salazzle vaulted over the Salandit line, followed by Spike-Skull Marowak. He hurled his bone club forward, knocking Buzzwole onto its back and leaving it no recourse against a point-blank Flamethrower from Healer. It dissolved away into black smoke. Healer and Spike-Skull smiled at each other, but the cute moment was interrupted by a cry of, "We need some help here!"

A Stakataka tromped across the ground, blasting Flash Cannons from several of its eyes. Cubones and Marowaks ran around in a panic, some carrying injured members of the tribe. Spike-Skull hurled his bone club at the nearest leg, but a Flash Cannon blew it into the ground. Totem Marowak weaved between two Flash Cannons and launched a fireball toward Stakataka's underside. It struck home, but Stakataka managed to kick Totem Marowak back. He hit the ground with a heavy _thud._

"Everyone, _fire!_ " Totem Salazzle cried, looking aghast at her counterpart. Rather than the familiar volley of fireballs, however, huge jets of steam swept Stakataka away. The various tribesmon all froze.

"All of you! Focus your efforts on getting to safety," Volcanion declared, landing in a burst of steam. "Leave these fiends to us!"

Totem Marowak scrambled to his feet, nearly dropping his bone club in the process. "M… Mighty Volcanion," he whispered.

"Now!" Volcanion roared.

The tribe looked up to see a giant made of green energy hovering high in the air. Tapu Bulu sat atop it, enclosed in his bell-shaped armor. Volcanion blasted two Blacephalons with high-pressure water. Tapu Bulu caught them in an outstretched hand and crushed them.

"Praise be to the Tapus! They've heard our plights!" the High Priest sang, spinning his bone club around in triumph.

"This isn't the time for celebrations!" Totem Marowak scolded.

"Agreed. Everyone, get underground! Full retreat! Grab whatever supplies you think you can carry!" Totem Salazzle ordered.

"Yes, Totem!" her Salandit squadron replied, saluting her unison and then scurrying off.

* * *

 **~Stormcracker Isle~**

"Lucy, are you seeing this shit?!"

Seraph stood perched on barren palm tree's branch. Luxeira stood at the tree's base, staring off into the distance. She did indeed see literal giants hovering in the air. Occasionally, brightly-colored blasts lit up the sky like a fireworks display. The thing was, she wasn't sure she _believed_ what she was seeing. With everything that had happened since Rem Canyon, she wanted to brush this off as the result of a blow to the head she had taken fighting Nihilego back in Cosmic Cavern.

"This is unbelievable," she said, stepping back from the tree. "What is going on over there?"

"The Tapus are using their Z-Moves, by the look of things," Totem Decidueye said, swooping down to land on the branch next to Seraph's.

" _That's_ a Z-Move?!" Seraph turned to gawk at her looplet. "It looks like they could destroy the whole continent if they wanted to!" Luxeira tensed. It was hard to ignore the bevy of explosions. At this rate, she feared there wouldn't even _be_ a Horizon Continent to return to should they survive the whole ordeal.

"I myself have never seen this before. The Z-Move's only been spoken of in tales and legends, like the story of how Voltaic Crater came into existence," Totem Decidueye said, brushing dust off his wing. "In times of crisis, the Land Spirits can summon giant guardians from the earth to command in battle. It's… a sight to behold, to say the least."

"Yeah. Good thing we got out of there when we did," Seraph said, rubbing her nose. "I'd hate to imagine what it'd be like if we were still on the mainland."

"Mayday! Mayday! Incoming Blacephalons!"

Seraph and Luxeira jerked their heads right. A multicolored Blacephalon head hurtled right toward Seraph. Luxeira coughed up a Flamethrower, blowing it away seconds before it exploded in a shower of bright lights. Seraph's legs shook. Her right leg slipped off the branch and, were it not for Totem Decidueye's quick thinking, she would've fallen to the ground.

Two Blacephalons caught sight of this and shot giant fireballs at Totem Decidueye. His eyes widened. He was too busy flapping his wings to fire off any ectoplasmic arrows. Luckily for him, Kahuna Riachu hovered up next to him and raised his paws. He caught one of the fireballs with his ESP and flung it back at the Blacephalon culprit. At the same time, a flurry of large, bright-green, leaf-shaped energy balls blew the other fireball out of the way.

Seraph saw a white and blue streak zip by her. Shaymin Esserly flew over to Kahuna Raichu, her blue hair and blue, scarf-like petals fluttered behind her. "Sorry I'm late, everyone! Evacuating the village proved more troublesome than I anticipated."

"It's quite all right, cousin. Good to see you again. Wish the circumstances were better, though," Kahuna Raichu said. The two Blacephalons grabbed their heads and threw them forward.

"Careful! Those can explode," Seraph said. Despite hanging from Totem Decidueye's talons, she launched blue lightning at a Blacephalon head, knocking it back into its body, which got swallowed up by a neon explosion.

"Good to know," Esserly said. She fired more Seed Flare energy pellets, which Kahuna Raichu electrified with his Thunderbolt. They hammered the Blacephalon head and blew it up. The remaining Blacphealon sprouted a new head, but a blast of purple poison struck its leg and sent it reeling, where Luxeira was waiting atop a nearby rock to snipe it with a black beam. It dissolved into gray shadows.

"Good work, everyone," Totem Decidueye said, gently lowering Seraph to the ground.

"I don't think we're safe, yet," Sticky said, pointing a nubby hand toward the sky. Lightning streaked toward them, but to their shock, Jolteon and Cosplay Pikachu leaped into the air and absorbed all the electricity. They landed safely on a giant water bubble formed my Primarina.

 _"Now, Vappy, let's let 'em have it!_

 _We'll send them packing like they're bad habits!"_

Primarina's singing sent the water bubble racing toward a trio of Xurkitrees. They prepared to vaporize his attack, but an Ice Beam struck them from below and froze them solid. The water bubble exploded, shattering the Xurkitrees. "Ah! Bravo! Wonderful! And you two were excellent," Primarina said, bowing to Jolteon and Cosplay Pikachu.

"Yeah. I, uh, wouldn't use those lyrics in the future," Vaporeon said, cringing.

"Guys, everyone focus!" Seraph said, her whiskers sparking. "If Ultra Beasts are swarming this place, then we have to make sure the people we evacuated are safe, right?" She turned to Esserly. "Where are the folks from your village?"

"There's a set of caves in the center of the island. They lead to a Mystery Dungeon," Esserly explained. "I brought them to the caves just before the dungeon. We found a bunch of Pokémon there, already."

Seraph lightning-dashed up toward a rock opposite Luxeira's. "Good work. Then, I think if we stay out here, we can draw any would-be attacker's attention and keep them from going toward the caves." She scanned the sky for any signs of any Ultra Beasts. Instead, a plume of rainbow fire erupted over the ocean. Yowling, Seraph through an arm over her face. She nearly fell off her rocky perch.

"Or Lady Ho-Oh could swoop in and burn the attackers away with her Sacred Fire," Esserly said, smiling.

Totem Decidueye blinked slowly as he tried to process what he had just seen. "I-In any case, we have to stay vigilant. Somebody could always slip past—"

A Buzzwole dropped to the ground and flexed. Luxeira didn't hesitate to blast it with a Flamethrower, but it jumped out of the way and flew toward her, glowing fist outstretched. She leaped off her rock right before Buzzwole brought his fist crashing down onto it. "It's bug and fighting-type!" Luxeira barked, turning to spit a fireball at Buzzwole's wing.

"Copy that!" Esserly said, her wing-like ears glowing. Air Slash crescents pummeled Buzzwole from above. Luxeira's fireball burned away its wing. A psychic ring from Kahuna Raichu proved the finish blow. Buzzwole dissolved away in a cloud of black smoke.

"I don't like this," Luxeira said, eyeing the spot where Buzzwole attack skeptically. "Something about these Ultra Beasts seem off."

"Yeah." Seraph crossed her arms. "They're clumsy… and fragile. Almost like…" Her eyes widened. "Almost like they're not real!"

"So, these are fakes?" Totem Decidueye said, flying up to scout from a tree branch.

"It would explain why they instantly turn into smoke when they're beaten," Seraph said.

"Ah! That sounds just like what happens to dungeon Pokémon overseas," Esserly realized. She bit her lower lip. "What does this mean?"

"It means someone's making Ultra Beast copies en masse," Seraph said, clenching her fists. "The question is… who's doing it? And why?"

* * *

 **~Celestial Island Interior~**

Tessa wasn't sure whether or not to feel fortunate or annoyed that the floor and walls kept turning into giant shapes to attack her. If they hadn't, she would've found it hard to go on after hearing Lunala's explanation. Instead, rather than trying to process the revelations, she had to focus on leaping over a chasm of spikes and landing safely on the other side while Lunala held crystalline crushers at bay with her ESP. Once she was on firm ground, Lunala flew through and the crushers slammed shut behind her.

"So, let me get this straight. You're saying the world — our _home_ — is nothing but a giant accident? Built off the foundations off some world where humans and Pokémon lived together?" Espy said, ears drooping and tail tucked between her legs. "And all the stuff we have to deal with — dungeons, ley lines, uncooperative gods, etcetera — is a result of the creature Arceus fought with when he destroyed the world?"

Lunala bowed her head solemnly. "I'm afraid so. That's what I ended up learning as a result of Necrozma controlling me." She frowned. "If I'm understanding things correctly, the same demon's power dwells inside Necrozma and, by association…" Her voice trailed off. She tapped her wing-claws together nervously. "That power was in your friends, too. Silvally and… um…"

"Shane," Tessa said, her voice empty. She looked down at her right paw. The sigil was flickering again. She didn't doubt what Lunala was saying. Instead, Tessa worried about what that meant for her. If her aura was built on Necrozma's energy, then couldn't that mean the void's power was inside of _her_ , too? Is that why Necrozma offered her to let her join him?

 _'Wouldn't that mean he could possess me like he did Shane?_ Has _he already possessed me?'_ she wondered, eyes widening when she recalled her rampage against her mother. If he did control her somehow, then how could she fight against him? He could take control of her and turn her against Espy. After her reaction to losing Silvally, Tessa feared Espy would lose her will to fight if that happened.

"On your left," Espy said, snapping Tessa out of her thoughts. Pink blasts whizzed past her face. They blew apart a few Necrospheres on her right. Lunala engulfed the rest of the them in a crimson shockwave. They slammed together and exploded. "The stairs are up ahead. You doing okay?"

"Just having trouble making heads or tails of this, that's all." Sighing, Tessa's aura feelers drooped. Even if Latias had helped heal her up, the mental exhaustion was getting to her.

"I'm sorry. I debated whether or not to tell you. But, well, you've seen what Necrozma is like." Lunala folded up her wings. "I figured if I stayed silent, Necrozma would rant about this stuff in an effort to try and get you to surrender to him." Her third eye flickered. "I can't imagine it's easy hearing anything of this. And you've both been through so much already."

"It's… it's okay," Tessa said, her voice shaky. Did it hurt to hear? Of course. But the loss of her friends hurt even more. And she would _never_ forgive Necrozma for taking them from her. "I want to see this through to the end. For Silvally and f…" She rubbed her face. "For Shane."

Espy nodded. "Exactly. There'll be time to reflect on all of this when Necrozma's gone. For now… we have to deal with him."

"Right." Lunala glided toward the stairs. "This time, I'll be here to help you two. And I'm sure that some of the other gods will break through soon enough and lend their strength to you."

The moment she reached the stairs, however, a click echoed through the room. The stairs vanished. A tower of cubes rose up from the floor, jettisoning a hollering Lunala up toward the glitchy ceiling.

"Lunala!" Tessa cried. She took a single step forward and her eyes widened in horror. The cubes were falling away all around her. "We have to jump for it!" Tessa crouched low and sprang into the air. She caught sight of Espy beside her. Tessa shot Psychic rings behind her in the hopes it would propel her forward.

However, the spot she thought she could reach fell away. The cubes drifted into the abyss. Tessa desperately reached a paw out toward what was left of the floor, only to see it crumble. With no place to land, Tessa tumbled down into the abyss, screaming at the top of her lungs. She lost sight of Espy seconds before slamming into something hard and having her entire world flash bright-white.

* * *

And with the debut of this episode, _Guiding Light_ is officially two years old! I know it may not seem like that to some of you, but I actually began the fic on Serebii on August 2, 2019. I didn't put it on FFN until several months later, when a reader asked me to do so. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine this fic would get the support it has gotten on this sight. One thousand reviews is mind-blowing! I'd say let's shoot even higher, but that's up to you guys and anyone who reads in the future. The amount of kind words you all have had blows me away! At the same time, I'm grateful to those who had constructive feedback for me. I'd like to think the quality of the fic has improved over time thanks to you all.

To those who have stuck around for a while, thank you for being such a big part of this ride. For those who caught up with the fic recently, I hope you're having fun. And for those of you who are silent readers lurking in the background… I hope you've enjoyed the story. I'd love to hear your thoughts, even a sentence or two, but I know it can be tough to come up with stuff to say. Regardless, I really hope you all enjoy what I have to offer for the final episode. I'm working really hard on crafting a satisfying ending that does justice to Pokémon Mystery Dungeon.

I could go on a ramble about all of this, but I already did that over on the "Ask the Guiding Light Cast" tumblr blog. In fact, I'm actually holding a giveaway there for the fic's anniversary. If you're interested in entering to win shiny versions of Team Radiance, head over to the blog through my profile page and search "fic anniversary." You'll find all the info there. You have until **August 17th** to enter. Good luck!

SuperOmegaGuest: Thanks. I imagine you're not much of a fan of Necrozma right now. You're not alone.

Unstopable8000: Glad you enjoyed everything! As you can see, we're not done with all the twists and turns yet.

Anon Omega: "This was all a trick. I deceived you." The hospital scene was me putting in one of the alternative endings I had in mind. One I never really considered. Coma tropes are overdone.

Next time: the most heartbreaking battles Espy and Tessa have ever fought!


	113. Best Friend, Worst Nightmare

**Content Advisory:** Like with last chapter, there are instances of charged and suggestive language.

* * *

 **Chapter 96: Best Friend, Worst Nightmare**

 **~Treasure Town Coast~**

Infernape drove a flaming fist into a Celesteela. It wobbled about unsteadily, leaving room for Feraligatr to leap into the air and bite down on one of its arms. Celesteela toppled over, desperately trying to blast Haunter, who floated nonchalantly in front of it. However, when the metal burst struck, Haunter simply vanished in a puff of smoke.

"You fool! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders! Mwee hee hee hee!"

Haunter popped up on the other side of Celesteela and licked its other arm. It seized up from paralysis, giving Infernape's Flame Wheel an opening to strike its chest. Celesteela burst apart into shadowy wisps. Infernape uncurled, dusting sand off his knees.

"Err… nice work there," he said.

"Any time!" Haunter bowed and sank back into the ground. Infernape looked around, trying to see if any more Ultra Beasts were attempting to breach the forcefield and invade Treasure Town.

 **"Go** _ **away!**_ **"**

Feraligatr jumped up with a holler. Infernape looked left, where sound waves knocked a Nihilego into a Pheromosa and a Naganadel like they were a stack of dominos. Exploud stomped about angrily, yelling, **"Trying to attack Sunflora when she was preoccupied? You guys are** _ **such jerks!**_ **"**

"I, uh, guess they've got things under control?" Feraligatr mumbled, head titled sideways. "Say, is it just me, or do these things seem a _lot_ weaker than that big building thingamajig Lycanroc was controlling?"

"You mean Spattatatta? Yeah, these guys _are_ a lot weaker," Infernape said. "It doesn't make any sense to me. They _look_ fearsome and imposing. So, why can we knock them out so easily?"

"Yoom- _ **taah!**_ **"**

To Team Poképals' right, a Guzzlord hurtled through the air, flailing its large arms. A ball of pink fairy energy struck it from above, destroying it. Cresselia hovered down, staring blankly at Wigglytuff.

"Hooray! I blew back the bad guy farther than Exploud did!" Wigglytuff cheered.

Blue-Beak Chatot hopped up and down, flapping his wings. "G-Guildmaster, _please._ This isn't the time for celebrat— _gah!_ " He shot into the air moments before a Blacephalon head hit the sand and erupted in a neon explosion. Cresselia barely managed to yank Wigglytuff out of the way in time. The Blacephalon in question dropped out of the sky, bowing as a new head appeared in its hands.

"Hey, lanky! Pick on someone your own size, will ya?"

Blacephalon whirled around, only for a Mega Lopunny to drive a glowing foot into its wiry frame. It buckled like a bent straw. Lopunny whirled around, punting its head into the distance. "Light 'em up, Gardy!" Lopunny dropped to her belly, enabling pink ripples to hammer Blacephalon while it was stunned. It dissolved away in trails of gray smoke. "Nice work!"

Mega Gardevoir levitated down from an alcove and daintily touched down in the sand. She was breathing heavily. "Th-Thanks, chief. But I gotta say, this workout's taking a bit of a toll on me."

A loud wham sounded to her right and a Pheromosa hit the ground beside Lopunny. It stuck a leg up, striking Mega Medicham's glowing foot. She hopped back from the stalemate, wincing as she landed. "What happened to staying retired, huh?"

Lopunny sprang toward Pheromosa. It whirled around, leg outstretched to meet her. But Medicham dove into her, forehead brimming with psychic energy. Pheromosa stumbled and Lopunny drove a fiery fist into its sternum. It dropped to its knees and burst into flames. Lopunny wiped her brow. "Well, we can't enjoy retirement if the world gets destroyed, can we?"

Medicham slumped over. "F-fair point, I guess."

"Aw, c'mon. Look on the bright side." Haunter materialized beside Lopunny with Drifloon and Misdreavus in tow. "How many exploration teams get to say they _charmed_ a pack of aliens? Get it? Because you're Team Charm! Mwee hee hee h—"

Lopunny backhanded Haunter's cheek. His eyes popped out of their sockets and rolled through the sand. "Yow! Hey, what's the big idea?!" Haunter huffed, scooping his eyes up and rubbing them against each other to get the sand grains out.

"Golly, Haunter. I don't think they're fans of your brand of comedy," Misdreavus said.

"Exactly. Focus on keeping Treasure Town safe. Then you can crack as many jokes as you want," Gardevoir said, leering at Haunter.

"Preferably out of our range of hearing," Medicham added.

Haunter stiffened and saluted her. "Y-Yes, ma'am!"

"Ma'am? Do I look like my frills are wrinkling yet?" Gardevoir fumed.

"Of course not! Of course not! You three are a pack of angels!" Drifloon said, hearts popping up in his eyes.

"Uh… gross," Medicham said.

"Girls. Let's not waste time with these dweebs. We've got aliens to pulverize!" Lopunny said, before hopping off in Azelf and Uxie's direction. Medicham and Gardevoir nodded and ran after their boss.

"W-Wait, what about us?" Haunter cried, then floated after them.

"I miss Team Captivate. At least they'd hit me while they were chewing me out." Drifloon sighed and hovered off dejectedly.

* * *

 **~Celestial Island Interior~**

Groaning, Espy rolled from her back to belly. "My aching everything." She brushed her head against her shoulder and blinked. Somehow, she seemed to have ended up somewhere even darker than where she was before. The ground had the same glassy texture as the other floors of the twisted dungeon, but now the cubes were jet-black, to the point where Espy couldn't identify their outlines.

She tensed her back. Her spine popped several times. After confirming nothing was broken, she got to her feet. "You doing okay, Tessa?" Espy waited for a response, but got nothing. She concentrated on her psychic powers but, like with Temporal Tower's ruins, she couldn't sense anything. "T-Tessa? Lunala?" Espy turned around, looking for any sign of the other girls. She saw nothing. Not even a faint outline.

"Tessa? Lunala? C'mon, this isn't funny!" Espy said, louder and more desperate than before. Her tail wrapped around a hind leg. Her breathing and heart rate quickened. "Please, say something! _Anything!_ " Espy's ears folded against her head. She had had this nightmare before. Plenty of times. Being alone in a dark, foreboding void with no way to sense anything and no signs of escape. The only thing that was missing was—

A _squelch_ made her fur shoot up. Her ears and tail stiffened. "W-What was that?!" Espy whirled around. "Wh… who's out there? Show yourself!" She conjured up fairy energy in her forehead gem and unleashed white, dazzling light. It lit up the room long enough for Espy to see a few puddles of black slime evaporate in front of her.

Espy's heart shot into her throat. Her tail ducked between her legs. This wasn't happening. It _couldn't_ be happening. And yet, she knew that her Dazzling Gleam had hit some Void Shadows. Which meant there was no denying it. This really _was_ her worst nightmare come to life. And she could barely see the Void Shadows coming with how dark this place was.

She crouched low to the ground, trying to steady her breathing so she could listen for the sounds of approaching Void Shadows. The silence made her skin crawl. With each passing second, she found it harder to keep her nerves in check. The possibility something could leap out of the darkness at her made it difficult for her to concentrate.

"Deep breaths… deep breaths," she squeaked. Espy found the sound of her own voice slightly calming amidst the stillness.

 **"Why, Espy? Why did you let me die?"**

Espy swallowed hard. She didn't want to turn around. Even with the distortion, she knew that was Umbreon's voice. She wanted to blame Necrozma for all of this. Espy figured it _had_ to be some sort trick or illusion. And yet, the sight of Umbreon — or, rather, what she assumed was a _copy_ of her brother — made her legs tremble.

Umbreon crept toward her, his red eyes glowing. **"I spent my best years being the shoulder for you to cry on. Trying to craft apologies to our colleagues for all of** _ **your**_ **angry tirades."** He paced back and forth. Espy stared him down, petrified. **"Cleaning up after your wild nights drinking and snorting stardust.** _ **Satisfying you.**_ **And for what?"**

A black beam raced toward Espy. After a second of indecision, she jumped back, wincing as smoke rose from the ground.

 **"For you to leave me behind… to suffer Necrozma's wrath!"** Umbreon said, rings flashing.

"N-No. That's not true." Espy shook her head. "You pushed me into the Magnagate! You wanted me to survive, right? You made it sound like it was the only way!"

 **"Ha! You only heard what you wanted to hear, as per usual!"**

Sharp claws swiped against Espy's rear. She stumbled forward and barely managed to roll away from another Dark Pulse. Espy whirled around, shouting, "Leave me alone!" Her forehead gem flashed white. But Haxorus' copy jumped away from the blast of fairy energy.

 **"What's the matter? Does the truth hurt? You're only upset because you know that I'm right,"** Haxorus said, unsheathing her Dragon Claws. **"All you've ever done is come up with excuses."**

Espy winced. "I… I was upset."

 **"For over a decade? Please. What kind of sorry reasoning is that?"**

Espy's ears twitched at another feminine voice. She saw something glowing red and fired Psychic rings to her left. Virizion yelped in surprise and tumbled back across the floor. Espy looked away guiltily, only to find a ball of dragonfire heading right for her. Espy formed up a Light Screen, but purple ectoplasm struck her in the rump. She gasped, then cried in pain as dragonfire pelted her face.

 **"How does it feel,** _ **Espy?**_ **All your safety nets are gone."** Umbreon's forehead ring smoldered. **"And how about those 'friends' you thought you could replace us with on Team Radiance? I don't see them anywhere."**

"Please stop! I'm sorry! I'm so, _so_ sorry!" Espy said. Even if she knew the dungeon was doing this, she couldn't help it. All the bad memories were bubbling up to the surface. "I made mistakes! A _lot_ of mistakes! Please… leave me alone!" Forehead gem brimming with fairy energy, she unleashed a Dazzling Gleam. It knocked the copies back. They shrank back down into Void Shadows and disappeared in puffs of smoke.

 **"This is what you deserve. To face down your demise… all alone. With nary a soul to come to your aid."**

Espy spun around, then dove to the floor. A purple beam whizzed over her, singing the forked ends of her tail. She looked up into Hydreigon's six eyes. Each one glowed bright-blue. Espy scrambled to her feet, wondering if anyone else would crawl out of the darkness. She shot white energy at Hydreigon, who flew above it.

 **"It's laughable, really. I** _ **thought**_ **you were a researcher. And yet, your actions with regards to your new friends are downright irrational,"** Hydreigon said, shaking his three heads in unison. Espy saw his purple Dark Pulse beam coming this time, however, and countered it with a pink, spiraling Psybeam. She backed away from a cloud of black smoke, only to yowl as something sharp jabbed her right flank.

Espy hopped left, keeping Hydreigon in view while staring down a copy of Keldeo whose horn brimmed with energy. She glanced at the spot he'd struck. The fur was scuffed, but otherwise the injuries were minimal compared to what Dragonite and Zero had done.

 **"Let's be real, Espeon. You weren't really friends with anyone on Team Radiance,"** Keldeo said, narrowing his eyes. **"They were nothing but crutches to you."**

"That's a lie!" Espy cried. She fired pink blasts at Keldeo, but Hydreigon swooped down to harmlessly take the blow. Keldeo used him as a footstool to leap into the air. Next thing Espy knew, water torrents swept her off her feet and sent her tumbling across the floor. She rolled back to her feet quickly, however. Her fur may have been soggy, but otherwise she felt fine.

 _'What's going on here?'_ she wondered. The attacks hurt, but they hurt in the same way stepping on a spike trap did. She _knew_ Necrozma was capable of doing far worse. So, if this was one of his traps, why wasn't he using his strongest techniques?

 **"Admit it! You wanted to use the guys to carry on your old habits!"** Hydreigon said. **"When they kept you away from the stardust you craved, you got antsy."** He opened his mouth and spewed fire at her.

 **"You** _ **craved**_ **intimacy. That's why you came onto Ninetales during the stage show. And, when that failed, you began to cozy up to a** _ **freak.**_ **"** Keldeo slashed at the flames with his horn. Fiery crescents homed in on Espy. She sprinted away from the Void Shadows, while Keldeo continued, **"You were desperate. I'm impressed you managed to show** _ **some**_ **self-restraint. Maybe you have grown a tiny bit since the days of the Bittercold."**

Espy skidded to a halt and threw up a Light Screen. The last fire crescent fizzled out against her barrier. "That has nothing to do with this! I'm trying to make up for what I did. I… I want to be a more positive person. But if I don't stop Necrozma, I'll never get that chance."

Hydreigon swooped toward her, spewing a purple beam. Espy avoided it by running right. Hydreigon shriveled up into a ball of black slime, which then turned into Umbreon. **"Please. You don't care about being positive. All that matters to you is the** _ **freak's**_ **big hulking frame on top of you."**

Espy shrank back, ears drooping and tail curling around her leg. "N-No. I don't… I wouldn't…"

 **"It's written all over your face,"** Virizion said, sauntering up to Umbreon. Her ethereal horn glowing orange. Keldeo joined her at her side, energy gathering in his horn as well. **"Warm breath on the back of your neck. Fur and scales rubbing against you."** Virizion smirked at Espy. **"You want him to have your way with you. To go at you so hard you can't walk straight when he's finished!"**

"Stop it! Stop talking about him like that!" Espy said, unleashing a Dazzling Gleam. Energy blades and a Dark Pulse beam countered the white light. Espy shuffled back, legs quivering. "I didn't… I wouldn't…" She shook her head.

 **"He was a big,** _ **alluring**_ **piece of meat dangling in front of you. Nothing more. Nothing less,"** Umbreon said. **"Things wouldn't have been any different with him than they were with me."**

Espy looked at the floor. These Void Shadows' attacks weren't the problem. It was everything they were saying. She'd heard this all before. In her dreams. In her worst moments of weakness when she was awake. And every time this had happened before, she turned to the same solutions. But she couldn't do that here. These Void Shadows were real. They were dredging her past mistakes back up. She _wanted_ to apologize. She had _planned_ on it.

But they were right. Espy made plans assuming she'd have Silvally to support her. Her gaze darted around. Were the Void Shadows right, then? Maybe Silvally _was_ a crutch she was using to avoid confronting her demons…

 _Don't listen to them._

Espy tensed up. Her eyes darted around, but she had to backpedal and dodge a Shadow Ball along with red energy crescents from Keldeo. Virizion hit the spot she had been standing in seconds after she moved.

 _Remember what we talked about. Challenge the negativity._

"Challenge the negativity…" Espy glanced right. Like on Zero's altar, a familiar silhouette stood behind her. It fanned out its translucent crest and smiled at her.

 _Asking for help is not a sign of weakness._

The silhouette faded. Espy's tail twitched. More ectoplasm was heading for her. She sprinted right, blasting a charging Keldeo with pink energy. Umbreon jumped in to block the blow, however. **"What's the matter? You've gotten awful quiet,"** he taunted. **"It's because you know we're right, isn't it?"**

Keldeo soared up on jets of water from his hooves. **"If you gave up… and returned the Z-Power you took to where it belongs… then maybe you could get him back."** He pointed his hooves at Espy. She formed a Light Screen and it proved strong enough to deflect his Hydro Pump jets. Keldeo frowned. **"This resistance of yours is laughable. We know you want him inside you. Necrozma can make it happen. All you have to is stand down."**

Espy skidded to a halt and glanced at her glowing looplet. So, that was what this was about. When Espy got her looplet, a rush of energy repaired her forehead gem and restored her connection to her psychic powers. She had used Z-Power to fix her "broken" abilities… just like Tessa with her defective aura sense, apparently.

 _'And Necrozma wants that energy back for himself. Even if it isn't much… he won't be satiated until he takes everything!'_

Espy narrowed her eyes at the Void Shadows. She took a calming breath. "You want to know what I have to say?" Her eyes glowed blue. Umbreon readied a Dark Pulse, but Espy unleashed her Dazzling Gleam much quicker. The Void Shadows burned away against a wall of white light. "I say _piss off!_ " She stomped a foreleg on the ground. "Yes, I did a lot of bad things after the Bittercold fell. Ditto with Dark Matter. I treated the Pokémon of Paradise like dirt. I'm not denying that.

"But I think I get _why_ things went badly. I didn't have the help I needed _._ " Espy looked around. New copies — Victini and Emolga, judging by the silhouettes — were forming to her right. Ectoplasm crackled around her forehead gem. "Everyone around me was so concerned with getting Haxorus back from the human world. And then, when we _did_ get her back, people ignored me! It was all about making Paradise as picturesque as possible. Nobody wanted to talk about the Bittercold because they were too afraid that discussing all that negativity would lead to its return!"

She shot the Shadow Ball forward. Emolga tried to blow it apart with lightning, but Espy's attack prevailed. It blew Victini back. Espy charged another Shadow Ball. "I was told to keep quiet. But I _couldn't_ stay quiet. I'm not blaming the others or anything." She shook her head. "They were probably just as scared and concerned as I was. The difference is… they could put on happy faces. I couldn't."

Flames and lightning rushed toward Espy. She jumped right, then blew Victini apart with a large Shadow Ball. "We place too much emphasis on individual strength. It's how you stay alive in dungeons. It's how you go on to be a _somebody_ with a successful lot in life and a plethora of friends." Lightning from Emolga struck her right shoulder. Espy grimaced, but held her ground and retaliated. As Emolga disappeared in a pink explosion, Espy continued, "But hearing you guys taunt my current teammates… it all makes sense now. Pokémon are at their best when they work _together._ "

Tears brimmed in her eyes. "Silv believed that from the bottom of his heart. That's why he refused to give up on me… even when I tried to push him away like I did with everyone in Paradise! He _understood._ " Espy gathered fairy energy from her core and unleashed a white beam, blowing apart the purple and blue energy beams heading toward her. New copies of Hydreigon and Haxorus staggered back.

"Silv and Shane are _not_ crutches. They're not a coping mechanism. They're my friends, damn it!" Espy stomped another forepaw on the ground. "There's nothing wrong with asking for help! It's not a sign of weakness! At the end of the day, I'm still the one who has to apologize to everyone in Paradise," she said, wondering if she should use her Z-Power or hold off in case Necrozma had some other trap lying in wait.

"I made a promise to Silv. We were both going to help each other. Because, even if we've only known each other a few weeks, he cares about me. And I… I…" Espy's legs shook. "I care about him! And that's why I won't stand for you talking down to him! Not after everything he's done to help me. To help all of us!"

Espy's ears twitched. She sprawled out on her stomach. Wind blades surged overhead. A few nicked the fur on her back. When she thought she was safe, she rolled to her feet and looked right, expecting to see another Emolga clone waiting.

What she found instead were two red, beady eyes looking at her through the darkness. Loud thumps echoed through the room as the eyes got closer.

 **"That was quite the riveting speech you gave. I'm sure the** _ **freak**_ **would love to hear it,"** Umbreon said. Espy saw him charging a Dark Pulse. She gathered fairy energy to retaliate. **"So, why don't you look him in the eyes and tell him everything you just told me."**

The thuds were getting faster and louder. Espy was ready to respond, when a distorted roar made her ears fold against her head. A large figure lunged from the shadows. Squealing, Espy backpedaled. Her eyes bugged out when a pair of familiar, chitinous forelegs struck the ground, kicking up shadowy embers.

"No…" Espy blinked once. Twice. She shook her head. "I'm not falling for anymore tricks, Necrozma! I'm _done_ cowering from Void Shadows!" Espy jutted her head forward. White light engulfed the forelegs and the blood-red feathers brushing against them.

 _'Wait… red feathers?'_

Espy's attack faded. There was no sign of Umbreon, but the main target of her attack was still standing. White smoke rose up from the large, black, crystalline helmet clamped over its face. A rasping groan sounded. The newcomer shook its helmeted head. Heavy chains rattled against its furry frame.

"It's… it's not a Void Shadow," Espy whispered, tail shooting between her legs. "But that's… that's…" She stepped backwards, lip quivering. Crystals jutted out of the creature's body… right where Espy _knew_ Silvally had his thickest patches of scales. The crystals flickered with ominous red light. A red, winged-heart sigil appeared in the center of the helmet.

"S… Silv?" Espy barely managed to whisper the name. She _saw_ him go up in a literal blaze of otherworldly energy. And yet… he was all she could think about. Void Shadows could only copy, not create. There was also the fact that she knew from experience how much Necrozma loathed giving his energy to others. He wouldn't waste his light on making a grotesque replica to mess with her… would he?

"Silv!" Espy shouted. Perhaps it was desperation. After all, he hadn't tried to attack. He just stood there. Staring at her.

That all changed in a flash. A roar echoed through the room. Even through the distortion, Espy could tell the voice she'd come to trust so much was in there. Which made it all the more gut-wrenching for her when Silvally unleashed a silver and red plasma beam from the sigil on his helmet.

"Silv, _no!_ " Espy cried. She ran left, but underestimated the sheer size of the Hyper Beam. It was even larger than the one he used on Dragonite. Plasma seared her right side. Fur burnt away. Her pale, sensitive skin blistered. She crumpled to the ground. Tears bubbled in her eyes.

Espy told herself this must've been an elaborate hoax. She had watched Silvally make the ultimate sacrifice, after she had _begged_ him not to. He wasn't a single spirit. There wasn't any way he could've bounced back. But here he was, standing right in front of her. Looking to _kill_ her.

She tried to lift her head, but purple energy spread across her. It was another weak Dark Pulse from one of the Void Shadows. Espy barely felt it with her side still burning from Silvally's attack. "No," she squeaked. "S-Silv… please. Please don't do this. I don't… I can't…"

 **"What's the matter? Where's that earlier display of bravado? Aren't you happy to see your close,** _ **precious**_ **friend alive and kicking?"** Umbreon's rings flashed, as did the sigil on Silvally's helmet. He reared up on his hind legs. Holographic swords surrounded him. His leg muscles expanded. The crystals jutting from his body brimmed with red energy. **"I thought you were going to tell him how much you cared about him!"**

One of the oran berries Lunala had given Espy rolled out of her satchel. She bit into it, but found no recourse in its cooling juices. The ground trembled. Silvally was charging her down. Each lumbering step jostled his helmet. And Umbreon stood ready to strike Espy if she tried to stand up.

Espy's breath came in short gasps. What was she supposed to do? She couldn't match Silvally in the slightest. Certainly not with Void Shadows crawling out of the woodwork to antagonize her. But she couldn't just roll over, either. Espy shakily fired Psychic blasts from her gem. One of them caught Silvally and flung him back, buying Espy enough to roll to her feet and avoid Umbreon's retaliatory Dark Pulse.

She put as much distance between herself and Silvally as she could. **"Ha! Look at you! Running from the guy you were just defending… like every other problem you've been faced with,"** Umbreon jeered. His rings flashed. Silvally's helmet glowed. Another Hyper Beam barreled toward Espy. Thankfully, she was far enough away to flank it.

Espy slowed down. Her forehead gem flashed orange. Warm light enveloped her. Some of the blisters receded. Patches of fur sprouted up to cover her burns. Espy breathed heavily. She knew she couldn't take one of those Hyper Beams head-on… or a strike from his claws now that he was powered up.

A Dark Pulse whizzed by her. Espy spun and rifled off a wall of white energy. A Hydreigon clone dissolved away. She whirled around, squealed in fright, and dropped to her belly. Air Slash blades whizzed overhead. "Why me? Why me?" she said, voice cracking. What was she supposed to do in this situation? The crystals seemed like smart targets, but what if that's what Necrozma _wanted_ her to think?

She tried to take a deep breath, but her teeth were chattering. It was like she was back in the middle of Glacier Palace, only she didn't have Umbreon by her side. Her ears drooped. She shot Psychic rings toward Silvally, but Umbreon snuffed them out with a purple Dark Pulse beam. Silvally charged her down, helmet rattling. His roars split the air. Espy's blood ran cold.

A glimmer caught Espy's gaze. It was the gem in her naturia looplet. Her brows raised. She swore under her breath. How could she have forgotten? Despite all the battling, she _still_ had her Z-Move. If Necrozma had gotten to Silvally, the Z-Move could bring him back, right? He wasn't beyond saving. There was a chance.

The helmet, chains, and crystals wore Silvally down. Despite the fatigue and the burning pain on her right side, Espy could keep a fair distance from Silvally. She struggled to weave through another Air Slash barrage, but stood tall through one of Umbreon's Dark Pulses long enough to snuff him out with white fairy energy. Espy spun around. Though her tail was still firmly between her legs, she forced herself to try and keep a brave face.

 _'If he's in there, he has to be fighting Necrozma's control.'_

"Silv! It's me, Silv! It's Espy!" she shouted, gathering ESP in her forehead. "I'm here. I can't imagine what you're going through, but I… I want to help you. I want to return the favor. So, please… please listen! Follow my voice!" She fired a pink Psybeam. Not a strong attack, but she wanted to discombobulate Silvally. Anything to try and shake off whatever it was Necrozma might've done to his mind. Assuming his mind was even still in there to begin with.

Espy shook her head. She couldn't think like that. She had to hold out hope.

Shadows shrouded Silvally. He slipped through the Psybeam like it was nothing and charged toward Espy, roaring loudly. For a moment, Espy's legs locked up. Ice ran through her veins. The combination of the voice that had encouraged her and the voice that brought the events at Tapu Bulu's temple to mind was too much for her to handle. Nonetheless, she found her footing and barely dodged Silvally's lunge.

He ripped cubes up from the ground when he landed. Silvally spun around. The sigil on his helmet bristled with energy. "W-Wait, Silv! Stop! You don't want to do this. I don't want to do this, either," Espy said. For a moment, the glowing rune subsided. "I don't want to fight you, Silv. Not after everything you've done for me. Please… you have to keep resisting. It's Necrozma! He's making you do this."

Silvally looked to the side. He then jerked his head back, snarling. A Hyper Beam barreled toward a mortified Espy. There wasn't enough time to completely avoid the blast. Espy summoned a Light Screen on her right side, but it shattered after two seconds. She fell to the ground again, her right legs _begging_ her to stay down.

With another roar, Silvally leaped into the air. Espy squealed in panic. Fighting back tears, she rolled across the ground. Silvally hammered the floor, leaving a crater behind. Espy thought her heart would burst out of her chest. Her ears were now ringing. This was all too much for her to bear.

 _'If I just had help… if only someone was here.'_

But the Pokémon she wanted by her side at that very moment was the same one opposing her. And he was gathering up energy for another Hyper Beam. Espy staggered to her feet, firing desperate Psychic rings. Silvally dove through the rings. Shadows from his chains and crystals let him pass through them harmlessly. He landed right by Espy.

"S-Silv, p-please…" She couldn't stop the tears from forming. "Don't do this. I _know_ you're still in there. You have to be. You're… you're…"

Instead of charging up a Hyper Beam, Silvally raised a muscular foreleg. Red energy brimmed in his talons. Espy's vision blurred. "You s-said it y-yourself! You're your own p-person! And I believe that! I believe in you!" she blurted out.

Silvally froze, foreleg right over Espy's head. The energy in his talons flickered. Espy blinked the tears out of her eyes. "It's true. I'm sure there are voices telling you it's not… but it is!" The words poured out of her. She couldn't stop them. Her life _literally_ depended on this. "No matter how many spirits are inside of you… how much Necrozma twists them around… I _know_ you're in there. You've forged your own identity! You're Silvally! Necrozma can't take that away from you!"

He lowered his foreleg. Even with the helmet hiding his face, Espy could see a glimmer in his eyes. Espy's heart raced so fast she thought she'd pass out at any moment. "You're a kind and loving Pokémon who never hesitates to help anyone. You've done nothing but put others before yourself. I admire you! And I care about you!"

Silvally looked down at her. Espy sucked in a breath.

"E… E…"

Her eyes sparkled. "Yes! Yes, Silv! It's me! It's Espy!" Her naturia looplet shimmered. She wrapped her forelegs around one of Silvally's, saying, "Please come back to me! I want you in my life!"

Silvally blinked. But then the winged-heart sigil flared up on his helmet, he roared in fury, and raised his free foreleg to attack.

"Silv… _no!_ " Espy cried.

She had no choice. Even though she knew she'd be caught up in the attack, Espy lit up with an orange aura. Her looplet shook against her foreleg. She thought she was losing her grip on Silvally, so she bit down on his talon. He gasped and tensed up.

All around them, cracks and ripples appeared in the air. Espy pulled herself tight against Silvally's foreleg, whispering, "I'm sorry."

Then the cracks erupted, flooding them both in a geyser of pink, psychic energy. Silvally's roars thundered through the room, only to die down seconds later. The explosion faded away, leaving pink mist swirling around in the air.

Espy lay on her side. Her limbs twitched unresponsively. She couldn't feel her tail, either. Espy prayed it was still there. Her head pounded. Each pulse made her vision blur. She knew she wasn't dead, but _gods_ was she exhausted. Espy wanted to shut her eyes and sleep… even if she wasn't going to wake up. She was just too tired.

"E… Espy…"

Her heart quivered. That was Silvally's voice. She was _sure_ of it. Espy tried to lift her head, but her neck muscles screamed in protest. Oh, why did everything hurt so much? Espy tried to tap into her psychic powers. The moment she did, it was like someone poured boiling water right on her forehead gem. She couldn't rely on Morning Sun.

Fortunately, her Z-Move had jostled her satchel loose. The remnants of her oran berry from earlier lay in front of her. Espy nibbled it. The juices filled her with enough strength to force her back to her feet.

That's when she saw him. The helmet was gone. As were all the crystals, replaced by familiar patches of dark-blue scales. His feathers were a soft, beautiful white once again. "S-Silv." Espy lumbered toward him. Each step grew clumsier until she collapsed on her belly by his face and forelegs. She figured she'd already cried herself dry, but somehow more tears welled up in her eyes.

Silvally opened his eyes. His irises brimmed with golden light… exactly like Shane's weird energy balls. Espy tensed up. Had she actually failed?

"S-Silv? P-Please say something," Espy begged.

Silvally met her tearful gaze with his own. His glowing parts shifted from white to blue. "I'm so sorry," he wheezed. "I thought I—"

"No! Don't apologize." Espy pressed her head into his chest plume. "I… I'm…" She brushed her head against his chest. "I'm so happy you're back."

"That's the thing, though…" Silvally sucked in a sharp breath. Espy's head snapped up.

"What do you mean? You're here! I'm… I'm…" Espy's chest tightened. She couldn't go through this again. Not after losing him once already. And not after this ridiculous ordeal.

"I feel… like I'm gonna break apart… again," Silvally rasped. "I don't know… what Necrozma did… but it's…" He tensed. "My energy's fading. I'm not sure… I can hold out like this."

"No! You can't say that! You're here. I can… I can…" Espy tried to call up energy for Morning Sun, but burning pain enveloped her forehead. "I won't lose you again, Silv. I _won't!_ " She had her forepaws on his beak.

Silvally wheezed again. "Espy…" Pain filled his expression. "I'm sorry. But at least… if I have to go… I'm glad I… got to see… what you're truly… capable of."

"Stop it! You're not disappearing!" Espy tried to reach for her satchel, but her forelegs hurt too much.

"I'm proud… to call you… my friend," Silvally whispered as he shut his eyes and lay still.

"Silv? _Silv, no!_ " Espy smacked his beak. "Wake up! You can't…" Tears streamed down her cheeks. "I need you, Silv! I _love you!_ "

Golden flames lit up the air above Espy. Gasping, she threw herself on top of Silvally and squeezed her eyes shut. She tensed up, expecting some sort of attack to finish her. Instead, warm light spread through her system. Heat radiated from Silvally, too. Espy grabbed on tighter. The heat faded after a few seconds.

Espy's eyes shot open. She held her breath for a moment. Then, Silvally opened his eyes. Like before, his irises had a golden tint to them. "Espy? I… I…"

A huge grin spread across her face. "Thank the gods! You're all right!" She buried her face in the crook of his neck, brushing her snout against his feathers. "I'm… I'm so glad. I… I…"

Silvally's fire memories switched on. His head crest fanned out. "I'm glad, too." He craned his head to reciprocate the hug and nuzzle Espy's cheek. "I'm so sorry about all of this. I… I…" He pulled his head away. "When Shane healed me… he did _something_ to all the spirits. It was like I got overcharged and I… I couldn't stop myself."

He shuddered. "When things looked grim against Zero, I found myself thinking that using Explosion would be the only way to win." Silvally hung his head. "I had no idea that was exactly what Necrozma wanted me to do." His cheek-bolts whirred slowly. "Somehow… Necrozma had condensed all the spirits into a core… kinda like his. Necrozma sent the core here… and then tried to bury it under hundreds of extra spirits.

"I saw everything, Espy! How the Void Shadows taunted you. How badly I hurt you with my attacks. I… I…" Silvally looked away. "I'm so ashamed. You trusted me. And I betrayed all of that trust." His head crested drooped. "If this ends up causing you nightmares like the Void Shadows did, I… I…" He clamped his beak shut. "I won't be able to forgive myself."

"Silv, look at me." Espy tried to move his beak with her forepaws. "Look at me."

Silvally turned his head.

"That wasn't you. I _meant_ what I said. You're your own person." Espy pressed a forepaw against his chest. "I don't care how many extra spirits or memories Necrozma pumped you full of. You're still Silvally. I care about you… because you mean the world to me." She nuzzled his neck again. "That's all that matters."

Silvally glowed yellow. His tail wagged. "Thanks, Espy."

"I'm just returning the favor." Espy winked at him.

"Sure." Silvally lifted his head slowly. "Sill, what happened? I feel so _energized._ Like I'm going through an evolution high or something. How did—"

They both looked up and found Ephemeris standing beside them, sighing in relief. "Thank goodness you two are all right." He offered them a warm smile. "I managed to catch up to Lunala and she told me what was happening. I sensed two fluctuating energies, so I blasted my way through the floor." He glanced at the remnants of the ceiling. "This was quite a nasty trap Necrozma had sprung on you."

Espy tilted her head. "I… I'm sorry. Have we met before? I have the strangest sense of déjà vu."

Ephemeris winced. "Err… it's a bit complicated, I'm afraid. Forgive my poor manners. I am Ho-Oh Ephemeris." He bowed to them. "Now, as much as I would like to let you two catch up, I believe there's the matter of your Lucario friend, yes?"

Espy's ears stuck up. "Ah, that's right!" She got up and looked around. "I don't know what happened to Tessa at all."

"From what I could sense… she's on the other side of this wall." Ephemeris pointed to his right. "I can probably blast it open like I did to the floor. But you two might want to stand back."

Espy and Silvally exchanged nervous looks, then did as instructed. Ephemeris sucked in a breath, then spewed a giant, golden Flamethrower. It struck the wall, which exploded in a burst of red light.

* * *

Tessa had already gone past her wit's limit. When she managed to roll onto her side and realize she had fallen into a dark, empty room, she got up and grabbed her head, gripping fur between her digits. "I can't take this anymore!" she cried, shaking her head back and forth. "Everything's sore! I'm starving and the occasional berry isn't helping! I've been running around fighting things for a goddamn eternity!"

She stomped around the room. "I haven't had any sleep in… in…" Tessa paused and stared at the wall. Faint red ripples ran between each black cube. "Argh! I don't even _know_ how long I've gone without getting any sleep! Because time's still not working!" Aura flared up in paws. "Is this what things were like for Team Poképals when they wound up the dark future? Why did none of the stories ever mention it? I'm losing my mind!"

Tessa looked around the room again. Then she sank to her knees, ears and aura feelers drooping. "No, that's not true. I've already lost my mind." She put her paws on her lap and rubbed her thighs.

She thought the planet's paralysis meant things were spiraling out of control. But that was apparently a warm-up. So much had happened in— well, part of the problem was Tessa didn't _know_ how much time had passed. She'd gone so long without sleep, but the combination of battles, a jammed aura sense, and shoveling down healing items had left her with absolutely no sense of where her stamina was at. All she knew was that she wanted to scream until her voice was gone.

Tessa lost Silvally. She lost Shane. But did she even have him in the first place? Necrozma was probably right about him being Dark Matter. So, what did that mean? Tessa hung her head. She lifted her paws up and cupped them over her shut eyes. Even if, somehow, she could help defeat Necrozma, what was going to happen? Her mom had _literally_ broken time and, if that wasn't bad enough, she befriended the one thing everyone in the world universally hated. Those were facts she would have to live with.

 _'Am I really capable of that?'_

She put a paw on her chest spike. It was Shane who promised to help her find something that could make her happy in a post-Necrozma world. That promise was meaningless, now. Tessa tilted her head. She could always get a powerful psychic to wipe her memories. But would that really make things better? Tessa wasn't sure. And thinking about this made her headache worse.

"There's an option you're overlooking, Tessa."

She jumped to her feet, paws raised and charging an Aura Sphere. "I don't know what kind of sick trick you're playing, Necrozma, but I'm not falling for it!" she growled. "You think you can play mind games by using Shane's voice? Well, I'm not buying it!"

Two soft, blue eyes stared back at her through the darkness. Footsteps _clinked_ against the cubed floor. Tessa held her paws by her side, charging the Aura Sphere even larger. "I'm warning you. Get back! You saw what I did to Zero! You know what I'm capable of!"

"Now, Tessa, why would I play any mind games with you? After all…"

Shane emerged from the shadows. Crystalline armor sat around his chest. A distorted red eye lay in the center of the armor, pulsating with red light.

"… you've been through so much already." The chains wrapped around Shane's forelegs bristled.

"I said _get back!_ " Tessa hurled the Aura Sphere forward. Shane's eyes flashed blue. A spiraling jet of fire shot out from the eye in his armor. Tessa shrank back, crossing her arms in front of her face to shield it from the smoke. When it cleared, however, her aura feelers shot up. She blinked slowly and rubbed her eyes, but the swathes of black, red, and orange were still there. Tessa shook her head. "You… you made a copy of my dad?" She narrowed her eyes. "How much of a creep can you be!"

"It's okay, Tessa."

Incineroar rose from his position on one knee and adjusted the crystal helmet on his head. An invisible force yanked tendril-like chains emerging from the helmet. Incineroar lifted his right hand. "You don't have to fight anymore. There's no need for you to stress yourself out any further."

"He's right." Shane paced into view. Tessa tensed up, expecting to dodge an attack, but Shane simply stood there with a somber expression on his face. "Necrozma gave you another option, Tessa. You can join us. There'll be no more stress. No more anguish." A smile spread across his face. "You'll have the power to do whatever your heart desires. Anything that upsets you… you can destroy it." Shane smacked a forepaw against the ground. "Doesn't that sound better than a life filled with endless guilt… where you're second-guessing every action you take and wondering if you'll lose control of yourself?"

Tessa's response consisted of a gray Flash Cannon beam. Incineroar jumped in front of it and met it with another corkscrewing Flamethrower from his belt. Tessa hopped backward, worried Shane would use the smoke as a cover to strike. However, he remained behind Incineroar, watching her with a raised brow.

"I won't let you trick me," Tessa said, her breathing heavy. "You're… you're a lunatic!"

"But Tessa… this isn't Necrozma talking." Shane shook his head. "It's me. It's Shane."

"Liar! You took him away from me!" Metal dust swirled around Tessa's paws.

"He's the real deal, Tessa. And so am I." Incineroar frowned. "I know I left you and Gallian behind, but your friend summoned me from the spirit world to talk with you." He raised his hands up. "We're not looking to fight."

"I'm not interested in anything you have to say. You've taken everything from me! Friends! Family! Happiness! I… I…"

"Nothing's been taken, Tessa. I'm still here. And so is Silvally. He's on the other side… waiting for us." Shane jerked his head toward the wall behind him.

Tessa tensed up. Her aura feelers twitched. That _had_ to be a lie. Silvally had blown up. There wasn't any sign left of him on the altar.

"You're confused. That's understandable," Shane said. Tessa leered at him. "Relax. I wasn't reading your mind. I could tell by your expression."

"Then I _know_ you're full of hot air!" Tessa fired off another Flash Cannon, but it faltered against Incineroar's Flamethrower.

"You're certainly channeling your mother's _passionate_ spirit, I'll give you that," Incineroar said, brushing dust of his arms in a robotic manner.

Tessa's eyes flickered with rainbow light. "Don't you dare compare me to her! If you were really my dad, then—"

"You're right. That was… a poor choice of words," Incineroar said, stepping back with a dejected look on his face.

Tessa shook her head. What was she doing talking to them like this? It was clear Necrozma was stalling for time. She couldn't keep hesitating. She had to keep up the offense. Tessa tensed up, ready to charge in with Extreme Speed.

"Why are you fighting us, Tessa? We're only trying to help you."

Tessa almost tripped and fell on her face. Beside Incineroar stood Eevee, his large, brown eyes watering. He wore a helmet like Incineroar's, spawning chains that connected to his legs. "I thought you missed me, Tessa. I thought you didn't want to be alone. So, why are you pushing us away?"

"Because… because you're not real!" Tessa sprinted forward, shoulder bared down to strike Incineroar. To her shock, however, he vanished in a cloud of shadows. Her momentum carried her toward Shane, who blasted her backward with pink energy. Tessa landed on her back with a holler. She quickly rolled to her feet, ignoring the throbbing pain in her shoulders.

"Look at yourself, Tessa. The longer you keep this struggle up, the more painful it'll be," Incineroar said, having reappeared at Tessa's side. "Join us, Tessa. You can get back everything you've lost. It's the only way to avoid a lonesome, guilt-riddled future."

"I don't… believe you," Tessa said through gritted teeth. She shot an Aura Sphere toward Eevee this time, but a wall of white energy swallowed it up. Shane frowned at her.

"Look. I apologize for the disingenuous stunts I did back at the ruins. But they were _necessary_ to deal with your mother," Shane said, shoulders sagging. "If I could've dealt with her myself, I would've. But all that 'tied to Dialga' nonsense put me— well, _us_ in a serious bind. I thought that by channeling energy from Necrozma's core fragment into Silvally, I could give him a big enough power boost to overcome Zero."

He shook his head. "But it wasn't good enough." Shane's ears folded against his head. "So, I did some quick manipulation of his spirits and got him to use Explosion. But he survived the blast."

"Liar!"

"It's true! I coalesced his spirits into core… exactly like what Necrozma has. I transported the core _here_ so I could give him a fresh, _new_ body when the dust had settled. I did it for you!" Shane said, fanning out his tails. "Because I realized the potential you have. Tessa, you wield a mighty power! You could do amazing things with it!"

"I'm _not_ going to turn into some sort of psychopathic sidekick! I _like_ this world. I want to save it." Tessa dashed right with a burst of Extreme Speed. She flung an Aura Sphere at Shane as she ran. The combined actions made the blue fireball too fast for Shane to deflect. It struck him right in his armor. He staggered backward.

"You stupid _bi_ _t_ _ch!_ " Shane snarled. Incineroar and Eevee glanced at Shane nervously.

Tessa smirked. "I knew it. This is all fake. Besides, weren't you the one who taunted me about how Shane was really Dark Matter? And now you're trying to use him to get me to give up? The _nerve!_ " Rainbow energy flickered in her paws and eyes. "I _hate_ you, Necrozma… with every fiber of my being. You deserve to _burn_ for everything!"

Shane's eyes shifted from blue to red. **"Foolish girl!"** His distorted voice made Tessa's aura feelers crinkle. **"I** _ **helped**_ **you! I turned you from a weak,** _ **spineless**_ **runt into someone to be** _ **feared!**_ **"** The eye in his armor glowed brightly. **"And** _ **this**_ **is the thanks I get for all of my generosity?"**

Tessa's face blanched. White-hot flames and golden, card-shaped energy blasts careened toward her. Tessa leaped into the air and kicked off the wall. She sailed over the attacks and fired a Flash Cannon down at Shane. He froze the gray beam with ice breath before it could reach him. Tessa hit the ground, only for pain to flare up across her tail.

"I see Shane was a bad influence on you. You've picked up his recklessness," Sylveon said, standing behind Tessa with a disapproving look on her face. Tessa darted forward and drove an electrified fist into Sylveon's face. Her helmet shattered and she disappeared in a puff of smoke.

 **"Your spirit was defective from birth.** _ **My**_ **Z-Power fixed it. I gave you an aura that any Lucario would** _ **salivate**_ **over,"** Shane hissed, flinging pink energy balls at Tessa. She ran in a wide arc across the room. **"Then, when the chips were down,** _ **I**_ **used the power I had from my core to ignite a spark that triggered a transformation beyond Mega Evolution. Not only that, I** _ **severed**_ **your mother's connection to the rest of my core!"**

Tessa vaulted over a Flamethrower, but bungled the landing and couldn't get a counterattack off. Trump Card energy blasts careened toward her. Tessa pointed her paws up and fired a gray beam, blowing them apart. "And I'm supposed to be _thankful_ for that stuff? What a joke! Even if you _did_ save Silvally, you probably corrupted him like you're trying to do to me!" she growled.

 **"Yes! You're supposed to be thankful."** Shane snorted out tufts of ice. **"Honestly… I can't believe I opted for power-bolstering instead of controlling you directly. I didn't have enough power to do both, so I chose to sever Zero's connection since she was weakened. After all, I had dreamed of it since the moment she trapped me in Lunala's body."**

Growling, Tessa threw an Aura Sphere at Eevee. Incineroar was too far for a Flamethrower to counter, so Eevee exploded in a puff of smoke. Tessa took off running again. Her legs burned, but it was better than the alternative. At the same time, her stomach churned. Necrozma could've controlled her… like he had done with Shane? If that was the case, why wasn't he trying now?

 _'What if… what if Shane's somehow fighting his control?'_

Tessa skidded to a halt and fired another Aura Sphere. Before either opponent could destroy it, she detonated the attack. Incineroar gasped. When the smoke vanished, he was nowhere to be found and Shane was glaring at her. **"You really know how to get on my nerves, don't you?"** he huffed.

"The feeling's mutual, _asshole!_ " Tessa cupped her paws around her snout. "Shane! If you're in there… keep fighting! I'm doing all I can out here, but I… I need you to keep resisting Necrozma."

 **"Silence!"** Icebergs burst forth from the floor. One clipped Tessa as she tried to make her escape. She tumbled across the ground, yelping in pain. The ice was as cold as Dragonite's attacks. Possibly even colder. Her feet stung.

"C'mon, Shane!" Tessa forced herself back up. The icebergs blocked much of her view. "Even if what Necrozma has said about your spirit or whatever is true… we can talk things out!" She blew as many icebergs apart as she could with one gray beam. When the last one crumbled, flames seared her side. With a cry of pain, Tessa dropped to her knees. Her fur smoldered. Her limbs were growing heavy, like what happened when her transformation faltered against Zero.

 **"It's not going to work. He can't hear you. I've broken him,"** Shane said, flipping his mane back and smirking.

"No, you're wrong." Tessa gritted her teeth. "Even with all his antics and mistakes… Shane never gives up! He's as stubborn as can be… for better or worse." She hurled an Aura Sphere into an oncoming wall of white energy, then ran through the ensuing opening. "Don't give up on me, Shane! Because we're partners for life… and I'm not giving up on you! We _will_ find happiness… together!"

Tessa dashed forward with a burst of Extreme Speed while Shane tensed up, his tails going stiff as arrows.

* * *

Shane struggled to escape the giant hands. He had grown too used to running on four legs. Being put back in a human body messed with his equilibrium. Shane stumbled into an oversized desk leg and fell to the ground. Fortunately, the nearest hand missed him by inches. Shane crawled along the ground, willing the giant hands to disappear.

 **"Where are you running to, dweeb?"**

A muscular leg dangled over Shane. He scrambled to his feet, scuffing his knees against the carpeted floor. Shane made it a few steps before the foot crashed down behind him. He was swept from his feet with a loud yelp. Shane tumbled across the floor and crashed into another desk leg. A chorus of distorted laughter rose up all around him.

 **"How pathetic!"**

 **"It's like watching him run the track in gym class! What a doofus!"**

 **"At least he wasn't trying to imitate one of his dumb cartoon characters this time."**

"Stop it! Be quiet!" Shane cupped his hands over his ears, but it did nothing to quiet the jeers. Two thinner hands with bracelets and rings shot toward him. Shane rolled behind the desk leg. One of the hands brought two fingers close to his neck. "Get away from me!" Shane kicked at the fingers, knocking the hand away. But one of the fingers got caught in a loop of his hospital gown's bow knot. It came undone. The moment Shane ran for another desk, the gown flew off. More laughter echoed above him.

 **"Wow! Look how pale he is!"**

 **"He's so scrawny!"**

 **"No he's not. He's got a bit of a belly."**

 **"Obviously! All he does is sit around and play on that dumb Game Boy."**

A shadow fell over Shane. He looked over his shoulder and saw a giant DS falling toward him. Shane dove forward. The DS hit the ground and shattered. Plastic shards scraped his arms and tore some of the fabric from his briefs.

 **"Nice shot!"** a girl's voice said, brimming with glee.

 **"Serves him right. I can't believe he still wears briefs. I'll bet his mom still buys all his clothing for him."**

Shane looked up. His eyes widened. Coat hangers hung over head. Sharp, metal, pointy coat hangers. "Stop it! I didn't do anything! I… I…" He threw his arms over his head and ran for it. The coat hangers rained down on him from above.

 **"Do we even want to shred his briefs?"** one male voice wondered. **"I don't want to see his ass or his junk! At least Eisenberg worked out. This retard wouldn't know a dumbbell if it smacked him in the face."**

Shane's eyes widened. He was nearly at the end of the hallway. There was a door and, unlike everything else, it wasn't gigantic. It was his size. If he could just make it another yard…

Something large and black caught the corner of his vision. Shane turned his head and yelped as a dumbbell hurtled toward him. He had no choice but to dive again. The carpet burned his arms and legs, but he'd take rug burns over getting clobbered in the skull.

 **"Aww, what's the matter? Trying to walk out? This ain't elementary school, dumbass! You can't get out of class by running around and screaming your lungs out like a baby."**

"Leave me alone!" Shane cried, tears welling in his eyes. Two more feet looked to squish him, but Shane threw himself toward the door. To his relief, it opened up and let him through. One of the feet smashed the ground behind him and he slammed the door shut. Shane pressed himself against the door as it shook.

 **"You can't hide in there forever. The longer you stay in there, the worse the ass-kicking will be when you come out!"**

Why was this happening? How was Necrozma doing all of this? Shane pulled at his greasy, brown hair. He _knew_ why. Necrozma was Nicky. All of these insults were things Nicky had heard. And Shane feared that these awful memories would play on repeat until they completely broke him. He had to find a way out of this. But what could he do?

The new room he'd entered was dark. There were nondescript cabinets surrounding him and a single computer sitting on a desk across from the door. Shane could tell it was old. Cobwebs covered the tower. It had a CRT screen; something Shane hadn't seen in well over a decade. And yet, despite its age, the screen flickered with light. Shane crept toward it. As he did, he caught sight of his reflection in one of the cabinets.

Though he was in his human body, his freckled face was missing. In its place sat a familiar red core filled with cracks. Another intentionally unsettling reminder of his warped spirit.

 **You've got mail. You've got mail. You've got mail.**

The alerts made Shane jump. A bright computer window appeared on the screen, displaying the same three words the computer said in its monotone, robotic voice. Shane didn't want to acknowledge the computer. It was undoubtedly part of Necrozma's nightmare prison. However, one look back at the entrance revealed the door had shrunk down to the size of his pinky toe. There was no way out.

Shane reluctantly approached the computer. There wasn't a chair at the desk, but that was fine. The thought of sitting in some broom closet in only his underwear creeped him out… which was probably the point of all of this. _'But why humiliate me like this anyway?'_ Shane wondered, glancing down at his scratched-up waistband. The possible reason made him cringe.

Necrozma was trying to recreate the humiliating experience that Nicky had.

He had never seen the photos for himself, but he heard about it from Nicky. The jocks had spiked his drink, stripped him down, taken naked photos, and somehow put them online for people at school to see. At least, that's what Nicky claimed. Though Shane's memory was fuzzy, he recalled there not being any way to concretely prove _who_ had put the photos up.

Shane pressed the ENTER key on the computer. The window disappeared, only for an image of a courtroom to replace it. Shane clenched his jaw. He was looking at a picture of himself, sitting stiffly in a chair wearing a suit that was at least a size too small. Faceless people surrounded him. One at the judge's bench, one sitting by a typewriter, three sitting at desks across from the witness stand, and several more in spectator seats.

"I'm sorry," Shane said, looking up toward the black space overhead. "I get it, okay? I was a terrible friend to you. But it's not too late! If you just—"

The courtroom window vanished, leaving Shane staring at a blue screen.

 _A problem has been detected and Nicholas Eisenberg has been shut down to prevent damage to the void._

"What? No, stop it. This is ridiculous." Shane mashed the ENTER key out of frustration. But every time he did, new dialogue boxes popped up.

 _lol we don't want u in this rp. godmodding retard._

 _Dude, nobody cares about your damn Lucario fetish. Go back to whatever hole you crawled out of e621 from._

 _How many times do we have to tell you to stop derailing topics and making them about yourself? Your friend can jump off a building for all I care. Seriously, final warning. Your ass is getting banned the next time you do this sh_ _i_ _t._

 _Stop trying to start drama and stop playing the victim whenever someone tells you sh_ _i_ _t you need to hear. This is a Pokémon forum, for god's sake. You need to get outside of your basement more often._

 _The following user is not allowed to join Camp PMD under any circumstances: LucarioFan96. Yes, I know you can see this. You're a terrible RPer and nobody wants you around._

 _Seriously, LF? I thought I said that I've got a life beyond this site. You keep pissing and moaning that I don't respond to PMs but, like, I'm not checking the forums every goddamn minute. Learn some patience, man. If you keep this up, I'm blocking you and reporting you to the mods._

Shane punched the screen, cracking the glass. However, it immediately repaired itself. There were no text boxes anymore. Instead, Shane saw footage of Yveltal, Nuzleaf, and multiple Beheeyem struggling in clouds of shadows. "YOU DID THIS" repeatedly flashed above them.

"I'm sorry!" Shane blurted out, as if they could hear him. "Shut it off… _please!_ I can't…" He thought he was going to pull his hair out. "I can't take this anymore! I _understand._ I'm a horrible person! I shouldn't have friends! I… I…"

 _ **yOU wILL sUBmIT, thEn? SurRenDeR… aND lEt Me DrAiN YoU OF yOUr WiLl, thEn YoUR spIrIt?**_

Shane dropped down to his knees and banged his head against the table. He didn't see the red eye staring him down from the computer screen or the spectral chains that burst out of the back of the CRT monitor. All he did was croak out a muffle sob. "Yes. I give u—"

 _Shane! If you're in there… keep fighting! I'm doing all I can out here, but I… I need you to keep resisting Necrozma._

He picked his head up, blinking. "T-Tessa?" He was sure he had heard her. But when he looked around, he didn't see any sign of his partner.

 _ **yOUr MiND is PLaYInG trIcKS oN YoU BeCaUsE yOU'Re ExHAuStEd,**_ the computer hissed. _**NoW—**_

 _Even if what Necrozma has said about your spirit or whatever is true… we can talk things out!_

Shane looked at the computer screen. The eye vanished. He now had a view of Tessa. She looked hurt… again. Yet, despite that, she had her teeth gritted and a determined look on her face. Shane's heart fluttered. Had he heard her correctly? She knew the truth about his spirit… but she didn't care?

 _Even with all his antics and mistakes… Shane never gives up! He's as stubborn as can be… for better or worse._

He opened his mouth, ready to say that his stubbornness was the thing that had nearly doomed the two of them, but then remembered Tessa couldn't actually hear him. Still, hearing her say that after all of their struggles made a warmth fill up his chest.

 _Don't give up on me, Shane! Because we're partners for life… and I'm not giving up on you!_ _We_ will _find happiness… together!_

Partners… for life? Shane mouthed the words to himself. She wanted to stay with him? Even after all the bad things he'd done to her originally? Shane's heart leaped into his throat. He wanted to stay with her, too. More than anything in the world. Even if it meant he'd be permanently bound to Dark Matter and would have to face those repercussions… he'd still take the chance. As long as he had her by his side, he'd be happy.

Shane took note of the chains wriggling around the computer. "She's right!" he cried, the warmth in his chest spreading out. Shane lashed out and grabbed the chains in each of his hands. They burned like a hot stovetop, but Shane held on, gritting his teeth. He was in some kind of nightmare prison. None of this was real, including the pain. But Tessa was real. Her words were real. She was his partner. And he was going to do whatever it took to return to her.

"I've had enough of this! You can't control me! You can't control Nicky! Give up… and _leave us alone!_ "

He seized on the chains. A garbled scream sounded from the computer, then everything went white.

* * *

Tessa tackled Shane to the ground. His lack of resistance stunned him, but then she saw a glimmer in his eyes. The heavy chains around his limbs constricted. Tessa hopped off him, looking to her looplet. Though part of her feared losing control to her Necrozmafied Mega Evolution — and _gods_ did she need a better name for that — there was only one way she had a chance of getting Shane back. Assuming this _was_ the real Shane, of course, but the alternatives spooked her even more.

 **"St… stop this. You can't… defeat me. My victory—"**

"Shut _up._ I am _so_ sick of you!" Tessa crossed her arms. Warm, familiar Z-Power flooded her system. Shane tried to raise a forepaw, but Tessa got her attack off first. She spun around so fast, the world became a complete blur. And yet, it didn't make her dizzy. Somehow, metal dust encased her, turning her into a giant drill that homed in on Shane.

Shane arced his back. A distorted howl escaped his lips moments before Tessa crashed into him. The drill broke through his chains and armor. Try as she might, however, Tessa couldn't cease her Z-Move. Shane was picked up and spun around like ocean debris in a whirlpool. Right when it looked like Tessa would inadvertently pin him into the wall and shatter his spine, a pink outline surrounded Shane.

Tessa finally broke out of the attack and landed on her feet. Shane hung in the air, down for the count. "How the—"

"Sorry I'm late!"

Lunala swooped down, spreading out her wings. Her eyes glowed pink. She looked between Shane and Tessa. "And it looks like I came at just the right time." She shook her head. "The dungeon kept trying to crush me and squish me and blow me up… but it looks like you went through something a _lot_ more upsetting." Lunala's third eye glowed. Soft, pink light spread over both Shane and Tessa.

"I, uh, I guess you could say that," Tessa said, watching Lunala lower Shane to the ground. Once again, a surge of vitality shot through her. At the same time, though, part of her regretted it. She'd now officially lost count of how many times she relied on healing energy to refresh her when she really needed honest rest.

Lunala tried to offer Tessa a comforting smile. "I think that—"

Before she could get a full sentence out, golden light spread across the wall. The temperature in the room spiked. Tessa shrank back toward Lunala. She wasn't ready for _another_ battle. Her brain was still trying to piece together everything that had _just_ happened.

Fortunately, when the wall collapsed, she was greeted not by an enemy, but by the sights of Espy, Ephemeris, and… Silvally?

Tessa blinked. She rubbed her eyes. Hell, she smacked herself across the cheek. "S… Silvally?" She pointed a shaky digit at him. "Is… is it really you?"

Espy nodded, her eyes red and puffy. "It is, Tessa. It is." She leaned her head against Silvally's thigh. His fire memories shifted on, but he did his best to keep what passed for a grin on his beak.

"Hey, Tessa. Sorry I gave you such a scare back on the tower," Silvally said, kicking dejectedly at the ground.

Tessa ran toward Silvally and threw her arms around his neck. "You're safe!" she said. "I'm so glad!" Tessa broke the embrace and stepped back. "Watching all of that happen…" She put a paw on her chest spike. "It was awful."

"I know." Silvally lowered his head. "My powers got out of control because Necrozma messed with my spirits while he was pretending to be Shane. I'm only back now thanks to these two." He gestured at Espy and Ephemeris. "Necrozma forced me to attack Espy, but she fought through her hesitations to save me. And, when it looked like my spirit core would fall apart, Ephemeris stepped in and stabilized the core that Necrozma created… or something."

"Or something indeed." Ephemeris held a wing up and chuckled. "Though, once this whole mess is settled, we will have to have a talk about your, erm, situation." He shook his head. "But that's neither here nor there."

"Wait a second. Isn't Lady Ho-Oh supposed to have orange feathers? And, y'know, be a _lady?_ " Tessa said, scratching her head.

"She is. I'm a different Ho-Oh. The one that your legends speak of, actually," Ephemeris said. "I'd love to give you all the details, but I think you ought to tend to your other friend." He pointed at Shane.

Espy and Silvally's gazes fell on Shane. He was stirring, though the moment he met his teammates' eyes, he shrank back on the ground with a whimper. Shane curled up in a ball, covering himself with his tails.

"Is it… is it him?" Espy whispered, ears drooping.

"I hope so," Silvally said, looking at Tessa. She looked at Lunala who, in turn, looked at Ephemeris. They nodded in unison.

"I believe Tessa's undone all the tampering Necrozma did to your friend," Lunala said. She hovered down, turning horizontal to try and get eye level with Shane. "Are you all right?"

Shane tried to scooch away from Lunala, but all he succeeded in doing was making his tails fall back down by his rear. His ears flattened against his head. "H-Hey," he whispered, looking down.

"Shane." Tessa took a step toward him, but Shane shrank back. "Shane, what's wrong?"

"I just—" Shane looked away, biting his lower lip.

"We came all this way to put an end to this, didn't we?" Espy said, looking between Shane and Silvally. Her tail drooped when she realized Silvally's cheek-bolts were whirring.

"Did you mean it?" Shane said, looking up at Tessa.

"Mean what?"

"That stuff you said. About me not giving up. About not caring what my spirit was really like. Wanting to be partners for life. Did you mean it?" Shane shot Tessa a pleading look.

Espy and Silvally exchanged wide-eyed looks. Tessa's aura feelers crinkled. "You… you actually heard that?" She was conflicted between being overjoyed her words reached him and worried Shane was latching onto the things she said. However, after a few seconds of looking into his soft, blue eyes, she realized they were full of concern.

Tessa nodded slowly. "Of course." She knelt down in front of Shane and put a paw on her chest. "I meant it from the bottom of my heart."

"B-But I'm Dark Matter." Shane's tails curled up. "I… I've hurt so many people." He looked at Espy, who stared back at him incredulously.

"What are you talking about?" Espy titled her head.

"Necrozma told me the truth. Dark Matter lay at the center of his core. It found a way to burst out and it… it fused with my human spirit." Shane shuddered. "I don't remember much of anything about being Dark Matter… but when Necrozma had control of my body, I… I…"

"That changes nothing," Tessa said, putting a paw on Shane's shoulder.

Shane blinked. "W-What do you mean it changes nothing? I… I'm the worst thing to ever happen to this world!" He paused. "Well, okay, maybe Necrozma and I are on equal footing at the moment… but we both came from the void anyway and… ah! My head hurts thinking about it."

"Listen to me, Shane." Tessa subconsciously shifted her paw to Shane's cheek. His eyes widened. Her cheeks burned, but she didn't care. "You're more than a collection of energy."

Silvally nodded. "It's about what you think, not what Necrozma tells you."

"Right." Tessa's expression softened. "You've changed so much as a person. I believe that change is real."

"It wasn't your human self that died in Ultra Space. It was Dark Matter," Silvally said, walking toward Shane. "It gave its power to you… because it thought you could use that power to help. Which is exactly what you've done."

"That's not true though." Shane looked down. "I was a total slimeball my first month here. I didn't help people… I berated everyone. You guys. Lycanroc. The other apprentices." He shuddered. "And Necrozma was able to worm his way into my spirit like it was nothing. I… I… I don't deserve forgiveness. I don't deserve you guys."

"It's in the past now, Shane," Tessa said. "You're here. You're with us." She gestured to her teammates. "We're together again. We can make our own future. Please…" Tessa put her other paw under Shane's chin. His eyes sparkled with tears. "You _are_ a good person. The changes you've made are real—"

"They don't make up for what I did as Dark Matter, though," Shane whispered.

"Maybe not. But you know what would? Stopping Necrozma… and saving our world from total destruction." Tessa pulled her paws away and got to her feet. "It wouldn't feel right for Team Radiance to finish this fight without its leader."

Shane stared up at Tessa, blinking slowly. Silvally stepped to Tessa's side. "I understand what you're going through, Shane."

"But I… I made you blow yourself up," Shane whimpered.

"And I tried to kill you back in Moonrise Marsh," Silvally said, looking down guiltily. "We've both got things we need to work on, that's for sure. And that's why I'm standing by you… like you stood by me when I was doubting myself after breaking my mask."

Espy stepped forward, brushing her side against Silvally's. "Me too. You refused to give up on me… even though I'd given up on myself _and_ the world." She looked at Silvally. "I might not have found something to fight for if you hadn't kept believing in me."

"See, Shane? We care about you… just like you care about us. We're a _team._ And, even with our rocky beginnings, I want my partner by my side. Now and forever." Tessa stuck her paw out toward him. "So, what do you say? One final mission. Let's put an end to this nonsense for _good._ "

Shane looked at her paw. He brushed his face against his shoulder, then stood up. Shane nodded. "Right." He brought a forepaw up to Tessa's paw-spike. "Through darkest night…"

"… and brightest day…" Espy put her forepaw on top of Shane's.

Silvally gingerly touched a talon to Espy's forepaw. "… Team Radiance always finds a way."

"Thanks, guys," Shane said, sucking in a breath. "Now, uh, not to dampen the mood or anything, but…" He looked around. "If Necrozma isn't here, then where _is_ he?"

"I believe he's battling several of the other gods on the outskirts of the island. I suppose this means he was multitasking between fighting them and controlling you," Ephemeris said. "The others managed to give me an opening to get through to you all." He tapped a foot on the ground. "Still, something's bothering me about all of this. Necrozma was barely putting up much resistance against the gods. All the Ultra Beasts he summoned were _beyond_ frail, as well."

"Now that you mention it, I got swarmed by Void Shadows when I was trapped… but their attacks hardly did a thing to me," Espy added, frowning. "What do you suppose it means?"

"Ahh!" Shane's tails fanned out in alarm. He looked past his teammates. "The Tree! It was right over there! Where did it go?" He spun about in a panic.

"Slow down, Shane. What do you mean?" Tessa said.

"The Tree of Life! Necrozma had put it right over there." Shane pointed a forepaw forward. "He was siphoning spirits from it… I think? But I've been in this room the whole time, haven't I?" He looked up. "Where could he have taken it?"

The ground rumbled. The cracks between the cubes lit up with red energy. Lunala gasped. Her third eye flared to life. "No. _No!_ " An ethereal glow spread throughout her wings. "Ephemeris, help me grab them!" She flew toward Team Radiance.

"Wait, hold on!" Shane's eyes widened. "What are you doi—"

 _ **I can't believe you're all such**_ **fools!**

Lunala enveloped Shane and Tessa in her wings. A bewildered Ephemeris grabbed Espy and Silvally in his talons. Lunala threw open an Ultra Wormhole and raced inside with Ephemeris hot on her tails. The portal sealed itself seconds before a wall of golden light swallowed up the entire room.

* * *

 **~Celestial Island Exterior~**

Necrozma staggered backwards, lashing at the air with his arms and tail. Palkia hovered in front of him, shoulder-gems smoldering blue. **"Ha! What's the matter? You had** _ **far**_ **more fight in you the last time we met,"** he bellowed. Palkia slashed at the air. Necrozma barely managed to teleport away from the jagged Spacial Rend tear that opened up and exploded in bursts of blue light. He immediately had to fire psychic rings in an attempt at diverting the golden meteors streaking toward him. It wasn't enough of a counter, however.

Arceus hovered above Necrozma, watching him tumble through the air, snarling. Unown fluttered around. Two Unown-O, an Unown-F, and an Unown-! drifted in front of Arceus. Giratina floated past, smiling at them. "Aww, look! I think our friends are having fun with this."

"Focus, Giratina!" Arceus said. Unown spiraled around his wheel. Multiple golden, ethereal hands formed around him. He glared at Necrozma, but before he got the chance to attack, Dragon Pulse bolts streamed in from his right. Arceus hissed as they singed his flank. A bunch of Unown-A clumped together above him, punctuated by another Unown-!.

"Ah! Sorry, Daddy!" Giratina disappeared in a puff of shadows, only to promptly reappear in the distance. He charged forward, enveloping the Naganadels that attacked Arceus in his wings. "Hello, new friends! Wanna play catch with me? Sure you do!" He thrust his wings back. "Hey, Pal-Pal… catch!"

Palkia whirled around, having just sliced a Guzzlord in half with a Spacial Rend blade. **"What is it? I'm busy, Girat—"**

Giratina threw all the Naganadels at Palkia like they were living lances. Palkia face-palmed and held his free hand up. Before he could form a vortex, however, one of Hoopa's rings opened up. **"Ha ha ha! An excellent idea, Giratina!"** he declared.

 **"Fools! Those are** _ **my**_ **Ultra Beasts! Not some damn toys for you to play with!"** Necrozma spat. Then a second ring portal opened up in front of him. **"Loathsome urchins!"** He raised his arms, then ran forward, barreling through all the Naganadels.

This left Necrozma with no way to stop a charging Rayquaza. A giant, fiery V slammed Necrozma from above. The armor on his back shattered. His right arm broke off and plummeted from the sky, only to evaporate into a fine mist. Necrozma howled in pain, his core flickering like a dying light bulb while his eyes cycled between different colors at random.

 **"No…** _ **no!**_ **You… you…"** Necrozma tried to lash out at Rayquaza, but he swiftly flew around to Necrozma's other side.

"You were _wrong_ to underestimate us!" Rayquaza thundered. He blasted Necrozma in the face with a Dragon Pulse. Necrozma's armor cracked. Black mist vented from it. "This world is _not_ beyond hope!"

 **"Lying wretch! My chains are a** _ **part**_ **of your world for all eternity! The void can never die!"** Necrozma spat, only for two more Dragon Pulses to hit him from each side. The blocky armor pieces hugging his torso shattered, exposing his gleaming, metal hide.

"Yeah! This world's _ours._ A meanie, nasty, stupid-head like you doesn't belong here. So, go away!" Giratina huffed.

 **"Even if what you say is true… thanks to your actions, and the mortals who have fought against you, we understand now that we cannot take our positions for granted any longer!"** Palkia said, his shoulder-gems brimming with energy.

 **"Ha! Pathetic! Your bravado is meaningless!"** Necrozma looked back toward the rift he had opened. **"Even if you beat me — which you** _ **won't**_ — **the status quo will creep back up. Just as it did after the Bittercold and Dark Matter. The void** _ **will**_ **triumph. You will fail. Your world will burn!"**

Golden light rippled to Necrozma's left. He turned in time for a swarm of meteors to pelt him. Cracks peppered what was left of his prism armor. His other hand dissolved away. The only spot that wasn't broken was where his core sat. Only a tiny sliver of light projected out from it. Necrozma looked up as Arceus hovered toward him, golden hands surrounding his wheel and several Unown floating overhead, spelling GET OUT.

"You have undoubtedly left us all with a lot to unpack. I imagine that the healing process this time around will be… far more protracted," Arceus said, narrowing his eyes. "And I will have things that I need to reflect on. But one thing is certain. You're finished, Necrozma."

 **"You don't have the right! You did this to me! You took everything from me!"** Necrozma snarled. He walked backward through the air, eyes darting about nervously. **"This isn't fair! I was so close!** _ **So close!**_ **I… I…"** He looked back at the rift once again.

"Any last words?" Arceus said, Judgement's golden light gathering within his hands. Necrozma turned back to him, a giant, deranged grin on his face. The core faded from his forehead.

 **"I can't believe you're all such** _ **fools!**_ **"**

Necrozma's rift pulsated with energy. In an instant, all of the Ultra Beasts surrounding Necrozma's opponents evaporated in a fine, black mist. The cracks in Necrozma's armor spread through his body. Necrozma began to decay. With each chunk of his metal form that fell away, patches of green, hexagonal scales appeared.

 **"Zygarde?!"** Palkia's eyes widened. **"Father, what's going on here?"**

"I… I don't know," Arceus whispered, his attack fading from his hands. The moment it did, Zygarde crumbled into dust. Necrozma's rift spread open even further. A golden, star-shaped silhouette sat in the center of it. Two small, pupilless eyes with several different-colored vertical stripes looked back at Arceus.

"No… it can't be!" Rayquaza shouted, dragonfire gathered in his mouth. He spat a giant Draco Meteor toward the rift.

 **"AlL oF yOUr SPiRItS ArE** _ **MiNE!**_ **"**

The Draco Meteor made it all of a few yards before it was engulfed by a wall of golden energy. The wall traveled all the way down to the paralyzed ocean, where it proceeded to split the planet's crust open. Ley line chains burst forth from the earth like writhing, metal geysers.

"Get back… all of you!" Arceus cried, trotting through midair toward the approaching wall. He brought all of the Unown around him, forming as many additional hands as he could muster. Arceus thrust them into the wall, only for his eyes to widen in horror as the hands burnt away. He screamed for all of a second before the light swallowed him up.

 **"We must flee!"** Palkia shouted.

However, with no Arceus to oppose it, the wall picked up speed. Palkia had only a few seconds to watch as Giratina, Hoopa, and Rayquaza dissolved away before he, too, was swallowed up by the light.

* * *

Delphox's wand fell from his grip. "No. No way…" He watched as huge chunks of the world — the world he'd worked so hard to save from Dark Matter — were torn up and swallowed by the advancing wall of light. "M… Meganium." He shakily reached a paw toward her.

Meganium wrapped him up in her vines and pulled him close. She craned her neck around him. They squeezed each other tightly. Neither of them noticed their fellow Expedition Society members gathering near them. They remained in each other's grasps until, like the rest of Lively Town, they were ripped off the ground in streaks of light.

* * *

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Lopunny sank to her knees. "We can't… we can't beat that."

Feraligatr's jaw dropped. He looked at Infernape. "H-Hey… buddy? Were we… were we too late this time?"

Infernape silently bowed his head. A yard away from him, Haunter turned to his teammates. "W-Well, gang. I guess… I guess this is our curtain call."

Misdreavus looked about ready to say something, but the wall of light sped up. She got one last look at Haunter's somber expression before all of them vanished in swirls of purple and black.

* * *

"Haxy! Put me down!" Raichu hollered, kicking at the air with her legs.

"No! We can outrun that thing! We can still get away!" Haxorus bellowed, tears in her eyes. Umbreon and Virizion ran next to her, with Emolga and Hydreigon flying overhead. Hydreigon took one look back and all six of his eyes widened. The light wall had ripped the crystallized remains of Post Town apart. Ley line chains freely shot up to tear apart even more of the landscape.

"It's getting faster! We're not going to make it!" he cried.

"Damn it!" Haxorus snorted out dragonfire. "I'm _not_ letting Necrozma get the better of us ag—"

The wall caught up with the group and the light burned them away.

* * *

Latias had thought it was over. When the Ultra Beasts attacking Pokémon Square had evaporated, she gave her brother a nuzzle and then flew into Lugia's embrace. But then fissures ran through the village. Chains shot out of the earth, grabbing hold of any Pokémon that had stayed to fight.

"L-Lugia! What do we do?" Latias said. She looked up at him, but the empty look in his eyes made her feathers stand on end.

"Th… th… there's nothing we can do," Lugia croaked. He turned Latias around just in time for her to watch the wall of light destroy Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre in bursts of red and blue light.

"No… _no!_ You can't do this to us!" Latios shot a Dragon Pulse at the wall, but it swallowed the attack up like it was nothing, then took Latios with it.

"Big brother!" Latias screeched, only for Lugia to pull her close and wrap himself around her protectively.

"I'm sorry, Latias."

In the end, Latias never felt the moment the wall of light destroyed her.

* * *

Gallian and Zoroark got tripped up scrambling for the assembly area and end up sprawled out on top of one another. "C-Come on, Zoroark! We have to move!" Gallian said, red sparks pulsating in his scythe's stump. "Something terrible is about to happen!"

No sooner did he finish saying that then wall behind him exploded. Gallian never even got the chance to turn around and see what had caused it.

* * *

"Sneasel! Sneasel, get up!" Hakamo-o shook his partner in crime. "We've got a problem! A big problem!"

"Hrrgh… quit it. I just… so tired…" Sneasel swatted Hakamo-o's arm away. Hakamo-o took one look at the approaching wall of light, then leaped onto the bed, spreading his arms and legs wide as if he could somehow protect Sneasel from the oncoming danger.

That woke Sneasel up. "Oof! What do you think you're doing! Quit it! I don't want anyone thinking we're—"

The end of Sneasel's sentence was lost, along with the rest of the infirmary, to the wall of light.

* * *

"The hell's going on?!" Seraph fell onto her rear. "First all the UBs vanish… now this place is shaking like a Baccer arena when the home team wins! What gives?"

"S… Seraph…" Luxeira pointed a forepaw forward, a blank expression on her face. Seraph sat up. She caught sight of the giant rift in the sky, the ground tearing itself up, and the wall of light racing toward the island.

"Y… you're shitting me. After all this…" Seraph lay down on her back and threw her paws over her face. "No… it's not fair! This is not how I'm going out! I… I…"

Luxeira looked right. Totem Decidueye was kneeling, his wings clasped together as he muttered a prayer to himself. Shaymin Esserly stood beside him, her head bowed solemnly.

"Spirits, preserve us," she whispered, a grimace on her face.

Luxeira turned away, but then looked up at Sticky. "Hey!" she barked. Sticky looked down at her in surprise. "If… if this is really gonna be the end for us, I just want to say… I was wrong about you. I'm glad we got to be partners."

Sticky's eyes widened. Unfortunately, he wouldn't get the chance to respond.

* * *

I cannot even _begin_ to tell you how hard this chapter was to write. Yes, the Zero battle had a heavy amount of emotion involved in it, but since it was _mostly_ centered around Tessa, that made things fairly straightforward and easy to coordinate. Delving into several different psyches made this chapter absolutely grueling to write. I spent such a long time revising it I had to avoid staring at a computer for a fairly long time after it was done. So, I would _really_ appreciate any comments on this part... even if you're just going to mock the ending scene with Thanos, Undertale, or Smash Bros. jokes. I'll take anything at this point.

I know that there are a handful of you — mainly those following the blog — who are heavily into shipping with this fic. I hope that, even if the pairing(s) you were rooting hardest for aren't what played out in this chapter, that you were still able to enjoy things. Please let me know. Everyone's feedback matters!

SuperOmegaGuest: It was actually quite difficult to write those characters again since, it most cases, it had been well over a year since I'd written anything about them. Hence why I kept their scenes on the short side.

Anon Omega: Of course. Can't fool you with your Kingdom Hearts knowledge.

zach: I've done more. Did you enjoy it?

Next time: It's the end.


	114. Heaven-Scorching Light of Destruction

Thank you all so much for the support with the last chapter. Hopefully we can keep that going now with the final battle! Thanks to Namohysip for beta reading this part. Enjoy

* * *

 **Chapter 97: Heaven-Scorching Light of Destruction**

 **~Cornell University, New York~**

Geoff made his way past the brown, circular ordering station with students littered around it, slinging his black, puffy winter coat over his right arm. His boots squeaked against the white, stone floor, leaving a trail of slush behind him. Geoff zeroed in on the centermost white, plastic table where a brunette sat in one of the gray, metal chairs, staring at her iPhone.

"Hel _lo_ , Rebecca. Might I interest a lovely co-ed like you in the pleasure of my company?"

Rebecca looked up from her phone. She brushed hair out of her eyes. "Oh, Geoff. I was actually waiting for Samantha, but—"

Geoff threw his hands behind his head and scratched at his short brown hair. "Ah, shucks. And here I was gonna ask you about the run-up to finals, but I guess they've got you too stressed to even talk. Guess I'll be on my way, then." He put on the most dejected look he could muster, stuffed his free hand into a pocket, and shuffled off.

"Oh, brother. You know I was kidding, right?" Rebecca rolled her eyes.

"Of course I did." Geoff slid into the chair opposite hers. "I was joking, too."

"Looked more like you were desperate," Rebecca said, swiping at her iPhone.

"Well, what's so important that you'd rather pay more attention to your phone than catch up with a friend, huh?" Geoff said, fluttering his eyelids.

"We Snapchatted for an hour, yesterday," Rebecca deadpanned. She sighed. "But it's whatever. My mom sent me this link to an article. It's, uh…" She held up the phone. "Well, just take a look for yourself."

The screen had a mobile version of the Syracuse Post-Standard pulled up. Geoff squinted at it.

 **Police Search for Missing Driver Continues  
** **By Ophelia Porter**

 _SYRACUSE, NY. A desperate search to find a young man who seemingly disappeared from a major car accident continues into its third day. Two nights ago, authorities arrived on the scene of a car crash near the employee parking lot for Upstate Medical Center. One of the drivers, 35-year-old Angeline Marquez, was found lying against her vehicle's airbag, which safely deployed. Authorities rushed her to the emergency department at Upstate, where she was found to have broken ribs, a concussion, and a BAC of 0.15, almost two times the legal limit. She is facing criminal charges for driving while intoxicated and possible vehicular manslaughter, pending the results of the police's ongoing investigation._

 _The missing driver in question has been identified by the plates on his totaled vehicle as 19-year-old Shane Whitley of Old Geddes._

"Damn. Whitley? Like… Prissy Nicky's retarded friend?" Geoff handed the phone back to Rebecca, who cringed. "Cripes. I had wondered what had happened to that dweeb. Never saw his name in the college map the old school paper printed off. Figured he got, like, committed to a mental hospital or something." Geoff took a straw and placed it in Rebecca's cup of water. In between sips, he added, "I mean, come on. The guy brought Pokémon plushies with him everywhere. He _needed_ the help."

"Really, Geoff?"

"What?" Geoff froze mid-sip and stared blankly at her.

"Geoff, we're at _Cornell_. I'm going to rush a sorority after winter break." Rebecca took the phone back and shook her head. "I can't walk around using language like that. It's all behind us." She shivered. "And I never want to talk to another lawyer for the rest of my life."

"Amen to that," Geoff said. Rebecca snatched the glass of water away from him before he could take another sip. Geoff slouched back in his seat. "Well, if he really did bite the big one, least he can finally be together with his boyfriend in the afterlife."

Rebecca's brow furrowed. She got to her feet, looking down at her phone. "I'm sorry. I have to go."

Geoff stood up as well. "Already? Weren't you waiting on Samantha?"

"She just texted me that she got held up at the student health center. I'm going to meet her for a movie later, instead," Rebecca said. She tried to make a beeline for the door, but Geoff blocked her path.

"What are you talking about? Your phone didn't go off," Geoff said, a skeptical eyebrow raised.

"Look. I don't have time to explain. Just…"

The large, LED lights flickered over their heads. All of the students conversing with one another looked up in unison. "The hell was that?" Geoff asked, staring up at the ceiling. "We getting power surges? Cripes, didn't think the snow was supposed to fall again until this evening."

"It's… it's not a power surge," Rebecca whispered, staring out the window. Geoff followed his gaze and his expression only grew more confused.

"The hell happened to the sun? There wasn't a cloud in the sky when I got here," Geoff said.

Rebecca ran for the entrance and threw it open. She ran out toward the parking lot of the old, brownstone Physical Sciences Building, only to stumble to a stop. On the campus roads to her left and right, cars had pulled over to each side, their hazard lights flashing. Drivers and passengers climbed out of their vehicles. Students and faculty filed out of the building behind her. Everyone's gazes were trained up toward the sky. Rebecca looked up. Her heat rate spiked.

Like Geoff had said, there wasn't a cloud in the sky. And she hadn't read anything about any total solar eclipses. Her little brother was an astronomy nut. He'd have been gushing nonstop if one was due to happen. And yet, she found herself looking at a large, black sphere eclipsing the sun. The sky had turned a sinister shade of blood-red.

"What is this?" Rebecca whispered. She lifted her phone up, ready to snap a photo of the strange phenomenon, when a bright white circle appeared on the sidewalk in front of her. "Ah!" Rebecca was so startled, she dropped her iPhone to the ground. The screen shattered instantly. But her gasp turned into a scream when a golden, ethereal arm burst forth from the concrete and grabbed hold of her like a living dumbbell.

 _ **"YoU ShOULdN'T HaVe LIeD aBoUT mE!"**_

"Holy shit! Rebecca!"

Geoff tried to shove his way through the crowd of students, but it erupted into a panicked frenzy. Students fled in all directions, knocking Geoff around as they headed for the parking lot or back inside the building.

Rebecca screeched in pain as golden light surged across her body. Geoff staggered to halt, watching in stunned silence as Rebecca's clothes and skin burned away before his eyes. In their places appeared dark-gray scales and a purple belly with pink, wavy markings. A black, star-shaped mark spread across her belly. Rebecca's fingers lengthened. Her hair dissolved away in shadowy plumes. An invisible force grabbed what was left of her nose and stretched it out, created a snout. Rebecca's eyes expanded. Her pupils shrank to feral slits, her irises vanished, and her sclera shifted from white to pink.

 _ **"NoW YoU LOoK lIKe ThE SkAnK YoU ReaLLy ArE!"**_

Those students who hadn't fled the scene had their phones out, recording every moment of the horrifying transformation. Geoff swatted the nearest phones out of their owners' hands. "Rebecca!" he shouted, finally finding his voice.

He sprinted toward the gold circle in the floor, but it was too late. The arm pulled Rebecca into a circular, checkerboard portal. Geoff staggered to a stop as the portal shut itself, silencing Rebecca's screams. That didn't matter, however, because more volleys of panicked shouts and cries rang out. All around Geoff, portals had opened, revealing more golden arms. Two of them ripped off chunks of the Physical Science building and hurled them into the parking lot, smashing cars apart. Others had grabbed hold of students and were flinging them around like rag dolls.

"Holy shit… holy shit… holy shit…" Arms trembling, Geoff managed to pull his cell phone out from his pocket. He fumbled about trying to turn it on, then could barely keep it pressed to his ear.

 _"9-1-1. What is your emergency?"_

Geoff hyperventilated.

 _"Excuse me? Is anyone there?"_

Geoff blinked, then managed to find his voice.

"My school's being attacked by _aliens!_ "

 _"Sir? Sir, where are you?"_

Geoff was about to answer, when a car alarm blared overhead. He looked up just in time to see a Toyota SUV falling right toward him.

* * *

 **~Ultra Space~**

Shane was at a loss for words. One second, he was reuniting with his friends. The next, Lunala had him wrapped him in a bear hug. Through her wing membranes, Shane could make out bright lights and strange geometrical objects. He even swore he saw a comet in the distance. Yet, despite the bizarre sights, something about them felt… _familiar._ Inviting, even.

It then struck him that he'd been here before… when Necrozma pulled him from the human world following his car accident. "T-Tessa! We're… we're in Ultra Space," he said. "Lunala, what's going on here?"

"I'd like to know that, myself," Ephemeris said, surrounded by a faint shield of golden light. In one leg, he clutched Espy, screaming in terror thanks to the sights of Ultra Space overwhelming her. Silvally wasn't faring much better. He was tense, eyes wide and darting about it. His cheek bolts revved in his sockets, creating sparks that made Ephemeris shift about uneasily.

"Please, you must calm down! I'm not sure I can hang onto you two if you keep this up," Ephemeris said, wincing.

"Calm down? _Calm down?!_ Look at where we are!" Espy cried.

Tessa struggled to make out much of anything. "W… wait. If we're in Ultra Space, then…" Her aura feelers trembled. "What's happening to our world? Lunala, say something!"

Lunala frowned. "I… well, I… um…" Her third eye flickered. "I sensed something… a powerful force. I didn't see any other options but to flee into Ultra Space."

"That could've been Necrozma!" Tessa barked. Lunala squeaked in surprise, but managed to keep her passengers wrapped up.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I just… here, I'll open up another wormhole and—"

A jagged, golden ripple formed in front of everyone. Golden arms shot out in several directions, tearing Ultra Wormholes open as they went. Ephemeris looked uneasily at Lunala. "That… that's not normal."

Lunala's third eye glowed. "No. Energy is leaking out into Ultra Space from our world. That's bad! _Really_ bad! I have to get us back there." She fired a beam from her third eye at the golden light. To her relief, an Ultra Wormhole opened. However, it was asymmetric, with strange shapes in it that didn't match the usual checkerboard pattern her wormholes had.

"I don't like the look of that," Espy whimpered.

"We don't have a choice," Silvally said, tensing up.

"Brace yourselves, everyone." Ephemeris flew into the wormhole first. Lunala took a moment to levitate Shane and Tessa onto her back. Like Ephemeris, she projected a purple barrier around them to keep them safe as they flew into the wormhole.

For a few seconds, they passed brightly-colored lights. Then the wormhole ended. Only, instead of finding themselves staring down at any sort of planet, what they got instead was a complete and total mess of crystallized chunks of land, floating haphazardly with no discernable pattern. In the distance, a jagged rift sat open. White-hot flames danced around the rift and the light it projected was so bright, it hurt Shane to look at it.

Espy's ears and tail shot up. "This… this isn't our world!"

Silvally frowned. His head crest fanned out. "I… I wouldn't be too sure about that." He shakily pointed a foreleg forward. A giant ball of static hung near the rift. Pieces of crystallized debris swirled around it, alongside familiar black, thorny chains.

"Those are ley lines!" Tessa threw her paws up in front of her mouth. Her eyes widened. "No… _no, it can't be!_ "

 **"Heeheeheehee! But it** _ **can!**_ **"**

Rainbow energy flickered in Tessa's eyes. Shane's tails shot up in alarm. "Necrozma! Get out here, you… _you bas_ _t_ _ard!_ " Tessa snarled. "What did you do to our world?!"

 **"Isn't it obvious? I** _ **destroyed**_ **it! Just as I said I would!"**

Shane's eyes widened. His gaze fell toward Lunala's back. "No…" His lip trembled. "After all of that… all of the struggle… you mean to say we failed?"

 **"Aww, why the long face?"**

The giant ball of static energy rippled. Two large red eyes appeared on its fringes, along with a mouth reminiscent of what Necrozma had when he possessed Lunala.

 **"After all, it's me. Your best friend…** _ **not!**_ **"**

Bolt-like beams shot out in random directions. None of them got anywhere close to Ephemeris or Lunala.

 **"At long last… I'm finally whole once more!"** Now more distorted than ever, Necrozma's voice seemed to come from all around Team Radiance. **"You** _ **fools**_ **were so desperate to save one another… you let me finish everything I needed to unimpeded."**

"That's… but that's…" Tessa's aura feelers trembled. "I don't understand. You were possessing Shane, but you were also fighting the gods, weren't you?"

 **"That's the beauty of it! I was never** _ **really**_ **there."** Necrozma's distorted laughs echoed through the cosmos. **"I had my full core back, after all. All I needed was a good source of energy and I could control both Shane** _ **and**_ **Silvally from a distance. And, wouldn't you know it, the sun —** _ **my**_ **sun, that I created! — was the perfect instrument for the job.**

 **"I used its energy not only to puppet your friends around, but to make all those Ultra Beast copies to bog everyone else down,"** Necrozma continued, barely able to contain the glee in his voice. **"Then, to** _ **really**_ **throw you all off the trail, I called on the figurative ace up my sleeve:** _ **Zygarde!**_ **"** Another laugh echoed through the darkened sky.

"Zygarde? Where does he fit into this?" Lunala said, frowning.

 **"Before Prisma wrestled control of my core away from me, I trapped Zygarde in the Ultra Nexus. After all… the god of order could've posed a** _ **serious**_ **problem if left unchecked."** Heavy, distorted panting sounded. Shane's tails curled up in fright. **"I pulled him out of his prison and made him into a doppelganger… and those sad, sorry gods fell for the ploy, hook, line, and sinker!"**

The ball of static pulsated. **"Was it a foolproof plan? Of course not. I overextended my powers, so my attacks against you weren't very strong. You fools were even able to free your pathetic friends from my grasp. But… heeheeheehee… I still ought to thank you all. Even though my return from the Ultra Nexus has been a grueling struggle… with your help, I've managed to do something even** _ **better**_ **than gaining back my lost light!"**

Shane tensed up. He squeezed his eyes shut, silently begging all of this to be another twisted nightmare. Beside him, Tessa needed every ounce of willpower not to dig her paw-spikes into Lunala's back. Rainbow lines rippled through her fur. Shane quickly wrapped his rightmost tail around her arm, shooting her a pleading look when her aura feelers curled up.

 **"I didn't just take in light from** _ **my**_ **sun. No. Thanks to all of the** _ **pathetic**_ **fools you convinced to take up arms against me… I now have the spirits of** _ **everything in this wretched world!**_ **Every mortal! Every departed soul residing in the Tree of Life… or trapped in the Voidlands after Dark Matter's last attack! Not to mention every lesser and immortal god… save for these two, of course. Heeheehee…** _ **gyahahaha!**_ **"**

The new laugh made Shane's blood run cold. He saw the look of utter terror on his teammates' faces. Even Silvally, for all the brave faces he had given throughout their travels, couldn't muster one up in the face of this new revelation.

 **"I am now the single,** _ **unopposed**_ **power throughout** _ **all of reality!**_ **"** Necrozma declared. **"Once I siphon off every last drop of light from the sun, I will flood this world with Ultra Space, then move onto the next one. One by one… each and every world will fall to my light. And it starts with our** _ **wonderful**_ **human world."**

"You wouldn't!" Shane gasped.

 **"Oh, but it's already begun! Remember Rebecca? That conniving** _ **bi**_ _ **t**_ _ **ch**_ **is now stuck in the Ultra Nexus in the body of a Salazzle!"** Necrozma thundered. **"And when I'm through with you** _ **whelps,**_ **I'll drag her out kicking and screaming to show her** _ **true**_ **terror! I will make each and every inhabitant of earth regret the day they were born… useless** _ **and**_ **human. I will give them… despair and** _**death.**_ **"**

Shane's tails shot between his legs. It was horrifying enough what Necrozma had done to his friends with just a _few_ spirits at his beck and call. But now he had _every_ spirit? How were they even supposed to stand up to that? _Could_ they even stand up to it? They'd had a lot of lucky breaks, sure. But even without ESP, Shane could tell that ball of static was bad news.

 **"Wonderful! Marvelous!** _ **Fantastic!**_ **Your fear… your hopelessness… I can feel it** _ **radiating**_ **off of you! See what I did there?** _ **Gyahahaha!**_ **"** The ball of static sucked up two fireballs from the rift. **"You don't need to say anything. I know what you're all thinking. Your friends… your family… you miss them all so much. Well, I have good news. I'm more than happy to let you join them… as a part of** _ **my being!**_ **You will all become one with the void… jUSt aS YoUR WoRLD hAS!"**

"… no."

Shane's head snapped toward Tessa. Her eyes were flooded with dread. "Are you crazy? We don't need to make him any more upset," Shane said, ears folding against his head.

 **"What did you just say? Speak up, spineless** _ **runt!**_ **"**

"I said _no._ I refuse your offer… and every other offer you can possibly come up with! We can beat you! This _isn't_ over!" Tessa said, her voice trembling. Her aura feelers quivered.

 **"** _ **Gyahahaha!**_ **Fool! You truly don't get it, do you? You have** _ **nothing**_ **left to fight for.** _ **Literally!**_ **"** Necrozma said.

"That's not true! I can fight for the spirits you imprisoned." Tessa raised a shaky paw. It flickered with blue flames. "For all the hopes and dreams that you tore away from them!" She looked at Shane pleadingly.

 **"Imbecile! Hopes… dreams…** _ **life itself.**_ **All of these things wouldn't exist if it wasn't for the void. They are** _ **meaningless!**_ **I will erase them all and leave only chaos behind!"** Necrozma declared. **"In fact… why am I even bothering with this exchange? My Z-Power courses through all of you. With my powers… I can control the lot of you with just a** _ **snap!**_ **"**

The last word came out as a roar. Shane braced himself for some sort of strike, but nothing happened. His ears twitched. The sounds of snapping claws echoed through the air. **"Grr… I** _ **said…**_ **I can control the lot of you with just a snap!"** Necrozma hollered. Again, nothing happened. **"What is the meaning of this? You four should be tearing your mounts limb from limb!"**

"It's not going to be that easy, Necrozma," Ephemeris said, a golden glow radiating off his body. "As the former god of rebirth… I won't let you get your greedy claws on any of us."

 **"Fool! I don't know what world you crawled out of, but I will make you sorely regret sticking your neck into this,"** Necrozma roared.

Shane looked back and forth between Tessa and the ball of static, then nodded slowly. "No, you won't. Because Tessa's right! This world… it's had more than its fair share of miracles! So, what's one more? If we're working together… I think we can take you down!"

Espy winced. "Whether we resist you or not… you're gonna kill or control us anyway. I'd rather go out fighting!" She nodded at her teammates.

"Golem built me to destroy gods!" Silvally narrowed his eyes at the ball of static. "It looks like, after all this time, I'm finally going to fulfill that dream of his… by taking down his _other_ creation!"

Ephemeris and Lunala nodded at one another. "And, of course, we'll assist you as best we can," Lunala said.

 **"So, you really intend to stand against me…** _ **Void Necrozma?**_ **Heeheeheehee…"**

The ball of static faded away, revealing a monstrous, golden light dragon that towered over both Ephemeris and Lunala. Necrozma spread his four wings apart, revealing rainbow, hexagonal tiles trailing from his wing joints. He opened his two, multicolored eyes. A third, red eye with a reptilian, slit-like pupil appeared on his forehead. Large spikes jutted out of his chest, each one bearing a winged-heart sigil. He opened his mouth and golden energy vapors streamed out of it.

Shane's tails shot between his legs. "B… big. So big," he whimpered.

 **"Then you will die as you lived…** _ **complete and utter idiots!**_ **"**

Golden light flashed inside the rift. Multiple golden energy balls appeared around Necrozma. He pointed an upper wing forward and the energy balls homed toward Ephemeris and Lunala. Ghostly energy gathered in Lunala's wings. She fired a purple beam straight at the oncoming projectiles.

 **"Useless!"**

To Lunala's horror, the golden energy balls burst through her Moongeist Beam with little effort. "Ah! Hang on, you guys!" Lunala spread her wings out and dove down.

 **"Ha! There's no escape. You can't do** _ **anything**_ **to me!"**

Lunala, Shane, and Tessa gasped. An unseen force propelled them up toward the geysers. Shane and Tessa screamed. Lunala managed to fight off Necrozma's control, however, and corkscrew past the energy balls right before they erupted in giant, golden geysers. Shane felt the energy brush against his tails. They crinkled up against his waist.

"Th… those were… like the golden energy ball attack I used," Shane said, blinking slowly.

 **"Of course they were. After all, it's** _ **my**_ **Photon Geyser!"** Necrozma bellowed, his voice so loud it made Shane's ears fold against his head. **"I must say, I'm impressed you escaped that so easily. Perhaps your status as an Ultra Beast affords you some protection against Arceus' Gravity."**

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "Wait… Arceus' Gravity?"

 **"Heeheeheehee! You don't expect me to just let these spirits fester inside of me, do you?"** Necrozma grinned. Golden vapors drifted out of his open mouth. **"Of course not. I'll use their powers to see you to your ends!"** He raised his upper wings. The space around him began to distort.

"Stay on your guard," Ephemeris shouted. He spat up a giant golden fireball. Necrozma's multicolored eyes flashed. Some of the chains surrounding him stitched themselves into a Bronzong that harmlessly absorbed the fire.

 **"You cannot even so much as touch me! I'm not simply immortal… I'm** _ **invincible!**_ **"** he boasted. Hoopa rings appeared around Ephemeris. Giant, crystalline hands shot out. Epehemris threw his wings up. A golden energy shield appeared. Ephemeris buckled. The hands pushed against his barrier. When it looked like it was about to crack, a Moongeist Beam engulfed the hands, shattering them along with the ring portals.

Lunala sighed in relief, only to turn and squeal at the sight of several approaching vortexes. She flapped her wings, thrusting herself backward. Shane and Tessa yelped, hanging on for dear life. The pull of the vortexes proved too strong, however. Tessa was plucked off Lunala's back and sucked toward the Spacial Rends.

"Tessa, _no!_ " Shane hollered. He tried to grab hold of her with his ESP… but it didn't respond. Shane's eyes widened.

The vortexes vanished in a plume of golden fire. Lunala shot forward and caught Tessa in her psychic grip, then planted her on her back and sped off to dodge a blinding-white beam from Necrozma's eyes.

"Are you okay?" Shane asked, though one look at Tessa's face gave him all the answer he needed. The colors had practically drained off her fur and her limbs were shaking. Shane growled in frustration. "Why didn't my Psychic work?"

 **"Gyahahaha! What a fool! You really think I'd let you keep those enhancements you got from** _ **my**_ **Dawn Shards? Don't make me laugh,"** Necrozma said. **"Oh, wait, I already did. Too bad."** His multicolored eyes flashed. A dozen circular runes with winged-heart sigils appeared around him, forming what looked to be crystalline bows.

"Look out!" Espy cried as the bows shot Rayquaza-shaped arrows into the air. Each one turned into a gleaming emerald comet that made a beeline for Ephemeris and Lunala.

"Both of you… back me up with your strongest attacks," Lunala begged, her third eye glowing. Shane stared at the Rayquaza arrows, each glowing with the energy of what he assumed was Dragon Ascent. He gathered as much ice in his mouth as he could muster, but the Rayquaza arrow was easily five times the size of Shane's Ice Beam.

Nevertheless, the ice combined with gray energy from Tessa's paws and a crimson Night Daze shockwave from Lunala. It proved enough to destroy one arrow and permit safe passage to avoid the others. As Lunala flew past the arrows, a warm, tingling sensation flared up in Shane's left foreleg. He looked down and was startled to find that not only was his naturia looplet somehow intact, it was flickering orange.

"Huh?" Shane blinked in surprise. "Hey, Tessa, take a look at this." He tried to lift his forepaw to show his teammate, but Lunala banked hard to her left, barely rolling out of the way of a swipe from Necrozma's massive tail. Vortex-shaped energy blasts surged out in all directions. Tessa grabbed hold of Shane to keep him from sliding off Lunala. She stole a glance at her teammates, then sighed in relief when Ephemeris flew over the Spacial Rends.

 **"How pathetic! All you can do is dodge and dodge and dodge. You're not resisting… you're simply being** _ **stubborn!**_ **"** Necrozma sneered, his third eye wriggling along with his head tendrils. **"Why continue this farce? Is your will to live truly that strong… even knowing that all you are protecting is an existence where fear and survival instincts are all that drive people's actions?"**

Necrozma's wings flared up with multicolored light. His main eyes shimmered. "He's getting ready for something big," Silvally said. "We've gotta attack him!" He shot a dragon-shaped energy beam that spiraled through the air. Necrozma's third eye flashed. He pulled one of the floating chunks of land in front of him and snuffed out Silvally's attack, along with the Psychic rings and golden Sacred Fire that followed.

 **"This was a fun warm-up, but I've had enough of this!** _ **Prismatic Laser!**_ **"**

A rainbow beam as large as Necrozma raced toward Team Radiance. Tessa screamed and buried her face in Lunala's ethereal back. Lunala tucked her wings in and dove as fast as she could. The energy was growing closer. Shane completely lost sight of the warped battlefield, blinded by Necrozma's attack.

Lunala fanned her wings out and skimmed the base of the beam. Third eye glowing, she unleashed a Moongeist Beam. It surged toward Necrozma's golden, crystalline leg… only for a spectral Braviary to appear and harmlessly swallow up the attack. Braviary disappeared in a trail of light while Necrozma looked down at her and grinned.

 **"Heeheehee…** _ **gyahahaha!**_ **What did I tell you? It's** _ **useless.**_ **"** Necrozma opened his mouth wide and spewed a large flamethrower. Lunala raced ahead, zipping between Necrozma's legs. **"Fool!"** Necrozma prepared to strike Lunala with his tail when an Ice Beam and bright-white ball of fairy energy smacked his cheek.

"Stay away from them!" Silvally snarled. Necrozma turned toward them, summoning more Rayquaza arrows. Ephemeris turned tail and flew off as fast he could. Behind him, the arrows brimmed with emerald Dragon Ascent energy and large, fiery, V-shaped crescents.

 **"Your fates are sealed. You cannot defy them. This** _ **reality**_ **cannot defy its fate… to fall before my light!"** Necrozma thundered. Espy and Silvally failed to destroy the nearest arrow with a Psychic-bolstered glob of water.

 **"These worlds do not deserve to exist! Gods and mortals continue to squander the gifts they stole from the void, be they humans, Pokémon, or Ultra Beasts."**

Ephemeris spun around and unleashed a huge gust of wing. Silvally added Air Slash crescents to the wind storm. His tail wagged when three of the Rayquaza arrows veered off course and broke into emerald fragments.

 **"Fear brings suffering to each and every world. And with that suffering comes anger. Then the anger turns to outrage… and that outrage to hatred. And then the hatred begets more fear and more suffering."**

"You're… nrrgh… full of nonsense!" Espy cried, forehead gem smoldering as she tried to repel the last remaining arrow with her psychic powers. Silvally pivoted and shot a massive Hyper Beam into the arrow. With Espy's Psychic backing it up, it broke through the V-Create and chipped the arrow's head. The rest of the crystal construct fell apart in bursts of emerald fire. Espy and Silvally smiled and bumped shoulders.

 **"Bah! Living creatures will do nothing but perpetuate the vicious cycle until they destroy themselves. That's why I'm skipping a few steps!"**

Lunala managed to escape Necrozma's tail, but in the short time she was near him, Shane's looplet went from flickering to positively glowing. A familiar rush of vitality surged through him. It was like the times he'd touched the Dawn Shards and the full Dawn Hourglass. "Tessa… is your looplet glowing?" Shane asked.

"Huh?" Tessa was still trying to process the sights of the battle and Necrozma's unhinged ranting. She managed to look down at her looplet. Her aura feelers stuck up. It _was_ glowing. "What does this mean? Should we… do we use our Z-Moves?"

"I… I don't know." Shane's brow furrowed. There was no conceivable way he could fire off a Z-Move while clinging to Lunala's back. He stared at his paw, biting his lower lip.

"Hey, if you two have any ideas, this would be a good time to speak up!" Lunala said, trying to weave through pink energy balls Necrozma sent toward her. Ephemeris was in a similar position, only Espy and Silvally were able to blast some out of the sky with their own attacks. Necrozma watched the whole scene with a bemused grin as more light gathered in his wings.

"He's going to use that Prismatic Laser attack again," Tessa realized, aura feelers trembling. "What should we do? All of our attacks don't even so much as phase him and I need to be able to at least stand to use a Z-Move." She looked despondently at her looplet.

"I… I…" Shane's eyes darted around. He _had_ an idea, but it was a spur of the moment thing. Could it really work? "Lunala! Can… can we channel our Z-Power into you?"

Lunala deflected the last of the energy balls with a purple shield. "Hmm? Oh! I… I'm not really sure, to be honest. But it couldn't hurt to try, could it?"

Shane nodded. Given their situation, he'd take _any_ opening he could possibly get. One quick glance at Necrozma told him another Prismatic Laser was seconds away. "Quick, Tessa. Focus on your Z-Power and try to push it into Lunala."

"I'll try!" Tessa drew up the Z-Power from her looplet. As its familiar warmth filled her body, she concentrated on Lunala. To her surprise, the warmth faded, but a brilliant orange aura surrounded Lunala.

"Ah! I… I feel so full of energy!" Lunala gasped. Her third eye glowed as brightly as Necrozma's wings.

 **"Gyahahaha! You won't escape me this time!"**

Lunala brought her wings up. Small, moon-shaped crystals formed around her. Each one fired off a purple laser. The lasers converged to form a single, gigantic beam. It struck Necrozma's top chest spike and shattered it. Necrozma gasped. All of the energy gathering in his wings dispersed. When it did, Shane's eyes narrowed.

Ephemeris flew up beside them, a look of shock on his face. "Wow! Was that Z-Power? You actually managed to hit him."

"So, the key to beating him is Z-Power? But I used my Z-Move saving Silvally," Espy said, only to look at her looplet and realize that it was glowing, too. "Wait… what the—"

"Ah! That's it! That's how we try to turn this around," Shane said, ears twitching.

"I'm not sure I follow," Tessa said, frowning.

"All of these attacks Necrozma's using are releasing tremendous amounts of light. Light energy is the basis for Z-Power! As long as we're fighting Necrozma, we've practically got _unlimited Z-Power_ at our disposal," Shane said, his heartrate picking up the more he spoke. "If we can keep avoiding Necrozma's attacks, we can keep charging up our looplets and funneling the power to Lunala to attack Necrozma!"

 **"Fools! You really think that's going to work against me? My powers are** _ **infinite!**_ **Any damage you do… I'll instantly heal right off!"** Necrozma snarled, third eye wriggling. Soft moonlight appeared above him. The shattered chest-spike reappeared, as good as new.

"Come on! You've gotta be kidding me!" Espy said. She had to stop herself from smacking Ephemeris' back.

"No. This doesn't change anything," Shane said. "We stick to the same plan."

"But what about us? Can Ephemeris take Z-Power like Lunala?" Silvally wondered.

"It's worth a shot, isn't it?" Shane said. He looked to Tessa.

"Absolutely," Tessa said, offering Shane the closest to a confident grin she could manage.

Espy and Silvally exchanged looks, but nodded their support. "We're with you," Silvally said.

"Good. Because there's one other part to this… and I'm not sure you guys are gonna like it." Shane cleared his throat. "Ha ha! Boy, you really outdid yourself with this one, Nicky!"

Necrozma froze in the midst of gathering magma around his wings. **"What did you just say?"**

"Come on, dude! This is just like all the times we acted out our own Pokémon battles, isn't it?" Shane said, ignoring the stunned looks on his teammates' faces. "Making them as ridiculous as possible, using all the craziest moves, and creating a whole bunch of explosions! The bigger the better!" A goofy grin crept onto his face. "You really went above and beyond, here!"

Necrozma's tail lashed at the air. His head jerked to the side. The sight was hard to miss. "Shane, what are you up to?" Silvally wondered.

"When Necrozma tried to trap my spirit… I saw something. I… I think Nicky's still in there," Shane said.

Espy frowned. "Shane, I thought we went over this all the way back in Cosmic Cavern."

"We did. This isn't about trying to appeal to him or anything. It's about trying to rile Necrozma up so he gets careless with his attacks," Shane said, his eyes narrowing. "That's our opening… but it's only going to work if you guys back me up."

 **"Heehee…** _ **heeheeheehee!**_ **How much of a naïve fool do you take me for,** _ **boy?**_ **"** Necrozma said, red expanding in his eyes and rippling down his body. **"This is** _ **nothing**_ **like those sorry games of** _ **pretend.**_ **All I ever did was roll over and end up a doormat while you gave yourself the most amazing powers ever!"**

"Move left. Left!" Shane hollered, wishing Lunala had fur or scales he could tug on. Lunala followed his instructions, veering away from a bevy of giant fireballs that surged right past her. Epehmeris banked in the other direction, but was never in any real danger of getting hit.

"Wow! Was that a bunch of Fusion Flares at once? Pretty crazy," Shane said, smirking. "I always thought you were more of a Zekrom guy, though."

 **"What does it matter? I have** _ **both**_ **of their powers! I could combine them and gain the bolstered effects if I chose to!"** Necrozma said. Flames bristled in his right wings and electricity crackled in his left wings. **"How does it feel for the shoe to be on the other foot, Shane? Instead of** _ **you**_ **getting all the godly powers…** _ **I**_ **have them! After all these years, it's finally time for** _ **me**_ **to win!"**

Shane's tails shot up. Was his strategy… actually doing something? Sure, there was still the same burning anger in Necrozma's voice from earlier, but instead of deranged ranting, there were complaints about the games of pretend Shane had played with Nicky. And, well, what he was saying _was_ true.

"T-Tessa, I think the plan's work—"

Necrozma jerked his head violently to the left. **"SiLEnCE,** _ **wHElP!**_ **ThIS Is My MoMEnT oF trIUmPh!"** Flames and electricity mixed together by Necrozma's chest. Plasma shockwaves spread toward Team Radiance. Lunala flew underneath one, but couldn't pull up fast enough to avoid a second one. She screeched in pain. Shane and Tessa also tensed up, but the pain proved minimal. The attack didn't even knock Lunala off course that much. She was able to right herself quickly and fly toward Ephemeris.

Golden glimmers of light appeared on Necrozma's wing joints. The crystalline hinges opened up, revealing four reptilian eyes much like the one on Necrozma's forehead. The eyes stared Team Radiance down in unison. Shane raised a curious eyebrow.

 _'Those eyes… I don't think Necrozma really wants them to be there.'_

He cleared his throat. "You're going to have to try harder than that to stop us." Shane conjured up a burst of white energy and sent it toward Necrozma. Espy added a Dazzling Gleam of her own.

 **"Pathetic!"** Necrozma formed a Hoopa ring. It swallowed the combined Dazzling Gleams up. A second Hoopa ring appeared by Ephemeris. He caught sight of it fast enough to let shoot out a golden fireball. Silvally added his own Flamethrower to the mix, blowing apart the Hoopa ring before it could release the Dazzling Gleam.

Shane looked down at his looplet. It was glowing again. "It's working," he said. "We can keep using the Z-Power. Lunala, next time you attack, you have to focus on one of those eyes on Necrozma's wings. Can you do that?"

"I can certainly try," Lunala said, flying up to pull even with one of Necrozma's upper wings.

"What should I do, Shane?" Tessa wondered. "I can fire Aura Spheres and Flash Cannons, but I don't think they'll do any good."

"I need you to help me keep talking to Necrozma," Shane said.

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "Are… are you sure? I'm not really sure what to say to him. He's, y'know, totally lost his mind."

"Just say some of that determined stuff you said before," Shane said, offering an assuring look. "I trust you, Tessa. We can pull this off… together." He shifted his right paw toward her.

Tessa looked at his forepaw, then nodded. She joined her paw with his. "Hey, Necrozma! You big bully! You spent all this time ranting and raving about how the gods betrayed you. So, why are you using their powers, huh? Makes you look like a giant hypocrite!" Tessa wondered if she was overdoing things, but Shane gave her a reassuring nod. "Are you too scared to face us with your own powers? I thought that was what you wanted your core back for!"

Necrozma's main eyes turned bright orange. They twitched. **"Insolent little rat! The gods were never supposed to exist in the first place. Their mistakes and backstabbing are proof of that! I've taken back what rightfully belongs to me!"** Necrozma summoned more gold energy balls. He struck them with his wings, knocking them at Lunala and Ephemeris.

One thing Team Radiance had on their side, though, was that Necrozma's size made his attacks painfully telegraphed. By the time the Photon Geysers moved forward, Lunala was already by Necrozma's right side. Shane and Tessa activated their naturia looplets in unison, sending more energy surging through Lunala's body.

She raised her wings up, unleashing six purple beams. Lunala swiveled them forward, where they merged together. Necrozma's eyes flashed. The purple beam struck against an invisible barrier. **"I won't let you get away with that again,"** Necrozma snarled. **"I am destruction incarnate! You cannot stop me!"** Light tendrils surged toward him from the rift leading to the sun. Lunala's eyes widened as the barrier pushed back against her beam.

"Keep it up! He's just saying that to mess with us," Shane said through gritted teeth. His looplet burned against his foreleg, but he refused to give in. "Isn't that right, Nicky? I know how much you enjoyed big, bombastic boasts!"

 **"Is that alliteration supposed to be cute? What a** _ **farce!**_ **I didn't enjoy it! You made me play the bad guy every. Damn. Time! You—** _ **ngarrrgh!**_ **"**

Lunala's Z-Move broke through Necrozma's barrier. The beam struck his upper right wing at the same time as a monstrous golden fireball. An explosive chain reaction engulfed the wing. Necrozma kicked at the air with his legs. His distorted screech split the multicolored, static-filled skies.

"The wing's gone," Espy realized, squinting to see through all the smoke. Her forepaw was sore after giving off Z-Power, but she forced herself to keep a brave face. "But he's going to heal it again, isn't he?" she said, frowning.

Silvally's cheek bolts whirred. "Not if we attack the spot it had grown out of!" He released the Hyper Beam he was charging up, but a gigantic thunderbolt vaporized it before it got very far. Necrozma thrashed about, eyes flashing between red and purple hues.

 **"StOP iT!"**

 **"No! I'm going to beat them!"**

Necrozma smacked the empty joint where his wing had previously been, then a bright flash surged through is body.

 **"Hmph. You can pelt me with attacks as much as you'd like, but it won't do any good,"** Necrozma said between bouts of hyena-like laughter. He looked at the smoldering stump where his wing was supposed to be. His eyes flashed white… but nothing happened. **"What the—"** His eyes glowed white… but he failed to do anything. **"Bah! Whatever! It doesn't matter. I don't even** _ **need**_ **these wings to fly! And I don't need them to destroy you all!"**

"We better get back," Tessa said, aura feelers tensing. Chains swirled around Necrozma's head. While she was happy Shane's idea had done _something,_ she wondered if they could really afford to keep this up. "U-Um…" She cleared her throat. "Oh, look, using your dumb alchemy chain stuff again, are you? Boy, that routine is getting tiring."

"Yeah! I'm sure you detest Golem as much as I do! So, why are you using the same techniques as him, huh?" Silvally barked, cheek bolts revving. "Even though you don't want to admit it, you're really no different than him! All you know how to do is hate!"

 **"Fool! Hatred is what made me into this. Hatred is the pox rotting these undeserving worlds from their insides out,"** Necrozma said. **"I'm not using the same techniques! I've evolved them into something greater!"** The chains finished forging a gigantic axe with a head resembling Arceus' wheel. **"Now** _ **perish!**_ **"**

The axe disappeared in a flash of light, only to pop up between Necrozma's legs. He gripped them with his claws and flew toward Ephemeris, the axe trailing behind him.

Espy's eyes widened. "Fly away. _Fly away!_ " she screamed.

 **"Too late!"** Necrozma crooned. He spun around, bringing the axe up, and slammed it down. A crystal piece of debris swerved into the axe's path. It struck with a thunderous _clang._ Shockwaves of golden energy raced forward. They swept Ephemeris up, drowning out his startled squawk and the pained cries of Espy and Silvally.

"Oh no!" Tessa looked to Shane.

"I'm on it!" Lunala's third eye glowed. She managed to grab hold of Ephemeris and his passengers and pull them away before Necrozma slashed at the air a second time. She barely got them out of the way of the shockwaves in time. "Are you all right?"

Espy's looplet shined so brightly it was hard to stare at her. "Ow." Her fur smoldered. Likewise, Silvally's beak and feathers had black streaks running through them. Ephemeris' feathers were also completely disheveled

"I'm… hanging in there," he said. Ephemeris got Espy and Silvally safely positioned on his back. Golden healing energy raced up toward them, undoing the damage from Necrozma's attack.

 **"You stupid,** _ **foolish**_ **oversized chicken! I will** _ **obliterate**_ **you!"** Necrozma said. He spun around, ready to strike with the axe once again.

"It's now or never!" Espy cried, pumping Z-Power into Ephemeris' back. Shane and Tessa followed suit. With the axe barreling toward them, Ephemeris and Lunala unleashed a golden firestorm and giant purple laser, respectively. They connected with the eye in Necrozma's lower left wing. He screamed in pain. Explosions swallowed up the wing. The axe vanished seconds before it would've slashed Ephemeris, Espy, and Silvally in half.

"What's the matter, big guy? You're not looking so hot! Maybe all this anger and destruction is giving you a bit of a guilty conscience," Espy said, trying to sound tough but betrayed by the slight tremble to her voice. She wished she could've said it was adrenaline, but the fear that the crazed look in Necrozma's eyes sent down her spine was all too visible. Right when it looked like he was about to say something, his head jerked to the right.

 **"EnOUGh Of ThIS! I Am VoiD NEcROZma, DivInE LiGHt Of OBlivIOn! I WiLL noT sInK to YoUR leVEL! I dON'T PlAY bY AnY Of YOuR RuLEs. I'Ve EvOLvEd BeYoND aNy RuLEs!"** Necrozma thundered. **"UlTImA!"**

"Ulti- _what?!_ " Silvally gawked as Necrozma craned his head up and spat a brilliant golden fireball into the air. It exploded into an entire series of concentric golden runes with a large pentagram directly above Necrozma's head.

 **"BeGONe, aLl Of yOu!"** He pointed his remaining two wings forward. A ring of golden light pillars surrounded him, then raced toward Lunala and Ephemeris. They both tried to weave their way through, but more light pillars appeared in the outermost circles of Necrozma's giant rune. There was nowhere left for them to fly.

"Quickly, Lunala. With me!" Ephemeris said, spreading his wings wide. Lunala flew up toward his stomach. Ephemeris pressed his wings to hers. They both channeled their energy together, forging a half-purple, half-gold barrier. A light pillar struck them from above. Though their barrier cracked and Team Radiance collectively cried out in a panic, they managed to hang through the attack.

 **"LoAThsome** _ **pests.**_ **You are doing nothing but delaying the inevitable!"** Necrozma hissed. Silhouettes of various gods appeared all around him. He pointed at his opponents and the silhouettes took off.

"We're not delaying anything! You're getting desperate," Tessa said. "All this time, you've done nothing but act for your own selfish, twisted desires. But the world doesn't work that way. We get strength from one another! And it's time you learned that lesson!"

 **"Liar!"** Necrozma's voice grew less distorted and his eyes twitched. The silhouettes of Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina sailed wide of Ephemeris. **"There's no strength to be had in** _ **any**_ **relationship in** _ **any**_ **world! People only know how to look out for themselves. Selfishness and survivability are all that matters to living creatures. Subject their relationships to even the tiniest bit of stress and they collapse like an weathered bridge."**

"That's not true!" Shane said, barely hanging on as Lunala pulled up from a dive to dodge the exploding silhouettes of Reshiram and Zekrom. He spat out ice breath to dispel the lingering flames and lightning.

 **"It** _ **is!**_ **Two worlds I tried to put my trust in others… and in both cases I had my life** _ **ruined**_ **because of it!"** Necrozma roared.

He then jerked his head to the left. **"nO. PaY No ATtEnTIoN tO THoSE MEmORiES!"** The remaining silhouettes exploded. Ephemeris and Lunala shot toward the debris. Espy, Shane, and Tessa stuck their limbs up to gather up as much of the stardust as they could.

Their looplets shimmered in unison. They wasted no time in sending Z-Power to their rides. Once again, a purple laser and golden fireball split the sky. Necrozma's third eye looked ready to burst out from his forehead. He released a purple beam much like Lunala's.

 **"I don't need** _ **anyone!**_ **I don't need** _ **anything!**_ **"** Necrozma snarled.

"You're… wrong! Everyone needs help! Everyone needs support!" Tessa said, arcing her back as her looplet burned her fur.

Necrozma's beam faltered. The combined Z-Moves struck his upper left wing. It detached from his body and fell away in a stream of bright, fiery explosions. Necrozma's roars grew so distorted they didn't even sound like roars anymore. His third eye swiveled about in his head at random.

 **"Enough of your stupid prattling! You don't get to use** _ **my**_ **power against me! It's mine! Every last drop of energy across every world belongs to me! To me!** _ **To me!**_ **"** Then, to the group's collective shock, Necrozma turned _away_ from them, rainbow energy bursts surrounding his body. **"Prismatic Laser!"** He fired the giant rainbow beam not at Team Radiance, but high into the cosmos. It soared into the darkness until a brilliant explosion shimmered far in the distance.

"W-What just happened?!" Espy squeaked, shrinking closer to Silvally.

"I… I don't know. But I've got a terrible sense of dread… and I don't think it's the Absol spirits in me." Silvally subconscious slid close to Espy.

 **"** _ **Gyahahaha!**_ **It's time you all met with a terrible fate!"** Necrozma declared. His multicolored eyes sparkled with silver energy. A heart-shaped portal opened over his head. Gigantic, flaming pieces of rubble streamed toward Team Radiance.

"What the heck are those? Meteors?!" Tessa squealed. Lunala banked hard right to avoid two of the projectiles, then barely managed to get a Moongeist Beam off in time to destroy a third one.

"No. It's… it's the moon," Shane said, watching one of the pieces of debris sail right by. The crater within the huge, jagged chunk of land was unmistakable. "He blew up the moon and he's attacking us with it!"

 **"You catch on quick! Remember how you were so** _ **scared**_ **of it as a kid? All because of that one dumb game you made** _ **me**_ **beat for you!"** Necrozma crooned. **"I lost out on my best years trying to salvage a friendship I got nothing out of!"** Pink energy encased the moon shards. They increased their speed.

"On your right, Ephemeris!" Espy screamed, burying her face in Silvally's hide. Silvally turned and fired a Hyper Beam, but it plinked off the flaming moon shard as despair spread across his face.

"Both of you… hang on tight!" Ephemeris cried. Silvally threw a foreleg over Espy's back and dug his claws into Ephemeris' feathers. But the instant Ephemeris began to roll, Silvally's grip slipped. He could feel Espy sliding out from his foreleg. Her eyes widened in terror. A moon shard was heading up behind them.

Silvally shifted to his steel memories. His body hardened into metal. Silvally squished Espy against Ephemeris' backside. They managed to hang on as Ephemeris rolled out of the way of the moon shard. He then blew another one up with a powerful burst of Sacred Fire. "You two doing okay?"

Espy shook like a leaf. "N… not really…" Her ears drooped and her tail curled around her waist. Silvally leaned over to nuzzle her.

Shane looked at his shaken teammates and glared at Necrozma. "Hey, come on! You're taking all of this way too far!"

 **"Too far?** _ **Too far?**_ **I'm not taking any of this far enough!"** Necrozma retorted, his eyes turning blue. **"You took away any semblance of happiness I ever had! All because you refused to use your head and think about anyone or anything besides yourself!"** Two blue, winged-heart runes formed on either side. **"And now… you expect me to stop? To let you have a fairy tale happy ending with new friends? To fall in love when I got my heart** _ **stomped**_ **on in two lifetimes?!** _ **Never!**_ **You will all** _ **burn!**_ **I don't care about your bonds! I don't care if you two** _ **idiots**_ **are too dumb, dense, and cowardly to say what you** _ **really**_ **feel!**

 **"** _ **YoU wILl DiE BeFoRE yOu CaN EvER sAY yOU LOvE EaCH oTHer!**_ **"**

Tessa's eyes widened. But if there was a retort she wanted to give, it faltered in her throat the moment Necrozma's runes created two gigantic, serpentine dragons made of pure blue energy. They spiraled through the air, looking to barrel into Team Radiance.

"That's the dragon-type Z-Move!" Lunala gasped and rolled right, but one of the dragons gave chase. "I can't make an attack strong enough to counter it on my own!"

"Ah! R-Right…" Shane looked down at his looplet, but it hadn't recharged yet. His brow furrowed. Sure, he seemed to have gotten through to Nicky _somehow_ , but all it did was dredge up all the resentment Nicky had for Shane. Deserved resentment, if Shane had to be honest, but it did nothing to help the team's current situation.

"I… I… have… an idea," he said, wincing as Lunala dove down to avoid the charging energy dragon.

"Another one?" Tessa said, aura feelers tensing.

"We fly _toward_ Necrozma. If his attack follows, he'll have to snuff it out himself, right?" Shane said, the look on his face suggesting even _he_ thought it was nuts.

"Are you crazy?"

"Yes!" Shane blurted out. "But all of this is crazy!"

Tessa frowned. "I… um…" She squeezed her eye shut. Then, to Shane's surprise, she grabbed his forepaw. "Okay. I'm trusting you on this."

"R-Right." Shane said, face burning. "Lunala… full steam ahead!"

Lunala sped toward Necrozma. Ephemeris, tangled up with the other serpent, spotted her and copied the gesture. Necrozma's eyes narrowed when he saw his attack heading for him. **"Imbeciles! What good does trust do anyone?** _ **Nothing!**_ **Trust is the key to future heartbreak and inevitable despair. I'll show you exactly how** _ **little**_ **trust means."** Necrozma summoned two circular runes with fire symbols in them.

"Oh no! He's gonna try another Z-Move!" Espy cried.

"Espy, your looplet! Strike first!" Silvally said, nudging her foreleg. Espy looked down, then hastily drew on the energy gathered in her looplet. A surge of warmth rose in Ephemeris' throat. Before Necrozma had the chance to unleash more attacks, he launched a golden fireball at Necrozma's last remaining wing.

Necrozma retaliated with two giant fire torrents of his own, but doing so caused him to lose focus on the energy dragons.

"Now!" Shane squeezed himself tight against Tessa, who threw an arm around his shoulders. Lunala abruptly pulled up. Necrozma's energy dragons swallowed up his flames, then slammed into the eye on his wing's joint. He tumbled backward, crystal shards falling away from his body and disappearing into the multicolored abyss below them.

Lunala steadied herself. Tessa's aura feelers throbbed. "That… that actually worked? It actually worked!" Tessa squeezed Shane hard, nuzzling his cheek with her own.

"Ow! _Ow!_ Chest spike! Chest spike!" Shane was torn between elation from Tessa's gesture and the pain of getting jabbed in the ribs.

"O-Oops. Sorry." Tessa softened her grip. "Got a bit caught up in the moment there." Her face flushed.

"It's. It's okay." Shane fought to hide a blush of his own. "But we're still not done yet."

 **"ImBEcILE! YoU'Re RuINinG eVErYThiNG! tHIS iS** _ **My**_ **BOdY To CONtROL!"** Necrozma thrashed at the air with his legs and tail.

"But we're out of wings! What are we supposed to attack?" Espy said, tilting her head to the side.

"His third eye!" Tessa said, pointing her marked paw forward. "Maybe we'll be able to blow off his head? That's gotta be where his core is, right?" She looked at Shane.

Shane nodded. "Yeah. Let's do it! I'm with you!" The two locked arms and checked their looplets. They were almost charged. All they needed was one last attack from Necrozma. "Hey, Nicky! If love and trust don't mean anything, then why are we still alive and kicking while your big, flashy body is falling apart on you?" He narrowed his eyes. "Know what I think? I think you're letting your anger get the better of you!"

Necrozma roared and kicked his legs together. **"Don't you** _ **dare**_ **lecture me about anger. Which one of us spent** _ **years**_ **throwing temper tantrums at teachers? That was you."** Necrozma's eyes twitched. His third eye spun about at random. **"You think you're some sort of hero?** _ **What a farce!**_ **You're a failure at anything and everything you've ever set your mind to. And that includes your life as a Pokémon. You only found success because of your partners!"**

Shane frowned. "I, well…" He blinked slowly and glanced at Tessa. Realization slowly washed over him and a confident look overtook his frown. "If I found success because of my partners… then that just proves how right we are! Relationships _are_ important! They're sources of strength that _everyone_ needs!"

Necrozma's eyes widened. The third eye pulsated like a giant heart. **"IDiOT! StOP it! StOP… Be SiLEnT…"**

Shane smiled at Tessa. "I _care_ about my team! So, I'm going to do everything in my power to support the friends who've carried me this far! And that starts with getting rid of you and fixing all the damage you've done!" He narrowed his eyes at Necrozma, who slammed his head into his own top chest spike.

 **"Heeheehee…** _ **gyahahaha!**_ **'Fix the damage?' There's** _ **nothing**_ **to fix! I've destroyed everything! And everyone!"** Distorted ripples flickered in front of Necrozma. **"All of their** _ **precious**_ **memories…** _ **gone!**_ **Eternal fuel for my undying flame! You will** _ **never**_ **get them back. You've lost. Now, stand down and accept your defeat!"**

A black, crystalline husk appeared in front of Necrozma. It bore striking resemblance to the creature Shane remembered seeing in the video footage after Golem took away Necrozma's light. "What's he up to?" Shane wondered, brow furrowed.

Necrozma fired a golden beam at the husk. The energy struck it and refracted, splitting into multiple beams, each with a different color. A yellow beam clipped Ephemeris' wing, drawing a pained squawk. Electricity surged down Ephemeris' back. Silvally barely switched his ground memories on in time to avoid any damage. He bit down on Espy's satchel and used it to hoist her into the air. She squealed in terror as she stared at the rainbow abyss far below her.

"Is everything ok— _agh!_ " Shane had to spit up globs of ice onto his forepaws to freeze them to Lunala's back and keep him from slipping off as she spun away from a purple beam bursting with ghostly energy. "Come on, Nicky! Enough is enough! We don't have to keep doing this anymore. You've made your point."

 **"It will** _ **never**_ **be enough! Not until you surrender. You don't get to win. None of you get to** _ **win.**_ **"** Necrozma's eyes flashed. In a burst of light, the copy he summoned split into two. **"You say your bonds are pure… but they're not. Time will rot them away, just as it does to everything else across reality. All living creatures are beyond salvation. They aren't worth caring about. Everything must be purged! Destruction is what every world deserves… no matter how sweet and lovey-dovey the inhabitants are!"**

Another gold beam struck the Prism Necrozma copies. An array of different-color energy beams raced out in each direction like a laser grid. Lunala spun away from a red beam, but then a gray beam struck her right in the face. Ice encased Lunala's head. She tumbled downward, with Shane and Tessa screaming in terror.

Ephemeris saw her falling, but couldn't get past two giant green beams. His attempts to counter with a Flamethrower failed, even with Silvally adding fire breath of his own. **"All it takes is a touch of fear to expose the lies in every relationship. Why do you think this world was so dysfunctional in the first place? It was** _ **built**_ **upon a foundation of fear. All I did was stretch things to the breaking point!"** In another flash of light, he summoned three black copies, then shot another golden beam into them.

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. With Lunala in a tailspin, there'd be to no way to dodge all the refracted lasers. Tessa raised a glowing paw and slammed it against the ice encasing Lunala's head. It shattered. "Lunala, help!" Tessa cried.

Lunala looked up to see red, yellow, and orange beams heading right for her. She tucked her wings in, diving down so fast that Shane and Tessa could barely hang on. "H-How much longer to we have to keep this up?" Shane said, his mane falling over his face.

Tessa glanced at her arm. "Our looplets are charged! Quick, Lunala, we have to get closer to Necrozma."

"Right. Hang on. I, uh…" Lunala barely managed to squeeze past two blue energy beams. Once she did, she headed back for Necrozma.

 **"I WiLl dO ThE SaME tHInG to EVEry WoRlD iN OuR ReaLITy. The PEoPLe wIlL lOoK uPon MY poWER aND, OnCe DeSPaIR hAS gRIpPed ThEM, THeY WiLL tuRN On OnE AnoTHER!"** Necrozma shattered the copes he'd created, then summoned four more that began to spin around one another. **"ThEN, I WiLL TakE ThEIr LIgHT aND RiP TheIR worlDS apArT unTIL** _ **NoThINg**_ **rEmAInS BuT The chAOs of ULtRa SpaCE!"**

"I don't understand… why does it sound like Necrozma's feuding with himself?" Tessa said, a chill running down her spine. She looked to Shane who, in turn, looked down at his glowing looplet. "Shane," she whispered.

"We got through to Nicky… I think. He's wrestling for control of Necrozma with the void. But all our comments are making him remember things that made him so upset to begin with, so he's still trying to kill us. Right now, Necrozma's like… like a flying-type whose wings are controlled by two different people," Shane said, face twisting into a grimace. "I'm not sure if that's made things better or worse for us."

Tessa put her free paw under Shane's chin. "Well, there's only one way we'll know for sure, isn't there?" She glanced at her looplet.

Shane nodded. Together, they funneled Z-Power into Lunala, hoping this would be the blow that would finally end things. Lunala fired another set of purple beams.

At the same time, Ephemeris launched another giant fireball. Both attacks went right for Necrozma's head while he charged up to launch what Shane and Tessa assumed was meant to be a true finishing blow. They watched their attacks fly with baited breath. Necrozma's third eye widened, but it he realized what was happening too late.

One final roar split the skies. The Z-Moves struck home, blowing Necrozma's head apart in streams of golden light. His body simply floated there, surrounding by ripples of distortion. Shane titled his head and frowned. "Is… is it over? Does this mean we win?"

Espy's ears drooped. "Why isn't what's left of his body falling apart?"

"Oh no…" Tessa's aura feelers crinkled up. "You don't think… his core _wasn't_ in his head, do you? Maybe it's in the middle of his body?"

Silvally's head crest fanned out. "If that's the case, then we have to hit him with everything we've got!" Frosty energy swirled around his cheek bolts.

"Silv, wait a sec—"

Silvally launched a large snowstorm in Necrozma's direction. It mostly struck one of his chest spikes… and failed to do anything. Silvally's head crest drooped. "Aww, c'mon. Do we need more Z-Power?"

"Silv, hold up for a second, please." Espy had a forepaw on his talons. Silvally looked down, fire memories activating. He nodded. Espy squinted as she looked toward the direction of where Necrozma's head had been. The distorted energy had faded and now a black fog swirled around Necrozma's golden neck. Her tail fell between her legs. "Um, guys? You see that fog over there?" She pointed a forepaw forward.

Everyone stared ahead. Shane's tails shot up. "Wait. Is he healing himself?" After the grueling battle, Shane wasn't sure he could muster enough resolve to keep going if Necrozma bounced back.

"I don't know. But that fog…" Espy's expression darkened. "It looks like the fog that shrouds the entrance to a Mystery Dungeon in the Mist Continent."

Tessa's aura feelers quivered. "You're kidding!" She stared blankly at the fog. Though she didn't want to admit it, she couldn't argue with Espy's assumption. Necrozma had used ley lines throughout the battle. In fact, his giant body was probably _made_ of them. "But… but what does that mean for us?"

Shane's ears folded against his head. "I think it means that… if we want to get to Necrozma's core and destroy it… we have to go _inside_ Necrozma."

"I… was afraid you'd say that," Tessa said, shivering. Even if Necrozma was more ethereal than flesh and blood, _nothing_ about that idea sat well with her. She'd have puked on the spot if her nerves weren't already so frayed from all the battling.

"Well, maybe we can come up with another idea," Shane said. "I—"

Tessa sighed. "I appreciate the concern." She put her paw on Shane's shoulder. His tails stiffened. "But, at this point, I say we go for it. I told the other teams that, no matter what it took, we'd stop Necrozma." She bowed her head. "If we have to, uh, take the plunge, then so be it."

Shane blinked. "Are… are you sure? Because if you want to raise and objection and call this idea stupid, I'm perfectly willing to—"

"Shane, be serious. Our job isn't finished yet," Tessa said, her expression stern. "If we're going through with this, I need to know you've got my back."

"I, uh…" Shane bit his lip. "I'm worried that Necrozma will be able to take control of me. Like, I dunno, maybe Ephemeris' protective aura will fail inside of Necrozma or something." He grimaced. "I don't want to hurt you again."

"Look at me, Shane." She shakily put her paws on each of his cheeks and swiveled his head. "I won't let that happen to you. We're in this together… until the end."

Shane looked into Tessa's eyes. A flush fell over his cheeks. "I… I got it." He nodded slowly. "Okay, Lunala. You can fly us over."

Lunala floated toward the black fog. Ephemeris flew beside her. The closer they got, however, the thicker the air became. When they were on the cusp of reaching the black fog, chains shot out from Necrozma's neck. Lunala was so startled, she couldn't properly form up an attack. Some of the chains grabbed Shane and Tessa's limbs. Both went wide-eyed and hollered in fright.

"Shane! Tessa!" Silvally shouted, only for Espy to cry out. Silvally looked left and found Espy getting pulled into the fog by the chains. "Espy, _no!_ " He leaped off Ephemeris' back, turning on his flying memories. He went for the chains holding Shane and Tessa. But the chains lurched violently. They all crashed into each other, then the chains yanked them inside Necrozma's neck with a loud _squelch._

Lunala tried to fly into Necrozma's neck, but struck off a barrier. She shook stars from her vision and looked at Ephemeris. "What do we do now?"

"I… I'm not sure. I think we have to try and find a way to break in, don't we?" Ephemeris said. "I hope they're all still in one piece.

* * *

 **Light of Oblivion, Void Necrozma  
** _The combined might of Necrozma, the light of the sun, and the spirits of those dwelling in both the living world and spirit realm. Devoid of all care and compassion, he seeks nothing but the complete and total annihilation of all living things. His body is so full of energy it seems to naturally repel any attack that strikes it. And any puppet spirit struck down can be quickly replaced by another while it recharges with the sun's light._

 _Hang tough, Team Radiance! Surely, there's a weakness that you can exploit!_

* * *

And that's part one of the final battle in the books. Another chapter that was a herculean effort as far as writing goes. So, any comments or feedback would be greatly appreciated.

memes: Someone had to make the joke, I suppose. I brought it on myself.

Anon Omega: That may be true, but his attacks here have a combination of different sources, including Final Fantasy IX's Necron. The naming schemes were too similar. I had to do it.

SuperOmegaGuest: Believe it or not, that's not why I'm referring to this as the golden ending. The real reason should become clear next chapter.

OverThePiranha: I dunno, you tell me. How was Team Radiance acting in this battle?

Next time: Into the belly of the Ultra Beast.


	115. Soul-Melding Genesis Supernova

Thanks to Namohysip for beta reading this part!

* * *

 **Chapter 98: Soul-Melding Genesis Supernova**

Bright lights and colors streamed by Shane. The cries of his teammates echoed all around him, but he was falling too fast to say anything… or even see them. For a moment, he wondered if he was trapped inside another one of Necrozma's nightmare prisons.

Then, the ground rushed up to meet Shane. A bright, luminescent glow-filled his vision. Orange steam rose up from beneath him. He tried to fire Psychic rings at the ground… only to remember Necrozma had taken Psychic from him. A few seconds later, he hit the ground. The shockwave of pain was complemented by a geyser of orange slime erupting all around him. Having grimaced from the blow, Shane was unprepared for the ooze to rain down on him. Loud _splurts_ echoed around the room as slime pelted his fur.

"Augh! _Gross!_ What _is_ this stuff?!"

Espy stood up, the slime reaching up to her belly. She was completely soaked. The goo weighed her ears and tail down, making it impossible for her to do anything but keep them folded. Her face paled. "It's between locks of my fur! Oh, gods, this is even worse than the time I fell in my own puke!"

Tessa turned her disgusted expression on Espy, though it was tough to make anything out with so much orange goop on her face. "I did _not_ need to know that," she said, trying to brush slime off her fur to no avail. "Well, at least if we _are_ in Necrozma's stomach, then we know he has no acids to melt us with." The thought brought her little comfort as she looked at her tail and the slime trails trickling off it.

"Hey now! Don't try and jinx us with that kind of talk." Silvally couldn't even fan his head crest out and his eyes were shut tight to stop slime from gunking them up. His steel memories had turned on by sheer instinct.

Shane finally managed to get his bearings and stand up. As per usual, his disheveled mane had fallen over his face. Luckily, the slime made it sticky enough that when Shane flipped his hair back, it stuck against his neck.

"Hey! Knock it off, Shane!" Tessa growled as orange flecks pelted her hip.

"S… sorry…" Shane's tails _tried_ to fan out in alarm, but the ooze had stuck them together. He blinked the orange out of his vision… only to wish his mane was blinding him again. "Oh… oh gods…" His legs grew weak. Before he knew it, his rear splashed down and more slime pooled up around his torso. "This… this is…"

His teammates finally stopped worrying about their appearances and took in their surroundings. There were hexagonal grates strewn across the area, making each member of Team Radiance bitter that they _happened_ to land in the one spot inside Necrozma with nothing to pass for a proper floor. The circular room was bordered by large, chitinous, horn-like structures protruding from the edges of the orange slime pool. They resembled curved dragon fangs.

"Ugh. His insides are a mishmash of all the sci-fi movies he dragged me to," Shane whimpered, struggling to pull himself onto one of the hexagonal platforms. Tessa offered her paw in assistance, but Shane slipped right through her grip and fell back into the slime. She pulled her paw back, opting instead to look at all the large, gooey cords making up the walls and ceiling.

"What are these things?" The slime weighed Tessa's aura feelers down too much for them to move. Not that it would've helped her, since the same pins and needles sense from when her aura reading was being jammed had made an unwelcome return.

"There are bright lights flashing in them. And they all have different colors," Espy observed. She spun around, mindful of falling back into the pool like Shane had.

"Guys, um… do you hear something?" Silvally crouched low to the ground. His cheek bolts rattled in their sockets. "Because I hear moaning. A _lot_ of moaning."

Having finally gotten to dry land, Shane tried to clear his ears out. He tensed up. His ears couldn't twitch properly, but an unsettling chill ran down his spine. "Yeah. It sounds like…" He blinked slowly. "There are thousands of voices all around us and they're all in pain!"

Espy stood at the head of the group, facing the other side of the room. She was slouched over, whimpering softly. "Guys? I think I found where all these weird tubes are leading." Espy lifted a trembling forepaw. "They're going to Necrozma's core."

Her teammates turned around. Tessa immediately wished she hadn't. " _That's_ his core? No… it looks nothing like the big prism he took from Zero. This is some kind of… some kind of sickly cocoon! Like what Volcarona had been trapped in back in the Volcanic Wastes."

Shane stared at the large, circular cocoon. It was a membranous sack dangling from the ceiling by six large, slimy cords bristling with flashes of light and pulsating like vessels. Multicolored lights shimmered in the center of the membranous structure. But so much fluid surrounded whatever lay at the center of the cocoon that there was no way anyone on Team Radiance could tell what it actually was.

"Okay." Espy gulped. "With the way our travels have gone, I can't be the only one who thinks we have to break open this _disgusting_ thing, right?" Her teammates shook their heads. "Yeah. Great. I don't know whether to laugh or cry. Or do both."

 **"Go AwAY!"**

The cocoon trembled and the cords feeding it swelled as if they were about to burst. "Get back, guys! I don't like the look of that!" Shane whimpered, his tails now dragging against the floor. His teammates shuffled back toward him as cracks splintered through the cocoon's membranous sac.

"Oh, _gods!_ Look at all the eyes." Tessa cringed. Bile rose up in the back of her throat.

Espy frowned. Just like Tessa said, the cocoon was now littered with an array of different-colored eyes, all swiveling around and glancing in random directions.

 **"Go AwaY!"**

The distorted voice made Team Radiance wince. Even though Shane was sure no attacks were used, a crushing weight pressed on his shoulders and chest. It hurt to even take a breath. "G-Guys. We… we have to…" He doubled over, wheezing loudly. Shane struggled to get a good look at his teammates, but he could see they were having problems, too. Even Silvally struggled to keep his head held up.

 **"I hAte You! I HAte AlL oF yOU!"**

Light flickered in the cocoon's blue and red eyes. A sigil formed in front of each of them: one blue teardrop and one red flame. The sigils shakily floated toward Team Radiance. Tessa brought her paws up, charging an Aura Sphere to fire. Then, the sigils erupted in flashes of light. A burst of water headed right for Espy, while a fireball careened toward Shane.

"Watch out, Shane!" Tessa hurled the Aura Sphere above her teammate's head. It stopped the fireball, but the resulting blast blew Shane across the floor. Tessa didn't get a chance to see if he was okay, however, as flames seared her from above. Thankfully, all the slime clinging to her fur acted as a natural buffer, shielding her from what should've been a serious blow.

 **"BuRn! BuRN! BUrN To AsHeS!"**

Tessa looked up. More red-flame runes floated toward her. This time, they burst apart before they got anyway near her. A volley of fireballs rained down on her from above. There was no way Tessa could deflect all of them. She turned to flee for the slime pool, but a bright-white flash enveloped the fireballs and snuffed them out. Shane slid in front of her, most of the slime burnt off his fur.

"You get away from her, Necrozma! I know you're the one doing all of this!" Shane growled, frost gathering in his maw.

 **"StOP iT! StOP! StOoOoOP!"**

The cocoon shuddered. Shane's ears folded from the onslaught of voices. It was even worse than listening to Necrozma. But he had to hang tough for his teammates. "We won't stop until you're _gone!_ You don't get to hurt anyone anymore!" He spat an Ice Beam directly into the cocoon. A huge grin spread across his face as the membrane rippled like a plate of gelatin prodded by multiple forks.

 **"StOP HuRTiNG Me! Go AWAy!"**

Three yellow lightning runes formed around the cocoon. Silvally lunged for them, ground memories active. He dove right through the ensuing lightning strikes and tore through one of the veins supplying the cocoon with brown, mud-covered talons. Silvally hit the ground and smiled at Espy, who grinned back at him. The warm moment was ruined however, when the severed vein drenched Silvally in red slime.

"Oh… oh no." Espy ran toward him, expecting something bad to happen. Silvally stood there, blinking at her. He tilted his head. Espy came to a stop. "You're… you're not hurt, are you?"

"No. But I might want to throw up when this is all over," Silvally said, shaking out his pelt and feathers.

Espy was about to say something, when the cocoon shrieked loudly. Blebs formed all around its membrane. The pustules popped, scattering golden fluid all around the cocoon that triggered a loud wave of hissing. Espy shrank back, tail crinkling. Overhead, star shaped runes drifted haphazardly around the cocoon.

 **"I HAtE YoU AlL! LeAVe Me ALoNE! DiE! DiE DiE DIE!"**

The sigils burst open, creating four, blood-red eyes that spun around and distorted the air in the room. Shane shot an ice shard at the nearest eye, but it was shredded to bits inside a vortex. The air around the eyes darkened. Shane was promptly lifted off his feet. "Whoa! H-H-Hey! Not good! Not good!" He looked into a pair of miniature black holes determined to suck him up. "Someone help m—"

Tessa grabbed Shane by his tails and tugged. Shane hollered, briefly worrying Tessa would yank the tails out of their joints. All the while, the black holes kept spinning. Tessa dug her free paw spike into one of the metal grates and held on for dear life. Across from her, Silvally had pinned Espy to the ground, using the added weight from his steel memories to keep her safe.

"Enough of these stupid attacks, Necrozma! We won't let you kick us around like this!" Silvally snarled. He unleashed a Flash Cannon, trying to aim the gray beam at one of the other veins. To his relief, it managed to squeeze between the black holes and sever the remaining two veins on the left side of the cocoon. More red liquid sprayed across the ground. The cocoon shrieked as the remaining cords recoiled and sent it bouncing around the room.

Shane fell to the ground with a _splat_ when the black holes disappeared. He blinked stars out of his vision, only to get struck by a pair of glowing symbols resembling miniature clusters of Unown. Shane tumbled across the ground, groaning. He was completely unaware of the other sigils that had burst out of more boils that appeared on the cocoon.

Tessa realized Shane was in danger. She ran toward him, using one paw to fire a Psychic ring. The pink blast broke two of the sigils apart. Silvally sliced the remaining glyphs apart with black, shadowy talons. Then he turned, energy blades glowing, and unleashed a black shockwave toward the lowest of the remaining veins.

 **"StOp! StOP ThiS! YoU… YoU AlL hATE mE! WhY DOeS EvERYoNE HAtE Me?!"**

The cocoon's membrane briefly parted. Tufts of dragon fire kept the cocoon's cord safe from Silvally's Snarl. Espy, meanwhile, had snuck around to the back of the cocoon and rifled off a Psybeam. The cocoon couldn't summon anything to block the Psybeam fast enough. It sliced through one of the veins, which rewarded Espy with a neon-green slime shower for her troubles.

"This is _misery incarnate!_ " Espy shouted, smacking a forepaw against the ground.

"Well, on the bright side, I think the color suits you well," Silvally said, wagging his tail and trying to offer Espy a cheerful grin. Espy responded with a look so chilling Silvally's fire memories switched on inadvertently.

 **"GiVe UP! GiVe UP! GiVe… GIvE GiVE GiVE GIgIGiGYARggH!"**

Shane choked on the ice he was gathering to strike the cocoon. He had no idea what to make of what he was seeing or hearing. When they were battling Necrozma outside, it had sounded like Nicky was fighting for control with the void, but the cocoon's cries lacked the coherence of Necrozma's earlier rants. Had their Z-Moves reduced Necrozma to some sort of primal creature that could do nothing but lash out?

The thought made him shudder, but then Shane caught sight of the rainbow glimmer in the center of the cocoon again. It reminded him of what he had seen in one of Necrozma's nightmare prisons: golden light wrapped up in chains.

"Nicky!" The shout came before Shane even weighed his options. "Nicky, I know you're in there somewhere!"

Tessa blasted a fireball away with an Aura Sphere. "Shane, what are you doing?"

"Trying to see if there's any way to get through," Shane said. "Necrozma told me something when he had me captured. He said that human spirits possess something Pokémon lack: indominable wills."

 **"i dOn'T cArE CARe cArE! Go AwAY! ShUT uP! ShUT Up!"**

Yellow-bolt runes burst apart. Lightning streaked toward Shane and Tessa. The latter tackled the former to the ground. Electricity grazed Tessa's back. She arced her neck up and cried out in pain. "Tes—" Shane wanted to ask if she was all right, but Tessa put a paw to his muzzle.

"I'm fine," she said through gritted teeth. "Keep… keep saying… what you were saying."

"U-Um… well…" Shane squirmed out from underneath Tessa, minding her chest spike. "Human wills are strong enough that, as long you have a fraction of the spirit around, the human's personality and all their memories will stick around." He got to his feet. "That's why I remained as Shane, even after I fused with Dark Matter. And that's why Necrozma hasn't been able to get rid of Nicky."

 **"Be QuIET! Go AWaY! DiE! I hATE yOu! HAtE HaTE HAyAeRG—** ** _gYaAh!_** **"**

Silvally slammed into the ground, bits of the last two veins supporting the cocoon wedged between his talons. Red and blue ooze dribbled down his sides. "It's… it's done." He turned around. "Now we can… huh?"

The cocoon's membrane had fallen away, revealing Necrozma's glowing, prism-shaped core in all of its splendor. After a few seconds of floating in place, however, the core dropped to the ground and melted into a puddle. Silvally hopped back, squawking in alarm. Electricity crackled around his cheek bolts. "I'm gonna shock it!" he said. But before he got the chance to launch any Thunderbolts, a sudden gust of air knocked him back into Shane and Tessa. The trio ended up collapsed on top of one another.

"Oof! G-Get off, big guy. You're, well, big!" Shane wheezed, smacking Silvally with a forepaw.

"I know! I know! Stop smacking my rear," Silvally growled, trying to shake the stars from his vision. Shane's eyes bugged out and his face reddened.

Espy managed to stay on her feet through the blast, but found herself frozen, watching the bubbling puddle. All of the fluid coalesced into a multicolored sphere that rose into the air. Its colors swirled around at complete random. It was making Espy dizzy staring at the core, so she looked away and smacked the ground with a forepaw. "This is unbelievable! We're _still_ not done? What's it going to take to stop this guy?"

 **"NoThInG CaN StOP… GiVE uP. GiVE iN. OuT. alL ArOUnD. UPsIDe… GrrArGHT!"**

The core's colors formed a circular pattern with a black spot in the middle. It spun around at high speeds. Espy's paws left the ground. "Hey! Hey, stop it! Guys, help!" she shouted, flailing at the air with her legs. She couldn't spin around to face the core and attack it.

Shane looked up to see the luminescent colors of the room distorting and spinning about. His tails fanned out in alarm, however, when an invisible force yanked him off the ground, too. He slowly spun around the room, unable to see what was going on.

"Hang on, you two! It's another black hole thingy!" Silvally cried, but choked on his own attack when the core even succeeded in hoisting him into the air. All of Team Radiance cried out in a panic as the black hole dragged them closer to the core itself.

"No… _no!_ Get away! _Get away!_ " Espy shrieked, before slimy tendrils wrapped her forelegs up and dragged her into the core. Her teammates all dropped to the ground with heavy thuds. The colors faded away from the core's slimy surface, revealing a purple, reptilian eye. Team Radiance saw Espy inside the pupillary slit.

"Espy!" Silvally's head crest fanned out. "We have to get her out of there!" He switched his steel memories on again and charged forward, a golden wheel surrounding his torso.

 **"NeVER. DiE! DrOWn iN YoUR SoRRoWS!"**

Espy's muffled screams sounded within the eye. Small pink energy balls surrounded the core, then shot toward the rest of Team Radiance. Silvally was too far into his attack to shift his memories. Instead, he charged through the pink blasts, wincing with every step he took. Metal coated his forelegs.

"Back me up, guys!" Silvally shouted, lunging for the core. Shane and Tessa were too preoccupied trying not to get blasted, however. Enough energy pellets struck Silvally to force him back to the ground. His cheek bolts revved up so fast they let out trails of golden sparks. His irises flashed gold. "No… _let her go, you cretin!_ " Another golden wheel surrounded Silvally.

 **"yOu dOn'T DeSErvE hEr. NoNE of You dEsErvE aNYThiNG exCEpT DeAtH!"**

Large balls of silver energy gathered around the core. Silvally was ready to lunge for the core again, but the energy balls turned into giant silver lasers. Yowling, Silvally dropped to his belly and rolled away from one laser, but it ricocheted off the ground, careened toward the ceiling, bounced off, and headed right for him. Silvally met it with a Flash Cannon beam.

"This is ridiculous! Stop it, Nicky! What are you hoping to accomplish by doing this?" Shane cried, one of the lasers singing his right flank. "Come on, dude. I _know_ you have to be tired of this. Look around you. Is this really what you want for yourself? To see so many people suffering like this?"

"Espy! Espy!" Silvally lunged for the core, only for it to float just out of range. Espy screamed in pain again. The core generated a pink shockwave. Silvally switched to his dark memories and the attack phased right through him.

"Give us our friend back!" Tessa cried, leaping over the shockwave and hurling an Aura Sphere at the core. It struck home and the core recoiled with a distorted wail. Silvally saw his opening and leaped up, shadows covering his talons. He slashed the core right through its pupil. Slime covered his talons, but he managed to tear the core open and grab Espy.

 **"NOoOoO! StOP taKInG WhaT'S MiNE!"**

Loud squelching noises echoed through the room. Frowning, Silvally had to swat Espy out of the core. She dropped to the ground and bounced to a halt next to Shane. Black, scaly plaques dotted her torso, limbs, and tail. Espy trembled. Her forehead gem flickered like a luminous orb running low on power.

"Espy? Espy! Come on… stay with me!" Shane said, pressing his forepaws against her in a desperate attempt at channeling Morning Sun. His heart sank when nothing happened.

"Out of the way, Shane! I've still got an oran berry," Tessa said. Though a layer of slime covered her satchel, she pulled out the berry. Shane didn't even want to think about how sanitary it was. The situation was too desperate.

The core responded to this development with a loud shriek. **"StOP iT! STop HElPInG EaCh oTheR! I HAtE You ALl!"** It drifted back from the group while its colors reappeared. A green delta symbol appeared on the side facing Team Radiance. The top of the sphere erupted and a large, slimy Rayquaza head popped out. **"WhEn WiLL yoU lEArN? NoTHiNG mAtTErS ExCEpT PoWeR! The PoWEr tO DeSTrOY EVeRYtHING!"**

"Shane, I need you with me," Silvally said, fairy memories bathing him om a salmon glow. Ears sticking up, Shane left Tessa to tend to Espy. The core's new head launched a volley of dragonfire at Team Radiance. Silvally dug his talons into the grated floor. Golden light flickered in his cheek bolts. "Dazzling Gleam, Shane! Use Dazzling Gleam!"

"R-Right!" Shane drew up fairy energy and released a wall of white light. To his surprise, Silvally gathered up a ball of moonlight and tossed it into the Dazzling Gleam. The explosive burst of fairy energy destroyed all the dragonfire and struck the core, blasting it into the wall. Shane turned to Silvally with wide eyes. "What are you doing? That gold glow… you're not getting overcharged again, are you? You can't do that!" He looked back at Espy, who Tessa was helping get back up. "We can't lose you again."

Silvally fixed his gold-tinged eyes on Shane. The shimmering glow faded and they returned to a plain salmon color. "I'm fine this time. I mean it. Necrozma must've left the overcharge bit in… but I'm only using it in short bursts."

Shane bit his lip. He didn't want things going like they did in the Prism Wastelands, but this was also a battle they couldn't afford to lose. "If you say so." He turned back to the core, only to gasp as, rather than dragonfire, golden Draco Meteors streamed toward them. Shane broadened his stance to absorb as many as he could, only for Silvally to buck him into the air. Silvally caught Shane on his back and charged toward the core.

"What are you doing now?"

"Necrozma's mixing types… like Dragonite did. I'm sure of it!" Silvally said, veering left to dodge Draco Meteors. He skidded across the grated floor and shot another Moonblast into the core. Though it spat up Draco Meteors to deflect some of the Moonblast, it wasn't enough to snuff out the attack. The core shrank back, its colors bouncing around its surface like a grotesque lava lamp.

 **"No More. NO MoRE! StOP hURtINg mE! StOP iT!"**

"The only one who can stop this is you, Nicky! We're trying our hardest, but we can only keep attacking for so long," Shane said, though he honestly wasn't sure how much he bought his own words. At this point, he was speaking before thinking.

 **"SToP LiFE. StOP liVInG!"** the core screeched. Its Rayquaza head was gone. Now, the colors formed a silhouette of a Time Gear. The core rippled, then split itself into four smaller copies. One of them shrank back, while the other three floated higher into the air and molded themselves into copies of Darkrai.

 **"You have nothing left to fight for. Give in. The world of darkness is finally here,"** the clones said in unison. They raised their arms, gathering black shadows.

"Those are Dark Voids! Scatter!" Shane hollered, sprinting away from Silvally as black blobs rained down on the group from above. He didn't even want to think about why the distortion in Necrozma's voice had toned down so much. All he cared about was making sure he didn't fall asleep. He couldn't imagine what sort of horror that would mean if he was already inside Necrozma.

"There's too many blasts. We can't navigate this," Espy said, tail curled around her waist as she sniped an incoming Dark Void with a Psybeam.

"Well, what else can we do?" Tessa said, sweeping a Flash Cannon threw multiple Dark Void blobs before her paws burned. She then rubbed them together, wincing. "Um… follow me!" Tessa threw her arms up over her head and sprinted forward, trying to use the ground as an indicator for where the blasts would strike.

"Tessa, look out!" Espy cried.

Tessa looked up and saw one of the blobs expanding to catch her. She shrieked and pointed her paws up, but all she could muster was a few blue embers. Tessa braced herself to go under when the Dark Void popped open like a balloon. Silvally landed between her and Espy. "You two okay?" he said. Before they could answer, he shot another Moonblast up at the Darkrai clones.

The clones clustered together over the lingering part of Necrozma's core. The Time Gear symbol spun around and the clones gathered Dark Pulse energy in their hands. "Not this time!" Shane snarled, fairy dust surrounding his shoulders. He launched a Dazzling Gleam burst at them, burning away the shadows and forcing the copies back together.

 **"Fools. All of you… fools!"** the core snarled.

"Please, Nicky! Whatever you're doing… keep it up! It's working!" Shane shouted, leaping back to dodge a bunch of Air Slash blades shot out from the core.

Tessa's aura feelers twitched. "What are you talking about?"

"The distortion in the voice… it's getting lower. We're getting through to him! We need to keep up the pressure," Shane said. His voice was strained, but his teammates could tell how sincerely he believed that.

"Okay." Tessa raised her paws and charged an Aura Sphere.

 **"I will make you all** ** _suffer!_** **"** The core floated back to dodge Shane's Ice Beam and Tessa's Aura Sphere. It pulsated and rippled, then split itself into four copies again.

"Oh great… _now_ what's it doing?" Espy groaned. She shot a Shadow Ball at the nearest copy, but it hovered above the blast. Espy was ready to fire another one, only for the attack to falter and her eyes to widen when a familiar, glacial-blue color washed across all the copies. A red spot appeared in the center of each of them. "No…" She shrank back. "No! _No!_ "

Tessa looked at Espy in confusion, only for her fur to stand an end. "H… hey. Did it just get colder in here?" She threw her paws up onto her shoulders.

Espy screamed and shrank down to her belly. Silvally was by her side in an instant. "Espy? Espy! What's wrong? Tell me! _Please!_ "

She pointed a trembling forepaw up. "B… B… B… B… _Bittercolds!_ " Silvally looked up and gasped. Four identical Bittercold clones floated overhead. Ice swirled around their pointed, frost-covered edges.

 **"Feel my hopelessness and** ** _despair!_** **"**

The clones floated down so they were level with Team Radiance. Their spikes shot out in different directions. Three jabbed Shane in his hips. The icy energy that coursed through his veins made him yowl and fall on his side, twitching in pain. Tessa sucked in her gut and arched her back. Her legs trembled as she tried to hold the delicate position and avoid the frozen thorns.

Espy was still in a state of shock, however. Silvally saw the spikes coming. He shifted his fire memories on and stood over her, heating his body up like he was going to use Flame Charge but not moving. Multiple spokes jabbed him from numerous angles. Silvally hollered in pain. His cheek bolts sparked. Espy saw golden embers flitter to the ground beside her. She tried to move, but unpleasant memories of the frigid temperatures of Glacier Palace kept her rooted to the ground.

Tessa looked at her teammates' conditions, even as the icy thorns retreated into the Bittercold copies. They all floated into new positions facing Espy and Silvally. Tessa gnashed her fangs. They intended to strike while her friends were most vulnerable. Tessa couldn't possibly stop all of them. She shot a Flash Cannon beam at one of the clones, knocking it back into the wall. It dropped to the floor with a clatter, but the remaining three clones extended their spokes.

Two jabbed Tessa's thighs, knocking her to the ground. All she could do was stare at the icy spear above her head, listening to Espy and Silvally's cries of pain. They brought her right back to the Prism Wastelands… when everything was going south against Zero. She remembered the look of helplessness on Espy's face and the resignation in Silvally's eyes as he planned to use Explosion. Her heart ached… and her stomach _roiled._

Despite the cold, her insides burned. She couldn't lay there and watch her friends keep getting hurt. Reasoning with Necrozma might've thrown him off, but he still refused to let up. He _had_ to be destroyed. Tessa glanced at her looplet. She focused on the anger bubbling up inside of her. It wasn't long before a familiar surge of energy flooded her system. Tessa sucked in a breath. She _had_ to keep control. She couldn't let the anger to consume her.

Tessa thought of Silvally's smile… of their moment on the beach when he was still Null. She thought of the time Espy confided in her. And she thought back to the heart-to-hearts with Shane in Cosmic Cavern and Circadian Coast. Tessa arched her back up… then shredded the ice spike above her with newly-formed Metal Claws.

"Leave… my friends… _alone!_ "

Seven different-colored ripples of light raced out from Tessa's body. She shot to her feet and shot out three Aura Spheres in rapid succession, not even noticing the rainbow lines running down her arms and legs. Each one struck a Bittercold clone and knocked them back into the wall. Tessa ran for Espy and Silvally without hesitation, her bizarre Mega Evolution's rainbow-colored aura dreadlocks trailing behind her.

Silvally lay collapsed on his side. Black blood oozed onto his fur. Espy lay next to him, tears streaming down her face. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I panicked. I did this to him!" She was about to smack her head against the floor when Tessa stopped her.

"You still have any healing items?" she asked.

"Um…" Espy flipped her grimy satchel open and managed to pull out half an oran berry.

"It's good enough. It'll do." Tessa took it and smushed it against Silvally's side.

Shane, meanwhile, was caught between the Bittercold clones merging back together and the rainbow aura shimmering around Tessa. He wanted to ask if she was feeling like herself, but trusted that the fact she was tending to Espy and Silvally meant she wasn't in a complete berserker state like last time.

"See, Nicky? My friends are willing to put everything on the line to stop all of this. And… and I am, too. That's why you have to keep fighting back!" Shane said. He spat an Ice Beam at the core. It rolled out of the way, then hopped into the air. The core bounced off the ceiling and looked to crush Shane from above. Shane jumped forward and rolled to a stop, but the core kept bouncing. It was going for his teammates.

"Guys, watch out!" Shane cried. He sent another Dazzling Gleam burst forward, but there was no way it would reach the core in time. Luckily, Silvally got back to his feet and met the core with a metallic headbutt. However, Shane's relief turned to panic when he realized Silvally had knocked the core back toward him. Shane dove to his right, narrowly avoiding the core striking the wall behind where he once stood and drifting up to the ceiling.

He staggered to his feet, breathing labored. "Come on, Nicky. We're doing everything we can." Shane looked at the core. A part of him thought it was useless to keep talking. It would only make Necrozma more upset and hurt his friends. However, he wasn't sure how much the team's attacks had damaged the core.

 _'We can't keep this up forever. We barely have anything to heal ourselves with.'_ Shane shot another Ice Beam at the core. It dodged the attack easily, but was unprepared for two corkscrewing, dragon-shaped energy beams to blast it against the wall. Tessa and Silvally nodded at one another, their mouths venting blue steam.

"We've had _enough_ of all of this!" Tessa snarled, her paw spikes morphing into Metal Claws. "You've thrown everything at us and we're not down for the count. This fight's gone on long enough. Cut it out! Give us back our friends!"

 _I'm trying._

Shane's ears twitched. That wasn't the guttural, distorted growl he'd heard from the core. The voice was softer, lighter. He blinked a few names, not taking notice of the core squirming and pulsating. Hadn't he heard that voice not too long ago? Shane's eyes widened.

 _'That's the voice that called out to me when Necrozma had control of me!'_

"Please… please keep fighting!" Shane shouted, gathering fairy energy in his eyes.

The veins and cords in the room darkened. Blue energy flashed inside of them. The core rearranged itself into a clone of Zekrom, with slime dripping from its limbs and a single purple eye in the center of its face. **"You are fighting a battle you cannot win. No matter how much you cling to the ideals of regaining what you've lost, the truth is that your situation is** ** _truly_** **hopeless."** Zekrom raised its gooey arms. Bright-blue electricity surrounded it.

The Bolt Strike moved so quickly that Shane had no time to react. One moment he was standing. Then, next thing he knew, he was sprawled out on his back, legs and tails twitching. Zekrom circled up toward the ceiling. Shane's eyes widened at the realization he was about to be squished, but his limbs wouldn't respond at his attempts to stand back up.

He braced himself for the worst, but instead of a horrible crushing pain there was a furious shout and the rumbles of thunder. Shane poked an eye open to find Silvally in front of him, up on his hindlegs with his ground memories active. His dusty-brown forelegs pushed back against the Bolt Strike as his cheek bolts twitched and crackled in their sockets.

"You… won't… beat us," Silvally hissed. "I won't… give up… on anyone… who needs… my help!" With a furious shout, he shoved Zekrom back. Its Bolt Strike faded in time for a Dragon Pulse and burst of fairy dust to hit it from behind. Zekrom shuddered and coalesced back into the rainbow core. The room brightened up.

 _Please… make it stop._

Shane's head snapped up and he looked around the room, trying to pinpoint the source of the softer voice. "Nicky? Nicky! Don't listen to all the nonsense Necrozma's spewing. We can still salvage this. Even if it takes a miracle." Shane stumbled to his feet. "This world's no stranger to miracles. Give us an opening or something!"

"Pay attention, Shane!" Tessa snapped, pointing her paws up and firing Psychic rings in tandem with Espy. Right when it looked like they'd strike the core, it split half, splattering juices across the ground. A red and blue glow took over the room as the two halves of the core expanded into clones of Latios and Latias.

 **"There are no miracles left. Why cling to such empty dreams? Your desperation is filling you with sadness and rage,"** Latias said, voice as stoic and flat as Team Radiance had ever heard.

 **"Hope is meaningless. It is unrequited,"** Latios added. The clones flew apart from one another. Silvally looked back and forth and switched to his steel memories, but then the clones flew right at him. Their slimy wings turned gray. Silvally realized his mistake too late and the clones' Steel Wings swept his legs out from under him. He crashed against the ground with a loud grunt.

 **"You say that you can help everyone, but that's a lie,"** Latias said. **"Your 'help' enables people to continue their poisonous behavior. All it does is make them think that you'll be able to solve all their problems."**

Latios turned its monolithic eye on Espy. **"Isn't that right?"**

Espy's tail shot up the moment Latios flew toward her, wings glowing. Rather than try to run, however, she faced the clone down and fired a Shadow Ball at it. It scored a direct hit right in Latios' eye, sending it crashing to the ground.

"On your right, Espy!" Silvally cried, scrambling to his feet. Espy turned to see Latias charging up a Draco Meteor. She hastily fired a second Shadow Ball. Latias choked on its attack and dropped to the ground beside its partner. Espy approached both of them, ectoplasm trailing off her forehead gem.

"Want to know what I think? You may have a point. There _are_ people out there who will take advantage of those who try to help them," Espy said, eyes narrowing. "But that isn't a reason to turn your back on them and leave them to flounder. It means you have to work _with_ them to find a middle ground… or get someone else to step in and provide support, instead." She looked at Silvally. "If I had understood that, maybe I would still be friends with everyone in Paradise."

White light glistened in her forehead gem. "People can change. They can fix their mistakes. But you don't want to give them a chance to do that!" She fired a point-blank Dazzling Gleam. The clones smushed back together in the spherical core. It rolled across the ground, its colors swirling around in a frenzy.

 _I just want it all to stop…_

"We're trying, Nicky!" Shane cried. He shot an Ice Beam at the core. It bounced up out of the way, leaving Shane gnashing his teeth. Another thought struck him as he stared the core down. Nicky wasn't the only spirit supposedly trapped inside Necrozma. He looked around the room at all the alien veins flashing with bright light.

"Everyone, please listen to me! You all have to try and fight Necrozma's grip on your spirits!" Shane said. "My friends are doing their best to destroy the core, but we need your help. Necrozma thinks that teamwork and relationships are meaningless. Show him that he's wrong! Work together!"

Shane's teammates stared at him blankly, but then the entire room shook. The veins above them pulsated. Spurts of goo shot out into the room. Behind them, small plumes of slime shot up from the floor. Shane's expression brightened. "That's perfect! Keep doing that, everyone!" he said.

 _Make it stop. I'm so tired. I want to rest._

Incensed by the development, the core shrieked once again. It pulsated and rippled, then split apart into multiple pieces that melted into puddles. Shane spewed ice breath at the nearest puddle, but it joined up with the other puddles and expanded into a giant orange ball. The temperature in the room spiked and an orange glow overtook the walls.

"That's a Fusion Flame! Run, Shane!" Silvally cried, channeling his water memories and attempting to put the attack out with a large wave. The fireball bounced back onto the floor, rebounded into the wall, and shot toward Espy, Silvally, and Tessa. They scattered in different directions. Tessa yelped as the fireball grazed her side. She rolled to a stop, clutching her smoldering right shoulder.

The fireball burst apart to reveal a copy of Incineroar. Orange slime dribbled off its belt and its lone eye stared Tessa down. **"People may change, but history is always doomed to repeat itself. Life is finite for nearly all creatures. Your sins will be repeated by the next generation. And the generation after that. And the one after that."** Incineroar raised a gooey hand and conjured a fireball. **"It's inevitable. Eventually, someone will take things too far. Then, everything you worked for will be erased. Legacies are worthless. Destruction is the only solution to reality's imperfections."**

Incineroar spun around, shooting orange fireballs to deflect bursts of water from Silvally and twin Dazzling Gleams from Espy and Shane. He jumped into the air, formed another large fireball, and shot toward Tessa. She cupped her paws together and thrust them forward, shooting out jets of aural fire. They struck Incineroar and brought him to a stalemate.

"Tessa!" Shane cried. He spat an Ice Beam at the fireball, only to watch it evaporate.

"I'll help her out," Silvally said, a golden wheel encasing his torso.

Tessa's aura dreadlocks fanned out. The glowing lines on her body shimmered with rainbow light. All the anger Tessa was trying to keep contained was trying to burst out of her. She stared at the flickering sigil on her right paw.

"You're the one… who's taking things… too far!" Snarling, Tessa tensed her arms and legs. More aura shot out of her paws. She pushed the fireball back far enough for Silvally to lunge for it. Water encased his talons and he drove them right into the fireball. Incineroar crashed into the ground near a doubled-over Tessa. She struggled to catch her breath.

"I get that… what happened to you… is nothing short of awful. But you don't… have the right… to judge every world… by the actions… of a few people." Tessa straightened up. Aura flickered in her paws. "Lasting change is possible. People just have to work together to make it happen. And that's what we're fighting for. To give everyone a chance to change. I won't let you take that away from us!" She hurled an Aura Sphere at Incineroar. It melted down into a puddle.

Tessa's eyes widened. She backpedaled. The puddle spread out toward her. Shane caught sight of this and shouted, "Jump off the wall!" Tessa hopped back, cringing as her feet connected with an oozing, pulsating vein. Nevertheless, she kicked off the wall and shot into the air.

But that seemed to be what the core was anticipating. The puddle bubbled. Silvally saw spikes form in it, ready to impale Tessa while she couldn't dodge. Silvally hardened his body into iron and lunged into the air. He knocked Tessa aside and the spikes jabbed against his belly with a series of _clangs._ Silvally landed and whirled around to attack, but the core was already back in the air.

 _I don't want to hurt you anymore._

Shane looked around at all the brightly-flashing veins. He couldn't keep repeating the same tired lines over and over again. His stamina was running dry and he imagined his teammates were struggling, too. There had to be a way to put an end to this.

 **"You cannot change the world. Your gods won't allow it. There will** ** _always_** **be people who resist change. The ones who think and care only about themselves,"** the core said. **"They cannot be stopped. They step on everyone around them until they're in control, then suffocate those who** ** _dare_** **to disagree with them. And after that, they stab their loyal followers in the back."** The core wriggled about. Slowly, its slimy membrane parted so a lone, violet eye stared at Shane. **"You can disagree all you want, but I speak only the truth."**

Shane shrank back, his tails curling against his waist. "I, well…"

 **"Need I remind you of what you really are?"** the core hissed. More of its membrane split apart, until it was a slime cage housing the violet eye in its center. Gooey spikes poked out of the cage's exterior and its colors faded to black.

Espy shrank back, eyes wide. Tessa tensed up, biting her lower lip. Silvally crouched low to the ground, a growl rumbling in the back of his throat. Shane glanced at his teammates, then stared down the Dark Matter clone. "If you're trying to break my fighting spirit or something stupid like that… then I'm here to tell you it's not working," Shane said, his brow furrowing.

"Yes, I screwed up. A lot. In _two_ separate lifetimes, apparently. If you asked anyone with half a brain… they'd tell you I don't deserve the amount of second chances I've gotten." He spat an Ice Beam at Dark Matter, but it hovered out of the way. Its eye flashed, then shot out six glowing orbs. Shane tensed up, ready to dodge them. However, instead of flying toward him, they hovered in the air. The energy balls grew bigger, until each one released a large energy beam.

"Hit the deck!" Espy yelped, diving to her belly as a beam swept overhead. Across from her, Tessa leaped over a separate energy beam, stumbling as she landed. Silvally was too large to avoid the lasers heading toward him. He instead shot a large bolt of lightning at the lower one, creating a gap to squeeze through.

 **"Be silent. All of you… be silent!"** Dark Matter growled. **"You're so annoying! Why don't you just accept your fates and die already?"**

"Because it's not up to you!" Shane said. "Look, I was one of those people who did everything I could to oppose change. But I see how wrong that is, now!" He looked at his teammates. "And it's all because of them. My friends showed me what it means to be a better person. To confide in others… and let them confide in me. I understand what it's like to help someone, now. And I want to keep helping people. Starting with you… and returning all those spirits you stole!"

 _It's not fair…_

Dark Matter responded by shooting out more energy balls. Shane saw an energy ball heading for him and leaped away from the ensuing laser. He shot an Ice Beam at Dark Matter and it struck the center of the eye. His teammates managed to weave through other lasers. Air Slash blades hit Dark Matter from behind. An Aura Sphere and a Shadow Ball struck it from the side. Slime splattered across the ground. The eye shook inside of its gooey cage.

 _Why didn't you help me?_

"Because I was an idiot, okay?" Shane's tails drooped. "I know… no amount of apologizing can make up for the bad things I did. Just like no amount of apologizing can make up for the fact that I'm also Dark Matter." Shane looked down. "No one can change the past. And one person alone can't change the present. But that's why you have to surround yourself with people who support you. So you can lift each other up and make a brighter future… together!"

 **"There will** ** _be_** **no future. None of you deserve one!"** Dark Matter snarled, hovering out of the way of multiple sets of Psychic rings. **"It doesn't matter what you do. It doesn't matter who you surround yourself with. There is no such thing as a perfect world! Better they all be erased than one person in one world be made to suffer!"**

 _Stop shouting… please. I'm so tired of this._

"And what do you call what you're doing? Look at all the people you've made suffer with your actions!" Shane barked. "Even if we can undo the damage… the memories won't fade away!"

 **"All the more reason to make everything disappear."** Dark Matter shot out a bunch of bright-white orbs. Enough to form an entire wall behind it. Tessa's eyes widened. If they fired off lasers, there'd be no way to escape them all. Not without jumping right into Dark Matter.

Shane tensed up, then noticed a glimmer coming from his looplet. He knew it wouldn't do any good to stop and think about if a Z-Move was even possible inside of Necrozma, so he focused on the looplet. His breath rushed out of him when the familiar warmth of channeled Z-Power spread down his limbs.

Silvally backed away with a yelp. "Careful, Shane! We're not exactly in a wide-open space, here."

An iceberg rose out from the floor. Shane glanced at Silvally and said, "I know. But I've got to try this. One way or another… we're putting an end to all of this!"

Dark Matter fired its wall of energy beams at the same time Shane unleashed his Z-Move. The giant ice beam struck the lasers and pushed them back. It made contact with Dark Matter, blowing apart its slime-covered exterior and exposing the purple eye in the center. With blue haze still filling the room and blocking his teammates' views of the trembling core, Shane leaped toward it with a loud holler. The eye widened. Black tendrils appeared around the core and wrapped Shane up the instant he contacted the core.

Espy dispelled the lingering mist. "Hey, where'd Shane go?" she asked, looking around the room in confusion.

Silvally's beak hung open. He stared at the core. Though it lacked a face and limbs, he swore it was convulsing in midair. The various color streaks crisscrossed one another. "I… I think he's…" Silvally pointed his beak at the core.

"What?!" Tessa's eyes bulged out. "We've got to get him out of there. Everyone… together!" She gathered her paws together to charge up an Aura Sphere when the core shrieked so loud that Tessa dropped to her knees and threw her paws over her ears. "Agh! M… make it… stop!"

Silvally's eyes twitched. He squeezed them shut and staggered back, bumping into an equally-frightened Espy. "S… Silv, what's going on? The whole room is shaking and flashing like Sunset Shoals during Primarina's concert!"

"I don't know! I… I…" Silvally hissed in pain, unable to do anything to stop his sonar-like ears from getting the full force of the core's screams.

Before Espy had the chance to respond, the entire floor flashed white. She looked down, tail stiffening. "What the—"

Another white flash ensued. Next thing Espy, Silvally, and Tessa knew, they were floating in midair. "H-Hey… what's the big idea?!" Tessa tried to look at the core, but the lack of gravity made it impossible for her to turn around. "Shane? Shane, can you hear me? What are you doing in there?"

As if to answer, white energy raced up the walls in successive ripples. Bright-white glows surrounded Espy, Silvally, and Tessa. They all exchanged surprised looks for a few seconds, before they shot up toward the ceiling, leaving Necrozma's innards behind in three streaks of bright white light.

* * *

Shane found himself once again floating through a seemingly-empty space. There was one critical difference between his current predicament and the time Necrozma possessed him, however. A mosaic of bright colors twisted and spiraled all around him. He squinted, trying to discern some sort pattern in the rainbow in front of him, but he soon abandoned those efforts.

"H-Hello?" He kicked at the air with his legs, thankful he managed to retain his Ninetales form this time. To his surprise, the action propelled him forward slightly. It was like doing a single breaststroke kick in a swimming pool. Shane kept kicking, moving through the alien space. The colors all around him kept shifting, but he couldn't make anything out from them.

"Tessa? Silvally? Espy? Is… is anyone out there?" Shane bit his lip. He was seriously regretting his decision to leap toward the core, even though he firmly believed the only way to stop the core's rampage was from the inside. After kicking for a while without any sort of response, Shane stopped and hung his head. "Nicky? Can you hear me? C'mon, man, you know I wasn't a fan of Inception. Enough of this dream within a dream-type nonsense! I just want to talk… I swear!"

 _I know._

Shane gasped. It was the same voice he'd heard during the battle, but it was much louder now. "Nicky? Nicky! You don't have to hide anymore. I'm here! I can help! I can… I can make up for what I did." Shane's ears folded against his head.

 _I'm right here. I've been here the whole time._

"Huh?" Shane squinted. He even went cross-eyed. That's when he saw tiny cluster of golden embers floating across from him. "Is… is that really you?"

 _It's… complicated. But you ought to know that by now, right?_

Okay, yeah. Nicky had a point. Blinking slowly, Shane reevaluated his choice of words. "You're… what's left of Nicky's spirit, aren't you?"

 _I— yeah, I guess you could say that. I'm the last shred of humanity left inside of Necrozma. It's… it's really me. Your old friend,_ Nicky said, his voice filled with melancholy.

Shane smiled. His tails wagged. He was relieved that his desire to find Necky wasn't wishful thinking. "I knew it. I knew you were still inside somehow!" He swam closer to the small ball of light. Nicky floated back, however, his embers rippling.

 _No, Shane. It's best if you stay back for now,_ Nicky whispered.

"What are you talking about? You've seen everything that's been going on, haven't you?" Shane said. "You've been trying to fight against Necrozma from the inside. I know you have!"

The energy ball bristled. _Shane, please. We… we don't have a lot of time. For once in your life — or, at least, for the life I know you from — be quiet and listen to me, okay?_

Shane frowned. He opened his mouth, only to nod slowly and lower his head. He'd interrupted Nicky enough times when they were human. Now wasn't the time to slip into that old habit.

 _Whatever Golem did when he tried to strip me of my powers broke my spirit apart. The pain was…_ Nicky paused. _I don't think words alone can describe it, to be honest. But the point is that, the part of my spirit that remained behind was filled with the same hatred that Golem and his assistants had in their hearts and minds when they brought me to this world and made me into the Guiding Light. That hatred mixed with the chaotic power of the ley lines that Golem used to create me. And thus, Necrozma was born._

It all lined up with what Necrozma had told Shane during his rant about how he was actually Dark Matter. But somehow, hearing it from Nicky's voice made it sound more… concrete? Shane wasn't sure if that was the right word.

The light ball flittered back, golden embers trailing off it. _After that, I was imprisoned in the Ultra Nexus. I can't tell you exactly how long that was, but it had to have been at least several centuries. All that time, I reflected on the things that had happened to me. Well, all the_ negative _things, to be more specific. They played on an endless loop for me._

"I'm sorry," Shane whispered. He could scarcely imagine what it'd be like if he was trapped with nothing but his thoughts. It was no wonder Necrozma descended into madness.

Nicky bristled once again. Shane looked away guiltily. _Shane, I know you want to think that I'm a victim in this whole sordid affair. And maybe I am to some degree. But most of Necrozma's existence has been carrying out my will._

Shane frowned. That didn't make a lick of sense. "What are you saying?"

 _That I wanted revenge. I_ wanted _to hurt people like they had hurt me. I wanted everyone to know what it was like to suffer… and I wanted to take their happiness from them by destroying the things they loved and cared about,_ Nicky said. _I haven't been resisting that long. I've mostly spurned on Necrozma's actions._

Nicky's words brought Shane back to his conversation with Espy about Necrozma's true nature. Was this what she had meant when she claimed he was too far gone?

 _Just like you and Dark Matter are merged together… I'm merged with the void, the empty entity that battled Arceus and lodged itself in the core of the planet, spreading the ley lines that Pokémon hate so much,_ Nicky continued. _My hatred fueled the void… and the void fueled my destructive powers by helping me harness the spirits of other Pokémon and control the ley lines within the planet. That was our relationship._

 _Heck, it even happened before we started battling. Once I got a taste of all the power the void had poured into Necrozma's core…_ Nicky's particles shrank closer to one another. _Shane, you heard Necrozma. That attack on the human world… that was all me._

"Rebecca," Shane whispered. He imagined a Salazzle thrashing about in an empty space, screaming and snarling. If this was going to be the end of Necrozma… would she be trapped there forever?

 _Not just her. With the powers I got from Arceus and the Unown, I sent his arms to attack Rebecca's school. Geoff was there, too, but I'm pretty sure he's dead now,_ Nicky replied, shrinking into an even tighter ball. _It doesn't stop there. I must've attacked at least a couple of dozen colleges. All to take away people's happiness… just like I had my happiness taken from me._

Bile rose in Shane's throat. As much as he resented many of his old classmates, he wouldn't wish death upon them. All he had wanted was for them to fess up and face justice for what he believed they'd done to Nicky. Instead, Nicky had exacted his own justice… as Necrozma. "Nicky." Shane's tails fell between his legs. "I don't get it. Then why were you fighting with the void for control of Necrozma?"

 _Because I heard the things you and your teammates were saying. And they made me think of Xerneas. She was…_ The light ball expanded. _She was my mate, Shane._

"Seriously?!"

Nicky bristled. A hiss echoed in Shane's ears and he shrank back, wincing. "S-Sorry. I wasn't, um, judging or anything. I mean—"

 _We don't have time for this discussion._

"But what about the stuff you said to my friends about the pictures on my computer?" Shane said, pouting.

 _I just told you… I don't want to talk about any of that. We're on a timer,_ Nicky replied. As if on cue, the rippling colors surrounding them darkened.

"What's that supposed to mean? I'm still really confused," Shane said. Then again… he _did_ see a second silhouette wrapped in the void's chains. Now that he thought about, it looked vaguely Xerneas-like. And Necrozma had possessed Xerneas when he confronted Shane in the Prism Wastelands.

 _Just be quiet and listen to me,_ Nicky growled. Shane shrank back again. Nicky sighed. _When I confronted Xerneas, there was… a schism of sorts. The realization of what I was doing — of the monster I'd become — had finally hit me. There were sparks of that when I encountered you in the Tapus' various temples. But the void and I were still on the same page, then. After Xerneas, though… I started to have second thoughts. But then I got a taste of the void's true power and almost lost myself to it… until your team broke through and I realized how wrong I'd been._

"Exactly! And now that we're together, there's got to be a way to—"

 _No._

Shane blinked. "No? What do you mean? Don't you want to be yourself again? I'm sure we can think of something." After all this work, he wasn't going to let Nicky slip away _again._

 _No, Shane. I don't want to return to being the Guiding Light or get put into a new body or anything like that,_ Nicky said, his golden embers dimming. _I'm tired, Shane. So, so tired. I've been drowning in negative thoughts for such a long time… I just can't do it anymore._

"You can't say that, Nicky!" Shane swam closer, but Nicky flittered back. "I know I screwed up when we were human. I missed all the signs that something was wrong. But not this time. I can help you. My friends can— err, I mean, my _other_ friends can help you find happiness as a Pokémon. You don't have to—"

 _Shane, I'm not saying I want to kill myself… again. I'm saying that it's impossible for you to restore me the way I am._

"Oh," Shane whispered. Why hadn't he said that from the get-go, then?

 _When I turned into Necrozma, the first thing I did was destroy my original body… and most of my spirit, as well. What you're seeing here really is all that's left. I can't maintain a physical form without leeching off of someone else's energy… whether it's the void's or Lunala's or anyone else's,_ Nicky explained. _In order to restore all the spirits I've consumed, I would have to give up all of the energy I've taken in. All that would be left behind is a dormant core. But the void would still be part of that core._

Shane recalled Team Paradox's story. Even if Necrozma was reduced to its core, it could still potentially cause trouble. He needed a better solution. "What about light energy or Z-Power? Can we use that to fill your spirit up enough to give you a new body?" Shane wondered, looking at his looplet.

 _Even if that was possible, I don't want to._

"But you just said—"

 _Shane, there's no way I can go and live in_ any _world after everything I've done,_ Nicky said, his golden embers dimming even further. _I have too many bad memories. Of my human life, my time as the Guiding Light, and all the awful stuff I did as Necrozma. I've had enough. I want it all to end. I want to rest._

Tears welled up in Shane's eyes. This time, Nicky's message was much clearer. Shane had to stop him from thinking like that. "C-C'mon. Don't say stuff like that. Didn't you hear what my friends and I were saying? People can change! You can—"

 _But I would never_ really _be happy, Shane. It's better for everyone if I disappear,_ Nicky whispered. _You're right, though. People_ can _change. You've changed, Shane. I'm stunned at who you've become. Somehow, being a part of Team Radiance truly transformed you… y'know, beyond the whole 'body of an ice Ninetales' thing._

Shane was filled with too much guilt to accept the compliment. "N… Nicky. You don't deserve this…"

 _This isn't a game, Shane. It's real life. Not everyone gets to have a happy ending,_ Nicky said. _I know how upset you'd get whenever I tried to get you to play a game or watch something where there aren't happy endings involved for all the heroes. But I'm not a hero._

"But you battled against the void from within!" Shane mentally kicked himself. He was this close to losing Nicky _again._ Couldn't he come up with something better?

 _Only after blowing up the whole world. Even if that can be undone… I can't reverse all the damage to the human world. I'm sorry, Shane, but this is one of those times I need you to buck up and stomach something you don't like. Because I need your help for one last thing._

Shane frowned. He wanted to save Nicky, sure. But was that actually a _selfish_ wish? Shane mulled Nicky's words over. He wanted to disappear… but he had a last request. And Shane had done such a bad job with his requests when they were human. Sighting, Shane came to a conclusion. Even though his heart ached, Shane believed he owed it to Nicky to indulge whatever the request was.

He blinked tears out of his eyes. "O-Okay. What do you need?"

 _I need you… to take what's left of my spirit._

"I… wait, what?" Shane's jaw dropped. That was… not the request he expected. It flew in the face of everything Nicky had said before… right? "But haven't we been—"

 _Even though your team broke the vessels linking the core to Void Necrozma, it's still connected. I can feel all the spirits beating together like one massive heart. They're_ yearning _to return to their homes,_ Nicky said. _And I can make it happen, but we have to get the void and its toxic ley lines out of the picture for good. My will is only strong enough to hinder it, not take it out. But if you accept my spirit… our wills_ combined _should be able to drive the void out of the core… and out of Necrozma. Then, we can destroy the void and restore everything that I took from this world._

"So, wait… would this be like how Dark Matter fused with my spirit?" Shane said. The colors around the room swirled even faster. Though Shane floated in midair, he got the sense that the room was shaking. Was _this_ the timer Nicky referred to?

 _Yes. Your spirit's far more stable than mine, so it would be your memories and personality that would win out. However, I'd make sure to give you the knowledge needed to fix the things I broke,_ Nicky replied, his embers pulsating. _This is my final request to you, Shane. Become Necrozma… be the new Guiding Light. Fix the things I broke and, hopefully, lay out a path for a bright future for this world._

Nicky floated up to Shane. Gold filled Shane's vision. This was _not_ a request to be taken lightly. His eyes darted about nervously. Shane knew he was impulsive. With Necrozma's powers… he could end up doing something hasty and making things even worse. "Are… are you sure you've got the right guy? I mean, I'm a total screw-up! There's no way I could handle that kind of power on my own."

 _You wouldn't have to handle it for long, Shane. Because what we have to do… isn't something you're going to bounce back from._

"Wait… what?!" Now Shane was _sure_ the room was shaking. Spinning, too. He was definitely light-headed. "Y… you're saying—"

 _That if you agree to this, you're going to burn out our combined spirit,_ Nicky said. _So, yes, we'll both be disappearing._

Shane clenched his jaw. "But… but then… what was the point of this whole conversation? I… I…"

 _This is why I didn't want you interrupting until I'd finished,_ Nicky said, sighing. _I_ wanted _to explain it all clearly, but you kept peppering with me with questions._

"But my friends… I want to stay with them! Please, there has to be some other way!" Fresh tears welled up in Shane's eyes. Thoughts of Espy's smile, Silvally curling around him protectively, and sitting on the beach with Tessa flashed in his mind. He couldn't leave. Shane promised that he would stay with them. They were a team. And their journey had been so different. It wasn't supposed to end the same way as the games.

A thunderclap echoed through the room. Nicky's light particles distorted briefly. Shane's tails shot up in alarm.

 _I'm sorry, Shane. This is the only way I can think of… short of having your team leave the world destroyed in exchange for breaking my core,_ Nicky said, a hint of urgency to his voice. _I realize this must be hard for you. Your friends… are good people. People who care deeply about you._

All Shane could think about was Tessa. Her smile. Her paw brushing against his while they talked on Circadian Coast. The encouraging words when he was trapped by Necrozma. "It's… it's more than that." Shane's voice trembled. "Tessa. I… I love her. I can't… I don't want to leave her. She's… she means so much to me."

 _If you really love her, then don't you think she deserves to have her world back? Think about it… neither of us were meant to be here in the first place. We broke this world. It's only right we put it back together._

Shane bit his lip. Nicky… had a point. After all the efforts Shane had taken to learn to be selfless, he couldn't throw that all away. Tessa deserved to have Gallian and Zoroark back. Espy deserved to reunite with her brother… and the Pokémon of Paradise. And, if he didn't fix the world, Silvally would never get to show people what he's capable of.

Still, it wasn't fair. After all of his hard work… he wouldn't get to stay with his friends. Not without doing something extraordinarily selfish. Shane's ears drooped. There wasn't any further room for debate. He had to go along with Nicky. Otherwise, he'd be spitting in the face of all the things his friends had said in battle. And that wasn't right. Not after everything Team Radiance had done for him… especially all the second chances he'd gotten. They _earned_ the right to get their world back… and experience true peace.

Another thunderclap sounded. _Well? What's your answer? I can't keep the void at bay any longer!_

Shane wiped tears out of his eyes. Yes, he'd made up his mind, but that didn't make it any less of a bitter pill to swallow. And, given how unstable Nicky made it sound like Necrozma's massive was, Shane wasn't even sure he'd get to say a proper goodbye. It stung. However, Shane forced himself to imagine his teammates reuniting with people whose spirits Necrozma had taken. It helped to settle his stomach.

He extended a forepaw toward Nicky and said, "Okay. I'll do it."

Even though Nicky lacked a face, Shane swore he saw a smile before his vision went white.

* * *

"Lunala, look! It's Team Radiance!" Ephemeris pointed a wing toward Necrozma's neck. Three bright lights burst out of Necrozma's golden neck, orange goop trailing off them. Lunala flew forward and snagged Espy and Tessa in a psychic grip. She planted them on her back, cringing as slime squelched against her spine.

"Eww. What happened to you all in there? You _stink_ to Mellath Bog," Lunala said, face scrunching up.

"Never mind that. Where's Shane?" Tessa looked about frantically. "Shane? Shane?! Say something, damn it! We did _not_ come this far for you to—"

"Ah! Necrozma's stirring!" Silvally squawked, pointing a talon forward. Everyone looked in Necrozma direction to see his head and wings reform, mismatched eyes and all. This time, however, there was no third eye on his forehead or extra eyes in his wing-joints. Necrozma sat upright, then coughed up a large purple eye. It swiveled around and stared at Team Radiance, then shot past them, shrieking in rage.

 **"I wILl ObLIteRAtE AlL Of YoU! DiE! DiE! Die!"**

Ley line chains swarmed Void, expanding the size of the disembodied eyeball. Its pupil crackled with dark lightning. "Incoming!" Ephemeris cried as Void shot a purple beam toward Team Radiance. Ephemeris spewed a Flamethrower in retaliation. Lunala added a Moongeist Beam. Tessa threw her paws up and shot out a stream of aura. Espy shot a Psybeam and Silvally, encased by golden energy, unleashed a white-hot plasma stream.

The attacks met Void's laser and forced it back. Void's pupil expanded. **"No!** ** _No! NoOoO!_** **ThIS iS ImPOSSiBLE! I Am AlL oF ExIStENcE! YoU CANnOT StOP m—"**

Team Radiance's attacks snuffed Void's laser out and struck it. Cracks splintered across its eye. It hovered back, pulsating and rippling with energy. More ley line chains burrowed inside of Void. Each one made it grow in size until it ballooned up to be twice as large as Ephemeris and Lunala.

 **"ThIS iS The ENd foR yOU aLl!"**

Void unleashed another laser, far larger than the other ones. Everyone's eyes widened and they braced themselves for the worst, only for a rainbow beam to destroy the laser and strike Void directly in its pupil. Void spun through space, coming to rest by the giant rift leading to the sun.

"What the—" Silvally turned around. "Necrozma?"

"Guess again."

Tessa nearly fell from Lunala's back upon hearing Shane's voice coming from Necrozma. He flew between Lunala and Ephemeris, his new, draconic body brimming with golden energy. Shane stared down Void. "I told you before… _nobody hurts my friends and gets away with it!_ "

Void tilted its eye meekly. **"YoU ArE… mAkInG A HugE mIsTaKe…"**

"No, I'm _fixing_ your huge mistake!" Shane said, flying up to the rift. The heat from the sun was suffocating, but the bright glow it gave off was also inviting. Shane hadn't felt this invigorated in either his human or his Pokémon life. He channeled the heat and energy from the other side of the rift, forming a giant golden energy ball overhead.

Tessa's jaw slackened. "No way," she whispered. Tessa rubbed her eyes with an arm, _convinced_ she had to be dreaming.

"This is for everyone you've hurt with your sick, twisted beliefs! Our world is _done_ with you… _forever!_ " Shane tucked his head into his chest. The golden energy ball surged toward Void.

 **"YoU Can'T Get RId oF mE! I aM** ** _NeCESsArY DeSTruCtIoN!_** **"** Void snarled. It gathered up the last of the remaining ley line chains, swelling up in size even further. It shot another purple laser toward the giant energy ball. Void's attack managed to stop Shane's light ball in its place, despite its massive size.

 **"I aM ThE BegINNiNG… tHe MidDle… tHE eND! I Am EVerYThiNG! I aM… I aM… VoID. I mUSt… ConSumE. I muST…** ** _DeSTrOY!_** **"**

Despite all of Void's efforts, it couldn't do more than keep Shane's attack in place. Shane's multicolored eyes flashed. The energy ball expanded… and swallowed up Void's beam. Shrieking at the top of its nonexistent lungs, Void poured all of the energy it could muster into its energy beam. It shrank down, ley line chains dissolving away as golden light raced to meet Void.

 **"No! NO! NoOO! I woN'T… GiVE iN! I CaN'T! I… HaTE… HatE…** ** _HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE YOU!_** **"**

"The feeling's mutual, _asshole!_ "

With one final burst of pink energy, Shane propelled his massive energy ball straight into Void. Bit by bit, the ball of purple and black slime dissolved away… until Void disappeared inside the energy ball. There was a blinding explosion, punctuated by the echoes of Void's defiant, rage-filled snarling.

Team Radiance all had to look away from the brilliant golden flash. When the light died down, there was nothing left in Void's place. Not even a single fragment of a ley line chain remained. Shane's beak creaked into a grin. It was gone. Every last bit had been blown to smithereens.

Ephemeris and Lunala exchanged curious looks and cautiously approached Shane. "You're… you're Shane, right?"

Shane nodded. "When I dove into Necrozma's core… I was able to force the void out of Necrozma."

"Shane, that's… that's…" Tessa was at a complete loss for words. "Does this mean we've, um, stopped Necrozma?"

He smiled. "It does. We did it. We won… together!"

"What's going to happen now? Even if we've stopped Necrozma from wiping out reality… our world's still been destroyed, hasn't it?" Espy said, ears drooping. She looked at Silvally and Tessa, who both lowered their heads.

"It's going to be fine."

Espy's ears twitched. She looked into Shane's massive eyes. "Excuse me?"

"The hard part is over." Shane glanced at the rift, watching a couple of solar flares jump out. He drew them toward his back. Another surge of energy shot through him. "You all finally get to rest. I'll take it from here."

Tessa cocked her head. "Wait, what are you saying? You actually have a plan to fix this?"

"I do." Shane looked at Ephemeris and Lunala. "But I don't think it's safe for any of you to stay here. I need you to go into Ultra Space for a little while. You'll know when it's safe to return."

"But what about you?" Tessa said, heart hammering in her chest. "It's not a true victory if we're not together in the end!"

"I told you, Tessa, there's no reason to worry." Shane offered her the best reassuring grin he could manage with his giant, beak-like mouth. "Everything's going to be fine." He turned toward the rift. "I'll see you all on the other side. Don't start the celebration party or anything without me, okay?"

Tessa tensed up. "No, it's not okay! What's your plan? What are you doing? Tell us, Shane! After everything we've been through, don't we deserve to know? I… I…" She put a paw to her chest spike.

Shane closed his eyes. "I promise… I'll tell you everything when it's over. Deal?"

Tessa's eyes darted about. Lunala had already opened up an Ultra Wormhole. Eyes squeezed shut, Tessa tucked her head in. Then, without warning, she leaped off from Lunala bag. Espy and Silvally cried out to her, but she ignored them. Her momentum carried her right onto Shane's crystalline beak.

"T-Tessa, what are you doing?!" Shane said, his eyes turning a mix of red and orange.

Tessa planted the tip of her muzzle against the top of Shane's beak. His eyes widened in shock. Tessa stood back up, legs shaking. "You better keep your promise, Shane!" she said. Tessa then leaped back onto Lunala, nearly jostling Espy off her back in the process. Espy stared at her in shock, but Tessa said nothing. She took one last look at Shane before disappearing alongside her teammates through the portal.

Shane waited until the wormhole was closed. The red color receded in his eyes and face. Shane sighed and bowed his head. "I don't see why I couldn't have told them the truth. They're going to be heartbroken, Nicky. And Tessa… after that gesture… I should've said that I love her." He turned so he was fully facing the rift. Immense guilt over the fact that he had lied to Tessa bubbled up in his chest. In truth, he still had no idea if this would work. But that wouldn't stop him from going through with it.

 _'After all, I was never supposed to be a part of this world in the first place. If I can give everyone else a second chance, then I can rest happy.'_

With a flap of his four wings, Shane clumsily made his way through the rift. Immediately, an intense wall of heat buffeted him. The wind rushed out of Shane. He was hoping his ethereal body would make this an easy feat, but the sun's molten surface suffocated him. He could barely think straight, but he knew he had to concentrate. Shane _had_ to think happy thoughts to get this to work right.

In his mind's eye, he pictured himself sitting on the hill overlooking Aeon Town. Soft fur brushed against his imaginary hip. He looked to his right to see Tessa sitting next to him. She wrapped an arm around his foreleg and smiled at him. Another tingle crossed his other hip as Silvally sat down on his left, with Espy at his side. All three of them looked out to the west, staring at a beautiful orange sky as the sun sank below the horizon.

Shane trembled. The energy surging through him made him feel like he was going to burst apart at any second. But he had to keep himself together until he reached the center of the sun. Shane squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his crystalline teeth.

"From darkest night… I'll light the way…"

Shane dove into the sun. Burning pain shot down his entire body. His wings quivered. His tail spasmed. Crystal chunks broke off his body. The hexagonal tiles of Void Necrozma's wings fell apart the closer he got to the sun's molten core.

"To a brand-new world… and a bright, shining day!"

Golden light beams poked out from the center of the sun as it slowly expanded in size. Then, in a sparkling, rainbow flash, it exploded, bathing the entire cosmos in brilliant, ethereal light.

* * *

 **Spawn of Chaos, Necrozma Core  
** _At last… Necrozma's terrifying true form reveals itself. With a ravenous hunger for spiritual energy, it will stop at nothing to destroy whatever stands in front of it. Though its enraged shrieks echo through the insides of Necrozma's body, a small, shrill voice cries out from the darkness._

 _"Please make it stop! I don't want to do this anymore!"_

* * *

Some of you may recall I've used the term "the golden ending" to refer to the final episode. Well, now you know why. It's "gold" in the sense that Shane turns gold... by becoming Necrozma. This is the ending I've had planned for several months. I'm sure some of you might be confused and others will have questions. Some might even be upset... though I really hope not. Relax. Take a deep breath. We're not quite done yet. There are still a few loose ends we need to tie up before the fic ends.

I know the reception for the last chapter was... on the lukewarm side. My hope is that putting this chapter together with the last one makes for a satisfying final battle. But that's up to you guys. Whether you liked or not, I'd love to hear what you thought about this.

SuperOmegaGuest: Don't worry. Still got a few parts to go before that happens.

Anonymous: I admit my bias, but Final Fantasy IX's Necron was also an inspiration for the first part of the fight.

Anon Omega: Not really sure about the Star Wars stuff because the last time I watched a Star Wars film, Windows XP was still the go-to operating system.

Next time: the aftermath.


	116. Planting the Seeds of Change

The second half of this chapter features some cameos from other PMD fics. If you can spot them all, you win fifty Shane points!

* * *

 **Chapter 99: Planting the Seeds of Change**

 **~Ultra Space~**

Unlike the previous, brief foray into the depths of Ultra Space, Tessa saw everything. The blue, ethereal light stretching out in all directions. Faint checkerboard patterns far in the distance. Crystal lattices and solar flares flying away. And, of course, bright-orange stars venting fireballs and sparks of energy.

Tessa's aura dreadlocks curled up. Her paws trembled. She was so stunned that her mind went blank. _This_ was what lay beyond her world? Team Paradox's description of Ultra Space didn't do it justice. Tessa truly was a tiny sand grain plopped in the middle of a beach.

Ephemeris stuck close to Lunala. Golden light bathed both of them. "Are you two okay?" he asked, looking at Espy and Tessa.

Tessa blinked a few times, then sat up straight. "I… I think so? Are we not supposed to be okay or something?" She frowned. "Sorry, this is a lot to take in."

"Agreed," Espy squeaked, burying her face in Lunala's back.

"Well, I want to make sure my healing energy is keeping you safe. Ultra Space is full of radiation that could pose a great harm to you both," Ephemeris said.

"How long do we have to stay out here, for?" Silvally wondered, trying to look back at the spot where they'd flown out of an Ultra Wormhole from. He squinted. Silvally _swore_ he saw a ripple, but it was tough to tell with the luminescent glow all around him.

Silvally's question immediately brought Shane back to Tessa's mind. Worry flooded her system. Why did he sound so confident when he said everything would be okay? Sure, Tessa didn't hear the same cocky attitude that the old Shane had. But the lack of a proper explanation made her insides turn. She swallowed a mouthful of spit, silently praying Shane knew what he was doing.

Lunala's third eye flashed. "What the—" she whispered, then turned around to face the spot where she knew her universe lay. Her eyes widened.

"What's the problem? I can't see anything," Espy said, unable to move further up Lunala's back with her stubby paws. She got her answer when geysers of golden light erupted in front of her. Lunala drifted back, gasping. Ephemeris flew in front of her, shielding her with his wings.

"That… I don't think that's normal," he said.

"The light's spreading!" Silvally said, head crest fanning out. A similar golden glow flickered in his irises and his energy blades. Espy caught sight of it, but couldn't do anything since she was stuck on Lunala's back.

More light geysers fanned out around Team Radiance. "We have to go," Lunala said, eyes wide. "It's not safe here. Ephemeris… where's the pocket world you live in?"

"What? We can't just leave now! What about Shane?" Tessa said, tensing up. He had _promised_ everything was going to be okay. Shane couldn't have been lying to her. Not after everything they'd gone through together. "We need to see if he's okay!"

"And we can't do that if we're not safe. Follow me!" Ephemeris flew away from an expanding globe of golden light. Lunala took off after him, with Espy and Tessa looking back and watching as the golden sphere grew bigger and bigger with every passing second.

"Look! I see Ultra Wormholes opening in the distance!" Espy said.

Worry flashed across Tessa's face. "We have to go back. Shane's in trouble… I'm sure of it!"

"But… but the light doesn't feel malicious," Silvally said, eyes glowing gold. "If anything, it's… inviting."

"Still, we can't take any chances," Ephemeris said. He came to a stop and released a burst of golden light. An Ultra Wormhole formed in front of him. "This way." He led Lunala through the portal.

They emerged in a large cavern. Neatly-trimmed, circular moss patches littered portions of the ground like small carpeting in separate rooms of a house. Silk tapestries hung from parts of the wall. A small brook ran through the middle of the cave and a large nest sat perched on a rocky outcropping. Ephemeris landed by the stream, allowing Silvally to disembark. The first thing he did was make a beeline for the stream. Silvally gulped down mouthful after mouthful of water.

"Oh, gods, that's good," he muttered, moaning like someone was massaging the tension out of a knot.

Espy and Tessa got off Lunala's back. "I'll go back out and check to see what's happening, okay?" she said. Her passengers nodded and Lunala vanished back into the portal.

"Now what?" Tessa asked, only to realize that Espy had ditched her to join Silvally at his side. She sat beside him — _close_ beside him, from what Tessa could tell — lapping up water from the brook. "Um… guys? What about Shane? Don't you think we should we be worried? We… I…"

Tessa made it three steps toward them before sucking in a sharp breath and clutching her chest in pain. "N… No. Not again…" She dropped to her knees. Her jaw locked up. Tessa remembered this godawful feeling. The same thing happened when her supercharged Mega wore off battling her mother. Tessa's paws dropped to her sides. She shrank back down to her normal form, venting off all the Mega Evolution energy in trails of rainbow mist.

That got her teammates to look up from their quest for rehydration. Silvally's head crest fanned out in alarm. "Tessa? Tessa, what's wrong?!" He bounded toward her, with Espy hot on his heels. "Can you hear me? Your face is paling!" His eyes darted around. "Where are you hurt?" Silvally whirled on Ephemeris. "Hey! Tessa needs help, here."

Ephemeris hopped toward them. "I can see that. It would seem… Tessa's strained her spirit. It reached its breaking point."

"What?!" Silvally crouched down and nudged Tessa with his beak. "Then fix her! We can't lose her!" His water memories shifted on.

"Calm yourself. Her spirit is not so badly depleted that she can't maintain her form," Ephemeris said, bending over to be at eye level with Tessa. "Rather, she cannot call up any attacks in her present state… or even move much, for that matter. I can help her out, but only in the sense that I can give her enough energy to move around."

Silvally stepped back, sighing. "It's… better than nothing."

Ephemeris draped his wings across Tessa. She stared blankly at the floor, until warm energy funneled down her body, starting with her ears and head. After a few moments, Tessa's limbs finally responded. She staggered to her feet. Silvally and Espy went up to each of her sides to support her.

"Th… thanks, guys. I'm… I'm okay. Just sore," Tessa croaked. Her muscles had never ached this badly, even when aura training with her mom.

Ephemeris watched her with a curious look in his eyes. "Mmm. We may need to have a talk about that transformation of yours."

"Can it wait? Things are…" Tessa sucked in a breath. Her mind drifted back to Shane. Tessa shakily put a paw on Silvally's shoulder. "What's going to happen to Shane?"

"I don't know," Silvally whispered.

"He's going to be okay, right? You… you heard what he said. He had a plan." Tessa let out an unhinged laugh. "Shane was sure of himself. And even if his plans don't always work right… we've always found a way to scrape by together." She squeezed Silvally's thigh. "He… he has to be okay…"

Espy brushed her head against Tessa's side. "We can't give up hope. We managed to put an end to Necrozma, didn't we? I… I have faith." She smiled at Espy. "A week ago, I'd have never said that. But everything's changed, hasn't it?"

Before Tessa could respond, a new Ultra Wormhole opened behind the team. Espy and Silvally helped Tessa turn around and face Lunala. She hovered in front of the portal, a stunned look on her face. Tessa's aura feelers shot up in alarm. "Well, what's going on? Is everything safe or not?"

"It's… it's more than that. It's back," Lunala whispered, expression frozen in shock.

"What do you mean by that?" Silvally said, raising a brow.

"Everything's back! Our world! The moon! The sun! And life forces… I sensed _so_ many life forces on the planet!" Lunala said, voice growing more jittery with each exclamation. "Don't you guys get it? It's _all_ there!"

Realization slowly spread across Team Radiance's faces. When it did, Espy's lips curved upward into a smile. "So, our world is safe, then?"

"Well, we shouldn't just stand here!" Silvally hopped toward Lunala. "Take us there. Let's see it for ourselves."

"Of course. Of course." Lunala turned around. Tessa stumbled forward, only for Ephemeris' wing to shoot out in front of her.

"Perhaps it's best if I give you a lift this time," he said. Espy and Silvally acknowledged him with a pair of nods, then climbed onto Lunala's back. Both had eager looks on their faces.

Tessa could scarcely believe it. But the lack of mention of Shane left twinges of worry in the back of her mind. And that was enough to keep her from launching into any sort of jubilatory display. She silently climbed aboard Ephemeris, who then flew after Lunala.

It took a matter of seconds for Tessa to realize things had _drastically_ changed. Ultra Space wasn't a sea of ethereal blue spreading out in all directions, anymore. Instead, solid walls of luminescent blue surrounded her. "Wait a second. This… this a hallway! It's like what we had back at the Observatory." Tessa looked around in confusion.

"You're right," Silvally said, staring in awe. Lunala rounded a corner and the team saw constellation patterns in the ethereal walls.

"Yeah. I have no idea how to explain this," Lunala said, shaking her head. "Whatever your friend did… I don't think it just affected our world. Odds are, _all_ of Ultra Space has been completely rearranged."

At the mention of her friend, Tessa's head shot up. "Lunala, did you see any sign of Shane? Golden light or… or a Ninetales drifting through space? _Anything?_ "

"I didn't stay long enough to check," Lunala replied. Tessa's heart sank.

"I'm sure we'll find him once we're back home," Silvally said, his beak curving into a slight smile. "Shane told us he'd see us on the other side. He must've known this would happen."

Tessa _really_ hoped that was the case. She forced herself to steady her breathing. The first thing they had to focus on was seeing what exactly had become of their world, right?

Lunala stopped in front of a large arch-like area. White and blue energy swirled around the wall. "I don't really know how to explain it but, like, this is where our world is."

Espy titled her head. "Odd. It's… it's like a building positioned on a street or something."

"Or an entrance to one of the rooms in the apprentice or veteran quarters," Tessa whispered, dumbstruck. She didn't really want to think about the implications all of this rearrangement could have. Just processing the _idea_ of Ultra Space was enough to make her head spin and she was tired and worried enough as it was.

"Okay. Gimme a second, here." Lunala's third eye shimmered and released a burst of purple light. It struck the arch and expanded into a fresh portal. Lunala flew through it with Ephemeris right behind her. Tessa gripped his feathers tight as the bright lights and loud _whooshes_ of the portal raced around her. She gave one last silent prayer that good things awaited on the other side.

"It's really back! I don't believe this!"

Espy's shouts made Tessa sit up straight. Ephemeris and Lunala flew toward the planet. Tessa's jaw slowly fell open. It was all there. She saw a _blue_ ocean instead of a colorless one. And there were large green and brown landmasses scattered around from one another. She was _sure_ she was looking at the continents of the western hemisphere.

"I don't believe it," Tessa whispered. Then her lips curved into a tiny smile. "It's back. It's really, _truly_ back."

Espy threw her forelegs around one of Silvally's, eliciting a surprised squawk. She brushed her face against his thigh, not even minding the fact that it caused more leftover gunk to smear across her face. "We did it," she squeaked. Tears welled up in her eyes. "It's over. We don't… we don't have to fight anymore!"

Silvally stared at the ocean as it came into better view. The sparkling light reflected off the water and triggered golden flickers in his irises, despite his water memories being on. Silvally leaned over and nuzzled Espy. "Yeah, I guess we did do it. Though, Shane really pulled through with that last part."

His comment made Tessa stiffen. She focused on her aura sense, trying to get a sense of where her teammate might be. To Tessa's dismay, however, she couldn't turn her aura sight on whatsoever. It wasn't that it was blunted. Rather, trying to dive into her aura sense triggered a bout of fatigue that locked up her muscles until she gave up.

 _'I guess I really did exhaust myself… almost like a dead luminous orb or something.'_

The rest of the flight back down to the surface proceeded in silence, save for Lunala informing the team she was taking them to Celestial Island since she sensed many of the gods there, along with Totem Ninetales. Tessa wanted to voice an objection, but figured that the best way to take stock of the world was to talk with the gods.

As they flew, swathes of orange spread across the blue sky. Tessa turned to see the sun poking up from the east. A warmth spread through her chest. The sky had been bathed in darkness for such a long time — or, at least, it _seemed_ like the whole Temporal Tower incident had gone on for quite a while, anyway — the sight of the sun settled some of Tessa's frayed nerves. Shane's ambiguous situation still left her with a lingering sense of unease, but the return of all the bright colors spread out across the ocean brought a smile to her face.

The trees had their leaves back. Green blotches passed beneath Tessa as Ephemeris soared over the Water Continent and headed south. Tessa raised a skeptical eyebrow. She knew they were heading for the Sea of Wonders, but something struck her as off. Tessa decided to break the group's silence. "Um, aren't the islands in the Sea of Wonders supposed to be hidden through, like, ley lines or barriers or something?"

"They should be, yes. But they're not anymore," Lunala reported. "I, um… I'm not sensing _any_ ley lines, actually."

"What? You're kidding." Espy gasped.

"It makes sense if you think about it. The void absorbed all the ley line chains… but Shane took it out with that big blast," Silvally explained.

Tessa's brows raised. "Wait. If ley lines are gone, then what does that mean for Mystery Dungeons? Ley lines were the whole reason they existed, weren't they?" She looked expectantly at Espy.

"They were. But if there are no ley lines, then… it stands to reason that there aren't Mystery Dungeons," Espy said, her tone suggesting she scarcely believed her own words. "Though, thinking about it, that _would_ explain why we can see all the islands in the Sea of Wonders, I guess."

"And why Celestial Island is no longer floating," Lunala exclaimed, craning her neck to point her forehead in the direction of the island. It wasn't that hard to spot, seeing as Groudon's hulking form sat at the edge of the island, with Kyogre bobbing in the water nearby. There were other gods assembled, too, but Tessa couldn't make them out individually. She was more surprised by the fact that the island appeared anchored like any other landmass. A far cry from the floating island full of Necrozma's sinister energy.

As Ephemeris and Lunala descended, Tessa mulled over Espy's statement. No ley lines meant no Mystery Dungeons. Then did that mean all the dungeons were now normal landmasses? What would that mean for the guild? What would that mean for a _lot_ of places and businesses? They had built up their towns and communities around exploring dungeons.

 _'Then again… there were a lot of problems with the places we visited,'_ she thought, biting her lip. Perhaps this was actually a blessing in disguise? The more Tessa ruminated on it, the more a headache crept on. She grabbed her head with a free paw.

"Something wrong, Tessa?" Silvally looked at her, face ripe with concern.

"It's… it's fine. Let's, um, figure out what's going on with the gods," Tessa said, struggling not to laugh at how _crazy_ that statement had sounded. She'd have never uttered a sentence like that three months ago.

"It's odd. Even though there are no ley lines… I'm still sensing _something_ deep within the planet," Ephemeris said, slowing his descent speed to a steady glide and spreading his wings out for a landing. "It honestly reminds me of Ultra Space… and the Z-Moves we used against Necrozma."

Tessa rubbed at her unresponsive aura feelers and sighed. Beside her, Silvally's glowing parts turned pink and he looked at the ground. "I think you're right. So, wait, did our world get rebuilt using Z-Power?"

"Light," Lunala whispered, her third eye glowing. "Your friend must've used the light from the sun to reconstruct everything. This is now a world of light." She dropped Espy and Silvally off on a grassy field along the outer rim of the island. "I'm going to go do more scouting. I'll see if I can find any signs of Solgaleo… and your friend." She then vanished into an Ultra Wormhole.

Ephemeris touched down a couple of yards away from Espy. Tessa almost fell off his back upon seeing Groudon and Kyogre a few yards away. The former stood on a patch of molten ground, presumably something he created to avoid burning the island. Kyogre bobbed next to him. Both looked at Ephemeris, their expressions blank.

Tessa wondered if she should say anything to them, but delighted squeals drew her attention to her right. Espy brushed a foreleg through the grass, tail wagging for what Tessa believed was the first time since they'd met. "Soft grass beneath my paws! Oh, I can't believe how much I missed this!" Espy chirped. To Tessa's bewilderment, she flopped onto her belly and rolled around, kicking at the air with her legs and giggling.

"Hey, that looks like fun!" Silvally said, bending over and sticking his rear in the air. His tail wagged in time with Espy's.

"It is! I feel twenty years younger!" Espy said. Tessa wanted to point out she was tracking slime across the grass, but simply sighed and shook her head. After all that had happened, Espy had more than earned the right to a bout of childish antics.

Silvally paused in the midst of laying down to roll onto his side. He stood back up, an eyebrow raised. "Huh. Oh, yeah, you were already an adult during the time of the Bittercold, weren't you? How old are you, anyway?"

Espy froze, then hastily rolled onto her belly, laughing nervously. "L-Let's not go down that avenue, shall we? Age is relative for Espeons, anyway!"

A loud throat-clearing startled Team Radiance and brought them to attention. Tessa turned and went stiff as a board. What else could she do with Rayquaza snaking toward her? "U… um… hi!" Her voice cracked. "C-Can we help you with anything?"

Rayquaza ignored her and went right up to Silvally, who crouched low to the ground. His fairy memories shifted on. However, Rayquaza didn't adopt any sort of imposing stance. Instead, he coiled up until he was only a head taller than Silvally. Espy and Tessa cocked their heads.

"You're the God Killer, correct? The one the alchemist made to kill me?" Rayquaza said.

"My name is Silvally." He held his head high. "If you have something to say, then say it." Silvally wasn't expecting Rayquaza to wince and tap two of his claws together.

"I, well…" His brow furrowed. "Look, I haven't had to do something like this before, so bear with me."

Silvally tilted his head. "I'm not even sure _what_ you're trying to do."

"I… I want to… th… thuh…" Rayquaza looked away, growling in frustration.

"Tripping over your words?" Silvally said, tapping a talon on the ground.

After a long, drawn-out sigh, Rayquaza bowed his head. "I want to thank you… for what you did for all of us, myself included." He took a deep breath. "This whole fiasco has… left me with a lot to think about. But I want you to know that I do not like having unpaid debts. I _will_ find a way to make this up to you… in time."

"Okay." Silvally's cheek bolts turned slowly in their sockets. "I wasn't acting alone, though." He looked at both his teammates. "If you're going to make it up to me, then you owe my friends, too."

Rayquaza glanced at Tessa. Her first instinct was to tell Rayquaza it wasn't necessary, but he spoke before she could. "Ah, yes. There's a tremendous power flowing within you, isn't there?" He bent down so he was eye level with Tessa, whose aura feelers were firmly stuck up in surprise. "Though you lack the scales, your heart beats with the ferocious spirit of a dragon."

"I, uh…" Tessa rubbed the back of her head. "Well, Necrozma was a big dragon and I inadvertently stole his energy to fix my broken spirit, so…"

"Your transformation is unique, but close enough to Mega Evolution that I could work with it. Perhaps I could help you learn to control your powers?" Rayquaza offered. "I will admit the last time I taught… things didn't go as planned. However, I want to change my behavior."

The proposal left Tessa stunned. _Rayquaza_ wanted to train her? This was a far cry from her mother deeming her a failure. _'I can't wait to tell Shane about this. Maybe we can—'_

Tessa's expression fell. Lunala was searching for Shane, but something about the way she phrased it made it sound like she doubted he was actually out there. Tessa shook her head. He told her he'd be waiting. That had to be the truth.

"Why don't you give her some time to mull it over?" Ephemeris suggested, stepping between Rayquaza and Tessa. "They've been through quite a lot."

Rayquaza's tail thumped against the ground. "Fine." He backed away. "I'm sure we'll cross paths again, anyway. You can give me your answer when you're ready." Rayquaza raised his brow at Ephemeris. "By the way, who exactly are you? A Ho-Oh from another world?" He shook his head. "It's beyond strange to think there could be other Rayquazas out there."

"While I have traversed Ultra Space for a long time, I am originally from this world," Ephemeris said. He turned to Groudon and Kyogre, who were both silently observing the exchange. "It's been quite some time, hasn't it?"

"You sound… familiar," Groudon said, a twinge of regret in his deep, rumbling voice.

"I would think so. After all… I perished in the storms your quarreling created," Ephemeris said. "Or, at least, that's what Arceus told you, isn't it?"

Groudon stiffened. Water shot out Kyogre's blowhole. "Y… you're…"

"I'm _that_ Ho-Oh, yes. Though I go by Ephemeris, now." He stood up straight. "I wound up merging with the original Solgaleo and Lunala. Thankfully… some of the mortals you all liked to dismiss so much had made contact with me. Otherwise, I might not have been able to help you all out."

"I see." Groudon poked at the slab of rock he sat on with a claw. "I don't suppose it's too late to offer an apology, is it?"

"I think it's best left in the past. After all, is this not the dawn of a new beginning for this world?" Ephemeris looked to the sky. "The sun is shimmering in a way that's… unfamiliar, yet inviting at the same time."

Kyogre bobbed in the water. "I actually agree," she whispered. Rayquaza raised his brows. "I can't explain it. I always hated the sun and the dry heat it brought, but the sight of it… and the rays against my back… they calm me. It's been _centuries_ since I've felt this relaxed _._ "

"It _is_ strange to see you two sitting next to each other without some sort of frenzied weather whipping up," Ephemeris said.

Groudon and Kyogre glanced at each other, then at Rayquaza. "Well, you see—"

"What do you _mean_ our powers are gone? How am I supposed to control the fabric of space if I cannot mold it with my energy?!"

Behind Team Radiance, trees bristled. As if the gods already in front of Tessa weren't dizzying enough, she fell to her rear the moment Palkia stomped into the clearing, eyes and shoulder gems flashing in rage. Uxie, Axelf, and Mesprit buzzed around his head, all sharing worried looks.

"Th… this is… not happening," Tessa whispered. When she was fighting Necrozma, she had Z-Power and a form change to keep her going. With both of those gone, this was too much for her to take in.

"I don't get it either, Pal-Pal! I can't conjure up any antimatter for my tricks," Giratina whimpered, brushing his wings over his comically tearful eyes. "I tried to bring up some ley line chains from the ground, but nothing happened."

Dialga and Arceus marched out next, the former's head lowered while the latter had an empty look in his eyes. "I already told you… there _are_ no ley lines," Arceus said, shaking his head. He raised a forehoof and traced a circle. The other gods looked expectantly, but nothing happened. Arceus lowered his limb. "Ley lines were concentrated masses of chaotic energy. They formed the basis for our use of alchemy and, by extension, our powers."

He looked at Dialga and Palkia. "The act of keeping time and space in order always involved utilizing ley lines, did it not?"

"It did," Dialga said. "But the human — Shane, was it? — destroyed them."

"Exactly." Arceus walked toward Team Radiance, avoiding his sons' gazes. "In recreating the world and ridding it of ley lines, it seems your friend took away the powers that separated gods like us from mortals like you. He even shrank us down. I'm a solid three or four heads shorter than I used to be," he said, though his tone suggested he was addressing all of the other assembled Pokémon as well.

"Yeah! Hoopa's rings can't go anywhere _besides_ other places here. And Hoopa tried," Hoopa said, arms crossed and lower lip jutted out.

"What does this mean, then? For the world and… for all of you?" Espy wondered. The sight of all these gods— or, rather, _former_ gods prompted her to cuddle up to Silvally. He stood in front of protectively.

"That remains to be seen," Arceus said, closing his eyes. "If I had to guess… it means we've reached the end of the age of Mystery Dungeons. The chaotic labyrinths are now a thing of the past. For example, Temporal Tower and Spacial Rift are nothing but a fancy-looking tower and a cavern with celestial patterns on its walls. I'm sure this means that locations that were once dungeons could be converted into communities for Pokémon to live in."

"Are you serious? So, I don't have to worry about Temporal Tower breaking apart?" Dialga's eyes widened. He bent over, brushing his forelegs against his face. "My whole _life_ revolved around that place! What am I supposed to do with myself if I'm no longer its protector?!"

"Yeah! Keeping balance with the fabric of space was my _purpose_. It's what you ordered me to do, Father," Palkia said. "You can't seriously expect me to return to Spacial Rift and just _sit_ there for all eternity, do you?"

"I don't. Namely because… I'm not sure we _have_ all eternity anymore," Arceus said. Dialga and Palkia tensed up and exchanged looks. The other gods did, too, save for Giratina, who put a wing up over his mouth.

"Ha! Good one, Daddy. Next you're going to say there are no more perfect apples in our new world." Giratina giggled, but his laughter faded when he saw the heavyset expression in Arceus' eyes. "D-Daddy?"

"We are mortal," Arceus croaked. "I'm not sure how to explain it, really. It's, um… there's a new, erm, _part_ to my body. Something that wasn't there before. Something only mortals had… and Xerneas gave herself against my wishes."

Dialga and Palkia instantly realized what was up. Both glanced down at their torsos, then looked at one another and shuffled back.

"You can't say… that we don't deserve this."

"Excuse me?" Dialga looked right, eyes flickering red. Mewtwo had emerged from the forest with Mew situated on his head and two Ninetales by his side. Tessa's heart momentarily soared, only to come crashing down when she realized it wasn't the shaggy ice Ninetales she was fretting over, but rather Totem Ninetales.

"The mortals of the world looked to us to protect them. In the end, we have failed them far more often than we have succeeded them," Mewtwo said, head bowed and arms crossed. "We called ourselves the strongest Pokémon, capable of dealing with any threat. But when the chips were down, we summoned help from worlds beyond our own to clean up messes that, let's face it, can be traced back to the poor decisions of yesteryear."

"And that gives one lousy human the right to strip us of all our powers? Rubbish! Hogwash!" Palkia stomped his right foot against the grass repeatedly.

"I'm still in shock, myself. Both by this turn of events and the fact that Xatu accurately predicted all of it," Ninetales said, biting her lower lip. "He summoned me and relayed a vision that ended with forecasting the fall of the gods and Mystery Dungeons 'numbering none.' And that's exactly what happened… albeit, not in the way I was expecting."

"This is farce is what it is! What's to happen if our world falls under crisis again? We'll have fewer means to defend ourselves with!" Palkia fumed.

"No. You'll be like the others of your, ahem, 'kind' out in Ultra Space," Ephemeris said. "Yes, there are undoubtedly Dialgas and Palkias that can bend the very fabric of their universes to their whims. But there are also ones residing in small pocket worlds that do _not_ have such powers. They are not gods, but their strength is the stuff of legends… if that makes any sense. They may not be worshipped, but they are still valued for their power."

"Pah! As if any other worlds are really comparable to ours," Palkia scoffed.

"You'd be quite surprised. I know I was," Ephemeris said, frowning.

Blinking slowly, Tessa shifted her gaze to the ground. Their world was now a world without gods? She repeated the phrase in her head multiple times. A brief image of Zero flickered in her mind's eye, making her tense. _That_ was why it sounded so familiar. Her mother's original goal was to rid the world of gods… but somehow that escalated to rewriting all of time so gods had never existed in the first place.

Tessa's brow furrowed. It seemed that, thanks to Shane, her mother had actually gotten what she originally wanted. Only she wouldn't get to experience any of that… would she? The thought made Tessa's head snap up. She stared at her trembling paws.

Silvally noticed her distress and walked over. "What's the matter?"

"I just realized something. Shane found a way to reverse the damage Necrozma did, right?" Tessa said, rubbing her shoulder. Silvally nodded. "Well, my mother was one of Necrozma's victims."

"That's… true." Silvally tensed up. "You don't think—" He stopped and shook his head. "No, you _are_ thinking about it. Otherwise, you wouldn't have said anything."

Tessa nodded. "What if she's back? Metagross could be, too. And we never really knew what happened to Lycanroc." Her aura feelers quivered. "I can't deal with any of them." She shook her head. "Not when Shane's still missing. I… I…" Tessa swallowed hard. "M… maybe he found a way to avoid reviving them? He seemed confident he'd fix things… but reviving them isn't much of a fix at all."

In response, another Ultra Wormhole opened behind Tessa. She jumped up, almost landing on Silvally's back. Lunala caught sight of this and winced. "Ah… sorry! They're usually not that bright and flashy when I make them," she said, tapping her wing-claws together nervously.

"And where have you been, hmm? Flaunting the powers that you still have to those gods who aren't here?" Palkia asked.

Lunala tilted her head in confusion. "I— wait, what? I have no idea what you're talking about. I've been scouting around… trying to get a sense of who was brought back and who, if anyone, might still be missing."

Tessa's heartrate spiked. "A-And? What happened to Shane?!" Her question came out much louder than she intended, so she shrank back toward Silvally.

"Calm down, Tessa. We're worried about him, too, but we should ask about that other issue first," Silvally said. He looked at Lunala. "There were some, uh, rather nasty Pokémon who fell victim to Necrozma, either directly or indirectly. We're concerned that Shane might've brought them back on accident."

"Yeah. I thought about that, too, which is why I included them in my scouting," Lunala said. "And, well, from what I could tell, they're not here."

Totem Ninetales cleared her throat, drawing Team Radiance's attention, along with the former gods. A purple glow faded from her body and the brooch on her shawl. "Metagross and Lucario Prisma are in the spirit realm… though the latter's spirit is faint. I'd hardly call it a spirit with how little energy there is. There's also a Lycanroc with them in the roots of the tree. That… tends to be where vengeful spirits end up. I suppose I'll have to tend to them later."

"Oh, _come on!_ " Palkia nearly shot out a stream of dragonfire. "We lose our abilities, but _she_ gets to keep her spiritual powers? How is that even _remotely_ fair?!"

"She did not misuse her spiritual powers as we misused our control over the universe," Mewtwo fired back. Mew almost slid off his head.

"Don't you dare snap at me like that. It's just as likely that the human let her keep her powers because she's a Ninetales like he is… or, rather, was!" Palkia barked, stomping toward Mewtwo as vessels bulged out of his neck. Mewtwo hovered into the air, with Mew falling to the ground in the process.

"That has nothing to do with it. You can't judge the human. You never even interacted with him," Mewtwo huffed.

"Neither did you! Yet here you are defending him like he's your best friend," Palkia said, eyes twitching.

"His team saved us from _oblivion!_ " Mewtwo retorted. The two divulged into a shouting match, with many of the other gods rushing to take sides or halfheartedly attempting to defuse the situation.

"Oh dear," Lunala whispered, frowning.

Tessa stared at them incredulously. Then she shook her head and turned back to Lunala. "Who else didn't you sense? I need to know about Shane. Where is he? Is he all right?"

Lunala's expression fell. Tessa took a step backward. "L… Lunala?"

"There were some auras that, despite searching intently, I couldn't find any trace of," she whispered. "Solgaleo, Xerneas, Yveltal, Zygarde… all missing. And, I'm sorry, but I couldn't find even the _smallest_ trace of Shane's aura." She bowed her head. "I even flew out toward the sun… but I sensed nothing."

Tessa's stance slouched. She looked at her feet, blinking slowly. "No. That can't be right. He was _sure._ He _promised_ me things would be okay." Tessa clenched her fists. "He must be out there. Maybe he's in Ultra Space? You have to go search for him!"

"And how do you expect me to do that? I told you guys that your friend _rearranged_ Ultra Space. I'd have absolutely no idea where to look for him. It could take days or weeks or, heck, even _months_ to find him if he's really out there," Lunala said.

"Then take Ephemeris with you! Or… or bring me out there." Tessa thumped her chest. There was a somber whine to every breath she took. "Once my aura feelers are working right again, I'm sure I'll be able to sense him. Please! You have to try! We… I… he…" She remembered the moment she jumped onto his beak. Tessa's arms shook. "He's still here. He _has_ to still be here."

"I'm sorry, Tessa. I looked high and low. Spread my ESP out as far as it would go… but it didn't work," Lunala whispered.

"It's entirely possible that he spent so much energy restoring everything that, even leeching off the sun and Necrozma's power, he burnt his spirit out," Ephemeris said, his head bowed.

"But then… then he's in the Tree of Life, isn't he?" Tessa turned to the two Ninetales, who exchanged frowns. "Oh, come on, if he's there, Ephemeris can bring him back, can't he?" Desperation flooded her expression. "Please. There has to be a way."

"I didn't find your friend's spirit when I looked through the Tree of Life," Totem Ninetales said, biting her lower lip. "And if someone completely burns out their spirit… then there's nothing left. They're gone. Or, at least, that's what was taught to me."

"Same here," Ninetales said, her ears folding against her head. "It sounds like your friend chose to give himself up so that everyone else could get a second chance."

Tessa's chest constricted. She placed a paw on her spike and dropped to her knees. Her face scrunched up. "No. He… he promised…" Tears welled up in her eyes. "He said he'd be waiting. Why would… why would he lie to me? I told him… I said I wanted to be his partner for life. I kissed his beak…"

Silvally was by Tessa's side in an instant, glowing blue from his water memories. He crouched down and wrapped his neck around Tessa, offering a consoling hug. "Maybe he didn't realize what would happen? He said he was working with Necrozma to bring everyone back, right? Perhaps he thought he'd make it out in one piece… but that wasn't what happened." His voice shook as he spoke.

Espy joined her teammates and sat down next to Tessa. "I don't know what to say," she whispered. "You two had been together from the start, right?" Espy put a forepaw on Tessa's lap. "If… if there's anything I can do, let me know." She looked around. "Well, I'm not really sure any of us are in a position to do much of anything here. Maybe we ought to go back to the Observatory?"

Tessa had a tight grip on Silvally's foreleg. Slimy as it was, she refused to let go. Shudders raced down her body. After everything they'd been through — the early bickering, the harrowing experience in Mellath Bog, the hatch-day party, evolutions, the Sunset Shoals show, the loss of control to a twisted Mega Evolution, the fight to break Necrozma's control, and the final clash with Void Necrozma — they wouldn't get to stay together.

She thought back to Circadian Coast. To the moment where she had told Shane how frightened she was of losing control and that, if the worst came to pass, he had to be ready to fight her, even if it meant she'd disappear. Tessa was _so_ sure that was the most likely outcome, especially after Lycanroc ran off with the Dawn Shards. She completely discounted the idea that Shane would have to disappear… but that's exactly what wound up happening.

Tessa hadn't prepared herself for this. There were a hundred thoughts racing through her head, jockeying for position at the forefront of her consciousness. Quiet moments she wished could've lasted longer. Things she _should've_ said to him, but balked on because of her own insecurities. Now, she'd never get the opportunity.

"Tessa?"

She didn't want to open her eyes and acknowledge Silvally. Tessa squeezed him tighter instead. He touched his beak to her forehead. "Come on, Tessa. I'm hurting, too, but you can't stay like this forever. I'm… I'm exhausted. I need to go back to the Observatory and rest. You do, too."

He was right, but she didn't want to move. Some voice in her head told her that if she did, her memories of Shane would start to slip away and regrets would fill their place. "I'm sorry," she squeaked. "I need a min—"

"… and I thought I told you that that was an _honest mistake!_ You and your propensity for holding grudges. You're _insufferable!_ It's no wonder Father wiped your memories of what used to be here!"

Palkia's shouting roused Tessa from her stupor. Her eyes shot open and her ears twitched. Tessa was sure the gods could see that she and her friends were mourning. Yet, despite that, they were _still_ arguing with each other?

Tessa slowly staggered to her feet. Silvally looked at her in concern. "Tessa? Are you, um… is there something you want to say?"

She walked right past him, eyes locked on her feet. Tessa marched forward, wincing as the gods' shouts grew louder. Eventually she spotted Dialga's tail out of the corner of her eye and stopped. "Excuse me? Can you guys cut it out? My friends and I are—"

"Oh, sure, call me insufferable. Do you have _any_ idea what it's like going around with a constant, nagging sense that there's something missing?" Mewtwo huffed, pressing his face against Palkia's. "I was _paranoid!_ And why wouldn't I be? He _tampered_ with my memories!" He pointed accusingly at Arceus. "I don't even remember what I was really like in the old world!"

"And if you _had_ kept them, who's to say you wouldn't have tried to do what that nutjob of a human did?" Palkia snarled.

Tessa clenched her fists and bared her fangs, incensed her words fell on deaf ears. Even though she was beyond exhaustion, that familiar anger made rainbow lights flicker on her arms. Uxie turned and looked at her, only to shrug.

"All of you… need to… **_shut up!_** "

Tessa pointed her paws forward. She shot out a small Aura Sphere. Burning pain flared up in her arms. The Aura Sphere struck Arceus between the eyes and exploded while Tessa staggered back, wringing her paws out.

Ephemeris trotted toward her, with Espy and Silvally on his heels. "I thought I told you not to use any attacks or abilities," he said.

The smoke from Tessa's Aura Sphere cleared, revealing Palkia and Arceus staring at her with incredulous expressions. Tessa hunched over, breathing heavily. "I know. But they were going on and on and on and _on!_ " She smacked herself in the head repeatedly as she spoke. "I couldn't take it anymore!" Tessa glared at Arceus. "Do any of you even _realize_ we lost our friend? Shane, he…" She rubbed her eyes. "He gave himself up to bring all of you back. And the _first thing_ you do is start arguing like _hatchlings!_ "

Tessa whirled around. "Who can project stuff with their ESP?" She looked between Lunala and Mewtwo. "I _know_ there were at least a couple of you sending telepathic orders when Dark Matter last attacked, so don't lie to me!"

"T-Tessa… what are you doing?" Silvally's head crest drooped. "I get how upsetting this is, really, but—"

"What am I doing? I'm going to see to it that we don't squander the second chance Shane gave us," Tessa said, breathing still labored. "He… his sacrifice can't be in vain." She looked at Espy, who was blinking slowly. "You understand, right?"

"I, um, maybe?" Espy bit her lip.

Lunala floated up to Tessa, as did Mewtwo. "I'm sure the two of us together are strong enough to reach all the continents," she said, her third eye activating. Mewtwo nodded, held his right hand up, then transformed in a flash of orange.

"Good, that still works," he said, swishing the tendril that had spawned from his head. Mew floated up to him, sat on his shoulder, and wrapped his tail around Mewtwo's arm. "What do you want to say?"

Tessa looked back at the gods. "Answer me this. Did you see what happened when we were fighting Necrozma?"

One by one, they nodded. "Personally, I felt like I was dreaming… and your battle was the thing I was dreaming about," Ninetales said.

"I'm fairly confident everyone was 'watching,' in a manner of speaking," Totem Ninetales said.

"Good." Tessa walked up to Lunala and put a paw on her forehead, covering the third eye. She took a deep breath, then said, "Everyone, listen up! I'm Lucario Tessa, one of the members of Team Radiance who battled against Necrozma after he had taken all of your spirits. I'm given to understand that you saw the results of that battle play out in one way or another."

Espy and Silvally exchanged astonished looks. "Is… is she really addressing _everyone?_ Should we try to interject?" Espy wondered.

"No. I think she might be onto something," Silvally said. He sat on his haunches, a pensive look on his face.

"As I'm sure you all realize, we managed to beat back Necrozma. Not only that, my team's leader, Ninetales Shane, took control of Necrozma and used his power to rebuild our world," Tessa continued. "And he was able to do it without the ley lines that have plagued us since the beginning of time." She paused. "Yes, that's right. Mystery Dungeons are a thing of the past. Not only that, but the gods have been depowered.

"But that came at a great personal cost to Shane. Lunala searched everywhere she could to try and find him… but he's gone. He sacrificed himself so that all of us could have a second chance at a happy life." Tessa took a few deep breaths to steady herself. "We can't afford to slip back into our old routines. Doing so would be a waste of the gift that Shane's given us. Things _need_ to change."

Tessa looked at her teammates. "In my team's travels through the Horizon Continent alone, we saw many different places and the customs they follow. At the time, I didn't think much of the things I saw or heard. But now, with everything that's happened, I can safely say that our world has problems that extend _far_ beyond the existence of ley lines and Mystery Dungeons. The way we treat each one another and the approaches we take to relationships… are unhealthy.

"We need to focus more on working _together._ Instead of furthering your own interests, you need to try and pick one another up," Tessa said. "I'm sure, if many of you were here with me in-person, you'd tell me that's exactly what you do. However, I'm not sure that's the truth."

Tessa fixed her gaze on Espy, who tensed up. "After battling the Bittercold, the Pokémon of Paradise came to the conclusion that, because our lives are only so long, we ought to make the most of them by helping out one another. The problem was that their method of doing that was by focusing on building up Paradise. They ignored their own personal feelings… and didn't confront lingering memories that stemmed from what the Bittercold did."

Espy's ears drooped and her gaze fell. Silvally leaned over, brushing his beak against her shoulder. In turn, she pressed her tail against his torso.

"And it's not like the Horizon Guild was much better. We prided ourselves on wanting to help Pokémon out… but we didn't all have selfless motivations for joining," Tessa continued, ears and aura feelers drooping. "Even if you're not a part of some sort of organization, there are still things you should think about. For example, the soulmate bond and the superstitions surrounding it. All it's done is create stress that's made Pokémon unhappy… yet we were always discouraged from talking about the subject because of the superstitions.

"That's why all of this has to change. Working together isn't enough. We need to be there to _support_ one another. If our world's going to succeed, we have to lift each other up. We need to talk out our differences and resolve our problems instead of resorting to petty fights or foisting our troubles onto other people." Tessa took a moment to catch her breath. That's when Totem Ninetales came to her side. She put her forepaw up to Lunala's forehead, nudging Tessa's aside.

"I think you hit the nail on the head," she whispered. "Well done. I can take it from here."

"Huh?" Tessa tilted her head.

"Hello there, people of the world. I'm the Totem Pokémon of Solstice Summit. Some of you may be familiar with me," she began. "Like you, I listened to everything Tessa had to say. And I, for one, agree with the points she's raised. We need to tackle our problems head-on, starting with old customs that have no place in our new world." Totem Ninetales paused to clear her throat. "To that end, I would like to invite all of the community leaders from every continent — from guildmasters to mayors to Totems of Horizon to former gods — to join me on Celestial Island, starting tomorrow morning. There, we can have a long, fruitful discussion about the future that _we_ want to cultivate.

Totem Ninetales glanced at the assembled gods, many of whom tensed up. "Of course, even if you're not in a leadership position, you are welcome to attend. Hopefully we'll have enough space to accommodate everyone. If not, we can make alternative arrangements." She glanced at Hoopa and smirked. "I'm sure Hoopa, along with those who can teleport, will be up for handling transportation."

Hoopa rolled his eyes. "Hoopa knows that tone well enough to realize you're not asking him, you're telling him."

"For now, though, I think we should all take the day to ourselves," Totem Ninetales said, smiling at Hoopa's begrudging agreement to her request. "Please… find your loved ones. Spend time with them. Tell them what they mean to you. Tomorrow, we'll get to work." She then slid her forepaw off Lunala's head and stepped back, nodding. "There. That ought to be a good place to start, don't you think?"

"I, uh… yeah, I guess," Silvally said, blinking in surprise. He didn't know enough about Totem Ninetales to have much of an opinion of her, but given that Ampharos and Magearna were working with her, he figured that was enough to at least trust she had good intentions in mind. "Is that all right with you, Tessa?"

He glanced at his teammate, who jumped up and squeaked. She had lapsed into silent reflection when Totem Ninetales brought up loved ones. But now that she'd said her piece to the world, the spark of anger that had triggered an extra bit of energy had run its course. Tessa only managed a yawn in response to Silvally. She wound up passing the yawn to Silvally, who passed it to Espy.

"Ugh. I'm… I'm so exhausted." Espy leaned against Silvally's side to stop from flopping onto the ground. "I just want to lay down and sleep and not wake up for, like, the next month."

"Yeah, tell me about it," Silvally said, yawning a second time.

"Perhaps I should take you three back to your home, then?" Lunala said. "After all of this, I daresay you've _earned_ the rest."

Espy and Silvally nodded slowly. The closest Tessa managed to a response was her shoulders sagging. Thoughts of Shane still lingered in her head, but her fatigue had turned those thoughts fuzzier than Espy's hide. She could barely walk forward to join her teammates. Silvally noticed her sluggish gait and offered up his other shoulder to steady her.

"Thanks," she mumbled, rubbing her eyes with a paw. Tessa also realized she was still filthy. However, sleep was far more inviting than a bath.

Arm wrapped around Silvally's foreleg, she walked alongside her teammates into an Ultra Wormhole. The two Ninetales followed them, along with Ephemeris.

* * *

 **~Pokémon Square~**

The surprise telepathic announcement left Blaziken and Swampert looking up at the sky, the former scratching his feathers while the latter fiddled with his worn rescuer's badge. "So, that's it, huh?" Swampert looked down at the badge and turned it over repeatedly. "Thirty-something years we've done this job..."

Blaziken noticed a nearby, square-shaped rock. He plodded over to it and sat down, sighing heavily. "Yeah. We've… been at this a while. Longer than Team ACT before they called it quits, I reckon."

"And now Mystery Dungeons are gone… just like that," Swampert mumbled. His usual enthusiastic grin was nowhere to be found. "I'm… not really sure what to think, bud."

"That makes two of us." Blaziken leaned back against the rock, resting his hands behind his head. "We had a rhythm, after all. Wake up, check the box for job requests, head into town, go into the dungeons, finish our jobs, and, if we had time, hang around and see what was happening in Pokémon Square." He furrowed his brow. "It's… odd to think about how it all became second-nature for us."

"Are you saying… you didn't enjoy your jobs?"

Blaziken and Swampert looked over their shoulders and did doubletakes in unison. "Ch-Charizard? And Alakazam and Tyranitar, too!" Swampert gasped. "Where _were_ you guys? We heard you went missing and tried looking for you… but came up empty-handed."

"Yes. Necrozma plucked us out of our homes a couple of weeks ago," Alakazam said, twirling one of his rusty spoons around in his hand. "Though it feels like we've been gone far longer than that."

"Our spirits have been limbo for quite a while… I think," Tyranitar said, slouching. He lumbered toward Team Go-Getters, dragging his tail across the dirt. "But, by some miracle, we're back. I suppose that's all that matters."

"Still, to think we'd actually see the day where Mystery Dungeons disappear forever…" Charizard's voice trailed off. He crossed his arms and closed his eyes. "I never thought it would happen. This is, truly, some sort of miracle."

"I suppose so," Blaziken said, shutting his eyes again. "You guys okay? Nothing broken or anything?"

"We're as good as we can be," Alakazam said. "That cough I'd developed even seems to have gone away. I feel… refreshed, despite my age."

"Same here," Tyranitar said. "Though I do believe Charizard asked you two a question."

"Huh? Oh…" Blaziken sat up straight. "It's nothing like that, Charizard. Swampert and I enjoyed getting to help people out. Really." He scratched the back of his head. "But now that Mystery Dungeons are gone, it's dawned on me just how much our lives _revolved_ around them."

"Yeah. Work kept us busy. I didn't mind it… but we had so little time to ourselves, we never really took the time to try doing things that didn't relate to rescue work. Probably why we were so lousy at staying in touch with old friends," Swampert said, tapping a temple with one of his fins. "So, like, what are we supposed to do now?"

"Well, I intend to go to that meeting," Charizard said, puffing out smoke. "We _are_ community leaders in some regards, aren't we? Perhaps if you talk with some of the other people there, you can figure out a new direction to take yourselves in?"

Blaziken and Swampert exchanged looks. "Good point, old-timer. I'd have expected Alakazam to say something like that."

"What can I say? His tendency for platitudes must've rubbed off on me." Chuckling, Charizard shrugged innocently while Alakazam rolled his eyes. "In any case, we're going to check in on the town. You're welcome to join us."

"Yeah. I think we'll catch up soon," Blaziken said, then waved them off. He leaned back against the rock and closed his eyes.

"What'cha thinking about?" Swampert wondered.

"How much of a workaholic I've been all this time," Blaziken said, sighing as he slumped down. "We've missed out on a lot of life, haven't we?"

"Well, I don't regret the way things have gone. You're still my best bud, after all," Swampert said, his usual grin returning.

Blaziken couldn't help but smile. "Same here. Still… I think that this is about as good a sign as we can get that it's time to step back."

"Step back?"

"Push more responsibilities onto the younger generation. Like Team Radiance." Blaziken sat up and looked to his right. "Oh, and those guys over there."

A female Nidoran and a Druddigon, both with pecha scarves tied around their necks, froze mid-step. Beside them, a trio consisting of a Cranidos, a Ponyta, and a Sandslash in matching indigo scarves also stopped walking and looked at Blaziken curiously. "Did… did we do something wrong?" Cranidos asked.

"Not at all." Blaziken got to his feet. "You're a couple of rescue teams, right? We saw you fighting some of the Ultra Beasts that Necrozma summoned."

"We _were_ a rescue team. Nothing to rescue if there aren't Mystery Dungeons, right?" Sandslash huffed, pouting and crossing his arms. "Two years climbing the ladder to gold rank… washed away by a snap of some magic dragon's claws. I can't believe this."

"Err, well, you never know. Maybe rescue teams will still have a role to play. I guess it all depends on that big meeting tomorrow," Swampert said, laughing and rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah. We can't let ourselves get discouraged!" Cranidos said.

"Easy for you to say. Your parents still run a box-bashing shop, don't they? You've got a fallback option," Ponyta said, poking at the dirt with a hoof.

"Let's take things one day at a time, guys. Besides, I'm impressed how much you all took initiative. If you ever need someone to vouch for you, hit me up." Blaziken winked at them. Then he beckoned Swampert to follow him. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Druddigon and Nidoran squealing to each other in excitement.

* * *

In the air over a nearby beach, Latios flew loops, whooping and hollering. "No more ley lines! No more Mystery Dungeons! Isn't it great, sis?" He paused, shaking his head to avoid getting too dizzy. "I mean, yeah, I don't know what this really means for the Expedition Society… but isn't this what we wanted? Less stress in our lives!"

Latias floated nearby, staring at the ground in disbelief. "I… yeah, I guess so."

Latios flew up to her, a worried look on his face. "Something wrong?"

"I suppose the realization of what this all means hasn't set in for me, yet," Latias said, gripping her flight goggles in her paws. She was still trying to figure out how she had them again, given that Necrozma had destroyed them.

"Ah, there you are!"

Latias turned around in time to squeal as Lugia wrapped her up in a big hug. "This is wonderful! I thought… I thought for sure it was the end for us. But we witnessed a _true_ miracle!" He lifted her up with his wings and nuzzled her snout.

"L-Lugia! Wait… I… tickles…" Blood rushed to Latias' cheeks. It was then she realized that Latios was still floating next to her. Her eyes widened. Lugia stopped nuzzling her and looked right at Latios.

"Oh. Uh, hiya." Lugia released Latias, who had a bewildered expression on her face. "This is, uh, definitely on the awkward side." He laughed nervously.

"Sis…" Latios frowned.

Latias looked between her brother and mate, expression panicked. Then she recalled the speech that Tessa had delivered telepathically. "Y'know what? I think it's time. If things are changing, then there's no reason to keep any secrets anymore." Latios and Lugia both looked at her in concern, albeit for different reasons. "Latios… Lugia and I are mates. We've been together for a while, but I never told you."

Latios blinked slowly. His gaze fell toward the ground, spiking Latias' heartrate in the process. Had she messed up? Was it too much of a bombshell to drop on her brother so soon after the planet's restoration?

"Then all the times you said you were going to train with Lugia?" Latios whispered.

"Oh, we definitely did training," Lugia said. "It's just we, uh, did other things, too."

Latios' face scrunched up. "Yeah. I, um, don't think I need the details." He cringed. Latias' face flushed. Latios' wings drooped. "Sis, why didn't you tell me about this?

"You're upset with me, aren't you?" Latias squeaked.

"I didn't say that. I'm… confused, that's all," Latios said, tapping his claws together.

"It's… a bit complicated." Latias nestled up against Lugia. He wrapped his wing around Latias, nodding his support. "The truth is… Lugia found me on the beach the day things… fell apart with Rayquaza. He nursed me back to health so I could fly home to you. We kept seeing each other after that. We courted for a while, before I finally worked up the courage to seal the deal with him." She craned her neck up to nuzzle Lugia's shoulder.

"I kept fighting with myself over whether or not to tell you. I wanted to. But at the same time, I was worried." Latias gripped her goggles tight. "You were always so protective of me. I figured that… that if I told you, I'd make you upset." Latias had to admit that hearing her own reasoning out loud made her question the logic behind her decision. "Well, I guess there was also the fact that I was nervous about people reacting to the fact that I had a mate."

"But Hoopa knew about us… and he never blabbed our secret," Lugia reminded her. The looks he received from both Lati twins made him regret opening his mouth.

"Latias…" Latios' wings drooped lower. "I'm protective of you because you're my little sister—"

"By, like, half an hour, tops," Latias said, pouting.

"Even still. Mom and Dad left a message for me… telling me to always do my best to look after you." Latios floated closer toward her. "Your empath abilities were always far better than mine. You're sensitive to everything happening around you. It's, like, a blessing and a curse, I guess. Still, more than anything else, I want you to be happy." He leaned forward, nudged Latias with his snout, then backed away. "If Lugia makes you happy, then I'm happy for you. And, of course, I'm happy to call him my spirit-brother."

Latios extended a paw toward Lugia. Lugia stretched out his right wing and tapped it against Latios' claws. They exchanged smiles. "And I'm glad to have you as a spirit-brother, too," Lugia said.

"Right." Latios backed away. "Still. Can't believe you wound up settling down with someone before I even went on so much as a single date." He ran his claws through his chest feathers. "What am I gonna do?"

Latias giggled. "Well, maybe that's a subject we should wait until after these meetings to tackle."

"Agreed," Latios said. "For now, I guess we should head back to the Expedition Society."

Lugia stiffened. Latias looked at him. "Err, why don't you go on ahead, big brother? I'll catch up with you."

"Oh. All right." Latios turned on flew off.

"Okay. What couldn't you say in front of him?" Latias asked, a curious brow raised.

"I, well… I wanted to talk, that's all. See where you're at and stuff." Lugia glided down toward the beach. Latias followed him, brow still raised. It took her a moment to realize it, but the beach Lugia touched down on was the same one he had found her crying on the day Rayquaza assaulted her. The unpleasant memories of his V-Create burning off her feathers lingered in her head. Her feathers bristled.

Lugia draped a wing over her. She leaned into his chest. "Latias, I know you'll try to downplay this, but I want you to know how proud I am of you."

"Huh? F-For what?" She didn't _need_ to ask. The answer was obvious, but Latias wanted to hear it from Lugia's lips.

"Everything related to this whole Necrozma crisis. I heard about it from Team Go-Getters. While I was busy tripping over myself and getting captured… you and Hoopa were running across the entire world, doing stuff to help Ampharos with his plan to revive people's spirits," Lugia said.

Latias sighed. "Yeah. Well, that didn't end up amounting to much. If it wasn't for Team Radiance, Necrozma would've gotten the last laugh."

"That may be true, but you were still instrumental in helping them get to that point." Lugia leaned over and pecked her on the head. "If you hadn't managed to outduel me, I would've gone after Team Radiance… and Mewtwo might not've taken us to Destiny Tower so we could get the other gods to help us."

A smile spread across his beak. "To say nothing of the way you stood up to Arceus and Rayquaza. I'll admit, you had me worried, but my heart swelled when you asserted itself." He leaned in and whispered, "And I thought it was pretty sexy, too."

Latias' face reddened. "I… aha… w-well…" She fidgeted with her goggles. "I'm not really sure what came over me, to be honest. Maybe some of those dormant dragon instincts Rayquaza always ranted about finally woke up?"

"Nah. That was all you." Lugia nuzzled her cheek. "Whatever you learned from working with the Horizon Guild, you took to heart."

"Yeah. I suppose so." Latias blinked slowly. "But then… that raises the question of what I should do now that this is all over."

Lugia tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

"I've been working with the Expedition Society for a while, now. But, I… well, I gelled pretty well with a lot of the Horizon Guild's folks, too." Latias slung her flight goggles around her neck. "A part of me is wondering if maybe it'd be better to move to Horizon. Y'know, fresh start and all." Her ears drooped. "But the idea also makes me guilty. It'd mean moving away from big brother. And it's nowhere near the Sea Shrine, either."

"If you want to move there, then let's move there," Lugia said.

"I— wait, what?" Latias looked into Lugia's eyes. "But I know how much you like being near the water. If we went to Horizon, how would that work?"

"Horizon's one of the smallest continents. I'm sure I could find somewhere," Lugia said.

"I'm not sure if there are any secluded settlements, though," Latias said.

"That's okay."

Latias' eyes widened. "It… it is?"

Lugia nodded. "What can I say? Seeing you rise above all your past fears has inspired me. It's time I got over my fear of living around other people." He smiled at Latias. "Fresh start and all, right?"

Latias floated up and pecked Lugia on the cheek. "The freshest."

* * *

 **~Pokémon Paradise~**

"It's back! It's all back!"

Raichu practically skipped down the road, her tail crackling and cheeks sparking. "It's as good as new!"

"I'll say." Haxorus leaned against a tree trunk. "It's like Necrozma never attacked this place. Thank goodness." A smile crossed her face. "That weirdo Ninetales did good. Real good."

Umbreon sat in the town square, staring at his old house off in the distance. He was torn between going into look at it and staying back. The last memories he had of it were from Zero sneaking in and convincing him to join her cause, after all. Umbreon's ears drooped. Sure, things had worked out for the best, but he'd still have to live with the fact that he made a terrible decision. A decision that had a lot of consequences for a lot of people.

He watched Hydeigon float past Raichu, cheerful looks on all three of his heads. "Everything's in one piece," he said, stubby tail wagging. "It's nice to see this place lively again." Hydreigon turned to see Virizion, Keldeo, and Emolga helping a Bagon and a Zorua with a stack of crates.

"Thanks again for helping out in Post Town when all those aliens were attacking," Virizion said, smiling at the smaller 'mons.

"It was no trouble at all, Miss Virizion," Zorua said, wagging her tail.

"Yeah. I'd love to put in a good word to HAPPI on your behalves but, well…" Virizion paused and looked up toward the sky. "It looks like we won't be needing HAPPI anymore."

"Ah, yeah." Bagon scratched his chin. "Guess this means we're out of a job, huh?"

"It could be worse!" a Gabite said, walking toward the square with a bag of berries slung over his shoulder. A Charmeleon followed behind him, carrying a bag of his own. "You could be like poor Umbreon over there. No more ley lines means all that research he did was for nothing."

Umbreon flinched. His gaze fell to ground. Gabite was right. He hadn't even _considered_ what this meant for his future.

"Hey now, don't be so inconsiderate," Keldeo scolded, planting a hoof in front of Gabite. "His sister's part of Team Radiance and _none_ of us would be here right now if it wasn't for them."

Gabite shrank back. "Oh. Uh, right." He scratched the back of his head. "C-Congrats to your sister… I think?" He looked at Charmeleon. They shrugged at each other, then kept walking.

Umbreon sighed. It was true. Despite the reputation his sister had gotten thanks to her behavior, she somehow turned things around. He could still hear the things she said to Necrozma in the back of his head.

 _'Everyone can change, huh? What happened to you after I disappeared, Espy?'_

Haxorus stomped up to Umbreon and put a hand on his shoulder. He jumped, tails and ears shooting up. "Easy now," Haxorus said. "Just wanted to tell you that, uh, your sister did good. I guess I was wrong about her."

Umbreon's ears twitched. "Yeah. I, uh… must've missed a lot. I think I'm going to need to find a way to get to Horizon and see her."

"You and me both," Haxorus said, crossing her arms. "Though, I may need a few days to help get this place back in working order."

"You? What for?" Umbreon raised a brow.

"When I saw her, she told me you sacrificed yourself to Necrozma to save her. There's a chance I _might've_ responded by telling her that it was a shame things weren't the other way around," Haxorus whispered, rubbing her shoulder.

Umbreon blinked slowly. "Oh." He didn't dare mention the claims Necrozma made before taking his spirit. "Yeah, that's… not good."

"I guess a lotta folks got a lotta stuff to apologize for," Haxorus said, crossing her arms. "Much as I hate to admit it, Tessa was telling the truth. We never _did_ try to talk about the stuff we experienced fighting the Bittercold, did we?"

"We didn't."

"Did you, uh, ever have any nightmares?" Haxorus asked.

"Some. Not as bad as Espy, though. The Voidlands were especially rough on her," Umbry said, ears drooping.

"Yeah." Haxorus sighed. "Guess we've got things to work on, then." She walked forward, then paused and looked back at Umbreon. "I'm gonna see if I can find a way to get you to Horizon. Don't wander off too far, okay?"

Umbreon nodded.

* * *

 **~Stormcracker Isle~**

"You sure you don't need us to help? Supervising three different communities sounds like a lot of work," Luxeira said.

"Perhaps. But you three put in the brunt of the effort fighting off the Ultra Beasts," Esserly said, shaking out her mossy back. "Let us attend to our own communities." She turned to an Arcanine pacing back and forth along the path leading into the caves. "Ark, were you able to get a headcount?"

"I was. Everyone's present and accounted for, Sister Esserly. They're waiting for you to take them to the waypoint," Ark said, bobbing his head.

"Very good." Esserly shifted to her Sky Forme and glided onto Ark's back. He walked along the path, leaving Team Paradox with Totem Decidueye and Kahuna Raichu.

"So, Circadian Coast's closest to Aeon Town, right?" Luxeira said, sitting on her haunches. "Because I think my teammates and I would like to go back there, if possible."

"I think I can arrange that, yeah. If the Sharpedo Sailors aren't running, I've got a Charizard on staff who can fly you over lickety-split, yeah," Kahuna Raichu said.

"There won't be any need for that."

"Woah!" Seraph jumped up, sparks racing down her freshly-restored ponytail. Ho-Oh landed beside her, stretching out her orange wings. "Cripes, where'd you come from?"

"The insides of a giant light dragon, same as you and everyone else on the planet," Ho-Oh said.

Seraph pouted, not the least bit amused by Ho-Oh's joke. "Well, what do you want with us?"

"I'm offering you a ride back to Aeon Town," Ho-Oh said. "I saw how hard you three were working against the Ultra Beasts. It's the least I could do."

"We'll gladly accept," Sticky said.

"Of course. Whenever you're ready to leave." Ho-Oh gave the team some space and turned to preen the feathers on her wing.

"Well, I can't speak for you two, but I know I've got no business to take care of on this empty island," Seraph said, shrugging.

"Err… yeah. Same here, I guess," Luxeira said, brow furrowed. She was surprised with Seraph's tepid reaction to the planet's restoration. Granted, she herself wasn't sure what to make of it. Luxeira was certainly happy to be alive, but at the same time there was a bittersweet element to it. Necrozma had a hand in destroying this world, like he did with Ultra Village. Unlike Ultra Village, however, all the damage had been undone. Pokémon would get to return their homes. Their families. Luxeira wouldn't.

"Luxeira, is something wrong?" Sticky hovered toward her. "You're tearing up."

"Huh?" Luxeira sat up straight. "I, uh… there was a dust speck that flew in my eye." She blinked repeatedly.

"Erm, forgive me, but I think I've known you long enough to tell when you're lying. I believe you're upset," Sticky said, poking his nubby arms together. "So, again, is something wrong?"

"Of _course_ something's wrong, Pin— err, _Sticky._ " Seraph cautiously approached Luxeira. "Lucy's upset because she's thinking about home."

Sticky's expression hardened. "Oh," he whispered.

Luxeira didn't respond. Seraph had her pegged. She _always_ had her pegged. Except she wasn't trying to get under Luxeira's skin anymore. It was a different type of pegging. The type that said Seraph wanted to help.

"C'mon, Lucy, you can tell us what you're thinking," Seraph said. She knelt down and put a paw on Luxeira's shoulder.

Luxeira considered making a smart remark about if Seraph was _really_ doing this out of concern or out of a desire to get in bed with her once all the dust had settled. She stuffed those thoughts down, however. "Yeah. You're right. It's… it's hard to look at all of this and _not_ think about home," she whispered, bowing her head.

"Wait… if Shane brought our world back, maybe he can bring Ultra Village back, too?" Sticky said, offering an optimistic grin that faltered the moment he glimpsed Seraph's icy expression.

"Two problems with that idea, bud. First off… you heard Tessa. Shane bit the big one bringing us all back to life. And second… Ultra Village was destroyed by a chain reaction from its power core," Seraph said. "The place was atomized. There's no coming back from that."

"Ah. Right. My bad," Sticky whispered.

"It's okay, Sticky. I appreciate you trying to cheer me up," Luxeira said between sniffles.

"You do?" Sticky said, eyes wide.

"Yeah. I know I gave you a hard time — and this whole fiasco's not gonna help improve my opinion of UBs in general — but the fact that you stuck by us and kept battling is impressive. And, of course, you took that blast from Metagross for us."

"Ah. W-Well… you two were much more valuable assets to the group. It seemed like a no-brainer," Sticky said, rubbing his head.

"Well, it was still bold of you. Don't sell yourself short," Luxeira said, brushing her face against her shoulder.

"Unless you're talking about your height, of course. In which case, honesty is the policy." Seraph giggled, but an elbow to the gut from Luxeira sent her into a coughing fit.

"Don't ruin the mood," Luxeira said, frowning.

"Yeah, yeah, I got it," Seraph grumbled. Silence followed, until Seraph said, "So, what happens now? I, for one, want to find Lunala or that gold Ho-Oh. Maybe we can get one of them to find the nearest Ultra Recon base and get us off this backwater planet." Luxeira poked at the ground with a forepaw. Seraph turned to her. "What's wrong? Don't you want to be back among some actual technology?"

"I thought… you promised me you'd help me ask Blaziken out," Luxeira whispered.

Seraph's ponytail crackled. She grabbed it in her paws and fiddled with the fur. "Oh… yeah. I did say that, didn't I?" She sighed and got to her feet. "Fine. Guess we can hang around for a bit. What's a few more weeks in this whacko world where everyone's parading around with no clothes and there's enough eye candy to leave me stuffed?"

Luxeira blinked. "I… can't tell how serious you're being."

"Good. I like to keep my friends on their toes," Seraph said, grinning cheekily. "Now, should we get going to Aeon Town or not?"

Luxeira was about to respond when a panicked cry caught her attention. "W… What was that?" She looked to her left. Loud sobs sounded from down in the jungle. Luxeira cautiously made her way down the path.

"Hey, where are you going, Lucy?" Seraph said, taking off after her. "What's the prob—"

Seraph skidded to a halt beside Luxeira, who was looking down at a clump of grass with her jaw dropped. "S… Seraph, are you seeing this?"

"I… I am. That Zigzagoon… black and white stripes and stars on its eyes."

"Can Zigzagoon look like that?" Luxeira asked. The oddly-colored Zigzagoon looked up at the two of them, her tongue dangling out of her mouth. Then, she bawled her eyes out.

"Waah! Where am I? I want my mommy! I want my daddy! I wanna go home!"

Seraph's brow furrowed. "I was afraid of this. Looks like Popsicle Breath might've opened up Ultra Wormholes when he pulled the planet together. And now we've got a faller on our paws."

* * *

Why, yes, I _am_ shameless enough to shoehorn a Galarian Zigzagoon into the fic two months before Sword and Shield are out.

Anon Omega: I will have to take your word for it. I had something different playing while I was writing it.

SuperOmegaGuest: And I hope this last bundle of chapters leaves you you satisfied.

Anonymous: The fic's not over yet. Anything can happen. But you'll have to stick around and find out.

redbandit: I don't know if you'll see this comment, but I'm glad you liked the beginning.

Next time: returning home and seeing some wayward souls.


	117. Rest and Recompense

Thanks again for beta-reading, Namohysip!

* * *

 **Chapter 100: Rest and Recompense**

 **~Aeon Town~**

The moment Team Radiance arrived back in Aeon Town, its members' fatigue multiplied tenfold. While the sun was rising on Celestial Island, it was nighttime in the Horizon Continent. Though none of them would've known that from the scattered shouts and conversations rising up from the buildings ahead of them.

Tessa trudged along the dirt road leading into town, still leaning against Silvally for support. The colorful buildings and Pokémon running out into the streets to share loving embraces or joyful greetings should've filled her with glee. Instead, the exhaustion spreading through her system left her empty inside. It was a familiar emptiness. One that dredged up memories of days spent lying around, staring at her bedroom ceiling.

She knew she should've smiled when some townspeople tried to walk up to her and offer congratulatory praise, but she couldn't muster the energy to do so. Tessa forced herself to focus on walking. One foot in front of the other. She gripped Silvally's thigh tight. His breathing was surprisingly labored, but she figured that he must've been tired, too. Tessa stole a quick glance at Espy. She had a similar drained look in her eyes.

After everything she'd gone through to get to this point, Tessa didn't want to celebrate. Only sleep. Tessa didn't have to say anything to her teammates. She knew they felt the same way.

Tessa's ears rang. Lunala and Ephemeris shielded the team from unwanted attention while both Ninetales tried to temper people's startled responses to seeing two gods casually strolling through their town. It occurred to Tessa that they both still had all their powers, which meant the gods weren't _truly_ gone. That thought brought on a headache, so she chose to shelve it.

Slowly, Team Radiance headed for the Observatory. For beds that they hadn't seen in far too long. Silvally noticed people looking at him curiously. He sighed. This was an issue he would've had to tackle eventually… regardless of the status of Mystery Dungeons and guilds. It's what he had talked about with Espy at Circadian Coast, after all. He looked down at her.

"You okay?" she whispered. "Sorry. Throat's sore."

"I'm fine. Guess I wasn't expecting _this_ to be how I'd introduce myself to the people of Aeon Town… let alone the whole world," Silvally said, shaking his head. "At least with Primarina's concert, everyone was brainwashed."

"That's, uh— probably shouldn't phrase that as a good thing, big guy." Espy returned to focusing on the Observatory. There was more she could've— no, _should've_ said. However, her mind was an egg that had been cracked open onto a frying pan. She was amazed she could even speak in complete sentences.

The small hill leading to the Observatory proved too much for Team Radiance. Lunala wound up levitating them up to the entrance. There, they found Dusk, Gallian, and Zoroark waiting for them. Gallian paused in the midst of his pacing. He ran up to Tessa, who didn't initially react when he jumped up on his forelegs to embrace her.

"Oh. Hey, Gallian," Tessa whispered. She tried to lift her arms and reciprocate the gesture, but they were too sore.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Gallian said, hopping down from her shoulders. His gaze fell toward the ground. "And, uh, I'm really sorry to hear about Shane."

"We owe you all a huge debt of gratitude," Dusk said, tail slowly wagging.

"Yeah. Shane even patched me up! I'm good as new!" Zoroark pointed to his newly-restored left ear and eye, the latter of which only had a thin scar as a holdover from his old injuries. "… well, for the most part, anyway. The important thing is I can see out of both eyes again!"

"Oh. That's great," Silvally said. "But, um, much as we'd like to chat, we're _really_ tired and could use some rest. Think you could help us down to our room?" He looked at Ephemeris and Lunala. "We appreciate the escort, but I don't exactly think you two will fit in the Observatory."

Lunala looked at the open doorway. "Mmm. Good point. I suppose I'll stand guard and make sure no one shows up to try and disturb you. It's the least I can do."

Smiling, Silvally nodded. "I think we'd appreciate that. Right, Tessa?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah," Tessa mumbled. It was getting harder and harder for her to keep her eyes open.

Zoroark caught on quickly and stepped to Tessa's side. He plucked her off her feet. Tessa couldn't manage a yelp or a yip. All she did was stare in confusion. "You're exhausted. Let me carry you down," Zoroark said, while Gallian looked on with a mixture of surprise and jealousy.

Tessa wanted to protest, but Zoroark's fur was as soft as the pillow waiting for her in her room. She nodded slowly and sank deeper into his chest. Zoroark carried her through the door. Espy and Silvally followed after him, with Gallian and Dusk bringing up the rear. Lunala waited until the door closed and turned to Ephemeris.

"I'm worried about Tessa. I think the loss of her partner's hitting her quite hard. I hope she's able to get some rest." Lunala tapped her wing-claws together nervously. "I really did look everywhere I could think of… but turned up nothing." She looked up at the mid-morning sky. "Maybe I _should_ try searching through Ultra Space."

"As much as I wish the human was here, too, I think it'd be foolish to race off into Ultra Space without devising some sort of plan," Ephemeris said. He turned to Totem Ninetales. "Perhaps you could take a better look at the Tree of Life?"

"Sure. I do have to follow-up on those restless spirits, after all," Totem Ninetales said, adjusting her shawl and brooch. "But I'd have to get to Rainbow Island or Solstice Summit, first. Esserly is likely waiting for my return. Is there any chance you'd be willing to open a wormhole for me, Lunala?"

Ephemeris looked at Lunala. "Oh! Yes, of course. It should be no problem." Her third eye flared to life. A purple portal opened behind her. She kept it on the smaller side to avoid attracting unwanted attention. "Will you be joining her?" Lunala asked Ninetales.

"Actually, I think I'd rather stay here for the moment. I would like to get back to Lively Town or the Air Continent before it gets too late over there," Ninetales said. "But, well, I imagine it will be much easier for us to see each other in person going forward."

"Certainly at the meeting tomorrow." Totem Ninetales smiled at her counterpart. Ninetales nodded back. "Great. I'll look forward to it, then." She stepped into the wormhole and vanished in a flash of light.

When Lunala dispelled the wormhole, however, she scrunched her face up in thought. "That's odd," she said.

"What's odd?" Ninetales wondered.

"Does Aeon Town have a large contingency of dragons living on its outskirts? Because I'm picking up a _bunch_ of dragon-type auras to the northeast," Lunala said.

Ninetales frowned. "I… don't think that's normal. But are we really in a position to send anyone to investigate?"

"I suppose I can go. It shouldn't take long," Ephemeris said, then took off into the sky, a rainbow trailing behind his tailfeathers.

* * *

Tessa felt everyone's gazes on the team as they made their way down the stairs. Bruxish, Trapinch, and Yungoos all stopped what they were doing and headed toward Team Radiance. "Oh, dahlings, welcome back! You were all fantastic out there!" Bruxish said.

"Yeah. You guys are heroes!" Growlithe said, tail wagging. "If you get any sort of ceremonial parades, can I bring my sparklers?"

"Parades?" Silvally blinked. "Um, let's not think on that right now."

Yungoos stepped in front of Zoroark, though he couldn't make eye contact with Tessa due to the way Zoroark carried her. "Hey, uh, I know dis probably won't mean much what with da human gone and everything, but… uh, I want to say dat I'm sorry for being all abrasive toward youse guys." He traced a claw across the floor. "I didn't do much other dan heckle youse, but da human still chose to save me… and everyone else who doubted youse guys, too."

"You could at least stand to call him by his name, you know," Espy said, fixing her tired expression on Yungoos.

"Ah. Err, right…" Yungoos shrank back. "Well, uh, I'm gonna keep on hoping dat _Shane_ is out dere somewhere. Youse gave us all a miracle, so youse deserve a miracle of your own." He looked at Growlithe. "Does dat make any sense? I think it makes sense."

A vine wrapped around Yungoos and pulled him away from Team Radiance. He was about to complain, when Serperior swiveled him around to make eye contact. "Look, this is all cute and mushy and stuff, but I suggest you save it for another time. Do you not see how exhausted they are?" She looked at Team Radiance. "You three go get some rest, okay?"

"Uh, sure," Espy said, glancing toward the western wing. "We were staying in rooms over here, right?"

"That ain't necessary, y'all."

Tessa tried to lift her head up, but her muscles wouldn't respond. Zoroark turned to let her see Braviary and Magearna walking out of what was once Metagross' office. All the weird metallic plates were gone, replaced by smooth, orange walls continuous with the rest of the assembly area. Tessa blinked a few times, but that was the closest she came to mustering any surprise over Braviary's appearance. At the very least, his presence made her more confident that Totem Ninetales was right and Metagross hadn't been revived.

"I reckon this is a formality, but y'all _more_ than deserve to use the veteran's quarters," Braviary said, gesturing toward the stairs with a wing.

"Just make sure to use the baths when you wake up," Togedemaru said, earning several scornful looks. "What? I can't be the only one who thinks they reek. Pee-yew!" She waved a stubby hand in front of your face.

 **Togedemaru, I think I have some papers I left in my workshop. Could you retrievitate them for me?** Magearna said, tone full of disapproval.

"Yeah, yeah. Anything to get away from the stench," Togdemaru said. She curled into a ball and rolled off toward Magearna's workshop.

"Well, that was rude. Remind me to squirt tamato juice on her food when she's not looking," Silvally huffed.

Espy giggled. "Deal."

Before things could get anymore awkward, Comfey, Steenee and Mimikyu emerged from the staircase to the veteran's quarters. Steenee carried rags in her arms, while Mimikyu had towels sitting on his disguise's head. "We finished cleaning out the room!" Mimikyu said, only to see Team Radiance and shrink back. "Ah, I didn't realize you three were back. Sorry for being so loud."

"It's okay. Good to see you again," Silvally said, nodding.

Mimikyu stiffened. "O-Oh, um, good to see you, too!" The towels almost dropped to the floor when he hopped up at down in excitement. "S-Sorry, I came on a bit too strong there, didn't I?"

"You're fine. I think my friends and I want to sleep, though," Silvally said. He yawned loudly. Steenee's face paled and her eyes watered.

"I used a special herbal oil on the cushions in your new room. It should help you three sleep peacefully. You deserve it, after all," Comfey said. "While you're napping, I suppose I'll grab some extra-strength fur shampoo from the Kecleon Mart."

"That'd be great. Thanks," Espy said, before yawning like Silvally did.

"Oh, spirits above." Steenee dropped her rags and ran for the east hallway, covering her face with her hands.

"M… my breath's not _that_ bad, is it?" Espy said, flinching.

"No, but the big guy's poison memories are on," Dusk said, jerking her head in Silvally's direction. He stiffened, then turned to look at his tail.

Silvally groaned. "Yeah, we _definitely_ need sleep." He nodded to the other guild members, then descended the stairs with his teammates in tow. Comfey led them to a darker portion of the hallway. In the process, they passed Volcarona and Araquanid, who offered silent nods. Comfey guided them into a spacious room with a soft, velvet carpet.

"Don't worry about gunking up the place. We can always clean it," Comfey said, gesturing to the orange pillows in the room. Zoroark walked Tessa over to the cushion. She was surprised it actually accommodated her larger Lucario frame, but was more surprised with how soft it was. It brought Altaria wings to mind. Eyelids already heavy, Tessa was out could the second Zoroark finished lowering her onto the cushion. Her teammates fell asleep seconds later, with Espy opting to forgo her own pillow and snuggle up with Silvally. He subconsciously curled up around her, drawing a purr.

Zoroark stepped back and grimaced at his slimy arms. "Guess I'll need to wash up, too," he whispered as he walked out of the room.

"Actually, can you hold off on that for now?"

Gallian was waiting for Zoroark in the middle of the hallway. He raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Uh, sure, it's not a huge deal, I guess. Why? Do you need me for something?"

Gallian nodded. Zoroark frowned in concern and walked up to his mate. Gallian stopped him from heading for the stairs. "It's Tessa," he said. "You saw how she looked. It's one thing to be tired, but Tessa…" His voice trailed off and he frowned. "She looked about as broken as I did before Espeon managed to talk some sense into me back at Cosmic Cavern."

"Ah, yeah. I guess she and Shane were a lot closer than I thought." He rubbed his shoulder. "I mean… I figured the two of them were too insecure about one another to be anything other than friends. Maybe something happened when they went off to fight Zero?"

"You saw how close they stuck to one another when they were fighting Necrozma," Gallian reminded him.

"True." Zoroark crossed his arms. "But what can we do about that? They had _Lunala and Ho-Oh_ with them. If those two couldn't save Shane… I doubt we can magically bring him back."

"Huh. That sounds like something I'd normally say." Gallian smirked and Zoroark rolled his eyes. "Look, the fact of the matter is that I think we need to do _something_ for Tessa." Gallian bit his lip and looked down the hall toward Team Radiance's room. "If Metagross were still around, he'd probably say something about how, logically speaking, Tessa should be happy that the world's been restored. But, like, with what she's been through, logic is bound to be the _last_ thing on her mind."

"Gee, that sounds familiar," Zoroark mused, tilting his head.

"Yeah. I know." Gallian lowered his head guiltily. "But that's why we have to act. To make sure Tessa doesn't get swallowed up by irrational thoughts like I nearly did." He stepped close to Zoroark, brushing the flat of his scythe against Zoroark's waist. "We need to show her that she's got friends and family here to support her."

Zoroark smiled. "All right, you've convinced me. What did you have in mind?"

Gallian reared up on his hind legs and whispered in Zoroark's ear while bracing himself against the wall. He dropped back down to all-fours. "Well?"

"Hmm." Zoroark rested his chin on a paw. Then, after a minute, he plucked a yipping Gallian off the ground and planted a kiss on his nose. "I think… I've never been more in love with you than I am right now." He set the bewildered Absol back on the ground. "If your idea wasn't so time-sensitive, I'd drag you off to an empty room and let you have your way with me."

Gallian's face and horn went bright red. "It's, uh, not _that_ great of an idea." He brushed his forelegs together. "There's a _ton_ of stuff that could go wrong. And I think my disaster sense is making me worry this idea will only upset Tessa even more." He paused. "Still, we ought to try it. For her sake."

"That's exactly why I said what I said." Zoroark had the biggest grin Gallian had seen on him since the night they'd taken one another. "This is the Gallian I've always known was underneath the rough, grumpy exterior. A guy who's willing to put his fears aside for something he believes in."

"It's _really_ not that special," Gallian whispered. The praise flattered him and he didn't want to ruin the moment by saying Zoroark was laying it on too thick. His fur had already prickled and blood was pumping toward… sensitive areas. "So, uh, I guess we should go speak to Lunala, then? And the gold Ho-Oh, too."

"Right. Assuming they're still here," Zoroark said. He led Gallian back up the stairs into the assembly area, where they found Dusk sitting by the northern corridor, ears drooped and tail curled around her waist. Serperior was coiled up next to her, tapping her chin with a vine.

"And you're sure about that?" Serperior said.

Dusk nodded. "I asked Ninetales. She said Midnight's in the spirit realm. And, like, I suppose the gold Ho-Oh is capable of bringing him back, but that's…" She shook her head. "I can't see him agreeing to it."

Gallian and Zoroark looked at each other. "Is… is she talking about—"

Zoroark nodded. "Yeah, it's gotta be _our_ Midnight." He walked up to Dusk. "Hey, Dusk, what's going on? You're looking as blue as Luxeira." Behind him, Gallian rolled his eyes at the comparison.

"Huh? Oh… y-you heard what I was saying." Dusk poked at the floor with a claw. "Yeah. Midnight's, um… he's dead. I think it had something to do with him stealing the Dawn Hourglass and trapping me with the Tapus and one of his two-bit thug friends."

Gallian caught sight of Sneasel freezing mid-step with a box in his arms. He set the box down and looked skeptically at the group, but a glare from Gallian prompted him to pick it up again and head into Metagross' old office. Gallian wondered what the two were actually doing, but chose to return his focus to Dusk.

"I see." Zoroark crossed his arms. "I, uh, can't say I'm all that surprised. The guy was determined to hold onto every grudge he had… and in the end it was those grudges that did him in."

"Was it really, though?" Dusk whispered, earning concerning looks. "I think it all falls back on my shoulders." She tucked her head into her chest. "I got the evolution I wanted… but I got careless. Midnight saved me. The powers that be should've rewarded him by giving him the evolution _he_ wanted. Instead, he got the exact opposite. A body type that upset him. A temper he couldn't keep under control. Instincts that disagreed with him."

Looking a touch guilty, Zoroark turned away at that last one.

"That doesn't excuse the things he did," Gallian said, brow furrowing. "He should've reached out and gotten help, but instead he chose to be upset and stay mad at people for perceived slights."

"I don't know. I think his tirades _were_ his way of asking for help. But we… ignored him," Dusk whispered.

"Ignored him? It was hard to ignore him with how much he got in my face," Gallian said.

"Okay. _I_ ignored him. Or, rather, the best I did was scold him for outbursts when I should've been trying to get to the bottom of what was wrong." Dusk sighed. "You heard all the stuff Team Radiance said about second-chances and people being able to change. Well, why didn't Shane bring Midnight back, too? Doesn't he deserve that chance?" She slumped over. "I should be grateful that we're all here… but a part of me is upset that I'll never get a chance to make up with Midnight."

"Honestly, I'm not sure he deserves a second chance after running off with the Dawn Hourglass," Zoroark said, scratching his ear. "Yeah, we can't say for certain how different things would've been if Shane had gotten the full Hourglass as intended, but he still caused everyone some _serious_ problems. And not the kind of problems a simple apology can fix."

"Besides… what if he _did_ come back, but kept resenting being a Midnight Lycanroc? Even if we _were_ able to convince him to behave better… I'm not sure we could really get him to _like_ his form." Gallian's expression sharpened. "Trust me, I speak from experience. There's enough stuff I resent about being an Absol that I could talk your ear off about it."

He paused, blinking slowly. "Huh." Gallian stepped back.

"What is it?" Zoroark asked.

"Y'know, loathe as I am to admit it, maybe Midnight and I were more alike than either of us realized. We both hated who we were… _especially_ the instincts we had. But that resentment drove us to live up to some of the worst stereotypes about our species," Gallian said, looking at Zoroark. "The big difference was… I had people to support me and stop me from slipping too far." He looked down. "Midnight didn't have that support. We only told him off for acting out."

"See? I've got a point, don't I? This is supposed to be, like, a fresh start for the world… but Midnight won't get the opportunity," Dusk said. She turned toward the main office and found Hakamo-o and Sneasel setting down baskets with metal shards in them. "You two!"

"We didn't do nothing!" Hakamo-o said, raising his arms innocently.

"You became Midnight's lackeys, didn't you?" Dusk said.

"Lackeys? No way! We were partners!" Sneasel growled, though the confidence in his statement faded before he'd even finished saying it. His gaze faltered and he rubbed his shoulder. "And look how I got rewarded for my loyalty."

Dusk's eyes flickered red. "Tell me… what was Midnight like when you were travelling together?"

"He was, uh… real bossy," Hakamo-o said, resting a foot on the box he'd been carrying. "If he wasn't shouting at us, he was going on about how he was going to stick it to Snowy and his dumb friends." He crossed his arms and closed his eyes. "At the time, I didn't like the shouting, but I didn't like Snowy, either. He kept showing us up… and his friends got us tossed in jail."

"Yeah. But Lycanroc dragged us into a heap of trouble because he was so desperate to get back at Snowy," Sneasel mumbled. "If we'd broken away from him… we wouldn't have wound up seeing your pops, getting attacked by the whacko Guildmaster…" His voice trailed off and he looked at Dusk. "We wouldn't have gotten our butts dragged into Lycanroc's dumb revenge scheme."

Dusk winced, remembering the crazed look in Lycanroc's eyes as he stood atop the Ultra Beast he'd summoned. "I suppose so."

Sneasel jerked his head in Hakamo-o's direction. "Sure, he got an evolution out of it. But me? I got kicked around by dragons, blasted by Metagross, dragged through muck, and drained of energy to the point I thought I was gonna shrivel up and _die!_ " He scrunched his face up.

Gallian's brow furrowed. "Well, if you'd _stayed_ in jail, that wouldn't have happened."

"Considering you stole stuff from the Kecleon Mart, you don't have much of a leg to stand on, here," Serperior pointed out, raising a skeptical brow.

"And you tried to blow up my mate," Gallian retorted, his glare returning in all of its scornful glory.

Serperior wilted like a dying flower. "P… point taken."

"I _know_ I could've stayed in jail! I'm not an idiot!" Sneasel blurted out. The other Pokémon around him tensed up. "But my folks… they always told me 'thieves never quit. They take advantage of any opening they can find.' Hakamo-o got us an opening… so we took it! I figured this made up for me finding him wandering around, covered in puke, and taking him in. Because a _real_ thief doesn't prey on sorry-looking sights like that."

Ice swirled around Sneasel's claws. "I'm… I'm not a quitter." Sneasel tucked his head in. "I'm not a quitter," he repeated, quieter this time.

Hakamo-o stared wide-eyed at Sneasel. It occurred to him that Sneasel had _never_ mentioned his parents before. He opened his mouth, ready to press the issue, but Sneasel kept talking.

"I wanted to hate Snowy because… he kept beating me. I was… I was supposed to be a great thief. But I kept losing to an amateur. A total chump! He made me feel like I was letting my folks down." Sneasel had to stop himself from kicking over the box of metal shards. "But then… Snowy and his friends saved me from Lycanroc _and_ Necrozma." He sat down beside the box. "It ain't worth it to hate Team Radiance. I'll just end up turning into Lycanroc."

He looked up at Dusk. "If you really want my opinion… move on. You keep fixating on him… you'll become exactly like him at some point."

Gallian's expression softened. He was _not_ expecting that kind of reaction from Lycanroc's former goon. Maybe being part of Necrozma's giant soul-pool-conglomerate-thingy triggered some sort of change in Sneasel's thinking? Gallian shook his head. He was getting too sidetracked. He had something he needed to attend to, after all. Gallian looked at Zoroark, only to pause when he noticed Magearna in the office doorway.

 **Err, is there an issue? My Geartronic Voice Decibellerator registered some shouts from this vicinity,** she said.

"Yeah. That was my bad," Sneasel said, huffing up an ice cloud.

"Hrmph. Well, I suggest y'all keep quiet until Officer Magnezone comes to take y'all back into custody," Braviary said, popping up beside Magearna.

"You're sending them back to jail?" Zoroark said.

"Of course. They escaped. Reckon that puts 'em at a pretty high outlaw status," Braviary said. "Though… it ain't my call to make. I'm just a concerned citizen, that's all." He stepped out of the doorway. "As y'all can see, we've patched the office back up. Looks just like it used to when Incineroar was around. I reckon I'll offer it up to Team Radiance when they're feeling better."

Gallian raised an eyebrow. There were a lot of thoughts swirling in his head, but he chose to focus on something simple to avoid wading into depressing territory with memories of his dad. "What about you? You were Metagross' assistant."

"If'n this has taught me anything, it's that I ain't a good leader. I reckon I was too complacent. Didn't ask enough questions when I needed to." Braviary shook his head. "That ain't what Aeon Town needs going forward. So, I'll be hanging up my badge. Reckon I'll return down south and get a job as a mail courier. Nice, honest position. I can still bring people smiles without any of them hassles and stresses of making important decisions."

Braviary didn't wait for any responses and shuffled off toward the eastern corridor. Hakamo-o and Sneasel looked at one other, shrugged, and sighed. "So, what, we just have to sit around and wait to get dragged back to jail?" Hakamo-o said, frowning. "Isn't there _any_ sort of alternative?" He looked toward Gallian and Zoroark. "C'mon… we freed those Mist Continent ladies together, didn't we? I know I wasn't _that_ helpful, but that's gotta count for something, doesn't it?"

 **I'm afraid that's up to Officer Magnezone,** Magearna said.

Sneasel got to his feet. "H-Hang on. Hear me out for a sec, then." He looked at Hakamo-o. "Hakamo-o actually had a suggestion and I… think it's a good idea." Hakamo-o tilted his head in confusion, but stayed silent. "What if, instead of sitting around in jail, we gave back to the community to make up for being a hassle?" Sneasel proposed.

"There's a cold place up north — Solstice Summit, I think? — that's supposed to be about helping folks find a sense of direction and stuff." Sneasel gestured at himself and Hakamo-o. "Well, we're a couple of clods with no sense of direction. Why don't we serve out our sentence by working for the Totem of Solstice Summit? Or, if not the Totem, someone else?"

Magearna's eyes whirred in their sockets. **I suppose that is a reasonable requestommendation.** She tapped a foot on the ground. **Though my Geartronic Truth-Tellinator failed to make it out of beta-testing, so I'm not sure if you're being one-hundred percent honest with me.**

"Then how about a little test to see if they're committed to their word?" Zoroark proposed, stepping toward Magearna.

Gallian frowned. "Hang on. What are you doing?"

"Trust me on this." Zoroark winked at him. "See, Gallian and I have an important project we have to work on. It needs to be done _very_ quickly. Like, 'work through the night' quickly." He pointed at Hakamo-o and Sneasel. "So, why don't they help us out?"

Gallian's eyes widened. "Are you nuts? We've barely—"

"It's a win-win. We get some helping hands… and these two can prove they're committed to changing," Zoroark said, smirking. "Actions speak louder than words, right?"

"Fair," Gallian said. He eyed the two skeptically. "You two think you're okay to work with us?"

Hakamo-o and Sneasel looked at one another, then nodded. "Of course. Whatever you need. We're here to help," Hakamo-o said, rifling off a salute.

Gallian nodded. "Great, then let's—"

"Um, excuse me?"

"Ugh, _now_ what?" Gallian growled, turning to find Ninetales and Milotic descending the stairs.

"Oh, Millie!" Serperior brightened up. "Any luck with Airy?"

Milotic wore a somber expression. She shook her head. Serperior's enthusiasm drained. "Oh," she whispered. "What did—"

"I went to her hometown. Figured that, if she wasn't here, maybe she'd gotten revived there… but I couldn't find her," Milotic said, eyebrows drooping. "I'm not really sure where else to look. Besides, if she _is_ still out there, I don't really know what I'd even say to her."

Serperior coiled up tight. "Well, look at the bright side…" She glanced at Dusk. "At least we're on the same Sharpedo. We both let a friend down."

Dusk's tail fell between her legs. "Oh. I'm sorry. Wanna talk about it?"

Milotic slithered toward Serperior and they approached Dusk in tandem. "I think that would be helpful," she said. The three headed for the western hallway.

"Can we go now?" Gallian said. Every interruption was costing him precious time and he had no idea how long Tessa would be asleep for.

"Sorry. I need to speak with him." Ninetales pointed at Hakamo-o.

"Me? What'd I do?"

"It's not that. There's, um… a bunch of dragons on the outskirts of Aeon Town, right now. Ephemeris brought two representatives here. They're asking about a 'Totem Kommo-o' and his eldest son," Ninetales said as Hakamo-o went stiff as a board. "Would you know anything about that?"

"Y-Yeah. I'm, uh, Totem Kommo-o's eldest son," Hakamo-o said, brow furrowed. "But I left my tribe. My younger brother can—"

"I hear him! It's the Totem's eldest!"

"Aw, nuts," Hakamo-o whispered, glancing up to see a pink-winged Salamence and an Altaria with striped, blue-and-red wings gliding over the stairs and landing near him.

"Thank goodness we found you," Altaria said, fluttering her wings. "You have to help us. We can't find the Totem?"

Hakamo-o raised an eyebrow. "Well, yeah. Dad probably got revived somewhere else."

Altaria shook her head. "We did a head count. Every dragon who was part of the escort team is together… _except_ the Totem."

"What should we do? We have no idea how to get back to Rem Canyon… and Rem Canyon isn't a Mystery Dungeon anymore!" Salamence said, his tail thumping the ground.

"I can't help you," Hakamo-o said, crossing his arms.

Salamence stiffened. "W… what do you mean you can't help us?"

"I'm an outlaw and I'm under arrest. So, I'm in these guys' custody." Hakamo-o gestured to Gallian and Zoroark.

"Well, can we borrow him for a bit, then?" Altaria asked. Zoroark had to elbow Gallian to stop him from snickering.

"Sorry, guys, but I made it clear I didn't want to be part of the tribe anymore," Hakamo-o said. "If my dad's not around, then you ought to pick someone to supervise until you're able to find him. Like my brother." He tapped his chin. "Or, better yet, why not ask one of the depowered gods for help? You all had such fervent praises for Rayquaza. Now that he doesn't have anything to protect, I'm sure he'd happily take my dad's place."

"Y… you want us to summon Lord Rayquaza?" Salamence gasped.

"Well, he's not exactly a 'lord' anymore, is he?" Hakamo-o said, smirking. "I heard Lunala was outside the guild. Ask her nicely… and maybe she can help you out."

Altaria and Salamence exchanged unconvinced looks. Both sighed and turned to Ninetales. "I guess it can't be helped, then," Salamence said. "Could you take us up to Lunala?"

"Uh, sure." Ninetales looked skeptically at Hakamo-o before escorting the dragons away.

"Okay. _Now_ it's time to go," Gallian said, rounding up Hakamo-o and Sneasel.

"Hey, you _sure_ you're okay with sending them off like that?" Sneasel asked.

Hakamo-o nodded. "Absolutely."

Assuming Hakamo-o had used cheesy wordplay, Gallian groaned. Hakamo-o realized this a second later and chuckled, which drew laughter from Sneasel and Zoroark. Gallian glared at the ground. "Let's just get a move on, already."

* * *

Silvally's head was swimming. He wasn't really sure he could call his experience after he fell asleep a dream. It was more like he'd collapsed into some body of water and the currents were dragging him down into the depths. The longer he slept, the greater the pressure on his head… and the more whispers he swore he heard around him. Though he couldn't make out any words, he feared angry spirits were bubbling up inside of him.

However, as time dragged on and more unfamiliar, mumbling voices joined the chorus, Silvally realized that they weren't hostile at all. There was confusion and uncertainty, but they actually sounded… conversational? Silvally wished he could tell what they were saying, but no amount of willpower seemed to do him any good. At that point, he simply chose to float in place, pretending the whispers were waves lapping up against a shoreline.

When he opened his eyes for real, darkness greeted him. All the luminescent orbs were off and the second sublevel had no windows. Tiny slivers of light poked in from gaps in a sliding door. Silvally switched to his dark memories and got a much better sense of the general layout. Aside from the cushions and a couple of empty cabinets pushed to the far wall, the room was empty.

Silvally tried to stretch out his neck, but it cramped up. In fact, most of his muscles were tight. Tight and sore. Silvally didn't want to move. Going back to sleep was a tempting offer. He figured he could sleep the month away. At the same time, though, there were whispers in the back of his mind _begging_ him to move.

There was a problem, however. A pink, ooze-covered problem. Silvally glanced down at Espy. Even though she was as filthy as he was, she looked… peaceful. It was the most relaxed he'd ever seen her. The sight brought warmth into his chest. He lost his view of the room as his fire memories took over. Much to his surprise, however, he was able to switch back to the dark memories immediately. In fact, that warmth didn't fade away when he did.

 _'Am I… fire_ and _dark right now?'_

More whispers. Silvally's brow furrowed. The voices were much clearer before. Now, it sounded like whoever was speaking was doing so with their head stuck in the ground. It was… odd. Silvally concentrated, clenching his beak tightly shut.

 _'I'm… a Midday Lycanroc.'_

The room disappeared. Silvally looked down at tan-furred, slender forelegs, then looked out at a set of rocky crags jutting up in the distance. Dusty air brushed against his mane. He rubbed his neck against the dirt and purred.

Then, with a deep breath, the memory faded and he was back in the Observatory, watching Espy's chest rise and fall.

 _'Okay… I still have these memories, I think? So, why are the voices so distant?'_

Silvally's hindlegs twitched. He looked at Espy again and sighed. Silvally didn't want to leave her, but the faint whispering filled him with an irresistible urge to get up. He slowly shimmied away from her, lowering her head onto the cushion. Silvally got to his feet and checked to make sure Tessa was still sleeping. When he looked at her, his vision flickered. Instead of looking at Tessa, he saw a silhouette with orange and silver swirling around it.

 _'Psychic? No, I'm not trying to be psychic.'_

He shook his head, then paused, worried he'd made noise. Neither of the girls stirred. Frowning, Silvally crept toward the door. He made to open it, when a faint glow surrounded the door. It slid open. Light flooded the room. Silvally's head crest fanned out in alarm. He hastily went outside, but the door had closed itself before Silvally could even turn around. The next thing he knew, he was a bit light-headed.

Silvally stumbled down the hall, blinking repeatedly. What was _wrong_ with him? Had the fight with Necrozma left him in such a sorry state that he couldn't control his memories anymore? No, that wasn't right. He was exhausted, yes, but he was in control during that whole battle. Why were things different now?

He stumbled around the corner. A chill ran down his back. His fur prickled. Silvally coughed up a cloud of frost and stared at it, wide-eyed. "Gah… this isn't right!" he said, unable to keep up his inner monologue. Silvally stomped down the hall until he found one of the open washroom doors. There was a note from Comfey along with three bottles and fresh scrubbers. Silvally went to grab the items with his beak, only for them to float into the air.

"Am I—" Silvally shook his head. "I shouldn't be levitating something like this. Nothing's making sense!" he growled. Was he dreaming? His sore muscles suggested he wasn't. Silvally tried to drop the objects, but instead they floated into the room… and headed right for a very fancy glass fixture in the ceiling.

"Hey, wait!" Silvally tried to pull them back, but they _thunked_ against the glass… and the structure dropped straight toward the ground. "No! _Stop!_ " he cried. Then, to his complete shock, his cries produced hexagonal ripples around the falling fixture. The light fixture froze in place. Silvally stared at it. He glanced in a mirror, but he didn't have the pink glow of his psychic memories. No. He had the sky-blue glow of his _dragon_ memories.

When Silvally looked back at the structure, it was dangling safely from the ceiling once again. He had only a few seconds to ponder what had happened, before the soap bottle and loofa dropped from the air, landing right between his eyes. Silvally staggered backward, blinking and hissing. Tiny bits of soap had gotten onto his sclera. Spirits above, his eyes _burned._ He shifted his poison memories on… but his dragon memories stayed active in the background.

Silvally held his stinging eyes closed for several seconds. When the pain subsided enough for him to open them, he found himself not inside the washroom, but on a stone roof looking out across an expansive sky filled with yellow clouds. Pillars stood proudly on either side of him.

"What the— isn't this… Temporal Tower?!" Silvally looked around in a panic. He blinked several times, then found himself back in the washroom. Silvally hunched over. His legs trembled. He glanced at the mirror again and frowned. His glowing parts had both a gray and sky-blue tinge to them.

It wasn't just that, though. Something else was off. He had grown. Silvally was _sure_ he was at least two heads taller than he used to be. He approached the mirror, brow furrowed. Silvally paced in front of it, ignoring the slimy remnants of Necrozma's innards clinging to his pelt. He studied his reflection. Silvally fanned out his head crest. The energy blades were longer. His beak was sharper. He snapped at the air with it, going cross-eyed in the process.

Silvally raised a foreleg. Not only were his muscles thicker, his chitin was sturdier than he remembered. And were his talons sharper or was he crazy? Silvally stared at them intently, only to drop his foreleg to the ground when pink light surrounded the talons. It didn't disappear. Silvally held his foreleg up and shook it, yelling, "Ahh! Get it off! Get it off! _Get it off!_ " He hopped backwards until he slipped and fell over on his side with a grunt.

The instant he hit the ground, it practically fell out from under him. Crisp air swirled around Silvally. Puffy white clouds surged past him. A Zekrom flew to his right, electricity crackling from its tail turbine. It smirked at him, then pivoted to give him a glance at its hips. Blood rushed down Silvally's torso.

 _Come on, Lala… try and keep pace!_

"Lala? No, I'm Silvally!" he said, only to return to the washroom with a violent jerk. Silvally scrambled to his feet. He looked in the mirror again. His reflection glowed pink and sky-blue. Silvally squinted. "Wait a second…" He approached the mirror, then hopped onto his hindlegs and pressed his forelegs against the wall.

"Hey, Silv, is everything all—"

Silvally was in the process of looking down toward his stomach when he caught sight of Espy standing in the open doorway. Her jaw hung open and she _definitely_ wasn't making eye contact. "E-Espy! Hi! When did… when did you get here?" Silvally flopped onto his belly, his fire memories giving him a bright-red glow.

"A few seconds ago," Espy said, face tamato-red. "I heard you shouting. Thought something was wrong and you might need help… but I guess it was a good kind of shouting?" Her tail crinkled up.

"I, uh…" Silvally was in a pickle. Seeing her in the doorway had made his heart — or his spirit core or whatever was sitting inside of him — race and he was in _no_ position to stand up while she was around. At the same time, though, he couldn't keep all the thoughts he was having to himself.

"Espy, do you notice anything… _different_ about me?" Silvally asked, poking at the floor with a talon.

"Uh, look if this is about what I just saw—"

"No. Do _I_ look different?" Silvally turned his head. "Something's wrong with me. And I don't know how to describe it. But I feel like I wanna jump out of my own fur and scales." He pecked at his shoulder with his beak. "There's something off with my memories. I'm seeing ones that didn't used to be there. And the voices… they're there, but now they're distant. I can't actually tell what they're saying."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Espy said. She cautiously approached him.

"Normally I'd say yes, but the voices sound… unfamiliar," Silvally said. His expression grew worried. "Do you… do you think this is because of what Necrozma did to me?" He got to his feet and looked in the mirror again. Espy's eyes widened and she looked away, trying to keep her breathing steady. "What if I'm starting to slip and lose control? There are… new spirits… and I think I have powers I'm not supposed to. Like I walked into the room and broke the light fixture and it was falling to the ground but I shouted at it and it _froze in place and went back into the ceiling!_ Then I had a memory I was sitting on Temporal Tower but that's Dialga's domain and—"

"Silv? You're rambling, Silv." Espy fought through her embarrassment to hop on her hind legs and put her forepaws on his shoulders. She found a pair of golden, ethereal eyes staring back at her and promptly dropped back onto all-fours. "Your… your eyes are gold," she whispered.

Silvally turned to the mirror. It wasn't just his eyes. His cheek-bolts, energy blades, and tail membrane were gold, too. "I… I…"

"Your eyes were gold after Ephemeris healed you, too. And I think it happened while we were fighting Necrozma," Espy said, frowning.

"R-Right. I, yeah…" Silvally looked down. "I think Ephemeris did say he wanted to talk with me at some point. But with all this confusion about the world being rebuilt, we might be busy over the next few days."

Espy sensed Silvally's worries and brushed her shoulder against his foreleg. "Hey. You don't have to deal with this alone. You know that, right?" Espy traced her tail down to his talons. "If you want to talk, you've got me and Tessa."

"Yeah. I know."

"Are you sure? I know I'm—" She paused to consider her words. "I know I can't exactly relate to what you're going through, but we made a promise to help each other out if we managed to beat Necrozma. And, well, we _did._ So, we ought to work on that promise next, don't you think?" Espy smiled at him.

"You're right." Silvally stepped back from the mirror. "Sorry for the scare. I guess I'm a bit jumpy after everything that's happened." He looked away, tapping a talon. "Um, can I ask you something… candidly, of course?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Besides the whole, y'know, affair with your brother… how did you and the Paradise crew feel after stopping the Bittercold?" Silvally wondered. "Were your nerves frayed? Because mine are. And, like, it makes me guilty. We should be celebrating. I _want_ to be happy. But part of me is on edge. Like—"

"Like you're finding yourself doubting if you've actually won? Or you're expecting some new crisis to immediately pop-up and catch you off guard?" Espy said. Silvally's eyes widened and she knew she hit the nail on the head. "Yeah, I understand. That's exactly how I felt back then. It's probably why I, um, was so _attached_ to Umbry in the wake of things." Her cheeks flushed and she brushed her forelegs together. "This time's different, though. I'm not on edge. I'm at peace. Maybe it has to do with hearing that ley lines and Mystery Dungeons are gone."

She smiled at Silvally again. "I'm kinda hesitant to say this but I… I have hope again. I can see a bright future for the world." Espy nuzzled Silvally's foreleg. "I've missed this feeling so much."

Silvally's head crest drooped. "We still lost Shane, though."

Espy winced and stepped back. "Yes… we did."

"Are you going to miss him? I know I will, despite our… complicated past," Silvally said.

"I miss him already," Espy whispered. "But I, um… I don't know how to explain it, but I think that the best way to honor the sacrifice Shane made would be to stick together and enjoy each other's company to the fullest." She bit her lip and furrowed her brow. "Err, sorry. That sounded better in my head."

Silvally sat on his haunches. "No, I see where you're coming from. Shane made it clear how much he wanted to stay with us. If he's really gone and that's not possible, then we have to live out our lives for him. Make the most of his parting gift and stuff."

Espy raised an eyebrow. "Hang on. The way you're talking about him… you don't think he's really gone, do you?"

"Do _you?_ "

"I'm not sure what to think," Espy said, ears dropping. "The two of you both helped me find my lost sense of self… and taught me to hope again. I think that means I _have_ to hope he's still out there." Her tail curled around her waist. "But then there's Tessa. I'm… I think if we tell her to hold out hope, it might make her feel worse, not better."

Silvally clicked his tongue. "I don't know. Shane and I had a similar debate over telling Tessa that her mother was Zero… and look how that turned out. Plus… think about the other times the world was in danger. Someone always had to disappear, but they always found a way to return to our world."

"I thought about that. The irony of it all is that it was Shane who always pointed out how things were different than what he was expecting," Espy said. "And Tessa was the one he directed most of those comments toward, so she's got those thoughts somewhere in the back of her head. That's why I'm hesitant to bring it up."

"Ah. I mean… I guess I see your point," Silvally said. "Though, I don't think we're really going to come up with a solid answer brainstorming in a washroom while we're still half-exhausted and a bit delirious."

"True. Plus, I still have to figure out what I need to say to Umbry," Espy said, flicking her tail to the side. "I guess… the battle might be over, but we've got a lot to cleanup." She sighed. "Starting with our appearances." Espy sniffed her hide. "Gods, this is disgusting." She got to her feet. "Sorry for holding you up, Silv. I'll let you bathe in peace." Espy turned and made her way to the door.

"Hey, Espy," Silvally said.

"Yeah?"

He turned toward the shower head in the corner of the room. "Once all the dust settles, we're gonna need to talk about what you said to me on Celestial Island."

Espy's ears and tail shot up. "W-What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. I wasn't out cold when you told me you loved me," Silvally said, turning on the hot water.

Espy counted her lucky stars steam quickly filled the room. It hid her blush nicely. "O-Oh! Th… that. Aha ha… ha…" Her tail curled up. "I, um… y-yeah, we can talk. Just not now. This is, uh, not the place. Or the time. Maybe after we're done with these big meetings." She left the room before Silvally had a chance to reply and nabbed a shampoo bottle and loofa of her own. Espy headed for the first of the two remaining unoccupied washrooms.

 _'He heard me. He actually heard me. What am I supposed to say to him now?'_

* * *

 **~The Tree of Life: Roots~**

"Let me out! Let me _out,_ you bloody drongos!"

Lycanroc lashed out at wooden bars radiating an ethereal glow. However, when his luminescent paw smacked against the bars… nothing happened. Lycanroc glared at his paw, red eyes glowing, then punched the bars again. And again. "Where? Are? My? Attacks?!"

He stumbled away from the bars, eyes twitching. "This ain't fair! Who put me in here? Snowy… it was him and his dumbarse friends!" Lycanroc lunged for the bars and tried to grab them, but a multicolored barrier rippled across the wall and knocked Lycanroc back onto the wooden floor. He stood up and rubbed his head. "Tch. Didn't even feel that." He brushed his snout. "I'm gonna bust out of here… like I busted out of Horizon's stupid jail!"

"… it's useless. Cut it out."

Lycanroc paused with his right arm outstretched. He glanced right, eye twitching. "Eh?" Lycanroc pulled his arm back to his side and squinted. "What the—" His eyes widened. "Oy! Yer Snowy's bloody girlfriend, ain't ya? The one who punched me right in my sweet spot!" Lycanroc's eyes flashed. "C'mere… I've gotta pay you back for that cheap shot!"

Lycanroc wound up to punch the faded silhouette of a Lucario sitting on the glowing, bench-like tree root in front of him. Rather than connecting, however, his arm phased right through. Lycanroc spun about until he came to a stop. "Oh, Double Team, is it? Feh. I'll find your other clones and—"

"I'm not some Double Team clone. I'm a spirit. Same as you." There was a pause. "Since you're clearly as dense as your mane is overgrown… let me spell it out for you. We're _dead._ "

Lycanroc stepped back, shoulders drooped and paws dangling only a few inches off the ground. Then, he lunged at the wooden bars with renewed vigor. "Lemme out! I can't be dead! I don't deserve this shit! This is all Snowy's fault, you hear me?"

Another rainbow barrier repelled him. Lycanroc slid across the wooden floor, coming to a stop by what looked to be a glowing, metal table. It was only when Lycanroc went to punch it in frustration that a pair of eyes opened and stared at him fiercely. "H… hey! You're the freak Guildmaster that went all bloody nutso on us." Lycanroc backed away from Metagross, who said nothing. He looked down at his glowing paws. "No…" Lycanroc clenched his fists. "This ain't fair! I ain't done nothing wrong. It's Snowy! It's all Snowy!"

"You mean the same 'mon who gave himself up so all of us could even be here?"

Lycanroc looked toward the wooden bars. Totem Ninetales stood on the other side, an eerie, purple aura surrounding her. Lycanroc's eyes twitched. "There you are! I'm gonna tear your bloody tails off!" He lunged for the bars, but the barrier repelled him again.

"I'm not the ice Ninetales you hold such vehement hatred toward," Totem Ninetales said, frowning. "I'd have thought my voice would make that obvious, but it seems your hatred has blinded you."

Muzzle drawn back in a sneer, Lycanroc staggered to his feet. "Okay, so you're a sheila Ninetales, then. What of it? Where the hell am I? I want out!"

"I can't do that." Totem Ninetales' brooch glowed. Rainbow energy rippled through the walls. The brown, wooden color shifted to a bright-white. "These are the roots of the Tree of Life, where restless souls are placed so as not to bother those peacefully residing in the spirit realm."

"No…" Lycanroc slammed a fist into the ground. "I can't be dead! This is all a mistake! Snowy—"

"If it wasn't for Shane and his friends, _none of us_ would be here right now," Totem Ninetales said. "Necrozma wiped out everything, but Shane used Necrozma's power to bring all of us back… at a great personal cost."

"Feh. He just wanted the attention. That's all he's ever cared about!" Lycanroc spat.

"It's awful hard to give attention to someone who burnt out their spirit and wiped themselves from existence," Totem Ninetales said, her expression stoic.

Lycanroc opened and closed his mouth several times, before finally managing to say, "Wait… Snowy's dead, too?"

"More than that. It seems he doesn't even have a spirit left to recover," Totem Ninetales said. She glanced at the translucent Lucario. "Though, from the looks of things, he's not the only one with a burnt-out spirit. Quite frankly, I'm surprised to see you here, Prisma. I was under the impression your direct exposure to Necrozma's core had destroyed your spirit."

"Human wills are strong. We can linger as long as a sliver of our spirit remains. The kid probably didn't even realize it," Prisma growled. "But you knew that already. So, why are you here? Come to deliver scathing remarks on behalf of all the idiotic gods who've been handed free passes?"

"No, I'm here on business." Totem Ninetales paused. "Besides, the gods have been stripped of their powers."

Prisma sat up, her arms going straight through her transparent thighs. "What are you talking about?"

"Team Radiance destroyed all of the ley lines that had previously plagued are world. And when Shane revived the gods, he did so in a way that removed their powers," Totem Ninetales explained. "They can't use alchemy. Their control over the elements is gone. At best… they are very strong Pokémon with powerful attacks. Nothing more." She swished her rightmost tails to the side. "Is that not what you were hoping for?"

Prisma's jaw hung open. Then, she tried to strike the wooden bench. Another rainbow barrier appeared and her fist bounced off harmlessly. "I don't believe this. This whole second life has been nothing but one cruel joke. Why _not_ cap it off by having someone _else_ achieve one of my goals while I'm stuck in some damn Poké-purgatory for all eternity?" She let loose a loud, bitter laugh.

"I wouldn't exactly say that." Totem Ninetales expression sharpened. "As it stands, I don't plan on having you three stay long."

Lycanroc raised a brow. "And what's that supposed to mean, sheila?"

"Well, the general policy Xerneas and I had always taken toward the spirit realm was that restless and vindictive spirits would be sealed in the Tree of Life's roots… then sent back to the world of the living as ghost-types … with no memories or any semblances of their previous selves intact," Totem Ninetales said, the purple aura intensifying around her.

"What?" Lycanroc thrust his arms to the side. He stopped and looked around. "H-Hey… where's my Rock Throw at?"

"Spirits in the Tree of Life cannot use attacks," Totem Ninetales replied. "Not that it would've mattered." She looked up. "It seems Shane fortified the spirit realm when he severed its connection to the planet's core." Totem Ninetales placed a paw against the glowing tree bark. "He briefly had control of _everyone's_ spirits, include the former gods. I imagine he must've tapped into their memories to see how the Tree of Life was constructed, then used Necrozma's light to alter the Tree's foundations."

"Oi. Quit speaking in bloody riddles," Lycanroc spat.

"She means that the Tree of Life is no longer tied directly to the planet's stability. No one has to worry about the world drifting into the sun if anything happens to it," Prisma said, shaking her head. "Unbelievable. No gods. No Mystery Dungeons. But I didn't get to return home."

Lycanroc's crimson eyes flashed. "You? What about me? I'm getting a bad rap, here." He glared at Totem Ninetales. "You ain't turning me into no ghost! I deserve a fair shake or trial or whatever!"

Totem Ninetales looked away. "With Xerneas missing, I can't afford to let you three linger here and potentially poison the spirit realm with your hateful thoughts."

"Then why even talk to us?" Prisma said, raising an eyebrow.

"Truthfully, I didn't want to. I'm simply honoring a request," Totem Ninetales said. She stepped to the side, revealing a dimmer silhouette behind her. Prisma stood up and put a paw on her chest.

"No…" Her right eye twitched. "W… what are you doing here?"

In the back of the room, Metagross stirred, cracking an eye open to stare at the bars. Incineroar walked up to them, wearing a tired expression despite having been resting in the spirit realm for months. He crossed his arms. "I had to see you. Because I wanted to hear straight from your mouth why you kept so many important things from me," Incineroar said.

Prisma shrank back, looking away. "I, well…"

"I believed you when you said you didn't remember anything before waking up on a beach and getting forced to work for the scavengers. I was committed to helping you regain your lost memories. I… we…" Incineroar's voice trailed off. "I told you how I felt about you. You said you felt the same way. But I told you multiple times how much having a family meant to me… and you never spoke up against it. Why?"

"I… I…" Prisma tried to squeeze her shoulder, but her paw phased right through it.

"Don't you think I deserve to know? Gallian and Tessa were my— no, _our_ children. Look at what you put them through," Incineroar said. His usual smile was gone. Prisma wasn't solid anymore, so she had to heart that could shoot into her throat. Instead, a general unease gripped her. Like she was a Riolu again with Feraligatr lumbering over her, waiting to discipline a perceived mistake. For the first time since Incineroar's passing, she whined.

"It's not my fault! _He's_ to blame!" she finally blurted out, pointing at Metagross. "If he hadn't… he…" Though she was purely ethereal, she went through the motions of sucking in a sharp breath. "He took you from me! You were the one thing… the _one_ silver lining in this awful, backwards world. That's why I put up with _your_ kids. They made you happy. I was happy when you were happy!" She squeezed her ethereal eyes shut. "I made the best of a bad situation."

"A bad situation? Don't you think I would've tried to help you find a way home if you had told me you were human?" Incineroar said, grabbing onto the wooden bars. Totem Ninetales wrapped a tail around one of his paws. Rather than phasing through, her purple aura spread across Incineroar's paw. He let go of the bars and stepped back. "I was an explorer… helping Pokémon was my life's work!"

"I didn't want you knowing because I didn't want _anyone_ knowing. I'd heard the stories about what humans had done and I didn't want to get roped up into some potential conflict when the only thing that mattered to me was getting the hell away from here!" Prisma snarled. Were she alive, tears would've have welled up in her eyes. Instead, faint silver embers trickled down her cheeks.

"I _tried_ to find a way home, but the more I looked into it, the less hopeful I became. And you and I were spending more time together and I got complacent," Prisma continued. "You reminded me too much of my husband. My _real_ mate. And if I couldn't have him, then at least I could have a substitute that didn't make me _completely_ miserable!"

Incineroar's gaze fell toward the ground. "I was… a substitute?"

"The whole family was! Those names I gave your kids? They're the names my _real_ children have in the human world. The ones who I was taken away from! Who've been waiting for my return for god only knows how long!" Prisma said, stomping on the ground repeatedly. "Necrozma's power gave me a chance… a chance to get them back. But now that'll never happen."

Silence fell over the room. Lycanroc looked between the two of them. "What a load of Krokorok tears," he sneered. "At least you two were able to have a relationship you enjoyed. The love of my life screwed me over… and it all ended with me trapped here!"

Prisma glared at Lycanroc. He glared right back, bearing his fangs.

"I had to fight her, too."

Prisma stiffened. "What was that?"

"Necrozma took my spirit and ripped it out of the tree. He made me corporeal again. He _forced_ me to fight Tessa." Silver wisps sparkled in Incineroar's eyes. "I hurt my daughter… and there was nothing I could do to stop myself. She managed to break Necrozma's control… but now I'll always have that memory haunting me until the end of time." His expression hardened. "I was hoping that, somehow, talking with you would clear my head. But I think it made everything worse." He looked at Totem Ninetales. "I'll be praying with all my nonexistent heart that Tessa can recover from all the damage you've _both_ done to her psyche."

At that, Lycanroc raised an eyebrow and pointed at himself. "Me? I—"

"Not you. Metagross." Incineroar focused on the back of the room. "There are so, _so_ many things I want to say to you… but I won't. You don't deserve my time. Not for what you did to me."

 **I'm… sorry…**

"I trusted you."

 **I was… jealous… of your evolution. I tried… to cut corners… to catch up. It cost me everything,** Metagross said.

Incineroar turned his back on the makeshift cell. "There's nothing more to be said. I hope that whatever ghosts are born from your spirits can do some good to make up for everything you two did." He turned to Totem Ninetales. "Thank you for letting me do this. Sorry to trouble you."

Totem Ninetales brushed her forelegs together. "It's quite all right. Wasn't a problem." Incineroar disappeared from the area, leaving her standing in front of the bars. She sighed. "Well then… I guess that's it. Time for you all to join the world's contingency of ghost-types." Purple embers smoldered in her eyes. Shadows swirled within her brooch and purple wisps rose up around her. They weaved between the bars and snaked toward the three spirits in the cell.

"No. No, you can't do this to me!" Lycanroc shrank back, but soon bumped into Metagross. "I don't deserve any of this, do you hear me! I don't—" The purple wisps dragged him kicking and howling into an ectoplasmic puddle.

Prisma silently bowed her head as purple tendrils wrapped around her waist. She balled her ethereal paws into fists.

* * *

Hopefully you guys liked this part. I realize this is, uh, a lot slower than all of the preceding chapters. But that's kind of the point to this.

SuperOmegaGuest: I don't know who gave you that "one chapter left" information, but they were mistaken.

Anon Omega: It ain't over until you see **THE END** within the chapter.

Xero-Xis: Not sure if you'll see this, but I appreciate the kind words!

Next time: Our heroes reflect on how far they've come.


	118. Radiant Sunset

Thanks to Namohysip for his beta-reading assistance.

* * *

 **Chapter 101: Radiant Sunset**

 **~Aeon Observatory~**

Tessa struggled to open her eyes when she finally woke up from her dreamless slumber. She was so sore, even small muscles like her eyelids refused to budge. The only thing that could motivate Tessa to force her eyes open was the desire to get off her slimy pillow and clean herself up. Her nostrils burned from the stench in the room. A pang of guilt struck Tessa upon sitting up. _Someone_ would be responsible for cleaning the room up after Team Radiance had tracked in all this ooze. Tessa told herself that whoever drew the short straw would just accept it as a small price for getting brought back from the dead.

"Ugh. I don't think I've ever been so stiff in my life," Tessa said, sitting hunched over on the edge of her cushion. "How are you holding up, Shane?" She waited for a response, but got nothing. Tessa blinked slowly. Her aura feelers drooped. "Oh… right. Guess I'm not as well-rested as I was hoping." She pivoted on the cushion. "What about you, Silvally?"

Still no response.

"Silvally? Espeon?" It was too dark to see in the room, yet her aura sight wouldn't switch on. Sighing, Tessa concluded it was still burnt out. She hoped this wasn't permanent. Even though she hadn't learned to use it well, part of her felt naked without it. Hell, a small voice in her head was telling her that, with Necrozma gone, she wouldn't _have_ an aura sense anymore. That, somehow, the demonic entity had taken her powers from her when Shane destroyed it. One final cruel act to go along with forcing her partner to give up his own life.

Shaking her head, Tessa made a mental note to try and talk with Ephemeris about her aura sense. Even if he wasn't a Lucario, he seemed to know _something._ And, at this point, Tessa would take any bit of knowledge she could get. She supposed Silvally could also help, but since Necrozma had confirmed her situation was… unusual, she figured Ephemeris was better suited to the task.

Slowly, Tessa staggered to her feet. Grimacing, she ignored the urge to flop back onto her cushion. Laying around in this rancid room wouldn't solve any problems. Besides, her teammates had already left. For all she knew, they could've been clean already. Tessa fumbled around in the darkness until she managed to reach the door and slide it open. She lost her balance, however, and dropped onto her right side with a hiss and a _squelch._

Tessa got back up, frowning at the imprint her slimy thigh had left on the floor. She cursed herself out for adding onto the workload of whoever would be cleaning the area up. Tessa then trudged down the hallway, staring at her feet to make sure she wouldn't fall again. By the time she rounded the corner, Tessa was favoring her right side. She spotted the bath items Comfey had left for her, but she didn't want to get them messy by picking them up. Tessa raised her paws, trying to call forth the energy she'd use for Psychic. Nothing happened. Not even so much as a pink spark.

Growling, Tessa chose to improvise. She picked up the stool the soap and scrubber sat on. Tessa carefully limped her way into the only open washroom. Then, ignoring the protests from her arm muscles, she flicked the stool forward, flinging the bathing tools toward the shower in the corner. Tessa set the stool down, only to pause and stare at the yellow, star-shaped symbol stitched into the seat.

Brow furrowing, Tessa leaned against the stool. She recognized it… but from where? Tessa squeezed her eyes shut. Her head hurt, but she had to think. This was bothering her way more than it should have. Why was the stool familiar? Had she seen it the last time she was in the veteran quarters? No, that didn't sound right. The stool in her mother's room had a blue star stitched into its seat, not a yellow one.

That's when Tessa's eyes snapped open. Her mother… no, her _father._ No, wait. It was technically both of them, wasn't it? Tessa squeezed her eyes shut again and shook her head. Her thoughts were too disjointed. She had to breathe. Breathe and clear her mind.

 _'There's a matching set of stools at home… in the den.'_

She envisioned it in her mind's eye. A brown, oval table sat on a shaggy red carpet. It had a couch on one side and a chair and two stools on the other. Back before her dad had died and her mother had broken the table in a fit of rage, there were evenings where he'd sit on one of the stools and read Tessa stories while she sat on the other stool. She'd kick at the air excitedly when Incineroar got to one of her favorite parts… sometimes toppling over in the process.

Tessa imagined a Riolu sitting across from Incineroar. He held a book in his right hand, with a picture of the Air Continent's original rescue team badge on the cover. _"So, what story will it be tonight, Tessa?"_

 _"The Tale of Team Poképals! The Tale of Team Poképals!"_ Tessa's younger self squealed, bouncing in her seat.

Incineroar rubbed the back of his head. _"Again? But I just read it to you the other week. Don't you want to hear a different story?"_

 _"Nuh-uh! I've gotta learn their story by heart. That way, when I join the guild, I can find a human and become big a world-saving hero with tons of friends… just like them!"_

Incineroar smiled and flipped the book open. _"Well, all right, then. I can't argue with that. Let me just find the first page…"_

The memory faded and Tessa opened her eyes. Somehow, she'd ended up turning to face the mirror by the shower. Tessa frowned at her reflection. Her fur had an orange tint to accompany blood splotches and streaks of dirt. Patches of fur were either outright missing or so knotted up that no amount of brushing could salvage them. Her tail and the tufts atop her ears had fared the worst, looking as wild and jagged as a Zangoose's stripe.

Tessa's shoulders sagged. She sighed. In the end, she'd gotten what she had wanted, hadn't she? She _was_ a hero. Tessa hadn't just saved the world, she'd saved _every_ world from oblivion. And she got Silvally back, too. That was worth celebrating, wasn't it?

"It's not a true victory… if we don't make it through together," Tessa whispered, putting a paw on her chest as she approached the shower. She cranked the hot water valve up as high as it would go. Steaming droplets pelted her from above. Tessa tensed from the heat, but forced herself to endure it. She leaned forward, bracing herself against the wall with her right paw.

Tessa stared down at the drain. The clear water around it quickly turned orange, a sign that the shower's pressure was strong enough to dislodge the slime and muck clinging to her fur. Tessa watched the filth swirl around and disappear into the drain, then shut her eyes and craned her neck up so the water splashed across her face.

How many times had Incineroar read the stories of the other heroes to her? Too many to count. And that wasn't even including all the times she'd read them on her own. And yet, even though she loved those stories dearly as a pup — she knew them cover to cover, after all — Tessa found herself wondering how accurate these retellings really were. They never mentioned anything about any of the teams getting overwhelmed by their enemies or breaking into hysterics or spending most of their time filthy and smelly. Sure, the stories had mentioned times when the heroes had doubts, but those doubts were always put to rest by their respective partners.

Tessa ran her paws across her forehead. She wanted to kick herself for believing in those stories so hard. Tessa had given Shane so much flak for using the games from his world as a basis for all of his reasoning… but, in reality, she'd done the exact same thing with these stories, hadn't she?

Her partner was gone. And she was… well, she was practically an anomaly of her own. A Lucario that wasn't meant to exist… with powers derived from the very creature that had _actually_ destroyed the world until Shane managed to reverse everything.

Those memories were there. They were _real._ Tessa would have to deal with these revelations for the rest of her life. And, as she stood there, silently running her paws down to her hips to try and force off more dirt, she wondered if she could really handle living with all of it. If Shane had still been there, she'd have felt a lot more confident. Their situations had a lot in common, after all. But he wasn't there. He wouldn't ever be there.

Tessa grabbed the scrubber and lathered it in soap. Somewhere, in the back of her head, she knew how irrational this was. Tessa had fought with Shane for quite a while. And even once they'd managed to become friends, so much of their time went toward dealing with the Prism Virus that they never _really_ got to bond with one another.

 _"Even if Pokémon can battle, that doesn't mean battling defines what Pokémon are."_

That was something her dad always told her. Tessa used to think that was his way of consoling her over the lack of progress in her aura training. Now, though, Tessa thought it held a different meaning.

Tessa gritted her teeth, scrubbing around her chest spike with, perhaps, more force than was necessary. It didn't take much more thinking for her to realize why she was so upset by this line of thinking. Tessa had brought this concern up to Shane back in Circadian Coast… right before Temporal Tower collapsed and everything went belly-up. At the time, Shane promised to do his best to find a way to stay with her so he could prove their friendship was the real deal.

 _'But that's a promise that'll never get met.'_

The one silver lining that came to mind for Tessa was the fact that all of this proved that Shane's claims that Solgaleo was the one influencing his good deeds — and that, deep down, he was still a lousy person — were wrong. After all, what kind of lousy person is willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to bring the world back from the brink of annihilation? As Tessa tilted her head up to scrub her neck, she hoped that Shane was able to find some solace in that thought during his final moments.

Tessa continued silently scrubbing away. With her muscles as sore as they were, she wound up scrubbing harder than she intended to. Still, she had to admit that the soap was doing a much better job than she expected. And it left her citrus-scented, to boot.

 _'Am I really so desperate to avoid thinking about Shane that I'm zeroing in on body odor?'_ she wondered, shaking her head. Tessa wasn't sure what to make of any of it. Her mind had turned into some kind of loose-cannon Sharpedo determined to swim away from the pack. After all, there were plenty of things she could distract herself with. She could spend time with Gallian and Zoroark. She could see if Dusk was okay following Midnight's apparent death. And, with all these revivals, she could head for Sunrise Village to see if Shane had restored Sylveon and Eevee.

The thought of Eevee made Tessa glance at her sudsy form in the fog-covered mirror. _'Gods… it wasn't that long ago that Eevee and I were still the same height. And now look at me.'_ She shifted the scrubber to look at her right paw. To her dismay, the mark was still there. She frowned. Maybe losing her aura powers was for the best. That way, Tessa would never have to worry about going berserk again.

Sure, Silvally could help talk her down. But with _his_ past episodes, Tessa worried that losing control again would somehow set him off. The memory looplet was gone, after all, and she had no idea of the extent that Necrozma tampered with his powers. Tessa's shoulders sagged. It was just another fear to toss onto the growing pile.

She wasn't sure how long she'd been under the shower for, but Tessa eventually reached a point where she didn't think there was any slime left, even on her… sensitive areas. Tessa leaned over and switched the water off. She made for a towel hanging by the door, only to pause and look left at the empty tub on the side of the room.

 _'Oh, what the heck.'_

Tessa used her foot to turn the valve and sat on the edge of the tub, legs dangling. Once it had filled up past the bench along its outer rim, Tessa slid in. She pressed a button next to the faucet and several bubble jets switched on. To her surprise, one of the jets struck her right thigh. Tessa squeaked, almost jumping into the middle of the tub. However, after a few more seconds, Tessa concluded the bubble stream felt good. Mindful of her stiff tail, she leaned back against the wall, letting the bubble jet blow against her rump.

Her eyes fluttered shut. Tessa was still tired. She wanted the warm water to lull her back to sleep. However, as heavy as her eyelids were, Tessa stayed awake. She soon found a silhouette of a familiar ice Ninetales staring back at her. His silky hair fluttered behind him despite the lack of any sort of breeze in the room.

Tessa squirmed in her seat. "Sh… Shane…" She rubbed her cheek with a paw. "Why'd you have to go?"

The silhouette looked back at her. It bowed its head solemnly.

"I… I'm sorry. I know… this is all for the best, isn't it?" Tessa whispered. "I just… I wish we had more time together. I wish… we hadn't been so short-sighted." She sank down in the tub, tensing as her tail bent. Lucario tails weren't meant to bend, but Tessa was already sore enough that a little extra muscle strain didn't bother her.

"I know I yelled at you a lot. And you yelled at me. We both mucked up badly. And… and because of that… I never… we didn't…" Tessa blinked rapidly. The silhouette was still there. It still had a guilty look. It was even rubbing its forelegs together. Tessa was half-tempted to reach out toward the silhouette, but she knew better.

"Shane. We really were alike, weren't we?" Tessa said, gazing at the silhouette. "Both of us are anomalies that shouldn't exist." She paused, frowning. "Or, I guess, shouldn't _have_ existed, in your case." It stung to say that out loud.

"Both of us got our powers from the same crazy demon who was ready to wipe out the universe. And we both wanted people to admire us and shower us in attention, didn't we?" Tessa continued, rubbing her shoulder. "All because… we barely had anyone in our lives before we met each other. We were lonely. We didn't quite fit in where we'd grown up."

She shook her head. "When we met, I was just as excited at the possibility of being a world-famous hero as you were. You had those games of yours… and I had the stories about the other teams." Tessa's aura feelers drooped. "We were both clinging so tightly to those beliefs, weren't we? The only difference was that you were vocal about your desires and I… I forced myself to temper my expectations, because I didn't want to end up disappointed."

"Why didn't I tell you that stuff from the get-go?" Tessa smacked the water with a paw, drenching her head in the process. When the steam cleared, the silhouette was lying on the floor beside her, dipping a foreleg in the water. "I mean, yeah, there's no guarantee things would've gone the way they did if we'd done things differently, but at the very least we could've bonded over more than just our struggles!"

The silhouette looked down. Its ears drooped.

"I know. There's nothing I can do about it, now. But I… I was wrong, okay? Our friendship wasn't fake. We _did_ have a lot in common. And I…" Tessa's voice trailed off. The words had gotten caught in her throat. What point was there to even saying them? He wasn't here. Shane would never know the truth. Nevertheless, she reached toward the silhouette.

"I could see us being more than friends," Tessa said. Her paw made contact with the silhouette. It offered her a smile before dissolving away, leaving Tessa's paw to drop into the water with a tiny splash. Tessa tucked her head into her chest. Then, she reached for the drain plug and pulled it out. As the water funneled out of the tub, Tessa climbed out and grabbed a towel. She stood in front of the fogged-up mirror, drying herself as best she could. Thankfully, Comfey's soap masked any wet fur smell.

It was right when Tessa was in the middle of drying her tail that someone knocked on the door. "J-Just a second!" she called, hastily trying to finish. Yes, her fur was still matted and littered with knots, but this would have to do. She couldn't keep hiding from everyone, after all.

Tessa opened up the door and found Espy and Silvally standing on the other said. Like her, they both had scruffy coats from running towels through their fur. "Hey. Everything okay in here? It sounded like you were talking to someone," Silvally said.

"Oh, that? I, uh…" Tessa's aura feelers crinkled. Knowing she didn't have a convenient lie at the ready, she sighed. "I was talking to, um, 'Shane.'"

Espy and Silvally exchanged concerned looks. "You mean… like a hallucination?"

"I—" Tessa frowned. "Yeah, I guess so."

Silence followed, until Espy's ears drooped. "Oh. I… I'm sorry we interrupted. But we peeked out the window. The sun's starting to set and it looks like the folks in Aeon Town are having some kind of gathering."

So, Tessa had slept the whole day away? She wasn't surprised. "A… gathering? What for?" Tessa asked, a brow raised.

"Dunno, but I saw smoke and smelled barbeque. So, maybe it's some kind of celebration?" Silvally said, licking his beak to stop drool from trickling to the ground.

Tessa blinked slowly. Of course there was a get-together happening. The restoration of the world _was_ worth celebrating. The problem was… Tessa wasn't sure she was ready to face down a crowd in Aeon Town. "Are you guys planning to go?" she asked.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm so hungry, I could eat a Krokorok!" Silvally said, drawing an astonished look from Espy. "Err… not an actual Krokorok, of course. More like a Krorkork-sized slab of meat and…" He sighed. "Forget it. I'll just stop talking."

"We thought you'd want to come with us. It wouldn't feel right without the whole team," Espy said, only to realize her mistake a moment too late when Silvally and Tessa's eyes widened. "Ah! Sorry! I… I didn't…" She shrank back, tail drooping. "That came out wrong."

"No. It's… it's fine," Tessa said, though the look on her face said otherwise. "I guess I'm just worried about bringing down the mood. I'm still…" She looked away. "I can't get Shane off of my mind."

"You're not alone," Silvally said, leaning over to nudge Tessa's shoulder. "I keep thinking about if there was something… _anything_ that I could've done to keep Shane from burning out his spirit." His sonar-like ears drooped. "But I think that's why we should go see what's happening in town. It's not that we're forgetting about Shane. It's more like we're, um…"

He tapped a talon on the floor. "Okay, I admit I don't really have a good comparison to make. But the point still stands. If we stay here, we're just gonna feel worse and worse. I think seeing happy, smiling faces in the town square will be good for all of us."

"I guess." Tessa bit her lip. "But aren't you worried about what the townspeople will think of you? I mean… you never even went to town back when you had the mask on, right?"

Silvally stiffened. "Ah. That's, um…" He shook his head. "It's all in the past. I'm not going to be afraid of who I am. I want everyone to know I'm Silvally… and I helped save their keisters from total destruction!" He puffed his chest out.

A smile finally tugged at Tessa's lips. "That's a pretty convincing impression of Shane's Vulpix days."

"Thank you! I've been working on it in secret," Silvally said, tail wagging.

Espy groaned. "Puh- _lease_ tell me you're being facetious."

"Okay! I'm being facetious," Silvally said, completely straight-faced.

"That… okay, it's scary how quickly you got serious," Espy said, though she couldn't help but giggle. Tessa also put a paw to her muzzle.

"All right, you got me," she said, raising her hands in surrender. "Let's go into town. But you might want to tone the charm factor down a bit, Silvally. You're still gonna be bigger than most folks there and I think a personality that matches your size is gonna spook a few people."

"Pfbt. That's what Team Specter's here for," Silvally scoffed.

Tessa tilted her head. "Oh, right. I guess I'm gonna have to get used to seeing them again at some point." She glanced at the towel she'd dropped on the floor. "Maybe I ought to bring this along? Y'know, to be on the safe side."

Her teammates joined her in chuckling.

* * *

"Hold up. You can _not_ be serious! We've got a faller situation. It's not something I can sit around and ignore!"

Tessa paused in the middle of the Observatory's entryway, aura feelers twitching. "Huh. Isn't that Seraph? When did Team Paradox get here?"

"Must've been while we were asleep," Silvally said. "You think everything's okay? She sounds a bit steamed."

"I thought being steamed was her thing," Espy mused.

"You _did_ hear her mention 'faller situation,' right? I think Luxeira mentioned something about fallers when she was telling us what happened to her home," Tessa said, frowning.

Espy's tail shot up. "Ah, she did! It was some kinda kooky Ultra Space term for someone who got sucked into another world through an Ultra Wormhole." She exchanged panicked looks with her teammates and they headed for the front door without a second thought. No sooner had they walked outside than they found Seraph standing in front of a bewildered Ephemeris and Ninetales, coddling a black-and-white Zigzagoon in her arms. Luxeira and Sticky were behind her. Both blanched the moment they saw Team Radiance in the doorway.

"Um, Seraph? Something the matter?" Tessa said, eyes locked on the weird-looking Zigzagoon.

Seraph turned to her. "Yes, something is definitely the mat—"

"Ahh! Ultra Beast! Ultra Beast! D-Don't eat me! I don't taste good or nothing!" Zigzagoon shrieked upon seeing Silvally. She squirmed about in Seraph's gripping, inadvertently clawing at her chest fur. "Save me, two-legged Luxray lady!"

Silvally's jack slackened. Meanwhile, it took every bit of restraint for Espy not to burst into laughter. "Two-legged Luxray? Seriously?"

"Kid! Oof… hey, kid, relax! The big guy's harmless," Seraph said, trying not to shock Zigzagoon by accident. Eventually she held Zigzagoon up at arm's length in Silvally's direction.

"Hi there," Silvally chirped, bending over and wiggling his hips in a friendly display. "I'm Silvally! I don't think I've ever seen a Zigzagoon look like you. Did you cover yourself in a tube of novelty fur dye?"

Zigzagoon blinked. "Uh… no. I've _always_ looked like this." She tried to look at Seraph. "When am I going home? I want to see Mommy again."

"We're, um, working on it," Luxeira said. "Remind us who your mother is again?"

"Her name's Obstagoon Mina! And I'm Zigzagoon Azalea," she replied, frowning. Her ears drooped. "How much longer do I have to wait? Mommy's gonna get upset at me… but I didn't wander off on my own! I was right next to her, I swear!"

"Of course you were." Luxeira nodded. "And we're doing the best that we can, but you'll have to bear with us."

Tessa, however, was completely lost. "Um, am I missing something here? Black-and-white Zigzagoons are not a thing. And what's an Obstagoon?"

"Lucy, look after the kid for me, will ya?" Seraph set Azalea down at Luxeira's feet and walked over to Team Radiance. In a hushed voice, she said, "Okay, look, I'm in no mood to explain this for, like, the sixth time. Short version is your buddy must've torn at least one Ultra Wormhole open by accident and sent that poor girl hurtling into our world. There are a lot of words out in Ultra Space, so odds are strong some of them have Pokémon species you've never heard of or Pokémon forms you've never seen before."

"Like how some Pokémon species are unique to Horizon," Espy said, glancing at Tessa.

"Okay. Fair," Tessa said. It struck her that her reaction to this development mirrored Shane's reaction to everything he found unfamiliar in Horizon. A guilty pang struck the middle of her gut and her aura feelers drooped. She quickly recomposed herself, however. "So, um, Azalea's not from our world. What do we do about it?"

"Well, I _wanted_ to ask Lunala for help, since Ninetales said she'd dropped you guys off here," Seraph said, tapping her foot on the ground. "But apparently she got pulled away on some kind of secret business. Not that it matters… since if this gold-feathered guy is to be believed, Popsicle Breath _rearranged all of Ultra Space!_ "

"Yeah, we kind of knew that already. Is it really that big of a deal?" Silvally said, eyebrow raised. "Your partner made it sound like Ultra Space had little rhyme or reason to it."

"It's a _huge_ deal!" Seraph threw her arms up and flailed them around. "The Ultra Recon Squad had organized itself around the layout of Ultra Space… even if it was hard to get a grip on. If Popsicle Breath restructured it from the ground up, then the whole Ultra Recon Network could be in a massive uproar!"

"Seraph, don't you think you're catastrophizing a bit?" Sticky said, floating up to her. "Most folks never set foot in Ultra Space… so they wouldn't notice a single thing. It's the companies and the Ultra Recon Squad that are likely calling emergency meetings and whatnot."

"That's my point. If they're all busy, then we've got no way to reach out to any of them," Seraph said.

"Oh, right. I'm sure you must be eager to get back to…" Espy's voice trailed off when she remembered what had happened to Ultra Village. "Err, never mind."

Arms crossed, Seraph said, "It's whatever. Truth is I've got at least one piece of business left to take care of in this place." She glanced at Luxeira, earning raised eyebrows from Espy and Silvally. "But, eh, I guess there's nothing I can really do about it right now. Just feel sorry for the kid, that's all." Seraph wedged a digit in her ear and scratched it. "I shouldn't be bothering you, anyway. You three have earned a break."

"Yes. Don't let us hold you up from the festivities," Sticky said, glancing down at the town square. Tiny smoke plumes rose up toward the late afternoon sky. Laughter echoed from down below and Pokémon of different shapes and sizes mingled around the Gorebyss fountain which, strangely, now had a golden Huntail coiling around it as well.

"All right. Thanks." Tessa sidestepped Luxeira. She made it five steps down the hill when a gust of wind rippled the fur on her back. "What the—" Tessa turned around. "Isn't that Rayquaza? When did he get here?" She pointed a paw off into the distance.

"Oh, yeah. Long story short… there's this tribe of dragons that got plopped down somewhere to the northeast of us. Said they lost their Totem or something," Ninetales explained. "When they came to the guild asking for help, the Totem's son was there. He told them he had no interest in helping them and suggested they turn to Rayquaza. So, now he's here."

"And Hoopa's the one who brought him!"

"Bwah!" Tessa jumped up, hollered in surprise, and fell to the ground with a _thud_. Espy arced her back, puffed up her fur, and hissed. Silvally turned to his right and frowned at Hoopa, who was dangling from one of his own ring portals.

"Seriously? You didn't have to spook us like that," Silvally huffed, dark memories shifting on.

"Hoopa wasn't aiming to spook. It's not Hoopa's fault you all are so jumpy," Hoopa said. He lifted his right hand, brandished a donut in it, and chomped down half of it in a single bite. "Besides, Hoopa's been ferrying people places for a while, now. Cut Hoopa some slack."

Silvally's disapproving look said there was no slack to be cut.

Hoopa frowned. "Yeah, okay. Hoopa's bad." He held out a plate with his left hand. A half-dozen golden, honey-glazed donuts sat on it. "Donut? Latias and Lugia are making them in town square."

Espy almost broke down coughing. "E-Excuse me? Latias and Lugia?" She turned to her teammates. "Weren't we supposed to use the meeting tomorrow to figure out how the gods were gonna mingle with us?"

"In all fairness, we've been with Latias for…" Tessa's voice trailed off. "Urk, okay, time crash aside, I guess it hasn't been _that_ long since she showed up for the Glyphic Falls expedition."

"Latias is moving in with you guys," Hoopa said.

"Wait, what? Did she clear that with, uh…" Espy's voice trailed off. "Actually, who's even running the Observatory now that the angry dinner table is an ornament in the spirit realm?"

Tessa blinked. "That's… an excellent question." She clutched her head. "And now I think another headache's coming on."

"Hoopa didn't mean they'd _literally_ move into your place. Only that they want to live in Horizon. As for your fancy dome, that's for you guys to decide. Hoopa likes his place in Lively Town, so Hoopa's staying there." Hoopa tossed one of the donuts from his plate into his mouth. "Mmm… Combee honey. Hoopa's favorite! Sure you don't want?"

"I'm more of a malasada guy," Silvally said, shrugging.

"Oh, they've got those, too. Some Crabrawler guy's making 'Mythical Malasadas,' whatever those are." Hoopa shook his head. "Hoopa thinks it's appalling, really. Taking good pastries and sucking all the sweetness out of them like that." He scarfed down another donut.

Fire memories switching on, Silvally leaned in and growled, "Hey, don't you diss malasadas like that! They're great! Besides, you lathered those things in so much honey that I bet you can't actually taste them."

"Settle down, children. Or am I going to have to separate you?" Espy teased.

"He started it," Silvally said, pointing a talon at Hoopa.

"Did not."

"Did too!" Silvally huffed.

"Did no— ah, forget it. Go have your shindig," Hoopa said. He ducked back into his ring portal, which closed up behind him.

Silvally puffed out his chest. "Now I'm a hero _and_ a defender of the best dish in existence."

"Yeah, you really showed him who's boss." Giggling, Espy hip-checked Silvally as she walked past him. Embers crackled around his cheek bolts before he suppressed his fire memories and followed after her.

Tessa could only sigh and bring up the rear of the group. _'Is he acting like Shane to try and make me feel better… or is he just that happy that Necrozma's gone?'_ she wondered, watching Espy and Silvally slowly drift closer to each other until they were walking side by side. Tessa figured that, with the tampering Necrozma had done to Silvally's being, it was the latter idea. At the very least, that thought brought a smile to her face. It was good to see Silvally happy.

As Aeon Town's square grew closer, voices grew louder. Tessa's nostrils twitched. The sweet aroma of Crabrawler's malasadas drew her attention straight toward his café. It seemed that he'd set up some sort of cooking station. There was a small line of Pokémon waiting to get food, all while Crabrawler and Steenee weaved between grills and wooden tables. Mimikyu scuttled around the cooking area, wielding utensils in his cloth hand and doing his best to balance a tray of cookies on his disguise's head.

"I wonder if Latias and Lugia are using the donuts to distract from, y'know, their appearances," Espy thought aloud. Tessa glanced right, where another cooking station sat on the other side of the fountain. Lugia was seated awkwardly between a bench and Dhelmise Depot. He had his tail firmly wrapped up in his wings, like he thought he'd accidentally smack someone with it if he wasn't careful. Latias tended to metal grates in bubbling oil. Growlithe stood at the cooking area's side with an apron slung around his belly.

Then, to Tessa's surprise, Sylveon walked between Latias and Lugia. She grabbed the handle for one of the grates with her ribbons, lifted it, and nodded with a smile on her face. Latias smiled back. Tessa stumbled forward pushing past Espy and Silvally. "They're back," she whispered.

"Huh? Who's back?" Espy said. Her ears stuck up when she followed Tessa's gaze. "Ah. If… if that's Sylveon, then—"

"Tessa! Tessa! Tessa!"

A brown ball shot past Espy and crashed right into Tessa's gut. Tessa fell to her rear with an audible, "Oomph!"

"Hi, Tessa! I missed you a ton!" Eevee chirped, his wagging tail brushing against Tessa's thighs. "Look how big you are, now! And you've got spikes! That's so cool! Can you teach me how to grow spikes? I'm thinking maybe I'll be a spiky Jolteon!"

"H… Hi, Eevee," Tessa said, petting her old friend on the head. "It's good to see you again, too. Did you, um, learn Headbutt or something since we last saw each other?"

Eevee tilted his head. "No, that was a Headhug!" His tail resumed wagging. "I came up with it myself!"

"Ah. That's very creative of you," Tessa said. She stood back up, holding Eevee in her paws. It was… odd for her to be able to do that. Tessa supposed it came with the territory of evolving. "Why don't we go say hi to your mom, okay?"

"Okay! She's making chocolate cake for you," Eevee said as Tessa positioned him on her shoulder.

"I'll, uh, catch up with you two, I guess?" Tessa said.

"Go ahead. I think we'll be fine," Silvally said, pointing his beak toward Sylveon. Tessa nodded and walked off, only for several Pokémon to notice her and call out to her. "So, shall we sample some malasadas?" Silvally gestured to his left. "You never got the chance to try one for yourself, did you?"

"Honestly, I can't remember at this point. Mind's all jumbled up from everything's that happened," Espy said, chuckling.

Before Silvally got to respond, however, two Pikipek, a Rattata, and a Munchlax swarmed him. "Mr. Silvally! Mr. Silvally!" Munchlax tugged at the fur around Silvally's right knee. His head crest fanned out in surprise.

"H-Huh? Is… is there a problem? Did I do something wrong?"

"Something wrong? No way! We wanted to see you close-up, that's all," Munchlax said, his eyes sparkling. "Hey, can you really switch to any type you want? That's so cool! You're kinda like Mr. Kecleon!"

"Nuh-uh! Mr. Kecleon says he has to get hit with an attack or he can't change types," Rattata harrumphed.

Silvally stepped back, blinking in surprise. "Err, um, y-yeah… I can change my types. How did you—"

"Because we saw you fighting Necrozma!" the shorter, stouter Pikipek said, flaring out her wings. "You were all like… bam! Whoosh! Ker-pow!"

"Yeah! And the way you jumped in to pull Espeon out of the big, slimy core monster thing… it was so awesome!" the taller, thinner Pikipek added. "Are you boyfriend and girlfriend?"

Espy's tail shot up. She stepped back, her cheeks reddening. "E-Excuse me?"

"That's… um… hey, where are your parents? Are they okay with you talking to strangers?" Silvally scanned the town square for any sign of adults missing their kids.

"Aww, look! His glowy parts turned all red. They _do_ love each other," the Pikipek sisters said.

"Yeah! He's right over here, guys!" Rattata shouted, waving his arms around. Silvally was about to respond to the Pikipek when he spotted other kids charging toward him. He stepped back, beak hanging open. There was a Yungoos, a couple of Cutieflies, some Grubbins…

"W-Wh… what can I do for all of you?" Silvally said, struggling to keep track of everyone.

"We wanna hear about all your adventures!" one of the cutiefly buzzed.

"Yeah! Tell us more action-packed stories!" Rattata said, punching at the air beside him.

Espy backed away when the second wave of tykes descended on Silvally. They were clearly interested in him and she figured that kids would be the perfect place to start as far as interacting with people in public went. Especially ones as eager to talk with him as these kids were. Espy decided to get him a malasada while he tended to his newly-formed fan club. She made her way down to the fountain and headed toward the back of the line for Steenee's food station, only for a brown, fuzzy arm to shoot out in front of her.

"Come now," a Gumshoos said. Espy shrank back at the sight of his big, toothy grin. His tone sounded friendly, but facial expressions were definitely a problem for the guy in her book. "After everything you did to help us, I can't let you go all the way to the back of the line. Take my spot. I insist."

Espy blinked. "O-Oh. N-No, I couldn't, that's— I don't need any special treatment."

"It's not special treatment. With all that you went through, it's _fair_ treatment," Gumshoos said. Several voices behind him muttered their agreement.

"O-Okay." Espy took her place in front of Gumshoos. Blood rushed to her cheeks. This was… quite a bit different from Post Town. It might take some getting used to. Espy glanced up the hill, then closed her eyes and smiled. If there were going to be bumps in the road, at least she had good support to carry her over them. Her tail perked up and wagged slowly at the thought.

"There you are, Espy. I've been looking everywhere for you!"

Her thoughts popped like a pricked balloon. Espy tensed up, eyes widening. "U-Umbry?" She turned left. Umbreon walked over to her, a mixture of worry and relief on his face… somehow. Espy's heart jumped into her throat, torn between the joy of seeing him again after the arduous trials that followed his sacrifice and concern because she hadn't had the chance to think about what she'd say to him when she saw him again.

In the end, she bowed at Gumshoos and left the line. She walked up to Umbreon and met him for a quick embrace. "It's… it's good to see you again," she whispered, giving him a curt nuzzle. "I'm glad you're okay."

"Me too, sis. Me too." Umbreon broke off the embrace and stepped back. "I, uh, I came over from Paradise as soon as I could. But I, um…" His voice trailed off and he looked toward the party. "Between my transport and this party things got a bit… wild." He leaned over and whispered, "Hoopa scares me."

"You're not alone in that regard," Espy said, smirking and shaking her head. An awkward silence fell between the two. Espy's brain screamed at her to stick to idle chitchat. "So, um, how's Paradise? Is it—"

Umbreon smiled. "Fixed." He paused to let relief flood Espy's face. "Well, more or less. But the others are tending to the few things that Shane couldn't fix."

"Is that so?"

"I use 'tending' loosely. Hydreigon's form of helping keeps breaking things and I'm _pretty_ sure Haxorus directed him to 'float there and look pretty' before I left." Umbreon chuckled, then waited for Espy to do the same. As amusing as the mental image of Hydreigon floating around covered in glitter was, Espy kept quiet. She brushed her forelegs together. "E… Espy, is something wrong?"

"I, um—" Espy bit her lip and looked away. She couldn't avoid things, could she? "Umbry, we… we really need to talk. About, y'know, what happened at Tapu Bulu's temple." Shuddering, Espy paused. "No… about everything."

Umbreon frowned. "Espy, I'm not here for that. I just wanted to see my sister again." He nudged her cheek. "After everything you've been through, you deserve to rest. Take the day off or whatever. We can always talk at a later point."

"No, we can't," Espy said, her voice firm. She glanced up at Silvally, who sat on his haunches with kids gathered around him. Some clung to his forelegs and shoulders. It brought a smile to her face. She took a deep breath. "Umbry, I want you to be real with me… because I've had a recurring thought ever since what happened at the Temple of Body… and even though my friends have tried to help me shake it, it keeps coming back."

"What is it?" Umbreon asked, his flickering.

"Did you sacrifice yourself because you'd gotten sick of me?"

Umbreon stepped back. His rings dimmed. Espy frowned. That was the exact response she _didn't_ want to see. "U-Umbry…"

"Of course not, Espy!" Umbreon said, loud enough to attract a few people's attentions. "S-Sorry, everyone." He waved them off with a forepaw, then looked around. Umbreon beckoned for Espy to follow him. They walked to one side of the hill until there weren't any other Pokémon around. Umbreon sat down and sighed. "Espy, why would you ask something like that?"

"Because of how I've treated you all this time. Let's face it, Umbry, I've been a really bad sister to you. And, um… an even worse mate," Espy said, wincing at that last part. "You didn't deserve all the flak and stress that I'd pushed onto you. I figured it was the whole soulmate bond superstition thing that kept you by my side. So, when Necrozma was attacking, you saw an out… and took it." Her ears drooped. "That's what I had told myself. And, frankly, if the answer was yes… I would've understood."

"Espy…"

"No, don't try to shrug it off, Umbry." Espy glanced up at the hill again. She could still see Silvally. A warmth spread through her chest. "I've… had time to really think back on everything that happened. Between us… and our friends in Paradise, too. For the longest time, I've been acting like the exact antithesis of what Paradise was trying to be. I got as bad as some of the Post Town residents were when Munna and Kyurem plagued the Mist Continent."

Umbreon tensed. "I… I wouldn't say it was…"

"It's the truth, Umbry. You don't have to sugarcoat it for my sake." Espy took another deep breath. "But I don't want to be like that, anymore. Seeing what Necrozma did to you…" Her voice trailed off. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to keep her breathing steady. "Umbry, before Necrozma destroyed the planet he… he trapped me in a Mystery Dungeon. Summoned Void Shadow copies of you and our friends from Paradise."

"Oh no. Espy, I'm so sorry! I—"

"It was bad. Worse than all the nightmares. But what made it even harder was… was the fact that I had to fight Silvally," Espy said, her head bowed.

Umbreon raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that?" Before Espy responded, however, Umbreon's eyes widened. "Wait, hang on. You and Silvally did seem, um… well, you stuck _close_ together when you were fighting against Necrozma." His brow furrowed. "Am I missing something?"

"Yes." Espy's breathing grew shakier. "Silvally has… helped me confront all of the negativity I've built up over the years. At first… I was dismissive of him. But the more time I spend around him, the more I realize how much I care about him." She rubbed her forepaws together. "When I thought I was going to lose him, I told him that I loved him."

"O-Oh…" Umbreon blinked slowly. "You, um…"

Espy nodded. "I'm sure of it, Umbry. These feelings I have for him… it's got nothing to do with mating. It's… I just want his company. I want him by my side." Her gaze fell on him again. His laughter — she assumed one of the kids had done something funny — brought a smile to her face. "He's… he's…" She blinked tears out of her eyes. "I want a life with him, Umbry. So, _so_ badly. Even if it doesn't make sense given his background. I can't envision a life without him."

Umbreon slowly tilted his head. His rings dimmed.

"Our relationship… I mean, yeah, I love you. You're my brother. But us as mates… that was a bad decision brought on by the thought that we were going to die," Espy said, her tail twitching. "And then I kept it going out of desperation. It was about sex… and nothing more, really."

Umbreon winced and looked away. Espy wrapped her tail around a hind leg. "It's not like that with him. His company is enough to make me happy… in a way I don't think I can really describe."

The two sat and looked at each other in silence. Espy grew progressively more worried, until Umbreon sighed loudly.

"There's no need to explain it," Umbreon said, nudging Espy's forepaw with his own. "Espy, I'm glad you were able to find someone like that. Yeah, I does bum me out when I think about how that means I probably shouldn't expect you back home, but it's not like we're never gonna see each other or anything." He glanced over his shoulder at Silvally. "Besides, from everything you've told me, it sounds like he really is a good fit for you."

Espy smiled. She blinked tears from her eyes. "Thanks, bro. That… means a lot more to me than you realize."

"Right. It's just… what about the superstition?" Umbreon said, biting his lower lip.

"Well, it's like Tessa said. I think it's time we tossed that moldy old tradition away," Espy said, sticking her snout up.

"Meaning what?"

"Meaning, as your mate, I'm saying we're through," Espy said. "But as your sister," she leaned in and nuzzled Umbreon's cheek, "I'll always love you. You're family. And you stuck by me during the worst of times. And now… it's time for me to figure out a way to repay you." She leaned back, flicking her tail. "Who knows? Maybe I can find someone more appropriate to set you up with."

Umbreon's rings flashed brightly. "U-Uh. M-Maybe we should take things one day at a time?" He chuckled nervously.

"I'm only kidding, dummy," Espy said, then punched his shoulder playfully. "Now, come on. I think we dragged all of this on long enough, don't you?"

"Agreed. Though I'm not even sure Silvally realized you're gone," Umbreon said, looking up the hill. Nine of the kids were trying to team up and knock Silvally over. But his steel memories were on and he wasn't budging an inch, much to his amusement. "Should we, um, save him? That looks quite bothersome."

"On the contrary. He's clearly having fun with this," Espy said, a huge grin on her face. "Plus, it's a good way to get him accustomed to being out in public, don't you think? He never really got the chance, since we had to flee the guild right after the events at the temple."

"Seriously?" Umbreon blinked in surprise. "Jeez, how much did I miss?"

"A _ton._ You'd want to pull up a cushion and get comfortable, because it'd be a _long_ story," Espy said, sighing and shaking her head. "I wish I could say our past experiences made me prepared for all the stuff we had to deal with… but that'd be a lie."

"That sounds… oof, yeah, that's a bad time." Umbreon shuddered. "Well, if you need to vent, I'm willing to hear you out. Provided it's, y'know, a healthy kind of venting."

"Understood," Espy said as they reached the fountain. "Okay, I think I'm definitely gonna get some f—" Espy stopped herself and squinted, then frowned.

"Something wrong?" Umbreon asked.

"Yeah. I think I just saw Tessa leaving town."

* * *

 **~Azure Cape~**

Tessa tried to mingle around with people at the party. She gave friendly greetings, talked with Sylveon for the first time since her hatch day, and received more compliments in the span of a few minutes than she thought she'd gotten in the last several years. Sure, there were quite a few people looking skeptically at the black fur on her chest, but they all seemed to take the sight in stride since she'd played a big role in saving them.

And yet, even with no aura sense to frazzle her, she got overwhelmed. So, Tessa trudged off down the western road, climbed the hill leading away from town, and kept walking until sandy shores appeared in the distance. Her aura feelers twitched as she approached the boundary between the trail and Azure Cape.

 _'And here I am. Back where it all began.'_

Tessa walked across the beach, shielding her eyes from the setting sun's reflection. She headed for the large rock stuck in the sand. The spot where she had found Shane after he'd washed ashore. The salty air brought the stench of damp fur to mind. It was the first thing that tipped her off that Shane was there. And, from there, things snowballed out of control in a way Tessa could never have predicted.

 _'How time flies, huh?'_

She knelt down and scooped up a pawful of sand. Warmth tickled her fur as she slowly opened her paw and let sand grains trickle back down onto the ground. Tessa continued walking until she was close to the rock. Then, she plopped herself down, leaning back and bracing her arms on either side of her. Tessa stuck her legs out and dug her toes into the sand, wiggling them. She gazed out over the water, squinting due to the sun's reflection. Orange sparkles twinkled in the distance, bringing to mind Shane's fur after Primarina's team had gussied him up and covered him in glitter.

"Nrgh. You're so stupid." Tessa lifted a paw and bonked the side of her head three times. "You're practically obsessing over him. Pull yourself together. This isn't the end of the world or anything. We managed to reverse that." She paused, frowning. "Well, I guess Shane did. And that's why he's not here." Her brows raised. "Ugh, I did it again!"

Tessa flopped onto her back, wincing from her tail bending. It quickly sank into the sand when Tessa bent her knees. "I'm such a dummy. Here I am… moping on the beach like I used to do before I met Shane." Tessa put a paw to her head and rubbed it. "You know he wouldn't want you to do that, Tessa." She lay there silently, thanking her good fortunes that there weren't any wild Pokémon around for her to scare with her rambles.

She traced her right paw through the warm sand. Tessa knew that Shane had made of point of saying that he wanted her to be happy. He was willing to work with her to find what, if anything, _could_ make her happy. Because the answer definitely wasn't exploring. Or battling. Tessa was absolutely sick of fighting. She wondered if she'd even use her aura powers again… assuming they returned to her, of course.

"So, what made you decide to ditch town to throw yourself a pity party?"

Tessa sat up, sand grains streaming down her back. "E-Espy?" She didn't bother turning around. "I'm fine. It was getting noisy and I needed some space, so I left."

The sand shook and, next thing Tessa knew, Silvally was standing to her right, grass memories active and cheek bolts glowing. Was he reacting to the sunset?

"It'd be one thing if you went back to the Observatory, but you walked all the way out here. And, well, we both know the meaning this place holds for our team," Silvally said, looking out at the water. He then glanced at Tessa. "You're thinking about Shane again, aren't you?"

Tessa put her paws in her lap. "It's that obvious, huh?"

"Given the context, it can't be anything else," Silvally said, tracing a talon through the sand. Silence followed, with Tessa looking down at her lap. She didn't see her teammates exchanging frowns. "Mind if we you join you?"

"Of course not," Tessa said, then squeaked when Silvally parked his rump down beside her, shaking the nearby sand. Espy sat down to Tessa's left, crossing one foreleg in front of the other. "You guys would've sat down regardless of what I said." It was a fact, not a question. She glanced at the hesitancy on Espy's face. "Given the context, I can't think you'd answer anything but 'yes,'" Tessa said, mimicking Silvally's voice from earlier.

"We're worried about you, Tessa," Espy said. "Like, I don't want you getting the wrong idea or anything. I'm sad that Shane's gone, too. But it looks like his loss is hitting you hard."

Silvally nodded. He nudged Tessa's shoulder with his beak. "Neither of us want to see this drag you back down into a dark place. And I'm sure Shane wouldn't, either. You've made so much progress from the time I've met you…" His water memories inadvertently shifted on. "We're here for you, okay? Please… tell us what's on your mind."

"I can't stop thinking about how bad I screwed up a golden opportunity. Shane was the person I needed in my life. And I was the person he needed in his life. But we were a couple of stubborn dummies." Tessa shook her head. "I should've opened up to him sooner. Maybe it would've changed the trajectory of our relationship. Maybe…" Her words got caught in her throat. She squeezed her eyes shut. "Maybe I would've realized my feelings for him sooner."

Silvally's head crest fanned out. "T… Tessa, are you—"

"Yes, I admit it." Tessa's aura feelers drooped. "I dunno… I'm probably being dumb and reckless… but my brother was, too, and he seems happy with Zoroark. It's just… there are too many similarities. Shane and I have shared so many struggles… and that's not counting what we did as teammates. It just… it makes _sense._ " Tessa brought her legs up to her chest. "But I didn't want to say anything, partly because I was afraid of my own evolution and how Shane seemed to idolize Lucario."

"Do you still think that?" Espy asked.

"No. Not anymore. I think he… he liked me most for who I was. My species was like… an added bonus for him or something," Tessa said. It was a slight rephrase of Shane's remarks to her from back in Cosmic Cavern. Gods, how she wished those quiet moments had lasted longer. "The stuff that happened on Celestial Island made me sure of it. I kept calling out to him to fight Necrozma… told him I wanted to be his partner for life. He _heard_ me. Managed to stop Necrozma long enough for me to land my Z-Move and break his control.

"I should've said something more concrete then and there, but you two came bursting in and… well, now the opportunity's gone." Tessa couldn't help but lean her head against Silvally's foreleg. A heaviness tugged at her heart. At the same time, though, she was happy it was finally out in the open. Tessa was sure that's what had been eating at her since she'd woken up.

"I'm sorry," Silvally whispered. He leaned over and nudged her head with his beak. "I wish there was something I could do… but short of charging out into Ultra Space on Lunala's back, I've got nothing."

"It's okay, Silvally." Tessa grabbed a clump of fur around his knee. She sighed as she sat up straight. After a protracted silence, Tessa looked out toward the water and said, "At least you were able to keep your promise to me."

"Hmm?"

"The sunset. We're finally watching it again," Tessa said, gesturing forward.

"Oh. R-Right." Silvally's head crest drooped. "I, uh… yeah. It's… it's beautiful. I can't put a claw on it, but something seems different about the sun. It seems more… vibrant. More, uh, radiant… aha ha."

"So, you've been thinking that, too?" Espy said, curling her tail around her waist. "Glad I'm not the only one. I swear the sky's been brighter since we got back to Horizon. I thought it meant my disposition had gotten more cheerful, but if you're also seeing something, then maybe the sun _has_ changed somehow."

Tessa took Espy's statement like a slap to the face. "Wait a sec… that's gotta be it! That's what Shane meant," she said.

"Beg your pardon?" Silvally titled his head.

"Shane took Necrozma's power and used his light to rebuild the world, right? Well, what if he rebuilt the sun, too? It kinda looked like it was collapsing on itself while we were fighting Necrozma. He probably fixed whatever Necrozma did to break it… and that's why it seems different," Tessa explained. "When Shane told us he'd 'see us on the other side,' he was probably referring to the sun."

"Huh. I… hmm…" Espy's brow furrowed. "I'm not sure of the logic behind that, but I can't come up with a counterargument."

Silvally looked into the sun. His grass memories shifting on. "Then that means his light will be burning bright throughout our lives." An awkward silence followed. Silvally shrank down sheepishly. "Sorry. That sounded more, um, poetic in my head."

The trio reclined, staring out at the ocean. After a couple of quiet minutes, Espy said, "Oh, as long as we're here, we may as well put this to use." She levitated up a tan satchel with a Crabrawler patch stitched into it. Espy opened it up to reveal a bottle of yellow-orange liquid and three glasses. "I, uh, might've _borrowed_ some pinap juice from the drink station as Silv and I were leaving town."

"That's not hard pinap juice, is it?" Silvally said, frowning.

"Nope. But it _is_ honey-sweetened." Espy poured the juice into three glasses and distributed two to her friends. To her surprise, Silvally snatched the glass up in a pink bubble. Even he seemed bewildered by the gesture, but shook it off. Tessa took her glass in her paws. It _was_ sweet. So sweet it made her mouth water.

"To Shane?" Silvally said, leaning his glass toward his teammates.

"To Shane," Espy and Tessa replied in unison. They _clinked_ their glasses together then each gulped down a mouthful of pinap juice. In Silvally's case, that meant drinking the entire glass.

Sighing, Tessa swirled the pinap juice around in its glass. "Though, if you think about it, aren't we kind of toasting the end of Team Radiance, too?" She glanced at her teammates' skeptical looks. "Team Radiance was an _exploration team._ There are no more Mystery Dungeons, so there's no need for exploring. Or guilds." Tessa looked into her glass. "What are we going to do with ourselves now that this is over?"

Neither teammate responded. Silvally silently levitated the pinap juice bottle over and poured himself another glass. Like before, he swallowed the whole thing in one gulp.

"My entire life revolved around the guild. First it was training up to _go_ there. Then it was taking missions with Shane. And _then_ we were battling the Prism Virus nonstop." Tessa took a small sip of pinap juice. "Battling and training are practically all I know, so what should I do? I was kind of thinking maybe I ought to learn how to bake. Then I could help Sylveon out."

"Well, there are those meetings. Maybe that will give us some answers?" Silvally said.

"I dunno. The meetings are more focused on giving the communities of the world a sense of direction… not individual 'mons like us," Tessa said. "Besides, don't you think it's worth considering? I mean, you were _made_ to battle, so what options are out there for you if you can't?"

Silvally set his glass down. His cheek bolts rotated slowly as he hummed in thought. "Well, I don't intend to stop training. Sure, we're much less likely to face a threat of our own making in the future… but you never know if Ultra Space could thrust some sort of crisis onto the planet." He looked up toward the sky. "I need to be ready for something like that… so I don't have to do something risky like when we fought Zero."

Tessa tilted her head. She got the sense there was more to Silvally's answer than he was letting on, but opted not to push it. "That's fair. But you can't spend every waking hour training."

"I know. Maybe I ought to look into, like, construction or something? I'm sure there are Pokémon out there who could use someone big and strong to help them build things," Silvally said, tensing up his leg muscles. Espy's face flushed and her tail curled even tighter around her waist.

"That's not a bad idea, Silv. And if that doesn't work, you could always consider being a delivery 'mon. You'd be able to travel across any terrain," Espy noted, sipping more pinap juice to try and dispel her blush.

"Well, what about you, Espy?" Silvally said.

"I was thinking of seeing if there's a library in Aeon Town that I could work in. I'm, uh… I don't really think I can handle the stresses of anything battle-related anymore." Espy's shoulders sagged. "Feels like I've knocked a good decade off my life with all the worrying I've done in our time together." Her forehead gem flickered. "Oh, and speaking of stress… I think your brother's running toward us."

"Huh?" Tessa looked over her shoulder. To her surprise, two Absols ran toward the beach. One carried Sneasel and the other carried Hakamo-o. The latter carefully held a package. "G-Gallian? But who's the second—" She promptly facepalmed. "Right. Zoroark."

Gallian slowed to a trot and Hakamo-o slid off his back. Zoroark, on the other hand, staggered across the beach. Sneasel barely managed to jump off before his illusion collapsed and he dropped to his hands and knees, drenched in sweat and panting heavily. "That was… much farther… than I was expecting."

"Well, we made it. That's all that matters," Gallian said.

"Easy for you… to say. It's not like… I was… running places… when my leg was busted," Zoroark wheezed, clutching his chest. "You're in… way better shape… than me."

"Um, is there a problem?" Silvally said, his comment directed mostly at Team Fang's unexpected presence.

"Oi. Don't give us the shifty, suspicious eyes. We ain't here to cause any trouble," Sneasel said, raising up his claws. "We're done with the two-bit crook routine."

"Yeah. We've been helping these two out with their crazy project," Hakamo-o said, jerking his head in Gallian's direction. "Guy's been breathing down our necks the whole day."

"Project? What kind of project?" Tessa said, a skeptical brow raised. Gallian beckoned Hakamo-o to follow him up to Team Radiance.

"Listen, Tessa… when I saw you back at the Observatory, I got the sense you weren't, y'know, feeling all that great." Gallian glanced at Espy and Silvally. "You guys, too. I only thought it right that I should do something to show you three how much people appreciate what you've done for them."

"You mean… besides the whole 'bringing the world back from total annihilation' thing?" Espy mused, flicking her tail to the side.

Gallian stumbled, but collected himself. "Yeah, aside from that." He leaned over and careful picked up an envelope in his mouth. Gallian handed it to Tessa. "Here. Read this."

"Okay." Tessa tore the envelope open with a paw spike and pulled out its contents. "It's… a card?" The front had splotches of colors scattered around, like someone had haphazardly squeezed paint tubes over it. Tessa opened the card up and was assaulted by a barrage of words and scribbles. "W… whoa. H-How many people wrote in this thing?"

"Let me see!" Silvally leaned over. His eyes widened. "What the— there's a note from Kahuna Raichu and his daughter! Heck, Totem Salazzle and Totem Marowak are there, too." He looked at Gallian. "How did you manage this?"

"We might've borrowed Lunala," Zoroark said, shrugging. Tessa paid the explanation little mind as she combed over the card.

There were scattered one-liners from her guildmates. Things like "Good job," "Thanks for saving us," and "I'm truly grateful." But there were also several larger chunks of text.

 _Thank you for helping set my mother straight and bringing our tribes back together again. It's so nice that Marowak and I don't have to hide our relationship anymore, though I do wish Mother would stop giving me courting advice. Still, it's thanks to your hard work that this could happen. Come visit us anytime! From Healer Salazzle._

 _Outsiders, thank you for saving our lands from destruction at the hands of Mount Supernova. I see now that it is wrong of me to make assumptions based on outward appearances alone. I should judge 'mons by their actions, instead. That's why I'm hoping to learn the Marowaks' dances for myself. I see a bright future for our tribe. From Totem Salazzle._

 _Miss Tessa, since the day you stood up to Totem Salazzle, I have seen her carry herself differently. There is caution behind her actions. She is not rushing to judgements, but rather is conferring with me before making decisions. She even wants to learn our dances and teach them to the Salandits. I believe our unified tribe is as strong as ever. Thank you… and give my regards to Silvally, too. From Totem Marowak._

 _Hey, Team Radiance. Latias here. You guys might not think it, but I believe I learned a lot from you. I was always doubting myself… wondering if I could really make a difference. But seeing you four give it your all, even when circumstances were as dire as they could get, lit a fire in my belly that I'm hoping to carry into the future. If I hadn't found that courage, I'm not sure I would've been able to save Lugia. So, thank you. I hope we get to see each other more now that Lugia and I are moving to Horizon._

 _I wanted to believe that Midnight could change on his own. That I wouldn't have to do anything to get back the friend I had cherished so much when I was a Rockruff. But that didn't happen. You guys tried to warn me, but I didn't want to listen. Thank the stars you were able to put him in place, because I fear what would've happened otherwise. And, of course, I'll forever be grateful to you for saving me. I'm really sorry about what happened to Shane. If you want to talk, come find me in Cosmic Cavern. From Dusk._

 _To say the day you showed up in my home was a wild one would be an understatement. A lot happened, some of which I'm still not entirely sure I understand. Nevertheless, I'm glad you all showed up when you did. Your experience was tantamount in keeping Cosmic Cavern safe from the Prism Virus. I wish you all the very best. From Totem Decidueye._

 _It's Blaziken and Swampert. We know we didn't spend all that much time together with you guys, but we were impressed with your resilience in the heat of the battle. For all your doubts about yourself, Tessa, you managed to shine as bright as your team's name. If you want to talk about Shane, we'd be happy to have a chat._

 _Not every day you get the privilege of knowing such great explorers, yeah. Seriously, cousins, Circadian Coast is my pride and joy. I love being the Kahuna here and the thought that some sort of crazy, otherworldly nonsense could've jeopardized all of it still sends chills down my spine. I'm thanking my lucky stars you all showed up when you did. Oh, and that you kicked Necrozma's behind, too. Consider yourselves welcome at the resort any time… free of charge! Assuming we're not booked up, of course. From Kahuna Raichu. Pau hana!_

 _Seeing you guys strut your stuff onstage has lit my creative fire! I'm like the end of a Charizard's tail… I can't stop burning! Here me out for a sec. A stage show… themed around your adventures. There'll be action! Drama! Romance! Emotion! Thrills! I'm writing a script as we speak. Trying to convince Primarina to do the music for the production, but it's gonna take some arm-twisting. I do hope you guys will consider dropping by to see it. From Cosplay Pikachu._

 _Hey, babes, it's your boy, Primarina. I'm-a be real with you… you outshined me onstage. Sure, maybe I wasn't entirely myself, but I'm still glad you put me in my place before I went too deep into my own mistake. I did a lot of thinking after our talk, Tessa. First off, Serpy and I have agreed to take a break from each other. Y'know, to try and sort ourselves out. If we still feel strongly about each other, we may pick things back up. But I've got a lot of work to do before then. And it all starts with stepping back from the stage. Cosplay Pikachu's asking me about some kinda show, but I'm not sure. Right now… I think I want to shift my focus toward teaching music to others. I want to inspire people to express themselves… whether it's through music or another form of art. So, again, thanks for all your help._

 _I always figured being a manager would be a low-key job. If you had told me I'd get hypnotized by my own partner into running some sort of crazy mass-hypnosis concert, I'd have scoffed at you. Needless to say, I'm really in your guys' debts. Both for snapping me out of things and for bringing me back to Jolty. Twice, technically, if we're counting Necrozma's world-ending blast. Keep your chins up, you three. You're superstars in my books. From Vaporeon._

 _What can I say besides I'm sorry? The things I said. The things I_ did. _I feel awful about them. And, despite how bad I was to you, you three still gave it your all to try and save Dragonite. And then, of course, everything you did to stop Necrozma. Tessa, you've become so strong. Much stronger than me. Nobody can take your victory away from you. Remember that. From Milotic._

 _Pretty much everything Millie said. Think I'm going to step away from the Observatory and do some soul-searching. Even if I wasn't entirely myself when we fought, I do think I might've had a bit of an attitude problem. I mean… I can't count the number of times I mouthed off to Shane. But he still chose to bring me back in the end… just like you all fought to free me. I wish you the best in whatever you all choose to do with yourselves. From Serperior._

 _I had just about given up hope I could get Gallian back when I stumbled upon your team in the Volcanic Wastes. Tessa, even though you were hot of the heels of a rough evolution, you not only heard me out, you did everything in your power to bring my mate back. I'm proud to call you my spirit-sister and I look forward to having you in my life going forward. From Zoroark._

 _I wanted to put this in writing so that you would always have this. Espeon, thank you for talking some sense into me when I was trying my hardest to tune out the people who cared about me most. Silvally, thank you for being a pillar of strength for my sister… and showing the world that it's not about what you look like or what abilities you have, but how you make use of them. And Tessa… I'm so proud of you. The struggles you endured would've broken me several times over. But you didn't quit. You kept fighting not just for yourself, but for everyone else. If anyone asks, I can tell them with confidence that I've got the best sister in the world. I hope you all enjoy your gifts. From Gallian._

Tessa's eyes were misty, as were her teammates'. "G… Gallian…"

"Your team's inspired a lot of people, Tessa. And, in turn, all of these people you helped want to see you happy. They care about you," Gallian said. "I can't imagine how you guys are feeling about Shane. But I'm hoping that this is able to help… even a little bit." He stepped back and looked up at the sky. "I want to believe that he's still out there. That he's going to return… somehow.

"Whether or not that happens, though, you guys deserve to have these." Gallian motioned at the trio. Hakamo-o opened the remainder of the package and unfolded it. Tessa looked down and gasped. There were half a dozen scarves stacked on top of one another. She immediately recognized the top two: a blue-indigo scarf with a yellow sun and a yellow-orange scarf with a blue moon. The difference this time was that the sun and moon had tiny pink hearts stitched into them. There were hearts stitched into the other scarves, too.

"G… Gallian. How did you— a-and so quickly?" Tessa picked up the blue scarf in a trembling paw.

"Salazzle's a fast worker," Gallian said, grinning. "We asked her if she could make replacement scarves for you guys and she said it would be her pleasure."

"Wow." Tessa turned the scarf over in her paws. Silvally leaned over to pick up the green scarf, matching the one he had lost fighting Dragonite. Espy levitated up a dark-blue scarf.

"That's strange. Call me crazy, but it feels like these scarves have auras," she said, a brow raised.

"That's because Salazzle weaved them from Rainbow Wings and Lunar Wings," Zoroark said, rubbing his nose. "We convinced Ephemeris and Cresselia to give us some to make the scarves. They said it was the least they could do."

Tessa slowly placed the scarf around her neck. Before it could slip from her grasp, Silvally caught it with ESP and tied a neat knot in the back. Tessa placed her paw against it. "This is… it's… wow." The fabric was exactly like she remembered.

Espy and Silvally slung their scarfs around their necks. "It's so soft," Espy whispered, lifting her head up and shaking it like she was drying herself off. "I see why you guys never took yours off, even with how dirty they got."

"Gallian, you didn't have to do this," Tessa said, still brushing the scarf with her paw.

"I know. But I wanted to. You've earned it," Gallian said. He stepped closer to her. Tessa leaned over and hugged him. Gently, of course, due to her chest spike.

"Thank you," she whispered. "I love it. Dad would've, too."

Gallian broke off the embrace. "I'm sure he's watching you from the Tree of Life and smiling. You've gone above and beyond. Whatever happens… I'm gonna try my best to be around for you when you need it, okay?"

" _We're_ gonna be around for you," Zoroark said, slinging his arm over Gallian's shoulder. "Come on, we're a family! And now that there's no Necrozma to worry about, we can finally start acting the part!"

A flush fell over Gallian's face. "R… right. W-Well, I, uh…" He blinked and shook his head. "I think we should take our leave. We'll be at the Observatory if you need—"

 **Oh, thank goodness. I finally found you!**

Tessa's ears and aura feelers crinkled at the sounds of screeching tires. She turned to see Magearna zooming across the beach, as she had done after they'd fought Team Captivate. Magearna came to a stop by Team Radiance, wheels retracting into her legs. "Um, can we help you?" Tessa said, cocking her head.

 **No. It's me who can assistify you,** Magearna said. **I was taking stock of my workshop… when I discovered something out of place on my desk.** She stuck her right arm out.

"Another letter?" Silvally said, a brow raised. "It looks like something's wedged into the envelope, too.

 **I tried to identificate the handwriting, but it didn't match anyone in my registries,** Magearna said. **And it was addresticated directly to you three. So, I raced out of the Observatory to locatiate you and hand it over.**

Tessa took the envelope in her paws. There was a spiky bulge on the bottom of it. Tessa tore the envelope open by the bulge to avoid damaging the letter. A white crystal tumbled into her left paw. "Huh?"

"Hey, look. There's a snowflake carved into the other side of that," Hakamo-o said, pointing a claw at it.

"Oh, yeah. Kinda reminds me of the ice carvings my folks used to do to sharpen their claws," Sneasel said, squinting. "Wonder how your secret admirer made it so tiny."

Tessa tore the rest of the envelope open, heart leaping into her chest. She read the first line and sucked in a breath. "No… no, it can't be."

"What? What is it?" Silvally leaned in, trying to look at the letter.

"It's… Shane wrote this!" Tessa said, holding the letter out while everyone else jumped back in surprise.

"You're kidding me! What's it say?" Espy leaned her head against Tessa's side.

 _Hey guys,_

 _If you're reading this… then that means I was able to use Necrozma's power to reconstruct the world, spirit realm and all. Except this time, there are no ley lines to cause any trouble. And, well, that means that we did it. We beat Necrozma and reversed the damage from his rampage._

 _I suppose I have to start by apologizing. After all, I told you guys that I'd be fine, didn't I? But the truth is that I knew from the get-go that, in order to bring everything back, I'd end up having to disappear. Nicky made it clear to me that the energy we'd have to expel from Necrozma's body would burn out our collective spirit._

 _And yes, I did say Nicky. When I jumped into Necrozma's core, I found the little fragment of his soul that had been left inside of Necrozma. We used our combined wills to force the demonic part of Necrozma out of his body. And, well, you guys saw the rest. We blew it to smithereens, then you flew off._

 _I'm sure you're upset. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't. When I said I wanted to stay here with you guys, I meant it from the bottom of my heart. Even though much of our time together was defined by struggles instead of fun, I still consider you three to be the first real friends I've ever made in… well, two lifetimes, technically._

 _Espy, I hope that, in the aftermath of all of this, those dark clouds swirling over your head finally start to clear up. The ley lines are gone. Void Shadows will never bother you again. I realize that this doesn't change what happened to you in the past. I wish I could've erased your nightmares with all of the ley lines, but I'm afraid Necrozma's light powers aren't_ that _good._

 _Still, I think that you deserve to give yourself more credit. After all, like you had mentioned back at the Observatory, it would've been easy for you to just lie down and not lift a paw to help us. But you soldiered on… even though doing so made you come face to face with the things that frightened you the most. You're much stronger than you give yourself credit for. And I firmly believe you'll be able to overcome your vices. Assuming you haven't already. No idea when you guys will actually get to see this._

 _Silvally… ours certainly was a bumpy road, wasn't it? It's strange to think that there was a point where every word that came out of my mouth toward you was an insult… and that you'd almost killed me in a berserker rampage. But, well, it seems we were actually far more alike than either of us realized. Our spirits are both patchwork pieces partially derived from the demon that spawned all the ley lines in the first place._

 _Honestly, though? That doesn't really change anything for me… except make it clear why things had gone south in Moonrise Marsh. At the end of the day… I'm still glad we were able to work through our differences. If you hadn't given me that pep talk in Tessa's house, I'm not sure I would've taken those first steps toward trying to be a better person._

 _I hope that you're able to find a place for yourself in the world. More people deserve to see your infectious positivity for themselves. I'm going to miss your ability to make the team smile, even when we were stressed to our breaking points. Don't stop being yourself and don't let anyone talk down to you. Because nobody can forge a path for you but yourself._

 _… sorry, that sounded cooler in my head._

 _Which brings me to you, Tessa. I know we've spoken about this, but even now, I still can't help but feel guilty over everything that happened surrounding Lycanroc and our disciplinary assignment. If anything, I feel worse about it because of the stuff you said to me back at Circadian Coast. I realize I've already apologized for this, but it bears repeating. I'm so,_ so _sorry for the things I said to you. No amount of stress and anger justifies it._

 _By all accounts, you had every right to never speak to me again. But that isn't what happened. You were willing to give me one last chance after your hatch day party. And I thank you for that from the bottom of my heart. I know the days that followed were filled with a lot more bad moments than good… but those good moments made our time together worth it._

 _Yeah, there was a lot of sitting and talking to each other, but I really did enjoy myself. And that's saying something, because nothing bored me faster than sitting and talking back when I was human. That's just how much you meant to me._

 _I'm sure you might be tempted to scoff at this given my, uh,_ interest _in Lucarios. But I mean it when I say that I like you for you. You never backed down, even when the odds were stacked against us. There were times I wanted to flat-out quit… but you always found the strength to keep going. And that, in turn, kept me going, too._

 _I wish there was a way that I could've stayed there with you… and helped you figure out what makes you happy in life. Sadly, I won't get the chance. Still, I felt like I had to do something. So, I used some of Necrozma's power to conjure up a small memento. It's a crystal… kind of like the one I gave you for your hatch-day. I hope you'll keep it with you… and that it can remind you of the good times we shared together._

 _I just want you to know that I will never forget you. Any of you. You're my teammates and my best friends. I'll always cherish the good times we had together._

 _May this new sun light the way toward a bright future for all of you._

 _Your friend,  
_ _Shane_

Tessa stared at the letter, breaths growing steadily more labored. "T-Tessa? Are you… gonna be okay?" Silvally said.

Her grip on the letter slipped. Espy caught it with telekinesis. Tessa clasped the crystal tight in her paws and ambled toward the shoreline. Gallian's eyes widened. "Hey, wait! What are you doing, Tessa? You know you can't swim!" He was ready to bolt toward her when Zoroark stuck an arm out.

"Don't. Let her have her moment. She needs it."

Step by step, Tessa trudged into the water. When it reached her ankles, she dropped down to her knees. They sank into the silt, but Tessa kept her balance. She squeezed the crystal even tighter, bowed her head, and gritted her teeth.

Tessa couldn't keep it together any longer. Tears spilled down her cheeks, splattering against the tiny waves splashing her thighs. She cried into the crystal — the last keepsake she had of her partner — while her mind cycled through those good moments Shane's letter mentioned. She lingered on their calmest moment together… sitting on the Circadian Coast shoreline, brushing paws against one another while the sun shined down on both of them and small, sparkling waves rolled up toward the sand. She saw the smile on his face and the calm in his eyes.

Sobs wracked her body. Tessa was so lost in thought, she didn't realize her teammates had waded in after her until Silvally had curled up around her, tucking his head down and pressing it against her forehead. Espy wrapped her tail around Tessa's waist and buried her face into Tessa's shoulder.

"It's not fair," Tessa blubbered.

"I know," Silvally whispered, tears trickling toward his blue cheek bolts.

"He wanted to stay with us. It's… it's not fair. We were… we were supposed to find happiness together," Tessa said between sniffles. "Why did he… why did he have to go?"

"I don't know," Silvally said, squeezing Tessa tight.

"We're going to get through this," Espy said, pulling her head back and brushing it against her shoulder. "One day at a time. Together. That's what friends do, right?"

Tessa's rubbed her head against Silvally's thigh. "Y… yeah. One day… friends."

"Even if there aren't Mystery Dungeons, we're still a team. We'll stick together," Silvally said, blinking tears out of his eyes. He slowly stood up and faced the sky. "For a bright future… like Shane said."

Espy got up alongside him. "Right. We don't need a guild to be a team. As long as we have each other, that's all that matters, right?" She extended a forepaw toward Tessa.

"Yeah." Tessa clasped it gently and stood up. She rubbed her eyes. "You're right. Tomorrow's another day. We'll face it together. That's what Shane wants for us." Tessa looked down at the crystal. She held it up toward the sun, which had nearly vanished beyond the horizon. "Through darkest night… and brightest day…"

Espy and Silvally reached out to touch the crystal. "Team Radiance always finds a way," they whispered together.

Tessa brought the crystal back toward her chest. "I'll never forget you, partner," she whispered.

They stood together in the water for a few more silent minutes, watching the horizon until the sun was completely gone and only a faint, orange sky was left behind. "Well, we should really get back to the Observatory. We've got a big day ahead of us tomorrow, don't we?" Silvally said.

Tessa nodded. "Lead the way." They all turned and walked back ashore, but not befor Tessa turned to take one last look at the cloudless sky. At her partner's parting gift to the world.

 _'Thanks for everything, Shane.'_

 **THE EN—**

 _'Hang on… what was that ripple in the distance?'_

Tessa's brow furrowed. Distorted sparks raced through the sky. Her aura feelers stuck up.

 _'Those ripples… they're just like what preceded an Ultra Wormhole!'_ She stood there, frozen in suspense. Tessa waited for something to pop up in the sky. But a solid minute past and nothing happened.

"Hey, Tessa! You coming or what?" Silvally called, standing on the shore and brushing sand off his talons.

"Ah, sorry! I'll be right there!" Tessa bit her lip, but ultimately jogged after her teammates. Surely, with all the stress she'd been through, her weary mind was just playing tricks on her… right?

* * *

 **~Ultra Nexus~**

"H… harrgh… hrrgh…"

Each pained wheeze grew harder and harder for Dragonite to handle. The spot where Silvally had torn off her wing had stopped bleeding, but that did her little good. Her limp had practically slowed to a crawl. She had been following this yellow, luminescent path for gods only knew how long… but it had led her nowhere. All she had done was pass by ethereal crystals. It didn't help that the sky surrounding her — if she could even call it a sky — offered no solid visual aids. It was dark blue, with strange checkerboard patterns and large crystals flying about at complete random.

"How much further… do I have to go?" she said, voice straining.

Dragonite's antennae twitched. She paused. Listening closely, she heard thumping. Rhythmic thumping… chained together in pairs. Like a heartbeat, but far louder. The sounds gave Dragonite a second wind. She limped down the path, bracing herself against the crystals as she went. Eventually, she caught site of purple and red light in the distance. She stumbled the rest of the way down the path, until she emerged into a circular clearing, with a strange, blue platform whose texture looked more like water than any solid floor.

"What the—" Dragonite squinted. Xerneas lay unmoving in the middle of the clearing. Dragonite could smell her from her position. Her snout wrinkled and she nearly gagged. "Whatever. Who am I to pass up the unconscious god of life? I can undo all the damage that _stupid_ mutt did to me."

Dragonite raised a hand, ready to summon a lightning javelin, when another distorted heartbeat sounded, loud enough to knock her to her belly. "Oof! Hey, what gives?" Dragonite looked up and her jaw dropped.

There, hanging over her head and suspended by countless slimy veins, was a large, crystal heart. And at the center of the heart lay a bundle of blueish-white fur with nine frayed tails. Rainbow light flashed in the center of the heart in time with its beating. Each pulsation sent energy ripples into the veins which, in turn, caused flashes in the sky.

"Aha… aha ha… _ha ha ha ha!_ " Dragonite pressed a hand to her gut. "This… this is too perfect! They must've fused or something!" An unhinged smile spread across her face. "Oh well. That's no scales off my bones. I get to kill that pasty _loser_ and take Necrozma's power all for myself! Then nobody will ever stand up to me again!"

Dragonite flicked her right hand out. A lightning javelin formed in it. With a strained roar, she leaped into the air and plunged the blade into the crystal heart. Fissures spread across it. The heart trembled. Dragonite's eyes widened. Something was wrong. It wasn't breaking apart. Instead, it was venting black smoke.

"W-Wait… hang on. What the hell do you think you're doing?" She tried to push herself off the heart, but she was stuck in place. The shadows then surrounded her.

As her world went black, Dragonite screamed.

 **End of Episode 16**

* * *

What's crazier than an April Fools' fake ending? A _legitimate_ fake ending, of course! Yes, I did say that this is the last episode… and it is. But I also said, on multiple sites, that this fic would have **five** special episodes. And, well, we're one short in that department. So, before you all grab your pitchforks and torches let me just say that, yes, the story isn't over. Special Episode 5 will be wrapping things up. The reason I'm designating it as a special episode is that it's, basically, going to be like an abridged version of post-game content from the canon material. With that in mind… **five chapters remain!**

For this chapter, I worked really hard to try and evoke the same emotions that the canon games bring about with their endings. Those of you who are Paper Mario fans might also recognize the influence in the card that Gallian threw together. In any case, I'd really appreciate hearing from you guys whether or not I succeeded at bringing the feels.

SuperOmegaGuest: Did I? Well, then that was some misdirection on my part.

Anon Omega: It ain't over until the fat lady sings!

Next time: A promise gets upheld.


	119. A Sense of Paradise

Beta read by Namohysip. Enjoy!

* * *

 **~Celestial Island~**

Tessa slumped so far over to the right she almost fell off the rock she'd been using as a makeshift seat. Squeaking, she thrust her arms apart and her aura feelers shot up. That earned concerned looks from the people sitting around her, her teammates included.

Totem Ninetales turned to Tessa with a raised brow. "Is there something you'd like to add?"

"N… no. Not at all. Carry on." Tessa waved Totem Ninetales off, a sheepish grin on her face. Then, sighing, she slouched back on the rock and stared up at the blue sky. Though she was willing time to move faster, the meeting dragged on.

That's all the last week had been, really. Showing up to Celestial Island and sitting around, listening, while the various Pokémon in attendance discussed what they were going to do with themselves going forward. But just the act of getting the whole crowd settled took up a sizeable part of the first day… and things only trudged on from there.

As far as Tessa was concerned, a lot of these ideas were no-brainers, like adopting Solstice Summit's naming scheme, ditching the unwritten soulmate rule so Pokémon were free to do what they wanted with relationships, and keeping the former Mystery Dungeons as habitats for Pokémon that didn't want to live in towns or villages.

But once the subject drifted toward how to approach the former gods, things devolved and Tessa found her attention wandering off. And these discussions were stretching into their sixth day. Tessa was going stir-crazy. She tapped a foot against the ground. Tessa repeatedly balled up and relaxed her paws, sometimes generating flickers of aura. The flares were weak, but given all the Pokémon on the island, she'd rather have a muted aura sense than get overwhelmed.

"Oi, Punchy! Stay with me! This concerns your team, you know."

"Wha—" Tessa sat up straight in her seat. "I'm awake! I'm awake!"

Seraph looked right at her, sighing and shaking her head. Totem Ninetales cleared her throat. "So, about this group you mentioned reaching out to? The Ultra Recon—"

"Network. The Ultra Recon Network. A series of small pocket words in Ultra Space that are linked together," Seraph said, arms crossed. "Though, after what Shane apparently did, who's to say they're connected anymore?" She scratched at her left ear with a digit. "Regardless, I think it's worth our time to find an Ultra Recon Squad to contact."

"And I say you're inviting trouble upon us," Rayquaza barked, pointing an accusatory claw. "Ultra Space is what got us into this mess with Necrozma… and now you're saying we should go charging into it to find more aliens?"

"It's not that simple. Even though we don't have the equipment, I'm quite confident that, thanks to Shane's actions, the whole _planet_ has an ultra aura. And, of course, there's the fact that we're up to five fallers and counting," Luxeira said, frowning. "The way I see it… an Ultra Recon Squad is bound to pick up _some_ sort of reading from our world and, when they do, they're going to come bearing a lot of questions."

"If past experiences have taught me anything, it'd be much smoother and less headache-inducing if _we_ made first contact with them… and not the other way around," Seraph continued. "If we work with Lunala or Ephemeris, I bet we can track down a URS base and explain things to them. At the very least, it'll keep them off your backs. Maybe we can even convince 'em to let this world join the Ultra Recon Network."

"Are you nuts? We don't want a bunch of Ultra Beasts descending on this place. It'll freak everyone out," Haxorus said, thumping her tail against the ground. Sticky's tail drooped at the comment. "Err, uh, no offense?" Haxorus rubbed the side of her head.

Tessa stretched out her arms. She leaned over toward Silvally and whispered, "I need to go stretch my legs before they lock up. Cover for me, okay?" Tessa waited until he nodded at her, then silently slid off her rocky perch and weaved her way between a few trees. She stumbled through one of the island's small forests until she emerged in a clearing. Tessa approached the grassy edge of the island and kicked a few blades into the water.

"So, how you holding up?"

"Huh?" Tessa's aura feelers twitched too late for her to realize Swampert, Feraligatr, and Raichu were all walking toward her. "Oh. I'm, uh, doing okay, I suppose. Trying not to rip my fur out in frustration. Who knew meetings were so boring?"

"I hear ya. I'd rather listen to one of Chatot's lectures than have to sit around here any longer," Feraligatr said. "But that's not actually what I meant. I was talking about your partner."

"Oh…" Tessa rubbed her shoulder while she considered how to respond. "It's… been tough. Espeon and Silvally have been there for me, but Shane keeps popping up in my dreams. They're not nightmares or anything… but it does bum me out when I wake up and remember he's gone."

"I hear you. The first night after I lost Infernape, the whole guild could hear me bawling my eyes out in our old room. Sunflora and Chimecho wound up offering to let me spend the night in their room," Feraligatr said. "I, uh, wound up staying there for two weeks."

"Same here. Hydreigon stayed with me when Haxorus disappeared," Raichu said, poking her nubby paws together. "He's surprisingly cuddly, given his appearance."

"Yeah. I, um, don't envy what happened to you guys." Swampert rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Blaziken returned shortly after I thought he was gone forever. Still, for the short time I _did_ think I'd lost him, I'm glad that folks like Absol, Ninetales, and Team ACT were around to help me out."

"That's why we wanted to check up on you. It helps to surround yourself with friends, right?" Raichu said, offering a friendly smile.

"I suppose you're right. I appreciate it," Tessa said, nodding at them. "You're not alone, there. Latias and Lugia visited the Observatory yesterday. It was… amusing watching Lugia try to navigate the place. The doorways were _not_ made for someone with a neck as long as his." As soon as she said that, she wondered if an Exeggutor had ever been in the guild. She figured the answer was no, but made a mental note to ask Braviary for her own amusement.

"So, uh…" Tessa fidgeted with her scarf. "Have any of you given any thoughts to what you want your familiar names to be?"

"Exploud suggested I go with 'Bigmouth,' but my mouth is _not_ that big," Feraligatr harrumphed.

"Really? _Exploud_ suggested that?" Tessa raised an amused brow.

"Cut us some slack. Naming isn't exactly something that comes naturally to any of us," Swampert said, shrugging.

"Honestly, I'm surprise _you're_ not considering changing your familiar name. It was your mother who gave it to you, right? Don't you want nothing to do with her?" Raichu said, tilting her head.

Tessa glanced out at the ocean. "That's true. But, honestly, after everything that's happened, I can't see myself as anything but Tessa." She bowed her head. The talk of names got her thinking about Shane's insistence on calling her Tessa instead of Riolu when they first met. Oh, how the tables had turned.

"H-Hey, why the long face?" Feraligatr leaned over and waved an arm in front of Tessa. "We didn't say something wrong, did we?"

"No. I was… thinking of Shane, that's all," Tessa said, pulling the crystal memento out of her new bag and turning it over in her paw.

"Ah. Sorry," Raichu said, ears drooping. She perked right back up, however. "Hey, how about a change of scenery? Maybe going someplace new will help you get out of this funk? Haxy and I would love to show you around Paradise."

Tessa tapped her chin in thought. The offer _was_ tempting. "Hmm. Actually, I've always dreamed of going to visit Treasure Town since I was a pup." She looked at Feraligatr. "Would you mind?"

"Oh, not at all!" Feraligatr perked right up. "It's been a while since I got to do my tour guide schtick."

Tessa blinked. "Tour guide?"

"Yup! We at 'Feraligatr Town Tours' pride ourselves on one-hundred percent customer satisfaction… or your money back," Feraligatr said, puffing out his chest.

"But I wouldn't be paying you anything," Tessa said.

Feraligatr lost his grin and stumbled forward, coughing. "I, uh… that was supposed to be the joke."

"Ah. Whoops. Still, thanks for agreeing to do it," Tessa said, smiling.

"And it looks like you won't have to wait long to leave, either. Seems the meeting's getting out," Swampert said, pointing back toward the center of the island.

"Thank goodness! Let's just hope we don't have to subject ourselves to _another_ yammer-fest tomorrow," Feraligatr said. He beckoned Tessa to follow. "We'd better find Infernape before Hoopa warps him off to Treasure Town."

"Right behind you," Tessa said, jogging after Feraligatr.

* * *

 **Special Episode 5: Bold New Horizon**

 **Chapter 102: A Sense of Paradise**

* * *

"You think Tessa will be all right off on her own?" Espy wondered, pacing along the outskirts of Celestial Island's forest while she, Silvally, and several other Pokémon waited for Hoopa to return from dropping off the Grass Continent residents in attendance at the meeting.

"She seemed to be in good spirits. I have faith," Silvally said.

Espy paused. "Was… was that supposed to be a play on words because of your core?"

Silvally blinked, then the realization practically smacked him on the cheek bolt. "Heh. It wasn't, but I like your thinking!"

"You and Shane have officially rubbed off on me too much," Espy said, shaking her head. She then caught sight of Haxorus and Raichu walking toward Hydreigon, Virizion, and Umbreon. Her brow furrowed. "Actually, Silv, since Tessa's going to be out… would you be willing to come with me to Paradise?"

"Oh? What for?"

"For, well, y'know…" Espy trailed off, rubbing her forelegs together.

"Ah. I thought you wanted to wait until all of the meetings were done," Silvally said.

"I did. But I reconsidered… in the moment." Espy's tail crinkled up.

The look on her face told Silvally if they didn't go today, it might take Espy awhile to work up the courage to suggest it again. "You're right. Shane really did rub off on you," he said. "Sure. Let's do it." He got to his feet and bent over to stretch out. "Not to put you on the spot or anything, but do you know what you want to say to them?"

"Sort of? At least, I kinda rehearsed a rough version in the shower last night," Espy said. That was more info than Silvally needed, but he nodded nonetheless. "In any case, I'm not looking for you to fill in any awkward pauses or anything. You're there for, y'know, moral support."

"Understood." He lifted up his foreleg and flexed his claws. "You've got this. You know that, right?"

"Y-Yeah." Espy raised her foreleg and tapped her forepaw to Silvally's talons. "I mean… what's a few folks I cussed out compared to Necrozma, right?"

Silvally frowned at the shaky tone in Espy's voice. He walked up beside her. "Well, I think you know as well as I do that this a different type of stress. Just, like, take some deep breaths. Keep a clear head about yourself. You'll be fine."

"Heyo! The Hoopa Express is leaving the station! Next stop… Pokémon Paradise and the Mist Continent!"

"Guess that's for us," Espy said. "Shall we?"

"We shall."

* * *

 **~Paradise Square~**

Various members of the original Paradise crew had moved logs or crates onto the grassy knoll in the center of town. Silvally sat opposite them, his gaze focused on Espy. There were a couple of skeptical looks thrown his way. It was mainly Hydreigon, though Silvally figured that had something to do with his role as the Voice of Life. Or, well, his _former_ role as the Voice of Life. His cheek bolts rotated once. To his surprise, his fairy memories shifted on.

"So, uh, thanks… y'know, for coming to hear me out and everything," Espy said. Her voice was still shaky and her slouched posture further betrayed her nervousness. "This is… well, I guess it's been a long time coming, hasn't it?"

Haxorus crossed one leg over the other. She said nothing, but the unflinching look in her eyes was enough to make Espy tense up. The back of Silvally's head tingled. Faint memories of times as a Sylveon carrying wood in his ribbons flickered to mind. Silvally sat up straight, trying to focus on Espy even as Emolga, Virizion, and Swanna stared at him curiously. This was about _her._ If he was going to support her, he had to stay under control.

"Right. Okay. Look, I'm going to be real with all of you. I could sit here and give you some big, long, drawn-out speech about how sorry I am for all of my bad behavior toward you all over the years. Heck, I tried to practice something like that the other night," Espy said. She glanced back at Silvally. He tilted his head, wondering where she was taking this. "But, well, a speech is just that… a speech. The way I see it, if I really want to make up for my misdeeds, then I have to take action."

Silvally leaned forward, raising a curious brow and taking in the surprised look on Haxorus' face. Espy stood up and levitated off her satchel. "This isn't much… but I thought it'd be a start." Espy flipped the satchel open and produced a porcelain Virizion figurine. It drifted over to Emolga. "Virizion, I worked with Magearna to try and recreate the figurine that Emolga had given you for your five-year anniversary. Y'know, the one I broke when I stomped around your place, drunk off my ass."

Emolga reached out and gingerly took the figurine in his hands. "How did you— but I had made the design with Victini!"

Espy pivoted to Victini. "Yes, you did. And speaking of Victini… here." A small scroll hovered toward him. "These are the V-Wheel 3.0 schematics I'd taken from you after that spat we had about the Jellicents' tabloid article. I found 'em in my personal storage box."

Victini snatched the scroll out of the air and unraveled it. "I don't believe this! I'd been looking _everywhere_ for this." Victini kissed the scroll, drawing cringes from Haxorus and Virizion.

"And Keldeo. This probably isn't much in the way of gestures, but…" Espy sent him a special tube of horn polish. "I hope this can at least make up a tiny bit for all the inappropriate comments I made about your Resolute Forme."

"A new extra-strength formula?" Keldeo scrutinized the bottle. "Where did you find this?"

"The Kecleon Shop in Aeon Town. It hasn't been released publicly yet… but Kecleon was willing to part with one tube." Espy winked at Keldeo, then turned to Swanna. "Swanna, I know there were way too many nights I didn't pay you properly. And, um, I'm not exactly loaded with cash or anything, but I did talk with Kahuna Raichu — the owner of Circadian Coast — and he agreed to help me advertise your inn over in Horizon." She levitated up a piece of paper. "This is a prototype flier we were considering putting up."

"That's… very thoughtful of you," Swanna said, taking the page with a wing.

A smile crept onto Silvally's beak as he watched Espy present her brother with a fresh copy of _The Traveler's Guide to the Horizon Continent_ , a book outlining the land's unique territories, species, and forms of certain Pokémon. Umbreon set the book beside him, rings glowing and tail wagging.

 _'When did you think all of this up, Espy?'_ he wondered. She had made it a point of saying how badly she wanted him to help her patch things up with the people of Paradise, but Silvally may as well have been a Joltik on the wall for the entire display. Sure, Espy stole the occasional glance at him, but with each gift she presented, her confidence seemed to grow.

"Hydreigon, I'll admit, it was a lot harder to come up with something for you. You've always been patient with me, even when I didn't necessarily deserve it. And, of course, you were one of the immortal gods." Espy rummaged through her bag and pulled out another slip of paper. "I know how much you used to prattle on about being unable to use Draco Meteor… so I thought this might help."

"This voucher entitles the user to one free move tutoring session," Hydreigon read aloud. "I'm impressed you actually remembered that."

"Heh. Well, hopefully this can give you the last push to get over that hump," Espy said. Her tail had finally stopped drooping. Silvally's tail inadvertently wagged. Espy approached Team Paradise, her head held high. Silvally held his breath, but relaxed when he saw that Haxorus had a smile of her own on her face.

"So, you two were probably the toughest nuts to crack, so to speak. You've both worked hard to build Paradise up… and I did my best to get in the way," Espy said. She shook her head. "I understand that I've made a lot of mistakes. And, regardless of what you choose to think of me, I've decided to stay in Horizon and start a new life for myself in Aeon Town."

Silvally raised an eyebrow when Espy looked right at him. His mind wandered back to the moment she had caught him in the shower. Was she thinking about what he'd said to her? How they'd need to talk about their feelings at some point? Silvally looked at his talons. It seemed that he was the one caught unprepared, not Espy.

"Anyway, this is what I came up with." Espy produced two rhomboid crystals and passed them to Team Paradise. "They're Frism replicas… modified from the Gear-Coms and Expedition Gadgets. I'm no Magearna or Jirachi, so I couldn't exactly make 'em communicate with each other, but that was never my intention." Her forehead gem glistened and the replicas sparkled in Team Paradise's hands.

"What are you doing with it?" Haxorus held the Frism up and stared at it liked she was using a magnifying glass.

"The replicas are enhanced so that they can store memories," Espy said. "Not just words… but sights, smells, and even tastes." She stepped back, tapping the forked ends of her tail together. "It wasn't easy to put together and it's been a while since I've tinkered with something that isn't Entercard-related, but I _think_ I got them right. Basically, you can turn on the Frism and it can record things for a few minutes… or you can use it like a music crystal. Touch it to your forehead, think about the memory you want to copy to the Frism, and it'll transfer."

"Wow. That's cool," Raichu said, turning over the Frism with her paws.

"Yeah. What made you decide to do this, exactly?" Haxorus wondered.

"Well… you two are a couple. I thought it might be nice for you to have a way to preserve cherished memories," Espy said, tail wagging.

"I see…" Haxorus scrutinized the item.

"Oh, come on, you've gotta admit, it's a nice fit," Raichu said, elbowing Haxorus' side.

"It is."

"Then why the furrowed brow? I won't think any less of you if thank her," Raichu said, curling her tail around Haxorus'.

"It's okay, Raichu. I understand. It's going to take more than a few gifts to get back into your good graces," Espy said, stepping back to glance at the rest of the group. "I've still got things I need to work on. Hopefully next time we see each other, I'll be someone you're all more comfortable talking to again."

Espy turned to rejoin when Silvally when Haxorus mumbled, "You're already close."

She turned to Haxorus, ears twitching. "What was that?"

"I said you're already close. I heard the stuff you said while fighting Necrozma, same as everyone else," Haxorus said, crossing one leg over the other again. Her eyes settled on Silvally, who stiffened to make it look like he was paying close attention. "Whatever your big squeeze here has done has clearly changed you."

"Buh… big squeeze?" The words came out before Silvally even realized what he was saying. Warmth flooded his system. He was sure his fire memories had switched on again, but there were twinges of dragon energy and… ESP?

Silvally blinked. Instead of looking at Haxorus, a Zekrom sat in front of him, one leg crossed over the other. _"You're an absolute riot, you know that? C'mere, you!"_ She reached a muscular arm toward Silvally.

"We, uh… but everyone only agreed to stop doing the soulmate superstition thing the other day," Espy squeaked, snapping Silvally back into the town square. He looked around in confusion, only to gulp upon seeing Umbreon sizing him up.

"Pfbt. Yeah, uh-huh. Look, even if I was part of some kinda creepy, soul soup hodgepodge, I still saw what happened in that fight," Haxorus said, smirking. "The looks you shared. You burying your face in his hide. The big guy saving you from tumbling off Ephemeris… then taking all those hits Necrozma's core would've landed with its Bittercold clones. You two have to face the fact that either one of you used Attract by accident… or you've got a thing going." She raised her right hand and clicked her claws together.

"We're not—" Silvally started, but his choked on his own words when he saw how red Espy's face had gotten. "It's, um, something we intend to discuss at a later date."

"Sure. Whatever floats your Jellicents." Haxorus shrugged. "But once you two do seal the deal or whatever… Rai and I could go for a new pair to double-date with." She threw her arm around a bewildered Raichu. "No offense, Virizion, but it wouldn't kill us to shake things up every now and again."

"Oh, agreed. Most certainly." Virizion shifted her wait onto her right side. "I myself am curious how you fell for such an… _interesting_ specimen." She locked eyes with Espy, an amused grin on her face.

"I, uh… well… that is…" Espy's tail curled around her waist. Silvally was ready to jump in, when Espy calmly assumed a stoic expression and said. "When you think about it, it's not all that different from you and Emolga." She walked back toward Silvally. "That's not meant as a diss or anything… I just find it funny you're the one to say that."

To Silvally's surprise, Virizion laughed. "I'm impressed. You didn't take the bait. I guess you really have changed."

Espy stumbled, bumping into an equally-confused Silvally's foreleg. "Bwuh?"

"That was intentional low-hanging fruit. I was curious if you'd snark at me or not," Virizion explained. "Seems Haxorus is right."

"Of course I am," Haxorus said, shooting to her feet and pointing her right index digit up triumphantly.

Espy and Silvally exchanged bewildered looks. "Right. Well, uh, I think the two of us ought to get back to Horizon before it gets _too_ late over there," Silvally said, glancing up at the sky. "Stupid time zone differences."

"You sure? I'm happy to let you both spend the night here," Swanna said.

"I appreciate the offer, but I don't want to impose," Silvally said, bobbing his head. "C'mon, Espy." He bid farewell to the Paradise crew with a wave of his foreleg then walked away from the town square with Espy at his side. She pulled out her Gear-Com and, after a brief exchange with a grumpy Hoopa, secured them a ring portal back to Horizon.

"Can I ask you something?" Silvally said.

"Besides that?"

Silvally froze mid-step. "Ha, ha." He rolled his eyes. "Anyway, when did you find the time to make that stuff?"

"Truthfully? I haven't gotten much sleep," Espy said, yawning to emphasize her point. "I've been a bit restless… and, I don't know, these little projects made for a good distractor over how weird it is not to have Shane around."

"Ah. He's been on your mind, too, huh?"

"You have to admit, things have been quieter without him," Espy said, sighing. "Even if he said a lot of stupid stuff, some of it was amusing. I kinda miss seeing him stick his paw in his mouth."

"Yeah…" The two shared a chuckle until their voices trailed off. Silvally crossed into Espy's path. "You know… for someone who really wanted me around, you seemed to handle yourself well. I daresay you didn't actually need me there."

"You think so? I, uh…" Espy brushed a forepaw along Silvally's chitin. "Well, when I was, um, 'practicing' how this would go, I looked into the mirror and I told myself, 'What would Silvally do?' I sat there for a bit, then answered, 'He wouldn't back down, no matter how scary the challenge seemed.' And things kinda snowballed from there."

"Well, consider me impressed. I thought you were going to have a _much_ tougher time with them," Silvally said.

"In fairness… I did have a big, burly buddy at my back." Espy smirked at him. "Maybe they were scared if they upset me, you'd get mad at them?"

"I think you're not giving yourself enough credit. This was all you," Silvally said, bumping her foreleg with his. Blood rushed to her face. His fire memories shifted on again.

"Maybe." Espy stepped closer to him.

"Espy…" Warm air gathered around Silvally's cheek bolts. "Maybe we should wait until we're somewhere private before we—"

"Knock, knock! Hoopagram!"

"Ah!" Espy arced her back and hissed at the ring portal that popped up in front of her. "Do you _mind?_ "

"Yes. You're cutting into Hoopa time." Hoopa rested his head against his right hand. "Get in so Hoopa can take you to Aeon Town and go back to chowing down on donuts."

"Fine. But don't tell anyone what you heard," Espy said, stepping toward the ring portal. Silvally glanced away. His eyes flashed gold. The back of his neck tingled.

"Um, actually… is there any chance you could drop me off at the Nocturnus Catacombs?" Silvally said.

Espy paused and looked over her shoulder. "Silv?"

"Um, I guess you could say you've sorta inspired me to try something," Silvally said, offering a shaky grin. "A reconciliation of my own, if you would."

"Then I'm going with you." Espy stepped to his side again.

"A-Are you sure? You don't—"

"Moral support." She wrapped her tail around his foreleg. Now Silvally's fire memories weren't just on, his red parts were _glowing._

"O-Okay. Sorry, Hoopa."

"Eh. That makes it easier for Hoopa." He waved his hand. A shimmer raced across the ring portal, then it expanded. Espy and Silvally walked into it side by side.

* * *

 **~Nocturnus Catacombs~**

Guilt bubbled up in Silvally's gut the moment he saw Espy's tail droop. He knew she was remembering the cave-in they'd experienced previously. Silvally wanted to offer to bring her up to the surface, but this wasn't a Mystery Dungeon anymore. As far as he knew, the only way out was to hike all the way back out.

"Are you sure you're up for this?" he said.

"I'm okay." She stuck close to him. "It's… I want to support you."

"And I appreciate that. But not if it's going to make you upset like this," Silvally said. He shifted to a steel-type, as if he could somehow shield her from the bad memories.

"I'm fine." Espy took a shaky breath. "I can do this." She nodded at him.

They proceeded the rest of the way along the tunnel in silence. The circular tunnel soon expanded outward into a large dome. Silvally's eyes widened. "What the— where's the lab? This is _definitely_ the right tunnel." He looked around in confusion, but all he found was rock outcroppings interspersed between two small ponds.

"Maybe Shane got rid of it when he fixed the world up?" Espy said, staring at the pond on her right. The water rippled. "I think someone's in the water. Or, rather, several someones." Her forehead gem flashed.

Silvally stepped in front of her. A mix of pink and black spread down his body. His cheek bolts rotated. It was time to speak with the horde.

"I know you guys are out there. Stop hiding. I just want to talk… that's all."

The pond rippled faster. An Unown-Y and Unown-? popped up, huddling together nervously.

"Not just you guys. Everyone else, too. I can sense them." The pink expanded in Silvally's head crest. When neither Unown moved, Silvally sigh. "Look, what can I do to convince you guys I don't mean any harm?"

The two Unown drifted back, replaced by an Unown-S, Unown-I, and Unown-T.

"Something tells me this is how they're choosing to 'talk' with you," Espy said, head tilted.

"Okay." Silvally sat on his haunches, then slid onto his belly. He let his talons dip in the pond. Flames ignited inside of him when the water turned out to be far colder than he could've expected. Red spots popped up in his energy blades. The Unown stared at each other, then looked up at the ceiling. Silvally followed their gazes and saw at least a hundred eyes staring back at him. So, it wasn't the full horde, but there was still plenty of them.

"Look. I know I said I wasn't going to come back here and bother you guys… but after the battle with Necrozma, I couldn't help but think about you all," Silvally said. "You, um, did see the battle, right?"

Unown-S rose higher into the air. An Unown-Y and an Unown-E joined it. Silvally resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He'd rather try to eat a nearby rock than talk this way. Silvally glanced at Espy, who looked at him in concern. He took a deep breath.

"Guys, I'm sorry that Necrozma hurt more of you. And I'm doubly sorry about what happened last time I was here. But I did what I needed to do to keep my friends safe," Silvally said, staring at his talons. Even if Unown were individually weak, a hundred eyes on him at once was too much to take. "I came here… because I was hoping that, at the very least, I could try to square things up with you all.

"But, I guess, now that I'm sitting here, I don't actually know what that really means." He stared at his own reflection. "I've had a lot of doubts about whether I really deserve to exist or not. But in the time after I blew up — when Necrozma had me under his control and I had to hurt Espy — I realized just how much I love being with my friends and being part of Team Radiance.

"I don't want to disappear or disassemble or anything like that. I want to be able to live out my life… as Silvally. Even if I have all these conflicting memories from my spirits… and even if my body was made from a lot of you guys," Silvally continued. He finally stomached the courage to look up at the Unown horde. They'd bunched up together yet, strangely, he didn't see any signs of their reality-warping powers. Had Shane undone those, too?

"None of that is anything I, as Silvally, had control over. I made that perfectly clear last time, but the difference is I've accepted my creation for what it is," he said. A golden shimmer rippled through his eyes. Warmth spread through his chest as he glanced at Espy again. "Again, I'm sorry about what happened to your brothers and sisters. Their sacrifices weren't in vain, though. If I hadn't been able to help my friends, who knows if Necrozma would've been stopped."

Silvally got to his feet. Water trickled down his chitin. The Unown stared him down silently. He sighed. "You know, I'd be willing to accept you all as a family of sorts. I'm… not sure what we'd do together, but if that's a way for you to feel like you've gotten back the members of your horde that you lost… I can try to make it work."

He stood there, waiting for a response, but nothing happened. Silvally lowered his head. At least he managed to say his part. After all, he really wasn't sure what, if any, closure he could get with them. This was better than nothing. In the end, he was glad he came here.

"W-Wait!"

An Unown-W floated into Silvally's path. "U-Um. I'd… I'd like it if you visited again."

Silvally's head crest fanned out. Espy's tail stuck up in surprise. They both heard faint whispers from the ceiling, likely the Unown trying to decide if they should intervene. Silvally crouched low to the ground in an attempt at looking decile. "I'd be happy to visit. I could even bring some stuff from Aeon Town for you guys to see, if you'd like."

"Stuff?" Unown-W flipped upside down. "Yeah! Stuff! I wanna see stuff!" It bounced around happily.

This sent a ripple effect up toward the ceiling. Soon, dozens of Unown were twirling, singing "Stuff! Stuff!" amongst themselves.

"This is… not how I was expecting my day to turn out," Espy mused, watching the sight with a smirk. "You always have a way to surprise me, Silv."

"I can't say I planned this," Silvally said as Unown-W rejoined the horde. "Uh, okay, then I'll try dropping by next week. How's that?"

The same Unown-Y, Unown-E, and Unown-S from earlier swooped down, orbiting around one another. "Okay. One question, though. My partner and I walked all the way here from the surface. Do you know if there's a quick way to get back to Glyphic Falls?"

The three Unown hovered to Silvally's left. He followed them and noticed a sparkling light pillar in the corner of the room. He titled his head. "Is this… a waypoint? We shouldn't have those anymore, should we?"

"Maybe Shane left them in?" Espy said. "I'd rather try it than hoof it all the way back through the cave. C'mon." She hopped into the waypoint. Silvally nodded at the Unown, then followed behind her.

* * *

 **~Aeon Town~**

"Okay. In truth… _maybe_ going into the Catacombs in the dead of night was _not_ our smartest decision," Espy said, yawning after a close call where she almost fell in the fountain.

"I did offer to let you go back to the Observatory," Silvally said, dark memories activated. They both helped him see and gave him a jolt of energy to make it back home before turning in for the night.

"And I refused that offer," Espy said, brushing against Silvally's side. A twinge of red popped up on his tail.

"R-Right, well—"

"There you two are! I've been looking everywhere for you!"

Pink splotches popped up in Silvally's head crest. He spun around and jumped back as Lunala swooped down with a bleary-eyed Tessa sitting on her back.

"Is something wrong?" Espy said. She looked to Tessa, who could only offer a half-asleep shrug.

"Yes. I, uh… I think so, anyway," Lunala said, frowning.

"What could be such a big problem that you have to come looking for us in the middle of the night?" Silvally wondered. He doubted he would like the answer, but if there was even the slightest chance this was overblown, he'd want to know.

Lunala hovered close to them. Then, third eye lighting up, she said. "I found an open rift just outside the stratosphere. And it's slowly sucking energy away from the planet."

* * *

Yes, I know. This is the shortest chapter this fic's had in a _long_ time. But this felt like a natural breaking point given what's to follow. Nonetheless, I still hope you enjoyed this and you'll consider leaving your thoughts.

SuperOmegaGuest: Yes, I couldn't quite bring myself to end things there. As you can tell from this part, though, this final arc will be on the quiet side.

Anon Omega: When I said we're done with big battles, I truly meant it. You'll have to wait and see what happens next.

Dovah: As it stands right now, I'm just focused on making sure the last part of this is up right before Sword and Shield come out. Which is what looks like will be happening.

Xero-Xis: Glad to hear you've enjoyed it. I confess my bias with all the Kirby influences. Best of luck with your own piece!

Next time: a fateful reunion. **Four chapters remain.**


	120. Into the Nexus

Beta read by Namohysip.

* * *

 **Chapter 103: Into the Nexus**

Tessa clung to Lunala's back as she flew higher into the sky. She and Espy were wedged on either side of Silvally. Each had a limb looped under his forelegs. Like with the battle against Necrozma, Lunala had a psychic bubble to shield them from the thinning atmosphere.

"So, you think Necrozma's old prison is to blame for this?" Espy said, focusing on her forepaws rather than the gradually-darkening sky.

"I do. It's possible that Shane inadvertently opened this rift between our world and the Ultra Nexus. I tried to get through the rift myself, but it repelled me. Perhaps certain Pokémon can't safely cross it. Hence, I turned to you three," Lunala said, flapping her wings.

"Couldn't you just shut it?" Silvally asked.

"I tried. Didn't work." Lunala's answer betrayed her annoyance at Silvally asking her something that seemed so blatantly obvious.

"Ah…" Silvally shifted uneasily on her back. "And what about the Ultra Nexus is worrying you, exactly?"

"Well, from what I can remember of Necrozma's memories… there was nothing there. It was a vacuum," Lunala said. "And when a vacuum is opened up and exposed to, well, something else… it's going to start drawing things in. In this case, it's energy. But since our world was rebuilt with light energy, if we let the Ultra Nexus continue siphoning away, sooner or later the planet could start breaking apart."

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "Y-Yeah. That's something I think we'd like to prevent." She wished her aura powers had fully recovered. Even if the Ultra Nexus was supposedly empty, there was no guarantee it'd stay that way. With the team's past luck, she had to be ready for a nasty surprise or two.

"Where do we come in, then? If you can't close the rift, what makes you think we'll be able to?" Espy wondered. She glanced to her right and noted the last of the sky's light blue had faded. Stars twinkled off in the distance.

"I'm hoping that, perhaps, there's something on the other side that's causing it. Something you can bring back to me. Then I could destroy it," Lunala said.

"Wouldn't it make more sense to destroy it on the spot?" Tessa asked, an eyebrow raised.

"It's not a risk I'm willing to let you take. If you do that, you could trap yourselves in the Ultra Nexus," Lunala said, tone grim. Espy tensed up and tried to shift closer to Silvally.

"Th-Then what makes you think it's safe for us to go in?" Espy squeaked. Tessa bit her lip. That was a good point.

"I've been studying the rift for the past several hours. It seems quite… stable," Lunala replied.

"Well, I appreciate the sentiment, but it's hard to just take your word for something like that," Silvally said. Tessa wondered if he was worried about what lay on the other side. His new scarf had a Lunar Wing sewn into it, so shouldn't all his spirits be under control?

"I understand. I'm sorry I can't give you three much more to go on," Lunala said.

"Why not bring other people along… like Team Paradox?" Tessa said. "Y'know, strength in numbers and all that jazz."

Lunala slowed her ascent. "They've been busy tending to the fallers they've discovered. I didn't think it appropriate. Besides, we're here now. It'd be a waste of time to turn back."

 _'Easy for you to say. You wouldn't be the one going in,'_ Tessa thought, following Lunala's gaze. Sure enough, there was a oval-shaped ripple in front of them, distorting space and drawing in rainbow-colored streams. When Tessa looked closer, she realized the energy was coming from the blue sky below her. Which meant Lunala was right.

"Okay. I guess we're going in, then," Tessa said. "You said you had supplies, right?"

A stuffed satchel hovered around Lunala and onto Tessa's shoulder. "Wow. This is, um… how much is in here?"

"A couple of dozen berries, a handful of elixirs, and several reviver seeds," Lunala said. "Braviary had left them lying around."

Tessa patted the satchel. "All right. Then let's—"

The rift flashed white. Lunala shielded her face with a wing. "What was that?" Her third eye appeared. Before she could channel her ESP, however, the rift flashed a second time. A white shimmer surrounded Tessa.

"H-Hey! What's the big ide— eyah!" The white aura hoisted Tessa into the air, satchel and all. Her teammates cried out in surprise when they were pulled up along with her.

"Hang on you three! I'll try to stop it," Lunala said, wings glowing as she prepared a Moongeist Beam. Tessa tried to reach her paw out toward Lunala, but the rift grew closer and closer. She saw the Moongeist Beam racing toward her seconds before her world went white.

* * *

 **~Ultra Nexus~**

"Silv? Wake up! C'mon, Silv…"

The shoves against Silvally's side barely registered for him thanks to the thick scales under his fur. But hearing Espy's voice made his head snap up to meet her relieved expression. "Oh, thank goodness." She leaned over to nuzzle the side of his beak. Warmth spread through him alongside a red glow. "You're not hurt, are you?"

"Nope. But I _am_ confused?" Silvally got to his feet. "Where are we?"

To his right, large crystals jutted out of the ground. Their composition instantly brought Necrozma to mind. He tensed, digging his talons into the yellow, ethereal path. Silvally looked up at the blue, cosmic expanse overhead. "Does this kinda look like Ultra Space? Those checkerboard patterns in the distance bring Ultra Wormholes to mind."

Silvally tucked his head in. His white feathers bristled. Espy stepped toward him, her tail by his foreleg and her head by his hip. She stared out at luminescent bubbles and yellow platforms encasing dark blue energy in the distance. "Yeah, it kind of does. It's, um… to be honest, it's quite the view. But I find it… unsettling."

"You're not alone, there," Silvally whispered. His head pounded. "Nnngh… feels like an electric-type is using Nuzzle on my forehead." Silvally stumbled forward. Splotches of yellow pushed the red color of his fire memories away.

"Silv? You're okay, Silv." Espy turned around. "There aren't any ley lines here… I think." She looked up to see a cylindrical crystal passing overhead. A distorted ripple followed behind it.

"T… Tessa. Where's Tessa?" Silvally said. The scenery change had caught him so off guard he'd almost forgotten about her.

"I don't know. The rift might've separated us. She doesn't seem to be anywhere around here, that's for sure. So, I think we have to get going," Espy said, scanning the sky. Two more distorted ripples raced overhead in succession.

"But which way?" Silvally still had his head tucked in. Even though there was air, he struggled to breathe. One second, his face was hot. The next it was freezing. Then a spark ran down his back and his forelegs felt like they'd been dunked in a mud puddle. He shook his head and blinked his eyes rapidly.

"Forward," Espy said. "There are some strange ripples in the air. They're coming from ahead of us. Maybe if we follow them, we'll find the source of the rift?"

Silvally nodded, hoping he could handle the suggestion. He tried to take the lead, but every step made his forelegs tense up. What was wrong with him? Silvally jerked his head to the right, but the blueness of the Ultra Nexus faded and blue, sparkling water took its place. A Goodra sat on the edge of a pond, splashing her legs against the water.

 _It's nice to have a quiet moment, isn't it?_

"Yeah… quiet's nice," Silvally said.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Silvally tripped over a crystal shard and hopped around until he regained his balance. "I, uh… well, it's kind of quiet here, don't you think?"

Espy's ears twitched. "I suppose so. But do you hear thumping in the distance?"

"Do I?" Silvally leaned forward. It was faint, sure, but his sonar-like ears picked up a _lub-dup_ far in the distance. After a few seconds, his vision blurred. Instead of open air, soft, glass-like feathers rubbed up against his face and belly. A slight tap on his chest accompanied every _lub-dup_ he heard.

 _Wow, Zek, I really got you going, huh?_

"Who's Zek?" Silvally said, only to blink rapidly and look around in confusion as he returned to the Ultra Nexus. He found Espy staring at him, eyes filled with concern. "I, uh… I meant to say, I heard the thumping. It kind of sounded like… a heartbeat?"

"Which triggered one of your memories?" Espy asked, looking away. She turned and resumed walking, ears drooping. "Silv, there's something you're not telling me, isn't there?"

Silvally walked behind her, cheek-bolts getting warmer. The view of her hips swaying side to side kept flickering out, replaced by a Goodra walking along a rocky trail. His cheek bolts clicked and he squeezed his eyes shut. He couldn't bring himself to answer.

"Okay, let me rephrase, I _know_ there's something wrong. First it was the golden glow in your eyes back when I, uh, walked in on you in the shower," Espy said, tail crinkling. "But now… you've got different colors swirling together in your tail and those head blades of yours."

Silvally froze. What could he say to that? He was caught red-handed. Or, rather, red-tailed. He nudged his scarf. "I'm sorry, Espy. I honestly thought this was a fluke, but it seems like I don't have as much control over my spirits as I used to. Their memories keep popping up. The type-mixing… that I'm not sure about."

"Is there nothing you can do about it? I mean… the last time you combined types…" Espy's voice trailed off. She sighed and bowed her head. "Silv, I think we ought to talk about, y'know, what happened on Celestial Island."

He looked up. For a moment, a Zekrom stared back at him, hands on her hips. That image faded away and Silvally trotted toward Espy. "You want to do that here? Now?"

"I don't see why not. We've been walking for a little while already and nothing's attacked us," Espy said, looking up. "If this _is_ the Ultra Nexus, then it's supposed to be empty, right?"

"I guess…" Silvally's head crest drooped. He had wanted to wait for the right moment so he could gather his thoughts properly. Right now, they were completely jumbled. "I, uh… well, I suppose we could talk." It did beat walking in silence, after all. "But, um… I haven't really thought about what to say. I was… a bit surprised to hear you tell me you love me. I just, y'know, couldn't properly react in the moment."

"What about you?" Espy said, tapping the ends of her tails together. Silvally noticed her constantly swishing the tail to her right, like she didn't want it to touch him unless he gave a certain reply.

Silvally clicked his tongue, wracking his brain for what to say. "I, um…" The heartbeats were getting louder… or was that actually his core _acting_ like a heart? Or maybe another a memory?

"I can understand if you're worried about what a relationship between us might look like," Espy went on, opting to curl her tail around her leg. "After all, I was a bit, shall we say, _thirsty_ when we first met." She cleared her throat. "But between our talk in Cosmic Cavern and, well, _everything_ that happened in Sunset Shoals… I found myself thinking differently."

"In what way?"

"I wondered if… maybe a relationship doesn't have to revolve around mating," Espy said, picking up her pace to hide the flush in her cheeks. Silvally followed her, even as another silhouette of the Goodra from earlier walked in lock-step with Espy. "After our, uh, impromptu breakfast in Circadian Coast, I sorta… kinda reached a conclusion that I just really like spending time with you."

"Really? You got that from a couple of difficult conversations?" Silvally tilted his head.

"I did, yes. It's hard to explain, but there's a charm in the way you carry yourself. Cheerful. Upbeat. Not afraid of being silly despite your appearance." Espy brushed her side against one of the crystals. "What can I say? I like— no, _love_ that about you. You're _interesting_ , y'know?"

"That's… one way of putting it, I suppose," Silvally said. That last line echoed in his head. The silhouette of Goodra shifted to a Latios floating over Espy. He blinked rapidly until the silhouette vanished. "I— hmm…" His brow furrowed. There were things he wanted to say, but his attempts at piecing his thoughts together kept failing.

"What's on your mind? C'mon, you can tell me. I can take it."

He looked into her soft, blue eyes. "Espy, I…" Silvally shook his head, trying to dispel the Goodra and Zekrom images flickering in his mind. A large chunk of black crystal flew overhead and Silvally quickened his pace. Espy followed him, her face ripe with concern.

"Are the spirits really bothering you that bad? What can I do to help?" she asked.

"No, it's not that. I'm struggling to figure out what I want to say." Silvally took a calming breath. This shouldn't have been so hard for him. He'd spoken with Espy at length without other memories acting up. Silvally told himself to focus. He glanced at Espy. A small smile formed on his beak.

"I really like spending time with you, too. I mean, I like spending time with everyone on the team, but I think what we have is… different than my bonds with Shane and Tessa," he said. Espy's ears stuck up.

"I agree." She paused, then bit her lower lip. "Err, I mean… I think our connection is different, too. Aha ha… ha…"

"Yeah. I've always had the sense that Tessa views me as an older brother of sorts. Shane, too, for that matter." Silvally sidestepped a rather large crystal and glanced at his distorted reflection. "Even once we got Gallian on our side, I still think Tessa saw me as an extension of her family. She and Shane definitely looked up to me… as a source of strength and guidance." He turned to Espy. "But with you… it's different.

"I'm sure it has something to do with when we spoke in Cosmic Cavern… but that breakfast we shared in Circadian Coast solidified things for me," Silvally said. "It's like… hmm, how should I put it?" His cheek bolts slowly rotated. "You ground me. You help to remind me that, even with the powers I have, I'm not perfect… but I don't have to be." He padded along the luminescent ground, gazing at the starry expanse in the distance. "I think when it comes to Shane and Tessa, I've tried to be a bedrock. To not let any faults show through so that I can help them overcome their challenges.

Espy nodded along, but stayed silent. Silvally didn't notice. He kept talking. "When I'm around you, I'm not afraid to let my vulnerabilities show through. I don't have to worry about making you nervous or upset… because you think of me as just another Pokémon."

"That's a good thing… right?" Espy said, tail crinkling.

"Yes. It's a good thing." Silvally stepped closer to her. "I don't want people to only see me as this almighty God Killer that helped bring down Necrozma. I want people to see me as someone they can turn to for help… even if I can't actually help them." He nudged Espy's side. Her forehead gem flickered, leading light to bounce off the crystals ahead of them. "Now that I've had time to sit on it, I agree with what you said to me in Cosmic Cavern. I _can't_ help everyone. But that's okay." Silvally smiled at her. "At the end of the day, I'll be happy knowing I gave it my all."

The path sloped downward toward a wall of distorted energy. There were no more crystals flanking the pathway. "Uh oh. Did we hit a dead end?" Silvally wondered.

"I'm not sure." Espy's forehead gem flickered. "That energy… it's weird, but it also feels similar to a dungeon entrance." She looked down. "Maybe that means we can walk through it and it will take us somewhere else?"

"True. But do we _want_ to go somewhere else?" Silvally said, staring down the energy wall. Red and purple bolts crackled through it. His feathers and fur stood on end.

"We never saw any sign of Tessa here, so I don't think waiting here will help," Espy said.

She had a point, but something about the instability with Silvally's spirits turned what should've been a no-brainer into something that made him hesitate. He puffed out his fur and revved his cheek bolts up. "Yeah, we've got to press onward." Silvally glanced at Espy. "But, uh, let's do it together, okay? Like, at the same time?"

Espy smiled. "Of course." She approached the wall with Silvally in two. They both looked closely at it. There was definitely some sort of ground on the other side of it, but the energy was too distorted to see it clearly. "On three, okay?" Espy said. Silvally nodded. "One, two, three."

They stepped through the energy wall in unison. A strange tingle ran down to Silvally's tail. His ground memories popped up, along with a flicker of the same Goodra from before wading through mud, brushing some off her sapphire spots.

"You hanging in there, Silv?"

Silvally snapped to attention. "Y-Yeah! All good." He took a few steps forward. "It's much darker here."

"Yeah. And is that a second path up on the ceiling?" Espy said, head tilted up. Silvally followed her gaze and found a mirror image of the yellow, glowing path they were on, crystals and all. The only difference was the strange, black and red cords weaving between the crystals on the ceiling. Silvally tensed up.

"Don't those cords remind you of what we saw inside Necrozma?" He gulped. That was not a memory he wanted to revisit.

"Err. N-Now that you mention it, they do," Espy whispered. She reflexively brushed her side against his. Silvally sucked in a breath. Espy's eyes widened. "Ah, s-sorry, Silv. I didn't—"

"It's fine. My spirits are kinda… mucking things up, that's all," he said. "I, um…" Silvally's voice trailed off. He leaned over and descended into a coughing fit. Something was caught in his throat, but that couldn't be right. He hadn't had anything to eat or drink in hours and his stomach wasn't upset. Yet, he kept coughing, like there was something he was trying to expel.

"S-Silv? Is everything… okay?" Espy squeaked.

"N… no…" Of course he wasn't going to lie. Silvally thought he was about to hack up his stomach… whatever it looked like on the inside, anyway.

"What can I do to help?"

"St… and… back…" Silvally staggered forward. His chest burned. His throat… something was clawing at his throat from the inside. He wanted out of this nightmare. Silvally hunched over. Golden light flared up in his cheek bolts. With one last, forceful cough, the cheek bolts tilted open slightly.

 _"Ugh, come on! Will you two stop beading around the bush and smooch already?"_

Silvally's head snapped up. "What the—" He looked at Espy. "Did you hear that?"

"I… I did…" Espy stepped back. "S-Silv… your cheeks. There's… there's _silver mist_ coming out of them!"

"What?!" Silvally's head crest fanned out in alarm. He tilted his head left and right. The silver fog drifted away, then condensed right in front of him. Silvally's jaw dropped. "Wait a second… you're the Zekrom and Latios I keep seeing in my memories! What is going on here?"

The mist gained shades of blue, white, and black. Zekrom crossed her arms, her tail turbine crackling with ethereal light. She and Latios looked around. "Huh. Guess you were right. We're _not_ in the Tree of Life anymore," Zekrom said, scratching her head.

Espy was as white as a sheet. Her eyes darted back and forth between Silvally and the newcomers. "Um, am I missing something?"

"Yes! Obviously," Zekrom huffed, rolling her eyes. Her voice had a slight echo to it. "You two clearly love each other. Stop pussyfooting and say you want to be mates already. It is _so_ aggravating listening to you two tiptoe around the issue from inside, uh…" Her voice trailed off. She stared Silvally down. "Come to think of it, the _hell_ are you supposed to be?"

"I'm Silvally. Why are you— how are you even here?" Curiosity got the better of Silvally and he tried to poke Zekrom with a talon. She swatted his foreleg away.

"Ex _cuse_ you. Keep your claws to yourself. Save 'em for your little squeeze." Zekrom jerked her head in a stunned Espy's direction.

"I… I felt that." Silvally looked down at his foreleg. This spirit… was tangible? How was that possible? What was going on here? He glanced at his reflection and saw the gold color in his eyes and energy blades. The closer he looked, the more he thought of Void Necrozma's glimmering form. He clawed at the ground. "N… Necrozma. It… it had to have been… when he put me back together. I—"

A gold flash consumed Silvally. He coughed loudly once again. Espy tried to step toward him, but his cheek bolts released more silver fog that drifted over to Zekrom and Latios. _"See? It's just like I told you… that flash of light back in the tree meant something!"_ a loud, male voice growled.

Espy's ears twitched. "Hang on… I think I recognize that voice." Her brow furrowed. "It's the leader of those dragons that Metagross blasted. The big, burly guy with the thick scales!"

Silvally's eyes widened but, sure enough, when the fog settled, he _was_ looking at Totem Kommo-o, standing beside the same Goodra with sapphire spots from all the flashbacks. If Silvally had lips, they'd be trembling. Instead, all he could do was stare slack-jawed. "This is… this doesn't make any sense. Why are you here?"

Totem Kommo-o turned to Silvally and raised a brow. "Ah, yes. I think I remember you two. You tried to come to our rescue on the beach." He raised his arms and looked at them, sighing. "Unfortunately, it didn't seem to do any good."

"That's not true. Shane revived the dragons that Metagross killed, but you were the lone exception," Espy said, frowning. "I guess this must be the reason why?"

Silvally's chest tightened. Totem Kommo-o was tied to him? No, this had to be some sort of mistake. What about Hakamo-o and the other dragons? How would he ever be able to face any of them? Silvally's eyes darted around. He wanted this all to stop. "You… mentioned something about a flash of light and a tree?" Silvally rasped.

"Yes. I was in the process of reuniting with my mate in the Tree of Life when it happened." Totem Kommo-o reached an arm out and gently clasped Goodra's cheek. She shoved him back.

"Not the time," she said, shaking her head.

Sighing, Totem Kommo-o crossed his arms. "We were… talking—"

"Arguing."

"… bah, fine. We were _arguing_ about our eldest son when a huge burst of light flared up within the spirit realm alongside a distorted voice," Totem Kommo-o explained, frowning after his mate corrected him. "After that… we found ourselves inside a room made of crystal. We soon encountered these two, then we ended up out here." He gestured to Latios and Zekrom.

Silvally hung his head. "Then Necrozma must've pulled your spirits out of the Tree of Life… and crammed them into me. Except I don't have proper control over you guys. At least, that's what it seems like."

Zekrom's bemused expression faltered. "Necrozma?" She looked at Latios. "Does he mean—"

Latios nodded. "Light."

"Oh." Zekrom's form flickered. "I guess… you're our new spirit realm, then."

"What? No, that can't be right. Just go back to the Tree of Life," Silvally said. Sure, he'd accepted that he was a spiritual amalgamate, but that didn't mean he wanted spirits bursting out of him whenever they felt like it.

"It doesn't work that way," Latios said, ears drooping. "Spirits need to stay close to where they're located or they risk burning away. If we wander too far from you… we could disappear." He snapped his claws.

"Th… then I'll put you back into the Tree of Life when we're done here," Silvally said, reflexively curling and uncurling his talons.

"A generous offer, but one I don't think will work," Zekrom said, arms crossed and head bowed. "Necrozma did this on purpose. I wouldn't expect him to let you reverse it so easily."

"But why did he do it? Why you, specifically?" Silvally said. He'd take any answers he could get.

"Because we used to be his friends," Zekrom whispered. She rubbed the back of her head. "We didn't stand up for him when Arceus acted suspicious. Because of us… he lost his light. You know the rest." Her form started to fade even further. "Tch. Looks like I can't stay out here much longer."

"Yes, it's best we return… less we risk burning ourselves out," Goodra said.

"But before we _do_ go…" Zekrom stomped up to Espy and Silvally. She tried to grab their heads, but her arms phased right through them. Espy's face paled. Zekrom pulled her arms back. "Okay, guess that option's off the table. In any case," she cleared her throat, "you two love each other. There's no denying it. So, quit messing around and prove it. Say you'll try dating. Kiss. I don't care. Just do _something._ One of you needs to make a move."

Espy was bright red and Silvally's fire memories fought to intersperse red blotches with his golden glow. "I, well… that's…" Silvally tapped his claws together. "You really think we're going to do something like that with you watching?"

"Okay, fine. We'll go away. But if you wuss out, I'm gonna pop back up until you grow a backbone," Zekrom said, pointing a claw at Silvally. "We clear?"

"Uh, sure." This whole situation was so strange, Silvally had practically forgotten he was in some kind of Ultra Space replica.

"Good. Don't let me down… whatever you are," Zekrom said. She winked at him before contracted into a golden ball. The other dragons did much the same and flittered back to Silvally's cheek bolts. They disappeared back inside of him.

"Well, that was… something," Espy said, staring at the spot where the spirits had stood.

"Um, Espy, are you…" Silvally looked away. "Hey, if you're reconsidering the stuff you said in light of all of this, I won't blame—"

Espy hopped onto her hind legs and pressed her muzzle to the side of Silvally's beak. She pulled away before his fire-typing made his metal parts uncomfortably warm. "It's like you said before. I'm not expecting you to be perfect. This is… an interesting development, yeah. But it gives you something to work on. And it gives me something to try and help you with." She slowly ran her forepaw down Silvally's neck. He shuddered.

"B… but what about, y'know, my background? If… if we stay together… I'm not sure I could help you make an egg. And you'd… you'll end up passing away at some point, but I probably won't," Silvally said. It was something that had been in the back of his mind, but seeing the spirits pop up like that meant he couldn't ignore the issue.

To his surprise, Espy wound her tail around his foreleg, brushing against his fur and scales. "It's okay. I told you… we don't need kids to define our relationship. As long as I get to spend time with you… I'll be happy. I'm sure of it."

Silvally blinked. Now his water memories were trying to activate. His eyes flickered between red and blue. Tears formed, then quickly evaporated. "E… Espy. That's… that's big of you," he whispered.

"You're worth it," Espy said, nuzzling his beak. "I still love you. And I don't see that changing."

Silvally finally reciprocated the embrace and licked Espy's cheek. "I love you, too," he whispered. "We'll make this work, together."

Slow clapping forced the two to break the tender moment. Espy dropped back to all-fours. "What was that?" She looked around, only for Silvally to jump in front of her. Brown and salmon spread across his eyes and tails.

"Dragonite," he growled, cheek bolts shimmering. "What do you want, huh? You look like you can barely stand!"

Espy poked her head out from behind Silvally. At the other end of the path, Dragonite was slumped against one of the larger crystals. Her scales had blackened. Heck, there were patches of scales missing entirely, replaced instead by crystals poking out of her body like large thorns. Dragonite struggled to stagger toward them and had great difficulty ceasing her clapping gesture.

"I wanted to congratulate the happy couple," Dragonite said, her voice uneven and cracking. She nearly fell to her right, but managed to brace herself against the crystal. "You two deserve a nice, sweet moment… before I take your light." She thrust her right arm out. A lightning javelin materialized. It burnt away the scales on her hand, but she didn't care. With a feral snarl, she lunged for Silvally.

* * *

Tessa trudged down the zigzagging path, stopping occasionally to brace herself against a crystal and doing her best not to look up at the upside-down path overhead. _'Then again… what if_ I'm _actually on the upside-down path?'_ She wasn't even sure why she was mulling that thought over. Perhaps to keep herself from slipping into an angry tirade. After all, she _once again_ got separated from her teammates in some sort of twisted, Ultra Space-related world. It was practically a punchline. A cruel punchline, but a punchline nevertheless.

She wished she at least had a clue where they were, though. Tessa had no sense of how time was flowing here. Luckily, crystal chunks and glowing particles had floated past her, so at least this place wasn't paralyzed. Tessa figured that leant credibility to Lunala's theory that the Ultra Nexus was sucking energy out of the planet. Time was flowing. It had actual landmasses, as weird as they were. And she could breathe here, so it must've sucked up some of the atmosphere, too.

 _'Which means we have to find a way to destroy whatever's causing this. Hopefully that will return all the energy it's siphoned off.'_

If there was one thing Tessa found odd, it was the lack of anything threatening. Were it not for the color scheme bringing up memories of Necrozma and the corrupted version of Celestial Island, she'd daresay that it looked peaceful. And given she was tired enough already, her pace lacked the frantic urgency it had back in the Prism Wastelands. All Tessa really wanted to do was slump down against a crystal and watch the weird, starry expanse.

At least, she felt that way until her ears twitched. Tessa stood up straight and listened closely. Was that… groaning? After a few seconds, Tessa confirmed that, yes, she heard a lady muttering something. But it wasn't any voice she was familiar with. Which meant the team _wasn't_ alone. Tessa raised her paws up, ready to strike in case this was some sort of trap.

The voice got louder the more crystals Tessa wove her way around. Eventually, she found a stretch of open path. There, lying in a puddle of familiar orange ooze, was a Salazzle. Tessa's nostrils burned at the stench. It was exactly like Void Necrozma's insides. Tessa crept forward, trying to get a better look at Salazzle. She seemed normal… until Tessa saw the familiar, star-shaped mark on her belly.

She sucked in a breath, forcing herself to stay calm. However, this proved loud enough to get Salazzle to pick her head up. She stared at Tessa, who couldn't get a solid read on her expression. Her aura swirled with a mix of panic, annoyance, and hopelessness. "U… um, hello there." Tessa waved a paw. "Are you okay?"

Her ears and aura feelers crinkled when Salazzle responded with an unhinged laugh. "Oh-ho, great. Wonderful. Fan- _freaking_ -tastic! As if this fever dream wasn't stupid enough, already. Now there's a big-ass, _blue, talking dog._ " Salazzle's hands fell by her sides with a _splat._ She then smacked her head, repeatedly, shouting, "Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!" Salazzle kicked at the air with her legs.

"H-Hey! Cut it out! You're not dreaming." Tessa hesitated to approach Salazzle. She had no desire to get reacquainted with that godawful slime. "I'm, um, part of the group that's here to rescue you," she said.

"Excuse me? You… rescue me? Yeah, sure… and, while you're at it, I bet you're gonna take me back to your magical dream palace so I can pet your unicorns and drink from your rainbow-sugar fountain," Salazzle sneered, flicking a hand dismissively. "I think I know a dream when I see one, _mutt._ "

Perhaps it was her already-thin patience, but Tessa had her lips drawn back in a snarl before Salazzle even finished speaking. "Look, miss, I'm trying to help you. It's dangerous here. I can't let you stay. You could get yourself killed."

"Wrong. Dying in a dream is how you wake up," Salazzle said. "I don't care if you need my help fighting off some evil nightmare wizard or whatever… you can _shove off._ None of this is real. It's all a stress-induced hallucination because I've got finals starting in a couple of days and I've been studying my _ass_ off." She looked back at her rear and pointed to it. "Why else would I have an ass like this, huh? It's symbolic or something." Salazzle shrugged. "Soon enough, I'll be back in bed, staring at my alarm clock and silently willing it to be Christmas break so I can go home and lounge around binging Netflix shows."

Tessa was seconds from shooting off a Flash Cannon out of pure frustration when her aura feelers shot up. Finals? Christmas? Netflix? What was this crazy Salazzle talking about? Had the Nexus poisoned her? Was she losing her marbles like Necrozma did? Tessa lowered her paw, her eyes slowly widening.

 _'Wait… didn't Necrozma mention trapping a Salazzle that he and Shane knew in the Ultra Nexus?'_ Tessa looked around. If this _was_ the Ultra Nexus, then this was the person in question. Oh, but what was the name Necrozma had used for her? _'C'mon, Tessa. Think!'_

Her eyes widened. "Um, wait. Hold on. Are you… is your name Rebecca, by any chance?"

Salazzle froze. Her shock wore off after a second, however. "Pfbt. Yeah, whatever. Of course you'd know my name, Fido. Lemme guess… I'm your chosen one or whatever?"

"No. And my name's Tessa. Lucario Tessa." Her head throbbed. This scene was eerily familiar. She envisioned a small, damp ice Vulpix laying in the middle of a sandy beach. Tessa's heart ached, then she balled her paws into fists and fixed an icy glare on Rebecca. "Listen… I know this is going to be hard for you to believe, but you're _not_ dreaming. You've been taken from your world, turned into a Pokémon, and placed her by a wicked demon called Necrozma."

Rebecca sat up straight. "Pokémon? Like… like the game for kids and dweebs?" She threw her head back and laughed. "Who are you trying to fool, huh? That stuff's all make-believe and the most exposure I ever got to it was watching my ex-boyfriend play it with his idiot friend—"

"Shane. And he's _not_ an idiot. He is— err, _was_ my best friend." Tessa had her fangs bared. What little aura she had flared up in her paws. If Rebecca opened her mouth and spewed one more insult, Tessa was sure she was gonna punch her right in that dumb star mark on her stomach.

"Please. Of course you'd know about Shane. You're obviously my subconscious trying to guilt me into thinking about the car crash he got in," Rebecca scoffed, flicking her snout indignantly. "You can't pull a fast one on me. I took AP Psych back in high school. I know about this shit." She shook her head. "I couldn't give a lick about what happened to that weirdo. He had no life beyond all this dumb, kiddie stuff. If you _were_ his friend in this stupid dreamland, then he obviously did something to piss you off. Because all he ever did was drag down people who associated with him."

Tessa's eyes flickered with rainbow energy. In a blur of colors, she charged up to Rebecca and _socked_ her right in the gut with a glowing palm. Rebecca arced her head back, launching a mouthful of spittle over Tessa's shoulder. Tiny bits of purple fluid dribbled out from her tail flaps. Tessa stepped back, mindful of Salazzle's ability to poison her despite her typing. Then, she bent over and hoisted Rebecca into the air, her eyes widening.

"Don't you _dare_ talk about him like that! Shane may not have been a very good human, but here… I owe my life to him. _Everyone_ does. He sacrificed himself to bring our world back from the edge of oblivion and stopped Necrozma — or should I say Nicky? — from destroying every other world, too," Tessa snarled, eyes blazing with aura. "You are _not_ dreaming. You're a Pokémon. You're in our world. This is _real._ And I have to get you out of here."

Tessa dropped Rebecca onto her rear and wrung out her paws, trying to get rid of the slime. "Okay, so I wasn't exactly telling the truth when I said I'm here to rescue you. I'm here… to destroy this place. Because it poses a danger to our world. If you stay here, then you're going to get killed. So, we're leaving. Got it?" She waited for a response, but got nothing. Tessa looked at Rebecca, who stared at her hands with a blank expression on her face. "Hey. Come on. You can't sit around and go catatonic on me." Tessa waved her paw in front of Rebecca's face.

"I… I…" Rebecca looked at the paw-shaped imprint on her slimy stomach. "That hurt. Like that _really_ hurt. This… this can't be right. But that would mean…"

"That you're not dreaming, yes. Shane had the _exact_ same reaction… more or less," Tessa said, crossing her arms and tapping her foot.

"N-No. This is impossible. I… have finals! I'm in college! I've got a family Christmas party! What about my presents? What about my friends?! I… I…" Rebecca put her hands on her head, tilted her head upward, and screamed at the top of her lungs. Tessa staggered backward, ears and aura feelers crinkling.

"Quiet down! You and I are the only ones here."

"Quiet down? _Quiet down?!_ My life is _ruined!_ " Rebecca stared down at her legs. "I don't want to be a slutty-looking lizard. I'm a _human._ None of this is right! I want out of Shane's wet dream!" Her breath came in short, sharp gasps. Rebecca tried to get to her feet, but immediately fell over on her side. She kicked and punched at the air, shouting "No!" repeatedly.

Tessa watched the scene with equal mixtures of annoyance and guilt. She didn't want to deal with Rebecca right now, but at the same time she couldn't leave her behind. That wouldn't be right… even if she apparently held Shane (and Necrozma) in such low regard. Sighing, tried to settle her twitching aura feelers.

"I can't imagine how this must feel for you, but we need to go. We can talk things over when you're someplace safe." She paused.

"Hell no! I want answers. Like, how am I supposed to walk with such big-ass feet?" Rebecca lifted a leg. "Seriously, look at the size of these." Tessa tilted her head. Rebecca's eyes widened and she promptly crossed her legs. "H-Hey! If you're trying to sneak a peek at me or something, then stop it! You're a dog!" Rebecca looked around. "Where can I find some damn clothes? I don't care how ugly they are… I don't want to walk around with breasts hanging out like this." She crossed her arms over her chest.

"Breasts?" Tessa rubbed the side of her head. "I'm not really sure what you mean, but I suppose I can answer your questions. After all, it's not like anything's trying to att—"

"Hold still, you pile of Garbodor slime!"

Electricity surged above the girls' heads. Rebecca screamed and curled up into a ball. Tessa looked overhead. Her aura feelers shot up. "S-Silvally? Espy? What are you— how are you— _huh?!_ " Sure, the answer was probably Ultra Space, but even with all the weird stuff she'd seen, her friends running _upside-down_ had to rank near the top of the list.

Silvally skidded to a halt and looked down… or, rather, up. "Tessa? Why are you upside-down? Oh, never mind. We've got a problem. A _Dragonite_ problem." He turned around and spat an Ice Beam behind Tessa. She followed the attack to find Dragonite staggering toward her teammates. Portions of her black scales had melted off, leaving blue, glowing gashes. The Ice Beam struck her, destroying more scales, but the continued limping forward, a deranged look in her eyes.

"You… will give me… your _light!_ "

Dragonite hurled a lightning javelin, but Silvally jumped into it. A brown and salmon aura dissolved the attack away. "Stop it, Dragonite! You can barely stand on your own two legs. We don't want to fight. We want to help you… and take you _home,_ " Silvally said, cheek bolts whirring. "Please stand down!"

"Help me? Aha ha ha… that's rich! You want me to power down… to be the quiet girl in the back of the room again." Dragonite stepped forward. Her left leg buckled and she dropped to one knee. "I won't… have it. I _will_ be strong. Other people… can't make me stronger." Another lightning javelin materialized in her hand. "The only way… I can get stronger… is with light!" She clumsily hurled the spear as she collapsed on her belly. It sailed down toward Rebecca and Tessa. Rebecca screamed again while Tessa hopped back, yanked her up, and jumped away from the attack.

"Ugh… put me down!" Rebecca hollered.

"Not until it's safe here," Tessa growled.

"Safe? Are you shitting me? Frankenstein's monster is fighting a _zombie dragon._ What the hell kind of messed up world do you live in?" Rebecca said, tail flaps twitching. "Pokémon's supposed to be all cute and cuddly, ain't it? All of Shane's dumbass stuffed animals were."

"It's a long story. And keep your tail under control, please. You might not realize it, but you can emit _very_ potent toxins and I don't want to be on the receiving end of them," Tessa said, walking backwards while keeping an eye on Dragonite and her friends.

"I… I can?" Rebecca looked back at her rear. She frowned. "What… is that supposed to be symbolic for Nicky and Shane thinking I'm toxic or something? Those two— _oof!_ " Her head bonked against a crystal. "Hey, watch where you're walking!"

"I'm trying to keep you from getting impaled by a spear," Tessa said, her tone suggesting she'd actually done it on purpose.

Above her head, Silvally lunged for Dragonite and dug his glowing, icy claws into her sides. Dragonite didn't scream. No pain spread across her face. Instead, she thrashed. Every squirm tore more scales off her body, to the point where Silvally couldn't stay on top of her. His forelegs phased right through her and his eyes widened.

"What the heck? Dragonite… you're _decaying_ in front of us. Don't you think you've gone far enough?" Silvally said. He found himself staring down a point-blank Dragon Pulse, but it fizzled out against a flare of golden light from his cheek bolts.

 _"What are you waiting for? Finish her! She doesn't deserve mer—"_

Silvally's right cheek bolt hissed and a softer voice spoke up. _"Don't listen to him. If she's your friend, you need to find a way to get through to her."_

Tessa's jaw dropped. Were those… Silvally's spirits? She swore she recognized one of those voices, too. Tessa wondered if maybe this _was_ all a ridiculous dream. What she wouldn't give for Shane to be here and lighten the mood with one of his quirky remarks.

"Friends? I don't _have_ any friends. Certainly not a pair of vain, overbearing girls who wanted to keep me _weak_ so they could feel better about themselves," Dragonite said, though her voice grew hoarser with each passing word. "I'm… getting stronger. I want… to crush them. Crush _you._ " She tried to stand, but failed. Dragonite settled for crawling toward a stunned Silvally, blue slime trickling down her mouth. "I… will have… your light. Your _life._ If I can't… the heart… Necrozma…"

Silvally crouched low to the ground. "What was that about Necrozma?"

An unhinged laugh echoed through the Nexus. Dragonite's smile cracked through the scales around her cheeks. "He's here," she said, arms trembling.

"What? But Necrozma… he and Shane fused together," Espy said, tail twitching. "If he's here, then wouldn't that mean that—"

"Shane's here, too," Tessa whispered. It couldn't be true. Her ears were playing tricks on her. No, _Dragonite_ was doing this. She was mocking Team Radiance… just like when they'd fought. Tessa pointed her paws up and rifled off an Aura Sphere. To her shock, however, Silvally blew it away with a strong gust of wind. "What was that for? She's obviously baiting us!" Tessa growled.

"No." Silvally's eyes glowed pink. An invisible force hoisted Dragonite to the air. She didn't even so much as struggle. "You're going to tell us what you meant."

"You think… I'm scared… of your threats?" Dragonite spat a mouthful of blue slime onto Silvally's face. "Ha! That's what I think… of your bravado."

She waited for Silvally to retaliate. And, for a brief moment, it looked as if rage would consume him. But the golden glow that flared in his eyes lasted only a few seconds. Silvally turned, flinging some of the slime up against a nearby crystal. "You think I care if you gunk me up? Please. I'm not going to give you that satisfaction." He stepped forward, tightening his psychic grip on Dragonite. Her black scales cracked. More blue ooze trickled out of them. "Start talking… _now._ "

Dragonite reared her head back, only for it to lock up. She glared at Silvally. He glared right back. "I'm not playing around. None of us are safe here. Including you. If you _really_ want to be strong, then you're going to have to make it out of this place alive, aren't you?"

"Nrrgh. I had… a ticket out. But that dumb heart… it messed me up," Dragonite said.

Silvally narrowed his eyes. "Quit being vague. You're not helping anyone."

"Hey, Fido. Get a move on, will you? I don't want to get eviscerated by Frankenmutt," Rebecca said, still slung over Tessa's shoulder like a living log.

"I told you before… it's Tessa. And my _friend_ isn't going to eviscerate anyone. I trust him. He knows what he's doing," Tessa said, though silently she wondered if there _was_ something off with Silvally.

"That's your friend? Jeez, Fido, you sure know how to pick 'em," Rebecca said. Tessa stepped back and Rebecca's head smacked against another crystal. "Ow! Hey! You're doing that on purpose."

"Sorry, my arm must've slipped," Tessa deadpanned. "Now, be quiet, I'm trying to pay attention to this." She looked up at Silvally. "Did Dragonite tell you anything specific?"

"Yeah. There's some giant crystal heart in the center of this place." Silvally walked past Tessa, levitating Dragonite behind her. Espy followed along with a bewildered expression on her face. "Dragonite here says there was a familiar spark of light inside of it. And now she's going to lead us there."

"Grk. There's not much… leading to do… beak-face. Just keep walking… and you'll reach it," Dragonite growled. She lacked the energy to struggle against Silvally's psychic restraints. All she could do was glare at the blades poking out of his head crest.

Tessa wasn't sure she trusted Dragonite's word, but did her best to follow along the bottom path. Her involuntary passenger didn't help her trek. Rebecca constantly shifted or squirmed against Tessa's shoulder. "Can you _please_ hold still?"

"I didn't ask you to carry me," Rebecca huffed.

"Fine then." Tessa unceremoniously dropped Rebecca, who landed on her rear.

"Ow! Y'know, for a rescuer or whatever, you've got a real sultry attitude," Rebecca said, rubbing her hip. "Ohh… what I wouldn't give for at least a baggy pair of jeans right now."

Tessa rolled her eyes. "Look. You wanted to walk. So, get walking." She gestured toward the path. Maybe it was a bit harsh, yeah, but she wasn't in the mood for any lip from this former human.

Rebecca struggled to stand up, falling over multiple times. Tessa noticed her teammates getting far ahead of her and growled. "Okay, no. Forget this. You're getting carried."

"Wait, I think I've almost got— _eek!_ "

Tessa yanked Rebecca into the air and slung her over her shoulder. "Oh, come _on._ At least let me face forward so I don't have to stare at your ugly tail and your weird-ass thighs. Your fur looks like a pair of shorts and— _ow!_ "

Rebecca's head bonked against another crystal. Her head then smacked against Tessa's backside and she went still. _'Finally,'_ Tessa thought. She was getting flashbacks to her heated exchanges with Shane during their disciplinary assignment. A weight sat on her chest… and it wasn't from Rebecca's tail.

"Everything okay, Tessa?" Espy asked.

"Not really."

"Who's the Salazzle?"

"Rebecca. The person Necrozma mentioned he'd trapped in the Ultra Nexus. I think she was, like, Necrozma's girlfriend when he was human… or something," Tessa said. "She's done nothing but mouth off since I found her, so I _might've_ subjected her to a few love taps with these crystals."

Espy frowned at her. "Is that really such a good idea?"

"It was either that… or I was going to use Psychic on her. Seriously, she reminds me of Shane when he was at his absolute worst," Tessa growled.

"And that makes it okay to lose your patience with her?" Espy said. Silvally glanced back at her, an eyebrow raised. "I, uh… sorry, I figured that was something you'd say but you're busy with Dragonite, so…"

"Espy… I'm tired. I'm sore. I'm worried. My heart is all over the place. And Dragonite is taunting me with someone I was sure was dead," Tessa said. "You're right. I'm not at my best. But if you heard the stuff she'd said to me… I think you might've lost your patience, too."

Sighing, Espy shook her head. "Well, we're going to have to deal with her one way or another. I wonder if Ephemeris can turn her human again? Hydreigon certainly can't, now that he's depowered."

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it," Silvally said. He stepped to the side, letting Espy see that the path in front of them suddenly dropped off to a circular platform. "Look down there. That's Xerneas."

"But she looks all rotten like Dragonite!" Espy said, tail crinkling. "You don't think she… didn't get her spirit back, do you?"

"I don't know what to make of it. But it's not good," Silvally said. He levitated Dragonite in front of him. "Did _you_ do this?"

"Ha! I wish. She was like that when I got here," Dragonite sneered. "If I had to guess… your _friend_ did this to her."

From her position on the bottom path, Tessa had a perfect view of the crystal heart suspended a foot over Xerneas' darkened antlers. A crack spread through the middle of the heart, which vented off black smoke. Ripples of distorted energy raced out with each beat. Tessa's aura feelers twitched. She squinted. It was tough to see with the smoke, but there was a familiar silhouette in the heart.

She rubbed her eyes with her free arms, telling herself it was a trick. But Tessa couldn't stop herself from shouting, "Guys! It's him! Shane's in the heart! _Shane's in the heart!_ "

"Wait, _what?!_ "

Ignoring Espy's startled cry, Tessa dropped Rebecca to the ground and made a mad dash forward. She flung an Aura Sphere at the heart. It struck home… but fizzled out harmlessly. Tessa staggered to a stop. "That didn't work?" Tessa tried a Flash Cannon this time. A purple barrier popped up and extinguished the gray beam. Before Tessa could say anything else, two golden energy balls formed in front of the heart and shot toward Tessa. Gasping, she ducked behind a crystal.

"Seriously? My lightning javelin didn't break it. What makes you think your dinky attacks will make a dent?" Dragonite scoffed.

Tessa glared up at Dragonite. She was _so_ sick of all the jabs. She wanted Shane back. Tessa _had_ to break the heart. But when she poked her head out from her hiding space, a silver silhouette of Necrozma's crystal form slammed into her. Tessa fell to the ground, groaning in pain.

"Tessa!"

A heavy _thud_ sounded behind her as she got to her feet. Espy and Silvally had jumped down on the lower path. Espy levitated Rebecca onto Silvally's back while he studied the crystal heart intently. "Do you think it's _aware_ it's being attacked? Maybe what hit you was some sort of counter?"

"Only one way to find out." Tessa shot another Flash Cannon. Like before, it struck a purple barrier. Two silver energy balls materialized into a silhouette of Necrozma and Shane. Both flew right at Tessa.

"Get down!" Espy cried, then rifled a Psybeam off to dispel the silhouettes. Weakened psychic energy struck the purple barrier. Two gold energy balls formed up and shot toward Espy, but a flurry of Air Slash blades deflected them away. This back and forth continued, with one of Team Radiance's attacks hitting the barrier and triggering either golden energy balls or silhouettes.

Tessa at last manage to send a gold energy ball off to her right without striking the barrier. "This is ridiculous! Nothing's working!" She gnashed her teeth in frustration.

"Is it even a good idea to keep attacking it? I'm guessing that thing's sucking up energy from the planet."

"Shane's in there. We have to get him back," Tessa said, fidgeting with her scarf.

"I know that… but it won't mean anything if we blow this whole place to smithereens and take ourselves out," Silvally said, feathers bristling.

"Well, then we have to think of something." Tessa stared at the heart. She put her paws on her chest spike. "Please. I… I want him back. So badly." Tessa gripped the memento crystal, only for a flash of white light to catch her eye. "Huh?" She pulled the crystal out of her bag.

"What is it?" Espy asked.

"Oh, brother, you guys are seriously fawning over some stupid crystal? You've all clearly lost it!" Dragonite spat, though she didn't budge from her position on Silvally's back. Whatever energy had kept her going before must've faltered.

"The crystal's flashing." Tessa's brow furrowed as she scrutinized it. An idea came to mind and she held it in the direction of the heart. The flashing intensified. "I think it's reacting to Shane's prison!"

As if to respond, a golden energy ball formed in front of the heart and flew toward Tessa. "Move aside!" Silvally barked. He spread his forelegs further apart and conjured a blue, glimmering barrier The energy ball struck it and pushed Silvally back, but didn't hurt him.

Tessa used the opening to run toward the heart. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?" Espy cried. Tessa paid her no mind. She leaped into the air, even as the heart formed another Necrozma silhouette to defend itself with. The purple barrier appeared, but Tessa thrust her left arm forward. Shane's memento made contact with the barrier. Cracks appeared inside of the purple energy. Yelping, Tessa fell to the ground while the barrier shattered above her.

"Get back, Tessa! It's trying to attack you!" Silvally shouted, launching electricity at the heart. Tessa looked up and saw the Necrozma silhouette falling toward her. She tucked in her legs and rolled backward. A relieved sigh escaped her lips when the silhouette sank into the ground in front of her. However, that relief faded the moment Silvally's Thunderbolt _plinked_ off the heart.

"No! I thought for _sure_ that would do something," Tessa growled, backpedaling toward her teammates. They were so close. Shane was _right_ in their grasp. She couldn't let him slip away. There had to be a way to break the heart. She just had to think.

 _'C'mon, c'mon… what would Shane do in this situation?'_

Tessa looked at her arm… and the naturia looplet on it. She brushed her paw over it, then pivoted between looking at the heart and looking at her looplet. Tessa remembered that Shane _had_ merged with Necrozma before disappearing. Necrozma ran on light energy… which was basically synonymous with Z-Power.

Her eyes widened. "Z-Moves! That's gotta be it!" she shouted, pointing to her looplet. "We use our Z-Power in unison. If it's really Shane… he should be able to absorb the light from our Z-Moves, right?"

Espy glanced at her own naturia looplet. "Well, it's worth a shot… assuming we can even use them here."

"We have to try," Tessa said, turning to face the heart. She crossed her arms in front of her face, focusing on a mental image of the talk she and Shane had together in Circadian Coast.

"Ha! You've gotta be kidding me. You really think that's going to do anything? Puh-le— _aah!_ "

Silvally flung Dragonite right on top of the crystal heart. She slumped against it. Dragonite couldn't lift her head and see the orange light swirling around Espy and Tessa. Light that shifted to pink and orange glows. A flurry of bright-orange fists surged toward Dragonite and the heart, followed by jagged, glass-like ripples of psychic energy. They ensnared Tessa's glowing fists, creating a massive orange bubble.

Tessa stepped back, her aura feelers twitching. "Wait. Is that supposed to happen? Should we be ner—"

Espy's Z-Move burst. A pink and orange explosion swallowed the heart up along with a screaming Dragonite. Tessa threw her arm up over her face, but a heavy weight settled on her aura feelers. A sudden spark had ignited in the center of the explosion. "G… guys? Are you sensing what I'm sensing?"

Silvally's head crest fanned out. A golden shimmer rippled through his eyes. "Yeah. Th… this power. It's… it's…"

The entire room shook. Tessa fell to her side with a yelp and Espy wound up sprawled on her belly. Silvally barely managed to stay up, tapping into his steel memories to root himself in place while making sure Rebecca didn't slip off. He stared at the golden orb forming where the crystal heart had once been. It slowly plucked Xerneas off the ground and sucked her in.

"Guys… we've got a problem! The Ultra Nexus is breaking apart!" Espy shouted, pointing a forepaw up. Her teammates followed her gaze and found huge, hexagonal tiles plummeting toward them from above. Tessa screamed and threw her paws up over her face. Then, a surge of golden light washed across her.

 _"Hang on, everyone. I've got it from here."_

"That voice… Shane, is that really you?!" Silvally cried. Golden light filled up his vision, then an invisible force yanked him into the air. The Ultra Nexus slowly faded away as everything went completely white.

* * *

Lunala hovered by the rift. "Guys? Guys?! Can you hear me? S… something's going on with the rift and—"

Her third eye flared to life as golden light leaked out of the rift. She backed away, but it wasn't fast enough to avoid getting blown out of the way by a surge of gold energy. A familiar, four-winged light dragon flew out from the rift, which sealed shut behind him. Several golden spheres floated around him.

"N… Necrozma? No, wait…" Lunala squinted. "Aren't you—"

The light dragon flew off toward the planet before Lunala could finish her question. Its speed astounded her. "H… hang on! Don't just leave me here!" She looked back at where the rift used to be. Her third eye flickered. There was no indication anything was sucking energy from the planet anymore. In fact, it seemed that the stolen energy had reversed course and was flowing _back_ to the planet.

Lunala turned back around and saw a golden trail heading toward the Horizon Continent. With a flap of her wings, she took off in pursuit.

* * *

 **~Solstice Summit~**

Totem Ninetales walked into the kitchen area in her temple. "How are breakfast preparations coming along, you two?"

Sneasel turned around from a steaming pot sitting atop a metal stove and wiped his brow. "It should be ready in a couple of minutes, I think?" He turned to Hakamo-o, who was perched on a wooden stool, chopping up a perfect apple with his claws. "How are the apple slices coming along?"

Hakamo-o held up a hand, revealing an apple wedge in each claw. "They're slice-o-rific!" He wiggled his fingers.

"Uh, yeah. Sure. Great." Sneasel rolled his eyes. "Toss 'em in the pot, then."

Nodding, Hakamo-o walked across the kitchen, only for the door to fly open and Esserly to glide in, breathing heavily and fluttering her wing-like ears. "T-Totem… you must come outside. It's… it's…" She dropped to the ground, struggling to catch her breath.

"What is it, Sister Esserly?" Totem Ninetales said.

"It's Team Radiance! They crashed into the village… with Dragonite, Xerneas, and _Necrozma._ "

Hakamo-o and Sneasel jumped back in fright, the latter nearly knocking over the cooking pot in the process. "Did she just say—" Hakamo-o started, only for Sneasel to nod at him. Before they knew it, Totem Ninetales and Esserly were heading out the door. "H-Hey! What should we do?" Hakamo-o ran off after them. Sneasel glanced at the pot, then shrugged and followed.

By the time they made it outside, a small crowd had gathered. Team Radiance had all gotten to their feet, weary looks in their eyes. Tessa walked up to the golden dragon lying splayed out on the snowy ground. She knelt down and lifted his head with both her paws. Multicolored eyes stared back at her.

"S… Sh… Shane?" Tessa struggled to form the words. "Is it… is it… really you?"

The dragon nodded. A tired grin formed on his beak. "See? I told you… I'd see you on the other side."

Tears welled up in Tessa's eyes. She was about to embrace Shane, when his body flashed white. Shane grimaced, then slipped from Tessa's grip as he shrank down before everyone's eyes. "Shane? Shane, what's going on?!"

He shriveled up. Shane's four wings vanished in streams of golden light, then his single, large tail fanned out into nine fluffy, blue-white tails. The ones Tessa had grown so used to. When the light faded, her Ninetales teammate lay in the snow. Tessa ran up to him, followed by Espy and Silvally. "Shane? Are you okay?" Tessa said. "You're, um… well, I don't know how to explain this."

"I… I…" Shane coughed weakly. Then his eyes rolled back and his head slumped over. Slowly, black crystals ran up his legs. Tessa's eyes widened. Right in the middle of Shane's chest was a triangular gem… flickering weakly. Tessa only had a few seconds to look at it, however, before black crystals completely covered Shane up from head to tail.

"Shane? _Shane?!_ No, no, _no!_ " Tessa shoved him repeatedly. Then, looking around frantically, she hoisted Shane into the air. Her gaze fell on Totem Ninetales. "Please… please, you have to help him! Find Ho-Oh! Find Ephemeris! I can't—" Tears welled up in her eyes. "I won't lose him again."

Totem Ninetales blinked in surprise. "Err… yes, o-of course. Let's get him to the temple… pronto!"

"But what about these two, Totem?" Esserly pointed to Dragonite and Xerneas.

"Grab a couple of villagers and sort them out while I tend to Shane," Totem Ninetales said, beckoning Tessa to follow with her tails. Together, they sprinted into the temple.

* * *

I apologize to anyone who was expecting some sort of big, epic showdown to take place in the Ultra Nexus. I felt that it would just be really pointless and redundant coming off of the crazy string of battles in Episodes 15 and 16. And since the battle with Void Necrozma had focused a lot on alien and eldritch horror, I decided to focus more on the character interactions than trippy Ultra Space stuff, since we've already had plenty of that in the fic to date. Specifically, Tessa's interactions with Rebecca are meant to mirror her first interactions with Shane all the way back in the opening chapter. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter!

SuperOmegaGuest: Silvally never saw Unown language for himself. It was only his teammates who came across it while he was staring at the operating table in Golem's lab. And appearance quirks are still a thing.

Xero-Xis: I appreciate the compliment. Currently, I'm not thinking about future plans. Just trying to get this all wrapped up before Sword and Shield come out. Which it looks like we're on track for.

Next time: our heroes get some difficult pills to swallow. **Three chapters remain.**


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